#anyways 2. shes so lovey dovey and the fact she takes the time to keep you comfortable first is sooooo ❤️

[beastking-golion]

Finished my run of Mortum’s romance and.

[selfless-solipsist]

Honeyed Confessions

He was a man with a hundred names, yet none of them were his own.

Wander x Villain Reader [Chapter 2]

Link to AO3:

Chapter Two: Helping Others With Gentle Hands

___ found herself waiting on a bench outside a carnival for a certain star-nomad, and... as she sat there, she was starting to grow impatient. She had no idea why she even agreed to this sort of thing in the first place. Well, okay, she had an idea. Despite everything, despite the fact that the little furball made her hit him twice during their first meeting, she was a bit captivated with his whole persona. But at the end of the day, real dates weren't really her style. She was a villain, not some lovesick fool who wanted to be wooed. And yet...

Here she was, waiting for Wander.

...yeah, she was definitely losing her mind as well.

But where the heck was he, anyway? It seemed the longer she waited, the more likely it seemed that he had just ditched her. He was a complete stranger, and for all she knew, he only agreed to go on the date for shits and giggles. Sure, he was a goody-two-shoes, and went on the first date to 'keep her company' - which ended up with them agreeing to go on another one... somehow -, but that didn't mean he wasn't a little ball of chaotic energy that relished in making others irritated and wanting to strangle him.

It was kind of his thing.

And so, as the woman continued to wait for the sunshine in alien form to appear, a very small pout formed on her face, her foot tapping against the ground impatiently. She glanced around the carnival, watching couples walk by with amusement and a bit of disgust, vomiting on the inside from all the lovey-dovey energy around her. Yuck. It was moments like these that made her realize why she chose the path of being a bad guy. Though it was kind of ironic at the time, considering she was about to meet up with the person she was supposed to hate. Or, as the self-proclaimed 'The Greatest in the Galaxy' would have said - the furry nuisance, the bane of his existence.

'NO ___, you don't understand! I HAD TO THROW AWAY HALF OF MY CLOTHES BECAUSE HE INFECTED ME WITH COOTIES!!! He's like THE WORST GUY EVER!' 

...Ah, good ol' Hater.

...

Grop, why was she even waiting for Wander anyway...?

After all she could just say screw it and leave. Go back to her spaceship. Or do something more productive like take over the Yonder Galaxy or something, that would have been a much better time consumer for sure. Instead of sitting there pouting like a scorned schoolgirl who didn't get her way, she had to admit - the whole look didn't really suit her.

But no, she was patiently... or well, not so patiently, waiting for a stupid star-nomad rather than doing something that actually mattered.

What the flarp was wrong with her?!

Her scowl deepened as the minutes continued ticking by, and she found herself starting to seriously consider just leaving and getting it over with, and maybe play some games in her quarters - because that was always fun - when suddenly...

THUNK!

Abruptly, Wander just appeared out of nowhere, crashing face first onto the bench right next to her. "OOF-" He let out a loud yelp of pain, but despite this, he turned his head to glance up at his date, grinning in an obnoxiously cheerful manner, a tiny bit of blood from his nonexistent nose staining the side of his face.

"Heya, darlin'!"

Obviously, he didn't seem phased by the fact that it looked like he had slammed his face against a wall at full speed, much less the fact that he was bleeding. In fact, in an almost eerily cheerful tone, he added: "I'm not late, am I?"

The woman truly didn't quite know what to say, her eyes narrowing as the star-nomad climbed up onto the bench and sat next to her. He was definitely late, and the fact that he didn't even seem to care made her glare harshly at him. "You are late." She stated bluntly, her voice cold as ice, although she was somewhat intrigued that he actually showed up in the first place.

Though Wander's smile only widened at her response as he looked up at her, tilting his head slightly. "I'm sorry!" He didn't sound sorry in the slightest bit, and he appeared as giddy as ever as he sat there with the red substance gushing out of his face slowly. Oddly enough, he almost seemed to enjoy her hostile attitude.

Maybe he was just a little.... unhinged.

"You're bleeding." The human pointed out the obvious, wrinkling her nose as she watched the blood trickle down his fur. Her comment was matter-of-fact, as if she were merely stating a fact rather than expressing concern. Because well, why should she show any concern, she was supposed to be a cold-hearted tyrant. 

He, on the other hand, didn't seem particularly concerned about the fact that he was injured. In fact, he only smiled at her comment, seemingly unbothered by the fact that blood was staining his lovely appearance from how hard he crashed into the bench."Oh, this? It's nothin'" Wander waved off her statement, as if it didn't even register in his mind. Clearly, he was more focused on finally being on the date with her, and he leaned forward slightly as he stared into her eyes. "Now, where're we gonna start, Darlin'?"

At that the female let out an annoyed huff, her arms crossing over her chest as she watched him with a scowl. "How about with an actual explanation as to why you're late." She said coldly as the little bundle of joy continued to grin obnoxiously, completely unaffected by her icy glare.

"I got distracted." He said simply, as if it was a normal occurrence for him. Which it was. Wander was easily distracted and had the attention span of a puppy, or a goldfish perhaps. Honestly it was a wonder how he was a few centuries old and still kicking.

"You got distracted?" She echoed in disbelief, her eyes narrowing as she stared at the star-nomad in slight annoyance. "What could you possibly get distracted by?"

Wander giggled softly, his smile widening at her disbelief. "Oh, I dunno, I could list tons of things!" He said in a sing-song voice, before he leaned back and crossed his arms behind his head, glancing around for a few moments. "Saw some pretty lights, an' a puppy or two... Oh! And a butterfly!"

Seriously?

___ couldn't help it, she facepalmed as he listed his distractions, her patience running thin with his careless and carefree behavior. It was a miracle she was even on a date with him in the first place. "A butterfly..." She repeated, her tone a mix of incredulity and annoyance.

"Yup! She was a real pretty one, too. Got her little wings spread wide an' everythin'!"

"And you just... stopped to watch it?" She asked in disbelief, her expression becoming even more irritated. "For how long?"

Wander shrugged again, a playful twinkle in his eyes.

"About thirty minutes, give or take."

...

"You watched a butterfly, for thirty minutes because it was pretty!?"

Wander nodded his head excitedly, making a 'mhm!' sound, his grin widening at her reaction. He was thoroughly enjoying how annoyed she was getting, and somewhat proud of his behavior. Because of that his obnoxiously cheerful mood never wavered, not even for a moment. "Heck yeah! You ain't ever seen a pretty butterfly? They're beautiful lil' things! All colorful an' pretty-like!" He said in a matter-of-fact manner, as if every person would stop to stare at a butterfly. But when he glanced at her, his expression turned to a sly smirk. "Although... I can think of somethin' that's even prettier." He scooted over closer to her, looking up at the human woman with glittering eyes and booped her nose. 

"You!"

Sure enough, the moment Wander called her pretty again, and did that weird thing with his finger (she didn't know what the heck it was),  ___'s cheeks went red, a fact that she was desperately trying to hide. She hated blushing, she wasn't used to the feeling, and yet every time he complemented her or made her feel flustered, her face would go red regardless. But she couldn't show how much he had affected her, so she let out a small cough in a poor attempt to cover up her reaction. "Shut up." Tell me more. "Can we go do something finally or whatever?"

The nomad giggled as he observed the emotions on her face, his orbs sparkling. "Ya know, you're just so cute when ya blush!" He teased, taking pleasure in the fact that he knew fully well she hated being called 'cute'. Additionally, he knew that she tried to act like his compliments didn't affect her, but little things like that were a dead giveaway. "But sure, let's go to the carnival! Unless you'd rather keep sittin' here and let me compliment ya some more!"

___ huffed, annoyed by his obvious amusement. "Carnival. Now." She responded bluntly, standing up from the bench and fixing her date - this time an actual one - with a sharp glare. But even as she tried to act tough, the truth was that deep inside, she wasn't really annoyed with Wander. And she even liked hearing his endless flattery.

Ugh...

He on the other hand simply tilted his head to the side, finding her demeanor rather endearing. "Aight, carnival it is! But ya might wanna hang onto somethin', cause I ain't going slow for anyone!" Just as he finished his sentence, he abruptly jumped up from the bench, finally wiping away the blood from his nose. Then, without giving her a chance to react, he grabbed her hand in a firm, but gentle grasp, and started sprinting towards their destination. And oddly enough, his sneakers thumped loudly against the ground as he ran, the sound resembling that of a car speeding, as strange as it was.

"Whoa-!" The suddenness of Wander's actions caught the villainess completely off guard, and she let out a gasp of surprise as she was suddenly yanked along by the orange nomad. She had thought that he was going to walk, maybe jog, to the carnival, but she didn't expect him to sprint at full speed. As they ran, she seriously tried to keep up with his hyperactive energy, but it was like trying to keep up with a bouncing ball.

The nomad continued to run with her in tow, grinning widely as he relished the wind against his face and the feeling of his heart pounding in his chest. He always had a seemingly endless supply of energy, and sprinting to the carnival was no different. And as they neared the entrance, he let out a joyful cry, his laughter ringing out in the air. 

"Woo-wee, I LOVE carnivals!!!"

As they entered, ___ was assaulted, actually attacked viciously and without mercy, by a burst of noise and color. Music thumped all around them, with different rides and games scattered throughout the area. The air was filled with the scent of cotton candy and popcorn, the sounds of laughter and excitement mingling with the various carnival games and food stands. It was safe to say that the villainess was a bit overwhelmed by the happy chaos, while Wander seemed right at home, his eyes practically sparkling dragged her into the madness.

Joy was everywhere.

...and she felt like she was going to d̸i̷e̸.

Wander was buzzing with excitement as he led the woman through the cheery area, his orbs darting around to take in all the sights, sounds and smells. "Look! That's the ferris wheel! And over there's the gravitron! And the Tilt-A-Whirl... and- and the popcorn stand!" He rambled on in excitement, pointing out various attractions. Then he glanced back at her, his smile widening at the sight of her overwhelmed expression. 

He found it adorable.

Her mind going into overdrive as she tried to take in all the stimulation around her. Loud noises, bright lights, strange smells - it was all so... much. She tried to keep pace with her date's energy, but it was like trying to keep up with a sugar-high two-year-old on a sugar-rush. Every ride and game seemed to excite him more and more, his smile practically split his face in half.

"Oh! OH- We gotta go on that one!" The fuzzy alien suddenly exclaimed, gesturing vigorously towards a rather large rollercoaster that stood tall against the night sky. It was a menacing beast with numerous loops and twists, and it looked like the kind of ride that would make even the bravest of souls queasy. But Wander didn't feel queasy, he was excited. Because of that, he shot ___ a cheeky grin, practically bouncing on his heels. 

"Whaddya say, darlin'? Wanna go on a dizzy trip?"

...like he wasn't always on a dizzy trip with that mind of his. 

The villainess gaped at the gargantuan rollercoaster that he  was pointing at, her heart leaping into her throat at the very sight of it. The loops, the twists, the insane speed - it looked like a metal behemoth that was designed solely to make a person puke their guts out. And if she had to be honest, it certainly looked like something out of her torture chamber. And that thought made her shake her head frantically, her expression a mixture of fear and refusal. "Absolutely. Not."

Wander's grin only widened at her response to get on the monstrous rollercoaster. He found it amusing, this hardened villain trembling in the face of a little adrenaline-filled ride. It was so... cute. So he chuckled softly, his eyes sparkling with mischief as he took a step closer to her. "Aww, don' like coasters? Too bad," He teased, a teasing gleam in his orbs. "But I ain't leavin' till ya at least give it a shot!"

Hearing that, the female shot him a menacing glare. "No. End of discussion," She said firmly, crossing her arms and lifting her chin defiantly. She was a goddamn villain, for crying out loud! She had ruled over galaxies for years, and yet this... cute little ball of fuzz was practically bullying her into riding a rollercoaster ride?!

But Wander obviously didn't care.

He took another step toward her, closing the distance between them even more as he looked up at her towering form. He was close enough now that he could almost taste her fear. "Oh, come ooooon~!" He drawled, his voice low and taunting. "Just one little ride, darlin'. What's the worst that could happen?"

Her glare darkened, her jaw clenching at the smugness of the little bastard. "Oh, I don't know," She retorted sarcastically, her voice dripping with venom. "I could vomit all over your adorable little face." With that, she raised an eyebrow at him, her expression defiant. "Or maybe I'd pass out and fall off the ride. Or maybe I'd get stuck upside down and puke my guts out. Any of those options sound delightful to you, weirdo?"

"Nah, I doubt any of those terrible things would happen!" The nomad replied, still grinning. "And even if they did, I'd be right there by your side. I'd hold ya hair back as ya hurl, or catch ya if ya fall... or, well, I'd probably laugh at ya when ya get stuck upside down." Although his expression didn't change, a devilish spark fell threw his eyes, knowing full well that this would probably not make her any more eager to get on the ride.

Wow... what a charmer.

___'s eye twitched at the thought of him laughing at her while she was hanging upside down, vomiting everything that she could. It was one of the most humiliating things she could imagine - a dictator, reduced to a human pinata - and she wasn't sure she could handle it if that scenario played out. "You would enjoy the heck out of that, wouldn't you?" She practically growled. "Seeing me suffering like that...?"

Wander's innocent smile widened at that. "Oh, you bet I would, darlin'!" He raised his voice cheerfully, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "I'd enjoy watchin' every second of your suffering, seeing ya squirm and thrash about like a worm on a hook!" He chuckled softly, his gaze never leaving her face. "But don't worry," he added, his voice sickly sweet, "I'd still offer to help ya down when ya were done pukin'. Wouldn't want ya to hurt yourself, after all!"

The woman huffed in annoyance, shaking her head at his cheeky response. "You're enjoying this too much, you know that?" She grumbled, folding her arms across her chest. "Fine then, you want me to get on the damn ride so badly? Let's do it. I'll show you how I handle this sort of thing." Closing her eyes for a moment, she took a deep breath, steeling herself for what was to come. "But if I throw up on you, I won't apologize. I'll probably relish it, in fact."

Wander's smile grew even wider as he saw her determination, amused by her fierce spirit. "Oh, that's the spirit!" he exclaimed, giving her an annoying pat on the shoulder. "And don't worry about the vomit, I'll just consider it a little present from ya!"

It almost sounded like he wanted her to puke on him.

...he seriously saw the good in everything, didn't he?

"That's... disturbing." The human muttered, shaking her head in disbelief and blinking at him, wondering just how sick in the head he really was. "I can't believe I'm doing this."

Swiftly, she took a few steps forward toward the ride, which thankfully ended up with only her and Wander going onto - quite convenient -, silently questioning her own sanity as she took her place in the seat next to wandering weirdo. She closed her eyes once more, preparing herself for the inevitable sickness that was to come.

She was sure that she was going to be sick.

Once they were safely strapped in, Wander snuck a glance at her, taking in her closed eyes and rigid stance. He fought the urge to giggle at how cute she looked, trying to play off her fearlessness. He knew that deep down, she was probably quaking in her boots. But he admired her bravery, and her determination not to show any weakness. "Oh, come on, it ain't that bad," he teased, his eyes sparkling with wicked delight. "See, ya haven't even thrown up yet!" Then he reached out and placed a reassuring hand on her knee, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Just relax, darlin'. I'm right here with ya."

___'s eyes snapped open as she felt his hand on her knee, a mix of surprise and fear fluttering through her stomach (which did not help her nauseousness, in fact, it only made it more unbearable). She wanted to swat his hand away - to tell him to stop touching her, to stop being so damn cocky and self-assured - but another part of her found comfort in his presence. A part of her that she didn't want to acknowledge.

"Easy for you to say," She managed to mutter through clenched teeth.

Ah, to be a villain that made everyone shake with fear yet be scared of a carnival ride.

Now that was the life.

The nomad's smile softened a bit as he noticed the conflicted emotions passing through her orbs. He had a feeling he knew which part of her was winning. He continued to gently squeeze her knee, his touch surprisingly gentle and almost soothing. "Aw, don't worry," he said, his voice taking on a more comforting tone. "I've got ya. I ain't gonna let anything happen to ya."

At least, not anything that she wouldn't enjoy.

The villainess' mind was screaming at her to push him away, to put some distance between them. But something about the way he was looking at her, with those damn sparkling eyes and that charming smile, made her hesitate. She swallowed hard, trying to control her racing heart. "I can take care of myself," She retorted, but her voice lacked its usual edge.

Wander let out a small giggle, clearly enjoying the way she was trying to put up a tough front. "I have no doubt about that, darlin'. But sometimes it's nice to let someone else take care of ya, ain't it?" He didn't move his hand, his touch warm and inviting. "And who better to do that than little ol' me?" Before they knew it, the rollercoaster reached the top of the first hill, pausing for a moment before the inevitable plunge down. ___ was about to retort with a snarky response, but his words made her pause.

Who better to do that than little ol' me?

W̴h̵y̴ ̴d̵i̷d̸ ̷i̸t̸ ̴f̷e̴e̶l̴ ̷l̵i̴k̸e̶-̴

The ride suddenly lurched forward, stopping her whole thought process, hurtling down the first hill at breakneck speed. Her fingers gripped the safety bar tightly, holding on for dear life. But Wander, on the other hand, was completely relaxed. He didn't even bother holding onto the safety bar. Instead, he reached out and grabbed his date by her chin, gripping her cheeks between his fingers.

He pulled her closer to him, his eyes locked on hers with an unwavering intensity. His grin widened. "Time to take a leap, darlin'," he said, his voice low and sultry.

And before she could respond, Wander closed the gap between them, kissing her with a fierce passion. 

W h a t ?

She barely had time to register what was happening before his lips were on hers, stealing her breath away. The suddenness of it all made her head spin more than the ride did. She felt her cheeks flush and her stomach flip-flop for a completely different reason than the nausea-inducing adrenaline rush currently flowing through her veins. The villainess wanted to pull away, to break the kiss and push the nomad away, to slap the cocky, arrogant expression off of his face.

Yet somehow, her body refused to cooperate. 

H̸̤̗́͂̎͐̀͗̽͌̅̾e̸͇̱̰̒́͑̕r̷̨̝̖̱̤̽͜ͅ ̷̭̼͖̳̰̦͉͉̈́̇̌̎͋̾̕ͅş̸͓̳̞̩̼̖̳̫͙̋͐ţ̸̭̞͈̰̗͈͚̯̫̊o̶̧̩̤̦͔͍̘̖̓͊̇͒̕m̶̯̬̱̤̹̈́̃̒̓̒͛̃̌a̵͙͍̐̐́͐̐͐͌̓̀͠c̴͎̙̯̰̫͕̒̓h̵͍͕̼͛̈́͛̉͊͂ ̷̡̛̼̫̙͕̥͖͛̑̊̏͆͂̿͌͘c̴͈̓̽͋̏̄̽̎̉̕̕ȟ̶̪̝̲͚̜̘̫͋̔ṵ̶̧̞̼̺̘͕̣͌̄̈́͊̀̿̚̕͝r̵̛̰̘̮̲̟̒̈́̃̽̐̈́ͅn̶̥̟̮̣̣̲̆͐̎͜e̴̺̩̜̞̍̅̾͌͘̚ḑ̵̪̳̖̲͓̥͎̏̾͆̏,̷̻̣̜͖̳͙͇̥̈ ̵̧̭̠͈͖̯͓̻̹̻̾̆̀́̈́̄b̵̫͎̭̓̈́́̔̅ú̴̟͌t̶̲̘̹̰͕͔̠̝̮̮̿̆͆̈͆̐̂͝͠͝ ̸̖̙̂̉̇̈́̓͌̐ͅn̶̡̝̈̌̽́͑̅̓ṑ̴̡͈̳̟͚̲͈̮̪͈͊̑̈́́̍t̷͚̭̝̣̥̮̆̏̀͌̽͑̔͜ ̸̳̙̬̫͈̀̂̄͑̾̿͠ḃ̷̡̡͔͙̜͍̰̙̭́̾̏̐̃̉ȩ̸̠̬̘̰̄̆͋̚͝͝ͅc̵̛̱̩̳̥̋̊̓̓̓͘ȃ̴̧̡̩͇̼͖̻̔̋̉͛̉͜͝ư̶̝̣̥͓̼̲͔s̶̛͉̟̣̖͍͓̩̓͌̔ë̴̛̞́́͛̃̍̀̈́͝ ��͕̺̞̰̹̫͍̜͔̌͂̅͂̐͒͠ǫ̶͕̗͕͓̽́̾f̷̧̨̦͖̣̮̰̜̲͉͂ ̴̬͓̖̪̾̿̌͆̑̓͘͜͠͠t̶̡̢̯̪͇̖̼̎͂͐͠h̴͎̹͎̦͇̘͝ę̶̞̦̠͙̦́́̈́̋̂̈͛̀̆̃͜ ̴̧̣̖̈́͠͝b̶̖̬̑̐̓̿̋̀̄̂̚͘ủ̶͙̱̮̞̠͐́̕͝t̸͔̳͇͓̖̲̩̬̽̎͋͆̂͠ͅt̵̻̑͆̾̈́̅̿͌̕͝͠ę̶̧̥̲͈̩͓̀̄̀ͅr̷̙͕̉͋̚f̷̢̜̩̝̀͐̀̆̂̊̀̍l̸̡͓̄̓̊͋͝͠į̵̤̪̼͔͚͖̠̉͂̓͆̈͒͜ĕ̸̛͔̪̭͓͎͑͂̈́̏̓̉͆̿s̶̤̮̰̟̋̀̆̌͋.̷̙͓̰̳̝͚͓̺̩͑͒͂͝ ̸̡̡̩̯̇̀̏̊͂̀̅

The human tried to cling to the safety bar still as the rollercoaster continued its frantic pace, but the small alien gently pried her trembling hands away from it. He placed them on his own shoulders instead, his grip on her chin tightening slightly.

He wanted her to know, that with him, she was safe.

His body pressed against hers, and she could feel his warmth radiating through her. The sensation set her heart racing even faster then the thrill of the ride itself. She felt powerless, completely at the mercy of his touch.

She should have pulled away.

A part of her wanted to push him away, but the more his lips moved against hers, the further that desire slipped from her grasp. She found herself losing herself in the moment, giving into the intoxicating, dizzying feeling of passion that consumed her whole.

He deepened the kiss, his grip tightening even more. She could feel his fingers pressing into her skin, branding her with his touch. She gasped, her body tensing as she struggled to keep up with this feverish encounter. The whole rollercoaster seemed to shake around them, the world spinning out of control from the dizzying combination of adrenaline from the ride and the intense rush of feelings that he was stirring within her.

It was all too much.

.̸̡̧̨̧̡̝͕̖̫̻̭̻͈̱͎̰͙̞̂̎̊́̑̈́̄̑́̈́͛̑̅̃́̓̿̽̒́̂̀̑͑̽͂̈̉̿̾͛̿͐̽̅̅̎̈́͌̎̚͝͝͠͠͝ͅBut despite herself, she didn't want him to stop.

.̸̡̧̨̧̡̝͕̖̫̻̭̻͈̱͎̰͙̞̂̎̊́̑̈́̄̑́̈́͛̑̅̃́̓̿̽̒́̂̀̑͑̽͂̈̉̿̾͛̿͐̽̅̅̎̈́͌̎̚͝͝͠͠͝ͅ

.̴̡̣̗͕̹͍̫͔̗̥̬̪̬̬͔͍̰͚͍̤̙̜̺͚͔̼̹̳̙̃͋̀͂̌͐̉̍̿̃̿͗͋̈͋̏̿̐͘ͅ.̸̡̧̨̧̡̝͕̖̫̻̭̻͈̱͎̰͙̞̂̎̊́̑̈́̄̑́̈́͛̑̅̃́̓̿̽̒́̂̀̑͑̽͂̈̉̿̾͛̿͐̽̅̅̎̈́͌̎̚͝͝͠͠͝ͅ.̸̡̧̨̧̡̝͕̖̫̻̭̻͈̱͎̰͙̞̂̎̊́̑̈́̄̑́̈́͛̑̅̃́̓̿̽̒́̂̀̑͑̽͂̈̉̿̾͛̿͐̽̅̅̎̈́͌̎̚͝͝͠͠͝ͅ.̸̡̧̨̧̡̝͕̖̫̻̭̻͈̱͎̰͙̞̂̎̊́̑̈́̄̑́̈́͛̑̅̃́̓̿̽̒́̂̀̑͑̽͂̈̉̿̾͛̿͐̽̅̅̎̈́͌̎̚͝͝͠͠͝ͅṔ̴̣̗̼͔͙͇̖́̐̈̓͑̎̂l̴̢̠͉͕͕̤̫̪͙͎͑̑͒̀̎͠͠ȩ̶̣̪̩͈̘̊̓a̵̬͆͗̃͐͂̍͋̊ş̶̢̲̠̎͜͝͠ë̶̢̧̘͖͇͈̫̜̆ ̵̢͓͚̱̖͙͖̺̻̲́̒̇͆̒͘̕ḩ̵̠̦̟̒́̎̀̽̉ ̴̢̧̛̛̦̺̝̜̳͔͇̈́̅͒̆̀̽̑ͅe̸̛͕̟̻̹̫͎̯̟̟͛ ̷̛͎̼̜͇͔̥̥̜̼̤̈́͊̀͌͛͝͠l̸̝͙͈̤͙̙͙̂̾́͗̒͝͠ ̴̡̳̙͖̬̠͖̓͌̓̿̀͘͘͜ͅp̶͉̭͚̮͙̔̋ ̴̨̱̙̹̜̻́̓̒̌ͅ ̷̘̻̪͓̮̯̟̆̒́̀̀̿̽͝ű̷̙̥̙̺̤͖̱̀̒̋s̴͍̯̠̻��͓͙̭͝

.̸̡̧̨̧̡̝͕̖̫̻̭̻͈̱͎̰͙̞̂̎̊́̑̈́̄̑́̈́͛̑̅̃́̓̿̽̒́̂̀̑͑̽͂̈̉̿̾͛̿͐̽̅̅̎̈́͌̎̚͝͝͠͠͝ͅ

.̸̡̧̨̧̡̝͕̖̫̻̭̻͈̱͎̰͙̞̂̎̊́̑̈́̄̑́̈́͛̑̅̃́̓̿̽̒́̂̀̑͑̽͂̈̉̿̾͛̿͐̽̅̅̎̈́͌̎̚͝͝͠͠͝ͅS̴h̶e̵ ̶h̷e̴a̵r̸d̵,̵̢̧̧̛͈͚̠̻͍͈͕͈͍͓̰͈͈͉͖̱͔͍̪̺͕̭̤̺̈̃̎̋̌͑͌͊͛̏͊͒̉̕͝͠ ̸a̴ ̴v̸o̶i̵c̸e̸,̵ ̸b̴u̵t̴ ̶s̵h̴e̷ ̸,̶̢̖͕̍̀̉̉̿̍̕̕̚c̷h̴o̸s̵e̶ ̷t̸o̶ ̴i̴g̶n̷o̵r̵e̷ ̶i̶t̵.̸

.̸̡̧̨̧̡̝͕̖̫̻̭̻͈̱͎̰͙̞̂̎̊́̑̈́̄̑́̈́͛̑̅̃́̓̿̽̒́̂̀̑͑̽͂̈̉̿̾͛̿͐̽̅̅̎̈́͌̎̚͝͝͠͠͝ͅ.̸̡̧̨̧̡̝͕̖̫̻̭̻͈̱͎̰͙̞̂̎̊́̑̈́̄̑́̈́͛̑̅̃́̓̿̽̒́̂̀̑͑̽͂̈̉̿̾͛̿͐̽̅̅̎̈́͌̎̚͝͝͠͠͝ͅ

.̸̡̧̨̧̡̝͕̖̫̻̭̻͈̱͎̰͙̞̂̎̊́̑̈́̄̑́̈́͛̑̅̃́̓̿̽̒́̂̀̑͑̽͂̈̉̿̾͛̿͐̽̅̅̎̈́͌̎̚͝͝͠͠͝ͅ

The coaster crested another hill, but this time, it was followed by a sharp drop. The human let out a gasp as her stomach lurched slightly, but Wander's grip on her remained unwavering. He deepened the kiss, his tongue tracing the outline of her lips, as if trying to memorize the feel of her mouth. He could feel her shivering lightly against him, her hands clutching onto his shoulders for dear life. 

And he loved it.

The rollercoaster came to a sudden halt, causing both of their bodies to jerk forward. He pulled away slightly, breaking their kiss and resting his forehead against hers. His hands still held her face tenderly, his own breathing just as shallow and hurried as hers. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, and his eyes searched hers with an intensity that made her feel naked under his gaze, taking in - with satisfaction - her flushed cheeks and the way her lips were parted slightly from the shared intimacy. 

"There ya go, darlin'," His voice was low yet held that familiar joy to itself. "Nothin' to be afraid of--"

Without warning, she raised her hand and slapped him across the face.

The nomad's head jerked to the side with the force of her slap, a look of genuine surprise (and maybe a smidge of admiration) flashing across his face. He pressed his fingers gingerly against his stuck cheek, rubbing the area in circular motions. Slowly, he turned his gaze back to the feisty woman that sat next to him, his grin growing in size once more. "Wow, darlin'," he drawled, his voice laced with a hint of amusement. "You gotta be careful with those hands of yours. I might start likin' them a little too much-"

Before she knew it, her hand was colliding with his cheek once more. 

And then again. 

And again.

And-

Eh, you get the idea.

With each slap, Wander's smile only grew. He didn't even try to stop her. In fact, he found himself enjoying the sting of her palm against his soft face. Every time she allowed him to, he rubbed the spot where the pain appeared, his eyes darkening with an unreadable emotion. "Darlin'" He finally spoke. "You keep doin' that, and you might just give me a fetish."

At that she paused mid-slap, her hand hovering just millimeters from his face, and then, she did something the nomad didn't expect. She looked down at her palm, her expression scrunching up in what could only be described as a look of absolute disgust. And then, she started to furiously wipe her hand on her clothes, as if trying to get rid of the feeling of her own hand.

And that made Wander giggle. 

He couldn't help it. Seeing her wipe her hand in such a fervent manner, as if she couldn't stand the touch of her own skin against his - especially after they just kissed -, was absolutely hilarious. "___" He exclaimed through his giddiness, his voice laced with mock indignation. "Are ya sayin' my face is that filthy?"

The woman's eyes narrowed at his teasing remark as she finally stopped her movements. "Your face is quite filthy." She retorted, a mix of annoyance and sarcasm. "But I'm not talking about the blood. I'm talking about the disgusting fact that I, a heartless villain, just willingly slapped a perverted nomad multiple times."

And kissed him! Can't forget about the kissing part!

...flarp.

"Aw, shucks, darlin'," Wander drawled, his southern accent thicker than ever. "I was just havin' a bit of fun. I guess I just have a way of makin' ya lose control." He winked at her slyly. "Though, I gotta admit, that lip lock was a real nice surprise."

She glared at him. "What do you mean surprise?! YOU kissed ME!"

But then, her eyes widened abruptly. 

As they sat there, suspended in midair on the stalled rollercoaster, the villainess suddenly realized that the ride had stopped. They were very high off the ground, and they were very stuck in their seats. And the whole realization hit the human like a bolt of lightning. She was alone. On a rollercoaster. Suspended in mid-air with him: a pervert with... questionable morals. Meanwhile, Wander didn't seem to care much. His eyes sparkled with excitement as he noticed how high up they were. He squeaked suddenly, his voice full of glee, and immediately started pointing at all the sights around them. He enthusiastically gestured towards a group of people below them, waving at them with a broad grin on his face. Then, he turned to his date and exclaimed,

"Look! We're like... super high up! Ain't it exciting, darlin'!"

"Exciting?!" She exclaimed. "Wander, we're stuck hundreds of feet off the ground! How in Grop's name are you not even remotely scared?!"

Did he have no self-preservation senses at all?

The more she thought about it, the more it sounded like it was the case. 

The nomad seemed genuinely surprised by her question, his head tilting slightly as he turned to look at her. He blinked twice, as if he was trying to register her concerns, and then he finally spoke. "Scared?" He repeated, the corner of his mouth turning upwards in a playful grin. "Oh, my darlin', I ain't scared at all. In fact, I'm havin' the most fun I've had in ages!" He exclaimed, his eyes sparkling with childlike joy. "We're up in the sky... and we're all alone!"

He wiggled his eyebrows. "Boink boink~"

___'s eyes widened at that remark. "Stop saying that!" She practically yelled, her cheeks burning with a sudden heat. "And what do you mean we're alone?! Someone's bound to come by eventually and get us. This rollercoaster ride doesn't just stop indefinitely, you know!"

Wander just shrugged nonchalantly. "Well, in that case," he began, his voice a bit teasing. "We better make our time here count, don'tcha think?" Before she could react, Wander leaned in, his face inches from hers, which caused her to lean away, almost becoming a wallflower on the cushioned seat. 

Her heart rate spiked at their sudden proximity. She could feel his warm breath ghosting over her face, and a tingling sensation ran down her spine. But she quickly regained her composure, planting a firm hand on the man's forehead and forcefully pushing his face away. "Wander," she hissed, her voice laced with a mix of annoyance and surprise. "There's no way we're doing that right now!!"

Or ever, she wanted to say, but she knew darn well that it wasn't exactly the case.

Wait what?

The helper blinked, his eyes widening slightly. He looked taken aback by her reaction, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"Whoa there'," He mumbled, his voice a mix of surprise and playfulness. "Geez, mind out of the gutter much?" He tsked, like he wasn't the pervert during their first meeting. "I was jus' about to suggest we play some games to pass the time." Wander replied nonchalantly, but then decided to move his eyebrows suggestively again. 

"Though if you're in that sort of mood-"

"No." She interjected, smacking him to emphasize her point. "In fact, I'd rather pet a porcupine."

Wander's face contorted with pain and his eyes widened at the sudden slap. "OW!" He exclaimed, his voice echoing in the enclosed space. He rubbed his cheek, wincing slightly. "Gosh dangit, darlin', y'ain't gotta be so feisty all the time!"

The villainess simply rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest, her expression stern. "Well, if you'd stop making all those dumb comments, I wouldn't have to."

"What? It's just a little friendly teasing, no need to get all worked up," The noodle-armed hero giggled, his voice still slightly tinged with amusement despite the sting of her slap. "Besides, can ya blame me? You're just too fun to tease!" He flashed her a smile, trying to lighten the mood. "I mean, we gotta find a way to pass the time, right? Might as well have a lil' fun with it."

___ just smacked the palm of her hand to her face, groaning.

Why the heck did she agree to give him a chance again?

"Fun?"  She scoffed, shaking her head. "You have a strange definition of fun, you know that? And here I thought I was on a date, not in a slapstick comedy routine." She narrowed her orbs, clearly unamused.

"Aw, c'mon, darlin'," He replied teasingly. "Ya know ya like my humor, even if it gets a lil' outta hand sometimes. It keeps life interestin'!"

"Oh, please," She retorted. "Your humor is about as dry as the desert. It's like you've never heard of subtlety in your life."

Wander feigned a look of exaggerated hurt, clutching his chest. "GASP! Darlin', you wound me! My humor may be a lil' rowdy, but it's all in good fun. Besides, life's more fun with a splash of silliness and a whole lotta laughter!"

___ rolled her eyes again. "Right, because getting slapped in the face is just hysterical."

"It kinda is, but in a more 'gets a fella goin' sort of way!" 

...

"Yeah, ew."

After that, for a moment they just sat there quietly as the wind blew through their hair - or in Wander's case, fur. The nomad was swinging his legs back and forth, looking around like he was on some kind of acid trip and the human woman found herself seriously questioning if she went on a date with a lunatic, or if she was the problem in the situation. Honestly it was hard to tell, considering the whole thing made her feel like she was losing her sanity. At a quickened pace as well. Because what kind of villain goes on a date with the hero, and makes out with them?

___, apparently. 

The silence between them felt... heavy, in a way. Wander's eyes drifted to the female, observing her reactions and expressions as she absorbed the current predicament. He couldn't help but notice the growing look of concern on her face, mixed with a hint of confusion. He opened his mouth to speak, breaking the momentary quiet. "You alright, darlin'? You look a bit perplexed."

Wha-

"You're asking me if I'm alright?" She snapped back. "We're stuck here on this damn cart, you're acting like you're about to jump off a cliff, and you're asking me if I'm alright?" 

Wander took notice of her reaction but didn't let it deter him. "Well, yeah, I am," he replied, his tone sincere. "I mean, you look a bit... troubled, ya know. I just wanted to make sure yer doin' okay."

The woman blinked at him, her mouth slightly agape. Was this what normal dates were like? Were they supposed to be like that? But honestly, even if they were, that didn't mean she was enjoying herself. Well, not fully at least. And knowing that she wouldn't be able to leave the cart for - possibly - a long while made her let out a sigh and hide her face in her hands, aching to scream into them. She had so much work to do, so much villainous schemes to plan and yet... she was stuck on a rollercoaster with Wander, the goody-two-shoes she was supposed to hate. And worst of all, she was the one who agreed to give him a chance and go on a second date.

But he did say that she was the first person he actually wanted to have something with, other than just a one-night stand.

It was... flattering.

Although a bit confusing.

Wander noticed her reaction and he let out a soft exhale, feeling a mix of concern and understanding. "Ain't the date goin' too well, is it?" He asked, his tone gentle and devoid of any judgment. He knew how the woman might feel and he wasn't about to pressure her into enjoying the date if she wasn't. He wanted her to be honest and open with her feelings, allowing her to choose how she truly felt about their current predicament.

The villainess let out another heavy sigh, lowering her hands from he face as she looked at the alien. A mix of vulnerability and frustration was clearly etched on her features. "No, Wander," She replied, her voice laced with irritation. "It's not really going too well. I mean, look at where we are, stuck on this damn cart, going around in circles. It's not exactly what I had in mind for a date, if I have to be honest."

But then her eyes moved to the side, looking down at the carnival below. The happy couples - which made her gag before - made the woman frown slightly, her troubled expression evident.

"...but it's not like I expected anything at all..."

And it was true. She was a villain, she only ever did one-night stands before Wander - just like the nomad did with his other partners -, so she wasn't exactly the best person when it came to such things. Normally, she would take pride in it, finding the whole idea of dating ridiculous and sickening.

But deep down she really wanted something out of this, whatever it was.

He turned his attention to her, observing her troubled expression as she glanced at the couples below. A flicker of curiosity and empathy welled up within him. So he decided to gently place a hand on her shoulder, offering a comforting touch. "Darlin', can you help me understand somethin'? I don't wanna pry, but I can't shake off the feelin' that there's a lot more to yer story 'en meets the eye. Why'd ya end up on this path of villainy?"

The woman glanced over at Wander's hand on her shoulder with somewhat of a frown. Her expression slightly softened however, her irritation slowly fading. She was never secretive about her past, it wasn't anything that mattered anyway, so she didn't care about hiding it from anyone. Although nobody ever asked, up until now, which made her feel... good? Something along those lines at least. "There's not a grand backstory or a traumatic past to my villainy," She replied. "I didn't have a terrible childhood, no 'oh boo-hoo I had a bad thing happen so I'm evil' cliché. I just found solace in causing trouble, and I enjoy the power it gives me. And the thrill, I guess."

And blowing up buildings and planets along the way always brightened up a bad day. 

It was just fun, as simple as that.

Wander's expression softened in understanding as he listened to her words, his hand still resting gently on her shoulder. He didn't expect a dramatic backstory or a tragic past, but hearing that she was driven by a simple enjoyment of chaos and the thrill of power made him even more curious about her perspective. "Yer not a villain for some grand, dramatic purpose then, huh?" He said thoughtfully. "It's all about the simple joy of raisin' a bit of ruckus, havin' a bit of fun, and feelin' that power. Is that it?"

"Yeah, pretty much," She  replied with a shrug, looking back at him. "I'm not like Hater for example, some misunderstood anti-hero or a misguided soul. I don't have some noble cause or a twisted past to justify my actions. I just enjoy causing chaos and feeling like I'm in control." Then she paused, a small flicker of self-awareness in her eyes. "It makes me feel powerful and free, I guess. And it's a lot more straightforward and less messy than... this." She gestured vaguely to the couples below.

And yet she was on a date with the orange weirdo. 

She really needed to get a grip. 

With a small giggle, his eyes started twinkling with understanding. "Y'know, darlin', there's somethin' oddly refreshing about yer honesty," He said, his hand slowly slipping away from her shoulder. "Most folks are tangled up in their own justifications and moral dilemmas, tryna find a reason for everythin'. But you, you're just... raw, unapologetic, and straight to the point."

He tilted his head curiously. "But, I gotta ask, does it ever get lonely?"

The woman's expression softened for a moment, a tiny glimmer of vulnerability showing through the cracks. However, she quickly pushed it down, her usual sarcasm and guardedness coming back. "Lonely?" She repeated, feigning casualness. "Why would I be lonely? I have the respect and fear of an entire galaxy, isn't that enough?"

But deep down, she knew the truth. The power and control she had were double-edged swords: while they gave her satisfaction, they also left her feeling isolated and misunderstood. 

Wander's keen eyes noticed the flicker of vulnerability in her response, and he couldn't help but sense the underlying loneliness that lurked beneath her tough exterior. "Respect and fear, sure, darlin'," He said gently. "But that don't fill the void of true connection, the comfort of bein' genuinely understood." He gave her a small smile. "I reckon bein' feared and respected can become lonely, as folks might not really know the person behind the villainy. But I see somethin' more to you."

She raised an eyebrow at the observation, her defenses quickly going up. "Don't try to psychoanalyze me, Wander," She snapped, her usual demeanor returning. "I don't need anyone to look past my so-called 'villainy' and try to find some hidden depth. I am who I am, and I don't need your 'understanding'." She shook her head dismissively. "This isn't some sappy romance novel, or a redemption arc. I'll stay who I am, thank you very much."

Of course Wander wanted to change her ways, it was what he did after all. Honestly it was probably why he even asked her for 'a chance', to go on a second date. It did keep her from carrying out any villainous schemes for the night and he was making her open up, asking questions about that topic when they were all alone. Grop, how was she so---

"Whoa there, darlin', I ain't tryin' to 'psychoanalyze' ya or change who you are!" 

Wait, what?

Wander held up his hands placatingly. "I'm just sayin', sometimes havin' someone who sees ya for who you are, flaws an' all, can be kinda nice. And I'm not askin' you to change or start singin' kumbaya and bein' a goodie-two-shoes either!" He paused, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"But..."

The villainess cocked an eyebrow, her curiosity piqued. "But?" She prompted, not sure where Wander was going with this.

Wander grinned, a joyful yet devilish tint dancing in his black orbs. "But," He began, drawing out the word playfully, "what if bein' a villain doesn't mean you gotta be all moody and alone all the time? What if you can have a bit of fun, cause a bit of chaos, and have someone who genuinely cares about you?" He gave her a wink. "It ain't about changin' you, darlin', it's about findin' balance. Bein' a villain doesn't mean you can't have a little company along the way."

And in a way, both of them knew that she was already doing exactly that. Because after all, she always went on blind dates - even if only for sexual pleasure. But now, she agreed to meet with Wander again, after their 'date', despite her usual nature.

___ actually tried to do something with her life.

Ew, mushy stuff.

Though she found herself clearly considering the nomad's words. She was a woman of her own and she wasn't easily swayed, yet there was something in Wander's perception that seemed to resonate with her. She looked at him, an enigmatic expression on her face. "Balance.." She repeated, the word hanging in the air between them. "You're suggesting a middle ground between villainy and... well, you. But I'm not the type to settle down, Wander. I don't do long-term."

But despite herself and her nature, she gave him a small smile. "I did decide to give this a chance, yes, but I also did say that I don't do love, remember?"

Wander nodded, understanding her stance. "I ain't askin' for a picket fence and happily-ever-after, darlin', I just want to spend time with ya," He replied simply. "And if that time includes a bit of villainy and some good ol' fashioned chaos, well, I'm game. But if it involves you actually bein' happy and feelin' somethin' other than loneliness, even better."

He smiled warmly, his eyes twinkling with genuine sincerity. "Balance doesn't mean we gotta change who we are, it just means we can be who we are together."

The wind blew, and Wander held his hat to keep it from flying away.

H̷̛͍̳̤͔̣̫̜̻̼̼͚͋̆̔͑̓̿̽͜͝e̴̳̘̟͒̔̇̓̏̒͋͑̃̋̈́̊̋ ̴͔͕̠͈̮̤͚̺͍̙͙͒̓̓ṯ̶̡̨̛̛̛͓̱̘͎̦͎̻̫̌͑̾́̆̈̐͛̚r̸̰͍͎̹͇͉͕̭̬͂̚i̷̡͕͉̟̇ě̴̞͉͇̪̤̃̓̓͌̚ḑ̶̻͍̦̬͖̱̼͕͎̙̅̎̈ ̶͖̼̯͕̌̌͂͜ͅţ̸͓͉̮͍̯͎͎̲͉̰͕͊͗̐̀͗͆̌̚o̵̝̠͍̞̘̙̲̯͙̮̰̲̩̿ ̴̮͖̙̱̫͍͖̙̠̪̤͝h̶̪̙̞̜̯̲̘̳͉̺̆̿̌̔̊̾̅͑͜ó̴̠̺͉̄̃̉l̵̡͕̗̟̻̣̰̘̱̝̎̔d̶̟̳̲̱̣̒̀̅̄̉ ̸̙͕̀͐̋͗̈́̉͌o̸͙̘͔̪̳͑̈́n̶̢̮̭̍̓̈́̑͋̈́̈̿͛͂̓͘͝.̴̡͖͓͎̟̙͕͎̖̦͈̙͒͋̃̎̅̋̄̔͝

A pink, almost red in color hue appeared around his black orbs as he whispered "And I'll be right by your side, always." As he finished, the scarlet shade left as quickly as it appeared, as if it was never there in the first place. There was something about his tone, but not enough to make the female question it. 

Not taking into account the small change, the female's demeanor softened as he spoke, his words cutting through her tough exterior. The mention of loneliness hit close to home, and it was clear that she craved companionship just like anyone else. So she studied him for a long moment, her eyes searching his, then let out a small sigh. "You really are persistent, aren't you?" She said finally, chuckling softly. "And infuriatingly optimistic."

"And persistent is my middle name!" Wander said with a chuckle, his smile growing as he saw the small hint of a change in the villainess. "But if you're askin' if I'm going to give up on ya, darlin', the answer is a big ol' fat 'no." He paused, his expression growing more serious, but with a hint of warmth in his orbs.

"I ain't ever going to give up on you, ___. Never."

She couldn't help the small laugh that escaped her at his insistence. "You really are incorrigible, you know that?" She replied, shaking her head with amusement. "But if you think I'm going to fall for your sweet-talking and your endless optimism..." Her expression was turning skeptical as she spoke. "Well, you might be in for a long wait, Wander. I've faced down armies, conquered galaxies, and made entire civilizations tremble at the mere mention of my name. You think you can win me over with a few charming words and a goofy smile?"

Wander's grin only grew wider at her words. He knew that she was tough and independent, but that just made him admire her even more. "Oh, I don't expect to win you over with just my charm and wit, darlin'," He said with a playful wink. "I've got a few tricks up my sleeve, too."

A small smirk that tugged at the corner of her lips. Though she wanted to deny it, there was something about his insistent optimism and his unrelenting determination that was starting to wear down her defenses even more. But she wasn't going to let him know that just yet. "You can try, Wander," She said, her tone teasing. "But don't be surprised if you exhaust yourself before you ever get through to me."

Wander's smile turned conspiratorial at her declaration. "Oh, darlin', I've got plenty of energy to keep trying," Playful charisma dripped from his voice. "And I don't get tired easily. I've been traveling the galaxy for centuries, meeting all sorts of folks, and learning all sorts of tricks." His eyes sparkled with mischief once more. "And I ain't about to let something as simple as a little resistance from a stubborn gal like you stop me."

"So you just keep on thinking you're immune to my charms, darlin'."

[fanfic-scribbles]

Marry Me Three

Sequel to: Marry Me 2 - Boyfriend’s Back (All Right)

Fandom: MCU Captain America/Avengers

Summary: Marriage is stupidly limited. That’s okay– you’ve never found a box that could fit you anyway.

Quick facts: Romance – Steve Rogers/Reader/Bucky Barnes – Female Reader

Warnings: Fluff, marriage talk, a little fade-to-black sexy times

MCU Timeline: Set some nebulous time after CA:TWS

Words: 3170

A/N: At last, the end of the ‘Marry Me’ saga. Please enjoy a bunch of goofballs <3

~

Bucky is brooding.

This isn’t so different from usual, but what is unusual is that none of your distraction tactics are working. The lovey-dovey stuff gets a little kiss before he’s back to stewing in his own head, the funny stuff gets a half-hearted smile before he once again becomes the protagonist of a Russian tragedy, (it is ridiculous that he is not actually Russian, honestly, even Natasha has commented that she feels lacking next to him), and your last-ditch attempts to be annoying get a scowl and some muttered curses before he turns away and does his best gargoyle impression.

Some research is required.

“Is there a reason you’ve started walking around with a notepad and pen and staring at Bucky?” Steve asks, like for all he knows the answer could very well be ‘no.’

“I’m trying to figure out what’s wrong with him,” you say. “So I’m taking notes and observations so I can put them together later.”

“Ah.” He sips his coffee and stares at you. “That explains the new corkboard. No string?”

“I had to order it. They were out of red,” you admit. “It’s coming with the safari hat.”

He stares at you. “Why safari instead of a deerstalker?”

“The safari ones looked nicer and shipped faster,” you say. “If the binoculars weren’t more annoying than they’re worth I’d be using them too. Maybe if I’m annoying enough I can actually get him to talk about his fucking feelings rather than keep shutting me out.”

Steve pulls you into a hug and kisses your head. “I’ll try and talk to him,” he says and rubs your shoulder. As he pulls away, he says, “No smoking pipes.”

You hadn’t been thinking about that since your Sherlock Holmes cosplay abruptly stopped with the lack of nice hats available with fast shipping, but now that he’s said no you can’t resist the siren song of pushing boundaries. “Not even a bubble one?”

Steve shoots you a glare and wanders off.

Well, if Steve succeeds, hopefully you’ll be able to find another use for the safari hat. But until he pulls through you will continue to observe Boyfriendicus Moodicus and hope a solution presents itself.

~

Nothing magically happens to make things better. Bucky’s still sullen, but he’s sullen with a guilty edge when he comes up one day and hugs you from behind. “I’m sorry I’ve been a jerk,” he says and presses a little kiss to your head.

“You’re not a jerk,” you say and put your hands over his as Steve watches with a look of concern himself. The talk didn’t go so well, apparently, but at least someone else is on the lookout now. “But I know you’re upset and I wish you’d tell me why. Or Steve. Or an imaginary friend. Somebody.”

“I, uh…” He nuzzles you, preying on your weakness. Bastard. You hope he keeps it up. “I don’t know how to say it,” he admits. “It’s something in my own head, and I don’t know how to…say it right. So I wanna wait.”

“But you will?” you ask and he nods. “Fine,” you say uncertainly. “If it takes too long though I’m getting a little hand puppet, okay?”

Even the thought makes him look annoyed, which is exactly what you were hoping for. They know better than to test you on your most ridiculous ideas, and you make a few open and shut motions with your hand to drive the point home. But something about how Bucky looks at your hand catches your attention. There’s a brief burst of longing and what is he even looking a–

Oh.

Oh!

The ring.

~

Over the next week you take your Bucky Studies very seriously. He said he can’t verbalize it and you believe that– Steve has his moments but Bucky has an especially hard time talking about what he wants and what he feels, (and when you think about the why you end up clinging to him like a koala which is not ideal for observation but is great for very distracting kisses), so you don’t try to push him. The safari hat goes mostly unused, alas, but you do pick up on a few things:

A) Bucky doesn’t just give sad longing looks at your ring, but at Steve’s too;

B) If you and Steve are already fooling around, Bucky is a lot more hesitant about joining in than he was when you all started your, ahem, group activities;

C) A and B are very often paired together– and while A can happen during even just the mundanity of the day, B will always have that look of envy;

and A point 2 C B or whatever) The envious look at your rings is almost always followed by a flash of annoyance. And not at you– you’ve gotten very, very good at reading your partners’ looks of annoyance, (you even have a handy card catalogue you reference sometimes to make them very annoyed at you), but seemingly at himself.

It’s sort of remarkable that you can see all this, because while you’re more observant than people sometimes give you credit for, it’s still something special to be able to observe Bucky without having him call you on it once or twice. It’s nice that he’s so comfortable around you. But it’s not nice that this issue– whatever he can’t verbalize– is eating him away so much that he lets it show for all and sundry.

Still, now you have some data. It’s time to try and formulate some solutions.

~

“Hey Bucky?”

“Yeah doll?”

“Would it make you feel better if Steve and I got divorced?”

Bucky chokes on his drink. Steve, to his credit, merely stops cutting his food and looks up at you past slightly raised brows. You think it’s nice that he understands what you meant. Or maybe he doesn’t understand and he’s just used to your nonsense. If you’re being honest, it’s probably more the latter, but it’s still nice to have your general person so well understood that Steve can hear that and not worry.

“Wh-…” Bucky pauses to take another drink that actually makes it down his throat. “Sweetheart, why would I want that?”

“It’s just a thought,” you say. “Because Steve and I love each other whether we’re together in the eyes of the law or not. Just like we love you.” You have to hurry up when he opens his mouth. “And I know you know we don’t love you any less, but knowing and feeling are two different things and we all have doubts.”

“I don’t doubt,” Bucky says quickly. “But…you’re sort of right. It’s just something I have to deal with.” He takes your hand and tugs you in for a little hug that you both have to lean out of your chairs for. “I don’t want you and Steve to get divorced. I like that you two are married. Also, it’d be a huge pain in the ass and pro’ly wouldn’t do much.”

“Okay.” You kiss his head and lean back. Back to the drawing board. Luckily the drawing board still has some sketches on it. “It’s okay Bucky, I’ve got another idea.”

Both Bucky and Steve are suddenly distracted by ringing phones. You sigh but pull yourself together as they jump up. While they get ready, you shove their dinners into containers so they can at least have a little something on their way to save the world.

“I know it sounded bad, but you get what I meant, right?” you ask Steve in between kissing him goodbye. Multiple times, of course.

“I know. And I agree.” He smiles and kisses you one more time before letting Bucky in.

You make sure to give Bucky just as much physical love as you did Steve, but he’s looking at you cautiously. Still, he kisses you, and says, “Don’t do anything before we get home and talk about your ‘idea,’ okay?”

“Have a lovely day at work; be safe!” you say cheerfully. Bucky is about to open his mouth but you are, strangely, saved by yet more ringing from his phone, and the sounds of tires screeching outside. He rolls his eyes and runs out with Steve, not even pausing when he mouths, ‘We’ll talk later.’

You shut the door and turn back to your empty home. You allow yourself a moment of self-pity before you make a fist and hit it to your palm. This is actually perfect– an opportunity to put your plan into action without any super-significant-other meddling. You are going to get right to it–

–your stomach grumbles–

–after dinner.

~

They come back in two days, so it’s a good thing you decided not to procrastinate on your Secret Plan. The mission was quick and neither of them are injured, but they are obviously exhausted, so you cajole them into taking a nap. Steve is tired enough he does as he’s told, dragging a slightly more suspicious Bucky with him. But Bucky is just as tired, so you blow them both a kiss and, once the door is shut and you hear no more moving, you rush to your little box of supplies and start setting everything up.

When they come out for dinner the candles are all set, the food is almost ready, and your two super soldiers take a moment to fully wake up from their nap and appreciate the nice romantic table you’ve put together.

Steve clears his throat and leans in to straighten one of the candles that had tilted maybe a little worryingly to the side. “Oh, oops; good catch,” you say and put down their two plates. “Steve, come be helpful and grab the wine glasses.”

“Really going all out to welcome us home,” Bucky says, eyeing you suspiciously.

“Yeah sure, that’s what it is,” you say, smiling too hard to sell it, and you all but drag Steve into the kitchen where you promptly shove a little box into his hand, and mouth, ‘Wait.’

His eyes light up, but he grins too and nods, and takes the wine glasses and the bottle out to the table while you grab the last plate and go to take your seat. Bucky looks even more suspicious, definitely not helped by how Steve is the absolute worst at keeping a straight face, but you ignore your husband in favor of the modest but still delicious meal you made. “You’re probably starving.”

“Sweetheart,” Bucky says warily, not even attempting to grab his fork. “Don’t take this the wrong way but– what are you up to?”

You don’t answer, and instead take a bite. In all honestly though it’s hard to focus on the food– you’re very excited for this, and when Bucky keeps staring at you, you think…fuck it. It’s time to put him at ease, one way or another.

So you stand up, walk over to him, get down on one knee, pull out the box, and open it. “Bucky,” you say. “We can’t get married before God and law but…fuck ‘em. I love you just as much as I love Steve and if this is only legit to us then that’s all that matters. So, James Buchanan Barnes, second love of my life but not the secondary love of my life, will you marry me according to the law of this house– coincidentally my law– and be my top-secret husband?”

Bucky considers you with a serious face that looks close to cracking. “Will you promise to unassign “Secret Agent Man” as my theme song?”

“Absolutely not,” you say. “But when I sing it the lyrics will be changed to reflect your new status as ‘secret husband man.’”

Steve breaks, laughing and leaning on the table for support. Bucky even cracks a smile, but you try to stay neutral, to let him know you’re (mostly) serious. His eyes soften like he knows. Of course he knows– he knows you just like Steve does, by now. “Well how can I resist an offer like that?” he asks and holds out his hand for you to put on the ring.

You try to take your time, so that Steve can get over his sudden burst of amusement, but he’s still chuckling when you take your seat again. You take your wine glass and give Bucky a sympathetic look. “I wish I could tell you Steve’s proposal to me was more romantic, but it really wasn’t.”

Steve stops laughing then. “Hey…you aren’t seriously going to tell that story to everyone are you?”

You take a moment to consider. “Well, I guess orgasms can be romantic.”

Steve hides his head and Bucky laughs loudly. “Stevie you fucking cheat,” Bucky says with a wide grin and admiration in his voice.

“That wasn’t the real proposal!” Steve insists. “The real proposal was the next morning. That was…”

“Steve being unable to keep a secret to save his life,” you supplement. Steve opens his mouth and you wave him silent. “Yeah, yeah; you can work on Bucky’s proposal later. For now, eat. I worked hard on this.”

“I’ll take the orgasm proposal,” Bucky says but takes his own utensils in hand. “Is that a special I can order?”

Steve mutters under his breath and attacks his meal like it’s going to run away.  You roll your eyes but get to your food. “Dinner first, then honeymoon.” You take a bite and chew for a few seconds before you swallow and add. “And then cake.”

“The only surprise about this, is that cake is coming last,” Bucky says in amusement and follows suit.

There are so many responses to that. You, a true Hero, refrain in order to at least get through dinner and to the fun stuff without your husband and husband-to-be chucking you out of a window.

~

You get chucked onto the bed, which is way more fun and makes you laugh as Bucky grins and crawls over you in a way that should be slightly terrifying but is honestly just fucking hot, so that when he’s close enough you grab him by the shirt collar and drag him in for a kiss.

“That never gets old,” Steve murmurs, his mouth quirked in amusement as he settles in next to both of you, but his eyes are intense as he, seemingly content, watches for now. As you break for air, Bucky takes the opportunity to grab the back of Steve’s head and move in for a kiss just as hungry as the one he just gave you.

“It really, really doesn’t,” you say and lick your lips. Bucky’s attention is drawing back to you, as is Steve’s. You pull the shoulder of your shirt aside to show your bra strap and wink at Steve. His eyes go pleasantly wide.

“So we’re really doing the honeymoon, huh?” he asks, a full grin spreading across his face. Bucky looks confused, but intrigued.

“The dress is in no shape to participate, but the rest of it is fine,” you say.

“What’s this?” Bucky asks as you sit up and wrap your arms around him. Mostly to stay up– your core strength is nonexistent.

“Go on Bucky,” Steve says, laying on his side and unbuttoning his pants with one hand. “Make your wife more comfortable.”

Bucky’s eyes shine so bright looking at you that you elect to watch his hands as he starts pulling your shirt up, alternately grazing and dragging his fingers across your skin. “Don’t worry,” you say, lips turned into an expression that feels appropriately devilish. “Your husband won’t keep his hands to himself for long.”

True to form, Steve doesn’t, and soon the three of you are a tangle of limbs and love.

~

When all is said and done, you’re all in a contented pile.

Except there's one thing missing. You clear your throat. Bucky looks, but Steve doesn’t. You clear your throat again, and this time Steve lifts his head.

“Aren't you forgetting something?” you say and look at Bucky’s one-ring hand and at Steve and at the hand and at Steve and at the hand and at–

“Yeah, what the hell; I thought this was a two-spouse minimum household,” Bucky says. “How am I gonna meet my quota if you hold back on me, Rogers?”

Steve rolls his eyes and flops his hand back on the nightstand which, to you, looks suspiciously empty. “Are you sure, Buck? She’s like a five-in-one special.”

“Nice try,” Bucky says and watches Steve fumble uselessly for a nice ring that isn’t there. “I’ve been putting up with you too long to let you get outta making an honest man of me.”

Steve turns to look and sees the ring isn’t there. You glare at him but he puts his finger up while the loading widget in his brain circles– and then he digs around under his pillow. Bucky waits. You wait. Steve then pulls up his pillows and shoves his arm down the crack between the headboard and the mattress. Bucky shakes with quiet laughter and you gape. “I swear to God if you break my ring, Steven Grant Rogers…”

“The only way it’s getting broken is if it came out of a box of Cracker-Jacks,” he mutters and fishes for it.

“I thought of that but the only Cracker-Jacks I could find had stickers,” you say, not intending to admit to the five different stores you went to and examined thoroughly. You wouldn’t say you’re banned from any of them, but maybe it’s best not to go back to that Wegman’s anymore. At least, not during the night manager’s shift.

Steve stops and looks at you. “Seriously?”

“I thought it would be cute!” You cock your head at him. “Also how long have you known me that you’re still asking that?”

He grins and leans over to give you a kiss– and then props himself up on one arm as he gives Bucky a sweet smile, holding up the (slightly dusty) box. “Hey jerk.”

Bucky snorts. “Hey punk.”

Steve breaks out the soulful eyes and opens the box. “Marry me?”

You snicker to yourself and Bucky sighs as though put upon, but he holds out his hand and Steve slides the ring on. Right on top of yours. “Knew I was stuck with you when you tried to shove me and ended up right on your ass,” he says and kisses Steve. “Yes.”

~

The next morning you put down the silverware, stick Cracker-Jack stickers on their cheeks, and you all go on in your lives– as husband, husband, and wife.

~The End~

~Omake~

“Wait.” Bucky looks at the rings, then at you. “How did you get my measurements?”

You smile sweetly.

Steve stares at you, and sighs. “Did you have Natasha break in again?”

“No.” They stare at you. “Really!” More staring. “…Maybe.” They glare at you. “It’s Russian Spy Enrichment!” You throw up your hands. “God forbid I help out my friends.”

Both of them groan. It’s okay– as far as you’re concerned, they’re stuck with you.

~ The End (for real!)~

[jodilin65]

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 1990 Last night I had a pretty good night with Andy at Denny's, and Andy's got a great possibility of being rehired now that Crosby's gone. I'm not sure if I'll ever be rehired, but I sure could use just 2-3 nights a week so I'm not always so broke and could afford to shop here and there and to go to the beach this summer.

Andy doesn't want to be friends anymore with Fran and Tracy cuz he's just as sick of their lies as I am. They tell lie after lie, and Fran stirs up so much trouble for me and Andy, and Tracy lets him cuz she's so afraid of what this guy Mike, who she claims is the greatest guy, is gonna say or do to Tracy when Fran repeats things Andy or I tell Fran. It's all such petty bullshit. Neither Andy or I need or want any hassles from people who are so screwed up and lie, and Tracy's a major con artist. We don't hate them at all, though, and I'll just continue to be friendly if they call. I can relate to them somewhat, of course, cuz I was once as fucked up as they are, but Andy and I are not gonna put up with any hassles, and we're certainly not gonna keep running round and round in circles with them forever. That's for damn sure.

I'm gonna go get a bite to eat, cuz once again I feel slightly feverish and on the verge of a cold cuz of these extreme temperature changes that never quit.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 1990 Before I get to the most important things I want to write about, I have some things to say about Fran and Tracy. They are so Goddamn unpredictable! One minute they're all lovey-dovey, then next they're one fucking explosion! A few weeks back, Fran was off his rocker big time, and I mean big time. He could not take the slightest joke or tease. He'd scream at Andy or Tracy or whoever about such petty bullshit. I'm not sure if it had to do with the fact that he was off his medication or just tired, but sure enough, just as things were going pretty well between me, Mom, and Dad, Fran had to go and fuck it all up. He called down there saying I was prank-calling him, and of course, Ma believed him. Andy told good old Dureen all about Fran to defend me, and he also spoke to Tammy. Even so, the bitch wouldn't speak to me for a few weeks, and when I called there she was rude, saying things to Dad in the background, so finally I just took the blame and said it was all my fault to make things easier, but Kacey said I should've never done that and that she'd never do that.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1990 Last night I had a blast! I mean, I had the time of my life with Andy and Tracy. First, we went to Denny's and were waited on by Sue and we saw Jayke. A few nights ago we went there too, and saw Bonnie.

Then after that, we went to Nervous's. At first, we were slightly obnoxious, then Tracy got him alone in the bathroom to try to con some money out of him, but it didn't work cuz he has no money right now cuz he just finished paying his rent. He's working now at Feinstein's Leather with a guy named Dick S. I went to school with his daughter Jamie.

So anyway, Tracy's a great con artist. She's from Philly which she has to go back to tonight cuz she has a court case dealing with a woman she conned into giving her her bank card and PIN. Guess she stole a few hundred bucks from her. It took Andy and I a little time to trust her, but we now know for sure she'd never fuck us over. Not the people she really cares about. Only the suckers like Nervous.

While she was in the bathroom with Nervo, me and Andy went through his stuff and Andy re-arranged the pictures on his walls, then stuffed one of them under his loveseat. I wonder if he found it yet. Then, Andy went to open one of his desk drawers and it went crashing to the floor. Nervous came flying out of the bathroom like a bat out of hell and then kicked both me and Andy out saying we broke his drawer which is true. Well, actually, Andy did. I was nowhere near the drawer, but it was so fucking funny! Andy was trying to blame it on Sasha, saying she got scared and jumped under the desk and he was just trying to help her, and I'm thinking to myself, "What a great excuse, M."

So while Tracy was still up talking with Nervo, me and Andy were going through some papers we took in the car, but it was complete junk. I still haven't found anything yet like phone bills with long-distance numbers on them. Only statements to remind him of how much he owes, but he says that by the end of the month, he'll have a phone again, which I won’t believe till I see this happen.

Kacey's home. Bye.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1990 This week Kacey's shift is midnight-8am, and I've been at her place all night after we had a romantic dinner by candlelight of fettuccini noodles, London broil steak, sautéed mushrooms, and baked scallops. Then after that, we took a bath together, also by candlelight.

"For once the romance hasn't been wasted," she said. As mature and as decent as she is, she's had her share of jerks, too. In fact, due to our only getting jerks for so long, we broke up for a few days out of pure fear and shock. We just caught each other totally off guard.

Suddenly, though, all of my fantasies are coming true! Everything I've always wanted to do or the person to be like in my fantasies has come true and is here in this woman! It totally blows my mind. And I am very attracted to her sexually. She's proportioned beautifully, has beautiful hair, does her makeup nicely, and has the attitude, maturity, and stability I've always wanted. My background and music are no problem at all.

She's had some problems with her family too, as a kid, and her two best friends Jules and Cathy, who are lovers, work in a group home for adults. Jules and Cathy look like typical lesbians but seem super nice.

Kacey's the type that you feel so relaxed with and like you can just be your fucking self, she's very understanding of all kinds of people and a great judge of character like I am, but you're out of her life if you fuck her over. She knows I would never do that to her and I feel she'd never do that to me either.

Tomorrow I'll write more and God knows I've got tons of shit to write about which is both good and bad, but mainly good for once. It’s about Andy, Jessie, my family, more about Kacey, and this 38-year-old, wild but funny woman named Tracy. And Fran and Nervous, of course.

[gralunaisland]

Sometimes, the blushes on their faces aren't blushes, they're just aesthetic choice flush cheeks, which is why most girls are drawn with them to look cuter sometimes. I think Mashima likes doing them more in winter scenes, or with most of the girls and children.

I'm aroace, so it honestly grates my gears when everyone starts jumping on romantic connotations between characters the moment someone has a blushed cheek drawing, whether they're literally overexcitedly talking about something else, non-romantic embarrassed/ashamed, or literal pouting because they've gotten snubbed or dismissed.

I swear, one day someone is going to look at Yukino blushing at sabertooth's guild all because she was forced to strip naked in front of everyone, and try to say she's enjoying it and canonically has a humiliation kink.

Like, that's how ridiculous all this romantic 'he is blushing he must be tsundere/she must be happily in love in this moment!' moments sound to me.

Anime Blush Does NOT Always Mean Romantic Blush

I'll just add your two asks together so I can answer them at once if that's alright!

You bring up such good points about the cheek flush! I totally agree that manga/anime characters flush for a myriad of reasons, not just because of romantic feelings! It’s pretty willfully ignorant to take every single time it happens as being strictly for lovey-dovey purposes. I don't think Pros who claim it really pay attention to manga/anime in general if that's what they really think.

By the way, just to clarify to everyone, I only called it "blush" in my Part 2 of Why Gray isn’t a Tsundere post (which I assume is the post that prompted your ask) because that was the best word I could think of at the time to describe the phenomenon of blood rushing to one’s cheeks, but just in case someone understandably misunderstood, whenever I mentioned it, I didn’t mean blush as in romantic blush.

Anyway, back to your ask, I’m not personally aroace, but I do understand your frustration with people who read too much into things just to support whatever opinion they have. I can imagine it must even be more aggravating for you though when people keep pushing for romance to infiltrate every little thing even when it doesn’t belong or when it ruins things, so you have my utmost sympathy. Romance just isn’t always necessary, and there are many more human relationships beyond it to explore.

Oh gosh, Yukino and a humiliation kink… honestly, that’s what these particular Pros would have to agree with if they take any little blush to mean someone is sexually/romantically aroused/attracted to something, as they do with Gray towards juvia. But you know these Pros won’t, because they’re not logically consistent; they want to twist the facts just to prove Gray’s always been madly in love with juvia.

As for your next ask, I totally hear ya, you’re not saying blushing never equals romance, you're saying that you can’t assume blushing=romance when something like context exists. I completely agree.

And you’re so right about the reasons for flushing such as crying, and that’s exactly what Mashima and thousands of other anime/manga artists do! Even in the panels that the Pro gr///vian used which I show in Part 2, when Gray is crying as Ur sacrifices himself, or when Erza is crying as a kid by the River, they’ve got blushes on their face from the crying! Is that Pro going to say that Erza was madly in love with Gray too? Or that Gray was madly in love with Ur?? Of course not, yet they don’t even stop to think how that might contradict their point of “Gray blushing=Gray loves juvia”…

I don’t even need to give my two cents because you’re totally right, Anon, but I will add that in the scene where juvia is chasing Gray with her perverted butt in the air, at least in the manga panel (I don’t remember in the anime but I’m pretty sure he didn’t blush there either), Gray’s not even blushing in this instance so Pros shouldn’t even be using that as an example x_x. But yeah, I still agree with you, and who wouldn’t be embarrassed if someone was hounding you publicly to spank their rear and then literally chasing you with said rear?

Anyway, thank you so much for sharing your thoughts with me, Anon, and for your patience!

I get the feeling more and more that I don’t even need to say anything when I get such intelligent asks like this, so idk if my responses are unnecessary, but I think they’re what people expect when they send me asks, so I guess I’ll keep doing as I usually do haha~

[comfortwriting]

Best Friends Brother Part 3 - G.W

Masterlist, Requesting Rules, Writing Prompt Masterlist

This is part 3 of ‘Best Friends Brother’ please read part 1 and part 2, want to be tagged? let me know! 

George Weasley x Fem Reader slow burn

Warnings: mention of food and eating, swearing, 

The moment your lips touched, fireworks went off around you, George wrapped his arms around you and pulled you close to him - all of your worries withering away, all you could feel was happiness and pure bliss.

George pulled away from the kiss and slowly opened his eyes, you were in shocked and couldn’t believe who’s lips had collided with yours moments before.

Opening your eyes slowly, you stared into George’s brown ones, his gentle hands holding yours and squeezing them softly.

“T-Thank you for tonight” you blushed, letting go of one of his hands, tucking a stray hair behind your ear nervously “It’s been wonderful.”

George smiled softly and nodded “it has” he paused for a moment, his thumb tracing circles into your palm “same time next week?” he asked, sounding quite nervous.

You squeezed his hand back in excitement and nodded “I would love to” you beamed.

Your three month anniversary was hanging around the corner, you had planned a whole day out on Saturday once George finished Quidditch practice, your heart fluttering in excitement and skipping beats, causing you to squirm in your seat - giggling out and squealing, confusing those around you, especially Ron who thought you were going barmy.

Despite seeing each other every day, the two of you were keeping things secret, you weren't ready for anyone to know - George knew his little brother all too well and so did you, Ron would be far from happy.

“George didn’t say anything to you after he, you know?” Ron asked, acting quite shifty in his chair.

“No he didn’t” you replied, “he’s not interested in me Ron, he just hates creeps.”

“Where were you last night?” Ron asked over breakfast, staring at you questioningly.

Shit! Think of something! I totally wasn’t kissing your brother, no, not at all.

“I went for a walk” you lied “I just had so much energy and needed to get out, I found an injured little owlet and was up all night nursing it, he’s helping me get over Penny.”

Ron believed you and nodded slowly “are you sure you’re ready for another owl?” he asked, trying to sound as caring as he could.

You sighed “I think it’s about time, yeah” you replied “It’s been almost over a year so I figured why not.”

So instead, you wrote to each other a few times a week, you had to admit, you quite liked the schedule; Wednesdays and Sundays nights were for the love letters, Saturdays were for dates unless he couldn’t skip Quidditch and the rest of the week you barely spoke and only engaged in eye contact if you were in the company of others - if not, you would hold hands and kiss in empty broom closets or even in the astronomy tower, but it was rare as Fred was never far behind from his twin.

Dearest Y/N,

Although we see each other every day and go on dates most weekends (when Ron isn’t on your back, or when I’m in detention like now) writing to you feels just as good as the real thing - but still bloody ridiculous.

Fred keeps asking what I’ve spent my Galleons on, told him it was for an experiment to do with our products we’re testing - he’s suspicious but believes me after I made myself sick to get out of Quidditch, oh the things I do for you, Y/N.

I think Gideon is the perfect name for the Owlet, mum will be so heart warmed and honoured when she finds out - but don’t bring the galleons into it of course, not until the joke shop is up and running with great success!

Seeing you last night up in the Astronomy tower was nothing short of the highlight of my day, I wish we could do it more often, but not to worry - one day we won’t need to meet up in private at all.

Anyway, I better get back to some homework before the greaseball comes over and reads this - detention with him always drags.

The next one will be longer, I promise, love.

Lots of love,

Georgie.

Dear George,

You should be focusing, get your head down and do your homework if you can bear it, I swear George, the day I receive a letter from you that wasn’t written in detention will be the day I wink at Snape - it’s silly I’m even asking you knowing that it’s never going to happen.

Your letters always cheer me up, Georgie, I can hear your voice as I read, feels like you’re sitting next to me and it’s good enough for me at the time being, I’m so thankful that we aren’t hundreds of miles away from each other.

Hey! You can’t be skipping Quidditch for me, you plonker! Gryffindor team need you and you’re a bloody good Beater - unbeatable in fact but stop skipping! we can make up for a lost date another time, I’ll try not to miss you too much I swear.

Thank you for gifting me Gideon, he is the sweetest little owlet and I cannot wait to watch him grow and to teach him like I did Penny - if his mother will let me that is. I won’t say a word to anyone, no one will know that you did such a thing although I want nothing more than to tell everyone, your kind-heartedness should never go unnoticed.

The joke shop will sweep you up off your feet and I can’t wait to see Weasley wizard Wheezes everywhere I go.

Thank you so much for last night, please don’t forget to send me your Christmas list - please don’t get me anything - Gideon is enough.

Focus on your bloody homework!

Speak soon and lots of love,

Y/N.

Looking over and your Owl, now named Gideon who had grown so much he was no longer a tiny owlet, you stroked his head and giggled at him as he nibbled on your finger.

“Alright, alright, but don’t be out too long” you whispered, opening your bedroom window, Gideon flapping his wings, leaping out and soaring into the night sky.

You beamed at your treasure, flying away to get some food for the evening, climbing into your bed as quietly as you could, hoping you wouldn’t wake up Hermione or your other roommates. Sliding your hand under your pillow, you patted around for the love letters from George you were hiding from everyone.

Your fingers grazed the corners of the crinkled parchment, lifting up your pillow you retrieved his most recent letter, taking it with you as you dive under your covers, shielding you from your roommates and giving you some privacy.

“Lumos!” You whispered, a beam of light stretching out from the tip of your wand, your cheeks flushing again upon seeing George’s handwriting.

Dearest Y/N,

Thank you for the heads-up, saved me and Freddie a lot of trouble, I swear one day Mr Filch and that bloody cat won’t know what’s hit them - if it wasn’t for you, we would’ve lost all of our plans and The Marauders Map, so thank you again for saving us all that trouble.

These three months have flown by so fast, I can’t believe it, I know this seems rather daft - a tall prankster being all lovey-dovey like this, but you really make me happy and I can’t wait to spend more time with you.

If you ever want to test any puking pastilles or fainting fancies, let me know and I’ll be able to look after you, love.

Looking forward to seeing you on Saturday so we can actually speak face to face - if Ron asks, you already know what to say.

Wrap up warm, it’ll be quite cold in Hogsmeade.

Looking forward to seeing you,

lots of love,

Georgie.

“Where are you off to so early? We never see you anymore over the weekend!” Ron complained, a mouthful of bacon.

“Oh get some manners, Ronald!” Hermione hissed, knitting her eyebrows together and grimacing.

You stood on the spot and stared at Ron, trying to plaster the most obvious expression on your face to make him feel stupid. “I’m off to spend some quality time with Gideon, he’s only a few months old and I want to make sure he’s as stable as Penny was at her age - I won’t be able to trust him to send letters long distances otherwise.” you lied.

But in all honesty, you weren’t really lying completely, next weekend was the end of term and the start of the Christmas Holidays - you wanted to make sure Gideon could deliver George’s letters to the burrow, you wouldn’t be able to hide them around for him to stumble across and pick up any more, and the two of you already discussed the problems of trying to use a device which muggles called a telephone.

“I’ll write you letters every week” George whispered, standing next to you in the corridors swarming with busy students, Fred chasing after Angelina outside “look in the middle of your textbooks, I’ll slide them in the middle of the pages.”

Opening up your book, a piece of folded parchment slid down and fell into your lap, you quickly stuffed it into your pocket, looking around to see if Ron noticed - luckily for you who he was copying Hermione’s classwork.

Ron looked lost for words, swallowing his bacon and thinking about your owl and how much you truly loved them “Alright then, well, see you later.” he replied,

You raised your eyebrows and smiled, waving goodbye to him, Harry and Hermione, walking out of the Great Hall and getting ready to meet George in Hogsmeade.

“She spends too much time with that bloody owl if you ask me” Ron muttered, stabbing some peas with his fork.

Hermione sighed “I think it’s quite sweet actually, she’s quite similar to Hagrid.”

Harry grinned and started to laugh, Ron rolled his eyes.

“Except the fact that she’s not a giant and she only flocks to birds of prey, not dragons or creatures that could kill us!”

“Well, at least you know where she’s going” Fred called out, walking past his brother “George never tells me where he’s off to and what he’s up to on a Saturday, he’s skiving Quidditch practice again and I get in bothered for it - I can’t check either because he’s got that sodding map with him!”

George wasn’t wrong, this time of year, Hogsmeade was freezing - your fingers changed colour and you could feel the ache and tingle against the freezing air that nibbled on your exposed skin.

You embraced yourself in one of the jumpers he had given you, one you were wearing under your fluffy winter coat which matched the colour of the snow. Looking around the small Village, you noticed George waiting outside The Three Broomsticks, looking slightly nervous as he scratched the back of his head.

You walked up to him, as you got closer you couldn’t help but blush at his red nose that had been attacked from the harsh winter air “Hello, George” you smiled softly, pulling him into a hug after clearing the coast of possible students.

George held you in his arms for a moment, taking in your scent and the feeling of your face against his chest, your hair under his chin as it rested on your head. “shall we get a drink, love?” he asked softly.

Following him inside and getting sat down in a quieter area of the pub, George ordered you and him a butterbeer and held your hand over the table, casually checking the map every now and then, checking on his brothers.

“It’s so good to see your face” he smiled, his starry eyes getting lost in yours.

You blushed and smiled widely, your drinks being placed down on your table, “It’s so good to see you too, can’t believe it’s been three months already!”

George took a sip of his butterbeer, the butterscotch warming up his tummy, you mirrored him, leaving behind a white foamy moustache. George smirked and leaned over the table, carefully avoiding spilling his drink as he wiped away the foam sitting on your top lip with his thumb, his index finger lifting up your chin.

The two of you exchanged a quick, risky kiss, remembering you needed to tone things down despite how hard the temptation was to snog him. George leaned back in his chair, sucking the foam off his thumb.

“I’ve been training Gideon” you beamed, the butterbeer warming you up “he’s finally got the hang of flying long distances and coming back in one piece.”

Meeting George in the small and squashed broom closet, he examined your tired features, looking slightly concerned, his hand resting against your face.

“Are you alright love?” he asked, “you look exhausted.”

You nodded and replied “I’m fine” suppressing a yawn “been up all night with Gideon, he’s growing so fast and he won’t allow me to baby him forever - he’ll be big enough to deliver letters soon.”

George felt a part of him fall in love with you all over again, the picture of you and Gideon in his mind made his insides got all warm and fuzzy - more so than his drink.

“So now he’ll be delivering you letters over Christmas!”

George went quiet and scratched behind his head like he did when he stood outside the pub, he paused for a moment and pursed his lips, licking them. “About that..” he trailed off, staring at his now half-full glass of butterbeer.

Your insides started to sink suddenly but your hopes were lifting, trying to figure out what he was going to say.

Is he staying at Hogwarts for Christmas with me whilst everyone else goes home? Am I unable to send him letters over Christmas if he goes back home?

“What is it?” you asked, both curiously and nervously.

George broke out into a smile, quickly glancing at the map again, then looking back into his favourite pair of eyes.

“Well, I was wondering...” he paused again “if you would like to stay at the burrow over Christmas, with me, everyone else of course but-”

“Yes!” you squealed, getting excited “oh George I would love to!”

George broke out into a grin, so relieved you were willing to come and spend some more time with him, a chance for the two of you to try and get some private time together, in the comfort of his own home.

“I had to ask mum ‘on behalf of Ron’ so if she says anything, just go through with it” George said quietly “Ron wouldn’t remember asking me to do such a thing anyway - his head is that clouded with Hermione.”

You swallowed down the rest of your drink, remembering to wipe away your foamy moustache this time “This is going to be wonderful, George” you smiled, squeezing his hand over to the table “Two whole weeks that we can just.. just be ourselves together!”

George smiled but remembered to remind you “We still need to keep everything on the down-low, it will be a full house and if we disappear it will be obvious we’re together - we’ll just need to wait for everyone to go to bed or go for a walk when they’re too busy to notice.”

You nodded your head, remembering that you would now be under not just Ron’s watch, but every Weasley who wouldn’t approve of your budding relationship.

George kissed your hand and looked down at the map once more, his smile dropping.

“Shit!” he panicked, getting up out of his seat.

“What is it?” you panicked, following him to the back doors in the pub.

He stared down at the map, his eyes following the group of feet storming into Hogsmeade “Fred, Ron, Harry - everyone’s heading this way - to this bloody pub!”

You swallowed hard, the butterbeer churning in your stomach, George’s drink rising up into his throat.

“When we can get away I’ll head to the owlery!” you put your coat back on, pulling the zip up quickly “you go hurry to Honey Dukes or Zonko’s when you get the chance, you’ll find your letter folded in your Quidditch jersey!”

George nodded, looking up from the map and quickly kissing you on the lips, the look in his eyes expressing the most sympathy you had ever seen.

Keeping things a secret would only get harder, harder than you and George were expecting.

Tag list: @amourtentiaa @reeophidian @inglourious-imagines @alwaysnforeverfangirl @horrorxweasley @sebby-staan @xmalfoyweasleyx​

[unknownwriting]

Could we please get some relationship headcanons for Erza, Juvia and Mirajane?

Summary- ^^ requested

Character(s)- Erza, Juvia, Mirajane

Warnings- none :)

A/n- hc with fairy tail girls? Hell yeah. Ahisdh I’m so excited for this. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do 💕 ack! This also took way longer than I thought, sorry about that.

Ezra Scarlet

Erza was my first anime crush. Omg I love her so much. 🥺💕

There’s not doubt about it, Erza is definitely shy and awkward. It’s a complete 180 compared to her powerful and strong personality. When you come around she melts like putty. Her biggest soft spot is you for sure.

Poor Erza can not get a break. The guild always teases and picks fun of Erza for the change in character when your around. Of they only tease her because she an easy target when your around and on top of that she’s so fluster you even fight back.

Cutes dates as cafes. I mean Erza loves her strawberry cake, so there’s no doubt that she’ll take you to her favorite cafe.

Prefers not to take you on missions but because she trust you and respects you strength. You and Erza always take missions to together. Erza still very overprotective of you though. The only missions she won’t let to do is S Class.

When y’all do go on missions, yall normally end up splitting up the quest. You will handing gathering information, while Erza will deal with all the fightings. It’s hard to keep with with Erza so not only will it let you off easy but Erza also doesn’t have to do worry about you. The 2 of you are probably the most perfect team out of the whole guild.

After long quest, or even a long day, Erza loves when y’all take baths together. It might not mean a lot to you, but it sure means a lot to Erza. Without her armor to protect her, she feels valuable and so that fact that she’s able to take her armor off and relax means that she trust you so much.

Absolutely loves when you wear her armor and/or clothes. You put on anything that’s hers and she will melt again. She just loves the way your armor looked on you.

Dating Erza is definitely an blessing, she strong, sweet, and trusting. You were so lucky to find her, although you have to make sure your patient. It’s gonna take Erza a while to get use to all this couple and lovey-dovey stuff because she’s never really understand it. So just make sure you patient, and soon enough Erza will be wrapped around your finger.

Juvia Lockser

Very dedicated and faithful to you.

Purest relationship the guild has ever seen. Juiva spoils you like there’s no tomorrow bring you presents and baked goods and always showing you with kisses and hugs. It would be a lie to say that the guild didn’t find it annoying. But as long as the 2 of you are happy the guild is happy too.

With that being said, it took a while for you to get used to Juiva’s very loving and affection personality. It’s was a little overwhelming at first, but it wasn’t long till you got use to it. Juvia definitely makes you feel like the only one in the world.

You feel bad about not being able to get anything back but Juvia always says that your love is the best things she could have. Juvia loves the little things you do, cook her dinner, brush her hair, give her a good morning kiss, stuff like that is what makes Juvia fall more head over heels, if that even possible

A very artsy couple. Always doing sometime type of project. Whether it’s cooking, sowing, or painting. Juvia always loves making stuff for you.

Random dates. Juvia loves to surprise you with random dates. She will take you anywhere and everywhere. It’s always ended up being that the most random spots too. Juvia just happy to spend time with you no matter where or when.

Her favorite thing you do is where her coat or hat when it cold. You do that, just like Erza, she’ll melt. Literally. Seeing you in her clothes makes her so happy.

Like I stated before, it’s took a while to get use to juvia’s overwhelming love. It wasn’t like any other you felt, but that’s probably just you fell for her even more. She was about to make you feel so loved and so happy and didn’t even ask for anything in return. She truly makes you feel like your the only one in the world

Mirajane Strauss

Surprisingly dominate.

It doesn’t matter if your older, taller, or have a higher rank than her. Mira’s gonna end up teasing you. It can be about anything too, as long as she gets to see your flustered smile she’s happy.

She’s always have you wrapped around her finger too. For some reasons, she just finds it so easy to tease and mess around with you. Of course she would never do it to hurt you in anyway. She loves you so if you tell her to stop or you tell her that something she said/did was bothering you, she definitely stop and try to make it up to you

You spend a lot of time with Elfman and Lizanna. Mira is a very family oriented person, whether it’s her real family or guild family. If you don’t get along with them it doesnt matter if she likes you or not. Her family comes first.

Because Mira doesn’t go on a lot of missions the 2 of you end up tending the bar at the guild a lot. It’s y’all’s only source of money besides missions.

Even when y’all go on missions, Mira refuses to bring you. She would rather have you stay safe at the guild than risk going. And because she’s an S Class wizard, it’s all the more reason she makes you stay.

Although, when the 2 of you aren’t doing missions or tending the bar, the 2 of you are off lazing around the town. The 2 of you are happy not doing anything exciting and just sitting back and relaxing. It’s nice to take a break from the guild and the pictures and interviews the 2 of you have. Because you know damn well that the magazine companies what the insights of y’all’s relationship. So spending time behind locked doors taking a bath together is the only thing the 2 of you could wish.

The 2 of you together is a match made it heaven. Although, Mira does tease you, she loves you so much and she definitely makes she to show it.

[study-coffee-chicago]

Stars on your Sleeve (Part 2) [A Jay Halstead Imagine]

A/N: The name of the girl is Y/N (I mostly write my imagines in second person POV...except for the one you guys might see in a few weeks) and cariña is just a nickname/term of endearment in Spanish that means sweetheart. Sorry if anyone got confused about that in part one!

"Dad," you started as you walked into Jay's office after school that day.

It was a Thursday and you had taken the bus from school to the district. It wasn't often that you did this, but you had gotten texts from both your mom and dad telling you that the current case was going to drag on and on tonight, so they wanted you at the district so that you wouldn't be home alone until two or three o'clock in the morning.

"Hi, cariña. How was your day? Learn anything interesting in school?"

"Dad," you groaned. "It's high school, half the stuff they teach me I won't ever use again."

"Well, excuse me for wanting to know about my daughter's day."

"Just can't wait for this week to be over to sleep in."

"You and me both, kid."

"Half the time you work weekends though, Dad," you pointed out.

"Comes with the sergeant title."

"And your sleeping in is like 7:00."

"Point taken. Now, did Mom pack you a few extra snacks or do you need some money for the vending machines?"

"She didn't--"

"Don't even finish that sentence, young lady," Hailey said as she burst into Jay's office. "I packed you a few extra things and you know it. You just want--"

"--Oreos," Jay and Hailey said at the same time.

"Hey, don't blame me! They taste good," you protested. "Anyway, Dad, can I use your laptop to do my homework?"

"Don't you have that school-issued one?"

"That one blocks Netflix."

Jay crossed his arms across his chest. "Homework, huh?"

"I'm just writing a paper. It's not like I'm doing math or reading something."

"What type of paper?" Hailey asked. "Because, I'm pretty sure that if it's a research paper, you need to focus."

"It's a narrative, so I don't need to be constantly focused, Mom."

"Makayla does the same thing," Adam said as he entered the office as well. "Let the kid have the laptop, Jay."

"Thanks, Adam."

"Uh," Jay groaned, "I guess."

"We also have a lead, so you wanna roll out after I give you the info?" Adam asked.

"Yeah. Sorry, Y/N, you need to go into the breakroom now."

"But why can't I stay in here?" you whined. "I want your spinny chair."

"Y/N, this is a case," your mom told you. "You know the rules: no being around the case talk. It's for your own good, we don't want to scar or scare you."

Mom, you know what I've seen, you wanted to tell her, but you knew it would be no use as your parents would never budge on this rule.

"I know, Mom."

Jay pulled his laptop from his desk along with the charger. "Rules?" he probed, holding onto the laptop and charger.

"Dad, I know the rules. Mom, c'mon, tell him."

"It's your dad's laptop, Y/N. I'm not arguing with you or him on this one."

Jay cocked his head to the side. "I'll give you the laptop after you tell me the rules...even though I know you know them."

You sighed. You went through this every time you used his laptop when he was going to be gone. "Only use my account, don't try to login to your account, and do not delete my search history."

"Here you go." He handed you his laptop and charger. "Good luck on your paper. Don't work too hard."

You went into the breakroom and opened the laptop. First, you pulled up Netflix, and then you pulled up your paper. It was your paper for your senior portfolio, which most people were putting off, seeing as you were only a freshman, you didn't need to work on it yet. But, you knew it had to be long, so starting it now would probably be helpful.

The paper was basically a narrative telling a story about each year of school. The stories had to be from two to five pages long, which meant that the paper in its entirety would be between 26 and 65 pages long. But, you didn't mind. It's not like you had to write a boring research paper. You also had to write about your career goals and one wish for your future as well, which would make the paper even longer still.

Seeing as your schooling didn't exactly match up with the American school system until you were around nine and in third grade, you had gotten permission from your teacher to just write about the sections of kindergarten, first, and second grade, as just memories from when you were six, seven, and eight years old.

You'd save the memories of six and seven for later, since you'd have to dig into the part of your brain where you were in the orphanage with your older sister, Illiana.

For now, you just scribbled down a few lines for ideas of when you were eight years old...which was pretty simple since a lot happened in your life that year.

***

"Y/N, we brought you some food if you--"

"Shut up!" Mouse hissed as the rest of the unit clambered up the stairs and into the bullpen. "She's sleeping."

Yes, when Mouse came home he returned to his job as the tech analyst of the Intelligence Unit. And, when Jay became sergeant, he pulled a few strings and got him a huge salary increase.

"I'll pull the car around front," Hailey offered.

"No," Jay whined. "That means I gotta be the bad guy and wake her up."

"Sorry, babe. I call dibs."

"Ew, guys, please keep the lovey-dovey nicknames to home. I don't need to see that," Adam joked.

"Shut up, Ruz."

Hailey swiped the keys from Jay's office and Jay went to wake you up. But, before he did, he saw the laptop, still open to both Netflix and your paper.

There wasn't much in the paper yet, as Jay had expected, only a few bullet points. His name caught his eye below the age 8 section...whatever that meant. He didn't mean to pry (well, really he did), but he closed the laptop without logging you out so that he and Hailey could take a look at it later.

"Y/N, Y/N, wake up."

You were woken up by someone gently shaking your shoulder.

"Quiero dormir, vaya," you whined. That was one thing you always did: reverted back to Spanish when you were tired. At least both Jay and Hailey understood it now because they had learned Spanish...which helped them with parenting because when they were mad at you, they'd talk in Spanish and that's how you know you were in deep shit.

"I know you want to sleep, and I'm not leaving," Jay answered. "But, we're going home so you can sleep in your bed instead of here."

"Mmmm, okay," you mumbled. You rubbed your eyes, but then decided it was too much work to get up, so you just sat up and closed your eyes once again.

"C'mon, cariña. Mom's got the car out front and then all you gotta do is stay awake until we get home, okay?"

"Mmmm," you mumbled and then stood up. He already had your backpack slung over his shoulder and was holding his laptop in the other hand. "Can I skip school tomorrow? I'm tired."

"Not a chance," Jay chuckled. "But, I can drive you to school and we can get you a frappucino on the way there."

"Mom won't be mad?"

"We don't have to tell Mom everything now do we?"

"No, we don't."

***

"What are you doing?" Hailey asked Jay as she slid into bed next to him that night. "Are you seriously checking our daughter's search history this late at night? C'mon Jay, she's a good kid. You won't find anything."

"That's not what I'm looking at. But, now that you mention it, I should probably check that, too."

"Then, what are you reading? Because I know for a fact that your case notes are definitely not as organized as that."

"Wow, Hails, you're so sweet," Jay said sarcastically. "It's Y/N's paper. The rubric was pasted at the top and it looks like she has to write about a memory from each year of her life and her career goals and a wish for the future."

"And you were snooping because...?"

"Because I saw my name. I wanna see what she says about us, Hailey."

"Jay, she loves us, baby. We're her parents. We both know that. You don't need to read her schoolwork to know that."

"Either way, I'm still reading it. Join me if you want, or go to sleep."

"Uh, fine. But if she asks, this was your idea and I will not hesitate to throw you under the bus."

Age 8, they both read to themselves, leaving/running away from orphanage

"God, no matter how many years it's been since she told us what happened, it never fails to break my heart," Hailey said.

Jay wrapped one arm around his wife. "I know, babe. I feel the exact same way."

"Hey, Y/N," the therapist started and you looked up at her. "Do you want to in that room over there and watch some tv while I talk to jay and Hailey? I can even turn on the Spanish movies for you."

"Okay!"

After getting you all set up, she left you in the room with a Spanish children's movie playing while she went to get Jay and Hailey.

"Jay and Hailey?" she asked as she entered the waiting room.

"Dr. Smith," Jay greeted.

"I have something to tell both of you, and Y/N told me it was okay that I tell you. When I asked if she wanted to be the one to tell you this, she said no because she didn't want to make you sad."

They entered the room where you had previously been and Dr. Smith sat in a chair and Jay and Hailey sat on the couch.

"What's this about?" Hailey asked.

"Well, she told me why she ran away from the orphanage."

Jay and Hailey were shocked. You'd been with them for three months and hadn't once mentioned why you ran away and what happened before Jay found you. It wasn't for lack of trying on Hailey and Jay's part, though. They tried. After all, they knew how to talk to child victims. But, they didn't want to push you too hard, and eventually, they just dropped the topic all together because they knew you'd talk about it when you were ready. Apparently, today was the day that you were ready to tell that story.

"And?" Jay pushed. "Why'd she run away?"

"She said that they came for her, the people who you were fighting," Dr. Smith said.

"Los Rebeldes," Jay said, more to Hailey than to anyone else.

"They came for her specifically?" Hailey asked.

"No, they just came to the orphanage. She said that she heard voices--male voices--telling them to get down on the ground and then some shots rang out. Her sister, Illiana, told her to hide and slipped the necklace around her neck. So, she did. She said she closed her eyes really tight and she just laid there, hiding and barely breathing. She said she heard a gunshot and then she heard Illiana scream and she heard squishing noises."

"Oh my God," Hailey gasped.

"You're saying they shot and killed her?" Jay asked, his voice cracking.

"That's what it sounded like, yes."

"How did she get out?"

"She said that she snuck out through a small door in the back of the room. She said it wasn't a real door, but it was a small door that led to the outside, by her description, it sounded about three feet tall and two feet wide."

"The waste doors," Jay muttered.

"The what?" Hailey asked.

"The waste doors...well, that's what we called them on Base anyway. They were these little doors where you could place stuff outside. Sometimes we'd put the packaging of our MRE's there or other crap we didn't need anymore. Not good for the planet, but yeah, that's what we did."

"So, Jay, you're telling me that Y/N essentially snuck out of the orphanage through a trash chute?"

"Well, we used them for waste, which is why we called them waste doors. But, I heard rumors of them being used at orphanages for parents to put their baby in a crib. They'd just open the door and place the baby in the little crib on the other side of the door."

"She moved the crib and snuck out through there?"

"If there was a crib, then she moved it and got out. If not, she just crawled out through there."

"Did she tell you anything about when she left?" Hailey asked Dr. Smith.

"She said that she didn't have much with her, just her teddy bear and that locket. But, she said that she walked for the rest of the day. And, according to her timeline, the soldiers came right after breakfast. She said she was really scared that they were going to find her and so she just kept walking. But then, she found a bit of a forest it sounded like and since it was starting to get dark and cold, she laid down."

"I found her in the middle of the night and she must've been there since sunset. No wonder she was hypothermic."

"We got her her first banana split after that therapy session," Hailey said. "I honestly don't know whether the food was to get her to try something new or to comfort us."

"Yeah, that was a rough night. I didn't even want her to leave my arms," Jay said. "Jay found me and I went home to Chicago," he read aloud. "Man, that night was rough, too. Probably worse than the night where we found out why she left."

"Now, it's crowded here, cariña so stay cerca to us or go mano a mano with me or Hailey, okay?" Jay asked you as the three of you found a parking spot at Navy Pier.

Adam, Kim, Kevin, and Will were all there as well. They had planned to go out and party and go to a bar when Jay returned home, but that changed now that he and Hailey had a kid to take care of, so they had decided to take a trip to Navy Pier.

In the airport, Jay had gotten a huge coffee from Starbucks, seeing as he had barely slept on the way home. Before coming to Navy Pier, you had gone to a place called iHOP where you had gotten some really yummy pancakes, and Adam, Kevin, and Will had made you laugh a lot and Kim spoke Spanish with you.

"What does that word mean?" you asked.

"What word?" Jay asked, looking down at you as he took your hand.

"Cr-crowded," you sounded out slowly.

"Uh, it means there's lots and lots of people."

"Oh, okay. I stay by you."

"So Y/N, what do you like to do?" Will asked you.

"I like reading and play fútbol," you told him.

"Really? Jay loves playing soccer!"

"We played back at the big house in España," you told Will excitedly. "We won and I got lots and lots of goals."

"Looks like you have a pro soccer player on your hands, little brother," Will said to Jay.

"Don't I know it."

"We go on the big thingy you showed me in the little book in the plane?" you asked Jay.

"The Ferris wheel?" You nodded excitedly. "We can do that, but let's walk around first. We might be able to play some games and win you a friend for Osito."

"Really? Osito have a friend?"

"Really," Jay promised.

As you walked down Navy Pier, you were excitedly pointing out every little thing you saw from the ducks and the seagulls to the big yachts floating down the Chicago River.

"Let's go into Garrett's, babe," Hailey suggested when they were inside the big atrium. "Give her a taste of Chicago's world-famous popcorn."

"I think that's a great idea," Jay agreed. "What do you think, cariña? Want to try some popcorn and then we'll get your favorite?"

You tilted your head to the side. "Popcorn? What is that?"

"Palomitas," Kim clarified for you in Spanish. "Hay muchos tipos diferentes de palomitas allí para probar y comprar."

"Oh, okay. Yes, please."

"What did you say to her?" Hailey whispered to Kim.

"Just gave her the Spanish translation of popcorn and then told her that there's a bunch of different types of popcorn that she can try and buy in there. But, you and Jay most definitely have your work cut out for you when it comes to learning Spanish. You're lucky that she's pretty good with English already and that I'm here to help you learn Spanish."

***

"Sleepy, cariña?" Jay asked as he heard you yawn from the backseat.

Hailey was driving and he was holding a big bag of caramel and cheddar popcorn...which Hailey was telling him not to eat all of it because she knew he would. You were in the backseat with your big stuffed bear, whom you had named Osita since she was a girl bear because she had really soft white fur and a pink ribbon tied around her. Jay had won that for you when he played a shooting game. You also had a stuffed duck that Will had won for you when he played a guess the weight game. You named him Pato...which meant duck in Spanish. You had gone on the Ferris wheel and had pointed out all the pretty things in the sky when you were up there. Hailey had never seen Jay so happy as when he was smiling wide at every little thing you pointed out and he tried to explain to you what they were.

"No," you answered as you laid your head against Osita. It was currently 3 pm Chicago time, which made it about 9 pm Spain time.

"Tell you what," Hailey started, "When we get home, we can show you your room, and then we can watch a movie and eat this popcorn. Because, if we don't start eating it soon, Jay will eat it all."

"Jay eat it all if we no eat it too?"

"Jay eats a lot," Hailey joked.

You reached your hand in front of you and towards Jay. "Palomitas please." Jay chuckled and Hailey smiled as he put some popcorn into your little outstretched hand. "Gracias."

"De nada," Jay told you.

"When we watch movie, how I get it?" you asked.

"We get it on the tv," Jay told you.

"No, how I know what they saying?"

Hailey hadn't thought that far ahead when she had suggested watching a movie. "Um," Hailey faltered. "We can make it so it's in Spanish."

"But then you no know what they say," you pointed out.

"We can put words on the bottom of the screen in English for us," Jay suggested. "Then all three of us will know what they're saying. Is that okay?"

"Okay!"

"Hailey," Jay whispered. "What are we gonna watch?"

"She's too old for princesses probably and way too young for action movies...how about Disney Channel movies? We could try High School Musical? That one's pretty good."

"You're kidding Hails. You watched that? Didn't it come out when we were like 20 or 25?"

Hailey held back a laugh. "Yes, it did. But, I babysat a lot of kids in my neighborhood who were around Y/N's age, and we'd always end up watching those Disney Channel originals."

"Okay, whatever you say, babe."

***

"I think I'm gonna bring her to bed," Jay said.

You had fallen asleep halfway through the movie. Before starting it, you had seen your room. It was purple! And, in black letters behind your bed, it said Salon de Y/N, which meant Y/N's room. Jay assumed that Kim had helped Hailey with the spelling and the boys had helped move the furniture into your room. There was also a little basket with a few things they thought you would like, such as a few different colored soccer balls and a bookshelf.

On the bookshelf, Hailey had picked out some books in Spanish that she had found at Barnes and Noble and some short chapter books in English that she used to read as a kid, such as the Nancy Drew series and Little House on the Prairie. She knew that you might need help reading them and might not be able to completely understand them all by yourself yet, but she knew that she and Jay would be there to help you.

"It's 6:00," Hailey protested. "Shouldn't we wake her up and have her stay awake for a few more hours so that her body can adjust?"

"If you're asking an adult like me that, yes, I'd stay awake. But, she's a kid. She needs her sleep. And, I'll probably be up before you anyway, so I can deal with her if she wakes us up at five in the morning."

"Okay super dad," Hailey joked. "Bring her to bed. I'll make us a quick dinner and cover this popcorn so it doesn't get stale. Can't wait for us to go to bed tonight." She winked.

"Hails, as much as I would love to take you up on that, I don't think it's a good idea when it's Y/N's first night. But, I will give you all the cuddles in the world tonight, don't you worry about that."

"As long as you didn't pick up the habit of snoring overseas then I'm all for that, babe."

***

Jay woke up to the sound of soft whimpering. It sounded like it was coming from the hallway but he couldn't be sure. He reached over Hailey and was about to grab her gun from her drawer where he knew that she kept it, but stopped when he remembered that it was probably just you. It wasn't just Jay and Hailey in the house anymore; you were there as well and that's probably where the noise was coming from. And, he didn't want to scare you by holding a gun.

He glanced over at the clock. 3 am. Yeah, sounds about right that you'd be waking up right about now since you'd slept for about nine hours and it was 9 am in Spain right now.

Jay slowly tiptoed out into the hallway, cursing himself that he hadn't left a light on or kept his and Hailey's bedroom door open so you could find them easily.

Jay reached out for the hall light switch and flicked on the lights, causing you to jump. "Hey, hey, it's just me. It's just Jay," he said calmly once he laid eyes on you. You were holding Osito and there were fresh tears running down your cheeks.

Jay never knew the force of an eight-year-old running into him could be so strong as to almost knock him over. You dropped Osito and wrapped your arms around him as if your life depended on it.

"It's okay, it's okay," Jay soothed. "What's wrong, cariña? Can you tell me what's wrong?"

"I-I no know where I was," you mumbled into his shirt. "Was dark. Think you and Hailey left, so I came to find you."

"Oh, sweetie," Jay started. "I'm sorry. I forgot to turn the light on for you in your room so that you'd know where you are. And, me and Hailey would never leave you."

"You promise?"

"I promise." Your stomach grumbled. "Hungry?" you nodded. "Alright, let's get you a sandwich and then get you back to bed."

"You eat too?" you asked.

"You know, I could go for a sandwich."

***

The next morning, Hailey rolled over to see that Jay wasn't in bed next to her and his side of the bed was cold. Then, she remembered you and walked over to your room and slowly opened the door. You looked up from the Spanish book you were reading and put a finger to your lips.

"Jay sleeping," you told Hailey.

Jay was sitting upright in your bed against the headboard, his thumb holding a place in what looked to be a Nancy Drew book.

"Did Jay read to you last night, huh?" Hailey asked as she walked closer to you and Jay.

"Yeah, he told me that Nancy does what you and Jay do with policia. Then, I sleep again and then I wake up and he sleep again, so I started reading in Spanish."

"I think we should let him sleep a little more while we go finish High School Musical and eat palomitas before Jay eats it all. Does that sound good?"

You nodded eagerly and closed your book. Then, you got out of bed and followed Hailey out of your room. And, after hearing that Jay had read to you and seeing him sleeping upright in your bed so that you'd be able to sleep, she had one more reason why she was truly head over heels for the man she married and got to call her husband.

"Look, Jay. She wrote her birthday in here for age 9," Hailey said as she pointed to the laptop screen.

"God, I don't think I'll forget that day for the rest of my life. It was such a good day."

"You are such a sap when it comes to Y/N."

"Hey! let me be sappy about our daughter, Hailey Anne. She's in high school now, high school. That means she'll be going off to college soon."

"Don't get too far ahead of yourself, sergeant," she joked. "Just keep reading this. It was your idea to snoop through her stuff after all."

"Jay, you got the stuff?" Hailey asked as she was sitting cross-legged on their bedroom floor with wrapping paper, tape, and scissors in front of her.

"Jesus, Hails," Jay laughed, "You make it sound like we're doing a drug deal."

"Well sorry if I want her birthday to go really well. Now, did you get them or not?"

"They're in here." He set a plastic bag down on the bed. He took out three framed pictures and laid them out on the bed. Of course, he made sure that the frames were different shades of purple. "Good?"

Hailey stood up and looked at the pictures. "I never know the CPD's sketch software could work miracles like this, so yeah, I'd say we did good."

Over the past month, everyone in Intelligence had told you that they were testing out a new sketch software to use to try to track down criminals. They let you play with it because they said they wanted to see what it would do...even though they knew what it did, how good it was, and it wasn't new. It was just a ploy to make sure they got your birthday gift right. They had told you to try and input someone's face from memory, someone like your older sister, Illiana.

So, when you had to go to the district for the day with Jay and Hailey, you'd ask to play with that software to work on your sketch. Little did you know, they were printing it out on fancy photo paper and putting it in a frame for your birthday. Jay had also swiped your necklace one day when you had taken it off to go swimming and had taken pictures of what your mom and dad looked like. Then, he and Hailey each took one parent and worked on making their faces through the CPD's sketch software.

"Now what the hell is this?" Jay asked as he held up a big board that Hailey had laying out in front of her as well.

"That, Jay, is so we can stick the back of the frames to it so that we don't have to give the three of them to her separately. Then, she can just take them off from it and place them wherever she wants in her room."

"You're smart. Maybe you should've gone to law school."

"Haha, very funny, Halstead. But then I wouldn't have met you."

"Eh, I beg to differ. You'd probably end up being some prosecution or defense attorney and then I'd have to testify, and after getting yelled at by you on the stand, I'd end up making an ass of myself and ask you out for a drink."

"Is that so?"

"That is very much so."

He walked up to her and grabbed her by the waist and she gave him a peck on the lips. "Hails," Jay whined. "Why'd you phone it in?"

"Because we have presents to wrap. Now, sit your ass down on the carpet and help me."

"Yes ma'am. But, damn, you're really going to be the death of me."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

***

"Before we do cake everyone, me and Hailey have one more gift for Y/N," Jay announced by tapping a fork gently against his champagne glass. Yes, the adults were drinking champagne because they were celebrating your first birthday with them as their kid. No, they wouldn't even give you one sip...but you didn't care and you didn't ask.

You had gotten spoiled all day. Will had taken you out for breakfast where you had gotten chocolate chip pancakes with all the toppings. Then, he took you to the sporting goods store where you bought an FC Madrid jersey and to Barnes Noble where you bought a few new books.

Then, when you got home, you were surprised to find everyone from Intelligence there along with some people from Med, and firehouse 51. Emilia, Mouse, and Makayla were there, and your friend, Rosa, whom Emilia had introduced you to earlier in the year at her welcome home party since Rosa was one of Emilia's little cousins.

You had gone outside and played a huge soccer game. And, when you got sick of playing soccer, Emilia busted out a makeup kit she had bought for you. And you, Makayla, Emilia, and Rosa did each other's makeup. While the four of you were doing makeup, a soccer tournament had broken out where Intelligence played Med, and then the winner of that game played Firehouse 51. Intelligence won against Med...mostly due to Jay. But, then they played 51 and they got creamed.

"Here you go, nena," Hailey said as she passed you the gift. Hailey had started calling you nena since Jay had a nickname for you, cariña, which you learned now meant sweetheart in English. So, she decided to call you nena, which meant honey. And, you and Hailey had thought it only fair if you came up with a nickname for Jay. So, the one you decided on was quite fitting in your mind: pecas...which translated to freckles. And, Will, well Will calls you Osa because your favorite animal is a bear. It's probably one of only three words he knows in Spanish next to hola and adios.

The gift was long and hard...like a piece of wood. You slowly opened the gift, wondering what else you could have possibly gotten.

You bit your lip as you finished tearing the paper off and flipped it over. "Mamí, Papí, Illiana," you whispered as you held back tears. "¿Cómo lo hicisteis?" you asked. Seeing as Jay and Hailey had been working very hard on their Spanish for the past nine months, they could understand you and could sometimes explain an English word to you in Spanish if needed.

"We didn't really need to test out the drawing thing," Jay answered. "We just needed a picture of Illiana. And, I got the pictures of your parents from the locket."

At this, you started to cry harder, remembering that day when Jay had to cut your necklace off of you in the back of the Med truck in Spain.

You stood up and hugged both Jay and Hailey at the same time. Now, you had both of your families watching over you: your biological family from in heaven and your parents in the here and now. And, your biological family now had no doubt in their mind up there that you would never, ever forget them.

"You remember what she called us that night?" Hailey asked.

"How could I forget? It was the first night she called us mom and dad. I still remember her exact words when I told her we weren't trying to replace her biological family: Son mi familia en el cielo y en mi corazon, pero vosotros sois mi familia aquí."

"They're my family in heaven and in my heart, but you are my family here."

"Exactly."

"Oh my God!" Hailey laughed. "She wrote sixth-grade: I cheated on a literature test and Mom had to come to pick me up and I got in trouble. And then, Dad went full-on dad-mode."

"No fucking way," Jay laughed as he brought the laptop closer to him and looked for the sixth-grade section. "I can't believe this is what she's going to write about!"

"Well, in her defense, it was the first time we had to ground her and the first time you went full-on, overprotective, my daughter can do no wrong dad-mode."

"Pretty sure the next time I'll do that is when she gets asked to the homecoming dance later this year."

"Jay! You will not! You will not scare the boys away from our daughter!"

"Well, they should be scared!" Jay argued. "We're both cops, babe. We can make their death look like an accident."

"Jay, what you're talking about is murder and I shouldn't have to remind you that that is illegal. If so, I am going to the Ivory Tower tomorrow to get you stripped of your sergeant title."

"Fine, fine. The next time I'll do that is when she gets her driver's license."

"Hey, on the bright side, we wouldn't have to pick her up from the principal's office then," Hailey pointed out. "She could just drive herself home."

"We wouldn't have to figure out which of us should go pick her up like last time?"

"Exactly. And I'm pretty sure she was thankful that it was you and not me who picked her up in sixth grade."

"Miss Halstead," your literature teacher said as she stalked over to you from the other side of the classroom. "Care to tell me what you have under your sleeve?"

"My arm?"

"I don't like being disrespected in my classroom. We both know you have your phone in there. And, lying to me will just make this worse."

"I-I needed it," you stammered, not wanting to have the whole class hear how stupid you were.

"For a test? You know the rules: no cheating. Principal's office, now. Grab your stuff. And, I'll be calling your parents as you walk down there."

You grabbed your backpack and started your walk to the principal's office. It's not like you had a choice...well, you did have a choice. You could've just not used your phone on the test. But, after that last grade you got on that essay and how weirdly worded the questions were, you basically had no choice but to use your phone. It's not like you were using it to look up the answers per se, but you were using it to try and understand the questions because there was no way you were going to ask that teacher.

"Mrs. Halstead, right this way," you heard the office secretary say as they led Hailey to the principal's office. Your phone was sitting on the principal's desk, the tab you had been using to cheat open and you were fiddling with the strings of your hoodie. You had thought about deleting your search history, but knew it wouldn't be of any use because Jay and Hailey would just be able to look it up with whatever police software crap that Intelligence had access to. You knew you'd be in more trouble if you deleted it and they found out that you were lying, so you decided you wouldn't delete it...even though you were regretting that decision as your phone screen stared back at you.

"May I ask why my daughter is in the principal's office when I thought she should be taking a test?" Jay and Hailey knew all about your literature test that day as you had read the book twice to be ready for it.

"That's exactly why she's in here, Mrs. Halstead," the principal told Hailey. "She was trying to cheat on her literature test."

"She wouldn't do that!" Hailey defended you. "She studied so hard!" She looked between both you and the principal, but your gaze stayed trained on the floor.

"Just take a look."

He passed Hailey your phone and she looked at the search history and the timestamps of said history. "Y/N, is this true?"

You nodded. Hailey sighed. "I'm assuming she's suspended?"

"Since this is her first academic infraction, I'm not going to suspend her. She does need to go home for the rest of the school day, though."

"Thank you. C'mon Y/N, let's go."

You hung your head as you left the middle school, Hailey holding your phone and still trying to figure out why you did this. But she knew that one thing was for sure: the minute Jay got home, he would not be happy.

***

"You're kidding me, right?" you heard Jay ask Hailey in the kitchen.

You were currently in your room, but the kitchen was right down the hall, so if you were quiet and focused enough, you could hear their conversation.

"I wish I was, Jay," Hailey said. "Just...here, take a look."

You assumed that Hailey was handing Jay the phone and he was looking at your search history.

Jay took a deep breath and restrained himself from shoving the chair into the kitchen table.

You heard his heavy footsteps coming down the hall and quickly locked your door and then sat back down on your bed.

You heard the doorknob jiggle as Jay tried to open your door.

"Y/N! ¡Abras la puerta inmediatamente!" (Open the door immediately!)

You were in deep shit if he was yelling at you in Spanish.

You didn't move from your bed.

"¡Ábrelo ahora!" (Open it now!)

"¡Estoy viniendo! ¡Calmáse!" (I'm coming! Calm yourself!) You got up from the bed and opened the door.

"Do not ever, ever tell me to calm down ever again! Do you understand me?" Jay asked angrily as he flung open your door after he had unlocked it. You nodded. "Now, I understand that you were caught cheating on a test. Care to explain that to me?"

"Not really," you sighed as you sat on your bed.

"I'm giving you one more chance to explain to me why you chose to cheat. And I suggest you tell me the truth, kid."

You looked up to be met with Hailey standing in the doorway. She nodded to you as if to say you better listen to your dad.

"Well?" he asked as he crossed his arms across his chest.

"I needed to cheat!"

"Nobody needs to cheat!"

"Well, I did!" You dug through your backpack and found the paper you had to write for the class that your teacher failed you on. "Because of this!" You threw the paper on your bed. "And because my teacher is a puta!"

"You do not call your teacher a bitch, young lady!" Jay yelled.

"Jay!" Hailey yelled. "Take the paper, go to our room and read it and calm down!"

"So Mom can tell you to calm down but I can't?"

Jay turned back to you, but Hailey grabbed his arm. "Bedroom Jay. Now." He left the room and Hailey turned to you. "As for you. You're grounded from your phone for the foreseeable future. Sorry, nena. Now, we'll be back to talk to you after we've read whatever it is you threw on your bed."

***

"We read the paper," Jay said as he and Hailey entered your room again fifteen minutes later. "And, I'm sorry for yelling. I know me and your mom are both detectives, but it'd look better if you told us why you cheated instead of leaving us to put the pieces together."

"I'm sorry, I really am. It's just, I failed that paper. And, I worked really hard on it. And, she said it wasn't a real tradition."

The paper topic was to write about a family tradition and you wrote about the Spanish tradition of eating grapes on New Year's Eve. With twelve seconds left of the year, you'd put a grape in your mouth for every second that passed. You'd try to get all twelve grapes in your mouth, but that was really hard. You wrote about the last time you did it with your family and your papí almost got all of them in your mouth while you only got three in your mouth since you were only three years old at the time.

One of the grading criteria for the paper was that it had to be a real tradition.

"She said that it wasn't a real tradition, Dad. She said that because she had never heard of it and that it sounded weird to her, that it wasn't real. So, she failed me. I also put some Spanish words in there, but I put the translations next to it. I thought it would make it more...what's the word? It's kind of like real? Like it'd make it more real to read? You know that word for it?"

"Authentic?" Hailey asked.

"Yeah, that. I thought it'd make it more authentic to read. And, I knew the material of the book. But, the questions were so confusing and I didn't want to ask her to clarify because she's mean."

"So you googled the questions to try to figure out what they were asking?" Hailey asked.

"Yes. I'm sorry. I really am. I just didn't want you to be disappointed in me and think that I've been here for four years and not know English."

"Oh, cariña." Jay crouched in front of you. "We'd never think that. I promise. And I know Mom would never think that either, right?"

"That's right," Hailey agreed.

"Now, I have to go make a phone call."

"You went off on that teacher, Jay! I don't think I've ever heard you that angry when you weren't in interrogation!" Hailey laughed.

"Well yeah! That teacher's logic and grading criteria were seriously flawed. And, you read that paper. It was really good. As Y/N put it that day, she really was a puta."

Hailey rolled her eyes.

"Wish for the future," Jay read aloud. "I wish that I could figure out why Los Rebeldes came to the orphanage and killed Illiana."

"I think that's enough snooping through her stuff for the day, babe," Hailey said, beginning to feel uncomfortable reading this. "Let's just go to bed."

"Yeah, I'm just gonna take a quick shower and I'll be back, okay? I love you." He gave Hailey a quick peck on the lips and made his way to the bathroom to take a shower.

"I love you, too."

But, Jay barely heard her. He was so lost in thought about how to get answers for you, for his daughter. Hell, he wanted those answers just as bad as you. What kind of sick bastard would come into an orphanage heavily armed and just kill innocent civilians and innocent children?

***

"Mouse," Jay said as he entered the bullpen the next morning, "I need your help with something."

"Jeez, Jay, you're late," Ruzek commented. "Where's Hailey?"

"It's her RDO. And, I promised Y/N a frappuccino because she had to wake up early for school and had to go to bed late last night because we were working a case."

"Does Hailey--"

"No, Adam. Hailey does not know that I gave our fourteen-year-old daughter sugar-laced coffee this morning. And, if you so much as say the words frappuccino, Jay, and Y/N in the same sentence, I will bump you back down to patrol so fast you won't know what hit you."

Jay started to walk towards the tech area where he assumed Mouse would be. His voice carried, so he hoped he'd heard him when he'd said he needed his help.

"Whose idea was it to give Jay all this power?" Adam asked rhetorically. "I think it's going to his head."

"I heard that Ruz!"

"You needed something, Jay?" Mouse asked as he turned around from his laptop and took a sip of his coffee.

"Yeah, can you do something off the books for me?"

"You don't even have to ask anymore, man."

"Just need to make sure you don't assign a case number to it."

"I can do that. Now, what do you need?"

Jay pulled out his phone and pulled up a Spanish newspaper article from two weeks ago. He laid the phone in front of Mouse. "This. This is why I need you."

Mouse looked at the phone and back up at Jay with raised eyebrows. "I'm gonna need you to translate that. I don't speak Spanish."

"Says that the guy who killed everyone in the orphanage that Y/N was in is meeting with his lawyer about an appeal. That son of a bitch. And, it's happening on Monday."

"He's meeting with his lawyer on Monday or you'll know if he won the appeal or not on Monday?" Mouse asked.

"He's meeting with his lawyer on Monday."

"And you need me because...?"

"Think you can hack into Spain's maximum-security federal prison system?"

"You cannot be serious."

"I am dead serious, Mouse."

"Why don't you just wait to hear the news?"

Jay sighed and took a seat next to Mouse. "Y/N has to write a paper and was using my laptop. It was this narrative thing for her senior project, so it's due in a few years. But, I'll spare you the details. Y/N had to write what one of her wishes for the future was and she wrote that she wants to know why the guy killed everyone in the orphanage. Not who, because we already know that it was Raúl Rodríguez. She wants to know why."

"That guy's the one who told them to attack the orphanage? The one that killed her sister, right?"

"That's the prick."

"Okay, I'll see what I can do. I'd know that if it was my sister or my kid that I'd want to know."

"Thanks, man."

"Video and audio?"

"Yeah. I'm probably gonna get Emilia in on this too to translate."

"Why? Don't you and Hailey speak Spanish?"

"We do, but they're gonna talk really fast and I probably don't know law lingo except for the word lawyer."

"Fair enough. I'll get to work."

***

"Hails, Hails," Jay shook Hailey awake.

"Jay? Why are you home so late?" she asked as she rolled over and opened her eyes. It was almost 11:30 and she had gone to bed half an hour ago...she thought Jay would've been home by 11:00.

"Paperwork," Jay answered honestly. He instantly regretted his decision of waking Hailey up knowing her history of insomnia. "But, I shouldn't have woke you up. I'm sorry, babe."

"No, I'm awake now. What's up?" She sat up in bed and turned on the lamp to see Jay changing out of his clothes and into his pajama pants and an old t-shirt. "You don't have to sleep with a shirt on you know."

Jay smirked. "You'd like that, wouldn't you? But, don't want our daughter to walk in on me shirtless."

"She's spending the night at Rosa's," Hailey informed him.

"In that case..." Jay trailed off and took off his t-shirt along with his pajama pants so that he was just in his boxers. "Better?"

"Much better."

Jay pulled back the covers on his side of the bed and slid in next to his wife. She cuddled into his side and he wrapped an arm around her.

"What'd you want to tell me?" she asked.

"How do you know I wanted to tell you something?"

"You had that look in your eye, Jay Halstead. Now, tell me."

"So persuasive." He rolled his eyes playfully.

"Shut up."

"You love it, though." He gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "You know how Y/N's biggest wish was to know why Raúl Rodríguez attacked the orphanage?"

"Mhmm," she mumbled.

"Well, I'm gonna find out why."

She pulled away from him. "What? How? You're going to Spain? To interrogate him? You know the CPD doesn't have jurisdiction there even though you were a ranger there, right?"

"Hails, I'm not going overseas to find him. I promise you that."

"Okay." She settled back into his embrace. "Then what are you doing?"

"Having Mouse see if he can hack into the prison system so that I can watch the lawyer talk to him."

"And you're going to be able to understand everything they're saying?"

"No, but Emilia will."

"You called her and told her your plan before you told me?"

"No! The only person who knows is Mouse. I figured I'd call Emilia tomorrow. Like I said, I was just at the district late doing paperwork."

"Okay, I believe you. And, we're not going to have her in the room with us, Y/N that is? We're going to tell her why he did this so she doesn't have to hear it from him?"

"Precisely. Now, am I right in assuming that since Y/N's gone for the night that we can be as loud as we want?"

"You are very much correct in that." Then, he gave her a kiss...and this time, he didn't phone it in at a peck.

***

You were sitting in the breakroom Monday afternoon trying to do some American history homework. There was so much reading involved, but it was okay because you liked history. And, there were pictures in the textbook...it wasn't like you were reading Romeo and Juliet like you had to do in English class.

You knew Emilia was here because she had brought you some fries, much to your mom and dad's dismay since your mom had packed you a few extra snacks. But, Emilia said she had to hold up her reputation as your cool aunt...even if she wasn't related to you whatsoever. And so far, she was holding it up.

You didn't know why she was here, but you assumed it was because Kim was in the field and they needed someone to translate audio. Sometimes Jay would call in Emilia if he knew that she wasn't working to do some translating so he didn't have to deal with calling up a patrolman. You also knew from hearing some of his conversations with Will that Will wanted to ask her out.

And, you hoped she say yes. You wanted Emilia to be your actual aunt. Apparently, she had a thing for doctors according to Jay's side of the phone conversations you'd heard, so you hoped it'd work out if your uncle Will ever got the balls to ask her out.

All of a sudden, Emilia came into Jay's office and he took off running. Hailey saw this and she started following them.

"What?" you asked yourself.

They always would tell you if they had to leave and they'd always be sure to tell you they loved you before they left.

You quietly walked out of the breakroom and towards where you had seen them running to. You assumed they were in the tech area because of the direction they ran in and the fact that whenever Emilia was here, she was most likely in the tech room.

As you got closer, you started hearing Spanish.

Someone talking about an attack...an attack on an orphanage.

A man said it was in the Tabernas Desert.

You peeked your head around the corner to see that on the screen there was a man in a nice suit and someone sitting at a table with handcuffs on.

"Anything we don't already know?" Hailey asked.

"Not that it sounds like right now," Emilia answered. "They're just talking about the orphanage Y/N and Illiana were in and where it was."

So this is the guy who did it. This was the guy--no, the monster--who led the attack that killed your sister.

"The lawyer just asked Rodríguez why he did it," Emilia said.

"And?" Jay asked

"Jay, I need to be able to hear them talk, so shut up."

Jay held his hands up in a sign of surrender.

"The lawyer just asked if it was something personal, something like Rodríguez being an orphan and he didn't have a good experience there so he attacked it, something that would tug at the board of appeals heartstrings essentially." There was a pause as Emilia continued listening. "He said no." She paused again. "Oh my God."

"What?" Jay asked frantically. "Why did that prick kill innocent children?"

"He said he ordered the attack because the orphanage was receiving aid from the US, for things such as food, clothing, and basic necessities."

"Un-fucking-believable." Jay wanted to punch something, but he restrained himself. "So, because our country was helping those who couldn't help themselves, this prick went after them?"

"That's what it sounds like. I'm sorry, Jay."

"Hails, how are we going to tell Y/N?"

"You guys don't have to tell me," you said as you made your presence known. "I heard the whole thing."

Jay sighed. "I'm sorry cariña, really I am. I'm sorry that this happened to you. That you had to find out this way. That this was the reason for what that monster did. I'm sorry."

"Dad read my outline?" you asked, turning to Hailey.

"Yeah, nena, he did. It was just open and you know him, he couldn't stop himself."

"Because he's a detective before he's a sergeant, just like Nancy Drew," you said, bringing it back to the books you'd used to read with your dad every night when you had just come over to the states from Spain and were working on your English.

"This should never have happened," Jay said softly as he walked over to you and brought you into a tight hug. "People that do these kinds of horrific acts shouldn't have the right to be born, much less to live."

"But if that wouldn't have happened you wouldn't have found me. And I wouldn't have found my forever Mom and Dad."

A/N: I wrote over 6.5k words to get this posted today! That's a new personal record for me! Also, my neuroscience class is kicking my butt right now, so if I don't update as frequently, that's why. Hopefully, I'll get one out every week or every two weeks at the latest. Please like/reblog and comment because I love getting feedback and it keeps me motivated to write. If you want to be added to the taglist, just tell me and I’ll add you! 

taglist: @theambracer88 @virtualreader @kelelas-life @celyndavies @brookerz122493 @musicismyescape27 @anotherfan07 @thexplosivegirl @dreamingwithlens @xoxmariaxox @onechicago18 @iamasimpingh0e 

[lovelyirony]

@rhodee for you

When Tony had gotten back from Siberia, he hadn’t been able to see anyone for a long time. 

But people had been to see him. 

He wasn’t expecting Rhodey to come and see him for a variety of medically-related reasons, but he was hoping for an email or a phone call, at least a message about Tony being a “dumbass.” 

And then he asked Pepper how Rhodey was doing, and she tenses up. 

Pepper has never been a good liar to Tony, not since they got drunk together for the first time and she told him every single tell she had for lying. They could never hide from each other after that. 

“He’s...knocked out, still.” 

Tony raises his eyebrows. 

“So, he’s not knocked out, something happened to him.” 

“Tony, he...he doesn’t remember.” 

“What, the fall? I wish I couldn’t remember that either, but I’m betting that that’s not what you’re talking about.” 

“He doesn’t remember any of us. He doesn’t remember anything except for his freshman year of college. All of this information is...overwhelming for him.” 

Tony freezes. 

He and Rhodey didn’t live together freshman year. Hell, they didn’t even know each other freshman year. They became sort-of-friends near the beginning of sophomore year, and that meant... 

Oh god.

Rhodey wouldn’t remember three important things: 

1.) He’s bisexual.

2.) He’s an accomplished man who has achieved much in his lifetime and has grown comfortable with himself with years of help.

3.) He married Tony. They’re married. 

For a long time, Rhodey didn’t really want to admit that he liked guys. It wasn’t something he ever talked about, nothing he ever wanted to discuss. He didn’t mind that Tony had an attraction to men, but he always seemed to put himself at a distance when Tony brought someone over for dinner or a study session. 

Rhodey didn’t want to come to terms with it at first. He was very adamant that he would marry a nice girl and settle down, and Tony hadn’t contested it, hadn’t challenged him on it. That could have very well been the situation. 

It wasn’t until the end of sophomore year--into the summer, actually--that Rhodey even wanted to tempt to talk about what attraction would even mean for him. 

They had gotten together senior year, and Tony has a picture framed in their bedroom of Tony dipping Rhodey into a kiss (and dropping him after the picture was taken) after graduation. 

“They had to take off his wedding ring for the surgery, but I wasn’t sure what to tell him. The doctors said to avoid bringing up any information that would surprise them, and I remember that you talked about it once...” 

“Yeah,” Tony says thickly, his chest hurting from more than just a frisbee-toss gone wrong. “Okay. Yeah. Let’s, uh...let’s just transfer him over to the headquarters. I’ll just...I’ll figure something out.” 

He can’t tell Rhodey he has a husband. He can’t. The reaction alone would be terrible, if he’s knowing what he knows. 

-

So he doesn’t. 

Tony welcomes Rhodey into the compound after taking down every single romantic photo, briefing everyone who still lived there that Rhodey had lost his memory, and praying to whoever would listen that Rhodey didn’t find out until he was comfortable with it. 

“I don’t go by Rhodey,” was the first thing off of his lips. Not a hello, not a smile. “I go by Jim.” 

“Right,” Tony says, smiling in that flashy way that Rhodey usually told him to stop, because it creeped him out because he knew what that smile was actually all about. “Jim. Nice to see you back.” 

“I wish I could say the same, but I’m not exactly sure I remember you. Your face looks really familiar, though.” 

“Well, that’s what nearly twenty-five years of knowledge can do to somebody,” Tony says quickly. “Let me show you to your room. Sorry about the lack of decorations, we didn’t really want to overwhelm you with anything.” 

“I’m fine,” Rhodey says, clearly annoyed. “It’s just weird knowing that I’m way fucking older and apparently I graduated college and managed to make something of myself and I can’t remember any of it.” 

“I can’t say I understand, but I can say that it sucks,” Tony says. “But, lucky for you, I kept some of your stuff.” 

“A friend kept my stuff?” Rhodey asks. “Why?” 

“Because I’m annoying and you pretend like you hate me, when I am the best thing that happened to you,” Tony says, smiling. 

He then turns when he can see Rhodey’s--Jim’s--expression turn sour. 

“Ah, anyway,” Tony says hurriedly. “You just...keep stuff sometimes.” 

(He’s not going to mention that it’s because they shared an apartment. Or a house. Or a room. Or, on occasion, a bank account.) 

“Dinner is gonna be at seven, feel free to come down,” Tony says, smile wearing thin. 

- 

Jim doesn’t come down. 

Or he did, but he came down early. 

Because he doesn’t want anything to do with Tony. 

“It’ll just take time,” Pepper tells Tony over the phone. “Give him some space.” 

So Tony does. 

But it’s hard giving your amnesiac husband space when you’ve never done it before, not really. 

Tony has always been around Rhodey, always been invading and crawling into his space, and Rhodey really only complained when Tony’s hands would sneak around his chest when the nights were dark and cold. 

Now they’re at a distance, and Tony doesn’t know how to bring up any facts about their life. 

So far, all Jim’s been doing is catching up on history. 

“We fought Captain America?” he asks, gaping at the article about finding Captain Rogers in an iceberg. “Why?” 

“He likes putting his foot in his mouth a lot.” Tony says. “And both sides have been notoriously bad at keeping their cool.” 

“Oh. So we just...I  fought him? Because I’m just friends with you?” 

“Yeah,” Tony says, quite uncomfortable with the insertion of the word “just” in that sentence. 

“...weird.” 

“The future’s crazy, honey-bear.” 

Jim looks up. 

“Why do you call me that?” 

“Call you what?” 

“Honey-bear. It’s weird.” 

“Inside joke we have,” Tony says, chest tightening. “We thought those couples that have the lovey-dovey nicknames were ridiculous.” 

“Oh. Gross.” 

“Yeah, it is,” Tony says. “But kinda funny. One time you called me ‘sugar-tits’.” 

Jim laughs at that one. 

“Oh god, that’s...rough. What else did I call you?” 

Baby. Honey. Love of my life. Darling. 

“Uh...” Tony says, pretending to think. “I think love-muffin was also an option.” 

Jim throws back his head and laughs. 

“How did we...how did we become friends?” 

“Well, it all started with a dining hall and you trying to steal an entire painting without getting caught, and my valiant rescue...” 

“Why do I get the feeling that that’s not true?” 

“Because it isn’t,” Tony grins. “Just making sure your bullshit-detector is working again. It is. We met because we weren’t supposed to be roommates but they fucked up and the rooms filled up, so you dealt with me as best you could.” 

“Oh,” Jim says. “What do we do for fun?”

Go on date nights. Talk about how stupid we were as kids. Debate who asked out who. Cook together. 

“Uh, we used to...shoot hoops.” 

“You don’t seem like a basketball kinda guy,” Jim says. 

“Oh believe me, I wasn’t,” Tony responds with a laugh, “but you were, and you always liked kicking my ass on the court.” 

“Good to know that I can still probably do that,” Jim says, smug and self-satisfied. “Hey, where did Pepper go?” 

“Oh, she’s busy with a contract this week, what do you need?” 

Jim puts his hand on the back of his neck in that nervous habit he always got (that Tony only knew about because every single time he would walk into the room after he realized he liked him in that way, Rhodey would do that). 

“Um, just want to ask her something. About my life.” 

And Tony can’t breathe. 

He doesn’t know and that’s...that’s everything. 

“She’ll be back for dinner,” Tony says. “In the mean time, I’ll be in the lab working on some stuff, feel free to do whatever.” 

“Thanks, man.” 

- 

Pepper stares at Jim, who for so long has been one of her best friends and is now asking if he had anyone who he was involved with romantically. 

“You...what?” 

“Did I have a girlfriend or anything?” Jim asks. “Because, um, it’s going to kind of suck if I didn’t.” 

“You had a girlfriend sophomore year,” she answers carefully. “That lasted for about three months or something. You’d have to ask Tony more about it, he knows more about you than I do.” 

“And you said we’re...friends? We didn’t date?”

“Yeah, we are friends, no we didn’t date,” Pepper says. “We get lunch on Thursdays if you’re in town.” 

“I’m in the army, right?” 

“About to retire, too,” Pepper says with a grin. “You were really happy, you were planning on taking Tony on a trip.” 

“I was?” Jim asks, frowning. “We’re...that close?” 

“Well yeah, you’re-” Pepper pauses for a moment. “You’re best friends. You always like spending time with Tony.” 

“Oh,” Jim says. “Okay.” 

He knows that they’re lying to him. He gets why: if he learns too much, it could cause some sort of damage. And according to Friday, “Colonel Platypus” (whatever the fuck that means) keeps his personal life intensely private. 

He doesn’t know why he’s done that. Why he’s kept everything so private. It’s not because of his military status, he thinks. Unless, of course, they put him on all sorts of secret projects. That could definitely be a thing. 

Tony keeps almost calling him Rhodey. It’s a weird nickname. He doesn’t know why he apparently loves it. It sounds...stupid. Weird. Jim works just fine. 

Pepper also said they were just friends. And she sounds like she means it. And Tony says they’re just friends, but he doesn’t sound like he means it. 

But that doesn’t mean...? 

No. Of course not. There would be pictures and rings and all of that sappy, gross shit that comes with weddings. 

...would there be? 

“Hey Friday?” he asks. 

“Yes, Colonel Rhodes?” 

“Um. Is gay marriage legal?” 

“Yes, Colonel Rhodes, it is. Would you like further articles about the decision?” 

“Uh...sure. I guess.” 

He keeps reading articles (with reading glasses) and learns a lot about what’s been going on. 

He’s just interested, obviously. In current events. 

- 

It’s a week later when he asks Tony about it. 

“So...did you remember the whole legalization of gay marriage thing?” he asks Tony, who pauses at his coffee. “I, um. Read an article where they said you were bi, so I wasn’t sure if you-” 

“No, I am,” Tony says. “I remember it really well. I celebrated well that day.” 

he grinned as he looked at Rhodey, and swore to rent out the entire metropolitan museum of art, just for him. he would do anything for him, anything at all-

Jim looks at him. 

“What did you do to celebrate?” 

“Well, there were quite a lot of people at gay bars. We danced. I drank a glass of champagne. And then we danced again.” 

“Someone was with me?” 

“You were,” Tony says. “You were here when it happened, and it was...it was a good day for us.” 

“I’m not gay though,” Jim says with a frown. 

“Doesn’t mean that you can’t celebrate,” Tony says, eyes holding something in them that makes him look like he might cry. “Some people’s triumph can be a momentous occasion.” 

It can the occasion where your marriage is finally recognized everywhere. It’s where you get the iconic photo of mashing cake in your partner’s face, and all of the guests are grinning and you’re happy, and--

Tony shakes himself out of that train of thought. 

“Yeah, I guess,” Jim says. “Just...please tell me that you didn’t get any embarrassing pictures.” 

“Oh I did,” Tony replies, grinning maniacally. “Would you like to see yourself in a feather boa or a flamingo floatie?” 

“Oh my god,” Jim moans, throwing his hands to the dinner table. “No...” 

“You looked a dream, gorgeous,” Tony teases. “And I have the pictures to prove it. I’ll get them out another time, I promised Dum-E that I’d help him pick up his mess.” 

“Who is he?” 

Tony grins. 

“He’s our baby, metaphorically speaking. We built him on a half-drunk, half-dare kind of situation,” Tony says. “He’s a disaster.” 

Jim thinks about it for a moment. “Can I...can I meet him?” 

-

Dum-E hasn’t seen his dad in forever. He’s wheeling around Rhodey, beeping and nearly running over his feet. 

“Great, your return has pushed back any build-up coordination training we did,” Tony scolds, although his tone doesn’t sound serious at all. “Dum-E, your father and I agreed to help clean, although methinks that Jim will be a great surveyor for us.” 

“What’d you spill?” Jim asks. 

“Couple of glass stuff,” Tony says. “He’s been really into stained glass recently, I think he was trying to make his own.” 

“He can think?” 

“Yeah,” Tony says. “His coding, by the way, was like sixty percent you. That’s why he’s so damned stubborn and also why he puts motor oil into smoothies, genius.” 

“Hey, that most definitely was you,” Jim says. “You didn’t grocery shop that day, so I was weak and malnourished.” 

Tony stills. 

“You...remember that?” 

Jim pauses for a moment. 

“You...you were supposed to go grocery shopping and I made a list,” he says, smiling fondly. “And you didn’t take the list because you said you had an eidetic memory, but you still forgot the lemons, so I don’t believe you.” 

Tony throws back his head and laughs. 

“Glad to have a memory for you, Rho-Jim. You want a glass of water or anything?” 

“Water sounds fine.” 

Jim watches as Tony works around Dum-E, obviously used to his quirks and mannerisms as he banters and threatens with nothing backing up that threat. 

He smiles as he wheels himself over, grabbing a dust pan on his way over. 

“Figured we’ll need this,” he offers. Tony accepts it with a smile. 

“Thanks Jim.” 

“You can-you can call me Rhodey. If you want.” 

Tony looks at him for a moment. 

“But is that what you want?” 

Jim pauses. 

“Yes. For now.” 

“Okay,” Tony says, smiling. He’s not showing how fucking happy he is, how ready he is to leap for the moon and bring stardust down on his way home. “Thank you.” 

Jim nods. 

“I think I’m gonna turn in for the night.” 

“Have a goodnight, Jim. Let me know if you need anything.” 

-

He lies awake in bed that night. 

“Hey, Friday?” 

“Yes, Boss?” 

“I...I’m not being told everything, am I?” 

“Information can potentially be triggering to the current state you are in, Colonel Rhodes.” 

“Are you being paid to say that?” 

“I don’t get paid,” Friday says. “Although if I did, I would not want to take the money.” 

“So I am missing something,” Rhodey says. “I just...I don’t know what.” 

“It will come with time, Colonel Rhodes.” 

“And if it doesn’t? If I have to relive life all over again?” He asks, growing agitated. “If my memory doesn’t come back, Friday...I’m not sure they’ll ever tell me anything.” 

“It is already a good sign that you remembered Dum-E. He was missing you quite terribly.” 

“Can I...can you show me a picture of me with him?” 

“Sure thing, Boss.” 

- 

Rhodey has a sharp intake of breath. 

Right there. 

Right on his left hand. 

A wedding ring. 

And then he looks at Tony, Tony who is looking fondly as Rhodey and Dum-E are reenacting some stupid thing, and there’s a-

A ring. 

On the left hand. 

That wasn’t there before. 

Shit. 

[innovativestruggles]

Daisuke & Suzue’s Relationship - A Consolidation Post

Hey gang, so given that we have 2 episodes left and absolutely zero idea as to what Daizue’s relationship is, I have decided to put together a spectrum of information. A lot of the stuff I am posting here have already been speculated to some degree, but it is nice to have it all in one big post where you can see what’s been gathered so far.

When I write about speculations, I always base everything on canonical evidence. Of course, there will be elements of personal bias and opinions intermeshed within, but I will try and separate facts from opinions as much as possible so that you can also draw your own conclusions.

For the purpose of this post, I will exclude all novel content, considering the anime is vastly different from the novel. I will start with the OP and work my way towards Episode 9. Originally I was going to wait until Episode 10 to complete this post, but I decided that it probably wouldn’t matter, considering Daizue’s relationship may not be revealed until Episode 11 and they most likely would be focusing on the battle with Shigemaru in Episode 10 rather than delve any deeper into Daizue’s relationship.

WARNING: This is a long post

The Opening

I want to look at this from the perspective of a complete newbie, who has zero knowledge of the novel or what the fandom is speculating. When looking solely at the OP, this is how it is seen;

1. Suzue is a beautiful character who is heavily sexualised

2. The show centres around a handsome rich boy with unlimited money

3. Selling the idea of sassy detective work

Suzue plays the perfect Bond girl trope. From the way she is shown in the OP in lingerie, to being tied to Daisuke’s car, to being bridal carried at the very end. As a newbie watching this OP, all I see is, hot rich guy and his hot, sexy, gorgeous sidekick woman whom he develops a sexual relationship with. 

If we all take a step back and just see the bigger picture, anyone, including non-anime watchers, who look at this OP would immediately associate Daisuke and Suzue as some sort of couple/love interests or two characters with immense sexual tension. There is no doubt about that.

So what am I trying to say here? Well, it is clear as day that the FKBU creators were deliberate in the way they showcased Daizue’s relationship. The OP is a foreshadow of what is to come or it implies the way the entire show is set out. 

But y’know...to me, the biggest foreshadow was that bridal carry!

Oops...wrong one...I meant this one below 😏

Episode 2

We are skipping Episode 1 as Suzue did not debut until Episode 2.

1. Suzue’s introduction She introduced herself as Suzue Kambe. That was it. Normally, whether it be in an anime or manga, a person would introduce themselves and their relationship (whether directly or indirectly), to another character. This was deliberately left out to keep viewers guessing.

2. Daisuke’s non-existent response Daisuke did not elaborate on his relationship with Suzue. Remember when Haru said something along the lines of “a woman with black hair entered this building,” to which Daisuke replied “woman with black hair you say?” There was no further explanation of who Suzue was to him or how they knew each other, or what sort of relationship they have.

3. Haru’s question was diverted When Haru asked Suzue, “who the hell are you?” Suzue’s response was “I’ve been following Daisuke’s orders...” Again, no further elaboration/explanation. The question was also diverted and she did not properly answer his question.

4. Haru’s assumption Haru made the assumption, as we found out in Episode 4, that Suzue and Daisuke are married. But this was not explored at the time in Episode 2. Again, another deliberate attempt to conceal information, considering we did not even get to see Haru’s assumption of Daizue’s relationship at the time.

5. Suzue’s use of Daisuke’s name No use of nii-san or nee-chan to indicate a sibling relationship and no honourifics were used. The interesting thing here was, Suzue was shown to drop the honourifics from Daisuke’s name in only this episode. Whether it was a mistake or a deliberate attempt to drip feed viewers information at the time, we don’t know. But let’s just say it was a deliberate attempt on the creators part - it needs to make sense. What I’m trying to say here is that Suzue should be in a relationship close enough to Daisuke to be able to drop the honorific but also be in a professional/lower position to continue addressing him with ‘sama.’ So in essence, Daisuke and Suzue’s relationship is most likely more complex than meets the eye.

6. Suzue’s professionalism Daisuke and Suzue’s relationship is too formal and professional to be considered to be some kind of sibling/family/close relative situation. Suzue works for Daisuke. That is the end point. She follows his every instructions and obeys all his orders. Even if she were a Kambe, she has to be a very, very, very distant relative to even submit to that level of obedience. If she were a closer relative but of a lower ranking than Daisuke’s family, there is absolutely no way she would be put in such a subservient position (more on this later).

Based on the 6 above points, personally, what I see is a deliberate attempt to create drama amongst fans lmao! But jokes aside, you cannot take it on face value that they are just relatives (or siblings at the time when it was first released) because as you can see, there are so many clues in this episode alone that does not make any sense.

Episode 3

Suzue only made a brief appearance here but I’d like to add a couple things.

1. Grandma’s focus on Daisuke Grandma barely acknowledged Suzue, and given that Suzue herself is a Kambe, I find this incredibly odd. Grandma was very focused on Daisuke, from his work relationship to his behaviour, and Suzue was...ignored.

2. Grandma explicitly stated to Haru about Daisuke that she is “his grandma” This piece of information was only available in the English subtitles. Remember that in Japanese language, there is no ‘his’ or ‘her.’ It is gender neutral. But I take it that the subtitles are official subtitles which gave us a bit more of a clue into Daizue’s relationship. We know at this stage here that Grandma is only Daisuke’s grandma and not Suzue’s.

With the above 2 points, if Suzue were a sibling or a closer relative, there would be more focus on her too. And I know the show is about Daisuke and Haru, so why would Suzue get any attention? But precisely this is the reason! Because the show centres a lot around the Kambe family conflict and you would think Suzue would be more involved in this conflict if she were closely related. But she is not involved. To me, this just screams outsider. Poor Suzue.

Episode 4

Alright, here we go on this roller coaster episode. 

1. Suzue addressed Daisuke as ‘Daisuke-sama.’ Kudos to know this because no bloody sibling would say this shit to their elder sibling. So that theory has been written off long ago now. 

Anyways I’d like to point out that there are times where lower members of a family, known as ‘branch’ families, would address the head family with polite honourifics. It’s quite rare nowadays in modern Japan, but in saying that, richer more exclusive families may still tend to do this and some still fight over the title of head of family. So in essence, anyone who succeeds as head of family (together with their immediate family) will obviously be addressed with polite honourifics. 

Just to let you know, branch families can either be closer relatives or very, very distant relatives (so distant that it is negligible they are related to the head family). We don’t know how big the Kambe family is and what the dynamics are like when it comes to the next successor. The bigger the family, the more likely members will want to fight over the title for head of family - usually once when the current head of family and their immediate family are all dead. What I’m trying to point out here is that Suzue may well still be a relative (I’m not gonna deny that during this first point I’m making), considering the above explanation I just made.

2. Daisuke did not elaborate on the type of relative Suzue was to him Another obvious one here. The creators love playing games with the viewers. The fact that Daisuke did not elaborate on his relationship with Suzue was a huge red flag. In the sense that we do not know whether Suzue is a close relative, a distant relative, married into the Kambe family or adopted. The creators are still keeping the viewers guessing!

3. Daisuke’s body language and expression This may be more opinionated base, but you can make judgements for yourself by rewatching the scene again. When Daisuke tells Haru that Suzue is a relative, there was almost a stilted, discomforting demeanour, as if he did not want to discuss the topic. This was heavily exacerbated and reinforced by his tone of voice, which may indicate he could be hiding something?

4. Haru’s assumption that Daisuke and Suzue are married Considering the fandom thinks Daizue look so similar, Haru clearly didn’t. So on his end, they looked more like husband and wife than siblings or relatives..

5. Suzue’s infatuation with Daisuke It was too obsessive. Lovey dovey and just ... plain questionable. I mean, Suzue could still be a relative and do this but the way it was set up was very jarring. As in, Suzue displays a sense of professionalism and obedience towards Daisuke that screams master and servant - not infatuation. 

Normally in anime shows where a character is infatuated over another, there isn’t that simultaneous level of professionalism displayed between the characters. So whether the character is a relative or not, it would be believable. But in Suzue’s case, professionalism + infatuation + relative does not make any sense to me. Also, Do NOT confuse loyalty with professionalism! They are two separate things. Suzue displays both! Characters you see in other anime may display loyalty and infatuation. The biggest incongruence to me with regards to Suzue is the infatuation and professionalism!

From something like this...

To something like this...

6. Suzue attended to Daisuke’s everyday needs Honestly if this wasn’t the most jarring thing, I seriously don’t know what was. I swear, not even the lowest member of a branch family would attend to a head family’s every day needs like a servant/maid. It makes no sense. Considering Daisuke is rich enough to have multiple maids that could attend to his every day needs, and that his butler Hattori could probably do what Suzue does, I do not understand the need for Suzue to do all these personal things for Daisuke.

7. The anime creators deliberately did this episode in a way that would confuse fans even more When you add: Daisuke saying “Suzue is a relative” + Suzue’s weird infatuation + addressing Daisuke with ‘sama’ = you are going to get the biggest explosion of confusion. 

It almost felt like the creators wanted to balance things out for the viewers. That is, “I want Daisuke to say Suzue is a relative, but I also don’t want the viewers to think she is a relative either.” There you go, they nailed it with this episode.

8. Daisuke cooked for Suzue At first I didn’t think much of this scene other than Daisuke’s weird way of making up to Suzue for being petulant LOL. But then I thought about how Grandma and butler were just standing there, uninvited to eat food made by Daisuke...it just goes to show that Daizue’s relationship runs a lot deeper than meets the eye. More important than Grandma that is for sure.

Episodes 5 and 6

Suzue did not make much of an appearance in these two episodes, but what I continued to see was the undying loyalty and continued professional relationship between Daisuke and Suzue. Despite Suzue’s injury in Episode 5, she continued to assist Daisuke (or tried to) in a manner that screams ‘I am forever your servant. Ask and ye shall receive’ kinda vibe LOL 

When she knows Daisuke is safe, Suzue keeps her cool, calm demeanour and powers on with the professionalism, but that weird infatuation kicks in otherwise... what an odd relationship they have...

Episode 7

1. The lack of Suzue in the family photos No Suzue could be seen in the family album. And yes, some people pointed out the baby in the ‘pink’ onesie was Suzue. Could be. But highly doubt it. Someone mentioned that the onesie used to be red but faded over time to a pinkish colour because it has been more than 27 years. That’s also a plausible explanation. Tbh, that entire photo album just screamed Daisuke.

2. All other photos pointed to the fact that Daisuke was raised as an only child No Suzue present or any indication that she was there at the time those photos were taken

Episode 8

Oh boy, the fun episode LOL

1. You can try and see it both ways here.

a. Suzue was just trying to warn Daisuke about HEUSC. That was all. Nothing else.

b. Definitely fanservice. Suzue could have done this in so many other ways. It was obviously a deliberate part on the creators’ side to bring forth a sexually suggestive scene that really further questions Daizue’s relationship. And the way they zoomed in on certain features (yeah we love their lips almost touching and Suzue’s ass in the air whilst her legs were pressed in between Daisuke’s) perhaps suggested something more explicit between the two (or implied to be in the future), but then again, the zooming in of their lips could just emphasise HEUSC’s ability to lip read rather than anything sensual. But ya know, I reckon it probably was both. 

Again, this whole scene puts more question marks on their relationship as to ‘What kind of relatives are they?’ or ‘Are they really relatives?’ or ‘What is their true relationship?’

**

Zooming in on Suzue moving her ass and legs in between Daisuke was completely unnecessary unless they are implying something sexual. Yeah goodbye.

This was obviously more necessary to describe HEUSC’s ability to lip read...but the way it was zoomed in and emphasised between them...

2. The creators made Haru see Daizue walk out the room A hugely obvious attempt at forwarding Daizue’s relationship. I mean, putting Haru in that position completely threw the spanner in the works. He was obviously informed by Daisuke that Suzue “is just a relative,” yet he saw them walk out from Daisuke’s bedroom looking all...well...looking like they just had the most amazing time in there. 

Even though it was obvious to us viewers what Haru was thinking, we were never shown Haru questioning the situation in relation to ‘Wait a minute, didn’t Daisuke say she was a relative? What the f did I just see then?’ We don’t get that point of view from Haru so we don’t know what he was speculating in relation to their relationship. I mean, Haru could just be as confused as we were! The only advantage Haru got over us viewers was that he could have just asked them for more clarity around their relationship. Clearly he was just being too polite lmao

3. Daizue did not attempt to clarify the situation I mean, unless they were both stupid and seriously thought Haru wouldn’t think they got up to no good, despite it being so clear as day that Haru thought otherwise, they did not say anything. Again, another deliberate part on the creators’ side to create further confusion. They really like making Daizue keep their mouths shut when it comes to anything to do with their relationship backstory...

**

The creators went one step further and made Daisuke adjust his shirt. LOLOL

And even further by making Suzue’s hair all messy and dishevelled...

4. Suzue mentioned ‘your father and mother’ to Daisuke when discussing HEUSC Big red flag here that would completely forever bury the sibling theory. It sounds to me that Daisuke and his family are very separate from Suzue.

Episode 9

We are in the present now!

1. Daisuke tells Grandma that only the Kambe family, that is, he himself and Grandma, could infiltrate the system This may imply that Suzue is not a true Kambe or she may have been adopted into the family. It would also help discredit the theory that she may be a lower ranking member of the Kambe family/a branch family of the Kambe. It may also imply that Daisuke may have been hiding something from Haru about Suzue when he said ‘Suzue is a relative’ or he was outright lying.

Other materials

Their appearances

On surface level, they do have some similarities but if you look a bit closer, their eye colour is different (Daisuke’s is a deep blue and Suzue’s is more violet), hair colour is different (Daisuke’s is more black and Suzue’s is more charcoal) and eye and eyebrow shape are different. Tbvh, if they made Suzue’s eye and hair colour completely different, you would see the contrast more. It’s just that the creators deliberately designed the two this way to evoke more confusion.

Concluding opinion: It is obvious to me that the creators are drip feeding us information about Suzue. Here with this post, even when analysing it on a spectrum, I gathered two things from it over time.

a) Suzue is not a blood relative

b) The relationship between Daisuke and Suzue is a lot more complex

Just remember that Daisuke trusts Suzue with his life. So the level of mutual understanding and trust between the two is incredibly profound.

Again, these are all very speculative and a lot of the fandom have garnered their own information over the course of the episodes. This is what I (and a lot of DaiSuzu fans) have dissected so far. 

Although the entire show is centred around Daisuke and Haru and their detective work with regards to the Kambe family, I feel like Daizue’s relationship is like that mini side story. Whether they will delve into it or not in the next two episodes is anyone’s guess really. As I said earlier, if anything, the reveal would most likely occur at the very end of Episode 11.

Anyways, share your thoughts and feel free to refute! But PLEASE, be respectful.

P. S. I will keep adding to this if I think of more stuff. It’ll be part of a new “edit section.” I’ll just reblog it so people can see it easier!

[flovey-dovey]

I want to say something about Klaus

I’ve been waiting a very long time to see this movie, and when I finally could I loved it to pieces. But the ending broke my heart- in more ways than one.

There will be no “tldr” here because my feelings about this film are too strong to let me minimalize what I have to say about it (but I might have to make a part 2 since this is pretty big). If you don’t agree with me, that’s fine, it’s okay, I don’t blame you. I won’t tell you you’re wrong, because in your own life you’re as obligated as ever to have an opinion of your own, correct or not. One other thing I want to say before I start rambling is that this will be messy. Also I do not- nor have ever- claimed to be a critic, and this is not a review. This is just a single person on the internet expressing their opinion, and for the love of all that is holy let’s keep it at that.

Foreword over, on to my pure thoughts. Oh, and spoiler alert for those who haven’t seen the movie yet. No matter what I think about it it’s definitely worth a watch, and going into this without seeing it will probably confuse some folks. Maybe.

Okay, since my main qualm is with the characters, let’s start with Alva. I like her. She’s not the generic “tough girl who don’t need no man” I was fully prepared to have shoved down my throat. She has some genuinely good moments on her own as well as funny and pleasant interactions with both Jesper and the children of the town and is a fine character. She is jaded and determined, though not to the point of that being her entire personality, and I loved watching her find happiness as the teacher she wanted to be. She is a victim of circumstance that eventually has her environment changed and finds herself changed with it for the better. Her design and personality were very pleasing (to me) to see as well.

However...

Why did she have to be the love interest? Just- why? What warranted her eventually desiring a relationship of any description when she was shown to be more devoted to her position as a teacher- and as a single woman- throughout 90% of the film? This is especially frustrating since it turns almost every scene with her into one that involves Jesper in some way rather than build her as a character outside of this perspective. It takes away from Alva “the character” and instead focuses more on her as Alva “the love interest”. In media stuffed to the rafters in heteronormative relationships, and from those that I’ve seen, as afraid as I was to see it happen I was also prepared to have this aspect of the movie gracelessly thrown into my face. So, as might be expected, I actually groaned out loud when I saw it come to pass. I’m not mad, just... actually that’s a lie I am rather irritated by it, but also just... sad. Very, very sad. Disappointed, you might say. She and Jesper don’t have a lot of interactions showing that this was the obvious outcome. The best I can think that people would draw this conclusion would be a) she’s a woman and he’s a guy and they looked at each other that one time, and b) when he was trying to be charming to wriggle out of her wrath. Also, same scene, I don’t buy that it’s further implied by the boat-guy (I forget his name and can’t find it on IMDB) teasing Jesper over “young love” after she leaves in a huff. He’s not a reliable look into any feelings Jesper might feel towards her since all he’s done up to that point is tease him. It’s not enough, it just isn’t. Not to me.

In regards to her feelings for Jesper, the most I see from her is gratitude. The scene when she’s showing Jesper what he unintentionally did for the town is just that, and as she’s looking at the townsfolk Jesper looks... distressed. This is because he is conflicted about what to do at this point in the story, not necessarily because of any feelings for Alva, but it doesn’t even look like he’s thinking of her- romantically- at all. They don’t share any additional conversation, either; not a single flirtatious joke or anything that would lead me to believe they were bonding. I feel horribly conditioned to see her as the love interest and nothing more because that’s all I’ve ever seen done with a man and woman who only share a single line of dialogue before some narrator is telling me “of course” they got together in the end. Oftentimes, that line of dialogue is in an unpleasant or downright aggressive scenario, and that’s not romance. Seeing it happen over and over and over and over in almost every piece of media I subject myself to makes me want to take a blowtorch to my brain. I’m literally at my wit’s end. If it was more built-up and actually there, then fine, I take it back, but the thing is I hardly saw anything at all in terms of either Jesper or Alva or both of them thinking about each other, wanting to be together as more than just friends, throughout the entire hour and a half of the movie. The most scenes I can say they shared (not counting the ending because I’ll get to that in a bit) are four, with each one being little more than a minute long, two of them being more on the aggressive side, the third being when Alva shows Jesper the new Smeerenburg. Pleasant and humorous, yes, but not inherently romantic (neither of them share more than a glance and Jesper looks pretty preoccupied internally). The fourth is of Alva helping Margu translate what she wants from Klaus for Jesper. When Margu hugs Jesper and he and Alva exchange silent looks, the expression on Alva’s face, to me, says something like “you’re not half bad” and a note of good humor for how he handles children. Just so we’re clear I’m not against her finding happiness with Jesper. I just want it to be warranted. Not narrated.

Oh, but their love for each other is obvious and clearly meant to be from the start, is it? Okay then, show me when Alva says or does something and makes Jesper laugh, or vice-versa. Show me when she thought of him OUTSIDE of simply showing him what he did for everyone and how their hands touched, their gazes met and shy or flirtatious smiles spread across their faces as they drew slightly closer, and how she felt something more than gratitude and impressment for him. Show me when Jesper wanted to do something for her OUTSIDE being the means to a letter-related end. Show me the parts when they pined for each other and how happy seeing the other’s smile made them and how they were happy for each other’s progress and encouraged each other. Show me the parts of the movie where Jesper visited as often as he could manage to squeeze into his busy schedule just to chat. Show me kisses, hand-holding, lingering looks and happy little half-smiles cast from across a crowded courtyard. Maybe they do share something more than friendship, but no matter what I can’t get over how little there was between them to give me the impression it was going to lead to romance. It’s not even subtext, in my opinion.

Do you remember when Jesper’s father came back and it all came out in a part known as “the liar revealed” (a trope I quite hate for the oftentimes needless forced drama it creates, but whatever, for now I’ll let it slide) that he had ulterior motives which, at that point, he no longer had? Alva was the FIRST to turn her back on him in spite of their “lovey-dovey” merry-go-round painting MOMENTS earlier. She didn’t even want to hear out Jesper, who was clearly upset, and jumped straight to accusing him without showing that she was just as upset by the revelation that he could’ve been using her and playing with her feelings. How romantic. Meanwhile, the last one to return inside was Klaus, who was far more saddened and disappointed, leaving slower and leaving Jesper looking the worst, like he was heartbroken by his words- an echo of his own- most of all.

In fact...

Speaking of Klaus, I’d say Jesper is far more attracted to him than to Alva. This movie, while nearly devoid of interactions serving to build romantic chemistry between Jesper and Alva (which it absolutely should’ve if they had the ending be what it was), is littered with moments, wordless and otherwise, between Klaus and Jesper. So let’s go over them. I mean, if you’ve left by now then like I said at the start, I don’t mind. But if it’s alright I’d like to talk about them anyway, because holy holly I love them.

The scenes in question are clearly shown to develop their friendship and only get more romantic from there, and I could run out of breath trying to ramble them off all at once and what it meant to me to see them portrayed in such a beautiful way- artistically as well as in terms of the story.

Fairly early on, we learn that the wind is kind of its own “character”, guiding both Jesper and Klaus to ultimately meet each other as well as bringing them together more than once afterwards, and later on with what we learn about him it’s heavily implied to be the spirit of Klaus’ dearly departed wife. I’d like to think she was trying to tell Klaus to move on and find new love in Jesper and for Jesper to find purpose by Klaus’ side. The instances involving the wind are scattered throughout the film, so this is going to be a bit out of order.

To start, Jesper, while trying to get Klaus to donate his toys to the children of Smeerenburg, doesn’t notice the wind swirling around behind him like it was telling Klaus to follow him even if at the time Jesper’s intentions were selfish. Because he changes. They change each other, and their dynamic progresses so much more naturally, directly and clearly than Jesper and Alva’s.

There’s another scene when it leads Klaus to his workshop, where he opens the door to see a silhouette distinctly meant to parallel his wife- the one he loved- and revealed when he pulls back the cloth to be Jesper- his potential new love.

It’s one of the most explicit scenes enforcing my idea that Klaus’ wife was trying to get him to love again. Anyway, Jesper then excitedly starts going on about his gift and trying to get his mojo back before making an unintentionally big mistake by revealing a painful reminder of Klaus’ wife. A mistake he deeply regrets, mind. Not too long later, Jesper tries working on his own to make Margu’s wish for a boat/sleigh come true. While he works, the shot fades to see Klaus back at his workshop. He sees the picture Jesper drew of them and sighs, giving in and going to see him at the post office [also not to mention the drawing fades with the family shelf thing Klaus made so that’s pretty neat; took me a year to edit this in but hey better late than never]. My favorite scene is Klaus showing up to work on Margu’s present, giving Jesper a tool as well and interrupting Jesper to wordlessly point at the task at hand as if to say “If we work, we work together”. And that spoke to me. More than anything else in the movie and more than I’ve heard from any movie I’ve seen that I can remember. Also, Jesper’s soft, shy, willing smile put the biggest grin on my face. It was the last nail in the sled that made me convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that they were forming a romantic bond from this moment forward.

Part 2 because this is long:

https://flovey-dovey.tumblr.com/post/189133807093/part-2-of-my-thoughts-on-klaus

[theydontknowaboutusimagines]

The Set Up - Harry Styles One Shot (Part 6)

Part 1    Part 2    Part 3     Part 4   Part 5  

**

The 10th anniversary issue of The Mixtape was now on newsstands and the response from your loyal readers as been amazing. Everyone was taking to social media talking about it and adding their favorite memories. Things in the office were a bit slower now, but there was still plenty of work to do. Booking artists for interviews and covers, pitching article ideas, and new themed issues. 

Your relationship was still in the honeymoon phase, but you knew at some point soon that would most likely fade away. Especially since he was starting tour in less than a week. You two still had yet to have a conversation about what it would entail in regards to your relationship. Would there be rules or expectations for one another? Would there be days that go where you two wouldn’t speak? How would you handle a disagreement? 

There was so much unknown information that you were a little worried. You had already wrote down every single tour date in your calendar, trying to match up with your own schedule so that you could fly out for a week at a time. You also made sure to note any of his off weeks, so that you didn’t overbook yourself for when he was home. 

Mentally, you are prepared to work as hard and as much as you could while he was gone, so that you were able to take off when you needed it. Of course, you knew that you couldn’t work yourself to death, but the motivation was there. You were at the office, going through a hoard of emails when your boyfriend poked his head in the office, holding two cups of coffee and a muffin. 

“Hey,” You smiled getting up from your desk. “What are doing here?” 

“Just thought I’d pop in and see my girl,” he smiled. “And bring her a little something.” 

“I was just about to grab a refill, so thank you,” you smiled taking one of the cups from him. 

“I figured,” he smiled putting his hand on your waist. 

You smiled giving him a quick kiss, “So, what’s on your agenda today?” 

“I’m having lunch with my sister,” he said leaning against your desk. 

“Oh, that’ll be fun,” you said sipping your coffee.

“Yeah, I try to spend a little bit more time with her before tour, since it’ll be a while till I’m able to see her,” he said. “She doesn’t come out on tour much anymore.” 

“Hm, that’s nice,” you smiled. “I remember her taking about it being weird for her, not always getting to talk or see you.” 

He nodded, “Sometimes the time differences get in the way or our schedules. We at least will text here and there. In fact, sometimes we talk more while I’m tour than when I’m not,” he laughed. 

You nodded, “Interesting.” 

“Hey, but don’t worry,” he said. “That won’t happen with us. Don’t tell Gem, but I’d much rather talk to you, over her,” he winked. 

You laughed, “I will definitely not tell her that or she’ll kick your ass.” 

“That she would,” he laughed. “Oh, there is another reason, I stopped by because I talked to my Mum this morning and she wants me to come stay with her for a few days. I usually do that as well before tour, sometimes she comes here and stays with me or Gem, others I go up there. She also wanted me to invite you.” 

“Oh, I’d love to go,” you smiled. “But only if you want me to go. I don’t want to impose on a mother son time.” 

“You won’t be, besides I feel like she’d be happier spending time with you than me,” he laughed. 

“Just let me know the dates and I’ll make sure everything’s good to go here,” you said. 

“Will do,” he smiled. “Oh, one more thing and I’ll let you get back to work.” 

“Yes?” You giggled. 

“Stay over tonight?” He asked. “I missed having my favorite breakfast this morning.” 

You looked at him confusion on your face, causing him to laugh, “You, baby,” he smirked. 

“Behave!” You laughed. 

“It’s true though,” he said. “I have to get it while I can before I have to go without it.” 

“Well, when you put it that way,” you smirked wrapping your arms around his shoulder, “I’ll be at your place as soon as I’m finished here.. and who says we have to wait until breakfast.” 

“I love the way you think,” he smirked pressing his lips against yours.

**

Harry left your office and headed straight to where he was meeting his sister. His mind was already thinking what would be taking place that nigh once you arrived at his home and he knew he needed to put that on the back burner before lunch with his sister. So, instead he thought about how your face at looked when he mentioned the tour and lack of communication with his family. 

Looking back, he probably shouldn’t have said what he did because while you were trying to hide it he could tell it bothered you. He really need to talk to you about what to expect on tour, but every tour was different, every relationship was different. To be fair, he hadn’t had many experiences with relationships on tour and they all obviously didn’t end well. In the past, he either didn’t have a super serious relationship with someone while on tour or he just didn’t even bother. 

That was mostly the younger side of him, still getting used to both the new found limelight and hectic schedule both on and off tour. But he really wanted this relationship to work with you. Going into it, he knew it was mostly a bad idea to pursue anything knowing he was leaving in a few months time, but he couldn’t help it. There was a undeniable connection he felt with you, even if in the beginning he tried to deny it. He could have at easily said he didn’t want it to become serious until he came back, but that wasn’t fair to you or to him. 

While he knew he should discuss the tour with you, he was going to keep it to himself a little bit longer. Yes, it was like the pot calling the kettle black because he had been upset with you not telling him about The Mixtape party, but this was different. He was afraid if he told you everything that could go wrong or how hard it could be, that you would freak out and end it before it even began. 

However, would that actually be for the best? Would laying it all out there in the beginning, letting you make the choice of sticking it out or walking away, help prevent him from getting his heartbroken yet again? Sure, it would fucking suck, losing you now, but at least it would be before he had fallen head over heels in love with you. 

Which, honestly, wouldn’t be too long now. It was crazy to think that way, he knew it. You two were still in the honeymoon phase, so it was mostly infatuation still, but he could honestly say he never felt what he was feeling with anyone else. Even people he dated long term. Maybe it was because you knew his family or maybe it was because you two were “made” for each other. 

He didn’t necessarily believe in love at first sight or soulmates, but he did believe that there was someone who fit in your missing piece. Someone who made you feel complete, who standing next to him for years to come, and he could see you as that person. Now, that his mind was a little more clearer he headed into the restaurant grabbing a table for two. 

“You’re late,” Harry smirked when his sister finally arrived. 

“By two bloody minutes,” she rolled her eyes. “I can count on both hands and  foot how many times you’ve been late.” 

“I believe that’s a bit of an exaggeration,” he said. 

“Except it’s not,” she laughed. 

“Anyway, I ordered us drinks,” he said. 

“Drinks, or drinks,” she smirked. 

“The former,” he said. “No one needs you drunk at eleven am.” 

She rolled her eyes shaking her head, “Now, let’s get down business.” 

“Let me guess, you’re going to grill me about Y/N this entire time, right?” He sighed dramatically. 

“Yeah, I am,” she said. “Neither of you have given me any information! I know you two are seeing each other and you were all lovey fucking dovey at The Mixtape party the other night, so just fucking tell me already.” 

“Tell you what?” He smirked. “That we’re fucking?” 

“Ew! What? No, I do not need to know that,” she said. “If it was Y/N and anyone else, I’d be all for the details, but not when it’s with my baby brother.” 

He laughed shaking his head, “Um, so does this mean she’s talked to you about details of her sexual past before?” 

“Yeah, I’m not going there,” she said. 

“What? It’s a question. I’m not asking for details. I’d rather not know them, actually,” he said. “I just want to know if you two did talk about that before...” 

“Yes, I mean it’s not like we sit down and have a formal tea and chat about it, but it’s been mentioned before usually when drinks involved,” she said. 

“Hmpf,” he mumbled. 

“Don’t be doing that,” she said. 

“Doing what?” He asked all innocently. 

“Getting jealous over past relationships,” she said. “It’s not like she’s the only person you’ve shagged either, yet you don’t see her trying to get information.” 

“Whatever. I’m not getting jealous, one, and two, I’m not asking for information, I was just asking a simple question,” he said. 

“Yeah, and denial is just a big fat river in Egypt,” she rolled her eyes. 

“No, by The Nile River is,” he smirked. 

“For fuck’s sake, just answer my previous question,” she groaned. “Are you and Y/N together yet?” 

“If you’re asking whether she’s my girlfriend, then yes, the answer is yes,” he said. 

“Yes! I fucking knew it,” she smirked. “When you two get married, please be sure to thank me. I take cash, checks, gift cards.” 

He rolled his eyes, “Shouldn’t you just be happy that both your best friend and brother are happy?” 

“Oh, I am. Extremely happy, but I can also be ecstatic that once again I was right,” she smirked. 

Harry laughed taking a bite of his just delivered food. 

“So, tour,” Gemma said after a bit. “How are you feeling about that?” 

“Excited, nervous, the usual feelings,” he said. 

“How Y/N’s feeling about the tour?” she asked. 

“Um, I don’t really know her exact feelings,” he said. “We’ve not talked about it.” 

Gemma sighed looking at him, “You leave next week.” 

“I know, I know,” he sighed. “It just hasn’t really come up.” 

“Because you haven’t brought it up,” Gemma said. “You need to talk to her about it, ASAP.” 

“Why are you so adamant about this?” Harry asked. “Did she say something?” 

“Look, I’m not going to get in between the two of you, I promised her I wouldn’t, but I will say this,” she said. “Just talk to her, please. Reassure her that things will be okay and that you two will work things out if they don't.” 

“Is she worried it’s not going to work out?” He asked. “Gem, you can’t just tell me this shit half ass, please tell me.” 

“Fuck me,” she groaned. “Before the two of you became official, she was a little hesitant on some things when it came to do the tour. She didn’t know how you felt about getting in or having a relationship on tour. She also may have asked about your other relationships and I might have told her there weren’t many to begin with and that the ones that were, there were problems.” 

“Bloody hell, Gemma, why would you tell her that?” He sighed. 

“Because it’s the truth, which she should have heard for you,” she pointed out. “So, that’s why I’m telling you to just sit down and have an honest conversation with her.” 

He sighed sitting back in his seat, “Yeah, I’ll talk to her.” 

**

Harry stared at the food in the skillet as it cooked, his mind wandering off to his talk with his sister. Ever since he left lunch with her, his mind raced with all sorts of thoughts. What if you were second guessing being with him and his fear of you walking out was bound to happen? He also wondered what else you talked to his sister about. He knew she would never break your trust, even if she slightly did during lunch, but if it was anything bigger, he knew she would never spill. 

He understood why and he would never intentionally ask or invade your privacy like that, but it still didn’t make the possibilities of conversations lead his mind. He heard the buzzer at the gate, signaling that you had arrived. He had given you the guest code, so you were able to get in, but it still alerted him when someone had arrived. He was thankful for that in that moment because it gave him time to try and clear his mind and put on a front that everything was okay until he had to bring up the topic of conversation. 

The doorbell rang, “It’s open!” He shouted from the kitchen. 

 A few seconds later, the front door opens and he could instantly smell your perfume. He smiled a bit knowing you were there, but deep down there was a feeling in his gut. 

“Hey, baby,” you smiled walking into the kitchen. “Dinner is smelling amazing.” 

“Thank you,” he smiled. “It should be ready in a bit.” 

You smiled wrapping your arms around his waist and given him a kiss, “Hm, how was lunch with Gem?” 

“Well, our conversation was centered around you,” he said. 

“Ah, so I take you finally told her we’re together?” You asked. 

“I did,” he said. “She told me we better thank her if we ever get married,” he laughed. 

“She would,” you laughed. 

“How was the rest of your day?” He asked. “Everything good at the office?” 

“Well, everyone was certainly in good moods thanks to the hoards of coffee, bagels, and muffins, my boyfriend dropped off today,” you laughed. 

“Happy everyone enjoyed it,” he smiled. 

You kissed his cheek, “Do you need any help?” 

“No, I’m good,” he said. 

“Okay, then I’m going to go freshen up and change, I’ve had enough of these tight ass for the day,” you laughed. 

He smirked, “Your ass definitely looks good in them though.” 

You laughed, “I’ll be right back.” 

He nodded giving you one more kiss before letting you go and head into the bedroom. He sighed, taking a deep breath before putting the food onto plates and taking it over to the table. Less than five minutes went by when you returned wearing leggings and an old concert t-shirt. 

“Just in time,” you smiled sitting down. 

“Want some wine?” He asked. 

“Actually, I think I’m just going to have some water,” you said. 

He nodded bringing over a glass of water before joining you at the table. 

Dinner was usually quiet only the sounds of forks clinging and glasses being placed on the table. You could tell something was off and you wondered what had happened between this morning and now. The only thing would be his lunch with Gemma and with him saying they talked about you. 

“You know despite Gemma’s previous warning, you aren’t that terrible of a cook,” you smirked looking over at him. 

He playfully glared at you with a laugh, but you could tell it was forced. When both of you were finished, you took your plate into the kitchen, “I’ll clean up,” you smiled. 

“You don’t-” he said. 

“No, I don’t, but I want to,” you smiled. “Then I’ll meet you over on the couch.” 

“Okay,” he nodded. 

After you finished cleaning up the kitchen, you poured yourself a glass of wine before going over to the couch where Harry was sitting. 

“So, you want to tell me what’s bothering you?” You asked turning to face him. 

“What do you mean?” He asked sipping his wine. 

“You know what I mean,” you said. “You’re acting different, standoffish a little. You barely said anything during dinner and now you won’t even look at me. Did I do something?” 

He sighed putting the glass of wine on the coffee table, “I want you to be honest with me, did you think about not pursing a relationship with because of me going on tour?” 

“Gemma?” you sighed. 

“Don’t-Don’t be upset with her, she didn’t really say those exact words, but I sort of got the feeling that’s where she was going,” he said. 

You sighed, “I didn’t say those exact words either,” you said. “We had this conversation before we even got together. It was while you were New York, she asked me how things were going and if I saw us going somewhere. I told her, I didn’t know because I didn’t know if you even wanted it to go somewhere because you would be going on tour.” 

“Why would you think that?” He asked. 

“I don’t know, I don’t know how that works,” you said. “I mean, maybe you don’t like having to worry about having someone back at home, having to make time to call them or something...” 

“What do you mean not worry about having someone back at home?” He asked. “What do you think I fuck around or something?” 

“What? No, I don’t-” you said. 

“Then what?” He said. “It makes no fucking sense on why you would think I would’t want a girlfriend just because I’m going on tour.” 

“Well, in case you forgot, you said it yourself just this morning, that you even have a hard time staying in touch with your family,” you said. “So, it does make sense that I would think you wouldn’t want another person to add to that list.” 

“Touring is part of my life, Y/N,” he said. “If I thought that way, then I’d never have a girlfriend, or ever get married unless I quit that part of my life and I don’t ever see myself doing that. Not until I’m dead or people stop coming to my shows, which ever happens first.” 

“We had just met, Harry, we had only been on one date and had a few phone conversations,” you said. “How was I supposed to know any of that? I didn’t even know what was going to come of us anyway.” 

“Oh, so you didn’t think we’d get together? Why?” He asked.

“Damnit, Harry,” you sighed. “Did you? Listen to yourself, this conversation with Gemma happened months ago. And for the record, you’re worried about that conversation, yet you’ve done nothing in the present to set my mind at ease about you going on tour and what that means for us.” 

“What are you worried about?” He asked. “Why are you freaking out about it?” 

“Because my boyfriend is about to leave for months on end and I don’t know how often I’ll get to see him or talk to him,” you said. “And that maybe, just maybe, since I won’t be around, he’ll forget about me and all of this will have been for nothing.” 

“How can you think that?” He asked. “I don’t know what you’ve experienced before in your past relationships, but I’m not some sort of fucking out of sight, out of mind person. If I’m with you, you’re all I’m thinking about. I don’t care if it’ll be two days or two fucking months since seeing or speaking with you, I will still be thinking about you.” 

“You say that now,” you said. “But you don’t know how you’ll feel two months from now.” 

He shook his head, “If anyone should be worried about it’s me,” he said. “How do I know that you won’t be the one looking for something else with me gone, huh? You could easily meet someone here, who would sweep you off your feet, someone who could be at your beck and call all the fucking time and not thousands of miles away. So, if there should be anyone worried about being in  relationship while I’m tour, it’s me.” 

“Oh, so now you think I’m going to be the one who fucks around on you?” You asked.

Harry didn’t say anything, but his silence said enough. 

“Wow,” you laughed darkly. “Never once did I think you would actually cheat on me because I trust you, but apparently you don’t trust me. So, you know what, I’m just going to leave and go back to my flat, while you figure you own shit out, but just know, I refuse to be with someone who doesn’t trust me.” 

Harry sighed, not saying anything, as your grabbed your bag to leave. You paused at the door, hoping he would say something, but he didn’t, so you walked away. 

And he let you. 

**

The next morning you were pissed, beyond pissed, so you got up first thing to head into the gym. Your trainer was there waiting for you with a punching bag and your gloves. You had waited up most of the night, wondering if Harry would call you to talk things over, but not even a single text message was sent your way. 

“Rough night?” He asked while he taped up your hand and wrist. 

“Didn’t get much sleep,” you sighed. 

“So, that’s why I received a text at two in the morning,” he laughed. 

“Yep, thought I might need to punch some shit around,” you said. 

“That’s what I’m here for,” he smirked. “Just don’t mess up the money maker.” 

“I’d never,” you joked. “On purpose, at least.” 

Over an hour later, you were drenched with sweat and your muscles were on fire. 

“Bloody hell, who pissed you off,” he said shaking his head. 

You sighed chugging down some water, ignoring his question. 

“Let me guess, boy troubles?” He asked. 

“How’d you know?” You said sitting next to him, wiping your face down with a towel. 

“I’ve had my share of ‘em,” he laughed. 

“I bet,” you laughed. 

“So, want to share?” He asked. 

“Let’s just say we’re experiencing our first fight,” you said. 

“Ah, the honeymoon phase is over,” he said. 

“I wouldn’t say completely over, just paused at the moment,” you said. 

“Well, punching the shit out of a bag and my hands, will help a bit,” he said. “But you know what actually will help.” 

“Sitting around a campfire and talking our shit out?” You scoffed. 

“Yes,” he laughed. “And then makeup sex, lots and lots of makeup sex.” 

“I take it you’ve had a fair share of that, too,” you smirked. 

“Yep,” he grinned. 

“I better get going,” you said. “I need to shower, change, and get to the office.” 

“And call the boyfriend,” he asked.

“At some point,” you said. 

**

Harry knew he fucked up as soon as you saw you walking out of the door. He knew he should have went after you, brought you back inside, and talked all that shit through. But he didn’t. He knew he should have called you, even texted you, to make sure you got home okay, but he didn’t. He tossed and turned in his bed all night. Your perfume still lingered in the air. 

Once the sun lit through his bedroom room, he decided to just get out of bed. He put on some jogger pants, his trainers, and a hoodie before making his way into the kitchen to make himself some coffee. He looked at his phone wondering if you had sent him anything, but there was nothing. Not that he blamed you. 

He needed to make this right, if there was ever a chance the two of you to come out of this still together. But first, he needed to clear his mind and to do that he needed to run. He put on some music, grabbed his keys, and headed out. Usually, he just ran a few times throughout his neighborhood, staying close, but that day he ended up running further and further away until he was standing outside of your office building. 

It wasn’t entirely too far from his house, but further than he had run one way before. He saw you from the other side of the street, walking up the street, and into the building. He fought the urge to walk over to you for two reasons. He knew talking about last night at your job was not good for either one of you and two because he really wished he could kiss you and make it better. 

After realizing he wasn’t going to actually do anything there, he decided to turn around and head back to his house. When he arrived back, he was dripping with sweat, after downing an entire glass and a half of water, he headed up to take a shower. He leaned his hands against the wall as he let the water rush over him. His mind wander to you and the situation again. 

He still didn’t know how to make this right, but he knew someone who could help him figure it out. 

By that afternoon, Harry had driven to his mother’s house, a few days earlier than planned. He hadn’t told her much, just that he wanted to be there a few days ahead of time. When she had mentioned you, he simply said it was because you couldn’t get off work, which technically wasn’t a lie. 

When he arrived, he brought his bags into his room, before meeting his mother in the backyard for some snacks. Harry grabbed some cookies to nibble on while his mother looked over at him. 

“What happened?” she said. 

“What? Can’t a loving son come and visit his mother without there being anything wrong?” He asked

“Normally, yes,” she said. “But you can’t hide anything from me. I can see it in your eyes that something’s up. Did something happen between you and Y/N?” 

He sighed, “We had our first fight last night.” 

“I can’t say that I didn’t see that coming,” she sighed. 

“Oh, but you and Gemma were just so sure we’re meant to be,” he rolled his eyes. 

“I didn’t mean it like that,” she said. “I meant that the honeymoon, fairy tale love phase doesn’t last forever. All relationships have shit they go though, it’s what makes them grow. You don’t have to tell me what happened in detail if you don’t want to, but I will say the one way this works out for you two is if you talk through it. The way you handle a fight or an argument is what will make or break your relationship.” 

“So, you’re saying coming up here was a mistake?” He asked. 

“No, I’m not,” she said. “What I am saying, is you should call Gemma and have her bring Y/N up, so you two can talk it out.” 

He sighed nodding. 

“Now, do it,” she said. 

“Yes, Mum,” he said. 

**

Everything happened so fast, you don’t even remember how you got in the car and was on your way up to Anne’s house. All you remember is Gemma calling and telling you to back a bag. Gemma could be very scary and persuasive when she wanted something. You figured it had to with what was going o between you and Harry and while you thought it should stay between the two of you, you knew she wouldn’t know anything about it unless Harry had told her. 

At least he was talking to someone about it. What you didn’t see coming was that she was driving you up to Anne’s house, which Anne knew something was up. You didn’t know how this would work between you and Harry if you needed other people to help you work out your shit, especially when it was your first fight. During the drive, neither your or Gemma really said anything. 

It felt awkward, but you really didn’t know what to say. You couldn’t exactly blame Gemma for what happened, but part of it was a little bit her fault. When you arrived at Anne’s house, you felt nervous, not sure what you were walking into. Either you would be able to work things out and move on, or things would be over before they even really started. And you knew you wouldn’t be able to handle the latter, especially when your only way back home was either with Gemma or Harry. 

Harry’s legs bounced up and down in anticipation as he waited for you to arrive. He wasn’t even sure how it happened, but Gemma was able to get you to come with her. He wasn’t sure how this was going to go or how you would respond to having to sort everything out at his mother’s house. God, he felt like a stupid, immature child, running to his mother’s house. 

What if you thought the same way, but surely if you did, you wouldn’t have agreed to come. He heard a car pulling up in the driveway and he knew it was you. Anne had already said she and Gemma would leave for a few hours, so that you two could work this through without an audience. He just hoped that things would get worked out. 

The backdoor opened and he turned around seeing you standing there.  

“Hey,” he whispered. 

“Hi,” you whispered back. 

“Um, do you want to have a seat? Want some water or something?” He asked. 

You shook your head, “I want to know why I’m here.” 

“Because you and I both know we need to talk about what happened last night,” he said. 

“And we couldn't have done that in London?” You said. “Or last night? You know instead of just letting me walk out, you had to drive up here and then have your sister bring me up here? What the fuck, Harry!” 

“I know! I know, okay, I fucked up,” he said. “Both last night and doing all this, but I just... I needed some time to think and I came up here to see my Mum, since I was already coming up soon anyway. We talked a bit and then I asked Gem if she could get you up here because I figured you wouldn’t come on your own.” 

“That’s pretty fucked up you know,” you snapped. “And the fact that you could talk to other people about last night, but not me, how do you think that makes me feel especially after you accused me of being the one to fuck up the relationship.” 

“I didn’t fucking say that!” He snapped back. 

“Yeah, well maybe not in those words exactly, but the imply was fucking there,” you said. 

“For fuck’s sake, I’m trying to make this better between us,” he shouted. 

“Well, shit isn’t going to get better unless we actually talk shit through!” You shouted. 

“Fine! Fine, if we’re going to talk, can we just stop yelling for five damn minutes!” He sighed. 

“Fine,” you said. 

“Good,” he responded. 

Both of you stood there trying to calm down for a bit. Harry ran his hand through his hair before looking back over at you. 

“Look, I’m sorry,” he said. “for everything, I know that’s not going to make everything go away, but-” 

“It’s a start,” you sighed. 

“I know,” he nodded. 

“Did you really mean it?” You asked. “Do you really think I would just forget about you and find someone else?” 

“It wouldn’t be the first time,” he sighed. 

You sighed walking closer to him placing your hand on his shoulder. The closer you got, you could see the hurt, worry, and tears in his eyes. 

“I like you,” you whispered. “A lot.. hell, more than I’ve probably liked anyone, this fast before. When I’m with you, I’m happy. You make me laugh, you make me smile, you make me feel stupid butterflies in my stomach. There is no one else that could ever make me feel like that and even if there was, I wouldn’t want them. I only want you.” 

“You say that now,” he whispered. 

“Yeah, I do,” you said. “And I’m going to say that tomorrow and the next day and probably in the next two months and beyond that. Neither of us know what’s going to happen the future, that’s why we have to trust one another and communicate with each other, we’ll be set.” 

He put his hands on your face, looking into your eyes, “I know I overreacted, but I just... the thought of losing you scares the shit out of me. I’ve never felt this way about anyone and I don’t want to lose how I feel whenever I’m around you or think about you.” 

“You’re not going to lose me,” you whispered. “Not unless you keep saying stupid shit,” you laughed a bit. 

He laughed a smile tugging at his lips before placing his forehead against yours, “And you’re not going to lose me, either. I’m not going to forget about you, I could never,” he whispered. 

“Well, I am pretty rememberable,” you smirked. 

He laughed, “A little bit, yeah.” 

“I think we both know it’s more than a little bit,” you smirked. 

“Does this mean we’re okay?” He whispered pushing hair away from your face. 

“It means we’re going to be okay,” you whispered. “I can’t just get over it and I don’t expect you to either, but this is a start that we need to get over it.” 

He nodded, “I’m sorry I made you come up here... If you want to go back to London, I’ll pay for you to go back.” 

“No, it’s okay,” you said. “I don’t mind staying unless you don’t want me too.” 

“I want you to stay,” he smiled. 

You nodded, “So, um... Gem said her and your mum were leaving for a few hours,” you said. 

“Yeah, Mum wanted to give us space to talk it out,” he said. 

“Well, we’ve only used about an hour and half for this conversation... so I’d assume they won’t be back for at least another hour or so, right?” You smirked. 

“I’d assume you’re right,” he said. “Where are you going with this?” He laughed. 

“Why don’t you take me up to the bedroom and find out,” you smirked. 

“Are you sure?” He asked. “We don’t-” 

“Oh, well, I mean... if you’re not hungry, we can just sit on the couch, watch netflix or something,” you said innocently. 

“Fuck that,�� he laughed picking you up and throwing you over his shoulder. 

“What are you doing?” You laughed holding onto his shirt. “I could have walked.” 

“Just getting you used to this mode of transportation ,” he smirked. “Because you won’t be able to walk by the time we’re finished.” 

“That a promise?” You smirked. 

“Oh, I always keep my promises, babe,” he said. 

And with that you both went up to his the bedroom, where he fact, kept his promise, which would eventually make for an awkward family dinner later that night. 

**

Sooo... I’m thinking the next part will be the set up for him going on tour and then maybe having a second serious of them dealing with being on tour together... what do y’all think? 

[dearestlouis]

𝑫𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒎𝒚 𝒉𝒖𝒔𝒃𝒂𝒏𝒅,

Today is our 6th month of being together and I'm so happy to have you in my life. I'm not a perfect one for you, but you always told me that I'm the prettiest ever. Who's lucky? Absolutely me. Through this, I want to show you that there are so many people who support us. And I'd love to welcome the baby together with you. We shall to hold each other's hands tightly, I love you the most! xx

𝑨 𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒇𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒔 :

⋆ Hello, dearest Joy and my twin Johnny.

I'm so glad to see this couple at first. You guys look so great together and I must say that you guys are the best couple I've ever seen! I wish you guys nothing but happiness; I hope your marriage life will always be romantic and last long. Can't wait till I see you guys have a kid.👀 Wishing all of the best for you guys! —JOHNTSUH

⋆ Starting off this message to Johnny oppa and Joy unnie for reaching another month together! It probably was not an easy road but both of you went through it well together and I hope it'll stay that way for a loooong time! Congratulations and happy monthsary once again! 🥳 — KlMSOHYUNN

⋆ MEMLO LOVEBIRDS! Congratulations for reaching another happy moment together. I hope both of your love will keep getting bigger every day! Thank you for taking care of my unnie well ❤️ stay longlast! —KAGNMlNAH

⋆ Hello Joy and her husband, I am very happy to see you have come this far and I hope you will be together forever. Your marriage is proof and witness that your love will always be united until your hair turns white. I pray for your good, make it last guys. 🤍 —roisiepark

⋆ Hello, Johnny hyung and Joy noona. J2(?) so there will be J3? i believe it will since Joy noona is having something called cutiebean inside her tummy right? i'm so happy for the two of you. Wow time flies that quick now Johnny hyung will become a father, Joy noona will become a mother and i will become an .... uncle? omg congratulations to both of you i'm very happy for both of you! not only that, i also want to congratulate you both for spending 6 months together. it is quite a long time, you guys have gone ups and downs together for so long. I hope you two will always be happy, your time always filled with love and always cheerish each moment together. I'm beyond happy for both of you. 🤍 — HENDEURl

⋆ happy monthsary lovebirds! anyways, as you guys going to be a parents soon, i have a strong feeling that this is the beginning of many great things. have fun discovering the surprises and perks of being parents. i will keep you in my prayers and also thank you so much for making me an auntie. can't wait to meet your ray of sunshine💛 — withlovewheein

⋆ Hello there, my sweetest brother and his beloved! I am feeeeling so great to hear that both of you have reached the sixth months of living with each other. I only have one wish that i want both of you always stay together and sharing bunch of memories together. Thank you for taking care of my brother, and please love him and take care of him well. 🥺 Happy 6th monthsarry! 💗 — Kakak Ayel sayangnya Tobi.

⋆ Good day, johoenny the peepee 👉🏻👌🏻💦 HAHAHAHAHA.

First of all, damn your wife is sweet ay. I can see now why you were so eager to make the baby🤡

But well! Happy 6th monthsarry to both of you🔥🔥🔥 it may be a short yet long journey but i know both of you can last really really long. Hope you 2 will stay sweet and lovey-dovey like this.

And also for Joy, i wish the best for your pregnancy! Im sure the baby will be as strong as the parents *lets pray that johnny's horny genes wont get into the baby 🤡*.

Best luck for everything, guys!

P.s please do tell me the birth date so i can come unlike the wedding 💀 — bobbyrxnika

⋆ Hi, lovebirds. It’s been a while since my last wishes on your wedding day and now i’m gonna throw some words again for you two. So, how’s your marriage life? It’s fun right? Even i don’t really know how you treat each other, but i can see Johnny can be a perfect husband for Joy since she always talk about how lovely Johnny is. And i’m very thankful for keeping my sister safe with you, Johnny. Also, congratulation soon-to-be parents! Promise i will buy some good stuffs for my niece/nephew later! I hope you both will only meet the happiness in life for a very long time! ♡

Sincerely,

kembang desa cicaheum.

⋆ Happy 6th monthsary, my favorite love birds.

May you both love and care for each other as you do today till infinite. may you create countless memories in coming years and grow stronger each day. may this monthsary be magical enough to add great love, care, and compassion in your live.

With love,

Vira [TAENGIM]

⋆ Hello to the cutest couple ever, Johnny oppa and Joy unnie! First thing first, thank you so much for inviting me to your wedding (it is one of the most memorable things that I’ve ever had in this world!) so for you two.. I wish you two for always be surrounded by happiness. Please enjoy all those quality time you could spend together. I hope nothing would butt into you two’s happiness. Stay healthy and happy! <3

Love, Siyeon.

⋆ To the most adorable and sweetest couple on earth, Alodie and Louis, congratulations for reaching up another milestones in your relationship! I notice how both of you being a simp for each other and that's wonderful. Louis, I would bid my utmost thanks for taking care of Odie really well, you know I always count on you when it comes to her. May both of you be blessed with happiness and more love for another upcoming journey, another anniversaries, to no end. Keep on sailing and be happy, always.

With love,

Buna Lily.

⋆ Happy 6th Monthsarry to you, lovebirds! 🕊❤️

There’s nothing as wonderful as seeing a happily married pair. Your happiness always reflects by the smile in your face and the delight in your eyes. And I as Alodie's beloved mom would like to personally thank Johnny for taking a well care of my daughter. Thank you for making her the happiest she ever been! May the love you have for each other continue to blossom like a rose with each of the passing month (and even year). You have all my greatest wishes and blessings. 🤍 And oh, I'm praying all the best for the baby too. 😜 Grow healthily, little one.

With love,

Adrianne L. Edelstein

⋆ Congratulations for being 6 months together with Joy unnie. Thank you for taking care of her well and make her happier than before. The road is still long way to go, so, i hope the love will always lights up the way. Please always be the lovely couple and lovely siblings for me.

— Kim Yerim

⋆ Best wishes to both of you on your Monthsary. May the love that you share last your lifetime through, as you make a wonderful pair. Happy Monthsary Johnny hyung and Joy noona.

- Doy

⋆ This message is aim to the dearest couple, Alodie and her husband. Time flies, I bet your relationship as a husband and wife is finally reaching a month old. Congratulations for that, I sincerely happy for you two. I wishes both of you to be happy with each other and I wish it'll wrapped with abundant blessing, jolity, and prosperity around so you could have the dream life you've dreamt about. Long live the couple! ♥️

— Calliope, X.

⋆ Happy mensiversary, Joy unnie with her beloved husband. 💗 May the ties that bind you grow ever stronger and hold you steadfast amidst your fears and uncertainties. Never stop being each other’s best friends, and always be each other’s priorities. I love seeing you both in love. Stay this way forever! 🌹

— Aeri

⋆ Hello, Johnny and Joy, oho I just realized that you both are Js. I am here going to congratulate both of you for another months you guys have spent together. Also the fact that Johnny is going to be a daddy soon!

As for my wish is for you both to have a happy and healthy long lasting relationship, being supportive towards each other and take a good care of each other more, okay? Johnny is a good person and I trust him that he will be a good dad and husband too. Also you should love Joy more each day, or I’ll beat your peepee John. OK JK.

Happy 6th Monthsarry!

Love,

Chu.

[justoneday-namjoonii]

Don’t Breathe 4.5 | teaser

»Genre: hitman!au || stalker!au ||

»Warnings: kidnapping, stalking, obsession, themes of potential Stockholm syndrome, mono-phobia, mature elements, yandere at some point (? i think ), themes of depression, redemption, they fall in love, lovey dovey, fluff, Disclaimer: I do not condone nor suggest stalking/kidnapping or anything of that nature, this is purely fiction ok.

»Summary: He doesn’t get shaky hands, he never forgets his gloves and he never leaves a trail. He was paid to get rid of everyone who witnessed the exchange between a gang lord and a politician, they were picked off, one by one. He found out a month later, he missed one. A young writer who attended the event where the exchange took place. He has to kill her. Can he do it?

✤ pt.1 - pt.2 - pt.2.5 - pt.3 - pt. 3.5 - pt. 4.0 - pt.4.5

author’s note: coming soon

taglist: @tangledsparkles @just-another-fangurl21 @impartoftoomanyfandoms @komorebi-unnie​ @tangledsparkles​ @yes-sol-not-soul (sorry :( tumblr won’t let me tag you) if you’d like to be added to the taglist please comment on this post💜

The sun is setting like a dream, you can’t say you’ve ever seen it shine so beautiful. The sky looks like a peach painting that shyly fades into a heavenly deep-blue. It’s a perfect evening, the air smells of the flowers growing on the porch and it delights your senses. He’s chasing you barefooted across the grassy yard, like two children playing tag at the peek of spring. Out of breath, he finally catches you and you fall back into the checkered blanket, too tired to run off again.

After seeing you enjoy the balcony so much, he introduced you to his lavish  backyard. Aside from the large stone patio and pool attached to it, the yard expands at least an acre and it’s well-groomed. Early in the evening, you moved to spend some time on the patio, a pencil and paper in hand. Taehyung had some work to do so you had a few hours to yourself, you used that time to think and write. After a few hours, you could no longer resist the urge to take a dip in the crystal clear oasis.

With a t-shirt and underwear, you eased into the cool water and breathed a sigh of relief. For what could have been an hour or two, you weren’t counting, you swam on your back, staring up at the clear sky, wondering if you’ll ever feel peace like this again. When your eyes shut, your thoughts seem to align, and for the first time since you’ve been here, you felt like you were where you were supposed to be. As much as you cherish your life alone, your independence and innate desire to prove that you can make it on your own—it seems Taehyung is worth giving that up.

That would have sounded crazy weeks ago, but it’s how you feel. That night that you confessed that you wanted to be with him, you meant it. You don’t know when it happened, maybe when you kissed him and he picked you up, when you woke up to him fast asleep with a pillow in his arms. Or maybe it was when he suggested you help him bake, since he knew you wrote so much about food in your articles, you’re not sure. But somehow, some time after learning his name, you think you fell in love.

When you were with Jin, you had similar feelings to this. You knew you were in love when you had the urge to smile even when you were hurting just to make him smile. That feeling of unexplained self-sacrifice, something as small as smile, you’d force it out if you knew it would help him. With Taehyung, it seems like he will do anything to make you smile sometimes, even when you know he’s keeping stressful things from you. Is that love? You think so.

You sigh, still feeling a bit wet from your swim a while ago but you’ve dried mostly. He fussed at you for not showering straight away but you said the sun would dry you well enough until your shower tonight. It’s dusk now, and your out in the grass, laying happily on the blanket with him. Only a few minutes ago did you find out that he had pretty lights adorning the patio. He said he’s had them for a while but hadn’t turned them on until today. It casts a warm light out into the grass, you tell him he should turn it on more often.

”You should shower before you catch a cold,” He stresses for the second time. You find his worry endearing but negotiate five more minutes, and he caves. It’s been a while since you’ve been outside like this. He knows this, that’s why he’s laying shoulder to shoulder with you as you gaze up at the night sky. “Sorry I had so much work I had to do today, hope you weren’t too bored,”

”It’s fine, I was writing anyway...”

”Really?” He turns on his side, curiosity piqued. You nod, hands searching for the pencil and pad you had on the blanket.

”I used to write poetry when I was in high school. I wasn’t very good and some of it is kind of cringe now that I look back at it, but I enjoyed it. I haven’t written in so long, I thought I’d give it a shot,” You grab the notepad and look up at it, eyes skimming over the gray hue from all the erasing. You catch him trying to peek over and you hold it to your test. You grin, “Don’t look, it’s not good,”

He pouts, hand moving to intertwine with yours.

“Come on, you’ve never shared your personal writings with me before,” He pouts, leaning closer to you in hopes that you might succumb to the allure of his gaze. “Pleeease?”

”Fine,” You sigh, “but you have to read it yourself,” You lift the notepad, handing it to him.

He sits up and the feeling of anxiousness comes to a halt when you realize one important fact; it’s Taehyung reading this. Not a supervisor critiquing your rough draft or a teacher judging your ability to recite your understanding of the class’s latest assignment. It’s him.

I’ve been given a universe, all for me. My very own stars in your eyes, I can stare at you forever. The remnants of your every gaze births a galaxy and I draw up the constellations by the reminisce of the pattern of your touch on my skin. I, too, have given my universe to you. Though I’m innocent to the stars in my eyes, the constellations I paint on your skin, all for you. No event is there more beautiful than the moment our eyes meet, our nebulae collide. A merging occurs, giving life to new stars that are our own, creating a galaxy that holds a shape that can only be defined by fate. In that sweet moment, we create an intertwined constellation, a design filled with millions of our old and new stars, shining brighter than ever,

“in your universe, my universe...” He reads the last lines softly. Setting the pad down with an expression that you can’t quite read, he just looks at you and you start to feel nervous.

“I just,” You bite at your lip and look up at the night sky that’s beginning to show the stars, “I had this idea about space, it’s a little different but it took me hours to come up with...I’m rusty.”

He props himself up and leans over you, gaze searching for yours with a tender close-lipped smile. He holds his hand to his heart, “That was so beautiful.”

You cringe, pushing his chest so he can roll back on his back. “Oh stop, now I wish I wouldn’t have showed you,” It’s hard to tell if he’s praising you or teasing, it seems like it’s one in the same sometime.

“I’m being serious, I can feel the emotions you’re conveying in your words, I really get it...” He looks a bit surprised that you’d think he was teasing you about this, he leans back over you. 

“You mean it?” You look into his eyes, wondering how anyone could be capable of making you feel so special, like you’re the only person in the world. Without a word, he presses a firm kiss to your lips and you sigh, he means it.

*  *  *

“How’s the investigation going? Jin told me you reached out the other day,”

The busy lawyer sits his freshly ordered coffee in his cup holder as he drives off to his highly-decorated firm.

“I did, the case is more complicated than I initially thought,” Yoongi poured the subpar coffee in the Styrofoam cup, it’s 6am and he’s trying not to be grumpy, “if I’m right about my suspicions, it’s a fucked up situation.”

“What’re you thinking?”

Yoongi looks around, seeing that the only person around was the woman at the desk. “The girl, along with the other individuals at that conference, were targeted. I got the names of the parties at the conference, they’re politicians of course but the details of the meeting was never released. I have a theory,”

He lowers his voice, looking around one more time before sipping his coffee, “I think someone at that conference had those other reporters killed. I went over each autopsy file and those people died from unusual things, but not unusual enough to suspect at first-glance. Most of them dies from too much of a medication that they were already taking, things like that. But this girl, unlike everyone else, she was abducted and I don’t know why.”

Jungkook makes a thoughtful noises. “What’s different about her that not like the others?”

“She went missing a little over a month after the others were found dead. It looks like a mistake to me,” He paces, “I don’t know if I’m being too outlandish, but I have a feeling she’s alive, we just need to find her,”

Jungkook responds with how he feels about it but Yoongi has to cut him short when Eunwoo walks into the station.

“You’re here early, Min,” Eunwoo smiles, beckoning Yoongi to follow him to his office, “I have some good news, and some bad news, which do you want first?” Eunwoo leads Yoongi into his office and sets his briefcase down so he can pull what he needs out.

“Surprise me.” He deadpans.

“Well, last night, we found out that the infamous Hwan Group could be apart of this. You know that group, they’ve been under the radar for years, you can’t catch’em. But there’s a chance they could be the force behind this, they have assassins for hire from what I’ve heard,” He takes a seat, opening one of the Manila folders.

“And the good news?”

“It took a lot to pin him, but we’re bring one of the parties in for questioning today,”

“Good, I think they know something that they’ve been trying to keep under the rug.”

“Yeah, I agree.”

Yoongi gets up, hand tight on the flimsy cup, “If you could give me a call after the questioning, I’d appreciate it. I’m gonna do a little digging into this Hwan Group, see if I can get some info that’ll help,”

Yoongi leaves the building with a to-do list but little does he know, detective Na Jaemin, knocking on on Eunwoo’s door.

“Come in,”

“Hi,” Jaemin slips into the room, an unusual grin on his face, “how are you?”

“Um,” Eunwoo looks around, not understanding why he’s approaching him like this but he shrugs, “good, is everything okay, detective?”

“Everything's fine,” Lies, “I just had a question about that PI, Min Yoongi,”

“Shoot,” Eunwoo awaits his question.

“Why is he so adamant on keeping this case open? I mean, I’m a detective on the case and I think we should start searching for the body,” His tone sounds innocent but he’s trying to sneakily plant this idea in Eunwoo’s mind, “we could be wasting precious time, the family deserves closure and we’re just dragging it on.”

“Detective Na,” Eunwoo stops looking through the folder, “given the other related cases, we have reason to believe she might be alive. Not every abductee is killed, even if that tends to be the case.”

Jeamin swallows, trying to think of how to save himself, “I know, I’m not saying that we should be pessimistic but realistic, rather.”

“I get what you’re saying, but on what prescient you’re saying it, I don’t know. I, and many of the others on this case, have reviewed the evidence and compared it to the other cases, it doesn’t add up. After the questioning today, we’ll talk, until then, your efforts need to go towards finding her alive and well,” Eunwoo walks past Jaemin and the detective gets the memo to get out of the office, “Understood?”

With a feigned grin he stands up straight. “Absolutely, sir,” 

[slusheeduck]

Binding Resolution

https://slusheeduck.tumblr.com/post/626433636773838848/binding-resolution[Chapter 1] [Chapter 2]

Chapter 3

              The backpack falls from your hands with a loud thud, and the lovey-dovey exchanges come to a screeching halt. Queen Vanessa’s head snaps over to look at you, ice-blue eyes narrowing suspiciously before she puts on a stiff smile.

              “Darling, who’s this?” she asks through her teeth.

              The Prince—should you start thinking of him as Snatcher? But that’s so weird—looks over at you. “Hey, kiddo, welcome back to the world of the living,” he says with a smile, though it fades as he pulls away from Vanessa to crouch down in front of you. “Well, maybe I spoke too soon. You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

              You laugh. You know you shouldn’t, but like, come on.

              Despite the fact that you did not actually find his comment that funny, he relaxes. “Well, that’s more than you’ve said all day.”

              “Darling, who is that?” Vanessa’s voice is much more clipped, and her smile seems frozen in place. You don’t like that.

              The Prince, however, is unphased and pats your hat. “An urchin I picked up off the street, obviously. Getting ready for a life of indentured servitude.” He smiles down at you. “Do I have to tell you I’m joking now, or are you catching on?”

              You manage a weak laugh. These jokes of his weren’t really that funny to begin with, but now they make you a little sick. He pats your hat again as he looks back to Vanessa.

              “She’s just a little visitor. Got lost in the woods, so we’re getting her rested up before finding out where home is.”

              Vanessa’s stuck smile finally disappears, now replaced with an exaggerated pout. “But…but I came home early so we could spend a whole extra day together.”

              “And we will, my love, we will.”

              “But…I don’t want anyone bothering you today! I mean, apart from me, of course.” The pout becomes even more exaggerated. “After all, we’re getting married soon. We should be spending every moment possible together to get ready.”

              The Prince shakes his head with a fond smile, then walks back to Vanessa and presses a kiss to her forehead. “We have plenty of time, my princess, don’t you worry.” He takes a step back, keeping his hands on her arms. “Look, I’ve already had the Dwellers cooking up some food, and I’m sure you’re exhausted after fast-tracking it home. Why don’t you…” He taps her nose. “…go freshen up, and I’ll take care of some business I got behind on thanks to our visitor, and then we’ll all meet up in a bit for brunch. Deal?”

              Vanessa giggles. “Deal,” she says, leaning forward to kiss him again before jumping up to give him a tight hug. Over his shoulder, her bright smile drops as she looks down at you, something in her eyes sending a chill down your spine.

A moment later, she bounced back out of his arms. “I’ll miss you every moment we’re apart, my prince,” she coos.

              “And so will I, my princess.” He kisses her again, then pulls away to walk down the hallway.

Vanessa watches him go, then sighs before stomping her way up the stairs. From your spot, you hear the door open. “Why are you in here?” you hear her ask the Dwellers. “My bedroom should have been UNTOUCHED.”

              You decide now is a good time to see what the Prince is up to.

~

              You find him in an office, tucked away in the back corner of the mansion. You don’t think you ever got this far, but then again, you might not have been able to recognize it if you had. The Prince is crouched over his desk, quill scratching quickly over paper.

              You’re willing to bet pons to donuts that he’s writing out contracts of some sort, but probably ones of a less soul-stealy nature. And, since he’ll one day be legally obligated to be your BFF, you figure you might as well take a look.

              “Oh, hey, kid. You looking to be put to work?”

              You hesitate for a moment, looking at his desk. Pages upon pages of letters are scattered all over it.

              “I won’t turn down the help, pull up a chair and grab a quill.” He pushes his pot of ink so it sits between the two of you, then puts his hand over it. “Wait. You can write, can’t you?”

              You send him a flat look and nod.

              “Just checking! Someone is definitely feeling better, isn’t she?” He pulls his hand back, picking up his quill again. “Anyway, I’m just writing letters to the Dwellers, so don’t worry about being too fancy. It sounds sappy, but…we’re pretty isolated out here, so I like sending them some mail every now and again. They’re always over the moon to get some from the ‘outside world,’ even if it’s just a smiley face.”

              You smile a bit as you start to write. This is much nicer than outright stealing mail and redelivering it. Huh, Snatcher really wasn’t that bad of a guy before everything happened, was he?

              A thought crosses your mind, a kind of terrible one. Generally speaking, trying to change the past is a BIG no-no, even bigger than dropping a Time Piece. But…if…and this was a BIG if…but if you could stop the break up from happening, then maybe Vanessa and the Prince could stay normal, and Subcon Forest could stay happy. In that case, it’d be better for everyone involved, wouldn’t it?

              The Prince interrupts your thoughts by cracking his knuckles. “Jeez, writing this much makes my hands cramp up. Back in school I would have actual dreams about being able to write up contracts with just my mind. But I suppose that’s the life of a prince, isn’t it?” He takes up his quill again, then pauses. “Well, technically, that’s the life of the Grand Duke of the Subcon Forest—actually, technically Grand Duke and District Attorney of the Subcon Forest. But that’s a mouthful, isn’t it?”

              Attorney? You knew it.

              The Prince catches your smug look and grins. “Bet you haven’t heard of a noble lawyer, have you, kid? Well, I haven’t, either. But lawyers who are minor royalty are also pretty rare.” He laughs at his own joke, and you politely laugh with him. “Anyway, I thought it’d be a good thing to have in my pocket, you know? But—and contain your surprise at this, kid—there’s not much in terms of legal settlements out here in Subcon. But who knows, maybe it’ll come in handy when I’m king. There’s all sorts of treaties and stuff to take care of, and I won’t have to worry about Subcon when it’s not my domain anymore.” A strange expression crosses his face at that, and he abruptly sets the quill down. “Anyway, I think that’s enough letters for this round. I’ve got ribbons in the drawer there, we’ll just roll these up, tie ‘em off, and then pop them into some mailboxes.”

              You nod, then open up the drawer. You don’t find ribbons, but you do find a very official-looking piece of paper with the word “Contract” embellished at the top.

              Really, you’re surprised it took you this long.

              You pull it out, looking it over. It’s much longer than the ones Snatcher gave you, with a lot of big words and sentences that seem to go on forever. But you do pick out “Queen Vanessa” and “marriage,” so it’s probably…

              “Heyyy, hey, hey, that is definitely not ribbons.” The contract is plucked out of your hand, and the Prince puts it back in the drawer in a hurry before slamming it shut. “Anyway, you don’t want to read that. It’s all boring marriage stuff. Did you know there’s a whole bunch of legal processing when you get married? No, wait, of course you wouldn’t, you’re, like, six. Annnnyway…”

              “My Priiiiince!”

              This time, the Prince looks downright relieved at the squeal, and this time he’s prepared for Vanessa to launch herself at him, deftly catching her and setting her in his lap.

              “I was wondering when you’d be coming in,” he says, leaning forward to rub his nose against hers.

              “Oh, I’m sorry to keep you waiting, darling,” she replies, giving him another pout. “It was those Dwellers. Someone apparently messed up my bed while I was gone.”

              For a moment, you and the Prince lock eyes over her shoulder, both of you fighting grimaces. The Prince breaks away first, putting on a mock-serious face as he cups her chin.

              “Well! I’ll be sure to get to the bottom of it, my love. We can’t have your bedroom getting messed up.”

              Vanessa giggles before snuggling up to him. “It’ll be so much easier when we’re married. I’m not letting you out of my sight, ever, and so I won’t even need a visiting room out here in Subcon! Just think, no more incompetent Dwellers demanding your attention and messing up our beds.” She lifts her head. “Speaking of, have they finished brunch yet? I’m starving.”

              The same strange expression crosses his face, but only for a moment before his smile’s back on. “I’m sure they are by now. Why don’t we get going?” He helps Vanessa to her feet, then, keeping a hold of her hand, presses kisses up the length of her arm as he stands up himself.

              Jeez. You knew the two of them were in love, but this is just gross. But you’ve already decided you’re going to try and help, and “gross” is much more preferable to “murderous.” Even so, you’d almost prefer having them be their current selves if it means no more baby talk and gratuitous smooching.

              “Hey, kid, come on. Bet you’re starving after the morning you’ve had,” the Prince says. He doesn’t seem to notice when Vanessa grips his arm tighter, nor the icy look she sends your way before giving a sharp smile.

              “Of course. Wouldn’t want our guest to go hungry.” The smile drops, and she tugs the Prince out the door, much more roughly than she needs to.

              You get the feeling she doesn’t like you much. But much more important is the feeling that your stomach is empty, so you shake it off and follow them.

~

              You haven’t had brunch before, but you’ve decided it’s now your favorite meal of the day. At least, it is in Subcon Forest.

              There’s eggs and sausage and biscuits and fruit and, most importantly, cookies! For BREAKFAST! Time travel is notorious for making you hungry, and you’re pretty sure you’ve inhaled six of these breakfast cookies before you’ve even sat down properly.

              You realize halfway through your second sausage that you’re probably not behaving the way you should when having  brunch with royalty, but the Prince doesn’t seem to mind all that much.

              “Careful, Vanessa,” he says as you reach for yet another cookie. “Looks like we might have someone who loves cookies more than you.”

              “Not possible.” Vanessa’s voice is flat, and she hasn’t so much as touched her fork yet. Instead, she’s just staring at you. Her face is composed, but you still get the impression she’s imagining some not very nice things.

              The Prince doesn’t seem to notice, instead stirring his coffee with another laugh. “You really ought to come back when Vanessa’s the one in the kitchen. Her cookies? Ugh, to die for.”

              Suddenly, you don’t want to eat anymore cookies. Possibly ever again.

              “Oh, if you’re looking for jam, try this one.” The Prince nudges a small jar toward you. “Here, I lo—” He catches himself. “It’s my favorite.”

              You’re not sure what’s weirder: the way he corrected himself, or the fact that you’re getting jam recommendations from Snatcher. Either way, you decide you might as well try it. As you’re spooning it onto some toast, another heavenly smell comes from the kitchen. This one seems to pull Vanessa out of her one-sided staring contest with you, but she doesn’t seem any happier. In fact, she looks outright angry.

              “What is that?” she snaps at the Dweller who enters the room with a covered dish.

              The Dweller pauses, their masked face going between Vanessa and the Prince. “It’s, uh…actually, I think it needs to go back to the kitchen.”

              “Show me what you’ve brought,” Vanessa says through her teeth.

              “Vanessa, love…” The Prince tries, but she holds up a finger to shush him. The Dweller is visibly shaking as they lift up the cover on the tray.

              “Bacon?!”

              You swear you see the lights flicker, and you sink down in your seat as she continues to shout at the Dweller.

              “You know bacon is not allowed at the table!”

              “Vanessa, darling, it was a mistake.” The Prince is immediately on his feet, turning Vanessa around to face him. The Dweller took the chance to bolt back into the kitchen. “I mean, you dropped by much earlier than planned and…”

              “I don’t care! I won’t have you loving something more than me first thing in the morning!” She gasps suddenly, then narrows her eyes up at him. “Have you…have you been eating bacon when I’m not here?”

              “No, no! Of course not, dearest. And anyway, you know I could never love anything more than you, especially not some cured pork.”

              “I don’t want you to love anything but me!” she snaps back at him, pushing him back before crossing her arms in a huff. “Not bacon, not this stupid forest, nothing.”

              Immediately, the Prince is behind her, hugging her tightly despite her stiff pose. “Don’t be ridiculous, love. You know I love you more than anything, Vanessa.”

              For a moment, she stays stiff, but then she leans against him with a sigh. “I just…after my last relationship…”

              “I know.”

              “And I get so worried…”

              “I know, I know. But I’m not like him.”

              Vanessa lets out a shaky sigh, then turns and buries her face in his chest. The Prince strokes her hair silently for several minutes, then lifts her head and rubs her cheek with his thumb, smiling gently.

              “Better?”

              Vanessa nods.

              “I think, love, that you’re exhausted.” He leans down to kiss her cheek. “Look, I’ve still got some Dweller business to attend to. Why don’t you take a nap, and then by the time you wake up, I’ll be right back.”

              She looks up at him with big, blue eyes. “Promise?”

              “Promise.”

              Vanessa nods, then pulls the Prince down to give him a very long kiss right on the lips. Finally, she lets him go. The Prince blinks a few times, looking stunned, then shakes his head.

              “C-C’mon, Kid. Can’t keep the Dwellers waiting for their mail,” he says, smiling woozily.

              You quickly hop down from your chair, all but running to the Prince’s side after witnessing all that. Despite everything telling you not to, you look back at Vanessa. She’s not smiling as you two go, and as a shadow crosses her face, you swear you can see a trace of red in her ice-blue eyes. You pick up the pace and turn back around, sticking as close to the Prince as possible as you both exit the house.

              You’ll be the first to admit that you don’t know the first thing about relationships. After all, you’re just a kid. But what you’re seeing doesn’t seem normal, and maybe your goal here shouldn’t be trying to keep the two of them together.

              Maybe it’s keeping them far, far apart.

[Chapter 4]

[krisdreaming]

heeey! can I request headcanons for tsukishima and ukai how their reaction would be if the wife tells them she is pregnant? and how they would be during the pregnancy and while the s/o gives birth? thank you so much if you do this one!

2/2  hey! the preggo hc request here, sorry I just rushed over your rules and I’m sorry for adding ukai, if you don’t mind could it be iwaizumi instead of ukai? sorry for the inconveniences!

Hey there, no worries! No inconvenience whatsoever, you’re really sweet to take the time to do that ^^ and anyway OMG I was thinking about this all day at work and the ideas for this are flOWING this got super long I’m not sorry.

-

Tsukishima:

When she first tells him the news, all he does is blink. It’s not like the meme (you know the one) but more like “Tsukki.exe has stopped.”

And then when it actually sinks in, this huge smile breaks over his face. The likes of which the world has never seen before. Maybe not even his wife. Like, crinkly eyes and the whole nine yards.

That’s when he picks her up off the ground because he’s just so damn happy because lbr our Tsukki is all grown up and being a father is really important to him.

As I’m sure we all could have imagined, he’s not exactly the most PDA guy, normally. He keeps it lowkey. That all does a 180 once his wife is pregnant because OH BOY he’s got a hand at her back, or squeezing her hand, or letting her rest against him because he just has to know that she’s doing alright.

(She is and he very lowkey annoys her because “What have you done with my husband you lovey dovey weirdo?” Then she starts to like it. Look out after the baby comes and she still expects it, bro.)

Will he tease her endlessly for asking him to go get lucky charms at 3 freaking A freaking M? Yes. Will he do it? YES.

As she starts showing and her belly gets bigger, he’s kinda fascinated by it all? Like this is his child and it’s growing inside his wife and for about three and a half days it was weird af but after that it’s just kind of amazing.

The nursery has so many dinosaurs it’s a fact accept it.

Then you get to the time when the baby could literally come any day. And he’s so jumpy. Every time she says his name he does this little gasp. (He doesn’t think she notices but she so totally does)

When they’re at the hospital you’d better believe he’s at her side the whole. dang. time. Even when he starts to get a little green and even when each of his fingers makes an individual popping sound because she’s squeezing his hand that hard.

Then the baby comes and pretty much nothing else in the world matters? It’s so tiny and perfect and it’s got fingers-

Wife gets forehead kisses. Baby gets forehead kisses. Yamaguchi gets a forehead kiss when he visits. Everybody gets forehead kisses. Except the Yamaguchi one never actually happened, okAy?

Tsukishima is absolutely smitten with his wife and with his child and maybe it’s the lack of sleep, but he kind of feels like he’s floating around in a silvery fog. 

HE’S SUCH A GREAT DAD OKAY FIGHT ME.

Iwaizumi:

Look, this guy cannot handle it when his wife breaks the news to him. He’s got this huge, dopey smile on his face and he hugs her SO TIGHT and spins her around.

(omg i’m so sorry I didn’t hurt you did i??!?)

He kisses her stomach every night before bed and tells the baby how much he loves it you cannot convince me otherwise.

He does so much research. He learns about the best foods to eat while you’re pregnant, exercises that are safe for the baby, and pretty much has memorized “What to Expect When You’re Expecting”. He’s going to do this right.

You know how nesting is a thing, right? Well it happens to his wife as it does to a pregnant woman, but he’s right there beside her painting like a fiend, babyproofing everything in sight, he washes the curtains twice a month. IT”S FOR THE BABY.

He goes into overprotective overdrive. He doesn’t like it when she walks down stairs on her own, or stands too long at once, or when she has to refill the copier at work. He once offered to go to the bathroom for her in the middle of the night because he didn’t want her walking down the hall in the dark. To say she’s exasperated is an understatement. But she knows he means well.

He loves to feel the baby kick. He’s just downright tickled about it. Oikawa has a photo saved of the expression on his face when it happened once while he was visiting, and that bad boy is ammunition.

When the time gets closer, he’s always ready. No matter the time of day or night, he wants to be prepared. The hospital directions are always queued up in his gps because lord knows in the moment he won’t remember how to get there.

And then the moment comes. He practically carries her into the hospital and tbh it’s embarrassing for both of them. (I can wALK HAJIME!!!)

His wife absolutely curses him out during labor and because it’s Iwaizumi he takes it like a real man. And by that I mean he only cries a little.

He gets to cut the umbilical cord and he is over the moon. The thing he can’t get over is how freaking tiny the baby is, and he’s so terrified he might break and/or drop it somehow, but at the same time he never wants to put it down.

He keeps telling his wife how beautiful and amazing she is and how much he loves her. He loves her so MUCH. They’re just super, crazy happy.

HE’S ALSO A BALLER DAD YOU’LL HAVE TO FIGHT ME TWICE