#and he was always just a bit soft for amy quietly

[luv-again]

on another note, amidst all the other disjointed things tumbling in my brain, i kinda want a shadamy fic inspired by oddworld bc my dad booted the game up the other day and the beginning cutscene was so jarring and so reminiscent of like the 90s sonic shows that i would throw everything down to revive sumn like that and make it shadamy

but *looks at my creative to-do list* i can't. i shouldn't :(

[calmoose415]

The Movie Star Speech

Tails sighed.

He folded his elbows over his desk. With another heavy exhalation, he rested his chin on his wrists while his namesakes swished in mild aggitation.

It was supposed to be so simple.

Another day, another raid on one of Eggman's bases. Jewel had sent him, Sonic, and Amy on a mission to scope it out and see if there were any supplies they could grab from there.

And while they had managed to grab some useful stuff, they ended up accidentally tripping some of the bases old security protocols.

Thankfully, with his trusty Miles Electric on hand, he could shut down those protocols with ease.

Keyword: could.

But no. Instead a stray blast from one of his defenses hit the device before he could finish hacking the system.

It took some time, but eventually, he, Sonic, and Amy were able to successfully escape.

But Tails still didn't feel better, especially while carrying the remains of his device back.

To make things worse, when they filed the report upon getting back to Restoration, he could practically feel the eyes on him.

While most people at Restoration were generally fond of him, some even idolizing him, he still had his handful of doubters.

"What is he even doing here?" He could hear some of them saying "He's just a kid, he doesn't belong here."

"What does Sonic see in that kid, anyway? It's not like he does anything that important."

"I heard Sonic only took him in because of his skills. It's not like their actually friends."

No matter how many times he heard it, well-meaning or not, their words always cut worse than any badnik.

These feelings continued to persist even after they got home.

Of course, whenever he was feeling down, Tails always fell back on his hobbies to distract himself. And since the Miles Electric needed repairing, this would be the perfect oportunity.

However, no matter how hard he worked, the thoughts still lingered in the back of his mind.

His head began to hurt as he desperately blinked away the tears building in his eyes.

He was eight years old with a 300 IQ; he shouldn't be crying like a little baby!

Suddenly, the door to his workshop creaked open, startling him out of his thoughts. He spun around, picking up a stray wrench on his desk and instinctively throwing it at this supposed intruder.

Instead, he was greeted with the sight of his big brother standing in the doorway, catching the wrench with ease.

"Woah, bud!" Sonic exclaimed a light chuckle in his voice. "Could've given me a concussion with this!"

Tails' shoulders relaxed. "Sorry." He mumbled. "Didn't know it was you."

"Hey, no harm, no foul." Sonic shrugged.

The teen casually strolled over to Tails' desk, placing the wrench down gently.

Tails hung his head, rubbing his eye tiredly. It was dark outside the windows of the workshop, the sun having set over the horizon a couple hours ago. And it was beginning to affect him.

"You doing okay, bud?"

Tails looked up at his brother, his heart clenching at the concern in his voice.

"I-I'm fine."

Sonic tilted his head before donning a soft smile. He knelt down in front of the kit, placing his hand behind the cub's ear and gently scratching.

"Is this about what happened today?" He asked.

Tails wilted, refusing to meet his brother's eyes, picking at one of his namesakes curled in his lap.

That all but confirmed it for Sonic.

"Hey, bud. It's not that big a deal..." Sonic started.

"It is a big deal!" Tails suddenly snapped, cutting his brother off.

Sonic recoiled a bit at the boy's outburst.

"I couldn't stop Eggman's security protocols fast enough because I was an idiot and didn't see that stray shot coming for me!" A few angry tears leaked down his cheeks.

"Bud, that wasn't your fault. None of us saw that coming." Sonic smiled comfortingly.

"You would have." Tails murmured quietly, looking back down at the ground. "I'm supposed to be smarter than this. But every time we're put in a life-threatening situation, I never pull through."

"Hey," Sonic voiced sternly. "You know that's not true, right?"

Tails, a bit startled, remained silent.

Sonic sighed tiredly. "Hey," He gently took Tails' hands into his own, giving them a light squeeze. "Do you need the Movie Star Speech?"

Tails glanced up his brother before he hesitantly nodded.

"Okay." Sonic smiled. "Tails, you are the star of this movie."

Tails glanced down at his idol's hands, grasping them tightly in his own.

"And this is the part of the movie where you get your heart broken. Where the world tests you, and people treat you like shit."

Tails flinched a bit, some of those peoples' words from earlier that day coming back.

"But it has to happen this way. Otherwise, the end of the movie, where you get everything you want, won't feel as rewarding. There are assholes out there. But in the end, they don't matter."

Tails found himself gazing up into his brother's emerald eyes, a soft smile adorned on the blue hedgehog's face.

"Because this movie's not about them. It's never been about them." Sonic's voice was warm, like a soft blanket draping over him.

"All this time... the movie's been about you."

Tails felt the edge of his lips quirking up into a smile. His eyes began to feel watery again. "Thanks, Sonic."

Sonic smiled back. "No problem, little bro." He gently ruffled the fox's bangs.

Tails giggled happily at his brother's touch before he yawned sleepily.

Still smiling, Sonic wrapping his arms around Tails' waist and lifted him up onto his hip.

"C'mon, bud. Time for bed."

Tails snuggled into his brother's soft fur, bunting his head under his chin and nuzzling him lovingly.

Sonic couldn't smile any wider than he already was as he carried his baby brother out of the workshop and up the stairs towards his room.

Gently laying him down on the mattress, Sonic carefully removed Tails shoes before draping the covers over him.

"Goodnight, Tails." He whispered. He then leaned in and softly kissed the fox cub on the forehead. "Love you."

"Love you too... big bro..." Tails murmured in his sleep.

Sonic chuckled as he stood up and walked over to the door, taking one last glance over his should at his sleeping kid before leaving the room.

[alittlebitofloveliness]

If you had to put the Curtis Gang as characters from little women, who do you think is who?

HI ANON! this was such a fun one as I've been obsessed with both these stories for ages

So ik MOST people would put Ponyboy as Jo but I actually think he's not as Jo coded as STEVE FUCKING RANDLE is so Steve gets to be Jo because he's very full of love but also full of anger, and I think he's the person in the gang who would struggle the most with everyone growing up/moving on so Steve is Jo, argue with the wall

Johnny has to be Beth, they're both quietly kind and morally good characters, even if due to the time period and his gender Johnny does not outwardly express it as much. They're ALSO both doomed by the narrative since page one soooo

Ponyboy is Amy (anon I MIGHT have an inkling of who you are based on a post I saw about this and you're so right for it) because he's an outsider in his own family, one of the youngest and excluded from some things because of it but also a bit pampered, and because he's his family's big 'hope' in that he's the one who's going to pull first himself and then the rest of them out of poverty (amy has to do this by marrying rich, pony has to do it by going to college)

I'm inclined to say Darry as Meg ONLY because I can't think of anyone who would fit him better. On some level it works, especially if Ponyboy is Amy, because the pressure for amy to 'rescue' the family came after Meg married lower than she was 'supposed' to, which is similar to Darry having to drop out of college, leaving Ponyboy the family's 'hope'. HOWEVER I don't think Meg as Darry fits perfectly because Meg IS kind of selfish in a way Darry isn't, because Meg does get married and leave her family and never look back, even when they needed her, which is something Darry would never do.

Soda is Laurie, he's fun and passionate and thinks with his heart before his head, always. This also might just be me trying to push the Stevepop/randlepop agenda, because Laurie was down bad for Jo the way Soda is down bad for Steve. (Whether Stevepop is requited in this universe or if they follow the same traic storyline as Little women thats up to y'all to decide)

uhhhhhh this is getting harder and harder I'm running out of LW characters-

Dally could maybe be Mr.Lawrence? They're both pretty cranky and intimidating by first glance but they both have a hidden soft side, and their favourites are well known (Mr.Lawrence adored Beth much the same way Dally adored Johnny)

Uhhhh I can't think of one for Two-bit tbh I don't see him really fitting with any of the little women characters, Two-bit is too unique of a character he does not project well imo

Thanks for the ask xx

[albertweskersplaything]

mon amour, mon ami - luis S. x Angi???

tags - fem!reader, somewhat soft?, re2 luis (remake), edging, overstimulation, some petnames thrown in, horny sub luis, a gift for a friend~

an - @angi-writes-filth i saw your post and SMIRKED, and then i started writing. the smut is taking longer than i thought but that's okay because little ole' katzen is gonna give you a small gift while you wait for the smut

"Estimado-- please..please s'too much- can't handle anymore.." luis cried, bucking his hips into angi's hand that was wrapped around his cock, tears streaming down his flushed face as he bit his lip and clenched his eyes shut. moaning and sobbing in pure bliss, it was all too much for poor, poor luis.

"shhh mi amor, you wanted this, didn't you? don't be scared now, mi corazón," angi chuckled with a smile on her face, squeezing gently at the base of luis' erection. angi leaned down to nip on luis' jawline before kissing him firmly at the corner of his lips. "just take it for me.."

"i- i can't-- ", luis mumbled, tears still falling down his cheeks. "i want to be good for you, and i can't.. I just..I can't cum..!" luis hiccuped with a choked moan, hands shaking and body shivering at the pressure of angi's hand around his cock.

his breath hitched when he then felt her hand sped up, his moans getting louder and the tears kept streaming down his face. bucking his hips wildly into her hands desperate for his high, his hands gripping whatever he could grip, as he desperately tried to keep himself from cumming. "angi, please! please, oh fuck!"

"stay like that until i'm sure you've come, alright?" she whispered, smiling warmly at her lover, slowly caressing his balls as she got down on her knees between his legs, her tongue flicking out to lick her lips slowly.

"amor- please..", luis whined softly, eyes flickering closed tightly when Angi began licking him slowly, savouring every inch of luis' cock, biting her lip when luis let out another whimpered whine. "oh god…Angi, please…" he gasped like as if he was underwater swimming back up for air, the warmth of her mouth around his length overwhelming his senses.

angi smirked seeing luis so needy and willing. she liked how luis had always been submissive towards her, not even once having the nerve to refuse anything she ordered of him. 'he's mine,' she thought, licking the tip of luis again, making the Spaniard shudder. luis couldn't help but cry out when angi sucked roughly at the head of his cock, using her hands to hold the bottom half of his dick to guide herself up and down his cock.

he was so eager that he immediately came after she'd taken him into her mouth, his cries growing louder than ever as the hot spurt of his semen filled her mouth. Angi swallowed his thick seed eagerly, humming happily at the feeling, sucking and licking at his shaft as if she were eating honey. "good boy." luis moaned quietly, grabbing at the sides of angi's head to hold her still before collapsing against her, panting heavily.

"fuck me…" he mumbled, his voice shaky and raw from all his crying, breathing heavily as he looked over at Angi. he was blushing crimson, obviously embarrassed and embarrassed by all he just did. "hmm, you want more?"

"please~". angi murmured with an innocent pout, giving him a puppy dog look with her eyes wide with longing. "you know what you mean to me..and I know how hard you can make me cums without it hurting too bad." luis sighed, knowing he wouldn't win this battle with Angi's devious ways.

he knew it would be easier to just give in to her demands. she wasn't going to stop until he gave in, and luis had learned that lesson very well already. "alright, fine..just don't bite my neck or scratch me..I'll have your ass in a second-" luis warned, looking away quickly to hide his blush when he heard the sound of Angi laughing loudly, this was going to be a long night.

[enyearns]

l.ch: Amy

in which lee chan is suddenly taken by the great urge to invite you over... or him to yours.

✧ listening to, and inspired by: Amy by Alexandre Desplat (Little Women 2019)

✧ genre(s): pure, domestic fluff ;o ✧ wc: 1k

✧ gender neutral reader! the title is Amy because i am listening to an ost titled 'amy' :) <3

waking up at 7 am to his alarm, chan's mind was foggy, yet he still found it in himself to unconsciously search for your warmth beside him.

feeling the flat surface, all null from your usual warmth, he slowly, and begrudgingly, opened his eyes. he slightly grimaced at the bright morning light filtering through the curtains, blinking a few times before finally adjusting.

he glanced to his side again, just to check if by some miracle you were there. you, of course, were not. 

he promptly got out of bed to further search for you, calling your name out groggily. as he gradually grew more alert, he realised that his apartment smelled like breakfast — he could smell eggs and toast. and sure enough, there you were, right there in the kitchen.

his lips curled up into a smile at the sight. 

you were like a scene from a movie. granted, right now he can’t think of the perfect film you would be, but you look like you had just stepped out of some comforting, romantic movie. the light, ambient soundtrack you had playing on the bluetooth speakers as you cooked breakfast definitely helped in painting the vision. 

you were bustling about in your pyjama shorts and the old spiderman graphic tee that he had given you just the night before. your hair was still unbrushed. even though it was slightly messy, it made you look all the more endearing to him. 

the morning light bouncing off your skin seemed to make you glow. you still hadn’t taken notice of his arrival yet, and he took a few moments to appreciate your concentrated expression before coming up behind you, lazily draping himself around you. 

you slightly jumped (you scare easily, he remembers affectionately), but you giggled and immediately eased into his touch when he drawled out a soft ‘good morning.’ 

“good morning,” you greeted back as he pressed a fond kiss on your hair. “i hope you don’t mind the mess… i used some of your eggs, but the rest are the stuff i picked up from the grocery store last night.” 

“grocery store…” chan thought back to last night with a warm heart. he had picked you up from work, and the two of you had gone out to eat at some b-rate fried chicken place. you were slightly bothered; you were so excited to eat here, only for it to be, in your words: “mid at best.”

that wasn’t the highlight of his night though. the memory he thought so fondly of was their supermarket trip after dinner. you had asked so sweetly to make a stop to the grocery store (you were playfully nagging for a bit before he complied (he was always intending to, he just wanted to tease you a little)), reassuring him that you won’t take long, and no, you won’t lose him in the supermarket.

holding true to your promise, the two of you were strolling side by side, with chan pushing the cart as you diligently skimmed through the ingredients list of whatever product you’ve got in your hands.

“i don’t like that sauce.” he had commented when he saw you picking up a can of worcestershire sauce. it was a particular brand that he came to hate. the taste of it was off. though… he doesn’t want to admit that it’s because he had, a long time ago, used it as a condiment months after its expiry date. 

“mmm, is that so?” you hummed absentmindedly, placing it in your cart anyway. a part of him quietly wondered if you did that just to spite him. “good thing this is for my apartment then.”

“oh.” he had been indulging in his daydreams of domesticity the entire trip, he had forgotten that this shopping trip was for you, not your shared home. “well… in the future, you’ll know that i don’t like that sauce.”

“mmm…”

behind your mask, he could see your eyes curling up into a smile. he grinned too, bumping into you playfully as you two continued down the aisle. one day, in the future.

“breakfast is almost done, baby. do you want tea, or coffee?”

“i want you to move in with me.”

“pardon?”

chan had blurted that out without really thinking. but… there were no regrets. “move in with me when your lease is up. or… you know, whenever it works for you.”

you broke out in a laugh, a pretty laugh, and you rested your head against his chest. “my apartment is better than yours though~”

“then, i’ll move in with you!”

this made you laugh even harder. you quickly turned the stove off and plated the eggs, then finally turned around to face him. he had moved his arms from your waist to the counter though, effectively trapping you. chan studied your face for a bit. you seemed to take what he said lightly. maybe because he had said it so casually, in which case he doesn’t really blame you, but… “i really mean it.”

“oh~? so you’re inviting yourself over now, are you?”

chan groaned, hiding his face in the crook of your neck. he could feel the vibrations when you’re chuckling, and it made him warm a bit. you feel and sound so close. “take me seriously.” he is close to whining now.

your fingers laced in between his locks, still giggling. “it’s hard to, when your hair is sticking up in all sorts of directions.” he looked up with a glare, a playful glare, which melted the moment he saw you staring back at him with a doting expression. “how about we look for a new place together? hm? how’s that sound?”

chan’s lips finally lifted up in a giddy smile, and he nodded enthusiastically. he leaned down and pecked your lips. “asap. as soon as possible.”

“let’s eat first. go freshen up chan, you stink.” you pulled a face, breaking down in laughter again when he obnoxiously placed another kiss on your cheek anyway. 

“i’m holding you to that.” 

“i won't secretly find a new apartment without you, don’t worry.” you pressed your hands flat against his defined chest and gave him a little push. “now go. oh, and also, you didn’t answer me, so you’ll be having tea with me. how's earl grey sound?”

he grinned. he isn’t big on tea, but it feels like they’re playing house. this brings about a rush of warmth, and he welcomed this feeling wholeheartedly. 

“yes, that, earl grey. that’s just what i wanted too.”

en's note: thank you to everyone who read this little drabble :) as with my last fic, this too has a massive gap between the dates of posting. i have hundreds (exaggeration >p<) of fics and drabbles that i write and just never post. i'm very, very shy. anyway! i'm just rambling now.., :o but again, thank you for reading (the fic, and my nonsensical thoughts!). maybe i will gain the confidence to post more often. be safe, everyone! take this very domestic ITS2 dino as a parting gift <3

[tickle-bugs]

Hello!

So I had a prompt for b99, I was thinking with Jake and Amy and Amy notices that Jake’s all jumpy and smiley and she Knows. Maybe with a dialogue bit of like “come on, we have a common goal here!!” or “don’t even try to fight me right now.” sry if ur prompts are already closed. tyy

This prompt made me melt fr I adore them ;w; this is so fucking CUTE. It put me in a rly intense ler mood but that's ok we make sacrifices for peraltiago <3

Proof in Patterns

Amy likes to think that she’s always known Jake well. From the minute she set foot in the precinct, she had had him at least 60% figured out. Though Captain Holt likes to call Jake predictable as a method of chiding him, he isn’t far from the truth--he’s not hard to understand, if you take the time to learn him. 

It’s sort of an open secret that Jake likes to roughhouse. He’s over the moon any time Terry decides to toss him around like a sack of potatoes--unless it's out of rage, which then the entire precinct begins to make funeral arrangements. Whether Jake realizes it or not, and Amy’s almost certain that he does, his mischief more than often gets him hoisted, chased, or launched by his friends. 

Only a smaller group of people--two, to be exact--know about the secret nestled within that one. Herself and Gina, the latter of which is a given, since she’s known Jake since they were little. 

“Jake!” Rosa’s tone could slice glass. Amy looks up from her computer, and—ah. Seems Rosa’s glare could slice glass too. Which means whatever happened is undoubtedly Jake’s fault. 

“Rosa!” Jake parrots gleefully. Rosa forcefully spins his chair to face her.

“Where is it?” 

“Where is what?” He crosses his arms, smug. She narrows her eyes. 

“Give it back or I’ll make you,” Rosa hisses, grabbing a fistful of his hoodie. Amy catches the way Jake’s eyes light up before he tries to play it cool. Cute. 

“Gonna have to be more specific, Diaz. I don’t have your stuff.” Jake shrugs. 

Rosa grins.

“Oh god, why are you smiling?” He whispers, leaning away. 

“Last chance, Jake.” Rosa raises her eyebrow expectantly. He swallows nervously. 

“I don’t have—“

Rosa tickles his stomach with a vengeance. Every time he tries to grab her hands, she jumps somewhere else. Jake slides down in his chair, giggling faster than his lungs can keep up with. She pins him in that awkward slump with just her tickling hands and an evil smile. 

“Top drawer! Rosa!” He yelps, hysterical, and curls away from her. Still tickling with one hand, she opens the top drawer and pulls out a brand new chocolate bar. 

Rosa doesn’t even tell him off, she just pockets the chocolate bar and saunters over to her desk to enjoy it. Jake quietly puts his head down on his desk, hiding his face in his arms. His ears flush a deep red. 

Alright, apparently three people know. Interesting. 

“You doing alright over there?” Amy laughs softly. Jake mumbles something and gives a weak thumbs up. 

“Jake, Holt wants you.” Gina announces herself by tazing Jake’s sides—with her fingers, thankfully. Still, he yelps and swats at her hands. 

“Couldn’t resist. Not sorry.” Gina saunters away. Jake buries his face in his hands yet again. Amy pats his shoulder. 

“Peralta!” Holt’s voice carries easily through the bullpen. 

“Coming!” Jake’s voice cracks. Amy muffles her snickers into her hand. 

…

Evenings are companionably quiet in their household--Jake’s murmuring reactions to the TV are white noise to Amy now. The combined softness of their pajamas defines contentment. 

Jake’s head rests in her lap. Amy’s arm rests across his waist. She traces her fingers idly over his t-shirt as she reads, occasionally fiddling with the hem. Every time her fingers brush over bare skin, he shivers and scoots a bit closer. 

“Hey--” She pokes his chest to get his attention. He jumps and rolls over quickly. She slowly bookmarks her page and sets the book aside. 

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Jake chuckles.

“I think you know,” Amy whispers with a mock-graveness. His eyes widen comically. He starts scooting down the couch but she drags him back towards her. 

“Ames. Amy.” He tries to grab her hands but she swats them away.

“Don’t even try to fight me right now.” She swivels so she can sit on his waist. Even as she poses a threat to him, his hands comfortably find her hips. His smile is near-blinding. 

“I feel like you’ve been waiting for this all day,” Amy laughs. Jake lets out a hilarious groany-whine, something gutturally flustered, and she laughs harder. 

“You know I love you, right?”

“Debatable,” He grumbles. She pinches his side and he yelps.

“Okay! Y-Yes, I do.” 

“And you know I think this is cute, right?” Amy drawls. Jake turns a pretty pink and refuses to meet her eye. He normally basks in flattery--his ego is usually a problem, even when endearing--but something about this context makes him shy. It’s adorable to watch.

“Would you just do it already?” Jake’s voice pitches high with embarrassment. Something devious in Amy wants to make him ask properly, but she saves it for another night. 

“You should be nicer to me, Jake--” she leans down and kisses his neck-- “considering we share a common goal.”

His face is so hot that she can feel his blush. She squishes his cheeks to cope with how cute he is. 

“You are so mean to me,” he mumbles through her hands. 

“No, babe, I’m about to be mean to you.” Amy grabs a delicate handful of his sides and he goes boneless on the couch. As her fingers crawl higher, he curls more, squirming fervently. When she gets to his ribs, he nearly throws them both off the couch. 

One of Jake’s most endearing qualities is how much he wiggles. 

“Stay still!” Amy laughs and shifts to pin him better.

“I can’t help it!” Jake squeaks. She spiders her fingers at random over his torso, dodging his every attempt to protect himself. It’s not hard—Jake’s a man of patterns and Amy loves to analyze. 

He slams his head back into the couch and clamps his arms uselessly to his sides. She tickles rapidly, incessantly at his stomach until he just has to reach for her hands. Once he does, she smirks and shoves her hands under his arms. He makes it so easy. 

“Shit, fuck, Amy!” His voice jumps when she vibrates her fingers under his arms. He tries to clamp his arms down harder but it doesn’t help matters much. 

“You keep saying my name like it’s going to stop me. You know your safe word.” Amy presses her thumbs in again. “Can I have my hands back?”

Jake narrows his eyes at her. 

“No.”

“Are you sure?” She wiggles her fingers. He lets go with a cackle. She gives him a chance to breathe. He looks up at her with a dopey grin. 

“Amy, Amy, Ames, hold on—“ He works himself into a giggle fit so fierce he snorts— “we can talk about this.”

“I’m not even touching you!” She snickers. 

“Title of your sex tape—“

Amy vibrates her fingers into Jake’s stomach and he lets out a very satisfying scream-laugh. She chases it, tickling along his waist and back up his sides. He manages to buck his upper half off the couch and kicks his legs like his life depends on it. All this does is ruck up his shirt. 

“I still think we can talk about this.” He holds his hands up between them with a giddy smile. 

God, she loves him so much. 

She shoves her hands into the pockets of his Die Hard sweatpants and tickles his hips ruthlessly. Having slipped off the couch proves to quickly be his downfall—there’s nothing he can do but laugh himself into silence. 

“Ah, okay, okahahay! Gruber!” Jake wheezes, grabbing for Amy’s hands. She immediately helps him up and kisses his forehead. He pulls her back down for a proper kiss. 

“Still think Nakatomi should be the safe word.” He huffs, little chuckles floating free. 

“Yeah? When you manage to say Nakatomi through laughing, we’ll talk.” Amy tweaks his nose. He reaches up to do the same to her, she tickles under his arms briefly, and his laughter once again lights the quiet corners of their apartment. 

[ilivemydreamsthere]

Hello there!

60-year special make me come back. I also decided to post and show you what I am working on.

For those who don't know me, I was the one always obssesing about Missy version of the Master. This story starts right after the Grace funeral. It will be a centrally longer story planing on 12 chapters.

Tw : Doctor has a panick attack.

I am again obssed with Missy and her love for the Doctor...

Take this like just little sneak peak....

----------

Of lost years, months, days, hours, minutes, seconds.

She had seen too many funerals. She stayed hidden in the corner. She wasn't in fact thinking of Grace and Graham when she should. Her mind was racing.

She lost so many people. Oh so many.

Rose, Donna , Wilfred, Amy, Rory ….River, Master …Missy.

Every thought on every name hurts. She never grieves over people she lost, she usually just tries to move away and keep a smile on face. Any face she was wearing.

She felt tears on face and couldn't anymore listen to people speaking of Grace no. She looked outside and her lips left gasp for air. People didn't look at her, everyone lost in their own grief.

Was it what she thought it was? Or was it just a shadow?

Definitely just a shadow she couldn't see right?

She hid her face in her hands for a moment. She had to be dreaming there is no possibility she would see her, right?

“Doctor?” The voice brings her back minutes later from her own mind. She could feel a gentle touch on her arm. She looked up and saw the hazelnut eyes of Yaz.

“Are you alright?”

“Me? Definitely. I am alright “ She shakes head and stands up. “I should go. Before any of you get hurt. All I do is hurt people “ She said wiping her own tears from face.

Yasmine watched her and pulled her in a hug for a short moment. “You aren't hurting people. I am sure you do more than that.”

Doctor for a moment allowed herself to be held. She felt for a single moment. “I should leave Yaz” She whispered more to herself than Yaz. She bit her lips and let the girl go. She shakes head and leaves the room. She needed air. It suffocated her. She walked out quickly without looking back.

She felt how her chest started to hurt. If she would be a human she would be sure it's her heart. But right now she knows. That feeling which was so close to overcoming its huge anxiety and guilt. All feelings she tries to stop herself from feeling.

She rushed inside her Tardis and leaned about the door from inside. There she allowed herself to feel it. Her lips left a long scream of pain and all these gathered feelings and she hit the door with both fists.

She felt tears in her eyes which were about to spill and the Tardis made a long beeping sound trying to calm her Doctor.

Then a soft knock on the door came. “Doctor, are you here? Can you come out please. “

She sighed when she heard Yasmine with others. She didn't want to go anywhere. She mumbled words in old Gallifreyan language. She took a long , shaky breath and opened the door after she stood up.

“Doctor…we come say goodbye “ Graham spoke and pulled Doctor to hug. He spoke quietly. “It's not your fault I know it's not “ He said quietly and when he let her eyes meet.

“Yaz said you are wanting to just disappear on us. “ Rayn spoke as he crossed his arms a little.

Doctor shaked head and she wanted to say more but when all four of them shared a hug she couldn't tell the difference. “Do you really wanna go with me to see the universe and see stars?” She asked the question and when they spoke back she had to smile. They wanted to go with her.

She chuckled little “that will give you a bit of shock come in “ She spoke and opened Tardis door. The tardis make another noise. Noise which doesn't seem to be such a distress like a moment back. More like humming.

“Welcome to the Tardis. And don't be shocked, it's indeed bigger on the inside!” She said and let all of 3 of them in. “Fam …you should wait “ She rushed to the control panel and pulled for some levers and characteristic noise came out of the Tardis rotor. She smiled hearing it.

“I will show you the way to your room when you are here with me. And I…” Doctor looks for the right words, her eyes still on the sensor on the control panel. There was someone in her own room. There were very few people who could be here and Tardis would let them inside.

“I need a long shower!” She said smiling “come on!” She said talking to them in many Tardis corridors. “Yaz you first!” She said and her voice echoed by the hall.

The girl opened the door and her eyes widened “I love that!” She said stepping in the room. Doctor smiled and Tardis still could modify it to people she decided to bring in.

“Graham there and yours here Rayan “ She said, showing on both doors. “I need my shower. My room is far to this hall at the end “ She explained and left both boys and Yasmine behind. She walked quickly. When she open the door of her room she gasped a little. There was no one. The room was empty. Having the huge bed in the middle of the bed was a huge library. She walked slowly to bed. Then she heard a voice from the corner where the door to the bathroom was located.

“You finally could afford the upgrade?”

She closed her eyes and she was sure she was dreaming imagining.

“You aren't here. “ She spoke back, her voice lower. The tears were about to spill out again.

“Oh I am indeed here my dear Doctor “ The voice continued and became more surprised as the Doctor sat on the ground and hid her face as if she wouldn't want to look at her. She basically wrapped herself in the fetal position not wanting to hear or rather didn't want to believe that she is in fact here and alive.

Doctor could feel hand on her shoulder and then feel the weight of the hug. No more words were spoken for a moment till she didn't look up, meeting the familiar eyes of Missy.

“It's a post regeneration mess or you really can't be without me…” The teasing voice trailed off when she realized the blonde in her arms is in fact crying. Missy didn't think just traced her fingertips on the Doctor's face. “Shhh I am alive. You won't get rid of me easily. Don't speak just ..” Missy decided immediately and leaned down a little more her lips touched Doctors and her fingers gently moved to her hair. She kind of expected the Doctor would hit her but the hit didn't come. Doctor decided immediately she slowly put her arms around Missy and now they had been holding each other in embrace and the kiss made it even better.

“So I am not dreaming, will you stay travel to the stars with me ,” She spoke against her archenemy lips.

“Yes. I will. But first get up Doctor, you know well after regeneration you need to rest. Or you will pass out and from what I understood you saved these little humans again. “ She spoke, helping her up slowly and then in bed.

Doctor kicked down shoes and pulled down her coat. “Be here when I wake up if you won't. I will track you in the end of universe and ….” She closed her eyes and opened them quickly. “And what killed me ?” Missy chuckled a little bit.

“Killing! Don't…I have 3 humans on Tardis. Be nice for once, would you for me?” The doctor asked before her eyes closed and Missy knew she had hours before the Doctor would be up to talk with her. She smiled for herself. This will be a ride. She knows it will be.

×××

[trytofic]

Stuffed Animals

A lovely continuation to day 14's bad luck (finally).

Ao3

Day 18: Stuffed Animal

During a stressful time, Amy gives Shadow her first stuffed animal.

Heavy breathing and subtle crying filled their bedroom. Blankets and pillows haphazardly lie across the floor. These panic attacks never last long but they are very intense. After his nightmare and waking Amy, he gripped his quills so tightly that Amy thought he would rip them out or even embed his claws into his scalp. Amy slowly moved across the room, Shadow's eyes snapping to her, watching every step she made. She reached into her closet and high up on a shelf was an old stuffed bear. There were plenty of stitches on its arms and ears. She slowly returned to the bed, kneeling in front of Shadow. 

“I’ll go make you some tea to help you calm down. I think this might help a little bit to ground you.” She hands him the bear and he hesitates before he slowly reaches for it. He runs his fingers over the face, matted down fluff in spots, a smooth set of eyes, and a stitched nose. He focused on the feelings under his fingers as Amy slowly left the room.

He pulled the toy to his chest and buried his face into it. It smelled of Amy’s favorite fruity laundry detergent. It felt comforting as he squished the toy with his hands, slowly feeling his heart rate finally beginning to lower. He didn’t realize Amy had walked back into the room until he heard the ceramic mugs she held, being set on the table. He looked up to her and she had the sweetest smile on her lips. Her eyes filled with love and concern. She was perfect with her messed-up quills and messy pajamas. 

“Did he help?” She quietly asked. He didn’t feel ready to speak just yet, so he nodded to her. “I’m glad. I’ve had him since I was a baby apparently. I used to carry him around all the time. But when I started to adventure with Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails, I never took him. I would get home exhausted and talk to him as if he were my only friend.” She chuckled and she grabbed her steaming mug.

“Did it make you happy?” He asked with a scratchy voice.

“It did.” She took a sip. “He would always be a comfort when I was scared about something. When Metal first captured me, when the typhoons were extra loud and the power went out, even when I decided to stop chasing after Sonic. He was there to help me through it all.” She smiled at Shadow and slowly leaned her head onto his shoulder, barely pressing her weight on him, testing how he was feeling. 

“It’s a very soft stuffed animal.” He says rubbing his cheek against it. “Thank you.”

“Would you like your tea?” She asked him, sitting upright.

“Please.” He set the bear down next to him and gingerly took the cup from Amy’s hands and took a small sip. The flavor was gentle and comforting, just like Amy herself.

[thewatcher727]

Tumblr Exclusive One Shot: Omega's Quest For Societal Integration

The sound of laughter and chatter filled the cozy living room of Amy Rose's cottage as Sonic and his friends gathered for a much-anticipated get-together. Team Dark - Shadow the Hedgehog, Rouge the Bat, and E-123 Omega - were seated at a separate table in the corner of the room, seemingly keeping to themselves. However, despite their stoic demeanor, they were just as caught up in the festivities as the rest of the group.

Shadow was his usual quiet self, nursing his drink as he watched the others with a reserved expression. Rouge, on the other hand, was in high spirits, chatting and joking with the rest of the gang. Omega was deep in thought, his eyes fixed on the table in front of him as he considered some problem that only he knew.

E-123 Omega was on a mission to improve his social skills. He was tired of being the lone robot, always on the outskirts of conversations and group gatherings. He wanted to make friends and be a part of the group.

Rouge, fully aware of his mission, offered a curt nod. "Omega, if you're really serious about making friends, why don't you go and talk to Blaze? She's relatively new to the group."

Omega's head rotated towards the opposite end of the room. Amidst the laughter and chatter, Blaze the Cat could be seen sitting quietly by herself, sipping on a cup of tea. Despite being a bit of an introvert, Blaze was having a good time. She was content to sit back and observe the others, a small smile on her face as she took in the festive atmosphere.

His circuits lit up with excitement. He was nervous, but he was determined to make a good impression. "Affirmative."

Rouge chimed in with a soft giggle. "Just remember, Omega, first impressions are everything. Make sure to be polite and friendly. You want to leave a lasting impression, don't you?"

With that, Omega set off towards Blaze, his metal feet clanging on the ground with each step. He approached her, and she looked up in surprise as the giant robot loomed over her.

"Greetings," Omega said. "I'm E-123 Omega, and I wanted to say hello."

Blaze raised an eyebrow, eyeing the robot warily. "Hello," she said cautiously.

Omega beamed, pleased that his social skills were already improving. He then leaned down, patting Blaze on the head. "Good kitty!"

Blaze's eyes went wide and she leapt to her feet, her fur standing on end. "What did you just call me?"

Shadow sighed in disappointment, while Rouge stifled a giggle. Omega was oblivious to the reactions of his two friends as he was focused on making a good impression on Blaze.

Confusion sparked in the robot's orbs. "I called you kitty."

Blaze was incensed. "I am not a kitty!" she hissed. "I am Blaze the Cat, Princess of the Sol Dimension! How dare you call me something so demeaning and disrespectful!"

Omega's circuits flickered as he processed this information. "… Affirmative. My apologies."

Blaze let out a deep sigh and shook her head. "It's fine," she said, her tone softening slightly. "Just don't call me kitty again, okay?"

With that, Omega walked back over to Shadow and Rouge, who witnessed the whole spectacle from their positions. "How did I do?" he asked, eager for their approval.

Shadow and Rouge exchanged a knowing look before turning to Omega with a smile. The latter spoke up and winked at her teammate. "You did great, Omega. Keep it up and you'll be a social butterfly in no time."

Omega beamed with pride, not realizing that his friends were just humoring him. He was determined to keep working on his social skills, and with a little more practice, he would be the most sociable robot in all of Sonic's world. Shadow and Rouge exchanged a look, both feeling a mix of amusement and disappointment at Omega's social blunder. But they knew that with a little more practice, Omega would soon become a pro at making friends and leaving lasting impressions on those he met.

And who knows, maybe one day, Omega and Blaze would become the best of friends.

[nagichi-boop]

A Star That’s Out of Reach (Chapter 7)

[Previous] - [Next]

[Masterlist]

I don’t have anything intelligent to say here, so let’s just get straight into it, shall we?

— x —

Shadow lay on the couch as Rouge tended to his wounds, occasionally flinching as she touched upon a sore spot.

“You should’ve just come home sooner to have these treated,” Rouge huffed. “Or even if you had just treated these injuries yourself.”

“You’re right,” Shadow agreed. “I’m sorry.”

Rouge looked up at Shadow with her eyes furrowed, then sighed. “I know, I guess I’m still just a little upset that you left,” she admitted. “But you’re here and you’ve apologised, so I need to just accept things as they are.” She cut off one last bit of tape to secure Shadow’s bandages, then return it to the first aid kid and closed the lid. “You know,” she continued. “You still haven’t told anyone why you ran away to begin with. Was it something to do with the ‘unfinished business’ you mentioned?”

Shadow tensed up, feeling his throat close up a little. His mouth twitched to form words, but nothing came out, which caused him to become discouraged, his ears dropping a little.

“It’s okay if you can’t talk about it right now,” Rouge assured. “I know that I need to be patient with you. I guess I just wanted some clarity.” She looked up at him and smiled warmly. “Tell me when you’re ready.” She stood up from the couch and stretched a little, then looked at Shadow. “Take it easy for a few days, okay? No reckless fighting. I’ll let Omega know too so you boys don’t end up brawling behind my back.”

“Yes ma’am,” Shadow replied sarcastically. Rouge scoffed, then went into the kitchen. Shadow laid down on the couch, staring up at the familiar ceiling. He then smiled and closed his eyes – he was happy to be home. He hadn’t realised just how fatigued he was, but he very quickly found himself drifting off to sleep.

“Shadow!” A soft voice called out to him, causing him to flinch.

“Maria?” he replied, then realised he was sat beside her, looking out towards the stars. “I must have fallen asleep again.”

“You sure did,” Maria chuckled. “I’m glad you’re back though.” Shadow glanced up at her, then back down again, his expression becoming more somber. “Is something wrong?”

“Nothing too big,” Shadow replied quietly. “I guess I’m just not sure what to do now. That’s the whole reason I ran away.”

“What do you mean?” Maria asked.

Shadow lifted his head upwards. “Ever since I lost you, I unconsciously vowed to myself never to get close to anyone. I didn’t want to go through that pain again or risk putting anyone else in danger like I did with you. But now…” Shadow gloomily looked down and away from Maria. “Now I’m afraid I have no choice.”

“You always have a choice, Shadow,” Maria assured him. “You could have run far away and hidden yourself forever, but some part of you wanted to stay. I think you know deep down that you’ve found a new family.”

“But I don’t want that!” Shadow snapped, hastily turning to face Maria. “I want…I want to be with you.” He held his hands together and clutched them close to his chest as his eyes began to well up. Maria gently wrapped her arm around Shadow.

“I know,” she replied softly. “I wish I could see you again. I want to sing and dance and play with you again. But we both know that isn’t possible.” She then glanced up with a hopeful smile on her face. “But you know, just as the sun isn’t the only star in the galaxy, I’m not the only one out there waiting for you. You can and should find a new family outside of what you lost in the past.” She wrapped her arm tighter around Shadow and pulled him closer to her side. “It may take time for you to trust and let people in, but you deserve to have a loving family. Moving on doesn’t mean denying the past.”

Shadow opened his eyes a little, his eyes still full of tears. Unclasping his hands, he stared at them sadly. “But what if I end up hurting them again?”

“You will,” a different voice spoke. Shadow turned to see that Amy now sat where Maria was. “But that’s normal. You don’t have to be afraid.” She held Shadow’s hand gently. “And whenever you need me, I’ll be right here.” Her voice became more muffled as she spoke, trailing off at the end.

“I lov…”

“Shadow? Are you okay?” Rouge asked as she loomed over him. Shadow slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes, trying to adjust to being awake again.

“I’m okay, I was just sleeping”, he replied. “Why do you ask?”

“You were crying and whimpering in your sleep,” she answered glumly. Shadow stared at her for a moment before looking away. “Did you have another nightmare?”

“Not exactly,” Shadow said softly. “More like…a bittersweet dream.”

“‘Bittersweet’? How so?”

He anxiously fiddled with his fingers for a moment. “I was with Maria on the ARK. We were talking about family.” He looked up at Rouge. “She said I deserved to find a new one.”

Rouge’s eyes widened. “Oh, I see,” she spoke contemplatively. “How did you respond?”

He brought his legs up to his chest and hugged them. “I told her I was worried, that I was afraid that if I had a family, I’d hurt them like I hurt her.”

Rouge sat down beside Shadow. “You didn’t hurt her,” she acknowledged firmly. “The soldiers of GUN took her away from you. That’s not your fault at all.” She then placed a hand atop Shadow’s arm. “I know how special Maria was to you, but I’m sure she wouldn’t want you to deny yourself of happiness because of what happened.”

Shadow chuckled. “She said a similar thing,” he noted with a smile. He then looked up at Rouge. “Thank you.”

“Of course,” Rouge replied. “That’s what are friends for.” She then stood up and was about to go to the kitchen to get some water for Shadow when he said something under his breath.

“Family.” Rouge stopped then turned her head back to Shadow, who was looking intently at her. “We’re family,” he repeated louder. Rouge stared at him in bewilderment before she smiled with tears in her eyes. She then quickly turned away from him.

“You can’t just say things like that when I’m caught off guard, you jerk,” she replied playfully. “You’ll make me ugly cry.”

Shadow grinned warmly. Rouge disappeared briefly into the kitchen and then returned with a glass of water, which Shadow sipped slowly. After finishing his drink, Rouge took the class into the kitchen and began to wash it up. Shadow sat there quickly for a moment before standing and walking in the doorway of the kitchen.

“I’m going to head out for a bit,” he informed her.

Rouge turned around, trying to conceal her worry. “Will you be back for dinner?”

“I will,” Shadow answered. Seeing Rouge’s worry, he added, “I promise.”

She smiled. “I’ll see you later then.”

Shadow walked towards the hill overlooking Station Square, deep in thought. He kept trying to think about what Maria said in his dream, but the image of Amy sat beside him kept flashing in his mind. He tried to deny understanding why she was there at all, but he had spent the past few days mulling it over. As he got closer to their meet-up spot, he suddenly froze.

“Wait,” he muttered to himself. “What am I doing? I’m not ready to see her yet.” After standing in place for a moment, he changed course and began aimlessly wandering away from their spot. Somewhat in a daze, Shadow was caught off guard when a gust of wind brushed past him, causing him to raise his arms in front of him defensively. As he lowered his stance, he heard another whooshing sound and was suddenly standing face to face with Sonic, who he realised had been the cause of the sudden gust of wind.

“Shadow?” Sonic exclaimed, raising an eyebrow. “What are you doing all the way out here?”

Shadow folded his arms uncomfortably. “Why is it any of your concern?”

Sonic placed a hand on his hip and tapped his foot. “Well, I suppose it isn’t. It’s just unusual to see you here.” Shadow scowled a little and glanced away. “Is something bothering you?”

Shadow turned to his side. “Don’t be foolish,” he snarled. He then gripped his arms a bit tighter. “I just got lost in thought is all.”

Sonic folded his arms and tapped a finger against his arm in thought. He then suddenly purked up. “Were you thinking about Amy?” Shadow suddenly tensed up, then he turned and lunged at Sonic, grabbing his shoulder tightly. “Dude, what gives?” Upon realising he had basically confirmed Sonic’s suspicions, he let go and backed up. He then sighed and facepalmed.

“This is ridiculous,” Shadow spoke defeatedly.

“What is?” Sonic asked, rubbing his now hurting shoulder.

Shadow lowered his hand and stared at it gloomily. “The whole point of my return was for me to come to terms with things, but when it comes to actually doing that, I turn and bail.”

Sonic once again raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t that normal?”

Shadow scowled at Sonic. “Perhaps for anyone else. But I’m the Ultimate Lifeform. Things like this are trivial.”

“Regardless, you still have these feelings, right?” Sonic commented. “Insisting you shouldn’t feel them because you’re the Ultimate Lifeform doesn’t make them go away. It just makes things harder on you.”

“Suppose you’re correct,” Shadow conceded. “Would it really be fair to act on these feelings?”

“What do you mean?” Sonic asked confused.

“If I told her how I feel, that would be unfair on her.”

Sonic tilted his head. “I’m not sure I follow, buddy.”

Shadow exhaled deeply, then looked back at Sonic. “She only confessed to you recently, right? Wouldn’t it be unfair of me to spring my feelings onto her when her feelings for you are still raw?”

Sonic closed his eyes, frowning and tapping his foot in thought. “I guess I can see that.” He then glanced at Shadow. “But isn’t it also unfair on you to hold them in? All that’s gonna do is make you keep running. I’m sure Ames wouldn’t want that, either.”

Shadow paused. “Would that be such a bad thing? I’m not exactly a good guy like she and you are. It probably wouldn’t make much odds if we never crossed paths again.”

“Sure, you two are pretty different,” Sonic acknowledged. “But you still like her despite that, right? Is it so hard to believe someone like her could love you back?”

“She loves you,” Shadow sharply replied. “You’re the icon of heroism.”

“And if it wasn’t for you, all of humanity would have been wiped out by now.”

Shadow became slightly frustrated. “I helped start that problem. If it wasn’t for Amy, I’d have gone along with the plan.”

“But you didn’t,” Sonic noted. “I feel like you’re not giving yourself enough credit here.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Shadow growled.

“You keep talking about the bad things you did,” Sonic sternly stated. “It’s good to acknowledge your faults, but only from the lens that you strive to be better. And in your case, you have. To keep using these past incidents as an excuse to deny yourself of happiness seems wildly unfair, not just to yourself, but to others who want to get closer to you.”

Shadow’s body relaxed a little. He stared at the ground, feeling conflicted by his feelings. Sonic sighed, then approached Shadow and placed a hand gently on his shoulder.

“Tell her how you feel,” Sonic advised. “That’s the only way you two can move forward, regardless of whether she reciprocates.”

Shadow continued to look away from Sonic. “What if she never wants to see me again?”

“Does Amy really seem like the type to do that to you?” Shadow didn’t respond. Sonic hesitated briefly, then backed away from Shadow a little. “Do you know how worried she was when she heard you had gone missing?” Shadow’s eyes widened and he finally looked Sonic in the eyes. “She didn’t say anything, but I could sense how anxious she was from the moment Rouge told her you were gone. In fact, she’s the one who convinced the rest of us to help find you. She really cares about you, Shadow. That won’t change even if the two of you stay friends.” Sonic paused again. “I guess the question is, do you want to move forward with her, or do you want to pass up what you have over a hypothetical?”

Shadow stayed silent mulling over Sonic’s words. He then raised his head up suddenly. “Wait, why are you trying so hard to help me? Surely me being with Amy is the last thing you’d want?”

Sonic rubbed his nose. “It has nothing to do with me, pal.” He then returned his hand to his side. “But in all seriousness, I just like helping people out. I don’t care too much about the past. Besides, although you may not feel the same way, I’d like for us to be friends one day.”

“I see,” Shadow replied monotonously. He then sighed defeatedly. “I guess I’ll consider telling her how I feel.”

“That’s a start,” Sonic chirped positively.

“You tell no one of any of this, got it?” Shadow threatened, snarling and angrily pointing at Sonic.

“Why would I do that? It’s no one’s business but your’s and Amy’s.” Sonic then turned around, about to sprint off. “Oh, but if you ever need a third party to confide in,” he continued, his head half-turned to Shadow smirking. “You know where to find me.”

“Fine,” Shadow huffed, then smiled back. “Now get out of here so I don’t have to look at you anymore.”

“Aye aye, captain,” Sonic replied compliantly then dashed off, leaving Shadow behind. He stood there for a moment in thought, then took a deep breath in and out. He pulled out his Chaos Emerald and teleported away.

[the-era-of-shadow]

Innate Affiliation

Written by Ash Rose Red

Cover Art by Ash Rose Red

Chapter 5: The Rough Road to Recovery

THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS: Swearing, mention of a dismembered body part

[Previous]

[Next]

As Amy, Tsunami, Whisper, Big and Froggy made their way back to Ms.Vanilla's home, they could just ever so slightly hear the sounds of a great commotion going on from within. The rest of the Freedom Fighters seemed to congregate in and around the cabin, talking amongst themselves as they waited for the five of them to arrive. 

Amy stared off into one of the house's windows, and saw that Sonic, Tails and Sally were having a discussion, but she also noticed that Sonic was wearing his glasses.

Sonic doesn't always wear his glasses, in fact, as of recently, he usually doesn't. But when he does, Amy has noticed that he seems to almost transform into a completely different person. He's nicer, he's more soft-spoken, more weird and nerdy. To be completely honest with herself, Amy liked Sonic more when he wore his glasses. But Amy wasn't sure that such would still apply after everything that had happened the week before.

Regardless, she entered the cabin.

As she expected, Sally approached Amy as soon as the two's gazes met, requesting that Amy join her and the others in their discussion. Amy was quite frankly tired of hearing anything coming from Sonic's mouth, and felt a bit betrayed by how Tails decided to buddy up with him rather than her for today's vacation. Deep down, Amy just wanted to have a nice, calming day with her friends, whether they be old or new to her.

Regardless, she agreed to Sally's request.

When Amy and Sally arrived at the room where the discussion was to be held, Amy saw that Tails and Sonic seemed to be rather melancholic; this discussion, certainly, was going to be a serious one. While it wasn't villainous aliens disguising as her friends to lure her into their lair, this was still most definitely going to be a mood killer, an early end to her good day.

Regardless, she entered the room, and sat down in one of the chairs within.

"Amy..." A voice of sympathy and regret came from Sonic's mouth.

"Are you finally apologizing for lying to me all these years?" Amy asked bluntly.

"Y-yes, and also-" Amy was stunned, astonished, even.

"Wow! Those glasses really do make you a better person!" She exclaimed.

"That's... uh... What we wanted to talk about, actually..." Tails interjected, which confused Amy.

"What are you talking about?" Amy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"There's been something... else... that Sonic has been hiding from you-" Sally said, causing Amy to flair up in anger.

"OH OF COURSE HE FUCKING HAS! WHY AM I EVEN SURPRISED?!" She yelled, looking like she was ready to kill Sonic right then and there as she shot up from her seat, but Tails took hold of her by the shoulders in order to try and prevent anything of that sort from occurring.

"It's not about you this time, i-it's something about... them..." They clarified, which only made Amy angrier.

"TAILS YOU CAN'T MAKE THIS BIG OF A FUCKING DEAL OVER SONIC CHANGING THEIR DAMN PRONOUNS-!!" She shouted.

"I-I... Well, Sonic did change pronouns, but that's not what I'm talking about!" Tails tried to explain, feeling bad that they had to raise their voice.

"Th-then what the hell IS this about, Tails-??" Amy questioned sternly.

"WE'RE A FUCKING SYSTEM, OKAY??" Sonic suddenly shouted, eyes full of tears, and seemingly rather pissed off.

"Wh... What...?" Amy asked, startled and confused.

"... I-I'm so sorry, I swear to Chaos I thought I had xem under control now, they weren't supposed to be able to yell at Amy like that-" 

"It's alright Nicky, I know you've been away for a while..." Tails assured them quietly.

"N-Nicky?? I... I thought that was your deadname??" Amy questioned, now more concerned than angry. 

"Amy... you don't know what "being a system" means, do you?" Sally asked sympathetically.

"No??? I... I don't understand any part of what's going on here???" Amy hastily responded.

"Well, in that case... Tails? Would you do the honors?"

"Of course, Sal. I told you, so I don't see why I shouldn't be the one to explain the situation to Amy as well!" Tails accepted with a tired, but genuine smile.

From there, Tails gently explained to Amy that Sonic/Nicky have a complex dissociative disorder, meaning that they had experienced repeated trauma throughout their early childhood, which resulted in a singular identity being unable to be formed. The system, that being the term for the alternate identities, or alters for short, within the body as a whole, isn't just Sonic and Nicky, as Tails clarified. It's just that those two are the two hosts of the system, or the alters who are present the most.

"The reason why you notice a difference between when they wear glasses versus when they don't is because it is, in a sense, a physical marker of who's present. Nicky prefers to wear glasses, while Sonic prefers contacts." Sally added.

"Our system name is "Genesis Overdrive", but I'm sure you can just ask who's in front and they'll just tell ya," Nicky interjected.

"... "In front"?" Amy questioned.

"Oh, sorry! That's just a more simplified way of saying that a certain alter is present at the given moment." Nicky answered awkwardly.

"So... Since we have that out of the way..." Amy said just as awkwardly, now feeling bad for blowing up in the way that she did.

"You're wondering what Sonic's new pronouns are, aren't you?" Tails assumed, to which Amy nodded, "Knew it! Anyway... you see, Nicky told me that Sonic hadn't really been... "grooving" with the he/him, and Nicky guessed that Sonic was just going with the he/him because of Nicky -" 

"My pronouns are he/they, by the way!" Nicky interrupted suddenly, feeling bad for the interruption right after, "S-sorry, I got excited..."

"It's fine, really!" Tails assured, "Anyway, as I was saying, Sonic felt like experimenting with their pronouns, and decided to start going by they/them and the neopronouns xe/xem to see how those felt!" 

"Ah! Well, thanks for letting me know. Even if I kinda hate them at the moment, I still want to gender them correctly!" Amy remarked with a smile.

"Uhm, Mr... Nicky, can I ask you -" Tsunami suddenly appeared from behind Amy, spooking Nicky practically out of his seat.

"Oh good Chaos! Sorry about that, Nicky!" Amy quickly apologized, "This is Tsunami, my mother. Did Sonic not tell you about her?" 

"Sonic... didn't really tell me about much of the stuff that happened recently, just that you... chucked us out a window?" 

"Oh... yeah, sorry about that, too! I wouldn't have done that if I knew it wasn't just Sonic in there!" 

".... What did Sonic do this time?" Nicky asked, sounding exasperated.

"Well, it's a looooong story, really..." Amy warned, sitting back down in her chair. Tails and Sally both rolled their eyes, both of them having taken part in this song and dance before. Nicky didn't mind that, however, and thus, Amy once again retold the past week's events - as if her life was stuck in some sort of terrible cycle of events.

"After Amy's done, may I ask you... why is it that this sort of thing happens?" Tsunami inquired of Nicky.

—------------------------------------------------------

Shadow paced about the floating temple grounds, not sure what they should do, now that it was finished with their Hi-Bloosiæne studies for the day, and that its tussle with Dr. Ivo Robotnik had passed as well. Looking down for just a moment, Shadow noticed something on the temple's floor that hadn't been there before.

"The Doctor's ear that Mom sliced off?" It muttered to themself as they picked the ear up, "Well, I mean, it did have to land somewhere, I suppose..." 

As they inspected it further out of curiosity, they suddenly felt the sharp wind of someone quickly passing by it sweep over them. It would seem that the Black Arms' trusty scientist, Eclipse, was in need of something, and fast.

"Where are you heading, Eclipse?" It asked.

"Shadow, you must understand, I am no good with robotics." They responded, seeming to completely skip the question.

"So you're...?" Shadow inquired further, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm going to take that two-tailed fox prisoner and have them explain to me how that sort of thing works." Eclipse answered bluntly, leaving Shadow stunned.

"... I-I would have... thought that you of all people would have realized how completely moronic that sounds by this point..." Shadow sputtered, trying to collect its thoughts, "I have nothing else going on right now, I at least know Omega better than you do, let's just figure out how to get him hooked up to the hivemind together!" 

"... Ah. I accept your offer, my liege." Eclipse said, feeling embarrassed.

The two walked quietly to Eclipse's laboratory, Shadow silently hoping to be able to check up on the progress of the new Dark Arms as well as their own Project Midnight. It felt bad that they hadn't been able to help with development as of late, with all the duties it has been given as the Black Arms' new leader, but it knew that Midnight was in good hands with Eclipse and Relic keeping tabs on her progress. Shadow began to ponder if this was how Black Doom felt during Shadow's own creation, he too carried the responsibility of leadership, as Gerald watched over Shadow aboard the ARK. Did Doom similarly trust Gerald to that level as well? Or was there distrust towards him for his humanity? But this was before G.U.N raided the ARK, so why did Shadow have that feeling?

"Do... do you not remember...? Just before our battle..." Doom muttered, sounding somewhat pained.

"Remember...? What is there to remember...?" Shadow inquired, confused.

"Pardon me...?" Doom responded, shocked.

"I... I don't remember our battle in itself all that much... Just the moment of regret... A moment that came far too late..." Shadow explained.

"I... I see..." Doom replied, both concerned and intrigued by this discovery.

But the time for speculation of any sort, or for checking up on any laboratory projects, was cut short, as when Eclipse and Shadow arrived at the laboratory, they both saw Yuki sitting on the table, seemingly waiting for them both to arrive.

"Yuki, don't you believe it's a bit early to be preparing to rest?" Eclipse asked, as recently Yuki and Harazuki had been sleeping in Eclipse's laboratory, like they had in the nursery on the New Black Comet.

"It would be, blarjikære*, but that is not why I'm here." Yuki clarified, "With yesterday's failure to capture Amy, I have decided to instead look into finding the location of Trixie and her partners for now. As for why I'm here, I thought you two could help me out with that." He then explained.

*Translation Note: Close friend within the Black Arms

"I know of a Trixie, but I don't know how helpful that would be..." Shadow responded.

"Please tell me regardless, you never know." Yuki told them.

"Trixie Rose! Member of my favorite pop punk band, Roses & Renegades! She's a black cat mobian with a pink streak in her fur!" Shadow explained, Yuki and Eclipse looking at it in shock. "...Did I say something wrong?" 

"Trixie Rose is the exact name of the person we're looking for." Eclipse informed them.

"And pink is like... her signature color!" Yuki added.

"Oh. I guess that would explain the strong Black Arms vibes I always got from their music." 

"... Kæ' Blak Doom ducsie, Shahdo…*" Yuki and Eclipse both groaned in unison.

*Translation Note: “Dear Lord Black Doom almighty, Shadow…”

"Wait! You said a band, right? Shadow, can you tell me about the other members?" Yuki said.

Shadow did as it had requested, revealing that the band had three members in total. Along with Trixie, there was with her Stella Primrose, a tan hyena mobian with purple streaks in her fur, and Max Rosemary, a dull red octopus mobian with darker maroon tips at the ends of his tentacles that served as hair.

"Yep, that adds up. Those descriptions match decently well with Trixies dearest partners; Rai and Aikshlin Rose." Yuki noted simply, while Eclipse wrote everything that Shadow had said down in a spare notebook they had lying around.

"Oh! Rai! Father and Aunt Sendrir taught me recently that rai means star in Hi-Bloosiæne! And stella means star in Italian! I think that should count as another point for suspicion!" Shadow informed the two.

"I don't know if that's clever or stupid..." Eclipse muttered, garnering a chuckle out of Yuki and Shadow.

"Okay, whatever you say, Doctor Ezrieal Clysdale." Shadow teased, to which Eclipse scoffed and rolled their eyes, but smiled nonetheless.

"Aikshlin... It seems that he is alive and well... Oh how glad that makes me...!" Doom interjected suddenly.

"That pleases me as well... He always lended me a helpful hand when I needed it. If I were truly a Black Arms leader beyond the hopes of some of the hivemind's people, he would have certainly been considered a loyal attendant to my side..." Eclipse recollected.

"I see... He was once one of my attendants before our failed invasion. A truly skilled and loyal soul born from a rather peculiar human boy..." Doom replied.

"Perhaps that should be a priority of ours? To search for and bring home these lost Black Arms?" Shadow suggested.

"I'm down for that." Yuki responded. "I will mention, there's at least one other lost Black Arms other than those three." 

"Is there now?" Eclipse questioned curiously.

"Yes. I remember in the chaos that was the crumbling of the New Black Comet, I came across a maiden I simply knew as Blossom, I believe she worked as er... something like what you'd call a librarian in this land's tongue? They organized and kept check of all the information stored in the Black Arms hivemind at any given time. When I saw her run past me to one of the escape pods, I read only one thought from her mind... She desired to make sure the Black Arms story would be kept safe and maintained..." Yuki explained.

"Hello Mama! Hello Uncle Yuki!! Hello Shadow!! I noticed you all are talking... plotting... Do you want some tea to accompany you?" Rhygenta implored of the three, appearing suddenly from below the table.

"That would be splendid, deary!" Eclipse replied happily. "Thank you so much!" 

"No problem!" Rhygenta said as she scurried off to prepare the teas, continuing to listen to the three converse as she did.

—------------------------------------------------------

After Amy and Nicky were done talking, they, along with Sally and Tails, left the room and integrated themselves within the rest of the lot at the party. There were a lot of people in Ms. Vanilla's house tonight, it would seem that all of the Freedom Fighters were in attendance, not to mention the addition of the Chaotix and Big. Though, still, it was far less than the amount of people at Amy's birthday party just a few weeks earlier, which Amy did indeed find entertaining. Sure, it was her Sweet Sixteen, it had to be a big party! But despite that, Amy still found the juxtaposition between her own larger than life party then and Knuckles's more low key party now intriguing. It was mainly Knuckles's idea for Amy to have such an extravagant party, after all. Amy was almost in a way like a daughter to him, and he wanted to make sure that Amy is given the best life she can have, which is why he seemed less than pleased to see Nicky, who he still believed to be Sonic, enter his line of sight.

"You've got a lotta nerve turning up here with those glasses of yours with how you've been acting lately!" He snarled.

"Knuckles, I understand your concern, but why don't we settle down for now? It's your b-day, big guy! You deserve to enjoy it." Tails said to Knuckles, hoping to gently soothe him down. They would've told him about the system thing if it weren't for how busy the whole house was at that moment.

"Oh alright, I guess you're right..." Knuckles obliged, Tails could hear Espio chuckling from close behind.

As Tails and Nicky were occupied with Knuckles, Amy slipped away and trudged through the crowd to locate Whisper, wondering if she had found the other Freedom Trainees, or if she had been essentially stranded amongst the chaos. Eventually she noticed that the Freedom Trainees and Big had snuck away with Cream into her bedroom in order to avoid the mass of people. Understandable, Amy's a social gal, and even then, things were starting to feel a bit uncomfortable for her. Perhaps it was the fact that Vanilla's home was not really built to house so many people? Or maybe it was just from her worries about everything else as of late.

As Cream, Big, Tangle and Lux cleaned and prepared Cream’s tea sets for the big dinner that night, Amy watched the other partygoers go about, with Whisper, Tsunami and Jewel by her side. She did consider the thought that such behavior could be perceived as weird, or even off putting, but Amy came to the conclusion that she didn’t quite care. As much as she hated it, she had the feeling that something could go wrong at any moment, and she wanted to be ready for when that would happen.

She saw Nicky go to grab something from his pocket, only to realize that whatever it was that they were looking for was not in there.

“I’ve been thinking about what Nicky said…” Tsunami said as the aforementioned Nicky scurried off into the crowd, and out of Amy’s sight.

“What part are you thinking about?” Amy asked Tsunami telepathically, not wanting to be heard by the partygoers, some of them surely still unaware of Tsunami’s existence.

“The part about that whole… dissociative disorder thing… he has… being caused by childhood trauma..” Tsunami answered sheepishly.

“... Why that, specifically?” Amy quiered, unaware of where Tsunami was going with this.

“Well… I said it already before, but it bears repeating; I was not a good mother to my first two children… I would often abandon them along with the rest of my responsibilities… That is not to say that there was no one looking after them at all, no… But while Trixie found herself often in Doom’s care, Yuki was often looked after by my brother, Black Death… His temper was abhorrent, but I had figured back then that he would at least fare decently well as a caretaker in my absence, as he had been sufficient enough with such responsibilities in the past… But the times had changed… He had grown colder, more angry, more violent… I can realize in hindsight that such company was not fit for poor Yuki… As it was Death who would, funny enough, see to it my end…” Amy looked at Tsunami, completely stunned. Big, too, had paused, hearing Tsunami’s tale. “When I would look after Yuki, I noticed that… He seems to experience the same woes Nicky does… And now I can’t help but wonder… Is it my fault that Yuki is now afflicted with such a disorder…?” 

That was most certainly a difficult question, and one that seemed to weigh on Tsunami heavily. Amy, however, seemed to come to an answer rather easily.

"I wouldn't say so, personally… Sure, maybe abandoning your children wasn't the wisest choice… But I'd definitely argue it was ultimately your brother's fault for the trauma Yuki sustained, as he was supposed to care for him in your absence. Your brother betrayed the trust you had in him by hurting Yuki… That's just my opinion, though." She said. "Besides, you realize now that what you did was wrong, so why dwell on it, instead of trying to grow from it?"

"Mr.Big, are you feeling alright…? You've become very quiet all of a sudden…" Cream asked, causing a pit to form in both Amy and Tsunami’s stomachs.

"I'm not keen on keeping secrets around here… Big is a Black Arms too, but he's a nice one… Got it…?" Whisper explained to the others.

"The Black Arms? Aren't those the scary aliens that invaded our planet a couple of years ago..?" Cream asked.

"Uh… yes…?" Amy sheepishly answered, for she had been hoping that she could keep Cream away from all this Black Arms nonsense.

"Oh! Is that the past mistake Ms.Tsunami is trying to atone for? Well, I do believe that having another familiar ally on your side is a very lucky thing to have, yes yes!" Cream surmised, which significantly calmed the nerves of all three of the previously Black Arms affiliated members of the present party.

"... I guess now would be a good time to mention that Amy is also part Black Arms then, huh?" Tangle suggested with a nervous smile.

"Really?? I didn't know that!!" Cream replied.

"Neither did I! Sonic kept it a secret from me until just last week, when xe had to clear things up after it was dropped on me like a bombshell by the jackass that also drugged Whisper." Amy remarked, too bitter over the situation to care about Vanilla possibly becoming cross with her for swearing while talking to Cream.

“That’s not very nice of Mr.Sonic to do!” Cream reacted, shocked.

“Mx.Sonic, I’m pretty sure. I was told that they wanted to start shying away from masculine terms.” Amy quickly told the young girl.

“Oh, okay! My mistake!”

“So, you’re gonna be a part of the Giving Those Black Aliens An Ass Whoopin’ Crew, then?” Lux asked Big.

“Ah… I’d rather not fight… But I do want to help make them stop hurting people…” Big answered.

“Good enough for me!” Lux exclaimed, leaning into Big for an embrace.

As the others chit-chatted, with the air less tense, Amy returned to watching the party. She saw Nicky return with what seemed to be a piece of paper in his hand. It can’t be… can it?

“Hey, I uh… found this letter at the doorstep after my talk with Tails and Sal.” He said awkwardly.

Amy's body froze as she overheard Nicky's words. Amy had spent her entire day running from the current events of her life, not wanting to put up with it, and yet, another fucking letter?? Did they not learn from last time?? Amy felt herself becoming enraged, but as soon as she noticed that rage, she tried to suppress it. To be so angry would be to be like how Shadow was, it would prove Sonic right, and she didn't want that in any sense of the word.

The Freedom Trainees noticed Amy's tense aura and all looked at her in concern. None of them were there for when Amy had last faced The Black Arms, they were in the Sky Patrol playing board games while she fought on the streets of Starlight City with Knuckles, Tails and Espio. They had no idea about the truth of that letter she received yesterday.

Despite the stress she was under, Amy told them the truth. She told them who the letter from yesterday was truly from.

"... Figures..." Whisper snarled, looking like she was ready to kill every one of those black aliens right then and there.

"... Maybe this is different? Nicky didn't even say the letter was for you..." Jewel suggested, trying to calm Amy down.

Jewel was right, it wasn't for Amy, it was for Knuckles.

Is that better?

Amy couldn't quite tell.

“Uhm… Thanks, I guess?” It was clear that Knuckles felt just as uneasy as Amy did, which was a comfort in some sense.

“Y-you don’t have to read it right now, I know you’re busy with the party and all, just figured that it’d be important to bring this to your attention, that’s all…” Nicky explained, which was followed up by Knuckles asking where this meek attitude had come from so suddenly, still thinking it was Sonic that he was talking to. Amy would probably have to explain the system thing to him later, if Tails wasn’t already planning on doing that themself.

“Whatever… I guess I should skim through it real quick to get it out of the way…” Knuckles surmised, giving Amy a glance of understanding through the window.

“Shit, he knows I’ve been watching-!” Amy suddenly exclaimed in her thoughts, which were picked up on by Big and Tsunami.

“He doesn’t seem mad, though…” Big pointed out.

“... I guess he doesn’t, huh?” Amy responded, feeling better.

“Perhaps we should go to his side to see what this letter says?” Tsunami suggested.

“Good idea, it’s never a bad thing to be prepared, right?” Amy remarked, getting up from the spot she had been sat upon. “Be right back.” She then said to all of those not in the hivemind.

Knuckles noticed Amy heading over to him and paused his reading of the letter, waiting for her to get close enough to view it with him, letting her take grasp at the paper once she had reached his side so that both of them could view it.

Dear Knuckles,

I write this note with a heavy heart, as I have the worst feeling about my fate as I make my return to the Black Arms’ base.

So, with my final moments, whether that be of sanity or of life, I’d like to get some things off my chest, and give you some much needed apologies.

I had known of Relic’s betrayal for some time now, long before you did. When I’d talk to Shadow back in their wishy-washy days, they’d often bring Relic - and her fascination with Eclipse and the Black Arms - up, even when she still would come along to our missions as if she was still with us.

I kept that from you, Knuckles, because I had realized what a mistake I had made in dragging you into this mess of ours. I wanted you to have thought you had won, while scaling back and making this a purely Team Dark mission once more. 

But that didn’t quite work out, did it?

I suppose this is goodbye, then. I wish you the best of luck, my old friend.

- Rouge L’Amour

A considerable feeling of a knot being formed in both Amy and Knuckles’ stomachs appeared as they read the letter, feeling uneasy, and unsure of what was the “correct” way to approach this issue. Though, regardless of not knowing the “correct” answer, they both certainly found an answer for each of their own selves rather quickly.

“Sounds like a her issue.” Knuckles said plainly, crumbling the letter up in his hands.

“But shouldn’t we do something regardless? She sounds unsure of her decision… Maybe there’s still time to stop her? We could invite her to the Freedom Fighters! She did help out a lot back when we were The Resistance!” Amy argued.

“She definitely did, but that was back then. Just like you’ve made the decision to stick by us and defend Aerth, she made the decision to defend the Black Arms back last week. Rouge can deal with the mess she made with that decision herself.” Knuckles argued back, throwing the letter in the trash. “Let’s not worry about her. It’s our time to have fun without those alien scum!”

Amy thought of arguing back once again, but she realized that he had a point. All this time that she had been wishing for a day of peace, a day of rest, and she was about to give that up for some grown adult who should be mature enough to sort her own shit out? Well, she shouldn’t. That’s what Knuckles was trying to get across, that's what Amy had now realized.

Soon enough, the big party dinner had come and gone, with many different flavorful foods to eat, of both the savory and sweet variety, and lots of talking to be had.

As Amy had one part expected and one part hoped, Tails explained the whole system situation around Nicky and Sonic to everyone else in attendance that hadn’t already known. There were many questions asked, and many of them answered by either Tails or Nicky, and in the end, everyone had come to a better understanding of their dear friend, or, friends, as it were.

One of the questions that was asked, more towards the end of the discussion, was why Nicky was the one fronting now in the first place, when it had been Sonic who had been the one out and about for so long. To this, Nicky explained that he had noticed how much harm Sonic was doing to the body and their relationships with everyone that was a part of the Freedom Fighters, so he had pulled xem aside to talk about it.

Sonic hadn’t always been a host, Nicky said, they used to simply be the primary protector of the Genesis Overdrive collective, fronting to fight Doctor Robotnik, and then letting Nicky have control over the body again once the battle had been won. That’s how it was back when they had lived in South Island, with their mother and siblings. But things began to change when they moved to Mobotropolis. Fights became more frequent, and so did the amount of time Sonic spent in the front. It came to the point where everyone had known the body as Sonic, so Sonic believed that playing into that, by being the one who was in the front the most, would be the easiest course of action for not having to out themselves as a system before they were ready.

But since Sonic was originally formed to protect, that mindset began to extend out to people they knew outside of the system, too. Sonic wished to protect everyone, though, of course, that didn’t always go as planned. Xe especially began to go overboard with it all after Shadow left G.U.N to rejoin the Black Arms. In the time Sonic had been the one out most often, they had formed a crush on Shadow, and had made it their mission to protect it from its own ties to the Black Arms. But Shadow hadn’t taken such advances very well, and while they never said it, it was clear they did not reciprocate Sonic’s feelings towards it.

Despite this, Sonic was the last Freedom Fighter Shadow had spoken to before its sudden leaving of G.U.N.. It had come with xem when they went to Starlight City to pick up their wisp Yacker from Doctor Ezrieal Clysdale’s clinic. Xe noticed that Shadow had stayed behind in the clinic, but in the moment, Sonic hadn’t thought anything of it. As time went by, however, and the news of Shadow’s resignation spread throughout the Freedom Fighters, Sonic began to put together what had truly happened that day, though it wasn’t until last week that xe finally had all the details.

In the end, Sonic felt sorry for treating Amy the way that they had, and hoped that one day, their relationship could recover. But Nicky understood that it would be a rocky road ahead, and the two mutually decided to let Nicky be the one in the front for a while.

As the discussion of the Genesis Overdrive had met its end, Tangle decided that it would be her that would reveal Big’s true identity. The announcement had seemed to come from nowhere, and shocked all who weren’t previously aware. Jewel and Whisper had even given her glares of judgment from how sudden the announcement was. But ultimately, after some questions and discussions, everyone was understanding, and thankful that Big had decided to stick by Aerth, even though it wasn’t where he had originally come from. Knuckles even had remarked that it was good to have someone on their side that’s familiar with the Black Arms’ tactics, since Amy had lived with mobians all her life, and Shadow had relapsed into the hivemind.

Eventually, the birthday cake was cut and eaten, and things began to settle down.

Tails and Rotor still had work to do on repairing the Sky Patrol, so they advised against anyone sleeping in there that night. With that being said, the Chaotix made it clear that they planned on bunkering with Knuckles on Angel Island that night, and most of the Freedom Fighters decided to join in on that idea. 

“It’ll be like we’re camping!” Nicky had remarked.

Amy, Big, and the Freedom Trainees, however, had instead opted to stay at Vanilla’s house for the night, liking the idea of having a sleepover together, and with Cream, and as the sunset turned to twilight, and twilight to night, the Freedom Trainees all went to sleep, one by one.

But even as the hours inched closer to midnight, Amy couldn’t do the same.

She just couldn’t go to sleep, no matter how much she tried.

[fast-grit-erotica]

Diner Story - 5K words

**NSFW - erotic story - public - work - waitress - oral - oral fixation - role-playing - pantyless - man and woman - sex**

Maya got in around eight o'clock. If she was late, the short-order cook didn't say anything about it. Instead, Cody watched her smooth out her uniform before sliding into her apron. She was reaching around to tie the back when she looked up to find Cody watching her. Busted.

She shot him a mock disapproving look before turning away from him and holding out the apron straps. "Do you mind?" If he was going to stand and watch her, he might as well help. 

Cody walked up behind her and tied her apron quietly. Maya thought he probably wasn't on the level right now. Despite being one of the best and easily most reliable short-order cook at the diner, everyone knew about his flask. To his credit, Cody managed himself well, never falling into drunken territory but never really rising to the height of sobriety either. Maya thought it might be whiskey tonight. Maybe if she played her cards right, he'd share.

When he finished, Maya turned to him and said, "thanks," in that haughty tone she reserved only for him. Cody didn't say anything, just gave her a lazy salute, and with that, their beginning shift routine was complete. 

Thursday evenings weren't exactly the pinnacle of excitement at the diner, but Maya liked them because she got out of the house and around other people. She didn't want to admit that she was lonely. When she thought about how much time she spent alone watching Netflix or doom-scrolling on socials, it made her tired, as if all of her life were being zapped out of her.  

Her family was only three counties over. Maya could drive to see them if she really wanted to, but with gas as high as it is, she reckoned it was best not to go too far. Plus, it was always the same thing: "How ya' doing? Do you have a boyfriend? When are you gonna get us some grandbabies?" The same blah-blah-blah she rather not hear. 

Cody placed a steaming dish of eggs, bacon, and toast on the counter and rang the bell. "Order up!" Maya fetched the order, pausing to catch him smirking at her through the server window. She'd known about his crush on her, but for the life of her, Maya could figure out why. She wasn't a great beauty. She wasn't model thin, nor did she have the bust most guys drooled over. She was mostly dark hair and glasses, more akin to small-town Velma than the glam of big-city Daphne.

She liked him well enough but wasn't sure she like-liked him. But on the whole, Maya thought he was alright. Cody eye-fucked her, sure, but he kept his hands to himself, and when they did talk, He didn't try to steer the conversation in a dirty direction, although he had his moments. She enjoyed their back-and-forth banter, and he always made her bacon a little bit crispy, just the way she liked. Even though she couldn't understand why he liked her, She really liked the attention and companionship from him.

She brought the steaming plate of breakfast food to the woman sitting at the far booth writing in her notebook. She was a regular, but for the life of her, Maya couldn't remember her name. She thought it was something soft that started with a vowel. Alice or Ashley, maybe? Whatever. The woman looked up and smiled before mouthing 'thank you' and turning back to her notebook.

Maya returned to the server window, where Cody was leaning on the other side and looking out at their only patron. 

"I Wonder what she's writing about?" Maya asked.

"Erotica," Cody answered, and she couldn't help but roll her eyes. 

"Okay, you're in horny jail for the rest of the night."

He looked at her and laughed. "No, I'm serious. I was working with Marlene one night, and she chanced a peeked at her notebook while Amy was in the bathroom."

Amy, her name is Amy. 

"Really?" She turned towards the window, leaned on one elbow, and looked at him, clearly interested. 

"Yeah, she said it's pretty raw but decent stuff."

"Any what does Marlene know about erotica?" 

Cody thought about this for a moment, then shrugged. "Dunno," he answered. "I guess more than she lets on." His smirk reemerged, and he gave Maya an amused look. "And what do you know about erotica?"

She felt a slight flicker of heat touch her cheeks and was mentally kicking herself in the butt for walking smack into this turnaround. "N-Nothing." She said, hoping it would sound like an awkward admission rather than the lily-white lie it was. 

"Sure, sure, sure," Cody said. The ease of his dismissal made Maya blush harder. "You probably know all about smut."

"Smut and erotica aren't the same things. They're like..." But Maya's words dissolved her mouth as she saw the satisfied look on Cody's face. 

"I Thought you didn't know anything about it?" And for the second time in nearly twenty seconds, Maya was mentally kicking herself in the butt for walking face-first into a question she should have seen coming. 

She spent the next couple of minutes fighting her embarrassment. She should have just admitted that she read erotica from time to time, but instead, she left her big girl pants at home today. Had it been anyone else, she would have just come clean. It had to be Cody, didn't it?

She managed to distract herself by wondering what Amy was really writing about. Not that she didn't trust Marlene's word, but if it was erotica, why come to a Diner at night to write about it?

After She'd overcome her spat of embarrassment, Maya returned to the server window and asked Cody, "Why do you think she does it hear?" 

He was scrapping one side of the grill clean with a spatula. "Maybe the thrill of it." He said, then added, "Some people like doing naughty stuff in public."

Maybe, but Maya doubted it. Writing in public wasn't the same as doing something naughty. However, she kept this opinion to herself. She didn't want Cody asking her any more questions. If he did, the dark-haired waitress was certain she'd be the one sent to horny jail. 

"Yeah," she agreed. "I guess."

He looked over his shoulder at her and asked, "Have you ever done something like that?"

The question she was hoping to avoid. It seemed like no matter what, Maya was fated to reveal some sordid deed to Cody. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. 

"Maybe." She said, still fighting it. "What about you?"

He paused for a moment, thought about it, then tossed the spatula aside and turned to her. "You can't tell anyone." He said, lowering his voice. Maya stepped closer, eager to hear whatever mischief Cody would divulge. If it was juicy enough, maybe she could use it to get some booze out of him. Cody would probably give it to her anyway, but what was the harm in a flirty little exchange?

"Yeah, okay." 

Cody licked his lips and looked over to Amy. When he was sure she wasn't listening in, he turned back to Maya, and she saw excitement there as if he wanted to share, so very different from her.

"Back around when I first started, I was fooling around with one of the waitresses." She'd expected some sort of brag, the way guys do, but Maya didn't hear the brazen tone of a man boasting. Cody spoke it as if it simply happened.

He nodded to the back corner, opposite the fire exit, and Maya knew why. I was where she and most of the other staff stood when they wanted to check their phones - a place far out of sight from the sitting area. 

"We went outback, and we were fooling around. I had my hand in her panties, and she kept moanin' really loud. I had to cover her mouth to keep her from making noise before she finally gushed all over my hands." Cody chuckled to himself as the memory played behind his eyes. "It was a beautiful mess."

Questions formed in Maya's mind quicker than bread turned to toast. Who was this mysterious waitress? When had they done this? And lastly, was he into that sort of thing? 

"That's it?" She said, hoping she sounded unimpressed. Meanwhile, it was like a broken faucet between her thighs. "Is that even considered public behind the building?"

"Wow, you're really being an asshole tonight." He said flatly, and she wondered if she pushed too hard. She wasn't trying to be annoying or snooty, just put up a mask of someone who wasn't increasingly horny. "And what have you done? Ms. smut and erotica are different." Figures he's still holding on to that.

She smiled, mentally prepared for this turnaround. There was an opportunity here, a chance to make her Thursday night a little more interesting instead of dancing the same old dance. She just needed to bait him a little more, then-pow! Hook, line, and sinker.

"What do you think?" She asked. When Cody rolled his eyes and didn't answer, she let out a dry little laugh. "What could I do?" Maya watched the question sink in before moving on. "You have anything to drink tonight?"

"Maybe," He answered.

"Then maybe…" She ambled closer to him and let her hand graze his arm. "Maybe I'll slip out of my panties for-" Maya paused in thought, then said, "ten minutes or so."

"Half-hour," Cody argued. "A half-hour without your panties or being rude, then maybe I'll share."

Maya thought about it. She'd barely notice a half-hour going by with a couple of swigs of booze running inside her. Plus, the thought of their devious little deal turned her on. How could she refuse?

She nodded once. "Deal!" Then, like two old men, they shook on it. 

Maya locked the bathroom door, then went to the basin and looked at herself in the dingy bathroom mirror. She'd never done anything like this before, and she felt giddy. She was also nervous.

"What was the big deal?" She asked herself. "No one's gonna know." Then she remembered that Cody would know. 

She emerged from the bathroom with her panties balled into a tight wad. Maya held them behind her as she peeked into the dining area. "You still doing alright, honey?" She asked Amy, who was scribbling in her notepad. The woman looked up and gave Maya a smile before nodding. "Alright," Maya said with her polite waitress smile. "You just let me know if you need anything, okay?" Amy nodded again and then went back to writing, and Maya retreated back into the kitchen. 

When she stepped into the kitchen, she found the short-order cook standing in the back by the emergency exit. "Is it done?" He asked.

Maya nodded, then peered around until she spotted his dented metal flask. Eagerness drew her to the prize, but Cody halted her with a cautious hand. Then he opened it, palm up as if expecting something. At first, Maya didn't get it, but then it hit her like a hammer blow, and she stifled a laugh. "Really?" She asked in a saucy tone.

Cody nodded. "You'll get them back later."

Maya looked at him for a moment and ran her tongue over her teeth. This wasn't part of the deal, but where was the harm? It wasn't as if Cody would disappear into the bathroom, then give them back to her ten minutes later with the fabric damp and soiled. Although, the thought of watching him with cock in hand as he stroked himself to her panties roused strange feelings in her. Disgust, amusement, and arousal all colored the idea.

She handed over her panties, and Cody waved them under his nose. He inhaled once before nodding as if satisfied by their exchange. Then he gestured to the flask.

"You're a freak." She laughed, and Maya took off her glasses, snatched up the flask, spun off the cap, brought it to her lips, and tipped it back. she had most of its contents down her throat before she realized it wasn't whiskey. It was vodka. 

She finished and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. Satisfaction settled over her as the fire running down her throat slowly faded. When she looked back at Cody, she found that he was still enamored with her panties.

"Black?" He sounded surprised. "I had you pegged as a white-panty girl." 

"Why?" She asked before making smacking noises with her mouth. The burning was gone, but she could still taste the vodka, which always made her want to pull her tongue out. 

"White panties are for good girls." He let the assumption linger in the air between them. 

"Then I guess you know I'm not a good girl," Maya answered defiantly. She put her glasses back on, pushed them up her nose, and smiled. "I'm full of fucking surprises."

Maya poured herself some tea and sipped it, trying to wash the rubbing alcohol taste out of her mouth. Besides that, she felt good. Her stomach was warm, her skin buzzed, her pussy throbbed, and wild possibilities ran through her mind. It didn't help that Cody stood leering behind her and pulled up her dress achingly slow. 

She reached behind her and swatted at him playfully, unable to contain the smile on her face. "Hey!" But her excitement made it difficult to sound outraged.

"Hey yourself. I've been waiting to see your ass since I met you."  

Maya wanted to ask him if that was true. She wanted to know what was so special about her, but before she could get the straight from the short-order cook, Maya caught movement from the corner of her eye. She turned and watched Amy slide out of her seat and head to the bathroom. 

She looked back over to the booth and noticed that Amy's notebook was wide open, with her pen lying across half a page of writing. This was her chance to peek into it, but she had to be quick! She hurried out of the kitchen and over to the booth. She couldn't help but leaned over and read what she could.

Amy wrote about a second date with a man much older than her she called Roger. She goes on about how she showed up twenty minutes late and how cross Roger was with her. The entire dinner, he was short with her, hardly sparing more than two words, until it was time to go. He'd paid and then led her back to his car, where she could Apologize in the back seat.

She goes on to give him a reluctant handjob. She'd penned out how she thought handjobs were kind of awkward. She'd offered to blow him, but they'd just had Korean barbecue, and Roger refused because he didn't want his dick smelling like teriyaki. When he'd finally cum, he blew his load all over Amy's dress, staining it thoroughly without apology. He didn't offer to help clean her up but kicked Amy out without even so much as a thank you. 

It was… Underwhelming. Underwhelming and crudely written in first-person. Maya understood that this was Amy's personal notebook, not a polished story. Despite that, she couldn't help but feel a sting of disappointment. Maya expected more. 

She slipped back into the kitchen before Amy returned and swatted Cody's arm harder than she intended to. "Ouch," he called out. "What was that for?" 

Maya whispered through gritted teeth. "You said it was erotica. That shit was barely smut, and for fuck's sake, it wasn't even good," Maya fumed! "You said Marlene said it was decent." She crossed her arms and said, "tell that bitch to get her eyes checked."

While she mauled, Cody rubbed his arm and stared at her like her name was Karen. "Why are you so angry about this?" 

"Cause' I thought it was gonna be good."

"So you take it out on me? I didn't tell you to go snooping."

That quiet Maya for a moment. The truth was she had hoped to catch a glimpse of something tasty. Maybe something would stir her imagination while she walked around without her panties on. Instead, what Maya read was disappointing. 

After a moment, Maya placed her hands on her hips and looked away. "Sorry," She muttered. 

According to the clock, hardly ten minutes had passed. This was supposed to be fun and exciting. Where had it gone wrong? Could she even salvage this?

"What were you really expecting?" Cody took her by the shoulder and gently turned Maya back to face him. "Hmm?"

"Something different, I guess." She looked up into Cody's face and was relieved that he wasn't upset with her. "I was expecting something like your story."

He gave her a dismissive chuckle. "My story wasn't all that hot either."

She knew it was true; he wasn't just being modest. But in his story, Maya could picture Cody being sexy and devious. She saw him pressed against some faceless waitress, one hand poised over her mouth and trying to catch her moans while the other was squeezed into her panties.

"Well," Maya started, pushing her glasses up her nose, "Tell me another one."

"Another… Another dirty story of mine? I don't know if I have one that you'll like."

"Make one up then."

Maya settled back against a shelf while Cody thought. After a moment, he stood up to his full height, and Maya thought she saw a glint of sex and mischief in his eyes.

 "There's this pretty girl with dark hair and glasses, I know." 

Maya rolled her eyes, but her smile betrayed her. "Oh really? What's her name?"

"You know I can't tell you that. Ain't anyone ever tell you that it's impolite to kiss and tell?"

"So, you kissed her?"

Cody sighed and picked up a spatula. He pointed at Maya accusingly and asked, "Did you want to hear my story or not?"

Maya sighed and let her hands flop to her sides. "Fine. Continue."

Cody lowered the spatula. "Like I said, there was this pretty girl with dark hair and glasses. Well, the thing is, I always thought that she was milquetoast, you know? One of those boring-bitchy women who were all talk but no action."

She blanched at his words. Was that how he really thought of her? But then, it struck Maya just how much that made sense. She'd always maintained a certain coldness and bravado when he was around him, a carry-over from her teenage years when Maya felt she had to mask her emotions, especially around fuckboys, but Cody wasn't a fuckboy. He never made her uncomfortable or copped a feel. He always helped her tie her apron, talked to her real nice, and made her bacon just the way she liked. Cody wasn't a fuckboy, so maybe she shouldn't treat him like one. 

"But one day we're working, and while things are slow, she pulls me in the back." He reached out with the spatula and hooked it under the hem of Maya's dress. "She said she wanted to show me something."

He began lifting her dress, and suddenly she had that full-blown giddy drunk smile going, only it wasn't the vodka's fault. She was caught in that weird in-between place where she wasn't sure if she wanted him to see, but she also really wanted to show him.

"She tells me that she doesn't have any panties. When I say, 'show me.' She does."

Maya hesitated at first, then reached down to her skirt from the spatula. She pulled it up herself, lifting it from the hem all the way up to her chest. She watched Cody's eyes settle over her crotch and her knees twitch. She's never been this exposed before, and as nervous as she was, she wanted even more for his story to play out.

"She held up her dress and showed me." Maya held up her dress by the hem, putting herself on display. Cody stood for a moment, fixated on her pussy. Maya wondered if she should have shaved today. 

"Imagine my surprise," he said in a low husky voice. "Not as milquetoast after all, huh?" Maya shook her head, though she didn't trust herself to speak just yet.

Cody took a step toward her and reached out his hand. He traced a thin finger down her stomach and past her belly button until he arrived at the patch of dark hair nested above her pussy. He swirled his finger through it as if he were stirring a drink, then Cody knelt down in front of her as if preparing to inspect her cunt.

"Do you know what she wanted me to do to her?" Maya shook her head and felt her heart thudding against her ribs. "She wanted me to-" He finished by leaning in and licking her clit softly. The sensation darted up Maya's body, and for just one moment, she trembled. It wasn't even a fully committed lick, he merely grazed her jewel with the soft tip of his tongue, but Maya felt it all the same. This was more like the story she'd imagined.

Just then, they heard the door to the bathroom close. The sound startled Maya, and she dropped her dress over Cody's head as he began to kiss and lick her pussy properly. Her chest hitched, and she tried to quiet her excitement, but it was so goddamn hard. The way Cody ate, greedily working his lips and tongue, threatened to expose them both.

She heard Amy settle back in her booth, and Maya looked down at the Cody-shaped figure bulging from her skirt. She pursed her lips and tried not to moan, but the restrain was almost too much. What if Amy heard her call out? What would she do? Maya couldn't' ignore that slight fear of being caught and how riled up it got her.

Maya strained her body, leaning over as far as she could until her head poked out from around the side. "Are you alright, honey?" Amy smiled and nodded like before, though she looked at Maya for a moment longer than usual, and the waitress thought she saw a little suspicion in Amy's eyes.

She leaned back, rested her head against the shelf, and closed her eyes. In addition to Cody's tongue, he'd managed to slip a fat finger inside of her. He pumped it in and out of her slowly, savoring her taste and driving Maya wild until she couldn't help herself. 

She let out a trembling wet sound that was just loud enough to travel throughout the entire diner. Then, realizing what she'd done, Maya clamped a hand over her mouth as if this somehow could undo her audible slip.

Cody stopped working his magic and managed to climb out from under her dress. His face was glossy, and he wiped his mouth absently. Before he could say anything, they heard Amy ask, "Is everything alright?" 

Cody slung an arm around Maya and led her to the counter, where their only patron stood in the dining area, looking concerned. "Yeah," he assured Amy. "She's not feeling well." He gestured to Maya. "I think it was something she drank earlier."

Amy offered Maya a sympathetic smile. "Awe, I'm sorry."

"Yeah," Cody Agreed. "We're just going to pop out the back for a bit to get her some air. If you need anything-" He reached over, grabbed the call bell, and placed it on the counter. "Just ring this, and I'll come to serve you."

They retreated through the kitchen and out the back door, leaving a concerned Amy inside. Cody propped an old plastic milk carton in the door before turning back to Maya.

"Couldn't keep quiet, could you?"

"I'm sorry," Maya said. "It just felt so fucking good."

Cody curled a hand around Maya's hips and pulled her close. He kissed briefly before whispering, "I'll give you a reason to make noise." 

He forced Maya down to her knees, and she peered up at Cody as he spun his apron around like a cape and fumbled with his jeans until his cock was out. In an instant, Maya devoured him, liking Cody's taste far more than the vodka that burned her throat. He watched her, slowly letting a thin dark grin spread over his face like so much butter over bread. 

"Bet you always wanted this, didn't ya ?" She already knew the answer, but Cody nodded all the same. For a moment, she felt him strain her mouth. as if his body were answering too. She took him as deep as she could before Maya pulled free with a cough. "We have to be quick," she said, stroking him with an impish smile and admiring the glossy feel of his cock slick with her spit and his precum.

She felt his body starting to grow taut as she sucked, pulled, and tugged on his cock. Cody made a noise way back in his throat that sounded a lot like satisfaction to Maya. His eyes were full of amusement and affection as he watched her; the sight of Maya with her dark hair and glasses seemed too great to ignore. 

"Damn," a whispered praise that resonated deep inside of her. 

He pulled Maya to her feet and spun her around. Maya bent over on her own and braced herself against the wall, eager for Cody to finish what he had started. His hands roved over her hips before she felt him flip up her dress. 

"Fuck," She thought while a flood of anticipation bubbled up inside of her. "Was this really happening"? She felt the glossy head of his cock push past her tight ring of muscles, and Maya gasped as her anticipation finally boiled over. Yes, this was really happening!

"We have to be quick," she reminded him, only now her words sounded hushed and strained. The short-order cook didn't waste any time. Cody fucked her fast and hard, making no time for petting or sweetness, only carnal desire.

As he slam-fucked her, she balanced herself with one hand while rubbing her pussy with the other. It had been ages since she last got laid, let alone a quickie. Cody filled her from wall to wall, and it shocked Maya just how amazing it felt.  

She had to stifle her voice for fear of crying out in rapture. Earlier, he'd eaten her pussy so slowly, taking his time to savor her taste and drive her crazy. Now there was this frenzied air about him that both shocked and pleased Maya. How could those two stark contrasts live in the same person?

She knew no one would see them back here. The back of the diner faced a lush woodland, but could Amy still hear them; could Amy still hear Maya? The waitress tried to keep her voice under wraps, but Cody had other plans. It was almost like he was trying to get her to call out.

Finally, with her juices running down her inner thigh, Maya couldn't hold it in anymore. She felt as if her orgasm rushed out of her, steam forced up through a kettle spout. She drew in a breath, meaning to call out in a colorful ecstasy, but then she felt Cody's greasy hand clamp down over her mouth. 

"Do you want the whole town to hear you?" He whispered while driving deep into Maya. She heard him chuckle just as her climax swelled to burst. "You do, don't you miss black panties? Don't you miss smut isn't erotica? You do want everyone to hear you cum on my cock?" Figured he'd bring that back up.

At his words, something inside of her burst, and Maya came; a churning, legs trembling, eyes rolled up in the back of her head orgasm. "Yes, yes, yes." only her words were flattened and muffled by Cody's palm. 

He stayed deep inside Maya until her body stilled, and her orgasm ebbed off into a dull throb. It wasn't long after that Cody pulled out of her and stroked himself, hand fisting his cock vigorously until he showered her ass in warm ropes of his cum.

"Maya," then, "damn!" His voice was low in her ear. She liked how he sounded when he came, but she liked how he said her name even more; all silky and soft, like it tasted delicious.

He cleaned her up with his apron, and Maya took a moment to straighten herself out. Cody kept touching her, rubbing her back and shoulders, and Maya didn't shy away from his affection. At least he wasn't being a total asshole about it.

The moment she walked in, Maya was instantly back in work mode. "Amy," she called, "sorry about that. I'm feeling a lot better now." Maya looked over her shoulder back at Cody and flashed him a wicked grin before turning back to their only patron. "Did you need anything?

The amateur writer shook her head, only wanting to settle up on the check. She paid, gathered her things, and was walking out when she looked over at Maya. She gave the waitress a strange smile.

After Amy left, Maya walked around to the back and asked. "What was that about?"

Cody shrugged and then produced Maya's panties. He offered them to her and said, "A deal is a deal."

Maya reached for them, then hesitated for a moment. "You never finished the story. Is this how it ends?"

"Yes, but maybe we could make up more stories." 

Maya nodded before taking her panties back. "Yeah, I hope so." 

The end

[sc0tters]

Little Love | Jack Hughes

summary: the story of how jack realised that he was in love with you too.

request: yes/no

warnings: swearing, use of y/n + oc (kiara is readers sister!)

word count: 4.01k

authors note: welcome to what was meant to be the final fic of 2023! I know I'm late but these this was honeslty a self indulgent fic for me to cure the feelings I felt of all of the Laurie and Amy edits on tiktok. Thank you alll for voting but yes Jack won so he got this fic! I wrote it over a couple of days so this might not be the most cohesive fic but 2024 had to start somewhere... right?

You swore the universe hated you.

Growing up as a kid your older sister Kiara was everything you wanted to be. Only twelve months older than you it meant that you two were constantly compared to each other. But as she was a cheerleader with perfect vision, straight teeth and clear skin. Those comparisons cute deep as you preferred theatre, had braces and acne until junior year and only learnt how to substitute your glasses for contacts the summer before college. The point was that she was always the hot sister and you were always the one who dipped out on those genes, most guys befriended you because it meant they could get closer to her.

In 2010 your family moved to Michigan and with that the purchase of a lake house came with it. The place was right next door to the Hughes’ and with that and your close ages to Jack and Luke, it was no surprise that your families became friends.

From the moment you saw Jack it was practically no surprise that you fell for him. From the way he made your heart pound out of your chest to the way, you felt just a little bit better about yourself when you were the cause of his smiles.

Kiara didn't want Jack, she made it clear that she was always into older guys. She also knew about the crush you had on the boy as he was always the one you were excited to see the middle Hughes boy. Unfortunately for you, Jack never really noticed it, to him you were Luke's friend and Kiara's younger sister. You just so happened to have the room that looked into his but the tree that sat between your two rooms was barely used.

Jack liked you as a person but as you would quietly sit and watch the group together, it meant you often fell to the corners of his mind. Like a fly on a wall, Jack often made the mistake of forgetting to pull you back into the group. You never held that against him though, hell you could never blame him for anything. Your silence was actually how you found Luke.

After embarrassment flooded through your body when you realized that Jack had been in the house when you confessed to Ellen that you liked Jack. You swore you were never going to step foot in that house again it took Luke and some ice cream to swear that Jack hadn't heard what you said. Now nobody would bring you back into the misery you felt in that moment. But that didn't mean that Jack didn't forget your words, truly he had never heard someone talk so highly of him.

"He's just so perfect and his smile makes me feel soft inside."

Even after all of these years of knowing him, it was amazing how only the last few years caused so much change for you and Jack.

summer of 2021

The boys had been playing football in the yard when they heard your car pull up “c’mon we gonna finish this game or not?” Trevor complained as everyone shook their heads opting to instead go help your parents in the hopes of talking to Kiara “you guys are disgusting.” Luke grumbled as he was the only one who just wanted to see you. Kiara had always been a hot commodity at the lake house because she was either tanning in the yard or in her room, never on the boat.

But as the boys came around the wall to finally see the front of the house they didn’t know what was more shocking. The fact that a boy had his hand wrapped around her waist or the fact that there was a girl who was arguably just as pretty stood alone next to them “Luke!” You called out with a squeal as you ran over to the boy not hesitating to wrap your arms around him as he spun you around.

Jack and Trevor both wore the same shocked expressions as they realised it was you. You had grown and finally let your hair grown out of the cut that you seemed to be attached to since you were a kid. Jack didn’t mean to stare but as you sent the boys a toothy grin as you were placed back on the ground he couldn’t help but notice that your breasts had grown larger too, by two or three cup sizes since the last time he had seen you. You raked your fingers through your hair not noticing that they were indeed checking your out as you were in shorts and your bikini top with a baseball jersey covering your shoulders “hey.” You smiled looking up at Jack.

Even after all of these years he could still make your cheeks grow warm just by looking at you “hey.” He matched your quiet expression as he opted for the usual side hug “when did that happen?” The moment the question left Jack’s lips and he saw how it was a bubble of disappointment burst over your head he regretted it.

All of the light that came in your confidence now disappeared as his desire for your sister hit you like an awful taste in the back of your throat "she met him on her trip to Thailand." Right after she turned Jack down Kiara went on a trip with her friends and of course she just had to go ahead and meet the man of her dreams "six months strong." It made Jack wince as he thought about how that was only a month after Jack let it slip that he thought she was hot.

Trevor had still been watching you as he finally cleared his throat "you got anyone special in your life sweets?" The Ducks player brought his hand to his jaw as he saw how the red fabric of your bikini top complimented your breasts as they were pushed together "ain't got no one Z." You shook your head as you brushed your tongue over your teeth flashing him a grin.

It didn't do too much for your confidence as the boy flirted with every girl that he could "think we need to change that then." Trevor sent you a wink that was only responded with a gag from Luke "ew." He grumbled throwing his arm around your shoulders as he pulled you in the direction of the house citing that his mom would probably want to see you.

Jack didn't take long to reach up to hit his friend "ow!" Trevor groaned as his hand massaged the sore part of his head "what the hell was that for?" He complained sending the younger boy a glare "you're disgusting." Jack's scrunched his nose as he shook his head.

The Ducks player smirked as he shook his head "you mad I realized she got hot or that I acted on it before you?" Trevor shot back as he rolled his eyes leaving the middle Hughes boy speechless "she is y/n that's all." Jack explained pushing past Trevor as he shook his head thinking about all the ways you had grown up.

He knew it was stupid but something was different about you this time. No longer did Jack see you as Kiara's sister, you were now y/n an entirely separate entity.

summer of 2022

It was a warm Michigan summer you had now gotten found yourself sat in your bed room as you got ready for your date. It wasn’t often that you found yourself in this position. Ethan convinced you to join him down at the country club for a round of golf as he had come along with Luke to the lake house for the summer.

You had felt good as you curled the ends of your hair letting the sounds of Avril Lavigne echo through your speaker as you’d occasionally turn your curling wand into a microphone “Jesus Christ!” You groaned almost dropping the hot tool on your carpet when you saw Jack sat on the tree by your window.

Physically it was possible for him to stay there was the previous owners of your two homes opted for a treehouse between your rooms. It hadn’t been used in years so you were honestly surprised that it still worked “what are you doing here?” You groaned opening your window so he could come into your room.

Jack felt bile travel his his throat as he saw the pastel mini skirt you wore with your blue polo “don’t go on that date.” Jack blurted out as he didn’t know how much time he would have to convince you to ditch the Canadian boy.

It made you curse yourself as part of you was genuinely actually considering doing what he asked "why Jack?" Your arms crossed unintentionally pushing your breasts up "because I think you can do better than him!" Jack argued shutting your window as the sounds of Trevor and Quinn bickering about something traveled up the walls of the house.

The obvious roll of your eyes was your version of being in full disbelief "you wanna show them to me?" You motioned to the floor in front of you giving him the space to show you "I'm right in front of you!" Jack shot back with an accusatory tone as he pointed to himself.

Part of you thought you were dreaming but the way he offered himself up had you recoiling from disappointment "you're being mean." You shook your head as you turned your attention back to your closet as you looked for your socks "how am I being mean?" Jack shook his head honestly regretting even coming over to you.

The socks stopped your hand from letting your nails dig into your palms "why can't you just be happy for me?" Your voice was soft as you stared at him through your mirror as you waited for his answer "I think you deserve more." He repeated his words as you scoffed.

Your hand raked through your hair as you sucked at your teeth "you don't get to decide things for me Jack!" Your throat felt raw as you mentally told yourself that you couldn't let yourself cry "not when I have spent my entire life loving you!" You had turned angry and almost a little hurt by his timing.

Jack's eyes widened at your outburst "shouldn't be surprised you didn't know with how you were so far shoved up Kiara's ass." An unamused laugh left your lips as you shook your head "you should go Jack." When there was a knock on the door downstairs you knew it was Ethan.

The middle Hughes boy frowned as he shook his head "don't do this-" his voice was softer when his hand reached out to yours. As you heard the door once more "I'm coming!" You yelled as you opened the window "go home Jack." You knocked your head down to the side.

You sucked your cheek as you frowned "wait Jack." Your words stopped him giving him what felt like the light at the end of the tunnel that he so desperately wanted "yeah?" He smiled as he looked down at you not realizing how close you were to him "do I look okay?"

The question felt like a punch to his gut "you look beautiful, you are beautiful." He brought his hand up to cup your cheek but you were quick to push it away "you should go." You sounded as though you were trying to convince yourself that it was the best option "bye y/n." Jack nodded going back to your window to let himself out the same way he got in.

As he listened climbing back to his room you contemplated again if that was even the right choice. But as he didn't dare to look back as thoughts ran through Jack's mind at a million miles a minute, he never knew he hurt you like that and he didn't know how to feel about it.

summer of 2023

It surprised Jack when your parents rolled up to their lake house without you in sight. Kiara and her boyfriend Max were there but you were still missing. Jack didn’t think he would notice it at first, sure your laughter could usually be heard from down the road, and the campfire kept on going until the early hours of the next morning when you finally decided that the stores you were making were not enough to keep you awake. He almost felt out of place as he would sit on the front porch each day patiently waiting for your Mini Cooper to show up.

Honestly, Jack was getting to the point where he was even ready to accept Ethan in that car with you, but the lack of your presence was beginning to drive him mad. Luke only began to notice last week when Jack kept your seat on the bench outside clear “she isn’t coming this year.” Luke figured that it was only right that he finally took Jack out of his misery.

But Jack didn’t feel better as his fingers gripped the arms of his chair "she decided to go to Miami with her friends for a girl's trip." Luke again decided to further put his brother out of his thoughts as he answered all of the questions about you "but what about him?” During all of the previous breaks you weren’t shy to post about your relationship with Ethan.

Every trip to Michigan dump that you seemed to take whenever you could leave Boston had Jack over analysing each individual detail that came from the inevitable picture of your date nights and on top of that you being at the Yost “y/n broke up with him just before finals.” Jack swore he could have hit Luke for not revealing this news to him earlier “something about the distance.” Luke mumbled on not noticing that Jack had gotten up as he made his way back inside.

Jack didn’t bother responding to the calls about where he was going as he ran up the stairs desperate to get his phone from his bedside table. The hockey player almost collided into his bed as he found your contact comfortably sat on an untouched message after you congratulated him on making the playoffs. He wasn’t an ass who left you on read, he just called you instead.

Jacky Hughes 😎: how’s Miami?

The notification made you smile “yeah I’ll be out in a sec!” You called out instantly swiping up as you sat on the couch ignoring how you still had a crush on him.

Y/n 😝: it’s been good

Y/n 😝: is that really what you wanted to ask me about?

Jack rolled his eyes as he smiled, you knew him too well.

Jacky Hughes 😎: heard about Ethan 😕

Even with that you felt foolish for thinking that there was something else that spurred his decisions to contact you. Ethan had helped you be okay with the idea of just being friends with Jack. But becoming a single woman again you found that idea fall apart.

Y/n 😝: just wasn’t meant to be 🤷🏻‍♀️

Jacky Hughes 😎: missing ya here

It made you squeal as you placed your hand on your mouth seeing him say that “be cool, y/n be cool.” You spoke to yourself as you chewed at your lip.

Y/n 😝: thought I’d be getting a message like that from Z

Jacky Hughes 😎: he’s still mad you for dating Ethan

A laugh left your lips as it was an ongoing joke that you both started after Trevor admitted to him that he was surprised that you were dating the college boy.

Y/n 😝: booo

Jacky Hughes 😎: you coming to any games next season?

Y/n 😝: I don't have a devs jersey here

You weren't lying, you only had Jack's devs jersey and you weren't going to bring something like that to Boston with you as you went to college.

Jacky Hughes 😎: could make some things happen

Jack threw the bait out and just waited for you to say what he wanted to see. He couldn't help but feel his hands grow a bit shaky as he watched the three little speech bubbles appear as you typed the message

Y/n 😝: always liked watching boston play

A scoff left his lips as he shook his head knowing that you were simply screwing with him "since when is she dangerous." he shook his head as he thought out his next message.

Jacky Hughes 😎: will make it worth your while

Y/n 😝: will you now?

Jacky Hughes 😎: you have my word squirt

You groaned seeing your childhood nickname that Quinn came up with "that dick." You grumbled going to type anther message as the front dooor to the air bnb opened "y/n c'mon!" One of your friends groaned seeing you still sat on the couch.

Jack frowned seeing no response from you opting for his next move.

Jacky Hughes 😎: i'm sorry I made you feel unnoticed

As you got up you noticed the message and you couldn't help but smile quickly opting for a response before you followed your friends out.

Y/n 😝: wasn't your fault

winter of 2023

Jack had learned how simple it was to make an effort with you all of a sudden as after that morning he made sure to keep in contact with you. The change was something you welcomed as you were reminded of all of the little things that had you falling for him.

Now he stood at the door of your apartment feeling nauseous with the Hughes jersey in his hand and the message from his mom reminding him to not fuck this up as she attached your address to it. A collective fear was held by everyone, not because they thought that Jack would fuck up, but because they knew your delicate heart truly wouldn't have survived if he didn't protect it.

Three steady knocks hit your door "coming!" You called out as there was now nothing more that Jack could do as he also couldn't run "hi." Your eyes went wide as you looked up at him "cute hair." Jack smirked as he saw the pink rollers that were in your hair.

It made you blush as you opened your door letting him in "what are you doing here?" You furrowed your eyebrows as you saw the jersey in his hands "thought you would need this tonight." A smile formed on his lips as he handed it to you. You weren't stupid, you knew that it was laced with his cologne and you were horrible at hiding the smirk on your face when his familiar scent captured your nostrils "Interesting smell." You teased running your fingers over the A badge that sat on the upper chest "had to make sure those Boston boys weren't gonna try anything." His point was true as he felt his face turn to a scowl at the thought.

A sigh left your lips as you placed the jersey on your counter "you didn't have to bring it to me." The point was something he knew as he also did agree with you, he didn't have to do it but he wanted to. Jack nodded as he reached out to grab your hand "but I wanted to." The boy argued back as his reasons for being there were selfish, Jack wanted to see you.

He could sense your hesitancy as you glared at him "Jack you have never done anything just because you wanted to." You reminded him about the fact that you knew him oftentimes better than he knew himself "okay I wanted to see you!" It wasn't often that Jack got you to shut up but in this moment he wanted you to be anything but silent.

You chewed at your lip before you let out a laugh "don't say things you don't mean." The response came off sharp as Jack never actively wanted to see you, if that had been the case this wouldn't have been the first time that he showed up at your apartment.

Jack frowned deciding to choose his words wisely "why do you find it so crazy to believe that I might actually be in love with you!" His fingers tugged through his hair as the color drained from your face feeling your ears begin to ring "I can't give you what you want." Kiara had always been the wild child within your family who lived for travel, you wanted to become successful and then become and wife and a mother. Those were two freakishly different dreams for life.

The boy smiled "you want someone who you can hide behind when you watch the saw movies because even if they scare you because you love to say you've watched them all." You had a strange obsession with the collection but you hadn't made it through more than half of the games mentioned within them.

He stepped closer as you sat on the counter in response to his movements "you want someone who is going to not only drive you to dairy queen at three a.m. but will also be the one to say lets go there." His words made you laugh as there had been multiple occasions where Jack would end up calling you when he realised that you were missing only to learn that you walking to the Dairy Queen up the road.

His hands cupped your cheeks “you want someone who isn’t only your partner but your friend and your confidant.” Your heart throbbed as you nodded “and you deserve someone who reaches for the stars just to give them to you.” What finally came to your realisation was that Jack always cared for you, but whilst he saw you as just Luke’s friend he couldn’t let himself fall in love with you. But whether you wanted to admit that it was you growing up or him no longer being enamoured by Kiara, Jack didn’t just like you. He loved you, but better yet he was in love with you.

It made your mouth go dry as you stared at him almost in awe of the fact that this wasn’t a dream, it was your reality “you’d really be a dick if you weren’t being serious right now.” You mumbled letting your fingers grip at his shirt as he smiled “I’m as serious as a heart attack squirt.” His nickname that he came up with for you when you were seven and deathly afraid of water guns (you didn’t trust the boys on where that water had been). You were brought back to the time Jack hid with you behind a table as you got caught up in the Hughes boy water gun fight.

A grin formed on your lips as his thumb soothed the redness that formed on your cheeks “give me a chance and I promise I won’t fuck this up.” Jack was being honest as he hoped you would see it that way “okay.” You nodded watching his eyes sparkle much like yours did in that moment.

It was strange how you could both see your futures flash in front of you, from rings to babies, and make ups to make outs. The highs came with the lows but he was in all of them “can I kiss you or is that-” you cut Jack off from the start of his panic when you kissed him.

His hands softened on your cheeks as his tongue swiped across your lips picking up the taste of your cherry lip oil “was that too much?” The point came when you needed air as you pulled away from the boy who tugged your hair through his finger tips.

Jack's laugh echoed through your ears as he brought his lips down to yours once more “it was perfect, you’re perfect.” He shook his head as there wasn’t a place he would rather been.

[heich0e]

midnights, menthols, maybes - akaashi keiji/f!reader (1.9k, mostly SFW) tags: platonic FWBs, implications of deep but ambiguous affection, post-coital conversations, akaashi smoking cigarettes, general overtone of those weird growing pains of early adulthood where you're still trying to figure it all out, talk of the future (marriage, parenthood), tw: keiji is kind of slutting reader out to his friends (or the other way around! all in good fun), based on this post and amy's (@saetyrn9) tags.

Keiji has a strict, self-imposed 'no smoking' rule in his apartment.

He doesn't want his little space to yellow with nicotine; his furniture, his books, the walls. He also doesn't like the way smoke clings to any soft surface or fabric, the smell turning sour and stale and impossible to remove over time. And he always says that when–not if–he quits, it'll be easier if he's not used to smoking inside anyway so it won't be an ever-present temptation he has to fight.

But there are two exceptions that he makes to this policy, rule-abiding though he may be. The first exception is reserved for when it's raining outside with an accompanying north wind, which means the raindrops will blow under the cover of his balcony, soak into his house slippers, and he might end up catching a cold. The second is saved for midnights spent with you, recuperating from having gone a few rounds, where just mustering the strength to crawl to the end of his bed and crack open the window is a miraculous feat in and of itself.

A plume of smoke curls from Keiji's lips on a long, almost rapturous exhale, his entire body slackening like he’s cumming for the fourth time tonight. You'd already seen (and felt) the tension bleed from him much earlier in the evening as he fucked you down into his mattress–following your usual routine of drinking your weight in whatever liquor was readily available and slandering your respective employers for a couple of hours–but now he’s really, totally at peace.

You watch him lift the mentholated cigarette up to his lips again, and you watch the inhale. The lit end burns bright in the dark room, stark against the shadows. The only other source of brightness is the distant city light against his profile as he sits next to his open window, backlit by the late night glow.

He has no glasses on—the frames discarded on the bedside table next to you, perched over the open drawer with a string of unused condoms still left hanging out from the side. His hair is tousled, dark and unruly. His lips are still a little swollen, their silhouette slightly fuller than usual as they wrap around the filter of the cigarette and take another drag.

He’s so pretty.

“Hey… ‘ji?” you mumur, soft enough to preserve the stillness blanketing the stretch of bed between you.

Keiji tilts his face in your direction, peeking at you from the corner of his eye with his cigarette still held between his lips.

He says nothing, but you know he’s listening.

“Would you ever wanna be my boyfriend?” 

You're not quite sure where the question even comes from, and clearly neither is he as he plucks the menthol from his lips in mild surprise. He laughs quietly, a half-rasp, and smoke slips out in an inelegant little puff when he coughs a bit.

“No.” His response is quick, honest, and sure.

You can't help but pout. 

“That’s kinda mean," you mutter, your fingers twisting into the comforter that rests over you, preserving your body heat as the night breeze rushes in through the open window. Every so often the wind carries Keiji's cigarette smoke closer to you before it has the chance to draw it out, but you don't quite mind it. It's familiar to you after all this time. Comforting, almost.

Keiji flicks a bit of ash from the end of the cigarette into the ashtray he has resting on the windowsill. 

“You deserve a better boyfriend than me, don’t you think?”

You hear a far-off siren blaring somewhere in the city outside as you consider his question.

“No,” you echo his earlier reply, but where his tone had been so resolute your own is offended on his behalf.

Time and sex has dried you out, and you're more sober now than you'd once been, even though the empty beer cans the two of you drained as still littering his living room table. You push yourself up off the pillows at the head of the bed and crawl down towards the dark haired man on your hands and knees. You're still a little shaky, a little weak, and Keiji watches your every move raptly as you approach. You pause just beside him at the end of the bed, blinking up at him expectantly. He lifts the cigarette to your waiting mouth so you can take a little puff, watching your lips as they just barely wrap around the end. You feel the pleasant buzz of nicotine in your veins as the prickling, minty smoke hits your lungs, then the light head rush that accompanies it once you breathe it all out again.

Keiji pulls the cigarette away and you flop down on your tummy next to him, rolling onto your side so you can peer up at his face. He reaches over to the sill and deftly flicks the ash away once more, and then takes another long drag.

“Why do you think I set you up with so many of my friends?”

This time it's his question that takes you by surprise, the words hanging in the air like the smoke he breathes out.

“Because you’re gossip hungry, and wanna know how they fuck.”

Keiji smiles wryly above you, stamping out the cigarette. 

“Yeah, true," he admits as he shimmies his bedroom window most-of-the-way shut, leaving just a crack to help the lingering traces of smoke clear. He turns to face you, one hand pressing down into the mattress beside your head as he dips towards you. He takes your jaw in his gentle hand, a thumb on your chin as he tips your face up to look at him. “But it’s also because I want you to find a boyfriend who at least has sheets on his bed.”

Keiji's bedding, at present, consists only of a comforter over a mattress cover. You know there's a brand new package of sheets in the corner of his bedroom, because you'd spotted them when you'd stolen a sweatshirt from his dresser not long prior, but when you asked him about them, he admitted that he hasn’t had the chance to open and wash them yet. Part of you wondered when he got them, how long they've gone unopened, and how long he’s been sleeping like this.

He'd been considerate enough to put down a towel before the two of you had toppled into bed, in any case, so at least you weren’t sleeping on a wet mattress.

But now the towel is in the hamper, and his old high school volleyball sweatshirt is wrapped around your shoulders, and the last few lingering wisps of cigarette smoke are slipping through the crack in the window out into the night. 

“Some of the guys you’ve set me up with have way bigger issues than a lack of sheets,” you counter his point, your features scrunching. 

He pinches your nose affectionately.

“Those ones are mostly just my curiosity getting the best of me.”

“At my expense,” you retort nasally.

Keiji urges you back up off the mattress and to the top of the bed again, crawling up along with you. He pulls the comforter up to your chins as you both snuggle down on your respective sides of the bed that isn’t quite meant to fit two people comfortably, but that you somehow never feel cramped in.

You curl up on your side facing him and he does the same, his hands tucked under his pillow beneath his cheek. You and Keiji aren't really cuddlers, and never have been. It always feels more like a sleepover than a hookup at this point in the night. 

Keiji’s eyelids are heavy as he lays beside you, but he's still watching your face between blinks. 

“Lets make a deal,” he says–his voice deep and flat and familiar. 

“‘Kay.”

“How about at forty, if neither of us have gotten our lives together yet and you’ve finally fucked your way through every man in my contact list, we get married?”

You want to laugh, but somehow you don't.

“Isn’t forty a bit late?”

“I figure it gives us a fair shot. I have a lot of contacts, you know.”

That makes you snort.

It's quiet for a moment. Blinks instead of words passing between you.

“What about kids?" you finally reply. "How about 35, instead? Biological clocks and all that.”

“You wanna have my kids?” Keiji's eyes look slightly more curious now, a little more lively under his heavy lids, but his tone doesn’t really change. Ever the same. 

You hum.

“I don’t think it’d be so bad,"–you shrug as much as you can laying down–“not sure I'd be very good at it though.”

“Well, dual income with no kids could be kinda nice.”

“Yeah,” you agree thoughtfully. “We can fuck whenever we want and go on expensive vacations.”

“That would require taking time off work,” Keiji reminds you—a feat which neither of you are particularly good at, at least not now in your late-20s when sometimes just finding 20 minutes in the run of a day to eat a meal feels like time you don't have.

You breathe out something that's not quite a huff nor a sigh, and yet somehow both at the same time.

“Alright, what about 38? Any earlier than that and we’re just setting ourselves up to fail,” Keiji offers up a compromise, wiggling one hand out from under his pillow to brush an errant piece of hair back from your face. "Still a few years for a baby to happen if it happens, and otherwise it’ll just be us and our vacations.”

“38...” you repeat his proposition, mulling it over.

Time keeps ticking.

A few more blinks.

“So, will you maybe marry me?”

“Sure,” you agree, as easy as anything. You mean it too, you think; there are far worse fates than spending the rest of your days with Keiji at your side. Laughing the way you only seem to when you’re together. Fucking the same way you always have. Maybe popping out a few neurotic, deceptively placid-faced babies if the universe has a sense of humour. Growing old falling asleep just like this, face to face. 

You know him. He knows you.

Keiji reaches up into the space between your faces, and sticks out his pinkie.

You reach up and loop yours through.

You're both on the periphery of sleep now, the time between blinks growing longer and longer until soon your eyes are closed.

Keiji hums a little: a question.

You hum back to tell him you're still awake.

“Did I mention that Bokuto-san said the National Team’s trainer is single again?”

“Iwaizumi-san?” you murmur curiously.

Keiji hums again, deep and low.

You crack one eye open, but Keiji’s are still closed and his expression is serene across from you. 

You smile a little, and you might roll your eyes if they weren’t already closing again. 

“Get me his number.”

“Get me a story.”

“Maybe.”

[fluffy-ami]

“Too sweet for me 🍰”

(RanPoe)

A/N: A gift for our sweet and inspiring @jettori (SJHDSJJSSJ the lightning kinda strikes and boom, ami needs ranpoe floof-)! I'm glad you are doing well, pancake 🥞✨

(Also I'm using this post to be like YOYOYO OMG 200+ FOLLOWERS GUYS WHEN AND WHERE AND HOW- I LOVE YOU-💖)

Characters: Ranpo Edogawa, Edgar Allan Poe (romantic, please don't read if you don't like it)

Summary: “I know what you're thinking about. For once, just for this once, I want these thoughts to stop running around in this little head of yours. Just look at me, just let go and laugh... Do you trust me with this, dear?”

“You know, we could read together... if you want”.

“Not in the mood”.

The young detective was sitting quietly at the table, his head on his palms, staring at the window. It was dark and raining heavily outside, with the occasional sounds of thunder interrupting Edogawa's thoughts.

“Come on, it's getting pretty late. You should have a rest,” Poe sighed, leaning on the doorframe and observing his boyfriend's small and even kind of sad-looking figure from the back.

“Working,” Ranpo mumbled in response nonchalantly. Some case files were scattered all over the table, untouched.

“I didn't mean your ‘work’,” Edgar huffed out a quiet laugh, stepping into the room and leaning over the other's shoulder, trying to take a look at his face, “I know you're thinking about it again. Go easier on yourself, dear”.

Edogawa furrowed his eyebrows slightly, turning his head away from him.

“Questioning your own worth after all, I see...” Poe hummed, a little bit sadly, “You want to talk about it once more? You know, I'm always here and my ears are ready to listen.”

The younger male kept looking away, going silent for a few seconds.

“It's... all the same,” he finally sighed, “There's nothing to talk about. Maybe you're right. I guess I'm just... a little bit too tired. Maybe”.

“I just want you to know that... having troubles with solving the case when you're not feeling like it doesn't make you look worse as a person. It doesn't make you look worse in any way,” Edgar spoke in a soft voice, gently hugging Ranpo from behind, “To me, to Fukuzawa, to the whole Agency - you are the most important person. Important in many ways”.

Feeling the younger male relax a little in his embrace, Poe smiled reassuringly. But he also wanted to see the detective's face now.

“Ran, just why can't you accept the fact that solving the case for a little bit longer than 15 seconds is absolutely okay, when you also don't have the-”

“I hahave my ability!” the detective really tried to sound serious, but...

“...Sure you do, giggles,” Edgar whispered with a smile, leaning a tiny bit closer to his partner's right ear on purpose, knowing exactly what he was doing.

“O-of course I- stahahap it!..” Ranpo squeaked, biting back a smile and trying to scrunch up his shoulders.

“Hm? Stop what? You don't want me to talk about how perfect you are on your own?” Poe's little smile became wider as soon as he saw Edogawa's ears turn an adorable shade of red.

“Yehehes..!” giggling quietly, the young detective managed to wriggle free from his partner's warm embrace and get up from his chair, covering his ear with his hand, his face flushed pink already.

“Ah, no-no-no, darling, not this time,” Edgar shook his head and came closer, chuckling softly and pulling Ranpo back by his waist with ease, being really gentle and using very little strength, “For someone who doesn't want it to happen, you sure don't look like you're running away...”

“Wehell, if yohou lehet mehe go, I wihill- WAHAHA– DOHON'T YOU DAHAHARE!..” Edogawa squealed loudly, feeling the familiar hands starting to squeeze his sides. This distraction was enough for his boyfriend to make them both fall on the bed, Poe laying comfortably on top of the detective and looking directly into his eyes, his smile wide.

“You know, I always say that I'm ready to listen, but I think that this certain someone we have here needs to learn how to listen, too”.

“Noho, oh nohoho!” Ranpo tittered, trying to shove at the writer's head half-heartedly, “Gehet off of mehehe! Thahat's a crime against peherson! Ahand thahat person is your bohoyfriend!..”

“I'll make sure to buy the biggest cake to make it up to you, little sugar cube,” the writer couldn't help but be amused at how his partner's blush instantly deepened at the nickname, “Sorry, but for now this big and scary criminal only wants to hear these sweet giggles of yours!”

“Ohoh shuhuhush...” Ranpo let out a giggly whine, covering his face with his hands.

“So there is something I'd like to talk about...”

“Dohohon't tahalk to mehehe!..”

“...about how hardworking...”

His breath tickling Ranpo's ear.

“...how talented...”

Now his neck... Oh no, oh no...

“...and how beautiful you are”.

The detective couldn't help but burst into squeaky giggles as soon as he felt his burning sensitive ear being peppered with kisses.

“Ihi'm nahahat..!” he squealed, kicking his legs out slightly and trying to scrunch up his shoulders, but it was far from enough to stop or even bother the novelist, “Stahahap it!”

“What, can't handle the truth? Are my words a little bit too sweet for you, dear?” Poe giggled along with his partner, blowing on his red little ear.

“Tohooth-rotting!” the younger shot back, squeezing his eyes shut and shaking his head at the sensation as he wiggled under the writer like a worm.

“Oh shush, don't be like that, I know we're both loving it,” the older male pouted jokingly, pinching at his boyfriend's sides to make him yelp cutely, ”You work an awful lot, but, even when you're feeling burnt out, who said that you should forget about what a great and smart detective you are? You know, you don't hahave to sue people every day to prove it!”

“S-stahap tahalking alreheady..!” Ranpo didn't even bother to try and argue anymore as he threw his head back, squealing like a child, his hair messy from all that squirming, his face and ears bright red from laughing, compliments and Poe's small amused chuckles ringing pleasantly in his head. The latter looked up once again, quietly admiring the detective's features and feeling his own face become a little bit pink.

“...Do you have any idea how much I love you?” he suddenly asked, stopping all the tickles. The raven haired male raised his head, looking surprised by the question (and even more flustered now, which made Poe huff out another little laugh).

Ranpo looked in his partner's eyes which were half-hidden by his hair, looking at him happily; his sincere smile, which was full of love and support, and he just- couldn't- Did he even deserve someone like Poe..?

“I'm... Poe, I'm juhust-” the detective stuttered, now avoiding eye contact.

“No-no-no,” the older male cut him off softly, leaning in forward and making their foreheads touch, “I know what you're thinking about. For once, just for this once, I want these thoughts to stop running around in this little head of yours. Just look at me, just let go and laugh... Do you trust me with this, dear?”

Ranpo was silent for a few seconds, but eventually lay his head back down on the pillow, blushing like mad and retracting his hands from the novelist's shoulders:

“...Okay. Just for a little bit, though”.

“You can hold onto me if you want,” the latter smiled sweetly at him.

The younger male thought for another moment, and his hands awkwardly returned to where they were a few seconds ago.

“Well, come here, then,” his partner laughed, lowering his head once again-

“I sAHAid yohou cahan tihickle me, but I didn't sahay you cohould tOHOuch my ehears!..” suddenly, Ranpo's high-pitched giggling filled the room. Nobody was even touching him yet!

“No?” Poe tilted his head slightly, as if he was surprised, “But how are we going to continue our conversation?”

“Noho mohore tahalking abohout mehe, thehen!”

“But that's the whole purpose!”

“Nohoho!”

The writer always considered funny the fact that his partner wasn't able to take any kind of compliments if tickling was involved. This knowledge made Poe a little bit braver in situations like this, but the detective always made sure to get him back (usually, tenfold, but we don't talk about that).

“Oh... Maybe your neck, then?”

“Noho, I'm waharning- pleHEEHEEase..!” Ranpo's shriek quickly dissolved into shrill giggling and his fingers softly squeezed the novelist's shoulders, as soon as his boyfriend tried to blow a tiny, shy raspberry on the side of his neck. Poe just couldn't tickle him roughly or even all that confidently, because, the moment he heard the detective's laughter or saw his smile, it was impossible to really concentrate because of this tingly feeling in his chest.

A couple of small raspberries was soon followed by the avalanche of neck kisses, which made Ranpo want to curl up into himself and squeal eternally. All of this was too much, his face was going to explode...

“Okay, ohokay, you said just a little bit, so there's just a few more things we need to do,” the novelist stopped to give his partner a little break.

“Ohoh gohohod...” the detective tittered, covering his flushed face with his hands and trying to calm down.

But, to be honest... with his non-stop giggling, with all this warmth, with this feeling of safety and belonging... Ranpo couldn't even really tell why he was so upset just a few minutes ago. His partner was one of the few people he could show this side of himself to, and Poe was the only one who always knows what exactly to do to help him feel better...

“...Ihit's nohot fahair,” the younger male let out a sarcastic, giggly groan, ”You nehever lehet me be like these cohold, mysterious dehetectives in moHOVIES–”

He flinched suddenly, but didn't even say anything in protest when he felt these familiar fingers starting to move down his ribs with tiny, gentle pokes, making Edogawa melt further into the bed in his quiet, muffled, high-pitched childlike chuckles.

“Nonono, no Mr. Gloomy Ran-Ran in this office, not on my watch!” Poe grinned playfully, slowly lifting the other's shirt up and revealing Ranpo's quivering tummy, “Are we ready, oh my Greatest-and-the-Most-Ticklish-detective in the world?”

“Wh-whahat are yohou- nOHo-! Noho kisses! I waHAsn't reHEHEADY-!..”

A/N: It's not perfect and probably ooc as hell, but I WANTED THE FLOOF WITH THESE TWO AT 3 AM AND DAMN I'M NOT GONNA REREAD THIS AFTER PUBLISHING, I'M SCARED-

I REALLY TRIED, SO I HOPE THIS IS GOOD ENOUGH, ILY JETT, DRINK WATER AND TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF while I'm gonna disappear again, but at least I feel happy now that I finished it 🤡🌸✨🍃

[filmtv2022]

By Your Side: Chapter Nine (18+ Minor DNI) 

Previous Chapter

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Masterlist

Pairing: Rhett Abbott x Reader & platonic!Perry x Reader 

Chapter Summary: Y/N and Rhett navigate the aftermath of Royal’s outburst at dinner the night before. Amy shares her big heart with Y/N who is taken aback by the little girl's intuition and kindness. 

Summary: Returning to Wabang was never something that Y/N had planned on, but with the loss of her father leaving her the sole owner of her family’s farm she must go back. Time spent at home forces Y/N to face the people she left behind. Will Y/N be able to navigate the murky waters of her past and present as the lines between them blur? 

Warnings: Ends with a spicy/slightly smutty scene + references to the incident + mild language

A/N: I tried to make this chapter a touch shorter for all of you, but knowing me… it’s still pretty lengthy. Oh well, I hope you enjoy the continued emotional trauma, and that the touch of spice between Rhett & reader makes up for it a bit. As always, forgive me for my mistakes, and thanks for reading! Also, I'm sorry if this is showing up funky on the mobile app. I tried to open it on my phone, and it is being odd. I'm not sure what is wrong because it looks fine on the website.

_______________________________________

The yellowish glow of the bedside table filled the room throughout the rest of the night because even in this safe haven it felt as if the world was closing in on you, and to add darkness to the mix would suck every ounce of air from your lungs. Rhett never fully relaxed, his body jolting awake each time he started to get some sleep. For you, time seemed to have stalled while your brain spiraled out of control. The thoughts coming so fast that it was nearly impossible to keep up. But there was one that kept spiraling back as the night trudged forward. You weren’t going anywhere, not this time.

The room began to brighten with the rising sun, stirring Rhett from the last dregs of his fitful sleep. Your soft frame pressed against his acting as the most gentle alarm clock for his senses, his body relinquishing itself into your embrace for just a bit longer. Knowing he was awake, you pressed your lips to the top of his head, brushing your fingers along his spine to comfort him, and let him know you were also awake. 

Groggily, he yawed as he spoke, “What time is it?”

Reaching out, you pressed the home button on your phone which had been discarded on the nightstand. 

“It’s still pretty early, just after 5 right now.”

“Hmmm,” The sound was muffled as he pressed his face further into your chest, letting his arms come to rest along your sides as he pulled himself closer. Talking into your chest, he continued, “How’d you sleep?”

You didn’t really have a response to that as the truth was that you hadn’t slept, but you didn't want Rhett to place that blame on himself. Just as you were about to answer, he lifted his head from your chest and looked deep into your eyes. It was impossible not to notice the violet hues and puffiness that painted the delicate skin.  You could see the worry build in his features, but you were not in the mood to deal with his pity at the moment. 

“Why don’t we get up and make some coffee?” Your suggestion fell flat as Rhett ran a finger along your cheek. 

Shimmying up, you rested back on the headboard while Rhett swung his legs over the edge of the bed, the covers still half over his lap. Shuffling his way over to the dresser, Rhett found himself a fresh set of sweats to wear this morning. With the pants hanging low on his hips, you watched him rifle through the drawer in search of a long-sleeve shirt for you. Quietly, you padded across the room. Rhett was still searching by the time you made it to him, the early signs of frustration evident in the way his back muscles flexed. Wrapping your arms around his middle, you let your forehead rest on the center of his back. His left hand came up to rest on yours, while the other continued to look for a shirt.

“It’s okay, Rhett.”

You weren’t sure exactly what you were reassuring him of, but it felt right. Turning around in your arms, he searched your face for any hint of uncertainty. Trying to encourage him, you cupped his face and pulled his lips down to meet yours. Rhett’s hands fell to your waist as he steadied himself against you.  

“Come on.” Dropping your hands, you moved away toward the door, not bothering to throw on sweatpants. Rhett fell in step behind you, keeping himself close enough to settle a hand on the small of your back. 

Never leaving your side, Rhett stayed right behind you as you readied the coffee pot, his hands sliding up under your shirt to hold onto your hips as you worked. Rough fingertips brushing at the hem of your underwear. Finished getting the machine ready, you pressed the on button. With your hands now free, you rested them on top of Rhett’s, letting his warmth seep into your cold fingertips. Sinking back into him, your head rolled to the side, exposing your neck. Dipping down Rhett painted your skin with tender kisses, each one sending electricity through your body. There was no urgency in this embrace, only comfort, the connection between you both growing with each brush of his lips on your soft skin. 

The gurgling of the coffee pot as it shoved out the last few drops was accompanied by a creak from upstairs. Dropping his hands from you, Rhett reached for the cupboard handle easing it open to give you the opportunity to take out a couple of mugs. Pouring the steaming liquid into the cups, you tried to brace yourself for what was to come. The emotional charge of the previous night still sat heavy in the air. 

Rhett leaned on the counter to drink his coffee, his left arm supporting his weight. Tucking yourself into his side, you watched as his brother came into the kitchen. The chair screeched out a shrill cry as Perry pulled it along the floor. None of you spoke, and in truth, there was nothing to say. Perry could tell by the look on your face, and the way you and Rhett clung together that you knew at least the basics of what had happened that night at the Pit Bar. 

Finishing his first cup, Rhett turned around and got himself a refill. 

“Want more?” He gestured toward your half-empty mug with the pot in his hand.

“Sure.”

You turned to face the counter as Rhett topped yours off and sat the pot back in its spot.  Looking over your shoulder you watched as Ceci and Royal entered the room. A sense of unease and trepidation came crashing in with them at full force. Royal’s eyes still held the remnants of that crazed look he’d possessed during his prayer. 

“Mornin’ ” Ceci feigned normality as she greeted the three of you. 

“Mornin’ ” Rhett spoke for you as he looked back at his family. Ceci, as usual, was moving about collecting items in order to make breakfast while Royal and Perry sat at the table staring off into the distance. You and Rhett were just about ready to leave when Amy came into the room. Sleepily, she gave her dad and Royal a hug before coming over to see you. Her eyes were still half closed as she leaned into you, not so much giving you a hug as letting her whole body weight press into you. Smoothing her messy blonde hair, you bent down and kissed the top of her head. 

“Hey, bug.” 

Letting go of you, she wedged her way in between you and Rhett letting herself lean on him for a moment. He chuckled lightly as he told her good morning. Perry couldn’t help but notice yet again how content she was with you. The feeling in his chest tightened like a noose. Seeing you and Rhett with Amy reminded him of how things used to be before Rebecca disappeared, and yet he wondered if they had ever been the happy family others perceived them to be from the outside. 

“Will you help me with my hair today?”

“Sure, bug. Go ahead an’ eat and come see me when you’re ready for your hair, okay?”

Stepping away, Amy went to grab herself a bowl of cereal. You could hear her talking with Ceci about whether she wanted any eggs as you walked away. Rhett was like your shadow as you got ready. Never far away, he kept you within touching distance the entire time you were getting ready. The proximity allowed him to stop you every so often and press his lips to yours. Seeing Rhett like this did nothing to calm your nerves because while you loved every second of his affection, this was different. It was like something had broken inside of him, and yet the flame was still there somewhere burning, but in need of oxygen to revive itself. 

Back in his room, you pulled out a fresh pair of jeans from your bag, and a riding shirt. Finished getting ready other than throwing on your shirt and boots, you went to Rhett who was sitting on the edge of his bed buttoning his own shirt. Reaching down you replaced his hands with yours, finishing the job for him. The stiff blue fabric was rough under your palms as you tried to smooth out some of the wrinkles. Rhett stood up in from his seat, his hands finding their way to your waist and into your hair. He rubbed circles into the thin fabric of your tank top as he held you. 

“Let’s just get through the day, yeah?” Your words warmed Rhett’s lips as he held himself close to you.

Rhett’s response was cut off by a quick knock on the partially closed door. 

“I’m ready.” 

It was Amy letting you know that it was time for you to help her with her hair.

“Be there in a second.”

“Okay.” 

Kissing you gingerly, Rhett let go of you reluctantly, “Meet you outside.”

Opening the door the rest of the way, Rhett nearly knocked Amy over in his distracted state. Catching her, he mumbled an apology without stopping. 

“Let’s go to the bathroom bug.” You plucked your shirt from the bed before taking off after Amy. 

Letting her lead the way, you grabbed the brush and hair ties from her hands as she stopped in front of the mirror. Plopping your shirt on the back of the toilet, you settled in behind Amy. Holding the hair ties in between your teeth while you brushed the knots from her hair. Creating a neat middle part, you used one of the ties to keep one section out of the way while you divided the other half into three, laying the smaller sections methodically on top of one another until you reached the bottom. Securing the end of the braid, you laid the other tie on the counter. You made quick work of the second braid, finishing it off with a few loops of the hair tie before using some hairspray from under the sink to hold the flyaways down. 

Amy had been watching you in the mirror as you concentrated. Her eyes tracked the scars on your shoulders and the backs of your arms as you worked. 

“Y/N?”

“Yeah?” 

“It’s okay if you don’t wanna tell me, but how did you get all those scars?”

Your hands which had been pulling at a few spots to soften the braids froze in place, your eyes meeting hers in the mirror. Amy took notice of the fear in your eyes as you contemplated her question.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to tell me. I’m sorry.” Her voice was shaky with worry. 

“No, bug, don’t be sorry. You didn’t do anything bad, your question just surprised me.”

“It’s just that I saw them on your legs this morning, and…”

“And what sweetie?”  Turning her around you tipped her chin up so that you could look into her eyes. The tears that were welling in her beautiful blues caused your stomach to drop. 

“And, I wondered if they still hurt… I didn’t like the idea of you bein’ hurt.”

“Oh, baby bug. You are the kindest soul, did you know that?” You pulled her in for the biggest hug, your own eyes going glassy with emotion.

Loosening your hold on her, you went to sit on the toilet, closing the seat before you sat. With her hands in yours, you moved Amy in front of you as you lowered yourself down. 

“Let’s start with your first question, hmm? These scars… there… there was umm-” Images of that night came back with horrific clarity as you searched for the right way to explain, “an accident. Uhh, someone pushed me and I fell onto some glass.”

“They pushed you?”

You just nodded your head. 

“Did they mean to do it?”

“I don’t know. But the ambulance came and took me to the hospital. An’ those doctors did such a good job, they patched me up real quick. And don’t you worry, they don’t hurt anymore, I promise.” It was taking everything in you to keep in the tears.

“Will they always look like that?”

“Yes, and no. They’ll always be there, but scars kind of change over time.”

Amy hummed in response, her hand reaching out so that she could run a small finger over one of the larger scars on your shoulder. Pulling her hand back she stared at you for a moment, you could see the words forming in her mind before she spoke. 

“You’re scared of the person who pushed you.” 

It wasn’t a question, just an observation… and it broke you. Tears fell in hot lines down your cheeks as you tried to gather yourself. 

“Yeah, I am.” You pressed the back of your hand to your mouth and nose to stop yourself from sobbing. You blew out a deep breath to release the tension in your lungs. 

“It’s okay, you’re safe with us. Uncle Rhett’ll keep you safe.”

It was Amy’s turn to hold you, her grip surprisingly strong as she wrapped her arms around you. 

Just outside in the hallway was Perry. He had been coming to let you both know that it was time to leave when he heard you talking with Amy. Stepping to the side, he listened as you revealed as much of the truth as you could share with his daughter. His heart swelled and broke as heard the conversation unfold. With the room falling quiet, he decided now would be a good time to interject. 

“Hey girls, it’s time to get goin’ ”

The two of you startled at his words, abruptly breaking apart from one another. Standing up you grabbed your shirt, tugging it on haphazardly as you made your way out of the house, Amy followed by your side the whole way, only leaving you once you were outside. 

Standing on the front porch you wiped your eyes on the cuff of your shirt sleeve. This action did not go unnoticed by Rhett who was already on his way over to you. 

“You okay?”

“Amy asked about my scars.” 

“Shit, I’m sorry, she’s got no filter sometimes, I’ll talk to Perry about -”

“Rhett, no. She just wanted to know if I was okay.” Your throat felt like it was closing as you struggled to keep yourself mostly under control. 

“Oh. You sure you’re okay though?”

“Yeah, I’m sure. Now let’s get this shit show started.” 

Rhett chuckled with you as you joined the rest of the group. Wasting no time, Royal led the way, calling out directions as you went. 

…

Overall, the process of moving the cattle was going well, and all of you fell into easy coordination after just a few minutes of working together. You and Amy stayed together most of the time, chatting away about nothing of importance as you worked. Rhett would ride by to check on you every so often but spent most of the time near Ceci. Perry and Royal were like two ships in the night, neither one interacting with the rest of the group unless absolutely necessary. 

With the sun sitting high in the sky, and your work almost done, you dropped back to ride with Rhett and Ceci for the last little bit of the day. Amy was out ahead fully engrossed in the task she’d been given by her grandpa a few minutes before. Looking up ahead you could see Royal pull out a pair of binoculars, his head turning to track down something in the distance. With the naked eye, there was nothing to be seen, but clearly Royal must have noticed something as he took off like a bolt away from the herd. 

“Where’s he going?” Ceci asked to no one in particular.

“Off his rocker, you ask me.” Rhett’s words were marked by the anger and confusion he’d felt towards his father as of late.

No one made a move to follow Royal, choosing to ignore the odd behavior and continue on with the task at hand. Eventually, he rejoined the group, trotting up as if nothing had happened. Giving you a look, Rhett stayed back with you as Ceci rode forward to talk with Amy. 

…

Before you knew it, you were back at the Abbott ranch, the horses were taken care of and resting in the stalls for the night. Everyone was more than ready to turn in, except for Royal, who let everyone know he was going to do one more pass of the fence line before coming in for the night. Ceci tried to talk him out of it, but he wouldn’t hear it. 

Giving up the losing battle, she soon joined the rest of you back in the house where she found you, Rhett, Perry, and Amy all sitting on the couch still in your work clothes. 

“Absolutely not! Get the heck off of my couch and go change. An’ don’t you dare leave those filthy clothes on the floor, you better put ‘em right in the washer.” Ceci made her way upstairs without another word on the matter. 

Following in her wake, the four of you trekked across the house to your respective rooms only returning downstairs once you were in your comfy clothes with dirty items in tow. Having dropped your stuff into the washer you waited to start the load until the others had added their clothes. The sloshing of water followed you as you made your way toward the sound of the TV. Coming into the room, you found it empty apart from Rhett who sat with a beer in his hand, the bottle sweating a ring onto the arm of the couch. 

Rhett sat his beer down on the coffee tabled and gestured for you to join him. Taking your hand, he pulled you onto his lap. Covering you with the blanket that was sitting next to him. Snuggling close, you let your nose brush against his neck. 

“Where is everybody?”

“They all went to bed. Amy was fallin’ asleep sitting up.”

You let your eyes close as you focused on the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest, the motion lulling you into a deep state of relaxation. 

“How you feelin’ about tomorrow?”

“Fine, just hoping for a better bull.” 

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk, but after the way the past 24 hours had gone, he just wanted to feel you. Your lips parted as he ran his thumb across them, the feeling of your plush skin spurring him on. You could taste the bitter tang of his beer on your tongue as he captured your mouth with his. You found yourself twisting in his lap, letting one of his thick thighs rest between your own. Sinking down you let your full weight settle onto him, the sensation sending waves of heat throughout your body. A soft moan fell from your lips as Rhett used his hands on your hips to press you down harder, rocking you back and forth. The feeling was entirely overwhelming, tipping your head forward you buried your face in his neck to block out everything but him. Your teeth scrapped along his sensitive skin as he continued to help you move. You could feel his body practically shaking with restraint. 

“Y/N, please.” 

“Take me to bed Rhett.” 

Standing he wrapped your legs around his waist, his strong grip locking you to him. Making it to the bottom of the stairs, Rhett pressed your back to the wall, kissing you deeply as he ground his hips against your core. Tugging at his hair, Rhett released a filthy moan, the bulk of the sound mercifully getting caught in your kiss.  Pulling back, he continued carefully up the stairs, his fine motor skills impeded both by the fact that he was trying to be careful with you and by the fact that he was rather preoccupied with the feeling of your body against his. 

Finally, at his bedroom, he fumbled with the handle for a second before managing to get it open. Once inside, he held you flush with the door as he locked it, his lips never fully breaking contact with yours. In a less-than-graceful move, he got you to the bed, practically falling on top of you as he followed your lips. Letting his lips ghost over yours he spoke the only words that could even come close to describing the way he felt about you.

“I love you Y/N”

Pushing him back just enough to look into his eyes, you took a deep before baring it all.

“I love you too, Rhett.” 

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