#and stopping by the library so i can pickup a hold

[bunflora]

birthday adventure time :3

[rotdistressxox]

Headcanons: The Ghouls first meeting / Developing a crush on you

The Ghoulettes + Mountain version here

Dewdrop

• Standoff-ish, is feisty with you at first

• Copia has to remind him to be nice to you since you're still new to the ministry.

• Has a lot of trust issues, but you are patient with him.

• You always greet him with a smile and he just sneers at you. But that doesn't stop you from making an effort for friendship

• One day you do something extra thoughtful and you mend the neck of his favorite guitar when he broke it in a fit of rage. He. Was. Speechless.

• "You did this? But, I've been such an ass to you..." "It's no problem, I know how much it meant"

• His feelings for you did a complete 180. He didn't make any rude face expressions when you smiled at him, he could only look away an blush. Other times he'd just wave.

• His tail wags when he sees you despite his face holding no expression. He has to tuck it in his trousers it gets so bad.

• You complement his long hair and he let's you touch it. His face has never been so red when you leaned closer to run your fingers through it.

• "Fuck, I'm such a pathetic loser. (Reader) would never think of me that way"

• He gnaws at his claws while daydreaming about you

Aether

• Warm and welcoming when you first meet

• Instantly becomes friends with you, he's definitely one of the more extroverted ghouls from the rest of the group.

• Finally, he has a work buddy. It's a little exhausting being Copias right-hand ghoul.

• Enjoys your company so much that he asks you to help out with more things around the ministry

• At first he thought he'd only see you as a good friend. But one day he hears you humming one of his favorite songs while in the library. He stays extra silent so you don't know he's there. Fell for you so hard you could compare it to falling down the steps.

• His pointed ears perk up everytime he hears you, smells you, hell, even by looking at you.

• Copia ships you two

• You gave him a little peck on the cheek when he bought you your favorite food while working. He left your office with the widest grin the world had ever seen.

• Never washed his cheek again until Cumulus had to basically hose his face down.

• Puffs his chest out to look more macho, always loves it when you complement his strength.

Rain

• Introverted. A ghoul of few words. Doesn't say anything when you first meet, only nods his head.

• As soon as you talk to him, he averts his eyes and keeps conversations short.

• You understand that he doesn't like talking, so you try communicating without words before he's comfortable enough talking to you.

• Seeing him while in a meeting, your eyes met. He was about to look away but you slip him a note from under the table.

• 'hiii, how r u?'

• His heart skips a beat, but he gives you a thumbs up.

• First it was notes, then it was hand gestures and face expressions. Finally, you two started having conversations

• He becomes more confident after you two became friends. Spoke up and had more faith in himself.

• He started crushing when you cared enough to slip him that note.

• Writes songs about you but hides them in his acoustic guitar. (Yes he plays bass, but likes to play acoustic guitars from time to time)

• He LOVES your eyes, he feels enraptured in your gaze.

Swiss

• Flirty, very flirty

• You can only laugh at his corny pick up lines. That satisfies him enough to know that you have a good sense of humor

• Is naturally very talkative, so it's easy to have conversations with him.

• Continues with using pickup lines on you, honestly he's never had anyone to use them on besides some of his fellow ghouls.

• Until the day comes when you flirt back with him. Satan, that awoke something in him.

• Also, he's very touchy, so he constantly wraps his arms around you and rests his head on your shoulder.

• You think nothing of it since you've seen him do the same with Dewdrop and Phantom. But he's definitely doing it just so the other Ghouls know you're his.

• Loves to show his teeth off for you, you've nicknamed him "Biggy Smiles"

• Quietly purrs when he hears you talk

• The ghouls know how badly he wants you, he talks about you nonstop.

• This man is so down bad. Catch him making up scenarios about you and him. Sounds familiar doesn't it?

• Likes to watch you work from afar, he doesn't want to make his love for you too obvious just yet

Phantom

• Ah yes, the new guy.

• You were there when he was summoned from the depths of hell.

• The first person he laid eyes on was not Papa, but you. You intrigued him in a way no other human has.

• You were assigned to teach him all of his tasks, introducing him to the other ghouls, and to fit him for his Ritual/concert clothing.

• He is very playful with you, he treats you like a fellow ghoul.

• Follows you around like a lost puppy, still doesn't feel like he fits in. You tell him that he's being silly and that the other Ghouls like him despite what he thinks.

• Well, he also just wants to be with you. He's very protective when he's around you, especially with the more flirty ghouls sneaking glances at you now and again.

• He likes his ghoul friends, but will fight for you if they even think of making an advance towards you.

• He's also a flirt, will tease you when you're working. It's worse when it's at a ritual and he sees you in the front of the crowd. He puts his guitar his shoulder, kneels down, and stares at you while smirking.

[alzvxs]

JJK MALES AND WHAT DATES WOULD THEY TAKE YOU ON!😽🎀

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~🪷 a/n: Hey yall!! nice to hear from ya again. im back with new headcanons since they carry my acc LMAOO😭. i hope yall enjoy and if you want you can..subscribe 😏😜🤭. take care🫶

‼️TW: pure fluff.

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~YUUJI ITADORI

• ABSOLUTELY a pup

when out

• will compliment and hold your hand while hes

"surprising you"

• will take you to a beautiful flower field that has a picnic placed on it

• "i know its not a lot but i tried my best!" bro needs reassurance :(

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~MEGUMI FUSHIGURO

• my pretty boy LOVES at home dates<3

• will cook, make snacks, set a romantic table and write letters for you to read later

• after the dinner, both of you will cuddle on the couch while watching a movie, while he big spoons you, hiding his blushy face in the crook of your neck >~<

• in the morning you will find the letters of him thanking you for everything you have given, poems and even kisses on it (he stole your lipstick to make them hehe)

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GOJO SATURO

• fancy dates like boy has money he will spoil his girl

• will buy THE MOST expensive things on the menu

• will probably order the same as you

• then he will drive you home and pamper you at home ^^

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NANAMI KENTO

fancy BUT MEANINGFUL dates. (bro notices absolutely EVERYTHING you like/dislike)

• will probably just take you to a chill coffee/bar so he could spend time with you

• While you talk about your day he will probably wait for you to finish so you can give you a necklace :3

• if you get drunk he will help you be okay and not hit yourself (will take you home, give you medicine and sleep on the couch since hes scared not to take advantage of you)

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TOGE INUMAKI

• my silent prince will definitely do cook/music

dates

• baking with you is a MESS but he loves it

• while the food is cooking or baking he will ask you to dance to love songs <3

• the food ends up delicious and you had a BLISS

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GETO SUGURO

• library/chill restaurant dates

• will compliment you a lot

• dress the way so he can match you

• probably a car ride after the date to spend some alone time

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YUTA OKKOTSU

• beach dates or study dates hehe

• cuddling sessions while listening to yall's shared album

• will whisper sweet nothings in your ear

• all smiley (his problems disappear when with you)

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TOJI FUSHIGURO

• take away.

• BRO DOES NOT HAVE MONEY

• he tries his best tho

• pampers you with affection and diy gifts!

——————————————————————————

CHOSO KAMO

• at home dates

• it feels more romantic to him, prepares everything

• makes the best ramen possible

• will absolutely adore you the whole night and blush at your compliments

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TAKUMA INO

• study dates or chill dates like that and PROBABLY KARAOKE

• sings his ass out just to cheer you up/make you laugh

• hugs you like crazy (he loves PDA)

• “such a cutie that i have all to myself” cheesy pickup lines as well, only to see you blush and smile.

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SRY IK ITS KINDA RUSHED BUT STILLL😭😭

HOPE YALL ENJOYEDD♥️

[etherealyoungk]

college bf!jun scenarios

requested by anon. anon i hope you see this!

pairing: jun x reader

warnings: fluff

word count: 590

college bf!jun who's been your best friend since the day 1 you joined. it was your first day at uni and you were lost and running late for your first class. you bumped into jun in a hurry but thankfully he was heading in the same direction and showed you the way. he found you during lunch break and after that day you both were inseprable.

college bf!jun who's would buy snacks and carry them in his bag all the time in case you hot hungry. and if you did get hungry his bag is like an never-ending array of snacks, he just keeps bringing all types of snacks out - but they're all your favorite snacks.

college bf!jun who's such a goofy guy honestly. loves making jokes, especially in the library when you're trying to study but he thinks it's a great time to tell you all the funny jokes he's collected or silly pickup lines he's learned. everyone looks at you both like you've both gone crazy because jun is laughing (not so softly) as he cracks a joke. "jun!, you whisper yell. "is it not funny? i thought it was funny, it made soonyoung laugh", he tells as he sits up straighter. "jun this is a library, we're supposed to be quiet", you tell and he nods. "oh yeah, i forgot, sorry", he says. "well in that case can we step out for a break, i really want to tell you something", he says and doesn't even wait for you to reply before he's standing up and taking your hand and taking you outside and telling you the joke and taking you to the caferia for a snack.

college bf!jun who was a nervous shy wreck before he confessed his feelings for you. he found you late at the library and sat down with you. he even got you some food and you noticed how the kimbap didn't have cucumber because you didn't like them. but jun paid attention to everything, all the silly and small details you'd tell him. "how come you're here? i thought you were with minghao?", you ask as you take a bit of the kimbap. "isn't it obvious?", he prompts and you just blink at him. "because i like you", you tells and you stop chewing. he thinks he messed up big time when you just stare at him but later when he's walking you back to the bus stop, you mumble out an "i like you too", before running inside and closing the door. jun would try to play it cool but he's so happy.

college bf!jun who's such a silly goofy person and he always finds some way or another to make you laugh or smile. he loves seeing you smile and if you were stressed or unhappy, he'd do his best to bring that smile back to your face.

college bf!jun who hates seeing you stressed and if you were overworking, staying up late too many times and just stressed and tired from studying, he'll pry you away from the books and hold you in his arms, telling you to sleep and that you needed rest too. he'll lightly scold you for not taking care of yourself and make sure you're eating your meals on time not pushing yourself too hard.

college bf!jun who always manages to light you up even on some of your worst days. he's your pillar and someone who's been there for you no matter what.

taglist: @daisycheols @naaaaafla @weird-bookworm @joshuaahong @fallingforshua29

[katz-chow]

laughing 'till our ribs get tough

synopsis: spending 3 weeks with johnny in the field while sleep deprived, hungry, tired, and actually going crazy takes a toll when you two finally get some sort of peace at mind aka you two finally start to relax after a tough recon and undercover mission

warnings: sfw, fluff, gn! reader, friends to lovers, pinning, really really bad jokes and pick up lines

a/n: this is in the same universe as this small fic, but they can read as stand-alones as well. i think my johnny x recon!reader will really just be a slice of life type of series, thanks!

"It's fucking hot as balls out here," You curse frowning and swiping your forehead off the sweat that's been dripping down.

Johnny laughs and pushes you along with a sturdy hand on the small of your back. "You're hot as balls."

You stop and turn to him suddenly, looking furious with steam practically blowing out of your ears. "I'm gonna cut your balls off." You deadpan.

He whistles and looks away from your stare and continues to walk on the tiled streets of Barcelona. The summer heat was beating down as the Spanish air broiled your lungs. It was the last few days of your mission to stalk a Bosnian gang leader on vacation here.

However, the most difficult of your reconnaissance mission has passed and you decided that he wasn't a big enough threat for you and Johnny to tackle. So here you two are, walking the mile in the scorching sun back to your rented Airbnb as two friends who took a month-long vacation to Barcelona. Friends.

"No need to be so snappy, Jesus!" He huffs and practically pouts as you two continue to march up the tight, tiled, stairs to the top floor of your Airbnb.

You smile slightly even with the discomfort of how your clothes are sticking to you. Finally reaching the top and into your home away from home, the shade hits and you two quickly close all the windows and doors while turning on the small ac window unit. Sitting smack dead on the terracotta floor just in front of the icy bliss that is your rickety ac unit, you finally let out a sigh and close your eyes. This bliss, however, was soon interrupted as your Scotsman nudges your shoulder with his own.

You groan and fall back onto the cooling tiles. "What do you want, Johnny?"

"Can you take me to the doctor's?" Soap asked, reasonably calmly, but this question shook you.

You immediately shoot straight up and turn to Johnny with your eyes wide in shock and horror, scanning his body for any injuries. "What? Why? Johnny, are you hurt?"

He looks at you sheepishly, a slight grin forming on his face as he struggled, but fails to hide it. "...Because I just broke my leg falling for you."

"Oh my fucking God, I'm going to murder you!" You shriek as you launch yourself at him and tackle him until you two might as well be sparring. He laughs and throws you as gently as possible over to your backside.

"Hold on, hold on, Lass, I got another," He bites his lower lip to stop the infectious smile he adorned on his face. "Do you have a name? Or can I just call you mine?"

You rolled your eyes and threw him off of you so that both of you two are sat upright, letting the cool air hit you. "That doesn't work because you know what my name is, Stupid."

"Alright, Lass, how about this one," Johnny stands up and presents himself. Suddenly, without warning, it was as if his legs were bound together by an invisible ribbon that caused him to topple over and land on top of you. "If there wasn't as any gravity on Earth, I'd still fall for you."

You snort and laugh a bit as he wiggled his eyebrows quite cartoonishly. A snap over your mouth as you feel a giggle slip out. He sees this and takes advantage of your weakened position to throw another one of his corny pickup lines at you to catch.

"It's 6 pm so all the libraries are closed..." He slides off of your lap and laid himself on his side with an arm up to hold his head. "Can I check you out instead?"

You couldn't help it anymore and burst out laughing behind your hand, but as you make eye contact with him, he raises his eyebrows and bites his lower lip, imitating a professional player. Your laughs ring out from the living room as you throw your head back.

The tears that gather in your eyes threatened to fall as you hear his own laugh mixing with yours. "That-" You snort, "Was the worst possible face you could've made!"

He pushes himself up to sit cross-legged in front of you, mimicking your position. "What face should I have made then? This one?" Johnny licks his lips enticingly but quickly his hand covers his own mouth as he wheezes, unable to take himself seriously.

You couldn't as well as your hard laughter turns into silent ones, and your lower back and stomach ache from the exertion of your glee. You look as he throws his head back and laughs at his antics, he looked so pretty in the setting sun.

You took note of how his mohawk had grown out quite a bit and now is more of a misshapen fade. You also tried your best to memorize the color of the orange sunlight on his tanning skin from the Spanish heat. This was him, not Soap, not Sergeant MacTavish; this was Johnny. And in the haze of you spacing out, he was able to look into your eyes as you did his. A look that lingered for just too long, a look that had some sort of silent words, begging to be spoken.

And for a moment, you both think or rather hope, that one day, this scene can be replayed in better circumstances. But now, you'll take what you can. His laugh though? That could never be enough.

[vshushmshu]

pickup lines

usually the red eared slider’s flirts and compliments were flowery, over the top with heaps of silly, and you would roll your eyes at each and every one. grand sweeping gestures, an arm slung around your neck, or running his thumb over your knuckles with a wiggle of brows that didn’t actually exist. it was entertaining, something you would never actually admit outloud, so you never really shut down his teasing. you only let it happen for the hell of it. yeah.

a wink that looked as if his eye momentarily had an uncontrollable spasm, “i would never play hide and seek with you, because someone like you is impossible to find.”

you grimaced as he walked over to sit beside you on the rooftop, “i honestly wish i could hide from this.”

finger guns, “are you from tennessee?? because you’re the only ten-i-see!”

a huff, looking over the city once more before you stopped patrolling for the night, “new york, buddy.”

“you never humor me…”

“you have no idea.”

an irritatingly wide smile, leo splayed out on your bed, “this might sound cheesy, but i think you’re really grate.”

you turn from your homework to cock a brow at him, “…puns? really? you’re stooping to puns now?”

“hey, a turtle’s gouda do what he’s gouda do.”

“i hate you.”

“awww, i love you too!!!”

you were drawing with mikey when your self-proclaimed bestie barreled in, “i seem to have!! lost my phone number!!!! can i have yours?”

the orange clad turtle seemed to be holding in the fattest cackle, so you ignored him to look at leo with a fairly neutral expression, “i thought you already had my number?”

“yeah, but i kinda… deleted it just to make this work..”

“…you’re stupid. i’m friends with an idiot.”

he pouted, until his phone lit up at an unknown number’s message, “and i’m friends with a meanie pants… oh! thanks!”

you shoved your phone back in your pocket while mikey eyed the two of you, his red striped brother already tapping the number into your contact once more, “sure, mhm.”

nabbing a piece of popcorn from your bowl, eyes scrunched from his simper as he glances at you, then lets his eyes land back on raph and april’s mario kart game once more, “it’s a good thing i have a library card, because i am totally checking you out.”

“…aren’t you illiterate or something? do you even know what a library is?”

“shut the fuck up….”

he looked up from his comic as you flopped onto his bed, just having listened attentively to another one of donnie’s infodumps, “did you just come out an oven?”

you huffed, draping an arm over your eyes, “no, leo.”

said turtle leaned over to poke your cheek with a snicker, “‘cause you’re hot.”

“goddammit, leo.”

“is this hogwarts express, because it feels like you and i are going somewhere magical.“

you stared at him as he gestured to a newly opened portal, “man, i swear, are you getting these from buzzfeed articles?? ain’t no way you pulled a harry potter line out your ass like that.”

“…is your name google? ‘cause you got the answers for everything i’m searching for.”

you swore you saw the face of a slider caught, and your eyes twinkled in amusement, “so, you are.”

“LEAVE ME ALONE.”

“your hand looks lonely. want me to hold it for you?”

you readjust your grip on your weapon, eyeing him in a sort of flabbergasted way, “lee, we are literally in the middle of a FIGHT.”

“right, whatever.”

you both were on your phones, the turtle laying on you scrolling through god-knows what, while you watched a video essay on something you were to inevitably forget about. you snickered at an elaborate joke about something or other, and the slider grinned a little, “roses are red, violets are blue. with a smile like that, looks like i’m doomed.”

“…”

you were tempted to kick him off, something inside you churning, but you just refocused on your video once more. his face seemed a little surprised in your peripheral vision, but at what, you couldn’t be sure.

leo sat beside you in blankets, barely conscious in his goofy pajamas during the latter end of a movie night, everyone else already asleep (except for donnie, who could care less about anyone else as his eyes stayed glued to the screen projected on the wall, hyperfixated on a jupiter jim movie he’s no doubt seen a thousand times over), “are you- did you fell from heaven- cause- fuck. i forgot how that one goes.”

you hid a grin behind a facepalm, equally fatigued as his head dipped to rest lightly on your shoulder, neck giving up on keeping it upright, “of course you did.”

sometimes though, those bits of flattery are uttered so quiet, barely above a whisper, the turtle holding such reverence in his tone. like now, just before he drifts off to sleep to no doubt drool all over you, the slider makes himself comfortable buried in your side. you still when his cheek rubs against your shoulder, a content sigh escaping leo while he wraps his arms around you in your shared blanket nest, “hm mwarm… i wish this would last f’rever..”

you can’t doubt that it’s sincere when it’s said like that. you look away from the movie to stare at him with tired eyes, face warm while you fiddled slightly with your fingers, buried under the blankets wrapped around your own body. leo started snoring in record time, light chirps coming from him every time he shifted in his sleep, and you rest your head on his. maybe you wished that too, maybe your mouth twisted into the smallest of frowns, but you decided not to dwell on it.

letting your eyes drift close, and pulling the red eared slider closer, you knew you were going to wake up to dumb pickup lines that held a bit too much sincerity in them. maybe you were glad.

[1800-page-not-found]

Oooo ok genshin females (mostly Lisa and beidou) with a flirty s/o who just DIES when someone flirts back like s/o is like “uh…I’m…um..well..”

you guys i havent played genshin during the whole 3.7 update lmfao 😍

its summerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

I'll do Lisa, Beidou, and Yae Miko x reader

fyi i dont know how to flirt bc i personally dislike relationships irl so i searched this shit up. im aromantic but fictional characters are just so pretty

this also adds to the fact that im street stupid (but im academically smart tho trust me bro)

i lied im not going to use pickup lines i searched up online and theyre actually horrendous

"Lisaaaaa!" you smiled.

You were Lisa's library assistant, and the two of you were organizing new books while the library was closed.

"Yes cutie?" You laughed, "Me? cute? no way! If anything, I'd say youre the absolute cutest!"

It was quite hard to think straight after someone as pretty and perfect as Lisa complimented you.

"A-anyway," you stuttered, "could you help me sort out these books? I dont know where these go..."

You picked up some books from the delivered box full of books and started flipping through the pages trying to determine what genre the book was. It was hard determining if the book was fiction or non-fiction considering the bizarre events that happened in teyvat. You also didn't notice the quiet advancement of lisa's figure walking up to you.

"These go in the fiction section cutie." she whispered in your ear.

"R-right!"

You shot up and dashed to the other side of the library where all the other fiction books were. It was quite hard flirting with lisa, she'd always beat you to it, flirting with you at every waking moment and possibility. Today however, things were going to change!-

"You didn't think a carved wooden duck could actually be the former dendro archon and sang as a duck did you?" lisa teased you to the brink of embarrassment.

Thank barbatos that there was no one in the library.

"Well, I didn't finish reading it! Yeah!" you shot back, face buried in your hands as you blushed.

You were always unable to flirt with lisa without getting flustered as you could always count on her flirting back but well, more flirtatiously. Hmm...Maybe you were doing this on purpose?...

~~~~~~~~~~

As you walked around the city of liyue, you were spacing out as the day slowly became night. Your trail of thoughts stopped after you felt a hand tap your shoulder.

"[name]!" Ah, it was beidou. "Whatcha' thinkin' about?!" She laughed, bottle of alcohol in hand.

You assumed she got drunk from a dinner party or something, after all it was a bit odd seeing the captain on land.

"Ah, I was thinking about you darling~" You smiled at her, giving a smooth wink.

"Hahaha!" She laughed whole heartedly.

"Whaaat?" You playfully frowned. "Can I not think about someone as charming as you?" You gave her a grin.

"Nice to know you think I'm charming!" she laughed again, but then suddenly she snaked her arms around your waist, and slyly smiled.

"W-what are you doing?!" You blushed and used one of your hands to cover her eyes. "S-stop looking at me like that!!"

Beidou laughed as she peeled your hand off her face and held it while her other hand was busy holding you.

"You're all talk and no bite when it comes to flirting hmm?~" she started to slur her words. "Betcha' didn't think I would do this did you~"

She smiled and shrugged. "What can I say? You really thought flirting like that to me wouldn't make me fall for you? You have quite the charm, give yourself some credit!"

~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh my, [name], I didn't expect seeing you here~" yae miko hummed as she sat down next to you in Uyuu Restraunt, eyeing the many empty bottles of sake around you as you slumped down on the table.

"Hmmm?" You drowsily turned your head (which was still lying on the table if I may add) to face her. eyes widening you struggled to sit straight. "Ah! its the suuuuuper pretty fox shrine lady! When we met for the first time, I just couldn't keep my eyes off you! Your name is um...its uh..." You paused, lost in thought.

"Silly [name], we're dating already. I can't believe you forgot me..." Her ears flopped down and you panicked.

"N-no! I didn't forget-your name is...its y-yae miko right? Please don't be sad!"

"Awe, so you did remember!" She smiled at you, seeing your eyes sparkled looking at her rather cute and fluffy ears. "Do you wanna pet me? Hmm?" As she leaned in closer, you started to blush as she picked up your hands and placed it on her ears.

"Ohmygosh-their so soft!!" you said excitedly.

This however, allowed yae miko to slowly close the distance between your faces, until your noses were practically touching. Unfortunately for you however, it was too late to realize as yae miko planted a kiss on your lips.

Like some cliché excited cartoon highschooler that got asked out on a date with their crush, you fell onto the ground and rolled around like a ball, kicking your feet. "Ah!~The super pretty shrine lady kissed me! Ahehehehe!!" you blushed

Yae miko could only smile at your antics while drunk. "How cute..." She muttered under her breath.

Later on, she bridal style carried you home.

~~~~~~~~~~notes

some of you guys got hella concerning usernames (you know who you are)

are you guys even real or

[imagine-knb]

Hi there! Can I request Kuroko, Midorima, Aomine, Akashi, Himuro, & Kasamatsu trying to impress their crush but failing miserably?

Kuroko: He had thought, what would be more romantic than a letter driven scavenger hunt? The little adventure he had led you on with his handwritten notes had taken you through many of the places he remembered interacting with you — the classroom, the library, on the rooftop — and it all ended here, next to the giant tree at the back of the school grounds. As you approached him, he gave you a soft smile and handed you the last letter; his confession.

He felt his heart stop when you looked up at him in confusion, asking, "Huh? Kuroko? Who's that?"

Kasamatsu: Looking out at the small group of friends gathered around, he could feel the burning edge of anxiety eating away at his stomach. He tried not to look at you out amongst the people watching him, tried to ignore how your eyes were glued to him. Kasamatsu glanced over to the side of the stage where Kise stood, silently encouraging him from the sidelines. He shifted the guitar in his lap, deciding to bite the bullet. He'd dedicate this song to you.

Too bad the microphone let out a piercing screech the second he grabbed it, causing him to turn red and run off stage.

Aomine: Cornering you near the bike racks on campus, Aomine had one of his easygoing, lazy grins on his face as flirt after pickup line fell from his lips. He was leaning against one of the bike rails nearby, looming over your as you fiddled with the lock on your wheel. Too bad he hadn't really been paying attention to where he was placing his feet, however, as he soon found himself tripping over the spoke of another bike, getting tangled before falling to the ground.

Aomine could feel his cheeks burn with embarrassment as he heard you ask if he was okay after his disastrous faceplant.

Midorima: He had been trying so hard to seem as if he were on par with your intellectuality; as if he were worthy of your time and attention. He'd studied all the right terms, really absorbed all pieces of information on anything you showed any semblance of interest in, and did his best to have engaging conversations with you about them. And, for the most part, it seemed to work. You liked talking with him, you were impressed with him, you—

"You're so smart, Midorima-kun. Reminds me of me at your age. You still thought of him as a child.

Himuro: The English study date was supposed to be something simple. Something lowkey that he didn't have to call a date if the vibes weren't right. But it all somehow got turned around when you started asking him to translate a romantic scene from your favorite drama. He was doing fine, speaking every flirting phrase in Japanese, voice dropped as he tried to woo you with them, but...

You snorted, trying to hold back laugher. "Sorry, Himuro, that just sounds so strange coming from you. Is that seriously how it's translated?" Okay, maybe he was being too technical with his translations.

Akashi: It was an amateur mistake. He should have paid attention to Yukimaru's appearance, should have listened to all the signs. The pale horse had been antsy, looking a bit more skittish than usual, but Akashi had ignored the warning signs in favor of keeping his eyes on you. Enthralled with your first time seeing a horse up close, you didn't know what to look for to clue into Yukimaru's discomfort, so Akashi couldn't blame you for what happened.

He just wished Yukimura remembered it was rude to kick at his owner's feet when irritated...

[goeldicotton]

Found this randomly, and just decided to answer all the questions for Eleven and River.

1. River, not to say Eleven isn’t affectionate, but he doesn’t ever say how he feels directly. which resulted in River assuming he didn’t love her at all, so yeah, she wins.

2. River is the little spoon, because Eleven likes to play with her hair while she’s asleep.

3. I mean, I could say the whole spoilers thing, but that’s easy, so instead…probably arguments about killing people.

4. Exploring. they’re both nerds. he’s the doctor, she’s an archaeologist. Yeah, exploring.

5. Already drew it, the answer is River. One, she’d fight him if he tried to pick her up. Two, Eleven is a stick. Three, River being badass is half the reason Eleven is into her. her picking him up would fluster the idiot to no end, and I love that.

6. Eleven: Hair River: His Blushing

7. Eleven: starts flirting back River: stops trying to kill him?

8. Hello Sweetie~

9. Depends on which end of the timeline we’re on. River in her past was reckless and violent, and probably saw the doctor as a complete stick in the mud, with all his spoilers, and rules. Towards the end however, she was the one teaching him his own rules. (that’s what we call a bootstrap paradox.) meaning she had to be the worrying responsible one.

10. The Doctor remembers almost every detail about River. he could tell you the exact thing she’d order, even at a place they’ve never been to, just by glancing at the menu.

11. Usually River.

12. Still River.

13. That one is Eleven. River would never think to hold hands, unless she was dragging him somewhere.

14. River, the doctor is too busy fidgeting/melting into the floor.

15. The doctor barely sleeps.

16. Surprisingly enough, I think that’s Eleven. It’s not to sleep mind you. He’d just want to spend more time with her before dropping her back off, especially towards the end of his timeline.

17. River, I don’t think Eleven ever says it, not to her. he’s probably said it to himself, or even to other people, but he never got around to telling her.

18. I imagine Eleven would leave meals for her on occasion towards the end of their timelines. Mainly when he was running out of days he could see her. they’d usually have notes with random jokes and things. they were his way of saying ‘I love you have a good day/night,’ without actually saying it.

19. River

20. They’re supportive…at least, as much as one can be when your friend marries your daughter. I think they took it well honestly.

21. Eleven, he asks her to dance at nearly any opportunity.

22. River can’t cook. surprisingly enough, cooking a decent meal wasn’t part of her kill the doctor training. Eleven on the other hand, can cook quite well. he tried to teach her once, and the kitchen caught on fire.

23. Eleven is the king of cheesy pickup lines.

24. River, all the time, especially when she was younger.

25. Eleven, but only because River functions without it. She definitely needs assurance that her husband loves her, because it’s eating her up inside, but she’s still able to do things regardless. The doctor meanwhile, has moments where, without assurance, he’s going to fuck up the universe.

26. IDK you yet

27. Eleven.

28. Eleven: travel River: depends, either school, jail, digs, or teaching.

29. One for each.

River never traveled with the doctor, because she feared her husband would come to resent her for risking their timelines.

The Doctor has thought of millions of different ways he could save River from the library, but is so afraid of failing, that he hasn’t attempted any of them.

30. One for each.

River always keeps a box of Jammie dodgers around in case Eleven drops by. she’s been doing this since university.

Eleven’s diary is nothing but him gushing about his wife. like it’s just full of him complimenting her, and writing awful poems, and sketching her. He’s definitely written down that he loves her, even if he’d never said it.

[swallowtailed]

3, for the books ask!

3. what were your top five books of the year?

in order to not repeat myself too much (imperial radch is really good!), i'm going to interpret this question very narrowly and offer my top five books released in 2023. (and 2022, oops, turns out spear was last year but it's good enough to stay on the list.) in no particular order:

feed them silence (lee mandelo)

every ecologist should be required to read this book imo. it's not marketed as horror, but i experienced it that way--it is such a precise depiction of the greatest failures of my field. abuses of power, basal errors of philosophy, a total refusal to comprehend one's place in the world. it's terrifying. great book.

the spear cuts through water (simon jimenez)

i was just posting about this, but god, this book gets so good. like, unbelievably good, enough to justify my other qualms with it. the front matter is also some of the best i've ever seen. that and the first ten pages of prose will tell you what heights this book can reach. it's a fractal, it's a fourth-wall break, it's a physical thing.

the saint of bright doors (vajra chandrasekera)

i don't know whether or not i like this book, or for that matter whether it is "good" or not, but i cannot stop thinking about it. so it's on the list. there is one of the weirder sex scenes i've ever read, and also a spot-on depiction of research fieldwork, and also no conclusions to any of the promises the book makes at the outset, and also a long and very beautiful sequence set in an unending prison-country. idk. read this and then come talk to me about it.

mammoths at the gates (nghi vo)

i read this book cover to cover in the passenger seat of a pickup truck driving down the laguna mountains. every time i looked up, i was somewhere different--the fog rolled in and washed away; the mountains sank downward. i cried, reading it. it's a book about grief, and young adulthood, and coming to understand that everything changes, even the people you love. there are many talking birds.

to shape a dragon's breath (moniquill blackgoose)

god this book is so full of joy. i had it recommended by a friend with excellent taste and then sat patiently waiting for it to come off library hold for like four months. worth every minute. it's an anticolonial ya dragon rider novel that nails the teenage narrator's voice, has an incredible magic system that you have to go and read about because the moments of discovery are some of my favorite parts and i won't spoil them, and perfectly establishes the magic school trope from an indigenous north american perspective. please go read this book it's so fucking good

end of year book asks!

[fallhound]

hi @charlottan, book tag game :3

Favorite books: It is so so hard for me to pick favourites. uhhhhhh... Night Watch by Pratchett, and honestly I could put a lot of Pratchett's books on here. but I won't. Wiedźmin Sapkowskiego, a lot of polish romanticism, satire, and war nonfiction; Sienkiewicz, Mickiewicz, Krasicki, Białoszewski, Borowski. A lot of Brandon Sanderson books; mistborn came to mind first

Favorite authors: a lot were mentioned above. Pratchett is probably the highest up there.

Favorite genres: fantasy, post-apocalyptic (or what I like to call: post post-apocalyptic) and historic nonfiction. Yuri.

Book(s) you’re currently reading: Sideways in time by Murray Leinster, After Sappho by Selby Wynn Schwartz, Macbeth by Shakespeare (plays count, shut up)

Books on your to read list: waaah too many to mention. I still have like 8 ones I've picked up from various used bookstores, my library holds currently are for The Terror by Dan Simmons, Hamlet (particularly choice audiobook), & The city and the city by China Miéville.

Books you loved as a child: Felix, Net i Nika Rafała Kosika, Animorphs by Katherine Applegate, Eragon by Christopher Paolini, Strrraszna Historia (various authors)

Preferred book length: with how I get INTO a book and refuse to put it down until it's over; I wanna say like. 100-150k words??? I dunno tho, I also like small books I can devour in one day, and I also like Project Books.

Books you couldn’t finish: I generally don't bother to remember things that I didn't enjoy or at least disliked in an interesting way. The most recent book I didn't finish was a 2 dollar used bookstore pickup Falling off the map: some lonely places of the world by Pico Iyer. the premise was amazing but then it just ended up being a bunch of British privileged takes on people the author clearly deemed as lesser. HOW IS ICELAND OR CUBA "FORGOTTEN"???? I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE TINY TOWNS, ACTUALLY INTERESTING THINGS, NOT WHOLE FUCKING CULTURES YOU FUC-

Fiction or nonfiction: as a Writer I lean fiction 95%, and as such read a lot of it and learn from a lot of it, but also as someone who was always interested in history of People's, not armies, I've read a lot of nonfiction; journals and such. Both are great, recently I've been on a larger nonfiction kick tho

Buy, borrow from library, or read online: I'm sadly also a buycel, I love physical books. However, I'm also huge on audiobooks, and used to use my kindle a lot. In reality my sortof. division would be: buy from used bookstores, borrow audiobooks from your local libraries, steal ebooks and put them onto a cracked eReader as last resort.

Author you’ve read the most of, but DON’T recommend: I dunno! I mean, hm. I don't know how the Witcher translations are, translating from a nice and juicy language into English is lossy as hell so those version gotta be mid and I would not recommend anyone learn Polish unless you have a damn good reason.

Favorite book character: Can I put a cop on here? cause first character I thought of was Vimes from Pratchett's city watch. He's complicated and a bastard. honestly, a lot of Pratchett's characters. Angua, Carrot, Vetinari even.

If you at some point stopped reading but then started again, what book/books got you into reading again: Gideon the ninth :) I used to read 2-4 books a week as a child, then depression hit, then immigration, money and space and house insecurity, and I stopped until pretty recently :) now I'm back babey

Tagging ANYONE in this, if you do do this, please tag me :)

[alagaisia]

Picked up a couple of holds today, because I don’t work until Sunday and the library doesn’t open early enough on Sundays for me to stop by before work. When I was a kid, you’d go up and ask the desk if you had something on hold, but now they have a holds section where all the books ready for pickup are shelved in order of the hold number on your card. And I’ve been doing this for a couple of months now, so I don’t usually have to look at the tags sticking out of the tops of the books, I know which shelf my holds are on and I can just find the books I know I’m there for.

But this time it took me several minutes because I was looking for books I recognized, and there weren’t any, and none of the other books on that shelf had my hold number stuck to them, and because I wasn’t there for a dvd it took me a couple of minutes of checking other shelves and looking at the numbers to realize there was an empty dvd case, shelved correctly, with my hold number sticking out of it, and the spine of the case read “check below” with an arrow pointing to the lower shelf.

Turns out six of my holds came in at once, instead of the usual 3-4, and so, presumably because of the amount of space they would’ve taken up on the shelf, they’d been stacked together on the bottom shelf instead. So now I know! Confusing few minutes, though.

These are the books on the docket for the next couple of weeks! I had put holds on both the second and the third books of The Expanse, because it looked like the third one would take longer based on the number of copies and my place in line, but Caliban’s War has been in transit for a few days and wasn’t available yet, so I’ll just have to hold on to this one until it comes in.

I think I’m most looking forward to The Golem and the Jinni, but To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is the one I’m going to bring with me to work, because Sundays are usually pretty slow and a bigger book will last for more of my day.

[scottwojahn]

The White Sweater

My cell phone buzzed today with a text message announcing that my dad’s Rx was ready for pickup. “Type stop to cancel”, it politely mentioned, as if the only reason to do so would be my annoyance at notification overload. I suppose I should let them know he’s gone. Best to wait until my next trip in for groceries to tell them that Karl will not be needing anything further from the pharmacy? Or would a call suffice?

A few days ago, after a circuitous route through too many voicemail prompts, I finally reached a woman in customer service at Spectrum and explained I needed to cancel my elderly father’s cable tv service and landline phone. Reading from her script, she walked me through some prompts and offers aimed at keeping me from my goal, finally asking, “Has he moved to another place? We could transfer his account”. I said gently, “Yes, he moved….he moved to heaven”. She dropped the script from there, and was quite kind going forward. We worked it out.

I have found in my car and my nightstand drawer and on my library table, hospital release reports, receipts, and medical reminders - all important records - now unnecessary, irrelevant, moot. They serve no purpose but to remind us of a difficult few months. Tossing them in a wastebasket felt like a kind of betrayal.

Even the weather seems to have given up since he’s gone. Mother nature has howled in angst, with biting winter winds and harsh, mocking temperatures. This morning registered 8 degrees F. It’s as if Karl’s spirit itself was a finger in the dyke, holding forth for all of us against her impassive, fierce discipline.

Joan Didion wrote beautifully of the mild insanities that can follow in the wake of losing a loved one. In The Year of Magical Thinking (Knopf, 2005) she describes removing her husband’s items from their closet, but holding on to a pair of nice shoes because he might still need them. My experience is less dramatic, but the myriad questions of what is a keepsake is daunting. As if the world doesn’t yet appreciate what I know; that Karl Wojahn’s Oregon State University sweater might fit me someday and I’d proudly wear it out somewhere fun. Or that there’s value in the monogrammed brown faux leather jewelry case which holds his fifties-era tie clasps and jade cufflinks from Hong Kong, or his beautiful Navy service pin.

In the last year, as my father slipped into the confusion of dementia, there was little thought paid to the long term, the legacy. We were focused on the day to day. He stopped wanting to go out for breakfast to his favorite pancake house. He quit reading. Eventually he even stopped telling stories from his childhood, a quiver of twenty or so colorful reminders of how far he’d come, from a house with no indoor plumbing on the destitute plains of Eastern Montana, to a college graduate with a bright future and enough funds to buy his own convertible. 

A friend observed that none of us will be remembered personally by more than two generations that follow. It’s unrealistic to expect my father’s life and memory to be shared by more than a few who knew him. He lived to be 97, after all. But perhaps the sight of his early 50s white knit sweater with the OSU beaver logo will open up a beautiful conversation someday, if I can ever fit into it.

[omg-im-such-a-masochist]

MR. REIGNS

Prompt: Requested by nonny

Word Count: Long-ish

Pairings: Roman Reigns x Reader

Warnings: +18, smut, degradation (name calling), flirting, daddy kink, sir kink, age gap

Editor: @thenightmareismyreality

Tag: @ziasaph , @theworldofotps , @sophiewolfheart-blog , @wickedsunfire , @akiko-tanaka , @aerynscrichton , @sassymox , @waywardwrestlewritingwaif , @reigns-5sos , @lustyromantic , @auawdo , @irish-newzealand-idian-dutch , @nicolewoo , @writtingrose , @bayley-no-friends

Notes: Disclaimer - For respect purposes, I’ll be using a fictional name for Roman’s daughter on this fic. If you’d like to check out my other works, you can find them on my Masterlist

It’s finally Senior Year - and what a fucking relief that is! No more stressful and endless studying hours, no more busting our asses off for mediocre grades, no more shitty frat parties “and last - but certainly not least- no more breaking up with asshole boyfriends at said crappy parties!

I don’t like younger guys. They’re inexperienced, get flustered easily, and don’t care whatsoever about reciprocating pleasure towards their girlfriends or hookups! I like older men...there's something about them that’s just perfect. “When I first met Amber Reigns, I never imagined that I would be blessed with such an amazing best friend. That’s why I knew it was wrong to have the hots for her father, but c’mon! Have you seen the man? He’s delicious! And I’m made of flesh and blood, therefore I have my weaknesses too. And Mr. Reigns is one of my biggest weaknesses.

“Y/N” Amber peeked her head inside my dorm room “Are you ready? My dad’s waiting for us in the parking lot”

“Yeah, I got everything I need” I said while putting on my backpack

“Do you mind going to the car? I’ll be right behind you, I just need to leave some books at the library, because if I don’t they’ll fine me like twenty dollars” She rolled her eyes in annoyance

I giggled “Sure. But don’t take too long flirting with the library boy” I responded in a teasing tone

She stuck her tongue out and left.

I made my way towards the parking lot and saw him standing there, leaning sexily against his pickup truck. He was wearing an extremely tight black tank top, which did nothing but accentuate his rippling muscles and tanned skin that were on full display. The intricate patterns of his tattoo could be seen from afar, the way the black lines molded to his skin like a shield never failed to turn me on, and a pair of black joggers caressed his strong thighs beautifully. His long, black, silky hair was tied up in a tight knot at the back of his head....the man was a fucking sight for sore eyes!

“Hello, Y/N” He greeted with a smile

“Mr. Reigns” I said shyly

He grabbed my backpack and placed it in the trunk of his car “How are you?”

“I’m good, sir. How are you?”

“Better now” He winked and smirked. And I almost came in my pants

“Where’s Amber?”

“She went to the library to return some books, sir”

“Don’t I get a hug?” He smiled

I awkwardly hugged him as I felt the smell of his cologne filling up my lungs and this weird feeling of wholesomeness took over me

“Let’s get inside the car, it’s too hot out here” He laughed

Amber had invited me to spend this holiday weekend with her family, and since I wasn’t feeling much in the mood to go home, I said yes. The only thing I didn’t know was that she planned on going to Mr. Reigns’ house instead of her mom’s house. Before I could fantasize in my daydreams for too long, Amber had returned from the library and hopped into the vehicle.

“Who will be spending the weekend with us?” Amber asked as she fastened her seatbelt

“Your uncles will be coming tomorrow afternoon with your cousins. Your brother decided to go to his girlfriend’s parents, and your sister is coming over on Sunday” Mr. Reigns replied as he turned onto the highway leading to his home.

During the two hour long ride, Mr. Reigns and Amber spent most of the trip conversing animatedly, occasionally asking me a question or two to keep me from feeling too left out, but I let them mostly catch up amongst themselves.

When we got to his place it was the end of the afternoon, and Mr. Reigns went to the kitchen to cook us dinner. I took the opportunity to shower and change into some clean clothes, nothing fancy though, just a pair of yoga pants and a gray tank top. While Amber was taking one of her famously long baths, I got bored and decided to go downstairs to see what Mr. Reigns was cooking.

“Y/N, to what do I owe the pleasure?” He smirked

“Amber is taking a bath” I rolled my eyes in fake annoyance

“Oh great” He grunted, but a smile danced on his lips “That will be quick” He joked, and I laughed in response

“So when is your girlfriend coming?” I asked nonchalantly and leaned against the kitchen island as he chopped some carrots

“Girlfriend?” He chuckled “I know nothing about that”

“How is that possible?” I asked in disbelief

“I don’t need someone in my life in order to be happy, Y/N”

“I’m not saying you do, Mr. Reigns. I’m just saying I find it hard to believe that a man like you doesn’t have a girlfriend”

“And why aren’t YOU spending the holidays with your boyfriend?” He teased

“Boyfriend? I know nothing about that” I mocked

He cackled “And why not? Maybe a boy in college wants to be your boyfriend?”

“I don’t like young guys” I shrugged

“Oh really?” He scooted closer “What do you like then?”

“I like older men”

“How old?” He flirted

The vixen part of my brain woke up once I saw the fire in his eyes “Around your age”

“My age?”

I nodded

“And what does a twenty two year old little girl like you know about men my age?” He licked his lips

“Oh Mr. Reigns...I know a lot” I smirked

………………………………………………………………………………………..

We went to sleep late that night, so the next morning I didn’t even hear Amber calling for me so we could go to the grocery store. When I slowly opened the door of the guest bedroom, I heard Mr. Reigns saying:

“I’ll stay here with her and you go to the store, because God forbid if I forget to buy whatever is your addiction at the moment” He chuckled

“Dad, stop!” She giggled “You’re making me sound like a terrible person, AND it’s Twinkies, ok?”

“Again? I thought it was chocolate with nuts”

“Nope, it’s Twinkies now, and just for that, I’ll buy an extra box just to piss you off” She laughed deviously and left out the door.

When her car left towards the highway, I saw Mr. Reigns going up the stairs and coming towards my guest bedroom. I quickly went to the bathroom so I could brush my teeth.

Mr. Reigns slowly opened the door of my room as I was leaving the bathroom.

“So you’re awake?”

“I woke up when Amber was leaving”

“Why didn’t you go to the store with her?”

“Wasn’t feeling like it. Why are you in my room, Mr. Reigns?”

“I came to check on you”

“Why? Do I need someone watching over my sleep?” I laughed

“I just wanted to make sure you were ok, Y/N”

With a smirk on my lips, I said “So you had no other intentions AT ALL?”

“Would you like me to have other intentions?” He chuckled

“Who wouldn’t?”

“You know this is wrong, right?”

“If I heard it correctly, Mr. Reigns, you were the one who wanted to stay behind, and you are the one who came up here” I shrugged

“Touché” He pushed me down on the bed, and covered my body with his

“If it’s so wrong, why are you doing it, sir?”

“Because” He licked his lips “Everything that is forbidden tastes sweeter, don’t you think?”

I giggled while my hands dipped inside his white t-shirt “That’s your shitty excuse?” And chuckled “C’mon, I know you can do better than that”

He cackled “Maybe...or maybe it’s the truth” His hands pulled my satin shorts down “I’ve thought about this ever since I first saw you”

“So why did it take you so long to do something about it?”

“I wanted to make sure you felt the same” His lips brushed against mine

“We better hurry up before someone gets here”

“It takes two and a half hours to get to the store and back, baby. We’ve got plenty of time” He smirked and kissed my lips deeply.

His full lips tasted like caramel coffee, something he drank every morning without a fail. I undid his perfect bun and let his black, silky hair fall upon his shoulders as we kissed. Moaning into the kiss, I pulled his hair while I wiggled my hips, which made him groan.

“So eager” He slapped my ass “I like that. Makes me wanna fuck you even harder”

He took my wrists and locked them on top of my head while rubbing his bulge against my core.

“Please, daddy” I moaned “Please fuck my pussy”

He growled at my pleading and pulled his joggers down quickly. Roman teased my clit with his tip, sliding it up and down my folds, applying more pressure every time he hit my little nub.

“No more teasing, Mr. Reigns... Please...”

Roman smirked and slid in me with one soft thrust.

“Fuck” We moaned together

My eyes rolled to the back of my head as he filled my core like nothing else. His size was beyond perfect to me and I couldn’t hold back my moans of pleasure any longer.

“That’s my good little slut, moan for the one who owns this pussy” He pulled all the way out, until just the tip was in, and then he went in again with a rough thrust

“Oh yes, Mr. Reigns. Keep going please” I moaned loudly

He gripped me by the neck and chuckled “Such a needy whore! I love seeing what I can do to you. The power I have over you...How you lose yourself while I fuck you” He slapped my ass vigorously “You’ve been waiting a long time to have me in you, haven’t you, my sweet whore?”

“Yes, sir” I panted

“Then tell me! Who’s my filthy little slut?”

“Me, daddy”

He snarled before fucking me faster “Say it!”

“I’m your filthy little slut, sir” Tears started to gather in my eyes, as I could feel overstimulation being so close

“Then cum for me, like a filthy, little, slut” He whispered in my ear, while pinching my clit.

It didn’t take him long to reach his high, and Roman quickly pulled out and spilled his seed on my mound.

He leaned down and captured my lips in a sweet kiss

“C’mon, let’s get cleaned up” Roman looked up at the clock and continued “And if we’re quick enough in the shower, we can have another round before someone gets here”

He picked me up in his arms, bridal style and whispered

“I still need to taste this pussy or else I’m gonna become a mad man” He smirked when I gasped

And ran towards the bathroom.

Please, if you’re comfortable with it, let me know your thoughts on this? Feedbacks are always appreciated ❤️😘

[wkemeup]

Sunrise (4)

summary: After an explosion takes his arm and his only sense of belonging, Bucky is content to live out the rest of his days in the hollow comfort of the dark. This is, until Sam drags him down to the local VA and he meets you. (Modern AU) pairings: bucky x reader chapter word count: 5.2k warnings: symptoms of depression, PTSD, anxiety, some really sweet moments to balance it out, more book recs 🧡 series masterlist / series playlist

“You’re staring at the doors again, sweetie.”

Chin resting on your hands, arms folded out on the countertop of the library’s front desk, you tore your eyes away from the entrance to find Mrs. Jefferson peering over at you from over the bridge of her glasses. She smirked as she returned to her book, knowing she’d caught you in the act.  

“Have patience,” she said simply.

“Book club is tomorrow and—” you sighed, a heaviness returning to your body as you slumped back against the counter, stare drifting back to the doors at the entrance. The sun was beaming outside, reflecting in beautiful rays as it illuminated the walkway and touched over old oak and the colorful bindings of novels. 

You frowned. “I really thought he was going to come.”

“This James Barnes... he’s a soldier, yes? Like my boy?”  

You nodded, disappointment burning like a lump in your throat, though you swallowed it back. “A Sergeant. Sam said he came home a little under a year ago.”  

“Then he’ll come,” Mrs. Jefferson pressed confidently, sliding her glasses up her nose, the chain of purple beads clicking against the gem stones on her sweater. “Boys like that don’t break their word. Even if he is a bit of a hesitant one.”

You knew what she meant by that. Hesitant.  

No one liked to talk about the dangers of a soldier post-war. It was uncomfortable; the idea that they could still be fighting a battle long beyond the absence of a weapon in their hands and the threat of present danger. Heroes weren’t supposed to have chinks in their armor. They weren’t supposed to crumble and break under the weight of what happened beyond borders and the guilt they carried.  

They were supposed to be strong; a symbol of a great country and a willing tribute to place upon a pedestal. It was unacceptable to be a burden, unacceptable to do anything other than seamlessly integrate back into a society that they never really knew to begin with.  

It was all a farce; a rigged game set to line the pockets of the rich and exploit everyone else in its path – sent off to fight for a cause no one really understood or believed in. It left behind good men and women to the rubble; Bucky Barnes among them.  

Sam hadn’t told you much about Bucky before you met him, but you knew enough to tell that it was a struggle to get him to leave the apartment. He was isolated and quiet and hardly recognizable from the man you’d seen in photos. Only, it wasn’t the lack of his left arm that drew your attention when you first saw him, but the lingering sadness in his eyes.  

Sam had a picture hanging in the office that often pulled you in. Bucky stood on his left side, smiling so wide it left lines on his face. He was bright, light as a feather, only weighed down by Steve’s arm slung around his shoulders. You wondered if the man in the photo would have flirted shamelessly with you, if he’d have corny pickup lines or offer to take you dancing. He looked like the sort of man who had girls chasing his tail, a line of heartbreak in his wake. He was beautiful.  

It was strange to see him like that, comparing him to the man he was today. Now, it was like a cloud lingered over his head, draining the color from his skin and chipping away at his soul until it dimmed and crumbled and faded away.  

But you’d seen glimpses of the man in the photo. He was still beautiful; a little hurt and dragging his feet, but beautiful. His smile wasn’t quite as wide and the cloud was still present, but there was a peak of sunshine peering through. A single ray puncturing over stormy skies, but it was something. He’d laughed and teased and it was more than Sam had known him to do in months. You were determined to see the sun touch his skin again. If only he’d let you guide him there.  

“I’m going to go restock on the second level,” you conceded, pushing yourself up from the counter and sauntering over to the cart lined heavy with books.  

“Alright sweetie. I’ll be sure to page you when your Sergeant shows up.”

You felt a heat burning in your face at the very idea of ‘your Sergeant’. Mrs. Jefferson chuckled to herself, eyes still down on her book. She waved you off, not giving you a chance to object, even if you could string together a coherent sentence.  

***

Bucky couldn’t get out of bed.  

He’d been in this predicament hundreds of times before; staring up at the ceiling, wasting the days away as the curtains blocked the light and shielded him from the reminder of another sun daring to rise beyond his window. His energy would be drained and his willingness to so much as brush his teeth was obsolete. He’d known what it felt like to not be able to get out of bed.  

This was different.  

He had somewhere to be. He actually wanted to get up. He really fucking wanted to.

But the pain in his arm had flared to one of the worst episodes he’d had in months and it rendered him useless; the arm that was both there and not there. He could feel his left hand curl to a fist, could feel the itch on his palm, but when he tried to scratch it, he was only met with thin air, his right hand sinking to the mattress in search of the sensation that didn’t exist.  

It was infuriating.  

The nerve endings in his shoulder were going haywire. It felt like his arm was being ripped from his body and it took nearly all the energy he had not to let it consume him. He’d even gone as far to bite off a piece of his cheek in an effort to suppress the lump in his throat.  

Sam would have frowned at that, spewed him some bullshit about how crying can be therapeutic and Steve would nod his head annoyingly in agreement, but Bucky was tougher than that. He had to be tougher than that. If he allowed himself to unlatch that gate, it would consume him whole. He’d drown.  

Hinges squeaked at the front entrance as the door swung open and a pair of heavy footsteps came rushing into the apartment.  

“I’m coming, buddy! Hold on!” Sam called, the plastic swish of the grocery bag handing off his arms dropping to the floor. Bucky tried to concentrate on the sound of running water, the bottle of pills shaking in the small orange bottle, and not on the pain threatening to tear him in half.  

The door to his bedroom flung open and Sam rushed in with a glass of water and his fist closed around two red capsules. He paused in the frame, a frown pushing down at his mouth, and Bucky could only imagine what he looked like; disheveled, sweating, laying in day old clothes and muddled sheets. His right hand was shaking.  

“Alright, help me out, Barnes,” Sam said, setting the glass down on the bedside table. He placed a steady hand on Bucky’s back to help push himself upright. Bucky swung his legs off the side of the bed, finding his balance before Sam placed the pills in his hand.  

Bucky threw them back into his mouth, holding his hand out for the glass of water that would come next. It landed in his grip and he gulped down the medication. There was no instant relief with pain like this, but the knowledge it would soon wear off to something manageable was enough.  

“Thanks,” he mumbled out, voice tense as he struggled to find it.  

“Insurance companies are assholes,” Sam scoffed, shaking his head, though he patted Bucky on the knee. “Cutting off coverage for a fucking vet with no warning like that? Can’t believe you’ve been without this stuff for almost a week. It’s messed up.”  

Bucky had come to expect it. He knew something had to go wrong eventually with how things were starting to turn around. He’d actually been looking forward to seeing you at the library and almost went that next day if it wasn’t for the sudden attack on his own body. He'd tried to deal with it on his own, thinking he might sleep it off, but then it became unbearable. Insurance wouldn’t budge and he didn’t have the energy to argue on the phone with them all day. Thankfully, Sam did.  

Except now it was a day before the next book club meeting and Bucky didn’t know how he was supposed to face you. Part of him wondered if you'd be disappointed, if maybe you’d steal a glance over the doors and hope that it was him walking through, only to be let down as each day passed by. The other half wondered if you’d care at all.  

But he’d seen the way you’d smiled at him, how you’d lit up at the idea of him stopping by.  

You’d care.  

He wasn’t sure if that hurt worse, seeing as he never showed up.  

“You could still go.”

Bucky sighed at Sam’s suggestion. He wasn’t teasing him, wasn’t wearing that shit-eating grin. He was being serious. It was the kind of look that reminded Bucky that under it all, Sam was one of his closest friends, one of the few that stuck around when everything went to shit.

“She’ll want to see you,” Sam continued, nudging Bucky’s side with a soft smile, but Bucky shook his head, unconvinced.

“What am I supposed to say to her, Sam?” Bucky groaned, pinching at the bridge of his nose. “’Sorry I stood you up, but I felt like my hand was being sawed off on an arm I don’t even fucking have?’”

“Why not?” Sam shrugged, earning a glare in response he let roll off his shoulders with ease. “She’d understand, Buck. She knows what comes with the territory here. She’s a lot more familiar with this stuff than you think.”

Bucky narrowed his eyes, a pang of jealousy burning hot in his chest. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Maybe you should ask her why she got involved with the VA in the first place.”

Bucky pressed his lips to a thin line, a silence coming over them. That was an immensely personal question; one akin to someone asking him how he’d lost his arm. He wasn’t sure that was an answer you’d be willing to share.  

Sam exhaled a heavy breath, patting Bucky three times on the knee before he stood up. “Let the meds kick in, but promise you’ll try to go, alright?”

Bucky stared up at Sam for a moment before he conceded with a short nod. The pain in his shoulder was starting to lessen, at least. It didn’t feel like his arm was being torn from his body or a knife was plunging into a part of him that didn’t exist anymore. It would likely get back to a place he could deal with within the hour.

“I promise,” Bucky said. “I’ll go.”

***

A brush of warm air filtered in through the vents as Bucky stepped inside the library. It was bigger than he remembered with large stain glass windows on the outer walls, filtering in a colorful sunlight onto the aisles upon aisles of books. At the center, just ahead of the entrance, was a reception desk. Bucky exhaled a tense breath in an attempt to rid himself from the nerves rattling in his veins and made his way to the woman sitting behind the counter.  

She was reading quietly in her seat, a pair of glasses on a beaded chain perched at the very tip of her nose. She didn’t look up in his direction until he stood at the edge of the desk, and only then, she caught glance of him over the top of her glasses before a smile rose on her lips.  

“Can I help you, young man?”  

Bucky cleared his throat. “I’m supposed to meet someone. She, uh, works here. Y/n.”

The woman nodded. She wore the kind of smile on her face Bucky was familiar with. He’d seen it in Sam about a dozen times in the last week; the kind of smile that said ‘I was right.’

“You must be Sergeant Barnes,” she said as she picked up the radio from the desk.  

Bucky nodded quickly, glancing over his shoulder. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but he felt jittery. He tried not to let the fact that you’d clearly talked to this woman about him throw him completely off his game. If he even had game to begin with…  

“Yes, ma’am,” Bucky replied with an even tone. She smirked.  

“Y/n,” she called into the radio, “you have a guest at the front desk.”

The woman held up a finger to him though it trembled with age, signaling for him to wait a moment. Bucky nodded, tucking his hand into his pocket as he silently made his way over to the series of chairs lined along the wall.  

He gripped his fist tight inside his pocket, trying to ignore the pulsing in his shoulder. It had lessened considerably since Sam brought him his meds, but it hadn’t gone away completely. Showering had taken longer than usual and it took him nearly four minutes just to pull a shirt over his head. His army jacket hung over his shoulders, wrapped in a protective layer, loose sleeve at his side. 

“If you’re pulling my chain, Mrs. Jefferson…”  

Bucky perked up at the sound of your voice. You were crossing the main entrance from the staircase, half jogging to the counter where the woman, Mrs. Jefferson, was grinning to herself from behind her book.  

You draped over the counter, toes barely keeping hold on the tile floors as you attempted to reach for her book, but she snatched it from your grasp just in time. You huffed, sinking back down the floor.  

“It’s not funny!” you whined and Bucky almost felt a little guilty for not making his presence known yet, but you were just so cute the way you slumped your shoulders and glanced back at the entrance.  

Mrs. Jefferson pointed over to where Bucky had slowly begun to make his way towards you, but you folded your arms over your chest. Bucky cleared his throat when he stood a few paces off your shoulder, but you didn’t seem to hear him.  

Mrs. Jefferson caught Bucky’s eye before she turned her attention back to you. “Sweetie, he’s—”

“He’s not coming, okay?” you groaned and Bucky felt a stone drop into his stomach. “I—I thought he would but… I was wrong.”

Bucky parted his lips to speak but suddenly his throat was dry. Mrs. Jefferson’s smile started to fade. Clearly, Bucky wasn’t the only one who heard the disappointment in your voice, the sliver of heartbreak, too. He tried to speak, to call your name, to say something, but he was marbled stone.  

“I’m going back to work.”

There wasn’t time to pull his words together before you slammed head first into Bucky’s chest. He stumbled back a few paces, surprised, and you gasped, hands flying to your mouth.  

“Oh God, I’m so sorry! I didn’t—” You stilled, taking in who was standing in front of you. “Bucky?”

He pressed out a smile, though his ears were burning red. “Sorry I’m late.”

“No! N-no, you’re totally fine! I didn’t—I didn’t think you were—” You blinked a few times before your eyes darted back at Mrs. Jefferson who only smirked from behind her book, adjusting the glasses on the tip of her nose. You turned back to Bucky, brushing out the hem of your skirt and wrapping the thick layer of a lavender colored cardigan tightly around your waist, almost like a blanket.  

You exhaled a nervous breath, a nervous smile lifting into your cheeks. “I’m happy you came.”

“It would have been sooner, I swear,” Bucky replied quickly, watching helplessly as your smile brightened into a laugh. “But, um, my uh—”  

He chewed on the edge of his lip. Was he really going to tell you what kept him held up in his room for days on end? Would it bitter the sweet way you looked at him to know that he was a mess under a poorly constructed surface, tied together with string and scotch tape? But you were looking at him so fondly, he wondered if there was anything he could say that could take that away.

“My arm,” he admitted, waiting for a flash of disgust on your face that never came. You softened a bit, but your eyes never left his. He cleared his throat. “It, um… It was just acting up. I ran out of meds and the pain it—it got bad. The kinda pain that sorta makes me wish I had the arm just so I could saw it off myself.”

Shit. He hadn’t mean to say that much but there was just something about the way you looked at him that made him feel like he couldn’t say a damn wrong thing. You pursed your lips, nodding in as much understanding as you could offer. You gestured to the staircase and Bucky followed you without question.  

“I would have been here last week,” Bucky finished because he needed you to know. He couldn’t stand the idea of you being upset, of that sliver of disappointment in your voice when you’d accepted he wasn’t going to show. He needed you to know he’d tried.  

“You don’t have to explain yourself to me,” you said simply, though he could tell you appreciated it nonetheless. You offered him a smile, one that washed away any feelings of doubt that crept up to the surface. The pain in his shoulder was long forgotten when you looked at him like that.  

“I just wanted you to know.”

I just wanted you to know I’m trying.

He had something to look forward to now, a reason to get out of his bed and open the curtains and look at the fucking sun for once. He had reason to shower and go outside and shove away all the thoughts of self-doubt and paranoia because there was something incredible waiting for him beyond the door.  

I just wanted you to know you’re the reason I’m trying.

“Come on,” you grinned, leading him to the staircase. “I have a few books in mind you might like.”  

Your hand extended in his direction, but you caught yourself when you realized what you were doing. It was seamless enough that you easily played it off as you tugged your sweater tight around your body, but he noticed. It was an intimate gesture, a closeness he hadn’t known in years.  

He hadn’t remembered what it felt like to crave something like that.

***

It didn’t take long for Bucky to settle on The Martian by Andy Weir. It was the first book you pulled from the shelves, one amongst a series of alternatives you had ready in the event this one didn’t appeal to him. All it took was a single glance over the back cover, a slight incline in his brow, and he was sold.

“I trust you,” was all Bucky had said; so simply, as if it didn’t take the breath straight from your chest.   

Bucky didn’t have a library card you realized as you brought him back to the front desk. He’d sheepishly asked to check it out on your account, but you were determined to see more of him and you hoped that by getting him his own card, he might be more inclined to come back. Not that you explained it that way per say, but he didn’t object at least.

It had taken a lot less time than either of you anticipated and you found yourself following him to the exit, both of you dragging your feet.

“So, um…” he started, a nervous chuckle in his voice. “That was easy.”

“Yeah,” you scratched at the back of your neck, glancing to the clock hanging high on the eastern wall. “I hope you like it after all this trust you’re putting in my judgement.”

“I’m sure I will.”

A short silence swept over. Neither of you moving to leave. A couple swerved around you in an effort to get to the doors. The silence wasn’t awkward, but there was a nervous energy in it, like you were both waiting for the other to make the first move. Only, you both did it at once.  

“Would you want to—”

“I’m off at four—”

You bit down on your lips, suppressing a laugh. You gestured for him to go first. His looked so sweet with the pink in his cheeks. A man who had been once rendered as a weapon and he wore a blush in his cheeks. Your stomach held butterflies in its cage.  

“There’s a coffeeshop nearby,” he continued nervously. “I was thinking I could replace that coffee of yours I spilled last week…”

Your cheeks were starting to ache from how wide you were smiling. “Give me five minutes? I just need to wrap things up with Mrs. Jefferson and then I’m yours.”

Bucky’s eyes widened for a second, a flash of something unreadable on his face. He shook it off quickly and nodded, telling you he’d wait by the chairs along the wall until you were ready. It wasn’t until you were halfway to the desk that you’d realized what you’d said.  

I’m yours.

A harmless saying; one people used every day in passing. Still, you felt that same surge of energy at the thought. From the twists in your stomach and the stammer in your heart, you knew that if he’d asked, it would be true.  

***

Bucky watched as you scurried back to the main desk, a few quick glances back over your shoulder in his direction like you were making sure he was still there. You were smiling so wide, he wondered if it ached in your cheeks. He’d never known anyone to smile as much as you did, like you had this limitless supply of joy eager to be tapped into. He couldn’t help but feel a twist in his stomach, knowing he had been able to syphon some of that joy and bring it to the surface. It was him you were smiling at. It felt like a dream.

He glanced down at the book nestled into the sleeve of his bag; a stunning ombre in shades of orange to red to black, a lone astronaut in the center – like he was floating adrift. You’d told him it was a story of survival, of the intricacies of humanity and human connection. It was funny at times and filled with science beyond your pay grade, but it was mesmerizing.  

There was an unspoken hope he could read in your eyes that he might connect to the main character, Mark Watney in his search for connection, in his desperate hope to free himself from the isolation, in his resilience. You’d said Mark was an exceptional character, one with courage and determination to be admired.  

Bucky wasn’t sure he could stand up to the likes of Mark Watney, but he would certainly try.  

The glimmer in your eye as you spoke about the book, almost as if it were an old friend, was enough to convince him. For the first time in years, he felt the urge to read when he got home, just so he could see the look on your face in book club when you realized he’d already started it. He wanted to make you proud, wanted to see more of your smile. It was his new drive.  

A few minutes later, you came jogging back up to him. Your purse hung over your shoulders, a few new books of your own tucked under your arm. You’d done more than finish your shift at the desk though, he realized, because his eyes flickered to a reflective shine on your lips, one that hadn’t been there before. You’d put on lip gloss.

His heart flipped.  

“Ready?” you asked, gesturing to the doors. All bright eyes and sunshine as you looked at him.  

“There’s a café called Luciana’s not too far from here. I’ve heard good things about it. Might be quiet,” Bucky offered and a flash of something unreadable crossed your features. “Do you know it?”

“I go there every Sunday before book club! It’s my favorite,” you replied, nearly skipping in your steps. “Replacing my coffee and getting it right down to the same shop? I’m impressed, Bucky.”

He chuckled, hanging his head as he followed you down the descending staircase and into the heavy flow of pedestrian traffic. He’d forgotten how busy the sidewalks could get at rush hour and the smile quickly drained from his face, though he wouldn’t let you see.  

Bucky tried to focus on you as the strangers circled in around him, how you were laughing at the coincidence of it all, starting on a tangent of your favorite donuts at the shop. Your voice was like a beacon and he did his best use it as a guide.  

But he could feel the quicken pace of his heart inside his chest, how it thumped through his ribs and pulsed into his head the closer strangers got to him. He swerved out of the way of a tourist who was too busy looking down at his phone to notice Bucky in his path. He kept his head down, hand clenched tightly in his jacket pocket, eyes staring at the concrete.  

Teenagers were whispering behind him, snickering under their breath, and Bucky could hear the harsh ‘shhh’ of a father at wit’s end. His lungs felt tight, certain that the boys were mocking the loose sleeve hanging down by his side. He could have taken it if here were on his own. His ears would flush red and a wash of shame and embarrassment would flood his senses, but he could have taken it.  

Not with you by his side. Not when you could be privy to the harsh stares and the cruel voices, the validation to a fear he’d known to be true long before he met you – that he was a broken mess of who he used to be and he would never find that sense of normalcy again. He was kidding himself into thinking that you could ever want someone like—

“Bucky?”

When he looked up at you, your smile had fallen away, replaced with concern. It must not have been the first time you called his name. He didn’t know what to say. He felt small, like a child, embarrassed that even on a good day the influx of people still rendered him to a state of panic.  

“Come on,” you said quietly, glancing around to an alley off your shoulder. “Let’s take the scenic route.”  

He followed gratefully, staring at your shoulder blades as you led him away from the busy hustle of the crowd and along empty side streets and residential neighborhoods. It would take longer this way, but you didn’t seem to mind. You were too busy admiring the architecture of the brownstones and the beautiful array of plants and flowers hanging along the windows. In the open space, you skipped a few paces ahead, arms out wide and twirled around, simply because you could. You laughed and it echoed up along the buildings.  

Bucky could have handed you his heart right then. He could have pulled it straight from his chest and set it into your palms. He wondered if you would handle it with the tender sort of care he hoped you would. His heart was fraying and damaged, after all. It required a gentle touch.  

You fell back in line with him easily and you checked to make sure the next block wasn’t too busy before you led him down another side street. He tried to ignore the voices telling him he was a burden, that his baggage was dragging heavy at your feet, but it crept to the surface no matter how many times you smiled at him.  

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled out, willing his voice to be stronger than it felt. “I don’t know why this is such an issue for me. I was fine on the way over.”

“You don’t have to apologize, Bucky,” you said gently, slowing your pace until you came to a stop.  

Bucky dragged his feet, stopping along a bush of pink hydrangeas planted outside a stunning brick townhome. From the corner of his eye, he watched as your hand reached out to him instinctively, almost in slow motion, and you only paused as you realized what you were doing and pulled back. You cleared your throat.

“I’m not ever someone you have to apologize to about this stuff, okay?” you continued with a kind of sincerity in your voice, Bucky didn’t have a choice but to believe you. The way you looked at him nearly pulled him to pieces. “It comes and goes. Waxes and wanes. There’s no fault. No blame. Just tell me if something’s wrong, so I can help. That’s all I ask.”

Were you speaking from experience? Did you know someone who had been as shattered as he was? Was it the reason Sam wanted him to ask about why you were involved with the VA to begin with?  

It was quiet on the side street; the only sound the distant footsteps from traffic up ahead and the low rumble of car engines in the distance. A bird chirped from a low handing branch above.  

You shoved your hands into your pockets in an effort to keep yourself from reaching for his. He was surprised at the twist in his stomach when he wished you would have tried just one more time. Maybe he could have had some courage to take it.  

“Okay,” Bucky agreed, feeling a weight lift from his chest. When you smiled again it was small— a little heavy— but it touched your eyes. There was a relief in it, maybe an appreciation, too. It swept away some of the anxiety from his veins.  

“Okay.” Your smile widened as you continued to walk down the sidewalk. Bucky found himself feeling a little lighter as he followed behind.  

When the two of you approached the main street again along the block Luciana’s was tucked away in, Bucky didn’t feel as though he was suffocating anymore. He could sense his reflexes picking up, a subtle increase in his heart rate, but he walked a little closer to you, your hip bumping against his every so often and he found that it grounded him. It kept him firm on the surface when he felt like he was floating up into a distant unknown. He wondered if you knew the extent to which you affected him.  

Luciana’s was quiet inside as Bucky jutted out ahead of you to reach for the door. A soft strum of an acoustic guitar and a Spanish speaking singer’s intricate melody hummed over the speakers. He felt a solid breath of air fill his lungs, tasting of coffee beans and fresh pastries.  

“Welcome to—” a voice called from behind the counter before she paused, eyes falling on you. “Y/n!”  

A woman ran out from behind the counter, dressed in a stained apron and a long, bright pink dress, and held her arms out to you. You laughed as she enveloped you to her chest.  

“My darling! It is not Sunday, you know. You’re getting your days mixed up!” she exclaimed, wagging her finger at you. She didn’t even give you time to explain before she turned to Bucky, who suddenly felt a burn of heat on his face. “Ah! You finally brought me one of your boys!”

Bucky narrowed his eyes, turning to you quickly. His stomach dropped.  

“She means at the VA,” you explained, a little embarrassed at her implication as you shuffled your feet, eyes darting at the floor. Bucky raised an eyebrow in realization, eyes flickering back to the woman – who he assumed to be Luciana herself – as she scurried back around the counter. He noticed then that she was wearing slippers on her feet.  

“Come, come!” She called eagerly, waiting with a tapping toe at the register.  

You and Bucky exchanged a glance, a breath of a laugh escaping before you stepped up to the counter. You didn’t hesitate in your order, though you took some extra time in looking over the pastries and donuts after Bucky told you to pick something out for him. You put so much thought into it, it was really quite sweet. He waited until you reached down for your purse to slip his card over the counter to Luciana.  

She wore that same smile he’d seen on Mrs. Jefferson at the library. That smirk. Like they knew something he didn’t.  

You heard the ring of the cash registered and looked up at him, agape. You swatted his arm without thinking twice about it and there was a comfort in that. He laughed, taking his coffee and settling in at a table by the windows as you followed behind.  

As he watched you across the table, your eyes glancing out to the pedestrians as they walked back, nursing the steaming mug of coffee between your hands, that morning suddenly felt like it was a life time ago.  

Had he really been paralyzed with pain, unable to move from his bed, just a few hours earlier? It felt like a century had passed in between. In a rare indulgence, Bucky let himself wonder what it would feel like to spend all his time with you; if maybe time moved so fast it swept him off his feet or if it moved slow enough to allow him to catch every second.  

All he knew was that he wanted more.

[shemarmooresfedora]

Rebuilding Family

Summary: Y/N and Spencer were college sweethearts at Cal-Tech but once Spencer got accepted to the FBI Academy, he ended things deciding it was not fair to make Y/N wait for him. When they meet again years later, he discovers something unexpected.

Pairing: Spencer x Fem! Reader

Masterlist

Chapter 10

You were packing up your stuff as students filed out of the lecture hall, it was your last class of the day. As you were walking out towards the parking lot, your phone started to vibrate in your bag. It was the school.

“Hello?” you answered.

“Hi Y/N. It’s Mrs. Flynn. I was just calling to let you know that Jo is now waiting inside with me because she was getting cold outside,” she informed you.

“Spencer’s not there?” you questioned, looking at the time displayed on your phone.

Pickup time was fifteen minutes ago.

“I’m on my way. I’ll be there in ten minutes. Sorry for the inconvenience,” you opened your car door and set your bag down in the passenger seat, turning on the ignition.

“No worries, I have to reorganize the classroom library anyways so I was already planning on staying after.”

Once the call ended, you tried to call Spencer but it went straight to voicemail.

“Hey Spencer, I don’t know if you forgot but it was your day to pick up Jo. I’m getting her now,” you said as you reversed out of your parking spot.

Minutes later, your phone rang again. Expecting Spencer’s contact to show up on screen, your brow furrowed when the name read “JJ” instead.

“Hi JJ?” you said, more of a question than a greeting.

“Y/N, Spencer has been shot. I already told Will to go back to the school to pick up Jo. You should get here if you can. He’s in surgery now but there has been no update since he went in,” JJ explained.

“Oh my god. Okay, I’m turning around now. How did this happen? He didn’t mention he was on a case?” you pulled into a random parking lot to turn around.

“Well technically, we weren’t. We had a lead on a possible local case and we went to interview a potential witness who could give us some more information. We realized too late that he was the unsub. He thought we were on to him and shot Spencer in the leg while trying to escape.”

You had silent tears running down your face.

“I’m five minutes out” is all you could muster and then you hung up the phone.

You ran into the ER doors to find the rest of the team in the waiting room. You were glad you went to Rossi’s dinner party now or else this would have been a much more awkward first meeting.

“Any updates?” you asked frantically.

“No,” Derek sighed, “But no news is good news.”

You took the empty seat in between JJ and Penelope and put your face in your hands, not wanting everyone to see your tears.

-

Two hours of crappy coffee and vending machine snacks as your only source of sustenance later, a doctor emerged from behind the double doors.

She had a completely neutral expression that you couldn’t read but then again you weren’t a profiler.

“Dr. Spencer Reid?” she asked, glancing down at her clipboard.

All of you stood and desperately crowded around her.

“Dr. Reid is in stable condition and awake. The bullet went into his thigh but it wasn’t through and through. He will need to be on crutches for about a week or so but luckily the bullet wound is near the edge of his thigh rather than the middle, meaning recovery time will be shorter,” she explained.

There was a collective sigh of relief along with a few “thank god”s.

“Although he is awake, I don’t think it’s best if you all go in at once since he is very drowsy. He has been asking for a Y/N?” the doctor looked around at you all.

All eyes fell on you. You collected yourself, grabbing your purse and following the doctor down the hall.

“I’ll let you know how he is,” you told everyone before you disappeared past the double doors.

The doctor guided you into a room at the end of the hall. You thanked her quietly and she nodded in acknowledgement, leaving you two alone. Spencer had his eyes closed but his hospital bed was inclined so he was sitting up slightly. You briskly walked over and took the seat right beside him. You took his hand in yours and squeezed it lightly, combing his messy hair out with your fingers.

As you were softly massaging his scalp, you heard a light groan. You retracted your fingers immediately as Spencer began to open his eyes.

Once Spencer took in his surroundings, he quickly sat up completely in bed, letting out a yelp of pain.

“Jo...it was my turn to pick up,” he said frantically.

“Hey, look at me, Spence. It’s okay, she’s at JJ and Will’s. You were shot in the thigh though so you’re not going anywhere. Please lie back down,” you assured him.

He nodded his head, relaxing a bit and looking down at his hands in his lap. He seemed to be processing something in his head.

“You called me ‘Spence’,” he stated.

Shit. That was twice now. It keeps slipping.

“Sorry, I-,” you began to ramble some apology that you didn’t even know where you were going with it. Luckily, he stopped you before you could further embarrass yourself.

“I didn’t say it was a bad thing,” he spoke softly as he looked up at you, tears threatening to fall.

“I was so scared, Y/N,” he sobbed.

You swiftly pulled him into your embrace, tucking his head into your neck as you began to gently stroke his hair again.

“It’s okay, let it out. I can’t imagine what that was like. I’m so sorry you had to go through that but you're safe now, I promise,” you whispered to him.

“I was so afraid I was going to abandon you and Jo again. It hurt worse than the actual bullet,” he muttered into your neck.

You removed your hands from his hair and cupped his cheeks, forcing him to look up at you.

“Spencer Reid, you did not abandon Jo in the first place so there is no ‘again’. Second of all, you would have died a hero saving lives and I would have made sure Jo knew that and she never forgot her Daddy or how much he loved her,” you spoke earnestly, never breaking eye contact.

Spencer’s eyes softened. A second later, his lips were on yours again. This time, however, you didn’t pull away. Life was too short and this was already complicated as is, what’s the harm.

You basked in the familiarity of his lips locking with yours. Once he finally pulled away for air, he rested his forehead against yours.

“Go out with me. A real date. No more college dorm dates with takeout,” he smiled.

“You know you didn’t have to get shot to ask me out, right?” you teased.

“I thought I needed a grand gesture,” he beamed, chucking lightly.

“Yeah, Spence, I’ll go on a date with you.”

His lips found yours once again.

-

“Jo, are you ready?” you called out from the kitchen, packing snacks.

“Mommy, I’m already at the door!” she exclaimed.

Jo was eager to go see her Daddy at the hospital. You would spend the day there until he was discharged and then he would live with you guys for the week. You insisted on being there to take care of him while he was healing. You didn’t want him hobbling around all alone in his apartment.

When you walked out to the front entryway, there was a stack of various toys and books that hadn’t been there when you came down the stairs.

“What is this?” you gestured to the pile, amused.

“Daddy has big boo-boo so he needs stuff to cheer him up,” she stated.

“I don’t think we are going to be able to bring all this. Plus, remember Daddy is coming home with us later today. So here’s what we will do,” you handed Jo her dinosaur backpack, “You pack all the stuff you can fit in this bag that you think Daddy needs right away and the rest of the stuff can wait.”

Jo made quick work of sorting through her massive pile, trying to decide what would make her dad the most happy.

-

“Daddy!” Jo excitedly screamed, running towards the bed.

“Jo!” he returned with the same sentiment.

She was unable to get up on the bed herself so you had to lift her up.

“Remember what I said, careful with Daddy or he won’t get better,” you reminded her.

“You can sit her on my good leg,” Spencer patted his right thigh where you gently set Jo down.

“We brought you loads of stuff, Daddy,” Jo chirped, looking over at you.

You revealed a box of donuts from your bag and the coffee tray you had been holding. You handed him a chocolate frosted donut with sprinkles and Jo a strawberry frosted with sprinkles. The two ‘cheers’ed their donuts before biting into them.

“Jo also brought you some things to cheer you up,” you handed her her backpack.

First, she promptly pulled out a pink Disney princesses band-aid and stuck it on Spencer’s already bandaged thigh.

“You need that so it doesn’t get infected,” she repeated Spencer’s words from when she fell at Rossi’s dinner party.

“Thank you, princess. What would I do without you?” he kissed the top of her head as she rummaged around in her backpack some more.

She set up her five favorite dinosaur toys on his tray table in front of them, glancing up at him for approval.

“Perfect,” he smiled, nodding.

Next, she pulled out a piece of paper that had been colored on.

“Who’s this?” Spencer asked, looking at the three stick figures doodled on the paper.

“That’s you, that’s Mommy, and that’s me,” she pointed to each of the sketches.

“Aw, that one is definitely making the fridge,” you smiled.

Finally, Jo took out her Magic Tree House book that she was currently reading. She needed help with some of the words but either you or Spencer or the both of you would help her read it every night.

“You already finished the last one?” Spencer picked up the new book that was next in the series, examining it and smiling proudly.

“And I didn’t need help with a single word on the last chapter,” Jo beamed.

“You’re so smart,” Spencer kissed her head again, “let’s see how far we can get on this one before we can go home.”