#also first one. sergio likes to be Held but he will also say nothing and god forbid you point anything out

[sunset-bridge]

i wanna rest in your light

[wundurrae]

@rattatoinger

saw someone do something similar and got motivated lol

I present to you…Albert rates F1!!! ( but they know nothing )

(parentheses is my input)

Oscar Piastri: He’s so me! He kind of looks like a side character in a Disney movie, he looks like the best friend of a Disney original movie whose there for like the first 10 minutes of the movie and then you never see him again. He’s silly.

Lando Norris: He has very strange unexplainable vibes. If he was next to me on a bus I’d scoot away. If he was my Uber driver I would play those “play this if you feel unsafe” audios. He also looks like he’s gonna have a mental breakdown. One curly fry in his normal fries away from ending it all. Probably be really good at the uncanny valley trend ( for some reason ).

George Russell: He looks like a middle school boy. Like an elementary school boy. He looks like when you open Facebook and there’s just a random kid. Looks like he’s the little brother of someone at a pta meeting. He made everyone play airplanes with him at recess. Looks like he’d help an old lady across the street but the wrong way.

Lewis Hamilton: Looks like a Dhar Mann actor. Would go on strike. “So you see…” If you stared at him for too long his eye would start twitching. Would flip if you ask him if he’s okay after that. Would be bandit in that one obstacle course bluey episode where he cheats and throws bluey to win.

Charles Leclerc: If he sneezed too hard his hair would jump off and crawl away. A creature. Polite, but a creature nonetheless. Really nice and great but if he stubbed his toe he’d start speaking in tongues. ( When showed a picture of a younger Charles ): he looks like that kid who cried cause his cat was gonna get sold.

Carlos Sainz: gives off the vibe of the guy who green screens himself onto the TikTok thirst traps. If I was in a coffee shop and he was behind me in line I’d get out of line to get away from him.

Max Verstappen: If there was a Minecraft movie he’d play Steve. Really square ( not sure if that’s a compliment ). Would give up his bus seat to a pregnant mother. Delightful. Would be scared of snap bracelets.

Sergio Perez: ( There was silence for a good minute ). Looks like the male version of “A single mom who works two jobs, who loves her kids and never stops.” Tucks phantom hair behind his ear and bats his eyelashes.

Logan Sergeant: Looks like Preston plays. Looks like he gets called a meow meow on tumblr. Would insist on watching horror movies but then scream and hide behind the couch when anything remotely scary happens. If he smiled really wide all of his molars would be gold teeth.

Alex Albon: He looks like if Mikey from tmnt was a person. Would partake in the trend where people do the spin and their boyfriends run in and grab them. Would have eaten glue as a kid. Gives off square marble vibes. Spoon in the fork drawer. Would also give up his seat to a pregnant mother.

Fernando Alonso: He has the human eyes that dogs have. Wouldn’t scoot away, I would just get nervous everytime he moves. At least once in his life has held out a hat for a penny.

Lance Stroll: Looks like he posts TikTok thirst traps but all the comments are making fun of him. Would turn around and say “so erm…that just happened.” Give the waiter a stink eye if they took too long to get his water. The villain in the Dhar Mann universe. Would be given a shitty redemption arc that doesn’t redeem him.

Esteban Ocon: ( Would have said toxic masculinity but saw the photo of him with the face mask things on ). Looks like he glued his hair back on. Looks like nat the rat from Barbie island princess. Why does he have an eagle? Looks like he was born in 2017 and never left. Also gives off “erm…so that just happened.”

Pierre Gasly: Is he ugly on purpose?

Yuki Tsunoda: I like him! Looks like he’d be mischaracterized by an entire fandom. Would be called “a little bean” and never be able to escape it. Guides an old lady across the street but the right way. Tried an ouija board and got cursed. Would say he’s a pro gamer but only plays fortnite and is kinda bad.

Daniel Ricciardo: Coquette. Looks like he sings the song that goes “Baby lock them doors and turns them lights down low.” Gives off the vibes of the “ROOTBEER” guy. ( when shown one specific picture ) LOOKS LIKE THE THUMB PEOPLE FROM SPY KIDS.

Nico Hulkenberg: Looks like a street interviewer. “Reminds me of Johnny Bravo as well” If Johnny Test was raised in a normal family with good values. Looks like a very distant cousin twice removed of Gordon Ramsey. Unironically listens to Ed Sheeran and plays it REALLY loud. You’d catch him humming “Shape of You” Looks like he’d go to a library solely for picture books. The uncle that only shows up to weddings and gets absolutely wasted. He probably ate his twin in the womb.

Kevin Magnussen: Thought his name was Kevin Magnussy. Is always in pain, even just a little bit. Turned 9 and went “augh my knees…” Eats garnishes off dishes ( forced to specify: grabs them full force with closed fist, gripping it, shoves it into his mouth and then goes back to normal ). If you tried to tell him about your interests he’d go “haha yeah” and walk away. Looks like he’d say “Don’t kill yourself…You’re so sexy haha”

Zhou Guanyu: ( When learning about his cat ) Sweetcorn? That’s cute! Would hear about controversial topics but does not research. He definitely posts fake paparazzi videos. Reminds me of the baby in the sardines commercial in cloudy with a chance of meatballs.

Valterri Bottas: Looks like Bertram. Drinks the ink out of pens ( force to specify: would drink the ink out of pens, you’d come back and ask him where it went, deny involvement but all of the ink would pour out of his mouth ). Looks like he purposefully goes into target and scratches the bottoms of Stanley cups off to give everyone lead poisoning.

[f1]

Spanish Grand Prix: Max Verstappen thinks Red Bull could win every race this season

Max Verstappen celebrated his 39th career victory with Red Bull at the Monaco Grand Prix last weekend Max Verstappen says it "looks like" Red Bull could win every race this season but insists that it is "very unlikely to happen". Red Bull have won all six races so far in 2023, with four for Verstappen, and look set to dominate this year. Verstappen said: "How it looks at the moment, I think we can. But there are always thing that go wrong. "We will always have tracks where it doesn't work out exactly, bad luck in qualifying, mistakes, whatever." Mercedes driver George Russell, who said at the beginning of the year that Red Bull could win every race, said: "On pure pace, they have the potential, but I'd like to think we can fight at some point and take advantage of some misfortune." A number of teams are bringing car updates to this weekend's Spanish Grand Prix that they hope will improve the performance of their cars. Red Bull are among them, but Aston Martin, second in the championship, also have a car development, as do Ferrari, while Mercedes are continuing with the major redesign they introduced in Monaco last weekend. Russell said he believed Mercedes would have one of their stronger weekends so far this season in Barcelona, partly because it was their best race of a very difficult start to last season. "We are not going to judge anything just on this weekend," Russell said. "Last year, we had a really competitive weekend in Barcelona. I was on the podium and Lewis [Hamilton] was really strong in the race after a puncture, and we came away thinking all our problems are solved. And we got to the following couple of races and learned that wasn't the case. "I am sure we will have a slightly more competitive weekend see in Barcelona but that doesn't mean we are definitely back." Russell said that the run of temporary tracks at the start of the year - five of the first six races have been held on street circuits of one kind or another - had made it "a really challenging start of the season". Barcelona marks the start of a run dominated by more conventional tracks, excluding the street circuit in Canada in two weeks' time, that he said would give "a better picture of where the car truly is and the order will be in a bit more of a settled position". Ferrari's Carlos Sainz said it would take some time before any team was in a position to challenge Red Bull, so strong is their car. The Spaniard said Ferrari's upgrade was "a new direction into what we think will be the right path into making the car more drivable and more consistent in the race". He added: "We have been struggling but with this first step into this direction we try to correct the [deficiencies] we have. But is the first step of many steps to come. It is not going to change our life overnight." Verstappen said the best way to ensure the field closes up would be to leave the technical regulations the same for as long as possible. "If you keep on tweaking things," Verstappen said, "some team will always find something and then it takes a bit of time for everyone to catch up." He added that dominance was a natural state for F1. "We have always seen this in F1, it is nothing new,' Verstappen said. "The longer you leave the regs the same, the closer people will get. Maybe this is something we need to look at. "You have the odd year for two where maybe two teams are fighting but overall from the 1980s, through the 1990s to now it is has been pure dominance of a certain team." Verstappen heads into this weekend's race with a 39-point lead over team-mate Sergio Perez, whose failure to score points after a difficult weekend in Monaco has allowed Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso, who finished second to Verstappen for his fifth podium in six races, to close to just 12 points behind the Mexican. via BBC Sport - Formula 1 http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/

[nataliesnews]

A dream and nothing good 10.9.2023

I had a rather weird thing happen to me some nights ago. I usually leave Audible on so that the story can send me to sleep. It sent me back to look for this old picture of my first year in Israel when I was on Beit Hashita. I woke up thinking of Sergio, whom I had been dreaming of. I had not thought of him in years. He  had been my boyfriend then at the ulpan.. He is the one with the sombrero and, I think, was from Mexico. I could not think why I should suddenly, after all these years, have dreamed of him. Then, as often happens, I had to go back to the story and listen to the part which I had not heard as   I had fallen asleep while listening. And there suddenly the name Sergio came up in the story. I wonder if one could learn a new language during one's sleep. 

I wonder how a parent whose son or daughter is about to go into the army feels about the following: 

Tel Aviv school board summoned the principal  over rally where 200 students said they won’t enlist

Education Ministry reportedly says it'll weigh revoking high school's license, funding; board barred event from being held, but organizers went ahead anyway

 What about the 1000s of ultra orthodox who are going to be set free by law and will be given the same stipends if not more than the secular youth who will have to endanger themselves in protecting these parasites. And the rest of us will go on working for them and,  if not working, will see part of our pensions going to them. Their rabbis are not called in to be questioned.

Yesterday at Sheikh Jarrah the police were much engaged in charging into the demonstrators so as to grab the Palestinian flag and beat up those holding it. I remind you that there is no law against it. This is the post by the demonstrator who was arrested. You can see the policeman showing how well he has learned from the murderers in America. Also how he has to be pulled off his prey

"Thanks to policeman Idan Luzon who knocked me down, pinned me to the floor with a knee on my chest and beat me, while two people who claimed to be policemen arrested Eran (right). They did not identify themselves. We demanded that they identify themselves and told them that until they show a policeman's ID, they are not policemen for us. The punishment for our insolence is beatings and arrest. Policeman Luzon had to be taken off me by force, in the picture you can see his station commander taking him off me. Shabbat Shalom to everyone except the Israel Police (Photo: Tzipi Menashe) " Printed on facebook.

This is a sign at one of the settlements.   "WARNING.   This road leads to the settlement of Bat Ayan.It is under Jewish control. It is dangerous to their lives to enter. Sorry Muhammad."

In other words like in Germany ....no dogs and Jews allowed.

The signs underneath were held by people at the demonstration in support of the new laws. They claim that Yigal Amir was right. Kahana was right. Amiram ben Oriel was right. Baruch Goldstein was right.

 They were all murderers. The people holding the signs are accomplices to murder.

I am sure you know who Amir was.

.

Ben oriel:   The Duma village arson attack refers to the firebombing of a Palestinian family home[1] in late July 2015 in the village of Duma, which resulted in the death of three people; 18-month-old Ali Dawabsheh was burned alive in the fire, while both his parents died from their injuries within weeks. One child escaped. An orphan.

Baruch Kopel Goldstein (Hebrew: ברוך קופל גולדשטיין; born Benjamin Carl Goldstein;[2] December 9, 1956 – February 25, 1994) was an Israeli-American mass murderer, religious extremist, and physician who perpetrated the 1994 terrorist attack on a mosque attended by Palestinians, known as the Cave of the Patriarchs massacre in Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.[3][4][5] Goldstein was a supporter of the Kach, a religious Zionist party that the United States, the European Union and other countries designate as a terrorist organization

Kach is Kahana   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meir_Kahane#Election_to_Knesset

And where women are concerned...Also female soldiers were ordered not to sing in the kitchen as it was bothering religious soldiers. And this

-In latest case of alleged harassment, woman says bus driver told her ‘You’re naked’

22-year-old says Dan driver repeated his comments twice when she boarded with a sleeveless shirt; company says it's investigating complaint

And to show you in what direction Israel is going ......yesterday one of our women was arrested and handcuffed in Tel Aviv for photographing accomplices to the police....she was fingerprinted and kept for hours until eventually released. Now she has been accused of attacking one of the policemen.

And a man arrested on  Saturday morning for putting up placards.

Not a good beginning to the week and worse will follow.

[libraryofloveletters]

Grey Sky Silhouette

Spencer Reid x Reader 

Warnings: Post-prison Spencer (some of y’all don't like it), brief mention of murder, some kisses

Category: Angst/ lil bit of fluff at the end

Word Count: 2.7k

Author’s Note: I saw this picture and idk inspiration struck so here we are

italics are flashbacks 

-----

Grey clouds blocked out the sun, the curtains in the bedroom pulled shut. Rolling to his side of the bed, there was an empty spot, a spot where he should be. 

The sun was gone and so was your sunshine, your sweet love, your best friend, someone you hadn’t seen in months simply because he didn’t want to see you. 

You weren't ready to face the fact that you could have lost him over something he didn't do. Guilt hit you and you pushed the feeling away, you were ready to see him but he wasn't ready to see you. 

“Who are you here to see ?” 

“Spencer Reid” 

The officer took your ID and scanned the list for your name. “Sorry, you’re not on here” 

“What ?” you had heard him but you were still confused. “What do you mean I‘m not there ? I'm his partner” 

“Sometimes the inmates take people off their list” 

The officer looked behind you at the forming line. “Please move, figure this out somewhere else. There are people waiting” 

Looking over your shoulder, there were a few people behind you. An older couple, a woman and a small child, and a man at the end of the line. You stepped away from the counter, fishing your phone out of your pocket. 

Waiting for the phone to ring, her voice filled your ear. “Hello ?” she answered, “JJ?” she knew something was off from the way you called out to her. 

“Are you there?” she asked softly. 

“Why aren’t I on the list ?” 

“He doesn't want to see you” 

“I don't care. I deserve to see him.” 

JJ sighed, there were a few moments of silence before she spoke up again. “I’ll talk to him when I go tomorrow. I promise” she reassured you. “Thanks” was all you mumbled before hanging up the phone. 

The floor was cold, all the warmth seemed to leave the apartment with him. It was constantly dark and cold, nothing you did changed that. The frame on the nightstand caught your eyes, a picture of the two of you in the hospital after one of his multiple work injuries. He sat on the hospital bed and you were standing beside him. His head rested on your side with your arm over his shoulder. 

The frame strung a nerve clearly, it’s just that you didn't notice until you felt the tear roll down your face. Flipping the frame downwards so you couldn't see the picture, you went ahead with your routine. 

Get up, sulk, get ready, work, come home to an empty apartment. 

Over and over and over again. 

Your heart hurt every time you thought of Spencer, you couldn't help it. It hurt that he didn’t want to see you even though you wanted to see him. You just had to move on, move on from the pain but not from him. 

You could never move on from him. 

The phone rang, Penelope’s name flashed across the screen. She had been checking up on you a lot more after she heard about the list fiasco, they all had. 

“Hi Penelope” you cleared your throat, you could feel her happiness through the phone. “My angel y/n! how are you today ?” she asked sweetly, you couldn't help but smile. “I’m okay for now, how are you ?” 

“I’m good! I have to go right now but I'll come by for dinner tonight!” Something felt off to you. It wasn't abnormal for Penelope to stop by or even spend the night with you but she seemed cheery, unusually cheery today. 

“Sounds like a plan, is everything okay ?” 

“Oh yeah, I'm fine sugar” it sounded like something clicked on her end or unlocked. “I have to go, I love you!” she said before hanging up. The sound of an automated voice came from her end, announcing something you didn’t catch before she hung up. 

“I love you” the words rung in your head, except it wasn’t Penelope’s voice you were hearing, it was Spencer’s. 

The sand squished under your feet as you walked down the shoreline with Spencer. His face had a scowl on it as he looked down at your feet. “What’s wrong Spence ?” you asked him, noticing the expression on his face. 

“Does that not bother you ?” he questioned, his eyes still on your sand-covered feet.

“The sand ?” you asked, he nodded. 

“Did you know that sand is usually made of silica?” he looked over at you,

“I didn't, do tell me more doctor” you smiled at the man. 

“It's actually silicon dioxide, which is a compound that makes up most of the earth's crust. It also makes up mineral quartz and has many uses like making ceramics, concrete and countertops” his eyes shifted back down at the sand, kicking some with his shoe

“I love your facts Dr. Reid” 

“And I love you” he blurted out. 

Your mouth opened slightly, letting out a small “oh” 

“I didn-” “I love you too Spencer” 

The same feeling of hurt returned. He filled your thoughts 24/7, his voice, his face, his smile, his hands, everything made you think about him. You pushed the feelings away once again and got ready for work. Dragging yourself to the kitchen, his mug sat on the counter, right where he left it three months ago. Of course you had dumped the stale coffee and washed it, but you returned it to that exact spot. You cleaned and returned it to that spot. 

That was the last thing he left laying around before he got arrested. You couldn't bring yourself to move it. 

Sighing, the kitchen was empty, there was nothing to eat. Giving up on your sad apartment, you headed out for the day.

-- 

Penelope stood in front of the green barred door, her heel tapped against the concrete as she waited for them. Only two of them were allowed in and although she worked for the FBI, she didn't have clearance like Luke and JJ did. 

The officer pulled the door open and Spencer walked through, JJ and Luke not far behind him. Penelope's arms opened and he made his way over to her, pulling her into a long awaited hug. 

“I missed you so much” she whispered to him, her arms wrapped around her friend. “I missed you too” he held her for a few moments longer before letting go. 

The four of them headed to the SUV, Penelope filling Spencer in on everything he missed the last three months. “Sergio is good, he’s at my apartment right now.” she told him while showing him pictures. 

Spencer smiled at her, he appreciated everything they had done for him while he was in there, but his mind kept drifting back to the one person he had yet to see. 

“They came to see you Spence” JJ said to him, there was a feeling of tightness in his stomach. 

“I don't- I can’t let them see me like this” Spencer’s head hung low, he couldn't look at JJ. He knew what she was going to say but he couldn't bear to hear it. 

“Why?” she asked, “y/n called and said that their name wasn’t on the list. Why’d you take it off?” 

Spencer looked up at her. They both knew why he had taken your name off, he never wanted you to see him like this. He could barely bring himself to say your name right now. 

He met you after a low point in his life, you were his saving grace. Letting you see him like this was the last thing he ever wanted. As he went to answer JJ, the alarm went off. JJ promised to be back the next day to talk to him. 

Spencer looked over the window as Luke drove down the road. Penelope’s touch brought him back from his thoughts. “They’re okay. I spoke to y/n this morning” 

“Do they know ?” Spencer asked her, his eyes still fixated on the road. Penelope shook her head. “They should be at work right now. Do you want to go home or go back to the BAU?” 

“Home” Spencer whispered. 

The word felt foreign. Home was somewhere he dreamt of while he was in prison, never did he think he'd be able to see his home again, to see you again. The drive was quiet, the song of the rain hitting the vehicle was all he heard. 

Spencer stood outside the apartment building, Penelope stood beside him. She pulled out a bunch of keys from her purse and handed them to him, “do you want me to come up with you ?” Spencer shook his head. “Thank you” he hugged her once more, he walked towards the door looking back at his friends once more before heading inside. 

The walk up was quiet, it was the middle of the day. He bumped into his neighbour who was about to take his dog out on a walk. He asked Spencer where he had been the last few months, Spencer just told him he was away on a work assignment. 

The lock clicked and he pushed the door open. The scent of your perfume and coffee filled his senses. That was a smell he’d never get tired of. He looked around, taking in the space. Although it was his place, he had gotten used to a 6x6 cell and this would take some readjustment. He slipped off his shoes and walked across the floor, his feet padded across the hardwood floor rather than the sound of clicking on concrete he had gotten used too. 

Spencer’s head peered into the kitchen, there was a pot of coffee on the counter. His hand pressed against the side of the pot, it was cold but he didn’t mind. He opened the cupboard to look for his mug but it wasn't there, he looked down to see it on the counter, the sight of the mug brought a smile to his face. 

“Do you have to go ?” you asked him, your knees curled up to your chest as you sat on the chair by the table. 

“Yes I do, you know I do” Spencer smiled at you, taking a sip of his coffee. 

“What am I going to do while you’re gone? maybe I'll adopt a puppy to keep me company” you tease him, he rolled his eyes. 

This was the first time since you had moved in that Spencer was leaving you at home by yourself for a case. “Read a book my darling, but no puppies in here” he set his mug down on the counter before making his way over to you.

He leaned down slightly, his hands cupping your face. Smiling up at him, Spencer leaned down and placed a small kiss against your lips. Your hands reached up his face, holding him close to you as he began to step away. 

“Mhm no” you mumbled against his lips, getting up as he moved back from the chair. The two of you were still holding each other and you were still kissing but you didn’t want to let go. 

“It’s only 3 days” he mumbled, his lips on yours still. 

“Spencer” you whined, he moved back towards the door and you followed him. Your arms rested over his shoulder and his hands were on your waist. “I love you” he kissed you once more, 

“I love you too” 

Returning to the living room with the mug in his hand, he made his way over to the window. He pulled the curtains open in an attempt to let some light in but was met with grey, cloudy skies instead. Spencer never minded the clouds, he wasn't a big fan of the sun nor the cold, but the rain was perfect. This was his favourite type of weather, it was not cold out but it wasn't hot either, there was a warm breeze out. Everything came to a stand still when it was like this. 

-- 

The grocery bags dragged up the stairs as you fumbled through your pocket for the keys. The sound of the record player coming from the apartment, you stopped in front of the door. Taking a moment to assess your options before opening the door. 

Best case, you had turned it on this morning and forgot to take the pin off the vinyl. Worst case, someone broke into the apartment and is waiting to kill you. 

What did you have to lose ?

The lock clicked as you turned the key, you pushed the door open and pulled the bags in with you. All the lights were off, the record player had a vinyl on it and there was a person standing by the window. The person had their back to you, they looked like a silhouette in the dull light coming from the window. 

Stepping further into the apartment, you could see the person a bit better. They wore a white shirt and grey slacks. They had a head full of brown curls, the same brown curls your love has. 

But, it couldn't be him. Could it ?

“Spencer ?” you called out, a few feet away from the person by the window. They turned towards you. 

“Spencer.” you let a breath of relief, Spencer smiled at you. “Miss me ?” he asked, you shook your head. “Always.” you smiled, Spencer gave you a small smile. He picked up the bags you left by the door and walked to the kitchen, you followed him. He began putting away the groceries, “I got it” you took the cereal box from him, “it’s okay. Can I please ?” he looked at you, you handed the box back to him. 

You watched as he put them away. “I’m gonna change, I'll be back” you let him in the kitchen and headed to the bedroom. The frame was faced down, you lifted it and put it back in its place. You changed and headed back, you needed to talk to him. 

“Spence?” you sat on the couch, he made his way over and sat beside you. “Can we talk ?” you asked, he nodded. “We can do whatever you want” he said, you sighed. 

“Why didn’t you let me come see you ? I know it was hard at first but Spencer, seriously ? I love you, I wanted to be- I should have been there for you.” You let out your feelings, you both knew this conversation was coming. It didn't matter if he got out yesterday or 20 years from now, it was going to happen. 

“I couldn’t let you see me like that y/n.”

“Like what?” 

“Rock bottom. You never need to see me like that, you understand ?” Spencer reached out and rested his hands on yours, you held his. 

“Spencer, that’s why I'm here, to help you. Rock bottom or not, I’m always gonna be here because I want to be, you understand ?” putting the emphasis on the last two words. Spencer just nodded. 

Spencer leaned into the side of the couch, you could see the sleepiness on his face. You opened your arms, he leaned forward and made himself comfortable on you. He sat between your legs, his head resting on your chest, his back against you. Spencer let out a hum as you ran your fingers through his hair. 

“I’m sorry” he mumbled. 

You leaned down and pressed a kiss on his forehead. “It's okay baby. You're home and that’s all that matters.”

---- 

Tag List: @spencer-blake-supremacy​ @mac99martin @aaron-hotchner187 @tclaerh @luke-alvez @iconicc​ @lieberhers​ @pumpkin-reads​ @katexrichardson​ @sluttytears​ @thelukealvez​ @scandinavian-punk​ @rosesonmyheart​ @haleymalaffey​ @shotarosleftpinky​ @mrs-dr-reid​ @hqtchner​ @averyhotchner​ @willlemonheadsupremacy​ @potter-reid​ @cloudy-reid​

[writingmyanxietyaway]

Heaven Above | El Professor

Requested by anon:  heyy prompts 40 , 65 , 66 for El Professor?with so so much angst -even death of reader- if you write kind of things ofc) thx already

Word count: 1,3k

Warning: angst, death, swearing

Note: not my gif! Also, the reader doesn’t know that Sergio is planning the heist! This takes place before/during the first heist :) It’s a little shorter than I’d hoped, but I hope you like it nonetheless. Enjoy! x

#40 - ‘I wish I’d never met you.’ ‘No.. you don’t mean that.’

#65 - ‘I might never get another chance to say this.’

#66 - ‘Do you regret it?’

------------

‘Do you regret it?’ you asked softly. You were fiddling with your fingers while you sat next to Sergio on the bed. Your bottom lip was trembling and your eyes prickled with tears.

‘I-’ he sighed, ‘I don’t know.’ He was nervous, you could tell. You and Sergio had been lifelong friends. Your mothers grew up together and got pregnant around the same time. He was a year older than you, but you nearly did everything together. You went to the same school, worked at the same place, lived in the same street. But deep down you had feelings for each other and that resulted in you two sleeping together last night.

‘What don’t you know? Us being clearly more than friends or sleeping with me was a mistake?’ you asked. Your heart clenched at your own words and you hoped with all your heart Sergio was just a little confused. 

‘No, it’s not that. But... This- This messes everything up. We were supposed to stay friends, nothing more than that!’ he said louder, standing up and throwing his hands in the air.

‘Sergio, please calm down. We made this decision together. I didn’t force you into anything, did I?’ you asked him, the realisation of him not wanting to be with you hitting you hard in the stomach.

‘You didn’t, but this makes it so complicated! This was not part of the plan Y/N, not part of the plan.’ He kept pacing back and forth, mumbling to himself and re-adjusting his glasses.

‘Sergio, look at me,’ you pleaded, taking his face in your hands. That only seemed to trigger his senses more as he pushed you away.

‘Everything is turning to shit, Y/N! I can’t think straight anymore. All I can think about is you and that messes with my head. God, you ruined everything! I wish I’d never met you!’ he yelled. You let out a loud sob. The man you’ve loved all your life confessed his love for you and offended you more than you ever though he would in the same sentence. When the words left his lips, his heart dropped in his stomach, immediately regretting what he said.

‘No, you don’t mean that.’ Your voice betrayed you as it cracked and quivered. Tears fell down your cheeks, showing Sergio just how much he hurt you.

‘Look me in the eye and tell me last night didn’t mean anything. Tell me you didn’t wait your whole life for that moment. Tell me you don’t love me. I dare you.’ The sadness in your voice now turning into anger as you took a step towards him. ‘Tell me, Sergio.’

The man looked at you with hurt, fear and sadness in his eyes, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak up and say any of those things. It simply wasn’t true and he couldn’t lie to you. Hearing the hurt in your voice pulled his heart strings. Tears filled his eyes and he could see the defeat in yours. Your shoulders slumped and you bowed your head.

‘I guess that was your answer. I don’t know what I messed up or ruined by loving you the way I do, but I’m sorry. I really am. I hope someday you can forgive me for all I’ve done. Goodbye, Sergio,’ you spoke, soflty smiling at him one more time before turning around and leaving.

-

That night stayed with you forever. You hadn’t seen or spoken to Sergio in three months and it hurt you every day. You went from seeing each other every day to not even texting. So you had spent the last few weeks sitting on the couch or in your bed. It wasn’t healthy and you knew that, so you decided to go out and get some groceries. You changed into some nicer clothes, put on a little bit of make-up and left your apartment. After exploring the market for a while, you found everything you needed so you returned home after taking a little walk in the park. Once you returned home, you saw the front door was open. The lock had been ruined. People broke in. Your heartbeat picked up and you felt yourself shaking. You decided to call the police, but as soon as you picked up your phone, you felt two arms wrap around you. You shrieked and tried to move, but a cloth was held in front of your nose. Holding your breath, you tried to stay awake as long as possible, but you soon enough slipped away into darkness.

‘I have to give it to you Professor, you have good taste,’ you heard someone loudly speak next to you. You slowly felt yourself awaken. You lifted your head and tried to move your hands, but couldn’t. Panic set in and you tried to pull yourself out of the ropes.

‘Ah, nice of you to join the party, darling,’ you twisted your head and saw a man in his fourtees looking down on you.

‘Wh-who are you? Where am I?’ you asked. A big screen was stood in front of you and a camera was pointed at your face.

‘You, my darling, are here because your friend doesn’t listen to our rules. See, all he has to do is let al the hostages go and you can go. But he’s a little stubborn, so he needs some help,’ he said, getting closer to you. You tried to inch away, but he grabbed you by your hair, shoving a gun to your jaw. You screamed and tears fell down your cheeks.

‘Hostages? What? Please let me go. I have no idea who you’re talking about,’ you pleaded.

‘Care to explain it yourself, Professor?’ the man asked and the tv was turned on. A very nervous Sergio appeared on the screen and your breath hitched.

‘I-I can explain, Y/N,’ he stuttered, ‘I did something big a-and bad and a lot of people are involved, but they’re not in danger. I promise.’

‘What the hell in going on? They’re not in danger? Then what the fuck am I doing here?’ you yelled at him and you could see him flinch.

‘I’m part of a robbery,’ your jaw dropped to the floor, ‘that was the plan I told you about. The one you, uh, ruined.’ He winced at his own words.

‘I don’t care what you’re doing, but you best let them go Sergio,’ your voice trembled as you finally admitted to yourself you would probably not make it out of here alive.

‘I- I can’t, Y/N. It’s part of the plan and if I lose them, the whole plan is ruined. I have to stick to it.’ You could tell he started to lose control and once he did, there was no coming back.

‘Sergio, listen to me. I have no idea where I am, got kidnapped at broad daylight and now I’m sitting here with my hands tied and a gun pointed at my head. Are those hostages really worth more than me? Think about how long we’ve known each other,’ you pleaded, hoping to trigger something.

‘I have to stick to the plan, Y/N.’

‘Very well then,’ you heard the man say and he pushed the gun at the back of your head. You cried out in fear and sobbed as quietly as you could.

‘Any last words, beautiful?’

‘ I might never get another chance to say this, so I’ll just say it. I love you Sergio. Always will and always have. I’m sorry I couldn’t be the person you wanted me to be,’ you sobbed, ‘I love you.’

A loud gunshot cut your sobbing short. Your head fell forward and you were dead. Reality seemed to hit Sergio harder than a truck, because his eyes almost popped out of it’s sockets and he screamed loudly. The man stepped back contently and turned his attention to the camera.

‘Now will you let the hostages go?’

[futurebicon]

I am happy to give you ideas! Please supply me with your brilliant writing! I need a bedtime story! Maybe Sirius getting pretty badly injured at a game? Re's reaction and then him helping with recovery?🥰

Okay this ones a little unrealistic probably but I was looking up injuries in hockey and this came up multiple times so yeah. (Also I got so carried away with this one. I literally lagged my phone with how long this ended up being.  There’s defiantly going to be multiple parts because I wrote too much and Tumblr won’t let me write more

Warning : Injury, panic attack?, heart problems, mentions of child abuse

“You okay?” James asked Sirius.

“Yeah, I just feel-off. I guess.”

James nodded, still concerned about the pained look on his face.

He stood up to go tell Remus when Sirius collapsed.

Remus jumped over beach to get to him. The other players on the bench crowding around him.

“What happened?” James screamed.

They could hear the announcer talking about the commotion on the bench. Everyone on the ice skating over and shouting questions. The stadium filled with quiet whispers.

Remus’s mind went blank. He went into the medic routine, not thinking about the fact that it was the love of his life on the ground.

“He’s in cardiac arrest” Moody told them.

“He’s 24” Logan exclaimed.

“DAMN IT GET A MEDIC NOW” Dumo shouted. All of them screamed for a medic as Moody cut off his jersey and gear and Remus began CPR

“WHERE THE HELL IS THE MEDIC HES DYING” Kasey screamed. This sent a shock through the crowd.

The medics appeared and pushed everyone out of the way, only Moody was allowed on the bench with him.

“NO. HE’S DYING AND YOURE NOT HELPING HIM” James tried to fight them.

“Stops, Stop” Remus put a shaking hand on his chest. “Let them work. Let them help him. Please James, I’m begging you to let them help him” his voice shook.

James nodded, backing away from the bench.

Dumo went over to stand near Remus. “What are you thinking right now?” He asked him, knowing that it was pointless to ask if he was okay.

“That I don’t want to lose him. I don’t want to lose him” Remus told him honestly. “My biggest fear is him getting hurt or leaving me and now he’s hurt and could be leaving me forever”

Dumo wrapped his arms around Remus, who’s breathing picked up as he thought about Sirius dying.

“Breathe, breathe Loops” He waved over Leo to help calm him down.

“Hey, hey. I know you’re fucking terrified right now. I can’t even imagine what I would do if it was one of my boys but you need to try and breathe Remus. You’re no help to Sirius if you’re panicking. Respirer, Remus”

He nodded, taking deep breathes.

“Good, good.” Leo nodded.

“If he d-”

“No, we’re not thinking about that right now” Dumo cut him off.

“His heart stopped” Remus began to remember bits and pieces of the last few minutes. Remembered checking for a pulse and telling Moody there wasn’t one. “His heart wasn’t beating. He was dead”

The rest of the players were standing around in terror.

They all went quiet as they tried to process what he said, they could hear the medics counting off numbers for the defibrillator.

Alice and Frank were quieting the stadium while trying to figure out what was happening.

The other team, the Hufflepuff Badgers skated over.

“What happened?” one of the players asked.

“Apparently cardiac arrest.” Adam Fox told him.

“He’s young though, isn’t he?”

“Yeah. Yeah he is” Finn said sadly.

A stretcher ran past them, loading Sirius onto it.

His skin was the color of snow. His black hair a stark contrast where it fell into his closed eyes. Remus wanted nothing more than to tuck it behind his ear like he’s done hundreds of times. His jersey and gear had been completly removed. A medic was on the stretcher, preforming CPR as they rushed him off the ice and into the waiting ambulance.

Remus shook his head and covered his mouth, tears streaming down his face. James turned him around and hugged him. The entire team gathered around them in a huge hug.

The Hufflepuffs made a circle around them, all of them with their hands on their neighbors shoulder and head down.

They stayed that way for a while before refs told them that the game was over. Their coaches wanted them in their locker rooms. They nodded and pulled away.

The Hufflepuff players patted all their backs and told them they would pray for Sirius.

It was silent as they walked into the locker room.

Remus walked over and sat in Sirius’s stall. He jolted as he realized that they wind of had to cut his necklace off.

But his eyes drifted to the wall of his stall. A small nail in the back corner had the ‘12’ necklace hanging from it. With a post it beside it that read “Re, promise I still love it. Just can’t stand the thought of it getting broken. I love you.”

He smiled sadly, reaching over and took the necklace off the makeshift hook. He couldn’t hold back his sobs any longer.

“He’s going to be okay. He has to be okay.” James cried beside him.

Coach Weasley walked in a few minutes later. “They’re trying to stabilize him and get him on a ventilator. They’re thinking about surgery to put in an ICD”

“ICD? What the hell is that?”

“It’s a device that will monitor his heart rate and shock it if it beats irregularly” Remus explained.

“Like a pacemaker?”

“No pacemakers force your heart to beat. ICDs just monitor it and help if something goes wrong”

“Can he still play?”

“He will be able to if he chooses to but he’s out for the rest of the season. The league can’t risk it.” Coach told them.

“He’s 24 years old. How can you go into cardiac arrest at 24 years old?” Olli asked.

They all looked to Remus for the answer.

“He’s an athlete and works out religiously. Too much exercise can sometimes cause the left heart valve to overwork. He told me that when he was younger his parents wouldn’t let him or Regulus sleep. Making them practice on their rink until morning or they collapsed.”

“Jesus Christ they need to be in jail.” Logan gasped.

“Or hell” James requested.

“The second options much better” Kasey said. “I volunteer to help send them there”

“All of you get dressed to go to the hospital.” Arthur told them, not even commenting on their murder plans.

The team had never changed so quickly.

“Remus, you’re driving over with me.” Dumo told him, Remus just nodded.

“What if he’s not okay?” Remus broke the silence in the car. “I know everyone’s saying he will be but what if he’s not? Realalistic he’s not going to be okay”

“Then we deal with it if that happens. No one knows what’s going to happen. None of us know how to prepare for a teammate to die. So all we can do is wait”

“I can’t lose him Pascal. I don’t think I can live without him.”

Dumo didn’t respond, just reached over and placed a hand on the back of his neck, squeezing slightly. Partly because he wanted to comfort him and partly because he knew it was true.

***

The hospital was quiet as they all waited for news. Some of them sitting on the uncomfortable chairs, a few of them pacing.

“Can all of you stop” Sergio told them, getting annoyed with the footsteps.

“No we’re stressed out so we’re not going to sit” Finn rolled his eyes at him.

“It’s annoying” Kasey told them.

“Too bad. Deal with it” James rolled his eyes.

They argued for a few minutes before Remus snapped.

“KNOCK IT OFF” he barked. “My boyfriend is in there dying or already dead and you’re fighting because footsteps are annoying you.”

They all quieted and sat down.

Lily and Natalie walked into the waiting room a few minutes, tears on their faces.

James and Kasey stood up to hug them.

“What’s going on? What happened? No one knows anything.” Natalie asked.

“What did you see?” Dumo asked as Celeste walked in.

Lily pulled away from the hug she was in with Remus. “Me and Nat were watching the game. And then they panned over to the bench where you were crowded around someone on the ground, one of you tipped over the bench so there was more room and the arena got quiet. Then Dumo was shouting for a medic and Kasey shouted that someone was dying. And the crowd started screaming. Then medics ran over and made all of you clear out and James was screaming something at them. Then Dumo went over to Remus and they said that they think it’s Sirius but they don’t know what happened and then he was wheeled out on a stretcher with someone doing CPR. The the game was over. And the announcers just talked for the rest of the time trying to figure out what happened and replaying everything. They talked to Hufflepuff players but they said it wasn’t their place to explain.” She told them.

“Sirius went into cardiac arrest” James told them.

“Oh god” Celeste gasped.

“Remus I’m so sorry” Lily breathed, pulling him in for another hug.

Nat had more tears falling down her face. “Did they say how he was?”

Dumo shook his head.

They sat down. Lily sitting between James and Remus. Remus’s head on her shoulder as she held James’s hand.

No one knew how long they sat there for before a doctor walked over to them. They all stood up.

“How is he?” Remus asked, terror coursing through his body at the sober look on the doctors face.

“He’s stable.” Remus breathed for the first time in hours.

“His heart did stop multiple times so we ended up having to insert the ICD you were told about. He’s still not awake due to the medication. He’s allowed one visitor for now.”

They all nodded at Remus.

“You were lucky. If you hadn’t reacted like you did we wouldn’t of been able to save him.”

The doctor gave him Sirius’s room number and the overview of directions to get there before leaving.

Lily kissed his cheek and squeezed his hand. “Go see him.”

Remus just nodded and walked down the hospital hallway. He took a shaky breath as he walked into Sirius’s room. But none of it prepared him for it.

A bandage was around his chest and over his shoulder, protecting the stitches underneath. Too many wires were starched to him. Remus walked over to the chair and pulled it up beside him.

“Hi baby” he said as he grabbed his hand gently. Kissing his knuckles.

“I know you can’t hear me but I need you to wake up. I need to hear your voice and see your pretty eyes, okay. I need to know that you’re here and I’m not going to lose you. Please baby.” He begged. Reaching up with the hand not holding Sirius’s to brush the hair out of his face.

“I love you. I love you” he repeated, kissing his forehead. “Please wake up”

Time was water, Remus was drowning in it. Knowing he couldn’t do anything except wait.

Finally, Sirius’s hand twitched in his.

Remus stood up. Watching Sirius blink his eyes open, squinting at the bright hospital light.

“Hey, hey baby” Remus smiled at him, his eyes filled with hears as he looked into Sirius’s grey ones.

Sirius came to his sense and jolted, his eyes going wide and making a machine beep once.

“Shh, shh, shh. You’re okay. You’re okay” he ran a hand through his hair.

A nurse quickly entered the room, the beeping of the machine probably alerting them.

“Oh, you’re awake” she smiled. “I’m just going to check your vitals real quick.”

“What happened?” He asked.

“You, uh, you went into cardiac arrest during the game” Remus told him.

“Can I still play?”

Remus laughed “You just almost died and literally died multiple times and that’s what you ask. And yes you still can once you’re healed but you’ll be out for the rest of the season to recover and give you’re heart time to rest”

“Wait so I had a heart attack?”

“No. You’re heart stopped.”

“Why?” Sirius’s asked. Sticking his arm out for the nurse to pull out an IV that wasn’t needed anymore.

“You exercise too much love” Remus smiled at him.

“That can cause my heart to stop?” He asked the nurse.

“Yes. You overwork it when it beats too fast while you work out. Eventually it gives out.” She explained.

“Oh, can it happen to the other guys?” He asked, concerned.

“It’s rare.” The nurse shook her head. “And from the looks of it, the excessive exercise goes back to your childhood”

“Baise mes parents”

“Fuck your parents is correct. I’m pretty sure the guys are plotting a murder plan in the waiting room” he joked.

“Good”

“I’ll leave you two to plot a murder alone” the nurse smiled before leaving the room.

“I like her, she seems nice” Sirius told him, still a tiny bit loopy from the meds.

“Yeah she does seem nice” Remus smiled.

“Are you okay?” Sirius squeezed his hand.

“Don’t worry about me”

“Too bad I’m going too anyway.”

Remus smiled sadly. “You terrified me baby. I thought I was going to lose you.”

“I’m right here, mon amour”

“I know you are. I just... realized I can’t live without you.”

“And you won’t have too. Now lean down so I can kiss you”

Remus giggled and leaned down, letting Sirius kiss him. He kissed back. It wasn’t a deep kiss but Remus poured everything into it. I love you. You scared me. I need you here with me. I love you more than anything. I can’t live without you.

“I love you” Sirius said when they pulled away.

“I love you too”

Remus sat back down as the doctor knocked on the door.

“You’re teams driving me insane.” He smiled.

“Yeah they do that a lot” Sirius told him.

“Alright, don’t let them hug you and mess up your stitches, I already told them that but I don’t think they’ll listen.”

Sirius nodded. “Am I allowed to sit the bed up. My backs hurting from laying down”

“Yes you can. Just not too far.” He told him before leaving to go get some of the team.

Remus helped him move the bed up. Kissing his forehead when he was sitting up.

“I love you” he muttered against it.

“Love you too” Sirius responded.

Remus knew he had told him that a lot today but if that was all he could said for the rest of his life he would mind.

A few minutes James, The Cubs, Dumo, Celeste, Natalie, and Lily burst into the room.

“Oh merci putain tu es en vie” James gasped.

“I am alive” Sirius laughed.

“If you die again I’ll kill you”

“That’s not at all how it works” Remus told him.

“I’ll make it work”

“We’re glad you’re okay. You scared us for a while there” Dumo told him.

“One could say you have us a heart attack” James smirked.

“Oh my god that was the worse joke I have ever heard in my life” Sirius groaned with a laugh.

“I think it was a pretty good one, si je le dis moi-même”

The girls all kissed his cheek and then scattered across the room to find a place to sit.

“So, what exactly happened?” Sirius asked them.

“You just looked...bad. Like you were pale and kept wincing and rubbing your chest. So I went to tell Remus to check to make sure you were okay and you completely collapsed.” James told him.

“Everyone was around you, Moody and Remus were trying to figure out what happened and the medics were taking forever. We screamed for them but they still took too long. Moody said you were in cardiac arrest and started CPR” Leo picked up.

“They made us go onto the ice so they could work on you. Moody and Coach were the only one allowed on the bench. Remus was freaking out and so was everyone else. The Hufflepuff team came over and we told them what happened. And then they wheeled you out on a stretcher” Logan continued.

“What does everyone know?”

“Just that it was you that it happened too. They were doing CPR on you when you were rushed out. They asked the other team what happened but they said it wasn’t their place to tell. Coach said they’ll have to release a statement in a few. He’ll come back and talk to you about it in a little.” Dumo told him.

“What treatment did I get?”

“You were on a ventilator for a litttle while they were trying to stabilize you.” Remus explained. “Once you were stable for a while they did a surgery to place an ICD in your chest. It’s a small device that will monitor your heartrate and heart beat. If something happens it will send a shock through your heart. I don’t know much else about it so the doctor will have to explain it.”

“But I can still play with it in?”

“Yes. You can still play.” Remus smiled.

“Good” he said with a nod.

“Why is your biggest concern hockey after you just died?” Dumo asked.

“Because it is”

“You’re impossible, you know that?” Remus laughed, kissing his temple.

“When can I leave the hospital?”

The others shared looks.

“What? How long?”

“Cardiac arrest is really serious baby” Remus told him.

“How long?” He repeated firmly.

“A month”

“What? But I’m perfectly fine” he exclaimed.

“I know you are but that’s just for right now.” Remus told him. “But 40% of people die within a year after cardiac arrest”

Sirius threw his head back against the pillow.

“I’m sorry, baby”

“Fuck my parents”

“We have the murder planned” Kasey told him.

“You’re the one to kill them” Natalie added.

“Good”

“No one is killing anyone. But if it’s okay with you, we can tell people about it and the reason your heart stopped.” Remus told him.

“I’ll have to call Reg about it. Ask him about it or I can say that he was the favorite child so they didn’t do anything to him.”

Remus nodded. “You’re parents have to pay for what they did” he said as he moved the piece of hair that won’t stay out of his face.

“Yeah” The coversation was cut off as the nurse from before walked in.

“How are you feeling?” She asked.

“I’m okay, my chest is a little sore but it doesn’t like, hurt-hurt” he told her.

Everyone tensed before she responded with a nod.

“With the surgery and multiple rounds of CPR, you probably will be for a while. If it gets more than sore tell us right away” she said as she checked his blood pressure.

Sirius nodded and squeezed Remus’s hand, it was still tensed up. He tugged on it lightly. Remus stood up and kissed the corner of his mouth. Relaxing immediately.

“Alright, vitals are good. Dr. Hudson will be in soon to talk about further treatment.” She told him, closing the door as she left.

Sirius reaches for his necklace subconsciously, jolting forward when he couldn’t feel it.

“I have it. You took it off so it would break on the ice. Remember?” Remus pulled it out of his pocket.

Sirius nodded, sitting up to let Remus clasp it around his neck.

“Good thing you took it off. They would of had to cut it off it you hadn’t.”

Sirius nodded, relaxing as he fidgeted with it.

Dr. Hudson walked in a few moments later.

The team stood up, promising to be back later.

“Alright” he pulled up a chair. “So you’re going to be staying here for a month. Just so that we can monitor you and make sure that your ICD works like it should. If you go into cardiac arrest or have any other heart issues we’ll have to keep you hear longer. 40% of people discharged from the hospital after cardiac arrest die within a year.” He told them.

“So what do I do about hockey?” Sirius asked.

“That’s literally all you’re concerned about” Remus shook his head with a smile.

Dr. Hudson chuckled. “You’ll be able to play next year.”

“Next year” he exclaimed.

“Sorry but we have to make sure you won’t die again” he smiled at how upset he was.

“After you’re discharged from the hospital and you rest for 2 weeks you’ll be able to sit on the bench during practices and games.”

“Good I still get to yell at them” he smirked.

Remus and the doctor both laughed.

“Your Coach is going to be here in a few minutes. So I’ll leave you all to discuss what ever you need to discuss.”

They thanked him as he stood and left the room.

As sad, Coach Weasly entered a few minutes later with a guy in a suit. “This is Mr. Tela. He’s from the league and is going to make the formal statement” he told them.

Mr. Tela shook Remus’s hand before going to shake Sirius’s.

Sirius winced and sharply inhaled in pain when he at up and extended his arm. “Sorry, forgot I had stitches”

“Perfectly fine” Mr. Tela smiled.

“So what’s the statement going to be?” Sirius asked.

“We need to be careful to not not scare your fans. There’s already mass panic at the fact that Winters screamed that he was dying. And the fact that you where taken away with someone doing frantic CPRhas obviously made fans assume the worst.”

“When are you making the statement? Do I have to say anything or is the league going too?”

“The league will announce it. It’s been over 12 hours since it happened so we’ll have to announce it soon.”

Remus blinked. 12 hours. It felt like just minutes ago but at the same time it felt like years.

“What’s the statement going to say?” Remus asked.

“This is what we have for now. You two can add anything or ask for it to be removed.” He took out two pieces of paper that had the statement printed on it.

Gryffindor Lion Captain, 24 year old, Sirius Black collapsed during the Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff game last night. The reason for the collapse was cardiac arrest. Black was quickly rushed to the hospital where they were able to revive him. He will be hospital for the next few months. Sadly, he will be unable to play until next year to make sure his heart will be able to stay stable. The reason for the cardiac arrest is unknown as of now.

“Wait why aren’t we telling them the reason for it?” Sirius asked.

“We weren’t sure if you would want it to be known yet.” Mr. Tela said. “If you would like the reason to be included we can add it.”

“I’ll have to talk to my brother about it. See if he wants everyone to know how shitty out parents are.”

Mr. Tesla nodded. “We’ll give you sometime to do that. Just call or text your coach when you’ve made a decision and we’ll come back in and talk about what exactly to say.”

“Thank you” Sirius thanked him.

They stood and left the room.

“Merde, I don’t have my phone”

“Here” Remus pulled it out of his pocket. “Grabbed it from your bag.”

“I love you” Sirius smiled, leaning over and kissing him.

“I love you too. Now call your brother.”

@lumosinlove

[daydreamingatnight209]

Hi everyone! As promised here is the Drunk Reader story! I spent all day writing and finishing this off so I hope you like it!

Hope you are all well!

Feedback is always welcome ✨💕

“Now or Never”

Spencer Reid x Female Reader

Warnings- None - Fluff 💕

———————————————

You loved ladies night. You, Emily, JJ and Penelope definitely knew how to you get your groove on.

Ladies night let you bring your hair down, get yourself dolled up and have one night where you didn’t have to talk about the cases you dealt with on a daily basis or come face to face with the worlds worse criminals.

You could gossip, laugh and dance the night away.

Unfortunately, although you would never admit it you were a little bit of a lightweight. It didn’t matter now much you ate before, it only took a couple of drinks before you became tipsy.

You often had a tendency to over share when you were sober but after a drink or two you went into overdrive and that’s exactly what happened that ladies night.

JJ was the designated driver that night, she had to be up in the morning for Henry so she wasn’t drinking.

Three drinks in you and the night was just beginning.

“So Y/N my lovely anyone special in your life? You haven’t updated us on any dates recently”

Penelope giggled, pointing at you.

She had already asked Emily who insists that she didn’t have time for any man in her life. She was perfectly contempt with Sergio. Her cat.

Sober you was glad ladies night hadn’t happened in awhile because in that time you have suddenly developed feeling for a certain co-worker.

A certain SSA Dr. Spencer Reid.

At first you thought it was a silly crush that you could get over in a couple of weeks. You were wrong, instead of going away the feelings became stronger and you knew it was serious.

You playfully rolled your eyes as the girls stared at you intently.

“Well, there is someone but it’s, it’s nothing”

“Oooh no no, go on!” Emily squeals with JJ laughing beside her. Yet she also was secretly intrigued at who this mystery person could be.

You swayed side to side in your seat and smile lazily.

“Well, he’s tall andddd he’s got really pretty, like really pretty eyes. He’s smart and and he has these super amazing hands”

In normal circumstance the girls would look at you confused and unsure what to say, yet these nights often consist of conversations exactly like this one. They tried to get more details out of you but you didn’t want to talk about boys anymore. You wanted to dance.

You dance and drink the night away but Penelope wasn’t giving up. Drunk or not she wanted to know who this man was that you described as have pretty eyes and nice hands. It took her all night but eventually she got the bottom of the mystery. After begging you all night you finally gave in, the alcohol had took down your guard.

“Fine, fine, fine. It’s Spencerrrr” you slurred, not noticing her shocked expression that had settled on her face.

“But I mean come on! Boy Genius isn’t gonna like someone like me is he. I mean he’s got everything and I’m just me” you lip starts to quiver as your thoughts begin to overwhelm you.

JJ had watched the scene unfold before her and started to put the pieces together. The way you started to sit closer to him on the jet or at the round table. They way you were extra emotional when Spencer would do something risky and how you would catch yourself staring at him longer then normal. It broke her heart to hear her friend say those words, especially when she knew Spencer was already in love with her. He had been since he set his eyes on her. Ironically, Spencer had admitted his love for you the same way you had. You couldn’t make it to Rossi’s for a weekend party, as something had come up with your family. Spencer had a little to much to drink and spilled the beans to her. JJ promised not to say anything but now she knew she had to do something.

—————————

It was 3 in the morning when Spencer got the phone to come and collect you from the bar. JJ said that she had her hand full with Emily and Penelope and that she could use his help. (Yes It was a lie on her part but what he didn’t know couldn’t hurt him)

He couldn’t say no to you so exactly half an hour later he was at your location, witnessing you being held up by JJ and a slightly drunk Emily.

“Spencieeeeee” you cried out, stumbling towards him. He was surprised you managed not to fall over.

He chuckled silently and opened his arms so that he could hold you up. He wrapped his blazer that he shoved on, around you in an attempt to shield you from the cold waiting outside.

You lent into the warmth and let your head rest on his shoulder.

“Come on love, let’s get you home”

“I’m having fun though” you protest.

It took him a solid 10 minutes to get you into the car due to your protests but in the end your energy burst, flamed out and you were complaining that you were tired.

Spencer didn’t want to leave you alone in this state and decided it would be best if he took you to his apartment where he could keep an eye on you.

What happened next, Spencer didn’t even suspect.

After helping you into his apartment, and letting you change into one of his old Cal-Tech T shirts, he finally gets you into bed while he takes the side chair.

“Come cuddle with me” you beg him but he looked hesitant. You were drunk. It didn’t mean anything but he still didn’t want to take advantage. He shook his head and tries to get you to sleep.

He thought he was successful and began to get through spare duvet so he could sleep on the sofa in his living room, until you blurted something out that stopped him in his tracks completely.

“I love you Spencer, but like really really in love with you. Drunk me wants you to know. But shhh can’t tell anyone” you giggle to yourself as you eyes lose the battle to stay open and you drift off to sleep.

Spencer vows that you will both finally have the long awaited sit down about how you both feel when you next awaken.

————————

You couldn’t help but groan as you take in your ridiculously dry mouth and your pounding headache when you wake up the next morning. You never wanted to drink again.

It takes a moment before you take in your surroundings and realise where you are. Spencer’s apartment... in Spencer’s bed.

You shot up immediately and were relieved to see you was still fully clothed.

You sigh, thank the lord. Yet it still didn’t explain how you got here.

You take another moment and that’s when the dread hits and the memories come flooding back.

You told Spencer you loved him ...

Right on cue, the Doctor himself enters the room with some painkillers and a glass of water.

You were grateful, but could sense his nerves.

You could blame what you said on the alcohol and pretend it never happened or you could finally face the music.

It was now or never.

“So about last night...” you trail off refusing to look at him as he sat opposite you.

Spencer didn’t want to tip toe around this any longer. He was tried of all three games and avoidance. He liked you, you liked him. So what was the problem?

“Was it true?” He asks, simply.

You knew he meant business.

“Yes” you mumble.

Spencer breaks into the biggest grin you could possible imagine and you see him visibly relax.

“Then meet me here, at 6pm tomorrow night, the job permitting”

Tag List- @purple-scarf-mistress

[ophiuchus-interactive]

28. For all the Ros

Thanks for the ask!

Decided to play around a bit and respond in their voices, just to change it up :D

Would they date a fixer-upper?

Long. Under the cut!

Valerian chuckles, lifting the hat off his head and smoothing out his curls in the process. It was a practiced move, one he committed to without thought as he spoke,

"Lots of people need fixin' up. If I were to find me someone who...I was over the moon for, it's my duty to help 'em. To love 'em."

Valerian looked away for a moment, swallowing down the disgusting bile of memories he'd rather forget. He cleared his throat for a moment, and he finally smiled,

"I just don't think anyone's really too far gone from love."

-

Peter raised his eyebrows, surprised at the phrasing of such a question. He coughed, his hand running through the scruff that colored his chiseled jaw, and face, "If the dedication to change is there, then...yeah, I would. You could love somebody or like somebody enough with all your heart and soul, but that doesn't mean that they're ready for something like that."

Peter smiles, though it doesn't quite reach his eyes,

"As much as I admire Val's optimism that enough love and acceptance could fix somebody, people get ruined when you think you can fix a whole person by themselves. It'd be hard. 'Be real hard."

-

Rosalie smiles, her answer coming to her lips before she could even blink,

"Of course I would! If I liked 'em quite a bit, why wouldn't I? You have to like their flaws to accept them, and everybody has flaws. Everybody."

She held her wide, kind grin as her mind drifted to her mother, a wave of memories that suddenly made her eyes turn icy, and cold.

"And most of the time, people's flaws are worth lovin' em over. Most of the time."

-

Ophelia frowns, her hand going toward her feathered chest, her fingertips dancing along the edges of her crimson feathers. After a long silence, she shakes her head,

"No. I don't find myself wanting a relationship to begin with. But, having a partner with lots of problems? Disastrous."

She says nothing more, sealing her lips into a tight line. There was a droop to her shoulders, however, something to suggest you that there was more to what she was saying- something you don't think you'd be finding out too soon.

-

Thane doesn't flinch or blink, instead he meets your gaze as serious and deathly still as he ever does. It's hard to tell just what precisely he's thinking, but he saves you the time but sighing,

"It's a stupid question, you know. It ain't whether or not I'd date 'em, but whether or not I'd be able to handle their bullshit." "When you like 'em- love 'em, even, that ain't ever going to be enough to fix what's up here," He points to his skull, "and in here," he motions toward his heart,

"love don't fix everything."

-

Sergio bites his lip before shaking his head, unable to conceal the displeasure in his face,

"My parents were the epitome of "fixer-uppers", and together they made the most fantastical duo of pain and agony one could accomplish with a family. No. Absolutely not. I may well like you, but if you're a mess?"

He scoffs, and you could tell there was nothing but pain behind the reaction,

"I wouldn't have fallen for you in the first place."

-

Javier said nothing at first, a flash of pain crossing his eyes before he attempted to put on his best smile. He flashed his pearly-white teeth expertly, attempting to sound unbothered by the question,

"Define 'fixer-upper?' Do they drink? Smoke? Have killed people? Kicked puppies?"

"If I liked 'em enough to date 'em, then I'd date 'em. Love and liking and- and supporting your partner ain't gotta be hard."

He swallows, his voice strained, as if he was attempting to convince himself of something he said. You weren't sure as to what.

-

???? blinks. It's almost cold, mechanical. They seem to pause for a moment, debating as to what they should say- or ask.

"Humans are capable of insurmountable amounts of mistakes. They are also capable of unbelievable amount of...care." "Were I to perhaps [REDACTED] enough for a partner, or maybe [REDACTED]- then I would find no reason to ignore them. I like to think that I could [REDACTED], like [they] did to me."

[tkmedia]

Eight players who could leave Barcelona before the transfer deadline – PF

It’s common knowledge that Barcelona are in a financial crisis.Their out-of-control finances meant Lionel Messi could not be retained and the club are desperate to reduce their wage bill. While players such as Gerard Pique and Jordi Alba have signed new contracts with reduced salaries, Barca still need to shift some players. With days before the transfer window shuts, we’ve identified eight men who could leave the Camp Nou before the deadline. Ousmane Dembele It’s safe to say that Barcelona’s big-money gamble for Dembele hasn’t paid off, after they reinvested a large wedge of the Neymar cash to sign the Borussia Dortmund winger when he was one of the most highly-rated youngsters in Europe, back in 2017. There have been some bright flashes over the years, and 30 goals and 21 assists in 118 appearances is not a terrible return, but it’s not quite what the club would have envisaged. Persistent injuries have resulted in the France international failing to realise his potential whilst at the Camp Nou, and reports suggest he’s one of the high earners they’re now desperate to get off their wage bill. But with just a year left on his contract, they’d be lucky to recoup a fraction of the €147million they originally signed him for. Philippe Coutinho Dembele Mk.II, Coutinho walked through the door six months later for another sizeable fee. The Neymar windfall gone, just like that. The issue is that Coutinho was neither a suitable replacement for his compatriot Neymar, nor Andres Iniesta in midfield, and has always looked an awkward fit at the Camp Nou. He remains contracted for another two years, but it’s been clear that the Catalan club have been aiming to offload him since 2019, when Bayern picked up his exorbitant wages on a season-long loan. He rubbed salt into their wound by scoring two late goals in an 8-2 thrashing in the Champions League before returning and doing very little of note under Ronald Koeman. The tabloids continue to talk up the prospect of a Liverpool reunion, but the idea of them or anyone else paying a large transfer fee looks unlikely. But there may well be the opportunity for another loan. Antoine Griezmann A theme is emerging here. Barcelona’s third all-time most expensive signing is also said to be surplus to requirements as the club look to step back from the brink of financial crisis. A return to Atletico Madrid was mooted earlier in the summer, but nothing materialised. But you imagine as Barcelona’s desperation grows in the final days of the window, some cheeky lowball bids may come their way. ✅ @AntoGriezmann ✅ On the hour ✅ Copa del Rey final ✅ 💥 pic.twitter.com/jdPUIEV0PT — FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) August 19, 2021 Riqui Puig Yet another technically superb midfielder to emerge from La Masia, Puig is one of the most highly-rated prospects to emerge in years – but Koeman doesn’t seem a fan, and handed him just two starts in La Liga last term. Some reports suggest that the 22-year-old is keen to stay and either prove himself to the Dutch coach or outlast him. But Catalan journalist Gerard Romero has reported that the Barcelona manager has advised Puig to move on and find a new home. Samuel Umtiti Umtiti started just six games across La Liga and the Champions League last season and made just eight further substitute appearances. And now Barca have signed Eric Garcia, the World Cup winner is arguably the fifth-choice centre-back at the Camp Nou. It’s been a sad fall from grace for Umtiti, who the club are attempting to persuade to cancel his contract and become a free agent. But, with reports suggesting Barca are struggling to find a buyer, perhaps the France international will stay after all. Miralem Pjanic It was always a strange signing for Barca to make and Pjanic looks set to leave the club in the near future. The 31-year-old didn’t set the world alight after joining from Juventus and Koeman is desperate to get his wages off the books. Pjanic has not been part of the first-team squad for either of Barcelona’s opening two games of the season. Pjanic’s agents held talks with Juve over a return, but are yet to reach an agreement over a move this summer. During this impasse, Napoli have registered an interest in the midfielder according to Mundo Deportivo. When asked about Pjanic and Umtiti’s future, Koeman told reporters: “There are players like them who have a very difficult time having minutes, but the final decision is always on the part of the players. “They have a complicated position, yes.” Sergio Aguero Having moved to Spain to play with compatriot Lionel Messi, Aguero must have been cursing his luck when the legendary attacker joined PSG earlier this month. Manchester City’s record goalscorer is not currently registered with the club, with injury ruling him out until October. Despite this, Aguero is reportedly so disappointed about Messi’s departure that he’s eyeing up a mid-season move to the MLS. That’s according to Phil Kitromilides, who hinted that sources close to Barcelona had told him the news on Monday morning’s Spanish Football Podcast, which he hosts with Guardian journalist Sid Lowe. Ilaix Moriba Moriba established himself in Barca’s first-team squad last season and you’d imagine Koeman would loathe seeing such a promising youngster leave the club. But the 18-year-old has rejected Barcelona’s offer of a new contract and negotiations stalled with the two parties failing to find common ground on the players’ wages. With no resolution in sight, Barcelona are preparing to listen to offers for the Guinea-born Spain youth international. Reports have suggested that the 18-year-old has caught the attention of Premier League side Tottenham. Chelsea, Manchester City, RB Leipzig and Real Madrid have also been heavily linked with Moriba. More Barcelona Comparing the team on Lionel Messi’s first and last Barcelona appearance The story of Henrik Larsson’s glorious late-career spell at Barcelona Can you name all nine clubs that Zlatan Ibrahimovic has played for? Where are they now? Barcelona’s five Neymar replacements from 2017 Read the full article

[starrynite7114]

two sides of reality: one

A/N: My lovely readers, how are you all?! Some states are reopening, please stay safe and practice social distancing! I come to you now with a new story. Absolutely no worries, my other stories will not be abandoned. Also, the next drabble will be posted later tonight, just wanted to post this first. This is a bit different from my usual stories, I’m nervous, but I hope you all will enjoy it!

Thank you for continuing to like my writing, I truly do appreciate all the love you’ve given me and I hope you continue to like my stories!

Snapshots should also be updated by the end of the weekend!

If you would like to be added on the tag list for this story, any other stories or for all my works, please let me know!

Love you all!

tagged list: @justahopelessssromantic​ ; @iambabyharry​ ; @thegirlwhowritesfics​

Rhian was making her way towards the office her brother occupied. He had summoned her for some reason and it was the last thing she wanted to do. Her whole morning consisted of changing oil, car after car, it was tedious work. Tying up her burgundy colored hair that she recently got colored once again, she tightened her ponytail, hating how the heat just stuck to her skin. Her hair wasn’t too long, a little past her shoulders. Tugging at her baggy shirt, she regretted wearing such a baggy T-shirt on a day such as this, but she forgot to do laundry and it was one of the clean shirts she had. She dressed with baggy clothing for pure comfort. The joggers she was currently wearing made it flexible for her to work under the hood of a car and not worry about showing her ass crack. 

She should wear a jumpsuit, but again, it was too fucking hot. 

At times she wondered why she stayed in Santo Padre with her brother, Daniel instead of moving to Los Angeles with her sister, Erica. She would have more opportunities in Los Angeles, but she couldn’t leave her older brother. Besides that, Erica was much more controlling than Daniel and she really appreciated the freedom she had. Though, there were other factors on why she decided to stay in Santo Padre, but the main reason was the side gig she had with Daniel. 

“Dan, honestly, you know I can do more than change oil right?” Rhian immediately commented when she arrived in his office. She raised an eyebrow when her eyes landed on her brother’s best friend, Sergio. “I thought you were still in LA?”

“Just got back squirt, come join us for lunch.” Her eyes landed on Daniel’s desk which had various boxes of Chinese food. “You have her just changing oil again? This is why I can’t leave her with you.”

Sergio was her pseudo older brother that at times she preferred more than her own brother. He trusted her and Daniel, well, he did, but you were also his younger sister. Overprotective tendencies was his niche. 

“Look, there was nothing that interesting and she needs to do scut work every once in a while.” Daniel made a plate for Rhian, handing it over to her. “Are you going up to LA this weekend?”

Rhian looked over at Sergio before shaking her head. “Not LA, I have something to do in Seattle, I’ll be gone for a few days.”

“Seattle? You got some secret boyfriend there?” Daniel wasn’t exactly sure why his younger sister traveled to Seattle often, but he figured whatever it was, she would let him know in due time, even though it’s been three years. His sister has always been secretive and he’s never forced her to disclose information unless she truly wanted to. It’s not that they weren’t close, they were, he just let his sister come out of her own shell.

It’s always been this way. 

Erica and Daniel were outgoing. They had plenty of friends, loved going out to enjoy the town and loved being the center of attention. Rhian was not the same way. She wasn’t a loner, she had her fair share of friends, but high school was a breeze for Rhian. She never made too much noise and kept to her group of friends, especially after sophomore year. 

Boys could be cruel, especially teenagers. 

“A secret boyfriend,” Rhian scoffed. “I wish, but you know, Clouie moved there a few years back, I just like visiting her.” That wasn’t a lie, one of her closest friends did live in Seattle. She visited Clouie every once in a while, but the reality of her situation was much more complicated than that. 

“No, I get it.” Daniel held his hands up. “I’m just saying it wouldn’t be so bad if you put yourself out there.”

“Right, with you two doing chastity patrol? No way.” She appreciated their protective ways, but it was hard to meet anyone in Santo Padre. Besides being a person non-grata due to her pesky older brothers, she also didn’t entertain guys. She didn’t exactly know when they were talking to talk or talking to hit on her. Regardless, she didn’t want to make any ties in Santo Padre. Once her deal was done, she was going to either Seattle or Los Angeles. She would get the fuck out of Santo Padre, a place that was never kind to her.

“Chastity patrol?” Sergio scoffed. “Cockblocks are so much better.”

Rhian just rolled her eyes and sat beside Sergio. “I can’t wait to get out of here.” She mumbled under her breath. 

“You know you’ll never leave,” Daniel never wanted to part with his sister. Their mother lives in Chino with their aunt and uncle, while Erica was in Los Angeles. She was the only one who decided to stay with him and he couldn’t let her go. Besides, she was better off in Santo Padre. They established their livelihood there, she wouldn’t want to leave. 

Sergio looked at Rhian and just gave her a knowing look. He wanted to get her out of Santo Padre. There was no future for Rhian in Santo Padre and the further away she was from here, the safer she was.

“What did you need to talk about?” Rhian asked once she was done with her food, throwing her plate in the trash can beside her brother’s desk. 

“I need a racer tonight, you up for it?”

And in some Fast and The Furious reality, Rhian, Sergio and Daniel were part of the racing world of the Inland Empire of California. Stephanie, Aaron and Sean were also part of their little crew who also worked at the garage. Daniel built a reputation, encompassing neighboring cities that had people coming to Santo Padre to just get their cars modified by him. It was thanks to his part in the racing community, which he now has retired from. It was mostly Rhian, Stephanie and Sean who partook in the racing, while the other three took care of the cars and set up their races. 

“Not tonight, I have an exam tomorrow morning.” Rhian was currently finishing up her Bachelor’s Degree, which took her some time, but a few personal issues kept her from finishing.

“Come on, you know you’re going to ace that exam, which you have been studying for since last week. Take a break,” Daniel was always such a terrible influence on her. While he encouraged her to study, if the opportunity presented itself, he also encouraged her to do other activities instead of studying. She knew it was due to his immense faith in her, but at times, she felt that it was that immense faith that kept her rooted in Santo Padre.

“Wow, you’re such a great influence.” Sergio shook his head, handing Rhian his plate so she could throw it. “Rhi, if you don’t want to go, it’s fine. I can have Sean race.” 

“No, it’s okay, I need the money.” And she did, she’s been saving up so that when she finally got out of here, she didn’t have to look back.

“What are you saving up for? You’ve won at least ten thousand dollars the last few months.” Daniel wished that she opened up to him more. The only plan he knew she had was that she wanted to become a doctor, but then again, that was her dream when she was younger. He wasn’t exactly sure what she wanted to do now. Every time he asked her, she just avoided the question. “You still trying to be a doctor?”

“No, not anymore. Too much work,” Rhian sat back, looking up at the ceiling. “I’m majoring in graphic design, how do you not know this?”

“Cause you don’t talk to me Rhi.”

She glanced over at her brother and smirked. “I do, you just don’t listen. Sergio, when do I graduate?”

“In a few months.” 

Daniel was somewhat envious of Sergio and Rhian’s relationship. She seemed to run to him for everything. He began to question if he ignored his sister and it was the reason she ran to his best friend instead. But he always gave Rhian her time to speak to him. He didn’t want to force her, but he might have to actively try and get his sister to talk. Contrary to what she may believe, he did care about her and he wanted to know about her. 

“I knew that too.”

“Did you?” Rhian chuckled. “Look, I’m not trying to give you a hard time. You have a lot of things going on, the last thing you need to worry about is me.” In a few months time, her deal with the cartel would be over and Santo Padre could be a distant memory after that. 

“You know I love you, right?”

“I do.”

Daniel nodded his head. “I need you to give this to Uncle Taza, before he comes here trying to come for my head.” Daniel handed her an envelope. The MC had issued him a loan for the shop, he was almost done with the payments, which he was thankful for. They didn’t charge him interest, which definitely helped out some. 

Rhian laughed, shaking her head. “Using me as protection again.”

“You’re his favorite, he doesn’t give you grief whenever you go over there.” 

“I’m not his favorite, you’re just an asshole who doesn’t like criticism.” Rhian pointed out. Taza was their father’s younger brother. Ever since their father passed, Taza helped out their mother to take care of them. Rhian was quite close to Taza and she agreed, she was his favorite. And being his favorite, Taza frowned upon Rhian being part of this crew her brother had, but he knew that when Rhian put her mind to something, there was little to nothing that could stop her. 

“Look at her, trying to play off she ain’t the favorite,” Sergio teased, trying to ease the tension in the room.

“Whatever,” Rhian stood up, rolling her eyes at the two. “I just want to let you both know, you’re the bane of my existence.”

“We love you too!’ The two men said in unison. 

=========================

Rhian waved at Riz, thanking him for opening the gate for her. Parking behind the motorcycles, she turned off her car and opened the door. The Santo Padre heat immediately hit her, causing her to groan.

Riz laughed, giving her a hug once she was out of the car. “You know, it still surprises me that you’re not used to the heat.” Riz swatted her ponytail. “Nice hair, did you get new glasses too?”

“Maybe because no normal human being could actually get used to this.” Rhian quickly made her way to the shade the clubhouse porch provided. “Thanks Riz, and yes I did, I stupidly stepped on my previous ones and I could have just taped it together, but my brother insisted we get new glasses.”

“Can’t have you working on cars if you can’t see.” He teased her.

“I’m not that blind, douche,” Rhian stuck her tongue out towards him. “Is my uncle here?” 

“Yep, templo, just wait inside, the AC is on.” 

“This is why you’re my favorite!” 

“Lies, but I’ll take it,” Riz called out after her as she opened the door.

Rhian found Angel and Coco sitting at the table, with Gilly sitting by the bar talking to EZ. The four men looked over at her. Coco and Gilly immediately stood up to greet her, while Angel stayed rooted at his seat. She wasn’t sure why Angel was so awkward around her, but she didn’t question it. She knew it had something to do with what occurred in high school, but she’s moved on, she’s spoken to him a handful of times. 

“Rhi, what are you doing here?” Coco questioned as he pulled away from her.

“Money drop off,” she waved the envelope in her hand. “Daniel is just too chicken shit to come here cause my uncle always gives him grief.” Looking at EZ, she waved at him and then at Angel. The Reyes brothers were always so awkward with her and she wasn’t exactly sure why.

“Your brother is such a little shit,” Gilly laughed. “Heard through the grapevine there’s a race tonight, you racing?”

“Why? You guys are going to come?”

“You want us to?” Coco didn’t have anything planned and they already handled their Rebels business earlier in the day. 

“Where’s Creeper?”

“Across the border,” Angel answered. “He got injured.” 

Rhian nodded. “To answer your question,” she turned to Coco, “sure, but don’t come in your motorcycles, it makes people antsy.” 

“Fuck them, we don’t give a fuck,” Coco scoffed. “You’ve been racing often lately, something going on?”

“No,” she gave him an odd look. They didn’t have to know she was saving for her escape from Santo Padre. It wouldn’t really bode well with Coco and Gilly. They’ve become quite close and she knew the Mayans men had a hard time letting go of people who become constants in their life. They would eventually be happy for her, they’ll understand. “My brother asked me the same thing.”

Coco and Gilly were the two she was closest with at the MC. It surprised her since Angel was their third musketeer, hell, he was their leader in this little group, yet, she still didn’t become close to Angel. It wasn’t on purpose, but they seem to always just avoid one another. Angel kept to his corner, was civil towards her, but he always kept her at two arms length. 

Angel turned towards them, intrigued by their conversation. Rhian Ayala was an anomaly for him. She spoke to him every once in a while, but unlike other women, she just never gravitated towards him. Her sister, Angel used to have something there, but Rhian just avoided him. Or that’s what he liked to believe. After high school, she avoided him like the plague, but her sister always assured him that it wasn’t him. That Rhian was just like that and in some ways he agreed, but she also didn’t give EZ the time of day, which if he was honest, was a fucking breath of fresh air.

“Is there?” Gilly asked.

“No,” she shook her head. “I just like having money since you two are a pain to feed.”

Coco and Gilly laughed, nodding their heads. “That’s true, but you love us.”

“Well, it’s either you two or my brother and Sergio, the lesser of the pair of evils.” 

“Damn, why aren’t we invited?” EZ spoke up. He was surprised he did since he hasn’t really spoken to Rhian since Sophomore year of high school. 

Rhian chuckled. “You’re more than welcome to come Ezekiel.”

EZ slightly cringed. She was one of the few who called him by his full name and he felt it was to keep the distance between them. He used to be close to Rhian, they were best friends till sophomore year. Things just changed and he couldn’t stop it even if he wanted to do so. 

“Is the invite extended towards me as well?” Angel joined in.

The silence was much longer than any of them would have liked, but Rhian wasn’t exactly sure what to say.

“Of course, the more the merrier.” 

Before anyone else could say anything, the temple door opened with Taza, Hank, and Bishop walking out.

“Tio Taza!” She enthusiastically greeted him. 

“Conejo, what are you doing here?” Taza fondly called her the nickname he had bestowed on her when she was younger. He gave her a hug, wrapping an arm around her shoulder once he pulled away.

Rhian waved the envelope. “Just my brother’s monthly contribution.”

“Your brother has no time to bring it in?” Bishop always found it amusing that it was Rhian that dropped off the money Daniel owed them. He knew it was only due to Daniel not wanting an earful from his uncle. 

“My brother doesn’t want to hear Tio’s nagging.”

The Mayans laughed at her comment. She handed the envelope to Bishop. 

“Have you eaten?” Taza questioned. 

“Yes, you do know who my brother is right?” Rhian playfully elbowed Taza. “He’s like a human garbage disposal, there’s always food in the garage.”

“School good?”

“Yes tio, it’s good.” Rhian’s phone began to ring. She slipped it out of her pocket, checked the name, and slipped it back inside. “I’m gonna go, nice seeing you all during our monthly drop off.”

The members laughed once again. Rhian left the clubhouse then, with everyone going about their business.

“She’s racing tonight,” Coco informed Taza.

“You know the drill,” Taza sighed. “Make sure she’s safe.” He never tried to control Rhian. She was a big girl, she could make her own mistakes, it was part of life. But that didn’t mean he didn’t protect her. 

“Always.” Coco picked up his pack of cigarettes, making his way out of the clubhouse.

“Hey Coco,” Angel called after Coco who had walked out of the clubhouse.

“What’s up?”

“Let Gilly stay behind and I’ll come with.”

“You?” Coco chuckled, taking out a cigarette and lighting it up. “Why? You’ve never been interested in Rhian’s activities.”

“You won’t let me be interested.”

“I’m not the one that avoids her like the plague.”

“The fuck you mean?” Angel’s eyebrows furrowed at Coco’s suggestion. He didn’t avoid her, he just didn’t have anything to say to her. More like he didn’t know what to say to her. After high school, there was just this unseen wall between them and as much as Angel wanted to break them down, he didn’t know how. 

“Come on Angel, you know you do. Ever since I’ve known Rhian, you never really gave her the time of day.” Coco always found it odd that Rhian never spoke to the Reyes brothers, but he never pushed her. Rhian was very cordial towards them, but he never questioned why EZ and Angel just seemed to become awkward around her. The two men he knew that could charm a wall could not even look her in the eye. He wondered what occurred, but he never tried to ask Rhian. So he asked Taza and it all made sense. He thought it was childish that Angel and EZ avoided her, but it must be shame that truly did it for them.

“I can’t give her the time of day even if I wanted to, she won’t even talk to me.” 

“Have you tried? Answering her questions every once in a while isn’t really trying Angel, did you do something to her?” Coco always found it amusing when he observed Angel while Rhian was around. He could tell his friend was having a difficult time talking to her. He could just tell how perplexed Angel became, thinking of how to approach her. 

It was amusing to say the least.

“This might be my opportunity to open the gates.” Angel knew he did her wrong, and he’s been trying. Well, he believed he was, but every time he would make a joke, she would just crack a smile and nod her head. Nothing else. He was a funny guy, there was no way his jokes were not working on her. She was suppressing it and he wished she wouldn’t. He refused to believe that she didn’t find his jokes amusing. 

“Are you interested in her? You know Sergio and Daniel would never let you near her.”

Angel smirked. “They can go fuck themselves, they’re the least of my concerns.” He wasn’t the biggest fan of Sergio. Daniel, he could handle, but Sergio, he just rubbed him the wrong way, always did, even while he was dating Erica.

“So you are interested in her?”

“No, I’m not. She’s just frustrating. Every time I try to speak to her, she just keeps it very short and professional.” Angel took a cigarette out as well, sitting on the porch stairs. “It’s been years since high school and it’s like she still hasn’t forgiven me for what happened.”

“What did you do?” He was wondering if Angel would admit to him why they stopped talking, but he doubted it.

“Just some childish shit.”

“Then it shouldn’t be a problem, Rhian wouldn’t hold it against you. She’s far too mature for that shit.” 

“What time is that race tonight?”

“Eleven, I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to go.”

Angel scoffed. “When has that ever stopped me?”

[doyouever-daydream]

You are the only one

A/N So this is what happens when Spotify plays One by Ed Sheeran followed by If the World Was Ending by JP Saxe and just because it’s been raining and I love writing angsty fics during rainy nights lol. There’s a 50/50 chance I will write a second part, who knows. Also remember English is not my first language and I wrote most of it at 2 am so I’m sorry for any mistakes. Enjoy!

Pairing: Penelope Garcia x Luke Alvez

Warnings: Angst without a happy ending, sorry y’all

Wordcount: 2144

Masterlist

Luke ran his fingers through his hair, usually he wouldn’t be out drinking alone at a bar on a Thursday night but the mixed emotions going through his mind had led him here. Earlier the team had come back from Kansas where they had been on a case for a few days, during their trip on the jet, Luke had overheard JJ and Emily talking about Penelope’s relationship, apparently things were looking great.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if they decided to move in together” JJ whispered but Luke had heard it.

“Really? I’m impressed, good for them, honestly I wouldn’t have thought about it, Penelope seems a little secretive about Jonathan” Emily stated, he had a guess as to why Penelope wasn’t sharing that much with them.

“Well, you know, she doesn’t want to bring it up in front of Luke” He was sure both women assumed he was asleep, and he had been until a few minutes ago, he decided to go back to sleep before he heard more stuff that would rub more salt to the wound. 

After arriving to the BAU and getting his paperwork done he quickly said goodbye and drove to the closest bar, by the third beer he knew he was not driving home and he continued to drink in silence.

It had been a year since the things between him and Penelope ended but it still pained him, he had tried to move on but the truth was he didn’t want to, so when he found out Penelope was seeing someone his heart broke even more.

He knew she had every right to move on, but he still had some hope left, they could work things out, Luke knew he didn’t see himself with other woman that wasn’t Penelope. He almost called Matt, usually he would go to him whenever he needed to talk about this situation, he was truly his best friend and always the shoulder he cried on, but by now, Luke felt uncertain to go to him to tell him the same things he’s been telling Matt since Penelope and him had broken up, and Matt always assured him that any time he wanted to talk he would be there to listen or give advice if he needed it.

But now he was afraid of taking his phone out because he just knew that instead of calling his best friend, his drunken brain would dial her number instead. And he didn’t want to bother her, it wouldn’t be fair to burden her with all of his false hopes and unresolved feelings, especially now that she was happy and getting serious in her relationship.

He continued to drink a bit more, he wasn’t usually the type to drown his sorrows with alcohol but the thought of Penelope settling down with someone else was the last straw, ever since their break up, nothing was ever the same between them, at first they only spoke when it was work related, when more time passed they tried to be friends but they never went back there, they could have conversations about that new place he thought she would like, or how Roxy was doing, he would ask about Sergio, but there was always some awkwardness floating around them whenever they were alone.

Even after everything one thing was certain: they wished each other the best. And as much as it hurt him to see her being with someone else, if it meant she was happy, he would learn to live with it, he was really trying to, but it was hard to see the person, you swore, was the love of your life with someone else.

He decided it was time to go when he realized it was pouring outside, so he paid the bartender and left, he knew he had to Uber home, he’d deal with his car in the morning, before he knew it he was on his way home.

Or so he thought.

The car stopped and he thanked the driver and got out, only to be met by Penelope’s building in front of him, he was confused but once he checked the address he typed on the app, he saw it was hers.

The loud thunder snapped him out of his thoughts, and he looked for some shelter from the heavy rain, once he did, he stood there debating whether or not was a good idea to go up, it was almost midnight, maybe he was there with her or maybe she was at his place.

He pressed his lips together wondering what he should do but before he had the chance to think it through, his feet were already walking towards the door of the building, lucky for him one of Penelope’s neighbor recognized him and let him in when they were getting in.

As he found himself outside her door, he still wasn’t sure what he was going to say or if he should even be there but his feelings got the best of him so he knocked one, two, three, four times.

It was almost midnight but Penelope couldn’t sleep, the storm happening outside was to blame, she had never a fan of lightning and thunder, so now she was drinking a cup of tea while Sergio rested on her lap, petting him made her feel less anxious.

She continued doing that until she felt her eyes getting heavier, and just when she was about to fall asleep, the knocking on her door made her eyes shot open, she sat up straight a little startled, Sergio jumped off at the sudden notion.

When she looked through the peephole, she thought she was hallucinating when he saw him standing there, Penelope slowly opened the door, as if he was going to disappear if she was not careful.

Luke had his eyes fixated on the floor but the moment he heard the door open, he lifted his gaze to be met with the most beautiful woman in his eyes.

“Penelope” His voice was almost inaudible.

She was both surprised and confused to see him there “Uhm, what are you doing here?” She wrapped her arms around her and stood there avoiding his gaze.

“Are you ok?” That’s when Penelope’s gaze met his.

“Me? I’m fine” She paused “Are you ok?” She tried to decipher what was going on in his mind.

“You really don’t like storms” He slurred and Penelope realized then he was drunk.

“Did you drive here?” She was ready to give him a piece of her mind.

His eyes shot open “What!? No” He looked at her as if she was saying nonsense.

Penelope moved to the side so he could enter the apartment “Come on, you’re gonna catch a cold, let me make you some coffee”

He smiled “Thanks Pen” His mind didn’t come up with something else to say so he followed her inside.

She went to the kitchen and he sat on the sofa, he tried to see if the place was any different, to see if there were any signs she was moving out, he knew something was missing but couldn’t quite figure out what was it.

Soon Penelope returned with a coffee mug for him, they sat in silence for a few minutes, neither of them able to come up with small talk.

Suddenly Luke started talking what was on his mind “I had to come, it was raining, you can’t sleep when it’s raining with lightning and thunder, I wanted to make sure you were fine” Penelope shuffled awkwardly in her place, she was aware this conversation would turn uncomfortable.

“I- uh, I appreciate the concern but you didn’t have to come here just because it was raining”  Since Sergio wasn’t there, she took the pillow next to her and hugged it, in an attempt to protect herself. 

He shook his head and started to ramble “No, you’re wrong, I did, I mean, I can’t let you be here alone and scared”

“Luke-” Penelope tried to cut him off but Luke was set on speaking his mind.

“It’s my job to make sure you’re ok” He reassured her with a furrowed brow.

“It really is not, I can take care of myself, thank you very much” She pinched the bridge of her nose “But I don’t know why I’m telling you this when you’re drunk, you are a stubborn drunk, Alvez”

He let out a harsh breath “I’m not, I-I’m not”

“Drunk or...?” She inquired. 

“Stubborn, drunk I am” She let out a sad laugh, she missed drunk Luke, and sober Luke as well..

“I guess I should offer you to crash for the night” She got to her feet seeing the opportunity to end the conversation “You can sleep on the couch”

“I don’t want to sleep” He rubbed his chin.

“Well, either that or you go home, newbie” The familiar nickname rolled off her lips for the first time in more than a year and he swore his heart skipped a beat.

“I want to talk” Those were the words she dreaded to hear.

“No, you’re drunk, you need to sleep, let me go get you some blankets and some more comfortable clothes”  

“I won’t wear his clothes” He stated with a firm voice.

She sighed and ignored him while she searched for the blankets, when she returned he was pacing back and forth.

“Pen, I’m not wearing your boyfriend’s clothes” His voice had softened.

“They’re yours, I found them in some drawer the other day” He stopped and turned to her, again unable to stop himself before he started to pour out all the words he had been wanting to ask.

“What happened, Penelope? Please tell me” He took a step towards her and she took a step back, Luke stopped and felt his heart break a little bit more for the second time in the day, she didn’t want to be close to him.

“Luke, please, don’t do this” She rubbed both hands on her forehead. 

“What didn’t I do? What do I need to make things right?” His voice broke.

“Let’s go to sleep, please” Penelope pleaded as she held back the tears. 

“Penelope, I need you to know that if you ever feel like you could give us a second chance I’d say yes and I know that most likely won’t happen but I needed you to know” Luke knew it wasn’t fair to do this to her, but he couldn’t stop himself.

Penelope on her part wasn’t as shocked as he thought he would be, a million thoughts were going through her mind, but she remained silent so he continued to talk.

“I know you’re happy and that I’m an idiot for doing this but I can’t take it anymore, I wish I was over you by now but I’m not, the thought of you being happy with someone else pulls me back together and breaks me up again, I wouldn’t want you to be sad and there’s a part of me that is glad there is someone else making you happy because I can’t but you have no idea how much I wish it was me making you happy” He also wished Penelope would tell him that she was waiting for him to show up and confess all of this so she could come to terms with the fact that she still loved him but she didn’t.

He didn’t know how long he stood there looking at her, waiting for something, anything to come out of her mouth, even if it was just her telling him to fuck off, he couldn’t stand the silence.

“I-I better go, I’ll type the right address this time” As he was about to leave the apartment he turned around “One last thing, I know I’ll have a moral hangover tomorrow and I’ll act weird and probably will avoid you but please, don’t stop being my… Friend, not being with you it’s incredibly hard but not having you as a part of my life at all would be the death of me, please, don’t let me drift apart just because I’m a fucking moron, Pen”

“Can you let me know you got home safely?” That was all Penelope could say to him.

“I will, sorry I showed up like this” And with that he left.

Almost forty minutes later, she got a text, it was picture of Roxy lying on her bed with her stuffed duck that Penelope had bought for her almost two years ago.

“Maybe this can help you sleep”

“I made it home safely, I’m sorry for everything”

That’s when she let the tears finally come out and so she cried herself to sleep, on the other side of town, Luke also let the tears out, thinking he would regret letting Penelope go the rest of his life.

[grandmalavi]

Moondance, a Marquillo/Serquel fanfiction. My first time writting about these two, so I hope it it isn't too cringy nor extremely OOC. Enjoy! :)

“MOONDANCE”

Raquel found Sergio outside, seating by the beach, bare chested and barefoot underneath the moonlight. Staring at the crashing of the waves, it seemed as if the ocean held all answers to the overthinking going on inside that brilliant mind of his.

He'd sneaked out little after dinner, when she'd been too enthralled in a conversation with Ailyn, the kind Filipina woman he'd hired to help with them with house chores, to properly notice his escape. Once she'd noticed his absence, though, Raquel immediately knew where he'd go— in this pacific island of theirs, there weren't many places to run off to, after all.

She'd left her mother to continue chatting with Ailyn from where she knit by the kitchen table, calm and chatty as the woman rarely was these days. They discovered the sound of one of Sergio's old classic records would have a surprisingly soothing effect over Marivi, and it now played softly at the background as Raquel left the room, travelling upstairs to found Paula already tucked in bed. The little girl flipped curiously through the pages of one of the books Sergio had purchased for her birthday, a month ago, and once her mother sat by her side, Paula filled her ears with excited babble over Harry Potter's newest adventures until finally being convinced into turning the lights off and going to sleep. Smiling at her small form underneath the sheets, Raquel had left a crack of her daughter's door open, so that she'd have that little bit of light coming inside the room the way experience taught her it'd make her feel safer, although the talk around bedtime these days was that nine was too grown up to be afraid of silly monsters anymore.

Then, and only then, Raquel went out in search of the complex, annoyingly withdrawn man she turned out to love— supposing she'd given him the time alone he seemed to need to think, by then.

Their living room double doors opened to a breathtaking view of the ocean, and in specially hot days they'd taken a habit off setting in the comfortable net outside and watching as Paula ran around in the sand with her new Palawan friends. She and Sergio would talk about nothing and everything, swinging pleasantly in the arms of one another while exchanging the silliest smiles, between caresses and kisses that'd leave them both needing and turned on, although much too comfortable with just snuggling innocently in the breeze to move inside and do something about it, at the same time. Their touching would be torturing, but of the best, slow-burning and arousing sort of kind— leaving both flustered and breathless afterwards, often clinging onto one another like high schoolers until the time they'd be alone again would come.

This night, Raquel stood by the doorway while bracing herself against the chilling ocean breeze coming in, her eyes wandering briefly until she found Sergio's familiar form, his slean shoulders bared outside in the cold, although he remained unflinching in face of the waves constantly licking his legs. Feeling a wave of sadness wash over her at how lonely he seemed, she sighed, and without further hesitation started making her way toward him.

Her feet dug into the cool sand, goosebumps lifting all over her arms once she reached the spot where he sat, pushing her wavering hair out of her eyes to stare down at him. Cross-legged, Sergio had his elbows over his knees, not only his jeans soaked by the come and go of the ocean but all the rest of himself, as well. With water drops still glimmering in his skin and his hair damp, glued to his neck, it was clear he went for a night time swim in the freezing cold waters ahead— and, judging by his t-shirt thrown soaked in the sand by his side, not so long ago.

He was clearly freezing, the muscles of his back coiled and tensed, making something ferocious inside Raquel rise, wanting nothing but to wrap herself around him and handle him all the warmth she had. Even so, she held back, finding a fragility in his posture that told her he might recoil, in case she'd do so. And even though her approach hadn't been silent, at all, Sergio didn't seem to notice her presence there until she came to sit by his side, crossed legs underneath her summer dress to mimic his own, her knee coming to brush slightly at his.

At her touch, Sergio straightened suddenly as if struck by electricity, his eyes raising to her face as hers lowered, to find the whiskey glass half filled with wine he cradled between his hands.

He'd rarely drink, unless if to make her company, and something about the fact he found more comfort at the bottom of a glass tonight made her feel all sorts of angry and sad. But looking inside his eyes, stripped off his glasses for the obvious risk of losing them underwater, Raquel found how unsurprisingly sober he was, for despite knowing how this meticulous man she came to know could oddly turn unpredictable sometimes, she also knew he'd never be reckless to the point of entering the ocean drunk off his ass.

No, this… this sounded more like something she'd do, being definitely the impulsive one out of both. The thought made Raquel smile at him, soft and a little bittersweet, wishing deep down she'd muster just enough reasoning to help him cope with whatever bothered him today, exactly the way she knew he'd do for her anytime her feelings made her go a little nuts.

“I really made you a rebel with this swimming in your clothes thing, huh?” she murmurs, tilting her head to the ocean with her smile widening, teasingly “I mean, it's a little late to be freezing my butt out there, but you could've called me to join, no? I can be a little rebel too…”

“Just a little, yes, Inspectora?” Sergio's eyes crinkled as he smiled, shortly and awkwardly, his head ducking at his lap to avoid eye contact “I, well, I wasn't exactly planning on doing it, until… until I-I sort of… Was already there, water on my waist.” he gestured nervously, his hand making as if to push the glasses that weren't there back to the top of his nose “I, you see, I-I had a couple more of these before,” he lifts his glass, swirling the wine “and then I suppose the alcohol must've made me think I wanted to get rid of something very badly, for I threw it at the waves. But as soon as I saw it floating away I regretted it, and let's just say I had to dive in and fish it back on myself…” he shook his head, shyly, looking at her through his lashes with a shrug and a self-deprecating smirk “Not my finest moment, so I'm glad you weren't here to see me destroying the beauty of fully-clothed swimming so pathetically, indeed.”

Raquel's smile faded as he spoke. Frowning, not liking the look in his eyes, she forgot the space she intended on giving him and reached to grab hold of one of his hands in hers, bringing it to her lap. Immediately she realized her instinct to be right, for Sergio's cold fingers squeezed hers quite frantically, his throat bobbing as he swallowed, sort of leaning forward towards her, his eyes sparkling in the reflection the moon provided on the waves.

Oh, my love.

“Sergio, did you get rid of Andrés' watch?”

His features twitched, a grimace of shame, and he nodded “Tried.” his voice was a whisper, that he drowned inside his glass in a nervous gulp of wine. Then, he shook his head, wiping clumsily a drop of water that slid from somewhere around the bridge of his nose, then down his cheek “I-I, I don't know what the fuck I was thinking, Raquel. What damn good would've come out of getting rid of the only thing my brother has left me…” he sighed, tremulously, scoffing at himself “My father's watch, Raquel. This old contraption he had restored for me because I'd refuse putting it aside in twenty years, all of it so that I'd have it in time before the heist… so that I'd have 'a second to remind our reasons' on me, he said.” Sergio's whole face scrunched, as if some sort of physical pain cut him from the inside “Same damn thing Dad told me the day he left to die, leaving me this watch so I'd have a piece of him, and since then it's become… It's become this piece of Andrés and that bastard smile of his as well, Raquel, and now it won't probably even work anymore…” he closes his eyes shut, trembling “I-I'm such an idiot-”

“Hey.” Raquel scooted closer to him, passing her arms through his, her chin propped on his shoulder as she tilted her head backwards to meet his eyes “Only I can call my boyfriend that, you hear me?” sighing, she asked softly “Where is it?”

“Over my shirt.” Sergio nodded towards it, and Raquel turned to reach for it. Turning the simple, delicate watch she'd only seen him take off to sleep over in her hands, Raquel saw how he'd attempt to dried it, although droplets of water had inevitably leaked inside it as she tapped its glass, its hands remaining frozen, still marking the same time from about an hour ago. The engraved quote “a second to remind your reasons” shone as she ran her thumb softly over the back of it.

“We'll ask Aylin if she knows any watchmaker in the village to take a look at it later.” she tells him, turning his hand over to set the watch firmly around his wrist, back where it belonged, planting a soft kiss to his palm before resting their joined hands back over her thigh again “But even if it can't be fixed, it doesn't matter.” she entwined their fingers, squeezed his hand “I'm sure your brother wouldn't care, for he gave it to you so that you'd keep on you as a reminder of himself and your father, not as just one more gift. What matters, carinõ, is that it's become important enough for you to make you dive into the ocean at night just to retrieve it back.”

Leaning her cheek to his arm while watching him mull over her words, she felt how cold and damp his skin felt, how he'd punished himself by seating there and letting shivers consume his exposed chest until now.

“Berlim was…” Sergio shook his head, his voice cracking “Sometimes reminding him is… difficult, complicated. I kept… looking at it, today, over and over, and, I-I don't know, Raquel…” he gulped, turning the watch anxiously around his wrist “ It was hard not to replay his death over and over, I suppose, just at the sight of this. It felt simply so… revolting, unfair. Then next thing I new, I'd already launched it at the waves. And at first… at first it made me feel so damn relieved you wouldn't believe it, Raquel. So, so much.” his tone was raspy, strangled, and he squeezed her hand so firmly it hurt “Until I realised, realised… I couldn't. Shouldn't. Immediately, it was as if this stone-shaped weight settled inside me, heavying me all over, a hundred pounds over my shoulders. It made me regret, then go after after it like the moron I am, so fucking ashamed and hoping I could somehow grasp his memory back-”

“Shhhh.” Her heart ached as she attempted a smile at him, rubbing his arm up and down in attempts of lending him a little of her warmth, at least. Feeling her own eyes filling at the sight of Sergio's shining ones, Raquel cradled his face in her hands, blinking her own tears away “You don't have to feel ashamed, you hear me? It's okay for you not to want to suffer nor carry willingly reminders of your losses around, Sergio. Means you're human. Means it's normal for you to want to run away from bad, painful memories, sometimes. It's perfectly okay…”

Sergio rested his forehead to hers, eyes closed, pulling Raquel to his chest as a tremulous gasp escaped his lips. She tried to keep her eyes open and watching him, but it was proven impossible as Sergio nuzzled his nose to hers, lips brushing softly against her cheek before he buried his face into the space between her neck and shoulder, releasing what it seemed to be a lifetime held breath, warm and heartfelt, against her skin.

Her eyes drifting closed, Raquel hugged him back and let him drown his sorrow inside her arms.

Very soon this morning, soon as the sun peeked at the horizon, she'd woken up suddenly and for no apparent reason to find herself alone in their bed. Missing the usual feel of Sergio's arms wrapped around herself, she'd sat and turned around to see where he'd went, finding his familiar form observing the sunrise by himself at the beach outside. Knowing the occurrence of his nightmares and troubled sleep the past few days very well by then, for she was the one to comfort him and witness him toss and turn, calling out his brother's name in the night, Raquel assumed he needed to clear his head off but didn't want to wake her up.

Nevertheless, she went after him. And wrapped her arms around him from behind as soon as she was close enough, hands sliding to his chest as she glued herself against his back, being able to feel the deep intake of air he took as soon he felt her touch. She'd earned herself a weak smile, Sergio's larger hands finding and grasping hers thankfully as she hugged him tighter, wishing to able to send all his troubles away with something as simple as her presence, alone. Together they stood, until sun rays colored the sand by their bare feet, orange glowing and outlining their joined bodies in soft warmth.

And then Raquel pulled him back towards the house, Sergio following willingly, wrapping himself all around her in return. Soon they no longer walked, but stumbled upon their unmade bed, falling over the mattress together amidst Sergio's pouring ticklish kisses all over her neck and shoulders and Raquel's breathless, relieved laughing out loud.

Their lovemaking was rushed and intense, a frantic ripping of clothes and ablazing hands exploring exposed skin, until Sergio's hips furiously met hers, coaxing shared gasps of relief out of both. Raquel's pent up desire for his touch made her dig scratches with her nails into his back, such was her pleasure, coaxing him into moving, harder, faster, deepest as possible within every thrust inside her until they both reached a sudden, toe-curling climax almost at the same time. Collapsing above her, Sergio's arms enclosured Raquel in a warm cage in which she immediately melted, his lips pressed against the pulsing hollow of her throat as they both struggled to catch their breath. She smiled in contentment, although briefly, once she noticed how tense and still he rested inside her embrace, silent even as she drew lazy shapes over his back with her fingertips, trying to get some actual words out of his mouth to express what had tormented him so much during the night.

Then, finally, as she felt moisture where his cheek had come to rest right above her heart, Sergio breathed his confession in a harsh whisper “He'd been forty-six today.”

And without further words needed, with her heart sinking, Raquel understood. It torn her how little there was she could actually do for him, but to hug him and feel his pain and let him hold onto her, caressing his hair as his silent tears slid between her breasts.

She'd never got to meet Andrés, besides for that brief and mostly unpleasant encounter with him as Berlim back at the heist, but that morning she and Sergio both fell asleep feeling deeply for his loss at heart.

When she'd woken up again, was to the strong smell of Sergio's cologne filling her senses, once during their sleep he apparently had turned on his side and crushed her to himself at some point, entangling his limbs around her in a death grip. Raquel's face glued to his neck, for she honestly felt hotter within the second against his warm body, but soon she found out she didn't bother much, when it was clear by his slow heartbeats Sergio felt deeply comforted and at peace in their sweaty embrace. She was, in fact, just starting to doze off again, lulled by the sound of his regular breathing, when he released her a bit, clearly awake, to cradle her face in his hands and place a lingering kiss on her lips.

“Good morning.” he'd said, smiling, and with that Raquel thought— wanted to believe— his troubled thoughts had ceased tormenting him, at least for today.

And true to his best abilities of putting up a facade, Sergio managed to convince her pretty well with another kiss and the promise of having breakfast ready for her downstairs, before he'd retrieve his glasses by the nightstand and left her hugging a pillow in lieu of his body, to disappear inside their bathroom displaying a relaxed smile on his face. Through the rest of the day, he never mentioned his brother nor the sorrow he'd expressed freely in her arms that morning again.

Raquel never approached the subject either, knowing that Sergio was bound to shyness and embarrassment if pushed into expressing himself prematurely, especially when the control freak inside him reacted so poorly upon having his emotions on check. And so she went along with his good humor and set about watching him closely, instead.

She laughed along Aylin and her mother's silly conversation topics at the breakfast table while accepting the coffee mug he handled her with a quick peck on the lips, watching him with the same moved gratitude of every day as he walked around her chair to deliver Paula's plate first, a smile opening on his face as the little girl approved soundly of her chocolate chips and bunny-shaped pancakes made out of scratch. Raquel even sneaked by the old piano Sergio had pushed against a corner in their living room, later, leaning onto the instrument in silent awe to observe him coaxing her daughter's enthusiasm into actually sitting and learning a few clumsy notes under his patient guidance. Unsurprisingly, she'd almost embarrassed herself by actually tearing up once Paula eagerly started playing the song they've been practicing for about two months now, Sergio's encouraging murmurs making her little girl smile proudly, seemingly suddenly so attentively and mature Raquel wanted nothing but to hug her tightly and never let her grow up.

But, above all, Raquel felt as if she could actually weep if any of them lifted their eyes from the keys long enough to acknowledge her presence there. Because family was the only word she could think of to describe Sergio's hand on Paula's shoulder and the little girl's clear admirance upon him every time he'd smile approvingly when she'd hit the right notes— the two halves of her heart, merging together into actually loving and caring for each other right there before her eyes.

Not for the first time since she'd brought her family to live in Palawan, Raquel felt deeply thankful for Sergio's willingness into making them a part of his life as well. He was such a different man here amongst them, and little by little she saw how he'd started to reveal new sides of his personality just by interacting with them. He no longer was the Professor nor Salva to her, but Sergio instead, a junction of both personalities into this man worth so much more Raquel could see both her daughter and mother starting to discover— and falling in love— for his true self as well.

Right now, being hugged and hugging him equally fiercely back, Raquel wished their newfound love could be enough balsam to relieve the lost of his loved ones somehow. Almost as if sensing her worry, she felt Sergio's chest expand against hers as he sighed very deeply, cupping the back of her head with both hands before finally releasing her, pulling back. She found pain still there in his face, but his eyes were clear once again, albeit intense, his attention solely focused on her in a way that made Raquel's stomach flutter in unexpected butterflies.

“We should get back inside.” he whispered, his features softer, tender, his hands moving to rub her upper arms “You're starting to freeze.”

"You are the only one freezing here, Professor.” deciding they've loathed over sadness enough for today already, Raquel opened a mischievous smirk at him. Smitten, she stole his glass of wine for herself and tossed her head back, emptying it in two gulps. Licking her lips, she left it behind on the sand, very much enjoying the way Sergio's pupils dilated as he watched her, amused.

“I've learned a long time ago that the best way to warm up is being creative.” she said, then leaned in for a kiss Sergio returned so hungrily she moaned against his mouth, coaxing a frustrated groan out of him as soon as she pulled back, smiling, and giggling got to her feet “You can get your old man's ass back inside later, 'cause right now you owe me a dance, Marquina.” she offered him her hands “Moondance is still my top ten Van Morrison favorite, so if you could, you know, get yourself moving while the moon is still out, that'd be great.”

“They'll have to get this engraved on my tombstone.” Sergio shook his head, smiling “Dead by Raquel Murillo's hands. Poor man couldn't say no, they'll say.”

And he grabbed her hands, stood up, resting his own hands around her waist to nuzzle her neck, feeling finally brought out of his own head there against her, happy and alive.

“Funny. Last night it seemed I was handling you just fine, no?” Raquel whispered by his ear, putting her arms around his neck.

Sergio laughed into her hair “Oh, you've got low tactics, Inspectora. Very low.”

“Anything's fair in love and negotiation, Professor. I didn't invent that.”

“Wrong quote. Great point, though.” he whispered, then nibbled her ear, chuckling when she gasped and pushed her hips automatically against his.

“W-Why aren't we moving?” Raquel stuttered, actually a bit flushed “Dancing and standing aren't the same thing, you know.”

“Oh, I do.” Sergio took one of her hands in his, pulled her closer and pushed back to beam a smug smirk at her “I told you before I never enjoyed dancing, but I did grow up with Andrés by my side, you know. He'd coax me into waltzing him more times than I'd like to admit, and I'll let you know I happened to get very good at it, Murillo.”

He winked at her and started swaying on his feet, gently guiding her along. Unable to stop herself, Raquel smiled wide, gasping and laughing in delight as Sergio unexpectedly spun her around, bringing her breathlessly back to his chest with a laugh of his own.

“You're not so bad, I admit it.” she breathed against his ear, heartbeats happily pounding, her chin over his shoulder as she tried to catch her breath. Closing her eyes, she wished they could spend the whole night like this, blissful and lost in their own world.

“Well, I was taught well.” Sergio spun them in lazy circles, putting her messy hair behind her ear “My brother would come back from the dead just to wack me on the head if I'd embarrass myself in front of a pretty girl like you, Inspectora.”

“Pretty girl, huh?”

“Yes, very pretty. Hot, too. Naughty. And oh, so horny sometimes…”

She slapped him playfully on the chest.

“That's a good comment to reflect about on the couch, you know.”

“You think? 'Cause I think some punishing sex would teach me a better lesson-”

She silenced him with a kiss, one that escalated very quickly, up until they stopped swaying to devour each other's mouths, breathing loudly and eating one another's moans, the freezing ocean breeze ignored around them once hands caressed and burned every bit of exposed skin there was to be touched. Sergio was almost lifting off her feet when Raquel pulled back, breathlessly, resisting the need to wrap her legs around his waist.

“Let's get back inside.”

“But I thought you wanted a dance first.” Sergio murmured, showering her jaw line in languid kisses “I was starting to feel rather fond of this new dancing style, to be honest…”

“Sergio.” Raquel protested, faintly and barely audible as her eyes tended to roll every time his mouth touched her skin “Carinõ, I'd love to, but if we keep dancing with your hands wandering in this pace, soon enough both Ailyn and my mother will be able to spot my bare ass from all the way inside the house.” she wrinkled her nose, reminding a few near-misses in her teenage days “And trust me, she wouldn't let us hear the end of it anytime soon…”

“Alright, alright. Back inside.” Sergio sighed, releasing her to gather his shirt from where he'd left it in the sand and hurry back to her side so fast Raquel giggled, before he grabbed her hand and pulled them to the house “Let's go. Don't stop or make eye contact, or else they'll make questions!”

His seriousness made her laugh harder as they entered the house, Sergio pulling her behind himself like a man on a mission. They crossed the living room and went for the stairs like teenagers on a secret relationship, sneaking into the bedroom instead of out of it, while hoping the women inside the kitchen wouldn't catch them on sight. Her mother's sharp instincts, however, were not to be underestimated, and soon they heard her shout:

“Don't forget to dry yourselves, otherwise you'll catch a cold!”

Laughing at Sergio's deer on the highlights looks, Raquel called back “Don't worry, Mamá!”

As she heard Marivi's and Aylin's amused laughter downstairs, Raquel guided a flustered Sergio towards their room, thinking a cold wouldn't be a price so high to pay for all she could've expected from a dance under the moonlight with the man she loved, and more.

[sleepyverstappens]

Your soul and mine

Title: Your soul and mine

Pairing: Charles Leclerc/Lando Norris

Rating: Gen/PG (bar a few curses)

Word Count: 2138

Tags: Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, Alternate universe - Soulmate, Soulmate Identifying Marks

A/N:  Me writing a fic without Max *gasp!* apparently miracles do happen, because Max is only mentioned once in this one.J prompted me a Charles/Lando meet cute fic on whatsapp and my brain totally skipped over the meet cute part and instead this happened. I guess it's still quite cute though?Anyways hope you enjoy this one :D

Summary: Most people were very private about their marks, if they could hide it they would do so. So unless you were one of the unfortunate souls with a mark stretching over your face the mark would be hidden away from sight until you found your match. People would wear scarves and gloves all year to keep that little piece of them hidden if they needed to. Only openly showing their marks ones they had started moving, once they had met the other half of their soul.

Read on AO3

No, he thought, no it couldn't be, it was supposed to be Carlos. Carlos who's mark he'd seen just a flash of. A glimpse of it caught when he'd walked in on him unannounced as Carlos changed into his fireproofs. The intricate swirl of a tail peeking out on his shoulder before he could cover himself. Carlos’ eyes worried as they met his own, but Lando had somehow managed to play it off as if he hadn’t seen anything, joking about as if nothing had happened. 

Most people were very private about their marks, if they could hide it they would do so. So unless you were one of the unfortunate souls with a mark stretching over your face the mark would be hidden away from sight until you found your match. People would wear scarves and gloves all year to keep that little piece of them hidden if they needed to. Only openly showing their marks ones they had started moving, once they had met the other half of their soul. 

He'd only seen a glimpse of Carlos' mark, but that tail had looked so familiar, like the tail on his right foot. The tail connected to the little monkey that had been there since he was 15. The same monkey that was staring back at him on Twitter now, the intricate details just like his own standing out against the pale skin of Charles Leclerc's stomach.

Charles Leclerc who he had maybe spoken five words with all throughout last season, the Ferrari prodigy not interested in hanging out with the new rookies even though he'd been one himself only a season before. Happy enough to stick to Pierre or Seb’s side whenever they had some free time during the busy weekends. 

“Fuck,” he cursed softly. He knows the universe wouldn't just put him with Charles randomly, but then why did he hate the idea of being his soulmate so much? His mind had been so set on it being his teammate, the teammate who he got along with so well. Who would laugh at his dumb jokes, whose touches he would still feel long after his long fingers had left his body. Yet none of his touches had made his monkey start moving, not even a smidge. He’d held out hope, hope that maybe Carlos’ touches weren’t right, did they ever actually touch skin? His brain was coming with plenty of excuses of how it could still be Carlos, until he’d seen that picture, that undeniable picture. 

It had to be photoshopped right? People did that all the time and it wasn't like Sun of all tabloids was a trustworthy one. But then how could they have gotten it just like his one? This wasn't a random leaf or puzzle piece that anyone could think up, no it actually had the monkey missing one of its toes like his one. Unless the person that wrote the article was his soulmate there was no way someone had faked that soulmark. 

“Fuck,” he cursed once more, a little louder, some curious looks thrown his way from the other people in the hospitality cafeteria. What did people do when they found out who their soulmate was? Movies always made it so romantic, eyes meeting across a crowded room, the soft touch they’d share, eyes widening as their marks started moving, the rest of the world going quiet as they only had eyes for the one that made their soul complete. Yet here was Lando, sat all alone in the middle of a crowded canteen, cutlery clinking loudly through the noise of people chatting. He needed to get away from all the noise, get some fresh air, sort his head out.

The paddock was bustling with people, but the noise felt less crowding than it had done inside. It’s only the second week of testing and people seem a lot more chill than during the race weekends, waiting somewhat patiently for their favourite drivers as they go for their lunch break. He hasn’t driven yet today, Carlos racking up more miles in the morning before he would jump in in an hour or so. 

Charles has though and Lando wonders whether he’s seen the pictures yet. How the scums from the Sun had managed to catch the exact moment Charles’ shirt had lifted he doesn’t know. The picture showed the young man standing on the balcony of his Monaco apartment, hair a mess and eyes squinted closed as he stretched his arms above his head. People would say it was his own fault for not making sure the mark was covered, but he was at home, a space that was supposed to be safe. And he’d clearly only just woken up, his brain not firing on all cylinders yet and somehow the camera had snapped at that exact moment. 

He hadn’t realised how far along the paddock he’d walked, his feet stopping abruptly as his eyes caught the bright red Ferrari hospitality building. A lone figure sat outside on the terrace attached to it, the hood of his jacket up against the cold as he gripped his phone tightly. Lando could see the forlorn expression on Charles’ face, clearly he’d seen the picture, how they had zoomed in on his stomach, broadcasting his mark to the world. Seeing Charles like this made his heart ache, his head and his heart at war on whether or not he should go to Charles and tell him. Tell him that whilst it sucked what they had done it had made Lando find him, find his soulmate. 

He’s about to step forward, let his heart lead the way, when Charles glances up, their eyes meeting and Lando freezes. He can’t do it, he’s not ready, not ready to give up the possibility of someone else. Of brown eyes and a Spanish accent, instead of brown eyes and a French accent. He manages to make a small smile stretch on his lips before he rushes back to the McLaren hospitality, to the safety of his home away from home.   

---

The next two days of testing fly by quickly, they get through their scheduled programming without much trouble and he gets to set the fourth fastest time, just behind Lewis, Max and Sergio, Ferrari still struggling to find the pace even during the second week in Barcelona. He had tried to avoid the team of the prancing horse as much as possible, only catching a glimpse of Charles as he had walked into the paddock on Thursday morning, other than seeing his bright red car out on track.

So it’s a surprise to find himself sat across from Charles in the first class lounge at the airport. He’d been there first, lazily scrolling through the messages on various social media when Charles had let himself fall into the chair across from him. There’s only two other people in the lounge and yet he’d sat there, right across from Lando, the Brit’s eyes widening a little as he’d found Charles staring at him. 

They drag their eyes away from each other in sync, Charles’ eyes now also focussed on the phone in his hand. Lando can’t help but sneak a few glances up at the Monegasque, seeing a deep frown wrinkling up his forehead as he reads whatever is on the phone. Then Charles huffs loudly, his phone clattering onto the table loudly as he pushes it away from him. 

“What’s up?”

And now that frown is directed at Lando, brown eyes piercing into him before he lifts a condescending eyebrow. “Really? Like you don’t know, like the whole fucking world doesn’t know already.”

“Sorry,” Lando murmured, feeling embarrassed for even asking. He’d just wanted to be nice to the guy, maybe get him to open up about how he’s feeling with all the shit that’s going on and then maybe hint at the fact that Lando is his soulmate. But instead he’d already fucked it up, the angry scowl on Charles’ face really making him question the universe right now. Did he have it all wrong? It couldn’t be, he’d stared at that picture for so long, zooming in on every tiny detail to compare it to his own mark and he’d found nothing different. Fuck, how would he tell Charles and actually make him believe Lando. Show him his own mark before Charles could angrily run out of the lounge, thinking Lando was only taking the piss out off him.  

“I need to tell you something,” he murmured just as the tannoy was announcing that the flight to Nice was now boarding, Charles’ flight. 

“That’s me,” Charles shrugged apologetically, rushing to grab his carry on, wrapping his headphones around his neck and starting to leave. And in a moment of panic Lando reached out for him, halfway out of his chair, fingers wrapping around the Monegasque’s wrist. Skin touching skin. And it’s a fucking cliché, it’s a goddamn fucking cliché but at that moment everything seems to go in slow motion. Charles’s wide eyes finding his own as everything but Charles’s face becomes blurry around them.    

He can’t stop the gasp from escaping his lips, mouth falling open as the rushing of his blood becomes deafening to his ears. This was really happening. Charles really was his soulmate, the other half of his soul. Their body and mind connecting from that single touch. His fingers start to tingle where they are still wrapped around Charles’s wrist and he could feel his right foot starting to itch.

“It’s really you,” he finally managed to get out, the words somehow managing to break Charles out of his stupor as well. 

“What?” Charles said voice hoarse, unable to believe what was happening right now, his eyes flicking over Lando’s face to look for the answer to a question he didn’t even know yet. “What the fuck is happening?”

“We’re soulmates. I… I’m your soulmate. I didn’t want to believe it at first, when I saw the picture, but it’s really you,” Lando said overwhelmed. 

“But, wha… how?”

“The fucking universe thinks were meant for each other apparently,” Lando said with a shrug. Now that there was no denying it anymore, that it really was Charles that was his soulmate and not Carlos his brain gave in easily, not fighting this inexplicable force that had brought them together, that connected them. 

His foot really was starting to itch a lot now though, he stomped his left foot on top of the right one trying to stop it from itching, but it didn’t work. His movement had managed to direct Charles’s gaze towards where he was fidgeting though, his eyes focussing in on his right foot. “Is it there? Your mark?”

“Yeah, it’s itching like a bitch dude, how are you not scratching your stomach off right now?” Lando whined, finally giving up on trying to scratch his foot through his shoe and tugging the laces free. 

“Wait, wait Lando you can’t, not right here!”

“There’s no one here Charles, everyone’s gone to their flights.” He let himself fall back into his seat and tugged his shoe free from his foot, sock falling to the floor as well and then he gasped once more. Because where his mark had been stagnant before, the monkey on his foot was now moving its head to stare up at him, tail flicking as it scratched its cheek, before looping back around. The same movements would repeat themself on his skin now permanently, repeating themself until Charles would die breaking their bond. 

“Can I? Can I see yours?” He asked tentatively, fingers itching to reach out for Charles’s white t-shirt, to move it away and see the same pattern on Charles’s skin.   

With one last glance around the empty first class lounge Charles slowly lifted his shirt, gasping softly as he saw his own mark moving on his skin. The monkey moving its head to the side, flicking its tail, before scratching its cheek and on and on again. He gasped again, a little louder as Lando’s fingers touched his skin, tracing around the shape of the mark, following the lines of the delicate tail.

“Shit, sorry!” Lando cursed, drawing his hand back as if it had been burned. 

“It’s okay. Feels nice,” Charles murmured, sounding so in awe of everything that was happening right now. A bright smile was starting to appear on his face though, as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. “Come here,” he beckoned, drawing Lando up from his seat again and pulling him into a tight hug. 

“Last call for Mister Charles Leclerc,” the lady on the tannoy announced loudly, but Charles just tightened his grip around him, not moving away from the hug, perfectly content in the little bubble they were in.    

“C'est vraiment toi.” 

[pug-bitch]

That’s not why I’m going (19)

Big Beaumont

Book: The Royal Romance

Pairing: Drake Walker x Amara Suarez

Rating: some foul language, some extremely suggestive, and a VERY steamy scene right at the beginning + another one later on. This is absolutely NOT appropriate for people under 18.

Word count: 4,450 (let me know if the ‘keep reading’ cutoff isn’t working well!)

Notes: This picks up where we left off, with Amara’s POV. I’m sorry this has been in standby for a little bit now and I have not been sustaining the same pace. I do not want the quality of the plot to go down and as it complexifies, I may have to slow down a bit to make sure the plot points are under control :)

*****

‘Oh, Drake!’

Amara loses her grip and waves of pleasure wash over her. Drake is truly good with his mouth, she thinks. She loves how dedicated he is to her pleasure, because she feels the same way about him. Tonight, he made it very clear he wanted to make her come, and got to work right away. She couldn’t get enough of his hands on her hips, his lips on her core, his tongue flicking her clit. Still, now that she climaxed, she needs more of him.

‘Come here,’ she whispers, pulling him on top of her. He had carefully undressed her, but he had kept his jeans on. She’d have to remedy that right away. He moans as her hands unbutton his pants, dangerously close to his hard, throbbing cock. Once she sets it free, she grabs it in the palm of her hand, and flips Drake onto his back. Surprised, he lets out a gasp, and then another one when Amara takes his cock in her mouth. It’s not because she wants to return the favor, no, it’s because she loves the feeling of his dick twitching between her lips, and the taste of his pleasure. She sucks on it relentlessly, drawing multiple sounds from Drake, which would have been muffled had they been at the Capital. But here, at Ramsford, they both felt more comfortable, and even though they would never dream of taking Maxwell up on his offer to just have sex anywhere, they still felt like they could let go a little more.

‘Fuck, Amara,’ Drake pants, ‘I want you now…’

She strokes his balls one last time, and straddles him, eager to take all of him inside her. Drake bucks his hips, and she starts riding him, her lips firmly stuck on his. Drake’s hands roam all over her hips and back, sometimes stopping on her breasts. She rides him slowly at first, wanting to take in all of him, to take her time, but soon enough, Drake’s moans become more urgent, and she feels like he is getting close to orgasm. So, she quickens the pace, until he can’t take it anymore and flips her onto her back once again, fucking her as deep as he can.

Afterwards, they both lie in bed, their legs intertwined, their breaths short.

‘God,’ Amara whispers, ‘I’m so glad you came. Pun intended.’

Drake chuckles. ‘I wouldn’t have wanted to stay in the Capital for anything in the world. Of course I came.’

*****

Madeleine is satisfied with what she’s found on one of them. For now. What she has on the other will cost more, it’s not as simple. She’ll have to contact him and demand more money. Not that she can’t afford it, but she shouldn’t be the one financing, after all. She’s not the only one benefitting from all this sabotage; the person who approached her was also eager to get rid of the others.

In the meantime, some good old-fashioned snooping could work. The Mexican isn’t at the Capital tonight, she’s at Ramsford getting ready for tomorrow’s big event. So, let’s start with her room.

Madeleine opens the door carefully. What if someone had the same idea as her? Well, no, no one did. The room is eerily silent and dark, and Madeleine lights it up with her phone. The woman took basically everything with her, or so it seems. There are a few outfits in the closet. Madeleine goes right for the tag. Most of the dresses are from retail stores, and they are several sizes bigger than Madeleine’s, which makes her smile. Of course, she could see that the woman is not as skinny as she is, but having it confirmed by her outfits was an added bonus.

So much nail polish. How many colors does she need? If there are so many in here now, how many did she have total? Madeleine shakes her head. Truly, she could not relate to this peasant.

The bathroom is almost empty, just a few cosmetics remain, nothing to write home about. Well, this has been disappointing.

The nightstands are her last chance.

Nope, empty. Damn, either this woman is a great packer and she brings everything everywhere, or she truly does not have any more secrets.

Madeleine types up a text.

Tell him I looked everywhere for immediate leverage on A.S., no luck. I have something big, but it will require more time and more money.

She walks back to her room, discreetly, when she sees her phone light up.

Carte blanche.

*****

The next day, Drake, Amara, Maxwell and Hana are seated at the breakfast table. Drake feels rested and excited for the Beaumont Bash. Those events have never felt really courtly and they were one of the few moments when people could really let their hair down and not worry so much about etiquette.

‘Did you end up watching that movie, Max?’ Amara asks.

‘We did, Hana had never seen The Birdcage,’ Maxwell responds.

Hana nods, and shares a knowing smile with Maxwell. ‘It was fun. We also talked a lot, and I told Max what I told you guys the other day.’ She blushes and looks down. ‘I don’t know what I did to deserve friends like you three.’

‘Aww Hana!’ Maxwell yelps as he gets us to wrap her in a bear hug. ‘The real question is, what did WE do to deserve you, honey?’

Amara extends her hand and offers it to Hana. ‘Exactly,’ she says. ‘I’m glad you told Max. I’m happy for you, opening up can only be good.’

While she said that, she looked directly at Drake, which sent shivers down his spine. If anyone had told him, a couple of months ago, that he would open his heart and his past to a near stranger, he would have laughed in their face. But now… ‘They’re right, Hana. I’m happy for you, too.’

Hana wipes away a tear and says, ‘Thank you guys. But I do think I’ll remain discreet for the remainder of the competition. Just you three is good for now. Baby steps.’

They chat for a while and devise plans for the Beaumont Bash, which they have to prep without Bertrand, held back in the Capital. Because of the dire financial situation, they will have to make some of the appetizers themselves, which Drake is thrilled about. Sure, he’s gonna have to make them bite-sized and fancy for court, but making food is always a joy for him. He misses his cabin, where the kitchen truly is the heart of the home. He can’t wait until he can bring Amara there, hopefully sooner rather than later. Does she enjoy cooking? He doesn’t even really know. Sometimes he forgets how little time they have known each other, despite the deep truths they know about one another. It’s ok though, they have time to figure those things out.

As they all walk to the grand ballroom to help the very few staff members set up, Amara grabs Drake’s arm and holds him back. ‘Hey, come here for one second,’ she whispers.

He nods and checks on Hana and Max, who are a few feet ahead, entangled in a very lively conversation of their own. ‘What’s up?’ he whispers back.

‘I’m gonna go look into Bertrand’s study, while everyone is carrying chairs out. Max wouldn’t mind, I’m sure, for the sake of the Savannah case, but...I’d rather keep it discreet, ok? Just in case Bertrand knows more than he lets on.’

Drake nods and lets her go. He’ll manage the others if they asked questions. Drake loved seeing Amara so excited about this. Not just because it meant she was adamant about finding his sister, although of course that was an important point. He also loved how motivated she was about investigating again. It was clear that detective work and criminology were passions of hers, that she gave up when Sergio died. Drake is glad that she is finally letting herself do something she is passionate about, instead of punishing herself. He’s obviously never met Sergio, but if he was anything like Amara, he wouldn’t want his little sister to be miserable on his account.

‘Hey, where’s Amara?’ Max asks, turning around.

Damn, that was fast. These two were really attached at the hip.

‘Um, she got a phone call from the guy from New York, you know, for the bank account info?’

Phew, that was quick thinking. Maxwell nods and says, ‘Ok, that’s great! So, what are we thinking for the decor, guys?’

*****

Amara doesn’t know where to start. Bertrand’s study is just like him: stiff, stressful, well-organized, neat. The walls are all mahogany, and so is the desk. She almost expected one of the chairs to have a vest. Just like the little secret Beaumont baby.

The good thing about him being so organized was that everything would be labelled. So, she’d have to go back to files from about 2 years ago to see if he ever sent her money, or if there was documented correspondence. Easy enough.

Her eyes stop on the massive portrait on the wall. An oil painting of a happy, younger Beaumont family. The patriarch, Barthélémy, was not smiling at all, faithful to Maxwell’s descriptions of him. The mother, Hélène, was very beautiful, all smiles, and Maxwell is very blatantly all her. Teenage Bertrand was wearing, surprise surprise, a vest, but his smile was a little more relaxed than the one he usually had on these days. And of course, little Max was just as adorable as Amara had imagined. Tears fly to her eyes as she studies the portrait, in part because it reminds her of her own incomplete, reconstructed family, which does not look like the old pictures either, which still had both her mom and Sergio. But also, the tears are coming for Maxwell, for all that he has lost. She desperately wants him to reconnect with Bertrand, she wants that for him, for both of them. Maybe this little baby represents hope? Maybe Savannah does too?

Alright, she thinks, let’s get our shit together. She opens the files one by one, no money wired internationally so far. She spends a while looking through bank statements, and catches herself thinking, ‘that’s not what I call broke, but I guess it’s broke for nobility’.

Then, she notices a pattern. Something amiss. Some lump sum, going away every month, in addition to the Savannah fund, carefully hidden by Maxwell.

Maxwell had explained to her how he hides his wiring. He takes out the money on a different pretense every month, with a different denomination, so as to not draw any attention to the fact that it is indeed the same amount. The pretenses are ridiculous, but they are believable for someone who knows Maxwell. Ostrich fund. Peacock fund. Fireworks fund.

What could seem inconspicuous to someone like Maxwell, who doesn’t care about boring jargon? Upkeep funds. A lump sum each month for something different: roof repairs, chimney maintenance, coal supply.

Except that Amara cannot find any receipts to back any of it up. And knowing Bertrand, king of receipts -there is one for a pack of batteries in there-, that would definitely be in the file.

Also, why does everything cost the same amount? Someone is definitely pulling the same crap as Maxwell was for Savannah, and Amara is determined to find out where it’s going.

*****

Olivia adjusts her dress, and puts the thin dagger back in her chignon. She truly enjoys these sexcapades with her bodyguard, but today, her heart wasn’t in it. She had asked him to drive her to Ramsford a little early, and then, when they’d been far enough away from the Capital, she told him to pull over and fucked him while he was still in the driver’s seat.

She needed to get away from Liam. From the entitled bitch he had been for the past couple of months, he had turned into a sad mess, ever since Suarez had told him she wasn’t interested. He’d asked to spend more time with Olivia, especially since Suarez, and Drake, were both in Ramsford already, and Olivia did not like being second choice. She realizes she’s been a tad pathetic, sleeping and making out with a man who was taken with someone else, but she had hoped that maybe, he would come to his senses and acknowledge that she is the right match for him. But now… Now he asked for her specifically last night, and it felt...wrong. She had sex with him, but felt used afterwards. As if he’s using her to either forget Suarez, or pass the time until Suarez changes her mind and accepts him.

But Olivia knows that Amara Suarez has made her choice. She chose Drake Walker, and Olivia can totally see why, although she would rather cut off her own tit than admit it. The two are good together. It warms Olivia’s icy heart to see those two bastards and their blooming love.

So, she slept with Liam anyways, because she can’t say no to him. She’s strong in every single category of life, except when it comes to this damn boy. It’s always been like this, even when they were kids. Whenever he asked her for a favor, she would roll her eyes but she would do it anyway. That’s exactly what happened last night. Except that, when they were 10, the favor was usually something along the lines of giving him her last baklava, or playing with him at a game that bored her.

Last night, the favor hurt her. He has to know how she feels about him, and yet he took advantage of it. She had slept over, although ‘slept’ is a strong word. She’d tossed and turned until dawn came, and then she was gone, before tears could well up in her eyes. She’d gone to her room to pack the essentials, and then she’d called her hot bodyguard Ilya, and the rest was history.

Once arrived at Ramsford, she gives him her bags to put in the hallway, until she’s assigned a room, and she goes to explore and see where the others are. Lo and behold, she catches Amara sneaking out of Bertrand’s study.

‘Well well well, hello Suarez,’ she whispers.

Amara jumps up, visibly surprised. ‘Oh! Holy shit Liv, you scared me.’

‘Did you and Walker christen the tweed desk of Big Beaumont?’

Amara chuckles, ‘Ha! No, and please don’t call him Big Beaumont, it makes me wanna barf.’

‘So what were you doing?’

Amara looks all around her and gets closer to Olivia to whisper, ‘I think I found something about Bertrand.’

*****

Amara had filled Olivia in, and then Drake, sneakily, before they all went to the kitchen to make the appetizers. She had made them both swear not to say anything to Maxwell until she finds out more. She didn’t want to crush his opinion of his big brother, in case it was nothing.

But it didn’t seem like nothing.

She shakes it off and tries to keep it off her mind, just for tonight. After all, she’d never experienced a legendary Beaumont Bash before, and she was determined to have the time of her life.

She turns to Drake, who’s already working hard on some type of baked soufflé. She can’t believe her eyes - her man, the very same man who had been complaining non stop about the tiny bites the court functions had to offer, was baking a tiny appetizer. She opens her mouth to tease him about it, and changes her mind. No, she thinks. That’s not what she should be doing. He’s clearly enjoying something he’s really good at, so why make him feel self-conscious about it? She smiles fondly, watching him shape the little rounds of dough, and fill them with some sort of mushroom deliciousness.

Olivia’s voice pulls her away from the moment. ‘Alright bitches, what can I do?’

Amara glances at her and laughs openly. Olivia is wearing a red bodycon dress, a dagger in her hair in lieu of a barrette, and a very frilly apron with a gnome on it. ‘Jeez Olivia. The apron softens you,’ she teases.

Liv grimaces, ‘That’s all I could find, Suarez. Because you bastards snagged all the good ones.’

Amara looks at her own, which reads ‘Kiss the chef’, and smirks. ‘That’s right. Although I really love the gnome, actually.’

They get to work, and manage to bake and prepare a flurry of small canapés and appetizers. When Drake’s come out of the oven, he looks at them with a satisfied look on his face and says, ‘There we go. Pre-baked. The staff will just have to reheat them a few minutes before the party and we should be golden.’

Amara can’t help herself, she closes the few steps between the two of them and throws her arms around him. She plants a massive kiss on his lips, which he returns gleefully.

Olivia snorts, ‘Ugh Suarez, keep it in your pants. You’re the one wearing the ‘Kiss the chef’ apron, not him.’

Amara looks at Drake, who is giving her the most earnest smile. ‘I just can’t help it, he’s so handsome when he’s baking.’

‘Hm,’ Drake responds, raising one eyebrow, ‘you have a baker kink, good to know…’

‘Guys, you will fuck later,’ Olivia says curtly. ‘Can someone look at my tartines? What the fuck am I doing wrong?’

Amara steps back and looks at Olivia’s canapés. While they are supposed to be simple bread squares topped with a pâté spread and a cornichon, Liv seems to have butchered them, and they look like they have been stabbed by Brienne of Tarth.

‘What...Olivia? What the hell? What kind of knife did you use?’

Olivia’s face reddens. ‘Well, my knife!’

‘The dagger that was in your hair?’

She nods vigorously. ‘I washed it first, obviously. I’m not an animal.’

Amara has to stifle a laugh. ‘Well it sure does look like an animal made those. You’re supposed to use a butter knife, this is delicate!’

They all burst out laughing, while Olivia sulks. ‘This is why we hire help, Maxwell. I don’t know about this shit!’

Drake muffles his laughter by pursing his lips, and says, ‘Hey no worries, I can fix it. Let’s put more pâté on these bitches to hide the massacre.’

*****

They had barely finished preparing the food that it was already time to go get ready. Olivia’s gnome apron was definitely not going to cut it for a Beaumont Bash. Amara had bumped into Bertrand on her way upstairs. He was back, which meant two things. One, she and Drake would have to be discreet. And two, Amara would have to tread lightly when going back to his study to pick up the employee files. She had to go through them to see if the account number corresponds to any of them, before expanding her investigation. She’d thought of confronting him directly, but what if it wasn’t him? She’d instantly expose herself as having snooped, and he wouldn’t trust her anymore.

She put on an olive dress with a full skirt, and a deep neckline, and opted for a partial updo. She was ready to party.

Downstairs, everyone had already arrived, and the music was loud and festive. Maxwell was DJing, as expected, and was also already pounding drinks. Drake had just come out of the kitchen, probably to finish helping the staff with the apps, and was looking especially dashing in a gray shirt and dark blue pants. Amara felt her stomach flutter.

‘Hey Suarez,’ he approaches her with a wide smile. ‘You look beautiful,’ he whispers. ‘Olive green is definitely your color.’

She smiles. ‘You’re extremely handsome in this. You know what I’m thinking?’ He shakes his head and she continues, ‘We haven’t christened any bathrooms here.’

He smiles even harder. ‘I’ll have to take you up on that once everyone is hammered enough not to notice…’

He holds out his hand, gesturing to the dance floor, and she takes it. They both get closer to the crowd and start swaying and dancing to the music. Hana joins them shortly, followed by Penelope, who already seems pretty lit after one drink.

When Amara finishes her drink, she takes her empty glass and Hana’s for a refill. Liam is standing right next to the bar, looking wistful. Oh crap, she thinks. She’s gonna have to talk to him, especially after he’s been so understanding. And she’s gonna have to pretend she never heard what he told Drake when she was in the closet, which is gonna take more than one drink. She pours herself and Hana another glass of champagne, and smiles at Liam. ‘Hello there,’ she says hesitantly.

His face lights up. ‘Hi Amara. It’s so good to see you. How are you doing?’

Damn, it’s even more excruciating than the time she had to serve her ex, Rick, at the bar, and make small talk. ‘Doing great. Ramsford is treating me well. How about you?’

He gives her a sad smile. ‘I’m fine, thank you. I wanted to say, thank you for being honest with me. Not everyone is. I appreciate it.’

She nods uncomfortably. He was being nothing but pleasant, but something about this interaction was making her queasy. Maybe because she was not, indeed, being honest. Maybe because she had left out a huge chunk of information, which would change the way he views his best friend. ‘Thank you for being so understanding,’ she finally responds. ‘Are you enjoying yourself? You should come dance with us.’ She instantly regrets saying this, but at the same time, who was she to exclude him from his own kingdom? Plus, Amara is inherently an inclusive person, who does not want anyone to feel left out.

‘Thank you. I might just do that. I need another drink, though.’ He pours himself another whiskey. Weird, she thinks. He’s usually a wine drinker. ‘And Amara? I’m not saying this to make you uncomfortable, but I just wanted to tell you that you look ravishing tonight. This dress is wonderful.’

She thanks him politely and they both advance to the dancefloor where they get lost in the crowd.

*****

Drake is taking a break from the champagne. He’s not quite used to the bubbles, and they make him dizzy. He looks over to where Amara is standing, dancing with Maxwell, having an amazing time. He hates to break this moment off, but he can’t stop thinking about her, about her touch, her smell, her lips. He approaches the two of them, and joins their dance. Maxwell is almost in a trance, and half of his shirt buttons are undone. Almost time to breakdance, Drake thinks.

He whispers in Amara’s ear, ‘I’m going to the bathroom, babe. Join me in two minutes if you want.’

He wonders whether it was too directive, but judging from the way she smiles from ear to ear, it’s not very hard to see that she’s on board.

He waits for her inside the bathroom, the one farthest away from the ballroom, right by Bertrand’s study. A minute or two later, he recognizes her knock.

She comes in swiftly, biting her lip, and locks the door instantly. ‘God, you’re so handsome,’ she whispers before capturing his lips in a long, deep kiss.

‘You’re driving me fucking crazy in this dress,’ he replies, whispering in her ear as he kisses her neck.

Soon enough, she turns around to face the mirror, and drops her panties to the floor. Drake feels his pants tighten around him. ‘Fuck, Amara…’ He holds her close, still kissing her neck, along her spine. The smell of her hair is intoxicating. What is it exactly, he’s always wondered. Jasmine maybe? To him, it’s simply the smell of Amara. A smell that drives him nuts.

He slips his hand under her skirt, and strokes her bare ass, and with his other hand, caresses her breasts. She moans quietly, and bends over the sink a bit more. He gets the cue. His hand wanders between her legs, where he teases her slit, which is already wet from anticipation and desire. He finds her clit and strokes it, before sliding one finger inside her.

It doesn’t take very long for her to be soaking wet, ready for him. He frees his cock from his pants and boxers, and enters her softly. He knows they’re gonna have to be quick, but he cannot help but savor the moment, and he knows she can’t either. Her soft moans do not lie. He fucks her from behind for a little while, until she turns over and hops on the sink, their position of choice in this type of rushed situation. Thank God for sturdy marble sinks, otherwise they would have been discovered long ago.

He enters her anew, and they both gasp again at the sensation. They’re gonna have to pick up the pace and they know it. Amara wraps her legs around Drake’s waist, drawing him closer and deeper, and he fucks her faster, until waves of pleasure wash over him, and he cannot blame the champagne anymore for his dizziness.

‘That was amazing,’ she whispers, kissing him once more, for the last time until they can be alone again.

*****

Amara had let Drake get out first, since he had left before her, and as she walks into the ballroom, she notices several people staring at their phones in disbelief. She doesn’t have hers, it’s in her room, and Drake doesn’t seem to understand what’s going on either. Oh no, she thinks. They share a brief glance, full of worry and tension. What if someone saw them? They had snuck out multiple times before, sometimes drunk, but maybe not as drunk as they were today. What if they had been less careful than usual?

Amara approaches Maxwell, whose expression has gone from ecstatic to defeated. ‘Max, what’s going on? Why is everyone looking so weird?’

He looks at her, suddenly sobered up. ‘Oh my God Amara, it’s bad.’

He hands her his phone.

In a group text from an unknown number, a picture, sent to basically everyone at court.

A picture of Hana, kissing a blonde woman.

*****

Taglist:

@andy-loves-corgis @drakeandcamilleofvaltoria @jovialyouthmusic @alesana45 @drakesensworld @mariahschoices @notoriouscs @thequeenofcronuts @emceesynonymroll @drakewalkerisreal @nikkis1983 @iplaydrake @simsvetements @drakewalkerwhipped @drakewalkerrosenberg @drakeswalkers @drakxwalker @drakelover78 @silviasutton1989

Thank you for your encouragements, everyone! Let me know if you want to be added to the taglist :)

[croatian-magician]

Soothing the pain

Pairing : Modramos

Summary: Luka is sick during the game against Villarreal. Sergio takes care of him.

Wordcount : 2100

"Sese, stop ! You'll get sick too!"

Luka tried to free himself from his boyfriend's embrace, but Sergio held tight onto him, refusing to let him go. The smaller man sighed, defeated, as he allowed himself to appreciate the hug for one second before his lover finally pulled back.

"That was stupid. You need to be at your best Sese and you won't be able to if you catch the flu."

He pouted a little, though he tried to hide it from the cameras. Sergio didn't stop smiling, which unnerved him a bit. This was serious business, damn it!

"Calm down, Lukita. It was only a hug. I'd be kissing you if it weren't for our audience..."

"Don't say that here! People could hear you!"

They had to force themselves to remember that they were in front of a whole stadium, even though it was surprisingly easy for them to forget it, living in their own little bubble.

They could hear the fans though, could see their teammates warming up, and yet it felt as if they were alone on the field.

"Okay, okay, don't worry about that. Are you sure you can play today though? You do look a bit pale, maybe it would be better for you to stay on the bench..."

"Sese, I know you're saying this because you care, and I appreciate it a lot, but I can deal with this, I promised. I've already played while being in a much worse state, during the world cup."

"Oh, and you think I was happy seeing the love of my life work himself to exhaustion back then?"

"You said you were proud of me!"

"And I was. Just like I was worried sick for you, Luka. And afterwards, when you came back to Madrid, I saw just what toll this had taken on your body. I know how long it took you to recover and I don't want to see you that spent again."

Luka knew his boyfriend enough to understand that this wasn't just fun and games now. Sergio was really, truly worried for him. He couldn't help but blushed a little, smiling shyly as this information warmed his heart.

"It's just a cold Sese, and I'll be playing a La Liga game, not a world cup semi-final. I'll be fine, I promise. You trust me, right?"

Sergio sighed, knowing that nothing would convince Luka to step out from this game.

"Of course I trust you, my stubborn little Croatian. Just promise me you'll be careful, okay? I'll hate myself if anything happened to you."

"Fine, I promise. We should hurry though, the game will start so..."

Luka stopped a second to sneeze and he could tell Sese was forcing himself not to put a worried hand on his shoulder. The smaller man rubbed his nose, trying hard to look tough despite his sickness.

"After the game, I'm taking you to my place so I can make sure you're recovering correctly. And no, you can't argue against that."

"Alright, but only because you'll need someone to celebrate with once we win this game!"

Sergio wished Luka's positivity brought them luck. Instead, everything went bad quickly, waking up bad memories from the beginning of their season. The first goal against them. Gareth being injured. Feeling as if they just couldn't stay in control of the game.

They were leading, sure, but Sergio had a bad feeling about this. He took a glance at Luka, hoping to find some reassurance in the mid fielder's eyes. If there was someone who fought until the end and gave his teammates strength, it was him.

He got the opposite result. The moment his eyes fell on Luka, he knew something was wrong. His boyfriend was obviously trying to conceal it, but Sese didn't fall for his act. He noticed how he was sweating more than usual, how he blinked as if he struggled to stay awake, how his legs looked all wobbly.

Sergio couldn't focus on him for too long, not when they needed to fight to keep their advantage. However, even as he played, he couldn't chase the worry from his heart. His Lukita was hurting and it obsessed him.

He waited for a calm moment to exchange a word with his boyfriend. Luka was breathing heavily, restraining his coughs, and Sergio immediately understood that this couldn't go on.

"You can't keep playing, Luka, look at yourself! Ask the coach to sub you off!"

"No, I... I can do it... I will..."

"That won't work, not with me. You can't go on, not when you certainly have fever."

"But the team..."

"The team needs to have everyone playing at their best, and you can't do that now."

Sergio's voice wasn't harsh but firm, and Luka understood that he was taking on his captain's role. He sighed, admitting that his boyfriend was right, that it was no use pushing past his limits.

"I guess you're right..."

"Good to see you being reasonable, Lukita. I'll take care of telling the coach you can't go on, okay?"

Luka nodded weakly and Sese could tell he was angry at himself for having to leavers the pitch. He wished he had the time to comfort him, but once more the game caught up to them.

Solari knew before the beginning of the game that Luka was sick, and so he agreed to sub him off without hesitating.

Sergio was relieved when he saw from the corner of his eyes Luka putting on a big coat and sitting on the bench, resting. With some luck, his sickness wouldn't worsen and he would be back at full health before Sunday's game.

Sadly, the game didn't go as planned. Villarreal scored at the end of the game, making it a tie. Sergio hated it, hated just how hard it was for them to win a game lately. He forced himself not to dwell too much on that for now, though. First, he needed to take care of Luka.

The moment they entered the tunnel, he stopped trying to keep a straight face and he winced, coughing his throat out. Sergio rushed to him, wrapping a protective and comforting arm around his shoulders.

All their teammates stepped apart, giving him their space and Sergio was thankful for it. Regui just told their that they would be checking on Gareth for him before disappearing as well and Sese couldn't help but be proud of his team, despite the recent difficulties. The young players were good kids and he wished he could offer them the joy of victory he had the chance to experience so many times.

He sighed, telling himself that now wasn't the time for regrets. Luka needed to be his top priority.

"How are you feeling?" he asked worryingly, caressing Luka's soft locks gently.

His boyfriend ignored the question, staring at the ground, biting his lips almost hard enough to draw blood.

"I should have kept playing. Maybe we would have won, then. I should have been stronger, I should have..."

Sergio rolled his eyes, and instead of spending thirty minutes trying to convince Luka that none of this was true, he lifted him off the ground without warning. The smaller man yelped, even though he was too weak to resist.

"What... What are you doing?"

"I'm taking you to the locker room so you can shower, and then I'm driving you home. And no, I won't listen to your stupid rant. You did more than well, Luka, and I won't allow you to say otherwise."

"But..."

"No buts. Just let me take care of you."

"You shouldn't waste your time with me, Sese. Your this team's captain, you should go talk to the others..."

"You mean the ones you left us alone on purpose because they know someone needs to knock some of sense into your head? Because I'm sure they don't see anything wrong with me taking care of a sick player."

Luka gave up, resting his head against Sese's chest.

"I don't really have a choice, do I?"

Sergio smirked as a he walked to the the locker room, all while making sure to be as gentle as possible with Luka. He sat Luka on a bench, then he started to slowly undress him. He also caressed and kissed his skin lightly, making Luka giggled a little. Sergio couldn't be happier to finally saw that joyful spark come back to his boyfriend's stare.

When Sergio started taking his clothes off too, Luka raised an eyebrow though.

"You know that the others will talk if we share the same shower."

"I just want to help you wash and keep an eye on you. Also, it's not as if it was the first time."

Luka blushed at Sergio's wink and he rushed into the shower stall, quickly followed by his strong boyfriend. He soon enjoyed his presence, though. It was nice, to have Sergio massaging his sore body and washing his hair. He closed his eyes, feeling as if though he could fall asleep like that, leaning against Sergio's strong body.

His lover noticed that and hurried to finish washing him.

"We'll get you to a bed soon Lukita, nice and comfy. Don't worry."

He nodded, Sergio's hushed voice acting like a lullaby on him. The taller man gently dragged him out of the shower, where he made sure to dry his body and hair before helping him put on clean, warm clothes.

Once they were both ready to leave, he stuck a beanies on Luka's head and wrapped a scarf around his neck, almost hiding the small man underneath it.

"Are you sure this is necessary?"

"I'm not taking any risk of you getting cold. Now, let's get out of here, okay?"

Luka agreed, still weak but feeling better with Sese watching over him.

Luka didn't stop coughing on their ride home, which didn't reassure his lover. Sergio had a hard time keeping his eyes on the road when all he could think off was his sick boyfriend. Thankfully, they soon arrived at Luka's house without facing any further problems.

Sergio led him right away to his bedroom, even though Luka protested that he could at least offer him something to drink first.

"Luka, you're sick and you need to rest. Keep the good manners for later."

His boyfriend huffed in annoyance, but he still let Sergio tuck him into bed, almost burying him under the covers.

"I know I'm sick, but don't you think you're exaggerating a bit?"

"Not when I see you those dark circles under your eyes. This cold is exhausting you Luka, and you need rest. Just stay here, I'll make you something to eat, okay?"

He was already at the door when Luka stopped him, his cheeks red and not only because of the fever.

"Sese..."

"Yes? Do you need anything?"

"I just wanted to say... Thank you. Forgot everything. I don't know how I would have been able to cope with without you."

"Now you're the one being over dramatic Lukita. I thought this was just a small cold."

"I wasn't only talking about the cold, but about this season as a whole. Thank you for always being here for me and the team, Sese."

This left Sergio speechless, his heart filled with warmth and love. He came back to leave a butterfly kiss on Luka's lips while he caressed his cheek with adoration.

"You'll get sick." His lover reminded him

."Do I look like I care?"

He kissed Luka's forehead before leaving to cook some of food for him. He came back with some hot soup and tea that he helped Luka eat. Despite his tiredness, Luka was hungry and he gulped it all down quickly. Sergio put the dishes aside before sneaking into the bed, bringing Luka’s close to him.

"Now you can sleep, my Lukita. Don't worry, I'll watch over you."

"But you didn't even eat anything!"

"Taking care of you is more important. I'll grab something later on, I promise. For now, just relax, okay? I know you need sleep."

Luka wanted to complain, but Sese's strong, warm arms felt too good around him and he didn't have the energy nor the will to chase him away. Instead, he sighed happily, closing his eyes as Sese started caressing his hair.

"You always know what gets me, don't you?"

"I would be a pretty bad boyfriend if I didn't. Now just relax. I'm here, everything will be alright."

As always, Luka trusted him and he drifted off in Sergio's arms, smiling, all his worries forgotten.

@esparafuso @smolmandzo