#and work all weekend and a picnic with my friends in the park on saturday

[loverboybitch]

wow hello everyone .. how are we doing.//.

[nerdy-novelist017]

Apologies (Benny Cross x Shy!Reader pt 6)

Ahhh don't come at me for the lack of updates lately! 😅 I've been so distracted with watching the Olympics and my job. I'm not meant to work a ful-time job, your honor. I just wanna write silly fanfics all day and read all night pls and thanks ! Anyway, enjoy! 🩷

Benny x Bunny Masterlist

Word Count- 3.4k+

Summary- The last person you expect to be there to dry your tears is that stubbornly persistent biker of yours.

******

Pete never showed up to your fundraiser. You had waited the whole afternoon in the hopes that you’d see him, but he wasn’t there for your event. He wasn’t there for the bake sale, or the picnic. He didn’t even show up for the auction which you were sure he’d be interested in that since one of the items to be sold was an expensive golf club set. He must have had other plans, you tried to tell yourself. He must have been too busy. 

You hadn’t seen Benny after that either, but you tried to find that as more of a relief than disappointment, after all, he was the reason you and Pete had a bit of a disagreement anyway. Part of you wondered if he only showed up for your tent since you hadn’t seen him anywhere else at the charity afterwards. Regardless, the hours passed at the picnic and you eventually helped everyone pack up before you left too, riding home on your bicycle. You tried to call Pete when you made it home, but his mother answered and told you he wasn’t home. You asked her to have him call you when he could. You ate dinner with your family and tried to not look too hopeful every time the phone rang because it was never Pete calling you back. You expected to go to bed with a sense of dejection, but instead you were surprised to feel something closer to  . . . relief. 

So the next two days went by quickly. You were too busy with work and household chores to notice that Pete hadn’t called you back. It was only when you had gotten up early to start on breakfast on the third day that he finally did ring you. 

“I’m sorry I haven’t seen you much,” he told you over the phone. “I miss you.”

“It’s okay, I’m sure you were busy,” you mumbled as you stirred the pancake batter, phone receiver balancing precariously between your cheek and shoulder. 

“I want to see you this weekend. I can pick you up around noon on Saturday if you’re free.” 

You agreed a bit reluctantly, but he didn’t seem to catch it. 

******

“Oh, are you going to teach me to golf?” you asked excitedly as Pete pulled into the country club parking lot. He’d been quiet to tell you where it was that he was taking you today, but you wanted to trust the spontaneity of the moment so you let him drive you to the mystery location. Out of all the places he could have surprised you with, this certainly wasn’t what you were expecting. Part of you was confused because you hadn’t expressed a particular fondness for the sport, but another part of you felt warmth that he wanted to share his hobby with you. 

“Yeah, I thought you’d like to join me and the boys today.” He smiled at you as you both exited the car. “Sit in the cart and look pretty while you cheer us on.”

Oh. So he wasn’t even teaching you his hobby. You wanted to say something back, to tell him that you were willing to learn if he taught you, but his friends came over then, interrupting your chance to speak. Pete introduced you to them, five in total and you struggled to remember their names. But it didn’t matter much since all chances of you speaking were thrown out the window when they bear hugged each other, and turned to go out onto the field. You followed behind, quietly trying to find a place in their obviously-tight friend group. And that’s how you spent the next three hours: awkwardly existing in their world, sitting on the cart and watching them play. You were the only girl, and it was clear that they didn’t know how to involve you much in their conversations. And when you were able to pull Pete to the side for a moment, you asked if he could let you take a swing once, just to try it out. He nodded but said, “Well, maybe in the next game, this one I’ve got a bet on and every shot counts.” You didn’t ask again. 

Even though you were still technically spending time with him, this didn’t feel in any way fun or exciting. You tried not to, but your mind drifted to your night spent at the bar with Benny and how fun that was, despite it being a bar full of bikers – a scenario you would have never thought you’d be in, let alone enjoy. As you sat in the golf cart, having nothing better to do than to watch Pete with his friends, you wondered if this was all he wanted you for. Were you really just a doll to him? A trophy? You didn’t get to play? 

After the next game ended, you asked Pete if he could take you somewhere for lunch and he seemed almost reluctant to leave his friends. But in the end, he did agree, and you said goodbye to the band of golfers. You walked back to the parking lot together and when you spotted his car in the distance, you figured this was your chance to actually talk with him, not just listen to him speak. 

“What do you want out of life, Pete?” you asked quietly as you slowed to a stop on the sidewalk.

“What?” He paused a few paces ahead of you, glancing back. “What kind of question is that?” 

“I mean,” you struggled to gather your jumbled thoughts. “What kind of life do you want?”

His brows pinched together in confusion. “Well, I’m going to school for engineering so I’m going to do that.”

You waited for him to continue, but he just shrugged and motioned for the car. “You coming?”

Not seeing the conversation over quite yet, your feet remained firmly planted in your spot. “But what do you want out of life? What do you want for me in your life?” 

“Geez, (Y/N),” he laughed humorlessly. “Where is this coming from?” His expression darkened suddenly. “Is this because of that dirty biker?”

It was your turn to look confused as you opened your mouth to speak, but he cut you off. “Have you seen him again, hmm?”

“I . . . he was at the fundraiser–”

“What did I tell you?” He asked rhetorically as he closed the distance between you. “I don’t want you around that deadbeat again.”

“It wasn’t like I sought him out,” you defended, trying to ignore the rush of agitation at his choice of description. “I had no clue he would be there. I thought you were going to be there.”

“Well, I couldn’t be. You can’t just expect me to drop everything for you at such a late notice.”

“What was more important that you needed to be at?” You frowned.

He rolled his eyes, turning back to the car. “I have my own life.”

That’s when you realized that he was so . . . disconnected, uninterested. He may have wanted you but not in the way of getting to know you. His want was selfish, only born out of lust. He didn’t care about your hobbies or interests. You weren’t even listened to when you spoke to him. The realization was painfully obvious and you felt like a fool, like he had played you. And maybe he wasn’t even aware of it himself, but you could see it now: he didn’t care for you, not in the way you longed for. 

You wrapped your arms around yourself, shaking your head as you watched him approach the driver’s side door. “I know that, but . . . I was just hoping to spend time with you.”

He turned back and threw his arms out dramatically. “I’m spending time with you now, aren't I? Will you just get in the car?” 

You took a deep breath, looking down at your shoes. “I think I’m gonna walk home.”

“Are you serious?” His voice grew colder as he yanked open his door. “Because I didn’t go to your bake sale?”

You shook your head. “No, I like walkin’ and I just want some time to think–”

“You’re going off to find that biker, aren’t you?” 

“What?” Your gaze shot back up to his. “No, I–”

“I knew this would happen.” He shook his head, an unamused smile flashing on his face. “He’s filling your head with all these dangerous ideas. He’s poisoning you against me. Me.”

“I’m not–” 

“Get in the car.” You didn’t realize that it wasn’t a request anymore. 

“Pete, I just don’t–”

“Get in the fucking car, (Y/N)!” He shouted, slamming his hand on the roof, and you jumped at the sound. 

You stared at him, wide-eyed like a deer in headlights. You’d never seen any man act like this, especially not Pete. Panic turned the blood in your veins to ice and you were suddenly painfully aware of just how fast your heart was beating in your chest. Seconds ticked by, and he finally reacted to your speechlessness by rubbing a hand over his face, sighing loudly. 

“Look, just get in the car,” he tried again, his voice barely controlled. “We came here together and I don’t want people to talk about how I’m leaving without you, okay?”

No, it wasn’t okay, you wanted to say, but your throat was suddenly too tight to speak. All you could do was stare at this man who you thought you had a pretty good understanding of, who you never thought would raise his voice at you, who would never command you to do something you very obviously denied. You shook your head, hand holding over your chest in an attempt to even out your heart rate.

He called your name, but you turned and forced your legs to walk, to move away from him. You just wanted to get home to the safety of your bedroom. Behind you, you could hear his car door slam shut and the engine whine as it fired up. He drove over to you, nearly hitting the curb as he weaved.

“Fine, walk home then!” he yelled and revved the engine, tires peeling out on the blacktop as he zoomed away. 

That’s when the tears started falling. You sucked in a breath you hadn’t realized you were holding and a sob choked into it. The sidewalk blurred from the stream of tears but you trudged on, wanting nothing more than to escape the prying eyes of the neighborhood. The action of Pete slamming his hand against the metal proof of his car replayed in your mind and something unpleasant gripped your heart at the realization that what you saw was his reaction to not getting what he wanted the first time. This was supposed to be the exciting moments of you relationship, the time when you were still discovering who each other were. If he could be so easily angered by you now, what would 5 years of marriage look like? What would 10? 

And as you approached the intersection, a thought came to you and you felt sick at the possibility that maybe this is what your mother felt before she married your father. And your grandmother before she married your grandmother. Like a chain, these women with hearts and ambitions and dreams all just got married and became something their husbands wanted, lived a dream their husbands had. And maybe that was their dream, but what if it wasn’t yours?

The revving of an engine broke you free from your all-consuming thoughts and fresh fear spiked through you. Was it Pete coming back? But no, you realized. The engine was coming from the gas station you were passing on the corner, and it wasn’t a car, but a motorcycle. The rider pulled up to one of the free parking spots, cutting the engine and kicking out the kickstand. His back was turned to you, but you knew who it was already by the messy blonde hair and signature blue jacket lettered “Vandals” across the shoulder blades. You groaned because he was the last person you wanted to see right now but you needed to walk right by him to continue on your way home. And as ridiculous as it was, you wanted to cry harder at the thought of him seeing you crying. 

When he dismounted, you quickened your pace, putting your head down in the hopes that he wouldn’t notice you. But of course, you heard him call out, “Hey, Little Bunny.”

You sniffed hard, quickly swiping your fingers across your cheeks as you heard him approach. Even though you didn’t slow your pace, he caught up to you quickly. 

“You walkin’ home again?” His voice was light, teasing but you didn’t dare to look up at him. “You must really like–”

But he must have seen your tear-soaked face because he stopped, his hand gently grasping your upper arm. “What’s wrong?”

You bit your lip, and against your better judgment, you glanced up at him. That was all it took before his shoulders visibly stiffened, and his jaw locked tightly. “Who did this?”

“Nobody,” you muttered softly, voice cracking. “I’m fine.”

“Was it Pete?” his grip remained firm on your arm.

“Please, just leave it alone, Benny,” you whispered desperately, and his eyes softened as he released you. A painfully long beat played out between you as you watched him decide if he wanted to press you further for details. But to your surprise, he dropped it, instead, reaching out, his calloused thumb brushing away a solitary tear from the apple of your cheek. You flinched at the contact, not expecting him to touch you so intimately. As quick as he was to make contact, so was he able to let his hand fall back to his side, leaving you wide-eyed at the act. 

“Let me give you a ride home, please,” he asked, his voice so quiet, so compassionate that you were honestly dumbfounded that this was a biker in a notoriously revered club standing before you. “I don’t want you to have to walk back when you’re upset like this.”

You glanced down the sidewalk, knowing you still had a few miles to go before you’d see your house in the distance. You sniffed again, “You won’t try to propose to me again, will you?”

“No strings attached, I promise,” he replied quietly. 

You relented, nodding slightly, and you didn’t protest when he slid his hand into yours, lacing your fingers together and gently tugged you back to his bike. 

******

Benny drove slowly back to your house, and you just buried your face against his jacket the entire ride, focusing on the gentle rhythm of his heartbeat. It gave you time to settle your breathing, to dry your tears, and when he finally did pull up to your house, a disappointed wave surfaced over you. He put both feet down to balance you both, but he didn’t cut the engine, and you didn’t release your arms from around his torso.

“Can we . . . keep going?” you asked hesitantly, unsure of just how patient he was willing to be with you.

“You wanna keep going?” he questioned over his shoulder, and you responded with a brief nod. “Where?”

“Anywhere, just not here.”

He pushed off the ground, revving the engine slightly and the bike picked up speed as you left your neighborhood. You tightened your grip as he drove you out of the city, down the long country roads, past barns and farms, out by the lake and through the winding back roads which cut the woods. He drove until the sun began to make its descent over the far wheat fields, the last warmth of those golden rays catching the two of you like a spotlight, like you were the only two people on stage. And you realized that’s what riding with Benny felt like: solidarity together. You’ve felt a strange sense of loneliness most of your life, even when you were surrounded by others who loved you, but with Benny . . . it was like you were finally being seen. No, not just seen, it was like you were finally being heard. 

But reality came back too quickly when Benny pulled up to a stop light, hand moving to brush across yours as he asked, “You ready to go back now or d’you wanna keep going?”

Keep going, your heart wanted to shout, keep going and let’s drive until we hit the sandy beaches of California. But your head always won the battle in the end, and you only nodded mutely. 

When Benny pulled up in front of your house again, he cut the engine, but remained seated. He held his hand out for you as you dismounted, and he wanted to say something – anything– to make sure that you were okay, to help you. But Benny’s not known for his good communication skills so he clenched his jaw tightly, frustration building in his chest. You needed him, you needed to be consoled, and he was so pathetic that he wasn’t even sure how. 

Sure, he knew how to have someone’s back, especially in a fight. He knew how to throw punches and get back to his feet after getting knocked down. He could do that all day. But you staring at him with your Bambi eyes and heartbroken expression, he couldn’t take it. He just wanted to pull your tiny frame to him and kiss away the tears, to tell you that everything would be okay because he’s got your back. Then a horrible thought clouded his mind because what if he was the reason you were crying? A bitter taste filled his mouth at the possibility. And my god, how stupid could he be because of course he had to dig himself deeper into that hole when he had told you that he wouldn’t apologize for his conversation with your date. At the time he said it, he had no guilt or shame for his actions because he saw nothing wrong with it. He wanted you more than Pete did, he was sure of that. But now as he glanced at your sweet face, he realized that his actions could have hurt you. And all for what – his pride? That seemed so insignificant now.

“Thank you for the ride,” you said ever-so-politely. 

Before you could turn to walk to your front porch, Benny’s hand reached out to lightly touch your own, and he blurted out, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry for what I did to Pete. That was wrong, and I see that now. I’m sorry if what I did has hurt you in any way, that was never my intention.”

Your frown deepened, and Benny’s heart sank. But then you said, “I’m not upset with you, Benny, but thank you. That . . . that means a lot to me.”

He was at a loss for words, struck by your angelic voice and unwavering benevolence. He could only watch as you slipped from his grasp and turned away. You were walking away from him, but Benny couldn’t help but feel it meant something more than just putting physical distance between you. His mind raced with thoughts, trying to find something he could say to get you to stop, to be able to see your face again. 

However, it seemed that fate had other plans because you halted in your tracks, hesitating a moment before spinning back around and approaching him again. He opened his mouth to ask if you were okay, but you cut him off as you leaned up and planted a quick kiss to his cheek. His heart skipped a beat at the gentle touch of your soft lips, and he widened his eyes as you pulled back, a shy smile on your face. He grinned because every time he thought he had you figured out, you continued to pull stunts on him. You were the most entertaining thing he knew. 

You took a few steps backwards, but maintained his eye contact as you spoke, “Maybe . . . next time we could go a little faster?”

He knew you were referring to the bike, but God help him because heat burned in his lower belly, and he wanted to pick you up over his shoulder and carry you into your house where he’d show you just what speed he was capable of. He wasn’t sure you even knew what effect your words had on him, or if you even knew the sexual implications, but he felt himself losing a battle of will. “You want there to be a next time?”

You nodded and that adorable rosy color tinted your cheeks. “Yeah, if-if you do.”

He shook his head in disbelief that you were finally giving him a chance. Though looking at your sweet smile now, he didn’t seem to mind the extra effort he had to put in. “You wanna go fast? Look who’s the trouble now.”

You fought to control your smile. “Goodnight, Benny.”

“Night,” he replied as he watched you walk back up the steps to your house, his fingers ghosting over the spot on his cheek that you kissed, wondering if apologies were really that easy. 

-Tag List-

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[whoisneo404]

Reader not even knowing he is into guys till he meet and starts liking nick after harboring feelings for a while he randomly asks nick out while they are hanging out

New Feelings.

Summary: your friend Chris introduces you to his brother Nick, not knowing that you’ll develop feelings for him.

Tw: cursing

I don’t remember when I started feeling like this. I think from the first time I saw him something changed inside of me. It was fall, Chris wanted to go hang out at a park and said his brother will come too, when I saw Nick for the first time something clicked in my brain, maybe it was his tattoos or his messy blonde hair, either way, I was infatuated with him. I got closer to him and started to hang out alone.

Most times I find myself looking at him, staring at his blue eyes, his smile. At first it was scary, I have never felt this way towards another guy, but after a while thinking and listening to him laugh, I realized this feeling is not momentarily.

I know Nick likes guys, I know he would date someone like me, I just don’t know if he would date me. It makes me go crazy to think about him rejecting me, but I’m more scared of never telling him how much I want to be with him. I truly believe he is the most amazing human being alive, he’s funny and handsome, hard working and kind.

‘’Are you fucking listening?’’ Nick softly punches my arm. We are sitting at the same bench we were sitting the day we met, it has been a few months since that day, a lot has changed.

‘’Sorry, I was thinking.’’

‘’Yeah, like you can think. What where you thinking about?’’

‘’Do you wanna go on a date with me?’’ I say without hesitating, he looks confused.

‘’What? Is this some kind of joke?’’

‘’Of course not, why would I joke about something like this?’’

‘’A date? Aren’t you like… straight?’’ he seems nervous.

‘’I’m not.’’

‘’I didn’t know.’’

‘’Me neither… Nick, look. I like you, a lot, I can’t stop thinking about you and us being together, I’m scared of this not working out, I totally get it if you don’t feel the same way but to be honest, I was more afraid of never having the courage to tell you. So, yeah, just tell me hat you feel, no hard feelings.’’

‘’I can’t believe this. I thought you liked girls.’’

‘’I do.’’ I mutter.

‘’I know. I mean like, only girls. Whatever, what I want to say is I like you too, I thought it was obvious, I had to force myself to act a certain way so you didn’t notice it. But I guess I should have just shown my true feelings. I’d love to go on that date with you.’’ He smiles warmly at me.

‘’Really? That’s awesome.’’ I smile widely, my cheeks burn a little. ‘’I already have a plan, oh god, that’s embarrassing, I said it before I though.’’

‘’You are so cute. Tell me about this plan.’’ He laughs at me and grabs my hand softly; I smirk and quickly glance at our hands.

‘’So, I was thinking. Picnic, arcade and ice cream. At the picnic we can do cute things like draw each other or something like that.’’

‘’Oh my god, I have seen people do that all over my tiktok. We have to do it.’’

‘’Great. So, maybe this weekend? Like Saturday maybe.’’

‘’That’s good for me… Have you told Chris about this’’ he says the last part looking at our hands.

‘’No. I wanted to tell him after I made us official, so, not yet. And about the also liking boys too, I don’t think it’s necessary to come out to them, maybe I can casually drop it in one of our conversations.’’ I say calmly.

‘’Sounds great. So, when do you plan to make us official?’’ I chuckle at this.

‘’After a few dates, I want to make sure that you fall in love with me as much as I fell for you, but I think that’s impossible.’’

‘’God, you are smooth. I like that idea, having dates, with you. It sounded almost impossible to me.’’

‘’We’ll we are here now. Sorry for making you think otherwise.’’ My thumb starts to rub his hand.

‘’It’s not your fault, I’m glad you said something about it.’’

‘’Me too.’’

Even when my confession wasn’t conventional, or the most romantic one, I know my feelings for him are real, and I’ll give my best for our next couple of dates to be the best he has ever had in his life. I’m gonna make sure that he sees how good of a boyfriend I will be. I can’t wait for us to finally be together, and for me to not hide my feelings for him anymore.

[didee-anne]

This week has been a busy one and will continue to be busy.

Monday we drove to Montana to drop Jen off with Rory’s parents for a week and a half and then we had life group when we got home. It was only 6 hours of driving in total so it wasn’t terrible but that’s still a lot of driving/long day in the car.

Tuesday I worked out with Sammie and then had coffee with her and Lori and Cindy. After coffee I ran home and grabbed Liam and Addie and the three of us drove up to camp for the night since Ror was on-call. Nikki opted to stay home with the dogs and enjoy an empty house. I left her with a little chore list and she did a good job!

Today I left camp and drove home, took a shower, went to the car wash and washed and vacuumed out the van, met Sam and Jamie for pedicures, bought mice for Jen’s snake, and then after Ror got home from work he and I ran to Costco and Fred Meyer for groceries for our bbq at camp we’re hosting Saturday and then before heading home he took me out to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants. 🥰

Tomorrow Ror and I are going on a 5 mile run, gonna go lift some weights at the gym; and then we’ll take the kids to watch fireworks in Deer Park after dinner.

Friday Rory’s work is taking all the staff to a Theme Park so we’ll be there all day 😅 I love rollerocasters but it’s a holiday weekend and it’s going to be HOT. I’m looking forward to the lazy river but I’m not looking forward to all the people.

Saturday Ror and I are hosting a big bbq up at camp since there isn’t a group there this weekend. I can have friends up when there are groups but it’s so nice to not have to share the pool and waterfront with hundreds of other kids.

Sunday I’m playing on the worship team and then after church we’re meeting one of Rory’s brothers and his 3 kids at a park to hang out and have a little picnic. It’s been really great reconnecting with him! It’s by a shallow part of the river so we’ll bring floaty tubs for the kids to play on.

Dang, I’m not sure how I’m going to have the energy for everything but it’s all going to be very fun!

[becomingkatie]

I've been testing negative but there's still so much crud in my face-holes and I am sick of it!

I came down with covid the wednesday before labor day. Sick through the week and long weekend - isolating, bad! Then I came out of that into a short week in which EVERYTHING was happening at work. I worked from home because in the beginning of the week I was still testing positive, and for those first few days of the week I was still feeling iffy too. So I was working like crazy, more hours than usual, on top of not being healthy.

I had one healthy feeling day and then at the end of the week I started feeling crappy again! I was thinking it was rebound covid but my test was negative. So we moved into the weekend with me feeling like shit again, congested and exhausted and barely hanging on, but with plans we made back before that we didn't want to cancel because we've cancelled so many plans lately. Friday we went to an outdoor concert after work (at wolf trap national park! picnic and music! so fun except I felt like death!) and Saturday we went to watch Michigan State play at Maryland (Ken is an MSU alum and another local alum friend organized a tailgate - also so fun except for all the mucus inside of my facial features). Both nights I walked into the house and went to sleep without any of the usual getting ready for bed - just every single ounce of anything I had was spent.

And then Sunday was a manic chore day because last weekend I had covid and couldn't do chores, the weekend before that I was in NYC and couldn't do chores, and the weekend before that I was in a hotel doing a writing retreat and couldn't do chores. So the list of stuff to do at home had gotten obscene.

Anyway, I still feel like crap, but work is calming down a bit this week, or at least that's what it looks like from this Tuesday morning vantage point. Eventually I will not feel like this. That's what I keep telling myself. But impatient little me is like, okay, "eventually" can come any time now please!!

[anjanettexcordonia]

Hey! How are ya? I was once apart of this community a couple years ago, some of you may remember. A friend recently reached out and inspired me to write a little bit. It’s probably going to suck.. but figured I’d dip my toe in the sand and see how it feels to write again & post it for internet to see. Eeeeek! Anyway! Hope you have all had a fantastic couple of years and hope you truly enjoy my little random untitled short story!

-xoxo Anjanette 💗

*as always mature & sensitive content

Note from me: I don’t know how many words it is. It’s a short read for sure. Read or don’t.. up to you. But I hope you do and overlook my short comings. Feedback is highly appreciated. There will be triggers through out. This will be a few chapters but probably 5 or 6 at most. I don’t know what this or what it’s based on. Dipping my toe guys!

Chapter 1

Juliette

The king’s castle sits high above the city. Passerby’s compliment it’s haunting beauty. Travelers come from far and wide to gawk at the medieval gothic style, yet no one in a century has laid eyes on what is hidden behind its doors. Nor has anyone seen the king or prince since the death of the queen.

Except me.

My name is Juliette and Caliginous Castle is my prison. Prince Ransley is my warden. This is my story.

Any good story must start from the beginning. To know where you’re going, you have to know where you’ve been. Once, I was a normal girl, living in a normal town with normal parents. I went to normal school, wore normal clothes, and I had normal friends. I was, or I guess, I am an old child. I’m not sure where my parents are or if they’re alive or dead. I suspect the latter. Anyway, I was as normal as normal could get. Mundane really. Idyllic childhood, loving parents, afternoon picnics, summer camp, final exams, weekend bonfires. That was my life.

Until the Prince came to claim what he rightfully believed was his.

“Did you hear about the Night Fair Saturday night?” Caroline asked as we linked arms walking through the parking lot of our community college.

“Yea, Mom said we have to go. Apparently every family within 50 miles is required by The Crown to attend.” I mumbled, while unloading my school bag into the backseat of my car.

“Why do you sound so miserable Wednesday? It sounds fun to me. And not every family. Only families with eligible daughters.” Caroline is always upbeat. Her bubbly personality is a stark contrast to my more doom and gloom personality. Hence why Caroline deemed me Wednesday Addams.

“What the fuck do you mean eligible daughters?” I pause waiting for Carolines answer before hopping into my car.

“Ya know how no one has seen The King,” she air quotes the king with her fingers,” in like forever?” I nod. “He is hosting the Night Fair and only eligible daughters and their families are attending. There is a list. And invitations. Mom showed me it.”

“Why?”

“Don’t know.” Caroline shrugs.

Thirty minutes later, I pulled into the parking lot of mom’s dress shop for my 3:30 shift. I swing open the door and toss my laptop on the counter. “Mom?” I called. The dress shop is usually empty this time of day. “Back here sweetie.” I followed my mom’s voice to find her in her office. A beautiful amethyst dress in her hands as she works on alterations. “What’re you working on? That color is beautiful.” The sparkles and rhinestones that cover the bodice reflect the light from the overhead lamp casting rainbows on the ceiling. “It's for you, darling.” Mom looks up. Her chocolate eyes lock with mine. “Me?” I pinch my brows, obviously confused. “The Night Fair.” She says. Her voice is hollow and empty. “I should have told you when the invitation came but… well anyway.. Kind Brander is hosting and you are invited.”

“Yea, well thanks Mister King for the invite, but I have finals to study for.”

“I thought the king was more of a figurehead, how can he just make demands?”

“Figure head? No no no, he’s just reclusive. We pay our taxes, he leaves us alone. He keeps to himself mostly..” Mom drifts off. “He has Kingsmen that will enforce his demands. He doesn’t demand much, but when he does, it is to be taken seriously. Understand?”

The door of the shop chimes. “Customer,” I murmur, “I need to get out there.” Mom nods her head. Fear creeping into the edges of her eyes.

I make my way back to the main floor of the store and nearly take out an entire dress rack when my brain registers what’s just walked in the door. Not what, who? The most beautiful man? Is that the right word? No no no, Adonis.. God amongst men. Holy shit he’s gorgeous like a statue come to life. His perfect dirty blonde hair looks like he ran his fingers through it too many times. Sex hair. And I want to run my fingers through it. He’s deliciously tall and his suit looks like it was sewn onto his perfect muscular frame. His biceps are so large it would take….

“So should I count to thirty? Is that enough time to get your fill?” A deep velvet voice with a slight accent I can’t place flows into my ears sending a shiver down my already rigid spine. “Sorry, um, what can I do for you?” I rush around the counter. “What’s your name?” His smirk on his full kissable lips is doing something to my insides. I stand there, unable to form a coherent syllable much less a full word like my name.

“Your Majesty.” My mom comes out from the back room and curtsies. CURTSIES! What the fuck? I have never seen my mother curtsy to anyone before. Did I go back in time or something? I must look like a fool, because the smirk on Mr. Sex in a Suit, oh wait, YOUR MAJESTY, turns into a laugh. And it's the most beautiful sound I’ve heard.

Stay tuned for Chapter 2

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed! Leave some feedback!

[progressivemother]

Make the Most Out of Your Weekend As a Working Mother

As a working mother, your weekends can be busy. Your weekends are full of all of the things that you didn’t get to during the week, such as running errands, and when the weekend is over, you feel exhausted rather than refreshed. Weekends can also be a time of survival. You are tired and don't have much energy to do anything fun. When the weekend is over, you don't feel like you made any good memories and you wasted time.

I get it. I've been through that. Eventually, we figured out a way to get pass this.

I found a job working from home and during any breaks, chores are done and projects can slowly be worked on during those breaks and during slow periods of my work. Right now I am working on a blanket for my son and it gets done when things slow down during work. Playdates can happen any time while I work. Either the friends come to my house or they go to another house or the park. They have SynchUp watches so I can keep track and they clean up after themselves.

I took better control of my time with a schedule and a routine for the week. I know what needs to be done and I do it. I knew that I needed something similar for our weekends. We make plans and a possible schedule for the weekends as well.

Weekends can be stressful and having a full packed schedule can be stressful as well. Planning one or two things for family fun works great and if we have the time for more, then we can do more. What matters is how you want to feel. I want to feel full of energy, relaxed, and I want to feel like I accomplished something with my family. Creating a weekend that is what we need as a family instead of forcing something that is going to feel like a struggle is the best way to go.

Saturdays are great. We make sure that we don't have chores to do except the almost necessary ones, such as dishes, making beds and feeding the animals. This way, we have time to spend together instead of focusing on chores. I make sure all essential chores are done during the week by me and by the kids. The kids only get simple chores after school so they can do homework and play. During the summer and Sundays, they can do bigger chores.

To make sure we have free time during the weekend, laundry is done daily, the main rooms stay picked up, and groceries are delivered every Friday. This frees up time to do fun activities every weekend.

Sundays, we do chores due to having a day off on Saturday. The house can get dirty quickly if we don't. We still keep up on Saturdays but, as I said, it's basic. We make sure to start early. Everyone is awake by 7am, daily, making getting chores done quicker. Breakfast, getting dressed, and all chores are usually done before 11am which frees up most of the day.

Here are some fun weekend things to do.

• Parks

• Aquariums

• The library

• Museums

• Amusement parks

• Bowling

• Trampoline places

• Hiking

• Picnic (indoor or outdoor)

These are just a few ideas. You can always find something free to do; you don't have to spend money. Today, we went to the library. The kids had fun. Our library has games and activities that we did. We choose books out before we left for lunch.

Remember, you don't have to pack your weekend full of activities and stress yourself out in order to have fun. You only need a few activities. Everyone wants time to relax after a long week, including your kids. Making the choice and planning activities and a schedule that supports what you want, feels so much better! And your family will feel it to.

[umichenginabroad]

WEEK 3: MADRID & VENTURES

Ahoj everyone! This is Jules with week 3 in Prague. My week was full of embracing more of this beautiful city and ending it with a weekend in Madrid. I can’t believe I’ve already been here for three weeks; time flies by in Europe. 

The Euros, which is the European football (“soccer” of course) championship, is going on right now, so my friends and I headed to an Irish pub to watch the Czechia versus Portugal game on Monday night. Unfortunately, we did end up losing to Portugal, but it was still really fun to watch. On Thursday, a couple of us joined in on CEA CAPA’s picnic in Stromovka park. I can’t believe I hadn’t gone to this park yet because it was so big and beautiful. After grubbing on the food that CEA CAPA so graciously provided us, we headed to a cute beer garden by the river with live music and drinks! It’s so hard to be bored in Prague when there’s always so much to do. For my classes, my Golden City class had a midterm this week, which was very doable, and my Linear Algebra class is also going great. I’m sad to say that next week is the final week for the Golden City class, but I think its four-week schedule and structure is perfect. Studying and getting work done at Cafe Du in the mornings have become a regular part of my routine. I’ll be posted up there again tomorrow morning to study for my Linear Algebra midterm. 

Irish pub. && Beautiful greenery at Stromovka park.

This weekend, I visited one of my friends who’s studying abroad in Madrid, and I had the best time ever. On Wednesday night, I did unfortunately stay up until 3 AM packing under the impression that my flight was on Thursday morning when in fact, it was on Friday morning. But the silver lining was that I got to go to the picnic at the park. After avoiding my travel fiasco, I made it to Madrid on Friday!! The first thing that my friend and I did together was grab acai bowls, which was much needed since I had been deprived for weeks. She took me shopping afterwards, showed me around the lively city, and then we grabbed tacos at Takos al Pastor. This place is infamous for their $1-2 tacos that come out almost immediately after you place your order. At night, we headed to this really cool speakeasy called Jack’s Library; it was hidden and intimate with a unique drinks menu. And then I got to experience Madrid’s clubbing at Kapital, one of their biggest clubs.

My Saturday was filled with amazing eats and a relaxing three hours at the hotel’s rooftop pool that my friend was staying at. Even though the food in Prague is really good (especially for the prices), I will admit that the food in Madrid was unmatched. The money that I saved by staying with my friend went towards my unforgettable meals. We went to Bel Mondo for dinner, and the decor inside this authentic Italian restaurant is one of my favorites of any restaurant I’ve been to. The biggest culture shock in Spain for me was the times that locals eat at. Dinner time typically begins around 9 PM and continues past midnight. On Sunday, we went to El Rastro market that had hundreds of vendors selling clothing, antiques, posters, art, literally everything you could imagine. I had to catch my flight around 1 PM, and now, I’m back home in Prague 2 eating dinner at a reasonable time. 

My Saturday spent in Madrid!!!!! Good eats, good views, good company.

All in all, I am in love with how different European cities are from one another. My first taste of the liveliness of Spanish culture has made me even more excited for my future trip to Barcelona (little teaser)!! I’m also excited to see how my weekend in Berlin next week will compare to this weekend. Thanks for reading my blog, and get ready for some more updates next week!

Jules Hwang

Industrial and Operations Engineering

Engineering in Prague

[charlewiss-writes]

the beach is for lovers / daniel ricciardo

masterlist

day 6: tourist (part of one-word november prompts!)

pairing: daniel ricciardo x reader

word count: 0.8k

summary: after the disastrous year you two had (you, due to your break up and him, with how hard the season has been), nothing better than going back to home sweet home.

"why don't you go to australia with me?"

daniel fucking ricciardo was many incredible things. he was known by his amazing race craft on the track, that allowed him to be on the highest step of the podium eight times. but apart from being a talented driver, he was also fucking unpredictable. it was a phenomenal trait to have on-track, but off-track, you had learned, after a few months working with him at mclaren as his pr manager, it led to being surprised by whatever his mind came with that day.

"wait, what?"

it would have been a normal weekend, if it wasn't the last race of the season: abu dhabi. the year had been unbelievable tough for both you and daniel, and you two couldn't wait for the winter break that was approaching around the corner. nonetheless, it was for very different motives. he was sick of mclaren, the team that had stabbed behind his back, just like your boyfriend of two years had.

he repeated, like you truly hadn't listened clearly before. "come with me to australia. i heard your talk with lando saying that you didn't want to go back to your the apartment you shared with that asshole. so don't" he shrugged, like it was the most normal thing to propose. "dan, you haven't seen them since winter break. you deserve some quality time alone with all of your family together."

the whole conversation had been going on since he finished with the press conference he had been assigned to attend. so now, after trying to keep up with his fast walking back to his driver's room, you were left out of breath when you arrived at your destination. he turned to look at you, just as you had closed the door behind you. "what if I want you there?" he said, tilting his head.

—

so now you were here, at the airport, after a 14 hour trip, only because daniel fucking ricciardo asked nicely. another one of his traits, you learned late enough, was being annoying until he had what he desired: a quality that was incredibly helpful on the track, but proved to be used against you, as you now were on the home country of the australian gp that was beaming beside you.

"you'll meet michelle first. she'll take us to her house where you'll get to know the little demons i always tell you about" he continued talking about his whole family while you two made your way towards the entrance of the airport. you were far too quiet to answer to him, which he found weird instantly. "you're awfully quiet. what's up, sunshine?" he dodged your shoulder, trying to make you talk to him.

"you're sure this was a good decision?"

he laughed like you had told him the funniest joke to ever exist. "of course, sunshine. they'll love you. and you'll get to know all my friends and all the places i grew up in" dan was beyond excited about all the plans he had already made for the two of you.

—

and he executed all the plans he made with precision like clockwork. you had arrived on monday evening, and by saturday, just as he promised, you had already seen almost everything dan wanted to show you: the park where he used to go when he was a kid, the school he attended growing up, the bar where he met on fridays with his friends. there was only one place left to show you: the beach.

it was close to his house, so after a little walk you finally arrived. the sun was already setting when dan and you laid the picnic mat that you had brought, along with the cans of beer that daniel had insisted on bringing, claiming that he hadn't see you drinking before, which was a blatant lie.

"my dad always said that I shouldn't wait until it was too late to look back over history, otherwise it would be filled with nothing but regret. i think I wasn't true to his word this year". you knew the season had been tough on him, but you two didn't talk about it on the weekends, too busy with all the work being part of mclaren's media team included. seeing that he hadn't met your attentive look yet, you keep quiet, understanding that he wanted to go on with whatever he had wanted to say. "I don't know what the future holds, y/n, but I would hope it included you in it".

"I know it's too soon. I understand. I just appreciate you coming all the way here, supporting me after this year." dan looked at you now, grabbing your hand with his free one. "I would like to do the same for you" he smiled, and ended his speech with the biggest smile you had seen in him all year. "I would like that very much, i'll try to be half as annoying as you are" you told him, jokingly. he launched himself at you, tickling you until you couldn't even breathe, "please stop, i'm only joking" you almost screamed, not being able to control the laugh that erupted from your body.

thank god for australia, you thought. and thank god for daniel fucking ricciardo.

[hoonhrt]

EMBRASSE-MOI

: pairing — student! jay x tutor! reader

: genre — fluff, crack 

: song recc. — L’amour by Miel De Montagne 

: a/n — this lowkey sucks but I've been wanting to get work out so I'm sorry if this isn't the best :(( also I'm still learning french so if some of it is wrong pls lmk so i can fix it!! 

Jay was your school’s resident bad boy. blond hair, all-black outfits, cuts class and yells at kids that look his way. you know? the usual. You on the other hand were the complete opposite. straight-A student. A quiet kid who didn’t dare look the ways of Jay Park and his Clique™. So imagine the shock that was felt when the boy you avoided at all costs, walks up to you in the middle of the cafeteria asking for French lessons. 

“You want me to do what?” He rolls his eyes, tired of this conversation already. 

“Can you not hear? I’m failing French and I need to pass or else my parents won’t let me move to France.” He speaks as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

“And you’re asking me why?” He rolls his eyes again for what felt like the 100th time. You’re just confused about how he even knows of your existence.

“Listen, all I know that you’re in my French class and that you pay attention, I’ll even pay you I just need to get my mark up.” You perk up to the sound of money. You don’t really need but it’s still nice to have some. Doing this will get you good Karma right? 

“Fine. Meet me at the library every Monday and Wednesday after class, got it?” Jay stares at you with annoyance. He really does not want to be wasting his senior year on stupid lessons but, here we are. He reluctantly agrees and watches you walk away, struggling to hold your books in your arms. He turns around and lets out a deep sigh, wondering if the hot chicks and fancy baguettes in France are really worth this

Minutes turned into hours as you waited for Jay to show up. You waited patiently for hours just for this kid to not show up. Annoyed, you start to pack up your books. You don’t know why you’d think someone like Jay would actually show up to a voluntary tutor session. You were just about to make your way out of the library when you see someone running towards you almost like the flash. As the figure got closer to your still body, you realize it was Jay. Now, bent over in front of you gasping for air with his tongue out like a dog. You stared at his limped-over figure with confusion and slight disgust. 

“s-s-sorry i was… late, i f-forgot about… this.” he manages to speak out with the little air he has in him. He stands up and evens out his breath. 

“what makes you think i’m gonna tutor you now? you wasted my time Park, i have a life too you know.” you snap at him. He stares at you for a brief second before letting out a hearty laugh, throwing his head back and slapping his leg. He sees your serious expression, your eyes glaring at him like an eagle and awkwardly stops laughing. 

“Look, i’m paying you and this is only gonna last for a little while. i just need to pass, that’s it.” His eyes shine with a hopeful gleam, a look that is extremely rare to see from Jay Park. He looked a little cute. You dramatically sigh and start walking into the library, Jay following behind you. 

You settle at the table you sat at prior, re-opening your book bag to pull out your notes. He just watches you do that, not making an effort to even bring out a pencil. 

“Okay, so how much french do you even know?” 

He stares into space, a little hesitant to continue. “Um, i can ask if i can go to the bathroom?” You stare at him with disbelief. You’ve been in this class with him for months and that’s all he knows. 

“THAT’S IT?” 

“Oh and i can say good morning!” you let out a loud groan that catches the attention of others around, causing them to loudly shush at you. Feeling annoyed again, you contemplate if the money was really worth it. You sigh out and start looking for your notes from the beginning of the semester. This was gonna take a LONG time. 

“... and that’s how you conjugate verbs in the past tense, aka passé composé!” You finish off the session with joy. Jay on the other hand has gone completely blank, not remembering a single word you just told him. He stares down at his notes, then at you, then back down at his notes. You can see the struggle on his face and he hasn’t said a word yet. 

“I’m never gonna pass french. This is it. I can kiss France goodbye.” he claims with despair. This already too hard for him and he barely has learned anything. He sets his head on the table and mumbles to himself about how he will never be happy if he doesn’t live his youthful 20’s in France. You sat across from him irritated with his discouraging behaviour and a little sad that you weren’t able to teach him well. Until you come up with a plan that might help him improve much quicker.  

“What if… we hang out this weekend? We can do something and we’ll only speak in French! Of course I’ll help you and all that. But like, maybe? Only if you want to of course you probably don’t wanna spend your weekend with me i dont know you know its just a plan.” you ramble on and on without stopping and Jay simply just watches you. He smirks a little before nodding. 

“How about you put your number in my phone and then I’ll text you when I’m free hm?” he slides his phone across the table towards you and eyes you typing it in. He catches a glimpse of your rose-coloured cheeks and smirks a little more. 

“Okay, uh there’s my number! Just um, text me you know, when you’re free!” you manage to stutter out. Jay just nods at you and again, watches you walk away. This time a slight smile across his face. 

A sudden notification pulls you away from your thoughts. An unknown number that you had a feeling belonged to a particular boy you didn’t think would actually text you. 

042-002-1130: bonjour 

042-002-1130: was that even right

042-002-1130: anyways I’m free on saturday if you wanna hang ig 

042-002-1130: samedi is saturday right 

042-002-1130: it is wow im such a genius 

You let out a snort at his cocky behaviour and reply back, letting him know that you were free yourself and to meet you at the school grounds at 2 pm. 

Saturday shows up as you wait outside the school gates, a picnic basket in hand. An all-black car with dark tinted windows zooms up to you. The window is pulled down and alas, the handsome boy sits in the driver’s seat, ushering you to get into the car with his hand. 

“Woah a picnic basket? Listen y/n you’re cool and all but this isn’t a date,” he speaks and notices you roll your eyes. A smug smile tugging his lips. 

“No you asshole, I have a plan with this.” 

“Tell me,” Jay begins to drive away from the school. The destination is unknown to you but extremely familiar to the boy next to you. 

“In here there is a bunch of food, in order for you to eat, you’re gonna have to say the name of the food in french.” He turns his head to see you looking back at him, a sweet smile places on your face. Jay has always known of you. You sat in the back of the classroom, handed in all your work on time and never skipped a class. You had very few friends and always seemed to be lost in a dream world when you weren’t working. Jay had never been able to speak to you personally as you always avoided him but know he has the chance to actually talk to you, and he doesn’t wanna mess it up. 

The car stopped at the edge of a giant grassy field. The greenery going miles ahead. Trees surrounding the two of you. Jay like a gentleman runs out of the car to open the door for you. You blush at his actions, thanking him silently by smiling at him. 

He directs you to a small spot under a tree. You lay out a blanket for you to sit on while Jay leans up against the tree. You tell him to sit down next to you as you bring out all the little snacks to share with him. He thinks that he could get used to this. 

“D’accord, commençons! Qu'est-ce que ç'est?” (okay, lets start! What is this?) 

You pick up a grape. He thinks for a little bit before answering. “Un raisin.” (a grape) You clap with glee and hand him over the grape. A silence falls between you both, unaware of how to keep going. He picks up a strawberry and brings it to your face. “Tu aime les fraises?” (do you like strawberries?) You eye him for a second, for someone who said he only knows how to ask how to go the bathroom in french, he knows quite a bit. You nod a little, opening your mouth and letting him feed you the sweet fruit. Your face matches the colour of the strawberry and he giggles. You pull out a sandwich and ask him to describe what’s in it. 

“Dans le sandwich, il y a du jambon, du beurre, et de la tomate.” (in the sandwich there is some ham, some butter, and some tomato.) He speaks confidently. 

“Trés bien Jay! Tu es bon en parler francias!” (very good Jay! You are really good at speaking French!) 

“Merci, mon Cheri.” (Thank you, my dear.) you blush even more before and shy away from Jay’s gaze. Jay being the very bold guy that he is, placing his hand underneath your jaw, forcing you to meet his eyes. You both just stare at each other as the sun sets behind you. Was Jay always this beautiful? His eyes scan over your face seeking for any discomfort, none is to be found. So he makes the move and starts to lean in. You already have your eyes closed and lips puckered out, ready to embrace a feeling you’ve never felt before.

His breath fans over your lips and just before he kisses you he asks “je peux t’embrasser? (can I kiss you?) you eagerly nod and whisper out “embrasse-moi.” (kiss me.) Jay finally places his lips on yours and everything feels right. Your hands find their way to the back of his neck to deepen the kiss. You stay in this position with him for a little while before you pull back for air. Both his hands cradle your face, his thumb rubbing across the apples of your cheeks.

“I still have a lot to learn y’know?” Jay breaks the silence. You laugh out loud, falling into his lap. 

“Same time next week then yeah?” He lets out a ‘hmm’ and watches you rest your head against his thigh, playing with the ends of your hair. ‘Maybe France could wait a little’ he thought. 

[sleeping-on-cracking-ice]

pls do part two of “you're everything you once hated” 🥺

Alright! I originally wasn’t going to do a Part 2 of this but a few people have asked so here you go! 😙

You’re Everything You Once Hated | Suguru Niragi

PART 1 | PART 2

{Alice In Borderland Masterlist}

{Main Masterlist}

Character(s): Niragi (ft. OC, Ann, Tatta, Hatter, Kuina)

Summary: You attempt to escape Niragi to replenish your visa by yourself, but he catches you and makes sure you won’t do it again

Warnings: (okay here we go) blood, toxic relationship, abusive relationship, obsessive themes, suggestive themes, graphic violence/torture, needles, being held hostage, deranged behaviour, reader is traumatised, implications of a panic attack, dehumanisation (kind of?), mention of amputation, mention of suicide, guns, knives, reader sees a corpse, minor character death

Word Count: 4.6k

*reader is female

Author’s Note: this is quite heavy and messed up, so I recommend people under 15 don’t read this

The young man leant against the large building, holding a small rose in his sweaty palms as he waited for you to arrive from your after school class. He winced as the thorns slightly caught on his olive skin. He sighed and craned his neck back to rest on the wall behind him. No matter how much he attempted to distract himself, the rate his heart was beating kept bringing the nausea to his stomach.

The sky was painted a soft mix of orange and pink as the sun began to fall asleep below the horizon. Valentine’s Day couldn’t have created a more romantic atmosphere for Niragi, he couldn’t mess it up now or he would let cupid down himself.

“What the hell am I even doing?” he questioned himself, wiping his brow with the back of his wrist. “She probably doesn’t even see me this way. We’ve been best friends for years, if she felt something she would’ve told me by now, right?”

He was stressing himself out, continuing the doubt whether his idea was good or not. He was considering dropping the rose and just walking away, being too afraid of the reality that he had been in love with you for years and had never been able to voice it. He felt embarrassed about himself, making his head fill with insecurities and doubts.

His phone vibrating in his pocket pulled him from his thoughts. Niragi reached into his blazer and pulled out his device, noticing a text from you.

‘I’m on my way,’ it read.

He heard your footsteps around the corner and straightened himself up, letting out a sigh to relieve tension. He knew there was no going back now, so he had no choice but to go ahead with his confession.

Just as he was about to turn the corner to meet you, he noticed a male voice that echoed yours, making him freeze in his tracks. He kept himself pushed against the wall, trying to listen to what you were saying.

“I mean, movies are cheap at the moment. Do you want to go see one together?” Niragi heard the boy say. His heart sank at the males words and his hand holding the rose fell from his chest to drooping towards the ground.

Your voice, that was all too familiar to Niragi, answered him. “Sure! I’m busy this afternoon, but I’m free this weekend on Saturday.”

Saturday. Niragi frowned. You and him always went to the park together every Saturday to have a picnic together. You wouldn’t forget about that, would you?

His disappointment turned into anger suddenly. The exhilarating emotions filled his mind and heart so quickly, it took him off guard. As his hand twitched slightly, he shook his head to remove the thoughts from his head.

“Okay, I’ll send you a text later to talk about times and stuff,” the boy said. Niragi’s curiosity got the best of him and he peeked his head around the side of the building to catch a glance of who you were with. He wished he didn’t.

It was one of the young kids that picked on him in Science class, which you weren’t in. Niragi felt betrayed, but tried to reassure himself that you just didn’t know what this guy was really like.

“Bye Y/N,” the boy muttered shyly, making Niragi fume at his fake behaviour. ‘He obviously is just trying to get in her pants,’ Niragi thought to himself, jaw clenching in annoyance at your blindness.

The boy leaned close to you and left a soft kiss on your forehead making you smile and wave happily as he walked away. As soon as he disappeared up the stairs a few metres up, Niragi leant back so you couldn’t see him.

He felt tears building in his eyes, so he quickly wiped them away before you found him. He jumped as he saw you turn the corner, hiding the rose he held behind his back.

“Hey Niragi!” you exclaimed, having the same gorgeous smile that you always conveyed around him. Usually the small action would make him melt into the ground. But at that moment, he didn’t think anything you did could make him feel better.

“You okay?” you asked, leaning close to his face with your eyebrows raised. His heart beat picked up, noticing how your lips were only a few inches away from his. He turned his face to the side, hiding his blush. “Yeah, I’m just tired,” he lied through his teeth.

As he kept up his innocent façade, small droplets of blood slowly drizzled down his wrist from the tight fist enveloping the thorned rose. His confined anger flowed through the blood that spilled from the cuts in his palm, but he didn’t feel a pinch of pain through his tensed muscles.

Perhaps one day, the world would give him another chance to show his love for you.

***************

You woke with a start as someone busted through the door of the room, looking around in a panic at who would enter so suddenly. Your eyes widened as you caught sight of Niragi, stumbling into the room with his usual sniper rifle slung over his shoulder.

“Sorry love, did I wake you?”

You stayed silent, sitting up properly and watching his movements closely. You didn’t trust a single thing he did or said, so you still remained on high alert whenever he was in this room alone with you, despite the fact you had been sharing the room with him for three days.

“You getting hungry? I brought some food up last night for you while you were asleep,” he said, placing his rifle on a small table. You watched as it collided with the wooden surface, flinching at the loud noise.

You hadn’t been able to leave the room since your injury. You had been shot in the foot by an overly sensitive militant woman who you weren’t even sure was still alive after the beating Niragi gave her in front of you. His behaviour during that time alone was enough to you terrified, especially the fact that it is impossible to run from him now.

But the lack of movement on your foot has proven to help and you have noticed the bullet wound healing quite well. The ointment and bandages you apply regularly on it (no help from Niragi) has been working perfectly, and you were praying for the moment you could move your stuff back to your own room and escape Niragi’s unpredictable and psychotic behaviour around you.

As if he read your mind, Niragi spoke up. “How’s your foot? Is it getting better?”

The sweet tone in his voice was so contradictory to his intentions. You hated the fact that he thought you fell for his fake façade. To be honest, he probably knew you didn’t believe him, but continued with it to keep you on your toes.

You glared at him through the top of your eyelids, keeping your head low in suspicion. As Niragi sighed from your unresponsive behaviour, he strutted over towards the bed that you were laying on. You panicked and used your arms to push yourself away from him, being terrified of his presence alone. Spending only a few days with him was enough to make you realise how despicable of a human being he actually was.

“Shh, calm down. It’s just me,” he attempted to calm you.

You froze as he sat on the bed nearby your legs. A pained expression grew on your face as he slowly lifted your injured foot to place it gently on his lap, running his hand carefully over the bandage you had applied before going to sleep.

“Does it hurt?” he asked, glancing up at you. You shook your head no, watching as he smirked slightly and turned back to it.

“I’m going to have a look at it,” he demanded, beginning to unravel the bandage on your foot.

You remained still, watching as he was unusually careful. It made your adrenaline run rapid, not knowing when he was going to suddenly snap.

As he pulled the final layer off your foot, relief filled you when you saw that it was still fine. The injury had turned into a small hole in the top of your foot, no blood or redness in sight. Maybe perhaps you could walk again soon, and be able to replenish your visa that was due to end in a few days.

Unfortunately, Niragi wasn’t as happy about this knowledge, and he intended to do something about it.

“Hmm,” he hummed in thought, leaning over to the night stand and picking up a small unwashed needle that he had kept there. It was left there by Ann a few days ago, as she had to come to the room to stitch up a cut that Niragi had obtained during a game.

Your eyes widened at the sight of him holding the needle close to your bullet wound. “W-Wait, Niragi,” you stuttered, nervous about his intentions. “What are you doing?”

Niragi glanced up at you, a devilish smirk painted across his face. His expression made your stomach churn and you attempted to pull your leg from his grip. Your heart rate picked up and you began to panic when he refused to let go.

“Don’t worry, this won’t hurt much. Just... try not to scream.”

Just as you were about to protest, Niragi pinned your foot onto his lap and pushed the tip of the needle as hard as he could into your bullet wound, making you let out a silent scream and thrash in his hold.

You screamed and screamed and screamed, a horrific pain continuously shot through your foot to your leg. You swore at some point it felt like he was cutting your foot off.

“NIRAGI!” you wailed. “STOP! PLEASE!”

You begged and begged through your cries of pain. After what felt like a century, Niragi pulled the needle out of your foot slowly and placed his hand over the wound to attempt to stop the bleeding. You were now lying on your back, sobbing lightly into the sheets and given up.

You felt Niragi caress your face with the back on his hand lightly. “My little princess needs to stay here, where I can keep her safe. You can’t leave. There’s horrible monsters at The Beach and I would hate for you to fall prey to one of them.”

You felt like screaming at him. How could he be so blind, so ignorant. He was the monster, and he failed to realise it.

He placed your leg off his lap, making you let out a small cry. Niragi crawled further up the bed next to you and sat on the sheets. You were facing away from him, not even daring to turn to look at him. You could hear him unbuttoning his checkered shirt, seeing it fly over your frame and land on the floor. A shiver made its way up your spine as Niragi’s hot breath hit the nape of your neck and his warm limbs snaked around your torso. He placed his hands underneath your shirt and softly caressed the skin of your stomach whilst nipping at the skin on your neck.

“You’re so pretty. You have no idea how much I’ve missed you over these years.”

His words sounded so loving, so sweet. But your reaction was the opposite of what he wanted. A slow, sorrowful tear traveled down your face and you began shaking in his embrace in fear of having him so close. You wanted to close your eyes and wake up back home, back in your own bed with your family’s hushed conversations spread throughout the house. This wasn’t home, this was absolute hell.

“Why are you shaking? Are you cold?” your tormentor asked. He removed his hands from underneath your shirt and pulled on your shoulders to make you turn over to face him. You kept your eyes shut tight, refusing to submit to his demands.

He pulled you close once again and placed his hand on the back of your head to push your face into his bare chest. Niragi’s usual smell of blood and metal filled your nostrils, making you grimace against him.

You continued to shake, not being able to control your movements. Niragi sighed, tucking his chin on the top of your head and nuzzling into your hair, taking a breath of the all too familiar scent of the shampoo you’ve always used for your hair. How you managed to find the exact one in the Borderland was beyond his understanding.

The smell made him feel at home. The comfort he found in you was too strong for him to handle, making him become deranged at the thought of you being back in his arms. It scared him, how much he actually depended on you to keep him happy.

And while he continued to hold you close and smile happily at the feeling of your soft breath against his chest, he failed to notice the continuous flow of tears that cascaded down your face and the shaking of your hands that gripped the top of your own thighs violently, trying to realise the tension of the adrenaline in your veins.

************

You had had enough.

Niragi did nothing but put you through absolute torture and trauma no matter how much you attempted to reason with his psychotic self. Bruises littered your body from his usual violence, committing to the awful promise that he was going to make sure you couldn’t leave the room.

You were imprisoned. It felt as if you were trapped in a cage that had the easiest lock in the world to pick, only you didn’t have hands to unlock it.

So two days after the needle incident, you decided you were going to escape, even if it killed you.

You had to replenish your visa, considering it ended the next night. You feared that Niragi would just leave you to die, not caring about your visa, so you had to take it upon yourself.

You may have had an infected bullet wound and a nearly crushed spirit, but you weren’t going to let this be your end. You had to at least try.

*************

“Oi, I’m leaving now,”

You shifted your eyes from your hands resting in your lap to the tall, deranged man who stood at the door of your room. He had his usual black and white buttoned shirt on, charcoal hair tied up at the top to keep it out of his face and his relaxed hand tucked into the pockets of his dark jeans. You almost felt disappointed. How could such a handsome man be wasted by such a horrific mentality.

He carried his loaded sniper rifle in his arm, fiddling with the trigger as he awaited an answer from you.

You nodded your head and turned back to your hands, twiddling your thumbs nervously. You stayed frozen as you heard his footsteps make their way over to you.

Niragi lifted your chin with a harsh grip to your jaw and smashed his lips onto yours. You closed your eyes tightly in discomfort, feeling his desperate lips bite over yours hungrily. It made you feel sick to your stomach.

He pulled away, your lips connected by a string of saliva, making him chuckle. “I’ll be back kitten. Maybe I’ll bring you back a present,” he suggested, raising his eyebrows.

You nodded once again. You knew what he meant. Perhaps an amputated hand of one of your friends? Or the eye of a seeker/hunter to remind you of the “monsters” he’s hiding you from? At this point, you were desensitised to it.

The feeling on his lips on your head brought you from your thoughts. He softly stroked his hand through your hair, tucking slightly on the ends, making you wince.

“Stay here, and don’t answer the door if someone knocks.”

And with that, he left. You stayed completely still for a few minutes, waiting in case he decided to come back just to torment you further.

After you were sure he was completely gone, you shifted to the edge of the bed and swung your legs over the edge to stand up. You had practised walking around the room on your injured foot for the past few days when Niragi wasn’t there, so you had grown used to the random aches that shot up your leg from your bullet wound while walking.

You waddled to the door, slowly swinging it open and grabbing the small knife that sat on the table nearby. You had to have some kind of weapon in case something was to happen.

As you stepped outside, a few people were still making their way down the halls towards the lobby. You noticed a young man that you had somewhat befriended when you first arrived at The Beach named Tatta. He stopped in his tracks when he saw you, a smile growing on his face.

“Y/N! Where have you been?!” he exclaimed excitedly, running to you and throwing his arms around you in a playful embrace. You grimaced at his loud voice, being afraid of a certain someone potentially hearing him say your name.

“Hey Tatta,” you said back, giving him a right hug. You swore you felt like you could’ve cried in his arms from how deprived you were from normal human interaction without the fear of being assaulted.

“Are you coming to the games tonight?” he asked, pulling back from the hug and keeping a hand on your shoulder. You nodded. “Can I stick with you?” you asked with hope in your eyes. Tatta smiled and hit your arm lightly. “Of course! I’d feel better going with someone I knew.”

You agreed and began walking down the hall towards the lobby together in a comfortable. Tatta failed to notice you being more cautious, checking around corners before you turned and whipping your head around to glance behind you every now and then.

************

Just your luck, a ten of spades. You swore the world just wanted you dead. At that point, you had become used to the never-ending bullshit that was thrown your way.

You clawed your way to the table that held the card. Holding the single piece of cardboard between your fingers had never felt more satisfying. You slid down against the wall near the registration area, limbs shaking from the muscle strain you faced during the game. Tatta knelt in front of you, rubbing your knee in an attempt to comfort you, but nothing he could do would make you feel better.

Back at The Beach, you sat in the lobby on one of the leather couches, rubbing your foot to try and ease the aching pain coming from your wound. You had heard when you arrived back that the executives had called a meeting, so you weren’t too worried about running into Niragi.

You closed your eyes and crossed your arms over your chest, rolling your head back to rest against the couch. Moments like that were complete bliss. For a moment, you were able to forget your current situation.

A sudden hand on your shoulder ripped you from your meditation, and you turned your head to see none other than Kuina with a red face and heavily breathing from running. “Hey Y/N,” she started. You sat up and turned around fully to face you.

“The executives want you in the meeting. They heard you collected a high number card and they need you to deliver it.”

Your heart dropped at her words, realising what was coming for you. You had to walk into that meeting room, where Niragi stood. He was going to find out about your little adventure you had without him knowing. Adrenaline filled your senses from the thought of what he was going to do to you.

You slowly stood up, wiping your sweaty hands on your shorts and checking your card was still in the front pocket. You gulped heavily and nodded to Kuina. “Okay, I’ll head there now.”

Every step towards the meeting room was another towards hell. The more stairs you climbed, the more nausea filled your stomach, the more thoughts filled your head. You were seriously just considering throwing yourself off the roof of the hotel, as that seemed like a better option than facing Niragi.

You arrived in front of the double doors, freezing in your path. You don’t know how long you stood there, sighing shakily and attempting to crack your knuckles to relieve tension. But still, as you lifted your hand to push on the large wooden door, your arm shook like a leaf.

You trudged in, hearing the room fall silent at your entry. You refused to look up from the ground, keeping your widened eyes locked to the carpeted ground until you reached the end of the table.

“Ah, Y/N. Finally! Care to show your card?” you heard Hatter ask. You glanced up and caught sight of all the executives gathered around the table on chairs. One of which was of course Niragi.

You locked eyes with the psychotic man, and your stomach dropped when you saw the scowl on his face. He was staring directly into your soul, eyes hardened with anger and unforgiveness. If looks could kill, you would’ve been on the floor dead before you even made it to the table.

You focused on the task at hand and pulled the card from your pocket, placing the somewhat damaged ten of spades on the table. Hatter reached over and held it close to his face to examine it as everyone watched. Well, everyone except Niragi, who held his piercing gaze on you. You swore you could feel him burning holes through your skin.

“Hmm,” Hatter hummed in approval. “Thank you very much Y/N, that will be all,” he said, making a shooing movement towards you.

You nodded and thanked him before quickly walking out of the room. As soon as you stepped out, you broke into a sprint towards you and Niragi’s shared room.

You had to leave the room before the meeting finished. You feared the absolute worse.

When you arrived at the room, you ripped open the door and scrambled inside, groaning at the pain your foot was in. You didn’t have a choice, you had to hurry.

You made your way to the large closet, immediately reaching for the top shelf to pull down the miniature machine gun that Niragi stored up there as a spare. You weren’t sure if you were supposed to know about it, but you managed to spot him tucking it underneath the clothes at some point.

As you were shuffling around the cupboard trying to find some bullets desperately, annoyed and stressed sighs and gasps leaving your mouth, you froze when the sound of the door opening hit your ears. Immediately assuming the worst, you grabbed the door of the cupboard and closed yourself inside, attempting to enveloped yourself in the piles of clothes and resources.

The keyhole in the door of the cupboard allowed you to have a small space to look through. You closed one eye and glanced through the hole, spotting Niragi placing his sniper rifle on the bed and untying his hair, running his hands through it in stress.

You didn’t dare even breath, keeping all your limbs tucked close so you didn’t knock over anything. You were so afraid that Niragi would even hear the sound of your heart beating, as it was as loud as a drum in your own ears.

You grimaced as a sudden putrid smell filled your nose. The smell of fresh flesh that you were all too familiar with from living in the Borderland. You turned around in the cupboard and moved to the side so the light of the keyhole would at least somewhat illuminate the small space. The sight in front of you was enough to make you throw up.

There sat Tatta (or at least, Tatta’s remains), empty eyed and leaning against the back of the cupboard. Bullet holes littered his once kind face, probably counting eight at least. You covered your mouth in horror, letting out a loud cry at the sight, pushing your legs against the ground to scramble away from your dead friend.

Once again, just like the other day during the needle incident, you screamed and screamed and screamed. You fell backwards out of the closet, curling into a small ball and screeching into your palm in horror at the now clearer sight of your friend’s corpse. 

Everything was crumbling around you. Your voice was being ripped to shreds at the back of your throat. Your mind was falling apart, not being able to handle the traumatising events that you’ve faced, breaking and tearing itself apart. Your body was broken. Bruises and scars scattered your frame like an artwork, each one holding a connected traumatic event.

Niragi sat on the bed, watching as you screamed on the ground over by the corner of the room, tears sliding down his tanned cheeks.

What had happened to you? Why did you change so much in these few years?

Niragi slowly stood and made his way over to your shaking frame, hooking his arms underneath your shoulders and knees to lift you bridle style. He smiled sadly down at your shivering frame, not being able to control your rapid movements.

“Aw baby, you’re a mess,” he cried, a sob escaping his mouth halfway through his sentence.

He brought you back over to the bed, crawling on his knees to the centre of the mattress and crossing his legs to lay you in his lap with your head tucked into the crook of his elbow.

He brushed your hair with his fingers, trying to ease your breathing as you kept your eyes tightly shut in fear. “I tried to warn you. Look what happened,” he chuckled through his tears, motioning his head over towards the cupboard. “Do you like your present? I saw you walking with him on your way back to the hotel and thought it would be perfect. Why don’t you like it?”

You opened your eyes and looked up at him with fear all written all over your face. You didn’t dare move from his embrace, being too afraid.

Niragi smiled as he caught sight of your glistening eyes, reaching a hand up and stroking his thumb along your cheek. “You’re so pretty,” he breathed out, leaning down and placing a gentle kiss on your lips.

You brought your shaking hands up and rubbed your face before finally speaking up. “I want to go home,” you desperately whispered, turning your head and pressing your face against Niragi’s clothed chest. He watched as you brought your hand up and gripped the material of his shirt in your fist tightly, conveying anger and stress through your grip.

“You are home kitten,” he states, rubbing his cheek against your head. “I’m your home. I always have been.”

He wasn’t lying to you, and that was the pill that was hard to swallow. Niragi had been your source of comfort for so long, and for once in your life, it felt foreign to lay in his arms and to look into his night eyes.

Oh how weird it felt to look at something that conveyed such sweetness, such delicacy and such empathy, only for it to be utterly ruined by its environment.

You’d like to think that it wasn’t either of your faults. But in the end, it doesn’t depend on the environment, it depends on how you react to it.

Neither of you were perfect, but you were both incredibly different. It never would’ve worked between the two of you, and being in the Borderland did nothing but strengthen that fact. In the end, your differences would either tear you apart from each other emotionally, or you would tear each other apart limb from limb.

Author’s Note: Hi everyone! I’m back to finishing off the fanfic requests that have been sent to me because I finished all the prompt scenarios. I won’t be doing another part to this because I honestly struggled for so long trying to figure out a plot for this one 😭 But anyway thanks so much for your patience. I’ll be uploading these fanfics as quick as I can! ❤❤

Small addition to this fanfic talking about Niragi’s motives and intentions

[samuel-de-champagne-problems]

I Can't Help It If You Look Like an Angel

Summary: Spencer is not that kind of doctor, but he'll always come when Y/N needs him, even if germs are involved.

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Fem Reader

Warnings: One cuss (sh!t), kisses, small insecurities

Word Count: 2.5 k (was not supposed to be this long but I'm a monster)

Author's Note: From this list (3, 12, 14) since I hit 300 followers! Thank you! This request is from @willowrose99 (look for the bold)

I Can't Help It If You Look Like an Angel

Spencer’s half done with his third book that weekend when his phone rang. A weekend spent in the company of Nietzsche and Sartre is, according to Spencer at least, a weekend well spent. He can feel the relaxation that settles in his bones come crashing down as he phone rings.

Thinking it’s Hotch calling the team in for an unexpected case, Spencer, lethargically, walks over to answer the phone. However, realizing the caller is not his boss pulling him away from a restful weekend, but Y/N, his heart rushes with a sudden urge of excitement.

“Y/N,” Spencer starts. He’s more than happy to have Y/N interrupt his weekend; they even made plans for a day out on Saturday at the new Anthropology museum that opened downtown. But all of Spencer’s made up plans fall in front of his face, as he hears Y/N’s quiet sniffles.

“Spencer, I’m so sorry to bother you. I know that you’re probably enjoying your rest, but I guess I have a cold. One of the kids at school, I suppose,” Y/N tells him in between sniffles. Her voice is scratchy and Spencer tries not to think about how his brain seems to short circuit at the way his name sounds.

“I’m coming over,” Spencer says, cutting her off. He doesn’t like doing that, in fact he hates when that happens to him, but right now he knows that Y/N is going to try her hardest to stop him from coming over.

“No Spence, it’s germs. You hate germs and I’m really gross and snotty and—”

“Stop, Y/N. Don’t say another word. I’m on my way” Spencer says. He feels a little guilty for hanging up on her, but he knows that if he stayed on the line any longer she’d end up convincing him that he didn’t need to rush over. There’s not a lot of people in this world that can convince Spencer to change his mind, and he’s pretty sure that Y/N is one of them.

Spencer walks into his bedroom, looking for some supplies like a man on a mission. He decides to pack a small bag for the next three days. He’s off from work anyway, why not spend that time making sure Y/N gets better. Spencer packs away a couple of sweaters, flannel pajama pants and two thermal shirts. In the back of his drawer he spots a very old college tee shirt.

A memory, an early memory with Y/N, comes flooding to the surface. They got caught in a rainstorm after a picnic in the nearby park. Spencer changed into his comfortable tee shirt and pajamas. He would never forget the look on Y/N’s face; the way the rain collected on her glasses and for some reason she had yet to wipe them off. She called him an angel. Maybe it’s for bringing her some warm clothes or maybe she’s slightly on edge from their dash into Spencer’s apartment. Whatever it was that made her call him an angel, Spencer never wanted her to call him anything else. Besides his own name, in that scratchy sick voice that made him feel a little guilty for liking so much.

Spencer collects some other things he needs for his stay. A toothbrush, toothpaste, a hair brush, and his hair serum that Y/N says she likes the way it smells. When she told him that, Spencer could hardly wait to buy the entire supply from the CVS down the street. He tucks away in this bag with a small smile.

Walking out of his apartment, Spencer locks up and makes his way down to his car. He glances at his watch, realizing that it only took him a couple of minutes to get ready for Y/N. Quicker than what it takes for him to get ready for an emergency case. Then again, tending to a sick Y/N seems much pleasurable then looking at served bodies and mangled limbs.

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

After making a pit stop at a small convenience store near Y/N’s apartment, Spencer pulls into the guest parking spot near her complex. He attempts to shoulder the weight of his go bag; even though he only packed a couple philosophy books, they are quite dense. In his hands, he grasps the grocery bags.

Y/N’s apartment, thankfully, is on the first floor. Spencer approaches the door and thinks twice about knocking or ringing the doorbell. The last thing he wants to do is wake a sick Y/N up. He rummages in his pants for his car keys. Attached to the keys is a cat keychain with a spare key to Y/N’s apartment. Balancing the groceries and his own bag, Spencer quietly attempts to open Y/N’s door without possibly waking her up.

Once he finally gets the door open, Spencer realizes all too late that a large orange cat guards the tight hallway entrance. Spencer Reid, though a genius in his own right, is completely aware of the fact that he has two left feet.

“Oh, Zelda! Oh shit!,” Spencer yells as he trips over Zelda, Y/N’s orange cat. Zelda, scared from the noise, leaps from her spot guarding the hallway to the kitchen. Spencer brushes himself from his fall and picks up the groceries that fell during his tumble.

“Zelda, baby?” Y/N calls from what sounds like the couch from the other side of the wall.

“Hi Y/N, it’s just me. It’s just Spencer,” He says, placing the oranges back in his canvas bag and on the kitchen table. He sees Y/N laying on the couch. Surrounded by a pile of crumpled tissues, she smiles weakly at Spencer. He walks over to her and like an involuntary muscle, she scoots her feet so Spencer has room to sit.

Spencer, setting the beg on the floor, tucks Y/N’s legs over his. He rests a comforting hand on her calf that’s covered by a worn quilt.

“You didn’t have to come Spencer. I’m really okay, I just wanted you to know that I wasn’t ghosting you this weekend,” Y/N explains. The TV has been left on, but on mute. The colorful lights illuminate Y/N’s face in her dimly lit apartment.

“Nonsense, Y/N. What are friends for,” Spencer offers, wondering beyond belief if he messed up calling them friends. Their relationship had been quite strange for the past couple of weeks. Intense moments of silence where Spencer thinks he’d have the time to memorize every freckle on her nose or small grazes from fingers to wrists where Spencer swears she left scars that he hope would never heal.

“Friends,” Y/N says quietly. Spencer, offering a tight lipped smile, leans forward to straighten the blankets under Y/N’s chin. He presses the back of his hand towards Y/N’s forehead, feeling her warm skin under his knuckles. He’s not sure if the heat he feels is from her bug or from the adrenaline coursing through his veins at being this close to Y/N.

“You’re hot,” Spencer says, not moving his hand from Y/N’s forehead. She, loving the way his ears turn pink when he’s embarrassed, uncovers her arm from under the blankets and holds onto his wrist, keeping him attached to her forehead. Not that he’d want it any other way.

“So are you,” Y/N says. Spencer flinches and moves his hand from her forehead like she scorched his hand. In reality, her comment pierced his heart with hope.

“How much cough syrup did you take?” Spencer asks, choosing to face the situation with humor. There’s no way in the world Y/N could ever find him “hot” without the aid of cough syrup or another mind numbing substance.

“None,” Y/N says, reaching around to turn off the television. Spencer, getting increasingly nervous as the minutes of that intense silence passed, mentions to Y/N that he needs to put the groceries away.

“You really didn’t need to do that, Spence. I feel bad enough that you came here just to get sick yourself,” Y/N says. She’s folding the blankets that she was just resting under.

“I’ll always come when you need me to, Y/N” Spencer says, his breath catching and his eyes latching onto Y/N. He looks at her too long and there’s that intense silence again. Silence that is as thick as fog. Spencer can’t see facts through all the love that swallows him whole looking at Y/N.

“Maybe I knew that, and maybe that’s why I called you,” Y/N murmurs quietly, almost like she’s more scared to admit it to herself than to Spencer.

“Maybe,” Spencer says, breaking her gaze to put the half melted tub of green tea ice cream in the freezer.

“I think I’m going to shower, I need to put a fresh pair of pajamas on. I’ll be right out,” Y/N tells him, turning on her heel and leaving Spencer along with his thoughts.

Spencer can hear the water from the shower turn on. He estimates that Y/N will take at least 5 minutes in the shower, accounting for a margin of error, he supposes that he should start to heat the soup he bought from the store now, so it’s ready for Y/N when she’s done in the shower. Too bad all Spencer’s brain power is good for his statistics and numbers, not recipes and romance.

As it turns out, not a single statistic, nor a single digit could account for the possibility of Y/N walking out her bedroom, her hair damp and skin practically glowing, wearing Spencer’s worn college tee shirt. Spencer reckons that his eyes must have been bugging out from his head, given the spirited smile Y/N wears.

“I’m sorry, Spence, you know how much I love this tee shirt. I was putting some of your stuff away in your drawer and I saw this and I just couldn’t help myself. God it even smells a little bit like that hair gunk you wear,” Y/N rambles. She stands, leaning on her door frame, staring at Spencer who holds a wooden spoon that he used to stir the soup.

“You look like an angel,” Spencer says before he can stop himself. He just knows that his face is flaming red.

“You remember that?” Y/N asks, her voice light and hopeful. Spencer recognizes something in it. It’s the way his voice sounds when he talks to her, about her, with her. He can only hope that this is the way she always talks to him. He hopes with every fiber of his being that she uses that light and hopeful voice with him and only him.

“Of course Y/N. Then again, even if I didn’t have an eidetic memory, I’d still remember every single detail about you,”

“Now you’re making me feel guilty about stealing your shirt. You’re being all sweet and kind with me, it makes me fuzzy in the head,” Y/N confesses. She walks to her kitchen table, slowly closing the gap between her and Spencer.

“Keep it, it looks better on you anyway,” Spencer tells her. Her eyes grow big at his words and she presses her lips together like she’s holding something in. But something in her switches. Something in her grows a little sad and Spencer watches before his eyes as Y/N withdraws into herself.

“You can’t say that stuff to me, Spencer. You can’t say that stuff to me and not expect me to love you more than I already do,” Y/N says, her eyes shut and her lips pinched so tightly that it almost looks painful.

“Y/N,” Spencer starts, unsure what he’s supposed to say. His brain always seems to be playing catch up around Y/N. “Can I say it if I do love you back?”

Y/N eyes flutter open and narrow at Spencer, as if she’s reading him. Her eyes scan for any sign of a joke, of a prank, of Spencer trying to trick her. Maybe he should be upset that Y/N is doubting him, but all Spencer can feel is hatred for the person that made her doubt herself so much to not believe him.

“I’ve never felt what I feel when I’m with you, Y/N. No one else has made me feel truly me except you, Y/N,” Spencer professes, setting down the wooden spoon on the counter to reach Y/N’s hand.

“I never thought you’d feel the same way, Spence. I love you, God. That feels so good to say,” Y/N says, letting out a strained laugh. Spencer standing up next to her, places his hands on Y/N cheeks, and tries to lean in lower to kiss her, but Y/N’s finger on his lips stops his movement.

“I’m so sorry, I should have asked. I thought that this is-” Spencer stammers, suddenly very concerned that he violated Y/N in some way.

“Shhh, angel. It’s okay. I want you to kiss me. I really do, but I just want you to tell the facts on you getting sick if you kiss me,” Y/N says, not moving her finger from Spencer’s soft lips. He kisses her finger and grasps her hand with his.

“Sorry, I just had to do that,” Spencer smirks, “but to answer your question, unless you have a bad cough, and some of the respiratory mucus has made its way into your saliva, the cold virus will not be transmitted by kissing,”

“That’s good, so please kiss me, Spencer,” Y/N practically begs, eager for Spencer to leave pieces of him all over her. Eager for him to leave physical evidence of the marking he’s already left on her heart.

“You just might have to take care of me next week,” Spencer counters, peppering kisses over her jaw, knowing he’s purposely avoiding her lips.

“Spencer, I’m sick! Don’t tease me, just kiss me,” Y/N whines, and Spencer caves. He leans in slowly, meeting his lips to Y/N’s. It was the kiss that Spencer knew he’d be waiting for. A kiss that seals fate without a return address. A kiss that reminds him that he’s alive. A kiss that says forever and always.

Spencer, resting his chin against Y/N’s head, closes his eyes. The intense silence that existed between them, now is this light and hopeful air.

“Y/N, do you use my hair gunk?” Spencer asks. He can’t help but giggle with her and breathe in the familiar scent of her hair. He places three kisses on Y/N’s head and gently pushes her hair to the side to kiss down the back of her neck.

“I’m not sure what I love more, the smell of your hair gunk or the man that wears it,”

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TAGLIST (Comment to be added or send in an ask)

@shemarmooresfedora

@willowrose99

@calm-and-doctor

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Tell me what you thought!

[babymetaldoll]

On cloud nine (Spencer Reid/Reader)

Prompt: Start a story with “Don’t try this at home”

Spencer Reid/ Reader

Summary: It doesn’t matter how many times Hotch asks Spencer to stop the physics magic at the BAU, he just can’t help it, especially when he wants to impress Reader.

Category: Pure fluff

Word count: 1,2K

Masterlist

- “Don’t try this at home!”- Spencer said mysteriously and placed an Ivory soap into the microwave.

García, Prentis, JJ, and (Y/N) were standing right behind him, waiting for his physics magic trick to work. Yes, Hotch had politely asked him to stop doing it the first time he caught him. Then, Reid hit Prentiss with a little rocket on the head, and Hotch reminded him he had to stop doing that at work, though a massive part of him was humored he was still such a child.

Yes, Hotch saw Spencer like another son he had to take care of. He didn’t bother though, he knew the kid needed a father figure, and Aaron had more than enough father material to rise above the circumstances.

- “Ok… and what’s supposed to happen?”- Garcia was eager to see the result, but Spencer shushed her and turned to his coworkers.

- “What you are about to see is pure magic and I can assure you, it’s gonna change your lives”

- “You are setting pretty high expectations, Spence”- JJ raised an eyebrow staring at the doctor

- “That’s because I am sure of my abilities”

(Y/N) looked at them and held her breath for a second. She was having a hard time keeping her jealousy under control. She was sure Spencer was still crushed on JJ, she could see the way he looked at her every time she talked. It was obnoxious, but she couldn’t stop him, she couldn’t say a thing! she was just his friend, not his girlfriend.

Besides, (Y/N) was sure JJ was flirting with him just to keep him on the hook. And she was going crazy, ‘cos JJ was her friend, and she couldn't hate her though she wanted to. It was nerve-wracking.

- “Ok, this is what’s gonna happen: I am going to turn this simple soap in a cloud, and it’s all physic’s magic.”

You could tell Spencer was excited to do the trick. He kept fluttering his fingers in the air and looking all mysterious.

- “Nerd magic?”- Prentiss joked and García and JJ chuckled. (Y/N) nearly smiled. She hated it when people made fun of Reid.

- “Call it what you want, I am going to blow your brains up”

- “Just try not to blow up the microwaves, or Hotch is gonna kill you”- Derek said as he walked over trying to catch what was going on- What are you doing kid?

- “Wait and see”

Reid was enjoying that moment. He wanted to surprise (Y/N) with his trick because he was actually doing it for her.

Last weekend they finally had some time to rest, and the two of them had decided to enjoy their free time together, and check a new exhibit at the Smithsonian. They had a great time, it got late for lunch, so they decided to have an improvised picnic at the park. They bought a few things to eat, sat on a blanket (Y/N) kept in her car, and just enjoyed being there, not caring about catching an unsub for a few hours. Their brains needed a break from all the stress.

- “That’s the cutest, fluffiest cloud I’ve ever seen!”- (Y/N) was laid on the blanket, next to Spencer, and pointed at the sky. He smiled at her excitement over something so simple.

- “Yeah, it’s a cool cloud… but, that one is fluffier”- he pointed another, just to argue with her.

- “My cloud is better, besides, it looks like a giant dragon… no, wait, it looks like a huge pile of hotcakes.” 

Spencer chuckled at those words. (Y/N) had been rambling about getting up from the blanket and getting hotcakes for at least half an hour, but she was too tired to even move.

Spencer turned to her and forgot about the clouds. She was way more beautiful to him than anything on the earth or above. Her eyes were fixated on the sky, and never noticed he was looking at her until his silence was too evident. She turned to her best friend, and knit her eyebrows.

- “What is it?”

- “Did you know fluffy clouds are actually called cumulus, their name derives from the Latin cumulo, which means heap or pile-” Doctor Spencer Reid covered his embarrassment for being caught staring, with random facts.

- “I knew the name, but I didn’t know what it meant”- (Y/N) simply replied and smiled at him sweetly. She loved his facts.

- “Did you know cumulus clouds are low-level clouds, generally less than 6,600 ft in altitude, unless they are the more vertical cumulus congestus form?”

- “No, but I do know most of them looks like cotton candy”- she added and smiled- “I could also eat some cotton candy”

- “But you already convinced me to get some hotcakes”

- “I did?”- (Y/N) sat down and smiled like a four years old kid on Christmas morning- “‘Cos I could eat a huge pile of chocolate pancakes right now, honey bunny”

Spencer sighed and melted at the nickname.

- “Let’s go then.”

And that’s why he was decided to give her a cloud. A cumulus. ‘Cos now clouds made him think of her, and he wanted to make sure she would think of him with them too.

- “Ok, so far we have a simple Ivory soap cut in four pieces on a dish in the microwave, but in exactly one minute, we are going to have something completely different”- Spencer pressed start and cooked the bar of soap, as his friends waited anxiously for the result.

He stared at (Y/N) for a few seconds, her eyes were fixated on the microwave, trying to see what was going on inside. He bit his lips and held his breath for a moment until he felt Derek’s elbow on his arm.

- “Wake up, Romeo, the microwave is...”- the beeping interrupted Morgan, and Spencer quickly moved to open the door.

- “Ladies and germs, I give you… the fluffiest cumulus on earth!”- (Y/N)’s eyes wide opened as Reid took the dish with the soap, which had turned into a cloud, a perfect fluffy cloud made of soap.

- “This is so awesome!”- the girl almost yelled as she saw it, and Spencer felt his heart racing in his chest with her reaction. Her smile was brightening his day. 

- “Just like the ones we saw Saturday”- he said and handed over the cloud to her- “And you can still use it, you can take a bath with the cloud”

- “Really? can I keep it?”- (Y/N) was way more thrilled than anyone else on the team. Not only because she loved clouds, but also ‘cos she loved how excited Spencer got when he did those magic tricks.

- “Of course, you can! I... I...”- Reid stuttered for a second, completely flustered- “I made it for you, actually”

It was hard not to blush for Reid, but under those circumstances, it was even harder. He could feel his face burning as (Y/N) smiled at him and pecked his cheek, blushing as well.

- “Thank you honey bunny!!”

- “You are welcome…”- the girl turned around to show her new cloud to the rest of the team- “Buttercup…”

Spencer whispered the loving nickname, but no one heard him… except Morgan.

- “That’s called game, kid”- he whispered and tapped on Reid’s back, who looked down at his feet, embarrassed, but still smiling- “Well played, man.”   

[allforhader]

Our Little Secret

Officer Slater x (F) Reader

Requested by: @berkmansbabe

Warnings: Langauge, Some Smut

“Hey, you finally fucking show up” Y/N laughs at the three finally joining her at the park.

“Well unlike you, we have a schedule that isn’t in our control” Seth states sitting on the picnic table on the bench while Y/N sat on the table itself.

Fogel sat on the other side of her with a nervous smile. Little does she know that he likes her. But Y/N only saw the three as friends, nothing more.

“I gotta get a new lighter if we’re gonna pass this shit around” Y/N smiles twiddling with a joint container before getting up. “Anybody wanna go to the liquor store on the corner with me or am I walking solo?”

“I’ll go!” Fogel got up from the table stumbling a bit making Seth and Evan groan. They know he likes her but won’t say anything about it.

“Alright. I’ll get drinks while I’m there as well. I know the owner” Y/N smiles walking with Fogel to the liquor store.

Y/N opens the door for them as the jingle of the bell caught the owner’s attention.

“Y/N!”

“Sup pops” Y/N smiles high fiving the owner over the counter leaving Fogel confused.

“Is he your actual...?”

“No my good man, no I am not. And thank god for that one” the owner laughs as Y/N rolls her eyes going to get what she came there for.

Fogel waited with the owner while Y/N not only went in the back to snag a few drinks without pay cuz the owner is used to it with her, but grab a lighter.

“McLovin’??”

The owner’s attention draws to the two officers stepping in as he quickly grabs his permits and such.

“Oh hey! What are you doing here?”

“Beer run my guy” Micheals pays his shoulder. “Then yknow. The usual with cops on a break”

Fogel nodded pretending he knew what he meant.

“So what are you doing here McLovin? Not here for alcohol yeah?” Slater laughs with Micheals.

“No I’m here wi—“

“Y/N NOW YOU GOTTA BUY THE LIGHTER IF YOU’RE GOING TO USE IT” The owner yells as Y/N steps into the isle to the door lighting the joint already before freezing when she noticed the cops.

“I am gonna buy it old man...just uh. Who called the cops?”

“No one ma’am, we’re off duty” Micheals smiles as Slater locked eyes with Y/N while she took a hit with a smirk on her face.

“Take a picture it’ll last longer” Y/N laughs catching Slater off guard.

“OH! Yeah. Officer Micheals. Officer Slater. This is Y/N. She’s who I came here with”

“Oh is she a lucky lady?” Micheals teases while Slater straightens himself still getting a longing look from Y/N.

“Nope. I am very...single” Y/N smiles handing the owner the money she owes for the lighter. “Now, we are out.” She grabs Fogel’s arm pulling him out of there as the two watched them. “Later officers...”

“See yeah...”

“A college girl. He’s aiming high” Micheals laughs going to the beer with Slater.

“College?”

“Yeah man. You didn’t seem the college lanyard hanging out of her pocket?”

“No...but did you get the name?”

A few days went by and Y/N sat outside of her class’s building finishing up a note from the previous class when a few whispers caught her attention along with a pair of black boots meeting hers.

“Well. I would ask where you get your boots but I don’t have to now” Y/N smiles looking up at Slater. “Now how did you know where my college is?”

“Officer Micheals has a great eye for detail” Slater points to her lanyard now hanging out of her backpack. Y/N laughs a little smiling.

“Anything I can do for you officer?”

“I uh, wouldn’t mind taking you out on a date”

“Oh?” Y/N smiles closing her notebook and leaning forward. “How about coffee first? See if you actually like me...cuz I really like you”

One coffee later...leading to four dates later...and they can official say they’re dating. Or well. Keep it to themselves.

“Sneaking off somewhere ma’am?” Slater smiles leaning against his cop car as Y/N had just reached the parking lot to her complex.

“No sir, my boyfriend awaits at his place. Or so I thought” Y/N smiles walking over to Slater and wrapping her arms around his neck. “Are you off?”

“You don’t see Micheals with me now do you?” Slater brought her close before kissing her lovingly.

“So, the cop car being here?”

“Mm. That one thing you told me”

“Oh?”

In an empty parking lot, Y/N sat on the hood of the cop car smiling at Slater. He likes to admire for a moment and so does she.

“You gonna keep standing there looking pretty?” Y/N smiles grabbing the sides of his shirt the second he got closer to her.

“I’m admiring the beauty here, love” Slater smiles kissing her lovingly before getting more heated.

Y/N pulls away a bit to get her shirt off and Slater instantly planted his lips on her neck enjoying himself. She ran her hands through his hair smiling more.

“You going to make me feel good baby?”

“Mmm...yes yes I am”

A few moments later...

Y/N gripped onto Slater’s back with her nails and her legs around his hips simply enjoying themselves in the backseat of his cop car. He made sure not to go too hard with his thrusts since her bare back is against the door. But she didn’t care and begged for him to go faster.

“Slate I—“ Y/N moans getting close as Slater kept an arm wrapped around her waist and one pressed against the window while he thrusted.

“I’m almost there” Slater got rougher shaking the car.

“Kiss me, kiss me baby” Y/N begged grabbing his face the second he looked toward her pressing her lips against his.

Slater deepen the kiss the moment he climaxed along with Y/N both moaning into each other’s mouths. He parts from Y/N kissing her cheek and neck before calming down.

“Jesus Christ....”

“Hm?”

“God you’re amazing...” Y/N pants laying back as Slater opens the door behind him knowing no one is out there those late slowly pulling out.

“You’re the amazing one here” Slater took a deep breath saying so, pulling the condom off and tying it off.

Y/N brought herself up taking Slater’s shirt and putting it on before seeing the mark ups.

“Well you truly like to show that I’m taken” Y/N laughs talking about the hickeys on her thighs, neck, and chest.

Slater laughs putting his pants back on before handing her her panties and shorts. “I want everybody to know you’re mine” he smiles sliding back in and kissing her once more. “You wanna head back to yours or mine?”

“Mine, since I’m hanging out with the three stooges tomorrow” Y/N says with a frown knowing she’d reschedule if he had the day off since it was hers off school and work.

“I can sleep over still right?” Slater smiles making Y/N’s returns with a nod. “Your cat isn’t allowed in the bed though”

“Awww come on Tiger bites you that ONE TIME” Y/N laughs kissing him once more.

The next day came around and Y/N sat on the hood of her car waiting for her fools to get out of school. She was a little upset that she had to give Slater his shirt back but she knew she’d seen him tonight so she has all the time to steal it back. But the only clean shirt she got was a tank top and it fully revealed what he left on her besides her jacket covering the few on her shoulders.

“Y/N! Yo” Seth smiles doing a handshake with her as did Evan.

The moment Fogel joined his eyes obviously trailed elsewhere. Y/N caught on but didn’t think it was toward the hickeys.

“Hey” Y/N snaps with a smile. “My eyes are up here Fogel”

“Oh! Yeah sorry sorry”

It didn’t take long for Fogel to find Officer Slater and Micheals that evening since he just checks where they’ve been before. Fogel practically can get into the bar without getting ID’d because they’ve been with him before and not every bar is smart enough to double check.

“McLovin what the fuck are you doing here?” Micheals laughs setting his beer down as Slater looks up from his phone over to the distressed Fogel.

“Dude you good?”

“NO I AM NOT!” Fogel got into the bar stool now having both of their attentions. “So you know Y/N?”

“Yeah?”

“We were hanging out earlier right? And she was like...a little revealing”

Keep it cool Slater

“Okay? Aren’t a lot of college girls revealing?”

Micheals you fucking bastard

“ANYWAY—She had all these fucking hickeys and stuff but like I didn’t know she was seeing anybody! I really like her and I don’t know what I’m going to do about it”

“Is there...anything you really can do? She’s seeing somebody” We can’t be subtle for shit.

“I mean you can jump the gun and think she’s...a whore but I know she’s not! She’s too classy for that”

“College does shit dude. You don’t know what she be doing” Micheals laughs again as Slater laughed along even if he wanted to punch his partner. “You should just be straight up with her if you really like the girl”

Y/N stares at Slater after he told her what happened. She couldn’t help it. She started laughing at the fact that Micheals would say that about her and that Fogel likes her. Like it’s cute that he has a crush on her but she thought the obvious disinterest in the three would’ve stirred that away but guess not.

“You take this super well”

“Well Slater, other than you. I’ve only slept with one other guy in my entire life. So the whore comment doesn’t affect me and you two are breaking up A LOT of college parties where some act like whores. You two see it a lot. But like I’m fucking smarter than that. I have a full ride through college, I have a decent job, good friends, and a boyfriend that I love. Yeah I get high sometimes but that’s about it” Y/N’s laughter calmed down as she moved her physics book off her bed along with her notes. She turns back to Slater moving himself to tower her. “Oh? Now what’s this?”

“You love me?” Slater smiles laying on top of her as Y/N brought her arms around him.

“I do, I love you”

“I love you too Y/N” Slater continues to smile getting many kisses from Y/N once he said that.

It didn’t take long for Fogel to find out. Well. It did. But it wasn’t...hard

Fogel one weekend went to Y/N’s school knowing she had a class on Saturday with the confidence to tell her but the second he spotted her, she was in the arms of Officer Slater.

So he did what was best in his mind.

Flip out.

“YOU FUCKING—“

Y/N’s attention immediately darts to the pissed off Fogel as she parts from Slater.

“Fogel—“

“I TOLD YOU THAT I LIKED HER AND YOU IMMEDIATELY SWEEP HER OFF HER FEET TAKING HER FOR YOURSELF”

“Okay I’m not a prized possession—“

“SHUT UP Y/N”

“Woah Fogel. Calm down don’t make a scene—“

“MAKE A SCENE?! YOU’RE A BACKSTABBING ASSHOLE” Fogel tried punching Slater as he has already kept pushing him back before he can even get in a “good punch”. But the more aggressive Fogel tried to be, Slater cant let it slide when he’s in uniform.

“Okay okay. No. This is assault of an officer and you’re under arrest” Slater states knowing this triggered Y/N at first since she didn’t know what was the plan here.

Fogel tried to fight the restraints aka the handcuffs being put on him. Slater immediately bringing him to his cop car as Y/N looked at everyone who watched anxiously before quickly following the two.

“You need to calm down”

“SLATER”

“No. Seriously. You need to calm down” Slater states putting Fogel in the back and taking the drivers not letting Y/N in until this was settled. “If she shows no interest you shouldn’t force it at all. And before you say “that’s what you did” I didn’t. She had every right to rejected me when I asked her out but she didn’t. The two of us got close and we fell in love. It’s not rocket science and I know you care about her. But shouldn’t you care more if she’s happy or not more than if she’s with you or not”

Wow.

Fogel didn’t really think that hard into it. Yeah, he has the reasons for liking her. But he didn’t think of how she’d feel about it. Only wanted to tell her everything. And after hearing what Slater said, he’s happy he’s with her. She’s got someone that loves her and will always put her first.

“Wow...I’m sorry Officer Slater, I didn’t even think about that”

“It’s fine Fogel. You’ll learn one day with the love of your life. I say that as a friend. But as an officer...don’t come throwing punches at me again or you will actually be arrested”

“Yes sir”

“Good” Slater faces forward gesturing Y/N to join the two in where Micheals usually sits. “We worked it out”

“Good. Cuz Fogel, he can’t do it because it’s wrong on so many levels. But I’m not afraid to kick your ass for throwing punches at my boyfriend” Y/N threats through the mesh cage separating the front from the back.

“Sorry”

“It’s okay, now let’s take you home”

[starlightrows]

Something Sweet

Chapter 3: Concerts and Cupcakes

← Previous - Next →

Series Masterlist

Pairing: Modern!Paz Vizsla x reader

Word Count: 3.2k

Warnings: NSFW, smut, vaginal fingering, p in v sex, Paz is a consent king, cumming outside (in this fandom? Shocking I know), swearing, angst at the end

Summary: You and Paz continue to spend time together and you have the misfortune of meeting “the guy” your friends warned you about... Gideon.

The following Tuesday you and Paz hang out with the group like usual, and give no indication that anything has changed or that you have plans to go together to the outdoor concert next weekend. But you can’t deny, you’re excited for it.

Finally Saturday rolls around. This time, you decide, it is a date. Or at least you’re gonna treat it like one. You pick a pretty sundress, comfortable shoes, do your hair and makeup. You also put a bag together with snacks, sealed mason jars with rum punch, a picnic blanket and a lawn chair.

Paz picks you up in his truck, and helps you load up your stuff into the back. He even opens the passenger door for you! The park is set up with a walking path, several meadows, sports fields, a playground and water feature fountain and an amphitheater surrounding a beautiful community center building.

The stage is set up for the outdoor performance. Community members and concert goer’s set up their picnic blankets and lawn chairs on the grassy slope of the amphitheater. Children run and play. Couples young and old share glasses of wine and snacks waiting for the concert to start.

After getting the blanket and the chairs set up, you pass him one of the jars of rum punch and sit back to chat and hang out until the concert starts. You take a moment to pause, and look about at all the happy people enjoying the warm summer evening and spending time with their friends, family, neighbors…

“This” you gesture with your hand “this is what I always wanted…”

Paz smiles warmly, sipping the drink you made for him. “Yeah, once you get a taste of living in a place like this… you can’t ever go back to living in crowded city where people don’t want anything to do with each other”

You chuckle “Or back to a rural town where your closest neighbor was a 10 minute drive away”

“I don’t know what sounds worse, never seeing anyone or being surrounded by people that act like you don’t exist” he shakes his head

“Well, I’m glad we both made it here” you say happily “because this is amazing”

Paz can’t hold back the smile on his face. Seeing you so happy and content, he can’t help but feel like the two of your were both meant to find this place.

The concert starts up, and the band is amazing! They play a lot of covers of popular music you hear on the radio and a lot of throwback music that used to be popular. Everyone in the crowd seems to know all the words. The band involves the crowd getting people to get out of their seats to singe and dance.

You feel alive and free, electrified by the familiar music and friendly atmosphere. You take Paz’s hand when a song you really love comes on, and drag him out of his seat to dance. He surprises you by offering almost no resistance and actually sings along with you. The two of you don’t sit down again until the concert is over, dancing and singing the night away.

When the concert ends, you’re a little bummed out it’s over. But Paz recommends that you stay a while in the park and let the crowds thin out before leaving, and you are more than happy to stay. The night air is warm, and the sun hasn’t quite set yet.

The two of you lay out on the blanket, folding down the lawn chairs to make room. Laying of your backs, you watch the sky dim. Turning orange, pink, violet and then fading to a deep midnight blue as the stars start to appear. He’s telling you an animated story story about him and Din pulling pranks and getting in trouble together as kids. You’re smiling and laughing, feeling incredibly warm and light.

Eventually he does have to drive you back to your apartment. He walks you to the door and lets you unlock it before you turn around. He’s standing close, very close.

“Thank you for inviting me out tonight” you say softly “I had so much fun”

He smiles, “Thank you for saying yes”

“Goodnight” you whisper leaning into him

“Goodnight” he closes his eyes and leans down, pressing his lips to yours. He breaks the kiss, pulling back a little.

But you pull him back, wrapping your arms around his neck, kissing him again. He responds in kind, sliding his large hands over your hips and holding you to him while he kisses you.

This time you break the kiss, pulling away and leaning your forehead on his. You push the door open behind you with one hand. You glance behind you inside, and back to him. A silent invitation. But he doesn’t respond, he doesn’t want to assume anything.

“Stay” you ask softly

That’s enough for him. He kisses you again, and walks you backwards inside. Closing the door behind him. He leans back against the door and pulls your into him, getting you to hop up and put your legs around him.

He’d be lying if he said he hadn’t thought about this. Your soft lips, gentle hands, quiet breaths and moans as he kisses you. He wants this. He has wanted this. And the little sundress you’re wearing has only fanned that flame today. But still…. he has to be sure. He pulls back and bit.

“Hey, hey, hey” he whispers “tell me you want this. Tell me this okay?”

Your heart flutters. Surely he knows that you want him, but he wants to hear it. He needs to hear it.

“I want this Paz” you say, kissing him again “I want you”

He squeezes your hip, and kisses you again. You drop your legs back down, and lead him back to your bedroom. Pulling him down onto the comforter with you.

His hands roam over your body catching at the hem of your dress, and sliding up along your thighs. You hum into his mouth, and slide your hands under his shirt. You pull your hands back and lift your hips and then your back, to help him get your dress worked up over your head and arms.

He reaches back with one hand, and pulls his shirt up over his head and drops it down on the floor with your dress. You shiver a little, taking in his broad bare chest and well muscled forearms. He on the other hand is lovingly gazing down at you. Soft skin, gentle curves, pretty… matching… panties and bra.

He leans back down, eager to feel your soft skin against him. His hand smoothes over the material of your bra, fingers trailing over the edge and slipping down underneath. Your breath catches in your throat. His hands are firm and worn, textured against your supple breast.

“Still okay honey?” He asks, moving his lips down to kiss your jaw and down your neck

“Y-yeah” you run your fingers through his thick dark hair as he kisses his way down to your collarbone, still tenderly stroking and squeezing your breast.

He kisses all the way down to your breastbone, and slips his hands around your back to undo the clasps of your bra. Sliding the strap over your shoulders and carefully tossing it away with the rest of your discarded clothes. He cups both in his hands, rolling his thumbs over your nipples, and brushing his nose over your soft skin. Slowly kissing his way up the slope of one of your breasts, he tilts his head over and draws your nipple into his mouth sucking gently.

“Beautiful” he mutters pulling off and switching to the other, “so beautiful”

You try your best not to squirm in anticipation, but Paz notices.

“You getting wet for me sweetheart?” He purrs, his hand leaves your breast and trains down to stroke you through your panties finding them slightly damp. “Oh love, do you like when I touch you?”

“Yes” you shutter out “Paz… please”

“Don’t worry gorgeous, I’ll give you what you need” his fingers dip below your panties, and slide between your folds.

Your eyes flutter shut. His fingers move with ease, aided by your slick. He stops for just a moment, to help you shimmy out of your panties, before he goes right back for your wet heat. He pushes in a finger and swallows your breathy gasp with his own mouth as he kisses you. His pace is slow, for now curling his finger within you. He adds a second finger stretching your opening a bit wider, relishing your soft moans and whimpers of pleasure.

You flinch, and cling to his arms in a reflexive movement as this thumb swipes over your clit and begins rubbing in circles. He picks up the pace, building you up quicker.

“There you go honey, my fingers feel good?” He huffs

“Yes… Paz… feels so good” you moan “please”

“Come on sweetheart, come on my fingers” he keeps up his pace, putting more attention into stimulating your clit.

The pressure builds up, every pass of his thumb over your clit seems to wind you up tighter until finally it snaps! Washing over you like a tidal wave, leaving your breathless and soaking.

He kisses you again, and begins stroking through your folds again, allowing you to ride out waves of your orgasm. You kiss him back, when your senses return to you a moment later.

“How is it that I am completely naked and boneless in pleasure, and you’ve still got pants on” you joke “doesn’t seem fair”

He chuckles and pulls back, going to undo his belt. You sit up with him, seeing the tent in his pants and moving to help him shed his jeans.

He steps out of his pants and boxers, and stands before you, hard and dribbling precum. He’s massive. Granted, he’s a big guy, you figured he would be proportional… but he is impressive to say the least.

“Not to give you an ego, but holy shit” you chuckle, making no attempt to hide your gaze.

How can any man hear that, and not have a bit of a head rush? He grins. “You like what you see sweetheart?”

“Get over here” you laugh, reaching out with both arms. He obliges you, and let’s you pull him down again to kiss. You can feel his cock pressed against you, insistent and aching. You roll your hips against him, teasing… inviting.

“Your turn” you whisper, reaching down and lining him up with your entrance. This time his breath hitches, he’s rather worked up and it’s been a while since he had a partner.

As he presses in, your warmth consumes him. Your walls are tight, velvety soft, and wet. He grunts a bit and he pushes forward, watching himself disappear within you. You moan too, the stretch is delicious and pleasant.

He sets a steady pace, drawing your legs up, placing one hand at your hip and the other above your head.

“You okay?” He grits out, always so attentive

You moan in response, “Yes, you can go a little faster, I’m good”

He follows your direction and picks up his pace, taking your moans and pleas fore more as guidance. He’s pounding into you, and groaning.

“Close” he grits out “where?”

“Outside” you gasp “anywhere you want”

He gets in a couple more good thrusts before he abruptly pulls out and jerks himself off, spilling his load over your stomach.

Having just came his mind is clear, and his body is calm. He realizes he finished before you could come a second time, a fact that he remedied by pushing his still hard cock back in and resuming his pace and dropping a hand down to rub your clit.

“Come on gorgeous” he praises “one more”

He’s getting a bit over stimulated, but he pushes through for you. Your orgasm is white hot, and searing. Unlike the first that crested like a wave, this one explored like fireworks behind your eyes as your cum on his cock.

You lay together for a couple minutes, breathing heavily, and savoring the postcoital bliss. You reach out, and lace your fingers with his. He strokes the back of your hand with his thumb.

“The concert next week is supposed to be smooth jazz” he chuckles “any chance you’ll let me take you on a second date?”

You laugh and lean over, and kiss his cheek. “It’s a date”

In the weeks that follow you and Paz continue hanging out with your friends on Tuesday nights. Going to the outdoor concerts on Saturday nights, and now going back and forth between each other’s apartments for dinner after work. Watching movies together, testing new recipes, learning new baking techniques and of course enjoying each other in the bedroom.

At first you both agreed not to tell anyone in the group. It’s a new relationship, and you didn’t want to get teased or asked a thousand questions. You just wanted to enjoy it, and each other. But as summer drew to a close and the chill of fall started turning the leaves and picking up the breeze, you couldn’t pretend or deny it anymore.

Of course literally everyone already knew or had their suspicions. What kind of people spend that much time together outside of work, aren’t in a relationship?

———

A few weeks into September you’re working on making new macrame plant pot holders during one of the slower parts of the day and listening to quiet music, humming along as you work. When the door opens and the bell tinkles to alert you. You look up, smiling at your customer. An older man, with a dark complexion, thin mustache, and an unsettling smile. Nevertheless you’ve had stranger clientele before, and you treat them all the same.

“Hello, can I help you find something today?” You greet him

“No, actually I was hoping that I could help you” he says approaching the counter.

“Oh? And how is that?” You have a bad feeling about this.

“My name is Gideon” he introduces himself “and I have a vested interest in the economic and cultural growth of this city”

Gideon. That name rings a bell. This is the guy your friends had told you about. You square your shoulders, stand your ground, and keep a neutral expression as he tries to dazzle you with ideas of “the city of tomorrow”.

“Of course, to make all of this come true all of the buildings in this area would need to be cleared and updated. I would love to make you an offer for your storefront, upto and exceeding ten fold what you paid for it”

“Mr. Gideon” you cut him off “it may surprise you to know that I am already fully aware of your vision for this city. What you seem to fail to realize is that no one that lives or works here shares your vision”

“That’s where I believe you are mistaken little girl, there are many who think this city has great potential” he says calmly “I know this city can be more than what it is now. I know it and I want it. Believe me, I get what I want”

“Unfortunately for you Mr. Gideon, you do not get to make those kinds of decisions. And no one will sell out to you to turn our dreams into your profit” you’re getting irritated now, and just want him to leave. You really want to call Paz.

“I could make you a rich woman. I am not the only one that would benefit from this change” he tried to persuade you

“Money can’t buy happiness Mr. Gideon. I worked my whole life to be here, and I am happy having my business here. And I will continue to be here as long as it makes me happy. Come Hell or high water I will stand” you say with confidence and surety, almost daring him to challenge you again.

Finally he backs off, but insists you take his business card… “In case you change your mind, or you find your business no longer makes you happy”

The second the door closes behind him, you grab your phone and call Paz, asking him to come over to your shop as soon as he can when he’s done closing. I Gideon gets in a sleek black car, and speeds away just as Paz comes through the front door.

“You okay?” Paz asks, coming behind the counter. You peer out the window and watch the car make the right hand turn off of the street.

You’re frustrated and upset, you gesture out the window with one hand and smack the other down on the counter.

“You guys warned me about they guy Gideon, but you didn’t mention how much he would infuriate me” you grumble

“Gideon was just here?” Paz asks

“Yeah, came in here preaching about how he’s going to transform this city and make us all fabulously rich,” you tell him “when you know good and well he would cheat us out of every penny he could”

He wraps his arms around you and presses a kiss to the top of your head. “You told him to fuck off right?” He asks

You wrap your arms around him too, and lean your head on his chest “Pretty much. I worked too long and too hard to get here to give it up”

“Good” he says “A guy like him will never understand why we do things the way we do. Your flowers and my bread are more than just…. things for others to buy for us… he’ll never understand something like that”

That’s exactly right. Boba has his pub. Din has his tattoo shop… everyone worked hard to get what they have, and it means something to each of us. Men like Gideon will never understand that.

About a month later, the weather has turned cold and the days are getting shorter. You and Paz have been making plans for Halloween, and working on fall flavored treats for Paz’s bakery.

But tonight you are over at his apartment, baking cupcakes, watching YouTube videos and practicing frosting piping techniques.

You’re sitting on his countertop, giggling and licking frosting off your finger tips when your phone starts ringing. You grab a tea towel and wipe off your hands to answer the phone.

“Hello” you answer, still smiling and stifling a laugh. Paz contains his own laugher so you can hear whoever in on the other end of the line, and bends down to check on the next batch of cupcakes baking in the oven.

“Wh-what?” Your voice is horrified. Paz looks up at you still sitting on the counter. Your eyes have gone wide, and he can visibly see your body language change.

He stands up quickly and wipes off his hands too, giving you a questioning look.

“We’ll be right there” you say in grave tone “thank you”

Your hand drops down into your lap.

He stands before you, trying to get your eyes to focus. He says your name once, twice… he shakes your hand a little

“The fire department” you say “my store front…. burned down”

Something Sweet Tag List: @gallowsjoker @simping-for-clones @mxndoscyarika @hayley-the-comet @blackmarketmummy

[umichenginabroad]

Paris Week 2: "les deux châteaux! "

Matthew Sinanis

Salut tout le monde!

It has been quite an eventful week here in Paris and I've done more than I could have ever initially expected. After getting to know my fellow peers abroad, I have found a group that shares my interests in exploring and going on spontaneous adventures.

We started off our week by going to Disneyland Paris! Compared to the United States, Disneyland Paris plays into French culture by displaying the "Sleeping Beauty" castle as opposed to the "Cinderella" castle which is shown in Florida. The park was incredibly fun and very interesting, especially since most of the interactive characters on the rides would speak French, which initially felt very confusing but ended up adding to the experience.

Paris has shown me how to have a true appreciation for food and view it just as important to French culture as the massive monuments and museums. One of the more intimidating experiences was taking my friends to try a French delicacy at dinner this week, Escargot. The experience was very enjoyable and I believe we all collectively agreed that once you stopped focusing on what you were eating, the escargot was very good. During the week, I continued my French food tour by trying the well-known onion soup, some more delicious fruit-flavored gelato, and assembling an amazing charcuterie picnic under the Eiffel Tower. I have also begun cooking this past week and have been really trying to push my culinary limits and cook some amazing dishes.

This week I have discovered one of, if not, my favorite place in Paris, that being Montmartre. Montmartre is an area in Paris where the Basilica de Sacré Coeur stands at roughly 500 feet tall in the northern 18th arrondissement. The church itself is breathtaking but the vibe of the area truly defines Parisian culture. At the top of the hill, you are left with an amazing visual of Paris's right bank, a view that reveals a different side of the city.

After classes, I have been attempting to slowly check off my ever-expanding list of museums to visit. A couple of the highlights from these trips have been visiting Le Centre Pompidou, La Musée Rodin, and Rivoli 59. Le Centre Pompidou seemed very out of place in the Marais area due to its size, yet the hundreds of modern art displays and the views from the 6th floor have shown me why it is an incredibly popular and appreciated addition. La Musée Rodin allowed me to see some incredible sculptures, including the world-renowned "Thinker". Rivoli 59 is a very unique art exhibit because it allows you to walk through the building as the artists are working and appreciate the creativity and diversity of artistic styles of Parisian artists.

Bringing us to the weekend, we started our Saturday off by heading slightly outside of Paris to the palace and gardens of Versailles. When we arrived at the palace, we were immediately met with the sight of the large golden gate at the front of the complex. Inside it was honestly as amazing as everyone makes it out to be. The halls were filled with lavish gold, murals, and sculptures that were honestly amazing to see.

On Sunday we woke up bright and early (literally at 5 am) to go to Mont Saint Michel in Normandy, France. The trip was 4 hours long to get up to Normandy and then we took a 15-minute shuttle to reach the foot of Mont Saint Michel. It is a massive castle-like structure that hosts a breathtaking abbey and village surrounded by a tidal zone. This is by far one of the most amazing places that I have ever been in my entire life.

Overall I have had a great week in Paris and the other areas of France and am so grateful to have seen some of these surreal places. Looking forward I have planned a couple more trips to London and Switzerland so I will keep you all updated with those trips soon!

À bientôt! Au revoir :)

Matthew Sinanis

Aerospace Engineering

Engineering in Paris