#also balloon is really really good. dancing like i never knew how to dance before

[codecicle-archive]

its rah tah tah anon i sent that before i listened to sticky i retract that previous statement

NOWWWW YOU GET IT. NOW YOU UNDERSTAND! i need you to open this genius lyrics page, read through it while listening to "Like Him" once you get there, then come back and update me. this is vital

[kisses-for-you]

party - j. todd

jason todd x fem!reader

summary: when you start talking to another guy at the party, Jason quickly begins to feel jealous.

w/c: 1.9k

The party raged around you. People were dancing, lights flashing, and music blasting. But your focus was entirely elsewhere — a stranger that you genuinely seemed to enjoy the company of, much to Jason’s dismay. The logical part of Jason knew he was just being stupid, that you were just being friendly, but he couldn’t help feeling jealous. Your entire attention was on this other man, and Jason didn’t like that. Of course, he trusted you. That stranger, on the other hand? Absolutely not. Who knew what he could’ve been thinking of at that exact moment? Taking you to the bedroom upstairs, maybe even going home with you…

Nope. Jason definitely did not want to think of any more scenarios because he knew he might just end up storming out — or beating the dude up, which he was sure you would be insanely mad at him for doing. He crossed his arms over his chest, clenching his jaw as he glared at the man, whose name he learned was Micah (which he truly thought was a stupid name), that you were so engrossed in conversation with. Unable to hide the frown forming on his face, Jason tried to focus on the music, but his gaze kept drifting back to the scene that unfolded right before him.

Just hours prior, you had suggested that you guys go out to this party. You thought it might be a good idea, considering all the stress you guys have been under lately. You wouldn't tell Jason this but you also kind of wanted to see him dance as you'd never seen him do so before. However, it seemed to be having the opposite intended effect on Jason, who took an irritated breath, turning away from whatever was going on with you and Micah. ‘You can’t let this keep bothering you,’ he thought to himself, sighing. He needed to focus only on you and quit ruining this night.

He decided to uncross his arms, the tension still very visible in his shoulders, and grip your hand to pull you closer to him. You noticed the force of your boyfriend’s grip but chose not to question it. This only irritated Jason further — you weren’t paying an ounce of attention to him and he was quite literally standing right beside you!

After what felt like an eternity, you finally glanced over at Jason, noticing how he narrowed his eyes at Micah. Sensing Jason’s discomfort, you leaned in and whispered, “Jay, are you okay?”

His jaw only tightened further but nevertheless, he forced a smile onto his face so you wouldn’t worry about him. Although, he kind of wished you would. “Yup,” he said, his voice a little too sharp, “just going to go get some fresh air for a few.” His smile didn't quite reach his eyes; his grip on your hand lingered for just a second too long before he let go, albeit fairly hesitantly.

Your head cocked to the side, confused and suddenly missing the warmth his larger hand had provided you with. “Do you want me to come with you?” you asked, your voice soft with concern.

“Nah, don’t worry about it, doll. Just stay here with Micah — seems like you’re having a great time,” he responds in a tight, clipped tone. There’s an unmistakable bite of jealousy underneath his words. With that, he turned on his heel and pushed his way through the crowd, not waiting for your response. You watched him go, a knot forming in your stomach. You couldn’t help but feel a little frustrated. Was this really about Micah, or was something else bothering him? You had been hoping for a fun night out together but now it seemed like Jason’s mood had completely soured.

You glanced back at Micah, who gave you a friendly smile, though you could tell he noticed the tension too. “Everything alright?” he asked, his voice gentle.

“I-” You hesitated, trying to figure out how to answer without making the situation worse. You didn’t want to drag Micah into whatever was going on with Jason. “Yeah, everything’s fine," you said, offering him a smile that didn’t quite reach your eyes. You weren’t sure if you were convincing yourself or him at this point.

As Jason stepped outside, the cool night air provided him with a brief pause from the tension inside. He took a moment to collect his thoughts, reminding himself that you were his, not that random guy's. Meanwhile, inside, you talked with Micah, trying your best not to think about Jason. You just hoped he’d get over it.

A couple of minutes passed, and Jason took a deep breath, trying to shake off the urge to storm back inside. But the longer he stayed outside, the harder it became to ignore the gnawing feeling in his chest. Finally, he couldn't stand it any longer. He pushed the door open, re-entering the lively party, and immediately, his eyes found you. You were laughing with Micah—too easily, too comfortably. His jaw tightened, fingers itching to pull you away from him.

With every step toward you, the tightness in his chest grew. The earlier calm he'd managed to force himself into was slipping away. He swallowed hard, his mind fighting to keep his pride intact. But when he reached your side, it was pure instinct that took over. He brushed past Micah with more force than he intended, the possessiveness in his touch clear as he placed his hand at your waist.

Jason didn’t even need to look at Micah to know the guy noticed. His grip tightened, pulling you a fraction closer as if declaring you his. He could feel the jealousy creeping back, clawing at his insides. It was suffocating. But he forced himself to mask it, just for your sake. The conversation continued, but all Jason could focus on was the way Micah’s gaze lingered on you — and the way Jason's fingers almost drummed against your side in a silent warning.

A couple of hours and a few drinks later, you were ready to leave. Normally, Jason would’ve given you a ride back on his motorbike but considering he knew he’d be drinking, he decided not to bring the bike. He wasn’t going to risk it.

The walk back was mostly silent, broken by the occasional small talk. You couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off because Jason was never this quiet. You glanced up at Jason, trying to gauge his mood, but his eyes were fixed straight ahead, his jaw still set in that familiar, tense line. It was like he was trying to keep everything in, but it was obvious to you something was bothering him. You knew that trying to get him to talk, so you decided to just stay quiet for now, lacing your fingers with his.

Eventually, you made it back to the tower but the weight of unspoken feelings hung heavily between the both of you. You turned to give Jason a kiss, a routine you have for each time you say goodnight to each other, but as you turned, you noticed he was already going to his room. He hadn’t even bothered to stay with you for five extra seconds. And this was your breaking point — you were going to make him talk whether he liked it or not.

You walked over to his room, knocking on the door but receiving no answer. Classic Jason. You slowly opened the door and entered the room to find him sitting on the edge of the bed, his elbows on his knees, hands clasped tightly together as he stared at the floor.

"Jason," you called softly, stepping inside, your voice just above a whisper. "We need to talk."

He didn’t look up immediately, and you could see the way he shifted slightly, his shoulders barely moving in acknowledgement of your presence, but that was it.

"You know you can talk to me, right?" you pressed gently, your voice filled with concern. "...What’s going on with you?"

Jason let out a bitter laugh, his shoulders sagging as he finally looked up, his eyes darkened by frustration. “What’s going on with me?” he echoed, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Why don’t you ask Micah?”

Your brows knitted together in confusion. “Micah?” you repeated. “What does he have to do with anything?”

Jason stood up, his movements abrupt, his fists clenching at his sides. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because you were all over him the entire night!” His voice was louder than he intended, his anger seeping through every word.

Your mouth dropped open, stunned by his accusation. “I was not all over him! We were just talking! I don’t even know him, Jay!”

“That’s the problem,” Jason shot back, his jaw tight. “You were getting to know him way too well. You were laughing at everything he said like he was the funniest guy on earth. You didn’t even look at me once.”

Realisation dawned on you, and your expression softened. “Wait- Are you seriously jealous right now?”

His eyes widened, the muscles in his jaw flexing as he tried to deflect. “I’m not jealous,” he denied quickly, but his voice wavered. “I just don’t trust that guy. I saw the way he was looking at you.”

You took a step closer, your voice gentle but firm. “Jason, I wasn’t flirting with him. He was just being friendly. Besides… I don’t care about Micah. I care about you.”

Jason’s shoulders tensed before they sagged, the fight draining out of him. “I know that,” he muttered, his eyes falling to the floor. “But I just hated seeing you with him. Made me feel… replaceable.”

Your heart clenched at his words. You reached out, your hand resting on his arm. “You’re not replaceable, Jason. Not even close.” You waited for his eyes to meet yours before continuing, “I chose to be with you because I want you. No one else.”

His eyes softened, vulnerability peeking through his tough exterior. “Yeah… Well, sometimes I feel like you could do better.” His voice was low, almost a whisper.

Your chest tightened at his words. You knew Jason struggled with insecurities, no matter how much bravado he put on. You stepped closer, your hands gently cupping his face, forcing him to look at you. “Hey, don’t do that. Don’t decide how I feel. You are who I want, Jason Todd. Mess and all.”

His eyes searched yours, the raw emotion evident as his walls slowly crumbled. He exhaled, his forehead resting against yours. “I’m sorry for being an ass tonight. I just couldn’t stand the thought of losing you to some other guy.”

You smiled softly, your fingers brushing his hair. “You won’t lose me, Jay. I’m yours if you’ll have me.”

His arms wrapped around you, pulling you into his chest, holding you like you were his anchor. “I’d be stupid not to.”

You stayed there for a while, wrapped in his embrace, feeling his heartbeat slowly return to normal. When he finally pulled back, his lips curved into a small, sheepish smile. “So… I was kind of a jealous idiot, huh?”

You laughed, the tension easing between you. “Kind of? You were downright possessive.”

He groaned, his face flushing. “Don’t remind me.”

You grinned, leaning up to press a kiss to his cheek. “It’s okay. I think it’s cute.”

Jason’s eyes brightened, a playful glint returning. “Oh yeah?” His arms tightened around you, his voice dropping to a low murmur. “Well, don’t get too used to it. I don’t like sharing.”

You laughed, your fingers lacing with his. His lips found yours, warm and firm — you were his, he was yours. And that was all that mattered.

DC masterlist

[darkhymns-fic]

A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening

Husk used to like dancing, once upon a time.

Amazing how certain people can ruin such things for you.

Fandom: Hazbin Hotel Characters: Alastor/Husk, Charlie Morningstar, Angel Dust Rating: M Word Count: 4421 Mirror: AO3 Notes: I caved in and wrote fic for the funny swearing cartoon. Please note that this story contains depictions of abuse and power dynamics, as well as implications of violence. More tags are listed on the AO3 mirror. Grumpy cat man does not have a good time here (or even a choice).

--

Husk raised an eyebrow as he processed the information that was passed to him. (No, he couldn’t have heard that right.)

He was still cleaning up a shot glass with a less-than-clean rag, but his movements slowed, keeping his eyes level with the princess of Hell who stood in front of his bar. The eerie glow of the wooden walls fell over her hair, coating it in a green sheen that reminded him of poison dripping down the strands. A bitter but familiar taste settled on his tongue.

“…A dance party?” he finally asked her.

“Yes! For everyone in the hotel! There’s gonna be balloons and camaraderie and so much music!” Charlie was bouncing up and down on her toes. If she got any more excited, she’d probably jump straight up through the roof. Not like it would’ve been the first construction hazard the hotel had, or even the last. “It was Alastor’s idea! He said it would be a really good morale booster!”

Not a whisker twitched on Husk’s face, but he could feel the cracks in the glass forming underneath his hand. Another one for the dustbin. “Of course it was.”

Too low for Charlie to hear him, not that he wanted her to. She was riding on cloud nine, which was an achievement for a Hell-born denizen. “I just gotta get all the decorations set up! Oh! And Alastor told me to invite you specifically! It’s going to be so much fun!”

Thankfully, Charlie turned away then—to check up on all those decorations, the bright balloons, and streamers, and what looked like a disco ball (?) up top that was just gonna break the beams of this shack of a building. Because by then, the glass Husk was holding had shattered to pieces.

With a growl, he picked away at the shards embedded in his fur, one by one. Just a few of them were stained in blood, their color gaining a sickly green hue from the glow of the bar.

What a painful way to start the night.

--

Before anyone had even hit the dance floor, Husk was already shit-faced. But he wasn’t blackout drunk, and right now, that was his ultimate goal. Cheap booze was hardly good for anything else.

He could barely care whatever music was playing—but by the way Charlie was twirling and shaking her arms like an excitable chicken, it must have been some of that new pop stuff Husk never took much of a liking to. Much of the scene was a blur to him, still staying put behind his bar, hoping to be forgotten for his boss’ new…interest.

(Awful to think, but some men craving for freedom, for anything, become desperate. He knew this too well.)

Alastor was doing all he could to encourage the princess with a bleeding heart; holding up his mic to comment on her dancing techniques, to cue applause at just the right moment, always telling her the same thing. “Wonderful! Just a wonderful performance!”

Even so, one could barely call this much of a party. Hazbin Hotel’s guests were so few—still only two total—but that Sir Pentious was also doing some of the dorkiest moves Husk had ever seen, and still falling face-first on the floor despite having no legs to trip over to begin with. Somehow, Angel Dust’s moves weren’t as X-rated as Husk would have expected on any other day. Instead, the guy was lending a pair of hands to Niffty, letting her lead yet still somehow controlling her rabid movements to pull him across the floor, also avoiding any sudden bites she would randomly decide to do.

There were times, also, when he would see Alastor reach out a hand to Charlie. He’d lean on his cane, mouth close to the mic head, humming a little ditty reminiscent of the jazz lounges back when their bodies weren’t made of fur and weird demon magic. It wouldn’t be the first time Alastor danced with the princess, but then an arm would reach out, safely guiding Charlie away from him.

Surprising that the same arm lacked a spear in it, one with a suspicious glint to it that Husk recognized but bit his tongue from ever mentioning. Vaggie’s one eye burned brighter than most firepits, and Charlie, innocent soul that she was, thought her girlfriend was just impatient for another close dance.

“Aw, Vaggie! Did you wanna try the Lindy Hop together?”

Another glare, her and the red demon’s staring contest looking ludicrous underneath the shifting lights of the spinning ball overhead. “Yeah, sure thing, hun.” And then she broke from that gaze, her expression changing to softness as she looked at Charlie in the blink of an eye and just that. It must have been love, not that Husk knew anything about it anymore. “I’ll follow your lead, if that’s okay.”

Alastor kept his smile as they both moved away, slowly pulling back his hand as his fingers curled. But a close listener could hear the static, garbling slowly in a crescendo. No, his boss didn’t like being denied his playthings.

And if he wasn’t being entertained this very second, then he’d—

“Hey, ya gonna join us? This dance party’s not half bad.” Angel Dust leaned on the bar, grinning as he took his usual seat. He hid it well, but Husk noted how his chest shifted with his heavy breathing, using his second right arm to discreetly wipe away the sweat from the fluff. It took all one had to keep up with Niffty, even from a guy who claimed to have amazing stamina.

Crossing one leg over the other, Angel kept up his smile, but it lacked the biting veneer from other times. An honesty that could be seen, even with Husk’s somewhat blurry sight. “I mean,” Angel continued. “If ya feel like sucking off that bottle instead of something with a little more taste.”

Husk didn’t take offense to such jokes anymore (just for show, which he also knew all too well) but he still didn’t move. This was the closest to safety he got. Besides, the bottle wasn’t even empty yet. “Nah, got two left feet. Wouldn’t work out.”

At that, Angel Dust laughed. “Didn’t stop our slithery friend over there! Or even Niffty! Though, uh…”

A quick look from them both showed the tiny Niffty now crawling along the walls, heading for the disco ball and then clamping it tightly with her entire body.  

“Yeah,” Angel nodded. “Think she’s got the hang of it now.”

Husk shrugged. He slid a glass to Angel that was half-full, a motion he could still do even with slightly trembling hands. “Don’t let me tie you down, kid. I’ve seen your moves.” He allowed himself a smile, one he could say he even felt.

Angel took the drink, one that could barely buzz a chihuahua, and gave Husk a smile back just as he stood up. All limbs, and a smile that hid back its usual gleam for fatigued eyes. “Alright, but if you change your mind, I bet I could teach you how to move it.”

Husk could barely count the minutes since Angel left and the party continued. The soundtrack for the dance eventually changed from the generic pop to a swing number—one that Husk could probably mouth the words to if he still had any hope inside him. And sometimes, he did feel it. Staying in this hotel was misery at first until the faces became more familiar, more concerned, and less like the eyes of something that hunted and searched for that moment of weakness.

The music was as grainy as his vision, so heavily textured and straining on the ears that he kept trying to pick it up, even as it changed. The vocals. The soft melancholic chorus in the background. It lacked the instruments of the previous songs. Weird choice for a dance. So much did he focus on it, all while holding a whiskey bottle with both hands because now he wanted some of the good stuff. He stared into the warped glass as he listened for so long that he forgot how there was no safe place for him. Just for a moment, but that was all it took.

A shadow fell over the bar. Over him. He knew who it was. Husk tipped the bottle to his lips and took long, long drink.

“Husker! My dear friend, didn’t you get my invite?”

It was a while before he answered. He slammed the bottle onto the mahogany surface, twisted his lips. Already empty, he needed another. “Yeah, I did. What about it?” Whiskey made him braver, but also careless. “Gotta keep serving the guests, don’t I?”

He heard the familiar chuckle, frizzled and slightly skipping, as if the vinyl had been scratched. “While it is good to see you still keeping to your deal, you have to understand it’s rude to RSVP and then not show.”

He wrenched the cork from his new bottle; wine this time, because this felt like as good of a time to switching things up as any. He watched the mist curl from the opening with all the fascination of a man pointedly avoiding the signals around him. “I am here to anyone that’s got eyes. Besides, I never promised Charlie I would actually dance.”

“Oh? You saying our little princess is a fibber?”

“I’m saying you only hear what you want. All the damn fucking time!” A hard grip, and then, he made the mistake of raising his head to see. (Never look into his eyes, you fool.) “Why don’t you take your dumbass musical project and just shove it along with that stupid mic of yours?! At least then I can just—”  

Something tugged him forward. Cold yet hot at the same time, just around his neck and clenched tight. He gripped the bar, claws digging in to keep himself from slamming his forehead into the wood.

Suddenly, his vision was crystal-clear.

The eyes burned into his. Red as the fiery sun over the sea, as the freshly split blood over a forest floor. A grin that was impossibly wide for a living thing, but neither of them were alive anymore, so all he could do was wait for when those same fangs would bite down on something else other than pride. Strange, twisting shapes curled from behind, appearing from behind the Radio Demon, like some demented crown of thorns.

“Silly Husker. That wasn’t a request and you know it.”

Oh, he knew it.

In the chaotic lighting of the room, from that fucking stupid disco ball, to the blinding streamers and balloons, and even a few rave sticks Husk caught Sir Pentious waving around, no one would notice the subtle green of the chains. How they burned into Husk’s neck, rubbing it raw until the fur would fall off, leaving him bruised beneath.

He shook again, keeping himself upright as much as he could. All to not be humiliated again, and this time in front a crowd. They would hate seeing him that way. They would demand Alastor to stop.

But the crushing indignity was too much to endure that.

“Fine,” he hissed out. “Do whatever you want.”

“Why, gladly!”

The chain vanished. Husk was left gasping, his fingers pressed against his throat to feel for any mark. (Just his property and nothing else). But he saw the hand now held out to him, palm facing upward. Those seemingly delicate fingers moved back and forth, and there was the familiar static, the usual dead air, but also…if one could turn the dial just so, the faint cacophony of screams that echoed in the distance, only to be drowned out by grainy noise.

“Shall we dance, dear Husker?”

Any choice he had once, he’d already made a while back.

Husk said nothing as he slid his hand into the other’s, claws carefully dulled to not scratch. He was practically pulled over the bar, his wings flapping in surprise. Red and black feathers circled around them both, and then he was tugged in close, looking up at the man with the smile that had now considerably shrunk—to look charming, almost. But always sharp and ready to bite.

“Now look lively, my dear. It’s as if your feet are encased in cement!”

The voice slid through his chest, like poison once more, carefully given to him in small doses over the years. A hand placed itself at the small of his back, his feet nearly lifted off the floor. An arm kept his wings closed in, so that they couldn’t stretch, like a straight-jacket forcibly put on him. Those wings were one of the few things he even liked about his form here in Hell, even if he sometimes found them to be an eyesore. But nothing else now could catch him from falling.

Nowhere to stabilize himself except in Alastor’s arms.

Anything to make him feel helpless. Vulnerable. Nothing more than a pet.

That’s all he was to him.

Alastor leaned in slightly, moving Husk’s free hand to clasp onto the taller demon’s shoulder. Husk sighed, but he followed through. Resigned. Better to be led through and survive the night without much damage. (Why even fight it?)

Just barely on his toes, and feeling the sharp nails dig just against his fur, they started their dance across the floor.

This wasn’t the first time they did this.

It was easy to fall into the motions. The thing that Husk had to begrudgingly admit was that Alastor was a pretty good dancer. He moved his feet with a grace that could be easily followed, and Husk did so. The trail of a footstep following the other, their hands joined together, leading him to the right or left with barely a pull. And with the grip behind his back, fingers circling into his fur, making Husk swallow hard.

Eyes started to follow them now, even with the awful-as-fuck lighting. He caught a glance of Niffty to the side, how she stopped trying to gnaw on Sir Pentious’ tail as she stared gleefully at her boss and co-worker getting close on the dance floor. He could hear Charlie make her excited little noises of happiness, commenting on just how sweet it was to see them demonstrate to everyone how to dance. Yeah. Sure. Anything to keep the princess oblivious to the rot beneath. At least Husk was sure Vaggie wouldn’t explain much more.

Maybe, just maybe, he thought he saw Angel Dust in the far back. Hard to tell, because the effects of all his drinking were slowly making its way back, his fear replaced by numbness. But seeing Angel’s expression, it wasn’t pity. It was an understanding between two losers at the bottom of the barrel, witness to another form of degradation. Sold souls that could do nothing else but share the pain from across the room.

And then he couldn’t see Angel anymore. Because Alastor suddenly dipped him, so low to the ground that Husk found himself clinging tighter to the demon. His fur stood on end, his hat dangerously close to falling off. But Alastor leaned in close, his sharp teeth just at Husk’s ear, his breath parting the fur as gentle as a caress.

“This is a lovely way to spend an evening. Can’t think of anything I’d rather do.”

Husk widened his eyes. The music playing in the room, its echoes finally reaching his drunken skull. Oh, this absolute fucker.

The guy’s face really was made for radio.

Alastor lifted him up again, twirled him with barely a thought for Husk, who could have vomited from motion sickness. Wings flapped open, desperate for freedom, only to be closed in again by Alastor bringing Husk close. Another lean, and the song played again, closer, on the speaker that was Alastor’s mouth, with a voice that wasn’t his but that age-old recording.

“A casual stroll through a garden, and a kiss by a lazy lagoon.” Alastor’s grin could be felt against Husk, and how so often was he told how soft his fur was, to touch and play with. “Catching a breath of moonlight. Humming our favorite tune.”

Husk bristled. His claws bent inwards, so close to Alastor’s neck. It would be easy to at least draw blood, right in front of everyone, to show that this demon, horrifying as he was, can still be wounded despite it all.

Except, Husk had already tried that once. Back when the deal had still been fresh.

Alastor turned to face him, his smile so manic, so very daring.

Husk did nothing, instead continuing to listen to the song that Alastor played, dictating their movements. The same song that Husk remembered hearing on the radio so many years ago.

“I want to save all my nights and spend them with you. I love spending all with you…”

--

It felt like centuries before the party was finally over.

Husk could barely stand to be back behind his bar, let alone in the hotel lobby. The balloons, which half were already deflated, were a fucking eyesore and that damn ball up top or whatever did eventually fall—on Sir Pentious. But if the guy could survive an attack from the Radio Demon absolutely demolishing his ship and half of his egg boys, then it was clear the snake was indestructible.

Maybe Husk was a bit jealous.         

He didn’t want to deal with seeing anyone, even when Alastor, finally, finally let him go. Still, their clasped hands lingered, and Alastor leaned down as if to kiss his knuckles, Husk frozen in place at the very thought. And then, fingers laxed in their hold, allowing Husk to pull back, his fur on end and his wings frazzled, the feathers out of place.

The song had long stopped playing but still he heard it, deep in his skull, as if someone had shoved a phonograph there, the horn of it directed right inside his ear.

A quick exit, before anyone could reach him. Hypocritical maybe, but he didn’t feel like voicing his troubles right now. Not when it just fucking happened right in front of everyone, with only one of them even getting a hint of what it was all about.

Alastor and his stupid games.

But even when Husk retreated to this room, he could barely relax. The room was just one in a hundred in this empty hotel, but one that Charlie had been so happy to lead him to that first time. She had pointed to each pillow on the bed and even to all the little mints that were stacked on top. She had even been hyped for the shaded lamps on the bedside table, despite the bulbs long weakening. Overkill, like much of what she did. But earnest, and genuine, and one that truly did see the good in everyone despite how each sinner had earned their keep here.

A complete difference from the Radio Demon that had just materialized at his side, a whisper of a soft, nostalgic melody his only warning.

“Oh, Husker. I didn’t peg you to be an early sleeper.”

Followed immediately by the door slamming shut.

Husk didn’t dare turn. Not yet, not until he reached for the cards in his pocket. They could be as sharp as knives, as strong as wire. He was drunk, and tired, and maybe he was past his limit at having himself played around with in front of everyone like it was all just normal.

But, before he could even pull back his arm, something held him in place. A blink. The lamp in his room flickered, and he caught the antlered shadow on his left wall, grabbing at his own. Of fucking course.

“Bad kitty! And after I let you keep your little toys.”

A quick squeeze and Husk sucked air through his teeth, dropping a flurry of his cards to the carpet. Then a violent turn, and the manacle appeared once more around his neck, the sickening green creating valleys and crevices all over Alastor’s grinning face.

Still, that godforsaken melody kept playing.

Then a pull.

Husk choked. He reached for the links, clung to it, even as they burned off his fur. His wings stretched wide, flapped once and then twice. All he could do to keep his ground.

Alastor leaned his head to the side at a painful angle—unclear if he even felt anything while doing so, or maybe he did because he could, relishing the crack of bone and the rupture of blood vessels. All while he held onto Husk’s leash, keeping it taut.

It wasn’t enough to make Husk shut up.

“You fucking psychopath. What more do you even want from me? I already danced with you! I even let you just… touch me like…” Husk could barely speak, but he glared at the Radio Demon with all the rage and humiliation he felt deep within whatever he had left of his soul. “I know you get off to this shit!”

The demon leaned in close. The sight of it was compressing, losing full shape, covered over with black marks and strange symbols that he had never understood. Antlers grew and took shape, their sharp points reaching out to Husk like an embrace. But, they stopped just short of his face, just over his eyes, making him terrified to even blink.

In corrupted static, the music garbled and off-key, Alastor whispered. “And so do you.”

Husk’s grip on the chain loosened. He gritted his teeth. Fuck. This was it. He was going to die, with his agony broadcasted all over Hell.

Another quick pull, and Husk lost his grip completely. The shadow from behind him had grasped at his wings, stinging in the pain as tendons snapped like twine, and suddenly he couldn’t extend them anymore. Another avenue of possible escape, already taken away from him.

Then he was pulled forward again to the real Alastor, a hand grasping his own, fingers interlaced. Husk trembled. Would the Radio Demon start by breaking his hands, going through each limb slowly until he couldn’t even move anymore?

Alastor pulled taut on the chain once more, straining the metal. But they would never break, no matter how much Husk wished for it. It was close to his face, and he wondered if Alastor was going to bound and gag him, burn off his tongue, so that his screams would have no words.

That is not what happened.

Instead, Alastor took the chain and wrapped it carefully, almost delicately around their clasped hands. Husk grimaced at the touch, burning yet freezing all at once. Alastor showed change in emotion at all. Still smiling wide, the antlers retracted back like tentacles. The discordant melody shifted back to harmonious, no longer warped and out of tune. The record played, undisturbed.

Husk blinked. His eyes moved to their hands, tied together by the chain, before going back to Alastor. “What…are you doing?”

A hand reached for his back, pulled him close until his nose was pressed against the front of Alastor’s suit. A finger pushed against a suspender in what could have been seen as playful, and a thumb rubbed circles into the fur, searching for the skin beneath.

“You’re just lovely when you dance,” Alastor said so softly, just against his ear. The teeth nipped just so slightly, tugging at his fur, at him. Husk shook, and he wasn’t sure if it was entirely from fear. “And the night is still so young.”

His wings still ached from the sudden clipping of his feathers, and his hand was half-burned from the links pressed against his fur. Even so, he didn’t step back. He felt his feet just almost leave the floor, their bodies pushed even closer than before in the hotel lobby.

He didn’t say anything. It wouldn’t have mattered anyway.

And he even used to like dancing, once upon a time.

Husk’s body felt like a rag doll, pushed and pulled to go wherever his owner wanted. The chain kept them bound, even if it was already connected to his neck. In the quiet of his room, they slow danced to what had once been one of Husk’s favorite songs as it played in its vintage soundscape.

It was nothing new at all. In fact, it was very much the usual. The playing of an old ballad or a jazz rendition when Alastor was near him. The subtle brushing of knuckles against his own when walking by. A quick pat over his head. A tug of his ears, done so lightly that Husk sometimes wondered if it was imagination. A patting of the shoulder, the hand lingering just a moment too long. A finger rushing down his side. Even a delicate pull of his tail. After all, Alastor would tell him, it was just so very soft.

Husk had pushed back at first. He had groused and cursed, hating to be ridiculed. He still did so now, like the fucking genius that he was, the current pain in his wings reminding him with glee.

Sometimes, Alastor would laugh and be on his way. Other times, not so much.

Husk forgot that he couldn’t pick his battles—for there was none he could win.

He gritted his teeth, letting his body be swayed, shivering at the hot breaths along his neck. The dim lights of his room swam in his vision, and soon, he was falling more against Alastor, pulled in by warmth that could turn scalding at any moment.

(Perhaps dancing was what cured the loneliness, in a way. He really was pathetic.)

He looked to their joined hands, engulfed in green that seemed all encompassing. Then he stepped in something wet, tracking it in the carpet. Too apathetic to the thought that they were dancing out patterns with his own blood.

“This is a lovely way to spend an evening,” sang Alastor, in that same recorded voice. But also, Husk could hear Alastor’s own, as if the demon was singing along in his own private booth for his loyal listeners. “Can't think of anything I'd rather do.”

Husk breathed carefully, letting himself fall quiet. When he made his deal, he was never promised he’d understand the Radio Demon or his motivations. He knew, in the end, that he didn’t want to anyway.

The night blurred, until the pain had all but numbed, and their song was all he could hear.

[saltsicklover]

Part Three

Part Three is here and this is where shit really starts to get angsty. So much love for this chapter, honestly. Enjoy!!

Title: Once an Asshole, Always an Asshole

Pairing: Robert "Bob" Floyd x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 3400+

Rating: R

Warnings: Smoking, Rude Bob, Drinking/Drunkeness, mentions of sex, swearing, pocket knife, once again Rude AF Bobby Floyd

Second Chance Romance!

Disclaimer: I do not own Bob Floyd, or anything related to Top Gun Maverick within this piece. Not Proof Read or BETA'd. All mistakes are my own.

I do not consent for my work to be edited, reposted, or translated.

You are responsible for your own media consumption. This is a work of fiction that may contain mature themes. If you are sensitive to those subjects, please do not read.

---

The gym was decorated to the nines, streamers and balloons, flashing lights and a DJ booth. There were tables scattered around the perimeter, leaving most of the floor open for dancing. The room was abuzz with energy, girls dragging their dates to the dance floor. 

Bob didn't have a date. It wasn't that he couldn't get one, it was more the point that he didn't want to deal with all the expectations that came with having one. The sex at the end of the night he could've gotten behind, it was all the stuff before it that he had a problem with. The dinner date before hand, then being attached at the hip for the rest of the night. The slow dances that he would've had to take part in and the sitting through conversations that never seemed to interest him in the first place seemed like the absolute last thing he wanted to find himself doing.

His suit fit well, of course it did. His parents had enough money for things like that. The gray dress shirt complimented the gray pinstripes of the black suit that clung to his frame. His shoes were shined and his tie was straight. He looked good, and the girls were sure to tell him he did. 

But soon the warmth of the gym was getting to him, sweat beading around his forehead. The music was loud and the headache blooming behind his eyes made sure he knew. He excused himself from Gene who was busy scoping out the lone girls on the other side of the gym and headed for the back of the school, looking to get a breath of fresh air. 

"Oh, sorry, I didn't think anyone was out here," Bob held an unlit Cigarillo between his fingers, slipping a small silver case into his back pocket. He tucks the smoke behind his ear, leaving it unlit as he steps further out of the school. 

The words left his mouth before he could even think. Bob's eyes caught the one girl he really wasn't expecting to see tonight, Duchenne. She was dressed in a beautiful maroon dress, the thin straps showing off her shoulders. The skirt of her dress was piled around her upper thighs, her legs sticking out into the grass. She wore sneakers, the sight of which caused Bob to chuckle a bit to himself. 

"It's fine, Bertie, I was just going in," Duchenne pushes herself to stand, brushing her hands off on the skirt of her dress. That nickname again- he hated it. She sounded more exhausted than inconvenienced. 

"You don't have to leave on my account," Bob speaks, moving towards the spot next to her, "Seriously, it's okay. We can sit here like adults." She rolls her eyes but sits down, not wanting to fight it out, but also not wanting to return to the dance yet. She feels a little tipsy, her body swaying a bit as she moves. 

"What are you doing out here?" Bob asks, his voice soft, kind.  It sounds just how she remembered it did when they first met. It melts her heart a bit. He almost asked 'What are you doing here', but caught himself. It shouldn't have seemed so improbable that a beautiful girl like her would be at the dance. He leans back a bit, pulling his things, his keys, wallet, a silver cigarette case, and pocket knife from his pockets. He throws them into a pile on the grass next to him before leaning back on his hands. 

"I just couldn't deal with all the heat and the noise and the grinding," She giggling, playing with the fabric of her skirt. Bob laughs right along with her. "Why are you out here?" 

"I just needed a minute, these things aren't my style," He confesses with a shrug. 

"Ha, right. Not your style, whatever you say, Bertie," She rolls her eyes, a smile still playing on her lips. Since when was a room full of well dressed and half desperate girls not Bob Floyd's style? Duchenne leans over to grab the silver case from the pile of Bob's things. She flips the lid, bringing it up to her nose and takes a deep inhale. The full scent of the tobacco causes a warm feeling to spread throughout her chest. 

Bob watches her carefully as she sniffs the smokes. His brows are furrowed a bit, but a smirk spreads over his lips as she squeezes her eyes tight, breathing in deeply once more. Finally, Duchenne closes the case with a metallic click before placing it back into the pile of his things. 

"Why do you call me that?" He asks her after a beat of silence. There is tension in his voice. She narrows her brows at him, trying to cover up the fact that she is thinking whether or not to tell him the truth. 

"I don't know... Ah fuck it," She whispers to herself before continuing, facing him more head on, "I didn't always call you that, you know, I guess I just wanted to get under your skin. I wanted you to feel the way you made me feel. I know its selfish and petty, but there's this part of me that is still that girl from freshman year who thought we had a chance at being friends before you went and made the swim team and fucked it all up." The words spill from her lips so fast she doesn't even realize she is saying them, all of the things she has wanted to say to him for years. She put all of the blame on his shoulders- he couldn't blame her for it either. She hadn't changed, it was him who had. 

"I always liked you, Bob, I still do. Or maybe I like the guy I met a couple of years ago, the same one who helped file papers in the office with me during study hall for extra credit, the same guy who shared his lunches with people who forgot theirs. The sweet, helpful boy that I so wanted to be friends with because you were just so good. I wanted to be that good, and then those damn teammates of yours got into your head and turned you into a dick,"

Bob takes in each and every word, letting them run right through him. It hurts his heart to know that the girl he has always thought was so good thought he was too, key word, was. He wants to defend himself, but not only does he not deserve it, he can't find the words to even begin. He sits there, staring at her, mouth opening and closing. 

"I think I might be a little drunk," She speaks again, her voice quiet on the wind.

"Johnny spiked the punch," 

"Ah, yeah, then I'm very drunk," She giggles to herself, "So drunk that I can admit to myself that I still like you, even if you have been nothing but mean to me. Maybe it's because I think I deserve it, every word, every mean thing you have ever said to me. And maybe it's the alcohol or the self deprecation, but God I want to kiss you," 

Bob's blood runs cold then molten. He couldn't have possibly heard her right. Duchenne wants to kiss him? 

"I wouldn't stop you," He whispers, leaning ever so closer to her. There is still a good foot between them, and he isn't planning on pushing his luck. 

"Of course you wouldn't. Men like you will fuck anything that moves if given the chance," She bites her lip, looking at him half lidded eyes. The comment stings Bob, burning right into his chest. "Help me up, would you? I've gotta get back in there," 

Bob doesn't say a word, instead, he climbs to his feet before taking his hands in hers, pulling her up from the grass below. He tries not to think about how soft her hands are in his, or the way she looks at him, her eyes glimmering. They are so close now, and he could lean in, steal that kiss that they both want, but he doesn't. He can't get himself to. Instead, he drops her hands, offering her a lopsided smile. 

"Goodnight, Bobby," She leans in with a whisper, a smirk on her beautifully glossed lips. The nickname sends a pleasant chill down his spine. He wishes she would've called him that from the beginning; that she would call him that for the rest of forever. 

"Goodnight," He whispers back, his eyes closed tight. He is doing everything in his power to not reach for her, to not pull her body into his and kiss her. Bob knows damn well he doesn't deserve the pleasure of kissing her. 

She moves to the open door, grabbing onto the jamb. With a deep inhale, she turns to see Bob with his eyes still closed tightly, one hand running through his hair. The long locks tangle in his fingers, she wishes it were her hands instead. He mumbles something to himself, something she can't make out. 

"Hey, Bobby," Her voice comes out a little sing-song-y. Bob savers the way it floods over his skin. He lets the sound seep deep into his bones; he swears he could live of it that nickname alone. So, he saves the memory deep within his chest, in the white warmth there. It fits perfect next to the image of her in math class, the one with her tongue out, large golden frames on her face. 

"Yeah?" Is the only thing he can muster, the nickname thrumming through him. The moment his eyes open, she already moving, barreling towards him. She slams her body into his, arms around his neck, pulling his lips down to meet hers. He stumbles backwards from the force of her body, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist as they both fall into a heap on the grass. 

None of it was graceful or beautiful. Their relationship up until that point was too tumultuous. It was all crashing waves and thunder, electricity under their skin like lightening. Everything between them burned, lips covered in gasoline, all consuming and red hot. 

Four years of pent up aggression and hidden feelings come together into one searing kiss that leaves them both breathless and blushing. They fit together in the way bodies should, his palms against the expanse of her waist, fingers reaching to encapsulate as much of her as he can. Her knees rest on either side of his hips, caging him down. 

"What the hell was that?" He chuckles, holding her body tightly on top of his own. Between the kiss, the fall, and the way his hands are holding tightly to her waist, his head spins a bit. The moon above him the only thing he can focus on for a moment, that, and the way he can feel someone's heartbeat against his chest. At this point, he doesn't know if it belongs to her or himself, but he can't find it in himself to care. The way it hits ragged against his chest makes him feel just a little bit more alive with each thump. 

He steals that feeling away too, tucking it in next to the new memory of his name of her lips. 

"I- Uhh... We graduate next week, and I don't know, I guess I just needed to know if I was right," She breathes deeply over him, her voice coming out mousy and unsure. His hand rakes through her hair, pulling back the pieces that have stuck to the sides of her face. 

The way she looks down at him sends a shockwave through his system; he lets his hands cradle her face for a moment longer than he probably should have, but God she is so pretty. She has always been pretty, he knew that, but the look in her eyes and the way she leans into his touch as he draws a thumb across her cheek has him fucking swooning. 

The air around them is muggy and thick, full of unsaid words and too much animosity- that part they both hate, and maybe that's where it's coming from. Not a dislike for each other, but the dislike for how things have fallen into place, for how they ended up in this moment, tangled up together. Until this moment they treaded the line between hate and desire, after all, it's a fine, sharp line- either side bound to leave them bloody and broken hearted.  

"Right about what?" He is almost too afraid to ask. Maybe he shouldn't have. 

She reaches up and brushes his hair away from his face, the softness of his hair bringing a small smile to her face. 

"Right about one kiss making up for the four years of torment, making it all worth it," She chuckles mostly to herself, "God I should hate you, I want to hate you, but all I can think about is kissing you again."

He doesn't give her time to say another word before he is pressing his lips firmly to hers again. He brings a gentle hand down to her chin, tilting her head to slot his mouth against hers, angling the kiss deeper. His other hand follows the taught muscle of her jaw down to her neck; he lets the edges of his fingertips graze lightly over her skin. The kiss is everything. It's tongues and teeth and so much emotion. She wants to cry. He wants to get on his knees and thank God. The kiss leaves them both so broken and so whole at the same time. 

His hands wander over her body, feeling every inch of red hot skin he can get under the gentle touch of his fingertips. She tangles her hands into his suit jacket, her knuckles pressed firmly to his chest, holding him down. She can feel the thumping of his heart beneath her balled up fists. He finds her heartbeat when his fingertips grace over the connection of her neck and jaw. 

They are tangled up in each other until they aren't. Breathing deeply from each other, hands still connected, lips parted. The mixture of her perfume, sweet and light, with the dense scent of his cherry tobacco makes them both a bit weak in the knees- so wound up together, entangled. 

"I think I should go," Bob finally whispers after a minute of sharing air, their foreheads pressed together. He doesn't stop himself from saying the words, even though that white hot part of his chest  was trying to strangle the words out of his head before he could say them. His chest hurts. He deserves the ache. 

"You want to leave," Duchenne whispers, tears welling up in her eyes. She tries to keep them at bay as she flutters her lashes. Her tone isn't accusatory, instead, it's full of knowing. 

He hates that she's right. 

"I don't want to, but I need to," The lie is easily off his lips as he sits them both up, unwinding his hands from around her body. He doesn't want to leave this moment, with his hands on her, Duchenne holding him even tighter. He doesn't want to go unwind the clock, go back to anytime before they were tangled together. Bob is thankful that she pulls her own hands from their place around his lapels. He knows he wouldn't have had the strength to do it himself. He shifts her from his lap to the damp grass beside him, the humidity from the late night clinging to the blades of grass, their clothes, their skin. It's sticky and consuming, both of them struggling to breathe. 

"I don't understand," She whispers, the waver in her voice unmistakable. Bob stands, leaving her sitting, staring at her hands bound loosely in the folds of her skirt, the fabric now dirty and wrinkled. He likes it better that way. It feels right, more like their shared past rather than the one they may have shared if he wasn't so damn mean. 

There's a metaphor in there somewhere; between the dirt under her fingernails and the way her hands find themselves winding around softness. Before it was the grass, then his body, now the fabric of her clothes. The juxtaposition of the cleanliness of his hands and the dirty ache that has taken over his chest, slowly snuffing out the warmth, the memories threatening to go with them. Maybe on paper, scrawled in looping wet ink, this is beautiful, the brokenness they have found themselves in. The inability to go backwards, to cross back to the comfortable side of the line. 

But in reality, it just hurts. 

"I didn't plan for you. We graduate next week, Duchenne, I move across the country in a month. I have it worked out to fast track my degree so that I can get into the Navel Academy. I have everything planned out. You can't expect me to give all that up because you got drunk and decided you needed to kiss me to fix your life," Bob's tone is hostile, the meanness he has fought so hard to keep at bay, the meanness that keeps himself safe, bubbles to the surface. "I didn't work my ass off for four years, doing advanced classes and killing myself in swimming to throw it all away for a girl, especially a girl like you," 

It was a cheap shot. He knows it the second it leaves his lips. Bob hates himself for it. After years of his much too put together parents telling him to keep his image up and take pride from those he surrounds himself with, the words just slipped. His Mother would preach about him finding the right girl, someone prim and proper that he could bring home. Someone she would approve of. She never would have approved of Duchenne. Not that it had ever mattered to him before everything went to hell in the first place. He doesn't stop himself to wonder why it matters now. 

He doesn't ask himself because he knows the answer already. His Mother's opinion doesn't matter. It never has. 

The truth is Bob knows he doesn't fucking deserve her. Not after the way he has treated her for the last four years. Not after how he let his friends treat her. Not after any of it. There's no coming back from how awful he had been. That much he knows, at least, he convinces himself he does. 

It's just easier that way. 

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me," Pain and frustration grate through her words. "We could have had one night where we weren't trying to kill each other, but instead of kissing me, you're trying to fucking fight me again! God damnit Bobby! I really thought you were different than this!" 

Bob wants to be different, God, he wants nothing more than to be different. He wants to be different for her, he wants to be the version of himself that lives in her head. 

"I guess I'm the one girl you won't fuck, huh?" Duchenne whispers those words to herself, her tone defeated. Bob wasn't supposed to hear them. He doesn't look at her, he can't, instead he takes a couple of steps back, the heels of his palms pressed firmly against his eyes. His brows are furrowed, a pained expression knit through his features. Her words hit him square in the chest. Hard.  

Duchenne almost shakes with anger, or maybe it's disappointment. Either way she is holding back a title wave of tears and curses. 

"So your just going to walk away?!" She yells, the tears in her eyes blurring the outline of his body. She climbs to her feet, a bit shaky and off balance. He wants to reach out and steady her, but he doesn't. His hands find home in his pants pockets; he buries them deep, clutching onto the fabric to keep himself from reaching for her. 

"Okay, that's fine. I didn't ask you to stay. I just thought that maybe, after everything, you might've realized that you had the capability of being a nice person. A good man. But I should've known," She shakes her head, fighting to keep her tears from spilling. She juts a finger out, pressing it square against his chest as she leans in close, her words no more than a whisper, "Once an asshole, always an asshole," 

Bob doesn't even give her time to say anything else, he kneels to grab his keys and wallet before he is turning on his heel. The only thing he hears as he crosses the threshold back into the school is a ragged sob coming from the broken girl he left behind. 

[storiescelestial]

Surprise

"Can't believe I'm helping you." The 14th doctor sighed as he put up the decoration.

"We're only doing this cause it's special." The toymaker was putting up the Balloons.

"Yes but I would've done fine without you."

"Nein, you wouldn't."

The 14th doctor set up the sign.

After the balloons was done the Toymaker tried doing the cake but the 14th doctor told him no.

"I'll do it you can do the cups though."

Toymaker nodded but Donna was already on it so now he had nothing to do as he would've put it.

He then went off and put the plates down.

"Do you think she'll like it?"

"Of course, and she'll be happy to discover that you and doctor didn't fight over it."

"Ja-"

"Toyamker!" Th doctor called him and he went in.

"You can finish the cake for me alright?"

He nodded.

The decoration was blue and yellow, though Toyamker didn't agree on it he went with it and finished the pattern up.

He was proud with what was done so he got it and started to bring it to the living room when he overheard the doctor and Donna.

"I just don't trust him." Doctor stated.

"Just for now doctor." Donna said.

"He's not good! No good!"

The toymaker felt tears wanting to come out but he blinked them away.

He went back into the kitchen and placed the cake back down.

"I'll show him," he mumbled.

"I can be as good as anyone else."

He had also hand made your gift, it was a little knick knack of a bird, he didn't know what else he could make since you told him you didn't want anything.

It was a bird knick knack too of a bird sitting on a tree branch.

He knew the Doctor got you a painting cause you wanted to put something up to decorate the living room a bit more.

The toymaker was never going to admit it but being with you kind of...how do you put it? Soften him up. But only towards you! He didn't change completely.

After he finished up a few more details around the kitchen he set up the cake in the living room.

Everything was set and when that door opened with you walking inside putting your coat up they all shouted.

"Surpirse!" You were indeed surprised.

You hadn't told him to do anything special for your birthday.

You walked more in and gave the Toymaker a hug bore hugging everyone else.

After opening all of the gifts you had some cake.

Toymaker got you a slice and watched as you picked up a piece of it and tried it.

You didn't just like it you loved it. Doctor and Toymaker were pleased every though Donna had made it they both took pride in the decoration.

Toymaker got himself a small piece.

After all of you chit chatted for a bit before Donna and Doctor left.

"That was a pleasant surpise."

Toymaker gave you a 'mhm' as he went over to you cake in hand.

You weren't even worried about the Toymaker but wasn't that a mistake? Cause birthday party's happened to be his favorite cause of the dancing and the chattering and the games.

And he couldn't resist a good joke.

He offered you some of his cake and you smiled as you went to get a piece of it he lifted the cake up more so it would smash into your face.

He bursted out in laughter.

You couldn't help but smile than take the rest of your cake and tried to get him but he disappeared and reappeared behind you.

He hugged you.

Luckily the cake was already made in small pieces after you blew out the candle so really it took almost nothing to get him back as you took a small piece and got him back. You both burst in laughter.

He went to get in front of you to pick you up and spin you around before placing you down and getting a napkin.

You both cleaned up and you tried to clean off his suit too but it was useless it would have to be washed, blue and yellow colors was stuck onto the black.

He giggled finding it amusing as you tried cleaning the suit.

After a moment he picked you up again spinning you around.

With a yelp you wrap your arms around him.

He chuckled.

"Place me down Toymaker please."

He put you down but kept his arm wrapped around you.

"Happy birthday mein liebling."

You hugged him back.

[choccorin]

hi hi hi everynyan !! forgot to update u guys on how my day went yesterday so here it is hihi :3 long text under cut !

THE YEAR END PARTY WAS SOOO FUNN !!!! although it started a bit boring, the games helped to set the mood :)

the first thing that we did after the prayer was the runway show where we had to show off our clothes and the student teachers and our adviser were the judges :) was very shy when it was me and my partner's turn but still fun. our vice president and auditor looked sooo good together !! even as friends, they still match each other :) our vp's outfit was pretty too, doesn't really fit the christmas vibe, but still pretty regardless !!

the first game was bring me !!! still a bit boring (for some) but the way my classmates rushed to bring the items was funny. they almost DRAGGED our adviser but they ended it after he refused.

second game was pass the message !! it was a bit fun bcus a lot got to participate in it :)

the third game was trip to jerusalem !! its where we dance around chairs that are arranged in a circle, once the music stops we have to get to sit on a chair or else we'll get eliminated ! managed to stay until the fourth round before i got eliminated </3 THE ENDING WAS SO ANTI CLIMATIC LOLOL classmate 1 didn't run to get to the seat, only classmate 2 did </3 STILL FUN THOUGH !!!!

the fourth game was paper dance !! this was one of the most chaotic games they played bcus it was by partner !!! and our adviser picked the participants, all of them were ships that he made up lololol here are some pictures !!! the couple with the red heart ended up winning :) they're also the most shipped in the class along with the guy with red jacket w/ the girl with white floral dress ! ^_^ hope they got a video of this game bcus it was genuinely fun !!! the whole class were squealing and yelling

after these games was food time !!!! i also ate a pizza for the first time ( DON'T judge ), it was the cheese pizza from greenwich ! it tasted like ensaymada (?) with a hint of ketchup .. didn't eat the crust bcus it was too hard for my liking ... ATE MOST OF IT THOUGH YIPPEE !!! the mango bango was good :) a bit bland but still good !! didn't like the other one bcus it tasted like yoghurt .. sour & warm .......

after this was the awarding !!! the officers came up with an awarding for the whole class, it was for who's the class clown, prettiest girl, etc etc ! didn't win any of them but got veryyyy close to the smartest girl (one vote diff) the results were sent to our gc :3 got surprised bcus i saw my name on the quietest girl list with seven votes ... got one vote for face card and clean freak <3

we also played two more games after this ! one hula hoop game and one where they have to pop the balloon on the other participants lap, they asking kung sino daw gusto maputukan </3 SO BASTOS TALAGA ... it was fun tho !!

after the party, i went to sm manila and fine arts museum !! bought three bead rings from a stall inside sm and two sketchbooks from national bookstore !! wanted to look around some more but i still had to go to the museum and it looked really gloomy outside, i was afraid it'll rain and i'll get stranded in sm 🥹 luckily, it didn't !! and my walk to the museum went fine :)

some pictures i took before entering >_<

and some pictures from inside !!!

the spolarium will never not amaze because wow. it's extremely beautiful and everytime i look at it, it makes me feel like i'm inside the painting and hearing how the bodies are dragged ... i could stare at it all day and never get bored of it. its size also caught me off guard the first time because i never knew that it was this big ! it quite literally can swallow me whole. and i'd let it ! my goal visiting the museum was to see amorsolo's exhibits again !! he's definitely my favorite filipino painter !! absolutely adoreeee his sketches !!! every line he drew has a purpose and they never feel out of place ! and the way he draws faces is just so 🥹🥹🥹 almost cried while looking at his paintings </3 ( oa mode on )

can't add any more pictures so i'll just add them to another post !

visited the night market near the bonifacio shrine ( kkk statue ) and bought a lemonade ! it was sweet and refreshing :) sad that i only got the medium size and not the large </3

PHEW THAT'S ALLL !!!! this day was fun and i enjoyed it a lot :) glad that my decision of attending the year end party gave me joy instead of making me sad and regretting it :'3 i actually intended to stay in the museum longer but my feet were crying and begging me to let them rest </3

[faes-land]

Day 18: Formal Wear - Yanan

Pairings: Yanan X Female Reader

Genre: Smut

Word count: 2,191

Warnings: Clothed sex, quickie, unprotected sex, fingering (female receiving), cum play? 

---

“Congratulations again! Everything is just as beautiful as we planned,” You said to your best friend who had just married her fiance, Yuto. You were her maid of honor and it took almost a year to plan the wedding.

She hugged you tightly. “Thank you. I can’t thank you enough for introducing me to him and helping set up my dream wedding.”  

You smiled at your best friend who was now a blushing bride. “I’m glad you two love each other as much as I thought you would.” You joked.

She giggled. “Well, now it’s my turn to return the favor,”

You gave her a confused look. “What? What do you mean?”

A devious-looking smile had spread across her face. “Come with me,” she said as he grabbed your hand and led you back to the reception, where her new husband was talking to one of his groomsmen whom you stood opposite during the wedding. He was very tall, had a sweet smile, and jet black hair that was long enough to frame his face. “I’ve wanted you to meet him for a while now - that’s why I paired you up with him.”

You turned to her with a scowl, but you also wanted to thank her. He was super handsome. “What’s his name?”

“Yanan,” She smirked. “You should go talk to him; I’m gonna make Yuto get more cake with me!” Then she went to her man and you rolled his eyes when you heard her say, “Yuuttooo~” He turned to her and smiled, knowing she wanted something based on how she said his name.

Yanan had turned to you and he also gave you a sweet smile. He’d been wanting to talk to you all day, but you were both so busy that he never got the chance. He can’t mess this up. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” He asked you, looking at your dress and how gorgeous the burgundy color looked on you.

You looked into his eyes and nodded, “Yes. It all came together better than we hoped.” You gave him a shy little smile and tried your best not to ogle him, his suit fit him a little too well. Even through the suit, you could tell he had a good body underneath. Your mind had started to wander, so you took a champagne flute from one of the waiters and began to sip it. Yanan grabbed one as well, just as nervous as you were.

“You did this?” He asked, waving his arm around the room and gesturing at all the decorations. The colors, the balloons, the table settings; all of it. He was impressed since Yuto said all he did was ask for a certain song to be played.

“We all did! I picked the cakes and the colors.” You giggled, remembering your best friend had become a slight bridezilla when picking out the cake. You ended up picking two since she couldn’t decide between a berry cake or a chocolate cake. Both were delicious so you couldn’t complain.

“It looks amazing.” Before Yanan could say anything else to you, he took your hand and brought you to the dance floor, where other people had joined in on the festivities. The DJ was playing one of your favorite songs, which you soon found out was also one of his. You couldn’t stop smiling as you danced along to the beat of the song with Yanan, your new handsome dance partner. Dancing with Yanan is probably the most fun you’d had in a while; he was really nice and you felt connected to him in a way you hadn’t with anyone else before.

Yanan was kind and he treated you better than most guys you had dated. Even though you had just met him, it felt like you’d know him forever. Maybe because you knew he and Yuto were so close that he felt familiar. It didn’t hurt that he was insanely handsome as well. He had a charm about him that you couldn’t resist.

Yanan couldn’t resist you either. The moment he saw you, he wanted to talk to you. The timing of the whole day almost made it impossible since you were running around and making sure everything was in place before the actual ceremony. He thought you looked absolutely beautiful in the dress you were wearing. It complimented your skin tone perfectly. “Hey, Y/N?” Yanan said to you as you were sitting together at one of the tables in the reception.

You turned to him, “Hmm?” You hummed as you took a sip of your drink.

“Would you want to get out of here with me soon?”

—-

Not long after the reception was over, you found yourself pressed up against your hotel room wall. Yanan had his hands all over you; caressing and gripping your body. His hands were on your ass as you had one leg slung over his waist. You never expected that you’d be in this position so fast, but you were and you definitely were not mad about it. You had one of the most gorgeous men you had ever seen pressed up against you; it felt like a dream come true. His kisses moved from your lips to your exposed neck and you moved your head to give him more access. His feverish kisses were all over your skin and leaving marks. Usually, you’d get mad when someone would leave a hickey, but Yanan was so hot that you kind of liked it.

Yanan picked you up so that your legs were around his waist, and your back was pressed against the wall. Your dress was hiked up so you felt his growing erection pressing against your clothed center. You moaned at the friction between your legs so Yanan decided to move his hips and rub against you. Another noise came out of you, so Yanan kept moving his hips against you while he kissed your neck and chest.

Your hands were on the nape of his neck, pulling his head up to kiss you again. Your lips crashed together and you both moaned. He pulled away from you and made sure that your legs were wrapped around his waist. Because of his height and strength, having you up against the wall was easy for him. Also, since your dress was all the way up to your waist, it made it easy for him to have access to your center.

Yanan’s hand had moved from your hips down to your core, where he rubbed you through your panties. You moaned again when he applied a little bit of pressure to your covered clit. Yanan moved your panties aside and teased your slit and feeling how wet you had become. He smirked against your lips before he slipped one of his long fingers inside you. You gasped and pulled away from his kiss. Holy shit, his fingers felt good. He moved it slowly in and out of you while his thumb was on your clit, rubbing it in time with his movements.

The fact that he held you up against the wall while fingering you was driving you crazy. You just wanted him to stop teasing you and fuck you already. “Yanan, please,” you begged.

He chuckled. “Uh uh, I need to get you ready,” a devious smirk was plastered on his beautiful face. He went back to kissing your neck and you felt like you were going to burst with how horny you had become. Yanan added a second finger, stretching you out to get you ready for him. Your eyes rolled to the back of your head when he curled his fingers and hit your spot.

“R-right there,” you moaned. Yanan listened to you and made sure that his fingers would hit you right where you wanted him. Hearing your moans and seeing how you reacted to his fingers excited him and he couldn’t wait to fuck you. He felt you clench around his fingers, and a part of him wanted to make you cum from his fingers, but another part of him was getting very impatient. He listened to the impatient part.

Yanan slowly pulled his fingers out of you and you whimpered. You were close to coming since his fingers felt a little too good. He kissed you and your ears perked up when you heard him unzip his pants and take out his cock. You pulled away and looked down to see exactly why he needed to prepare you. Your eyes widened and he chuckled. “You think you can handle me?”

You nodded, eager to have him deep inside you. You don’t think you had been with anyone as big as Yanan before, but you were excited and ready. Based on the look on his face, he knew how to use it too. “Yes! Yanan, please I need you to fuck me!” You were beyond turned on at this point and if he made you wait any longer, you were going to go insane.

Luckily for you, he was just as turned on as you were and he couldn’t hold off anymore. You both moaned when he teased his tip at your entrance, coating his head with your wetness. Your breathing had become unsteady and finally, he placed his hands on your hips and slowly thrust himself inside you. You couldn’t even make a sound, the stretch of his big cock had you speechless and unable to even think properly. He hadn’t even moved yet and you were already going dumb from his dick.

Yanan couldn’t get over how good you felt around him and he was still for a little bit longer than he thought he would be. Finally, he moved his hips, pressing you up against the wall. It was a little uncomfortable, but that didn’t matter since he felt so fucking good as he fucked you. You tightly held onto his shoulders and your legs were practically squeezing his waist to keep him in place. He kept a steady pace, getting you used to his size, which you were glad about, but you also wanted him to go a little faster.

“F-faster,” you moaned between thrusts. Yanan kissed you before heeding your command. His hips snapped against yours and you were practically bouncing on his dick at this point. Honestly, you were still in shock at how a man like Yanan was now fucking you hard in your hotel room, but all of those thoughts were pushed aside when he angled his hips a certain way. You screamed at the pleasure he was giving you and it encouraged him to keep fucking you like this.

He was thriving at the way you moaned for him and held on to him. Every time you moaned his name, he thrust into you a little harder. He never imagined this is how his night would end, but he couldn’t complain. He had been crushing on you for a while, so he was over the moon that you were a mess in his arms. He kissed your neck and he bit down slightly, leaving a mark on your skin.

The tip of Yanan’s cock had teased your spot and you almost couldn't make a sound at how good you were feeling. The way Yanan was fucking you and how his cock felt each time he thrust into you was better than anything you’d ever felt before. He really knew how to use what he was blessed with. It didn’t matter that you were still fully clothed, it was almost hotter this way. You were also amazed at how strong he was since he was able to hold you up for so long. You’d be lying if you thought his strength wasn’t hot.

Your moans had become very frequent and you knew you were getting close to your orgasm. Each thrust felt better than the last and you knew you would be able to hold off much longer. Yanan could also tell by the way you were squeezing around his dick; the tightness making his head spin. “I-I’m not gonna last much longer,” you said breathlessly.

“Come all over me,” he sighed before one of his hands went from your hip to your clit, rubbing it in time with his thrusts. You held onto him tightly as your orgasm crashed through your body; you couldn’t believe how hard you had cum thanks to him. Because of the way you felt around him, that triggered his own orgasm and his hips began to falter before he pulled out of you and jerked his cock. You didn’t hesitate to get down on your knees and stick your tongue out for him.

Yanan’s eyes widened when he saw what you had done and after a few quick strokes, he was coming. Some of it landed on your tongue, and some of it landed on your chest. You smiled at him before cleaning what landed in your chest and licking it off your fingers. Yanan leaned down and gave you a sloppy kiss, “That was so hot,”

You giggled. “Let’s move to the bed and take off our clothes.”

[noceurous]

—hit me up a thousand times

summary: you should not have let him use or hurt you like that. but also he should not know your body that good for you to let him in.

warnings: angst, swearing, cheating, smut, fingering, bucky is being mean to the reader, he is also 6’6 in my head, being hurt, creampie, degradation kink, praise kink, mentions of drinking and loneliness. 18+ || minors dni

a/n: this is based on this ask, even though the song is not my type that much i really liked the lyrics.

You loved him. It was cliche, it was borderline of being pathetic but somehow you loved him.

He was talking about something, his nostrils were bigger and eyes were darker. He was filled with rage. Or boredom, to be fair you could never tell.

“—are you even listening to me!” You shuddered with his cold tone. Tilting your head.

“Yeah.” You looked down, fingers playing with the papers you were holding. “You want me to help, and you need my help because you scared off the party planner people.” You spoke in one sentence almost being out of breath.

“Good. I’ll see you later.” He gave you a quick nod. Appreciating your simple obedience.

“But Bu—“ And he left without letting you finish. But I don’t want to help you organise a party for your girlfriend.

You sighed. It’ll be fine, maybe we could even bond over this. You rubbed your temples, trying to not focus on the headache it will cause. You knew it was bad for you that you could never say no to him.

You always let him get through you, so why this one would be different.

“Oh!” She cheered as the colourful balloons filled the room, some confetti falling down from the ceiling. The room was echoing with people’s laughter and singing a happy birthday song.

“Did you make this Bucky? And people say you are not the romantic one.” She joked and you looked at him. Hoping that he would say something.

“Yes doll. Your old man still has some things back in his sleeve.” He chuckled, leaning down to kiss her.

You wanted to cry to the reality in front of you. You needed something to punch, or hug. You weren’t sure but you knew that you shouldn’t be there. Everything was becoming too much and the last thing you needed was seeing him wrapped around her.

So you left.

Your place never felt that dull before. You were alone once again, away from the crowd and people. You couldn’t call someone and tell them how you felt, even though you desperately needed.

How pathetic.

You poured yourself some alcohol so it would make it easier to digest. Your comfort movie was playing in the background as you checked your phone. Trying to find something distracting.

You didn’t even realise you were sleeping, when you heard the knock on your door. Your feet felt too heavy while you walked.

“Hey.” You said as you saw him leaning on your doorframe. Jaw clenched, looking at your fogure.

“ ‘didn’t see you at the party. I couldn’t say thanks.” He explained as he invited himself inside, looking at the smallness of your apartment.

“You could have just texted me.” You explained. “You didn’t have to come all the way down here.” You continued as he looked around your place.

He turned to you and smirked. His eyes were a bit darker know. You really wondered what he was thinking. Even though you were good at reading people, he was a closed book. If there was ever a book of Bucky in the picture.

“Yes I could have texted...” He started as he walked over to you. Eyes looking at your old tshirt and pyjama bottoms. Smiling at your cuteness and petiteness in contrast to his large dark figure.

He leaned over to you, his hot breath fanning your face. “...but then I couldn’t do this, can I?” He finished as he kissed you. His lips were cold, and the kiss was demanding.

You found yourself responding to the kiss quickly, your hand placed on his cheek. You raised yourself on your tiptoes, deepening the kiss.

His tongue was dancing around yours. Sucking and licking. He was always the taker and you the giver. He placed his arms around your waist.

Your mind was screaming at you, to stop the kiss immediately. But your body and heart was too lost in the kiss already. He knew your body almost better than you did. He knew what you needed and what you craved. So it was easy for him to use you however he wanted.

“You’re such a needy little slut.” He chuckled, his metal hand wrapped around your throat pushing you back towards the wall. “Always desperate for me.”

And again he also knew how to break your heart, just like the way he knew make your panties wet.

You gasped as he tightened his hold. Smiling at your fragile state. He brushed his nose along your cheek. You whimpered as he tugged down your bottoms. Fingers were inside your panties. “All wet for me, and I haven’t even touched you.” He whispered to your ear.

His fingers playing with your folds. Gathering your wetness. You whimpered as his palm brushed along your clit. “So submissive.” He said as he pushed his finger inside you.

You moaned, your walls clenching around his cold digit. “You want this don’t you? Tell me.”

“Yes Bucky. I want you. I want you to fuck me. Please.” You answered. He pulled you towards him, lips crashing into yours. You wrapped your arms around his shoulders as he continued to fingering you. Swallowing your moans and whimpers.

You bit down his lip as he added another finger. Currently playing with your sweet spot, getting you panted up. “Bucky, I—I’m coming.” You explained as you broke the kiss for air.

“Cum for me. Soak my fingers with your juices, like a little good girl.” He curled his fingers, rewarding you with your orgasm.

You were panting when you felt your orgasm taken over your body. He took off his fingers, and licked your juices off of them. “You taste so sweet.” He admitted.

“T—thanks?” You said. Allowing him to guide you to your bedroom.

“You can thank me after I’m finished with you.”

He pulled you to his lap, kissing you. You could taste yourself on his tongue.

His hands were placed on your waist, helping you grind yourself on him. His cock was hard again, buried between your folds just before he pushed himself inside you.

“Oh!” You moaned, slowly raising yourself on his lap only to get lower again. His hands were everywhere. Your neck, chest, back, waist...

“You’re doing so good.” He whispered on your lips, helping you to move on him. Helping you to adjust him. His hands went to your butt, grabbing tightly and pulling you closer to himself. “F—fuck, you feel so good. All warm and tight around me.”

You couldn’t speak coherently anymore. All things left your lips was cries and whimpers as he took you on his lap. His fingers inside your mouth.

He loved to see your mouth full. Loved filling all over your holes. “I love seeing you stuffed like this, splayed out on my lap like a good little pet.” You felt your walls clench around him.

Your heart was beating inside your chest. Your eyes meeting with his dark, lustful eyes. His chest was pressed into yours. His naked chest covered with a thin layer of sweat and you could see the veins on his arms and neck. Chest rising as he breathed.

He was deep and fast, just fucking his frustration out of you, whatever got him mad. It didn’t matter since he came to you.

His low groans were vibrating on your breast and chest. You could feel his cock twitching inside you. Your moans were muffled because of his fingers inside your mouth. You sucked on his fingers again, closing your eyes with the sensation.

“Fuck! I’m going to cum.” He moaned when you circled your hips once more. “Oh, you’d like that don’t you? Want me to fill you up?” He said as he pulled off his fingers. You nodded before the fingers left your mouth.

His hand went to your waist. Holding you down and pressing your body more to him as he increased his speed. Chasing your orgasm, as well as him.

He didn’t need you to tell him that you were coming. He could tell it from the way your breathing changed and how you dug your fingers on his shoulders.

He knew you better than you knew yourself.

He filled you with his cum as you came down on his cock. He chuckled, slowing down before stopping with you still on his lap. He pulled out slowly, and you threw yourself next to him.

He pushed himself off the bed. You turned your head to look at him. You watched him getting dress without saying anything.

You knew you should have put an end to this, or be brave enough to tell him that he could stay. You were doing this for months but never once he stayed or asked you to.

You knew you didn’t mean anything to him. Just a stress toy he could use here and there. Whether it is the work, his girlfriend or the constant nightmares he had. He just loved to fuck it out with you.

Maybe he knew how you felt too. Sometimes you were sure even a blind person could see the light in your eyes whenever you looked at him. Or smiled when he said something nice to you, no matter how rare it happened.

He knew well about your body so why not your mind too.

“Nice job on the party. I know I could count on you.” He added as he zipped his pants back. Gave you a simple nod before leaving.

You sighed as you threw your head back. Trying not to make a sound before you heard the sound of your door shutting.

Again, he knew how well to hurt you too.

[feelingsick]

“Stop holding it down, sweetheart.” with Bel and Romi?

It didn’t matter how much Bel tried to assure Romi that he was welcome in the apartment, or that the younger dancer had lived with Bel and his boyfriend for almost a year now – Romi still didn’t feel comfortable being in the apartment alone. Even if he didn’t say so, Bel could tell how awkward he acted at the prospect. He knew it would take time for Romi to get used to things, to come to finally see himself less as an imposing guest and more as family. In the meantime, Bel could at least try to minimize Romi’s stress as much as possible.

“I’ve got some shopping to do,” Bel announced, glancing down at where Romi was looking over one of his textbooks. “Feel like coming along? You’ve been studying for a while now. Might be time for a break.”

Normally Romi would jump at the offer, but he’d been quiet all afternoon. It was no wonder – the poor kid had been working hard all week.

Bel smiled encouragingly as Romi closed his book and set it aside. “I just need to pick up a few things. We’ll be back in no time.”

—

Romi was at least a little more talkative as they got off the bus and continued their way downtown. He told Bel about what he was studying, and listened as Bel outlined a new dance routine he’d been working up.

Slowly, though, Bel began to notice Romi becoming quieter and quieter as they shopped. Before long, he’d stopped talking altogether, only responding with a nod or a shrug when Bel tried engaging him.

“Are you alright?” Bel asked finally, eyeing Romi over his shoulder as he sorted through a rack of clothes. “If you’re bored, we can–”

“No,” Romi answered quickly, shaking his head. “I’m not bored, really. Just…” He blushed, making a face. “My stomach hurts a little, that’s all.”

Bel frowned, dropping the top he’d been looking at. “Do you want to leave?” he asked.

“No, I’m fine, I promise.”

Bel looked him up and down. Romi was clearly uncomfortable, but he looked alright. The flush from his cheeks could have been embarrassment as easily as a fever. But if he was really, truly sick, Bel also knew that he’d never admit it at the cost of ruining their day out.

“I’m done here anyway,” Bel said casually, picking up his shopping basket. He’d found a couple tops he liked, which was good enough for today. He gave Romi an encouraging smile as they moved to the front of the shop, noticing the stiff way the younger boy walked as he tried to discreetly cradle his stomach. The sooner Bel got him home, the better.

The cashier smiled at them as Bel handed her the clothes he’d picked out.

“Did you find everything you were looking for?” she asked cheerfully.

“Absolutely,” Bel answered, returning her smile. She began to ring up his purchases, but when she looked up again, her smile fell.

“Um..” she began, looking upset. Bel frowned before realizing that she wasn’t looking at him, but rather past him. He turned, following her gaze.

Romi stood behind him, a hand pressed tellingly to his lips. As Bel watched, Romi’s body jerked, his cheeks ballooning out before he valiantly swallowed it back down.

“Oh, gosh…” Bel took Romi by the shoulders, turning quickly back to the cashier.

“Bathroom’s back there,” she said before he even had a chance to speak. He thanked her, quickly steering Romi in that direction.

“You should have said something,” he chastised gently. “I wouldn’t have made you come out with me if I’d known you were sick.”

They burst into the thankfully empty restroom, and Romi let Bel guide him into one of the stalls. For a moment, they just stood there, Romi breathing deeply in an attempt to keep his composure.

“I’m sorry,” he said, his voice shaky. “I don’t know what happened.” He swallowed. “I feel a little better now.”

“Are you sure?” Bel asked.

Romi nodded slowly before suddenly dropping to his knees over the toilet with an empty belch. Bel couldn’t help but chuckle as he crouched down beside him.

“That’s what I thought,” he said gently, placing a hand on Romi’s back. “Just take your time, we’re not in a hurry.”

Romi said nothing. Bel rubbed a hand across his trembling shoulders, waiting for the inevitable. Sure enough, he felt Romi’s body tense as he gagged once....twice…before swallowing it back down again.

“Romi,” Bel chastised gently. “Stop holding it down, sweetheart. It needs to come up.” He reached around and pushed Romi’s sweat-dampened bangs off his forehead. “Trust me, you’ll feel better once it’s out of you.”

Romi made a soft whimpering sound. For a moment, Bel worried that they’d be there all day as he continued to fight it. But suddenly Romi’s stomach gave a deep gurgle, and he was once again leaning over the toilet. With a heave, he let loose a torrent of his half-digested breakfast into the bowl.

“That’s it,” Bel praised. He rubbed a hand up Romi’s spine, trying to help his body through the motions. Sure enough, Romi let out a soft burp before vomiting up another thick stream.

He heaved a few more times, each time bringing up less and less, before he finally stopped. He fell back, panting hard. His shirt was soaked through with sweat, and he was shaking like a leaf.

Bel reached up wordlessly and flushed the mess away before tearing off a wad of toilet paper and handing it to Romi. “How do you feel now?” he asked, giving Romi’s shoulder a squeeze.

“Better,” Romi gasped softly, cleaning his face with the tissue.

“Told you,” Bel laughed. He ran an affectionate hand through Romi’s damp curls. “Give yourself a minute to breathe and make sure you’re done. Then we’ll get you home.”

[chasingpj]

𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐨 𝐝𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐫

pairing: leo valdez x child of iris!reader

requested?: yes!

translation: full of color

warnings: uhh, mentions of mental health and ?? maybe some typos lmao

category: headcanons, fluff, best friends to lovers

pre-relationship

though, leo saw you around camp often, you caught interest in him before he caught interest in you

i mean, he literally couldn't miss you because your outfits were always bright, whether it was a combination of colors or monochromatic

you and your siblings actually look like a rainbow threw up on you guys, and it's honestly iconic

no one at camp can not notice the children of iris, especially when they're in a herd

one day, you were sitting alone at a picnic table near the lake, and you found yourself drawing him in your sketchbook

you sketched a portrait of him while he spoke to piper at a table nearby

you've always found the floppy curls and how his brightest smiles always look a little manic to be adorable

when you sketched his portrait in your notebook, you didn’t intend for him ever to see it

until a couple of weeks later in the arts and crafts center, leo passed by and caught sight of a new project you were working on

he stopped in his tracks to compliment your drawing

since you were nowhere near done with it, you couldn’t admire the piece as much as he was

but his enthusiasm was so endearing

he politely asked if he could see more, and you didn’t hesitate to slide over your sketchbook

he noticed a lot of your drawings were scenery and people at camp; especially your siblings

he stumbled across a detailed sketch of a woman and her child sitting in a bus

“wow… who’s this?”

“oh, I don’t know. It was just a little girl I saw on the train with her mother.”

“so you just drew her?”

you never realized how weird your habit of drawing random people was until he had asked

you giggled nervously, quick to explain yourself, “I tend to draw people or things that I find beautiful. I wanted to capture how calm and happy she was with her child ‘cause at the time, I was stressed and angry. Watching and drawing her made me calm.”

leo nodded, a faint smile on his lips before looking back down at the drawing. “that’s really cool,” he complimented, and you shifted in your seat, suddenly shy.

And then it hit you

you were so willing to show leo all your works that you had completely forgotten that his portrait was in that book

your pulse thumped loud in your ears, mind racing to figure out a way to take away your sketchbook before he could see it

you ended up spending so long thinking of what to do that he arrived on the page in no time

right before he could see the drawing in its entirety, you slammed the book closed and snatched it

leo’s startled expression turned into a mischievous smirk

“was that me?”

you froze in your place; a squeaky sound escaped your throat in your embarrassment

leo’s brown eyes sparkled as he leaned into you, your gaze fixed on his, “y/n, you think I’m beautiful?”

AHHHH!

^^ that was you in your head btw

leo laughed, amused at your attempt to deny it

“then why did you snatch it away?” he raises an eyebrow before reaching over quickly to grab the sketchbook back

you didn't pull it out of his reach fast enough, leo getting a grip on one side

the two of you pull it back and forth, leo laughing at you as you continued to deny what he saw

though you were incredibly embarrassed, you couldn't contain the laughter bubbling in your chest

gods, of course, this would happen to me, you thought

he got it out of your grip, and you sighed in defeat, watching him flip to the page of him and piper

he was quiet, studying the picture for a second before giving you that playful smirk

“you think I’m beautiful?” he asked again

you playfully rolled your eyes, “it was more piper than you.”

your tone was sarcastic, only fueling leo’s banter with you

“oh really?” he chuckled to himself, “but i’m the only one colored in.”

you were silent at his observation before scoffing, “whatever.”

leo only laughed as you take the book away from him

“don’t you have somewhere to be, fire boy?” you asked and nudged his shoulder

the glint in your eyes made him smile, and he shrugged, “i guess i do. i'll see you around."

you nodded, too shy to do anything else, and he walked off

after that, leo took it upon himself to talk to you every day

leo teased you about the drawing all the time, and he found the way you would play along to be funny

before you both fell in love, you were close friends

you had such an optimistic point of view about life, and it was pretty contagious

somehow when leo was in the dumps about something, you always knew what to say

you were just so easy to talk to, and because of this, your friendship just grew naturally

your first kiss was towards the end of summer

leo invited you to hang out with him in bunker nine at, specifically, 6 pm

you teasingly asked if it was a date, and you remember the way he tensed up a bit

with a mumble, he asked, "what if it is?"

from the tone in his voice, you knew he wasn’t joking

in fact, his tone was hesitant, a part of him was expecting you to reject him

then the heavy pit in his stomach turned light when you smiled and said, "then I'm down."

the grin leo gave you made your heart flutter like crazy

your first date consisted of eating snacks and watching a movie on one of those portable DVD players

You picked up on the tension between you and him, and noticed the opportunities for a kiss kept passing

it was until Leo walked you to your cabin that night did you have a moment of boldness and asked, "so are you going to kiss me or?"

leo's eyes widen in surprise before his face broke out in the familiar smirk he gives when he flirts with you

you rolled your eyes playfully and grabbed the front of his shirt, pulling him into you

your first kiss was sweet and soft; a little awkward

his hands hovered over your sides for a second, not sure what to do with them until he decided to rest them on your waist

it was the perfect way to mark the beginning of your relationship

relationship

since you guys are both broke teenagers, you got creative with date nights

you came up with the idea of paint splattering with him

you guys got canvases, covered the walls and floors with plastic to make sure you didn't dirty them

then you filled water balloons with paint and just threw them

despite you guys singing and dancing around in the midst of it, the canvases came out so good

and to commemorate the beginning of your relationship, you hung them up side by side in bunker nine, and when you guys get a place together, you hang them up in the hallway of your apartment

leo is a huge gift giver; as i’ve said before in my “how he shows he loves you” headcanons

he’s made you a lot of things; canvases, jewelry, little trinkets with scrap metal

one of your favorite gifts from him is a suncatcher with rainbow quartz

you fell in love with it and when you move in together, you make sure to hang it up in the kitchen with the bunch of other suncatchers that he’s made you

i love the idea that you would attempt to bring more color in his wardrobe

a lot of his clothes are muted in color; you don’t mind it but you were interested to see what he’d look like in a colorful outfit like yours

To say the least, he was not that enthusiastic and maybe, you shouldn’t have put him in a monochromatic orange outfit but… you still thought he looked cute

leo thought he looked like a traffic cone though so it didn’t stick

it’s okay because you like him the way he is anyways

another thing is that you guys are super supportive of each other and leo loves just how you manage to lift his mood

once leo was having a bad mental health week

you guys were sitting under a tree, looking out at the water

his head laid on your shoulder and small sniffles came from the other

it hurt to see him like this and you wished you could do more to make him feel better

then you had the greatest idea to make a rainbow for him

so you did

leo was so stunned when he saw the rainbow form over the lake

he looked at you surprised and when you admitted to making the rainbow for him, the emotion on his face was indescribable

and then you laughed and held him when he started crying because he said it was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for him

another time, you insisted that meditation would be good for him

he literally sat down for like 3 minutes with his eyes closed before he was itching to get up and do something

even when he was sitting down, he was still bouncing his legs and fidgeting

so that fell through too but you still helped him in other ways and he’s so grateful for your optimism and bubbly personality

leo always says that you bring color to everything; literally and figuratively

one of the things you bring color to is his life

and he’s constantly reminding you of this; that his world just feels brighter now that you’re around

and it’s literal too

since you painted the walls of bunker nine a bright orange

he asked you why orange, and you told him because orange encourages productivity, creativity, and most importantly, optimism

it may have also reminded you of the orange outfit you put him into

anyways, you told him that it hurt you to see him get down in the dumps, and you insisted there was no way he could be sad in a bright orange room

needless to say, you were kinda right

masterlists taglist: @nct127bee @minamisulemisa @yanfeisluvr @cartocns @slytherclaw-kitten @idk-bye-no @percysbluehairbrush @Hermioneswifeee @quteez @drayshadow @ashookykooky @anything-forourmoony @loverstyless @yelenabel0vaswife @ohmydamgods @jordannfields @amy-writes-blog @muted-mayham @dreamerball @earthtokace @thehighladyofday @lala-llama123 @tootsdoll @slytherindaughterofposeidon0 @black-rose-29 @somekidnamedkai @possiblylostchasecousin @hamdehlesmis @cami05sworld @does-anyone-hear-me @sol-the-salmon

if your username is bolded that means i can’t tag you ! you probably have your visibility settings on!

[sofoulandfairaday]

The ultimate How I Met Your Mother Finale rant

I know this has been done before, and I know I'm several years late to the party, but I don't care, so IN THIS ESSAY I WILL tell you about why this finale takes the spot as the second-worst finale in TV show history (because Game of Thrones is still, to this day, unbeatable, and it will probably stay like that forever). 

But first, a little context: I've just finished binge-watching HIMYM. This binge has been going on for three days straight (my final exam of the semester is in a week and I should be studying, so the fact that the last few days were a partial waste of time makes me so mad). Second thing: I already knew how it would end, and yes, kids, it does ruin the show for you. It ruins the show so much it makes your blood boil when you rewatch certain scenes, but I will get to that. 

You might want to make yourself a drink because this is a complete list of all the reasons why HIMYM's finale sucks - I'm warning you, it's gonna be looong.

It completely invalidates the entirety of season 9

This is one of the complaints people most often have with this series, and I have to agree. It would have been so much better if the last two episodes never existed, and they just showed Barney and Robin dancing at the reception after walking out of the chapel, Ted noticing Tracy and then the platform scene. "And that, kids, is the story of how I met your mother". Cut scene. Honestly, I don't get the hate people give to season 9, barring the last 2/3 episodes, especially since season 8 was so much worse (except for a few honourable mentions, like The Robin). S8 was slower, less funny, and less deep, and while the authors took a risk by making s9 happen in the span of a weekend it paid off: they took their time introducing the character of the Mother to the gang and fleshing her out. They make sure to highlight all the little ways in which Ted and Tracy are perfect for each other, and even tie up loose ends, like with the Slapsgiving episode, that was a filler but it wasn't boring to watch (although it may be problematic for different reasons, I'm not Chinese, so I can't say for sure if it's cultural appropriation or just the authors making fun of a particular movie genre). 

Some episodes were arguably great: "Daisy" was amazing, and that whole fight between Marshall and Lily was so realistic and well thought out, "Sunrise" was extremely important for Ted's character development, same goes for Tracy and "How Your Mother Met Me", "Bedtime stories" was impressive, "Rally" was incredibly funny and proved once again what a beautiful character Barney Stinson is, so much so that even Robin never has doubts that he (the guy with the biggest commitment issues on the planet) will bail on her before the wedding, and says to Ted that "he always comes back". Daphne's character is super funny and the right amount of annoying, the shenanigans of the gang are well thought out and all of the characters (not just Barney) complete their arc in this season. The last two/three episodes butcher that.

Marshall and Lily

Marshall and Lily, arguably the world's most solid couple, are the only thing this God-awful finale gets right, especially Marshall, who is my second-favourite character, that finally gets everything he deserves. But what about Lily? They never mention her career after Italy, and I refuse to believe she goes back to being a kindergarten teacher as if her year in Rome meant nothing. I also refuse to think she becomes nothing but a political wife, the equivalent of Zoey, but without saving the world. We know she has three kids, but her postpartum depression is never really talked about much and they definitely had the screentime to delve into it. 

Barney

 Where do I even begin? Barney Stinson is, without a doubt, the best character in this series, the glue of the whole gang. I think the message they were trying to give is that, since his trauma stemmed from the absence of a father figure in his life, he could only truly heal by becoming a father as well. People also say that n°31 had to stay just a number, because who could match up with Barney Stinson? First of all, I call BULSHIT on that last point, because Robin wasn't the only girl Barney could have ended up marrying. I used to think that too, but it's just not true: that is the equivalent of saying that Barney was incapable to truly love a woman and commit to her, even after all the development he got, and that he only got one shot at love in life, and that's it. This goes against the point the showrunners try to make by having Ted and Robin end up together AND by having Tracy get with Ted in the first place: "it's never too late, you always have another chance at love, etc." And, let's face it, Barney and Robin are legendary, but Barney and Nora (hell, even Barney and Quinn!) were pretty good together too. 

Second of all, if they wanted to give Barney a kid, they could have easily done that, before Barney married Robin. Barney's "redemption" starts when he gets with Robin the first time, hell maybe even when we meet James for the first time: Nora, Quinn, finding out who his father is, the episode dedicated to the lies his mum told him/finding James' father, him getting to know his own dad, etc... those are all steps along the way. The s9 episode where Barney accepts the relationship between Loretta and the reverend proves how far he's come. So why not give him a daughter BEFORE he proposes to Robin? Have him cheat on Nora/Quinn with n°31, giving him a relapse, and having him get closer to Robin while struggling to be a dad to Ellie. That would have been great. 

Or, you know, don't give him children. What's the point of burning the Playbook if you're going to have him write the second edition? What's the point of having him do a complete 180 in the last few scenes and acting like having a kid is the only thing that makes him change? What's the point of doing that when the show spends entire episodes berating Marshall and Lily for "changing too much" when they have a kid?

Also, Barney is the "challenge accepted" guy. He loves his wife so much, he spent years wanting her, and then he gives up because there is no WiFi in his hotel. How does that make any sense at all? This is Barney Stinson, the "I will fly out to San Francisco and buy Lily a plane ticket", the "I will steal every girl from my best friend just to save him for Lily", the guy that wrote the Playbook (it takes effort to pull those plays off), the guy that planned for weeks his proposal, the guy that waited years to get back at the man who stole his first girlfriend, the guy that makes every night legendary... are you telling me that that guy becomes the equivalent of a bored housewife instead of living his best life while travelling the world? Come on. They don't even try to make it believable.

Ted

While watching seasons 7 and 8, I felt that Ted was becoming the worst character on the show: he was boring, depressed, basically had no good storylines, the whole thing with Victoria was pointless and inconclusive (and the whole "stop being in love with Robin" was completely out of character for her), but whatever, we could have accepted that because it passed the message that two people could be good together, without being soulmates - which, by the way, renders the TedxRobin ship pointless, because they were right for each other, but Ted and Tracy were soulmates. Him being hung up on Robin in the latter seasons is almost pathetic, and the thing he does with the locket is insane, not romantic - BUT I will say this: it can be seen in two ways, depending on who's watching. I personally like the two as friends, so I see the whole thing as a "Dahmer" situation, but I get the people who see it as a "Dobler" one and see what he did as a grand romantic gesture. 

The problem, though, is that the whole TedxRobin ship gets pretty old, pretty fast: it's an annoying on-and-off thing, that should have ended with the locket. Because, yes, Ted was in a dark moment, yes, he was probably depressed, yes, he thought Robin was his only shot at happiness, but he changes during season nine! He spends entire episodes letting go of Robin, including the one where she transforms into a balloon and flies away. Ted is the good guy, ultimately. He is the guy that is genuinely happy for his best friends. In one of the deleted scenes from the finale, he meets Robin years later and says that he's so happy with Tracy he never thought about Robin in that way anymore. All of that gets thrown in the trash. Why do that? To use a Harry Potter metaphor, Ted is Severus Snape, while Barney is James Potter: the former loved the girl of his dreams with all his heart, even to the point of creepiness, but they weren't meant to be together. 

Robin

This, along with the next point, is the worst of all: Robin is the worst character of the entire finale. Her relationship with Ted in season 2 is wonderful, and I say that as a full-on Barney/Robin shipper. There was never a problem in their relationship, apparently, but they then break up because they have an "expiration date" and ultimately want different things in life. Except that Ted is not her soulmate. The only times when Robin wants Ted are the times where (1) she can't have him because he's either trying to move on or (2) the times where it's convenient, for example when they become roommates again and they solve their disputes again. Around that time, we see perfectly that Ted had moved on and that the person getting hurt was Barney. It's one thing to see Ted and Robin in the finale as two people picking up where they had left off after they dated. But this is not the case. 

In season 7, we have the exchange that should have put an end to any and all TedxRobin drama, and that completely invalidates whatever the writers wrote after that about the two of them: Ted declares his love - "I think you know how you feel about me now. I don't think time's gonna change that. Just tell me: do you love me?" To which she answers "No". And Ted also says later to Marshall, that he's "happy because he can finally move on". 

What a load of crap. 

Getting over someone is hard, believe me, I would know. And, oftentimes, it doesn't happen until we find someone else to love (and from the moment he meets Tracy, there is no one else for Ted). But by giving Ted feelings for Robin after this moment, it takes away from the beauty of it- because it's one of the most heartbreaking feelings in the world when you declare your love to someone and they don't love you back. Ted and Robin were both honest at that moment, and it was the last genuinely good exchange between them. After that, during season 8 they try to show us Ted trying to get over her (and failing) and in season 9 Ted getting over her completely. This is also weirdly paced because at the beginning of s8 both are in happy relationships with other people and there's no jealousy (which is good, because at least they weren't toxic) and they seem just friends (when Robin leaves Nick to go see him in the middle of the night, she implies that she would do it for any of her friends), but after Ted breaks up with Veronica because of Robin everything is weirdly coated in this sort of tension between the two: first Ted loves her, but she doesn't, so when he helps her by taking her to Barney's proposal ("which means my best bro in the world has given me his blessing"). 

And, by the way, every time they try to paint Ted as the guy that comes through for Robin after this moment, they dumb down Barney's character. And still fail to make Ted a better guy than him (see: the carousel in Central Park). 

Yes, Robin and Ted have some chemistry, but it is nothing compared to what Robin and Barney have. Every time Robin is jealous of Barney, it doesn't seem like a stupid whim, just because some other child is playing with her toys (except, perhaps, during The Robin). Robin and Barney's relationship would need a whole other post, and the next time I rewatch the series I will write down all the things that make them perfect for each other, but, to me, the biggest difference between the two relationships is this: in season 6, when she's not dating either one of them, Ted accuses Robin of never making him feel needed while they were together, whereas Barney praises her for it. Those are elective affinities: that's what Barney and Robin have, and what Tracy and Ted have. 

Barney and Robin have more or less the same arc: they both get over their fear of commitment and they do that with each other. Time and time again, we are told that if they're ever going to settle down, it would only be with the other. The first time they break up is honestly so stupid, and even when they are broken up, they are the best of friends, which also makes Robin's behaviour in the finale look so stupid. The way the two of them fit together is unparalleled, both in a romantic and a platonic way. 

Think about it: Robin makes Barney a better man, while she makes Ted a worse one. 

Also, the whole point that there are different seasons in life for everything gets thrown out the window: apparently, Ted and Robin (that were a couple that ultimately worked in their young twenties) are the same people in their forties.

But that's not even the worst part. The worst part is that the two final episodes butcher Robin's arc as well: episode 23 starts with Lily saying "I want this girl to be in our lives" and we know Robin never made other friends outside of the gang, because she didn't need to, and now she walks away from everything because of fucking Ted?? This is saying "hey, Robin was only in the group for Ted, who brought her in, and now she leaves because he's not her puppy anymore". Robin was the one that was eternally indecisive between Ted and Barney and you're telling me that three years and many many life experiences later, she's still not sure? 

The point of her story is learning how to get over her fear of commitment, learning how to be there for her friends (there's an entire episode dedicated to that, and it's the one where Lily's pregnant and we meet Robin's ex-best friend in Canada), and how to balance her job and her life. Also, the way her character is treated is un-feminist and un-progressive: she becomes Ted's consolation prize. She is passive throughout s9. She cannot, ultimately, win the modern-day struggle most women have and balance out career and love life, so her true life, her "happy chapter" begins after she has already accomplished everything she wanted to and she's free for Ted. She doesn't even go back to him, she just the prize the main character wanted for all his life and only got in the end because his wife died (ONE SCENE, people, ONE SCENE!). Also, this makes Tracy the "broodmare" that gives him the kids he wanted, and his "happy family" experience before he goes to be with his one true love. 

The mother

This. This makes me so mad. One whole season spent on building up Tracy's character, just for it to go to waste. It would have been so easy to screw her up, but she is hands down the best thing about s9. She's the perfect woman for Ted and the episode shot through her perspective is the sweetest. By the end, I liked her more than Robin and Lily. She was the perfect addition to their group, she fit together with them in a perfect way, and they show us the biggest moment of her and Ted's life... for what? To have her die in a few sentences? And I don't care if they shot a funeral scene, I don't care if the finale was supposed to be 40 minutes long, because, in the end, it wasn't. The scene where Ted meets her is the second most beautiful one (after Barney's proposal to Robin) and the climax of the whole show, but they ruin her... and for what? The chemistry Ted has with her, he has with no one. The joy she brings him, the way she understands him, is unlike any other. I am sure that one of the reasons they killed her off was the shock value and I hate it. 

I cannot stress this enough: Tracy makes Ted a better person. When he's with Robin, Ted is "the nice guy" in the most selfish and narcissistic version of the trope. When he's with Tracy, love comes easy to Ted. Also, the scenes between the two of them are arguably the best Ted scenes of the show.

The kids' reactions (ugh)

It's not really what they say- it's the way they say it. The end of HIMYM was not supposed to be funny, even though the show is a sitcom. It was supposed to be bittersweet and beautiful, because it's the end of an era, and the writers must have known that. So, Ted finishes telling his story, reveals to the audience that their now-beloved Tracy is dead, and the reaction is: "No, ahah, you totally have the hots for Aunt Robin" (their words, not mine). Like, what the actual fuck? I cringed when Penny said that. It's tasteless and not fun at all. Even if it has been six years... It's still your fucking mum, show a little bit of sadness at the thought of her. 

The reason the show ended this way

What makes me especially mad is that I know for a fact that the reason they went with this ending is that it was the original one, always intended for the show, from season 2 onwards. And, if you watch it right after s2, it makes sense. But if you consider the eight years that passed and the massive character development, then no, it's not the best possible one. So many things hadn't been decided yet back in s2, especially about Barney, Ted, and Robin, and I hate that they didn't dare to scrap their work. This ending probably had sentimental meaning to the writers, but authors have to do what's best for their characters, not themselves. It's like with GoT, in a way: I think that the authors were all too aware of the impact of HIMYM and didn't believe that their finale would live up to the expectations... which compelled them to make the worst decision possible?? Every single character is OOC during the episode. Oh, and Marshall and Lily moving in the last episode is a ripoff from Friends (or maybe a tribute? Idk). Anyway, I believe that the authors were too attached to their sentimental version of "what should have been" and didn't give the characters the endings they truly deserved.

"Life works this way" // "Life only moves forward"

Some people say that the show is realistic because that's how life works. But I call super-BS on that. That might be true, and yes, people do get sick and die (Max, Marshall's dad...) and life does go on. But then, you don't frame it the way they did. It's just bad storytelling if you do it like that. And the problem is not the structure of season 9, because the characters develop in that season. The problem isn't even the mother's death. The problem is Ted ending up with Robin because that's not life moving forward for him, that's him, doing the same thing he did in 2005, 25 (twenty-fucking-five) years before! 

In conclusion, this finale is incoherent and inconclusive, and not satisfying at all. The only character that gets a good ending is Marshall: why is that? What makes his ending great? It's the fact that his character arc is respected and he finally gets what he's been working towards for more than ten years.

[kaitsawamura]

baby mine, don’t you cry

Summary: A quiet early morning moment between Reader and Deku and their newborn baby.

Pairing: Pro Hero Deku x Reader and newborn daughter

Warnings: None!

Tags: Just sheer baby fever fluff inspired by the movie A Beautiful Day. Aged Up Izuku Midoriya, Dad! Deku.

Notes: Short and sweet, I hope y’all enjoy! Not my best but I couldn’t get this beautiful little scene out of my head. Picture is not mine, it’s from Pinterest. I will be changing it, just wanted to get this up right away 😅

Links: AO3

Of all the things Izuku Midoriya thought he’d be doing at twenty-eight, being married to the love of his life and learning how to care for a newborn baby girl was not one of them. But here he was, exhausted, letting out a long-winded sigh through his lips as the baby fussed from the crib. You were blacked out next to him, thank god. You needed your sleep. He supposed he needed his too, but he had told the agency that he would only be coming in on an emergency basis for a little while. They had heartily agreed; the world was crazy and Pro Heroes needed love (maybe especially) too. It was only right that he got to be with his family at this crucial point.

Deku blearily looked over at the clock on his nightstand; the dimmed blue numbers read 3:53 AM. He tried to remain quiet, hoping for a bit that maybe the baby would go back to sleep but the minutes ticked by and her crying only grew louder and more frenzied. He pulled the quilt back from his body and sat up, bending over to let out a little groan. Everything in his body protested. The three of you had not gotten a whole lot of sleep recently while everyone acclimated to the new schedule. He carded his fingers through the curls atop his head and very nearly laid back down.

But then the baby let out a particularly strong wail and he rose on creaking knees to go to her crib. Even in the waning moonlight that ghosted through the window, he could see how red her cheeks were and with a lurching in his chest, he grabbed for her. Scooping her up into his arms and holding her against his bare chest. He walked back and forth for a moment before realizing she wasn’t quite done crying.

The wooden floor of the hallway shifted under his feet; it was spring and early mornings were still cold. His toes were a little frozen so he wiggled them as he walked. He rocked the baby, swaying his hips back and forth making little shshing sounds as he did but still, it was no use. Great crocodile tears etched paths down her chubby little cheeks and she drew in great hiccuping breaths.

“Oh, little one, ssh. It’s all right. Daddy’s here.” He resigned himself to no more sleep until his wife woke up for her “shift”. The rocking chair sat in the corner by the living room window. It looked very enticing right now; he was already dead on his feet. He turned on the little lighthouse night light that sat on a bookshelf near the chair and when the light bulb flickered to life, it cast a barely-there glow that just encompassed the chair. He sat, making himself as comfortable as possible, and brought his newborn daughter to his chest. She had just eaten an hour and a half ago; based on what he had learned so far, she wouldn’t be hungry just yet.

He rocked and hummed and hummed and rocked. She was so little, so tiny and he absently wondered if it was because of his own big shoulders or if all babies were like this. Tiny but willing to take on the world. And that’s what she sounded like as her crying gradually faded to whimpers, and then tiny little baby groans that matched her small fingers and toes. That she would take on the world if she had to had something cracking in his chest as he identified with that feeling. She nestled her face into his chest and his eyes near brimmed with tears of his own.

His life was nothing short of crazy. He was a Pro Hero. A Pro Hero mentored by All Might no less. A Pro Hero who had not been born with a quirk. A hero who had been a nobody. As his mind slowly edged between waking and sleeping, he realized that sometimes he still felt like a nobody. But with an unimaginable warmth seeping into his body from where his little girl lay against him, his heart skipped a beat.

Because he also realized that a nobody couldn’t make such a precious somebody as the little one he was holding in his arms.

---

You startled awake, the headache that had been threatening to hit from earlier finally gripping at the back of your neck. You had been sure you had heard the baby fussing a little while ago but now all was quiet. Deku’s side of the bed was empty, a ghosting of his scent and warmth still lingering on the sheets when your fingers brushed across them.

You sat up, squinting your eyes against the pain in your neck and shoulders. Ibuprofen would fix that but that was all the way in the medicine cabinet in the kitchen. Which really wasn’t all that far away but certainly felt like it at the moment. Deku must have gotten the baby but as your eyes blinked away sleep, you could see he wasn’t in the room. He must have gone out to the living room.

The pain in your neck radiated down your back and into your lower hips and lack of sleep made it feel near impossible to actually sit up and get out of bed. But your curiosity was piqued and the aches in your body were nearly growling. It was just 5:30 in the morning and you could hear the faint melody of birds chirping outside. You probably weren’t going to get any more sleep for a little while as it was.

You padded down the hallway, holding your hand against the small of your back, arching it in an attempt to eradicate some stiffness. The house was breathing all around you, making small noises as the world around you slowly awakened. It was still chilly; your feet protested the cold wood floor. A milky shaft of light flowed into the hallway from the kitchen. Another warmer light emanated from the living room. That must be where Deku was. Judging by the stillness in the air, he had accomplished what he came out to do.

You entered on a small gasped breath, placing your hand over your mouth as if that would help conceal the sound escaping your mouth. Deku was a stunning man. Even if he didn’t know it, you were always looking for chances to remind him and he was always doing things that just made himself a hundred times more attractive. Like the way his hair looked when he was straight out of the shower. Or the way he smirked when you told him a stupid joke. Or the way his hands looked when he was chopping vegetables for dinner. Or the way his smile looked when he caught you outside in the garden.

But he had never looked so good as he did right now and your heart bloomed on an almost painful balloon of happiness and love. The glow from the lighthouse night light was already weakening as the sun began its ascent but it was just enough to cast Deku’s face in a warm glow. He had a five o clock shadow now and was somewhere in between sleep and awareness; his foot propelled the rocking chair in a slow ambling rhythm but every once in a while it would stutter into stillness. You shook your head, a smile threatening to break across your face at the delightfully foolish man; he hadn’t bothered to put on a shirt so your baby girl was skin to skin with him. Her eyes were shut and her little mouth was open just a touch.

You must have made some noise because his eyes fluttered open. He didn’t say anything just gently lifted a hand to beckon you over. The muscle memory of sneaking around whenever she was asleep kicked in though and this time you made it to him without making a sound. He closed his eyes briefly again as he took your hand in his own. It felt magical really to hold his hand. It was large and warm and callused. You brought it to your lips, pressing gentle kisses to the scars that crisscrossed his skin before leaning into his ear.

“Why don’t we sit back on the couch,” you whispered. At least the three of you could fit on there together and you had a creeping suspicion he wouldn’t go back to bed even if you suggested it. He lazily nodded his head before cradling the baby in his arms and rising, the breath whooshing from his lips as he attempted to move without waking her. You knew what it felt like to be held by him so you weren’t surprised when she didn’t wake from her slumber. After grabbing the much-needed painkiller for your headache, you settled in next to him.

He opened his arms and now was cradling two human beings. He was an expert at it really. You curled into him and listened with delight as the baby nestled even farther into the crook of his arm and let out a breathless sigh, the kind that only babies can make. Deku was already drifting back to sleep. You could tell by the way his breath deepened with each movement of his chest as your arm rested over his abdomen.

“I love you,” you murmured into his skin. He whispered it back against the crown of your head as the two of you floated into sleep and the world felt whole and good.

Early morning sun craned through the window; outside the city came to life. Spring danced on a breeze through the trees outside. All was well.

[pillow-anime-talk]

happy b-day!

synopsis: Your boyfriend makes you a cute birthday surprise!

# tags: headcanons; current relationships; b-day!au; romance; fluff; sfw

includes: gender neutral reader ft. l lawliet {death note} + levi ackerman {aot} + nikolai gogol {bsd} + toge inumaki {jjk} + ichiro yamada {hypmic} & ayato kirishima {tokyo ghoul} 

author’s note: since today is my birthday, i’m just adding such a thematic post! <3

— LAWLIET

↘ He remembered the date of your birthday well, of course; after all, he has a really good memory, and he writes down each important thing in a brown calendar that he keeps in a cupboard under his desk or under his fluffy pillow.

↘ Lawliet is the person who will surely give you an amazing, yet delightful and intimate surprise in the comfort of your own home (or hotel room).

↘ I’m sure he’ll finish all his work faster, then he’ll make you a warm bubble bath with sea salt, next ask Watari to make a cake and nice dinner. He will also order your favorite flowers or chocolates, and as soon as you come home you will also hear the sound of the bottle opening with your favorite alcohol inside.

↘ You really weren’t expecting all this, but you were positively surprised. It was your best birthday!

— LEVI

↘ I imagine that most of the day he doesn’t know it’s your birthday (he has so much on his head, ehh, poor man...), but at some point he will hear younger cadets like Eren, Armin, Jean and Sasha salute in your direction and they say loudly ‘Happy birthday, Capitan Y/L/N!’. Then he will remember that today is your important day and will ask Erwin for the rest of the day off for himself and for you.

↘ Will definitely take you to some cute cafe for a cup of expensive tea as well as some sweet cake. Additionally, when you go for a walk, he will ask you to choose a gift; if you refuse, he won’t insist, but will instead buy you flowers at the nearest flower shop or simply nod his head, grabbing your hand and kissing soft skin. However, if you shyly point at the shop window, he will immediately come with you to the building, buying you everything you want.

↘ Definitely, at the end of the day, he will make you some delicious supper and give you your (and his) favorite alcohol.

↘ Maybe, but only maybe tonight he will be more touchy/clingy than normal, so expect a few quick pecks and a few more minutes of birthday wishes!

—NIKOLAI

↘ Ahhh, Nikolai is definitely going to make a splendid party!

↘ If you love contact with people, he will invite Sigma, Fyodor and some of your friends so that you can spend this day with your beloved ones. However, if you’re a bit of an introvert, he won’t mind playing loud music, ordering fast foods, and dancing with you in the living room, showing you a few new tricks every now and then.

↘ He will definitely pull out all the presents for you from his dark coat; a bouquet of colorful flowers, sweet wine, a huge teddy bear with a red bow around his neck, a pack of sour lollipops, some clothes, a necklace with a beautiful pendant, a light brown puppy...?

↘ It was a fun and definitely memorable birthday!

— TOGE

↘ Our baby boy thought about what he should give you for your birthday for several weeks, and finally, the day before your day, he had an wonderful idea.

↘ You weren’t expecting anything specific that day. You were literally just hoping for a nice date, but then... You got a huge jar with a hundred reasons why Toge loves you; for your eyes, for your warm voice, for your crazy ideas, for your patience, for your laughter, for your physical strength... Everything was written in his handwriting, which made you feel moved like never before.

↘ There was also a little note at the end where the boy apologized for not being able to tell you this through his mouth, but it definitely didn’t matter to you because you knew that all his feelings were sincere and more beautiful than anything else.

↘ That day, as never before, you gave the fair-haired one so many kisses that the next morning his lips were indescribably sore and all pink.

— ICHIRO

↘ Saburo reminded him about your birthday, because lmao. Ichiro has been so busy lately with rap, villains and problems at work.

↘ With the help of two younger brothers, he decorated their entire apartament with big balloons, shiny confetti, delicious food and snacks, as well as your favorite music.

↘ When you visited your boyfriend and his lovely siblings that day, you were touched by what they had prepared for you. You kissed each of them; Saburo on the forehead, Jiro on both cheeks and Ichiro on the lips of course.

↘ It was an amazing evening because as a gift you received not only a beautiful bracelet with elements of red, blue and yellow color, but also a live performance from Buster Bros!!! 

— AYATO

↘ Of course he remembered. You are the only person he cares about – that’s why he made you an stunning surprise.

↘ Do you know this charming trend where one of the partners leaves small notes around the house, which lead to a gift at the end?

↘ So, yes. That’s what your boyfriend did to you; with each such note, he left something magnificent for you. If you are human, these were your favorite candies/fruit, delicious breakfast, some compliments or just clothing items such as shoes, underwear or sweatshirt. On the other hand, if you are a ghoul, these were notes on how great a partner you are.

↘ At the end of your little adventure, naturally, Ayato was waiting with a pretty cake (or a bottle of blood-wine) who shyly greeted you and gave you a long kiss right in the middle of your forehead.

[ickle-ronniekins]

black & white

request: from nonnie: ASDFGhjkl. Why are your fics so CUTE? 😭 Can I request a cute and cheesy George proposing to the fem!reader—and they’re wedding? 💜

desc: a love story unfolded via a timeline of events and colors. based on the song ‘black and white’ by niall horan

pairing: george x fem!reader

word count: 5.5k

warning(s): lil bit of angst, alcohol, some sexual content if you squint but it stops before things ~heat up~

A/N: this is just pure fluff. may or may not have cried at the cheesiness. idk. i’m a cheesy gal. can’t help it. i’m in love with a fictional character. sorry i went a tad overboard with this. also let’s pretend ~voldy~ doesn’t exist in this k? reminder that my requests are currently closed, i am merely working through the requests already in my inbox. i do not give permission for my work to be posted on any other platform.

Red

Red, hot fury swept through your bones as you watched him laugh hysterically alongside his brother. You balled your fists together, ready to throw a punch, but you knew your mum would lock you in your room until you were forty years of age if you even thought of throwing hands.

George Weasley was a pretentious little git. It was bad enough that he was your neighbour and you had to see him and his equally annoying twin in the village nearly every day, but what made it even worse was that for whatever reason, he’d chosen you to be on the receiving end of all of his pranks. His mother, Molly, was not for it -- she often gave her sons a solid tongue lashing, but it clearly never made an impact, for each and every day they were back to their normal mischief, seeking out ways to make you shake with anger.

“Weasley!” you squeaked as he and his brother ran back across the field toward their home. You loathed the idea of being in the same school as him in just two years time. At least here, at home, you could escape to your own house and your own room, far away from the boy who teasingly threw a red paint balloon all over you and your new dress. But at school, well -- the castle was only so big, wasn’t it? You weren’t sure how far away from him you’d be able to get.

You watched as he and Fred ran away, their giggles echoing through the air on top of the hill. You looked down at your ruined dress and screamed. You reckoned you’d never be able to love the colour red ever again -- not when it had ruined your beautiful purple dress, and especially when it was the colour of his annoying, messy hair.

Yellow

“I’m really sorry.”

He was standing across from you in the field. You thought about telling him that you needed to take four showers in order to get all of the red paint from your hair, and that your dress was permanently stained, but instead you folded your arms across your chest and huffed a bit. Not even magic could salvage it.

“I promise, I mean it,” he squeaked, as if he could read your mind. He seemed sincere, but he was always getting into all types of trouble, wasn’t he? Perhaps he was as good a liar as he was a pranker.

You kicked at the dirt, unsure of what to say. “You ruined my dress.”

“I know, I’m really sorry,” he said again, “it was all Freddie’s doing! I know he normally takes charge of pranks, but blimey, I told him it wasn’t a good idea.”

You arched your eyebrows up in surprise. “You did?”

“Yeah,” George told you. The wind ruffled the leaves on the tree next to you both, and you watched him tentatively as a big smile split his face. He wandered over to the tree trunk and picked at the flowers that were growing at the base. Then he turned around, marched right over to you, and handed them to you.

Yellow dandelions. You peered down at them, and then looked up at him in surprise. This wouldn’t fix your dress, but he was trying, at least. You noticed the dimples that appeared on his cheeks when he smiled. “Pretty flowers for a pretty girl.”

You couldn’t help it; you blushed and looked toward the ground. You picked a bit at the flowers and met George’s gaze once again. “You still owe me, Weasley.”

You both heard Molly calling him for dinner. “Okay, mum!” he called back, his voice echoing against the wind. He turned back toward you. “Promise. I owe you. I also promise to kick Fred’s arse since it was his idea anyway.”

A squeak of a giggle emitted from your lips and you watched as George Weasley skipped all the way home.

Blue

All of Ravenclaw house erupted into cheers as the colours of the Great Hall changed to celebrate the momentous occasion of your house winning the Quidditch Cup. It had been a neck to neck match against Gryffindor, but had you not caught the snitch before Harry, they would have had it in the bag for the third year in a row.

“At the risk of sounding like I’m pro Ravenclaw, I’ve got to say, you guys put up a great match,” you whirled around in the crowd and saw George standing in front of you. He had his hands in his pockets and he shrugged, clearly upset at a Gryffindor loss, but at least they hadn’t lost to Slytherin, right? “You really are a wicked Seeker.”

“Thanks, Weasley,” you said triumphantly, both pleased with yourself for winning but also feeling a little bit guilty for beating Gryffindor.

“When did you get so good anyway?”

“Hmm,” you placed your hand to your chin and pretended to be deep in thought, “do you mean, how did I get to be so incredible? I don’t have an answer for you, truthfully, reckon I was just born with it.”

Students filtered around you both, and you watched him laugh as blue confetti fell around the both of you and the rest of the Great Hall. Personally you thought it was a little much, but the captain had insisted. You met George’s gaze again though, and rolled your eyes.

“Oi, mate,” you heard Fred call. He reached his twin and threw an arm around his shoulders, “what’re you doing over here, conversing with the enemy?” You rolled your eyes yet again, something you found yourself doing quite often with the two of them, and Fred just grinned obnoxiously at you. “Only joking, Y/N. I suppose if anyone had to beat us, we’re glad it’s Ravenclaw. But if you repeat that, we’ll deny it, I swear to Merlin.”

“My lips are sealed, Freddie.”

You bid them both adieu before turning back to your house, celebrating and clinking your goblets of pumpkin juice together, and through the yelps and the cheers, you missed George say to Fred that he actually quite liked the way the Great Hall looked, all decorated in blue.

Orange

“How about you get to work on the ground Unicorn horn, and I’ll try and get this water crystalized?” you offered.

Today’s lesson was to brew the Oculus Potion, in the event any of you ever needed to restore someone’s sight. In an attempt to separate them, Snape had paired George with you and Fred with another Ravenclaw who didn’t look happy at all at the prospect of having him as her partner. You peered over the cauldron at George and said, “No worries. We’ve only got thirteen steps. I reckon if we keep at this without any distractions, we’ll be finished before the rest of class.”

“Better get cracking, then,” George replied.

The two of you worked in comfortable silence; you tensed a few times when Snape meandered by your table, peering down into your cauldron and scoffing, for you were certain that an attempt at any type of potion would never live up to his unrealistic expectations of two sixteen-year-olds.

A little while later, you realized that the heat emitting from all of the cauldrons was making the entire classroom incredibly warm. “Blimey, could he open a bloody window, or something?” you asked, ignoring the fact that there were absolutely no windows in the dungeons. George laughed and continued to add the crystalized water into your cauldron as you pulled your sweater over your head, leaving you in your white button down and blue and grey tie. You pulled your hair back off of your neck and said, “Alright, be sure to only add the water until it turns indigo, George.”

The poor lad hadn’t been paying attention, because your potion was far past indigo at this point. In fact, it looked as though it had turned a deep, navy blue, bordering on black, as George peered at you with soft eyes and continued to pour in the crystalized water, not realizing that he was messing up your carefully brewed potion. A snapping noise pulled him from his thoughts, and a slight explosion erupted from your cauldron and caused black smoke to cover George’s face and hair.

Most of the class began to laugh, but Snape angrily shushed them and sauntered over to the two of you, clearly giddy beyond belief that he was able to deduct points from both of your houses for causing such a ruckus in his precious dungeons. George wiped a bit of the soot from his forehead as you poured in the antidote and giggled.

“Merlin, I’m sorry -- didn’t mean to get points taken from your house.”

“Eh, it was bound to happen sooner or later.. don’t worry about it. Look! Good as new,” you clapped your hands together as the potion turned to the desired shade of orange before the final two steps. You met George’s look through the orange haze over your cauldron and asked him, “What had you so distracted anyway, Weasley?”

“Oh, erm -- nothing,” he replied a bit quickly. It didn’t go unnoticed how he’d stumbled over his words and immediately went back to looking rather intently at the directions. You bit back a smile and looked back down at yours too, unable to rid yourself of the nerves bubbling up inside of you as George looked up once again, stealing glances at you through the orange mist as nerves overtook him, too.

Green

“You had no right to do that! What the bloody hell were you thinking?”

George was standing across from you on the empty dance floor; the Yule Ball had ended abruptly and each and every student had filtered from the Great Hall and back to their respective dormitories, per the teachers. The two of you had managed to stay somehow, now more than ten feet away; you looked at one another with envy as a dramatic scene unfurled between you both.

The entire night had been nothing but a dream, up until that one dance. You’d waltzed in, your light green dress swaying beautifully near your ankles, your hand wrapped around your date’s arm. You waved to your friends, who stood with their respective dates as well, and promised yourself you’d catch up with them at the end of the night when you’d undoubtedly have stories to tell them of the most magical evening of your life.

Except that wasn’t how it worked out, had it?

“He was all over you!” George called, and you noticed how prominent the veins in his hands were when he threw them up in the air. “You said no, didn’t you? He asked you to come back to his dorm and you’d said no. Did you expect me to stand there and do nothing when he grabbed your wrists and tried to pull you there?”

George was right. You had said no, and truthfully, the way your date had grabbed you and attempted to drag you back to his room had really frightened you. You reckoned it was the firewhisky he’d drunk earlier that evening -- he wasn’t violent or anything, but he seemed desperate to get you there. All George had done was step in and stand up for you, so why on earth should you be angry at him?

You didn’t want to give George the satisfaction of letting him know that he was right. You were mad at him for other reasons, anyway. It should’ve been you that he asked to the ball, not that other disturbingly annoying Beauxbatons girl. It’s like he’d picked her particularly because he knew her annoying, bubbly personality and thick French accent would get right under your skin.

You softened a bit as you took a deep breath. “I appreciate what you did, George, but it wasn’t your place. I can take care of myself. He nearly knocked you right out!”

George winced at your words and brought a hand to his black and blue eye. He hadn’t even had the time to grab some ice and place it to the injury, and it was now rather swollen. “I don’t care if he knocked me to the bloody ground, I wasn’t going to let him do that to you!”

You couldn’t help it; anger took you over and you were saying things you shouldn’t have before you could second guess yourself. “Well you know what, George? Perhaps he wouldn’t have had the chance to try anything with me if you’d just bloody asked me to the ball first instead of that stuffy Beauxbatons girl!”

You knew your words hurt him, but you didn’t care. He looked as though he’d gotten the wind knocked out of him; he stepped backward and faltered a bit. His breathing became heavy and irregular. “You already had your date when I asked her, Y/N -- don’t you dare try and pin this on me.”

He was right, yet again. You couldn’t help it. Big, fat tears were falling down your face now and you reckoned you wouldn’t be able to salvage the rest of the hideousness that was this evening. You wiped your tears with the back of your hand and noticed the smears of black mascara and eyeliner on your skin. He inched forward now and opened his arms, but you backed away, still not ready to show him any affection.

You were being a git, but the truth was, you’d waited until the very last possible second for George to ask you to the ball. So when he didn’t, you begrudgingly agreed to the Hufflepuff who’d stepped forward and asked you himself. And as you walked swiftly passed George and up the steps to your common room, you realized that though you’d said yes, your heart had been with the Weasley boy you so adored the entire evening.

In truth, what he’d done was brave and full of love and passion. But you were still filled with hurt.

The green monster of jealousy that you’d felt when you’d watched him dance with his date was such a vice, but you just couldn’t help how you felt.

You left George alone in the desolate Great Hall as he let his head fall into his hands, pushing down his fury and tears.

Grey

You hadn’t gone back to him, that boy from the Yule Ball. You thought about it, but you figured you’d spare George more anger.

He’d approached you, your date, the day afterwards, apologizing profusely for his behaviour and how embarrassed he was at the whole ordeal. He’d asked you for lunch, only if you were okay, and you politely declined. “Friends,” you’d said, and he smiled pitifully, but gratefully, and took your hand in his to shake it.

It was so stupid, wasn’t it? Fighting with George over this. So he hadn’t asked you to the Yule Ball, so what? It wasn’t the end all, be all, was it? And he’d stood up for you, hadn’t he? When things had gotten a little out of control. He hadn’t been your date, but he had been your saviour.

It had only been a week since the dance and you two hadn’t said a word to one another. Fred had begged you too. “Come on, Y/N, you know he’s real sorry. Can’t you just forgive him? Blimey, it’s a right difficult thing to do, splitting my time between you both.”

You merely pressed your lips together and huffed. “He can come apologize to me himself, Fred. He doesn’t need you to do it for him.”

But later that afternoon, you figured, why wait? This whole thing was so dramatic and stupid. And so after rereading the same page eight times due to your lack of concentration, you jumped up from your chair in the Ravenclaw common room and made way toward the Great Hall, as fast as your legs could carry you. You were just going to tell him exactly that -- that this entire thing was dumb, and that you were thankful for him, and that bloody hell, you missed him. Perhaps it was a bit dramatic -- it had only been six days, right? You couldn’t help it. You missed him. You missed him a lot.

The thought of finally speaking to him after a very dramatic week apart made your heart flutter, and a very wide smile split your face just as you were about to round the last bend before the Great Hall.

And then you saw it. Them. Tucked away in a corner near a deserted classroom -- tangled together, George’s hands on her waist, hers in his long red hair. Her lips nearly on his. Smiling, giggling. Kissing him.

That bloody annoying Beauxbatons girl.

You stopped short and nearly tripped over your own two feet. You opened your mouth to speak but just let your mouth tremble in silence as you watched them snog one another. Her laugh was so painfully sugary sweet, you felt as though you’d like to rip your own hair out.

You were surprised how quickly the sight of them had sent your heart plummeting into your stomach. Somewhere in the few moments when you stood there in shock, your vision had become blurry and your face had become wet. You wiped at it with your sweater sleeve and sniffled quietly so they wouldn’t hear you. You spun on your heel and sped back toward your common room, wondering what the bloody hell had come over you when you thought of apologizing to him. You just wanted to get back to your dorm. Or perhaps back to your house in Ottery St. Catchpole. Stupid, silly girl you were.

If only you knew that George had spotted you before you’d left and froze solid in the spot he was standing, ignoring the forwardness of the Beauxbatons girl attached to his arm, his heart and mind chasing you all the way home.

Purple

The Ravenclaw common room was completely empty except for you. You always did this, though -- each and every year, you were always the last to finish packing. Not because you were a procrastinator, but because you hated admitting to yourself that another year was over, and you were another year closer to impending graduation.

Someone popped through the door and said your name softly. You turned and saw George standing there with a small smile on his face. “Hey,” he said, “train’s here. You almost ready to go?”

You groaned and looked back down at your trunk, now fully packed. “If I’ve got to be.” You felt like an absolute idiot that those few words brought tears to your eyes so easily. “Oi, here I go again.”

George laughed lightly and pulled you into a hug. “We’ll be back in no time, you’ll see again how quickly the summer holidays go.”

“But George, it’s our last year!” you cried. And then you took a deep breath to calm yourself down, because you didn’t fancy the idea of boarding the train with smudged makeup and a red nose. “Anyway, shall we?”

When you grabbed your trunk and headed toward the door, George gently took your hand in his and turned you around. “I’ve got something for you actually.”

You wiggled your eyebrows at him and clapped your hands together. “A present? It’s not even my birthday.”

But then you wondered if it was actually a present he wanted to give you, because he took your other hand in his and squeezed them, a serious look on his face. Your features twisted into that of confusion, and you’d be lying if you said that your heartbeat didn’t increase at the sight of him looking at you so earnestly. “What is it?”

“I’ve been a real git this year. Specifically, the Yule Ball. And a little while after that.”

You laughed and playfully shoved him. Though you still felt the sting of those few weeks, you two had managed to patch things up. He hadn’t lasted that long with that Beauxbatons girl anyway. “George, we’ve been over this, c’mon -- you were only doing what you thought was right. I’ve forgiven you, you know.”

“I know,” he smiled, and you could tell that he was equally as glad as you were that you two had placed that argument behind you. But what you two hadn’t touched on since then was what you’d said to him in a fit of fury: Perhaps he wouldn’t have had the chance to try anything with me if you’d just bloody asked me to the ball first instead of that stuffy Beauxbatons girl!

Of course he’d wanted to ask you. He’d wanted to ask you more than anything in the entire world, but each and every time he’d opened his mouth to say something, he couldn’t. Bloody nerves, and all that. Then he went and acted like a prat, making you cry, and he vowed to himself that he’d never make you cry again, unless it were happy tears.

“I realized I’ve never properly made it up to you -- not asking you to the the Yule Ball in the first place, and that time when we were nine.”

You raised your eyebrows suspiciously. “When we were nine? What the bloody hell happened when we were nine?”

And then he pulled from his pocket the most beautiful lavender pendant you ever did see. The circular stone was outlined in the same silver as the chain, and the sun flooding in from the windows made it sparkle more than anything you’d ever seen in your life. Your breath caught in your throat and you looked back and forth from the necklace to George, and back again.

“I ruined your purple dress, remember?” he asked you. He laughed a bit, probably thinking about the ridiculous way you’d looked with red paint splattered all over you. You couldn’t believe he remembered that. “Now, it’s not a dress, but seeing as we’ve grown up a bit since then, I reckoned you’d prefer something a little nicer.” He swallowed over a lump in his throat before continuing. “I never fancied her, you know. That girl from Beauxbatons. I just...” he trailed off, searching for words he couldn’t seem to muster up. You wondered if he could hear the dramatic thump of your heart, beating loudly in the heavy silence. “It doesn’t matter. It was you I wanted to be with that night, and long after. I still do.”

Then he brushed aside your hair and placed the pendant around your neck. You peered at him through blurry vision, and surprised yourself that you were now crying due to the tenderness of his touch and the emotion in his gift and not that you two were about the board the train and leave school, no longer the same two people you were just a few moments ago.

You did the only thing you could think of and you threw your arms around his neck and kissed him. You felt his shock, but it took him only mere milliseconds before he was kissing you back. In truth, you’d been wondering what it would feel like to kiss him -- the taste of him, the feel of your limbs entangled together, exactly how high your heart would soar. It was exactly the way first kisses were meant to be -- slow, and easy, and warm, the way it’s supposed to feel after having swam all day long -- your body limp and muscles de-tensing. You moulded perfectly with him, and when gravity (or rather, the first signal of the train’s departure) pulled you from one another, he peered at you with such affection that you felt as though you might explode.

You grabbed the pendant and held in gently in between your fingers, already having memorized the outline of the silver and the different shades of purple within it. “I am so bloody happy you threw red paint at me that day, Weasley.”

He laughed haughtily, throwing his head back before swinging an arm around your waist and pulling your trunk toward the exit of the Ravenclaw common room. “Merlin, me too.”

White

You were sitting at your kitchen table, ignoring the massive amount of work in front of you to admire your other hard work. Your cozy little flat looked just as you always imagined it would, with the added bonus of your boyfriend in the corner of the front entrance, fixing a loose coat hanger on the wall.

Never in your life did you imagine that things could be as perfect as this.

You couldn’t help but wonder if it would be a flat you two would share one day.

You got up and brought with you his half empty glass of wine and handed it to him. Gratefully he took it and sipped before pressing a feather light kiss to your forehead. But then you gently traced his jawline with your finger, down his neck, across his collar bone until he followed your move and leaned in to kiss you. It was soft and chaste and everything like your first one had been. But as the alcohol worked its way through your veins, you found yourself pressing yourself harder against him.

A moan of content escaped him as you bit down on his lip and slipped your hands underneath his shirt, hands pressed against his chest. Unashamedly, you pulled him toward your bedroom, and he placed his empty wine glass next to yours on the table as he kicked the door closed.

The two of you fell backwards onto the bed in an entanglement of limbs. He hovered above you, dropping down a bit to press light kisses to your neck, in between your collarbones, behind your ears, against your jawline. You so desperately wanted to feel his weight on top of you, and so you yanked him firmly against you and kissed him in a way that there was no aching way that he wouldn’t be able to tell exactly what you wanted.

He began to undo the buttons on your shirt, taking time to press kisses into your chest at the exposed places before he stopped himself and gently ran his hands across your hips, and then your cheek. His voice was merely a whisper in the deafening silence, “Are you sure?”

He gazed at you with such tenderness and love that you knew he’d stop, if you’d asked him to. He wouldn’t go another inch further if you weren’t ready. And for you, that was more than enough.

“I’m sure.”

He sucked in a breath and dipped down to press lips to yours gently before continuing to make light work of your clothes. He explored every inch of you, and the sensation of his lips gently grazing your skin caused you to arch your back in pleasure. You could feel him smiling against you, wildly in love, handling you with such care as if you were a tiny glass figure he was afraid of breaking. He held you so delicately and worked his way through each and every single one of your wants with slow and gentle hands.

You’d known it was love with him; maybe not consciously, but you’d known it long before now. Love, filled with intensity and desire and longing, in its most vulnerable and fragile form -- pure, and blinding white.

Pink

The summer air wafted in through the open window in the kitchen, and you listened to Mrs. Weasley hum some Muggle song as she set the table for dessert. You placed the finishing touches on the lemon meringue pie you baked, special because it was George’s favourite and Mrs. Weasley had insisted.

You had to admit, he’d always had the outside exterior of a tough guy, but owning a business did absolute wonders for his confidence. You noticed the way he stood up a little straighter, smiled a little bigger, and most of all, just how much he gushed about all the plans you two would be able to act on, now that you were both making income of your own.

“Merlin’s beard, Y/N, you’ve absolutely knocked it out of the park with this pie, if I do say so myself.” Arthur’s praise was nothing short of wonderful; you felt the tips of your ears turn pink at his compliments. By the way Ron slouched back in his chair, looking rather chuffed indeed, you could tell he felt the same exact way. Especially when he reached for the last piece, but Hermione slapped his hand away.

“Oh my!” Molly yelped suddenly. You jumped in surprise in your seat. “Oh, Georgie dear, would you mind wandering into the field before dark? I’d love some wildflowers for the table,”

“Sure thing, mum.” George replied before turning to you and squeezing your hand. “Want to tag along?”

You said, “Of course” at the exact same time Ron said “I’ll come along too, I could use a good walk” and if you hadn’t been so focused on George’s tender gaze, you almost would’ve missed Fred silently hissing at Ron and Hermione slapping his hand yet again. “On second thought,” Ron swallowed thickly, “I’d better stay here and help you clean up, mum.”

“Atta boy, Ronniekins,” Molly said. To you and George, she continued, “You two better get going -- not long now before it turns dark!”

George stood and pulled you to your feet. “You coming, love?”

“I go where you go.”

About twenty minutes later, as the setting sun had blended with the light purples and pinks of the sky, you’d found yourself with a rather beautiful bouquet of wildflowers for Molly. You turned to George, who was leaning against the tree and smiling at you, and asked, “Shall we get going darling? Don’t want to be too late. I reckon your mum will come out here searching for us if we spend an evening among the stars.”

“Doesn’t sound like too bad of an idea, actually.” His grin deepened, and then he said, “you’re lucky I don’t have any pranks up my sleeve right now.”

You look up at the tree and recognized the place where he’d infuriated you all those long years ago. You rolled your eyes and shook your head before twirling in your dress. “I am lucky. I was able to get a new dress after the one you so lovingly ruined. Though I will admit -- I wasn’t all that big of a fan of those puffy sleeves. This one’s much more adult.”

George arched his eyebrow in surprise before wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you close. “Oh yes it is.”

You slapped him playfully and pointed your finger at him. “Alright you prat, calm yourself, you’ll have to wait until we get back to our flat for any funny business.”

But then you realized, as George’s features turned from mischievous to genuine within the matter of seconds, that there was definitely more pressing matters than funny business on his mind.

And then he was telling you how he’d only teased you back then because he’d found you so bloody cute, and how he should’ve asked you to the Yule Ball and regretted every single day that he didn’t, and how he’d never met anyone who could play Quidditch quite as well as you, and how bloody happy he’d been when you’d kissed him that day in the Ravenclaw common room. And then knelt down and he asked it, the words you’d imagined since you were a little girl, strung together with such fondness and emotion and tenderness that you weren’t quite sure how you were standing upright.

You’d already begun to nod quickly through your tears before he finished, but would he really be George Weasley if he didn’t tease you, just a little? “Say yes,” he laughed, “say yes and marry me and be my wife for as long as you’ll have me.”

He slid the ring onto your finger and kissed you and picked you up and whirled you around in the field and held you gently in his arms as though you were a precious glass figurine and he was doing everything in his power to hold you delicately.

“Yes. I say yes.”

Black & White

You asked, When did you first know?

And he answered, I always knew.

You both ran back up the aisle, your white dress fluttering around your ankles, his black suit hugging the curves of his arms, and into the field and away from the party, momentarily, to celebrate your first moments as husband and wife in the place where he’d figured it all out.

He’d known since that afternoon when he’d handed you those yellow dandelions that he would bring you back here one day, to ask you to be his wife. He’d known, in the Ravenclaw common room when he gave you that purple pendant, still dangling from your neck, that one day he’d also give you a ring. He’d known, all those long years ago, that he wanted to marry you, and that you would say yes, when he’d finally ask.

And now, in front of your friends and family, he’d vowed to love you -- love in it’s purest and simplest form, love -- with all it’s sentiment and emotion and vulnerability. He vowed to love you and only you for the rest of his life.

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[woniepop]

TYPES OF DATES ENHYPEN WOULD TAKE YOU ON!

Pairings: Enhypen x Gender Neutral! Reader

Warnings: cursing and mentions of alcohol if you squint

Word Count: about 300 - 400 per member

a/n: this is my first enhypen work if it sucks pls tell me LOL I ALSO LEFT HEESUNGS ON A SAD NOTE OOPS. Also I wrote some of this at 2 am and it is raining so hard. I live in SoCal and I feel like I can’t function when it rains so I had to blast music in my headphones but it’s okay Iz*one’s Fiesta is top tier. I did not mean for it to turn out this long lol.

༑ ࿐ྂ。Lee Heesung

- Karaoke

Sitting on the couch of the private karaoke room, exhausted having just sung and danced all of I Can’t Stop Me, Heesung reaches out to take some of the kimbap you had made together before karaoke happened, kind of like two dates in one day. Since he was always busy, he wanted to spend the most amount of time he could with you this weekend, in case he couldn’t meet you the next. Heesung always did a great job of making you feel loved and appreciated, and today he especially wanted to give all his love and attention to you.

“We should rap all of Canceled in one breathe” Heesung suggests, knowing it was a whole three minute song. Although you know you’d die, you nod excitedly, ready to shout at the top of your lungs “THIS YOU?” because Tana definitely gets canceled every 5-7 business days. He starts off the song, both screaming at the top of your lungs, starting off with Bryce Hall 😼. The song goes very swimmingly actually, definitely taking more than one or two breathes.

Taking a call from your phone, you step outside so as to not disturb the caller with Shake it Off. Your mother wanted you home soon, but you desperately wanted to spend more time with Heesung. Stepping back into the room, you decide one more song is short enough to catch the last train home, you grab the remote and pick your last song, Perfect. It was definitely slower paced than the songs you had sang before but you wanted to have at least one moment of romance before it’s completely dead. Taking your hands, he wraps them around his neck and places his hands on your hips and sways side to side as he sings every word beautifully. Even if you could sing as good as him, he was always so hypnotizing when he sang to you. Ending the song with a kiss, you guys both pull away, very sad at the fact that the night has come to an end.

THE REST ARE UNDER THE CUT!!

༑ ࿐ྂ。Jay Park

- Aquarium

- Aquarium

Walking through the hallways hand in hand, you enjoy each other’s presence while admiring all the children excited about the stingray that just swam by. Watching Jay’s face light up when he had finally found the sea otters, you giggle at how cute it was. “Look at all the baby sea otters, Y/n, they’re so cute ahhhh'' He says eagerly. Pulling out your phone to take a picture of him, he grabs your hand and takes your phone. “No, Y/n, we have to take this picture togetherrrr.” he whines. Sighing, you agree and wait for him to find someone to help take the picture for him, obviously right next to the sea otters. 

Continuing down the aquarium building, you find the automatic sliding door leading to the outside. Knowing exactly what lies beyond those doors, you pull Jay’s hand and rush out. As a kid, you loved coming to the aquarium to spend time at the petting tank, and now you got to experience it with Jay. Finding a spot at the tank, you dip your hand in and touch the bamboo sharks. You sigh in relief at the nostalgia of it, and turn your head to Jay. “Don’t you want to touch them too?” You ask innocently. Faced flushed, he frantically shakes his head, giving you a blatant no.

Laying your head on his shoulder, you bask in his presence, exhausted by the exciting day you had. Turning on his phone to check the time, you notice he’d set his lockscreen to you. “Did you take that while I was petting the sharks?” Embarrassed, he turns away and avoids the question. “HEY, I could take a picture of you alone for my wallpaper but you could??? Why is this so unfair???” you ask. 

“Because…” He says with a sheepish smile on his face. You quickly take out your phone and snap a picture. After a moment of playful fighting and begging to delete the photo on Jay’s end, he ultimately gave up and let you save it as your lock screen as well.

༑ ࿐ྂ。Jake Sim

- Laser tag

Having Jake as a partner, he’d always taken you on more high energy, adrenaline rushing dates, and today was no different. This date, however, he decided to take you to play laser tag, something you had never done before. Entering the lobby, you both decide to be on the same team for the first round, which helped you feel a bit of relief. Choosing a vest to put on, you get very very tangled in it, which causes Jake to laugh a bit but he eventually helps you out.

During your first round, Jake helps you out, staying by your side the entire time and even holding your hand to lead you through the room. It felt really nice, seeing him so protective of you in the moment, but you knew better than to like the thought of it too much, because the next round was going to be a lot different. Unexpectedly, your team lost, which made Jake feel even more competitive and pumped up for the next round.

The next round starts, and surprise!!!!! You and Jake are on opposing teams. It starts off very well actually :D. As soon as you enter the room, your heart starts beating out of your chest and you’re so nervous to be alone. Cautiously maneuvering through the hallways, you scan the premises thoroughly, knowing if Jake ever sees you throughout the game you’d be screwed. Surprisingly enough, you go a bit of time before you hear your vest’s alarm go off, signalling to you that someone has gotten you. You look all around you taking some time before finding Jake crouching on the other side of the wall. You run to the other side of the same wall, and decide to scare him before he could shoot you again. It works out very well, because the next time you see him, he screams and drops to the floor in shock. Taking this chance, you shoot his vest and run away, leaving him no time to get you back.

༑ ࿐ྂ。Park Sunghoon

- Birthday Party

Laying on the floor of your living room with Sunghoon, you lie on your back, trying to cool your body down as much as possible. The hot and humid Korean summers were definitely always fun, but not when you were craving cuddles. Thinking of activities the both of you could do without overheating, you think back to how refreshing all the ice cream was at your friend’s recent birthday party. Although it wasn’t even close to your guys’ birthdays, it gave you a great idea. You shoot up and rush to get dressed, leaving Sunghoon very confused. 

Finished, you come back to the living room. “Sunghoon, get dressed. We’re going to the market.” Without question, he does as you ask and you both head to the market in no time. 

Walking hand in hand down the ice cream aisle, you grab all the flavors you enjoy, filling your whole basket with different ice creams, toppings, fruit, drinks, and even a cake. “You’re quite hungry, aren’t you?” Sunghoon teases, earning him a slap to the arm.

As soon as you get home, you send Sunghoon alone to the bedroom, telling him you need time to prepare everything. You had pulled all the stops, whipping out the cheap snoopy shaved ice maker, birthday party hats, streamers, balloons, and banners. It was no one’s birthday in particular, but the fake birthday party put you in a festive and refreshing mood. You had set up a giant ice cream sundae bar, and had even made lemonade. 

Calling Sunghoon to come out of the bedroom, he was not surprised but very appreciative. He knew you’d pull sh!t like this Wanting to make it even more fun, he suggests to make sundaes for one another, which you happily agree to. The day was so fun, you had forgotten all about the time you had a few hours earlier, suffering in the heat of your apartment. 

Sunghoon on the other hand, was so happy that you planned something like this. He was never one to do anything cute for you unless you asked, begged so this time he wanted to show you how grateful he was to you by giving you one FREE boop on the nose. Scooping some ice cream with his fingertip, he lightly taps your nose, leaving the melted strawberry ice cream to drip off your nose.

༑ ࿐ྂ。Kim Sunoo

- Brunch

Being a foodie yourself, you and Sunoo would always go cafe hopping to try out different desserts and drinks. This Saturday morning in particular, you both decided it was time for a change. This change for the greater good would include brunching for hours like stuck up rich moms and judging everyone in the facility, as you do when you are a brunching mother. Dressing in your finest brunching attire and of course, sunglasses, your waiter leads you to the table and you strut down that walkway like you know the difference between regular and Belgian waffles.

Crossing your legs at the same time and sipping your orange juice, wishing you could have added some champagne. Your orders finally arrive, having ordered the classic avocado toast and eggs benedict. Starting with the avocado toast, as per tradition, you and Sunoo construct the perfect first bite, shove it into your mouths, make eye contact and a disgusted face, even though it was very obvious that you guys thought it was delicious.

“I feel they nailed the seasoning because avocado, egg, and bread are known to be very bland flavors. The poached egg was perfectly runny in the middle, which was so satisfying to me, especially knowing that the chef can actually cook an egg right.” You start off, pretending you were some high status food critic, above Gordon Ramsey almost.

Sunoo takes his spoon and splits apart the poached egg on the eggs benedict. The egg just so happened to be a tad bit overcooked and the yolk didn’t rush out as smoothly as the other one did. You make eye contact with Sunoo, the most disgusted look plastered on your faces. A couple seconds pass by and you burst out laughing, forgetting about the egg yolk and shoving a huge bite straight into your face.

༑ ࿐ྂ。Yang Jungwon

- Zoo

When you first suggested going to the zoo with Jungwon he looked at you with a confused face. He loved spending time with you, but why the zoo? It’s stinky and there are too many children everywhere. Nevertheless, after much convincing, he gave in and went with you. The screams of all the tiny children were giving him a headache, but he kept reminding himself he was here for you. Seeing the alligators first, it was definitely acting up and snapping its mouth very angrily and hissing. Just because he wanted to be nice by coming to the zoo with you, didn’t mean he was going to hold back on his snide remarks. 

“That’s you that one time I accidentally ate your pastry.” He comments. Rolling your eyes and smacking him in the arm, you continue on the path looking at all the animals in awe. The whole time you walked around you bickered back and forth, many “That’s you when/cause”s being thrown around mercilessly. 

The comment that took the cake and left both of you speechless was one made by you. Walking towards the flamingos, everyone knows them for being notoriously stinky. Pinching your nose to go with the comment you were about to say, you chuckle. “It smells like that one time you accidentally farted in your VLive.” you manage to get out with a straight face. I made that up lol

Jungwon stops in his tracks, looking at you like you had just betrayed him. .He stomps his feet on the floor and whines in the middle of the walkway. “Y/nnnnnn you know I’m sensitive about thatttt.” The time you spend with him after you get home consists of him clinging to you, demanding your undivided attention, cuddles and kissies, and for you to blow dry his hair after he showers. 

༑ ࿐ྂ。Nishimura Riki

- eating competition

Watching mukbangs all day and cuddling with Niki definitely got both of you hungry pretty quickly. With Niki being a bit homesick and you wanting to improve your cooking, a great idea pops into your heads. You wanted to cook Japanese food for Niki, hoping to aid his homesickness, and Niki wanted to see how much food he could shove down his face until he explodes. And with that, your whole date had become a food eating competition. 

Setting all the food down on the table, you had done a very good job. Working your ass off to make not only omurice with curry, but also yakisoba and fried chicken, you were very ready to start your whole competition. Portioning it out evenly with a scale beforehand, you and Niki countdown together and start scarfing down food like you’ve never eaten before. With a mouth full of rice, Niki manages to get out a “It’s really good.” Knowing he liked your food made you feel so proud even though you had just shoved a whole piece of fried chicken in your mouth. 

Several minutes, three enhypen members walking past you judgmentally, and 10 napkins later, you and Niki were too stuffed you even have food this close to you. Queue the rest of the enhypen members, they oh so generously gave you their service and finished the food for you guys. Concluding that you and Niki could not in fact eat two family sized meals in one sitting, you lie on the couch about to pass out. 

“That was so fun. We should do that again.” Niki says while groaning from stomach pain. “And thank you for thinking about my homesickness and making me Japanese food. I love you so much.” He adds. Ending the day with complaining about being too full, planning the next competition, and even inviting the other members, you both pass out an hour after you had eaten and were punished with the dishes in the morning for being cringely in love out in the open like that. 

[hargrove-mayfields]

The first summer after the incident at Starcourt, things have finally had enough time to slowly ease back into normalcy.

The day after school lets out, the kids talk Steve into letting them come swim in his pool. It’s only for a couple of hours, and honestly, it does them all some good, the kids getting to pretend things are okay for a while, and Steve getting to soothe that worry that crept in every time he didn’t have an eye on all of them, so despite the guilt they all certainly felt for having fun, they let themselves enjoy it, for a little while at least.

The gimmick of what made summer fun ran out pretty quickly for them though, so once they’d all gotten sunburnt shoulders and had tangles in their hair and wrinkles on their fingers from the chlorinated water, they decided it was time to go home. They weren’t up for the arcade or ice cream after the pool like they used to be either, but they had had just under a year now to decide they were okay with that.

So Steve loads them all up into his new Mercedes-Benz, the replacement for the BMW that became necessary post battle when they discovered his car had been crushed at some point during that night by the Mind Flayer, and took them all home.

Max’s house was the last on his route no matter which way he went, the only member of the party who lived on the outskirts of the wealthy part of town now that the Byers’ had moved, so it’s just the two of them in the car. As they pull up outside though, she hesitates to get out, instead nervously picking at the stitches in the seat, mulling over something in her head.

They aren’t really close, no bond between them beyond babysitter and grumpy teenager not happy to have one, but Steve feels an obligation towards all of these kids, so he shifts in the seat so he’s facing her, and asks her in a way he hoped sounds approachable, “What’s up, Max?”

Max takes another second and a deep breath before speaking, wringing her hands nervously, “Billy’s birthday is in a few days and I don’t think anybody knows that, but I want to do something for him.”

Steve nods, doesn’t really know what he’s supposed to do at first, “Have you talked to your mom about this?”

He asks because word traveled fast in a small town like Hawkins. Everyone and their mother knew that Neil Hargrove had split before they’d even stabilized his son in the hospital, and his wife had stayed with their children, taking full responsibility for Billy and Max. If anyone should be having a party for Billy, it should be Susan.

“Yeah and she liked the idea, but she’s been really busy with work and stuff, double now with Billy’s medical bills, and I know a lot of the other parents are too and some of them I just don’t know well enough to ask, and I don’t know who else to turn to because normally I’d take this stuff to Billy and I can’t do it by myself.” Max rambles all in one breath, has clearly been thinking about this for a long time.

Steve obviously wants to encourage that, so he asks, “What did you wanna do for him?”

“I just wanted to have a party for him at the hospital, but I know that’s kinda dumb since nobody goes to see him anyways.” Max mumbles, wrapping her fingers around the door handle like she’s going to get out, “I don’t know, it’s stupid.”

“No it’s not. What day is it, his birthday?”

“The sixth. I know that’s kinda short notice but-“ Max starts again, but Steve interrupts, a small smile on his face as if to prove he’s genuine, “No, it’s fine. We’ll figure something out. We’re not going to let Billy be alone on his birthday.”

It doesn’t seem to have the effect Steve wanted though, because Max scoffs and pushes the car door open, snapping before she gets out, “You do every other day.”

Even though Max had been so short with him at first, after that, she and Steve work on a plan at the end of every day when he was driving her back home, Max slowly evolving from tense about even bringing it up to actually excited for this thing they were working on together for her brother.

Steve doesn’t really have the time or the know-how for home made anything, but he buys everything you typically would find at an under twenty one birthday party, balloons and streamers, a chocolate cake, per Max’s request, and a tub of Superman ice cream, also a suggestion from Max.

He doesn’t buy Billy a present, he figures he doesn’t have use for much for anything material in the hospital, and although he’s willing to help, he feels he still doesn’t really know Billy like that anymore.

Or maybe he does, he just doesn’t know if the friendship they had been reluctantly developing would withstand the strain the accident at Starcourt had put on it, and didn’t feel it was very appropriate just to show up with an expensive knick knack that would just rub his wealth in Billy’s face.

Instead, he gets him a card, because who doesn’t want a birthday card, and leaves a hundred dollars and a heartfelt note in it. The money is because he has it and Billy needs it more than he does, and a hundred dollars was standard for milestone birthdays, in his family at least, and since Billy was lucky to see his nineteenth come around, he figures this counted.

So on the sixth of June, they’re ready to celebrate Billy.

Steve drives the kids all to the hospital that day, surprised that even without El around right now to convince them to, they were all willing to come. He guesses they’d all seen how torn up Max was when Billy was admitted to the hospital, and now that eleven months later he still hadn’t got out, it was bound to be hard on her.

It wasn’t a surprise anymore, Max had let it slip to Billy a few days beforehand in her excitement, so they just went straight up to his room, each kid and Steve carrying something, decorations or food or presents.

At first, Billy doesn’t really seem to thrilled to see them, but Steve supposed he wouldn’t be either, it couldn’t be any fun aging in the hospital, especially surrounded by nobody but your little sisters friends.

But they still set it all up for him, tying balloons to his bed and hanging streamers above the door. Max sits with him and keeps him entertained with stories, but what makes his mood significantly improve is when a nurse interrupted them to give him another dose of his pain meds.

Once they’re all set up, it’s Lucas who points out, “We forgot the candles for the cake.”

And it’s Max who, without really thinking about it, reminds him, “We probably have some with all the decorations and stuff we bought.”

It’s Dustin who looks and finds a pack of candles that someone indeed had brought, and calls out, “Found some.”

But it’s Steve who is seemingly the only one able to remember that the birthday boy was still on oxygen after a lung transplant and didn’t think he needed to be blowing out any candles, reminding Dustin very pointedly, “Actually, Dustin, I don’t think we need any candles.

Of course he argues, because kids do, “C'mon Steve, it's a birthday cake. All birthday cakes have candles.”

“Yeah, but I said I don’t think this one needs any.” Steve says, through his teeth this time, nodding subtly towards Billy, and Dustin's eyes widen a little, and the candles get put back without another word about it.

Instead, Steve gives Billy the zippo from his pocket, flipping it open for him so a tiny flame dances in front of his face, “Make a wish, Hargrove.”

Billy takes the lighter, a little apprehensively, but he stays quiet, looking up at Steve as he presumably makes his wish to himself, then clicks it shut, extinguishing the flame.

Ever impatient, the kids decide that’s their cue to cut into the cake without really asking anybody, but Steve doesn’t stop them, because as Billy reminds Max when she sits down on his bedside with a piece, “I can’t really eat that right now, kiddo, but thank you.”

She blows him off, teasingly uncaring in that sibling way, “Oh, I know, that’s why I picked chocolate cake, ‘cause I know you don’t like it. I just wanted you to have one, so it felt like a real birthday.”

Billy smiles wide, holds his arms out the best he can anymore for a hug, “Aww, come ‘ere, shitbird.”

Max spends the rest of their little impromptu party at his bedside, talking to her friends but sitting with her brother, the both of them chasing that sense of normalcy that everyone else had been able to move on and achieve, but they had no chance at grasping so long as they were apart.

That is at least, until to keep himself busy while the kids argue about something, Billy reads his card from Steve, that long written out note that detailed all his feelings and regrets and thoughts about Billy that he had been grappling with since Billy was hospitalized, sorrys and thank yous and happy birthday, everything crammed into that card but the part about how Steve had been falling in love with Billy since they met in ‘84.

It makes Steve nervous, twitchy and vulnerable with Billy reads it, until he gently closes the card and looks up at Steve, eyes wide and a little teary.

The first thing he says is an unrelated question, ruffling his little sisters hair and asking her, “Maxi, can you go down to the vending machine at the end of the hall and grab me some stuff? I’m running out of candy to hide in the bedside drawer.”

Max nods and slides down from his bed, and Billy adds, “Take all your friends too. See if they want anything.”

He waits until all the kids are gone, their voices echoing distantly down the long hallway, to ask Steve, “D’you do all this for me, Harrington?”

Steve shrugs, not sure if he’s more humble or nervous about why Billy wanted to talk to him alone, “It was Max’s idea.”

“But you still organized it, right?”

“I guess. I don’t want a thank you or anything though.” Steve insists, but Billy smiles, a bright one like Steve hardly ever saw anymore, and insists right back “Too bad, you’re getting one. Thank you.”

Steve just shrugs again, “It’s your birthday, Hargrove. I wasn’t going to let you be forgotten.”

“I would’ve been okay, Steve. Birthdays were just… never really a thing in my family anyways.”

Steve can tell they were going to go back and forth all day, arguing over whether or not he should be celebrated, and if he needed someone by his side, if he doesnt change the subject, so he asks him, “What’d you wish for?”

“Can’t tell you that or it won’t come true.” Billy hums, thoughtful, and he says, sounding like his sister, “And it’s sort of dumb anyways.”

“Hey, I’m sure it’s not dumb. If it’s something you want, it can’t be.”

Billy looks up at him, a little smile on his face, and explains, “I don’t know it’s just, I’m going to be sick for the rest of my life, I’m stuck in the hospital for another month at least and my dad disowned me, but, my wish still wasn’t for any of that to change.”

“What was it then?”

Billy takes a deep breath, a noticeable flush to his face, “I wished that I would have the guts to finally do this.”

For a second Steve wonders what he’s talking about, worries briefly that he was going to use the distraction and the relaxed attention from the nurses on his birthday to make grand escape from the hospital or something, until Billy leans up and kisses him.

It’s chaste and it’s sweet, everything that he’d expect from anybody that wasn’t Billy Hargrove, and everything that Steve could ever have wanted. He sits down on the bed beside Billy to make the angle easier on the both of them, not breaking the kiss for even a second, bringing his hand up to cup Billy's cheek, and deepening the kiss.

They’re interrupted by the squeaking of tennis shoes on the waxy hospital floors in the hallway, the kids coming back already, so Steve pulls away, just as flushed as Billy was now and keeping one of his hands resting on top of Billy’s, “Happy birthday, Billy.”