#and I fear he has a lot of ideas before following max

[lestappentrain]

Charles’ 146 way of trying to get his man’s attention: have the same profile pic on insta (they still don’t follow each other, might not work*)

*who are we kidding? Max noticed within 16 seconds of the change and even saw the first one that was not centered 😭����

[disneyprincemuke]

midnights * mv1

since your breakup, max hadn’t thought of you. until he stumbled home by himself in the middle of the night.

pairings: max verstappen x fem!reader

warnings: honestly just heartbreak all around

notes: i started writing this when i found out my ex-boyfriend was dating someone new, and now here i am 💀 and i fear i am on my phone once more; i will credit the gif in the morning when i get to school

(next)

the lock clicks as max turns his key, the sound echoing in the eerily empty hallway behind him. he turns the knob and was greeted by his empty apartment.

max hasn’t been home in almost 2 weeks. the races and his media commitments, topped by other projects just made it so rare to find the time to come home. but that’s not the only reason he’s avoiding the confinements of these four walls.

he flips the switch in the entryway, slipping his shoes off. immediately, he notices the vast difference in the way his apartment looks — how strangely lifeless it feels.

he can’t exactly pinpoint what it is and it takes him a second to realise.

you’d emptied his apartment of your belongings.

the breakup happened in the 2 weeks he was away from home. it actually took place a night before his race. he’d grown tired of it too, the neverending misunderstandings and the fights.

so he let you walk away; you hopped on a flight back home.

he hasn’t exactly had the time to think about you since then. you’d only texted him once: two days ago to tell him that victoria will be the one with the cats until he comes back. he’d only replied with a simple ‘okay, thank you’.

he didn’t really know what to say either. he stared at your text message for 5 minutes before daniel called him over to start filming a promotional shoot. that was all he could come up with.

max walks further into the apartment you’d once shared. his eyes are darting all over the place, taking mental notes of spots that look different from the way he had left it.

the framed picture of you with the cats is gone, your magazines on the coffee table, the bowl of your collection of scrunchies as a ‘conversation-starter’ centrepiece — it’s all gone.

his apartment didn’t even feel like home. all of the things that made it feel like home just isn’t in here anymore.

max turns his body, taking a glance at the entryway. even your house slippers aren’t where they usually are. it’s as if you were never even here.

he takes a walk further in, glancing at the sofa. it seems so lifeless now without the teddy bear you brought in, and the blanket that you insisted was only for the living room.

he admits he misses the teddy bear. though, he was opposed to the idea at first, claiming that it’s taking up precious space that you could both be maximising together. it proved a lot more useful when he found himself hugging it when he’s on the sofa watching a show with you.

the remotes for all the appliances are no longer scattered over the furniture mysteriously. they are all lined up neatly on the edge of the coffee table, grouped accordingly. you hated arranging the console remotes for the simple fact that you were too lazy to reach forward an inch to start playing.

and it finally hits him, that in the moment of pride, and simply protecting his peace at the moment, he has now lost you.

for good, it seems.

max drops himself on the couch. he’s still looking around, desperately wishing that this was some cruel dream he’s in. he will wake up with you by his side, your hair in his face with his arm draped lazily around your body. he will wake up and you are still his, and he is yours.

he can only sigh. audbily, at the predicament he has found himself in. at the time, it didn’t occur to him to fight for you; to ask you to stay. he didn’t have it in him to ask you to find reason within yourself to change your mind.

then he hears a soft meow, followed by sounds of pitter patter against the floor of the apartment. before he knew it, the couch dips ever so slightly and then there’s jimmy climbing onto his lap to greet him.

then he hears actual footsteps, slippers dragging against the floor. he turns his head slightly, his one hand patting the feline’s head, and meets victoria’s eyes.

“max?”

“victoria.”

a set of lights by the windows are turned on, granting him a look at his younger sister. she’s standing by the door of the guest bedroom with a jacket hanging loosely around her shoulders.

she has a frown on her face, and a look that screamed she didn’t know what to say to him.

and then his heart breaks. instead of walking through those apartment doors hand in hand with you, giggling from the high you’d get from the bar in his private jet, he is sitting her all by himself. met by his younger sister, who would be gone by morning to go back to her family.

max can only smile sadly at her. he shrugs. “we broke up.”

“i know,” she answers softly, nodding understandingly. she approaches him cautiously with her arms slightly held up. “i’m sorry.”

“me too.”

max scrambles from his position and gladly takes in the hug that she’s offered him. he suddenly feels so small, his heart aching in his chest and his throat closing up. he feels the tears in his eyes as he hugs his younger sister slightly tighter.

she rubs her back up and down, hugging him even tighter when she feels his chest stagger slightly. now he’s sniffling and hands are moving up to his face to wipe the tears falling from his eyes.

“give it time,” victoria whispers, swaying slightly in an attempt to comfort the driver. “i promise everything will fall back into place. slowly, but surely.”

max sighs deeply. “i don’t know why i didn’t stop her from walking away.”

she pulls away from the hug, then tugs his hands towards the couch when he chases her embrace. she leans back, pulling max in for a tighter — and slightly more comfortable — hug.

“i know it sucks now,” she rests her cheek on the top of his head, squeezing his shoulder empathetically. “but let things sort itself out. it will be okay.”

there, in his sister’s arms, he cried for the first time since your breakup. he had been so busy that he hadn’t been able to process the whole situation at all.

the way you had shot daggers at him through your eyes that night, how he snapped at you when he noticed and how the fight had erupted from something barely of significance.

it was just over a cup of coffee — how you had made it with 2 sugars instead of 3.

from there, the topics of contention had evolved into something bigger. in the haze of both of your anger, past arguments were brought up and new ones were created just in that night.

then both of you grew tired. you ended up next to him on the couch of his driver’s room in silence. and you said, “i can’t do this anymore, max.”

and he had said to you, “i’m tired.”

but what he should’ve said was: “i’m sure we can find a way through this.”

but that’s not what he said to you. he stayed silent when you brought it up: “i think we need to break up.”

frankly, he didn’t really know what to say. at first, he was dumbfounded at what you said. never did he think, that when you first start dating, that a breakup would ever present itself.

max told himself, about 4 months into the relationship that there’s absolutely no way he’d end up with anybody else except you.

now, it seems he’s going to have to go through all of this by himself. start the whole thing all over again, unless something changes.

[landinrris]

do you have any carlando fic recs?

Do I have carlando fic recs? always. There's a somewhat recency bias to the individual recs, so if you're wanting a more comprehensive look, I would definitely utilize the resources above this "read more." But also the individual fics are 🥰

First off, I'm gonna humbly present my catalog 😅

I also have some authors (in no particular order) that I would recommend anything Carlando-related they've written: -Phebes (@phebess) -Pitmewithyourbeststop -Magnificentbirb (@magnificentbirb) -Charleslelurk (@charleslelurk) -Madlyiephasetwo -Tiredtiredsharl (@wolfiemcwolferson)

My general fic rec tag is a great place when I come across tumblr links/snippets (also contains other rec lists: x, xx)

My public bookmarks on Ao3 is also a good indication of my fave fics (because some things are between me and god)

I'll shove some individual fics (in no particular order) below the read more so I don't clog people's dashes

Someone Who Can Stand in Your Storm by The_in_between_honey (@the-in-between-honey) (Rating: M)

Like most drivers, Lando has always worn scent blockers - like, always. He’s not ashamed of being an omega, it's just not anyone else's business. Besides, who wants to get into the politics of alphas vs omegas vs betas in F1? He doesn't buy into any of that, just like he doesn't buy into the idea of a "soulmate." No one asks, and he doesn’t tell anyone. Not even Carlos.

I never knew I was looking for all of my tomorrows by Anonymous (Rating: E)

They’d joked about it sometimes, what it would be like if one of them were a girl, if they would cross that line they already tiptoed around. “Would you break up with your girlfriend for me?” Lando teased once, pushing it ever closer to the edge they teetered on. “Lando,” Carlos had said in that warning voice of his, but he hadn’t said no, and now there’s no girlfriend either…

Across The Never by ShankySpork (Rating: M *Rated with MCD but not permanent)

Benny Goodman once wrote a song, ‘Where Or When’. It goes as follows; “It seems we stood and talked like this, before//We looked at each other in the same way then, But I can’t remember where, or when//The cloths you are wearing, are the cloths you wore//The smile you are smiling, you were smiling then//But I can’t remember where, Or when//Some things that happened for the first time//Seem to be happening again//And so it seems//That we’ve met before//And laughed before//And loved before//But who knows//Where or When” And truly, nothing could summarize this story better.

you lit a fire (and left no mark) by slapshot (Rating: E)

Lando doesn’t really drink or do drugs. So when he collects his things and dresses himself and leaves the room, fighting back tears and muffling his sobs behind his hands, Lando remembers everything. ~*~ the carlando accompaniment to salad days.

Count-Back by nottonyharrison (Rating: E)

Lando’s career progression up to the age of nineteen can be summarised by one word: Hustle. Lando learned the fine art early on in her racing career. It’s not always been successful, sometimes it’s blown up in her face, and sometimes her smart mouth gets her in trouble. But, on balance, things have worked out pretty damn well. The one fly in the ointment now though, is her teammate. Carlos Sainz is a whole lot of things Lando’s not. He’s confident in an old-money, sophisticated sort of way. He’s intelligent and well spoken. He’s goddamn gorgeous. Most annoyingly, he’s better than she is.

i’ll race you for pinks by cazio (@chubbydino) (Rating: M)

Heist!AU. Carlos Sainz Jr. is heading a heist operation based out of New York, following his father’s footsteps as a criminal mastermind. Max Verstappen, the most feared mercenary in the business, is his second in command. Daniel Ricciardo is the deadly charmer that gets them whatever they need, from whoever they need it from. Lando Norris is the mystery. Carlos has never met him in person, but he knows Lando will be perfect for the job. But Lando is not exactly what Carlos envisioned a computer nerd to be. In fact, he is very, very hot.

 fall and fixture by heroics (@restacks) (Rating: E)

Lando’s already had a very poor time of it this morning. First there was no real milk in the break room refrigerator, so he had to put almond milk in his tea, disgusting. Then he caused a panic in the explosives lab by knocking over someone’s project. Now he’s faced with Carlos Sainz Jr., Foreign Operative #055.

If the Love is Pure by loveleclerc (@holacarlando) (Rating: E)

After being attacked in the middle of the night by an unknown Alpha, Lando flees to Spain for protection from the Sainz Pack while his fathers search for a way to keep him safe in England. He never asked to be a male Omega, a designation rare beyond belief and sought after by Alphas around the world, but fleeing into the care of Carlos Sainz Jr. may just be the solution to all of his fears… and dreams.

and all of my wildest dreams (they just end up with you and me) by choripan (@7msc) (Rating: E)

“What time did you go to sleep last night, cabrón?” The 7AM light hitting Carlos made his Disney Prince dark hair look like a halo, his features softer in the morning. He was frowning a little bit, but in a way that made him look worried instead of angry. “Uhhhhhhhh…” “Landooooooo…” OR: the one where Lando is slowly girlrotting away and Carlos just wants to help.

i love you forever, not maybe (you’re my one true love) by mtchmrnr (Rated: E) 

Lando is starting to suspect that off-camera, he’s quite the soft and gentle guy. What did he say once in an interview? He protects love? I’d love to be protected, Lando thinks. or: the one where Lando is a student, Carlos is a F1 driver, and they go through a lot before they get their happy ending

[bones4thecats]

Hiii omg could u write these tokrev hcs for chifuyu, smiley, mitsuya and angry catching the eye of a fem reader during the valhalla vs toman fight? She's there as a spectator with some of her subordinates (also something you don't have to necessarily add: she is tall and elegant, like a rose amongst thorns;)

Catching the Attention of Valhalla! S/O

Type of Writing: Request Character: Chifuyu Matsuno, Nahoya Kawata, Takashi Mitsuya, and Souya Kawata Name: Catching the Attention of Valhalla! S/O Requester: Anonymous

A/N: Not me listening to hot edit audios while writing this :p

P.S: These are shorter than my normal pieces, my ideas are just super low right now

✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅

✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅

💘 Chifuyu did not want to see his friends being beaten, but he had no choice, these members of Valhalla are so brutal with their beatings

💘 When he finally knocked one member down, he heard a wolf-whistle and looked behind him to see a small, yet decently sized group of Valhalla members

💘 But the member highest up caught his attention the most, it was you...

💘 Your eyes were trained upon the male, never loosing contact, you were very shameless when it came to your interests. To the point where your followers were kind of uncomfortable underneath your stare

" Well Boss, whatcha think of that little runt? "

💘 You blinked slowly, analyzing the guy standing there and dodging the many fists of your subordinates being thrown at him

" He'd be a good addition to our forces. But- " " Ha! I doubt he'll even try joining our ranks, damn Toman loyalty. " " Let me finish. "

💘 Your right-hand froze in fear as you grabbed their hair and pulled them back, smashing their head against one of the many car hoods

" S-sorry, Boss. " " BUT. The way that he has been around their rankings, despite Baji joining our side is quite alarming. After all, many trade sides with those they deem worthy, or close. "

💘 Chifuyu was by far one of the most interesting members of Toman, you'd have to keep an eye on the male from now on

✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅

✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅

☀️ As a high-ranking member of Valhalla, you were forced into observing the match between the gangs Toman and Valhalla

☀️ You just sat there with a small majority of your group, only sending those out if needed

☀️ It was during your many gazes across the large battle where you saw a large puff of orange hair with a bright smile washing around, whooping the asses of your followers

☀️ Your right-hand looked back at you and flinched before asking;

" Uh... Boss? Are ya' alright? " " Yes, why? " " You just seem upset. " " Why wouldn't I be? That orange-haired one is sending my members to hell with his minor punches! " " I'll go down and teach him a lesson! " " Sit your ass down, Haruto. "

☀️ This guy was proving to be a problem, if you kept losing your members, Valhalla would be in deep shit, as your's were by far some of the strongest fighters in the gang

☀️ The guy, whom you learned by a fallen comrade was nicknamed 'Smiley', due to his smile he always wore, even during fights

" Smiley? Oh! That guy! His real name's Nahoya Kawata, the twin brother to Souya, y'know that blue-haired boy that would come into my store a lot growing up. " " Hm. Interesting, I must keep an eye on this Nahoya from now on. We mustn't have him interfere with any future plans. "

☀️ Maybe if you could motivate him enough, you could put this guy to his max potential...

✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅

✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅

🪡 You had heard many stories about the short-purple-haired fighter from Toman from your old allies Baji and Kazutora

🪡 And all of those stories ended in how much he stood out against other members of Toman, since he had a love for sewing and being quite calm

🪡 At the moment, you were thinking about those stories while searching for the young male that the two men had spoke of on multiple occasions, only stopping once you saw him

🪡 You narrowed your eyes in interest, he did seem to be a good fighter like they said

" Boss? Who are ya' watching over? Kazutora? " " I think they're watching over Baji. " " Shut it you two, Y/N doesn't have to explain their-self to your low-life selves. "

🪡 Rolling your eyes at your followers actions, you saw how this Mitsuya had looked at you and furrowed his eyebrows, he obviously was frustrated at the fact that you just watched this bloodshed without a care in the world

🪡 As he began to focus back on the oncoming members of Valhalla, you turned to look at your most informational follower and called his name

" Find as much information as you can on Mitsuya Takashi. And deliver it all to me as soon as possible. " " Why him? He's a pathetic fighter compared to other members of Toman- " " Just do it. " " Yes, Boss... "

✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅

✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋆⋅⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋆⋄✧⋄⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋆⋅⋆⋄✧⋄⋆⋅

💢 God, your followers were getting more and more pathetic

💢 Every time you sent out one, they would get tossed off to the side by a member of Toman like a baby tossing around a ragdoll

💢 It was starting to piss you off...

" Y/N? I think we need to send out another round of fighters. " " Then do it. " " 18 through 28, deploy! "

💢 Watching them carefully, you noticed they had gone straight to hitting and kicking without remorse, didn't you teach them how to use their brains and not just their fists?

💢 It was during your overview of those meatheads that you saw a matching pair of hair, one orange and one blue poke out from the mass of blacks and yellows

" Souya and Nahoya? " " You know those two? " " Uh, yeah. They were my old classmates in elementary before I dropped out a few months into middle school. "

💢 Your third ally looked at you in confusion as you narrowed your eyes at the younger Kawata boy and smirked; he would be a good addition to your main squad

" Boss? What are you thinking? " " Nothing. Send out the next battalion, they need as much help as they can get. " " Understood. "

[stevie-petey]

HIHIHIHII can i please request a blurb where bug jon steve and nancy have a sleepover or having fun together? and maybe the kids can be included?

I LOVE YOU SO MUCH AND UR WORK UGH MAKES ME WANNA CRY 😭🎀

of course ! n thank you for the compliment omg

enjoy <3

"dude, what if jonathan had become your brother or something?" mike asks dustin with disgust in his voice as he watches you and jonathan help arrange the picnic blanket. nancy helps steve with the platters of food you had so carefully prepared. it's the first day of spring and youd been adamant that you, all the teens, and the party have a small picnic in the park to get some fresh air.

"dude!" dustin hits his shoulder, entirely unamused. "dont remind me about that, it was a close call."

"at least he isnt dating your sister now." mike groans.

max slides next to him on the park bench. "who is dating who again?"

"nancy is with jonathan and y/n has some weird thing with steve going on." lucas explains, but even he doesnt quite understand a lot of it still, and he frowns. "although, for a while there we thought jonathan and y/n would get married while nancy was with steve."

"they were not going to get married." dustin shrieks, absolutely horrified by that idea.

"im confused." now max is the one that frowns. "so jonathan and y/n werent dating?"

"yes." dustin and mike say, while lucas and will say, "no."

"that wasnt an answer." el points out, slightly confused yet content to listen to the conversation.

maxs frown deepens, now completely confused about the relationships between all the teens. "none of you are helping."

suddenly you appear, steve following close behind, and you flick dustins ear. "if you guys are done gossiping about our love lives, im about to lay the cake out."

"ow!" your brother rubs his now sore ear. "whyd you flick me?"

"you were the closest." you shrug at him before glancing at max. "and to answer your question: no, i never dated jonathan."

"allegedly," steve whispers, winking at the kids, which causes them to laugh. when you turn to glare at him, he quickly shuts his mouth and gulps. "sorry?"

you roll your eyes at him and point towards the cake still in his car. "grab the dessert before i throw something at you."

"yes maam," he sighs, ducking his head down as he hurries over to the car to retrieve the cake.

the kids laugh again, this time at steves expense, and nancy and jonathan now join. when notice the laughter, nancy looks around and tries to understand what shes missed. "did something happen?"

dustin opens his mouth, but you quickly cover it in fear of what he may say. "nope, nothing. now, lets all just grab our food-"

a scream, followed by a thud of two bodies colliding, interrupts you.

everyone turns towards the source of the sound and find steve and jonathan, covered in cake, sprawled on the ground.

immediately the kids lose their minds laughing, dustin practically falls off of the bench as he hunches over in laughter. meanwhile, you and nancy rush over to the teens in concern yet slight amusement.

you stand over steve and jonathan, a smirk on your face. they look so fucking pathetic covered in cake. "now, boys. what did your mothers say about playing with your food?"

"not funny," jonathan grumbles, wiping cream out of his eyes before angrily pointing at steve. "someone decided to trip over a tree branch and take the other down with him."

"was it you?" nancy asks innocently, a glint in her eyes. you giggle at her quip while jonathan closes his eyes and sighs.

steve gives everyone a thumbs up, though its hard to tell due to his finger covered in a thick layer of cake. he sees this, thinks for a moment, and then brings his thumb to his mouth. "mmm, not bad, y/n. this a new recipe?"

you and nancy groan in unison while the kids all look at one another in varying states of disbelief. mike looks disappointed, dustin is ashamed, el is still giggling, and lucas just puts his face in his hands.

"seriously, im expected to believe that y/n saw something in those two?" max says out loud to no one in particular.

"nancy, too." mike sighs, now even more disappointed.

dustin drops his head down onto the picnic table and sighs as well. "i dont wanna talk about it."

[heretherebedork]

I am very interested in what BMF was saying today about asexuality versus insecurity about sex versus sex in a relationship.

We saw Kawi say he would be more than happy to simply hold hands in bed forever. We saw Max say that he has sex before he ever starts dating anyone. We saw Piseang's desire but also willingness to follow Kawi's lead.

Three different approaches to the idea of sexuality and sex in a relationship and none are right and none are wrong but we did end with the implication that Kawi agreed to sex with Piseang as something new after a day or rejecting new ideas and no discussion about his own thoughts on sex.

So... is this asexual erasure? Is the idea of this episode that Kawi was avoiding sex out of fear rather than a lack of desire?

There is no evidence either way for that. Because there is no singular way to be ace. Kawi doesn't have to be sex repulsed to be ace. Heck, he doesn't have to be ace. He might be demi and only discovering what sexual desire is because he's finally found that part of himself with Piseang.

It was interesting to have the entire conversation with Max revolve around sex and sexual desire and not include asexuality but I also understand it because this is a discussion a lot of BLs over the years have stayed away from entirely (see the blushing maiden trope via @absolutebl because it is a DOOZY, honestly) so is this about asexuality or is this about the idea that for certain people society has said that desire is wrong?

What kind of societal commentary are we exploring with Kawi's reluctance? IS this about asexuality or a fear of sexuality? Is this about how he doesn't want to have sex or about how his reluctance is shaped by society in a way he doesn't even see? Is this commentary on older BLs and their lack of examination of this reluctance?

There are so many facets to what this could be and could mean and I feel like we ending with Kawi agreeing to trying to try sex with Piseang is a very interesting choice that I both understand and am a bit reluctant about. Because what is this about? Kawi's reluctance because he's uninterested or because he's afraid in a way he can't articulate? Is the rollercoaster representing something new or something scary or something that he knows he doesn't like but can't fully articulate?

[toaarcan]

Arcan Grumbles About Mecha Sally, Part 2: Naugus

Part 1 is here.

Been a while.

I originally intended to make Part 2 about how this story has the wrong villains, just like it had the wrong protagonists, but I feel like I need to talk about this specific one on his own first.

So, Ixis Naugus. His grand return to the comics after spending most of Flynn's run as basically Mogul's dog. I actually really like Naugus as a bad guy, he's a lot of fun, most of the time, and I will say that I find his role in this arc probably the most enjoyable of all the villains in it. That's a low bar, but he clears it with great ease while everyone else does the limbo under it.

Naugus' role in this story is to take over the Republic of Acorn, and further ramp up the "Darkest hour" leanings by contributing to everything going wrong at once. That's kinda... all he really does. His magic is a potential solution to Mecha Sally being weaponised, as he is shown to be able to deroboticize Bunnie's 100% artificial limbs, but his decaying mental state, loss of control of his powers, and clear confusion as to how he did that in the first place aren't helping him.

Later on he's seen trying to make bargains with Max and Jules, so that he can steal their bodies as his degrades, and being rebuffed, only to end up taking over Geoff's. This is more or less the last we see of him pre-reboot.

I don't entirely hate this, but I think it's perhaps a bit ill-timed. The protagonists lose so much in the opening stages of this arc that it becomes a bit too bleak. If the heroes themselves managed to survive, but they lost everything else, great. But since the other members of the team are also dropping like flies, it just feels bad.

Still, I can respect the idea of what Flynn and co. were going for.

Where the problems really arise is the execution. Because Naugus' plan is really stupid. It only works because everyone involved is either really stupid, mind-controlled, or both, and that it works at all says worrying things about the way the Republic of Acorn's government is set up.

That's right, I'm criticising a Sonic the Hedgehog comic based on its political structure. Look, if you don't want dorks on the Internet to do that, don't put arcs focused on politics in your Sonic the Hedgehog comic, okay? This isn't an "Adult fan of Steven Universe confused by show for kids for not following their idea of political praxis", this is "Flynn literally wrote an arc about giving democracy to the people of Mobius and then used that democracy exclusively to make the heroes' lives harder in ways that shouldn't be possible."

Naugus' plan is, on the face of it, very simple. In the wake of Sally, Elias, and Amadeus reforming the Kingdom of Acorn into some sort of constitutional monarchy, Naugus intends to use the new political structure to take power by getting himself elected King. He will do this by exploiting the people's fears, using his magic to turn them against their protectors and leaders, and presenting himself as the solution.

Okay, fairly simple, this works on some level. But it's got issues.

Problem #1: Ixis Naugus is a known traitor and is responsible for the Great War.

There's a solid argument to be made that much of Archie Sonic is Ixis Naugus' fault. Like, the central conflict of the series is the long-term consequences of his actions. He deliberately sparked the Great War between the Mobians and the Overlanders, which resulted in one Julian Robotnik betraying his people and joining the Mobian side, only to use the war to increase his own power and then betray the Mobians as well, taking over. While he was eventually killed by Snively in Issue #50, his control over the world was so great and so long-lasting that the people of the world weren't able to fully dismantle his empire before his interdimensional counterpart, Eggman, made his appearance, and easily stepped into the void, continuing right where Robotnik left off.

While there have certainly been threats and villains that Mobius has faced from outside the context of the Robotniks, Naugus' machinations have demonstrably caused the main conflict of the series. This is known history- Chuck, who is on the Council, tells it to Tails and Amy like it's relatively common knowledge later on.

Not only that, Naugus was last seen by most of these people when he escaped from their prison. He's literally an escaped convict who didn't finish serving his sentence.

Fortunately for Naugus, his ass is saved by the fact that the Republic of Acorn doesn't have any legal protections against letting literal supervillains walk in and demand to be made king. When most of the Council get up to help Sonic fight him off, quite sensibly, Naugus is able to stop them by using his magical influence to make Rosemary and Penelope follow the rules really hard, which apparently doesn't include "Don't let known enemies of the state waltz in and demand the crown" for some reason.

Given the number of Sonic villains who use mind control in some shape or form, and the number of villains who want to take over the Acorn Republic, you'd think they'd have better safeguarding against this exact situation, but I guess they didn't think about that when they wrote their constitution.

Problem #2: Naugus' campaign is a singular issue and only affects the population of one city.

Naugus' plan to get made king is, assuming that he avoids just getting his ass beat, to use the population's newfound fear of Nicole to present himself as a protector.

This is a pretty clever move on his part, all told, because he kinda has a point. They live in a city made of nanobots that are all controlled by one person, who has no limits in place to prevent her from turning the city against them if she goes bad. Nicole has an enormous amount of power over the city, a city that, prior to her taking control of it, was a self-replicating grey goo monster that tried to eat people. She's able to shape those nanobots into anything she pleases, teleport anyone inside it wherever she chooses, create forcefields, and make people's own possessions turn on them.

And sure, she didn't want to turn on them in the Iron Dominion arc... but she still did. Regina turned Nicole against them with a wave of her hand and there was nothing in place to protect Nicole from that, or protect the people from Iron Nicole.

By using this as his campaign's main point, Naugus has the heroes over a barrel. There aren't really any good arguments against what he's saying, in fact, all he had to do to bring everything to a fever-pitch was amplify the already-existent fear that had turned Mina against Nicole. It's a pretty clever gambit. All the good guys really have against him is attacks on his character and defences of Nicole's, which help nobody.

However, there's a small problem with this: Not everyone in the Republic of Acorn lives in New Mobotropolis.

Places like Furville are Acorn territory. The Southern Baronies are also Acorn territory. They're not the only places that are, either. The Republic of Acorn is an entire country, and Naugus' campaign is laser focused on just the capital.

"I will protect you from the scary computer lady" has literally no impact on anyone living outside of New Mobotropolis, who don't have a scary computer lady but sure as hell are going to remember the pain and trauma that has resulted from Naugus' machinations in the past.

So, how does Naugus reach these people, then? If he has Mobotropolis on lock, how does he get the rest of the country behind him?

Well, that's simple. He doesn't. The people outside of Mobotropolis just don't get a vote.

Which is, uhhhhh... well it's certainly interesting. A reformation to give "Power to the people" has apparently only given power to the people of one city. Everyone else is just as unable to have a say in their government as they were when the Acorns were an absolute monarchy controlled by a magic puddle of piss.

Considering that every actual member of the Council is from New Mobotropolis, this doesn't say great things about how the Council was set up. Did those other towns and cities get a vote back when the Council was formed? Because they have no representation in their own government.

And it's not like they couldn't have had Naugus win over the people in the outer reaches of the kingdom, it would just have taken longer than Flynn wanted it to. Naugus could have gone on a charm offensive around all of Acorn, even using this very same disenfranchisement as a tool, but he never would've been able to pull this off before the mandated "Story starts at 225" deadline.

Moreover, there's no election at all. There's no formal process he challenges Elias to overcome, no debates, no voting. Naugus kills a robot, a mob cheers for him, Geoff steals the crown off of Elias' head and gives it to Naugus, and this apparently counts enough for the Council to go with it.

Now, an argument can be made that since this isn't a proper election, then normally non-residents of New Mobotropolis do get a vote and they only don't get a say because Naugus wins through will of the mob... but again, the Council goes with it. There's no argument from them as to whether this is legitimate. They don't say anything on behalf of their people outside of the city's borders.

As a body that literally exists to stop whoever wears the crown doing whatever the hell they want, the Council are not doing their jobs. They are either incompetent, negligent, or impotent.

And no "Naugus has mind control" isn't an excuse, his powers in this arc don't outright hypnotise or brainwash people, they work by amplifying emotions and thoughts they already have. Unless they already intended to capitulate, he wouldn't be able to make them do what he wants.

Still, there's way this could've actually worked, on a similar timescale, without needing to change too much.

Instead of Naugus trying to make himself king explicitly, he should've made Geoffrey king, with him ruling from the shadows.

Geoffrey is not an escaped convict or known traitor. The only person he has betrayed is Sonic, who is the only available witness. Geoff can easily argue that Sonic is lying, and is biased because of his connections to Sally and Elias.

Geoffrey partook in the defence of New Mobotropolis against the Iron Queen. His heroics are fresh in the populace's minds.

Geoffrey has spent a lot of time outside of the capital, and could either have deliberately built up support with people in outlying areas, or just organically become very popular with them.

Geoffrey has a long history of good deeds and heroics, which he can doubtlessly leverage against the Acorns, of whom only Sally really gets seen doing anything.

Geoffrey's wizard status isn't as well-known, so if he gets his shit kicked in by a deranged cuckoo in a pirate outfit, he doesn't immediately lose face as a powerful guardian.

If Geoffrey turns on him, Naugus can just possess him and continue to rule directly, rather than through a puppet.

This way, Geoffrey can arrive to the stage with a ready-built powerbase ready to support him in a snap-election. By the time he even challenges Elias, he's basically already won. Mobotropolis is just the last place he has to get to support him, which he achieves by targeting Nicole. More or less the same outcome happens, without the other characters needing to grab the idiot ball for dear life.

This could end up taking longer to play out than it did for real, but Naugus was always going to be a problem that didn't get dealt with until after Mecha Sally herself, so why not do it this way? Barring the real-life problems that would've hindered this arc, like Penders, of course. Because it's not like the story we got ended in time either, for those same reasons.

There's an argument to be made that Naugus' ego would never allow him to do this, that he'd need to be the one in the spotlight, but he's no stranger to working in the shadows or manipulating the current king with his schemes, this would not be out of character for him.

Next time, I'll cover the other villains of this story, Eggman and Mecha Sally herself. And oh boy do I have a lot to say about Mecha Sally herself.

[ceruleanwind]

what i want, you've got (and it might be hard to handle)

Chapter 2/2 | 9.7k | Read on AO3 | Read chapter 1 on Tumblr or AO3

The Threesome Chapter.

Max’s proposition lingers in both brothers’ minds for weeks after the event.

To be fair, Max is the only person that truly knows about them now, the only one with some semblance of an idea of what the Leclerc brothers do with each other behind closed doors. Arthur and Charles tease each other about it, their cheeks flushing red once they really consider the offer. They could call Max up anytime they wanted and he’d rush to come over—and the thought of that excites Charles, if he’s honest. He wants Max to see what he and Arthur get up to.

During one of their weeks off racing—Charles and Arthur have to coordinate when they can see each other considering their busy schedules—they both wind up back home in Monaco, lounging in Charles’ apartment for the weekend. Arthur’s in Charles’ lap on the couch, watching a shitty movie on TV while they wait for their take-out to arrive.

“We should call him,” Charles says out of the blue, giggling when Arthur whips his head around to look at him in shock. “What? It’s been weeks! He’s probably losing hope!” Charles decisively reaches for his phone, anticipation already tingling under his skin. If he does this, there’s really no coming back now—but taking Max up on his offer has been on Charles’ mind ever since he proposed it, and it has certainly been the subject of many of his and Arthur’s fantasies in the weeks that followed.

He opens his text message conversation with Max and scrolls through his photo library to find the perfect picture. It’s an impossible decision—Charles thinks he has lots of winners—but eventually he settles on something rather tame that leaves the viewer wanting more: it’s a photo of Arthur all spread out on the bed underneath him, three of Charles’ fingers buried in his mouth as deep as they’ll go. Arthur’s drooling around them like some sort of slut, his cheeks flushed and hair messy where it’s splayed across the crisp white sheets. God. Even looking at it makes Charles’ cock twitch as he adds it to the message, along with a short line of text: you’re in Monaco this weekend, right? we don’t want you to miss out on this again . . .

Charles’ phone chimes nearly the moment he goes to set it aside. Heart racing in his chest, he picks it up, stomach twisting when he sees Max’s name pop up on the screen.

Fuck, Max had simply typed, no emojis attached. Is this you finally asking for a third?

Charles bites his bottom lip and shows Arthur the text, grinning with excitement. “God,” he whispers, giddy nervousness making his hands shake. “I can’t believe we’re doing this.”

Arthur’s jaw drops for a moment before he giggles too, glancing between the phone and his big brother. Max was the one that proposed this whole thing, sure, but now that it’s a stark reality, his nervousness sweeps up over him, threatening to drown him.

Charles giggles again, cheeks flushing hot as he imagines Max coming over and having his way with the both of them like he insinuated he'd do. He types out yeah. you know where my place is before tossing his phone aside on the couch, wrapping his arms around Arthur instead. “Fuck, I have no idea what to expect,” he breathes, rather worked up with fear and anticipation. “Bébé, are you already getting hard? I didn’t know you liked Max that much.”

Arthur whines at being caught red-handed with a semi rising to attention in his shorts already. He squirms in Charles’ lap, embarrassed at the question. “It’s—it’s not that, Charlie, I just—” he cuts himself off with a grumble, cheeks flushing hot. As loathe to admit it as he is, the thought does excite him; Max is an exceedingly attractive man, clearly interested in his and Charles’ relationship, and eager to join in on what’s kept a secret solely between the two of them. Arthur can only dream about how big Max’s cock is, how he might use that aura of dominance he exudes to order him and Charles around like they’re both his little toys.

“Oh, you are,” Charles teases, his hand settling over the obvious bulge in his baby brother’s shorts. “Maybe we should have done this a long time ago. What are you thinking about, hmm? I’m dying to know.” He grins innocently up at Arthur, his gaze searching. He’d be lying if he said he himself hadn’t been thinking about Max getting involved far before he pitched the idea in the first place; Max is really fucking hot, after all, and Charles knows damn well a word out of Max’s mouth will get his knees weak.

Arthur’s hips involuntarily twitch into the heat of Charles’ palm, arousal beginning to rapidly pool in his lower stomach. “He’d tease us, I bet,” Arthur says, breathless as he imagines it. “He’d tell us how depraved we are, how we’re brothers and shouldn’t be touching each other like this.” He pauses to whine, panting as he ruts into Charles’ hand. “And—his cock, Charlie, fuck—can’t stop thinking about it. Want him to order us around.”

Charles giggles as Arthur goes on and on about what he’s been thinking about. "He’s so confident, and hot, and—fuck, petit, how big do you think his dick is?" Charles bites his bottom lip again, eyes blown wide with lust and excitement. Every minute spent waiting for Max to arrive feels like an eternity, but Charles mitigates the anticipation by leaning forward to kiss Arthur, all slow and hot like how they make out when they have all the time in the world.

Arthur grins, gesturing out with his hands, spreading them almost a foot apart, giggling as he does so. “He’s probably so fucking big,” he murmurs against Charles’ lips before leaning into his kisses, continuing to rut into the addictive heat of Charles’ palm. God, it feels dirty to be talking about one of their colleagues like this, but all the shame in the world instantly evaporates once the fact sinks in that Max is on his way over right now. To have his way with the both of them.

“You wish,” Charles teases between kisses, his hands sliding up underneath Arthur's shirt, feeling along his baby brother’s pretty pale skin. Arthur is already so warm and easy and wanting, letting Charles press his tongue to his without a second thought. He obliges Arthur just a little, squeezing at his hard cock through his shorts and palming at him as he ruts into his lap. Arthur always makes the prettiest noises like this—high-pitched whimpers and whines—and Charles swallows them all greedily, every single one of them going straight to his cock.

Just as Charles is beginning to relax into it, getting a rhythm going, thumbs grazing against Arthur’s hardening nipples, a firm knock at the door makes him gasp. Max.

Charles pulls away, wide-eyed, his lips spit-soaked and kissed-out. He gently nudges Arthur off his lap so he can go get the door, nervousness twisting at his stomach as he goes.

“Hey,” Max says once the door opens. He’s dressed in a tight white shirt, the curve of his pecs and waist prominent through the cotton, and a pair of equally tight jeans. His eyes narrow when he lays eyes on Charles, then his gaze flits behind him to Arthur on the couch, both brothers looking dishevelled, and he smiles. “Don’t tell me you started without me.”

Arthur crosses his legs on the couch, tugging his shirt up over his obvious erection. God, he already feels fucking dumb in Max’s presence and Max has only said one sentence out loud. “It was Charles’ idea,” he quips, his smile bratty and teasing as he points with his thumb to his older brother. He’ll never pass up an opportunity to push Charles’ buttons.

Charles stands aside to let Max in, cheeks already flushing hot with embarrassment. Seriously, Max is just standing here and he’s already ready to melt into a fucking puddle. It’s downright humiliating and Charles finds himself liking it.

“Oh, really?” Max asks, laughing softly as his gaze flits from Charles to Arthur and then back to Charles. “I don’t think so. I can see that, Arthur.” He shifts his gaze, glancing pointedly at the hard-on tenting Arthur’s shorts, then reaches to take hold of Charles’ bicep, firmly guiding him back over to the couch. “You two are gonna keep doing what you were doing before I got here, and I’m going to watch.” Max sits himself down on the couch on the other end from Arthur and crosses his arms in front of his built chest, looking at them both expectantly.

Arthur’s lips part in a mixture of shock and embarrassment, his cock twitching underneath Max’s gaze. With Max looking at him like this, he feels more exposed than he does when he’s naked; it’s intoxicating how easily Max can take control of the situation, order the two of them about as if it’s second nature to him.

Charles obeys Max so eagerly, as if he’s always meant to. He wastes no time in sinking back into the couch cushions, manhandling his baby brother into his lap and feeling the line of Arthur’s cock hard against his thigh. He takes Arthur’s face between his hands and kisses him again, a hot, open-mouthed affair, tongues pressing hurriedly against one another.

“Oh, that’s nice,” Max says, voice low and rumbly from the other side of the couch, his smile audible. “I suspected you two had something going on, you know. It’s not normal to see two brothers touching each other the way you do.” He takes in a deep breath of air, then lets it out in a sigh. “Charles, touch your little brother a little, won’t you? Look at him—he’s practically gagging for it.”

Not even breaking the kiss to question Max, Charles slips one hand below Arthur’s waistband and teases at his cock over the thin material of his boxers. Arthur’s already a little wet, pre-come drooling from the tip of his cock, and it only spurs Charles on, dragging his thumb over the wet spot on the fabric.

“Charlie,” Arthur whines between kisses, his hips twitching into Charles’ touch. The slow drag of Charles’ thumb across the tip of his cock is so deliciously stimulating and it makes Arthur arch his back, cheeks flushing a pretty embarrassed pink. It’s one thing to do this with Charles behind closed doors where no one can see, their secret safe with each other, but with Max watching, Arthur feels something dark and feral gnaw at his stomach. He can’t stop thinking about the way Max talks to them, tells them what they’re doing is wrong; simply listening to him and letting the words sink in makes Arthur needy to come despite having only just started.

Max laughs, so deep and hot and thoroughly infuriating. “Is he always like this, Charles?” he asks, although he isn’t exactly expecting a reply. “Look at him. Look at how desperate he is for you. Or maybe he’s just putting on a show for me?” Max watches them for a moment, biting the inside of his cheek as he debates pushing further. He does. “That must be it. You two wanted me to watch, tell you how wrong this is. Is that it?”

Charles whimpers, wholly humiliated by how Max sees right through them. He breaks the kiss for a moment, hand still working at the front of Arthur’s wet boxers. “He—he is,” he says, voice shaking with it. He can’t stop thinking about how Max talks about Arthur like he’s not even there. “You should see how he begs for me, Max.”

Five minutes into this fucked up scene and Arthur thinks he might die from the way Max and Charles talk about him like he’s nothing but their little toy, their slut who deserves no input. He moans, hips shifting forward to seek out more friction from Charles’ warm palm, his cock fucking aching in his wet boxers. If there’s one thing Arthur can do well in this world, it’s beg, and he does just that, giving Charles his biggest, glassiest eyes and pursing his lips in a pout. “More, Charlie, please,” he breathes, feeling Max’s gaze burn into his back. “Please. Need you so bad it hurts.”

Charles turns his head to look at Max, smiling as if to say, see? and not letting up on how he’s teasing at Arthur’s cock.

Max smiles sweetly right back, splaying his thighs just the tiniest bit apart where he’s sitting on the couch. Without any hesitation, Charles’ eyes fly to Max’s crotch, where his cock is just beginning to perk up in his jeans. “You're right, Charles, he does beg so nicely,” he says, glowing with approval. He watches them for a few more long moments, then looks at Charles strangely. “So . . . aren’t you going to do what he’s begging you for? Come on. Let’s put that pretty mouth to use. I bet he’ll cry once you get your mouth on his needy cock.”

Arthur downright whimpers at the suggestion, hips thrusting wildly into Charles’ hand. “Please, Charlie, need your mouth so bad,” he begs, frustrated tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. He feels perpetually teased by both Charles and Max in this moment, aching to finally get some long-needed relief. Arthur shifts his frantic gaze to Max, and somehow it’s just as easy to beg Max as it is to beg his older brother. “Make him hurry up, Max, please, I can’t wait anymore,” he breathes, dragging out the last word in a whine. He doesn’t think he’s ever felt this turned-on in his life; Max being right here, watching their every move with those calculating blue eyes has Arthur feeling deliciously on-edge. Why hadn’t he and Charles done this sooner?

“Oh,” Max says, laughing again and resting the palm of one big hand over the bulge forming in his jeans, “he’s got a bit of a mouth on him, too, huh?” Even though Arthur is speaking directly to him, he can’t help but keep treating Arthur as if he’s nothing but a toy. “You heard him, Charles. Hurry up now. I don’t like to be kept waiting, especially if it’s two pretty things like you.”

Charles nods, immediately obeying, and lifts Arthur off his lap long enough to slide off the couch and onto his knees. It’s easy for him to undo Arthur’s shorts and slide them off him—it’s a dance they’ve done a thousand times before—but doing all this under Max’s watchful eye is so much more embarrassing. “Don't worry, bébé,” he breathes, finally talking directly to Arthur now, “I’ve got you, okay?” He pulls back Arthur's boxers, letting his flushed, leaking cock spring free, and wastes no time in getting his mouth on it, letting the head sit upon his tongue.

Arthur can’t help but babble the moment Charles gets his cock in his mouth. “Thank you, Charlie, thank you, fuck, you’re so good to me, so so good,” he whines, his hands flying to grab at Charles’ hair. Charles’ mouth feels downright heavenly around his cock and it takes all of Arthur’s self-control not to fuck into it like an animal in heat, chasing that delicious hot wet friction against his aching cock.

Max greedily takes in the sight, watches as Charles takes his baby brother’s cock into his mouth. “That’s perfect,” he murmurs, the praise soft as he finally makes eye contact with Arthur, talking right to him now. “Tell him what a good job he’s doing. Isn’t he such a perfect older brother? Look at me, Arthur.” Max’s gaze is intense, so casually dominant. “Tell me. Were you thinking about this as much as I was? Did you want me to watch your brother fuck you?”

Charles whimpers around Arthur’s cock as he hears Max and Arthur talking about him like he’s the toy now. With a cock in his mouth, all he can do is focus on making Arthur feel good, dragging his hot tongue up the length of it and teasing at the slit before dipping back down. Max’s praise sends wave after wave of heat to his already throbbing cock and it’s infuriating.

God, Arthur doesn’t think it’s ever been this difficult to look at Max—but to be fair, he hadn’t ever had to talk to Max while his big brother was sucking him off. “Fuck—yes, yes, I was, Max. Couldn’t stop thinking about it since you found us. Want you to watch him fuck me—ah, please. See me all spread out on my big brother’s cock.” The words feel filthy as they tumble from Arthur’s mouth, but like this, with his orgasm rapidly approaching, he can’t bring himself to care. His voice pitches up as he obeys Max and whines to Charles, “Feels so good, Charlie, fuck, can’t get enough of your mouth. So good to me, so good, please make me come, ah—love you so much . . .”

Max stares at him, silent for a few long moments. “Good,” he says, grinning, then nods to how Arthur’s thighs tremble with the beginnings of an orgasm. “Stop, Charles.” The command comes out soft yet firm, easily dominant just like the rest of him. “We can’t have him coming yet. That wouldn’t be very much fun.”

Charles pulls off Arthur’s cock with a wet pop, his lips and chin soaked with spit. He looks at Arthur regretfully, a wordless I’m sorry, and murmurs, “I love you too,” his voice raspy from the cock that was just down his throat.

Max emits a sigh again, getting up off the couch and rising to his full height. He casually approaches where Charles is still on his knees and runs his fingers gently through his hair. “Let’s go somewhere a little more comfortable,” he urges.

Arthur lets his hands slip from Charles’ hair, crestfallen at being denied the sweet relief of an orgasm, but some part of him understands, knows that when he’s finally allowed to come tonight, it’ll be a lot better than just having his brother’s mouth on him. God, Max is so nonchalantly dominant that it makes Arthur’s stomach twist, his spit-slick cock twitching in the cool air. His command has Arthur immediately scrambling to obey, tucking his cock back into his shorts before following Charles and Max into the bedroom.

Charles reaches to wrap an arm around Arthur’s waist as they head to the bedroom, fitting himself against his baby brother’s side. He feels so small, so humiliated in Max’s presence that it drives him up the wall. Once in the bedroom, Charles climbs right up onto the bed, kneeling on the plush mattress and waiting for Max’s orders. It's striking how quickly Charles’ demeanour can change; one day he could be ordering Arthur around just like this, but whenever Max is around, Charles’ muscles go weak and he’s made to obey like some sort of pet.

“That’s right, you can get up there,” Max encourages, watching as the brothers climb up onto the bed. “Charles, take your brother’s clothes off first. I think we both want to see how pretty he is without everything covering him.”

Charles bites his lip, obeying without question. He runs his hands up underneath Arthur’s shirt before sliding it easily over his head and tossing it to the side, then moving onto his shorts.

Even when all Charles has done is take his shirt off, Arthur feels so exposed under Max’s watchful eye, almost wanting to wrap his arms around himself and cover up as if they’ve both walked in on him changing. The air feels thick and heavy with want as Arthur pants for more, lifting himself off the bed to help Charles undress him. He’s so easy like this, preening under the attention despite his embarrassment; he’d like nothing more than for Charles and Max to have their way with him right here and now, and thankfully, he knows that’s what he’ll get.

Max hums in approval once Charles strips Arthur of his boxers, leaving him completely naked. He rakes his gaze over Arthur’s body, taking in every inch of it. He’s lean and pretty, and his cock, while not big, is adorably flushed and hard and leaking against his stomach, still slick with spit and pre-come. “He’s so pretty, Charles. Look at him. Tell him how pretty he is.”

Charles swallows thickly, gaze darting between Max and Arthur before Max tells him to look at his baby brother. He runs his hands up Arthur’s sides, leaning in to kiss him briefly. “You’re so beautiful, petit,” he breathes, the praise coming easy to him. “You’re my everything. I love you so much.”

Arthur has to take a deep breath, stomach turning under both Charles’ and Max’s eyes, but he certainly can’t deny that Charles’ words soothe him. He smiles, pretty and soft as the sun’s rays, and murmurs back, “I love you more, Charlie. You’re the best big brother I could ask for,” before he purses his lips and meets Charles’ mouth in a kiss. The intimacy of the moment is striking, even with Max watching on as if he’s been given the greatest gift of his life.

“Aren’t you two sweet,” Max hums, smiling as he perches himself on the other end of the bed, perhaps a little too close for comfort. “The world would be shocked if they found out the Leclerc brothers are in a very serious relationship. Arthur, take Charles’ clothes off now, will you? We can’t have him feeling left out.”

Charles eagerly helps Arthur along, slipping his clothes off even as Max watches on. His words, although taunting, go straight to Charles’ cock. What would the world think? People would talk, surely, say they’re disgusting and immoral. Their careers would be finished the second their teams found out. And what of it? Charles doesn’t think he’d let Arthur go—not even then.

Arthur’s never been so grateful for his big brother’s help because fuck, his hands shake with the prospect of the world finding out the truth. Max is right and Charles knows it scares Arthur more than anything. He can picture the press outside their apartment building, knocking at their windows, microphones and cameras in their faces the moment they dare to step outside, tabloids upon tabloids with their faces on the cover. Arthur has to silently thank Max for being just as depraved as they are because if not, both of their careers would be over faster than he could blink.

“Hey,” Max says, shifting closer on the bed and sliding his hand up over Arthur’s bare back, touching him for the very first time. “I can practically hear you worrying. I won’t tell anyone. Just means I get to see this all for myself, and I quite like that.” His hand on Arthur's back slips lower, down his spine, then around his hip to his front before Max’s warm fingertips graze the sensitive skin of his cock. “So hard, aren’t you? Missing your brother’s mouth on you?” He laughs, dragging his thumb roughly over the tip of Arthur’s cock before lifting off. “Maybe you should ask him to fuck you instead.”

“Fuck,” Arthur breathes, feeling himself relax into Max’s touch. Not only does Max know exactly what to say to get him riled up to near-tears, but he also knows how to pull Arthur right out of his own head, telling him gently to focus on the moment. His thumb against the wet tip of Arthur’s cock hurts in the best way, making Arthur cry out, his desperation back in full swing. “Charlie,” he begs, breathless as his hips twitch into Max’s touch, “please. Need you inside me so bad—haven’t I been good? Please. I’ve been good for you both, please.”

Charles, now fully naked under Max’s gaze too, nods and leans in for a few kisses. They kiss a few times, slowly, just tasting each other, and Charles thinks he can feel Max hungrily looking on. He swears Max would eat them if he could. “You’ll look so pretty, bébé,” he whispers, thumb stroking across Arthur’s flushed cheek.

“Let’s get him on his hands and knees, Charles,” Max orders, and passes him a bottle of lube. Charles hadn’t even noticed Max bring that in. “Finger him open for me, show me he’s able to take your cock. Or my cock.” His teeth catch on his bottom lip. Max knows damn well they’ve both been thinking about his cock, and right now he’s rock fucking hard.

“You heard him, petit,” Charles murmurs, leaning in to steal one last kiss. “On your hands and knees.”

Arthur shakes with excitement as he hauls himself up to assume his position, spreading himself out on his hands and knees. He splays his thighs just the tiniest bit apart, arching his spine to show off the pert and pretty curve of his ass and tries not to show just how much he has been thinking about Max’s cock, how he’s been dreaming about taking it like the good little whore he is.

Charles squeezes some lube out onto his fingers and teases one finger between Arthur’s cheeks, slipping the tip of his index finger just inside his hole. He’s tight and warm like always, maybe more relaxed than usual since they’d fucked this morning, but Charles will never stop loving it. It’s easy for him to add a second finger, spreading Arthur apart and delighting in the pretty noises his baby brother makes when he does.

“Charles,” Max says, shifting closer on his knees, “are you getting stage fright? That’s a pathetic excuse for fingering your little brother open. Here.” One of Max’s big warm hands settles on the small of Arthur’s back and the other wraps around Charles’ wrist, guiding him to fuck into Arthur deeper with his fingers, twisting his wrist as he goes. “Now curl them,” he whispers, and Charles obeys, taking the initiative to add a third finger too, Arthur taking it all.

Goosebumps erupt all over Arthur’s skin once Max’s hand lays warm over his back. He draws in a sharp gasp as Charles’ fingers nudge into his prostate, the sudden onslaught of pleasure setting his nerves on fire and sending his back into a delicious arch. “Fuck, ah—right there,” he whines, cock aching with how badly he needs to be fucked. Arthur can’t get enough of how Charles and Max treat him as if he’s just their toy, their little plaything to have fun with.

Max laughs softly, petting along Arthur’s back, following the curve of his spine. “You take it so well,” he coos. “I can’t wait to see your brother fuck you. Charles, that's enough. Get him on his back and fuck him, please. I think he might die if you don’t." He lets his touch slip from Arthur's back and Charles’ wrist, retreating back to his spot at the end of the bed.

Charles obliges, taking his fingers out and turning Arthur over to his back. His baby brother looks so pretty like this, soft blondish hair splayed across the white sheets, thighs spread to show off his leaking cock and slick little hole. Charles coats his cock with lube, wincing at how cold it is against his skin, and presses the head of it into Arthur’s hole, gasping at how fucking good it feels after being so hard and desperate for so long.

Arthur can’t help but cry out in sheer relief when Charles’ massive cockhead slips into him, forcing his silky walls apart in the best way. “Please, Charlie, need all of it,” he begs, debauched, gazing up at Charles with his biggest, glassiest eyes. “I can have it, can’t I? Haven’t I been good?” He fists at the sheets, breath catching in his throat as Charles sinks further into his hole.

Charles listens, of course—always the doting big brother—and pushes his cock steadily, inch by inch, into Arthur’s tight little hole. He’s so slick and desperate and warm like this, begging pathetically for it, and who would Charles be to refuse, especially when Max has his eyes on them both? “Of course, mon petit,” he whispers shakily, bottoming out inside him and leaning down to kiss Arthur again. He can’t get enough of kissing him when they’re like this, connected as brothers in the most intimate way possible.

“You two look so good together,” Max says, and for the first time tonight his voice shakes. Charles casts a surprised glance in his direction only to see Max brazenly palming himself through his jeans, hips twitching up to meet his hand, and his cock looks huge through the fabric. Charles’ mouth waters at the thought of it. “That’s right, Charles. Keep fucking him. You wouldn’t leave your baby brother hanging, would you?”

Arthur feels so full that he thinks he might burst. No matter how many times he and Charles do this, he doesn’t think he’ll ever stop fearing that he might split apart one day from how big Charles’ cock is inside him. “Please,” he whines, nearly babbling now as his hole clenches around Charles’ cock, “need you to move, Charlie, please please fuck me. I’ve been good, please, I’m your baby, I promise.”

Max smiles warmly, reaches over to ruffle Arthur’s hair where he's lying all spread out, being fucked open by his very own brother. “He’s right, Charles,” he says, stroking Arthur’s hair, feeling it soft around his fingers. “He’s been so good tonight, for both of us. I think it’s only fair that you give him his reward, yeah?” He shifts again, rounding to the other side of the bed to slip in behind Charles, getting his fingers around the base of Charles’ cock and helping him press his way in. “That’s it. Until I’m touching him.”

Charles moans at the touch of Max’s fingers to his cock, slim and supple yet strong at the same time, from a lifetime of racing cars. He tries to focus on pushing into Arthur to the hilt with each thrust, pressing into him until Max’s fingers meet Arthur’s skin, but at the same time he feels Max mouthing at his neck and it’s all so much. “Fuck,” he whines, his movements erratic, but he thinks Arthur is enjoying it all the same.

While Arthur is normally shy about being too loud, Max and Charles almost make him want to be. He moans with each push of Charles’ cock into his hole, feeling Max’s fingers against his skin every time. Arthur has to swallow around the drool that floods his mouth at just how insane this is. “You fill me so well, Charles,” he breathes, mouth hanging open as he pants with it. He hopes his eyes, big and wide and wet, convey just how much more of this he wants.

“I bet your brother would do anything for you, Arthur,” Max goes on, fingers still wrapped around Charles’ cock as he fucks into him. “He’s so hard, I can feel it. He can’t get enough of you. But why would he, when you’re always so pretty, laid out just for him to fuck?” Max laughs softly, his other hand on Charles’ hip keeping his pace steady.

Charles thinks he wants to cry out of embarrassment. He can feel Max’s clothed erection pressing up against his bare ass and it’s all so terribly distracting. Max’s eyes are trained on where his cock disappears rhythmically into Arthur’s hole, filling him up like his life depends on it. “Fuck, petit, you feel so good,” he moans, tilting his head back and whining when he feels Max’s lips on his neck again.

Arthur doesn’t think he’ll ever be able to unhear the way Max calls him pretty, praises how easy he is for his big brother. He chokes back a cry, wishing he could melt into the mattress. “He’s the best big brother, Max,” he pants, breath lodging in his throat at a particularly hard thrust. “He’s so good to me. Spoils me so much.” His cock twitches against his stomach, the head drooling out another bead of pre-come at the praise that fills the air.

“He’s so good to you,” Max agrees, speaking low and soft and downright alluring. “And you two look so pretty together. It feels wrong, doesn’t it? Kissing your brother? Letting him fuck you? Or maybe you’re beyond that. I think you’re proud of it, Arthur.” Max can’t seem to find where to stop, the words falling readily from his lips, but he thinks all his words ring true. “But I don’t think that’s all. You were so excited when I showed up tonight, weren’t you? Have you been thinking about me, too?”

Charles whines, each further word from Max going straight to his cock. He fucks desperately into Arthur, his hips stuttering as he tries his best to focus on a rhythm, but Max is—he’s fucking hot, and dominant, and knows just how to toy with them both, play with them like they’re his puppets. Charles can’t get him out of his head.

Arthur tilts his head back into the sheets, his cheeks flushing hot as the words spill out of him. “Yes, Max,” he breathes, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes, “couldn’t stop thinking about your cock. Ever since you found us I’ve wanted you to insult us, tell us how horrible we are.” Arthur pants desperately as Charles fucks him, scrabbling at the sheets for purchase. He can’t get enough of how Max sees right through them, sees right through their façade of a normal brotherly relationship. Max knows the real them, and it makes Arthur want to come just thinking about it.

Max finally lets go of Charles, lets his cock slip from his fingers, but encourages Charles to keep fucking his brother nonetheless. He shifts to lift his tight white shirt over his head before moving onto his jeans, tossing those aside to only leave him in his boxers, his cock obscenely tenting them. “That’s it, Charles, I can tell he’s close,” he murmurs, still eyeing them hungrily, but now he palms at himself through his boxers, the massive length of his cock quite visible through the thin fabric. “Make him come.”

Charles wouldn’t ever dream of doing otherwise. As he fucks Arthur, he reaches between their bodies to get a hand around his cock, stroking him in time with his thrusts. He can tell Arthur’s close by the way his thighs shake, his mouth dropping open in sheer pleasure. Charles wants nothing more than to watch his brother come all over his gorgeous slim stomach.

As Arthur nears his orgasm, he squirms, thighs trembling as Charles strokes roughly at his aching cock. “Gonna come, Charlie,” he whines, mouth hanging open as he arches his back in pleasure. “Please make me come, please, please.”

Charles pants, his pace relentless, and he snaps his head up to look at Max for permission despite him making the order just a moment ago.

“Yes, Charles,” Max says softly, his own breath coming a little heavier now as he palms himself through his boxers. “Make him come. He’ll make such a pretty mess, won’t he?”

That’s all Charles needs to finish the job. He watches in awe, wide-eyed, as Arthur shoots out all across his pale stomach, moaning and crying as he goes. Charles thinks it’s the hottest thing he’s ever seen. He’s close himself; he thinks he can only hold on for a few more deep strokes into Arthur’s tight hole before he fills his baby brother up like he’s been begging for all night.

Arthur flushes once he comes all over himself, making a big mess of his pretty, unblemished skin. He wants to cry at how good this is, how much it is; Charles doesn’t let up with how hard he’s fucking into him and Arthur’s thighs twitch with overstimulation. “Come in me, Charles, please—knock me up. I’ve been good, I’ve been good.” He utters his plea aloud before he’s able to censor himself—should he really say something like that with Max right there? Arthur’s teeth worry at his bottom lip, eyes glazing over as Charles uses him.

Max’s breath hitches and Arthur’s slutty pleas are all he needs to slide his hand beneath the waistband of his boxers, taking his cock into his hand for real this time. “Fuck,” he mutters out loud, jerking himself off properly, “you wanna be bred, Arthur? You want your brother to fuck a baby into you? Fuck.” He has to take a deep breath, tongue darting out to wet his lips at the sight in front of him. “You can come, Charles. Knock your little brother up.”

When Charles gets Max’s permission, he comes right there on the spot with a choked cry, filling his brother’s tight little hole with it. The orgasm is so strong it sets his nerves on fire, pleasure washing through his body as his hips stutter through it. It’s too fucking good, the mix of bliss and humiliation, and Charles wonders why they hadn’t done this sooner.

“Fuck,” Arthur curses under his breath once Charles slows to a stop. Max’s words make his spent cock twitch up to attention once again against his messy stomach—it’s really like he’s nothing but Charles’ and Max’s toy for them to play with, to fuck into and come in. Arthur loves it. “Feel so full, Charlie. Feel so round with your babies.”

“God, you look round with it, too,” Max says, taking his hand out of his boxers and instead reaching to slide it across Arthur’s tummy, covered in his own slick, and he settles it over the slight bulge in his lower stomach. “Arthur, do you think your big brother knows how to share? I want to see if you’d look as pretty taking my cock as you did taking his. What do you think?”

Charles, still buried to the hilt inside Arthur, gasps softly at Max’s words. Max wants to fuck Arthur, right in front of him? He tries not to think about how fucking hot that idea is, seeing Arthur squirming and moaning as he’s split open on Max’s massive cock. “I know how to share,” he says, and it comes out so pathetically whiny. “I’m really good at it, Max. I promise.”

Arthur nods, frantic, his hole clenching around Charles’ cock as he imagines taking Max’s huge length inside him. He’s even bigger than Charles and that drives Arthur wild to think about. “He knows how to share, Max, I promise,” Arthur whines. He fears he might die if Max doesn’t fuck him open right in front of his big brother. “Please, Max, I need to take your cock too. I can do it.”

Max laughs softly, patting Arthur’s stomach before bringing his come-covered hand up to Arthur’s mouth. Immediately, Arthur’s tongue darts out to clean up his mess, his skilled tongue dipping and teasing between Max’s fingers. “That’s what I thought,” Max says, smiling. “Charles, pull out of him. I want to see how well you filled him up.”

Charles immediately obeys, slowly pulling out of Arthur’s fucked-out hole with a wince. Immediately, he can see the creampie leaking out of him, and while normally he’d chase it with his tongue, he’d much rather see Max fuck right back into him around that fresh slick. “I’ll watch, please,” he begs, already taking hold of his slick cock. “Wanna see him take it, Max.”

“You two are so perfect,” Max praises, soft and reverent as he slides his boxers off to expose his huge cock for the very first time. It takes a few long moments for him to cover it in lube, but soon enough he’s fitting his enormous cockhead against Arthur’s slick rim.

Arthur shudders as he feels Max’s cockhead press against his wet hole. Fuck, he knew Max was big, but for a moment Arthur panics, worrying that he might not be able to take Max after all. “Fuck, Charlie, he’s so big,” he breathes in a mixture of fear and excitement. “Exactly what I wanted. I was right, wasn’t I? Oh my God.”

“Bet you’ve been thinking about this ever since I found you two at that dinner,” Max taunts as he slowly pushes his cock into Arthur, using Charles’ creampie as extra slick to help him along, Arthur’s hole fluttering around him as he tries to adjust. “You’ve been getting off to the thought of me telling you two how disgusting you are, what whores you are. Am I right?” Max quite enjoys having all his attention on Arthur. He playfully rubs his thumb across Arthur’s nipple, delighting in how it eagerly perks up under his touch.

While Charles wants to be jealous at how Max touches his little brother, he can’t look away from how Max’s huge cock disappears inside Arthur’s needy little hole. Arthur’s taking him so well and it gets Charles so impossibly hot. “Fuck, petit, isn’t he big?” he breathes, wetting his lips. “You take him so well. Look at you.”

Arthur thinks he might choke on Max’s cock despite Max fucking his hole rather than his mouth. It’s so fucking big, much bigger than Charles, and Arthur thinks Max might genuinely kill him with his size. He tries his best to relax, let Max’s cock part the slick walls of his hole, but God, Arthur hasn’t taken anything this big before. “Max, yes, yes—you’re right, you’re so right. Can’t stop thinking about you watching us, insulting us.” He has to force the words out—he can practically feel Max’s cock in his throat—but when Max rewards him with a gentle push of his hips he thinks it’s all worth it.

Max smiles, thumb still grazing Arthur’s nipple as he pushes steadily into him, bottoming out within moments. Arthur is so tight and slick and delicious around him, clenching down with every shift of Max’s cock. “There, you took it so well,” he praises, taking in every inch of Arthur’s beautiful needy face, lips parted on a whine. “I think maybe we need to put your pretty mouth to work now, don’t you? Charles, come here. I want your brother to get his mouth around you while I fuck him.”

Charles’ stomach twists at the thought of him and Max using both of Arthur’s holes at the same time. It’s so wrong, he thinks, but his body takes over for his brain and he’s shifting on the bed to feed the first inch of his cock into Arthur’s awaiting mouth.

Tears prick at the corners of Arthur’s eyes as Charles forces his cock into his mouth, all hot and wet and perfect. Max thrusts into him at just the same time and it makes Arthur cry out around Charles’ cock, strangled and muffled around Charles’ huge length. He shuts up and takes it regardless, his cock twitching against his stomach at being used like this, drooling pre-come out over his skin. It’s easy for him to put his mouth to work, eyes slipping shut as he traces up Charles’ cock with his tongue.

“Oh,” Max breathes, panting as he slowly pulls back before pushing back into Arthur’s tight hole, “look at that. He’s got a greedy little mouth on him, doesn’t he, Charles?” He takes Arthur’s thighs into his hands, squeezing tight, fingertips sure to leave bruises there by tomorrow morning, and fucks into him around the creampie Charles had left, the sound of it obscene in the otherwise quiet room. “He's born to take it, I think. Meant to always have two cocks filling his holes, huh?”

Charles nearly goes dizzy at Max’s words, and pleasure immediately shoots up his spine at how good Arthur’s mouth feels around his sensitive cock. He’s eager to fuck deeper into Arthur’s mouth, pushing in until he’s choking with it. “Yes,” he gasps out in response to Max, breathless from everything that's happening. “He is. He loves us filling him like this, Max.” Charles tilts his head back, panting with the pleasure. It’s all so much.

Arthur’s thighs tremble in Max’s hands, shaking with how good they both fuck him. He was born for this, he thinks. Born to be caught between Charles and Max, born to take cock in both of his slutty holes, born not to be just Charles’ little brother but also to be his fucktoy. He moans around Charles’ cock, back arching as Max fucks right up into his prostate, and hopes to whatever God is out there that this won’t be the last time he finds himself in the middle of Charles and Max.

“I bet he won’t last long at all,” Max goes on, a taunting lilt to his voice as he laughs and fucks into Arthur harder. “He’s a little whore, isn’t he, Charles? Taking us both so well. Look at his cute little cock.” He smiles and focuses his attention on Arthur’s cock, hard and leaking, as it bounces against his stomach with each thrust. Max’s cock is so big, pushing deep into Arthur and once again seeking out the spot that’ll surely push him over the edge.

Charles gasps with pleasure, whining out loud as his little brother's tongue laves all over his cock. It’s so good, he thinks, just like under the table at that dinner, the dinner where Max found out about them. “He is,” he manages to whimper in response, thighs shaking as he thrusts gently in and out of Arthur’s mouth. “Always begs for me so pretty, Max. I can’t help but be a good older brother and give him what he wants.”

By the shaking of his thighs and the tears running down his cheeks, Max can tell Arthur is close, and honestly, he is too after watching the gorgeous show the two brothers put on for him tonight. He gets one hand around Arthur’s wet little cock and strokes it as he fucks him, being sure to nudge up into his prostate with each thrust. “Are you close, baby?” he asks, although he certainly isn't expecting an answer with how full of cock Arthur’s mouth is. “Come for us. Come for me and your big brother, show us what a mess you can make.”

Charles’ gentle thrusts into Arthur’s mouth become more erratic as he nears his own orgasm. Arthur looks so pretty with tears in his eyes and drool running down his chin as he takes everything that’s given to him. The sight alone shoves Charles towards the edge, his eyes squeezing shut as he feels his orgasm approach him like a massive wave.

Arthur certainly doesn’t need Max to tell him again. With a few more strokes against his cock and the relentless push of Max’s cock into his ruined hole, Arthur cries out against Charles’ cock and comes onto Max’s fist. He’s always the first to come—so easy to please—and it makes him feel like a fucking slut, nothing but a pathetic toy for Charles and Max to use. He’s obsessed with the idea of Max coming inside him too, his come mixing with his big brother’s and stuffing him full. Arthur drools around Charles’ cock, trying his best to swallow around it as Charles thrusts into his mouth.

The vibrations of his baby brother’s whine against his cock is all it takes for Charles to tip over the edge, coming hard right down Arthur’s throat. His incessant thrusting into Arthur’s mouth doesn't slow, however—he desperately rides out his orgasm even when he hears Max’s amused chuckle from behind him. “Fuck,” he whines, choking out an overstimulated sob. It’s so good, but also so much. The knowledge of Max watching all this is nearly too much for him.

Max is pretty damn close himself. He swears softly under his breath and with a few more deep strokes into Arthur’s tight hole, he comes too, filling Arthur right up with it. As he fucks it into him, the sounds are obscene from his come mixing with Charles’ inside him. It’s the hottest thing Max has ever seen, and ever heard. He thanks his lucky stars that he was able to piece together the two brothers’ true relationship himself.

Arthur can’t stop whimpering and whining underneath the both of them, feeling so pathetically fucked-out and full. Max’s come mixing with Charles’ inside him feels better than Arthur ever thought it would and he selfishly wishes he could keep it forever, always feel stuffed with their babies.

Charles slowly takes his cock out of Arthur’s mouth once he’d swallowed all his come, leaving his lips spit-soaked and flushed such a pretty red. He runs his fingers slowly through Arthur’s hair, suddenly overcome by affection for his sweet little brother, always behaving so well for him. “I told you he could take it, Max,” Charles says, but doesn’t take his eyes away from Arthur’s face; he looks down at Arthur fondly, shifting around on the bed so he can lean down and kiss his brother properly.

“Oh, I didn’t doubt it for a second,” Max says, sounding exceedingly pleased. He pulls out of Arthur’s tight little hole and rejoices in the sight of his and Charles’ come leaking out of him, making even more of a mess of the sheets. “He was so good for us, wasn’t he? That’s it, Charles. I love when you treat him all sweet.” If Max wasn’t already thoroughly exhausted, his cock would have surely been hardening up again simply at the sight of the two brothers kissing. It’s sick and perverted in just the right way that keeps drawing Max in.

A soft sigh falls from Arthur’s lips as he melts into his big brother’s touch, mouth feeling used and fucked-out as he purses his lips for a kiss. He’ll never get enough of the way Charles looks at him, as if he’s his everything. He’s weak for Charles like this—weak for his fingers in his hair, weak for the way he calls him petit and bébé, weak for the way they love despite being brothers. Arthur doesn’t think he wants to be anything else.

Max watches them hungrily, and while for a moment he thought he was exhausted after such a great fuck, his cock twitches back to attention against his stomach. He moves aside, casually leaning back against the pillows on the bed, and wraps one hand around his stiffening cock. Not moving, yet, but waiting. “Charles, you'll help your little brother clean up, won't you?” he asks, his voice soft and honey-sweet.

Charles nods, pulling away from the kiss just long enough to gaze over Arthur’s pretty face once more. He looks ruined—tear tracks drying on his face, lips slick with spit and come, hair beautifully messy—and Charles has never seen anything more gorgeous. “Of course,” he responds, and moves to get up, but that’s when he notices Max sitting at the head of the bed. He’s watching them. With a hand around himself. He gets off on this. Charles’ stomach twists, but he makes his way to the bathroom to get a damp washcloth anyway. If Max wants a show, he and Arthur will put one on for him.

As Charles heads to the bathroom, he can practically feel Max’s gaze burning a hole into his back. He returns with a damp washcloth and tries not to think about how Max is watching them, touching himself to the sight of him being sweet and taking care of his little brother. “You were so good for us, petit,” he praises softly, running the cloth over Arthur’s skin and mopping up all the sticky come that had landed on his stomach and thighs. “You're so pretty. I love you.”

Max’s cock twitches again in his hand as he greedily watches the show. The two brothers saying I love you to each other is dirty in the best way and it makes Max start to move, lazily stroking the massive length of his cock as he watches. “Aren’t you sweet?” he practically purrs, grinning as Charles leans down to kiss Arthur once again. “Arthur, isn’t your big brother just so good to you?”

Arthur smiles up at Charles, soft and vulnerable, as Charles cleans him up, running the cloth over his messy skin. He can spot Max out of the corner of his eye, lazily stroking his cock to the affection he receives from his brother, and it nearly makes Arthur dizzy to think about. “I love you too, Charlie,” he whispers, and his gaze is so horribly lovesick as he does. He turns his head to Max, a smile crossing his face. “Of course, Max, he’s so sweet to me,” he says. “Always takes care of me like this. He’s the perfect big brother.”

Max hums approvingly, still keeping that same slow, lazy pace on his cock. He’s simply enjoying himself, now, and he’s glad that Charles and Arthur seem to be as well. “I bet it’s been that way since you two were kids, huh?” he asks, his gaze flitting down to Arthur’s fucked-out hole. “Oh, Charles, you missed a spot. Clean him up properly like the good big brother you are.”

Charles glances over at Max in surprise, unsure of what he means, but it suddenly clicks in his head and his cheeks flush an embarrassing shade of pink. He nods, eager to please Max and hear more of his praise, and shuffles down on the bed so he can lap up the mixture of his and Max’s come right from his baby brother’s pretty little hole. He’s tentative at first, the knowledge of Max watching him making him blush, but the taste of all three of them together spurs Charles on.

Arthur whimpers weakly once he feels Charles’ tongue at his hole, warm and wet and soft as he licks up the mess. He resists the urge to bring his thighs together around Charles’ head, flushing a pretty pink with embarrassment at just how dirty this feels. “Charlie,” he can’t help but whine, reaching down to grab at Charles’ hair. Everything feels so warm and with Max watching, Arthur thinks he might die at how good it is.

Max pants softly, his hand quickening on his cock. God, he always swears this can’t get any hotter and then it does. The Leclerc brothers are obviously very receptive to his orders and Max loves it. “You have such a pretty mouth on you, Arthur,” Max says, voice hushed and somewhat strained as he strokes himself, using his own pre-come as slick. “Tell Charles how much you love it, how good it feels, yeah?”

Charles hums against Arthur’s skin, greedily lapping up everything his tongue can reach before pushing it into Arthur’s tight little hole as far as it’ll go, eating him out like his life depends on it. He loves how his baby brother whines for him, all the little sounds he makes; Charles thinks he’d do anything to hear more of them. He wants to say something, tell Arthur how good he is, that he loves him, but for now Charles sticks to cleaning him up, face feeling hot under Max’s watchful eye.

Arthur moans as Charles eats him out, his tongue pushing into his fucked-out hole, nearly fucking him with it. Feeling both Charles’ tongue and the come inside him drives him insane. “Fuck, your tongue feels so good,” he whines, letting himself squeeze at the sides of Charles’ head with his thighs. “So good to me, love it so much . . .”

Max groans out loud, beyond happy with the show he’s having presented to him. “That’s it,” he praises, his voice strained as he roughly strokes himself. He doesn’t exactly want to come again, but he isn’t sure when—or if—he’s ever going to see this sight again, and so he wants to make the most of it. “Kiss him, Charles. I want him to taste all three of us.”

Charles moans against Arthur’s skin at the idea of it. It’s so fucking dirty and he knows it, but how can he resist? Arthur’s been so good for him, and Max . . . well, Charles can’t exactly resist Max’s orders. He finishes the job with one last swipe of his hot tongue across Arthur’s hole before shifting up on the bed to kiss him, tongue eagerly pressing against his baby brother’s and sharing the taste of them all. He loves it.

The sight of Charles leaning down to kiss Arthur, slick and drooly, their mouths sliding together like they’re meant to, suddenly gets Max hot and desperate to come. He grunts, his hand quickening on his cock before he comes without warning, his cockhead drooling ropes of it over his own fist. He pants with the harshness of his second orgasm, all quick and dirty, and breathes, “Fuck. You two look so good like that.”

Immediately, Charles and Arthur break apart, and they’re both on Max in an instant, almost fighting each other to clean up his mess. Their mouths look nearly identical as they trail their lips and tongues over Max’s spent cock, his lower stomach, and his fingers, greedily licking up everything they can reach.

“You two might kill me one day,” Max sighs once the two brothers pull away, tongues darting out to lick their lips. They both look so pretty like this, all wrecked and flushed and happy. While Max catches his breath, a smile can’t help but work its way onto his face; despite his overstimulation and exhaustion, he’ll never get enough of this sight, seeing these two gorgeous brothers in a way no one else gets to see them. “Charles, is your shower big enough for three?”

Charles perks up, giggles, and nods. “There’s lots of space.”

[f1-disaster-bi]

Now I’m just having more Party au thoughts 🙈

How would Party au Lando handle this F1 season? All the highs and the lows and the expectations and pressure of finally having a good car. Finally winning in Miami and the celebrations afterwards. The contact with Max in Austria and anger afterwards followed by the fear of losing that friendship. The disappointment of losing Silverstone when he was so close and blaming himself. Daniel’s season not being great and the threat of him not being on the grid anymore and being close every weekend to support Lando…

Anon, you and me both right now! I actually just a message to Birb with a whole idea for a little Party au drabble/prompt based on this past weekend.....

I may also be thinking about Koa meeting Leo and Roscoe 👀

This season would definetly be stressful for both Lando and Daniel in different ways.

Lando might have the pressure of his first win off his shoulders but he also now has the pressure of being in a top car and being able to fight for wins. People have turned from talking about him having no wins to fixating on every little mistake, talking about him as if he will never win again, a one hit wonder, and Lando, at first, adjusts to the pressure saying he has already proven himself. He does go back to having a meeting every two weeks with his therapist instead of the monthly meeting that they've dropped down to, and that helps.

It's the triple header that has him really struggling because he catches that cough that won't go away. He's sick and he's tired. He's trying to be the partner Daniel needs and encouraging Daniel to keep up with his own therapist, and being a comfort to him but by the end of Austria Lando is struggling. A lot of what he said in the media came from him worrying about Max and their friendship but also Max's sobriety and his own because for the first time in about a year, Lando want's to drink. He wants to leave the paddock and go buy a bottle of vodka and sit in the dark and drink and that scares him so he's just a bit of a wreck, Luckily, he flies home with Alex and Daniel, and they help distract him and Lando goes straight to a meeting the next day and meets up with his sponsor and does what he can to stop a relapse, and he tells Daniel that he scared himself.

Silverstone is the nail in the coffin and Lando is just really struggling but he isn't hiding it. He's honest with his friends and Daniel, with his sponsor and therapist, with Jon. He doesn't try to go it alone and that is what saves him from a possible relapse.

Daniel is also struggling throughout all this with negative thoughts and the media speaking shit about him. He knows he might lose his seat. He knows the car isn't the best and that he's struggling to prove being on the grid when RB have drivers waiting in the wings to be called up so he's trying to fight for his seat and to stay on the grid. Mentally, it's draining, and it only gets worse when he sees Lando going into the triple header looking like he's struggling because he's always worried about Lando in the same way Lando worries about Daniel.

Before that, he was able to be there to support Daniel and his worries about his season, but after the triple header both of them are a little raw and know they need to be there for each other without hurting themselves in the process. Luckily, they have a great couples therapist that they see every so often to help them navigate things like this so they know how to support each other without sacrificing their own needs. They spend a lot of time just comforting each other physically rather than verbally. Lots of soft touches and hugs, lots of cuddles and sweet kisses, hands on shoulder/thighs/backs, just being present for the other to lean on. They do talk as well but they find the physical comfort helps them both.

They spend most of the break between Silverstone and Hungary just hiding away together. Just taking time to heal, to get their heads right and reconnect with each other and disconect with the world for a bit until they're both feeling better.

It's still a struggle, but they have each other's backs and they work together to make sure they're both okay

[spurgie-cousin]

I was watching back to back spooky like, Appalachian folk tales on youtube and scared tf out of myself so I turned on Jessa's pregnancy Q&A as a palette cleanser. Here are the things I found interesting (cw miscarriage mentions):

- she found out she lost the last baby on Dec 22 and that's also this new baby's due date. She says she gets a lot of comfort from that.

- she's planning another hospital birth (thank GOD) and doubles down on her love for epidurals. She says she even inquired about getting one for post partum cramps

- she says she toyed with the idea of having a gender reveal this time but decided her tradition of waiting to tell people was better (I agree)

- she says Ben had told her he's not concerned with having more kids as much as he is with her health and mental well being as a stay at home mom to lots of them.

- Jessa adds to that and says while she still believes kids are a blessing, she doesn't believe that "accumulating" a "maximum quantity" of blessings should trump giving the kids you have a good quality of life. She believes the Bible communicates that as well so that is her primary intention. She also doesn't believe it's a sin to "manage" your blessings (aka pregnancies I'm assuming) and says that's something she's considered for the future (pleasantly surprised by all of it).

- She says she sometimes struggles with the fear that she "has all these kids" and they won't grow up to follow The Lord, but that she doesn't let that particular fear keep her from having them (she said all that good stuff before and then lost me again).

- She says the number of kids she and Ben have envisioned having has gotten smaller and smaller as the years go on. She doesn't want to make a definitive decision while she's pregnant and uncomfy, but she said her idea of a "big family" has gone from like 8 kids to maybe 5 max.

[omegawhiskers]

Dynamite 26/10/23

A Gift for Sting

Dynamite opened up with a fired up MJF. We had appearances from Adam Cole (via phone), Roderick Strong and the Man in the Devil Mask.

The action began with MJF defending his Dynamite Diamond Ring against Juice Robinson. Juice received a vicious ass kicking outside and around the ring from the get to. The victory came for Max when the Gunns goofed up, giving the Champ enough time to slip the ring on and sock Juice in the jaw.

Post-Match saw a beatdown on MJF with Strong and The Kingdom making the save. Roddy stayed in his wheelchair while The Kingdom got easily discarded. But do not fear, The Acclaimed is here as they cleared the ring. The furious Gunns issued a challenge for the ROH Tag Team Titles at Full Gear. MJF takes the offer but wants a piece of all four members before the PPV. Next week it – in the main event – it will be The Bullet Club Gold ve. MJF and three partners of his choosing. Right away Roddy and The Kingdom as dismissed, followed by he Acclaimed. This begs the question, who will team with MJF? The pressure is stacked as Kenny Omega comes out and makes a challenge for the Triple B. MJF accepts the match for this Saturday on Collision. Later, Samoa Joe offered to team with MJF under one condition; that he is given a title shot.

Next was Hook teaming with RVD to take on the Dark Order’s Alex Reynolds and John Silver. There’s no clear direction for The Dark Order. The main idea is to shine the light on Hook and for RVD to help ignite the crowd.

Tony Schiavone in is the ring to give Sting a gift from Tony Khan. That gift is Ric Flair. I can't say I'm disappointed. I never expected Flair to be in an AEW ring to be honest. The Nature Boy says some very sweet words to Sting. Christian Cage, along with Luchasaurus and Nick Wayne came out and interrupted the feel-good moment. Christian destroyed Flair verbally and issues as challenge at Full Gear. The bout will be a 6-man tag team match. Fortunately, Flair won’t be fighting with Sting and Darby Allin.  Later, both men try to recruit Adam Copeland who refuses to fight Christian. Sting attempts to talk some sense into Copeland. I do think Adam will join the fight at Full Gear, but I sense a heel turn.

Chris Jericho had a sit down interview. He vows to get revenge on Don Callis. Jericho states he has lots of friends and some of them are bigger than Will Hobbs. Who is the Ocho talking about? Paul Wight of course! Nah, that wouldn’t be it. Maybe it’s not size he is referring to but star power.

The ROH Trios Tag Team Titles were on the line as The Young Buck & Adam Page defended against The Hardy Boyz and Brother Zay. I’m not a fan of the ROH belts appearing on AEW. I don’t watch ROH, so I’m not following the journey of these belts. The Bucks and Hangman retained in a non-exciting bout. Before a celebration could begin, we cut to Swerve and Prince Nana breaking into Page’s home. Both men walk through the house. Swerve made his way Adam’s baby boy’s room. It was quite a uncomfortable moment as Strickland gifts the baby with his t-shirt. He vows that the baby will one day owe him something. This feud has become personal, and it must end in blood.

Hikaru Shida defended her AEW Women's title against Ruby Soho. Early on there was a botched cross body and from that point on the match never took off. There was a moment where I thought Soho was going to win, but that's as far as the drama took me. If the moves were tightened up, I think this would have been a solid bout. Toni Storm and her new butler, Luthor made an appearance on stage for an exchange of stares.

Orange Cassidy and Kazuchika Okada took on Bryan Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli in a very good main event. The crowd were behind Orange and Okada. The ending was odd tough. Bryan was left holding his face in a kayfabe injury while the BCC came to his aid. Things were getting tense as Hook and Best Friends came Oranges side.

Most of the show was setting up Full Gear and continuing stories. The wrestlers who ate the pins are kind of in purgatory. What do you do with The Hardyz, Ruby and Dark Order at this point?

[starboy-at-the-disco]

OK OK SO. the basic storyline is that max escapes dema by following the banditos out after the events of. i think it was levitate. whichever one where they were playing in the middle of dema and then leaving through that side door. but he sneaks out behind them and theyre like. well fuck he came from nico's area, hes dead if he goes back and we cant just leave a kid in trench. so they bring him back to their bandito camp. and oh yeah max is escaping because he just cut his hair but his dad caught him and was about to tell nico and max knew hed get in big trouble. so yeah

david is already in trench hes been a bandito for awhile. one of the few people to escape from nico but nobody knows that his bishop was nico because he doesnt talk about it. but hes the one that basically babysits all the kids that escaped from dema without any parents (and also occasionally babysits the kids born in trench. like a daycare. hes running a daycare). and he pretty much adopts max more than any of the others. this kid escaped from nico and hes obviously already had so much trouble with nico because hes covered in bruises and scars and shit. and david is sososo sad and wants to protect him

at some point. the bishops raid the bandito camp mainly to get tyler back but they bring back as many banditos as they can (recapturing escapees and also grabbing a few kids who had been born in trench. nerris is one of them ill get 2 that later!) max is one of these kids. and david insists on joining the rescue team to get him back because oh god oh god theyre gonna kill that kid if we dont save him. he cant let anything happen to max so he willingly returns to dema for the first time ever since he escaped because HE NEEDS TO SAVE HIS BOY!!!!! and its so much extra dangerous for david because anyone who escapes nico and goes back never survives. tyler is probably the only one to ever survive because theyre using him but david would definitely get fuckin executed but hes still going back to save max

and then harrison also has his own storyline too!! first he was with listo (fear of abandonment) and at first they were trying to surpress his magic because (of course) theyre scared of it and think its dangerous and that he could probably use it against them. and ofc hes trying so so hard to be a good kid and not use his magic but it hurts and that causes wild magic (bursts of magic that he cant control) and so when he accidentally makes his brother disappear hes so upset and scared and guilty and they ALMOST kill him for it. because this magic is dangerous. but then sacarver (fear of losing/hurting loved ones) is like. no let me work with him i can use this. and now harrison is working with her but he hates it and hes scared. he probably works with tyler and clancy a little bit to add special effects to the shows theyre forced to do

(tyler and clancy r 2 separate people. tyler is the performer and clancy writes the songs)

AND THEN!!!! after The Raid. when nerris is brought to dema for the first time ever. for a bit xe's locked up near harrison and they end up talking and bonding just a little bit. so sacarver is like oh yeah i can use this one too. "she" can be motivation/threat for the magic one. so she hurts nerris a lot to punish harrison because he HATES HATES HATES his loved ones getting hurt when hes made to think its his fault. which makes him cooperate more because he doesnt want them to hurt nerris. hes never escaped before so when the banditos come 2 rescue everyone and they save nerris, nerris makes them help harrison too because nerris likes him now too and you dont just abandon friends!!

anyway thats all so far. feel free 2 add ideas :]

That’s so,,,,,ur brain is huge omg

[kurt-wagner-official]

Post #97: Fallen Angels issues 1-8

I've never read this miniseries before and I don't really know anything about it other than it stars Berto and a bunch of really weird new characters, which is more than enough for me. After all the stress and distrust of their recent arcs, this mini opens with the New Mutants just hanging out and playing soccer. But like all good things around here, it soon comes to an end when Sam trips and collides with Berto, slamming his head into a goalpost. On reflex, Berto lashes out with his power and knocks Sam unconscious. Ashamed, he runs away to his room. He goes to Max's office to ask for advice, but he's already taken Sam to the hospital. Berto sees his own student file on the desk and opens it to find a letter that Xavier had typed up about him saying that he fears Berto may follow in his father's footsteps. Berto decides that he's too evil a person to remain at the school, and he leaves a goodbye note and runs away. I actually really like how stupid and overdramatic this plot hook is, because kids are usually stupid and overdramatic. We've seen the New Mutants struggling with a lot of really complicated drama lately and struggle to figure stuff out, which can make us forget that even in really simple misunderstandings teenagers can also have way too hard a time figuring themselves out. As Berto walks the streets of Manhattan drowning in angst, he stumbles across a girl being mugged and jumps in- but his powers suddenly fail him, leaving him at the muggers' mercy.

Berto and his new friend are getting beat up when another girl, Ariel, opens the door to the building next door and the girl, Chance, runs in. Berto, whose angsty inner monologue has declared that "Cain is no more evil than I," just gives up, until Warlock appears and saves him, having tracked Berto down. He says that if Berto won't come back to the mansion, they'll be outcasts together. It's not the first time they've had an interaction like this, but it just always warms my heart to see these two interact. Berto is just always so openly friendly and affectionate to Warlock, it's adorable. Berto goes to check on Ariel and Chance, but the door leads to an empty room. Back at the mansion, Max is explaining the Berto situation to Moira, who he had called to help him out with all his end of term paperwork. She brought along Sean's daughter Theresa and Jamie Madrox. Max enlists Moira on therapy duty for the other kids, which is long overdue, and Theresa and Jamie head to the city to try to track down Berto and Warlock. But when they eventually find them, so does somebody else- a weird guy with pet lobsters, who tells Berto that he needs to come with him. Then the Vanisher shows up, and Theresa attacks him cause he's evil. In all the commotion, a door opens up and Ariel and Chance, who are friends with the lobster guy, tell Berto to come with them. He does, and Warlock and some of Jamie's duplicates follow, but when Theresa tries to she finds the door leads into a restaurant and the others are nowhere to be found.

It turns out Ariel and Chance are members of Vanisher's gang of thieves that Tabitha (Boom-Boom) recently left. So is the lobster guy, whose name is Gomi, and Don and Bill, his lobsters that he talks to psychically. Vanisher wants Berto in his crew, the Fallen Angels, and because he's decided to embrace his life as a tragic villain, he accepts, on the condition that Warlock can stay too. The Jamie dupes stick around too, to keep an eye on things. Jamie Prime and Theresa, meanwhile, have no idea were everyone went off to. Jamie suggests they get dinner while they wait for his dupes to bring Berto and Warlock back to them. We get some more hints of Jamie's past; he lived on a farm as a child, and when his parents died, he just kept living there with dupes as his company, which fucked him up in ways he doesn't realize. It's also time to start getting origin stories from the new guys, starting with Gomi. He's not actually a mutant, but a cyborg. He and his lobsters were test subjects for college kids obsessed with superheroes, and they gave the lobsters sentience and Gomi some psychic powers. Eventually the three of them ran away and joined up with these guys. We don't get much info on Ariel yet, just that she's not a mutant, but an alien, and she can open portals through doorways. To demonstrate, she opens one into then X-Factor building to check on Tabitha, who's bored and decides to go through and rejoin her old friends. Just then, Theresa and Jamie arrive and demand an explanation. But as they're taking the conversation outside, Ariel opens another portal, and everyone's on an alien planet.

They immediately get attacked by an alien dinosaur, except for Vanisher, who vanishes. Berto gets a sudden boost of power and beats the dino single handedly, while Ariel and Chance run off in search of their targets- two mysterious mutants on this planet. They don't find anything except Vanisher, who says he was just on his way to check on them, and they head back to the camp, where Theresa and Jamie are flirting while Tabitha sits there pouting in jealousy. Berto and Warlock have also wandered off, where they run into Moon Boy and Devil Dinosaur, the mutants Ariel was looking for, and bring them back to the camp to introduce them.

Moon Boy and Devil Dinosaur (two previously established characters with the powers of being an ape man and being a sentient dinosaur, respectively) decide to come back to Earth with everyone cause why not. At this point, the characters seem to realize that their book has no plot and they're only halfway through, so they hang out in the living room for half an issue until Vanisher says the new mission is go steal a bunch of food so the dinosaur doesn't eat them. They all wander off in pairs. Theresa points out to Jamie that they are completely failing their mission of recovering Berto and Warlock, and Jami says they probably can't convince them to come back so it's better to join the gang of petty thieves to keep an eye on them. No wonder these guys haven't gotten membership in any of the big teams yet. Eventually, Tabitha and Gomi run into a rogue Jamie dupe who doesn't want to rejoin Prime. They kidnap him and bring him to Theresa and Jamie, and they all have a little philosophy debate about the nature of life. It's mostly a gag, and implied to be because of the way everyone's powers have been acting weird, but it actually lays the foundation for a ton of Peter David's work on Jamie down the line. The scene is broken by tragedy when Moon Boy and Devil Dinosaur, who got bored, show up to hang out with everyone, and Devil Dino steps on Don the blue lobster.

The next issue picks up after Don's funeral, where Berto and Warlock comfort Gomi and Bill and Berto gets one of his best moments ever talking about how all lobsters go to Heaven. Devil Dino is wracked with guilt, and Berto takes this as another opportunity to wallow in his own "evil nature," saying Devil Dino is a better man than he. Ariel and Chance have a cryptic conversation about their evil plans for all the mutants they're collecting. Bill gets into a fight with Devil Dino, which Berto breaks up, before suddenly everyone's mutant power disappears and comes back. During the disappearance, the rebel dupe stays separate from Jamie, and they decide to stay separate as brothers. Everyone's freaking out about all the weird power stuff recently, and they assume it must be X-Factor stalking them, so when Ariel suggests she take them all to her home planet, they all agree, to her delight.

Everyone's hanging out on the planet Coconut Grove, which resembles a mall in a cartoon more than anything else. The guy in charge, Unipar, keeps following them around wiggling his fingers evilly, making cryptic comments about how he likes mutants. I'm starting to think this is the guy Ariel is working for. Jamie's rogue dupe is getting even weirder, and has now split into another dupe that doesn't want to be absorbed, leaving us with three different Jamies. Vanisher calls a meeting to discuss what the hell they're all doing, when suddenly all their powers start going crazy again. Jamie, using the mini Cerebro that Moira gave him to track Berto, discovers that the reason for all this is Chance, who it turns out is a mutant with the power to turn other mutations on and off. Unipar shows up to collect the mutants, including Chance, to Ariel's anger. To Chance's horror, Ariel eventually lets them take her only friend off, before she too is captured. It turns out she's also a mutant, with the power of persuasion, which explains why everyone keeps acting weird when she wants them to. But it's tragic news for our heroes, who are now all captured.

Everyone except Bill, the green robot cyborg, who sneaks after his captured friends and starts plotting revenge. A lot of writers have tried to replicate the cool badass Wolverine Alone moment from the Dark Phoenix Saga, but this one just set a bar that none, including the original, can never touch. Everyone else is stuck in a cell, where Unipar tells them they'll all be dissected to uncover the secret of mutation, which the Coconut people almost never achieve. Warlock does get a nice moment; his mutation is to have the capacity for compassion, but even with dampeners on the cell, he still cares for Berto. He asks Theresa why, and she says that love is a learned behavior, and he doesn't need his mutation any more. The scientists kill one of the Jamie dupes and drag the other two and Berto off. Then, Bill shows up, beats up all the guards, and frees them. After some debate, they decide to take Chance and Ariel with them. Elsewhere, the distraction of the riot gives Berto and Jamie and chance to break free. The independent dupe sacrifices himself and lets the other Jamie absorb him to heal both their injuries, and there's a big teamup where Chance masters her powers to boost all the other Fallen Angels. Ariel convinces Unipar to let them go, and they all head back to Earth. Berto finally realizes that he really sucks at being an edgy villain, mainly because he keeps being supportive and protective of everyone around him. He decides to return to the New Mutants, which delights Warlock. Theresa and Jamie decide to stick with the Angels for a while and try to guide them on a path of good, which I'm sure will work great. And that's it for the book.

This was one of the weirdest books I've read in a bit. Not because the plot was incomprehensible but because it mostly didn't exist. For being the lead character, Berto didn't really do all that much, but for the time he was on the page, we got to see a new side of him as a reluctant leader, something that doesn't really come up when he's with Dani and Sam but will become a bigger part of his character in the 2000s. And like I said I'm always happy to see him hanging with Warlock. It was nice for Jamie to have a bigger role in a book, even though he doesn't yet much resemble the great character Peter David turns him into. Most of the other characters weren't that great, except Gomi and the lobsters, who are now some of my favorite deep cut X-characters ever. If Marvel ever hires me I'm resurrecting Don. When I was reading about this book I found out that it was originally going to be published when Berto disappeared for a while during SWII, but there were delays and it got rewritten for this point in the series, which makes that whole thread make a lot more sense. I'm not at all against weird books with no plots, but this one definitely could have been a few issues shorter. I wish Jo Duffy had stuck around the X-office longer, cause she's a good writer and with a little more time to adjust to this franchise I think she could have written a great ongoing X-book. But alas, this is the last we see of the Fallen Angels. It was nice, but I miss the main New Mutants book and I'm glad to be headed back.

[lovesickgolbach]

Secret Love Song|| MV33

Description: You and max had been dating for a year now. Although it’s been a year, you and him had decided to keep your relationship private, well mostly it was his choice. No one knew about you, only close friends and relatives did. You were frustrated from having to hide away all the time.

Pairings: Max Verstappen x Reader(recording artist/singer) 

a/n; I based this story off of a song by Little Mix, “secret love song”. this idea has been in my head for ages! i’ll put a little a/n where you can press pay and listen to the song while reading. i did have to cut it short for purposes of the story so sorry if it seems a little jumpy. enjoy! <3

This is my first imagine i hope you like it :)

You had been in your office all day, writing, playing music on your guitar and piano, trying to figure out a melody to your new song. Max was out on a run with his trainer so you had the apartment to yourself for a while. You sighed throwing your notebook at the wall, frustrated that no lyrics or melodies were coming to your mind. “For fucks sake!” you angrily spoke. 

“Y/N?” you heard coming from another part of the apartment, you would recognize that voice anywhere. 

Footsteps approached and in walked a very sweaty Max, smiling as soon as he saw you, but his smile disappeared just as soon as it had appeared on his face. “Mijn Liefde” he said concerned when he saw your defeated face. 

“I cant fucking think of anymore lyrics! Or any new notes for a song! My mind is so blank and I have a deadline!” your hands flew up in frustration as you spoke, laying back against the wall opposite to where you threw your notebook earlier.

Max picked the notebook and pen up gently and came to sit next to you. “I’m sorry angel” he looked at you in your eyes, “is there anything I can do for you?” he tucked your hair behind your ear. You leaned into his hand. 

“Yeah, write the song for me” you looked up at him, making eye contact with him. Jesus. ‘I could look at those forever’ you thought to yourself.

“Unfortunately, I got the ability to drive, not the musical ability you have” he giggled and so did you. 

“Can we go out tonight?” you asked in a hopeful manner, you were dying to go clubbing with Max, you’ve seen how much of a fun drunk he could be. “There’s a lot of press baby.. they’ll see us..” he spoke softly.

 “And? Max please! You always go out with your teams and I have to sit at home and watch you having all the fun.. I have to watch you letting girls flirt with you.. it’s not fun..” you were disappointed at his reaction, although it didn’t surprise you. The public knew Max was in a relationship, they also knew that you were in one too, but never put 2 and 2 together, its not as if you’ve given them a reason to think you were together, you didn’t even follow each other on Instagram, in fears it would spark rumors.

“I’m sorry Y/N.. we just- we just can’t alright?” he got up, handing you the notebook. “If you need me I’ll be in the shower” he walked out.

You sighed. “I just want the world to know you’re mine..” you mumbled as he left. As soon as those words left your lips, an idea popped into your head.

Grabbing your notebook, you opened it on a blank page and started writing, the words flowing out onto the page like a waterfall. 

__________

It wasn’t until Max had told you to come to bed, that you realized how long you had been sitting in your office, scribbling away, playing some notes on the piano. “Y/N come on, its late and you’ve been sitting in here for hours!” Max was begging, practically on his knees at this point. “Not now Max! I’m on a roll!” you spoke slightly annoyed that he had been bothering you.

You felt his presence behind you, “Please, just come to bed” he sighed. “I want to spend time with you before I leave for Spain” you could hear he was upset. “Well now you know how I feel when you’re on the simulator all day Max, if you had said yes to going out with me, we would have had a great time together..” you looked up at him, watching as his face changed from sadness to anger, his jaw clenching slightly. 

“You could have showered with me! You could have had dinner with me! We could have danced in the living room! Going out isn’t the only way that we can spend time together!” he semi-yelled with his fists clenched. 

“Just go to bed Max, I have work to do” you spoke softly going back to the piano and playing more chords. You knew he was still behind you, you could feel the heat radiating off of him. 

“Are you seriously mad at me now because I didn’t want to go out? You also agreed to keep us private! Don’t pin this on me!” he was yelling now anger seething in his voice.

“Please don’t yell at me Max... I’m just tired of having to sneak us around.. I’m so tired of not being able to like your posts.. or not being able to celebrate your wins with you at the podium.. for gods sake Max I’ve never even been with you to a race!” you were yelling now too, now standing on your feet, you stepped closer, getting in his face, “is it so bad that I want to be able to kiss you whenever I want? Is it so bad that I want to travel the world with you, experience new places with you? Is it so bad that I want to hold your hand in the paddock?! I just want us to be a real couple! I want to tell the world about you! I want to shout it from the rooftops!” your face was now red, you were angry. Max took a step back from your sudden outburst. 

He walked out. You watched him angrily stomp his way to your shared bedroom and slamming the door behind him. ‘Unbelievable’ you had thought to yourself as you continued writing.

The next few days were tension-filled as you and Max had been ignoring each other completely. You hated it, but if he wasn’t going to listen, then that was his problem.

_____________

It was the opening night of your tour, starting in the country you resided in, Monaco. Max came to every show with you, even if you two had been fighting, which had been the case for the last 2 weeks. He was able to stay pretty hidden in between all the other celebrities that were attending, as it was not a location that he would stand out in the crowd. You were backstage, getting your mic pack put on and connected as you were preparing for the show to start. 

Whilst doing some last minute vocal warm-ups you had felt a gentle hand on your shoulder, turning around you could have sworn that your eyes were going to pop out of your head. “Max...” you said softly, “what are you doing back here?! they will see you” you said concerned.

“I needed to wish you luck, and I need to apologize... for everything” he moved the large bouquet of roses towards you for you to take, which you did. 

“I’m not mad at you Max...” you sighed looking at him “but thank you for the apology” you smiled at him. “These roses are gorgeous! But you have to keep them safe for me, I don’t have time to get back to my dressing room now.” He took them from you, kissing you on your cheek softly “Go sing your heart out schatje, I’ll be right here, cheering you on”

You smiled before running out onto the stage to start your performance.

Max sat in the wings of the stage, smiling as he watched your every move and seeing the joy on your face as you did what you loved doing. 

You turned to your audience “So...” you breathed into the mic, giggling slightly “tonight I have a special surprise for you all!” the crowd went wild. “Tonight I’ll be performing a brand new song that I have only recently finished writing. Would you guys like to hear it?” you spoke as the crowd went wild again. “I’m taking that as a yes!” you giggled through the mic, sitting down at the white piano your crew had rolled onto stage.

“This is a song that comes straight from my heart. I hope you all like it, its called ‘Secret Love Song’ “

(you can start playing the song now)

Taking a deep breath, you started playing the notes on the piano, seemingly forgetting where you were. You were lost in the music.

“when you hold me in the street and you kiss me on the dance floor, I wish that it could be like that, why can’t it be like that ‘cause I’m yours” 

max perked up listening to the lyrics. 

“we keep behind closed doors every time I see you I die a little more stolen moments we steal as the curtain falls it’ll never be enough”

max was now standing, his jaw slightly agape.

“its obvious you were meant for me  every piece of you, it just fits perfectly every second, every thought, I’m in so deep but I’ll never show it on my face"

you turned your head to the side slightly looking in Max’s direction to get his reaction. He was stunned to say the least.

“but we know this we’ve got a love that is homeless why can’t you hold me in the street? why can’t I kiss you on the dance floor? I wish that it could be like that, why can’t it be like that? ‘cause I’m yours"

Max was frozen in place, his mind racing with a million thoughts at once.

“and nobody knows I’m in love with someone’s baby I don’t wanna hide us away tell the world about the love we’re making I’m living for that day, someday...”

You made eye contact with max in that verse, tearing up as you saw his expression. A single tear fell down your cheek

“why can’t I hold you in the street why can’t I kiss you on the dance floor.. I wish that we could be like that why cant we be like that? ‘cause I’m yours, I’m yours oh, why can’t you hold me in the street why can’t I kiss you on the dance floor I wish that it could be like that, why cant we be like that ‘cause I’m yours...”

You closed your eyes again, not wanting to break down in the middle of the song. Max swallowed hard. The lump in his throat was burning as he held back his tears.

“why can’t I say that I’m in love? I wanna shout it from the rooftop I wish that it could be like that why can’t we be like that? ‘cause I’m yours why can’t we be like that?  wish we could be like that..”

You sang that final verse without the music playing from the piano, tears were flowing down your face freely as you looked at the crowd in front of you. You looked to your left, backstage where Max was standing.

He looked at you, tears in his eyes as well as he blinked them away quickly before they fell. You looked at the crowd again, many of them also having tears on their cheeks from your song. 

As you were about to speak through the microphone, you heard the audience start screaming, pure excitement in their voices, pointing to your left. You turned to look at what they were referring to, when you saw the love of your life run over to you. Max smashed his lips against yours, kissing you in front of everyone. You dropped the mic, wrapping your hands around his neck, kissing back. For a moment, it was just the two of you, in your own world.

Max pulled away, looking at you in your eyes, “I am yours” he spoke softly. You couldn’t help it as more tears ran down your face. “I love you so much” you were able to say to him softly.

Picking up the mic that you dropped, Max turned to the crowd, “Y/N Y/L/N is my girlfriend!” he practically yelled, making you giggle at his actions. 

You were finally free to let the world know who your man ways. Nothing would ever be able to change that. 

Max Verstappen was yours.

[wibble-wobbegong]

Mike Hostage Theory

i just wanted to make an official post with my view on this theory bc i have a very specific vision

edit: i’ve made a post with some more evidence here! :)

For anyone who doesn’t know, the Mike hostage theory is essentially the idea that Mike will be taken hostage by Vecna in season 5.

Here’s my reasoning for why I think this is a possibility for season 5:

- Mike has managed to ruin all of Vecna’s plans since season 1 and each season he develops a better understanding of the UD and is able to formulate plans that take direct action in preventing Vecna from achieving his goal. a short list that shows this would be:

s1: Mike discovers what the upside down is and relays all the information he’s gathered from El, giving the rest of the cast an understanding of what’s actually happening. Plans to rescue will spring from Mike’s information

s2: Mike is the only one who actually understands what’s happening with Will AND he takes the lead in creating the plan to save Will. Second only to Will, he has the most in depth understanding of how the mind flayer works which he demonstrates in episode 8 where he explains everything he knows to Dustin who then makes the analogy to the mind flayer in DND. He suggests putting Will to sleep, isolating him to try and break him out of the possession, getting the mind flayer out of Will before the gate completely closes, and distracting the demodogs by lighting the graveyard on fire.

s3: After learning about the mind flayer’s return, he comes to the conclusion that the mind flayer won’t die when it’s expelled from someone and that they have to figure out how to actually kill the mind flayer (though they never ended up doing this). After learning about Billy being a potential host, he mentally made a complete plan of how to know whether he was a host or not. He barely had to think about it after they confirmed Billy was acting suspicious, he knew how to test him with the sauna and executed that plan in the same day after coordinating with the rest of the party. Mike is still pretty in touch with how the mind flayer works when interacting with its hosts

s4: Vecna very specifically timed his attacks so they would begin the day Mike left. He was counting on Mike not being able to get involved and it making him more successful, which is what happened. He thought he had Mike completely out of the picture and yet he still managed to get involved with Vecna’s plans when he was finally going to kill El. Mike’s monologue was mostly a failure, but it did boost El’s memories with Max in a way. Either way, Mike still managed to get in the way even with Vecna counting on him being on the opposite side of the country.

This would give Vecna 1 major motive to keep Mike in the UD with him. It allows him to keep an eye on Mike and eliminate the possibility of his interference.

- Mike is incredibly close with vecna’s true target; Will. Vecna needs to bring Will back into the UD again to follow through with whatever plan he’s been trying to follow through with since season 1. Does he want Will to join him? Does he want to turn Will into an asset to the hivemind? Does he want to possess Will himself and obtain his abilities? There’s no way to know for sure, but no matter what he needs to lure Will into a situation where they can talk alone. Vecna and Will are still connected so Vecna is definitely aware that Will’s feelings for Mike are way too strong for Will to not come to rescue him. He’s likely going to use Will’s emotions to his advantage.

- Mike’s perspective needs to be told and having him live through a long-term psychic curse from Vecna would allow us to understand what Mike’s fears really are. I think they could use a situation like this to tell Mike’s perspective of the story in a way that’s reminiscent of how El had an isolated story in season 2.

- Mike has a very strong tendency to isolate himself when he can’t cope with things and there is going to be a lot weighing on him, emotionally, in season 5; Eddie’s death, breaking up with El, Will is in danger again, still believing that his feelings are unreciprocated, and he’s probably gonna be expected to take a leadership role again. Everyone is going to be focused on dealing with the apocalypse during the two year time gap so I could see Mike spending a lot of time alone when he’s not working with the party which gives Vecna an opportunity to kidnap him silently before starting the next phase of his attack.

note: maybe will discovers his powers before the time skip and has to spend a lot of the two year time gap practicing with el, though he hangs out with mike when he can

How I think this could advance multiple plot lines!

Mike’s Personal Arc

I covered this a little bit, but if mike were to go under a long-term psychic connection with vecna, we could watch his point of view for a lot of the major moments in different seasons that we were denied his perspective. It would be an opportunity to finally reveal mike’s genuine feelings, fears, and regrets to the audience in a way that wouldn’t involve other characters discovering this about him. Personally, Mike would finally be able to emotionally advance past a lot of his repression as he’s finally forced to face it head on over and over. He might break down at first, and he should, but the longer he stays there the more he’ll learn to deal with those fears. I’m going to tie this into another plot line, but him being able to walk through his emotions would demonstrate a new emotional maturity he has been lacking due to his relationship with El and his incessant need to be normal. He might learn to hide from these things that are torturing him by going into happy memories, which will force him to accept that he wasn’t happy in his relationship with El and that he is a happier person when he’s with Will and his friends doing the things he loves (I’m sure he’s aware of this to some extent during s4). Vecna won’t be present in his mind (explained later), so Mike will be able to walk through these happy memories safely and reminisce on those moments which will continue to expand his perspective, this time from a positive light.

Will’s Personal Arc

Will is going to have a Hero Arc in season 5, it’s been foreshadowed since season 2. He’s finally escaping his repeated victimization and fighting back, protecting who he loves, and avenging everything that Vecna stole from him. He doesn’t need to be Mike’s heroine to go through this arc, but it would be more impactful for Will to rescue the boy who saved him time and time again, the boy who always protected him, the boy he’s in love with. It’ll add more emotional depth to Will’s story in season 5, not that protecting the others isn’t emotionally strong, but it’ll give him a certain level of empowerment that he couldn’t achieve by saving anyone else. Knowing that he has the strength to do what he’s admired Mike for for so long would be fantastic for his view of himself. If he’s going to fight off Vecna with love, he’ll need to develop some self love too, which can come from finding strength in himself and knowing Mike reciprocates his feelings (Mike makes him feel like he isn’t a mistake, but he feels like a mistake for being gay. When Mike confesses it’ll make Will feel even less like a mistake).

The Mike/Will Role Reversal

There have been tons of hint throughout season 4 that hint at Mike and Will having reversed roles in season 5. For one, Mike has a ton of death tags (ex. being compared directly to romeo, dying in the opening DND game, etc.) that won’t lead to an actual death. When Mike disappears randomly, there might be people who assume he’s dead the same way they did with Will in season 1, but if we know anything about Will it’s that he’d never give up on Mike just like how Mike never gave up on him. This is also going to give them an even deeper understanding of each other as they’ve now both been the searcher and the rescued.

Finding Max

So, I’m going to be assuming two things for this part of the theory.

1. Mike is traveling throughout memories in his own head but those memories are manifesting in Vecna’s mind.

2. Vecna absorbed Max’s consciousness, as he describes being able to absorb his victims, and Max is now able to traverse Vecna’s mind and go back to her own memories as she pleases.

If both of those are true, then Mike may very well run into Max once he starts hiding away in happier memories. To be clear, I don’t want nor think Mike will be the one to free her consciousness: that has to be left up to Lucas and El somehow. Mike could be the one to discover that she is alive and start considering the possibility of bringing her back. When he’s freed, this is information he can give to the party. That ties into his role as an information gatherer and it’ll likely lead to him planning a way to get her back, though it’ll be Lucas and El carrying the beef of that plan.

As for which memory they’d run into each other in, I think it has to be that scene in the gym from season 2. It’s pretty much the only memory between them where they’re both happy and together that’s been shown on screen. It would be a good way to reaffirm their friendship, too, if they’re both visiting that memory. We see Mike shooting her concerned glances when her nose bleeds and she wrote him a letter despite their dynamic being shown as rivals more than friends, so this is a way to expand the depth of their relationship and show that they are friends and they do care about each other in a way that’s yet to be displayed.

Romantic Byler

Can’t talk about Mike in season 5 without factoring byler into it!

As far as how this theory plays into byler edging towards becoming canon, I think this is where the audience would finally be being told that Mike is in love with Will in every aspect except the actual words. This is where “show don’t tell” is gonna take it’s extreme. We’re going to be going on a journey with Mike through memory lane of all the good and the bad, which Will is inevitably a major part of both of those types of memories. We’ll see Mike’s reactions to things, which we aren’t shown throughout the show very often after season 1. There is going to be an undeniable love for Will shown from Mike’s perspective.

Then, with Will being the one to rescue Mike, we’re also going to get Mike realizing Will needs him even when he isn’t providing something for Will. He’s going to understand that Will wants him around. A more emotionally aware Mike + a single Mike + a Mike who feels loved for who he is by Will = a potential confession.

All around, I just think that Mike getting held hostage through a long-standing curse could add a lot to the story. I also wrote this while having not slept in about 2 days, so please feel free to add onto the things I missed :)

[iliveiloveiwrite]

Here When You Wake // Eddie Munson

Request: I was wondering if you could write an eddie munson with the fluff prompt “don't worry, I'll be here when you're awake.” when the reader finds eddie ,, n he hasn’t been to sleep because he’s traumatized and scared so the reader says that with him to help him get some rest  - anon

A/N: This request made me so soft. Thank you so much for taking part in my celebration! I adored writing this so much. I just hope you like!

Warnings: s4 spoilers, so much fluff, beginnings of pining, nightmares, sleeping, dialogue heavy.

Word count: 1.5k

Italicised excerpt: Jude Deveraux - Velvet Promise

There was no explaining the relief that spread through your chest when you found Eddie alive and unharmed, hiding in the boathouse of his supplier out by Lover’s Lake. Clearly exhausted and terrified, he was still in one piece.

It was a sweet reunion for Dustin; happy to see his friend as safe as he could be. Yet, you couldn’t ignore the anxious undercurrent that ran through the atmosphere. Anxiety that was brought to ahead when sirens were heard in the distance.

“Hide Eddie!”

At Dustin’s warning, Eddie ducks under the blue tarpaulin. Sirens rush past the boathouse; police cars and ambulances speeding up the road. An unspoken agreement rang through the group. Steve led the way, standing first, followed quickly by Robin and Dustin.

“You aren’t just leaving me here?” Eddie splutters in disbelief, sitting up in the boat. “Alone?”

“We have to check out the sirens,” Steve argues, already making his way to the door. “We have to figure out what’s happening here.”

“But do you all need to go?”

There’s a pause before Steve nods. “Guess not. Who’s staying behind?”

“I will,” You answer, stepping forward, flashing a calm smile towards Eddie. “Dustin and Max will keep me informed. They always do.”

“Alright,” Steve nods, not wholly happy with the idea but lacking the effort to argue further. “We shouldn’t be too long.”

They leave in a hurry, wanting to get to the scene of the sirens before the news vans and reporters descend. As Steve’s car speeds up the drive, you get your first good look at Eddie.

He’s a wreck. A tremor in his hands that he’s trying his best to hide. Dark circles line his eyes from where he hasn’t slept or has slept but woken up from nightmares. You can see the clear fear and worry in his brown eyes; constantly having to check over his shoulder and flinching at every loud sound.

You drop down next to Eddie in his makeshift hideout. The boat creaks with age, protesting as you throw the blue tarpaulin over the side. Eddie doesn’t comment but he watches you warily. With a winning smile, you address the falsely accused brunette. “What? I had to make room.”

“For what?”

“When was the last time you slept, Eddie?”

He freezes in place, thinking back to his last peaceful night. “A full night’s sleep? The night before Chrissy.”

“Oh Eddie…”

“I’ve had an hour here and there,” He murmurs, running a hand over his face, looking so dog-tired. “But then I hear a siren, or I hear Chrissy’s bones snap and I wake up terrified.”

“That settles it then,” You declare, offering no further explanation. Reaching into your bag, you pull out two items.  A much beloved and battered paperback, and your favourite cardigan.

Amused and curious, Eddie eyes the two items. “Do you always carry a book with you?”

“Yes,” You answer as if carrying a book around with you was something out of the ordinary.

“What are you doing?” Eddie asks as he watches you fight with the buttons of the patterned cardigan.

“Making you a pillow,” You reply. You fold the cardigan into something that resembles a pillow. You place it onto your lap, explaining to the metalhead, “It’s a lot comfier than the floor of a boat.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

Eddie hesitates; brown eyes flashing between your lap and your face. “What are you going to do if I sleep?”

You shrug. “Keep watch. Read my book.”

He continues to hesitate. You reach out and grab his hand, “Eddie, you’ve had a rough few nights. Whether you sleep or lie with your eyes closed, it’s up to you but I’m not going anywhere.”

Your words spur something in the metalhead. He shifts, lying down with his head in your lap. You smile down at him, “Everything okay?”

He nods. “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“Will you read to me? It might keep my mind away from Chrissy.”

“Yes, I’ll read to you but don’t judge my taste in books. I’ll have you know this particular book is a classic.”

An unexpected burst of laughter leaves Eddie; a handsome smile spreading across his face as he promises to do no such thing. The sight of such a smile leaves you momentarily stunned, reaching for your book silently.

Clearing your throat, you flip to the first page in the paperback that you’re confident you could recite word for word. Eddie sighs, eyes slipping closed with his arms crossed against his chest.

“The moon cast long shadows over the old stone tower which rose three stories high and seemed to scowl down, in a tired way, at the broken and crumbling wall that surrounded it…”

You channel Jude Deveraux’s words, letting them wash over the both of you. Halfway through chapter two, Eddie’s breathing slows, the tension leaving his face. Light snores fall from his lips; the sight entirely too endearing for you to handle so you return to your book, reading silently to yourself.

You find it hard to completely focus on the plot of the book in your hands. Despite knowing it word for word, your eyes slip to the sleeping brunette in your lap. His chest rises and falls steadily; his mouth slightly parted as breathy snores leave his lips. Warmth stirs in your chest as you watch him; a feeling that had occurred more than once when talking to the metalhead.

Forcing yourself to read the book in your hands, you’ve barely begun chapter six when Eddie begins fussing. It starts with small whimpers before the word ‘no’ leaves his mouth far more than it should.

Eddie wakes with a start, forcing himself to consciousness when his dreams turned to nightmares. Breathing heavily, his heartbeat only starts to calm when he spots you sitting beside him.

“(Y/N)?”

“Hey Eddie,” You whisper, “You good?”

He ignores the question in favour for asking another. “How long was I asleep?”

You check the watch sat on your left wrist. “Just under an hour.”

Eddie nods as if he were expecting this answer. You pat his shoulder comfortingly, “Think you could sleep some more?”

Eddie nods again, settling back down with his head on your lap. “Will you read some more? I never took you as someone who enjoyed reading steamy romances.”

You laugh; the action coming far too easily in his presence. “It’s clear you don’t know me that well then, Eddie Munson.”

“I’ll have to fix that.”

“Yes, you will.”

There’s a pause; a charge of something else before you pick up from where you left off. The words flow easily from you, Eddie getting lost in the rise and fall of your voice. He can feel sleep waiting to claim him, but he fights against it. He fights and he fights until you place a hand on his, gripping his fingers.

“Don’t worry,” You murmur, pausing your recitation of the 1981 romance. “I’ll be here when you’re awake.”

At your words, Eddie holds your hand that little bit tighter, finally falling asleep.

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

By the time the others land back at the boathouse, Eddie remains peacefully asleep, his face hidden in the stomach of your t-shirt. Dustin finds you, loudly announcing his arrival to which you shush him silent whilst pointing at your lap with your free hand.

A satisfied smirk grows on Dustin’s face as he waves everyone over. “Dustin,” You warn, “Whisper! You aren’t waking Eddie up.”

“Why is Eddie asleep in your lap?” Steve asks, frowning.

“He hasn’t slept in days and my lap is comfier than the floor of the boat.”

Satisfied with your answer, all but Dustin wander away, thinking about their next steps with whatever they found out. “What?” You hiss at the teenager.

Dustin shrugs. “Nothing.”

“Dustin Henderson, I will burn your entire comic collection.”

“No need for violence,” Dustin laughs, “He has a crush on you, you know? Told me at Hellfire the other week.”

You ignore Dustin’s words, feeling the familiar burn of hope in your chest and flush in your cheeks. Glancing down at the sleeping metalhead in your lap, Eddie keeps a firm hold on your hand as he snores into your stomach. A fond smile grows on your face as you ignore the racing of your heart.

“I see the feeling is mutual,” Dustin crows victoriously, a large smile on his face.

“Dustin!” You whisper-yell, “Bugger off before you wake Eddie up.”

Dustin wanders away, arguing with Steve as he sits down next to his idol. Eddie shifts in your lap. “Doesn’t matter,” he announces, “I’m awake.”

“Oh,” You croak, clearing your throat. “I’m sorry if we woke you.”

“Don’t apologise,” Eddie smiles, “That was the best sleep I’ve had in days.”

You snort, amused at his words. “I told you so,” You smile confidently, “I was here when you woke.”

Eddie laughs; the sound music to your ears. “That you did.” Eddie pauses, looking over to the group that were doing their best not to stare. He drops his voice to a whisper, leaning in to you. “Perhaps you’d like to read more of that book to me? I mean… after everything is over.”

You cut him off before he can begin rambling, kissing his cheek quickly. “I want nothing more.”

*******

Stranger Things taglist: @neptunes-curse

Eddie Munson taglist: @magicalxdaydream @tellmehows @thesuncitysworld