#anyway now I can have things like eating lunch and sleeping and cleaning up my wardrobe

[mako-designated-driver]

I'M FREEEEEEE

*for the next week but I'm still free

[a-hazbin-reader]

Alastor X Reader Headcanons

✅️Romantic

❌️Platonic

TW: Extreme Fluff!! Sweet Intimacy!!! A little canon cannibalism

Description: Different ways Alastor likes to be pampered by Wifey!Reader

When it comes to his wifey...Alastor is super spoiled and he knows it, craves it like nothing ever before

He's a glutton for your attention and everyone knows it

Every little act of kindness, every drop of affection and loving gaze just melts over his (shriveled black)heart like a sugary glaze

Mmmmmm glazed hearts

Great now he's hungry

ANYWAYS-

Even the normal everyday things make him feel warm and fuzzy inside

Like when you bring him his favorite tea in the mornings, giving him a soft kiss on the side of his face as you drape your arms around him

"Mm...good morning my dear..."

Or when you smooth over an unruly hair for him or fix his bow tie before he leaves the hotel

You can't have your snookums going out looking like some scruffy strawberry clown

You always make sure his staff is clean and polished, suit flawless and pressed, shoes shiny before he has an overlord meeting

You're NOT going to let your pookie bear hang around the other overlords with smudged shoes

Just. No.

Loves the days that you drag him off to the bathroom to coax him into a hot bath

"You've been so tense lately... let me take care of you..."

How can he say no to you?

He just relaxes and closes his eyes, letting your gentle fingers massage his scalp as you lather shampoo in his hair

The candles and bubbles 🫧 were a good touch too 👌

He almost always falls asleep by the time you're done massaging and cleaning him up, once you start scrubbing under his nails then he's OUT LIKE A LIGHT

Not that you mind, he's so attractive when he's sleeping

WAIT HUSBAND DON'T DROWN

Wakes up to an empty bathtub and a warm towel being wrapped around him by his delicious boo

You're so good to him how did you know he needed this

Always finds himself in a better mood after that, like his problems have all been washed and scrubbed away by your gentle pampering

He secretly loves it when you come by his radio tower with a fresh lunch, interrupting his set just because he needs to eat

Though he pretends it's a big hassle

He savors the food you bring him either way, walking you to the door afterwards and thanking you for thinking of him

Bby boy that's all you do is think about him

He locks the door on your way out tho

Alastor loves the way you convince him to come to bed with you, knowing he needs to sleep but also armed with the knowledge that he'll fight bedtime like a child

You leaning on the doorway already in your sleep attire, giving him a soft pout as he tries to continue his work and ignore you

"Alastor..."

Not his ears flicking up at the sound of your voice

When whining doesn't work, then you slink your way over to him, cupping his cheek and forcing him to look at you

He's trying so hard not to though, the moment he looks at your face then he knows he's done for

"Look at me, darling~"

Okay maybe just a quick glance-

Alastor you are a strong man, you are cruel and sadistic and you are an overlord with very important business!! You can handle telling your wife no-

Ffffffffuck.

Not the gooey goo goo doe eyes

Immediately leans into your touch, savoring the feeling of your fingers stroking his cheek

Not his tail fluttering

"Come to bed already~ I can't sleep without you, you know..."

And that's how you convince him to get to sleep every single night, a full 8 hours or whatever is recommended in Hell

Getting out of bed is hard for him because you look so delectable asleep and curled into him

Maybe he should take more time to pamper you too

But he's a selfish, greedy man who likes being spoiled by his wife so that thought is gone as fast as it came

He gets out of bed just to watch you whine and blindly reach out for him, so adorably pathetic

Okay just five more minutes of snuggles then I gotta go-

If he's cranky then you manage to convince him to nap, patting your lap and stroking his hair once he lays his head down

Your soft singing lulls him into a light sleep as you scratch and rub the ends of his ears

Wakes up drooling

Wakes up with his face buried in your stomach, arms locked around your waist as he sleepily breathes in your scent

How is he supposed to get any work done with you around????

Alastor loves all those things but his favorite way that you spoil him?? His number one fave?? That he would never admit to anyone??

When you give him your special smile, the one that's always been his to see and his alone

The smile that conveys enough warmth and love to make all of Hell seem like Heaven, at least for him anyways

The same smile that he first saw when you told him that you loved him, the same smile that tells him you still love him

You spoil him

Alastor thinking of his wife:

[milaisreading]

HIIII i love ur posts!!

Can i request a tired or mentally drained and at one point she breaks down on front of the bllk boys and all of them start panicking or trying to comfort her? 😭😅

I've been tired cuz exam season ( >:p ) "and i wanna cry but i physically can't ( idk why? ) and i want some comfort sooooo.... yeah!

if u dont wanna its cool :)

byeeee❤️❤️

Author: I FEEL U! I have been feeling soo drained and useless ever since my exams finished. Literally can't even relax during this small break I got:// Anyways, I hope u like this! Thanks for the request🩷

Warnings: Reader uses she/her. Requests are open

⚽️Blue Lock belongs to Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Yusuke Nomura⚽️

On any normal day (Y/n) didn't mind the chaos the boys caused her, after all they were under a lot of pressure, so she let them unwind while cleaning up after them. But today was not one of those days. Ever since the preparations for the next Blue Lock phase started she felt like they were more and more chaotic, while she was losing herself more and more in all of her work. The whole week was just a whole mess for her, from running errands for Anri and Ego, to breaking up fights between the teammates, she just felt like giving up. Right now, she was enjoying some quiet time in the lunch hall, just drinking some tea while fighting back sleep.

"This morning was so tiring...." She winced while grabbing her stomach. This morning, Rin accidentally kicked the football past the goal, which ended up hitting (Y/n) in the stomach. This caused a loud argument between the captain, Isagi and Barou. (Y/n) tried to stop them, but the fussing coming from Aryu and Hiori stopped her. She was annoyed that they didn't let her handle the issue, instead Kurona and Yukimiya ended up dragging her toward the infirmary.

Next thing that happened was an hour after the first incident. Karasu and Otoya were practicing with Bachira and Aryu, (Y/n) was as usually sitting and taking down the stats of the 4. Nothing unusual. Until Bachira decided to goof around with the football and yell at (Y/n) to watch him do some tricks. She admitted, they were impressive, and she commented on how great they are. Her comments along with the impressed look on her face caused the other three to start doing the same. The problem was that there were 4 of them and (Y/n) would have to look every 2 seconds at a different player, which did make her dizzy. Ego had noticed the commotion and yelled at all 5 of them to get back to training.

The 3rd incident happened barely an hour ago at lunch time. (Y/n) was sitting with Gagamaru, Isagi and Chigiri during the time, and while talking with the 3, she didn't notice an argument between Kunigami and Nagi unfolding. Everyone knew that (Y/n) barely ever ate her dessert, it had too much protein, so she would always left it to one of the players to eat. The dessert was pretty much the highlight of their day and the team agreed on whoever got the most points for the day, will get the sweet treat. This arrangement worked for 2 months, but today was the first time that two players were tied in points.

Kunigami and Nagi were both known to be level headed and somewhat apathetic towards everything, except when it comes to their manager and her attention,  that's when both are pretty much irrational.

"I think you seem to misunderstood me, Nagi. I am getting it today." Kunigami said, sending a tight smile towards the albino.

"And you seemed to have misunderstood me, Kunigami. But that pudding is mine."

"Calm down, you two." Niko rolled his eyes, still mad that he lost this time.

(Y/n), blissfully unaware of that whole agreement, noticed Gagamaru staring at her dessert. Knowing she won't eat it anyways, she decided to give it to him.

"Here. I won't eat. Hope you like strawberry flavor." She said, handing the surprised Gagamaru her food.

Chigiri and Isagi gasped silently. They shortly sent the flustered goalie jealous glares before looking at Kunigami and Nagi, who were staring degers at Gagamaru.

"A-are you sure?" The boy asked as (Y/n) nodded her head, smiling warmly at the boy.

"Of course-"

"Gagamaru, you traitor!" The two flinched and looked in surprise at Nagi.

"Ha?" (Y/n) panicked a little as she saw Kunigami and Nagi glaring at the duo.

"Keep it down, you two." Reo rolled his eyes, earning a nod from Tokimitsu.

"M-maybe we should let Gagamaru have-"

"Shut it, Tokimitsu!" Kunigami and Nagi yelled and then started arguing with Gagamaru. It eventually spread across the whole lunch room, and (Y/n) started twitching a little. Nobody was listening to her as she tried to calm it down. Was it the exhaustion or pure desperation to shut everyone up, but (Y/n) eventually started crying silently. Lost in her own thoughts while crying, she wasn't paying attention to what the rest were saying.

"I am the fastest. The dessert is mine!" Chigiri earned a show from Aryu at that.

"You forget I was in the top3 and I am the one with the better hair."

"Oh, shut up you peasants! You all are beneath me and (Y/n), therefore the pudding is mine."

"Says who? You, Barou? You do not have the charm to be anywhere near (Y/n)."

"Otoya, you cheated on your girlfriends. What makes you think you are worthy?" Yukimiya sighed.

"And what about you, Yukimiya? You are so plain, there is no way she will fall for you. Now me on the other hand-"

"Oh, shut up Karasu. Your charms are below Antarctica's temperatures." Niko groaned.

"I think the cutest one of us should get the pudding. So me-"

"Bachira, that would be me. I am also the ace, so that's just a bonus." Isagi smiled, earning a glare from Rin

"Pipe it down, you two can barely pick up a 2nd language." The captain added in.

"English is hard." The two protested.

"I think the richest one should have a say in the dessert." Reo smirked, earning louder protests.

Tokimitsu shivered a little in fright and looked over at (Y/n), freezing for a moment as he saw her crying.

"What's up, Tokimitsu?" Hiori wondered, one of the few who decided not to argue. Kurona looked over to where Tokimitsu was looking, and his eyes widened in surprise as he saw her crying too. He nudged Hiori.

"Look." Kurona said and the cyan-haired boy looked at (Y/n). He wasted no time and ran to her side, followed by Tokimitsu and Kurona.

"He-hey, don't take it to heart. They are stupid like that." Tokimitsu said as he patted the sobbing girl's back. Kurona and Hiori moved closer, both trying to calm her down, all three felt their hearts breaking as they watched her cry. The room grew slowly quiet too, as the rest looked at (Y/n) in concern and guilt.

"(Y/n)...." Chigiri gulped.

"It's just hard to keep up with you all. You keep arguing and destroying things at times... and it's just hard to keep up... I can usually take it, but I guess today isn't my day." A wave of guilt hit the team as they quickly scrambled for the right words. The last thing they wanted was for their (Y/n) to cry, or worse, contemplate on leaving them.

"Tokimitsu, go and take (Y/n) somewhere quiet to calm down. The rest of you stay here." Rin said, quickly getting unto his captain mode. The rest said nothing, deciding not to make things worse, and they watched with guilt and sadness as (Y/n) got dragged out by Tokimitsu.

"Alright, listen up." Rin spoke up, causing the rest to look at him.

"We need to pull our shit together, unless we want (Y/n) to leave and for some other manager to replace her. The team pretty much shuddered at the idea, there was no way someone will replace her!

"So, what's your idea, captain?" Barou wondered.

"I will tell you, but first... Reo, I need you to do some calls." The billionaire heir raised his eyebrow and slowly nodded his head.

And soo, that was what had happened. (Y/n) ended up crying for about 30 minutes as Tokimitsu stayed around, just in case. The boy was collected and calm, no sign of his previous fidgety demeanor. After she calmed down, she apologized to Tokimitsu for inconveniencing him, but the boy didn't mind.

"If you feel down again, don't be afraid to tell us. We will listen." The boy said with a smile, which calmed her down a lot.

After lunch, she went back to her normal duties, helping the other staff members and the team out. To her surprise, they didn't cause any ruckus, they were calm and friendly. Even Rin, Isagi and Barou stayed away from arguing with each other. Unbeknownst to her, whenever a staff member tried to scold her, Karasu, Aryu and Nagi would send them warning glares. They alone caused them to back off quickly. All in all, the day went pretty well, and (Y/n) felt a lot lighter now. She slowly walked into her bedroom, and stopped at the entrance as she noticed a box on her bed. Slowly walking towards it, she looked at the note on the box and slowly started reading it. (Y/n)'s eyes widened a little as she read it through, realizing that the team sent her this, and her heart melted at the apology they wrote out.

'They are chaotic... but I love them like that.' She smiled and slowly opened the box, only to find various treats that she could only buy outside of Blue Lock's facility, she even got a small (f/c) bear.

'They probably made Reo get this...' She chuckled and plopped on the bed, hugging the bear close to herself.

'I will make it up to them... maybe Teieri-san can help me get them some small gift next week.' She thought, slowly falling asleep.

[theglamorousferal]

Persephone's Binding Part 5

AO3 Prompt Part 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Jason woke from a start to someone pounding on his bedroom door.

"Jason!" yelled the sing-song voice of the High Prince. Jason shoved his head back into the pillow and groaned.

"Come in!" He yelled after raising his head again. He swept the covers off and sat on the edge of the bed, stretching his shoulders out.

Danny floated in, today he was in his other form, the one he showed the previous night. Unlike last night however, he was now wearing armor. studded leather armor stained black covered his torso, forearms and legs. Held around his shoulders with a stylized D clasp was a fabric cloak with black fur lining, the inside however looked like the fabric of reality. It was like staring into space when traveling with Kori, he looked away to not get too focused on it.

"So, did'ja sleep okay?" Danny asked flying in lazy circles around the chandelier near the ceiling.

"Like the dead." Jason deadpanned. He stood and made his way to where his usual clothes and armor were neatly folded, cleaned and mended. "We heading straight to spar, or do we have time for me to like, eat?" He took the pile of clothes and made his way to the bathroom, and kept the door cracked so he could hear Danny's response.

"We can grab breakfast burritos from the kitchen on our way to the training grounds."

"Okay, fine by me." Once dressed, Jason latched on all of his armor. He stomped out of the bathroom then gathered his helmet, which he held under his arm against his side. "Weapons allowed? And what kinds?"

Danny stopped circling the lighting and floated down to eye-level with Jason. He appraised him for a moment. "We'll start with hand-to-hand and see where you stand, we can move onto non-lethal weapons after that. I don't think Jazz would forgive me if we use projectiles against each other."

"Fair enough, lead the way." Through the corridors Jason was led once again.

"So Jazz mentioned you said the city you live in is cursed? What's that like?" He floated on his back facing Jason not seeming to need to pay attention to where he was going. The cloak billowed around him as if he were in water, galaxies rippling.

"Yeah, Gotham, home sweet home. It's a pretty messed up place. We've got quite a few rogues in out city, and then there are times outside threats come and try and mess with it. It's got the highest crime rate in the country, one of the rogues polluted the water with his special brand of insanity and now we have fish mutated to have a human death grin. That's not even counting the Lazarus Pit under the city."

"Lazarus Pit?"

"Yeah, bubbling glowing green liquid that heals those near death and kills those that are healthy. The Demon Brat's grandfather has one he's used to keep himself alive for 600 years. I was pushed into it when I was basically catatonic and came back with my mind and most of my previous injuries healed."

"Shit that sounds powerful. And another thing that could help in tracking down your dimension." He flew ahead to where a pair of yetis were looking over a scroll. He spoke to them for a moment before returning to Jason. "K that should help a bit more. So you mentioned something yesterday that I wasn't familiar, what's a meta-human?"

"Oh, they're probably called something different on your Earth. So it's people either born with the meta-gene or are powered due to their species or otherwise have extra-human powers. Like, my brother Duke is a meta because he has the meta-gene, but Superman is a meta because his species naturally has extra-human capabilities. Another hero, Beast Boy, got his powers from a lab somehow, he didn't give much details and I wouldn't share it anyway."

They went through a set of dark wooden doors and the delicious smell of chorizo floated past Jason's nose. In the kitchen was a woman who looked like the lunch ladies from school but floating, glowing, and with green skin.

"Hey Lunch Lady, how're those burritos coming?" Danny floated in, careful to stay away from anything cooking or on the counters.

"Oh hello dearie, I was just wrapping them up. I do wish you'd stay and eat a full meal." She said smiling at him. "Oh hello there, you must be the young man who appeared suddenly and set this castle into a tizzy. I hope you're doing alright?"

"Yes ma'am. I've been treated very well since I've arrived." He felt the need to be polite, she just seemed like a sweet grandma.

"Good good, now you two enjoy these and go play." She handed each of them a burrito wrapped in tin foil. They made their way out of the room.

"Jazz mentioned that originally the people studying ghosts thought they were all evil, but every ghost I've seen so far has been extremely kind and nice. What led them to think they were all evil?"

"Oh, don't be fooled, Lunch Lady gave me a run for my money several times. She was the first humanoid ghost I fought, she turned into a giant meat monster because my friend got the menu changed to vegan for a week. It was a whole thing." He rolled his hand. "And I mean, ghosts say 'Hi' by play-fighting. To be fair, I didn't know that at first either and it caused quite a bit of confusion. Once that bit was cleared up I was able to talk with my rogues and they backed off and made sure to keep the fights away from civilians."

"Right, Jazz mentioned you fighting ghosts. So you were a hero then?"

Danny sighs. "Yeah, once I started to gain control of my powers and defeated my first big ghost, I realized I could use my power to fight anything that came through the portal. I had the whole deal, villain of the week, a nemesis who later was redeemed and became a mentor, a cloning mishap, an evil alternate timeline, the whole shebang." He rolled his eyes. "I had the whole secret identity thing for a while too." He smirked.

"Oh, do you normally have a mask on when in one of your forms?"

Danny laughed. "No, no, just turns out face blindness is a common thing in my home town. Even though I'm literally just a palette swap, no one figured it out without me transforming in front of them." He turned serious for a moment. "The town found out in the last battle. It's been a bit of a learning curve for people to get used to." His tone turned bitter. "That the scrawny little Fenton kid could possibly be the town's hero? As if." He scoffed.

"Fenton? I thought your last name was Nightingale?" Jason asked. Danny froze mid-air with his eyes wide.

"Forget I said that, you weren't supposed to hear that. Do not mention it to Jazz." Danny's face was three inches from Jason's and glowing that horrible Lazarus green. He nodded.

"Will do, heard nothing, locked away." He made the motion of zipping his lips and tossing the key over his shoulder. Danny stared at him for a moment before nodding his head once and flying in the direction of a set of stairs ahead in the hallway. Jason jogged to catch up.

At the base of the stairs was what appeared to be a medieval training grounds with several paddocks, one paddock with obstacles for mount riding, one for racing, another had what seemed to be a military-grade obstacle course and yet another held a free-running course. Outside of the paddocks, there were several rings for dueling and weapon racks along the fences and an archery course along one side of the grounds. A green dome was above the entire field, presumably to keep projectiles from hitting passersby.

There were a few different mounts around. Some that looked to be unicorns but had sharp teeth like a predator, some had wings but similar teeth, all the horse-adjacent were colors from blue, to green, to black to purple. There was a large cat with long fangs and a pair of horns, it had a long fur coat that was patterned plum and lavender stripes sleeping in top of one of the lean-to's that held benches for resting. A mechanical horse with Egyptian regalia stood beneath it as it huffed not liking being ignored by the cat.

Jason whistled impressed. "Impressive grounds, reminds me of what I've heard of Themyscira." Activity began to stall at their approach, a tall black suit of armor with flaming purple hair came up to Danny.

"My liege, do you wish us to clear the grounds?"

"No Fright Knight, we are just going to use one of the sparring rings for a bit of the morning once we've finished breakfast."

"Very good." The knight nodded and then turned to the others scattered about the grounds. "Back at it you all!" Fright Knight went back to brushing his humungous black alicorn.

Danny directed them to one of the resting spots next to an empty ring. "Here, let's finish our breakfast and then did you wanna warm up?"

Jason sat and took a large bite as Danny was asking the question and thought for a moment before nodding and chewing. The chorizo burrito with egg, bell peppers and spinach was delicious. Once finished, he worked his way through his usual pre-patrol warm-up. He expected to go a few rounds before Danny was tired of playing with him.

Danny worked his way through some warm ups, stretching in ways even Dickie would flinch at, then made his way to the ring. Jason followed and they faced each other, and for the first time that morning, Danny's feet were firmly on the ground.

"So, best two out of three in hand-to-hand then we move onto weapons?" Danny suggested.

Jason considered for a moment. "Yeah, sounds good to me."

"Alright then," Danny smirked and got into position, "bring it on."

[ythankucaptainmccoy]

Simon Ghost Riley x Reader (The Living Kill Too) Ch6

Here is the next chapter. Warnings: Nightmares, Physical Assault, Torture and Fluff.

Simon was a man that always got up on time even before his alarms would go off. After people started turning into those flesh eating things he still kept his schedule of waking before his watch alarmed, but this time it was different. The warmth against him was welcome and then his eyes fluttered open. You were sleeping peacefully against him as he had slept you must have turned into him. Your head tucked under his chin, your soft breath hitting his chest. 

You were still wearing the makeshift blindfold as some hair had fallen into your face. He slowly pushed the hair behind your ear making you sigh. His breath caught in his throat when you nuzzled closer into his chest. His alarm went off at that moment and you stirred awake and when you realized how close you were to Ghost you pulled back. “I’m sorry”, you whispered. “It’s alright”, he gruffed. 

Ghost noticed you didn’t even try to take the makeshift blindfold off and so he got up to grab his mask. Once he tugged it on he informed you that you could take off the blindfold. You sat there and realized it was still dark out. “Still on military time huh”, you smiled. Ghost seemed to smirk at that, but you couldn’t tell by the small lamp that illuminated a small part of the room, and his mask. “You can go back to sleep. I have duties to attend to”, he tells you.

“It’s alright. I’m up now best to earn my keep anyway”, you reply. Ghost watched you for another few minutes before motioning you to follow him. He took you to the infirmary and doc found some things for you to do. Ghost ducked out as soon as he could to do whatever it was he had to tend to. The crutches were a hindrance, but your wounded leg would protest when you tried to walk on it. Soap came by for a checkup from his wound and doc commented about how well done the sutures had been done.

You explained it was the heat of the moment and it would have been prettier had it not been a rushed job. Soap only laughed and talked about how the scar was just to add to his charm which you rolled your eyes at. The only break you received was for lunch and Soap came back to get you. Soap led you to a table in the back where Gaz and Ghost were sitting. “How you settlin’ in?”, Gaz asked. “Pretty well, have a new job and everything”, you reply.

Ghost watches you from the corner of his eye and listens intently to you. “Ghost any more information from that man you brought back?”, Gaz questions. You freeze knowing that the only reason that bastard is here is because of what he did to you and Josie. “Nothin’ yet”, Ghost replies. He is looking at you as you stop eating and starting to get nauseous. You will it away as Ghost seems to stare you down. “Ye arigh’ lass? Ye look like yer about to heave”, Soap says.

“Yeah, just pain in my leg”, you say. Soap and Gaz drop the conversation about the man you had Ghost torture, and start asking if your going to be okay. You force yourself to eat because you never know when you're going to eat again in this hellscape. Ghost had his mask up to eat and you focused on his mouth. Full lips with a scar on the top lip closer to the corner of his mouth. Strong jawline with small scars that look like they go up his cheek, and you can’t help but stare as he shovels food into his mouth only pulling it down while chewing. 

His eyes meet yours and you automatically place your gaze down to your food. “(Y/N)”, Ghost says. You look up to acknowledge him as he tells you to meet him after you're done with your work. The food was good as you cleaned up your spot and took your plate back to the woman working the line. The rest of the day went smoothly and when you were finished with the infirmary you made your way to meet Ghost. He stands against the wall as darkness is falling over the base. 

He looks ominous leaning against the wall as he meets your gaze. He pushes off the wall and you start to follow him. “So the guys don’t know what happened”, you state. “No, none of their business”, Ghost replies. You continued to follow him on your crutches as you recognized the path you were taking. The prisoner woke when you both entered the room and started yelling and cursing. Same as before you called out objects as Ghost inflicted the torture. 

This session lasted an hour before the prisoner passed out from pain. “Pitty”, Ghost mumbled. Ghost once again led you to his room, but then said something about a shower. You followed along and grabbed a cloth to clean around the sutures in your leg. The soap was going to dry out your skin, but you were clean for the first time in a couple of weeks. When you got finished you dried your hair and skin as Ghost waited for you.

Ghost led you back through the maze of the base and back to his room. You had snagged a small rag earlier in the infirmary just in case you needed it. You sat down as he took your crutches to place against the wall. When he turned around he was surprised to see that you had placed a rag over your eyes and tied it in the back. “What’re ya doin’ luv?”, he asked. “This way you can be comfortable in your own room. That mask has to get uncomfortable at some point”, you say.

He feels intrigued that you’re still willing to blindfold yourself after what you know he is capable of doing to you. “Why do you trust me?”, he blurts out. You sit frozen for a few moments as you think of how to respond to his outburst. “Because you helped me when I was at my lowest point, and never made me feel unsafe”, you whisper. He breaks a little at that and sits beside you as he realizes you’re shaking as you recall what happened to you. You startle a little when he pulls you into his lap, but you soon relax within his arms. 

He doesn’t speak, just holds you as you nuzzle into him. “Thank you for saving me”, you mumble into his chest. “Always luv”, he responds. You smile at that as you feel him pull off his mask. Without thinking he places his lips to the top of your head for a quick peck even though you don’t register it at first. Without thinking you bring your hand up to place on his face, but he grabs your wrist as you jolt a little. “I’m sorry”, you whisper. He is tense as a bowstring as you sit and wait for him to make a move. He brings your hand close to his face and with the palm open he set’s it against his cheek.

You just rest there cupping his cheek and rub your thumb back and forth across a slight stubble. He relaxes more and more as you let him get used to it. He reminds you of a skittish cat that would spook at the slightest wrong move. When he leaned into your touch you felt somewhat accomplished as you continued then squeaked when he pulled you back with him as he lay on his back. You stayed like that until you rolled off him and fell asleep as he sat staring at the ceiling. What the hell was he doing letting you get this close to him. He always kept people at a distance before to keep them from getting hurt. 

He remembered one woman back in England near his old flat that tried several times to get to know him. He kept her at a distance only seeing her as a neighbor because of not only his past, but the job he had. If anyone then had found out about a girlfriend or acquaintance they could become a target, but now what would it matter in the ruins of old civilizations? Maybe the only reason he felt this way is because of what happened to him because of Roba, and how he was also at the mercy of sick people. 

Maybe he was drawn to you because of basic instincts starting to take over. Yeah that had to be it; he was drawn to you because biologically it made sense. That’s what he continued to tell himself before sleep claimed him. Later that night you woke to Ghost muttering and the bed moving slightly. You listened for a moment then realized he was still asleep when he gasped then let out a strangled cry. You sat up realizing it was a nightmare and with your blindfold still on patted the bed until you met his shoulder. 

You gently pushed him and that’s all it took for him to startle awake and lash out. He threw you hard onto the floor and before you could scramble to your feet fully he hit you with the strength of a bull. Your back and head hit the wall behind you causing a cry to slip from your lips. Then a fist collided with your face. Pain erupted along your cheek as you tried to steady yourself again, but he slipped behind you as one arm went around your neck.

“Ghost”, you gasped. His hold only tightened as you scratched at his arm to try and pry it off. You panicked in that moment and jabbed your elbow several times into his ribs. He grunted but nothing helped and you could feel consciousness slipping away. You decided in a split second to go limp and it seemed to work as his grip loosened. You took that moment to slip under his arms causing the blindfold to slip off. It was dark but you could make out his silhouette and the door behind him. 

You knew there was no way you were going to get past him so you grabbed the lamp from the table and threw it. It made contact stunning him enough for you to slip past him and grab the door handle, but you were yanked back by your hair and fell to the floor. He was over top of you and his hands wrapped around your neck squeezing hard enough that you were sure your windpipe would collapse. He slammed your head a couple of times as you clawed at his arms again.

You tried to talk but no sound would come out, but you stopped fighting and lifted your hand to his cheek. You felt him flinch but continued to keep your hand there and used your thumb to stroke his cheek. His grip suddenly loosened as you gasped for breath and his breath became erratic. You knew what PTSD looked like and knew this episode was coming to an end. He was shaking when you made your way to your knees coughing. “Ghost”, you rasped. 

He flinched when you spoke to him and you slowly inched your way to him as he collapsed. His back resting on the wall as he tried to regain his composure. You didn’t speak as you settled to sit beside him with your back against the same wall. You slowly put your hand over his and he flinches again, but doesn’t pull away as you use your thumb to slowly stroke his knuckles. You both sit in silence for a few minutes until his door opens. 

You close your eyes when you hear Soap’s voice, “Ghost ya’ alright ma… Holy hell (Y/N) what the hell happened here?!”. “Bad dream, he’s alright now”, you rasp. Still keeping your eyes closed as you know the light is streaming in from the hallway. “I didn’t mean to”, Ghost whispers. You can feel he is trembling again as you squeeze his hand. You feel someone kneel in front of you and you can tell it’s Soap as he touches your cheek. You wince as pain radiates from it and Soap apologizes.

“Steamin’ Jesus (Y/N) your face and neck”, Soap says. “It’s alright Soap”, you croak. “You need to be checked out”, Soap announces. “I’m not leaving”, you whisper. “I’m going to get doc”, Soap relays. “Fine”, you reply. You hear Soap leaving and you look away from Ghost knowing that his face is still on display. You look away from him and spot a balaclava next to you on a table. You reached up, grabbing it and handing it to Ghost with your free hand. He pulled his hand away from yours to put it on, but his hand came right back to yours to squeeze for reassurance.

“It’s okay”, you grate out. You turned to look at him and you could see the anguish in his eyes. You smile at him as you wince a little at the already swelling cheek. He continues to watch you as you put your head on his shoulder. When Doc comes bustling into the room he kneels down in front of you. “(Y/N) how are you feeling?”, doc asked. “I’m fine, really just hit my head a couple of times”, you explain. “Then what happened to your cheek and neck?”, Doc grilled. “It was nothing”, you replied. 

“It was my fault”, Ghost spoke up. Doc looked appalled as he continued to check you over. “He was suffering a PTSD attack. It was my fault for triggering him”, you explain. “Well you have a concussion, bruised cheek and your neck will be sore for the next couple of days”, Doc tells you. You nod as Doc turns to Soap ordering him to go get some water for you. Soap doesn’t hesitate as Ghost has been rigid since Doc came into the room. Soap comes back as you take sips of water and Doc finishes up with his instructions.

Once Doc leaves Soap waits to see what you want him to do. “It’s okay Soap I’ll be alright”, you rasp. “You good Lt.?”, he asked. “I’ll be alright Johnny”, Ghost responds. Soap lingers for a moment longer then leaves as you hear him go back into his room. Ghost doesn’t move a muscle as you turn to look at him. He flinches when you place your hand on his shoulder. “Ghost it’s alright. I shouldn’t have touched you when you were obviously having a night terror”, you whisper.

He looks at you just staring into your eyes. “I never should have put my hands on you”, he says. “Well I technically put my hands on you first, and if it wasn’t for almost dying it was very impressive how quickly you move”, you respond. He relaxes a little more as you both sit in silence for a while holding his hand. “Teach me”, you say. “What?”, he grunts. “Teach me how to defend myself. I want to be able to know how to get out of holds and fight back if I ever needed to”, you explain. 

“Alright once you're healthy we’ll start trainin”, He gruffs. You lean your head on his shoulder as he watches you. You can feel all the adrenaline leaving you and you close your eyes for a while. “Wake up luv”, Ghost says. “I was just resting my eyes”, you respond. “Can’t have you fallin’ asleep yet. Don’t want ya’ to have any complications”, he tells you. You could tell that even though Ghost had relaxed some he was still tense. You got up slowly as Ghost watched you grab your crutch. 

“Come on”, you say. He looks at you in slight bewilderment as you hold your hand out for him to take. He takes hold of your hand and you pull him up with what little strength you had left. He followed you as you made your way towards the cafeteria. When you entered the kitchen you pulled a teapot and scavenged until you found some tea bags. You made him sit down on a stool while you fixed the tea as he silently watched you. Once the tea was done you grabbed a cup and poured some out for him.

“It probably isn’t tea like you’re used to, but it’s at least tea”, you joke. You could see the small tug at the corner of his mouth in a lopsided grin. He pulled his balaclava up to expose his mouth and lower part of his nose. Same as last time you took note of the small scar through the corner of his lips and the ones on his opposite cheek. “Take a picture luv it’ll last longer”, he gruffed. His comment made you look away as your face heated up. 

You hadn’t seen his whole face or any other part of him, but that didn't mean you couldn’t imagine what he was like underneath that mask. “Seems like you have seen a lot of action”, you say trying to make small talk. He hums at that as you turn to make yourself a cup of tea. “I’m sorry for earlier”, he mumbled. When you turned around he wouldn’t look you in the eye. “Ghost it was an accident and I shouldn’t have woken you up like that”, you respond. 

Ghost then looks you in the eyes and you can see he is trying to work through things in his mind. “Why do you do that?”, he asked. “Do what?”, you reply. “Why are you forgiving me? I'm no better than that man I have been torturing”, he says. “No Ghost, you are nothing like that man”, you say. “I put my hands on you. I tried to kill you”, he raised his voice and started to stomp toward you. “You didn’t and wouldn’t have done that if I hadn’t woken you up”, you huff.

He comes to stand in front of you looming over you in an intimidating manner. His mask is still up from where he was sipping his tea and his eyes are boring into yours. It clicks in that moment for you that this is his defensive mechanism. He pushes people away so that way he doesn’t have to deal with his emotions. It angers you a little that this man would do that to you after all you had been through since meeting him and Soap in that house.

His breath hit your face as he stared into your eyes with a gaze that people would cower from. “You’re an idiot”, he growls. You scoff at that as you have already deduced what his game is. “Oh I’m an idiot huh. What about when I helped save your ass when we were being shot at”, you huff. “I had everything under control”, he seethes. “Oh yeah sure you did”, you hissed. The anger in his eyes and his words should have made you want to wither, but you couldn’t bring yourself to look away from the beautiful fury behind those brown eyes.

You watched as his eyes flitted to your mouth a few times and if you hadn’t been paying close attention you would have missed it. Without thinking you pushed onto your toes and smashed your lips to his. He pulled back in shock and you could tell you had taken him off guard. You watched as the shock faded, but then he lunged forward pinning you against the counter. His lips were on yours and he was being as gentle as he could be. You were panting in between kisses and the anger and tension in his body slowly faded. 

In the heat of the moment you rolled your hips as he pulled away with a grunt. “No we can’t”, he breathed. You couldn’t understand what you did wrong as he seemed to be enjoying it just moments ago. “Come on we should get back to bed”, he says. You help put away the cups then follow Ghost back to his room. You lay down on the bed while Ghost lies down on the floor. “You don’t have to sleep on the floor”, you say.

“I’m fine down here”, he gruffed. You didn’t respond as you rolled over onto your side turned away from him. You fell asleep not long after, but when you woke up the next morning it was late. Ghost was gone from the room, and it angered you a little that he hadn’t woken you up for your duties. You went to medical to help doc and he gave you some small tasks to do. When you were finished for the day you went to go eat. When you got to the mess hall Soap and Gaz were at their table. 

You grabbed your food and went to sit down with them looking around for Ghost. “If yer lookin’ fer Ghost you won’t find ‘im lass”, Soap said around a mouthful of food. “What do you mean?”, you questioned. “He left early this morning”, Gaz replied. “What for?”, you asked. “Said something about scoutin’ the nearest town”, Soap replies. You think about it for a minute and wonder if you're the reason he left this morning. 

Ghost trudged along in the small town watching to see how many dead there were. A lot of times it was helpful to know if large herds of dead were moving through. So far there were small pockets of dead, but nothing to be concerned about, but he was concerned about what had happened with you last night. How he could have killed you, but how you had kissed him even after what he had done. He wondered if he should have stopped you last night, but of course he should have. Getting attached to someone could cause people to die so he continued with his internal war as he scouted more of the area.

[yanderepuck]

Starting to think ikevamp JP is lacking because we have no new cards of this man and it's been a hot minute since they released him. Why are we lacking so much

Anyway. May have had this idea as soon as I woke up. My best smut ideas happen first thing in the morning and I couldn't tell you why. But uhhh major degrading some CNC and we might be back on that somno shit

You bite down hard on the ball gag in your mouth. Your moans and screams muffled. Drool dripping down your chin, getting the sheets wet. You're squirming so much it's like you're trying to get away but Drake had a tight grip on your hips.

"Come on, little fawn. Cum one more time for me," he was starting to lose his breath.

One hand tightened while his other leg go, reaching under you to play with your clit. You squirmed and screamed more, but he kept your ass in the air, rutting into your cum filled hole.

"Cum and I'll finally let you rest," his voice wasn't filled with promise.

Your hands dig into the bed and you bite harder. You aren't sure if you can cum anymore, the bottom half of you feels so numb from all his relentless thrusting.

His fingers rubbed harder and you let out another muffled scream. You try pulling your hips down against the bed but he only pulls you up higher, your torso almost vertical.

"I'll fuck you all day, fawn. Having my cock in your hole is a delight," he smirks.

His voice is so smooth. So sultry. It makes you want to do anything he says.

With your body at a new angle, his cock is hitting you in ways it wasn't before, sending new waves of pleasure through your body.

You start moaning again. Clenching around his cock again. Your body going limp for the nth time tells him that you did cum.

Your eyes are fluttering, forcing yourself to stay awake. Drake pulls out of you before slowly letting your body drop to the bed.

He's panting, but not nearly as hard as you. He rubs your ass, watching you.

"Look at all that cum drip out of you," he chuckles and leans over your body to get the gag off. "Such a whore."

You're able to breathe better once it's off. You try rolling to your side but you're so sore.

"Don't move too much," he lays beside you, pulling you into his chest. His touch is much gentler now, petting your hair and speaking in a soft soothing voice. "You don't hurt anywhere too much, do you?"

You just shake your head, still not sure if you can use your words. He kisses the top of your head, assuring you that he loves you.

After letting your body relax you try getting up. You had to get cleaned up before going to start on breakfast. It was going to be a long day since you essentially got no sleep.

~~

As you are in the kitchen preparing some lunch you hear someone come in, but your back is towards the door.

"Sebastian can you-"

Arms wrap around your waist, making you jump.

"Try again," Drake kisses your cheek, holding you close to him. "How are you feeling?" He takes a piece of fruit that you are cutting and eats it.

"Exhausted. All thanks to you," you huff in jest. Today is going to be long but everything before felt so good.

"You enjoyed it," he smirked and took another piece. His hands rested on your waist. "Besides that will mean you will sleep good tonight."

"I'm hoping to pass out right after dinner."

"Guess I'll have to have dessert alone then," he sighs, being a little dramatic.

"What were you thinking of having for dessert?"

"You of course," he purrs in your ear. Your cheeks flush. "I could still have you for dessert while you're asleep," he presses his body against you, his hands sliding down.

You bite your lip to stop a moan. His face gets closer, his lips barely touching your ear. "I've always wanted to fuck your sleeping cunt," you don't seem to be against it so he keeps going. "Sleepy girls make the best fleshlights," a whimper came through your lips. "I'll be sure to stop by your room later."

One of his hands reaches around your front, lightly rubbing you through your clothes. You hold onto the counter. Your legs shake, still sensitive from earlier.

"Make sure you aren't wearing anything that blocks that hole of yours. I want to be able to slide right in," he kisses the top of your ear and takes another piece of fruit before walking away.

You're still shaking, feeling yourself getting wet from thought already. "Goddamn it," you moan softly.

~

Just as you thought, the day was long. But you're sure it dragged on even longer after what Drake said to you. You can still feel his hands all over your body.

Are you even going to be able to sleep now? Or are you going to be too excited about what's going to happen? Are you going to be able to feel it? Will you wake up?

You keep asking yourself these questions as you walk back to your room. You were falling asleep on your feet while cleaning dishes so Sebastian let you go early.

You close your door and look around your room. Is he really going to come? Did he really mean it? It feels a little embarrassing to want to be fucked in your sleep.

You get changed, putting on only a shirt just like he said. You feel a little nervous but just because you aren't sure what to expect. You turn your light off and crawl into bed.

You had nothing to worry about. The moment your head hit the pillow you were out. Your body was so happy to be resting.

After some time Drake came into your room, making sure he locked the door after him. The bit of moon light coming through the window is enough for him to be able to see your body.

He walks over and gently brushes some hair out of your face. "So innocent looking," he smirks and pulls the blanket down to see if you obeyed him. "Too bad nothing about you is innocent," he lifted up the shirt slightly and saw you were bare underneath.

"You want it just as bad as me, don't you," he gets his clothes off, leaving them on the floor, getting onto your bed. He rolls you flat on your back like a rag doll. "You get to sleep, and get fucked. It's like a win-win."

He slides his hands up your body, lifting your shirt over your chest to expose you more. "You're a treasure any pirate would steal."

He spreads your legs wide, wasting no time in sliding in you. He has to bite his lip so his moan isn't too loud.

"You're having naughty thoughts about me, aren't you?"

He smirks and gets one of your legs onto his shoulder. First he pushes deep into you. As deep as he can go. He swears he's deeper with you asleep. Once he has you warm him for a bit he starts thrusting.

As much as he doesn't want to be, he starts out gentle, not knowing if you will wake up easily. You stay motionless, nearly oblivious to what is going on. He gets more comfortable and speeds things up, then getting rougher, and rougher, and rougher.

Eventually he's not even worried about waking you up, he's just thinking about his own pleasure. He has both your legs over his shoulder, putting your body into a breeding press.

You might be asleep but your body is reacting. You moan here and there. Your walls clenching around him. He thrusts into you full force. He's not able to control himself.

He sees your eyes start to flutter. Maybe he is being a bit too rough. He can feel your body start to wake up but it doesn't stop him. All he does is put his hand over your mouth. Your eyes open moments after. Your vision is still blurry but you can see him. As your body wakes up you feel him everywhere.

You try to moan but it's muffled.

"Go back to sleep, fawn. I'm almost done with you."

You have no clue what time it is or how long he's been in you, but with the way he's panting between his words he's been fucking you for some time.

You try to moan again but he presses harder against your mouth. His thrusting never stops, never slows down. If anything now he's being rougher because he doesn't have to worry about waking you.

You whine a little, it can barely be heard over the slapping of skin, but he glares at you.

"Keep making noise and I'll shove your underwear in your mouth."

You can't tell if it's because you're still partially asleep, but something in you wants him to do that. But you stay quiet. Eventually he removes his hand from your mouth so that he can hold you down better.

Drake is pushing your body into the mattress as best he can to stop your body from jerking forward with every thrust, even if watching your tits bounce is a highlight.

Your eyes keep fluttering, slipping in and out of consciousness.

"That's right. Go back to sleep. Little fuck toys work better when they're asleep."

You bite down on your tongue as you reach your climax. How many times have you already reached it though? Has Drake? Something about not having a clue makes you wetter.

Getting even more slick enables him to go faster. Your eyes shut and you tilt your head back.

"Ahh..hh... Drake!"

He covers your mouth again. He starts panting, getting closer, his cock twitching inside you. You ball your fists up into the sheets just in time to feel his cum fill you.

He bites his lip to stop from getting too loud with his moans. After riding out his high, making sure he's emptied himself into you, he pulls out and lets your legs fall on the bed before falling down beside you.

He's panting harder than you this time.

"Fuck," his chest heaves. "I wish I asked you to do that sooner," he chuckles.

Drake pulls you in to cuddle before closing his eyes now.

"Why don't we actually rest now. If I'm dead on my feet two days in a row Sebastian is going to scold me more."

"His scoldings might be the worst," he rubs your back gently. "I did tell you back to sleep though."

"As if I could with how rough you are."

"You wouldn't want it any other way," he kisses you and pulls the blanket up, covering you both.

~~

Tag list~

@kissmetwicekissmedeadly @fang-and-feather @xalxtusxiao @namine-somebodies-nobody @ana-thedaydreamer @evil-quartett @ameyoruakiikemenseries @yrenesposts @tele86 @damekathearasi @lokis-laugh @candied-boys @breadmercury @aquagirl1978 @xenokiryu @nightghoul381 @vampiricpancake @lulu-the-smol-floof @faust-bite @floydsteeth

[trivialbob]

Back from the camping trip. Work tomorrow.

It was a smooth and fun weekend. I worry too much about something breaking in the trailer or the truck. We've never had any disasters though. The first year we owned a trailer I learned to carry a tool box and two or more of certain things, like freshwater hoses and electrical cords. Neighboring RVer are helpful about sharing ideas.

RV tip: Do not rush when putting up or taking down. People in a hurry are the ones that (try to) drive over wheel blocks (guilty) or forget to shut the ceiling fan cover (guilty). One thing I love about some campgrounds are how veterans watch out for the newbs. "Oh, hey man. I know you were going to disconnect that power cable before leaving, but because you had your truck in gear, well I thought I'd be a buttinsky even though I'm sure you were going to take care of it."

In one of the small towns yesterday I bought some organic, artisanal, foo foo scented soap at a boutique (the one next to the liquor store). If I see a fancy, nicely scented bar and I'm on vacation, I will gladly pay what top line beer cost for a single bar of soap. The soap lasts longer anyway.

Sheila has class now. I cleaned the trailer and put it away. Tonight I'm doing many loads of laundry. Bedding and dog blankets need washing. The weather forecast had been all over the place, so we over packed to be prepared. Now all that has to be washed. I'm not sorting out the unwashed clothes. They're all getting washed.

The dogs have barely moved tonight. I can tell they're happy to be home. They'd never say no to camping, but home is home.

The last load of laundry is in the dryer. My personal level of satisfaction is high. Getting the clothes and bedding done and put away relaxes me. There's no way I would have had a sound sleep if there had been dirty clothes in the laundry room overnight.

Tomorrow I'm going to a new downtown office building for the first time. I know my card key works, but I'm not sure where I can eat breakfast or lunch without leaving the building. I'm still excited to go downtown for a day.

I'm going there because my boss and some other managers are in town to meet people.

I have to drive downtown. After the pandemic there are no more buses I can ride downtown in a reasonable time.

[bunbeeplays]

Xander and Jaden are walking back home from the orthodontist. The appointment had gone well, and Jaden had been very brave.

Xander: Your mouth feel okay, short stack?

Jaden: It's a little sore but not too bad.

Jaden: It's better than having crooked teeth.

Xander: At least you're a good sport. I was your age when I got braces, you must get it from me.

Jaden: But I'm adopted.

Xander: What? Since when?

Jaden: Daaaad!

His dad is always cracking jokes! He's such a goof. Jaden likes it!

Xander: Alright, alright. How about we get some bike riding practice in? And we can get lunch in town too, since you've been so good about getting your new braces.

Jaden: Really? Yeah!

He loves his sisters, but it's nice to get one-on-one time with just him and Dad.

Xander: Mom mentioned something about a haircut too, we can go to the barber while we're in town.

Jaden: …Okay.

If Mom told Dad about it, she must really want Jaden to get a haircut. She's always been so good to him, he doesn't want to disrespect her wishes.

Xander guides Jaden through the process of riding a bike confidently, but he suddenly seems a lot less confident. He was just so excited, why does he seem so sad now? He looked less miserable when he was getting his braces on.

Something's wrong. Xander's Dad Senses are tingling.

Xander: Hey, buddy, can we take a break? I want to talk to you.

Uh-oh. Dad sounds serious. It's never good when he's serious. Did Jaden do something wrong?

Jaden dismounts and quietly tucks his bike into his inventory before faking a smile.

Jaden: What's up?

Xander: You seem bummed, kid. What happened? You were psyched a minute ago.

Jaden hesitates. He doesn't want to hurt Mom's feelings, but he doesn't want to lie to his dad either.

Jaden: Well, uh… Promise you won't get mad?

Xander: I promise. Now spill the beans, bud.

Jaden: It's not that big of a deal. I kind of don't want a haircut, so I'm a little sad, but I'll get over it. We can go back to bike practice now.

If Xander knows one thing about his wife, it's how she tries so hard to make each of them happy. Something's off here.

Xander: Jay, did you tell Mom you don't want a haircut?

Jaden: No. She says I need it though.

Xander: I think she's just used to you having shorter hair. Why didn't you tell her you like your hair the way it is?

Jaden: I… didn't know I could.

Jaden: You and Mom tell us when to go to bed and to brush our teeth. I thought this was like that.

Xander sometimes wonders if Jaden's upbringing with his strict biological parents had more impact than he lets on. Maybe it doesn't and Jaden is just trying to respectful.

Xander: Mom and I do have to make sure you get enough sleep and take care of yourself, that's our job. But you're growing up, and you're starting to care more what you look like. It's okay to tell me or Mom you'd like more of a say in this stuff, as long as you're being kind.

Xander: If your mom knew you were this unhappy about cutting your hair, she'd never made you go through with it. I can talk to her, if you want, or you can tell her how you feel.

Jaden: She won't be mad?

Xander: Over a haircut? Never.

Jaden: I-I think I'll tell her.

Xander: And don't ever feel like you can't talk to us if you think something is unfair. We might not always be able to change our minds, but we can always talk about it. We're here to take care of you, not boss you around just for the heck of it.

Jaden: Okay! Thanks, Dad.

Jaden doesn't remember much about his biological parents. He remembers being sad a lot. He remembers feeling powerless.

He might just be a kid, still, and he's not always going to have a say in certain things, but Jaden knows he's safe with the parents he always deserved.

While Xander treats Jaden to some lunch at one of the food stalls in town (his sister runs them, so they eat for free anyway), lunch at home is a lot messier.

Ophelia: My goodness, look at you, messy girl! Let's get your face cleaned off.

After setting Wren down for a nap, Ophelia sees her son and husband walk through the door.

Ophelia: Hey, your new braces look great! Did you and Dad have fun in town?

Jaden: Yeah. Can I talk to you, Mom?

Ophelia: Oh, sure, sweetie.

They settle down on the ottoman in the entryway before Jaden tells her the truth.

Jaden: I didn't say it yesterday, but the truth is, I don't want a haircut. I like my hair longer.

Ophelia, just like Xander said, takes it well.

Ophelia: Oh, okay. Why didn't you tell me?

Jaden: I thought I had to because you're my mom and you wanted it. I talked to dad and he said it was okay to tell you stuff like this.

Ophelia: Of course it's okay!

Growing up, Ophelia got told how to dress, how to do her hair, how to exist. She'd never want that for her kids.

Ophelia: I'm sorry I made you feel that way. I shouldn't have just assumed you wanted to keep your hair short. You're a big kid now, and sometimes I forget that. As long as you keep your hair clean and take good care of it, you can grow it out as long as you want.

Jaden: Thanks for understanding.

Ophelia: Of course. Your body is yours, and you should get a say in how you look. I'm sorry I tried to take control, I just thought I was helping.

Jaden: It's okay, it's not like I told you.

Ophelia: Well, we'll know better for the future.

Ophelia: Let's make a deal. I'll stop assuming what you want, and you don't bite your tongue and do something because you think it'll make me happy.

Jaden: Deal. Love you, Mom.

Ophelia: I love you too, sweetie.

Jaden couldn't ask for a more supportive mom.

Can't let her "twin" have all the spotlight, can we, Miss Gemma?

Gemma does some nighttime yoga outside, conquering her fear of the dark, as well as completing the Mind and Body childhood aspiration.

Gemma is now Headstrong! Valuable skill to have for future heir duties.

[dollsonmain]

I've forgotten how to sleep and startled myself when I looked in the mirror on my way to bed last night. The eye wells in my skull were very, very visible. Slightly less bad this morning.

So sleep hasn't happened due to both anxiety/stress and the AC having been broken for a while. AC was out for about a week and once it was fixed, I was too stressed about the absences thing at school to sleep the first night, and then too stressed last night because Son broke his school laptop yesterday and we have to tell That Guy today, AND That Guy had gone out partying with friends after work which means he drives home like that in the middle of the night and I always worry he's not going to make it. I can't sleep until I hear the garage door open. If he crashes, with the way he has our finances set up, Son and I are effectively homeless immediately. Part of why I am trying to work. Him not coming home until 1am also prolonged the anticipatory anxiety of having to wait to tell him the problem and get over the aftermath.

And then I woke up at 3am like always and couldn't get back to sleep.

Anyway.

Work stuff ish again

I will not complain about being expected to work 6 hours a day because that's less than a "normal" job anyway, but really at that point I'd rather work a full 8 and get benefits.

I very much think it should be illegal to schedule people juuuuuust under the cut off for benefits to be required by labor law. You should have to either schedule people 40 hours or 20 hours, no in between, IMO. Scheduling someone exactly 20 hours gives them plenty of time to go work SOMEWHERE ELSE for the other 20 hours without having to worry about being scheduled to work 60+ hours a week because both employers are cheapskates that will work you 30 hours.

I also need to completely change my daily routines AGAIN to get to work on time.

My current-new routine is:

wake up at 3:30 and get my morning coffee

sit around and wait for That Guy to leave for work which is usually 4-4:30

Son gets up and we have the morning together

Son leaves for school at 6:50

I don't get hungry until somewhere between 7 and 9 and will have breakfast then

depending on how exhausted I am I will or will not do chores between 5 and 10

leave to walk to work at 10:20

get to work at 10:40/10:45

work 11-3

That Guy picks me up on his way home from work, though I did have to walk home yesterday

do chores

dinner between 4-5 or so

vegetable time

Now, I'm going to have to skip my morning coffee because it makes me poop and I don't want to be pooping while I'm also the only cashier at work.

So it's going to be like....

wake up around 3 and shower OR shower in the evenings and deal with being gross from night-sweats at work so wake up at 3:30, I do prefer to show up to work nice and clean but it is a gas station...

force feed myself some sort of solid food while waiting for That Guy to leave for work around 4-4:30

make sure the boy gets up no later than 5

leave to walk to work at 5:20

get to work at 5:40-5:45

work 6-whenever (she hasn't decided when????)

leave work to walk to home whenever that happens to be and I'd rather it WASN'T noon because it's going to be stupid hot, then, but stop on the store's "porch" to put on sunscreen real fast... which means I need an opaque travel size bottle for sunscreen, and eat something so I don't pass out on the way home (yesterday I took a small bread roll and some jerky and ate that and drank a second V8 Energy while walking)

get home around 1 if I left at noon because the walk home is slower than the walk to work

eat a real lunch? finally have my poopin coffee?

chores

Son and That Guy get home at 3

profit???

I'm going to have to prep and take multiple sugar drinks so my blood sugar doesn't bottom out while at work. Right now I've been taking one bottle of water with a Real Lemon lemonade drink stick mixed in and I forget to drink it but it's there so I can slam it before leaving. I'll need to also take a meal replacement shake got sugar, salt, and other nutrients, I think, and an extra water.

Manager keeps trying to get me to buy something at work before my shift starts and I'm like no thanks those are MY monies, now, you're not getting them back on your overpriced bottled water.

Today I need to do laundry, deal with the fallout of telling That Guy that Son broke his school laptop, go to Kohl's and see if I can find some New Balance cross trainers to wear to work since I will be doing walking, standing, and lifting and I think cross-trainers would be the best option AND already know NB is the brand they primarily carry, need to find a hi-vis vest or couple of belts because I'll be walking to work in the dark, and That Guy said he'd take me to dinner today for leaving me to have to walk home from work Yesterday but what does that matter? That's going to be every day from now on.

A few more paychecks and I'll look for a scooter again. Or something. Still kind of like the idea of getting a cargo trike, ngl. Would be harder to steal than a bike anyway.

I don't know what I'm going to do in the winter.

-

Running a salary and income tax calculator and factoring in about $3k in short-term hobby income, even putting that no tax is withheld, it looks like I'd expect a tax return of $3k? Because there's about $3k in tax credits??? Whatever. I'll figure it out when it's closer to the right time.

[bakery-anon]

Hello my loves, it’s spirit week this week and I am getting up at 5 for my makeup tomorrow <//3 so it is time for me to go to sleep. I’m also just like exhausted lol. My teacher acted like I didn’t do anything today and asked if I could “help them clean up today." like I didn't skip lunch last year to finish the lab and like I don't skip classes to finish work for him. Smh. Sorry that annoyed me 🙄

Anyways, I hope you had a good day today and that it was filled with smiles and laughter. I hope you had the best day ever today and if you didn’t I hope tomorrow is a better day for you.

You’re all so deserving of love and happiness so I hope you’re able to find it. Find the small things to make you happy. Read a comfort book, watch a comfort movie/show, cook your favorite meal. Find something that makes you smile so at the very least you can smile today. Find a joy in life to make you excited to get up in the morning. Oml…this is going to sound so cheesy but I get up bcs I’m really excited to see my gf (bug stop talking about their gf challenge: level? impossible </3). That’s not all though, you have to find reasons that aren’t tied with a person as well :) this week it’s spirit week. Next week it will probably be my book I’m reading or a show I’m watching or something I’m writing. Point is, find the things that make you happy :)

If no one has told you today, I love you and I’m proud of you. You’re deserving of love and I hope you find the love you’re looking for. A dancing in the kitchen in the small hours of the morning kind of love or a sitting on the couch not talking to each other while reading kind of love. Or the most important love, the platonic kind of love that makes you smile and laugh harder than you have before. The kind of love that makes you feel like you have a friend in the world. You’re deserving of love <3

Good morning my loves, to any of you that see this in the morning. I hope you have a good day, I hope you find reasons to smile and that everything goes well for you. I hope you get to wish on necklaces and eyelashes. Good morning my loves, eat some breakfast or have a snack and drink some water before your coffee finishes being made.

Goodnight my loves, to those of you who like me are going to sleep now. I love you all and hope you have sweet dreams. I hope you sleep well and that when you get up in the morning you feel refreshed. I love you goodnight :) <3

-love bug <3 🍪

[swallow17]

Today is one of those days.

I'm having a hard time just standing myself; I'm annoying myself out of my mind. I'm tired, but I don't really want to sleep. I want to play Zelda, but I'm too impatient to go after the fairies. I want to read, but my mind keeps drifting. I've been hungry all freakind day, but I don't fancy anything specific. I've tried to eat this morning, and I tried to have lunch; I simply can't. I'm not nauseous, or dizzy. My stomach doesn't hurt. I just don't feel like eating.

But I'm so hungry.

I don't have much food at home, anyway. I've been trying to lose some weight; it's not like going back to talk to Ana, as I did when I was a teenager. I just want my summer clothes to fit. I just want to recognize myself in pictures, in the mirror. I'm not going back to Ana. Or that's what I want to think.

So, I'm Mediterranean after all. Far away from the sea, more linked to the Atlantic, but Mediterranean nonetheless. That means that I belong to a culture of poor people who're great at inventing things to eat, so roasted onions it is. I have two onions left from yesterday's party. It will take about two hours to roast them properly. I guess that'll do for a very early dinner.

Yeah, maybe that's why I'm so down right now. Work has been a shitshow lately. My friends are adults (just like me, I may add), so we never find the time to meet anymore. One of them moved to another country and we talk weekly as if a bussiness meeting, another is kidnaped by a jelaous girlfriend. My fiancé lives in a different city during the week. I've been holding to yesterday's party to keep my sanity, I've prepared everything so it'd be perfect.

Don't get me wrong, it was perfect. Almost all of us were there, together, laughing, enjoying the food I so carefully curated, singing and looking our best with the most perfect smiles. I enjoyed it as if it was my last night on this Earth.

But it lasted four hours. Four freaking hours, and it was... gone. The morning came with a disastrous kitchen, a friend who slept at my place having a nervous breakdown and my fiance so tired that I didn't have the heart to wake him up. I cleaned the whole freaking house while my friend cried and told me about her mess. I mean; I make bad choices, I have to admit it. But at least I can be proud of not making all of them at the same time. She's working her ass for a job who doesn't pay back; studying for an exam she'll never pass, 'cause she has the wrong degree for that test. She's dating a guy who she doesn't even like, but he's a "nice guy". I couldn't avoid the grimace when she said that. I've had my fair share of "nice guys".

But that'd make for another entire post. So, back to this one.

While I was cleaning the aftermarth of the party and listening to her I felt so... trapped. I felt as one of those donkeys they used in the village, with the carrot just out of reach, so close I can dream of catching it.

"Work a little harder, girl, and you might make it. Make it until that shinny day that'll be too short anyway. Get back to work. Chase the next shinny day. Do it until you're too tired to imagine new shinny days. And then enjoy the nervous breakdown on your kitchen's floor."

Yeah. Maybe it's just the lack of sleep. Maybe it's just that I'm all alone again, alone with the perspective of another Monday on a job that's draining me.

Maybe it's just today.

It must be just that. It's just one of those days.

I guess the onions could be ready by now.

[adamruz]

This Time is Different

Summary: My version of the morning after 1017. Rated T just in case.

Word Count: 899

Note: I had no plans to turn my idea into a fic until @piscesgirl87 volunteered me to write a fic, so here we are lol. I think this is the fastest I've ever written something.

Their clothes were still scattered on the bedroom floor with pieces of a broken lamp and teacup all over the living room floor as the sun began to peek through the window. “Well this is a welcomed sight,” Adam mumbled as he woke up with his arm still wrapped around Kim as she was tracing her fingers lightly across his chest.

She looked up from the spot her head was cradled in under his head and smiled. “What do you mean?”

“Usually you're out of my arms in the morning before I even wake up, but I like this version much better.”

“This time is different. What time do you have to check in with Sam again?”

Adam rubbed his eyes and answered, “not until around 3, but I was planning on going back to my UC apartment around lunch time. I can probably push it back a little longer though just to spend more time with you and Mack.”

Kim shook her head. “No, Adam, you have to stick to the plan just in case. You can’t get made. Plus we have the rest of our lives to spend together.” She dropped that last sentence so casually like it was nothing, but it made Adam shoot up to sit against the pillow behind his head. “What did you just say?”

“I told you this time was different. I know we have a lot still to talk about, but I’m done being scared with you. She leaned up to kiss him again until he pulled away.

“Hey, can we get something to eat first? I'm a little hungry.” Kim agreed and threw on Adam's flannel over her underwear and headed out to the kitchen. Adam stepped up behind her with just his boxers on and wrapped his arms around her waist as she got a pot of coffee started and rested his head on her shoulder while softly kissing the spot on her neck that she loved so much.

They were interrupted by a knock on the door. “Adam, what time is it?”

He leaned back to look at the clock and replied, “9 o’clock on the dot, why?”

Kim immediately started panicking. “Oh shoot, Amanda's mom said she was dropping Mack off at 9. I…we must have lost track of time.” Adam began laughing and couldn’t control himself. “Adam, this isn't a laughing matter. Our daughter is standing outside of our house right now and we're standing in the kitchen half naked and the living room and my bedroom are a mess.”

A knock came again. “Well you have more clothes on than me,” he proclaimed while still finding their current situation amusing. “Plus all of my clothes are upstairs.” Kim ran into her bedroom and threw his jeans from last night at him.

“Here. At least you'll have pants on.”

“Darlin’, I can't answer the door shirtless in front of a parent from school.”

Kim put her hands on his chest as she started to push him backwards, rotating him to face the front door, and eventually moving her hands to his butt to scoot him towards the door. “It's okay, trust me. All of the moms at school already have a thing for you anyways,” she revealed with a wink. “Now just distract them for like two minutes while I clean this mess up.”

Adam opens the door to see Makayla, Amanda, and Amanda’s mom standing on the front porch. “Hi Adam!”

“Hi Mack, did you have fun?” Mack nods and tries to run through the door, but Adam bends down to stop her. “Hey now, make sure you thank Amanda and her mom for having you sleep over."

“Thank you, see you at school on Monday," Makayla yelled as she waved to her friend and eventually pushed past Adam. “Mom, I'm home.”

“Hey bud,” Kim answered just as she was finishing shutting the door to her bedroom where she hid the mess with a robe on, replacing Adam's flannel she was wearing earlier. Adam turned the corner, afraid to see if Kim had enough time to clean up the mess and he had to admit she did a pretty good job. That was until Makayla asked, "what happened to the lamp that was here?"

Adam stood behind Mack in silence as he threw his hand over his mouth while Kim fumbled with an answer to her question. “I…I felt we had too many lamps in this room, so I put it away for now.” They both sighed in relief to have avoided that close call.

Makayla turned around and now inquired, “Adam, why do you have on the same jeans that you did when you dropped me off at school yesterday?” Adam was pretty sure his jaw was on the ground and now it was Kim's turn to start giggling as Adam tried to weasel his way out of this one.

“I will have you know, little one, that I have many pairs of black jeans that all look the same.” He wasn’t exactly lying as his closet did exist of a handful of black jeans, but she was right about this pair. It was like they were misbehaving teenagers again getting caught by their parents. It probably shouldn't have caught them so off guard that their daughter being raised by two cops in an elite unit would be so observant but here they were.

[nowoyas]

Koi no Yokan 22: come together (nishinoya yuu/reader)

First - Prev - Next - M.list - Ao3

A/N: take two on the right blog this time lmao. next update may be delayed, but I'll keep y'all updated. between new health issues and world events writing is really difficult for me right now. thanks for understanding <3

Summary: As the training camp nears its end, your boys continue to work hard and pull it all together.

Warnings and Tags: blanket series warnings

Words: ~3200

The next day is the first that you manage to make it to lunch without cringing, and the first where you get to be in the gym all day. You push your luck as you always do, spend the night up until dinner helping Noya with his jump set—still not quite there yet—and, after dinner, shoot a text to Noya asking if he'd like to walk around the school with you, since you're supposed to be going on walks and stuff and don't feel like going it alone. Naturally, he'd been so down for it that you'd been able to watch him basically leap out of his chair from across the cafeteria once he read the text.

You kinda missed having time alone with him. You haven't really had much of any since the training camp started, and you realize with a pang that the reduced frequency is an indicator that things are back to normal—no more sleeping in his arms, no more everyone in the house you're in home before dark, no more I'm home! and casual welcome back. No I'm heading out, no see you later. No one to eat dinner with.

A finger pokes your cheek. "You're getting stuck in your head. What's up?"

Right. This is stupid. You're being stupid. "It's nothing."

An unimpressed look. "Sure it is."

You sigh. "Just thinking about what I'm gonna have to put up with when we get back."

"Your dad?"

A nod.

"That's a problem for future [name]-san, isn't it?" He tilts his head. "You're not there and it's not your problem."

"But…"

"But I know that girl. She hates it when you take work from her. If she knew you were trying to take the worry about this from her, she'd be pissed."

You pause. Laugh. "Right. You're right."

You walk a little longer with him. It's nighttime, but it's still hot. The darkness isn't doing anything to cool anything off, but you happen to like it. It feels nice. Comfortable, even though you're stuck to long pants while doing manager stuff. Maybe a bit sticky, but it's not like you're doing any running. (Maybe it feels better because you know you aren't the one stuck exercising in this heat.)

"Thanks for walking with me. I know you've probably had enough exercise this week to last you the year."

"Are you kidding? I can keep going."

You roll your eyes. "Probably shouldn't, though. Something something, rest and recovery, something, take care of your body. I think I've basically gotten my fill, anyway, so we can head back."

"I mean," he hums, "if you took better care of yourself, I might consider taking better care of myself…"

You roll your eyes. "Like you'd do anything to hurt your performance at volleyball. You'll take care of yourself."

The pair of you wander past one of the gyms, and you pause at the distinct sound of volleyball taking place. Check the time on your phone. Noya isn't far behind you when you poke your head in to look—Hinata and Tsukishima, of all people, are mid three-on-three with some guys from other schools. They're locked in, which is sort of cool to watch, but…

You wait for the ball to fall, and then you cross your arms. "Hey, you guys ate, right?"

They freeze, turn to you in comical sync.

Oh god. They haven't eaten. "The cafeteria is getting locked in three minutes. Tell me you guys ate."

Hinata shakes his head gravely. You sigh. If you remember correctly… "Alright. Hold on. You guys clean up."

You've been excluded from the rotation on account of the concussion, but the other managers have a rotating schedule on which two girls clean and lock up the cafeteria at night. Tonight's Shirofuku and Suzumeda, if you recall, the latter of which does not pick up the phone. You get Shirofuku when you try her, though.

"What's up?" she answers.

"Shirofuku-san, hi! How much do you love me?"

There's a pause before she responds. "…why?"

You take on your sweetest affect, smiling even though she can't see you. "Could you maybe hold on locking up the cafeteria for me?"

She sighs. "What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything! But we've got a couple stragglers who got too focused on individual practice and haven't eaten yet. You wouldn't want anyone to fall out tomorrow because they didn't eat properly, would you? Not you, Shirofuku-san. You'd never."

There's a hesitation. You hear her cover the speaker, probably to talk to Suzumeda. You pounce.

"I'll handle locking up afterwards and cleaning properly, so you guys can go ahead to bed and not miss anything."

"How about you make them handle it, Little Miss Concussion?"

You pout. "It won't be that much. You guys were basically already done, right? And it's not like it's a problem if I miss any sleep, I mean, I've got doctor's orders to take naps as needed, anyway, so if I miss out on sleep—"

"Don't you dare—" Noya interrupts beside you. You lean over, slap a hand over his mouth, and keep talking.

"I've got this. Come on, please?"

"Fine. We'll wait. But you are going to take it easy, you hear? if you don't come upstairs in time we're physically carrying you up the stairs and forcing you to sleep."

"Great!" you chirp. "Thanks so much! I've got them cleaning up, so I'll meet you and get everything ready. You're the best!"

Just as you hang up, something warm and wet lathes over your palm. You squeal, jerking away from Noya. "Did you just lick me!?"

"Sorry," Noya says with a shit-eating grin. "There was this hand over my mouth, see—"

"I'm going to have Nee-san dye that little bleached strip pink next time you bother her for a refresh," you threaten.

He laughs. "I think I could rock it."

...infuriatingly, he totally could. You turn to the six stragglers, face flaming with embarrassment. "Anyway! I got clearance to keep the cafeteria open a little longer for you guys, but obviously it'll create problems if you stay too late and we make it to curfew without being done, so I gotta ask that you guys clean up and eat quick so I can clean up in time, okay?"

You receive six synchronous bows, six shouted thanks. Pride surges in you when the volume doesn't bring about any twinges of pain.

"You're so kind to us!" a voice booms.

Your gravity lurches out of wack—at first, you think that'd be because of Fukurodani's ace (Bokuto, maybe?) rushing towards you, but then a familiar arm settles over you and you realize that Noya has pulled you squarely out of his reach. He steadies you, chin resting on your shoulder to glare at him.

Bokuto stops and pouts, arms crossed. "I just wanted to thank her for making sure we can eat tonight. Is that not okay?"

"Bokuto-san, maybe don't randomly hug someone else's girlfriend," Fukurodani's setter says.

You freeze. "Hold up. Girlfriend?"

"Are you two not dating?" Nekoma's captain asks.

Noya's arm over your shoulder tightens protectively. "Not yet, but she's still off-limits."

"Excuse me, yet?" You turn to glare at him. He raises an eyebrow back.

"Yet."

You snort, roll your eyes. "Right. Okay. Anyways, we all need to hurry, so..." You wriggle out of his hold.

He's so convinced you'll fall in love with him. Like it's that easy. Stupid.

So you meet up with Shirofuku and Suzumeda. The guys trail not far behind—they get leftovers, and they're cold, but it's dinner and they're grateful to you. They go out of their way to avoid making a mess, and Noya lingers by to help you finish cleaning and lock up even though you repeatedly tell him he doesn't have to. He's so pushy. What pisses you off the most is the fact that you can't even be honestly annoyed with it. You lock up, you get to sleep on time, all six of the Stragglers Squad thanks you with their lives, and the next morning—last day of the camp—you settle in for morning practice like always.

When Hinata pulls off some new move—a wipe, Shimizu calls it—Yachi smiles at you and says, "I hope that new quick comes together soon, too."

"Same," you reply back.

~

Her wishes do not go unanswered. The final set of the training camp—imbued with energy from the promise of impending grilled meat and emboldened by Yachi's gentle mention to Hinata that she'd like to see that new quick they're working on—sees the first truly satisfying spike you've seen from Hinata in a while, your head notwithstanding. It takes you too long to recognize that they'd done it, that that was the new quick. It doesn't look much different to you, or to Takeda, apparently, but it's all about options, apparently, and now Hinata has those.

As Yachi cheers beside you, and the guys yell, you can't help but feel a little proud that they managed to make it work. You kinda wanna tell Kageyama I told you so, but you'll let them have this. The set moves on—a successful synchronized attack, a time out, water bottles and towels and excitement and Noya taking a moment to flash that wide grin at you.

"Wait, [name]-san," he says before you can walk away to set down the water bottle caddy, "for good luck—marry me?"

You roll your eyes, turn to pat his shoulder. "I don't think you really need the luck, but why don't you get that set to come together and ask another eight hundred and eighty-six times or so and I'll think about it in the meantime?"

His face lights up as always, and you watch him practically bounce back into position on the court.

It takes two points for the opportunity to come—a receive by Kageyama, and then Noya flowing easily into the set, which Azumane spikes and just barely manages to get in. But he gets it in.

It comes together.

Holy shit, it came together.

You grab at Yachi's arm in your excitement as she cheers—nice kill!—and try to contain yourself. Your first thought had been to cheer with her, but the second thought was swift and much louder—he'll never let you live it down if you do.

He catches your eye as you try to tamp down the smile. Gestures wildly. You roll your eyes in reply. You're sure later you'll receive a tackle for it, but you can try to avoid it, at least.

~

Fukurodani takes the last set with a truly impressive spike from Bokuto. You can't even really be mad that the gambit to crush him didn't really pull through, least of all when Noya sweeps you off your feet in celebration of his first successful in-game jump set.

"So, since I got it to come together—"

"Eight hundred and eighty-five or no deal," you interrupt, voice a little strained from the ongoing bear hug.

That earned you another nine proposals, rapid-fire, like you weren't in the middle of the gym and wriggling to get free, but it's fine, you guess. More important than proposals 106 through 115 is the barbecue, which you manage to escape for in hopes of helping out with.

And everyone is happy with the barbecue. When it kicks off, you find a corner to linger in with Tsukishima. The amount of people is just a bit... overwhelming, that's all. Tsukishima's corner is quiet. It's a good pick.

You can't help but needle him, though. You can only take so much quiet, only so much room to think. "I think that those moments today where things started working are why everyone else works so hard. That's where their passion is coming from."

He sighs. "I gathered. I don't get it, but I think I at least see it. It still feels stupid to just chase a high like that, but..."

You shrug. "Better than walking aimlessly, I guess."

He nods. "Right."

You sigh. The smell of meat is getting to you. "I'll leave you to your skulking," you say. "I'm gonna see if these guys will let me get close to any of the grills."

He nods you away, and you make it all of four steps before you spot a disaster-in-progress in the form of a trembling Yachi, surrounded by basically the four beefiest dudes at the entire camp, including Azumane.

You swoop in quick, gesture to them to step back. "Woah, hey. You're looking a little overwhelmed, Yachi-san. Do you wanna go sit?"

She nods weakly, face deathly pale. You shoot an apologetic look to the guys. "Sorry. I think the crowd's overwhelming her. C'mon, let's go sit with the girls and I'll get your food for you. How's that sound?"

"O-okay..."

"Can I touch you?"

Another weak nod. You place a hand on her shoulder, steer her over towards the other managers at a careful pace. Your firm "excuse me!"s cut through the guys well enough. You suppose there's an advantage to basically everyone knowing you have a concussion. When she's sat down, you kneel in front of her with a look of concern. "Are you gonna be okay?"

She nods. "Y-yeah. Sorry, I just... they're all so big and scary and... I-I know we've been around them all week, and even Azumane-san was there, b-but..."

"It's okay. Seriously. You're allowed to have anxiety, no matter what anyone says. Do you still want to eat?"

"Y-yeah. Maybe. I don't know."

"I'll get a plate with enough for both of us, then, and bring it back."

"Y-you don't have to—" she starts to protest, but you raise a hand to silence her.

"I'm choosing to. You're not making me do anything. It takes no extra effort to just take a little bit extra of what I get while I'm already getting it."

"B-but your head..."

"Will be fine. I'm supposed to be gently pushing myself, right? This is a good gentle push. If it gets too hard, we can send someone else. Alright?"

"Okay..."

You nod to Suzumeda and Shirofuku. "Can you two keep an eye on her and talk to her? Just a distraction to help her calm down. When I'm back, I can walk her through calming down the rest of the way if she needs it."

They nod, and you disappear into the crowd—get a small pile of meat for you and one for Yachi, pile up some vegetables on top to balance it. You're not all that hungry, but you suppose after nearly passing out like that, she probably isn't, either.

For good measure, one rice ball for each of you makes its way onto the pile as you wind your way back, and then you slump into the chair beside her and offer her food. You pick at your own, focus more on letting her get her fill than eating, yourself. The meat smells delicious, but...

You can't shake it. Can't shake the loom and gloom, the knowledge that, after this, you're going home. To your house. To your house.

Your eyes drift to watching everyone mingle as Yachi goes from shaking to calm, from having to be fed to being able to eat on her own.

You promised your dad you'd come home and talk then. You don't know what he could possibly say to you, if anything could make his absence better. You probably deserved it, anyway. You should be the one apologizing. It's not like he killed your mom. His wife. The woman he loved more than anything.

Your eyes trace Shimizu, sauntering obliviously through the crowd of guys to get her food. Maybe you should just find Noya and hang out with him. He's good at distracting you. You're sure he'd be thrilled to be hanging out with a girl at one of these, anyhow. He's just so easy to be around.

But right now, he's not far behind Shimizu, flanked by Tanaka and Mohawk guy. Glaring, probably audibly growling. Letting some guys from Fukurodani know, in no uncertain terms, to lay off.

A hand tugs you out of your thoughts, forces you to turn to the other girls.

Suzumeda leans in, devilish grin on her lips. At some point, Miyanoshita and Otaki also joined you, so, save for Shimizu, all the managers are present. "So, [name]-chan."

"Yeah?"

"We've been good. We've been patient. But you're about to go home—" Gee, thanks for the reminder. "—and we can't let you leave without answers."

Ugh. This is about Noya, isn't it? You suppress the urge to roll your eyes.

"What is the deal with him?" Otaki asks. "I mean, you guys are really obviously super close. Like, really obviously. And you know, we're nosy... why aren't you dating him?"

"Him?" You snort.

"Yeah! He clearly likes you, you like to act tough but I'm pretty sure you like him, I mean... why not?"

You jerk your chin towards where he's patrolling around Shimizu, chewing your lip hard enough to punish. "Does it look like he likes me, or does it look like he likes girls and I just happen to be one who pays attention to him?"

"[name]-chan…"

They have more to say in response, but you refuse to entertain it. Instead, you zone out Shimizu-ways, watch her remain blissfully unapproached as the trio does their sworn duty. Noya does his job well.

"Yachi-san," you interrupt suddenly.

She jolts. "What's up?"

"Can I borrow your bus pillow when we leave today? My head's kinda starting to hurt but I can't sleep on the bus without resting my head on the window. You can probably imagine how much that will not help me at all."

"Oh, uh, sure! I don't mind! Do you want me to go ask Sensei about your painkillers?"

You shake your head. "I should be fine. It's not that bad, I just need to sleep it off."

Doubtful that you actually sleep.

~

On the bus a short hour or so later, clad in your bus hoodie—well-worn, faded, and cozy without making you overheat—you rest your head on the borrowed pillow and try to keep your eyes closed. You don't want to see the look on Noya's face when he realizes you've taken a seat on the side of the bus with single-seat rows.

You hear it, though. Footsteps stuttering to a stop, then Yachi's voice.

"Oh, she said her head was bothering her, so she was just going to nap."

You can actually hear the pout in his voice. "Am I not a good enough pillow…?"

"Oi, Nishinoya. Keep moving," Ennoshita says. "We all have to get on the bus, you know."

"Right. Yeah, sorry. Ryuu! I'm coming to sit with you!"

The footsteps continue. You pull your hood over your head and try to shove down the guilt. When your phone buzzes, you flinch.

Noya to [name] at 14:13

Noya: [image attached. Image description: Soba with her mouth open and both front paws in the air, batting at something out of focus in the foreground.]

Noya: Soba fighting off your headache. get some good rest for me, ok?

Somehow, this doesn't help your guilt. It doesn't help it one bit.

Tags: @deeplightgarden @idonthaveanameideayet @dusstory @kazunish

[snapdragonsimming]

Now that precious Carmel has joined our family, we’re settling into life as a family of four. Gabriel took a week off work to support me as I recovered from the birth, but now he’s back at it and I’m on my own with two under two! We're so blessed to live in a safe neighborhood with lots of fellow believers; in fact, my aunt and uncle live right across the street, and sometimes I like to stand at the window and "show" Carmel the house where I spent so much time growing up!

In the mornings I try to steal as much sleep as possible, but one of the girls is usually awake and fussy by six or seven, and if not then I’m up anyway, prepping for the day. Now that I’ve started Abbey on solids it’s easier to eat breakfast as a family, and I’ll feed Carmel either before or after we eat depending on how hungry she is. Of course, amidst the chaos I always make time to nurture my personal relationship with God.

Gabe heads off to work around eight with a kiss and healthy homemade lunch in his bag! He works so hard to provide for us, so I do my best to ease his burdens where I can. The rest of the morning is usually low-key. I’ll play with the girls, give Abbey a snack, work on some motor skills, and (ideally!) sneak in a load of laundry. After lunch the girls go down for naps, and that’s when I get the bulk of the cleaning done. Sometimes one of my sister-in-laws will drop in around midafternoon to see the girls and help out around the house, which is such a blessing. Between all that I make a point of having some "training time" with Abbey. It's so important to promote discipline and good manners, even in little ones.

When Gabriel gets home I try to have the girls clean and happy for time with Daddy, because the last thing he needs at the end of a long day is a dirty, screaming infant shoved in his face. I don't know how secular women can stomach doing that to their husbands!

After dinner we spend time together as a family, talking about our days, reading the Bible, and praying. Of course the girls can't understand much, but good habits start early! Then it’s baths and bed for Abbey and Carmel, and “date night” for us! It’s so important for me as a wife to meet my husband’s needs and carve out "couple time" before we start all over again the next day.

Though the small age gap between our kids can be difficult day-to-day, I’m so grateful for the little family I have, and I’m prayerful that it’ll lead to a close sister relationship for my girls- just like the one I have with my own sister, Tabitha. Following His design for my life and becoming a mommy has been the biggest blessing, and I can’t wait to see how God continues to work in our lives!

[beauty-and-passion]

Beau! Hello! How are you doing?

Hi! :D It's so nice to see you again! I really missed our conversations, can't wait for more of them to come soon! <3

This summer has been pretty busy for me. I studied almost every day - but it's summer, it's hot and my will to study was below zero, so I skipped a few days here and there, did other things, studied in the morning only and so on. Still no idea about the results, but when I get them, I will let you know :)

In the meantime, I still enjoyed my time by doing other stuff, like:

Cleaning

I love organizing things and since I finally had some time, I took the chance to:

Write a full inventory of the garage/storeroom where my family has been accumulating stuff for years

Buy a couple new storage racks for my apartment and move some furniture around. Still not over, but it's an improvement

Also, since my mother finally realized that yes, we have a lot of stuff indeed and we can rid of some of it, we went on a cleaning spree and cleaned:

The woodshed which had everything inside except for wood. There was even a sewing table!

The front garden of my house and that meant removing a shit ton of plants because my mother decided it was a great idea to plant them all together. She literally put two palm trees inside the vineyard. Those have been hard to tear down, but when me and my brother finally did it, the satisfaction was immense

We still have to move some stuff and properly clean the storeroom, but we have to wait for my uncle first: once he takes some furniture away, we will be free to keep going.

Keeping healthy

Since I went to the gastroenterologist and he told me to change my diet, I lost 7kg immediately and I feel WAY better. But it's still not enough: I plan to lose 7 more kilos, just to be in perfect health and to keep being healthy, even if I gain a couple kilos back in the future.

In order to do that, I kept (and try to keep) a schedule made of:

walking at least 6000 steps every day

spending at least one hour doing exercises and yoga 5 days a week

following the healthier diet suggested by the doctor, which is made of fresh fish and meat, fresh vegetables, almost no bread, gluten-free pasta, rice, couscous, no milk and no processed products. It was hard the first few days, now I feel bad when I don't follow this plan. I don't miss junk food and I still allow myself a treat once in a while. Also, since I am lazy, I cook once a day and double the amount, so I can eat for dinner and have a meal ready for the next day's lunch. This way, I'm always covered and I don't feel like resorting to junk/fast food (I also got rid of everything unhealthy, so it would be impossible anyway).

trying to get a better sleeping schedule: my alarm clock is set at 7:50 every day except for the weekends and I allow myself to get a 1-hour-long nap in the early afternoon. I also try to go to sleep around midnight, but still end up sleeping at 1am, so there's still room for improvement.

Writing

Studying was hard, but writing has always been great. And when I can have a schedule, it's even better :D

I started with two hours, every day. Right after dinner, when my mind was still fresh - and the weather gets cooler too. Then, around 10pm, I move on the couch and watch a few YouTube videos, before going to bed.

Some days, I didn't want to write a single line and had to force myself to write at least for one hour. But there were also days in which I wrote one or two hours more than planned. And now, I can write a few hours in the morning too and that means double productivity! :D Also, after sitting for so long in front of a screen, the exercise session in the late afternoon is even more enjoyable.

Small trips

I couldn't allow myself to take a longer breaks this summer. And that means I won't be able to visit Greece, so I took small trips to my uncle's farm and 1-day long trips to a few places.

In July, I visited Gaeta and Sperlonga (Italy). Those are two beautiful towns between Rome and Naples, with wonderful clean sea and beautiful sights. Sperlonga was especially cute, because the oldest part of the city is on a hill, so there are a ton of narrow streets, white-painted walls, corners decorated with seashells and painted tiles, tiny stairs and little plazas. It was nice.

In August, I visited Rovinj (Croatia): that's another little town, with a wonderful green sea. While we were there, we took a boat trip and visited the nearby fjord and wow, it was just like a postcard from a Norwegian fjord. And the trip was very enjoyable too: the boat owner offered us drinks and gave us interesting insights about what we were seeing.

I have two more trips planned for the next week: a water park tomorrow and a small cruise trip next week. Then, nothing else for now. Maybe will do something for Christmas and even New Year, but we'll see what offers we can find.

What about you?

What did you do these months? How did you spend your summer? How are you spending these last few days of August? And do you like to sleep as much as my cats like it?

[jacqcrisis]

Since it's my birthday could I possibly request a silly rambling about Caleb having to cancel dinner with his mom and not tell her it's because he's at the hospital. Again.

Yes! But mostly because I've had an idea I'd probably never write in my drafts that would prelude this. Gunna put most of it under a readmore as it's long and a little saucy.

Caleb's got a busy day ahead of him, with lunch with his ma and an evening shift after that so, in order to get a workout in, he decides to go to the gym first thing when he wakes up. Thing is, when he gets there, the showers are closed due to maintenance. That's not great, but he supposes he'll cut the workout short and run back home to wash up before lunch.

Not that he wants to go to lunch. His ma is probably going to have pamphlets and numbers for matchmakers and single women his age she knows. It's going to be an hour or two of guilt-tripping and pressure that he doesn't really want right now, but it's better to go than her try to show up at an apartment he doesn't live at anymore, so he best be on time.

Well, after his workout, a new problem arises when he gets back to the apartment. One he thought would still be sleeping considering its like...half past noon, so himbos don't expect to be ambushed as they put their keys on the table and their bag on the floor. Caleb squawks as a shockingly awake and already rumbling Zeke wraps his arms around him from behind.

He's got his toothy face jammed into Caleb's neck and his hands already under his clothes as Caleb's brain finally works out what's happening. Caleb puts up a mild protest, mostly telling Zeke to wait or at least, follow him into the shower, while not really putting much effort in trying to get hands out of his gym shorts or a mouth from sucking hickeys into his throat. Zeke's not having it, and Caleb's lukewarm attempts to wriggle free are nowhere to be seen when he's picked up and becomes intimately familiar with the wall against his back.

Not that Caleb would stop Zeke at this point as he's been trying to get the changeling to let loose a little and just go to town on him. Who knew all it would take was a workout and a missed shower to have Zeke manhandling him and trying to eat him like a peach? All thought of lunches later in the afternoon are absolutely out the window as are any worry about what a keyed up, aggressive Zeke might do when he moves their operation to the bedroom by carrying Caleb there.

Obviously, Zeke ends up gnawing the shit out his shoulder again, shocking literally no one. And it's bad enough that Caleb can't risk not going to the ER...again so when Zeke stops gagging, they clean up a little so they don't walk in looking too much like a crime scene. During that, as Zeke is assessing the damage frantically, Caleb's phone goes off with his ma on the other end doubling checking the resturant choice for today.

Caleb fumbles his way through a lie about how he can't go to lunch, he's really sorry, but he's...sick? His ma tells him that she's going to be in town anyways and she has some things to give him so she'll just stop by his place and- Caleb scrambles to cut her off, tells her they can reschedule or something, like it's fine, don't drop by, he's like super duper gross right now.

There's some back and forth, again while Zeke is wiping blood and drool and semen off him, where Caleb comes out on top by saying how she, his mother, would prefer to go through whatever she has for him in person. She irrately agrees, and she ends the call by telling him that he sounds a lot like his father. Caleb kind of shrugs it off but Zeke immediately starts apologizing again since he not only ruined lunch but Caleb will probably have to call off work tonight as well.

Caleb stops him, surprisingly happy with this outcome and assuring Zeke for the millionth time he's exactly the opposite of mad and he wishes Zeke was like that more just without the hospital part after. They go to the ER, and that sucks but it's a better time than lunch with his ma and Caleb gets a night off to play Call of Duty. Zeke also coddles him when he get off work later so it's wins all around for Caleb.