#as i write these tags at 2pm the next day

[sidesteppostinghours]

16, 10 and 3 for Caineeeee and Cecilia plz

evening!! hello there crab controlled cat

16. What makes their stomach turn?

Caine- hmmm. this isnt something thats really happened before,,,, but i think its pretty similar with what i mentioned here, they got a spidey sense if the signal for the spidey sense was an extremely panicky feeling in their gut. i havent really thought of what would disgust them or even cross their morality enough to react that way. new thing to think about! the image of caine sneering at somebody/thing is a very fun thought.

Cecilia- like caine, shes also rather resilient, so its hard to find a situation where her stomach would turn. on top of that, she finds intrigue in the things most people find disgusting (blood and viscera for once thing), so almost nobodys seen her actually in that state. themmy has though! it was during a prank when she swapped out cecis chocolate chip cookies for raisins, she spat the whole thing out. ceci didnt talk to her for a week after that. shes never going to forget the moment she realized she was back at the farm. shes never felt so helpless before. she loses herself in those memories sometimes.

10. What lie do they most frequently remember telling? Does it haunt them?

Caine- caine doesnt actively tell lies a lot, just omits the truth. the most frequent one for him would probably be being a regene. even with being a villain or pupeteering hark, its not an actual lie they say out loud. however, its a bit unavoidable for being a regene lol. they have no regrets, its a matter of his safety and it could actively put their own plans in jeopardy, so they see no problem with it.

Cecilia- cecilia? cecilia doesnt lie! shes a very honest step thats super blunt about everything! you can trust her to always tell you what shes thinking! except for every principle shes built on. who she is as a person. hell, if she even is a person in the first place. but thats ok, thats not lying, thats just being stupid, a little silly if you will. the thought doesnt count as haunting her if she doesnt confront it!

3. How do they put themselves to bed at night (reading, singing, thinking?)

Caine- does working count. they dont have a solid sense of time, and he often loses himself in the process whenever he makes something, so a solid 60-65% of the time theyll end up falling asleep at their desk. if he remembers to go to sleep, hell either end up escaping to hark, or if they need a clear head, just thinking. theyve got a rather active imagination so you could imagine it as someone getting a story to sleep. sometimes theyll get some white noise to accompany it.

Cecilia- sketching! she keeps a notebook by her bedside table to draw things that happened during the day. the subject varies depending on her fancy, but either way, its a good way to help her get her thoughts out. sorta like journaling, but with the added benefit of being able to put down what shes feeling even if she cant place it (plus nobody could interpret what she puts in there even if somebody finds it, which is pretty sweet)

questions from here!

[courtingchaos]

2pm on a Sunday

Pairing: Professor Munson x Female!Reader

Summary: It’s a little slice of life, 2pm on a Sunday afternoon.

A/N: I’m always thinking about Professor Munson. This is just a little fluffy kind of blurb. A little dirty at the beginning but I wasn’t in the mood to write smut! That’s next time babes.

Warnings: sex, language, weed smoking NSFW 18+ no minors

2pm on Sundays are Eddie’s time.

He’ll have spent the morning trying to wake you up first because the rule was whoever woke up first made coffee first and he wasn’t getting out of bed first on a Sunday.

You never get out of bed first.

His plan will inevitably backfire and before he knows it, 10 am is rolling by and he is yet again trapped between your thighs. Your fingers buried deep in his hair making him moan against you, his own fingers buried deep in your pussy, pulling out whines and making you wiggle under him. It’s Sunday and there’s no rush. He takes his time running his tongue over and over your clit, the needy sound in your throat droning on while he keeps his steady pace.

“Ed…”

“Hmm?” He hums and locks his lips around you.

“You gonna pick up the pace or what?”

“Oh I’m sorry.” He lifts his head to look up at you. “Do you have somewhere to be?”

You’re giggly and a little sleepy still, grinning down at him. He can’t help but grin back when you smooth one hand over his frizzed curls.

“No but I thought you wanted coffee.”

He lays his cheek on your inner thigh but keeps his fingers rubbing lazily inside. Your eyes roll back and fingers grip again against his scalp, his name dripping from your lips. Normally he’d crawl up the bed now and pull your knees up around his ribs and really make you late for whatever errands you had.

But he did actually really want that coffee.

So he stays put. Moves his hand faster and pins your hips down and keeps his tongue moving until you’re sighing into the quiet room, pliant in his hands. He moves your legs off his back and you slide over to his side of the bed to cuddle up to his pillow. Another contented sigh while he’s grabbing his robe and before he leaves the room you mumble something at him, face still shoved in the pillow.

“What was that?” He leans down on the bed, one hand on the pillow to pull it back so he can see your one eye looking up at him.

“I said I wanted extra sugar in mine.”

He makes kissy noises at you and tries to land one on your lips. “Oh baby, I’m all the sugar you need.”

So yeah, 2pm. Sundays. It’s his time. You’re usually gone off to do whatever it is you haven’t don’t yet this week and Eddie is firmly planted in the kitchen, working on his good afternoon high. If you’re not involved he’s just rolling a joint or packing the little glass bowl on his pipe. You’re the more epicurean of the two of you so you’ve got brownies and cookies and fucking candy that he still isn’t used to yet. 2pm on Sundays is Eddie’s ‘me time’, his little smoke session and todays tag along treat are the left over biscuits you’d made for breakfast the day before. He’s leaning on the kitchen island, joint tucked firmly between his lips, arms crossed over his flannel robe, watching the plate turn in the microwave. 30 seconds and he can put the tub of frosting in there and he’s already dipped into the strawberry preserves he’s going to use.

He’s got a good buzz going, the speakers in the kitchen on low while he assembles his snack. He can hear you shuffling around upstairs still. When he’d finally brought up your coffee you’d been in the shower and he hadn’t heard a peep from you yet. Now though he can hear the squeak of your shoes on the wood floor, the jingling of metal and your humming along with his music. He’s on the other side of the island now so he can see you come down the stairs and so he can sit at the barstool and stuff his face with breakfast delicacies.

When you swan down off the stairs he lets out a dry laugh, still trying to chew the mouthful he’d shoved in there. “Where are you going?” He sounds a little accusatory and it makes you whip your head around to give him a confused look.

“Excuse me?”

“I said,” he swallows finally, “Where are you going? Dressed like that.”

“Like what?” You’re actually confused. You look down at your plain cropped top and high waisted work pants, pointless chain hanging from your belt loops. “Are you mad you can see skin, dad?” You ask sarcastically, giving him a sharp raised brow.

“Nope, don’t do that. I know what you’re doing.” He’s still seated but is pointing a lazy finger at you accusingly. “That’s girl bait.” He snaps his fingers down at your feet. You did cuff these pants, and you do have fun socks on today and yeah sure those are your slip on vans.

“Girl bait?” You know you’ve been caught but you also know he’s high, plate of biscuits and frosting all the evidence you need.

“You know exactly what I mean. Who is she?” He’s not mad, in fact he’s smirking at you while he’s got strawberry stuck to his chin.

“God you’re a fucking mess.” You laugh and move into the kitchen so you can steal a bite and wipe the preserve off his chin with your thumb.

“You gonna answer me? Who’s this secret girlfriend huh? She give better head than me?”

“Oh my god, if I had a girlfriend she wouldn’t be a secret. And you know how good you are at that don’t even try me.”

“Okay well what’s with the cuffed dickies then?” He takes a pull from his joint and sets it back down in the ashtray, makes sure to blow the smoke away from you while handing you another piece of sticky biscuit.

“Okay. Fine. I’m going to get a coffee and there’s a new barista. I want her to think I’m cool, okay?” You can’t help the heat creeping up your neck with the way Eddie is leering at you now, stupid little smirk growing wider with the passing seconds.

“Trading me in for a younger model, I get it.” He knows that’s not true, but he’s gonna tease you about it anyways. “You want her to think you’re cool? Just tell her about the brownstone you live in.”

“No, she’ll think I’m a yuppie.”

“Well…” Eddie trails off, flashes a big frown at you and raises his eyes. “Sorry love, you might be now.”

You push his shoulder and he acts like you’ve mortally wounded him, laying back across the other barstools dramatically. His glasses that had been perched on top of his head clatter to the ground and he looks around for the noise.

“Oh that’s where those were.” He’d be lost without you, you know this. You laugh at him again and lean over to grab his glasses and he takes the opportunity to slap your ass with a giggle. When you stand up you fling his glasses into the living room.

“Have fun finding those, pointdexter.”

He’s still laying down awkwardly across the barstools, trying to blindly find the ashtray on the countertop, grinning up at you. You drag it closer and pick the joint up for him.

“Thank you baby.”

You hum and lean down to give him a kiss. “I’ll be back soon. You need anything?”

“Just don’t let your new girl get you home too late.”

Later, when the sun is starting to set, casting the kitchen in deep orange, you come home to relative quiet. There’s two stubbed out roaches in the ashtray and you can hear the murmur of life upstairs that you follow. You’re about to push through the half open door of Eddie’s office when you notice Steve’s voice and the light strum of his acoustic. Their laughs twine together while Steve talks about their friend Dustin and his kids having set something on fire again. You sneak a hand into the room enough to set his iced chai on the table just inside.

You’re making dinner when he finally comes down, ice clacking in the plastic cup. He comes right up behind you to drop his nose into the back of your neck, arms circling around your waist. He’s warm against your back and cuddly so he’s still sitting in the twilight of that high he’d been so diligently working on earlier.

“You okay?” You ask over your shoulder and he hooks his chin there to give you a kiss. He taste like good weed and the chai he finished.

“Yeah just tired. Hungry.” His stomach growls and you chuckle.

“Go sit down, foods almost ready.” He just grumbles and nuzzles back into your neck. He stays like that till you have to move from the stove, swaying both of you to the music in his head.

“Oh, we’re having dinner with Steve next weekend.”

“We are?”

“Yeah, I meant to text you earlier.”

“Is it fancy?”

“It’s Steve. So yeah.”

You roll your eyes and hand Eddie his plate and point at the island. “Sit.” He sticks his tongue out but complies. Always listens to you.

“Do I need to get something new for this?”

“Mmm, we could go get you something.” Eddie’s watching you over his fork, letting the steaming noddles cool.

“Are you buying me something pretty?”

“Something like that. How do you feel about purple?”

“Purple what?” Something’s up. Eddie can’t hide an emotion when he’s high and he’s high and tired so the look on his face is a mix between salacious and hopeful.

“Uh, anything?”

“Why purple Eddie.” It’s not a question. You stand on the other side of the island and stare at him and grin like an idiot. He just shrugs his shoulders and gives you a dubious look.

“Steve likes purple.”

(Sacrifice for the readmore)

[queencherryberry]

So….I lied. I smoked the whole day and couldn’t resist writing chapter 6. And…uh…buckle up.

Tags: @alyyaanna @alyanamrossi @crossrhodez @mylittlepartofthegalaxy @freegardenbanananeck and anyone else who wants tagged.

Warning: implied violence, revenge, argument between reader and randy, implied sub space for reader, slight kink shaming

Chapter 6 of Brothers Best Friend

Cody let out a small chuckle rubbing your back as you clung to him still sobbing. He picked you up and took you to the bathroom and sat you on the toilet while he ran you guys a bath. You reached out to him doing grabby hands and he walked over while the tub filled up. You wrapped your arms around his waist and put your head on his abs. You just wanted some type of close contact with him. He stroked your hair as you started to calm down. For as long as he had known you, he knew physical touch was your love language. And he was prepared for how clingy you were about to become. To say he was excited for it was an understatement. When the water was sufficiently full enough he sunk into the water. You got in and sat in front of him. Your back rested against his chest and laid your head on his shoulder and closed your eyes. Cody wrapped his arms around you in a hug and rested his face by your neck. You both sat in the bath in silence enjoying each others’ presence. “I love you too baby girl.” He mumbled into your skin. He was met with light snoring from you. You hadn’t realized how exhausted you were until now so dozing off wasn’t a surprise to cody. He only smiled. He placed a kiss to the side of your forehead. He held you with one arm and reached over to drain the tub with his free hand.

After drying you both off he carried you to bed where you could get some actual sleep. He was even nice enough to put in some makeshift pj’s. He used one of his shirts and hoodies and he put your sweatpants back on you. “I’ll be right back to cuddle. I still have to go clean up breakfast since it’s almost 2pm. That and I still have to get some online school work done. Rest well.” He whispered to you stroking your hair. He kissed your forehead and put his shorts back on. He heard your phone go off. He picked it up to see who it was. He furrowed his brow and walked out of the room still holding her phone. He opened the text messages. ‘Hey lil’ mama, where you at? I didn’t see you at school today. You good? You still mad about Lexi? I told you we just friends. It’s not like that. I don’t know what you think is happening, but nothing is happening. Can we talk about this? Say dinner at 7?’ Before Cody could answer another text popped up from your best friend Brandi. ‘I know you probably don’t think about him like this but how big do you think Cody’s dick is? Like do you think he’s packing? Ask your brother if Cody’s single. Or better yet next time you see him give him my number chica’ cody smirked to himself. He kept this information on the back burner. He went back to jeys text and just simply sent a dick pic. ‘Fuck off dickwad. She’s mine now.’ He then blocked Jey and erased your conversation with Jey. He then texted Brandi his number. He saw an unread message from Randy. ‘Kim’s staying for awhile. Grab what shit you want and stay out of the house for about a week or so. I’m pretty sure rhodes wouldn’t mind the company. Just try to cock block him when he brings girls home. Tell him it’s a gift from me.’ Cody set her phone down and tried not to laugh. “This mother fucker…” he said to himself. He sighed and went to the sink to start doing dishes. After 15 minutes he pulled out his laptop and started work on homework and looking through class notes. His phone buzzed. He looked and saw he had a DM for $500. He opened it, piquing his interest. The note attached to it read: ‘next tinder bitch please whip.’ He set his phone down and sighed. He debated his options. He looked over at you sleeping peacefully. He closed his eyes and leaned back in his desk chair. There was something he was forgetting but he couldn’t remember what it was. He shrugged and closed his laptop and crawled into bed with you.

About three hours later there was angry pounding on his door. “Rhodes open the fuck up. I’m going to fucking kill you.” Cody shot up in a panic. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t scared to open his door. You awoke too and got up. Cody tried stopping you but it was useless. You flung open the door to stare face to face with your brother. “Fuck off randal! I’m trying to fucking sleep. And if you dare lay a hand on him, I, PERSONALLY WILL RIP YOUR BALLS OFF AND SHOVE THEM DOWN YOUR THROAT!!” You screamed at your brother. Randy’s face got redder when he saw the marks on your neck as well as the hickeys that littered your neck. “The fuck you’d do to my sister you little shit!?” Randy yelled. Before either man could blink, you gave your brother a low blow by kneeing him. You then slammed the door in his face and marched back to the bed and grabbed your blanket and curled up to Cody who still sat up shocked. He blinked a few times before laying back down. He just stared at you. He had a confused boner. He wasn’t sure if he was scared or turned on but he wasn’t going to speak on it. You grabbed his arm and dropped it over yourself aggressively. You curled up to his chest. You then moved around so you guys were spooning.

After about another 2 hours you woke up and Cody was missing. You sprang up and started looking for him. You wondered if Randy was still around. You heard laughing and it was coming from down stairs. You crept downstairs where you found your brother and Cody playing Call of Duty. Both men looked over at you creeping down the stairs. “Bout time you woke up miss priss. Thanks for the injured balls bitch.” Randy said starting another round of the game. Cody had a black eye when he looked at you. You continued down the stairs confused. You walked over and saw they were also smoking. You grabbed Randy’s cartridge and took a hit from it. “What? Not gonna sit by your boy toy? Codes told me everything. At least he’s a better candidate than fuck boy Jey.” Randy said. You got up and walked over to Cody and wrapped your arms around his shoulders and buried your face in his neck. He rubbed your arm and then went back to playing the game. You sat down next to Cody and put your head in lap. You chewed on your sleeve as you watched them play.

You soon felt Randy get up to leave. You didn’t know how long you were asleep. Cody stroked your hair and switched to a different game. He hit off his mod and leaned back into the couch. With one hand he combed through your messy hair. He thought you looked like an angel as you slept in his lap. He smiled to himself. He wasn’t playing his game for very long. He set the controller down and stretched. He looked at the time. “Sweetheart. Wake up. What do you want to eat?” He said, shaking you lightly awake. You yawned and stretched. You rubbed your eyes while stretching. You looked up at him and reached up to cup his face. You rubbed under his eye and frowned. “Randals a dick. This looks like it hurts.” You sat up still holding his face. He kissed your hand and held it in his. He looked at you sweetly. “Did you know Randy had a bet with Kim on when this would happen?” He said killing the mood. You smacked your forehead in irritation. “Are you shitting me? That dick!”

[nihyunluvskookie]

and then I met you

[four]

Pairing: Jeonghan × fem reader × Seungcheol

Synopsis: Falling in love with bestfriend’s ex wasn’t something that Jeonghan planned.

Genre: angst, hurt/comfort

Word count: 2.7K

Warnings: mention of pregnancy.

Author’s Note: just wanted to tell you, I write for fun and it’s fictional so if anyone doesn’t like what I write, it’s totally fine <3 We can’t love everything we read or come across <3

Happy reading ~

taglist: @scarlet789   @jjeongddol

If you want to get tagged, you can reply me <3

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As week went by Aisha was trying to talk to Seungcheol, in that mean time Aisha informed her bestfriend Jia, she needed someone by her side but the worst timing was Jia had to leave after five days staying over with Aisha because of a business trip.

‘Aisha, you need to go for check-ups and take care of your health. I’ll be back soon probably in one-two weeks okay?’ that was the thing Jia told her and left.

Aisha did agree to that but only she knows what she was going through. She had to take care of her and the baby.

“Jeonghan… hi”

“Hi, how are you feeling?” Jeonghan’s soft voice made her feel better.

“umm, I am fine… I guess” she took a pause, “actually Jia left the day before yesterday… she stayed with me for like five days”

“Yes you told me. Are you feeling any better?” she nodded at his words as if he could see her and he was replying to her softly despite working on something important.

“She had to leave for a business trip, and I guess she will be back after few weeks, she is not sure yet, she’s going as the team leader. so” she trailed off, “I wanted to ask you something, and it’s totally fine if you can’t. I originally thought I would go with Jia but since she’s not here and I…”

“Where do you need to go?”

“I’ve doctor’s appointment tomorrow, in afternoon around 3pm” he looked at his iPad checking his schedule. “It’s totally fine if you-”

“Okay, I will pick you up around 2pm and send me the address”

“You will go with me?” Aisha was surprised, she didn’t expect Jeonghan to agree.

“Yes, let’s meet up tomorrow then.” Somewhere Aisha was thankful to Jeonghan and god.

“Thank you so much Jeonghan.”

“No worries and take care of yourself okay?”

“yes” Aisha tried to sound cheerful, “I’m hanging up then” and she hung up.

Aisha was looking at the clock, she had another dream about Seungcheol and she ended up crying throughout the day, wondering about him. She did trying calling him once again but there was still no response, it’s been more than a week but there was no sign of Seungcheol.

Aisha was trying to cope up with everything when Jia was beside her because she would keep her occupied but then once she left, she’s back to the empty space and her mind is all over Seungcheol, how much she wanted to talk to him and hear his voice.

She heard the doorbell ring, she got up from her sofa and went to open the door.

“Aisha” she looked at Jeonghan who was smiling, she was meeting Jeonghan after almost a week, he still texted her at times and Jeonghan was less worried about her when Jia was staying over.

“Jeonghan, hi”

“Ready to go?” she nodded at his words.

She locked her apartment and went down with Jeonghan. She looked tired in Jeonghan’s eyes, “how are you?” she was taken aback worried if she looked very tired or Jeonghan was just asking without any reasons.

“Me? I am good.” She tried to smile. He was lying to herself along with Jeonghan.

They got into his car, he played some soft music and started driving, “you had an off day today?” she asked suddenly, “no, I had work”

“Then how…” she trailed off

“I took half day” he replied to her looking at the road, “God, why would you do that Jeonghan? I told you it was okay, it was fine, I was okay with it.”

“I wasn’t fine, Aisha. It’s fine, I can do this much.” Aisha was feeling guilty somewhere, Jeonghan had to take half day because of her when it wasn’t even his work or responsibility. It should’ve been Seungcheol.

“By the way… Aisha” he paused, Jeonghan was searching for words to speak he wasn’t sure if she should be bringing this up or not because she haven’t asked Aisha about Seungcheol and how is she dealing with everything. He was trying his best to contact Seungcheol and explain everything but there was no response from his side, he was getting tired of Seungcheol’s stubborn behaviour.

“say it Jeonghan” he took a deep breath before saying the remaining words “are you sure, this is the address because it’s in Seungcheol’s locality.” He stopped the car at traffic and took a glance on her, she turned her head to look outside, trying not to tear up. “Yes. When I booked the appointment two weeks ago, I thought me and Seungcheol could go together then later spend the whole day in his house.” Her voice was very low but Jeonghan heard it and decided not to ask about it anymore. Jeonghan started driving again and Aisha wiped her tears, she thought Jeonghan wouldn’t notice but he did and he was feeling bad for her.

Soon he parked the car, outside the clinic. She was about to open the door but Jeonghan opened it for her. Aisha was feeling tired, but she tried her best to not show anything to Jeonghan and make him worried.

Soon, they went to the waiting area, after Aisha talked at the reception. She was getting anxious and was trying to shrug off all the thoughts. Jeonghan noticed she looked nervous, after all this was her first time. “When did Jia leave?” he randomly started talking about Jia so that he could distract her and it worked. Aisha looked happy while talking about Jia, she truly was happy to have Jia by her side.

She even told how Jia wanted to hangout with Jeonghan, and how she wanted to talk to Seungcheol directly, but at the mention of Seungcheol her voice died down, so Jeonghan switched to another topic. He was trying his best until her name was called.

Jeonghan accompanied her inside to the doctor’s chamber.

Everything was going smooth but the moment doctor wanted to just do a normal check up of Aisha, she looked worried. “Aisha tell me one thing, are you not taking care of yourself and taking meals timely?” Aisha’s silence gave them the reply, Jeonghan was worried about her.

“Aisha, look you need to take care of yourself.” The female doctor turned to look at him, “and you need to take care of her, pay attention to her meals timing, and give her fruit juices along with fruits.” Jeonghan nodded at her words, “you just can’t neglect her, she is already 7 weeks pregnant, okay?” Jeonghan nodded again, “I’ll take care of her”

They left after thanking the doctor, who wished Aisha luck. “You’ve been skipping meals, your pulse rate was also low today.” Jeonghan looked at her, Aisha was feeling guilty again, “I-I just”

“I am telling you again, you need to take care of yourself Aisha, please. You can’t do this to yourself.”

They were walking towards his car and Aisha felt dizzy, she was about to take one more step but she held Jeonghan’s arm with a very tight grip, “Aisha? Are you okay?”

“Jeonghan…” she trailed off, Jeonghan didn’t risk anything and picked her up in his arms, “Aisha, hold on”

He quickly opened the door for her and let her inside, carefully. He had water in his car, he opened the bottle for her, “drink this”. After Aisha drank the water, Jeonghan went to the driver’s seat. “Are you feeling any better?” she nodded, he turned on the AC, “why would you skip meals Aisha, why?” Jeonghan was trying his best to keep himself calm, he was getting worried about her each growing second, even doctor told her she’s weak and she needs to take care of herself. She need to eat and get fruit juices, she cannot skip meals at any cost.

“Even doctor told you Aisha, please”

“I cannot, Jeonghan understand. How can I eat peacefully and sleep peacefully thinking about this baby and Seungcheol.” He sighed at her words, she was broken and only Seungcheol could fix her. There was a reason Jeonghan texted Seungcheol saying he should come visit the doctor because Aisha is going to the doctor in his locality but he didn’t see Seungcheol.

The only thing went unnoticed by both of them was, the moment Jeonghan picked up Aisha in his arms, Seungcheol was there to witness everything. ‘I was right’ he said and left.

“Fine, let’s go home now.” The whole ride Aisha was absent minded and was silent. Jeonghan stopped parked his car and got down. Aisha was lost to even ask him why would he park the car.

Jeonghan came after buying few things, “take this” he gave the plastic bag to Aisha and she looked at her, “what is this?”

“open up” he said and started driving back to her apartment.

“drink the lichi juice for now, I’ll cook something once we go home.” He took a glance at her while driving, “You don’t have to do that”

“and let you starve?” she looked at him, in disbelief “end of conversation Aisha, finish that juice before we reach your apartment.” Jeonghan smiled looking at Aisha pouting.

That whole week, Jeonghan went back and forth while taking care of Aisha, he would randomly bring fruits for her after returning from his work. Sometimes, he would cook dinner for both or it would be Aisha, that week Jeonghan saw Aisha smiling. He knew she needed some care and that was supposed to be given by Seungcheol but he wasn’t here anymore, and Jia was out of city which made her lonely.

Jeonghan would leave once Aisha was ready for bed, and he would randomly come in evening, make her fruit juices for her, make her some snacks. This whole week Aisha saw Jeonghan cook more than her. He would take care of her. Aisha was feeling better but the lonely nights after Jeonghan would leave was the most painful, she would wake up middle of the night in tears at times because of Seungcheol.

It was finally weekend, Jeonghan informed her Friday night before leaving that he would come in afternoon and they can have lunch together and watch some movies or go hangout somewhere.

She wanted to make breakfast for herself but she wasn’t feeling well. She was feeling sick, probably because she cried a lot that early morning, unknowingly because of some nightmare, about Seungcheol never coming back. somewhere she knew that might get true but she was trying her best to prove it wrong. She didn’t stop trying to contact Seungcheol, at times she would just send him messages about how she misses him, how she misses his voice and want to see him once again. and with that, she had morning sickness today, which was more than enough to make her weak.

Aisha somehow made, toast and drank orange juice.

She heard a knock on the door, she looked at the time, it was 11 am; she didn’t realize how time passed by. She walked towards the door and saw Jeonghan standing from the peephole. She smiled a bit and opened the door. When she saw him, she wondered who would even take care of her to this extent and given that’s Jeonghan, he was doing more than anyone else. He was taking care of her, this is what friendship is.

“are you okay?” Jeonghan was concerned, she looked perfectly fine yesterday. She nodded, “I am fine, just feeling a little weak…” Jeonghan locked the door, they were walking toward the sofa, “did you eat this morning?” she nodded, he could see how tired she looked and her voice was barely audible, “enough sleep?” she nodded absentminded.

She was walking until she held her head and felt dizzy, Jeonghan was quick to hold her. “Aisha” he led her to sit on the sofa and brought her a glass of water.

“drink this” Jeonghan would lie if he said his heart didn’t stop beating for a second because he got so worried out. He always had a soft spot for Aisha till date, he saw her struggling alone, at times he’s just skeptical about leaving her alone at least now. The fact she was supposed to be in Seungcheol’s care but it’s been almost three weeks ever since that happened. She’s struggling alone, he closed his eyes and it felt like the whole thing flashed infront of him, how happy Aisha was when she told him about Seungcheol’s proposal and they were thinking to get married as soon as possible. She would've been so happy. he wanted to take care of her, his heart was hurting looking at her so helpless, he was the only close friend she had right now, and he had to take care of her or else no one knows what will happen next because there was still no sign of Seungcheol showing up.

“Aisha, I’m moving in with you” he held her shoulders, she was surprised.

“Jeonghan, you really don’t have to do this, I am fine. It was just I didn’t had enough sleep and had to deal with morning sickness. Or else I am fine.” Aisha didn’t want to burden him, he was already doing so much for her, trying his best to be with her when she needs care and comfort.

“Jeonghan… it’s okay.”

“I’m moving in, that’s it. You need care, you need someone who can take care of you, and if I stay here it would be easier atleast until Jia comes, once she comes I’ll leave if you want.”

“Wait here a bit, I’ll go bring my essentials and then I can cook lunch for us, I was wondering we could go out and eat but looking at you I don’t even think it’s the best idea to take you out.”

He didn’t give her a chance to speak, and left. Aisha sighed. She was tired with everything.

Her phone started ringing and saw Jia was trying to facetime her, “how are you doing Aisha?”

“I am okay, why is everyone asking me how am I doing” she almost broke down, infront of Jia,

“hey what’s wrong Aisha?” somewhere Aisha hated herself for still being stuck with Seungcheol, she wasn’t ready to let go of him, how could she even let go of him when his part was growing inside her

“I don’t know Jia, I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I just feel like sleeping and not wake up” Jia was feeling helpless, she told her she would come back and stay with her. “Aisha, wish I could give you a hug right now” there was a long silence, and she was just looking at Jia, atleast looking at her made her feel better, how much she wanted to be with Jia right now. “was everything a mistake? Was I not enough somewhere? Was I wrong?” she spoke in her low voice, Jia heard and shook her head, “girl you were the happiest when you were with Seungcheol, it wasn’t a mistake. I wish I could make him suffer right now for everything you went through for past three weeks and I am so glad Jeonghan is there by your side.”

“Aisha” she heard her name and then door close, she turned her head to see Jeonghan with his belongings, “were you for real saying that Yoon Jeonghan??” Aisha looked puzzled, “what did you think?” Jia saw everything, she was glad for everything Jeonghan did all these weeks, she was somehow hoping for something more somewhere but she knew this wasn’t possible somewhere because the question would be ‘why’ and another question would be their ‘happiness’.

“hey Jeonghan” both of them realized Jia was still on call, Aisha facepalmed herself in realization, “Jia’s on call”

“oh hey Jia, how’s work?”

“it’s killing me, wish I could apply for leave like Aisha right now” she joked “I need a break guys” she smiled, after talking a bit more, Jia hung up and it was just Jeonghan and Aisha. Aisha was still in disbelief because she didn’t even think Jeonghan would actually do that. ‘what are friends for’ that’s what he said to Aisha. Little did he knew he was getting more and more soft for Aisha each passing day.

“I’ve another bedroom, you can shift there” Aisha gave Jeonghan a look, “what?” he looked at her.

“Nothing Jeonghan, you’re impossible” she slightly hit his arm, after Jeonghan settled, Aisha insisted him to have delivery and they ended up having lunch delivered.

Aisha was happy whenever she was around Jeonghan, it felt like he was the only reason right now why she could smile a bit in this situation of her.

[fuqnia]

SP Main Four + butters !College AU Headcanons

[☆] A/N | hii guys! i recently hit 500 likes on tumblr and i'm like so speechless... i never wouldve thought people would be interested in reading my stupid little writing hehe, so tysm! my long fic, most wanted, is coming to a close soon, and I have been working on another longfic that's a fem!reader insert x main 4 boys in college!

[☆] C/W | slight nsfw in kenny's

[☆] check out my relationship college au headcanons for the boys + butters here! it's sfw and nsfw <3

☆ stan marsh

environmental science major

i think he would have like around a 2.5 - 2.9 gpa

uses a laptop to take notes

surprisingly has decent notes

gets on wordle, geo guesser, quordle, WAFFLE, during lectures if he gets bored

struggles with hangovers, yet still goes to classes sometimes

i don't think he truly notices how much he drinks... it kinda just happens ?

doesn't mind college parties, will go if his friends want to

kyle usually has to carry him back to their shared dorm when he does go tho LOL

volunteers at the town's animal shelter !!

sometimes eric and butters tag along

visits home like once a month, mostly to see his mom and dog

crimson dawn is still a thing, and stan is sooo dedicated

matches band tees with kenny sometimes <3

keeps up with his college football team religiously

way too emotional about college sports

joins some intramural sports tho!

butters and wendy would come to his games and cheer him on

definitely has late night talks with kyle about "deep" stuff... and kyle is like

"dude, shut the fuck up and go to bed," and throws a pillow at him

i think he would start a vinyl collection

also has succulents, but he forgets to water them hehe

doesn't really use social media

so he gets kyle to send him songs from tiktok for his workout routine LMFAO

sucks at cooking

best procrastinator around

his drunken rendition of mr. brightside went viral after kenny secretly posted it online

"IT WAS ONLYYY A KISS, IT WAS ONLY A KISSSSSS"

very political

argues with the tik tok interviewers on campus

gets kenny to help him bleach his hair

eric bullys tf out of him for it

☆ kyle broflovski

political science major and on a premed track

4.0 gpa idc this man is a tryhard and fueled on spite

uses an ipad and apple pencil to take notes, uses goodnotes

definitely color codes his notes

i don't think he would actually ask questions in class

but goes to office hours... and that's how professors know his name

obsessed with email etiquette

will actually facetime sharon to show how messy stan's side of the dorm is

will spray stan with a waterbottle to wake him up

"dude... are you serious right now?" "it's 2pm stan."

has a mini ironboard and iron

wears his ushanka on bad hair days

refuses to join study groups

but is butters study buddy

visits home every 2 weeks

and comes back with a ton of leftovers from his mom's cooking

he also mealpreps

whenever his mom calls him, eric takes kyle's phone and starts talking to sheila himself

in bed by 9pm most days

kenny comes knocking on the doors at 9:01 to bug kyle

definitely a coffee snob, and grinds his own beans

has a small box of keepstakes under his bed

also has a small medkit in his dorm, backpack, and gave one to kenny, eric, and butters

jogs every morning before class

terrible at small talk

prolly makes underclassmen cry

sends venmo requests for every shared expense

participates in model un

falls for ragebait online

also chronically online

waters stan's succulents for him

☆ kenny mccormick

physics major with a minor in women's and gender studies

3.5 gpa

milked the fuck out of his home situation to get a full ride scholarship

uses an old fashion notebook to take notes

sometimes comes to class faded

tries not to make it a habit

also smells like cigarettes, but everyone still wants to sit next to him ?

butters offers him alternatives like gum or lollipops

adrenaline junkie

his favorite class he took is water skiing

but also really likes his minor classes!

volunteers at local events, like community cleanup

thrifted flannels

shares them with stan

the most well known on campus out of the four + butters

loves late night drives

knows all the scenic spots around campus

has a bunch of tattoos littered on his body

kyle definitely mothers him, taking care of his scratch and bruises

horrible sleep schedule thanks to eric screaming in their dorm at 2am

makes quick god-like meals

the underclassmen idolize him for some reason ?

diy king

was hired to be the campus mascot

but was fired for bringing pyrotechnics on the football field

do not ask this man his bodycount

decorated his ottoman, to make it look less suspicious

definitely hides his drugs and alcohol in it

locks out eric from their dorm room and puts a sock on the door handle when he's getting sum

☆ eric cartman

business administration major with a minor in psychology

2.0 gpa

does not rlly give a fuck abt his classes

gets caught for cheating/plagiarism but somehow manages to never get expelled ?!

runs for his class student body president position, but his campaign is just memes

always scheming for free food, all the clubs know him

doesn't have anything school related in his backpack

loud as fuck in his dorm

"Dude. You’re at, like, an 11 right now. I need you at a 3." "Uh, excuse me? I’m multitasking. This is called strategy, Kenneth. I’m practicing for when I go pro, unlike you and your stupid—whatever it is you’re doing—'The Patriarchy 101' or some crap."

unironically loves the dining hall food

networks on linkedin for some reason ?

listed kyle as a reference on linkedin to piss him off

tiktok famous

atrocious dorm decor

has a cardboard cutout of andrew tate that he loves

runs the school barstool instagram account

reddit mod on the school's subreddit

every few weeks, stan convinces him to set a fitness goal

always fails...

has convinced the entire dorm there’s a ghost, and charged people $10 for ghost hunting tours

once organized a charity on campus to help pregnant students, but pocketed all the money

also ropped butters into it somehow

stole one of stan's succulents

believes he's a karaoke god

records the main four + butters at parties

spends at least an hour in the dorm's bathroom, causing kyle to geek tf out

works as a guide tour for the school, so he could spread misinformation to the tour groups

☆ leopold 'butters' stotch

either an education, psychology, or business major... i can't decide

3.8 gpa

active in the student government

sometimes reviews eric's cheating cases... way too lenient

accidentally started a cult on campus

started as a wholesome self help club

his advice was so endearing people started treating him like a guru

kenny thinks this is hilarious... kyle tried to stage an intervention but failed

becomes an RA

takes it way too seriously, best informative bulletin boards and door decorations

gets really sad whenever no one shows up to game night

so the main four and craig's gang show up out of pity

sometimes the girls come too!

did study aboard for a semester

returned with an inflated sense of cultural superiority

eric mocks the fuck out of him for it LOL

says howdy! to everyone every morning

academic overachiever

too polite to call out slackers in group projects so he just does most of the work

studies at the campus library at a specific spot next to a window

chews grape flavored gum while studying

started cleaning up trash at parties

color coded planner with stickers and motivational quotes

best hugs... stan is like the only person who hugs him back

sneaks into the football stadium at night to just stand on the grass

goes out for every holiday

plans secret santa for his dorm, makes cookies for finals, decorates his dorm room

his dorm door is always open!

☆ Group Dyanmics

always does group costumes for halloween

teletubbies one year, fnaf the next

bad movie nights everyweek

annual camping trips

kyle cries about the lack of phone signal

stan always forgets something important, like his tent or sleeping bag

kenny loves telling scary stories, especially to freak out butters

cartman only packs junk food

butters always burns his smores

every year when the snow falls, the go out in the quad to have a snowball fight and random people join in

kenny somehow manages to get the group to join him for his midnight drives

every semester they crash the weekly campus trivia at least once

can you guess who my favorite is tehehe...

[dreamlandxrunaway]

☁️ 1 cloudy day at a time ☁️

part 40: drunk on alcohol v1.0

summary: getting stuck in rain on campus that one faithful monday with a mild hangover is either the best or the worst thing to have happened to y/n... she has yet to decide, and so have the people that were involved.

pairing: yang jeongin x fem!reader

warnings: implied drinking, swearing, implied nude photo (◼️)

Masterlist

prev < part 40 > next

tag list: @mythicalamphitrite @aliferousminho @jcngh0-hq @linodori @seroriis @mchslut @https-skzology @streetrebelrootsdistinguish @thisisnotjacinta @mmm-alhaitham

Purple can't be tagged

Feedback is greatly appreciated ♡

A/N: Hello~ you can thank Baek Ji Young feat. Taecyon of 2PM - candy in my ear playing on repeat for whatever this is and the following chapter skaiabsjabsisbsjbsjs I had too much fun writing this... and for no reason sjsbauabajbajshqhq these messes I swear sjshqjwbjq

Tag list is open, so if you want to be added, let me know :)

[cjdevlin]

Day 8 of Planning The Forgotten Gods 🌿🔮

I'm going to start writing tomorrow! I have the first 4 chapters planned (it was supposed to be 5 but uh I might have slept in until 2pm, whoops)

4 chapters is definitely enough for me to start writing tomorrow and know what needs to happen in the first chapter, though, so it's all good!

I'm spending a few days back at home with my parents after the writing meet tomorrow morning. I need some time to catch up with them and make sure my mums doing alright after her op 🥰

So I might not get much done or posted over the next few days (other than tomorrow because I'll be posting about how the writing meet goes and how much I manage to write!)

Also, it turns out I can't see the results of the poll before it closes 🤦🏻‍♀️ so unfortunately, I can't make the tag lists until the poll is done in a week. Apologies 🫶

~ Caitlin 🌿

[the-good-projxct]

March 8th, 2024

9:52 pm listening to what's my name by Rihanna sitting in KaMami’s room with her and Aunty KendiKakes. I did not write yesterday or the day before. Well for the day before I had already chosen a picture to use for one of this week's entries. But last night, I didn’t. For two reasons, I didn’t have my computer but I had my phone and I have written in my apps note and transferred it. Honestly, I was just in a different zone and I didn’t want to do anything other than be in that zone. I’ve been enjoying having KaMami and LoustaLoustaBaby in Nairobi. We went to the mall then we went to see my little cousin Nita and her baby girl Kiki. They are so cute. Holding a 3 month old is so precious. They're soo little and just…soo vulnerable that it brings joy and heartbreak at the same time. Something about babies is pure bliss and absolute chaos at the same time. We came back home and Shaka and Aunty Bome came by. We all spent some time together, the elders Karimi and Moka wa Mwiti were there as well. Then I left with an uber to Munene’s side of town for a few days. I got there and it was already evening so we had supper and vibed for a while. Then we went to an avocado packing plant at like 11pm till 2pm. Munene does export stuff so I tagged along so I could see what he has been up to. It was cool and ting. I was pretty sleepy when we got back to the apartment though. The next day we had a slow start. Walked to the shop, bought stuff to make breakfast then made breakfast together. Crazy story, I am struggling to conceptualize that I have a bae, that I am in Love. Like it feels…foreign. But also, he feels like home. I love doing mundane things with Munene. Like I can do nothing with him for eternity and not be bored. I think the perks of having a partner is doing romantic, touchy, sexy things with/to one another as you do mundane things. Anyway, I enjoyed making breakfast with him. We watched an episode of Love is Blind. Then we went to the mall. We took some edibles before heading out. I stopped being a stoner in 2022 but I did it a few times in 2023. I brought some edibles with me for Munene’s birthday present. So we decided to take them then go on the ferris wheel at the mall. It’s a pretty big, very western mall. The edibles hit at the perfect time, we had stopped by their office for a few. So it was soo funny to see him conducting business knowing we’re both on edibles. Then we went to the ferris wheel. The gag is, we’re both scared of heights but we both didn’t think through how high that ferris wheel goes. So once we sat in it, the fear kicked in. The ride goes twice, we only did one run cuz fear... Anyway, while up there we kissed, held hands, and said I Love you’s. It’s so crazy because life feels very romcom with Munene. We went to the grocery store because we had munchies, then we went back to his office for a while. I was sitting on the balcony then I looked up and saw hearts in the sky. Like yo, life is a movie right now. We went home, I took a nap, we watched more Love is Blind then slept. Munene Loves me. I know this in my bones. In my Soul. I Love him. We are falling in Love. I have worked so hard to heal so much stuff. I know I am ready for Love, tenderness and a partner. I feel self sabotage tryna creep in. It’s so weird because the sabotage is from my ego. My soul is at ease and in Love. My ego is tryna start shit it cannot finish. Anyway, I have the tools to take care of my ego/me/us. It’s like while living the dream, my ego doesn’t feel like it's enough or I am worthy. Even though I know I am enough. And I am worthy. I want us. I Love us. I know I will need to be consciously in Love this time. I know I am making a choice this time. I finally get it, Love is a choice. I want to choose Munene over and over and over forever. Life is Gøod. We are Gøod. I am Gøod. The Universe is Gøod. Love is Gøod. Home is Gøod. Ase. Ase.

[furious-rogue-stuff]

Heat Chapter 23: Coffee

New year, same ol' heated love affair~! 😚 While I don't normally forecast what's to come in this author's note section, I figure that 2021 ending on an epic downer (R.I.P. Betty White!) means I need to pass on some good vibes, so just know that this and the next couple of chapters are going to be some good Javi x Querida love and yearning fare, with minimum angst, if any 😁

If you’d like to be added to the tag list, please let me know~!

Pairing: Javier Peña x OFC | Javi x Querida

Disclaimer: Written in 2nd person narrative, you can safely assume our heroine and love/lust interest is a Latina, written by a Latina. Here's my philosophy on my writing, for further context.

Rating: Mature/Explicit 🔞

Word Count: 17,000+

Summary: Navigating the balancing act of keeping your relationship secret at work while things between you and Javi heat up, can you both avoid the pitfalls that arise when things move to the next level?

Warnings: The BEST Javier Peña, graphic depictions of sex, including  oral (m+f receiving) and unprotected sex. Use of provocative and slightly degrading pet names, dom/sub play, cum play, size kink, dirty talk, and praise kink. Some Dom!Reader, Sub!Javi, Possessive!Javi, and Soft!Javi. In the vein of Narcos being a bilingual show, and Javier Peña being fluent, I felt it was apropos to include Spanglish and Spanish throughout.

Heat Masterlist

Previous chapter - Chapter 22: Alone

Chapter 23: Coffee

The effervescent feeling sticks with you all morning after leaving Javi's, even when you rush home and literally strip and jump into a work outfit before hurriedly blow-drying your hair and dolling up for the office. It doesn't even leave you when you're stuck in traffic and need to call Ellis on your cell phone to warn him you're going to be a few minutes late to your first meeting of the day. Luckily it's an operations check-in, so he can run interference until you show up.

Breezing through security and strutting in your heels to the elevators, you hustle in and thankfully don't have to wait for the other passengers to arrive at their floors before the compartment stops at yours first and dings open. You're mercifully able to toss your purse onto the couch in your office and stride down the hall to the conference room to arrive with just enough grace to only be a minute behind the start of the meeting.

"Good morning, everyone!" you greet placidly, and internally breathe a sigh of relief. By the time the meeting ends and everyone files out, you practically deflate in your chair while Ellis snorts. "…Don't say it," you grumble warningly as you bow your head onto your folded arms over the conference table.

"Oh? Say what, pray tell?" he chimes knowingly, and bounces his eyebrows at you when you glare sorely up across the table at him. "Back on, I take it?" he goadingly drawls.

You nod and lean back in your chair meekly. "Anyway…what else is on the docket for today? I was hoping to meet with HR and make sure there are no hassles with them working on the new system," is your musing as you stand and stretch your aching muscles.

"Ah, I penciled that in around 2pm. The ambassador's secretary asked for you to go up and meet with him around 3:15pm, between two of his conference calls," Ellis tells you as you both lope out of the conference room.

"Huh, did she mention what about?" you ask as you make a beeline for the coffee maker, retrieve a mug, and pour yourself a cup.

"Nope, just said it would be a quick touch base," Ellis retorts while you fiddle with the button of our chic gray blazer while you sip your brew. "Oh, and Francesca's going to be in a little later. She called and said she was meeting with her professor about that extra credit to beg for a better grade without doing the bonus work," he tells you as you now head back to your offices. "I still think she should just cruise that cool street art spot you showed me—"

"Firstly, that's a dangerous neighborhood if you don't know you're way around, and second – her Spanish is not much fluent than yours," you heckle him acerbically as you enter your office and set your mug on the side table. "Besides, I doubt extra credit will be enough to raise her semester grade, let alone go through the trouble," is your musing as you shed your blazer and adjust the sleeves of your white button-cuffed chemise blouse before retrieving the mug and sitting on the sofa while Ellis leans against the door jam. "Ah, have you heard an ETA on the system from IBM?"

"Yeah, I got the first stamped forms and the processing should be complete by end of Thursday, so we should have it here at the embassy following week," he answers and adds tentatively, "Although, that means one of us has to do the field office rounds right after so they can help set up the hubs each will need to get onto the system."

You sigh and lean back into the cushions with your mug cradled between your palms. "Crap, I forgot about that," you mutter and take a long sip of your coffee. "Well, start looking at the itinerary for the next few weeks. I'd want to visit each field office back to back and get things up and running just to get it out of the way," is your musing as you twist your lips and add, "I have my cousin's wedding coming up, so definitely don't want to be traveling to the field offices around then."

"Sounds good. I'll start looking and confirm before I make any arrangements," Ellis tells you dutifully before checking his watch. "Oh, by the way, Jackie told me she's getting a bit of resistance from the DEA resources she's been onboarding into the pilot. Rather than have drama to report, I'll ask Stoddard if we could move the status report with Peña to next week," he remarks before giving you a lopsided smirk and adding, "That should be enough time for her to whip them into submission and have some progress to show."

You can't help hum a silly sound at that. "Fine by me. I think he's going to be plenty busy this week anyway…"

He snorts at that. "Mighty big fish he reeled in," Ellis remarks and crosses his arms. "That reminds me, I put in for the same kind of cell phone you got: encrypted, secure – the works. It should come in next week too."

"Excellent," you chime and finish your coffee, pleased that you'll be able to get ahold of Javi on a much more reliable means of tech than his current clearly-compromised satellite phone. You'd asked Ellis to make the arrangements for the cell phone last week before all the drama on Friday, so you're glad he clearly put in the order prior. "Ah, I have a meeting with Internal Ops," you sigh when you glance at the slim rose gold watch on your wrist before standing and slinking your blazer back on. "Lunch in the atrium later?"

"I'm down!" he chirps and gives you a silly salute before he saunters out to his own office while you grab your things and head to your meeting.

Javier is currently head down in his office while he listens to the latest tapes Stoddard had prepared for him of the wire tap on Christina Jurado's phone. It's the typical crime-adjacent-kept-wife bullshit: she's complaining about missing him, getting shined on by Franklin that he'll bring her along next time, and lamenting how this is not entirely the lifestyle she expected. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he shuts it off and sits back in his chair, hand dragging down to idly rub over his moustache as he ruminates.

The day had started out fantastically, but as soon as he stepped foot in the embassy, all eyes were on him, and most of the looks might've been benign, but after the removal of Col. Martinez from his post and Stechner's not-so-veiled threat, Javier felt like he was on edge. It didn't help that he'd been summoned to Crosby's office first thing to get forewarned of a big mucky meeting that was going to happen end of week, headed by General Vargas. The sharp-eyed ambassador had told him he better tread lightly now that he'd kicked the hornets nest, and Javi had appeased him with a curt, "You've got it, sir."

Really, though, Javi was prepared to take a blowtorch to the proverbial hornets nest, but for now he was biding his time. He was hoping Jurado's wife would get the man to slip and disclose his current location, and once he knew where he was, he was going to hunt him down. Brooding now, Javi glances at his cigarette pack, temptation calling to him, but he looks at his watch and smirks.

Tidying up the counter while the machine brews a fresh pot of coffee, you're humming to yourself as you straighten the little wooden stirrers and set them to align with the sugar packet cubby. You're contemplating to yourself over some of the tasks you need to get done this week as the brewing hiss and fizzling coming from the machine ceases just a few seconds before you hear someone clear his throat behind you.

"You must go through enough coffee to run a café around here," Javi croons when you glance reservedly at him and smile. He has a plain ceramic mug held in one hand as he slips the other in his tan slacks pocket. "I'm not going to earn ill will from your staff for partaking?"

"Not at all. My team has no qualms sharing," you retort wryly and offer to fill his mug for him. He lopes closer and holds the mug out to you, smirk warm and eyes crinkling soulfully. As you pour the piping brew, you muse, "It also helps that I keep Don Gilberto's coffee stocked at all times."

"I didn't know he sold his coffee in bulk," he chuckles before sipping the delicious scalding coffee, and having to wince back.

You stifle a chuckle and refill your cup while eyeing him amusedly. "He doesn't, but I convinced him that he should, and I'd be his #1 customer. I even made a spreadsheet to show him just how much profit he could make if he sold the coffee grounds in bulk," you tell him blithely as you lean back against the counter and let your coffee cool. "Everyone who has a cup falls in love with it. I even got Dotty in Crosby's office sneaking down here and absconding with to-go cups to take up to him," is your cheeky aside as he gives you a warm, rugged look.

"As if you weren't his favorite department head already," he drawls laconically, to which you narrow your gaze haughtily in response as you drink from your glazed mug.

He sips his coffee to hide his goading smirk, so you take the opportunity to whisper airily, "I'm likely the only department head that doesn't raise his blood pressure these days, unlike some others."

The surly grunt he lets rumble loud enough for you to hear sounds more like an ornery little purr, so you crack a smile while he glances down at the quietly busy department. "Well, I'll head back and get out of your way," he tells you in a professional tone, but covertly winks at you as he adds, "You have a good rest of your afternoon, director."

The molten, puckish look in his eyes has you aflutter, but you manage a congenial, "You as well, Agent Peña."

With a charming grunt, Javi saunters off, and you get to watch his handsomely tailored frame walk away as you make mental notes of all the naughty things you're going to do to him later tonight.

"Whew!" you hear Francesca chortle out goofily as you come back from the coffee corner, so you raise your brows in question while she waves you over. Once you're in her cubicle, she whispers, "That man in the tan suit strutted in here and all the girls snuck glances. I hope it's alright that he walked down before I could catch his name and ask you."

Snickering, you sit on the corner of her desk and assure, "No harm done. He's the DEA country attaché, and a coffee fiend," smirking when she gives you a surprised look. "He also has quite the rep for being a lothario," you tell her amusedly and sip from your mug.

"Oh, wait—that's Javier Peña?" she whisper-exclaims – looking super intrigued when you nod and hum the affirmative. "Well, that explains it, I suppose," is her snort as she crosses her legs and leans back in her desk chair, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose.

"It should, considering even such a dutiful intern like yourself knows the chatter about him," you quip and eye her humorously.

"Oh, I heard gossip from some of the other interns upstairs when we had to do that annoying security profile update," she tells you before whispering, "The intern in Correspondence said he took one of his office girls home after a night at the bar."

With a perfect poker face, you smile and drawl, "Yep, that's what's gone around the water coolers." She hums in wonder, and you just love the smart, intrepid young woman. Still not jaded or put out by the world. Changing subjects, you ask, "So, did your professor let up on that extra credit project?"

"Ugh!" she dramatically deflates into her chair and frowns. "No, but he said he'd weigh the grade for it so it helps boost my overall grade for the semester. I just have to look for a subject that'll let me interview 'em," she sighs forlornly.

You pat her on the shoulder and check your watch, realizing you're going to be late for your meeting upstairs with HR. Agilely, you run to set your mug in your office before hustling by her and assuring, "That's actually a way better deal, so you should go for it!"

Completing your meeting with HR a little late, you make it up to Crosby's office with a minute to spare, and Dotty lets you in and asks the ambassador if he would like another coffee before winking at you.

"Yes! That would be wonderful. Thank you, Dotty," he exclaims and gestures for you to come sit. "Well, darlin', I only have a few minutes, but I wanted to show you something," Crosby tells you warmly as he picks up what looks like a fax and hands it to you. You skim it, and are surprised by the Senatorial letterhead. "Seems that the Appropriations Committee will add a provision for the funding your department requested. They're set to vote on it next week," he explains and grins broadly when you stare up at him, baffled.

"But, they were so disinterested…" you wonder out loud, and you read further, but it's mostly just pleasantries and political jargon. "…Did you intercede on our behalf, sir?" you find yourself asking and skeptically glancing up at the man as he leans back in his leather-bound chair and blows a raspberry at you.

"I didn't have to, actually. Seems that on Friday, while out on their excursion with the heads of DEA and CIA, they got the lay of the land for the funding need," Crosby explains, adding as an aside, "Senator Toyle mentioned that Agent Peña especially vouched for the impact the overall funding would have, and mentioned that your department's work would become integral in the future work the DEA is able to do."

You are absolutely floored. Javier had not mentioned any conversation of the sort. If you'd known that once the helicopter had landed on the tarmac, he'd struck up a conversation about needed modernizing and told both senators, "—That department is going to be fundamental in technologically leveling the playing field with the cartel networks and keeping teams like mine one step ahead of the traffickers," before rushing off to his car to call Stoddard? You probably would've melted down into a puddle of yearning. Hearing Crosby tell you the cliff note version now? It sets your heart aflame for him.

Thanking the ambassador for sharing the wonderful news with you and promising to keep him abreast of the pilot program's progress, you leave him to his next conference call and walk by Dotty as she comes in with the coffee she's pilfered from your department's pot.

The whole trip back down to your office, you're buzzing, feeling so overwhelmed by the adoration you feel for Javi right now, that it's taking all your willpower not to take a detour to his office and ravish him for all of the DEA bullpen to see. Instead, you practically float out of the elevator and down into your department before strutting buoyantly to your office. When you look at your desk and see a folded piece of paper sitting on top of your closed laptop, you get a giddy thrill. You stroll over to pick it up and unfold it, going from excited to perplexed.

CONGRATULATIONS ON THE FUNDING. LOOKING FORWARD TO WORKING TOGETHER SOON.

Bemused, you feel a cold chill go down your spine as you analyze the handwriting. It's not Javi's script, and you don't know anyone who writes in all capitalized words. Just when you're starting to rack your brain, Ellis pops his head in your office.

"Hey, I got everything ready for the meeting with Accounting," he calls over, but when he sees your tense expression, he quirks a brow and queries, "Something wrong?"

"…I'm not sure. Did you see anyone come into my office?" you ask and fold the note back.

"Nope, but Fran left not but 10 minutes ago, so maybe someone slipped in after?" he asks and eyes the note in your hands.

Stoically, you slip the note into your purse and instead hold up the copy of the fax the ambassador let you have. "Never mind. Crosby gave me good news: We're getting the funding!"

"Awesome!" Ellis exclaims and rushes over to give you a high-five.

While you and Ellis move into prepping for the last few meetings of the day, Javier has been avoiding phone calls and most of his non-essential meetings, favoring ducking into the booth Stoddard has set up the wiretap equipment so he can concentrate on listening to the Jurado tapes while he skims other surveillance briefs Feistl and Van Ness had faxed to him. The fact the men got sandbagged by the crooked CNP captain when it came to the documents they'd collected from Pallomari's office didn't mean they weren't finding ways to collect intel. He was reminded of the time he'd told Steve to shove documents down his pants in the Palacio de Justicia's storage room where the government had stored all of the Escobar evidence.

The irony didn't escape him now. Where he and Steve had cut corners, to Messina's chagrin, Feistl and Van Ness were tactically coloring in the lines while Javi was just keen on results. He's decided he makes a shit boss, but hell, not much he could do about it now.

He spends hours in the room, poring over documents and making notes for standout details to himself, so by the time he looks up and peers through the blinds of the door, he finds that most have left for the day. Grumbling, he collects the files and heads out to his office and finds Stoddard toiling away at his medieval-looking desktop computer, sat just outside of his door.

"Boss, meant to tell you that Mil Group asked for a meeting this week to discuss strategy on continued interagency surveillance ops," the weary young deputy remarks as he gets up and follows Javi into his office. "Unfortunately that muddies up the schedule, so I have to postpone the status report with IT+IS to next week."

Javi stores the files in his desk and grabs for his nicotine packet. "That's fine," he remarks flatly before popping a gum into his mouth, chewing on it as he gives the man a thoughtful once over. "Go ahead and call it a night, Stoddard. You look as tired as I feel," he deadpans before unrolling his shirtsleeves and buttoning the cuffs. "See you in the morning."

Shoulders slumping in relief, Stoddard weakly smiles as he backpedals to the door. "Thanks, boss. Have a good night," is his parting remark as he hustles to his desk, grabs his things, and hurries out before Javi changes his mind.

Javier decides it's time to get the fuck out before he changes his mind too, so he shrugs on his blazer, grabs his things and heads down to his car to make a couple of stops before your place.

You've been tending to the stove for the last hour, hair up in a flirty twist and comfortable in your flower-patterned bateau-shoulder strapped dress as you flounce around the kitchen. The apartment is clean, table set, and the drink glasses are waiting on the kitchen island as you chop the ingredients for the salad. There's a nice breeze filtering through the apartment from the windows, and you feel refreshed after shirking your work clothes, showering, and pulling on the soft cotton dress so you're comfy while you make dinner – eager to spoil Javi after the news you got today.

The TV is on, but the volume is set to low so you can concentrate, already wondering if you overdid it while you're mixing up the vinaigrette dressing you made from scratch. Once you're satisfied and set everything aside so you can wash your hands after turning the stove off, your mind betrays you with a reminder of the cryptic note that was now sitting in your purse. As you stir the rice in it's cauldron one more time, you let your mind wander. Who would know about the funding outside of Javi, the ambassador, and my team…?

Just as you start to fixate, the house phone rings in its cradle. Distractedly, you wipe your hands on the towel and grab the wireless receiver. "Hello?" you greet as you glance up at the clock, wondering if it's going to be Javi telling you he's running late.

But then you remember you'd both agreed to only talk on secure phones, so he'd have called your cell phone, not the house phone—

"Ah, so you're home tonight," the purred rasp taunts before adding, "Hopefully wearing a sexy little negligee already?"

You scoff and put your hand on your hip as you go back into the kitchen. "Hello, Sasha," is your flat greeting, knowing it'll rile him.

"Oh c'mon, ketsele! You REALLY aren't gonna greet me like the old friend that I am? I'm fucking wounded—" he complains gruffly, and you can hear the sincere scowl in his tone.

"You are such a brat," you cut in sardonically. "Congrats on the upcoming showing! I can't believe you didn't mention you were working on art again while I was there," is your remark as you idly clean the counter.

"Ah, well I wasn't sure I'd have a finished collection for the installation, so no point in mentioning it. But I got a serious bout of inspiration. It all fell into place quickly once I was done," Sasha convivially regales. "I just ironed out the details today. I fly into Bogotá on Friday and the installation will premiere on Monday night—"

He goes on to tell you the details, from the location, to the time, the dress code for the premiere, and you smile at the sound of his exuberance. After all, it'd been years since he'd shown his own work, so you were excited for him.

"—I'll put your name on the VIP list so you can come in to the preview before the ticket holders. And don't be mad, but I'm hoping you can help me translate and mill around? I just don't trust the cultural attaché they've assigned to me," he shares as he you lean your hip into the kitchen island now.

"Sure, I'd love to," you answer, before a sudden idea strikes you. "Oh, would it be alright to bring my intern? She needs to do a project for extra credit involving interviewing an artist about their process."

"Anything for you, my exotic rose," he coos, and you can't stifle the scoff. After all, he only uses that line when he himself has something he needs from you, but he isn't getting around to asking you just yet. "Bring whomever you'd like! It's going to be a lux affair, or so I'm told. It'd be nice to be around people I don't want to avoid all night."

You instantly think of Javier, dressed in a nice black suit, crisp dress shirt with obsidian-buttons, hair brushed back – basically just him exuding mustachioed James Bond sexy vibes, and you find yourself musing, "I'll bring a date."

Terse silence greets you for a second before Sasha hums in that low, gruff register of his. "A date, you say? Don't tell me you've been holding out on me, ketsele," he finally grouses, tone raspy.

"It's a long story," you tell him plainly and add, "What happened to that cute theater teacher you were seeing?"

"Hmph, it's a long story," he laconically deadpans. "But anyway, not like I'd want my escort to be anyone else but you. I promise, it'll be totally platonic, especially if you're bringing someone along…" Sasha remarks placidly before purring, "But do me a favor, and wear something red? I love that color on you."

You're about to quip that he tells you a different color every time when three swift knocks rap on your door. "Something red is doable. And don't be grumpy. My date might be too busy to come, but I would like to have the option to bring him," you're telling Sasha as you trot around the kitchen island to the door, opening it and smiling at Javi as you pull him inside, peck him on the lips and gesture to being almost done on the phone. He nods and sets his duffle bag down and the brown paper bag in his other hand onto the side table. You purse your lips at his unbuttoned and tie-free collar, eager to undress him completely soon. "But if you'd prefer me not to—" When Sasha interrupts with a grunt and grumbles, 'It's fine by me,' you smile and tell him, "Email me the details? And you're sure you can help my intern?"

"Yes, not a problem. You'll make it up to me some other time," he flirts, and you roll your eyes. "I'll call you when I've settled in."

"Sounds good. Be safe, Sasha," you tell him, and he snickers a 'Goodnight, krasivaya,' before you snort, "Goodnight," and end the call, placing the wireless receiver on it's mount.

You turn to see Javi giving you a molten, sexy look as he stands next to the chair with his hands on his hips as he inhales the delicious aromas wafting through the space. "It smells fucking delicious in here," he rumbles as you strut over and loop your arms around his waist to hum coquettishly. The sultry look you give him already has him sporting a semi, so you impishly press flush against him and brush your lips over his jaw. "Mmm, don't try and make me want to skip dinner, seductora—"

"As if," you chuckle and get on your tippy toes to peck him on the lips again, batting your lashes at him as you drawl, "Come. Dinner's ready."

He smiles and tugs his blazer off after you toy with the lapels. "What'd you make?" he asks once he's tossed it onto the chair and walked to the kitchen table.

"Salad, marinated steak with arroz junto, some tostones, and for dessert?" you recite as you flounce to the cabinet and open it to reveal a wrapper of Solteritas.

Javi's eyes twinkle at the offerings and he grins at the cookies, boyish dimple in his right cheek on display as he teases, "Jesus, you're trying to fatten me up. As if I didn't pack on the pounds when I was home."

You scoff a silly sound and start serving him a plate. "And pray tell, who was cooking up a storm for you while you were there?" you ask in a faux snippy tone as you walk over and place the meal on the table before sauntering over and grabbing a glass and pouring him a double.

He's already salivating, but wants to wait until you're sitting with your own meal before he digs in, so he takes a sip of the whiskey before answering, "Sometimes my aunt brought over potluck dinner. But most days, pops would throw a couple of steaks on the grill for us, along with any seasonal veggies he'd grown and recently picked."

"That sounds nice, actually. I wish I had room for a little garden," you muse when you sit in the chair across from him with your own plate and drink, smiling as you watch him eagerly dig into the meal. You grin when he takes the first bite of his steak and practically swoons. "Buen Provecho," you purr and he says it back around the fork, so you snicker and admire him. "Is it cooked to the temperature you like?"

He nods vigorously. "Fuckin' A, this is fantastic, querida," he praises after swallowing, dabbing his lips and wiping any possible food from his moustache before smirking and remarking, "Pops would love this marinade."

"Oh, well, if I ever get to visit, I'll give him the recipe," you retort and eat some of the salad from your plate.

"When you visit," Javi clarifies without hesitation before he sips his whiskey. His dark eyes smile at you over the rim of the glass as you blush at the unabashed firmness with which he declared that, but before your mind could fly off into whimsical musings, he asks, "Who was that on the phone?"

"Oh, that was my artist friend, Sasha. My intern, Francesca – she needs to do extra credit work for a class, and Sasha's going to be in town from New York," you answer without concern, adding cheerfully, "If you don't have plans next Monday night, we're invited to the installation at MAMBO. They're premiering Sasha's work, and I'm going to be on the VIP list, so I can have Francesca come with so she can do her interview. Hopefully she'll be cool with it."

Javi grunts, demeanor easygoing as he listens and smiles. "I can be free Monday night, although I'm not sure I have anything to wear to an art premiere," he remarks while he cuts into his steak.

"Ah, when I go over to your place later in the week, I'll raid your closet and see what we can find," you playfully retort and wink at him before sipping from your glass. He seems very pleased by your suggestion as he keeps eating with gusto. "By the way?" you lilt, and when he glances up at you with his undivided attention for you to continue, you purr, "We got all the funding we asked for."

He obscures his smile by feigning as if he's wiping at his moustache again with the napkin. "Really? That's great, cariño. I told you it would all be fine—" he pauses when he feels you skim your foot up his leg, caressing along his inner thigh.

"Crosby said you put in a good word with the senators for IT+IS to get the complete funding," is your tantalizing murmur as you caress your foot further up his thigh and feel his muscles flex under the pads of your toes. "Tell me what you said, exactly?" you suggest sultrily, enjoying how Javi licks his bottom lip and puts his cutlery down so he can place his hands on the edge of the table.

His dark chocolate eyes are smoldering at you, jaw clenching as you nestle your foot to be dangerously close to rubbing the inseam of his crotch. "Told them the truth—that your department's the future for the rest of us to stay in the game," he tells you in an even, albeit, husky tone.

"You know you shouldn't have done that, Javier," you muse aloofly, and when his brows knit questioningly, you drawl, "It's a conflict of interest. We can't be influencing things to benefit each other's departments or professional standings—"

"I didn't lie or misrepresent anything, though," he retorts neutrally. You sigh and go to recede your foot from its naughty pilgrimage when he bracelets your ankle and tugs you closer, which forces your chair to drag into the table more. His thumb grazes along your instep while he pins your foot to the top of his thigh and has his other hand join in – kneading it up your calf muscle. You exhale a shaky breath as he grumbles, "They asked my opinion, and I gave it. No conflict of interest present."

You pout, so he trails his fingertips along the arch of your foot, which tickles, but you try to keep from squirming. Noticing how your tendons flexed, Javi repeats the action, and has you instantly fidgeting. "Deja eso—hah-hahah, stop, that tickles," you begin to admonish before it splinters into a fit of giggles as he relentlessly keeps his fingers working now. "Javier! Hahahah-oh my god, stop—!" is your wild laugh as you try to wrench your ankle free from his grip.

"You stop giving me a hard time about this, then I'll stop," he proposes as he keeps tickling, eyes crinkling with devious mirth as peels of high-pitched laughter burst out of you now.

"Ok! I concede—I concede," you squeal, so he immediately ceases the tickling and lets your foot slink off his thigh, laughing when you give him a flustered sneer, but can't quite wipe the smile off your face. "You're screwed. I'm going to find where you're ticklish, and there won't be anything you can say to get me to stop," you growl as you stand and bossily shimmy onto his lap, earning a grunt and a wily smirk from Javi.

"I'm not ticklish at all, but, you can try exploring to your heart's desire, bravita," is his mirthful grouse as he cups your cheek and pulls you to meet his lips.

You hum into his mouth and card your fingers through his hair when you deepen the kiss, drinking in Javi's titillated groan when his hand slides down the small of your back and feels that you're not wearing any panties under your dress. He's instantly hard, and before you can protest, you’re being picked up as he stands from the table and only makes it as far as the couch before he pounces on you. You're dripping with excitement now, so you pull at his shirt and let him suckle hot kisses into the column of your neck when he yanks your shoulder straps away for his mouth to explore you without obstructions.

Just as you unfasten his pants and slip your hand in to palm him though his straining underwear, his satellite phone starts ringing. You both huff in frustration, but when your hand recedes from his cock, Javi growls, "Fucking hell…" and climbs off the couch to bound over to his duffle. "Peña," he barks into the phone when he answers it, and you watch his shoulders relax as he grumbles, "Unless you two have actual leads on that, it doesn't make sense to rattle CNP's cage right now."

He glances over his shoulder as he listens to Van Ness, and when he realizes this is going to take a few minutes, he tilts his head as if to say, 'Sorry.' You nod and pull your shoulder straps back into place before getting up to go back to the table. You're clearing his empty plate and picking a little more at yours when you hear Javi mutter in Spanish to himself.

"Nothing for you to do at this hour. If they keep giving you both the runaround, let me know and I'll see who I need to talk to. All right. Keep me posted," he orders before ending the call and putting the phone back into the duffle. Javi lets out an annoyed huff before he comes around the island and encircles your waist from behind. "Sorry about that. My guys are getting stonewalled by CNP down in Cali," he tells you as he nuzzles your neck. "Really wish they'd be more ballsy. If it'd been me or Murphy—"

"Javi, they're checking in because they're doing things differently from how you guys did it," you can't help redirect before smiling when he grunts sorely at that. "Here, help me finish this?" you ask and offer him a piece of steak over your shoulder.

He snickers and lets you feed it to him before helping polish off your plate so you can leave it to soak in the sink. Deciding to have after dinner drinks and dessert in bed, you quickly pack the leftovers into lunch-sized containers and store the meals in the fridge while you watch Javi retrieve the shopping bag and go into the bathroom, where he unpacks the second set of toiletries he bought to store in your medicine cabinet. The sense of déjà vu tickles your core. Playing house with Javi, living domestic little lives together away from work and the prying opinions of others? It'd been something you weren't aware you'd missed so much until now. Would it work, though? Especially if you're both splitting up your time between your place and his?

You snap out of your musings when you hear him stride down into the bedroom. It takes you a moment to pensively consider how quickly you're getting back into things after being so stubborn on not doing exactly this. But you can't find it in yourself to be unequivocal on it anymore, so once you're done cleaning, you lope down the hall and find him sorting through his duffle and hanging up some clothes in your closet.

Playfully, you slink up behind him and caress your hands along his sides before looping them to unbutton his shirt. "I should shower first," he rumbles in an enticed tone, as he lets you unfasten his belt while he tugs his shirttails loose from the waistband of his pants. "I smell—"

"I happen to like the way you smell," you chime and slip your fingers down the planes of his stomach, drawing your fingertips sensually around his navel before combing them down the happy trail of dark vellos that descend his apex and frame his perfect manhood.

Javi thwarts your teasing touch from going lower. "To be more precise, I stink and want a shower," he grouses wryly and turns in your arms so he can start undressing you slowly of your flouncy dress. "I wanted to fuck you bad in the shower this morning," he tells you and watches as your nipples harden after he exposes your breasts. "Wanna finger-fuck you and watch my cum drip out of your pussy."

You're soaked now, flush rising to your skin as the dress pools at your feet and Javi sees how wet you are. He lets you strip him of his clothes and belongings before leading the way to the shower, and once you're both under the warm water, Javi picks you up effortlessly and pins you to the tiled wall before spearing you down onto his throbbing cock.

Looping one arm around his shoulders while you grip the inset shower shelf for purchase, you hook your ankles together and hold on for the ride as Javier fucks you against the wall while the water cascades down his back.

"You're already so slick, baby," he growls against your damp jaw before suckling a kiss along it. "Fuck, you're so fucking tight like this," Javi admires as he keeps plunging you down while he thrusts up, all the while you just gasp reedy cries and whimpers whilst trying not to fall apart. "Th-Thought about hiking your skirt up and fucking you against the wall of that hallway—"

You gasp a strangled, scandalized sound. "Ja-Javi!" you moan in warning, getting incredibly aroused by the obscene fantasy of him throwing his coffee mug aside to take you against the wall of your department, where anyone could walk over and catch you.

"Oh—you like that?" he coos in a gravelly husk, primal urge winding in him from your cunt clenching excitedly around him. "Does the beautiful director want to get fucked in her office?" Javi taunts as he nips at your shoulder and grinds you down on him, earning a hearty cry of approval from you. "Yeah? Bend you over your desk and pound your pussy – m-make you come all over my cock," he groans out and misses a breath when he feels your cunt clamp around him wantonly. "F-Fuck—wanna make you drip all over your desk while I shoot my load in you—"

That has you unraveling with pleasure, climax snapping through your taut muscles and flooding your silken sheath before your needy pussy flutters and nestles Javi deep. The feel of your walls clutching beseechingly around his cock and the ardent cry of, "Javi!" you let out has him choking on his groan as he orgasms.

Your legs struggle to keep locked around him while your arms hook behind his neck in order for you not to melt into a puddle from the force of your climax. Sighing deliriously and smiling into his neck, you relish the way his cock is twitching inside you while he leans heavily into the wall with you now.

"Good girl…" he rumbles and nuzzles your wet skin, mouthing lazy kisses along your jaw and cheek. "Such a good girl for me."

If you weren't just turned into liquid sinew before, you were now, going pliant in his hold and mumbling, "Feel tingly."

He grunts a rugged sound of approval and shifts so he can pull out and still hold you up. Your thin whimper at losing his hard length sends feral pride into his loins, but Javi wants to just let you come down from the high while he kisses you. Eventually, you give him an affectionate squeeze and nudge his cheek with your temple before unfurling your legs from around him to stand on shaky, jelly joints. He keeps an arm around your waist to make sure you don't lose your footing as you both maneuver to wash off the soap and sin.

You dimly wish there was a bench seat right now so you could sprawl onto it while Javi pleasures you with his fingers and revels in his spend leaking messily from your puffy, tender pussy. When he presses you flush to his chest so you can lean against him while he hikes one of your legs up onto his bent knee, though? You are buzzing delight, especially as his strong, deft fingers gently glide through your folds, taking the time to tend to you while he hums soothing sounds into your temple and praises you with, "Always amaze me, how soft and supple and tierna you get after. Love feeling how good you feel, how full you are with me…"

By the time Javi's fingers are wringing a gloriously luscious orgasm from you, your knees are shaking and you feel like a melted velvet bolt that is flung up against him while your cunt drips all the remnants of his thick, pearly cum to recede down your warm, drenched thighs. He rinses you off with love and care, smiling against your hairline when you complain goofily, "I'm just made of jelly now because of you."

So, he takes you out of the shower, wraps you in a towel, and carries you effortlessly to bed where he dutifully rubs the fluffy material to dry you before he nudges you to lie back and lounge in a nice, fuzzy sensual repose. Javi loops the damp towel around his waist and goes to turn the TV and lights off before returning with a drink for each of you and the solteritas. You've managed to let your hair down, burrow into the covers, and look ridiculously gorgeous as you stare at him lovingly, so he sits at the edge of the bed next to you and hands you the drink.

When he leans in to steal a kiss, you yank at the towel around his waist and purr, "Come get into bed, stud."

He smirks and surprises you by finishing his whiskey in a swallow before putting the glass aside and going to the duffle he left on the foot of your bed. "In a minute. I got something for you," Javi rumbles as he digs into a pocket, retrieves the items, and then tosses the bag aside next to the dresser before he stretches out on the bed and sidles up next to you.

You put the cookies and your drink on the nightstand when he hands you a pair of keys and a slip of paper. Blinking at them before glancing at him, you feel an excited tickle warm your womb.

Unfolding the paper, you see it's a numeric code. "That's for the garage gate. The square key is for the building's entry door, and the round key's for the apartment," Javi tells you, and your startled gaze melts into a smoldering stare as he caresses his hand on your knee over the blanket and croons, "No more sprinting down the ramp for you."

Your smile is bright and dazzling, eyes softening as you chime, "Jeez, now I just have to shack up with you at your place, don't I?"

He loops his arm around your waist and playfully squeezes while you squirm and giggle effervescently. "Yes, you malcriada!" he growls and grins while you wrestle him before slipping your arms around his shoulders and anchoring him down onto you. "No pressure. You can come over whenever you want and stay for as long as you like," Javi whispers against your lips before kissing them.

Unfurling under him at that, you caress his tousled locks and affectionately pet them down and away from his face with one hand while the other clutches the amazingly poignant offering he's given you. Setting the keys and code aside quickly, you slink up against him and demandingly yank at the towel around his hips. "Off, now, chulito," you purr, and the heat that pools in his eyes makes your core ache. Once he's complied and slipped under the covers with you, you grab the solteritas, handing him a cookie before retrieving your drink. A fortifying sip mellows you enough to ask flirtatiously, "When's the last time you shared your apartment with someone?"

Javi munches the cookie in several bites and chews thoughtfully, eyes crinkling as he thinks back. Licking his lips and absently brushing his moustache of any possible crumbs, he eyes you before answering, "Technically never."

You stare dubiously at him before draining your glass of your drink, hitting ice. "Weren't you engaged at one point?" you query, curious, and set the empty glass aside before pulling the comforter up so you can sidle up close to his warm frame.

He slides his arm around you and cuddles you into his side, relishing your cool, supple skin as you press up against him. "Yeah, but her parents were old fashioned. Didn't believe in us living together until we were married. I had a place in town while I worked at the Sheriff's Department, so sometimes she'd spend the night, but she didn't have stuff there like that," Javi explains aloofly and enjoys how intrigued you seem by the whole thing.

"What about that woman?" you press lightly, and when he grunts and squints in confusion, you mutter, "Elisa?"

Javi can't help scoff. "She was an informant. Just because she crashed at my old place for a few days doesn't mean anything," he tells you curtly, and when he sees your lips press into a thin, miffed line, he amends, "It was not the same. She didn't have a key, or really my invitation to be there, but we had nowhere else to put her."

Crinkling your nose, you needle, "And you have no qualms about me shacking up at your place? None at all?"

"Nope," he tells you puckishly and starts kissing on your neck. "I've wanted you at my place since that embassy party. Hell, I kicked myself for weeks, wondering why I didn't invite you over," Javi blurts, giving you a lopsided smile when you chuckle derisively. "Not that I had a chance of that happening, huh."

"None at all. I would've thought you quite cocky for thinking I would've been open to the suggestion," you jab playfully before adjusting to curl up against him, feeling a bit sleepy. "Not to mention that the most scandalous rumors involved you bringing prostitutes back to your personal taxpayer-rent-paid fuck palace," you razz and yawn.

Javi grumbles at that. "It was not a fuck palace…"

"Ok, gruñón," you tease and lean up to kiss his pouty lips, humming when you taste the zesty cookie's flavor.

He turns the lamp off and shifts down into the pillows with you, holding you close as he murmurs, "You're the only person I've ever wanted to keep close."

Your heart turns into an igneous fountain of love for him at that admittance, already-ravaged muscles growing warm with desire and core pulsing with your yearning.

In the dark of the bedroom, you caress his cheek and nuzzle him. "You'll tell me if you need a break…if you ever want to just be alone?" you tentatively whisper, genuinely nervous, since he might not comprehend the change in dynamic that is having you in his space.

His lips brush the apple of your cheek. "If I ever need my space, I'll take it…by putting my head between your thighs," he jokes, and you blow a raspberry before brushing your fingertips along his forehead. His eyes involuntarily flutter shut, lulled into tranquility by your tender touch. "I've had plenty of space. I don't…I don't need to be alone anymore."

That makes your heart feel heavy, so you press reverent kisses to his features before resting your forehead to his. "You won't be," you promise in a gentle whisper. "I love you, Javi."

His embrace coils tighter around you as he buries his blushing face into your shoulder. "I love you too."

You both relax in each other's arms after the scintillating declarations, and sleep pulls over your forms like a protective shroud.

The next morning, you wake up in his arms, with Javi spooning you. His nose is pressed to the back of your hair and he's snoring that adorable purr, so you lie there and just enjoy the moment, until the alarm goes off. When you reach over to shut it off, Javi stretches out onto his back and grunts tiredly. You yawn into the back of your hand before rolling to smile down at him, eyes appreciatively scanning his broad frame. His morning wood is tenting the blanket at his crotch while he's preoccupied with scrubbing his eyes with his hands.

You lean down to kiss his chest while you slip your hand down his stomach and under the covers to touch him. He groans and grabs your wrist when your nimble fingers lightly wrap around his hard-on. "Teasing me first thing?" he grouses in a raspy baritone and snakes a hand under you to tug you up against him.

"Just thought I'd take care of that," you lilt and kiss along his jaw.

He chuckles and rolls to pin you down, and pretty soon you're both fooling around. Javi can sense you're a little sore and tender, so he's sweet and gentle with his touch as he brings you to bliss with his fingers over your aching clit. And soon after, you enjoy feeling him wind up with pleasure only to succumb to a needy climax you coax from him with your hands – spilling his cum over your taut tummy. The pleasurable buzz underneath his skin only heightens when he watches you serenely stretch and trail your fingers through the mess before licking your digits clean with a pristine smile in your eyes. Needless to say, he's fuzzily smiling when you pull him out of bed and into the shower to start getting ready for your busy day.

While Javi shaves, you get dressed and then whip up a quick breakfast for you both. You're setting the table with a quick omelet and buttered toast for him and some fruit for yourself when you hear his footsteps coming from finishing dressing.

"Any big meetings today?" you ask when he saunters from the bedroom while he absently fiddles with his tie.

"Centra Spike wants to go over surveillance plans," he tells you and smiles when you guide him to the kitchen table to sit and eat. "I should be over late tonight. Might have more tapes to listen to," Javi remarks and starts eating.

That gives you an idea. Abandoning your breakfast, you go to a drawer in the kitchen, retrieve something, and then return to the table. Holding out your hand, you request, "May I see your keychain?"

Quizzical, Javi reaches into his blue trousers and retrieves his keys on the plain ring and hands them to you, and watches as you simply slip your spare key onto the ring and fasten it into place with the others before handing it back to him. His chest fills with the expanse of hot pride that threatens to stretch his bones with heat. You innocently go back to finishing your breakfast, impish smile flirty as he eyes you with intense yearning.

Pursing your lips when he doesn't have a puckish remark at being bestowed with the spare key you'd confiscated from him, you chime, "What? Just making sure you can get in if you're coming over late." It's not a lie. After all, you have three copies for the apartment lock: Yours, the spare you gave your downstairs neighbor incase of emergencies and to help water your plants while you're away, and the copy Javi is toying with idly. It would only make sense for him to have access to your place if you're both going to be splitting up your time together – staying over at each other's abodes.

Needless to say, Javi is in a great mood as he finishes adjusting his tie and shrugs his blazer on. Your relationship was totally back on track, and for once, there was no sense that a proverbial shoe was about to drop. You're just as content, and when you primly hand Javi the lunch you packed for him and go to the door to see him off, you can't help give him a fond kiss on the lips before purring, "Coffee date later?"

He hums and caresses his hand along your back as husks against your cheek, "Fuck yeah."

You laugh and squeeze his side. "See you then, guapito," is your affectionate murmur, smiling when he chuckles and winks before heading out the door.

Once he's striding off across the courtyard, you hustle to finish getting ready for the day, snatching the set of keys and code he gave you the night before and adding them to your keychain before storing them in your purse, grabbing your own packed lunch, and heading to work.

While Javi is in his meeting with Centra Spike, you're merrily finishing up checking your work email before signing into your personal email account and seeing a message from Sasha. At lunch, you, Francesca and Ellis sit to dine in your office, where you mention the favor you requested from Sasha, and she enthusiastically thanks you for making the arrangements.

"—Sasha said I can invite whomever I want, so if you and Anita want to come too, let me know," you're telling Ellis as you close your lunch container.

"That sounds cool. I've never been to the museum, so definitely put us down," he retorts jovially before asking, "Have you told me about this Sasha friend before?"

"Oh, maybe? He's a good friend from back in the day when I lived in the city. I met him through his younger sister when we were away at school together," you remark and store your things in your work tote.

"What kind of art does he do?" Francesca asks, sitting casually on the sofa in your office while she nibbles on her noodles.

"Mostly big installations. He uses industrial materials, welds stuff together, or just manipulates it to make beautiful pieces out of unconventional resources," you explain. "Sasha's last showing was like…ten years ago? Since he has so many contacts, he ended up curating shows for major galleries. He won't tell me what the theme is for this collection, but I can't wait. They're always very evocative," is your musing as you check your watch.

"Awesome! I can't wait to meet him," Francesca chirps as she stands and announces, "I'm gonna grab something to drink from the vending machine. I'll be back at the desk if you need me."

When it's just you and Ellis now in your office, he swivels in the chair to face you and squints his eyes goadingly before drawling, "Is a certain suitor also getting an invite to the fancy museum premiere?"

You purse your lips at him. "Yes, he is, so I hope you can behave—"

"Me?! I'm always well behaved. Really, I'm a saint," he tells you glibly, and you laugh out loud. He snorts, cracking a warm smile before he murmurs, "You look happy, girlie. I'm glad things are good."

You can't help return his smile, feeling effervescent. The subject eventually returns to work, and Ellis let's you know the status report meeting is officially moved to middle of next week, for now. Checking your watch again, you can't help think of the unofficial meeting you have with the DEA head soon, so once Ellis heads off to his next meeting, you go put on a fresh pot of coffee.

For his part, Javi's had a decent day so far, even though Stoddard was getting on his nerves about being so squeamish over the whole wiretap thing. He's got bigger fish to fry, after all. The big meeting that keeps escalating with official after official getting tacked on is definitely going to be a hit job, and he knows the fire is coming his way. Still, he doesn't care – not when Gilberto Rodriguez is cooling his jets in prison and he thinks they're very close to getting Jurado's location.

When he enters your department, he swears he can feel a few glances come his way again, but he has his trusty mug, so many of the looky-loos go back to their work.

"Hankering for some coffee, eh?"

He pauses in his stride when he notices the bright-eyed, wily smiling wavy-curl-having intern with the chic framed glasses in her cubicle.

"Damn. What gave me away?" he jibes and glances dramatically at his plain coffee mug in his hand. "I can't help it. Have you tasted the coffee in the break rooms?"

"Haha, I have, once, and I still cringe whenever I walk by one," Francesca jokes.

"Yep, hence why I keep sneaking down here to pilfer some. Ever since I had it, I can't drink anything else," he pauses in his congenial chat to stretch his hand out to her. "My manners aren't usually so poor, sorry. Javier Peña."

"Nice to meet yah! Francesca Silverman, at your service," she chimes and shakes his hand very firmly, not using a dainty grip. "You're in luck. I think the boss lady is making a fresh brew right now."

"Perfect. See you around," Javi muses affably and offers her a salute farewell before he strides down towards the hall he can already smell the fresh coffee aroma wafting deliciously from.

"—Sure it's cool for us to come down and have some?"

"Yeah, we don't wanna be moochy jerks."

"Not at all! There's plenty of coffee, fellas."

Javi turns the corner to see you chatting with Nador and Benson – the latter taking his coffee black with two sugars while the former stirs only cream into his.

"Shit, so the word is out."

You turn and see Javi looking smug and ridiculously handsome as he strolls over.

"Hell yeah, it is. This coffee is freaking great," Benson declares while Nador nods and sips his. "We keep warning her that everyone and their mother's gonna show up to have some. Case in point," he razzes by gesturing to Javi with his own mug. "We call dibs though, Peña."

"You can't call dibs on my coffee machine, Benson," you jab and give him a haughty glance. Nador chuckles at his partner's expense.

"Technically it wasn't originally your machine though," he counters sarcastically. "Samson gifted it to you, so really, it's part of the Mil Group family—"

Javi has to do everything in his power to control his face from scowling at the mere mention of Luke Samson. He manages to just quirk a brow and set his jaw – expression cool and flippant, while you laugh and swat Benson on the shoulder. "It's not a kid in a divorce!" you jibe.

"Dude, she's right, now shut up before you get our coffee privileges revoked," Nador hassles before shoving Benson along to walk by Javi for the exit. "Thanks again, buddy," he offers you in departure.

You snicker and put your hands on your hips of your belted slim-fit navy dress when Javi grunts and just stands in what you can clearly read as a sulk – right hand fidgeting and flexing his fingers idly in that idiosyncratic grounding gesture he absently does whenever he's tense and wants to shake it off. Yes, you know him that well now, having amassed a mental catalogue of his little habitual tells, so you find it endearing that he's actually trying to shake off his sulky grouchiness for you.

"Don't tell me you're annoyed—" you can't help tease in Spanish.

"You never mentioned it was a gift from Samson," he grumbles, and the surly look he gives you makes you scoff.

"So…you're now turned off on coffee because of the machine's previous owner?" you can't help needle as you cross your arms.

That winds Javi up. With an appraising glance down each end of the hall, he suddenly takes two long strides to back you up into the counter, leaning in close as he croons, "Nope, because the better man won out. I got the girl, and the coffee."

He's so close you can smell his cologne and aftershave, and his nose dangerously grazes yours when he feigns like he just might kiss you right here and now. But just as quickly as he advanced, he sidesteps and reaches for the carafe, innocently pouring the piping brew into his mug while he mischievously glances at you from the corner of his eye.

The apples of your cheeks feel so hot that you swear they'd burn just as much as the coffee in the pot. Arousal has made you grow whet with desire, and the fact there's nothing you can do about it right now has you getting very riled.

"Did you really just say you got the girl and coffee?" you whisper imperiously at him, and he presses his lips together to stifle his grin. "First off, I'm not a girl anymore, atrevido. Secondly? I'm going to get you back for this."

"…That isn't really a point, mi directora," he can't help goad as he turns to lean his hip into the counter and sip his coffee.

Your eyes narrow, and Javi has to admit – the fierce look turns him on. "No, it's a promise," you hiss and surprise him by reaching between his arm and side for the carafe, weaving it out to pour a refill into your own mug, then replace the carafe as you covertly bump your hip against his. "Oops, excuse me," you chime congenially as your pivoting hip brushes his crotch. Javi's intake of breath from the charged contact is everything you need to get through the rest of the afternoon. "Look at the time. I have to head to a meeting," you announce primly before shooting him a brazen look as you turn and saunter off. "See you around, sir."

Javi can feel the blush creep up his neck and fan all the way up to his ears. It was all too tantalizing. The temporary flash of his jealousy that already made his blood run hot, the way your lips had stuttered apart when he'd leaned in, the cant of your hips being so close when you'd grazed his lower half, and then calling him 'sir'? Yep, Javi was doomed to spend the rest of the day hiding a boner now, and it was his fault for instigating you so brashly.

He manages to get control of his libido long enough to march swiftly out of IT+IS and up to his office, where he chugs his coffee and sits at his desk to do all the busy work he'd been putting off. Signing requisition forms, approving surveillance requests – everything a dutiful leader should've done first thing. Then, when it's already late in the day, Stoddard produces the latest of the wiretaps and places them on his desk. Javi's not in the mood to sit in the cramp audio room, so he had the man bring one of the tape players and a pair of headphones. He's listening to the second tape while he makes notes when Christina, Jurado's wife, makes a passing mention to Miami.

Pausing the tape, Javi eases the headphones off and cups his chin thoughtfully while glancing at his desk phone. Checking his watch, he decides it isn't too late to call, so he picks up the receiver and dials the number.

"Murphy."

"Good time to chat?" Javi asks, but his wry smirk is edged in his tone.

"Pfft, well now. What an honor, to hear from the DEA country attaché at such a late hour," his former partner razzes. "Yeah, I'm just catching up on paperwork. What's up, Jav?"

"Wondering if anything new has netted out of that Cornerstone raid? Or if you'd heard of any sketchy finance stuff going on around the Cali operation there?" Javi inquires as he taps the end of his pen on the notepad.

"That wasn't my sting, but I know the guys who handled it. I can ask 'em. Looking for something in particular?" Steve sounds like he's tired, but intrigued.

"Just a lead on a rogue banker I'm looking for. He took off from here on a flight to Panama, but we lost track of him after that. He's done business for Cali all over. He could be in Miami, even if it would be daring as shit," he tells Steve.

"Well, I'll put some feelers out. But I doubt he'd be here. Stuff for Cali has gotten pretty hot here lately. I heard it's business as usual up in New York, though," Steve remarks, earning a flat hum from Javi as he tosses his pen down and starts fiddling with the nicotine gum packet. He would prefer a cigarette, but he's decided that if he's going to go home to you, he'd prefer to not smell and taste like smoke for you anymore. "So…how're things with our feisty little mamacita?" his friend chuckles.

"Our? You better amend that," Javi laconically barbs, and when Steve just makes a loopy sound, he scoffs amusedly. "She's great. Hell of a better boss than I am, that's for sure—"

"Duh! As if that wasn't a given," Steve cuts in derisively, and Javier grunts huffily at that. "Shit, don't tell her I called her a mamacita. I don't wanna get a verbal beatdown again," he remarks sardonically, earning a chuckle from Javi.

"And you? How're Connie and Olivia? Still putting up with you?" Javi can't help prod, smirking when Steve makes a fawning little sound over the line.

"Yeah, Olivia's walking and talking. It's fucking terrifying, man," he flusters. "She loves going down the slide, and every time she sees a dog, she points and says, 'My puppy, Daddy,' and I just turn into damned mush," Steve regales before adding, "Connie's doing great at work. Loves the new house, and is even talking about maybe having another baby…"

"Shit," Javier blurts out, astounded. So much had changed, and he was still beside himself with how little time it had changed in. It made a bit of second-hand anxiety spring up in his chest for his buddy. "I'm happy for you, Steve. Don't know if you can survive adding another kid to the mix, but I'll be cheering you on from all the way over here," he jokes and pops the nicotine gum he'd been toying with into his mouth.

"Yeah, keep laughing. Pretty soon, this'll be you, amigo," Steve counters smugly. "I gotta head home. Will let you know if I hear anything. Have a good night, Jav."

"Thanks, you too," Javier replies before hanging up and staring at his watch again. He frowns at how late it is.

Deciding to listen to the rest of the tapes in the morning, he stores them in his desk and collects his things. By the time he gets to your place, it's a quarter to 11pm. Traffic had been heavy thanks to some congestion, so he'd had to take detours all the way up to your neighborhood. Using the key to let himself in, he locks up behind himself and stores the keychain onto the side table next to yours and takes in the space. It's quiet and mostly dark in the apartment as he walks through the living room to the kitchen. Placing the used lunch container into the sink, he notices things are still on the stove from dinner, and the light above it is still on while the rest of the space is dark, minus the light coming from your bedroom.

When he quietly lopes in, he finds you sat up against the headboard with a bunch of reading material on your lap and a magazine resting over your chest. You're asleep with your head tucked to the side of the propped pillow, and a blanket over your stretched out legs. His gaze softens when he realizes you were waiting up for him, so he takes his watch off, shrugs out of his blue blazer, and removes the items in his pockets before placing them soundlessly on the dresser.

You only start to stir when you feel the bed dip slightly and the shifting of the weight that's folded on your lap. With a hum, you adjust up into the pillow. "Shush, go back to sleep, querida," he coos and brushes a kiss to your temple before grabbing all the reports and magazines, setting them to the side on the nightstand.

Unfurling to stretch like a cat, you pop your joints and yawn before rubbing the sleep from your eyes. "Jeez, what time is it?" you mumble in a silly, tired voice before blearily looking over at the clock.

"It's late. I'll get undressed and turn the light out—" Javi is remarking as he works his shirt open and pulls it loose from his slacks.

"No, I made dinner," you flop the blanket off and start to slink across the bed to reach for your robe. "I'll just heat it up—"

Javi gets one look at what you're wearing, and his undressing pauses so he can concentrate on staring at you. "Is that…the sexy little thing from last time?" he husks, and you dimly look down at the burgundy baby doll.

"Oh, yes, it is. Hah, I'd fallen asleep in it last time, too," you affirm before giggling. "It must be jinxed, because I always put it on and plan to tease you mercilessly in it, only to end up passing out," is your glib musing as you pull on the robe and fasten it shut before he can get any naughty ideas. Smirking, you grab his hand and purr, "Dinner, then I'm dominating the hell out of you."

Javi can't argue with that plan, so he doesn't, and obediently lets you guide him down to the kitchen. You quickly heat the food up for him, and while he eats, you store the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. Once he's done, he goes to the sink and washes up, helping you make short work of cleaning the kitchen before you flounce up to him while he's drying his hands.

Grabbing his belt buckle and tugging, you brush your nose along his chest and murmur incandescently, "Get naked and on the bed, now."

You can feel his muscles jump at the command, the molten look of lust heating his dark eyes and that etches his features has you getting tingly and wet. When he purposely grazes by you to do as he's told, he let's you feel how aroused he is already, and the spike of want into your cunt is unreal. You positively throb with your need, but you wait a few minutes, and when you hear the mattress protest with his weight pressing down onto it, you decide it's time to do everything you wanted to do to him at the coffee nook earlier.

When you come into the room, you find Javier naked and lying on his back, looking like a broad, golden-tanned feast of stretched muscles and rippling sinew. The light from the lamp spills over his skin and contours shadows along one side of his handsome frame. He seems to sense your presence, since he glances up and stares with hooded, dark brewed eyes at you – lips panting from the wound up arousal and anticipation. His cock is already hard against his belly, and the way his muscles flex tells you he's been riled up all day.

"Do you get off on pushing my buttons? Being incredibly unprofessional, invading my personal space in a place where any of my staff could catch us?" you ground out in a luscious tone as you take the robe off and toss it aside. The way Javi's eyes fixate on your body in the sexy lingerie has your nipples studding, so you saunter over to loom at the foot of the bed. When he doesn't answer and just gives you a hungry look, you tut, "That wasn't rhetorical, irrespetuoso."

Javi's cock twitches at being called 'disrespectful' in such a illicit pitch by you, and the look in his eyes gets bold when he sits up on his elbows and grouses, "You already know the answer, boss lady."

You are tickled by his defiance, so you decide to do something just as bold in return. You prowl onto the bed, settling one hand at his hip bone for support – putting it dangerously close to where he's throbbing with need for you. The intake of breath he takes has blood rushing in his veins; blows out his pupils until his eyes are dark with lust. With a gloating smile, you knead his hip, and when he groans and closes his eyes to try and rein in his need to pounce on you, it acts as the perfect distraction for you to sit back on your knees and purposely trace your fingertips along the arch of his foot.

The contact makes him jolt, but not squirm. "What would you have done had someone caught us?" you ask as you skim your hand up to his shin, using it to support your weight as you lean back down to brace the other hand at his hip.

He has a perfect view down your cleavage now, and when you wet your lips, his mind gets a little fuzzy, but he manages to croak, "Asked them to come back later?"

The smile he expects doesn't come. Instead, your gaze narrows and your features turn icy. With an unhappy hum, you lean down further and bring the hand at his shin to rest over his midriff as you brush your lips over the underside of his cock. The contact has him riling and fidgeting, so you make an unpleased sound and lean back to stare chidingly at him.

"Since it's so amusing to you, playing the exhibitionist, do it now," you order while trailing your touch down to graze the very inner planes of his thighs.

The sensation has him squirming and biting his bottom lip while he wrings his hands into the bedding. "—D-Do what?" he bites out in a growl as you catalogue his reaction and now trace your fingers further up and find the spot where he truly is ticklish. He squirms and tries to remain still, hoping you'll move on. But you caught the hesitant spark in his eyes, so you deviously lean down and flick your tongue over the soft, usually hidden span of inner thigh that is right next to his balls. Javi goes taut and actually hisses from how much your tongue tickles him there, but it's the kind of tickle that makes his stomach flip excitedly. "B-Baby-hah-fuck, that t-tickles!" he grounds out in a reedy hiss and tries to shy away, so you imperiously abandon the spot and instead lave a wet swipe of your tongue over his balls. "Fuck—!" Javi hoarsely exclaims and writhes, tossing his shoulders back into the bed and groaning when he feels his pulsing cock start to weep pre-cum.

"So, you're a fresco and a liar," you chuckle and sit up to loom over him. "Not ticklish at all, you said," is your crisp sigh as you work your touch up to knead his muscular thighs. You can see the flush rise to his skin – tell how flustered he is now as you tut admonishing sounds at him. "You just love to instigate me like there aren't any consequences, but it's my job to teach you how fucking wrong you are," you remark evenly before shifting your touch and proximity away. Javi snaps up to stare at you, a plaintive look in his needy features, so you smirk and drawl, "Jerk off, you dirty fucking beyako."

The intense arousal that surges through him at the patronizing command makes him hot and dizzy, and the way his cock throbs with need should make Javi feel shame, but he doesn't. Instead he's impatient and desperate. "L-Let me eat you out while I do it?" he bargains, and you quirk a haughty brow and cross your arms. "I fucking need you, preciosa—"

"And I need to see you be the filthy fucking bastard you really are when you can't get your way," you cut in with such fierce allure that Javier swears his entire lower half is tingling with pent-up need for release. You toss your hair with a flirty air over a shoulder and maneuver to stretch out on your side at the end of the bed. "I want to see what you do when you can't have me because you behaved like a puto descarado," you tell him as you lie on your tummy with your legs bent at the knees and ankles crossed together, looking like you're ready for a fun show.

His cheeks burn now, but he knows this is a game of his own making after what he pulled at the office, so he lounges back more comfortably so he can at least have a great view of you as he takes himself in his hand. A few strokes in and he's fisting his cock, frustrated and aroused beyond belief as he masturbates in front of you. It makes him feel a naughty thrill – something debased but exhilarating. It also, unbidden, conjures memories of the last time he jerked off in front of someone else, and the lewd delight it burns in his gut has him getting a bit shameless for you.

You watch him stroke himself with desperate vigor, and the sounds he stifles are a feast to your senses, making you ache to touch and taste him, but you know that's all he wants right now. When he muffles a groan from rubbing his balls along with his stroking, he gives you what you can only think is a daring, inviting look before he pants at how you just hum and cup your face in your hands with a charmed smile. He was hoping you'd be touching yourself by now, and you can see the crinkle of disappointment between his brows.

"What dirty things are you thinking of to get yourself off, mi beyaquito?" you purr when he huffs in frustration and drags his thumb over the dribbling slit at the head of his cock.

He continues to stroke himself, but his growl of frustration becomes a hiss before he bites out, "Hmph, c-can't fucking concentrate since y-you're not even turned on or anything—"

"Oh, just because I can control myself and not touch myself, doesn't mean I'm not turned on, pervertido engreído," you chuckle before sitting up and spreading your knees a little. "See?"

His breath catches in his chest when you shimmy the hem of your baby doll up to show him how wet your pussy is from just watching him. Your delicate folds look like dewy petals, cunt flushed with excitement and positively calling for him to bury his face in your drenched heat. The sinfully decadent sight, combined with the alluring look of sublime desire you give him has Javi's arousal spiking.

"Oh fuck…fuck me," he grits out as he strokes himself to completion just from seeing the lewd proof of your need for him. He moans as he fucks up into his fist and pumps his climax out, shooting the first of it over his knuckles before he mindlessly digs his heels into the bed and paints his stomach with thick, pearly ropes of cum. Javi's face is burning, his eyes shut and his bottom lip stinging from being nipped hard to stifle his whimpers of filthy release as he keeps stroking himself through his aftershocks until he starts to chafe. With a gruff sound, he falls back onto the bed, heavy and spent, sweat clinging thinly to his skin as he gasps hungry breaths.

Your clit is throbbing and your core is beating with your racing pulse at how enthralling it was to watch him bring himself to climax, and the fact that what pushed him over the edge was just seeing the effect he had on you has want tingling beseechingly in your aching parts. But first, you have a little power game to finish here.

Javi's mind is crackling with fuzzy fog, pleasure still thrumming in his sinew and leaving him on a bit of a delay, so it takes him a few seconds to realize he feels something warm and wet caressing his stomach. When he squints his heavy-lidded eyes, they snap fully open at the sight of you bowed at his side and licking his cum off his now taut abs. You have your hair gathered back as to not have it trail in the mess, and when he gasps a husky groan, you stare up at him. Undeterred, your eyes smile as you lick a streak of cum above his navel before moaning at the taste of him. The scent of salty, heady musk and the heat of his skin fill your senses, saturating your already lusted-over mind to continue licking him clean of his savory seed.

He's so enraptured that he just watches, and by the time you dip to lick up a bead of cum at his hip, Javi's cock is already filling out. You can't help smile and flick your mischievous gaze up at his entranced expression. "Eres tan rico, beyaquito," you tease and suckle the head of his cock, moaning around it for good measure.

"Holy shit," Javi groans and writhes, desperate to grab you, but you sense it and lean back and pivot to grab his left hand in order to greedily yank it up to your mouth so you can lick and suck his fingers clean. "Jesus fucking Christ—" he grits out on a stuttering husk and watches you work over each digit with your lips and tongue before you suckle the last of his cum off his knuckles. "Por favor, mi amor—"

"Even after I let you get yourself off, you're still not sated?" you cut in and showily straddle his torso now, purposely slinking yourself to hover over his stomach instead of his hips. Javi's brows arch in wonder, too far gone in his lusted out mind to know what to say. "Such a needy thing, aren't you," you purr and place his now-saliva-cleaned hand on your thigh while you grab the hinge of his jaw and tug. He obediently sits up as far as he can with you straddling him this way, pillowed lips parted airily for you. "Did you like shooting your load all over yourself, hermoso?"

Javi's eyes sharpen at that and he nods, not trusting his voice. Unsatisfied, you give his jaw a tight, possessive squeeze. "Mmph! Y-Yes, fuck, yes, I liked it," he husks in a rough pitch, arousal pooling in his gut and zinging down into his cock as you release his jaw and hum approvingly. "Please, baby, let me have you now—"

"Have me?" you ask, an edge to your timbre as you smirk and caress your hand to pet his hair before you cup his cheek. "Oh, baby boy, I'm not done having you."

With that, you capture his lips with yours, tongue delving into his mouth and letting him taste the salt of his cum. He moans a lustful sound and tries to pull you down over his chest, but you grab his wrists and press them over his head before shifting back and staring down at him.

"Think you're ticklish on the other side?"

Before Javier can decipher your meaning, you chuckle and lean down to trail gentle, doting kisses over his features before mapping a path back down his broad body, loving when he whimpers every time you suckle or nip a spot you know gets him tingling.

"You're always teasing about dominating me in my own office – how you'd fuck me on my desk," you taunt in a sultry murmur as you nestle between his legs in order to reach that other spot on the opposite inner thigh. "Wanting to bend me over and pump my pussy until I come all over you, where anyone could come in and see us?" Javi's stuttered groan is your answer, so you smile and first trace your fingertips lightly over the erogenous-yet-ticklish spot next to his balls. He jolts and squirms, fisting the bedding and inarticulately grunting something that sounds like 'Y-Yes, want it,' so you purr, "Maybe instead, when I go to your office for the status report, I'll tell you how poorly your team's doing while I ride your cock."

The way Javi reacts? It'll keep you company on lonely nights to come. He literally keens a growl of approval and tosses his head back on a wound up, "Dios mío—" just as you put your mouth over the spot and draw the tip of your tongue to tickle a pattern into it while your hand cups his balls and rubs them.

"You like that, atrevido? I'll just hike my skirt up, straddle your lap, and ride your big dick while you're in your desk chair, right where anyone in your office can walk by and see?" you prompt devilishly and give a flick of your tongue over his balls.

He lets out a desperate groan and begs, "Oh-p-please, fuck—please, querida!" as his cock strains against his belly at your lascivious ministrations. The onslaught of the salacious fantasy you've constructed along with how you're worshipping his aching spheres without touching his cock has him in an illicit tizzy. One that hits critical mass when you cup his warm sac and give it a squeeze. "Fuck, 'm gonna come—gonna come!" he hitches out and goes taut as he loses himself to the pleasure and shock at reaching bliss like this, with just filth poured into him and his cock erupting while going untouched.

It surprises you how worked up he got, and the sight of him arching against the bed and smothering his shouts of pleasure with a hand over his mouth as he came over his stomach and chest this time has you drenched, pussy clenching around nothing while your core laments missing out on being filled by all that cum.

Synapses stuttering and going haywire for a moment after collapsing heavily onto the bed, Javi can barely remember anything before the pleasure, so it takes him a while to scrape his mind back together and regain his internal equilibrium. Exhaustedly, his hand falls away from his mouth as he gulps hungry breaths and just lies in a spent heap, eyes screwed shut and insides still trembling. It isn't until he feels you licking him clean again that he shivers and opens his eyes to stare dazedly at you. His orgasm this time wasn't as heady and profuse, so you make short work of licking and laving him clean, smiling when you feel him give a deep, contented sigh. You kiss his nipple and give it a teasing flick with your tongue before adjusting to lie on your side next to him. He turns his head to stare dreamily up at you, and you give him an enchanting smile before caressing his face, brushing his hair from his forehead and temples sweetly.

"Tan bello," you murmur and nuzzle him affectionately. "Always my gorgeous stud," is your coo as you kiss his temple. "My wonderfully strong and sexy man," you lull and kiss his cheek. And with a serene whisper as you caress your fingertips along his forehead and brow, you declare, "Amor de mi vida."

He shudders and curls up into your chest, and you pull him close, holding as much of this broad, strong man to you as possible with your arms looping around his wide shoulders. You bury your nose in the top of his hair and breathe him in while he comes down from the high and regains his cocksure composure. It's a quiet while later that his vise-like hug around you eases enough so he can nuzzle up into your jaw and let out a cleansing sigh.

"Virgen Santa…" Javi breathes out in a velvet rasp, feeling blissed out and overawed. "Mmph, m-made a mess..." he sincerely mutters, the self-conscious shame starting to wriggle into his lust-sated demeanor.

You smile against his curls and plant a kiss at the top of his hairline. "No, you didn't. You let me have you," you assure affectionately and giggle when he hides his face in your neck and grumbles a flustered sound. "I love when I can just concentrate on making you feel good, Javi. Helping you let go and just give into pleasure like that," you softly murmur as you caress his warm back, feeling his muscles flex and relax with his deep, sated breaths.

Javi can't help feel like a depraved deviant for getting off on the cunning, fearsome way you can twist him up with pleasure with a few scathing commands, only to coo the most loving praise he's ever gotten in his life after. The dichotomy of it is something wild and primal, but it sits like a simmering ember of intrigue in his belly just the same. Still, he's never had that happen before – have someone get him off without actually stimulating his cock, so he's a bit bashful. And he'd be damned if he didn't feel silly about it.

"All those sexy scenarios? Of us messing around in the office?" you suddenly murmur wryly, "None of that can actually happen, hermoso. Not without costing us our jobs at the worst, or turning us into embassy gossip fodder at the least."

He snorts and curls up to nudge a rugged kiss into your jaw before adjusting to gaze down at you. "I know, querida. And I know I was being unprofessional today," he tells you as he caresses the backs of his knuckles along your cheek. "I won't do anything risky like that again. It's just hard not to flirt with you," is his puckish quip, smirking when you purse your plush lips at him. "Although, the idea of you riding me while in my office is gonna fucking linger in my brain every time my thoughts wander while I'm sitting at that damn desk now."

You laugh out, melodious and endearing as you sigh a silly sound and let him roll you onto your back so he can frame you under his arms and nuzzle your hairline by your ear. Clutching at his sides, you chuckle, "As if you hadn't already thought about it—"

"Oh, fucking loads of times, but it's a different kind of turn-on when you're saying it to me," he impishly drawls and nips at your pulse point, earning an airy gasp from you as you wriggle under him and feel his knees begin to nudge your legs apart. "Jesus, that was fucking hot. I can't believe I got off on it," he rumbles, dark eyes lowering to your mouth before flicking up to your smoldering gaze. "Think the closest that's ever happened before was when I came in my pants freshmen year," he blurts, and while his tone is unabashed, you can see his features flush from the admittance.

"Oh?" you purr, squeezing your knees irreverently at his sides and showily adjusting to get comfortable under him while still in your burgundy baby doll, aka the only article of clothing left between you two. "You gotta tell me all the details now, stud," is your sultry taunt as you lean up and suckle lightly on his bottom lip.

He groans a husky sound. "You're just gonna laugh—"

"I won't! I promise," you lilt sweetly and kiss his chin before batting your lashes.

Arching a skeptical eyebrow, Javi huffs and shifts to flop onto his side next to you so he can rest his forehead against your shoulder grumpily. "It was the first dry-humping session with a girl. We'd hopped the fence at the drive-in, snuck up to the top of the storage shed tucked away in the back, and started fooling around. I just remember she was wearing these tight jeans, and we were making out and grinding against each other. I could feel how warm she was against my thigh. Just a total turn on, and then, she moaned in my ear, and that was it," Javi regales in a gruff murmur, momentarily reliving how he'd hissed a swear and 'jizzed his jeans' so hard it started seeping through the denim at his crotch. "She'd just snickered and it was fucking the worst bike ride home of my life," he mutters, cheeks feeling warm at admitting the embarrassing story.

You surprise him by not giggling or teasing him, instead rolling onto your side to kiss his forehead. "Mi pobre chulito," you tut and press your nose to his temple. "Are you embarrassed? About earlier?" When you feel him tense, you shift so you can cuddle him shamelessly. "Because you shouldn't be. That was amazing, and frankly, I'm going to think about it whenever I'm really needy and aching to get off when I'm stuck by myself," you admit with genuine delight, and the way Javi melts into your cuddling embrace is all the reward you'll ever need.

"Christ…" he croaks in wonder, thinking of you touching yourself to the memory of him coming apart like he had, and finding it ridiculously satisfying. Your wonderful, unrelenting tenderness and grace with him – even in moments like this when he's abashed and thinks he deserves judgment, sets him at peace. He could just burst apart from how accepted and proud he feels right now. From how enamored he is with your unselfconscious passion.

Rolling to suddenly press you down onto the bed, Javi's molten gaze heats as he contemplates articulating his desire. It sends a fizzy tickle into your womb, but after he paws his warm palm over your breast and drags it heavily down your torso, the spark becomes an inferno of cloying excitement in your core. When he sees your breath catch excitedly, he just tells you with canela-dipped reverence in his velvet tone, "Let me worship you? Wanna devour your sweet pussy, make you come on my tongue, hermosa."

The words escape you, no response falling from your tantalized lips, so you nod breathily and blush at how a new flush of damp excitement honeys your cunt over. Javi can already smell your arousal, how wet you are, and even though you've made him orgasm twice already, he can feel that tug of heavy want pool in his apex again. And when he prowls down to lay on his stomach while between your thighs, Javi’s cock engorges at the sight of your puffy, drenched womanhood. Without ceremony, he licks into your cunt and buries his face in your warmth, nuzzling your soaked folds and moaning hungrily into your center.

You light up and arch, crying out in ecstasy as his mouth works your slow-burned arousal back to full inferno with the expert flick of his tongue and the deft suckles of his lips.

"Javi, oh—" you begin to moan when Javi suddenly rolls onto his back and pulls you with him, which makes you grapple to straddle up onto your knees and balance by leaning back on your haunches. "Babe—!" you exclaim and immediately gasp when he loops his arms to encircle you in order to coax your pelvis to rock your pussy over his face. You jolt when you feel the defined ridge of his nose press into your clit before he spears his tongue into your slit. "Oh—oh my god!" you wail and latch onto his wrists as you start to ride his face in time with his ravenous oral dominance.

He can feel your thighs quivering as they clench around him, so he tilts his head up so his mouth can capture your clit just as he shifts to snake his hand up so he can corkscrew two fingers into your rippling, silken cunt.

The onslaught is all too much after all of the stimuli of having your way with him, compounded by how lascivious his hunger for you is now, so in a incandescent flash, you're hurtling into a blistering orgasm, head tossed back as you sob his name plaintively and flood with your slickened warm climax. Javi moans with savage accomplishment as you come on his face, buzzing with feral pride as he keeps pumping his fingers into the clutch of your pussy and licking your clit to prolong the shattering aftershocks of your bliss.

At some point, your soul rejoins your body and sinks heavily into your spent, tingling flesh, registering dimly that Javi has brought you back down onto the bed and is just languidly licking your pussy as if it was a decadent source of honey. Shivering with overstimulation, you whimper, and Javi pulls back with a hum and plants a sloppy kiss along your inner thigh before sitting up and gazing down at your ravished, dewy countenance. He knows you're completely exhausted and won't be able to move for a bit, so he tucks you into bed, making sure that the baby doll doesn't ride up your waist. You sense him leave the bed, but return with his face damp from the cold water he splashed over his burning features and a cool washcloth he uses to tenderly care for you before he uses the other side to wipe himself down of any salacious remnants of his orgasm before he shuts the lights off and slides under the covers with you.

You're so blissed out that Javi has to roll you onto your side so he can spoon you, and the fawning little sigh that falls from your swollen lips is pure rapture to his senses. There's a satisfying, whimsical silence for a beat, where you manage to sow your synapses back together into at least sixty percent capacity.

"…Can we still have our coffee dates, though?"

You laugh an exhausted, enchanted sound at his velvet over steel query. "Yes. Just as long as you can behave, guapito," is your charmed exhale. You squeeze his arm, eyes already heavy with sleepiness as you add in a purr, "And keep from riling me up."

Javi grunts and buries his smile against your nape before encircling his arm to hold you more flush against him, deciding he has no salacious quips to respond with. Not when he's got his sexy, loving little minx all warm and satisfied in his embrace. You're soon fast sleep, and Javi pensively replays all the ways you've helped center him – made him trust and believe in more than just the angst and acrimony of his day-to-day. In gentle, quiet moments like this, he starts to open up to the hope he buried deep long ago, and wonders if there is actually more for him in this life other than chasing pinche asesinos down and dismantling their drug trafficking empires.

Dangerously, he wonders if he can make you happy in this life he's weaving for himself, and most importantly, if you'd want to be in this life he's now looking forward to seeking out with you.

Javi falls asleep lulled by your soft scent, and the sublime feeling of being loved unconditionally, which eclipses all of the worry and self-doubt that he's not worthy of you, helping cultivate the pining hope he's started to let bloom within him.

________________

Read Chapter 24: Chemistry

Spanish-English Glossary:

Seductora = Seductress

Arroz junto = rice with beans

Tostones = fried plantains

Solterita = Name of Colombian orange zest cookie; also the term for a "single gal"

Buen Provecho = Bon Appetite

Querida = Affectionate term for a female, akin to expressing one's want and desire

Cariño = darling/sweetheart

Deja eso = Stop that

Bravita= Tough girl; feisty girl

Vellos = hair; peach fuzz

Tierna = Tender (female)

Malcriada = Bratty woman; spoiled woman; naughty woman

Chulo/Chulito = Cute guy; little cutie

Gruñón = Grumpy man

Guapito = Handsome (said in an affectionate diminutive)

Atrevido/Atrevida = Daring man/Daring woman

Mi director = My director (female)

Irrespetuoso = Disrespectful (male)

Fresco = a guy who's being 'fresh', or naughty/pervy

Beyako = Puerto Rican slang for horny/naughty guy; akin to "horn dog"

Preciosa = Gorgeous; precious

Puto descarado = Fucking shameless cad/scoundrel

Mi beyaquito = My little naughty perv

Pervertido travieso = Daring/Naughty pervert

Eres tan rico, beyaquito = You're so delicious, my little naughty perv

Por favor, mi amor = Please, my love

Hermosa/hermoso = beautiful (female); beautiful (male)

Dios mío = My god

Tan bello = So beautiful (male)

Amor de mi vida = Love of my life

Virgen Santa = Mother of God; Blessed Mother

Mi pobre chulito = Mi poor little cutie

Canela = Cinnamon

Pinche asesinos = Fucking murderers/killers

Thanks for reading! Please consider leaving a comment and sharing your feedback. I would be eternally grateful.

[starbornvalkyrie]

ACOSF USA BOOK TOUR NOTES

Hey y’all! I just attended the LiveTalks Los Angeles event with Sarah J Maas and Eva Chen!! I took lots of notes so I wanted to share them with you all! They’re a little incoherent on the page, so it might seem a crazy, they jumped topics a lot. Feel free to chat with me about what she talked about! But first.

MY RULES:

NO SHIP OR CHARACTER SLANDERING. I know that we all may have different opinions. I will not offer my opinions here, this is purely informational for those of you who did not have the opportunity to attend this event.

PLEASE NO ARGUING IN MY COMMENTS OR ASK BOX WITH ME OR ANYONE ELSE WHO COMMENTS

Acknowledge that I am not perfect and may not have written down everything perfectly. I did my best while still trying to enjoy the event.

I AM NOT SARAH J MAAS AND CANNOT INTERPRET WHAT SHE MEANS

I’m tagging this with #acosf spoilers and #acosfspoilers just in case.

If you understand and can abide by these rules, keep reading below the cut, and enjoy!

SJM said it was weird doing this event from her living room where you might be able to hear her dog in the background or her son trying to get into the room.

ACOSF started as a passion project while she was writing ACOWAR! It was never anything she thought she was going to publish. (more on this later)

About reading and writing growing up

in middle school, she read a lot of fantasy

in high school, she didn’t read as much, but wrote A LOT. it became her fixation, almost an obsession.

in college, she only really wrote on vacations (she had a very healthy social life hehehe) but her junior year is when she found her balance between schoolwork, writing, and socializing.

there was no plan B for her!! it was always to be an author. if it didn’t happen right away, she was going to find a job that would get her by until plan A could come to be.

her favorite author growing up was Garth Nix. She longed for books about badass women. She got to meet him and write a blurb to be on one of his books! She cries when she meets her favorite authors.

Talk about character names!

her character names come from everywhere and nowhere

sometimes she’ll just hear a name in her head and think “that’s it!” (Rhys, for example)

she needs to know the name to write the character

if the name doesn’t immediately come to her, she spends a lot of her time on baby name websites and makes lists until it clicks

sometimes the names just... connect. sometimes she doesn’t mean for them to.

it will always be uncommon. never “Frank” lol

Writing about Nesta!

on a “surface level” she loves writing when Nesta comes out to fight. for example, her favorite scene in this aspect to write was the bog scene. As soon as she got to it, it flowed out of her. The final product was almost identical to the first draft. She wrote it in one session, from the terror & tread to the “who am i?” to when she emerged--she went YES. MAJOR Mic Drop moment for her.

going deeper: definitely her overall journey was one of the favorites she’s ever written. From the dark place she’s in at the beginning to the very end. 

Writing about Nesta meant so much to her because of her own mental health. She channeled a lot of her own feelings and went on the journey with Nesta.

it was a lot of “how do you face mental health in a fantasy world without therapy and medication”

it was easy to get into Nesta’s mind but emotionally intense.

ACOSF’S BIG MESSAGE: LEARNING TO LOVE YOURSELF AND OTHERS. YOU ARE WORTH OF LOVE.

YES there is a book planned for Elain!

As soon as Nesta and Elain came onto the page again in ACOMAF, she knew they’d get their own journey.

Nesta grabbed her by the throat in book 1

She was originally contracted for only the first three books but realized there was more she wanted to explore. Essentially the “what comes next” after ACOWAR in this new world with out the wall.

FUN FACT: while editing ACOMAF/writing ACOWAR, she drunkenly told her editor at the time, “hey guess what happens next?”, and it turned into a two hour conversation about everything she wants to happen for Nesta, Elain, Mor, Azriel, etc. TWO WEEKS LATER, she gets a call saying they want to buy the stories!! Obviously, she said yes.

This allowed her to start planting the Easter eggs for these stories in ACOWAR. She knew she did not want Nesta to be sympathetic at the beginning of the book! But she did not want people to hate her.

She always has one eye on the horizon for future books.

If she could visit one court for a day, which and why?

She LOVES the season Autumn, it’s her favorite. “BUT EVERYONE IN THE AUTUMN COURT IS AN ASSHOLE”. She would want to visit the Autumn Court when no one is there so she can enjoy the beauty of Autumn.

But also she would want to go to the Summer Court because she has a thing for Tarquin but only if it’s not gross and humid.

She would ALSO want to go to the Day Court for Helion and all his libraries.

ESSENTIALLY she would want to go everywhere but Spring because Tamlin sucks and is an asshole lmao.

BEAST FORMS

SJM’s beast form would be something totally not cool or majestic like a sea otter.

Nesta’s beast form would be something terrifying and beautiful like a snow leopard/dragon hybrid, a griffin, or a sphinx. **WANTS SOMEONE TO DRAW THIS**

FUN QUESTIONS

Nesta’s favorite smutty book would be JR Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood series. She reads these books for the distraction, of course, but also for the comfort they gave her that everything turns out okay for the characters.

Nesta’s Starbucks order: cappuccino- something simple, nothing with too much sugar or whipped cream. Elain’s would be a Frappe- something delicious and sweet. SJM’s is a flat white, iced or not, but never after 2PM.

SJM usually listens to classical music and movie scores while she writes, but she’s gotten used to write in silence so that she can listen for her son’s shenanigans with Josh.

“Stay Together for the Kids” by Blink 182 semi-inspired the scene when Nesta and Cassian go back to her family’s cottage. She can hardly explain why.

WRITING ADVICE

Write what you love, not what you think you should be writing.

Give yourself permission to suck. Her first drafts are shit and are usually accompanied with an email that says “I know I need to fix this, this and that” lol.

WRITE THE DAMN THING. Vomit on the page!

YOU CAN’T FIX A BLANK PAGE.

Her least favorite part about the publishing process is the first pass of copy edits, those last minute checks and balances. But once it’s off to the printer, it’s not her problem anymore.

She’s every publisher’s worst nightmare because she sends it off to the printer at the LAST possible minute.

For reference: Throne of Glass was finished almost... a year and a half? ...before it hit shelves, but ACOSF was finished this past fall.

MAIN CHARACTER TALK

All of her heroines have a piece of her.

SJM’s personality is a hybrid of Bryce and Nesta.

Feyre and Nesta got most of her in terms of learning to be empowered.

She has to have a connection to them in order to write them. It’s an out of body, method acting experience.

MISCELLANEOUS

She said “CC2 is a year from now.”

She started writing ACOTAR in 2008 before she published TOG.

She loves the story and dynamic of Elizabeth and Darcy from Pride and Prejudice. Cassian is Elizabeth. Nesta is Darcy.

And that’s all I have, folks! Thank you for reading, I hope you got something out of this!

[minaofmayhem]

IMAGINE #24 - Cabin

Hi everyone ! It’s the first time I’m writing on Bruce Wayne and I liked It! 🤩 I hope this is what you expected anon, I really enjoyed writing this imagine. More are coming, stay tuned and don’t hesitate to ask for being tagged on my future writings. Love ❤️

Summary : Tired of your husband’s absences, he knows he has to make amends so he plans a little trip on the Wayne’s cabine for your wedding’s anniversary.

Pairing : Bruce Wayne x Reader

Warnings : smut smut smut! 

Taglist : @kittenlittle24​

Thirty seven.. Tonight, it’s officially the thirty seventh dinner you take alone in the big dining room in the Wayne’s manor. You’ve waited, patiently and for a long time, but you were so starving that you finally ate your meal. 

“Should we keep Mister Wayne’s plate warm, Miss (X/Y) ?”, says Alfred’s voice as appearing suddenly from the door. The faithful butler wears a kind but sorry face expression. He lives with Bruce for so many years that he knows exactly how it feels to wait patiently for him to come home. 

“It won’t be necessary Aflred. I don’t know where he is and for how long he’ll be absent. But thank you, it’s really kind of you”, you answer back. He politely nods and approaches to clear away the table. 

“Mister Wayne is probably doing what he’s good at : helping his fellow man. Sadly, Batman has no schedules”. Alfred was always the best to resume situations. You smile at him and thank him for his service, before he disappear, leaving you alone with your despair.

Around midnight, still no signs of Bruce. You went to bed around 10m, hoping that reading a book will help you to stop thinking and being worry. But after a moment, you throw it on your night table, not convinced. You sigh loudly as looking at your wedding ring. Tonight you were supposed to celebrate your wedding anniversary...When you got engaged to Bruce, five years ago, you knew what it meant to be Batman’s wife. He never hide you the fact that he was the famous hero of Gotham city and you always thanked him for his honesty. But sometimes, you just wished that saving people would pass on the second plan, after you. You hated having such ideas cause you had the impression of being a selfish and heartlessly woman but, this is what you were feeling right now. 

Finally, you felt asleep. But you don’t sleep completely, your mind always awake and on the alert. And that’s exactly what happened when you feel something heavy crawling slowly on the mattress and a hot body coming to stick to yours. You immediately recognize the smell and the softness of the skin.  Bruce. With his strong arm, he takes your body to move it closer and when he feels your body move a little bit against his, he puts a sweet kiss on your bare shoulder. He was home and safe.

The next morning, he woke up late, around 2pm, fresh and awake after a long night of sleep. He probably thought that he would have a quiet breakfast but you have decided otherwise. You talked to him about your loneliness and the fact that he leaves you most of the time. And to crown it all, he missed you 3rd wedding anniversary. Bruce was really surprised cause you never argued. You always find a way to communicate and to tell each other what’s wrong but you couldn’t keep it for yourself any longer. 

Confused and really sorry, Bruce apologized many times and promised you to redeem himself. “He better be”, you have thought. 

And so this is what he proposed : a weekend, together, at the Wayne’s cabin outside of the town. 2 days without Batman, without Wayne Enterprise or Gotham. Only you and him. It couldn’t have been better.

You arrived on the Friday late afternoon, after he concluded his last matters at his enterprise. You, on the other hand, finished your work at the Gotham library around 4pm. You had the time to finish the suitcases before the departure. When Bruce came back, you were already waiting for him in the corridor. In less than 10 minutes, everything was settled into the Lamborghini and you were waving goodbye to Alfred.

You were the first one to come into the cabin, Bruce was taking charge of the suitcases. And you discover a beautiful red roses bunch waiting on the kitchen’s counter. Your favorites. Happy, you go directly to grab it and to smell the delicate perfume of the flowers. You turn around and see Bruce, observing you on the doorframe with a big smile on his face before walking towards you. He puts the suitcases down and embrace your body with his strong arms.

“Do you love it Mrs Wayne ?”. Even after the years, you always love hearing him calling you like that. 

“I absolutely adore them”, you exclaim as inhaling the perfume once again. He puts a delicate kiss on your forehead. 

While you are unpacking your stuffs in the bedroom, Bruce buckles down to prepare the dinner. He did some shopping before coming home this afternoon and has everything he needs to prepare a delicious stew. While you are alone, your discreetly prepare your surprise for tonight. 

“Dinner is almost ready my love”, you hear Bruce’s voice from the kitchen.

“I’m coming”, you yell back after hiding your little package under some of your stuffs in the wardrobe. 

Once in the kitchen, Bruce holds you a glass of red wine. You take it and you cheers. 

“Happy anniversary sweetheart”, he whispers as looking intensely into your eyes. You do the same, with a little smirk and hit your glass against his. 

“Happy anniversary my love”. You take a sip of your wine. “Mmh...it’s delicious”.

“It’s a vintage wine coming from Wayne’s wine cellar. 13 years old age. I keep it for the occasion”. You smile to your husband and put your glass on the table. While he finishes the dinner, you take charge of setting the table. You also light some candles in the middle of the table to give a romantic atmosphere. Everything was perfect so far.

*

After the dinner, you use the need to take a shower as an excuse. In effect you have an other plan in mind. You discreetly go to the bedroom to get back the surprise box you hidden earlier. Once in the bathroom, you open it and take out a beautiful black lingerie set that you quickly wear. You add a comb, some red lipstick on your lips and after a last glance in the mirror, you decide that you have the result you wanted. 

The living room was only light by the beautiful lights of the fire in the fireplace. The flammes were dancing on the wall and warming the room. They were also dancing on Bruce’s beautiful face. He was facing the fire, sat in the couch with a glass of whisky in his hand. He was glancing ahead, lost in his thoughts, probably thinking about all the heavy weight he has on his shoulders. For a moment, you stay at the doorframe, observing him with a smile on your face. He is so gorgeous under this light, with his delicate features. You are aware that you are lucky, your husband is the most kindly, brave and altruistic man on the planet. He’s totally perfect.

He suddenly turns his head when he notices you standing in the corner. And his lips stretch on a surprise and content smile. He also adds a little whistle. Flattered, you walk into his direction, with a feline walk before standing in front of him. Bruce puts his glass on the coffee table and sits at the end of the sofa to be close to your legs. He looks up, searching for your glance, as your hands get lost in his hair. Bruce’s hands stays on your lower back, caressing your skin with the tips of his thumbs.

“You are absolutely gorgeous”, he lets out in a whisper, without breaking the eye contact. He puts a sweet kiss on your stomach, his hands gripping firmly your ass. You shout out of surprise and giggle. But before you really realized it, Bruce was standing up and lifting you up in his arms. You immediately wrap your legs around his hips and he easily carry you into the bedroom, blindly.  

The room is completely dark but the open door gives an access to the fire light. Once near the bed, he puts you on it, delicately and you both giggle. But the giggles quickly turn into deep kisses. Bruce holds your face with his hands to kiss you passionately, your bodies colliding and rolling slowly on the mattress until you lay on your back, with Bruce up on you. His mouth leaves yours to take care of your neck and collarbones. Your body arche when he attains the space between your two breasts. There he devour your flesh, using his index fingers to remove the lingerie so as to have an access to your hard nipples. You moan when you feel his warm tongue licking them. 

Then he leaves a trail of kisses on the line of your stomach until he arrives at the waistband of your black thong. Knowing what’s coming next, you open your legs and Bruce steals between them. He positions himself so as to be able to move away your thong. You see his head disappear and a sudden lick on your lips. You let escape an erotic moan and you imagine Bruce’s content smile. 

“So wet already...I didn’t know I could turn you on so easily...”, he jokes before going back to his work. His tongue bustles in every corner of your lips, going up and down and insisting on your clit. The electrical discharge you feel when he presses his thumb on it excites you a lot. You didn’t know where to put your hands but they quickly land on Bruce’s hair that you totally disturb. You do some pressure on it, a way to show him the rhythm you want. 

After some minutes, he pulls back again and lean on his forearm, you look at him and wait for the rest. But no need to be impatient cause you immediately feel his finger entering in you. 

“Oh”, you exclaim while your head falls on the mattress. Glad of his effect, Bruce starts to move and adds a second finger that easily moves into you. When he estimates that you are enough ready for him, he quickly moves back from the bed to remove his shirt and trousers. Impatient, you get up to stay on your elbows and observe him as he remove the last piece of clothes on his perfect body. In the shadow and with the little light of the fire, you only see the sharp of his muscular body. You can’t see the scars and bruises that cover his skin. Things that belong to Batman. Tonight you are only with the man, not the hero. 

Completely naked, Bruce comes back next to you and captures your lips for a passionate dance, your tongues moving together in perfect harmony. You take advantage of his inattention to glides your hand between your bodies until you reach what you want. When he feels your fingers around his hard member, he moans strongly and stop kissing you. 

“Not tonight baby...”, he whispers against your lips as taking your hand in his to put it around his neck. You understand and kiss him tenderly on his lips. Without warning you, he uses his strength to get over your body on his. Once on him, you spread your legs and put them on each side of his hips. Wrapping his arms around you, to hold you close, Bruce’s hands go down till your ass cheeks. You feel the tip of his erected member hitting your entrance through the lingerie and you moan against your husband’s lips. There one of his fingers just move away the string of your tongue. With his other hand, he spits on his palm and cover his dick with his, although you are already soaking wet. His glans pushes near your entrance and with a slight pelvis move you let yourself impaling on him. You both let escape a cry of pleasure, not leaving each other’s glance. 

Bruce’s hands lay now under your ass, where he can take your lower body while he moves his pelvis. At each slow thrust, you experience a new sensation. You’ve never tried this position before and you must admit that you really enjoy it. Embraced in Bruce’s arms, you feel good and protected. He continues to move, in and out, increasing slowly the rhythm of his thrusts. He can hear your moans and rapid breathe against the skin of his neck, telling him that you are feeling pleasure. Holding you closer to him, he speeds up once again, taking the control. Closing your eyes, you have a beautiful sensation crossing your lower belly and you know, by experience, that it means your orgasm’s arrival. 

“Don’t stop Bruce...”, you manage to say, between to breathe, as you feel him hitting your spot many times in a few seconds. “God...yes...”. You scream a bit louder this time. You hear a masculine growl and you take it as an answer to your request. The heat in the room start to become unbearable and you are almost sure that the windows are covered with mist. 

Bruce increases the speed one more time and you experience new incredible feelings. Surprised, you pull back a little bit, your body still stick to him. Eyes closed, you moan louder and louder as you hear Bruce activates himself under you to give you the pleasure you deserve. In the final straight, he moves the fast he can and suddenly, the orgasm hits you. It is strong, powerful and almost impossible to support. 

“Oh my god...”, you moan in a pure erotic breath. You feel your uncontrollable legs shaking and Bruce’s hard member entering now slowly in you to make you cum till the end. He knows exactly how to please you. Completely in a sweat, you don’t have time to catch your break that you feel Bruce moving again on so he can cum too. A couple of minutes later, his member thrusts you a bit harder until you hear him growl wildly, his strong muscles contracting. 

For a moment, you both stay quiet, in each other’s arms, lying down on the bed. Your bodies are a bit sweat but you don’t care. You are feeling good and relax, hearing nothing except the fire cracking into the chimney and Bruce’s heartbeat into your ears. You suddenly notice that he didn't make the effort of removing your lingerie and you giggle, half sleepy. 

“What’s so funny ?”, he asks, curious to know.

“I just notice that you don’t take off my lingerie”. A silence settle and then you both giggle, your laughs resounding into the room. 

“I really like seeing you in this. It really suits you well”, he confesses, watching the ceiling, his fingers caressing thoughtfully your shoulder. You thank him for the compliment and smile. Always so gentleman. You are totally in love with him. Now it’s he’s turn to ask something.

“So...what do you think Mrs Wayne ? Have I been forgiven ?”. 

“Mmh...not completely Mr Wayne”, you say, playing, with a serious tone. “But you still have 2 days to totally pay your debt”. Bruce’s laugh.

“If you like this kind of payments, then...it’s not a problem”. 

[moonlit-mizukage]

Chapter nineteen: uhhh hi?

Summary: U.A.’s third year student y/l/n Y/n, has had a crush for a long time on Todoroki Shouto. One day she decides to write an anonymous love letter, sticks it under his door. She confessed her love and asked him to meet under the Cherry tree Saturday at 4pm. She prepared with her friends for this moment, but what happens when someone else takes credit for the letter? (All characters aged up to third year!)

Taglist: CLOSED!!

Word count: 1k (a little over)

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Third person POV 

Saturday, around 2pm

Letting out a deep sigh he picked up the letter again. Rereading it for the fifth time he began to jot down something on a separate piece of paper. 

Looking over his notes, he let out  another sigh scratching off some points. 

What is this feeling? He thought to himself. Placing everything down on the table he stood up and began to exit his room. Heading down the elevator to the main floor as he headed into the kitchen.

“Hey Man! What’s going on? You look a little stressed.” 

"Hello Kirishima. I am a little distraught, I was trying to come up with something to give to someone but it seems I am not as good at it as I wanted to be.” 

“I see, can I ask who it’s for?” 

“I broke up with Ochaco. She lied too many times to me about everything and after you and Midoriya confirmed the lies I confronted her only to get lied to too.” 

“I’m sorry you found out this way.” 

“I am not, if she was not the one whos true feelings were expressed then why did I spend all this time getting to know her.” The look on Kirishima’s face was somewhere between confused and 

angry. 

“It's not too late to make things right man.” 

“Yes, I have intentions to. Thank you for all your help Kirishima, but I must get back to my work as my tea is now done now. Have a lovely evening.” 

“Ah yeah you too Todo.” With that Todoroki took his tea cup back up the elevator to the fifth floor. Entering his room he set it down beside his note and started back at his work. 

A few hours later...

Todoroki sent a quick text off to Midoriya and after he had received his answer he shoved something into his sweater pocket and headed out.  

Why do I suddenly feel so nauseous? He thinks to himself entering the elevator. Arriving at the floor, he began to feel himself walk slower. He lightly knocked on the door upon arrival. 

On the other side of the door a voice can be heard, “Did you forget something Bakugou?” 

She opened the door,  “Todoroki? W-w-why are you… what are you.. uhh hi.” 

“The way your mesmerizing eyes have caught my attention from the moment we locked eyes, I had known you were the one who held my heart. I was worried at first it could have been a physical attraction, but after getting to know you more through the things you'd do in class I realised it was much deeper. My love for you had grown much bigger than I intended for it too.” 

“Is that my.. My letter?” She asked him. 

“Yes but I also have this,” He pulled something from his pocket and began reading it. “When the letter first had slipped under my door I questioned who could write such lovely words. I have not been one to go out of my comfort zone or talk to anyone other than the few friends I had made and their groups of friends. Over the past few years I have been very self involved so I was quite amazed someone could see me underneath the persona I had made for myself at school. I only read your words, even though I did not see who you were at first, it had made me feel a way, I could not describe it. All I could tell you I wanted to be romantically involved with the one who wrote it. After finding out the original person who claimed the letter as theirs was lying, I felt instant betrayal and wanted to speak to the original owner to see if she would give me a chance.” He stopped reading to look up at y/n. 

“Todo-” She started.

“Please wait there's more.” 

“Oh okay.” She said looking at him again signaling him to continue. 

“It took me a long too long to know the truth, but thanks to the second letter you had sent I was able to learn the truth. I had also asked friends of yours for proof to confront Ochaco, but I knew the original letter was yours after reading the second one just by the way you wrote. I may not have known you personally over the past few years but I was able to recognize who you were. The first memory I had of you was when you volunteered in class and flooded the entire room with your quirk. From the moment on in second year I had taken an interest and wished to know more about you. I always see your lovely smile everyday and your laughter fill my ears.I had always wished I had known what made you feel this way. I wish I could say I felt the same way you did all these years, but here I am now instead, asking if you could let me be the reason you smile everyday.” 

“Todoroki, I am, I uhhh wow.” 

“So  what do you say y/n? Will you be my girlfriend?” She gave him a huge smile, the ones he liked so much. 

“Yes!!” She dove at him with her arms wide as he let out a chuckle, hugging back. 

“I see I have already got one of your smiles.” He whispered into her hair.

She pulled back away from him, noticeably embarrassed by the way she held herself. 

“Please come in, I’m sorry I made you stand in the hall the whole time you were reading that to me.” She stepped aside as he walked past. 

“And I am sorry for making you wait so long for me to come around to you. I would also like to apologise for not massaging you as you had intended with your number on the last letter. I had felt it would be better to talk to you in person.” 

“I like it better this way Todoroki.” 

“Please, call me Shouto.” 

The two sat down on her small couch together as he pulled her in closer. 

“Thank you for giving me a new reason to smile Shouto.” She said into his chest. 

“And thank you for letting me be that reason.” He said as he placed a small kiss on top of her head.

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Previous | Masterlist | Next

An: Only two more chapters till the end after this one,, I’m going to miss writing this smau :(

TAGLIST CLOSED!!

Taglist: @videogameboiwhowins​ @too-many-fandoms666 @angelofdarkness1020 @bakuinred​ @yoonbbyboy​ @iamagalaxy @softesyoongi @tsumuuumiyaaaa @kyomihann @iwavibes @thatweirdfox22 @missmultifangirl @lilithknight1111 @letmebreathepls @ohmygodronnie2020 @noahmanz @smolbbygorl @mikeys-thighs @elephantloser @cuddlesslut @vhskenma @athenarosaline @i-need-hugs @avatarayeaye @tansyfleurwhisper @sorrythatspussynal @yikes-buddy @torilovesmiraculous @zukoatethat @httpswwwtbhkcom

If your name is bold I could not tag you!!

[makoodlesarchive]

in bloom 🌼 || bnharem server collab

hellooo everyone!! this is my piece for the bnharem sfw collab. The theme this time was ‘flowers’! i had the absolute pleasure of writing for my baby kiri! this collab was actually super fun to write for, i had a blast 🌸🌸🌸

please go and check out all of the fantastic works on the masterlist here!

kirishima x reader

word count: 4.9k

｡ﾟ❁ུ۪ °ₒ 𓂂 ˚ 𓂂 ₒ ° ₒ 𓂂 ˚˖⋆ ｡ﾟ❁ུ۪ °ₒ 𓂂 ˚ 𓂂 ₒ ° ₒ 𓂂 ˚˖⋆

Your apartment in Musutafu is small and cramped, with thin walls and very little natural light. The rent is extortionate for what it is, even considering the location in the city centre, and at least once a month there’s a complex wide electrical blackout. You can overlook all of the faults of the apartment though, because it’s in a safe neighbourhood close to a hero agency and, most importantly, it’s got a balcony.

Like the rest of the apartment, the balcony is small, but you’ve got enough room to cram a little outdoor bench into the corner. The rest of the space is filled with planters full of flowers and leafy pants, transforming the cramped little space into your own tiny garden. As the weeks begin to melt into summer, your little garden transforms into a wildy colourful and delightfully fragranced haven for butterflies and honeybees. You love to curl up on your little bench with a book, relishing the warmth of the sun on your face and the musical buzzing of the bees flitting about your Lantana flowers. Your apartment’s location on the ground floor means that you don’t get a whole load of privacy, but it doesn’t stop you from spending as much time as possible on the balcony beneath your hanging ivy planters.

Another bonus to the ground floor balcony is the cute redhead that wanders past every day at 2pm and then again at around 9pm. You’re not entirely sure when exactly you first noticed the man, but since you’ve moved in he’s become a permanent fixture in your daily routine. In the afternoons when you take a break from working from home and sprawl out amongst the leafy greenery of the balcony, you always catch a glimpse of him. You guess he must work in one of the offices nearby, and judging by the hastily buttoned jacket and wrinkled sweatpants he changes before going on his lunch break.

Every day he walks by, and every day you see him craning his neck to catch a glimpse of your balcony. It’s not uncommon for people to stare, considering your balcony is basically a green splash amongst the dull grey drabness of your apartment building, but unlike all the other curious passers-by, whenever this guy makes eye contact with you when you’re sitting out he’ll make sure to grin widely and wave at you. It’s sweet. You know next to nothing about the guy, other than that he always seems to be in a hurry and he has a smile so bright and toothy it could probably be seen from space, but those little interactions always put you in a good mood for hours afterwards.

After countless days of waves and smiles from a distance, you look up one day to find him grinning and waving yet again, but this time with a new addition. In his hand is a little potted cactus, which he holds up in the air so you can see. 

“It’s for my office!” he yells to you. There’s a shrubbery area right outside your balcony that acts as both decoration and security to prevent anyone from just strolling up and hopping over the railing, but the guy is still standing as close as he can get on the sidewalk.

Your grin spreads slowly as you get up off your little bench and lean over the balcony railing to get a closer look at his little potted plant. “It’s cute!” you call back to him.

He beams, impossibly pleased with himself. “It’s not as impressive as yours!” he gestures at the foliage flowing over the railings and the hanging baskets.

“Everyone has to start somewhere!”

He laughs at that, his nose scrunching up just a little, and then waves at you again before setting off down the street. You watch him go until he disappears from sight, then return to your bench to continue reading. You’re so distracted by that whole little episode that it takes a few minutes for you to realise that your book is upside down.

It was such a short exchange, but after nothing but smiles and waves from afar for so long it leaves you a little dazed. You could kick yourself for not asking what his name was, but you just hadn’t had the time. Besides, you had been a little dazzled by his smile.

The man’s name is Kirishima Eijirou. Since the first day he spoke to you, you’ve bumped into him at the local supermarket several times. He’s friendly, sometimes overwhelmingly so, and really kind. He’s the perfect package wrapped up in the body of a professional cage fighter, so it’s probably inevitable that you develop a big fat crush on him. The two of you have only really exchanged basic pleasantries and small talk, but it’s enough to have your pulse skipping everytime he smiles at you.

The local flower shop is beautifully vibrant compared to the gunmetal grey skies outside, and the quiet warmth of the place makes it one of your favourite places to spend your days off. Hanging baskets full of seasonal flowers and trailing ivy are suspended from the ceiling and from high shelves, and leafy green plants create a jungle-like atmosphere within the shop. The effect is delightfully mismatched, with enormous bouquets of flowers brightening up the spaces along the walls. The high shelves and boundless foliage makes the whole place feel like a maze; you could happily lose yourself for hours upon hours within the humid little aisles.

You trace your fingers along the large waxy leaves of a monstera plant, enjoying the smooth texture. A bell tinkles overhead as the door to the shop opens and shuts, momentarily breaking the soothing blanket of quiet. You contemplate the price tag on the monstera plant; you already have one, and if you buy another you’ll be pretty hard pressed to find space for it. It is really cute though, and you’re pretty sure that if you move your ficus a little more into the left corner of your balcony you can make enough space for it.

Your thought process is broken by a noise from the top of the aisle, and you glance up to meet the gaze of a surprised yet familiar man.. “Oh! Kirishima-san.” you say at the same time as he blurts “Hi!”

Before you can say anything else, his face splits into a smile. “Aw man, I can’t believe you’re here! This is perfect!”

You laugh a little nervously. “Huh?”

“I was hoping to get a new plant for my office! Could you help me pick one out?”

“Oh.” you blink, a little overwhelmed by his exuberance and the way his eyes crinkle up when he smiles, “I don’t work here.”

He laughs like you’ve just told a really funny joke, and moves to meet you in the middle of the aisle. “Yeah, I know. I’m just guessing that you know your stuff about plants -- your balcony is so awesome.”

“Oh.” you say again, straightening a little despite yourself. You feel ridiculously pleased, probably more than such a simple comment warrants. “Thank you. I worked hard on it.”

“It really shows!” he enthuses. “It actually inspired me to spruce up my office a bit, actually!”

“Really?” you ask, leaning back against one of the shelves. A frond-like leaf tickles the back of your neck, but you don’t bother swatting it away. You think that the two of you might be the only two customers in the shop at this time, and your conversation seems so loud in the relative silence. Somewhere near the back an electric fan buzzes, the noise breaking up the monotonous quiet so it doesn’t seem quite so oppressive. 

“Yeah! So, will you give me a hand?” he tilts his head as he asks, and you realise that his shoulders have dropped down, as if he’s trying to make himself appear smaller. “My friend thinks it’s stupid, but I’m determined to have the nicest desk in the whole building!”

You smile despite yourself, his good humour infectious. “Yeah, okay. Are you looking for something in particular?”

Kirishima steps back and regards the surrounding display cases thoughtfully. “Um. Honestly, I don’t know much about plants. I have my little cactus, but it’d be nice to get it a friend, right? I’m happy to go with whatever you think is best!”

You hum, considering your options. If it’s a small office desk he’s hoping to decorate, you suppose a couple of small succulents could do a nice job of adding a bit of life and colour. “I’m sure we can find something.”

“I’ll leave myself in your capable hands, then.” Kirishima says with a grin, inclining his head a little.

You step further into the shop, ducking under a trailing strand of ivy leaves. The dark hardwood floor creaks as you move, with Kirishima following close behind you. When you pause to gaze at a couple of potted plants on one the shelves you keep your gaze cast down, but glance up through your eyelashes to look at Kirishima. You’re surprised to find him already watching you, like he’s drinking in every move you make. The attention is a little overwhelming, but it’s also exciting. His gaze on you is like a physical weight, and you can’t quite help the coy smile that curves over your face. You know you’re not imagining the soft, heated interest behind his eyes; he’s not exactly being subtle.

You duck into a parallel aisle, just fast enough that Kirishima stumbles for half a step at the sudden change in direction. You hum quietly to yourself, and toss a playful smile over your shoulder as he follows behind you. He meets your smile with another grin, bright and handsome. He doesn’t look away from you for a second.

You come to an abrupt halt in the middle of the aisle and turn to face him. The sudden movement takes him by surprise, but he manages to catch himself before he barrels into you. It’s probably not entirely intentional, but he ends up standing so close that you can almost count the delicate little freckles splashed across the bridge of his nose from the summer sun. His head dips down towards you, leaning into your space in a way that is decidedly more than just casually friendly. His lips part, but before he can speak you ask, “What about this one?”

His gaze drops down to the space between you, where you’re holding up a small plant with waxy little leaves. He blinks at it, and then recovers gracefully. “Hey, that one is pretty cute.”

“‘Pretty cute’s not quite good enough, though, is it?” You pretend to ponder, tapping your chin. “If you want the nicest desk in the whole building, you need better than ‘pretty cute’, right?”

If anything, Kirishima’s smile grows even wider. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. You up for the challenge of finding me the best plant in the store?” He steps closer as he speaks, until there’s nothing but a scant few inches and the potted plant between you.

You make a show of considering the challenge, shifting your weight from foot to foot. “Hold this for me?” you ask suddenly, practically shoving the plant into his hands.

Kirishima takes it, startled, and in the moment of distraction you turn on your heel and dart down the aisle, disappearing down another row of shelves. You’ve barely turned the corner when you hear a deep, rumbling chuckle followed by quick footsteps against the hardwood floor as he follows after you.

It’s like a game. You wind your way through the aisles, skipping over vines and stray pots, and Kirishima tries to catch up. You know this shop like the back of your hand (you’re in here nearly every single weekend), but Kirishima is fast and agile despite his large stature. There are a few close calls, where you just manage to round the corner of a new aisle before Kirishima can reach you, and each one makes your breath catch in your chest when Kirishima’s delighted laughter rings out through the shop.

You can’t help the grin that stretches across your face as you turn into another half-hidden aisle, ducking under a large fan-like leaf that stretched out and drooped low. Only a moment later you hear a soft slap and an “Oof!” as Kirishima presumably runs straight into it, and you laugh quietly to yourself as you slip in between a row of glass display cases.

A clatter and a soft curse sounds from one aisle over, and you guess that Kirishima just accidentally knocked a pot over. You pad softly to the end of the aisle, taking a moment to try and catch your breath and stifle your wild grin. It’s so childish, playing a game of chase in a garden shop with a man you barely know, but you’re having so much fun.

You poke your head cautiously around the edge of one of the display shelves, biting your lip and listening carefully for any sign of Kirishima. The only noise you can hear is the strained mechanical whirring of the fan from somewhere near the back of the shop, so you edge forward. You’ve only managed to take two steps before you feel a presence behind you.

“Gotcha.” Kirishima rumbles, right by your ear.

The noise that’s punched out of your chest is embarrassing, a weird cross between a yelp and a laugh. You whirl on the ball of your feet to face him, only for him to keep stepping closer. You have no choice but to retreat, until you’re backed up into a little alcove between two large glass display cases overflowing with luscious green ferns. Kirishima advances until he’s as close as he can be without actually touching you, and maybe you should feel a little intimidated by this man that’s built like a brick wall of pure muscle but his smile is so delighted and soft that you don’t think you could be afraid of him if you tried.

“You got me.” You agree, a little breathlessly. You don’t know if it’s from the exertion of running through the shop like a child or from the thrill of Kirishima’s closeness to you, but your heart is thrumming like a wild thing in your chest.

From this close, you can see the way Kirishima’s hair is sweat-damp on his brow and curling just slightly; it must be from the humidity inside the shop, because he doesn’t seem even the slightest bit affected by the physical activity of chasing after you. “You’re fast.” he says, his voice quiet as if afraid to break the atmospheric stillness within the shop.

“Yeah?” you mimic his volume subconsciously, “You sure you don’t just like chasing me? I think you could have caught me earlier, if you wanted.”

Kirishima laughs, and the skin around his eyes crinkle up in the most adorable way you’ve ever seen. “Maybe.” he says, and it sounds like a secret. His teeth are white and sharp and his cheeks dimple when he smiles. You’re distracted by the dimples, so when he raises his hand you barely notice until suddenly there’s a flower right under your nose and your eyes nearly cross in your attempt to look at it. 

“It’s pretty.” You say with a smile. It’s a simple white cosmo flower, though Kirishima is beaming as though he’d managed to find a particularly rare gem, and you don’t get a chance to take it from him before he tucks it neatly behind your ear.

“It’s like you.” He says. The words are flirtatious, but he delivers them so earnestly that you don’t quite know how to react.

“How about a potted ivy?” you blurt, at a loss for anything else to say. “It would be easy to take care of, and it looks good.”

Kirishima blinks, but takes the change of subject in stride. “Is that your professional recommendation?”

“Mhmm.” It’s hard to focus when he’s so close that you can feel the warmth of his breath ghosting across your skin every time he speaks. You’re sure he must be picking up on how flustered he’s making you -- you’re not convinced by the innocent expression on his face. “Maybe a few succulents, too.”

Kirishima nods thoughtfully, consideringly. “Hmmm. That sounds good to me. Will you go out to dinner with me?”

It’s such a non-sequitur that it takes your brain a long moment to register his words. “I- huh?” 

His dimpled smile turns bashful and a little self-conscious. “Ah. Sorry, that might have been a little forward.” He scratches the back of his head, and your gaze is drawn to the way his bicep bulges at the movement. “I was wondering if you’d like to get some dinner with me? I know a place that does some really great burrito bowls.”

“Are you asking me on a date, Kirishima-san?” Your words come out soft and quiet and effortlessly flirtatious -- you hadn’t intended on sounding so seductive, but you can’t help but enjoy the way Kirishima leans in closer to you.

“Yeah. No pressure if you don’t wanna, of course!” He’s quick to reassure you, “It’s totally fine if you’re not interested. I just wanted to let you know that I am very interested.”

As refreshing as his straight-forwardness is, you can’t help but feel surprised. This man is very much out of your league, you’re not blind, and yet he had been the one to approach you, and had indulged in your silly game of chase around the shop, and had playfully cornered you in an alcove and asked you out. You’ve met him enough by now to know he’s kind, friendly, and eager to help with just about anything you ask. Plus, he’s practically built like a Greek god, with a handsome face and the most stacked muscles you’ve ever seen in person.

“I’m interested.” you breathe, heart hammering in your chest. God, you really hoped this wasn’t some kind of elaborate joke. 

Kirishima seems to actually inflate at that, a bright smile blooming across his face as his shoulders straighten. “Really? Great! Awesome! Tonight?”

“Sure.” you agree, returning his smile. Your heart rate still hasn’t returned to normal from your chase around the shop; if anything, it feels like it’s pounding harder than ever. “I’m free tonight.”

“Great!” Kirishima says again. He seems more excited than you would have expected, which is honestly pretty flattering since you’re pretty sure you’re the one that should be feeling the most excited in this situation. “I have to go back to work since I’m technically on my lunch break right now, but I could pick you up at your apartment at around eight tonight?”

“Eight is perfect.” you straighten the flower behind your ear and smile up at him, letting your own excitement shine through on your face.

Kirishima steps back, finally giving you some space. You forcefully resist the urge to follow after him, watching instead as he backs away, still beaming. “Okay. Okay, cool. So, I’ll see you tonight?”

You let him go a few more steps before tilting your head and asking, “So, you changed your mind about the plants?”

He pauses, one foot raised mid-step like a cartoon character. “Plan-?” he starts, before his eyes go comically wide, “Oh! The plants! Right!”

You laugh, finding him stupidly endearing, before stepping out of the little alcove and setting off down one of the aisles to the left. There’s a whole section of the shop dedicated solely to the house plants, and it’s not difficult to find a suitable ivy plant with light green leaves and tumbling vines. Kirishima takes the potted plant when you hand it to him, and trails after you again as you go in search of the succulents. When you’ve found some suitable little plants, you help him carry them up to the counter with the cash register. There’s no one manning the register (and you breathe a quiet sigh of relief at that, because it means that no one saw the two of you running through the shop like idiots), and you ring the little bell to notify the employees that you’re at the counter. 

“I’ll leave you to it,” you say, stepping away from the counter as an employee finally emerges from the back of the shop. “See you tonight?”

Kirishima fumbles with the plants in his hands as he tries to wave. “Tonight! Yeah!”

The bell tinkles as you duck out the shop door, biting your lip to try and stifle your excited grin.

//

You look in the mirror yet again, tugging nervously at your clothes. You look pretty good, you think, but the closer it gets to eight the more nervous you get. You realised too late that you never exchanged phone numbers, and Kirishima doesn’t know which number apartment to buzz from the front door. You focus on staying calm and not overthinking things; it’s just a date, with the most handsome man you’ve ever actually spoken to. No big deal. It’s fine.

You tug on your shirt again, even though it’s sitting pretty much perfectly. You just lean forward to check your teeth when a crash sounds from your balcony. You jerk towards the crash automatically, and race out to open the doors to the balcony. You’re greeted with the sight of Kirishima with one leg over the balcony railing, staring dismally down at the shattered pot that he apparently just knocked over.

“I’m so sorry!” he blurts as soon as he sees you, “It was an accident! I didn’t know your apartment number to buzz the door and so I thought I’d just knock on the door to your balcony but I didn’t see the pot and- wow, you look really good!”

You wave away his frantic apologies with a laugh as you step over the spilled dirt. “Don’t worry about it. You look pretty good, too.” Your eyes drop to where he’s hiding his hands behind his back. “What have you got there?”

Kirishima hikes his other leg over the railing and drops to his feet, before pulling his arms out from behind him and revealing a large bouquet of beautiful white and pink lilies. “I got these for you.” he says, a pink blush dusted over his cheekbones. “I know you, uh, like flowers and plants and things. I don’t know much about them, but I thought they were pretty!”

Your whole face softens, and you reach out to take the bouquet. They are pretty, with delicate pink-streaked white petals and long, dainty stems. Pollen drops from them at every movement, sprinkling into the air in delicate yellow puffs. “They’re beautiful! Thank you.”

When you glance up at him you find that his attention is caught by the side of your head, his own smile softening. “You kept it?”

You touch the cosmo flower still tucked behind your ear, a little embarrassed. It had seemed like a cute idea to keep it and wear it for the date, but now you wonder if it’s a little weird. “Yeah. Like you said, it’s pretty, right?”

“Yeah.” he agrees. His gentle pink blush has intensified into a deep red. “Very pretty.”

You look back down at your lilies, still smiling. You feel so pleased, like all your nerves are being melted away only to be replaced by excited anticipation. “Your office must be really close by if you had the time to grab these before getting here.”

“It’s right around the corner,” he points towards the end of the street, “But, uh. My boss actually let me go early today.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. I, uh-” His blush, impossibly, seems to intensify further. “I’ve been talking about you for a while, I guess. Telling people about your awesome balcony and stuff, and how nice you are whenever I meet you. I didn’t actually realise how much I mentioned you, but, uh, when I told Fat that I had asked you out, he pretty much told me to get outta there and come straight to get you.” 

You laugh, pleasantly embarrassed yourself. “Wow. That’s… that’s really sweet.” A thought intrudes on the back of your mind, suddenly, and you frown a little. He said his boss's name was Fat? Office around the corner? “Wait. You work at Fat Gum’s Hero Agency?”

“Yep!” He flexes one of his biceps playfully; you’re pretty sure it’s bigger than your head. “I’m a sidekick there! ”

“Wow.” you say, gaze stuck on his muscled arm. “That- well. That explains- I mean, you have a very nice body.” Oh god, you think, cursing yourself. Why had you said that?

Kirishima flushes from the roots of his hair to his chest. You can’t help but grin, his bashfulness impossibly charming. “Oh! Thanks! I work out a lot.” he chuckles, shrugging as if it’s nothing.

You’re still grinning as you look at his rosy face, your eyes dropping to his red-flushed chest. His very red-flushed chest. “Uh.” you glance to his neck, where the skin is an angry crimson colour. “Kirishima-san?”

“Yeah?” The sun is dropping low in the sky, and the golden sunset throws buttery yellow-toned light all over your balcony. It lights up Kirishima’s profile in warm relief, and makes you wonder if you’re maybe imagining the colour you’re seeing.

“Are you okay? You have- I think you have a rash?”

“Huh?” He drops his chin to his sternum, trying to get a look at what you’re seeing. When he tugs his shirt down, it reveals angry red lines streaking down his chest. “Oh. Yikes.”

Your mouth drops open. “That.. looks painful.”

“It’s more itchy, really.” He admits, poking at the patch of ruddy skin. His head snaps up, eyes wide, and he quickly adds, “This doesn’t usually happen! I don’t usually have, uh, whatever this is!”

That definitely isn’t as comforting as he’s clearly hoping it will be. “Um. Kirishima, do you feel weird right now?”

“A little? I think I’m just nervous for our date, though.” He shifts on his feet and reaches up to scratch at his throat. “Just a little itchy. My throat feels a bit weird. I think it’s nerves.”

The angry red rash climbing up his chest and throat suggests that it’s not just nerves. “Does your throat feel… swollen?”

“Kinda?” 

Your gaze drops to the flowers in your arms. The breeze shakes loose another little cloud of pollen from them, which floats into the air in a little puff of yellow dust. “Did this start after you got the flowers?”

“I guess!” Kirishima says, clearly not following.

“Oh.” You stare at each other. Kirishima still hasn’t quite caught on to the logical conclusion of these questions. Now that you’re looking at him closely, you’re pretty sure his face looks a little puffier than usual. “I think you’re having an allergic reaction.”

Kirishima blinks, then looks to the flowers in your arms. His hand scratches idly at the base of his throat, which is now a raw and angry red. “Oh. Oh, I see. Huh.” You might be imagining it, but his voice sounds a little thicker now.

“I think we should go to the hospital.” You set down the lilies on your garden bench and usher him into your apartment. You haven’t had time to tidy up, but you’re past the point of caring about cleanliness. Kirishima doesn’t seem to notice anyway, as his face has fallen.

“What about dinner?” He asks, obviously disappointed, and yep, his voice has definitely gotten thicker. It sounds like his throat is swelling.

You try not to panic. “We can get food after the hospital!”

Kirishima actually has the nerve to pause and think about it. “Are you sure? I don’t feel that bad, and I really want to take you somewhere nice.”

It’s hard not to feel flattered at that. “I really appreciate that, Kirishima. I would feel a lot better if we got you checked out before dinner, though. I think the date would go better if you weren’t on the brink of anaphylactic shock.”

Kirishima concedes at that, and lets you call a taxi. As you stand on the sidewalk waiting for the taxi to arrive, he sighs and tilts his head. “This is embarrassing. I can’t believe I finally ask you out only for it to be ruined by some stupid flowers.”

“Hey,” you bump him with your hip, but it’s like hip-checking a boulder. You wince and rub at your hip bone as you say, “The flowers were beautiful, and a really lovely thought. Plus, I’ve kind of had a crush on you for a while now. One little bump in the road isn’t gonna chase me away, okay?”

“Really?”

You tug him over so you can press a chaste, tentative kiss to his cheek. “Really.”

“I’m gonna make sure when this is over that I bring you on the most unforgettable date ever!” In the light of the setting sun, Kirishima is lit up golden. He grins, gilded and bright, and even with his puffy face and swollen throat, you think he might just be the most beautiful man you’ve ever seen. 

“I think that you’ve already accomplished that.” you say delicately as you spot your taxi rounding the corner of the street, “Maybe our next date should be a little more uneventful.”

“Yeah,” Kirishima laughs, sounding like his throat is full of cotton balls, “Maybe uneventful is best. But you basically just agreed to go on another date with me, right?”

You suppose you have to be impressed by his determination, if nothing else. You’re not used to being the focus of someone’s attention like this, especially not someone on the brink of a medical emergency. It’s… flattering. “Yeah, I guess I did. Maybe next time we should leave the flowers, though.”

“No flowers.” Kirishima agrees, then chuckles. 

You think his swollen, puffy smile might just be the cutest thing you’ve ever seen in your life.

[mrs-harkness]

Run To Me (Part 4)

Pairing: Diane Sherman x Fem!Reader 

Word Count: 2.5k

Part 1 || Part 2 || Part 3

TW: Brief mention of vomiting. I don’t want anyone getting triggered, so I would rather be overly cautious!

A/N: If you would like to be on a tag list for this fic, please add a comment below or shoot me a message! Excited about the next chapter, things are coming. Again thank you for the love. I am having so much fun writing this and it means even more when you have people who enjoy reading it!

Even though it had been four whole days since the accident, you were not feeling better. Diane had said that the day after was supposed to be the worst, but it seemed like you felt weaker each day. Diane was keeping a close eye on you though, making sure you weren't running a fever and that the road rash and cuts weren't getting worse. She said if you got any weaker, she would bring you to the local urgent care to make sure something serious wasn't going on.

Though you weren't feeling well, you enjoyed the days spent with Diane in the quiet little house, just the two of you. You had learned a lot about each other in the past few days, developing a routine with one another that always ended the day with a cup of that nasty ass tea, but deep and sweet conversation.

You hadn't gone into too much detail about your past quite yet, about your mother or father or what it was like in the foster home. You shared mainly surface level things and funny memories that were light hearted. You knew the heavier stuff would be discussed eventually. Although you were choosing to keep the painful memories of your past to yourself for the time being, Diane had opened to you almost immediately.

You found out she didn't have parents either, her mother dying when she was a child and she was married when she was very young, to an abusive husband that left her for another woman only a year and a half into the marriage. Soon after she found out she was pregnant and she decided to not reach out to her ex-husband and to just raise the baby on her own. Unfortunately she developed high blood pressure and delivered the baby too soon, and she died in Diane's arms before she even had time to discuss options. Her name was Chloe and Diane chose to live a quiet life after that. She moved to Washington only a few years ago and put herself into teaching, science, and her garden. She always wanted a child, but she was just never able have one again.

When she told you that, your heart broke for her. Of course she was so willing to take you home with her. She was lonely! She had promised to take care of you, but you knew as soon as you were back on your feet, you were going to try and care for her too. In whatever way she would let you. You weren't Chloe, and you could never be Chloe, but you could love her with all your heart.

It had been another rough day, as you had suddenly developed a bad headache and had felt queasy for most of it. You didn't really eat much of your dinner, pushing it around your plate. You didn't want to tell Diane you had vomited up breakfast. If she knew you were barely keeping things down, she may get worried.

Diane cleared the plates from the table and brought them to the sink. She noticed you didn't eat more than a few bites. She didn't say anything but turned to you and smiled.

"How about you go ahead and sit on the couch? I'll be there in just a minute," she said quietly. Her voice had seemed to grow more gentle towards you each day.

You smiled wearily and went to the living room, lazily sitting down on the couch. It could have only been a few minutes, but you somehow managed to fall asleep. You were constantly tired and wanting to nap. Diane said it was a good sign because it meant your body was trying to heal itself.

You were woken up by the couch dipping under Diane's weight. You opened your eyes and saw her smiling at you, holding a bowl of something brown. It smelled sweet and you looked at her suspiciously.

"What's that? No tea tonight?" you asked, hopeful.

Diane chuckled and pulled out two spoons, sticking it into the bowl.

"No, no tea tonight. I don't want you to get too much of those herbs and vitamins. And this, it's brownie batter. Me and my friends as teenagers would make a bowl of it and eat it as we talked about boys and school and our dreams," she said, picking up a spoon and licking off the chocolate from it.

You couldn't help but smile as you took a spoon and licked at it cautiously. You had never had the stuff and it was intoxicating. You shoved the whole spoon in your mouth, ready to inhale the entire bowl.

Diane laughed and pulled the bowl towards her.

"Alright, alright speedy... don't eat it too fast. You'll get sick."

You forced yourself to go slower, but the moment Diane turned around you would be sure to put as much of it in your mouth that would fit. This was worth getting sick over. Diane stared at you, drinking up the image of you enjoying the treat she had brought.

"You know," Diane hummed, "I always thought I'd do this one day with my daughter. Make it a tradition and she'd tell me her secrets and we would be best friends."

You're heart ached in your chest. You knew she meant Chloe and you knew she would rather her be on the couch than you. Suddenly the batter didn't taste as sweet. You put the spoon into the bowl and left it there. You looked up at Diane and saw she was almost beaming at you though.

"I'm glad I get to do it with you," she said, picking up the spoon with her other hand and letting you eat off it.

You felt really confused, but happy at the same time. You knew you weren't her daughter, but sometimes the way she said things or looked at you, it was like she wanted you to be. As if that's how she saw you. You weren't sure if you saw her as a mother though, you didn't really know what that felt like. It was complex for you.

"So, Y/n, tell me. What did you do with your friends? Did you have any special traditions with the girls?" Diane asked, eating another spoon of the batter, it dripping onto her lips.

It broke you from your anxious thoughts and had you now thinking about your past. It wasn't that much better but at least it would keep you talking.

"Well, I really wasn't in one place long enough to make any traditions with my friends. But me and my foster sister, the one who lives in town, we would go and sneak out of our group home and head to the woods behind it. The woods had fireflies in them and we would go see the 'light shows' and talk about a bunch of different things. What our families could have been like, what we were going to do when we aged out, the issues we had at the home."

You remembered those nights fondly, some of the few good memories you had growing up. You wondered if there were any woods in the area and if they had fireflies. Maybe you could go and see a 'light show' for old times sake. You would ask your sister when you saw her. But you needed to call her first.

"Uh Diane, could I possibly use your phone?"

Diane suddenly stiffened, the spoon thudding back into the batter. Her face seemed to harden just for a moment before quickly returning to the warm look she often gave you. It took her a moment to respond, making the air between you thick for some reason.

"Sure. Are you okay?" she said, her voice sounding concerned.

She seemed like she was worried and you wondered if she thought she had upset you.

"Oh yeah! I'm fine. I just actually wanted to call my sister and let her know I made it here and that I'm safe and see when she wanted to meet up," you said in a confident tone, hoping to ease her mind.

Her face seemed to twitch and she swallowed hard, clearing her throat. She smiled at you though and you just shrugged off her strange reaction. She pointed to the kitchen where the phone hung on the wall. Diane had phones with chords still in her house, which you found charming, but also a little inconvenient that you couldn't step outside.

"You're welcome to call your foster sister," she said, saying the word 'foster' strangely, "I'm going to go upstairs and get ready for bed to give you some privacy."

She smiled at you and brushed your hair behind your ear before getting up and heading to her room. You waited until you could no longer hear her footsteps before leaning over the brownie bowl and quickly stuffing your mouth with as much batter as you could. As soon as you swallowed it all, you realized you may have made a mistake, but you could regret it later.

You walked over to the phone and pressed the buttons to the number you had memorized by heart. You felt nervous suddenly even though nothing had changed and you had just talked to her a week ago. Your heart race increased with each ringer, anxious to hear her voice.

"Hello?" a sleepy voice on the other side of the phone croaked.

"Mandy? Mandy, its Y/n."

There was some rustling on the other side of the line and you were pretty sure you had woken Mandy up, but you knew she wouldn't mind.

"Hey! I was wondering when I would hear from you. I was a little worried. You were supposed to call me like two days ago," she yawned.

"Yeah I'm sorry. I had a little set back. But I'm here in town and I'm staying with a woman I met-"

Mandy cut you off with a very obnoxious "Ooooohhhhhh!"

"Shut up. It's not like that. She's just a really good friend that I was lucky enough to meet. Now before you say anything else stupid, when and where do you want to meet?"

Mandy chuckled on the other end. She knew you hated being picked on and anytime she sensed even the possibility of making you uncomfortable, she had to crack a joke.

"Well, I have class tomorrow, but I am free after lunch. There is a nice little coffee shop book store on Howard. You can meet me there at like 2PM. Does that sound good?"

"Yeah, that's perfect. I can't wait. I've missed you so much Mandy," you said, tears prickling at your eyes.

"I've missed you too lighting bug. So tell me, who is this lady you are-"

Suddenly Mandy's voice cut off. You pulled the phone away from your ear, not even hearing a dial tone. You messed with the phone for a moment before realizing the line was dead.

"Diane?" you called out, sticking your head around the corner.

Diane was right there, breathing heavy as if she had been running. She startled you and you stared at her, mindlessly passing the phone to her.

"Your phone line went dead," you mumbled.

Diane put the phone to her ear and pressed a few buttons before hanging up.

"I'll call the phone company in the morning. Sometimes someone hits a line and the whole thing goes dead. Were you able to call your friend though?" she asked, leaning against the wall.

You noticed she said friend this time, but you brushed it off. She didn't know the bond you and Mandy shared.

"Yes! I did. I'm going to meet her tomorrow for lunch."

Diane didn't hid her discomfort this time.

"Y/n, I don't think that's a good idea. You're still very weak. You didn't even eat dinner. I don't think you should go out by yourself. Maybe I should go with-"

"No. It's okay. I'll be fine for a couple of hours. I won't be running a marathon, just having a coffee with my sister."

You wanted to spend time with Mandy by yourself and while you appreciated the thought of Diane going with you, you were still an adult no matter how young you looked. It didn't help that at the moment the brownie batter was now fighting against you and you were hunched over slightly.

"Well maybe consider letting me drive you to town? I need to run some errands anyway so I can drive you and that way if you feel like you need to lay down or rest I wouldn't be far."

You would need a ride to town, but you just weren't sure.

"Let me sleep on it. I hate to think I would be using you just for a ride. And-" before you could finish, you start having a coughing fit. Coughing was nothing new to you thanks to the asthma, but this wasn't that. This was the batter.

You tried to keep it down, but it was too late. You threw up, all over yourself, all over the floor, and even on Diane's slippers. You expelled everything you had eaten that day and more and it took a moment before you stopped gagging, laying in a ball on the floor.

Suddenly fear over took you as you saw yourself and the floor covered in vomit. You know your mom would be so mad when she saw it and you would get punished. You didn't want to be punished. You began to cry and you scooted away until your body hit the wall.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to," you cried. You forgot where you were and suddenly you were back at home. You didn't like going back.

Diane quickly ran over to you, not phased by the vomit and held you in her arms. You fought her off at first but she shooshed you and smoothed your hair, holding you close to her. She knew a flashback when she saw one. She held you and whispered in your ear. It took a moment but eventually you came back to present day. You still felt sick, you now smelled awful, your head hurt, and you were embarrassed. For the first time since you had met Diane, you felt tears prickle you eyes and instead of hiding them, you let them flow.

You cried in Diane's arms as she rocked you back in forth, and you apologized over and over again. You weren't sure if you were saying sorry because you had thrown up on her or if it was because she lost her daughter or because you were the mess of a person she felt fate brought her. She kissed your head and took your face in her hands. She wiped your tears with the pads of her thumb and looked at you with tears in her eyes too.

"Hey. It's okay. Stop apologizing. You're safe now Y/n."

She pulled you back to her chest again and wrapped her arms around you tight as if she would never let you go.

"I've got you," she whispered, over and over.

"I've got you, and I'm not letting go."

[deonideatta]

hi hi i heard you like chief kim and i'm here to get all the intel on why it's a good drama 😊 and what you love about park jae bum's other dramas 😊 pls let me know if there's romance bc that's the oxygen i breathe when i watch a show 💕

Hello!!! Thank you for asking me about Chief Kim!!!! I can go on about it for ages lol. This got a bit long so i’m putting it under a cut

Chief Kim (aka Good Manager) is a comedy office drama with 20 eps, and it aired in 2017. There isn’t a main romance plotline, but don’t let that put you off! It’s an incredible drama in so many ways. (tho there is a subtle romance side plot, but it doesn’t involve the main character and it’s never the main focus, though it is cute). It does feature a bromance that was so great that the two actors literally won an award for it tho lol, so there’s also that!

In a way, the general premise is somewhat similar to Vincenzo in that it’s the main character and an unlikely team of others fighting a big corporation. The comedic tone is also more or less the same. The drama follows Kim Seong Ryong (the titular Chief Kim, played by Namgoong Min), a man with a talent for handling numbers who goes from running a seedy accounting firm to quite accidentally becoming a champion of employees rights in one of the biggest corporations in the country. He originally joins the company with the goal of embezzling a lot money and moving abroad, but he gets swept up in office politics surrounding high executives and the sinister goings on surrounding the position he was recruited for, as well as the shady things the higher-ups want him to do and the suspicion of the other members of his department. Eventually he starts to work alongside them to fight the corruption of the higher ups, and quickly becomes the bane of top management’s existence by being so incredibly annoying that they begin to regret hiring him.

It’s the kind of drama that really gets you to laugh, while still being incredibly heartwarming. The main character is so unashamedly funny, and the character dynamics are all so warm, and none of it ever seems forced. The first tag for the drama on MyDramaList is “character development”, and that says a lot! There’s so much growth that goes on for all the characters, even some of the villains! It’s especially funny because to begin with all the good things Kim Seong Ryeong does are completely by accident, and he’s annoyed but also pleased with all the attention it gets him. Over time he begins to own it, and begins to actively try to stand up to the corrupt people at the top of the company. The other highlight for me besides the humor is definitely the characters. From the eccentric main character, to the no-nonsense second in command in his department Yoon Ha Kyung, to the aggressive finance director Seo Yul who is always eating (one of my all time favourite characters, played by 2PM’s Junho), to the janitor lady who always roasts everyone, there isn’t a single dull character, whether good or bad. And Seo Yul gets one of the best character arcs I’ve ever seen in a kdrama. You get to watch the characters struggle and triumph, and you feel for them because their struggles feel so real, and the drama really gets you invested in them. You see the ways in which they fight to survive as normal working class citizens and you want them to win.

It differs from Vincenzo in that the main character isn’t considered evil and loses his less savoury traits over the course of the drama (his character arc is one of becoming a more upstanding citizen), and the message is one of fighting against corporate greed using the corporate system against itself in order to make things better for the average working citizen. But there’s the same plotting, and the same feeling of rooting for the protagonist team to win as you watch them plot and plan. I never rewatch things, but i’ve rewatched Chief Kim twice already and i’m looking forward to rewatching it again soon (just writing about it is making me want to rewatch it right now lol). It especially hits well for me because i love office dramas, and the humor and the bromance are just right. (Also, not entirely related, but it’s the first drama Kim Seonho was in!)

Another Park Jaebum drama i can definitely recommend is The Fiery Priest! It’s also a comedy action drama with 20 eps (released in 2019), and it follows Kim Hae Il (Kim Nam Gil), a catholic priest with a real temper, as he works to solve the mystery surrounding the death of a senior priest. No romance there either, but it’s got the same humor as Chief Kim and Vincenzo, and the same overarching found family trope (that really shines for this one). It’s darker than Chief Kim, but not as dark as Vincenzo. The plot is very intriguing, and it’s the kind of drama you feel compelled to keep watching to see what happens next. And the host of characters in that drama is still one of my favourites to this day. Every character was incredibly written, and they all played vital roles in the overall story. Again, lots of character development all round, and great character arcs not just for the main character (even for a few of the villains!). Plus it was lovely to watch the various characters interact, get closer, and build relationships. Such an iconic squad. Not to mention how funny it is?? And the fight scenes??? In fact, I enjoyed it so much that when I checked Park Jaebum’s page on MyDramaList after watching it around June last year and saw Vincenzo as an upcoming project, I added it to my plan to watch list immediately even though there was only a single line of synopsis lol. It’s also got an absolute banger of a soundtrack!

When you think about it, all three (Chief Kim, TFP and Vincenzo) can be simplified to “guy with dubious past sets out to fight corruption and creates a great support circle in the process”. All three are dramas of finding people who care about you and are willing to fight alongside you, and fighting for your convictions/what you think is right. Each main character starts out as a somewhat solitary figure, and you get to watch as they each find people who are willing to fight alongside them and support them. What exactly those specific convictions are varies in each drama, but Park Jaebum writes the character development arcs incredibly each time, and the relationships between the characters are so real and so satisfying to watch. And yet the integrity of the main character in each drama is never compromised either, it’s shown that they can grow and become better without losing themselves. The growth is also in the way that they learn to work with and rely on others, because teamwork makes the dream work. And then to cap it all off he lets them have victories, and he makes it SO satisfying??? There are highs and there are lows, and you feel all of those right there with the characters, which makes the victories feel so so good. In each we see the ensemble cast get involved with the fight and the plotting, and we get to see all their epic plans and their execution, and the victories they win that build up over time. And it’s so satisfying to me! I love it a lot, just thinking about it is making me smile lol. It also shows how well humor and darker/more serious plotlines/events are balanced in the dramas, neither is compromised in favour of the other, but it always works so well that the humor never feels forced or out of place. As someone who doesn’t like overbearingly dark shows, I really appreciate that. They all give you lots to laugh at, while not losing any of the plot to the funny.

Of course there are differences, notably the romance, and the fact that Vincenzo is bad vs bad rather than good vs bad like the other two. They deal more with redemption (especially The Fiery Priest), but that works for the stories that are being told, and it’s very well executed.

It’s worth noting that Park Jaebum also wrote Good Doctor and 4 seasons of God’s Quiz. I haven’t checked those out yet, but I’ve heard good things about all of them. He also wrote Blood, I haven’t seen that one either but opinions seem to be split on how good it was. All of those are medical dramas (which is the reason I haven’t watched them lol, i can’t stand medical dramas) from before 2017, when he wrote Chief Kim. It seems he’s been on a roll since then, good for him and good for us lol. You can see everything he’s written on his MyDramaList page.

Overall I enjoyed the Park Jaebum dramas I have seen for first and foremost the comedy, but also for the warmth of the character relationships and for how well developed/written each character is. And I love how he balances the humor with more poignant/darker moments, I laughed a lot watching all three dramas, but I’ve cried over each of them as well. It’s a good balance to have, it gives you a good plot to be interested in, but doesn’t keep you stressed and sombre the whole way through. I’ve seen people say that Vincenzo wouldn’t be as good if it wasn’t so wacky, and I fully agree. It’s the same for both TFP and Chief Kim, and that balance is definitely what I appreciate most in Park Jaebum’s dramas. I know I will laugh, but I also know I will get an incredible plot and incredible characters, and that’s really important for me. Plus I know I can trust that there will be a good ending because the writer cares about his characters.

I definitely recommend checking out both TFP and Chief Kim after Vincenzo is done, especially since they’re so similar in terms of comedic tone and basic plot direction. If you ever get to watching either of them feel free to hmu to chat about it!! There’s lots of plot stuff that can be can discussed.

lol this got v long (i have lots to say about how much i love these dramas haha), but I hope it’s helpful!!!

[redeadepression]

Never Be | John Marston Fic | Arthur’s POV

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I’ve decided to make this a small series. John’s inner monologue of all his failures (set in my Modern AU) and interactions with his friends and family/their reactions to his situation. This one is different because it’s written from Arthur’s POV! Let me know if you want to hear John’s!

Jumbled timeline because I write what I feel like lately. This is the earliest story in the series so far.

~~

Characters: Arthur Morgan, John Marston. Hosea Matthews, Dutch Van der Linde Setting: My Modern AU  Words: 2849 Tags: Angst, Family, Adoption, Modern AU, Teen John No Trigger warnings Summery: Arthur returns home to visit his parents and receives some disturbing news.

~~

The scratching sound of Arthur’s hand-brake was always a concern to him. But even at the age of twenty-eight he was still struggling to have enough money to take the concern too seriously.

Instead, he ignored it as he always did. Making sure to let it click at least three times and silently praying that his car would not roll back down the drive once he left it.

He sat back in his chair for a moment. Letting his head fall back against the rest and sighing deeply as he prepared himself for the next few hours.

He loved his parents deeply. He would be forever grateful for the way they took him in. Not just as a Foster family but for adopting him officially as well.

But hell, they were exhausting sometimes. Dutch more so than Hosea. Always wanting to talk shop and try and convince Arthur to go another way in life. Stop trying to get his art out there and take on a trade instead.

Hosea was more supportive of his life choices. But the way he fussed over Arthur’s eating and the way he lived was its own form of exhausting. Always having to assure the older man that his apartment was clean and he had eaten three meals in a day.

Instant ramen was a meal. He didn’t care how hard others argued against that.

He missed being a carefree teen like John was at the moment. Not having to worry about mundane things like bills and whether or not his car would break down on the way to work for the third time in a week.

Steeling himself against the wave of questions as to why it had been so long since he visited, he pushed open his door and exited the vehicle.

Locking his car and checking to make sure his wallet was in his back pocket. He turned, jogging up the front steps and knocking on the screen door. It rattled under his knuckles, wobbling in its frame. Arthur had always mused just how easy it would be to push it off it’s hinges and walk inside. He was always on their asses to lock the wooden door as well but they refused. The screen let in the cool breeze and stopped them from having to pay for air conditioning.

Not that the cool breeze ever did anything to alleviate how sweltering their house was in summer.

Air conditioning was something Arthur had looked forward to the most when he left home. Turning it on and letting it run 24/7.

Until he’d gotten his first power bill.

“$600 a year is a bit steep for power isn’t it?” He’d asked Hosea bitterly.

Hosea had laughed heartily at his son’s naivety.

“Electric bills are not yearly son.” He’d corrected. “Every three months.”

“Every three months?” Arthur had asked incredulously, the other man smiling to himself knowingly.

“Not so fun being an adult now is it?” He’d chuckled simply.

Arthur still bristled at the memory. They could have warned him.

Although he knew deep down there was no way he would have listened anyway.

Arthur drummed his fingers absently against his thigh as he waited to be let inside. Frowning when no one came to the door and flicking through his keys to look for his old one.

He let himself inside, closing and relocking the door behind him as he yelled out that he had entered.

He checked the time on his watch as he walked down the hallway and turned into the living room. They did say lunch was at 2pm. He was only fifteen minutes early.

No one was in the kitchen.

Placing his hands on his hips, he looked around the room, clicking his tongue as he decided they must still be on their way home.

“Alright.” He whispered under his breath, leaving the living room and continuing on down the hallway towards his old room. He had wanted to grab some of his book he’d left here years before anyway.

As he sidled down the hallway he stopped in his tracks, movement catching his eye as he backtracked a few steps and peered into John’s bedroom through the open door.

“Hey?” He asked in surprise, realising the teen was home.

John startled at Arthur’s voice. Turning to stare at the older man, equally surprised from his place atop his bed.

“Hey.” He said back croakily, arms crossed across his chest moving to rest by his side as he pushed himself up into a sitting position.

He had been staring despondently at the ceiling. Arthur wondered if he hadn’t heard him or if he was ignoring him purposefully.

“I called out.” Arthur stated simply, shrugging as he moved into the room without invitation and slumped himself down into John’s desk chair.

“Thought you were Dutch.” John said wearily, head hanging low as he sat on the edge of his bed and refused to make eye contact with the older man.

Arthur frowned, something about the teen seeming off. He was never the most enthusiastic teenager but he usually made a little more of an effort to engage with Arthur than he was at the moment. Despite his emo phase ending a few years earlier he seemed withdrawn and sullen.

Arthur took in the younger’s pale appearance. Dark circles underlining his youthful eyes and discolouration mottling his cheeks and brow.

He seemed ill or at the very least, extremely tired.

Arthur knew he had been working hard at his trade lately. He’d earned himself an apprenticeship in some form of construction work. Hosea had been fuzzy on the details. Even hazier on whether or not John actually enjoyed or wanted the job.

Deep down Arthur felt perhaps John had just bowed to the pressure of setting himself up in life that his parents had always instilled on them. He had to choose something to get them off his back.

He felt bad for the kid. He didn’t really have any ambitions. None that he ever liked to talk about anyway.

“You alright?” Arthur asked earnestly, leaning down to try and catch John’s eye as the other nodded softly.

“Yeah.” He lied, unable to truly force the deceit.

Arthur heard the statement for what it was, pursing his lips as he rested his forearms on his knees and leaned closer to the younger man.

“Wanna talk about it?” He asked, already knowing what the answer would be as John shook his head.

Arthur inhaled deeply, sitting back in his chair and wincing as he leaned forwards again to pull his wallet from his back pocket. Placing that and his keys on the desk next to him before pausing and returning for his wallet. Slipping a 20 out of it and placing it between a stack of books.

He was broke as shit but he always had money for little John. The boy never asked anyone for a Goddamn cent and Arthur knew firsthand how cruel teenage life could be growing up with no cash. Although his parents had been generous with him, they were still less than wealthy compared to a lot of other kids in Arthur’s class.

Arthur turned back to John, clasping his hands together in between his knees and thinking on something to say to try and get the kid to talk to him. He had been feeling bad for not visiting as often lately. He wondered subconsciously if John was annoyed about that. Feeling neglected.

He had been meaning to drop by. Especially as John closed in on his eighteenth birthday. Only a week away now. Arthur had wanted to have a quick chat with him about drinking responsibly.

Although he knew of course the kid would never listen to him as he had not listened in the past. He wanted him to know he could always call if he needed him. That Arthur would be his designated driver no questions asked if he needed it.

Hosea had offered that to him just shy of his own eighteenth birthday. That and adoption papers. Arthur had never been so happy in his life.

“Your birthday’s coming up.” Arthur said after another moment of silence. “Eighteen, that’s exciting.” He baited, waiting for the other to perk up at the mention. What kind of teen wasn’t excited about hitting adulthood and all the disappointing realities that came along with it?

John’s hands tightened against his mattress, frown deepening at the mention of his birthday as Arthur watched on in confusion.

“Uh…” Arthur began, unsure what exactly had upset the kid. “Not excited then?” He asked, regretting his choice of words as he caught sight of John’s eyes watering. The younger’s hand shot to his face, wiping at the wetness before it could fall. Turning his face away from Arthur and trying his hardest to hide his tears and compose himself. “John?” Arthur said softly, feeling guilt well in his chest for causing such a strong reaction in the teen. It had been a long time since he’d seen him cry.

“Don’t.” John choked, shaking his head as he silently begged the older man to leave it alone. “Just, don’t.” He repeated, voice thick with emotion as Arthur watched on sadly.

“Arthur!” Hosea called suddenly, excited voice echoing down the hall as they both heard the old screen door rattle. Arthur turned away from John, looking out the doorway as the scrape of boots on the front mat and footsteps on the floorboards could be heard. The clunking steps drawing closer as the older couple returned home. “You’re early!” Dutch chided as the footsteps took a turn and Arthur knew without having to look that they had walked through the living room and into the kitchen.

“Fifteen minutes!” He shouted back. “Ya’ll haven’t even started cooking yet.” He complained half-heartedly before turning back to John and frowning once more. The younger was wiping at his face frantically, looking panicked as he tried to usher Arthur from the room.

The older man nodded, grabbing for his wallet and keys before leaving John’s room and closing the door behind him. He stood in the hallway for a minute, reflecting on the strangeness of John’s behaviour before heading back towards the living room.

He supposed he would not have wanted them to see him crying at that age either. He still had trouble crying in front of his romantic partner, let alone his parents. He would feel like a right fool if they caught him in that state.

Arthur’s parents looked up to greet him as he entered the living room, walking through and towards the kitchen bench as they both fluffed around putting groceries away.

“And here’s one we prepared earlier.” Hosea joked as he lifted a large bag of KFC into view and dumped it onto the bench in front of Arthur. The younger man laughed. He hadn’t been sure what he was expecting but it certainly wasn’t take away food. Not that he was complaining. But he sure did miss a home cooked meal.

He didn’t let the irony fly over his head at that fact. He had complained many times as a teen that he wanted fast food instead of the roast that had been prepared. Now he would kill for a juicy roast instead of the same greasy burger over and over again.

Arthur watched as the older couple shuffled around the small kitchen, gathering the plates and utensils they would need to eat.

He took the plates as they were handed to him, moving the short walk to the dining room table and placing them down in their respective places.

He moved back towards the bench and took handful of cutlery from Hosea.

“Hey?” Arthur asked softly, grabbing the older man’s attention as he leant against the counter and chewed over his words. “Everything alright with John?” He asked after a moment, keeping his voice low as he was aware the kid could enter the room any minute.

“Is he here?” Hosea asked in surprise, making Arthur frown.

“Yeah.” Arthur replied simply. Taking a moment to let Hosea speak again before adding. “In his room.”

“Oh.” Hosea said softly, un-bagging the food and passing the items to Dutch to place onto plates. Arthur waited for one of them to speak again. Feeling impatient as they continued to ready lunch rather than answering his question.

“Is he alright?” Arthur asked again, a little firmer as Dutch finally turned his attention to the younger and Hosea ignored him, walking past with platefuls of food.

“He’ll be fine.” Dutch assured, picking up his own plates and walking towards the table as Arthur followed suspiciously.

Hosea placed his food down in the middle of the table. Turning to face Dutch with his arms across his chest and a sour face.

“Go on.” He snapped as Dutch approached. “Tell him.”

Arthur looked between them with furrowed brows as Dutch let out a long sigh. He had rarely seen them fight in his time with them and if they did it was usually Dutch that held a grudge.

Arthur felt something unsettling turn his stomach as he watched Dutch place his own plates down on the table.

He turned to Arthur, shrugging.

“We’ve decided not to adopt John.” He explained, shaking his head if he was talking about keeping a puppy or a kitten and not a human child.

Arthur felt his mouth open in shock as he looked between the two of them in disbelief.

“What?” He asked softly, eyes lingering on Hosea as he waited for the other man to argue.

“Dutch feels…” Hosea began, stopping himself quickly and correcting his words. “We feel…” He began again. “That it’s not in our best interest to take on another child permanently.” He explained eloquently as Arthur scoffed at the excuse.

He had always assumed that John would be adopted just as he had. As soon as the agency had confirmed that they had no plans to send him elsewhere, he had become a permanent fixture in their lives. Or Arthur’s life at least. He had let himself actually get to know the kid.

He loved him like a real brother. He had always thought that one day they would really be brothers, tied together by their parents.

“What about John’s best interest?” He asked flatly. Shock stopping him from expressing himself properly as he waited for a better answer than ‘it’s not in our best interests’.

That was a load of bullshit. There was something else going on and it made Arthur feel uneasy.

“We don’t have time to get into it now Arthur.” Dutch said gently, holding a hand out in front of him to signal that Arthur needed to drop the subject. The younger man glared at him, jaw clenched as he held back a rebuttal.

His parents were good people and he trusted them to make good decision for himself and the other children.

Well, John.

John had not been the last child they’d taken in. He was just the only one that didn’t have parents to go back to.

He was alone in this world, just like Arthur. John didn’t have any family and the family he did have before they passed had left him with nothing. Which is why Arthur had always assumed Dutch and Hosea would take him in too.

Give the poor kid the family he so desperately craved.

He knew deep down that they must have a good reason for what they were doing to John. But in that moment, he was blinded by a simmering rage as he remembered the boy’s tears earlier and how hard that kid had fought his whole life to feel accepted by anyone, especially their family.

Arthur turned his attention to Hosea once more, their eyes locking as Arthur registered a deep sadness in the older man. Stood a few steps behind Dutch, the older man shook his head slowly, telling Arthur to let it go before this situation turned ugly.

Arthur swallowed audibly, licking at his lips and turning to look at the dining room table full of food.

He felt sick to his stomach. His appetite gone.

“Have you told him?” He asked after a long moment, sucking on his teeth as he waited for an answer. The silence in the room deafening as the seconds ticked on without a reply.

“Not yet.” Dutch answered eventually. The scrape of a chair breaking the tension in the air as the older man pulled it out from under the table and slumped down into it.

Hosea followed suit, gesturing for Arthur to do the same.

He did as instructed, walking around the table and pulling out the chair from his favourite spot. Slinking down into it and looking to his right at the empty place he had set for John.

He supposed that they were all aware the kid would not be joining them.

“Well, he knows.” Arthur replied, venom in his tone as he snatched at the bucket of chicken in front of him and pulled it closer.

End.

~~~~~

Poor John. :(  If you’ve read my other works you guys can probably see where this is heading. 

I got my electric bill today.. Also had KFC for dinner because I couldn’t stop thinking about chicken after writing this. 

Please let me know if you read this and liked it! I love hearing from my awesome readers! Let me know if you want more backstory and what you’re hoping to see in future stories! ❤