#being lower to the ground gives me a headache

[random-hippocat]

there are practical uses for big pickups. I grew up in a tiny farm town where mostly everyone has a big truck. my family are farm people. my dad is in construction and has to haul around trailers and equipment constantly, as well as drive off road to get to the work site, often through mud and potholes.

I do, however, agree that in an urban area there is no purpose for them. unless you actually do regularly haul around trailers and equipment and such.

cities aren't built for big trucks, so they're impractical if you live there. my dad doesn't even like driving in cities because the roads, parking lots, drive thrus are all smaller.

Saw this Trucks Discourse on facebook and I'm not part of that world but yeah that one on the left is delightful and I really had no idea just how wasteful and pointless the other kind is until this comparison

[simjaexy]

𝙃𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙚𝙣 𝘿𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙨 | 𝙋.𝙎.

pairing ⇀ brothers best friend! park sunghoon x sister! reader

synposis ⇀ you knew sunghoon ever since you were little with him being your big brothers best friend. what jay didn’t know though, was that you always had a secret crush on sunghoon. despite your feelings, you believe sunghoon doesn’t like you back and sees you as nothing more than his friends annoying little sister. right?

genre ⇀ smut, angst

warnings ⇀ MINORS DNI!!!, the sexual scene doesn’t come for a while, lower case intended, cursing, arguments, crying, partying, drinking, insecurities, sunghoon is toxic, reader thinks about sunghoon a lot, mean dom! sunghoon x sub! reader, eating out, overstimulation (f), blowjob, semi public sex, jealousy, possessiveness, dirty talk, manhandling, minor choking, lying, fingering, name calling (slut and etc.), no protection (wrap up ur hotdog), not cumming inside, lmk if i missed any!

w.c ⇀ 8.0k+

a/n ⇀ was trying to do a drabble but instead made it into a somewhat whole fic cause i got carried away but oh well. this took me a while too make cause i wanted to make it good but i think it ended well ifykyk ;). also, if you would like to be added to my permanent taglist please click here and leave a comment! reblog, comment, like, etc.! not proofread!

masterlist here

you remember the first time you met sunghoon at a neighborhood park. you were five while sunghoon was six. the sun was setting, casting a golden hue over the playground. jay, your big brother, had excitedly dragged you along to meet his new buddy.

you were curious but also a bit nervous. as you and jay approached the swings, you saw a boy standing there with an air of cool detachment. his hands were shoved deep into his pockets, and his eyes seemed to be lost in thought.

"hey, sunghoon! this is my little sister, y/n," jay introduced her with a wide grin, his enthusiasm infectious.

sunghoon barely glanced at you, muttering a quick "hi" before turning his attention back to the ground. his voice was soft but carried a certain indifference that made you feel small.

you felt a pang of disappointment but brushed it off, determined to get to know him better. after all, jay had spoken highly of him, and you trusted your big brothers judgment.

as the years went by, you found yourself attending the same school, even participating in the same extracurricular activities. your crush on Sunghoon grew stronger with each passing year.

you noticed the little things about him—the way his eyes softened when he was lost in thought, the rare smiles he reserved for jay and his other friends, and the quiet kindness he showed when he thought no one was looking. he was always polite to you, but there was a distance, a wall that you couldn't seem to breach.

high school brought more opportunities for interaction, but also more complications. sunghoon became more popular, his cool demeanor attracting a lot of attention. you, on the other hand, remained in the background, content with your small circle of friends and your studies. despite your different social circles, their paths crossed often, thanks to jay.

now that it’s been years of knowing sunghoon, you know how he acts, how he talks, how he reacts, everything about him that other girls wish they knew. but one thing that you’ll never know is his type. you seem to be nothing but jays little sister to him, right?

it was a typical friday evening, and your house was buzzing with the usual energy that came with having your brother, jay, and his other best friend, sim jaeyun, over. they were playing video games in your living room while you silently read a book in the kitchen.

you heard jake screeching about something while jay was shouting nonsense. you weren’t gonna lie and say it didn’t give you fat headache. as you continued reading you suddenly heard a knock at the door. annoyed, you went to go answer it.

you walked past jay and jake and headed towards the door boredly.

as you opened the door, you were met with the sight of park sunghoon, jay's friend, aka your crush. he stood there, looking as cold and distant as ever, his hands shoved into the pockets of his jacket.

"hey," you greeted him, trying to keep your voice steady despite the way your heart was pounding.

sunghoon barely acknowledged you with a nod before stepping inside without a word.

he didn't even spare you a glance as he made his way to the living room where jay and jake were deeply engrossed in their video game. you closed the door behind him, feeling a mix of relief and disappointment.

you followed him into the living room, where the boys were too focused on their game to notice your presence. sunghoon joined them, his expression remaining stoic as he watched the screen. you took a seat on the couch, pretending to be absorbed in the book you had picked up earlier. but your eyes kept drifting back to sunghoon, watching his every move.

you decided to try to catch a conversation, “hey, sunghoon, do you want something to drink?" you offered, hoping to engage him in some small talk.

he barely looked up from where he was watching jay and jake, "no, thanks," he replied curtly, his attention still focused on your brother.

you sighed inwardly, feeling a pang of disappointment. it was always like this. no matter what you did, sunghoon never seemed to notice you. it was as if you were invisible to him, just another part of the background.

the boys continued their game, their laughter and banter filling the room. sunghoon remained quiet, only occasionally offering a terse comment or a slight sigh. you wished you could be a part of their world, to share in their camaraderie, but you felt like an outsider looking in.

despite your best efforts to focus on your book, you couldn't help but steal glances at sunghoon. Every now and then, his eyes would flicker in your direction, and you would quickly look away, hoping he hadn't noticed. but deep down, you hoped he had.

jake groaned when he finally lost to jay, letting out a frustrated growl, “my finger pressed the wrong button!”

jay cackled and clapped his hands together. sunghoon just stared at them. you noticed how much jay and jake talk compare to sunghoon. but to them, he was like a missing puzzle piece to their friendship.

jay got up from the couch and stretched, “i’m gonna make something to eat. anyone want pizza rolls?” he questioned. jake raised his hand like a kid while sunghoon shook his head. you stared up at jay and nodded.

he went to the kitchen while jake wrapped an arm around sunghoon shoulder, “did you talk to that girl yet?”

you heart dropped hearing that. what was jake talking about? you peeked from your book and watched sunghoons expression. it still remained serious, but you could see a bit of an annoyance.

“i already told you, i blocked her number.” he stated. jake gasped and unwrapped his arm around sunghoon, shoving him.

“what? dude she was your only chance to getting some!” jake said. he threw his hands on his head as if sunghoon broke a promise that was supposed to be kept forever. sunghoon shrugged his shoulders,

“i don’t want a girl that gets passed around.” he firmly said. jake stopped complaining and put a finger under his chin. you on the other hand, was wondering what girl it could be.

jay eventually came back with a plate full of pizza rolls and set them in the table. jake hurriedly grabbed one and took a bite only to whine how hot it was. you giggled and took a bite yourself.

“ready to do another round?” jay spoke. jake nodded and grabbed the controller, loading it to jay. they both sat down again and started a new round.

you noticed sunghoon was staring off in a distance, “everything okay?” you asked. sunghoon flicked his gaze towards you before simply nodding and standing up.

“i’m gonna head to the restroom.” he spoke towards jay. jay nodded his head. sunghoon walked towards the hall that led to the bathroom, shutting the door with a click. you let a little sigh before grabbing your book again and reading. it was worth a shot.

eventually, the boys finished their game, and jay and jake started packing up their things. sunghoon stood up, his expression still unreadable.

he glanced at you briefly, and for a moment, you thought you saw a flicker of something in his eyes. but before you could decipher it, he turned away and headed for the door.

"see you around," he said, his voice cold and detached.

you nodded, unable to find your voice. as he walked out the door, you felt a pang of longing. jay stood next to you eating a pizza roll, “why are you staring at sunghoon like that?”

you snapped out of your daze and glared at him, “i wasn’t staring at him!” you snapped. you turned your heel heading back to your room.

jay watched you go to your room, “were too!” the only thing he heard from you was a loud groan with the door slamming shut.

the morning sun peeked through the curtains, casting a warm glow over your room. you groaned softly, reaching out to silence the alarm clock blaring on your nightstand. it was another school day, and you knew you had to get up. with a sigh, you swung your legs over the side of the bed and stretched.

"hey, sleepyhead! get up, or we're gonna be late!" jay called from the hallway.

jay was always the early riser, and he made sure you were up and ready on time. you quickly got dressed and headed to the bathroom to brush your teeth and fix your hair. jay was already in the kitchen, making breakfast.

"morning," you greeted him, grabbing a piece of toast.

"morning," he replied with a grin, "ready for another day at school?"

you rolled your eyes playfully, “as ready as I'll ever be."

jay chuckled and ruffled your hair. "come on, let's get going."

the two of you drove to school together, chatting about random stuff. as you guys got out of the car, you approached the school. you noticed the usual crowd of girls gathered around sunghoon and jake, who walked through the hallway with their signature known demeanor.

as you reached your locker, jay went off to join his friends, leaving you alone. you stood at your locker, watching the scene unfold from a distance. it was hard not to notice sunghoon, especially when jay and jake were so openly flirtatious with the girls.

jay's charming smile and jake's playful banter had the girls swooning, but sunghoon remained detached, barely acknowledging their presence. as jay and jake still talked with the girls, sunghoon began to walk away from the crowd.

you decided to follow him, curiosity getting the better of you. you kept a safe distance, not wanting to draw attention to yourself. sunghoon's long strides took him to a quieter part of the school, away from the hustle and bustle of the main hallways.

just as you thought you were being discreet, sunghoon suddenly stopped and turned around. your heart skipped a beat as his piercing gaze locked onto yours. before you could react, he closed the distance between you, trapping you against the wall with his arms on either side of your head.

"why are you following me?" he asked, his voice low and teasing.

you felt a blush creep up your cheeks, but you couldn't find the words to answer. sunghoon's proximity was overwhelming, and his intense gaze made it hard to think straight. he leaned in closer, his breath warm against your ear.

"do you enjoy watching me?" he whispered, a smirk playing on his lips.

you swallowed hard, trying to maintain your composure. "i-i was just... curious," you stammered.

sunghoon chuckled softly, his eyes never leaving yours, "curious, huh? be careful, curiosity can be dangerous."

with that, he pushed away from the wall and walked off, leaving you flustered and breathless. You watched him go, your heart still racing from the encounter. what the fuck just happened?

after that encounter you went straight to your classroom, not even bothering to say hi to your friends. you sat at your desk and let out a deep sigh.

did sunghoon meant to do that? you felt your heart beating out of your ears. maybe you were just hallucinating it. the bell finally rang when students started coming in. you on the other hand, decided to just lay your head down for the whole lecture.

lunch came by pretty fast and before you knew it you were on your way to your friend group table. you took a seat while your friends were gossiping about someone.

"did you see sunghoon talking to that girl in the hall earlier?" one of them asked, eyes wide with curiosity.

your friends exchanged glances, sensing your discomfort but pressing on, "they seemed pretty close, like they were having a deep conversation or something. do you know anything about it?"

shakes of heads were viewed until they all looked at you.

you shook your head, forcing a smile, "no, i don't know anything about it."

you felt curious on who the girl could’ve been. knowing sunghoon since forever you knew he’s not the type to start a conversation with a girl first. was it the girl jake was talking about?

you huffed and took a bite out of your food. whatever it was, it wasn’t your problem. but you still had that pang of discomfort in your chest.

the final bell of the day echoed through the halls, signaling the end of another school day. you gathered your books and headed towards the exit, where your friends were already waiting. as you approached, jay pulled up in his car, offering you a ride home as usual.

"hey, you need a ride home?" jay called out. you hesitated for a moment before shaking your head.

“no thanks. i think i'll walk with my friends today." you chimed.

jay raised an eyebrow but didn't press further, "alright, see you later then."

as you walked with your friends, the conversation flowed easily, but your mind kept drifting back to Sunghoon. You hadn't seen him much today, and the lingering thoughts from the previous conversation gossip still gnawed at you. your friends noticed your distraction but didn't comment, knowing you well enough to give you space.

when you finally reached your house, you waved goodbye to your friends and walked up the driveway. the sound of laughter from the backyard caught your attention. curiosity piqued, you made your way around the side of the house.

there, by the pool, were jay, jake, and sunghoon, all three in bathing suits, clearly ready for a swim.

jake noticed you first and waved, "hey, you made it! we decided to take a dip. wanna join?"

your eyes flickered to sunghoon, who was lounging on a chair, looking effortlessly cool and completely at ease. it’s almost as if this morning wasn’t even real. the sight of him in his swim trunks made your heart race, and you felt a blush creeping up your cheeks.

"uh, i left my swimsuit at my friends house," you stammered, trying to keep your composure.

sunghoon glanced up, his expression unreadable, "you can always borrow one," he said nonchalantly, as if your presence didn't faze him at all.

you felt a mix of shyness and frustration. it was clear that Sunghoon didn't share the same nervousness you felt around him, "maybe next time," you replied, your voice barely above a whisper.

your brother, ever the peacemaker, jumped in, "no worries. we can just hang out. come sit with us."

reluctantly, you walked over and took a seat on the edge of a lounge chair, trying to act casual. the conversation flowed around you, but your focus kept drifting back to sunghoon.

every time he laughed or spoke, you felt a pang of longing, wishing he would notice you the way you noticed him.

the water sparkled invitingly, and the sound of laughter filled the air as sunghoon, jay, and jake splashed around. you noticed sunghoon moved through the water with such grace, each stroke powerful and smooth.

jay and jake were goofing off, trying to dunk each other, but sunghoon was focused, swimming laps effortlessly. the way his muscles flexed and glistened under the sun made your heart race. you tried to look away, but it was no use. your gaze kept returning to him.

after what felt like an eternity, sunghoon finally climbed out of the pool, water cascading down his toned body. he ran a hand through his wet hair, sending droplets flying. you felt your cheeks heat up and quickly looked down, hoping he didn't notice your flustered state.

but when you dared to glance up, you caught his eye and he gave you a small, knowing smirk. your blush deepened, and you couldn't help but look down, your heart pounding in your chest.

as the afternoon wore on, you found yourself relaxing a bit, the initial awkwardness fading. jay and jake’s easy banter was infectious, and you couldn't help but join in. despite sunghoon's apparent indifference, you cherished these moments.

when the sun began to set, jay suggested ordering pizza, and the four of you moved inside. the atmosphere was warm and inviting, and for a while, you forgot about your worries, simply enjoying the company of jay and his friends.

jay was on the phone, ordering pizza for everyone. the anticipation of the delicious food was palpable, but your mind was elsewhere. sitting so close to sunghoon made your heart race, and you couldn't help but feel a bit nervous.

jake, noticing your unease, leaned in with a friendly smile, "hey, are you okay? you seem a bit tense," he asked, his voice gentle.

you glanced at him, trying to calm your racing heart, "yeah, i'm fine. just a bit... hungry," you lied, hoping he wouldn't see through it.

sunghoon, who had been quiet, shifted slightly closer to you. his presence was overwhelming, and you could feel the heat radiating from his body.

he glanced at jake, his eyes narrowing slightly, "she’s fine, jake. Just a little tired, right?" sunghoon's voice was smooth but there was an edge to it.

jake raised an eyebrow, clearly sensing the tension, "sure, man. but you know, talking can help distract from hunger and tiredness," he said, turning his attention back to you, "so, what have you been up to lately? feels like i don’t really see you often." he joked.

you appreciated Jake's attempt to make you feel comfortable, but sunghoon's proximity was making it hard to focus, "oh, just the usual stuff. school, work, you know how it is," you replied, trying to keep your voice steady.

sunghoon's arm brushed against yours, sending a shiver down your spine. he leaned in slightly, his voice low. "you know, you don't have to answer him if you don't want to. we're just waiting for the pizza, after all."

your heart skipped a beat at his words. there was something possessive in his tone that both thrilled and confused you. you glanced at him, trying to read his expression, but his face was a mask of calm.

jake, ever the peacemaker, tried to lighten the mood, "well, i think it's great that we're all hanging out together. it's been a while since we had a chill night like this," he said, giving you a reassuring smile.

jay finally hung up the phone and rejoined the group. "pizza's on its way! should be here in about thirty minutes," he announced, plopping down on the other side of jake.

the conversation flowed more easily with jay back, but you couldn't shake the feeling of sunghoon's eyes on you. every time you laughed at one of jake's jokes or responded to his questions, you felt sunghoon's gaze intensify.

finally, the doorbell rang, signaling the arrival of the pizza. jay and jake jumped up to get it, leaving you alone with sunghoon for a moment.

he took the opportunity to lean in closer, his breath warm against your ear, "you know, i wouldn’t talk to jake so much, he always does that when he wants to get into girls underwear’s." he murmured, his voice low and possessive.

your breath caught in your throat, and you turned to face him, your eyes wide, "sunghoon, we're not... i mean, we're just friends," you stammered, unsure of what to say.

he smirked, his eyes darkening, "maybe, but that doesn't mean he won’t do anything to you. just remember that," he said, his hand lingering on your arm for a moment before he pulled away.

jay and jake returned with the pizza, breaking the tension. as you all dug in, the atmosphere lightened, but you couldn't shake the feeling of sunghoon's emotions. it was confusing and thrilling all at once.

jake was already scrolling through the movie options, "How about this one?" he suggested, landing on a popular action film.

“sounds good," everyone agreed. they settled in, grabbing slices of pizza and filling their cups. the room was filled with the sounds of chewing and occasional laughter as they watched the movie.

as the movie progressed, you felt a gentle touch on your hand. you glanced to your side and saw sunghoon's hand lightly brushing against yours. your heart skipped a beat, and you quickly looked away, trying to focus on the movie. but the warmth of his touch lingered, making it hard to concentrate on anything else.

when the movie finally finished and every slice was gone, jake and sunghoon decided it was time to head home. jake and sunghoon were getting ready to leave.

jay was in the kitchen, cleaning up the remnants of their pizza night, while you stood by the door, ready to bid them farewell. jake was the first to step forward. his smile was warm and genuine as he reached out for a hug.

"thanks for having us over. It was a great night," he said, wrapping his arms around you in a friendly embrace. you hugged him back, feeling the comfort of his presence.

as you pulled away, you noticed sunghoon standing a few steps behind jake, his expression unreadable. his eyes were fixed on the floor, and he made no move to step forward. there was an air of detachment about him that seemed out of place.

“goodnight, sunghoon," you said, hoping to catch his eye. but he didn't look up. he simply nodded once, almost imperceptibly, and turned to walk out the door without another word. the door closed behind him, leaving you standing there, confused and a little hurt.

jake noticed your puzzled expression and gave you a small, reassuring smile, "don't worry about him. he's probably just tired," he said softly, patting your shoulder before following sunghoon out the door.

you watched them walk down the driveway, jake's easygoing stride contrasting sharply with sunghoon's tense posture.

the night air was cool, and you shivered slightly, not entirely from the cold. you couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. sunghoon's silence and his refusal to say goodbye gnawed at you, leaving a lingering sense of unease.

jay came up behind you, drying his hands on a dish towel, "everything okay?" he asked, noticing your troubled expression.

“i’m not sure," you replied, still staring at the spot where sunghoon had been standing, "sunghoon didn't say goodbye. he seemed... different."

jay frowned, looking thoughtful, “maybe he's just got something on his mind. you know how he can be sometimes."

“yeah, maybe," you said, though you weren't entirely convinced. theimage of Sunghoon's emotionless face stayed with you as you closed the door and locked it for the night.

as you headed to bed, you couldn't help but wonder why sunghoon decided to act like he cared about you and then act like he didn’t care anymore. you hummed and slowly closed your eyes before falling asleep.

The morning sun filtered through the curtains, casting a warm glow across your room. you stretched and yawned, feeling the remnants of sleep leave your body. it was time to start your usual morning routine.

you got out of bed and headed to the bathroom to freshen up. after a quick shower, you brushed your teeth and combed your hair, feeling more awake with each passing minute.

dressed and ready for the day, you made your way to the kitchen to grab a quick breakfast. as you poured yourself a bowl of cereal, you heard footsteps approaching. turning around, you saw jay entering the kitchen, looking as relaxed as ever.

“morning jay," you greeted him with a smile.

“morning," he replied, grabbing an apple from the counter, "hey, just so you know, i'm gonna be hanging out with jake today. he was complaining about how he needs new shoes.”

you nodded, taking a bite of your cereal, "cool, sounds fun. what about sunghoon? isn't he coming with you guys?"

jay shook his head, a puzzled look crossing his face. "no, he said he didn't want to go. weird, right? he always hangs out with us."

you frowned, feeling a twinge of confusion. sunghoon was usually the first to join in on any plans with the group. "that’s strange. did he say why?"

jay shrugged, taking a bite of his apple, "nope, he just seemed off on call. maybe he's got something else going on."

you couldn't shake the feeling that something was up with sunghoon. determined to get to the bottom of it, you decided to check in on him later. for now, you finished your breakfast and went about your day, the mystery of sunghoon's behavior lingering in the back of your mind.

after breakfast, you tidied up the kitchen and headed out for a morning jog. the crisp air and the rhythmic sound of your footsteps on the pavement helped clear your mind.

returning home, you took a quick shower and changed into comfortable clothes. you decided to text sunghoon, hoping to get some answers.

Y/n: Hey Sunghoon. Everything okay? Jay mentioned you weren't joining them today.

minutes passed without a response, and you grew more anxious. you tried to distract yourself by diving into a book, but your thoughts kept drifting back to sunghoon. finally, your phone buzzed with a message. it was Sunghoon.

Sunghoon: I’m fine.

his reply was short, almost dismissive. you knew sunghoon well enough to sense that something was off. you couldn’t decide to think anything better than pay him a visit.

you grabbed your keys and headed to sunghoon's place. the walk wasn’t that far with him living in the same neighborhood. as you finally got to his house you felt a sudden nervousness.

as you approached his door, you hesitated for a moment before knocking. a couple seconds the door opened, sunghoon opened the door, his expression one of confusion and mild annoyance.

"what are you doing here?" he asked, his tone colder than you expected.

“i was worried about you," you replied, trying to keep your voice steady. "you didn't hang out with jay and jake, and you seemed distant when you texted me. what's going on?"

sunghoon's eyes narrowed as he crossed his arms over his chest, “why do you care? it's none of your business."

you felt a pang of hurt at his words, “of course, it's my business! we're friends, and friends look out for each other. you've been acting strange lately, and i’m worried."

“well, maybe you should mind your own business," sunghoon snapped, his voice growing harsher. "i don't need you or anyone else telling me what to do."

your confusion turned to frustration, “why are you being like this? i'm just trying to help you!"

sunghoon's expression didn't soften, "i don't need your help. just leave me alone."

anger flared up inside you, and you couldn't hold back any longer, "fine! if you want to be a jerk, then be a jerk! but don't expect me to keep worrying about you if you're going to treat me like this."

sunghoon's eyes flickered with something you couldn't quite place, but he didn't say anything more. he simply turned and walked back into his house, leaving the door open just long enough for you to see that he truly didn't care.

feeling a mix of anger and sadness, you turned and walked away from sunghoon's house. when you finally arrived back home, you saw jay standing outside, waiting for you. he looked concerned as he approached.

"are you okay? where were you? you could at least text me where you’re going." jay asked, his voice gentle.

you didn't even look at him as you brushed past, "i'm fine," you muttered, not wanting to talk about what had just happened.

jay reached out to stop you, but you pulled away, needing some space to process everything. you went inside, leaving jay standing there, knowing he was worried but unable to face another confrontation.

the sun slowly settled down, and you were curled up on the couch, flipping through channels but not really paying attention to anything. your mind kept drifting back to the tense encounter with sunghoon earlier.

just then, jay burst into the living room, excitement radiating off him, "there's this party tonight. you should come with me. you could meet my girlfriend finally.

you looked up, not really feeling the party vibe. "i don't know, jay. i’m not really in the mood for a party tonight. maybe i can meet her after?

he gave you a knowing look, "come on, it'll be fun! plus, i heard sunghoon's going to be there. maybe we can ask him why he was acting weird."

you heart skipped a beat at the mention of sunghoon. despite the argument, you couldn't deny the feelings you had for him more than your anger.

maybe this party could be a chance to make things right, "sunghoon's going to be there?" you asked, trying to sound casual.

jay nodded, a smile playing on his lips, "yep. so, what do you say? are you in?"

you hesitated for a moment before nodding, "alright, i'll go. but I need to get ready."

jay grinned, "great! we've got a couple of hours, so take your time."

you rushed to your room, heart racing with a mix of excitement and nerves. you wanted to look your best, hoping to catch Sunghoon's eye and maybe even talk things out.

you rummaged through your closet, finally settling on your favorite outfit—a sleek dress that made you feel confident and beautiful.

you applied your makeup, you couldn't help but think about what you would say to Sunghoon. you wanted to apologize for the argument and explain how much you cared about him. with a final touch of lipstick, you looked in the mirror, feeling ready to face the night.

jay was waiting for you downstairs, and his eyes widened in surprise when he saw you, "wow, never seen you this ready.”

you smiled, feeling a bit more confident, “let's go."

the drive to the party was filled with jay's chatter about who would be there and what to expect. you appreciated the distraction, but your mind kept drifting back to sunghoon. when you arrived, the party was already in full swing, with music blasting and people mingling everywhere.

jay led you inside, and you scanned the room, searching for sunghoon. you spotted him near the back, talking to a group of friends. he was leaning against a wall with a drink in his hand, looking a bit tipsy but still maintaining his usual cool demeanor.

Your heart pounded as you made your way over, trying to muster the courage to approach him.

“sunghoon, can we talk?” you asked softly, stepping closer.

he looked up, his expression unreadable, “what is it?” he replied, his voice a mix of curiosity and annoyance.

you bit your lip, “is it okay if we go to a more private space?” you asked. sunghoon looked over at his friends and said something to them. he then averted his stare to you.

he walked past you without saying a word. you followed him past the loud people and music before going upstairs to a bedroom. he went in first and then with you shutting the door. you faced him and decided to just do it.

“i’m really sorry about earlier,” you began, your voice trembling slightly, “i didn’t mean to upset you. i was just frustrated, and I took it out on you. It wasn’t fair.”

sunghoon sighed, rubbing his temples, “yeah, well, it wasn’t exactly a great conversation.”

you nodded, tears pricking at the corners of your eyes. “i know, and I feel terrible about it. I just want us to be okay.”

he stared at you for a moment, and then a small smile tugged at his lips, “you always talk too much when you’re nervous,” he said, stepping closer. before you could respond, he leaned in and pressed his lips to yours, silencing your apologies.

the kiss was gentle but firm, and you could taste the alcohol on his lips. it was a mix of emotions – his frustration, your regret, and a shared longing to make things right.

when he finally pulled back, he rested his forehead against yours, “i’m not mad anymore,” he whispered, “but i do know what can help you to be forgiven.”

you nodded, feeling a weight lift off your shoulders, “i’ll do anything to make you forgive me,” you said.

instead of saying something, he smashed his lips against yours. you wrapped your arms around his neck. you couldn’t believe you were finally kissing him.

you let out a tiny moan when he gripped your waist harder. he signaled you to jump making you do so. he lead you both to the bed while still having his lips latched onto yours. he set you softly on the bed and kissed your neck softly.

you gripped his locks softly and sighed feeling him go along your neck to your chest. you helped him take off your dress by unzipping on the back. when the dress finally fell slack you felt shyness course through your body.

you tried to cover yourself, but sunghoon gripped both of your wrists above your head. “sunghoon wait-“

he ignored you and rubbed his thigh against your core. you arched your back and let out a loud moan. a smirk tugged on his lips, “sensitive are we?” he teased.

you hid your face in your arm, feeling embarrassed. he traced his fingers alongside your bra before grabbing the strap and sliding it down along your shoulders. you gasped feeling his cold hands fondling your breast.

you whimpered when he flicked it and gripped it harshly, “sunghoon please.” you breathed out. sunghoon clicked his tongue.

“be patient slut.” he snapped. you but back your words and hummed. he lowered his head to your breast, and finally you felt his hot tongue on them. he sucked them hungrily like he’s been waiting to do this for a long time. loud moans and kissing noises were heard.

you squirmed and cried out when he let go of them with a ‘pop’. he took off his jacket and shirt revealing his toned body. you pouted when you couldn’t feel his abs since his hands were still holding you down.

he grinned when he saw you trying to release from his grip, “i told you to be patient didn’t i?” he rasped. you nodded your head, wanting to be good. he chuckled darkly.

you suddenly felt a hand on your core and that’s when sunghoon started rubbing alongside your folds. you let out a squeal when he dipped his hand in your underwear and rubbed your clit.

“sunghoon ahh~” you cried out. he prodded around your hole before slowly dipping a finger in. you felt a shooting pain and tried closing your legs.

“if you can’t take a finger, how can you take my dick?” he asked so casual. you felt your cheeks go red. you slowly tried relaxing, feeling the stretch burn.

slowly, you felt him go in and out causing you to let out a quiet moan. when sunghoon noticed you were feeling good, he added another finger in making you squirm.

soon enough, three fingers were already inside you moving back and forth. your loud moans sounding desperate. you felt your orgasm coming and tried signaling sunghoon. he didn’t stop when you felt your legs shake as your orgasm went right through you.

you let out a desperate breath when he let his fingers slip out. you watched him lick his fingers clean with your cum. you blinked twice and squeezed your legs together. he let go of your wrists and began to unbuckle his belt and slid his pants and boxers down.

you let out a gasp seeing how big he was. there was no way he could fit. he hissed when he touched his dick and let out long strokes. you gulped seeing his pre cum seep out. letting your mind take over you for up and crawled towards him.

he eyes you confused before he felt your smaller hand grip his dick. he let out a groan and threw his head back. you stroked it slowly up and down before licking his pre cum. you hummed at his salty taste.

you didn’t know where your confidence was coming from, just seeing him so open to you had you thinking strange. you opened your mouth and engulfed his dick. sunghoon jerked forward a bit at the sudden warmth and gripped your hair.

“agh fuck, just like that slut.” he groaned. you moaned around his dick and sucked it harshly. his mains turning you on more. as you were about to finger yourself, sunghoon gripped your hair.

“don’t you fucking dare.” he growled. you whined, but didn’t move a muscle. you felt him tensing up indicating he was gonna cum soon and stroked his balls. a few seconds later you felt hot sperm in your mouth.

he let out a drawn moan and slowly let go of you. you took his dick out your mouth and swallowed his cum. he watched you intensely and wiped his cum off your lips. he lifted his fingers towards your mouth. you sucked on them until there was no more left.

he didn’t give you time to speak before you felt yourself being pushed back with your pussy in view for him. you let out a scream when you felt his dick enter you without warning.

he started thrusting into your pussy without giving you time to adjust. your eyes rolled back feeling him deep inside you, “s-sunghoon! oh fuck!” you screamed out. sunghoon just hummed and kissed your cheek.

you suddenly felt another orgasm coming already and wrapped your arms around his neck, “i-i think i’m gonna c-cum.” you stuttered. sunghoon cursed and wrapped his hand around your neck, squeezing it as a warning.

“you cum, i’ll overstimulate you.” he sternly said. you let whined moan. how can you not cum when he’s fucking you so deep? his pace didn’t falter one bit. you felt like it was going to be eternity until he cums.

sunghoon groaned feeling you squeezed around him trying to hold your orgasm. you felt his dick pulsating and before you could let out another word, sunghoon beat you to it.

“cum for me bitch.” he whispered in your ear. you felt your orgasm hit you hard. you mouth fell slack when he took out his dick and stroked it on your stomach until his cum spurred out.

you both let out heavy breathing until sunghoon put on his shirt and jacket. he went to the bathroom and wiped you off before putting on his boxer and pants. he helped you out with your clothing too until you were dressed.

as you both stood there in silence, you suddenly heard someone knocking causing you to jump, “everything good here?” someone asked, it was jake. your eyes widened and you looked over at sunghoon who expression was unreadable.

before you could say something sunghoon went towards the door opening it. jake backed up and looked surprised.

“oh shit, my bad sunghoon. i didn’t know you were in here-“ jake sentence cut off when he saw you behind him, “oh? hey y/n?”

you awkwardly waved. sunghoon looked back at you and turned towards jake. he walked past jake not giving another word out, leaving you there alone and shocked. what the hell?

jake stared at you confused, but you didn’t say anything and went out the room too. you made your way downstairs, but didn’t see sunghoon in sight. as you looked around you saw jay holding hands with a girl walking towards you, “hey y/n! this is-“ “where’s sunghoon?”

jay’s eyebrows furrowed, “oh, uh, i think i saw him leave-“ you didn’t let him finish his sentence and rushed out of the house. you looked around, but didn’t see sunghoon anywhere.

you felt disappointment on your chest and looked to the ground. was he just using you? you took out your phone and looked for sunghoon contact, shooting him a text about his disappearance.

you went back inside the house and told jay you wanted to go home. jay bid his goodbye to his girlfriend and escorted you out to his car.

the whole car ride was silent. none of you guys speaking a word. even when you came back home you left jay in the car and went inside, wanting to sleep.

as you lay in your bed, you sighed and finally let your tears roam free.

you woke up to the soft morning light filtering through the curtains, casting a warm glow over the room. the events of the previous night were still fresh in your mind, and you felt a pang of anxiety as you recalled what happened yesterday sunghoon. you sighed and stretched, trying to shake off the lingering tension.

as you made your way to the kitchen, you found jay sitting at the table, sipping on a cup of coffee. he looked up and gave you a small smile, “morning," he greeted, his tone gentle.

“morning," you replied, trying to muster a smile in return.

jay studied you for a moment before speaking again, “jake told me you and sunghoon seemed upset about something. is everything okay between you guys?"

you felt a lump form in your throat and shook your head, "i don't really want to talk about it right now," you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

jay nodded understandingly, “that's okay. you don't have to talk about it if you're not ready." he paused, taking another sip of his coffee, "actually, i was planning to go to the mall today with my girlfriend and jake. we thought it might be fun to hang out and take our minds off things. would you like to join us? it could be like a double date."

you hesitated for a moment, considering his offer. the idea of spending time with friends and getting out of the house sounded appealing, “yeah, i think i'd like that," you agreed, feeling a small sense of relief.

jay's face lit up with a smile. "great! we'll leave in about an hour. take your time getting ready."

you nodded and headed back to your room to change. as you dressed, you couldn't help but think about sunghoon. you hoped that some time apart would give both of you the space to cool down and reflect on what had happened.

an hour later, you found yourself in jay's car, with his girlfriend in the front seat and jake sitting beside you in the back. the drive to the mall was filled with light-hearted chatter and laughter, and you felt your spirits lift as you listened to their banter.

when you arrived at the mall, the four of you wandered through the stores, stopping to browse and try on clothes. jay's girlfriend, hana, was sweet and friendly, and she quickly made you feel at ease. she linked arms with you as you walked, chatting animatedly about the latest fashion trends she took an interest too.

jake kept the mood light with his playful teasing and witty remarks. you found yourself laughing more than you had in days, and the tension from the previous night began to melt away.

at one point, you all stopped at a café for a break. as you sipped on your iced coffee, jay leaned in and gave you a reassuring smile, "i'm glad you came with us today," he said softly, “sometimes, a little distraction is all we need to feel better."

you nodded, feeling grateful for his understanding and support. just as you were gonna say something, your eyes wandered across the room and landed on a familiar figure.

sunghoon was there, sitting at a table with a girl. they were deep in conversation, laughing and smiling, completely absorbed in each other. your heart sank, a cold wave of realization crashing over you. it felt like the air had been sucked out of the room, and the once comforting warmth of the café turned into a stifling heat.

as if sensing the your gaze, sunghoon looked up and their eyes met. for a moment, time seemed to stand still. you could see the surprise in his eyes, quickly followed by something else—guilt, perhaps? the girl with him noticed the change in his demeanor and turned to see what had caught his attention.

you quickly looked away, your heart pounding in your chest. the moment of peace was shattered, replaced by a whirlwind of emotions. you stood up abruptly, leaving your half-finished latte behind, and hurried out of the café, the sound of sunghoon's laughter still echoing in their ears. he’s never laughed like that towards you.

the sight of the girls behind, you knew she had to be pretty with the way her hair looked smooth and straight. her clothes fitting her body perfectly. you felt tears in your eyes after finally knowing that sunghoon was just using you.

you walked briskly down the street, your mind racing. you didn't know where you were going; you just needed to get away. the sound of footsteps behind you made you quicken your pace, but a familiar voice called out your name, stopping you in your tracks.

“wait! please, just wait!" sunghoon's voice was breathless, and when you turned around, you saw the desperation in his eyes.

“what do you want, sunghoon?" you asked, trying to keep your voice steady despite the turmoil inside.

“i can explain," he said, stepping closer. "it's not what you think. she's just a friend, i swear."

“do you think I'm stupid?" you shot back, anger and hurt lacing your words. "i saw how you were with her."

before sunghoon could respond, you heard another set of voices approaching. jay, hana, and jake appeared, looking concerned.

“what's going on here?" Jay demanded, his eyes narrowing as he looked between you and sunghoon, "why have you guys been acting like this?"

“it’s not what it looks like," Sunghoon started, but jay cut him off.

“then what is it?" jay's voice was rising, and you could see the frustration building. "you two have been acting weird for weeks, and now this? i thought we were friends sunghoon!”

jake stepped forward, trying to defuse the situation, "let's all just calm down and talk about this."

but jay wasn't having it, "no, i want to know the truth. are you two...?" he trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

you took a deep breath, feeling the weight of the moment, "there's nothing going on between us, jay. sunghoon and i are just friends. but seeing him with that girl... it hurt."

jay looked at you, his pissed off expression slowly fading slightly, "why didn't you tell me you had feelings for him?"

“b-because i knew you would be mad. and because sunghoon doesn’t like me in that way." you admitted, feeling a tear slip down your cheek. you felt embarrassed and guilty.

sunghoon stepped closer, his eyes filled with regret, "i'm sorry. i never meant to hurt you. i should have been honest."

you look up at sunghoon teary eyed. before sunghoon could step closer towards you, jay cut him off, “get the fuck away from her.”

everyone stared at jay in shock. he’s never cussed at any of his best friends, “i trusted you sunghoon and jake to not go after my sister for so many reasons and that’s the first thing you do? until she explains everything to me from a to z, you’re not coming to my house. you’re not gonna speak to me or her until you get your shit together.” he demanded.

he left without a word while hana followed him. jake stared at both of you pitying before following along. you slowly got up and walked past sunghoon. before you could walk away, sunghoon softly grabbed your wrist.

you met his soft gaze, “i’m sorry for everything.” he whispered. you didn’t say anything and left him alone. it was your turn to walk out on him.

taglist:

@laylasbunbunny @umsivsworld @woofie-nctzen-fanarts

[strawbeerossi]

Silencing Spencer Reid

Pairing: Fem!Reader x Spencer Reid

Description: Spencer likes how you listen to him ramble about things that interest him. He also likes your method of telling him to shut up.

Content/Warnings: Reader is a little mean because she has a headache, Spencer ramblings, oral (f receiving), face sitting (duh), degradation, pet names (pretty boy)

Word Count: 1.1K

Kinktober Day Eleven: Facesitting

Navigation || Kinktober Masterlist || AO3

You liked listening to Spencer talk, something about his voice being calming to listen to. Listening to him ramble was like heaven, watching him get excited to tell you every bit of information that plagued his brain on one specific subject. Spencer was honestly grateful, liking the way you actually showed care to what he had to say and telling him your own thoughts. However there was another side of you that he liked.

“Spencer, honey, can you please just give me five minutes? I have a really bad headache.” you spoke as you were walking through your shared apartment, your boyfriend following behind you like a little puppy. “But you haven’t even heard the best part about this episode! I mean, you have no idea how crazy it is when he-” Spencer was cut off by the palm of your hand pressed against his mouth.  “I love you so much but you need to just.. Fuck, go sit on the couch for a minute.” You snapped. You knew you’d feel awful about it later but right now you were just frustrated. 

Spencer wasn’t negatively affected, instead a rush of blood rushing down to his cock. He was getting under your skin, just what he was intending on doing. All he needed now though was you to shut him up, to put him in his place. He’d been sexually frustrated all day and he wanted nothing more than to have your soaked cunt on his face, making a mess of his jaw while you used his tongue to get yourself off. The thought of your slick arousal on his tongue was enough to make him drool.

“But baby, don’t you wanna hear about my theories? I mean the show is so interesting and you know I’m passionate about this character.” He was rambling now, only blushing as you shot him a warning look, one that he was used to from the amount of times he attempted to test you. He knew the punishment would be severe but he didn’t care, he needed to taste your essence sooner rather than later. “Come on..” 

Whenever Spencer wasn’t getting the hint though, you were frowning. Now if your head wasn’t pounding, you would’ve realized what he was doing. Right now though, he looked like a brat who couldn’t seem to follow your damn directions. “Go lay down. Now.” You murmured, the male perking up at getting just what he wanted before scrambling off to the bedroom. You were joining him a few minutes later, already pulling your pants down your legs along with your panties. “Don’t get any ideas, brats don’t deserve to be touched or cum. You are servicing me tonight. That’s it.” The harshness of your voice had a whimper rip from his throat, his head nodding slowly. 

Contrary to most men, Spencer could spend hours lapping at your cunt. He enjoyed making you feel good, your fingers tangling in his hair while shoving his face deeper into your warmth. He could cum just from that alone. “I’m gonna sit on your face tonight. Got it, pretty boy?” Just from the look on his face, you could tell that he was eager to flick his tongue into your sweetness, having you rock your hips against his face solely to pleasure yourself. “Yes!” He was desperate, head lifting as his eyes were fixated on your bare lower half.

After getting your shirt off and throwing it on the ground along with the small pile of your other clothes. “You know, Spencer.. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that you wanted this.” You spoke in a low tone while facing him with a frown, body climbing onto the bed as you were crawling to get situated. With your knees on either side of Spencer’s face, you were glancing down at your boyfriend who had his usual doe eyes that were clouded over with arousal. “You need to listen better, you know. You shouldn’t upset me on purpose.”

Spencer didn’t have time to respond whenever he was face to face with your wet pussy, his hands coming up to hold your hips before gently tugging your lower half onto his mouth. 

His tongue was darting out to flick over your throbbing clit, your fingers tangling into his messy curls while you let your head fall forward with a soft breath. “Fuck, put that mouth to good use.” You spoke, the sinful sounds of suckling filling the room whenever he got the chance to take your bud into his mouth. When he’d pulled off with a pop sound filling the room, he didn't waste time to drag his tongue through your slit, giving himself a taste of what he was so desperate for. “Pretty boy, don’t keep me waiting.” You spoke, which he didn’t need a warning before his tongue was breaching your leaking sex. 

Pistoning his tongue into your sweet cunt, he relished in the feeling of your velvety walls constricting his tongue from the surprise of him getting right to work. He drank every ounce of arousal you gave him, eyes fluttering shut as his moans were muffling against your pussy. His hands were assisting you as you were rocking against the warm muscle working its magic, leaving you desperate for so much more. “Mmm, is this what you wanted? Me to ride that pretty face of yours? You could’ve asked, baby. You didn’t have to get under my skin and get yourself in trouble.” You tsked while glancing down at the fucked out face of your boyfriend underneath you. 

His vigor was making that familiar warmth in your stomach grow, knowing that you were close. Spencer had known your body by now, so as he knew you were close, he was focusing on your clit once more, sucking harshly as he had you letting out curses and sharp gasps as you were desperately rocking your hips against your partner’s face. “I’m gonna cum.” You whispered while both hands were roughly gripping his messy hair.

With a soft cry, it wasn’t long until your creamy arousal was flowing into his mouth, Spencer was eagerly licking up the sweetness as he was letting his head tilt back against the pillow with a deep groan. “Good job, pretty boy.” Your cooing caused a sheepish smile to spread across his face as he blushed.

“Go take a shower.” You hum, crawling off of his face while Spencer was pushing himself to sit up. His eyes were glossed over, his mouth and chin soaked, and his hair was all over the place from her fingers gripping and pulling it. “You look so pretty.” You cooed while making his blush deepen, drunk off of your pussy as he was slowly pushing himself to stand. “Can I please touch myself?” His voice was whiny, filled with need as he stared at you. 

“Nope. I told you, pretty boy, this is a punishment.”

[earlgreylatte]

Three Lifeforms

(Hal Jordan x Blue Lantern Reader) Where Hal is the one that grounds you after a big reveal and the Justice League is always in everyone’s business.

“Three life forms detected.”

Hearing the status from the ring, you and Hal exchanged glances, finding that the abandoned planet you two often visited in between missions wasn’t as vacant as you initially thought.

“Hello—!” Cupping your hands around your mouth you began to shout out, only for Hal to immediately envelop more than half your face with his stupidity big hand, as he pulls your back into his chest.

“What are you doing?” He hisses, looking around worriedly, as you try to shove him off you.

“No one is ever here but us, someone might have gotten stranded here,” you explain, trying to look up at him.

“That doesn’t mean you should go announcing yourself to a possible hostile!” Hal retorts, tightening his grip on you.

You’re sure Barry or Batman would have felt vindicated amusement in how your usually reckless, highball partner was forced to take up a certain level of caution when paired with you. While Hal Jordan was an optimist, even he had nothing against a wielder of the hope ring.

“So what? No one can stand a chance against a Blue Lantern and Green Lantern, you’ve said that way too many times to count,” you finally escape his grasp before turning around to face him, “Besides, if they need help, it’s my duty to provide it.”

The man before you sighs tiredly, shooting you a wry grin. “Maybe you should have been the Green Lantern with how stubborn you can be, berryblue.”

“How many times have I told you not to call me that?”

*

“Come on, there’s no one here! We’ve been here for hours—“

“Less than a hour.”

“Let’s head home, order some takeout, watch watch whatever tv show you’re obsessed with right now, maybe fool around a bit-“

“Hal.”

He groans, before splaying himself against you, relying on you to keep him upright.

“It’s been so long since we’ve been alone, don’t you want me to take care of you?” His hand travels lower, giving your bottom a generous squeeze, eliciting a strangled yelp and punch from you, which he only laughs at.

For a second, you think he somehow flustered you enough that your knees felt weak enough to buckle, but with how your head felt like it was being drilled from the inside, you conclude that this goes beyond Hal Jordan’s charm.

“Babe,” he starts, but stops when he sees you bring up a hand to massage your temple. “What’s wrong?”

“Just a headache. I’m fine, Hal,” You assure him, gently pushing him off.

You can already tell he’s furrowing his eyebrows beneath his mask before he brings his hands to grasp your arms, pulling you closer to inspect your face properly.

“Your ring should have negated anything like that. God knows how many migraines—“

“Hangovers.”

“—you’ve cured for me. Something’s going on.” He frowns.

“Just tired. We haven’t been home in months, it’s probably just taking a bit of a toll,” you reply, ignoring the way your vision becomes blurred.

“More the reason we should go, then.” He declares, his face hardening into the determined expression you’re more than familiar with.

“Not until we find whoever else is here.”

He groans out your name in exasperation.

You’re sure that he’s giving you a lecture about self-care, probably adding a salacious remark or two. But you’re unable to register him when the world around you begins to tilt.

*

He’s calling your name. Not ‘babe’ or some other embarrassingly gushy pet name . He’s definitely worried. So when your eyes flutter open, you’re not surprised to see the distress on his face as he cradles you to his chest.

“How long was I out?”

“You…only a couple minutes,” he answers, his grip on you tightening for a moment, “Come on, we’re going home.”

Scowling, you squirm in arms, but his hold remains steadfast, much to your fond irritation. “It was just a dizzy spell—“

“That was not—!”

“I’m fine. Besides, we still haven’t found whoever else is here!”

“They could be the Pope, and I still wouldn’t give a shit!” He bites back, his hand flexing on the meat of your thigh, mindful enough to not strengthen his grip on any further.

You furrow your brows, I mean, yeah, you’re literally Jewish.

“Give me a boost, will you? I’ll have us back in the watchtower before it’s Spooky’s feeding time.”

When you remain still, he jostles you lightly, but you avoid meeting his gaze.

He growls out your name impatiently, before softening.

“I’ll have Guy or Kyle do a scope here as soon as we get you checked out,” he promises.

“It’s probably nothing,” you grumble, before acquiescing, focusing on his ring and augmenting its output, “Gently, Hal.”

“Only because you asked so sweetly.”

*

Powered down and tucked into a med bay bed, you toyed with the ring on your finger as Hal finished off the leftovers of the meal J’ohn brought you.

“Sure you don’t want me to get you anything else?” Hal asks leaning forward on his chair.

“I’m fine,” you reply absentmindedly. You’re sure he’s looking at you with that dumb, loving expression he gets around you, when his brown eyes soften enough to resemble melted chocolate, so you avoid looking at him lest you break.

He places his hand over yours, giving it a light squeeze, “You were just overworked, don’t worry, Nurse Jordan will you have up and running in no time.”

“Liar. You were the one saying something has to be really wrong for my ring to not cancel everything out,” you scoff, trying to fight back a smile when he winces guiltily. “Well, your bedside manner isn’t too bad, though.”

With a soft grin he climbs onto your bed, nestling one of his arms behind you so it’s wrapped around your shoulders, moving around until you’re settled against his chest, as he uses his free hand to lock fingers with yours.

“You’ll be just fine,” he quietly assures, thumb rubbing against your hand soothingly, “After all, there isn’t anything we can’t figure out together.”

“Because of our rings?” You mumble as best you can with your cheek smushed against him.

“Because I’d literally tear reality apart for you and you’re my stubborn, intelligent, gorgeous girl that’s going to outlast everyone.” he responds casually. You really can’t tell if he’s joking or not. “But yeah, the whole ‘strongest weapons in the universe’ thing too.”

You let out a breathy laugh, nuzzling against him, only straightening up when J’ohn returns, expression as enigmatic as ever.

“One of the functions of the hope ring is to keep its wielder in peak condition, especially since its speciality is regeneration, correct?” He asks.

“Always wakes up without an ache or creak in her back, her ring surpasses mine in that regard,” Hal comments, squeezing your hand.

“Yes, I think its effect on your physiology is more proactive than anyone could have anticipated.”

“Just spit it out,” you sigh, wanting to rip the bandaid off.

The Martian clears his throat, suddenly look awkward, “There really was no way for you to realize, with the ring working to negate any symptoms and attempting to keep your body in optimal condition, that you are…with child. Second trimester, I would guess.”

You’re very sure that you’re brain just blue screened for a second, jolting back into reality when a tension you didn’t notice in your partner immediately faded, “Oh thank god.”

You look at him incredulously as he grins sheepishly.

“Sorry, sorry, but I was really worried it was something terminal or some galactic virus!”

“Weren’t you telling me not to worry earlier?”

“Yeah, you’re a Blue Lantern, worrying is my job between the two of us.”

J’ohn clears his throat again, pausing your debate, “We can have our on-staff medical team oversee your…condition, or we can refer you to trusted OB-GYN on Earth. While rare, a ‘cryptid pregnancy’ is still completely safe. It’s just good we were able to catch it so early.”

“Yeah, imagine if you randomly went into labour in the middle of space,” Hal states, visibly shuddering at the thought.

You groan, burying your face in your hands.

“I’ll leave you two to discuss this privately,” The Martian excuses himself.

You feel two large hands wrap around your waist, and in an instant Hal has manhandled you in his lap, his back hitting the pillows you were just propped up on. He buries his face into your neck, humming contentedly.

“What are you thinking?”

“What are you thinking? You’re awfully calm when this is probably the last thing you’d want, flyboy.” You retort with a bit more venom than you wanted, but he only nuzzles his nose near your pulse point.

“I’ll admit that when I got this ring, I figured I wouldn’t do the whole family man thing. I mean there was a point where my feet wouldn’t even touch the ground, between sector shit and the airfield,” Hal starts, “but being with you, I realized that I wouldn’t have to ever tie myself down because it would never feel that way with you. Not that I would mind you tying me up.”

Despite your best efforts you laugh, and you feel him smile against your skin.

“Whether we’re on Earth or on the other side of the sector, I’d be happy as long as you’re the one holding my reigns. Lantern or not, I know we’ll be okay. So being married to you and raising a kid…what’s not to want?” You remain silent for a moment before relaxing against him.

“I won’t say I’ve never thought about this before and the ring is definitely going to make the process unfairly easy,” you begin quietly.

“Oh, yeah, bet there are a lot of ladies that just hate your guts for that alone.”

“So, I—,” you pause for a moment, Hal patiently waiting, “I want to do this. With you. I mean, I’m scared but overcoming fear is kind of our thing.”

Hal’s hand comes up to tilt your head back to press his lips against yours. The angle is a bit awkward, but Hal leaves you breathless nonetheless, and even now, he’s smiling.

You pull away with a shriek, when his other hand reaches up to grope your breast. “No, just like I thought, it’s definitely bigger. More sensitive too.”

“You’re the worst,” you complain without any real heat.

“Hey, just checking!” Hal grins deviously, giving you another squeeze before you’re interrupted by the sound of a certain bat clearing his throat. You would have jumped out of Hal’s arms if not for his grip on you, clearly unashamed of cuddling you even in Bruce’s presence.

“Hey, Spooky, here to congratulate us?” Hal asks and you resist the urge to elbow him for being so obvious, but the other man only hums in affirmation and you realize you should have known nothing goes unknown to the bat.

“And to assist in anyway you two would need.” He approaches you and hands you a pile of—

“Brochures?” Hal observes. “‘How to handle your super bundle’, ‘How to go from Superhero to Super Parent’—who the hell made these?”

“Not like we’re having a super baby that could try to claw out of me ‘Alien’ style,” you note.

“While you two are both normal humans, that doesn’t mean you won’t have our support in having a new responsibility added to your already busy lives,” Batman affirms, “We will also set up a college fund when your child is born and cover medical expenses and the like. And—“

“Wait, too much info,” you massage your temple, “Since when did we have all these resources? Oh, Clark wasn’t kidding when he said you paid his rent!”

Bruce only smirks in response. Rich people.

“Alright, alright, we get it, maybe don’t try to send the love of my life into an existential crisis?” Hal interjects. Softie.

“We can talk more later. Some of the parents in our community have monthly meetings. I’m sure Barry will be sending you invites and reminders as soon as he finds out,” Bruce says, looking vaguely amused.

“Hold on, how many people know? How did you even find out? Did J’ohn tell you?” You question, furrowing your brows.

“As soon as you two arrived, Clark heard a third heartbeat, and we all know he can’t contain himself on these matters.” Bruce explains already heading for the door, deeming the conversation done. You have no doubt he’ll be popping around Coast City in the coming months though.

“He’s such a gossip, or more like everyone here is,” you complain, “Better tell Barry and Ollie while you can. They’ll be mad if they find out from the grapevine.”

“Guess we got a lot to do when we get back home,” Hal muses with a stupid grin, probably already planning out a green, space themed nursery.

You hum, leaning back into his hold before jolting. “Third life force!”

“Huh?”

“The—ring—third life force! It knew!” You sputter out, glaring at your finger accusingly.

Hal stares at you for a moment before bursting out in laughter as his shoulders shook, once again burying his face into your neck, which did very little to muffle him.

“Hal!”

Low key my worst fear, but it’s Hal and I think he should acquire a child if dc isn’t going to write him being a big bro to air wave. Also I want his dick LMAO

Masterlist

[foone]

A good teleport should be barely noticeable. One moment, there's no one there, and the next moment, there is. No flashes of light, no sound, you could literally blink and miss it. You often don't even see them at first, because the human eye is watching for movement, and a well-done teleport has no movement, just an instant change of nothing becoming something. It's a subtle art, the kind practiced endlessly by magicians, and that goes doubly for anyone trained as a war wizard. You want to turn the tides of a battle with arcane powers, or slip an assault team in behind enemy lines, to decapitate (sometimes literally) the opposing force? You have to be discreet. You have to perfectly balance the spell so that your strike force can slip in unnoticed, with a bit of magical help, and teleportation is one of the trickiest kinds of magic to make unnoticeable. The universe doesn't like it when nothing becomes something, and vice versa. It tends to notice, and people around tend to notice as well. So there's really an art to a good teleportation spell, and you sometimes see the grand masters of the field give demonstrations before crowds of less experienced magicians, often to roaring applause.

This was not one of those teleportation spells. This was a C-, barely passing, "SEE ME AFTER CLASS" written on your homework type of teleportation. The kind you do when you don't have time to prepare, when you don't give a damn who notices your arrival, because the one thing that's of highest importance is that you Stop Being Here and start Being Somewhere Else. This teleportation spell would give anyone magically sensitive headaches for days, and you would have trouble missing the bright flash and deafening noise that accompanies a body's-worth of air having to get out of the way in an instant. If you could hear the fabric of space, it rang like a bell hit with a sledgehammer when that teleport happened. Light-years away there was probably some little green men confused at why their new gravity-wave-detector appears to have told them a black hole merger just happened on the surface of a habitable planet.

And through that cacophony of light and sound and gravity, there stepped a man. He was silent for only a moment, and then screamed in terror, almost equaling the sound that had come shortly before. He ran, his rationality giving out, managing to function only at the instinctive reaction of an animal that is on fire and needs to move, now.

Because it's one thing to know, intellectually, that there are planets out there where the evaporated water from lakes and oceans collects in the lower atmosphere, and somehow condenses into visible structures of suspended water droplets, which then sometimes comes crashing down to the ground. That makes sense, in the way that you can read about sex or skydiving but it can in no way compare to experiencing the real thing (and hopefully not at the same time). There's a huge difference between knowing that there are planets with precipitation, and being in the middle of a rainstorm, because your emergency teleport dropped you on the outskirts of Seattle in the middle of the wet season.

Rudapedi Yonfer is being rained on for the first time in his life, and the master magician is terrified in much the way you would be if you opened the door to your bathroom one morning and there was a cheetah sitting in your bathtub.

[brf-rumortrackinganon]

I feel like the BRF knows waayy more than what we do which means all of Rachel's deep dark secrets and connections but they can't go all Kraken on her coz one of their own idiot is the one standing on the firing line, taunting and threatening them. "I'll cause all these headaches and serious issues but if you dare to touch me or her I'll off myself so try me!"

That's exactly what's happening.

Initially the British press didn't like Meghan for Harry. They started dripping her dirt but then, the BRF clamped down on them, which fueled engagement rumors. Most likely it was Harry going to Charles and whining "they're being mean to the girl I want to marry" and then the BRF lowered the boom on the press, who all got in line with the Saint Meghan, Diana 2.0 narrative.

Harry will always be protected by the BRF and as long as he remains married to Meghan, that protection is extended to her.

Meghan probably knows that too, which is why she's hung on to him for muhc longer than we've all expected; because she needs him far more than he needs to her.

And we see this play out in their relationship often. They have cycles of time where they do separate PR or it gets out that they have separate lies or Meghan leaks she doesn't support what Harry's doing, then some dirt and gossip starts dripping out about Meghan because everyone thinks "this is it, this is divorce watch", then she lovebombs Harry in the press, and they make a couple of public appearances together to prove they're happy even though their body language is way off.

(It's also why they bleat on so much about their privacy. The more they talk about the privacy, the more grounds - imaginary as they may be - they have to claim "my privacy was invaded" or "that's a lie" when their dirt and skeletons leak out.)

Meghan won't leave Harry until she has Plan B set up, but they've all failed. Her only hope is meeting a centimillionnaire or a billionnaire who can give her the luxury she wants, pays for her vanity projects, and buys off the press to keep her secrets. (So in effect, she's probably looking for a modern day Richard Carlisle, who bought a whole dang newspaper for Lady Mary to keep her secret that she'd had premarital relations.)

Hence why a lot of people think Harry will be the one to leave first. He holds all the cards, she knows it, and she lovebombs him to keep him in line.

[theladyofbloodshed]

Chapter 34

One more chapter and an epilogue <3 (this is a sad chapter)

The field lay in ruins. Corpses – their own and Hybern’s – were spread across the muddy plain. Arrows jutted from limbs, blood and gore soaked through each court’s uniforms so they were united in a rusty red. The soldiers from Hybern who hadn’t been quick enough to winnow away were being rounded up for questioning.

Azriel would take stock of it later. Would stop and measure the magnitude of what they had done once his mate was in his own arms.

He was barely holding himself together. Feyre offering him the memory of what she saw through the Cauldron’s power had nearly broken him. Only Rhysand’s hand clamping around his upper arm to follow him where he winnowed stopped Azriel from inciting further bloodshed.

Carranam.

It was unheard of. A bond so rare – so deadly in cases – that even mates weren’t prepared to try. How had Eris known that Nesta was his Carranam?

Not his. Never his.

The Autumn Court had no tents. They’d arrived too late, already in the thick of the fighting, to prepare them. Where was Eris?

Azriel’s breathing was a wet rasp. His wings screamed in protest with every moment. There were cuts on his body that needed seeing to, some more pressing than others. He’d broken ribs, gashed open his ear. None of it mattered. Not until Nesta was with him.

‘Can’t your shadows-’

‘They are searching for her,’ he ground out before Rhys could finish.

A number of the Vanserra brothers were already winnowing away their army back to their golden oak-covered lands. If Eris had dared to take Nesta... If he thought in some way that a Carranam bond meant more than a mating bond…

‘There,’ said Rhys gently. He pointed towards a clearing by the edge of the trees where Helion stood near Eris, blocking Azriel’s view.

Azriel forced his power to rally and winnowed them both to close the gap.

‘Get your hands off of her,’ Azriel snarled.

Nesta was unconscious in Eris’ arms. The flush upon her cheeks made his stomach knot. Golden light swirled around her body from Helion’s healing gifts.

‘She has delved too deeply into her power. And another’s,’ said Helion with a knowing look to Eris. ‘She will live, but her body is exhausted.’

Rhysand’s grip on his arm hurt. His high lord dug his fingers into Azriel’s skin like blunted blades to anchor himself.

‘Put. Her. Down.’

Eris gave an easy smile, one a snake might wear. ‘Nesta and I are Carranam. She will be returning to my court where she belongs.’

A shield shot between them – the violet edges a tell-tale sign that it belonged to Rhys.

‘Nesta belongs in the Night Court,’ his high lord stated.

Eris gestured to the cut across Nesta’s palm. Many had seen their display against the king. Whether others would realise that Eris had shared his power with Nesta was another headache to be solved later. All Azriel wanted was his mate in his own arms.

Azriel said through clenched teeth, ‘Did you have to cut her palm so deeply?’

Blood still dripped from it. Eris hadn’t bothered binding it. He’d hurt her. Ran a knife across her skin.

He was practically vibrating with anger. His mate had chosen to die. Had spent a night with him, knowing she would walk into the arms of death the next day. And she would have done it alone. She’d deceived them all to face the king. The image of her being thrown by his magic, the bruises on her face-

Her blood drip, drip, dripped onto the earth.

‘Az.’

‘Give me my fucking mate.’

The colour drained from Eris’ face at the shadows poised to strike him, shield or not. Even Helion stepped away, his magic recoiling with him. He felt the grip of Rhys on his arm release as Eris carefully lowered Nesta upon the soft grass too.

Azriel had one singular focus. He didn’t care for Rhysand’s words advising him not to be rash. Nor Helion’s advice about her magic.

The moment that he cradled Nesta into his arms, he winnowed back to the Town House.

This was the female he loved. The one he wanted to spend his whole life with.

And he was so fucking angry with her.

Fuck the Carranam bond. Nesta had laid in his arms, knowing she was going to wriggle away from the others and offer herself as a sacrifice. Did she think her life meant so little? That it could be easily thrown away?

Azriel wouldn’t live if she died. There could be no future without her.

Even with fury roaring in his blood, Azriel did his due diligence as her mate and stripped off her spoiled, blood-soaked leathers. Her knees were bruised and a nasty-looking one spread across her ribs. They had matching breaks then. He washed her hands first then bound the cut on her hand, tying it tight to cut off the flow. Nesta’s hair was darkened by blood, so he held her over the bath and did his best to wash it before cleaning the rest of her body.

His anger refused to soften even as he tucked her into bed and stroked her face. Azriel’s mind began to wander. Had she done it to get away from him? Was it a punishment because he’d gone to fight with damaged wings? Was Nesta trying to give him a taste of his own medicine?

Quick steps sounded down the corridor and Azriel braced himself for whoever it might be.

Rhysand loomed in the doorway.

‘Az, I need you back there.’

‘No.’

‘It is your duty to-’

‘No,’ he snarled. His thumb brushed against Nesta’s fingers. ‘I don’t care, Rhys. This is my most important duty. I will be at my mate’s side until she is well.’

Rhys’ shoulders slumped. There was blood and mud splattered up his face. ‘Az, we have a mountain to manage. Cass is heading to Illyria to let families of fallen soldiers know. I need to manage Hybern’s soldiers and speak with the other high lords. I need you.’

‘No.’

‘Feyre and Elain are going to burn their father’s body in lieu of a funeral. Nesta should be there.'

The burning anger inside of Azriel’s chest threatened to loosen itself on his high lord. ‘Can’t you fucking see she’s unconscious?’

Rhys stepped back, wariness widening his eyes. Slowly, he said, ‘I expect you at my side, Azriel.’

‘Don’t pull rank on me. If it was Feyre laying here, nobody would cleave you from her side. Do not expect me to desert my mate.’

For a short while longer, Rhysand lingered then departed with a wearied sigh. Any other time and Azriel would be right at his side. There were more important places for Azriel to be now.

Even when the others returned, late into the night, Azriel did not move from Nesta’s side. She remained unconscious, her breathing slow but even. He allowed Madja to enter the room and check her over. A nudge of her magic would help her to heal quicker. The others knew better than to invite him to join them downstairs where the most expensive barrels of wine had been brought out to celebrate. He was in no mood to celebrate. Azriel had almost lost everything.

For two days, Azriel remained steadfast beside his mate’s side. She stirred a handful of times, but remained deeply sleeping for most of it. He stole fragments of sleep whenever his head slumped for too long. His shadows turned traitor and instead of pricking him to keep him awake, they allowed him to rest for longer than he wanted. Nobody could move him from Nesta’s side: not Morrigan, as much as she pleaded; not Rhys or Feyre trying issue orders; and certainly not Lucien who had likely been sent in as a radical choice to offer information about Eris and the Continent as bait. Azriel would not be moved.

His anger softened. The sharp edges were rubbed smooth.

With every hour that ticked by, Azriel’s anger morphed into sorrow. He couldn’t imagine the burden that had been upon Nesta’s shoulders – the target that Hybern had painted on her back for protecting her sister. The fear that must have gripped her in those moments where she lured the king to her. She was selfless, reckless, and brave. Azriel stroked a length of her soft hair. As much as he despised Eris Vanserra, if the male hadn’t shown up then Nesta would be dead. He didn’t like to owe a debt to any, much less the Autumn Court heir – but when it came to Nesta, there was nothing that Azriel wouldn’t give, wouldn’t owe to protect her.

On the third night, she woke groggily, grasping at her throat. Carefully, Azriel trickled water onto Nesta’s tongue. She ended up drinking most of the jug before blinking heavily at him and settling back down onto the pillows, a hand clinging to him.

***

There were wounds inside of Nesta’s heart that she would never recover from. Her extended sleep had only worsened them. When she woke again, at the dawn, Azriel set to running a shallow bath for her and requesting food from the wraiths.

They went through the motions of him caring for her as she slowly settled back into her body. It felt foreign and wrong.

Nesta did not want to be here.

Not in this house.

Not with these people.

None of it.

For every invitation to join them for dinner, to drink with them in the lounge, Nesta refused. Azriel took her lead and acted as a buffer to her sisters’ requests even though he’d press her on the refusal. Nesta wouldn’t give him an answer. She couldn’t tell him that she hated herself. Hated how many lives she’d ended in the war with a stroke of her power. Hated that she was bound in some way to Eris and not wholly Azriel’s anymore. Hated closing her eyes and seeing the lights spark out from her father’s eyes as his neck was snapped. Hated to think that she could lose Azriel one day. It was better to close down and push him away. It would hurt less when she lost him if he hated her.

After a week of her hibernation, Azriel tried to tempt her outside. He offered the library which she refused and even a tea shop that she liked in Velaris, but she refuted that idea too. Each time that she rejected his ideas, Nesta saw his face fall a little more. She had to keep cracking him bit by bit then he’d realise she wasn’t worth his time. He’d find somebody better, somebody brighter, who could give him what Nesta couldn’t.

‘We’ve been in this room a long time,’ he said gently. Azriel reached to run a finger down her arm but Nesta moved from his path. Each night, he’d lay beside her in the bed but she’d toss his arm off repeatedly until he stopped trying.

‘And what is that meant to mean?’

He looked towards the window where twilight was settling in outside.

‘Fresh air might help.’

Nesta’s nostrils flared as she stood. She hauled the window open so that a strong wind blew in – and with it the promise of autumn arriving. ‘Fresh air.’

She hoped to see his eyes darken. For his siphons to pulse with warning so that she could have confirmation that she was pushing him to his limits. Nesta wanted Azriel far from someone like her.

He stood and closed the window, blocking off the howl of the wind. ‘You understand exactly what I mean.’

‘If you want fresh air then leave. Nobody has asked you to be at my side morning and night. It is unwanted.’

He had a way of emptying himself. Azriel kept his expression perfectly vacant. He was too difficult to read. Even his shadows sat still behind him.

‘I am here because I love you. Because I am your mate.’

‘I don’t want you here,’ she hissed.

‘Madja has agreed that you are well enough to try and use your magic again.’

‘I have no magic,’ she protested. It was a lie. It swirled and ached inside of her. Eris’ own magic had entered her body, scorching the veins in its wake. She was different because of it. Her magic thrashed at the sides of its cage, desperate to practise its new facets.

In an even voice, Azriel replied, ‘I will leave tonight, but you will have Elain or Feyre here in my stead.’

‘I didn’t realise I needed a nurse maid.’

‘Yes,’ he replied. ‘Because I don’t know what you might do if you are alone.’

Nesta’s heart gave a sorrowful lurch. ‘Leave me alone.’

He did as she asked, but within a minute, perhaps less, Feyre entered her bedroom. Her sister’s presence was maybe worse than Azriel’s. He was at least content to let her sit in silence or read. Feyre did not stop with her never-ending stream of questions or narrations. She talked of their father, of the funeral where she turned his body to ash, and it took all of Nesta’s strength not to scream at her sister to be quiet.

And so it was.

If Azriel wasn’t occupying the chair in her room, it was Elain or Feyre. Nesta stopped responding to them. Stopped answering their questions. She only ate when Azriel loomed over her and threatened to feed her like an infant if she didn’t hold the fork herself.

The war had ruined her. Every day became harder and harder to push herself through.

When Feyre one day snatched her hand unexpectedly, Nesta had no time to ask what she was doing before they arrived in her favoured tea shop. Azriel was already there, her favourite tea brewed and waiting for her.

Nesta couldn’t give him hope. There was something rotten inside of her. It would ruin him if she let him in.

Like an insolent child, Nesta sat upon the chair opposite Azriel and refused to drink her tea. She folded her arms across her chest and stared at him. She ignored his quiet utterings, pleading with her to drink. Ignored Feyre’s bubbly chatter. They had tried to ambush her – but Nesta was an unstoppable force of stubbornness. They would not find her malleable.

The further two attempts at integrating her back into society were as disastrous. One had been to swap her bed mate to Cassian who she had easily managed to grind down by making a grab for his wings multiple times until he relented and backed off. The second had been to bring the dinner to her room including all eight members of the household. From the wary expression that Azriel wore, she knew it had not been his idea to invade her personal space – and he was the one who ended it by ushering them all out.

‘I just want to help you,’ he said, the stress of the last three weeks beginning to weigh on him. There were bags beneath his eyes. On the nights that he stayed in her room, he no longer assumed a place in the bed. He’d bring a blanket to sleep on the floor or the chair, but he rarely slept. He had been harder to push away than Nesta thought. He was as stubborn as she was.

‘I do not want your help. I do not need it.’

‘Then what do you need?’ He pleaded.

To hurt him. To push him away for good, Nesta had to aim low at wounds that hadn’t healed for him.

‘I want Eris.’

The words landed. A vindictive part of her wished she’d used his name sooner. It made Azriel’s wings flare. All seven of his siphons rippled with colour.

‘I want to be with Eris. He is my Carranam.’

‘You don’t even know what it is.’

‘He is mine,’ she said, knowing that each word would hurt him. ‘He will train my magic then we-’

‘You’ve sworn to the Mother a dozen times that you have no magic,’ he said swiftly, cutting into her speech.

There was one wound left. One last way to make Azriel bleed so that he was as repulsed by her as he should be.

‘I want to be with Eris because he is the son of a high lord. He is what I deserve. And you...' she fumbled. 'You’re just…’

The words lodged themselves in her throat. Nesta couldn’t do it.

‘Say it,’ he said softly.

Nesta ground her teeth together and held her chin up.

‘No,’ Azriel murmured. ‘Say what you want to say, Nesta. Tell me what I am.’

Her whole body gave an involuntary tremble.

In silence, Azriel pulled a bag from beneath the bed and began sweeping through her clothing, throwing it into the bag. The three books that she had on the bedside table were tossed on top along with a spare pair of shoes. Azriel wrapped and arm around Nesta then threw her over his shoulder. The dig of his bony shoulder made her stomach ache. She smacked his back – tried to scratch his wings – as he manoeuvred her through the bedroom and down the stairs.

Her hissing and spitting like a cat roused Feyre who darted from the office downstairs.

‘Put her down,’ she demanded.  

Azriel ignored her and continued striding through the house with Nesta hauled over his shoulder.

‘Azriel, what the fuck are you doing?’

He exited the Town House.

‘I’m her mate,’ he said. ‘I’ll decide what’s best for her.’

Nesta sucked in a breath as shadows wrapped around them, disfiguring her vision.

When they stopped, a cold wind blew through her hair.

She recognised the wooden cabin at once. The wildflowers which had been as high as her thighs last time she’d visited were brown and wilting as the summer waned. Stars were scattered through the early evening sky.

She couldn’t be here.

‘Take me back,’ she begged.

Azriel gently set her onto her feet. ‘No.’

‘I don’t want to be here.’

The front door opened and light flooded through the gap.

She scrambled to find purchase on his chest. ‘Please. Take me back to Velaris. I'll be better. Please.’

Azriel’s hands settled on her arms, pinning them to her sides. It wasn’t anger in his expression. Nesta wished it was. No, Azriel looked utterly defeated.

His mother met them quickly, concern pulling her dark brows together.

‘Nesta isn’t doing well,’ he said bluntly. ‘The city isn’t a good place for her.’

Rovena nodded in sympathetic understanding. A warm hand stroked between her shoulder blades and it took all of Nesta’s strength not to break into a sob from the touch alone.

Without a further word, Azriel turned and walked a handful steps away before winnowing into nothing.

[breakfastteatime]

Today's Fallen Order request is Sink for @armageddon-is-light-after-dark

“Cal.”

“Shh.”

“Cal!”

“Shh, Greez, I’m trying to concentrate!”

“I’m gonna die. We’re gonna die! I knew I never, ever, should’ve left the ship!”

Cal looks over at him. He’s sinking – they’re both sinking – into quicksand. Slowly, yes, but sinking, nonetheless. Actually, Greez is definitely sinking faster due to the amount of flailing and wailing he’s doing. BD’s not around to get help because he decided to go into town with Cere and Merrin. Cere wanted a head start by heading out early – something about the best caf blend deals only being available early in the day. Merrin went along because she was awake and eager to explore. Cal had taken the rare opportunity to sleep in (sleep in, poke at his lightsaber on the workbench, what’s the difference?) and Greez opted to finish some maintenance prior to the two of them following Cere, BD, and Merrin. And what happened on their way to the market?

They somehow wandered off the jungle path and into quicksand. Actual, real-life quicksand. It’s giving Cal very, very bad memories Bracca, but now is not the time for old traumas to consume him.

Sand is a lot drier than oil pits after all.

Cal needs to get them out, or at the very least he needs to get Greez out so Greez can go for help. It is surprisingly cold in the sand, and Cal isn’t in any kind of rush to experience hypothermia again, and he definitely doesn’t want to learn what it feels like to choke to death on sand.

“Cal!” Greez wails.

Alright. There’s only one thing for it. He’ll have to lift Greez out, then Greez can go for help. Easy. Simple. “I got it. Just calm down.”

Finesse is where Cal still lacks training, as far as the Force is concerned. Throw stuff, pull stuff, fine. Intricate work, like make enough space in the tightly packed sand to free Greez and lift him? That’s trickier. But Cal understands the physics of it, and the Force is there, helping him to create enough space around Greez’s sinking body to lift him free. He feels a distinct pop, and then Greez’s relief and delight as he’s lifted free. Cal returns to himself, and sees in his distraction his own body has sunk a little lower.

Greez isn’t going to have time to get Cere and Merrin.

Okay. Okay, he can do this. It’s fine. There’s nothing nearby he can use to haul himself out, no convenient vines he can grab. He’s going to have to make enough space in the sand around him and work his way free.

“This isn’t how I pictured our day going,” Greez says.

“Nope, me neither.” Cal chuckles. “Can’t wait to explain it to the others.”

“How about we don’t? You get us out, we go back to the ship, shower, and then just head into town like everything’s fine?”

“Cere will know. You’re a terrible liar.”

“I’m a terrible liar! Me? Your face goes as red as your hair when you try lying. It makes no sense to me, kid. You’re an absolute card shark, but the second you try to keep something from someone else, you light up.”

It’s the truth, and everyone who knows Cal knows it. Instead of responding, he uses the Force to give his legs enough space to kick, kick, kick his way free, slowly, so slowly, until he’s close enough to solid ground to pull himself free. Greez gives him a sandy hug before Cal can flop onto his back.

“We’re never gonna live this one down, are we?” he asks.

“Nope.” Cal rubs his head. He’s going to need something for this headache.

When they do get to town much (much) later, showered and changed, and find Cere, Merrin and BD at a small café, Cere points at two empty chairs. “Tell us everything.”

[lendmyboyfriendahand]

More in the AU where Elrond and Elros are 16 years old rather than 6 when Sirion is sacked. Tag is "older kidnap fam fic" for previous installments

Elrond wakes up draped over the rump of a horse.

Not, to be clear, his own warhorse. His faithful stallion is being ridden by one of the few remaining warriors of the Gap, the great cavalry of the Noldor, who will be able to keep her seat regardless of what the horse tries.

Elrond isn't initially sure who is riding the horse that he's been set over like a sack of baggage. His arms are stretched out past his head, tied wrists dangling toward the ground, and his ankles are tied as well, tighter than the hobble that he had while walking. He can't see anything but horse flank.

Elrond wriggles around to try and get a better view, and someone notices.

"Lord Maedhros, it seems your guest is awake."

Maedhros pushes down the middle of Elrond's lower back to pin him more surely to the horse. "Lie still. If you fall off while riding in formation you're liable to get stepped on by the next horse, even if the rider wished to avoid you."

"I know how to ride properly."

"Yes, I saw that you were quite skilled when you killed my soldiers, which is why you're staying right there."

"Could I at least sit upright, even if I have to ride behind someone else like an infant?"

"Maybe tomorrow, if you give your word not to escape."

"I'm not stupid enough to try and bargain with you again, after you broke your word about setting us free from the cellar."

"I never said I'd set you free, I said I'd leave the city and wouldn't kill you. Sirion crumbled in the first assault, but I did no more damage after taking you and your brother into custody. If they're smart enough to repair the castle first, everyone should be able to keep warm this winter."

"And if they focus instead on burying their dead, or rebuilding their houses, or rescuing their kidnapped princes?"

"Who knows? But I'm not king of even the Noldor anymore, and the people of Sirion are not my responsibility."

"You would just let them die?" Elrond wanted to glare at the Feanorian, and nearly slipped backwards off the horse as he tried to sit up.

Maedhros caught Elrond deftly by the bound wrists and pulled him back into place. "Next time you do that, I'll let you fall"

"So you don't actually intend to even spare my life."

"I agreed to spare you, not to save you . None here will harm you, but I won't rescue you from consequences of childish stupidity, no more than I will rescue Sirion from winter. If you would rather bash your head open rather than remain my captive, I am not so cruel as to deny you that escape."

Elrond had nothing to say to that topic, as his first retort about more palatable escapes seemed likely just to enrage his captor, as did any question about cutting off hands. "Where's Elros? Was he at least left back in Sirion?" Elrond wanted his brother to be safe, and his people to have a leader with his mother drowned. But he, selfishly, also did to want to be alone with the kinslayers.

"He's here as well, don't worry. Nornmalo has him, and I trust him not to torture a prisoner, despite what it may sound like."

"The moans of pain might be a headache, he drank rather a lot of beer while we were trapped."

Maedhros laughed. "Well, a hungover child soldier. He will at least bother Nornmalo less with questions."

"Could I give him something to soothe the headache? I know a bit of healing."

"No. A headache won't kill him, and he'll get water when we stop same as you."

They stopped only once that day, to water the horses at a stream. Elros was pulled down from the saddle - feet first, luckily, though he still landed in a heap - and his hands untied. Maedhros tossed him a canteen, and said "if you need to piss, now's the best time. You won't get piss all over the horse or your clothes, and we're downstream of the rest of the company."

"My legs are still tied."

"The ropes low enough you should be able to unfasten your belt."

"Are you going to watch me the whole time?"

"Until I find another guard, yes."

Elrond drinks little enough water to avoid the issue, for the moment.

When it's time to ride again, Elrond puts up a fight about having his arms tied again. That just gets Maedhros pinning his face in the dirt while a soldier ties the rope.

Elrond is slung back on the horse like a parcel.

They stop again just before sunset to make camp.

Elrond's hands are untied again for dinner.

The food is simple, waybread and water, and Elrond wonders if he should mention that Men need to eat more than once a day.

Far more exciting than the food though is the figure dropped on the grass next to him, clutching his own canteen and waybread.

"Elros!"

"Elrond! By Ulmo, you're alright!"

"I am, just a bit bruised from the horse. You?"

"Here's something for your healer's notes: do not put people with hangovers upside down for hours. I must have thrown up a dozen times."

"That's terrible! Maybe we can ask-"

At that point the guard tells them to hurry up, they'll be taken to where they're sleeping in ten minutes regardless of how much dinner they've had. Elrond and Elros focus on eating.

They are not, apparently, going to be sleeping near each other. "Too much chance to plot."

The Feanorian soldiers have tents. Some of them share, some of them have their own. A few soldiers have tents obviously designed for two or three that they go into alone.

The horses stolen from Sirion are tied to a picket line. It's loped through the reins, but one person untying the end would let all the horses scatter.

The horses the Feanorians rode into town on are not tied at all. They are loyal old warhorses, and will not flee from orcs in the distance. If wolves do sneak past the guards into the camp, better for the horses to run, and come back at their masters' call when the danger is passed.

Elrond, by contrast, is tied to a tree trunk. His hands are tied in front of him rather than behind, and his legs are unbound. Maedhros's brother - and Elrond learned from a careless remark that their is only the one left - even tossed a blanket over Elrond's legs, to guard against the chill of the night air.

It is the most freedom of movement Elrond has had all day, but that's saying little.

He is stuck sitting up, feeling every root and rock underneath him, unable to reach his hands back to where the rope is tied behind the tree.

Elrond sleeps poorly, stirring at every noise, whether it's a guard on their rounds or an owl hooting its warning.

In the morning, Elrond is given a breakfast of water and waybread again.

Maedhros says "You know it would be suicidal to flee, alone in the wilderness, yes?" and lets Elrond ride behind him sitting up.

Elrond's hands are still bound, and a rope leads passed Maedhros to the saddle horn. If he fell off, he better hope he can keep pace with a cantering horse, or else be dragged on the ground.

Elrond stays on the horse. He figures out his balance well enough to turn, and sees Elros riding similarly.

Thing continue like this for over a week, until they reach Amon Ereb.

[harringtonstilinski]

Always The Babysitter - Chapter Twenty-Nine: Dear Billy

Author: @harringtonstilinski​ Characters: Steve Harrington x Olivia Henderson(OC) Word Count:  Warnings: fluff, angst, olivia being olivia, Smut: no | yes; 18+ MINORS DNI: shower sex; unprotected m+f (pls wrap it), A/N: Hi, friends! If you like this chapter, please do not hesitate to reblog and give some feedback, whether it be in the reblogs, comments, or my inbox. As always, read at your own risk and enjoy 😊

prev | current chapter | next

season masterlist

series masterlist

series playlist 

I was shaking Max, trying to get her out of whatever trance she was in for a few seconds before she came back to us, telling us about a grandfather clock embedded in a wall down the hall.

Steve, Dustin, and myself followed her while Robin and Nancy met us to where she was talking about. Disbelief with tears laced her in voice, she said, “It was here. Right here.”

“A grandfather clock?” Nancy asked, incredulously.

Max nodded her head as I rolled my eyes and turned to Nancy asking, “Do you believe anything anymore? I mean, this is serious shit. Just like Will disappearing, just like the Demodogs and the Gate, and just like the Mind Flayer and the Russians.”

“I’m not saying I don’t–”

“Well, you’re as shit acting like it, Nance.”

“It was so real,” Max said, bringing us back to the situation at hand. “And then, when I got closer, suddenly I just… I woke up.”

“It was like she was in a… trance or something,” Dustin said. “Exactly what Eddie said happened to Chrissy.”

Max turned around to face us, fear in her eyes. “That’s not even the bad part.” She led us back to Ms. Kelley’s office, telling us, “Fred and Chrissy, they both came to Ms. Kelley for help. Uh, they both were having headaches, bad headaches that just wouldn’t go away. And then… then the nightmares…”

I moved from my spot by Steve to stand next to Max, putting my hands on her shoulders for comfort as she continued, “Trouble sleeping. They’d wake up in a cold sweat. And then they started seeing things. Bad things. From their pasts. And these visions, they just… they kept on getting worse and worse until eventually… everything ended.”

Looking at Dustin, I sighed, “Vecna’s Curse.”

 “Chrissy’s headache started a week ago,” Max said. “Fred six days ago.”

“Yours?” I asked.

She turned her head towards me a little, saying, “I’ve been having them for five days. I don’t know how long I have. All I know is that… for Fred and Chrissy… they both died less than 24 hours after their first vision. And I just saw that goddamn clock, so… looks like I’m gonna die tomorrow.”

“No,” I said. “You’re not fucking dying. I’ll make sure of that myself. If he’s coming after kids with trauma, then fuck it, I’ve got tons.”

“Liv, no,” she said, eyes locking on mine. “I can’t let you do that.”

“Watch me.”

A loud clang sounded, scaring all of us to the point our skeletons might’ve jumped out of our skins. Steve looked around at everyone before his eyes landed on mine.

“Stay here,” he said, walking off.

“The fuck?” I said, moving to walk behind him. “No way. I’ve never stayed put.”

He grabbed a lamp, sighing as he did while pulling it from the wall. “Just stay behind me.”

Steve walked into the hallway a few feet before I walked behind him, giving a good bit of distance between us just in case I needed to turn tail and run. A few seconds later, I heard Nancy’s heels clap on the ground and I rolled my eyes, knowing her, Robin, Dustin and Max all followed.

More clattering and footsteps sounded down the hall to our left. Steve raised the lamp like a bat before a figure emerged. Steve went to swing at who or whatever it was, but a light on the figure showed that it was Lucas.

We all screamed for different reasons as Steve raised the lamp a little more before lowering it. 

“It’s me!” Lucas yelled.

“Lucas?” Nancy asked.

“It’s me!”

As I held my chest, Steve and I said in unison, “Jesus, what’s wrong with you, Sinclair?!”

“I’m sorry.”

“I could’ve taken you out with this lamp,” Steve said. I said the same but instead of saying I , I said he.

Steve turned around to face us, eyes our meeting before he held his arm out to me. I gladly walked to him, taking deep breaths.

Panting out his words, Lucas said, nonchalantly, “Sorry, guys. Sorry. I was… I was biking for eight miles.” Holding a finger out to us, he turned to his right a little, saying, “Give me a second. Shit. We’ve got a code red.”

“What?” Steve asked, pulling me tighter into his hold.

Lucas looked at Dustin, walking towards him saying his name. When he reached my brother, he said, “I’ve been with Jason, Patrick and Andy, and they’ve gone, like, totally off the rails. They’re trying to capture Eddie.”

“What?!” I said, turning Steve and I to face Dustin and Lucas.

Turning his body a little bit towards us, Lucas said, “But they think Dustin knows where Eddie is.” Turning back to Dustin, he added, “You’re in terrible danger.”

“That little fucker has to get passed me first,” I said, anger rising in me.

“Liv, calm down,” Dustin said. “Lucas, that definitely sucks, but we’ve got bigger problems than Jason right now.”

We looked at Max, and I could tell Lucas was, too, because her eyes went from his to the floor. 

~~~

Steve and I ended up taking Dustin and Lucas home, while Nancy took Robin and Max home. I went back to Steve’s house, where we showered with a little bit… sexy time.

“Fuck, Steve,” I whispered, breaths heavy. “Fuck, you feel good.”

He groaned, hand on the wall beside my head. “You feel fucking incredible. I don’t think I’ll last much longer.”

“Cum for me, Steve.” I threaded my fingers through his wet hair the best I could. “Cum, Stevie.”

“You first,” he said, bringing his fingers down from his hold on my hip to my clit, rubbing in small gentle circles. 

Moaning, I rested the back of my head on the wall, my hands falling from Steve’s hair to his neck, trying to find anything to rest my hands on. “Oh, my god, I’m cumming.” I only announced it once before my back arched off the wall in a deep and loud moan, Steve releasing about a second later.

He kissed me, long and sweet before gently pulling out, our mixed cum sliding out of me and onto the shower floor. I watched it run and fall to the drain, feeling Steve’s hands on my hips once more.

Pulling my attention back to him, I locked my eyes with his, seeing borderline exhaustion lacing his features. “Let’s get cleaned up and dressed for bed, and maybe I’ll read to you.”

He chuckled lightly, nodding his head. “Sounds good, baby.” He took my body wash, lathering it in a wash cloth before gently scrubbing at my body, washing away all of the dirt and grime from the day.

My hair didn’t need to be washed, so I had thrown it into a bun before we stepped in. It got a little wet, but it was all good. I didn’t mind.

When Steve was done with my body and I was rinsed off, I took his body wash and returned the favor, washing away his dirt and grime, the water rinsing it off once I was done.

We got out of the shower, wiping the towels over our bodies, before wrapping them around ourselves before moving to his bedroom to put on our pajamas. Crawling into bed, I kept my promise, grabbing my book and getting into our favorite position; us on our backs, my head resting on his shoulder.

I read until I fell asleep, waking up curled into Steve on my right side while was on his left side, arms around me. I went to move, feeling his arms tighten around me, a small groggy groan coming from him.

“Don’t move,” he groaned. “This is very comfortable.”

I chuckled, moving my head to look up at him, getting a really good look at his chin. “We have to. Gotta get Dusty and head to the Wheeler’s, remember?”

He groaned again, that sound letting me know he didn’t want to, but knew he had to. He rolled on his back, taking me with him, a laugh bubbling out of my throat. 

“Steve,” I giggled. “Let me go. We have to get dressed and head out. Do you really want Nancy calling here and yelling at us?”

“You have a very good point,” he said, sitting up. 

I was cradled in his arms, like a baby, smiling up at him. Touching his bottom lip with my fingers, I sighed. “I love you.”

He smiled back at me, leaning to press a kiss to my lips before we got off the bed, moving around in each other like a choreographed dance; him in the closet first to pick his outfit while I went into the bathroom to brush my hair and teeth before we switched rooms. 

Once I was dressed and had my light makeup on, we went downstairs to get a quick breakfast before heading out of the house and to his car, making our way to the Wheeler’s house.

~~~

I was looking at the latest edition of Cosmo, sitting in a chair with my legs over the right arm of the chair in the Wheeler basement while everyone else was reading about the Creel House and Victor Creel and all that Nancy and Robin read about at the library the night before.

Steve groaned, pacing in front of me. “Okay, be honest. Uh…”

“That shirt and those jeans–” I said, the chef's kiss at the end of my sentence. “Di-fucking-vine.”

“Uhm, thanks, and no,” he said. “Do you guys understand any of this?”

“No,” Lucas said.

“Pretty straightforward,” Dustin added.

“Yes, I am sexy, thank you,” I said, more to myself, nose still in the magazine.

“Oh, straightforward, really?” Steve said, stopping in front me for a moment then began his pacing again.

“Well, what’s confusing to you?” Dustin asked. “So far, everyone that Vecna has cursed has died, except for this old Victor Creel dude Nancy found. He’s the only known survivor. If anyone knows how to beat this curse, it’s him.”

“Yeah, that’s assuming that he was cursed, Henderson, which we don’t even know,” Steve said. He sighed, reaching up to rub his forehead. “How can Vecna have existed in the 50's? It doesn’t make sense.”

“As far as we know, Eleven didn’t create the Upside Down.”

“She opened a gate to it,” I said, flipping a page of the magazine.

“Yeah,” Dustin agreed. “The Upside Down has probably been around for thousands of years. Millions.”

“You wouldn’t be surprised if it predated dinosaurs,” I said, sighing.

“Liv, dinosaurs?” Steve asked.  “What are we–”

“Okay,” Lucas said. “Okay, but if a gate didn’t exist in the 50’s, how did Vecna get through?”

“Oh, and how’s he getting through now?” Steve added.

“And why now?”

“Oh, and why then? Just pops out in the 50’s, kills one family, and he’s like – pffff – hey, I’m good. And poof, he just disappears. Just… gone? Only to return 30 years later and start killing some random teens? Nah, I don’t buy it.” He breathed deep, turning to face me, tapping my legs. 

I got up as he said, “Straightforward, my ass,” before turning to Dustin for a moment. “And ya’know what? Honestly, Henderson, a little humility now and then, it wouldn’t hurt you.”

“Sorry,” Dustin said, looking down.

Steve sat down in the chair I was previously occupying, pulling me down to sit back the position I was in, his left arm around the middle of my back, his right arm draped across my thighs. I watched as he looked at Dustin, giving him a look that said you better be.

He looked me in the eyes before I rolled mine, going back to my magazine. “You’re the worst, ya’know that?”

A few seconds later, Dustin asked, “Any idea what she’s writing?”

I turned my head to look at the back of Max’s, watching her arm move slightly. “I wonder if she slept any.”

“I mean,” Lucas said. “Would you, Liv?”

A door opening had me jumping out of my skin as heels sounded on the staircase, Nancy and Robin showing up not long after.

“Okay, so,” Nancy said, glancing at Robin, both girls sighing. “We have a plan.”

I set the magazine down in my lap as Robin all but shoved a brown folder into my hands, Nancy doing the same with Dustin. The two girls sat down across from how I was sitting, Steve and I looking into the folder Robin gave to us before she said, “Thanks to Nancy’s newspaper minions, we are now rock-star psychology students at the University of Notre Dame.”

“I’m now Ruth,” Nancy sighed.

“And I’m Rose.”

“Ruth?” Steve asked, looking at Nancy.

“You don’t look like a Rose to me,” I said, eyes on Robin. 

“Nice GPA,” Dustin said, looking at Nancy.

I rolled my eyes, looking back at Robin’s file once again, reading over every word on the page.

“Thanks,” Nancy said. Addressing the rest of the group, she said, “So, we called Pennhurst Asylum, told them we’d like to speak with Victor Creel for a thesis we’re co-writing on paranoid schizophrenics–”

“To which they said no,” Robin said, eyes on mine for a moment as I passed the folder back to her to look at Nancy’s.

“But we landed a three o’clock with the director,” Nancy said. 

“Now all we have to do is charm him and convince him to let us talk to Victor,” Robin added. 

“And then maybe we can rid Max of this curse.”

“Yeah, uh, about that,” Steve said. “We’ve been doing our Victor Creel homework, and, uh…”

“We’ve got questions,” I said, tossing the magazine I’d previously been reading on the table next to me.

“Lots of questions,” Lucas said. 

“So do we,” Nancy said. “Hopefully, Victor has the answers.”

“Wait, wait, wait, wait a second, uh…” Steve said, looking up from one of the brown folders that I’m assuming was Robin’s. “Where’s mine?”

“Excuse me?” I asked. “What do you mean, where’s mine?”

Nancy got up, not wanting to touch on the subject, but Steve just tapped my legs before getting right up, almost tossing me to the floor as he followed Nancy up the stairs, saying her name over and over again.

Robin helped me up before we both made our way up the stairs to the kitchen before ascending the stairs to Nancy’s room. We got there just as Steve said, “I know, but why does it always have to be me?”

“Oh, my god, you have a Tom Cruise poster,” Robin said, a little too excitedly as she walked to it. “You have a Tom Cruise poster.”

I chuckled at her amused tone, covering my mouth with my hand. Feeling a hand on my elbow, I let Steve guide me to stand beside him, his arm around my shoulders. I love that no matter where we are, who we’re with, he always has his arm wrapped around me in an almost protective way.

Looking back and forth from her closet to Robin back to her closet, Nancy said, “That’s… old. It’s just–”

Robin’s laugh had me laughing, her amusement amusing me as she went through Nancy’s things.

“Can you please not touch anything?” Nancy asked, annoyed.

“I can’t do anything here, Nance,” Steve said. He had moved to pace while I watched Robin in more amusement than I have in months… and I work with her. Steve continued his words, “Maybe I can be helpful with his asylum director dude. I don’t know, I could turn on my, like,–” Weird sounds coming from his mouth that I can’t describe. “My charm.”

“Not the kind of charm we need,” Nancy said, sticking her head from behind her closet door.

“It’s the kind of charm I need,” I said, the tiniest bit seductively. 

“Liv, are you horny?” Robin asked, still looking at Nancy’s things.

I thought about it for a second before saying, “A little bit.”

She chuckled before picking up Nance’s music box, opening as Nancy said, “If we’re gonna win him over, we’re gonna have to convince him that we are, too. That like him… we are true academic scholars.”

“Oh, that’s right up your alley,” I sarcastically said, wrapping my arms around Steve’s middle.

“Holy shit,” Robin whispered. “There’s a little ballerina in here.” She bit her bottom lip and I snorted, still amused by her actions.

“Academic scholar?” Steve asked. “She’s giving you an academic scholar vibe? Yeah.”

“Damn,” I said, looking up at Steve’s profile. “You’re hot when you say academic scholar.”

“Liv, calm down,” Nancy said. “Steve, to answer your question; no, but… she will.” She brought out a very girly pink top and a skirt to go with it.

Robin looked at Nancy, giving her a fearful look. “Oh, please, tell me that you’re joking.”

Nancy put her arms out, giving Robin a smile. I looked at her, grimacing, “No, I don’t think she is.”

~~~

Steve and I went back down to the basement where he, Dustin and Lucas sat on the couch while I paced the width of the basement, arms crossed.

“Stop pacing,” Dustin groaned.

“No,” I said.

“Babe,” Steve said.

I stopped my pacing for a moment to look at Steve, a brow raised, saying, “Steven,” before continuing my steps.

A few moments later, I heard Max say, “I know you guys are staring at me.”

“What, sorry?” Steve said, all three of them pretending to do something.

“You said you needed something?” Lucas asked.

Throwing a ball into the air, Steve said, “Just hanging out.” What I wouldn’t give to lick that neck of his.

“How you think your eyes boring into the back of her head is protecting her from Vecna, I don’t know,” I said. I watched Max get up from her seat, walking over to the boys, standing at the table.

“You can look at me now,” she said. 

“Thank you,” Dustin said. “Sorry.” Steve and Lucas also said their sorries as I walked a little closer to them as she started handing them envelopes.

She turned to face me, reluctantly handing me one, too. “Oh, uhm, give these to Mike, El and Will.”

I took the four envelopes from her hand before she turned around, telling the boys, “What are you doing? No, don’t. That’s not for now. Don’t open it now.”

“I’m sorry, what is this?” Dustin asked.

“It’s, uhm…” Max said, looking down for a moment. “It’s a fail-safe. For after. If things don’t work out.”

“Whoa, hey, wait a second,” I said, stepping up to her side, putting my hands on her shoulders. “Things are gonna work out.”

“No!” she said. “Liv, I love you, but I really don’t need you to reassure me right now and tell me it’s all gonna work out. Because people have been telling me that my entire life and it’s almost never true. It’s never true.”

I sighed. “I’m sorry.”

“I mean, of course, this asshole curses me,” she continued. “Should’ve seen that one coming.”

“Then he should come after me,” I said. “I’m not having symptoms but… I mean, if it should be between you and I, I’d rather it be me.”

She looked past me after she took a deep breath, going to the table and picking up the walkie talkie. “If we go to East Hawkins, will this reach Pennhurst?”

“Of course,” Dustin said.

“Wait,” Steve said. “Wait, wait. Why are we talking about East Hawkins?”

All four of us looked at Steve, our eyes locking for a moment before he said, “No. No. No!”

Without taking those no’s for an answer, Max zipped up her jacket before grabbing her backpack, walking out of the basement door, the boys and I putting our own jackets on, following her out.

“Max,” I said. “Max! Hey, kiddo. Seriously?”

“I’m not joking,” Steve said. “I’m not driving you anywhere.”

“Steve, if you think I’m going to spend what is likely the last day of my life in the armpit of what is Mike Wheeler’s basement, then you’re out of your mind,” Max said. “So, either take me where I need to go or you’re gonna have to tie me down which is technically kidnapping of a minor. And if I live to see another day, Steve, I swear to god, I will prosecute.” She reached for the back driver door, pulling the handle to open it before looking at Steve, and saying, “Open the door.” Steve looked from Max to me and back to Max, saying, “Uhh, no.”

“I know a good lawyer.”

“Oh, shit,” I said, a smile on my face that tried to hide with my hand.

They had a staring contest before he scoffed, taking his keys from his pocket and looking at Dustin, saying, “Henderson, that super walkie of yours better reach Pennhurst.”

We got in the car, Max standing outside for a moment before she got in.

~~~

I turned on the radio as we drove, finding a station that played decent music before I landed on one that I knew played some of my favorite music. I sang along to Hard Feelings by Al Kerbey, my feet on the dashboard, knees bent.

“You talk a lot, but you don’t say much In the things you do,” I sang, tapping the beat of the song on the sides of my calves, bopping my head as I did. “You're always right, in all our fights Because no one else can shut you down Or turn you around, you should see yourself.”

Steve parked the car and shut it off, and it was just then that I noticed we were at Max’s place. Placing my feet back on the floorboard, I turned to face the teens in the back as Steve said, “Alright, this better be fast, Mayfield.”

“Twenty seconds,” she said, getting out of the car and shutting the door.

I looked at Dustin and then his walkie. “That has batteries in there, correct?”

Sighing, he closed his eyes. “I’m not even answering that question.” It was my turn to sigh, but with more irritation. 

“Yes, it has batteries in it.”

“Okay, I was just checking.”

After about a minute had passed, I started to get worried about Max, so I got out of the car, sitting on the hood with my knees bent, fingers at my bottom lip. Dustin stood next to me, as I heard Steve’s door open, but not close, just like the back passenger door.

Max came around the corner, fear on her face and her eyes red. I slid off the hood just as Steve said, “Hey, that was longer than 20 seconds.”

I followed her to the back of the car, saying as she got in, “Max, honey, are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she said, opening the door. “Steve, just drive.”

Rushing to my side just as Steve started his car, I couldn’t help but think about what caused her to be so upset. I got in just before Steve backed up and out of the trailer park. Turning to face Max, I asked, “Did something happen?”

“Can we please just go?” she asked.

“Max, we’re moving.” She didn’t say anything else, just looked out the window, so I just turned back around in my seat, letting out a deep breath.

~~~

We drove for what felt like hours as Max gave Steve directions to where she wanted to go next. I had leaned over on the window, Steve’s hand on my thigh where it belonged as I closed my eyes for a moment. Max’s voice telling Steve to turn where she needed brought me out of my sleep.

“Here?” Dustin asked, silence being his answer.

I looked to my left as Steve turned, seeing the sign for Roane Hill Cemetery, and that’s when I put the pieces together. Sitting up a little, I turned my head to look at her, silently asking, “Is this–” She immediately answered with a small head nod, my eyes downcasting, not really looking at anything in particular before turning back in my seat, Steve’s hand off my thigh so he can drive properly and safely.

Steve stopped where she asked him to, her and Lucas getting out of the car. Since Steve had his window down, I could hear a little bit of their conversation. 

The other words I was able to hear was Lucas asking Max why she keeps pushing him away, telling her that he doesn’t need or want the letter and that she knows she can talk to him and us three sitting in this car.

She walked away after a few seconds, Lucas coming back to the car after watching her retreat from him. He stood there for a moment before coming back around the car, sitting in the backseat with Dustin.

After a few minutes, I leaned my back against the door, reaching my legs across Steve’s lap, his right hand resting on my calves, his left resting on the door with the window down. Lucas and Dustin had gotten out of the car; Lucas sitting on the hood while Dustin basically stood behind me.

I watched Steve’s finger tap where it rested, looking out towards Max. He checked his watch before tapping my legs. I pulled them back as he got out and said, “Alright, it’s been long enough.”

I got out, almost knocking Dustin over, giving my apologies while helping him stand back up right. 

“Steve, just give her some time,” Lucas said. 

“I have, alright, Sinclair,” Steve replied, turning to face Lucas. “I’m calling it. She wants to get a lawyer, she can.”

I sighed as he turned back around, walking up the small hill towards Max as I sighed, looking between my brother and his best friend. “Of course he says that. He can pay for it. Well… his parents can.”

Around 15 seconds goes by before I’m on alert, hearing Steve telling her to wake up, clapping his hands and repeating the word hey. “Max, wake up! Max! Wake up!”

I took a couple steps forward, shaking my head slightly before Lucas and I both said, “Oh, something’s wrong.”

Steve quickly glanced at us, saying, “Guys!” before myself, Lucas and Dustin all hightailed it up the hill to Billy’s grave, where Max sat, eyes reddish pink, looking up, her eyelids fluttering.

“Shit, shit, shit,” I said, sliding onto my knees as best I could. “She’s in a trance. Max, wake up! Get out of there! Fight, Max! Come on! Wake up!”

The boys were all basically yelling the same thing I was, my hands on her cheeks as she was trapped in this trance.

“Call Nancy and Robin!” Steve exclaimed. “Go get ‘em! Call Nancy and Robin! Go!”

With my breathing starting to pick up, I looked to my left, watching as Dustin ran his way back down the hill to Steve’s car. Turning back to Max, tears filled my eyes, thinking this is the last time I’m going to see her. “Max, wake the fuck up! Get out of there! You gotta wake up! Come on!”

Dustin came running back to us, Max’s walkman and a bunch of cassettes in his hands. “Guys!”

“What is this?” Lucas asked after Dustin put the tapes down.

“Her song!” Dustin said. “What’s her favorite song?”

“Why? Why?”

“Robin said if she listens– it’s too much to explain right now.”

“Wait, if she listens to her favorite song, she’ll be pulled out? She’ll wake up?” I asked, right hand still on Max’s cheek.

“Precisely.”

“Then what the fuck are you waiting for?! Put the tape in!”

“What’s. Her favorite. Song?” Dustin enunciated.

“Uhh…” I said, trying to think. The song she constantly listened to started running through my head as I closed my eyes, silently muttering the words to myself, “Running up that road, running that hill, running that building.” Looking at the tapes, I said, “Kate Bush! Get that Kate Bush song!”

They found the tape, put it into the player, her headphones being brought into my line of vision. I took them from Dustin, placing them on her ears before turning to Lucas, saying, “Hit fucking play!”

Lucas hit the play button, Kate Bush’s voice faintly coming through the speakers resting on Max’s ears, all of us once again encouraging her to wake up and to get herself out of the trance she’s in. We all went quiet for a moment before her body started lifting up off the ground.

I backed up as much as I could, my hands on the ground behind me, ass and feet flat on the ground, legs bent at the knee as I stared at Max floating in the air. The higher she went, the quicker I got to my feet, yelling her name, the boys doing the same.

Tears quickly filled my eyes as the desperation in my voice grew bigger and bigger with each passing second before she fell to the ground, whimpering with fear as we all squatted down beside her, all of us saying her name again.

I set my hand on her knee as she started to hyperventilate, her and Lucas clinging to each other as I reassured her, “Max, it’s okay, you’re okay, you’re safe.”

“I thought we lost you,” Lucas said, throat tight with tears.

“I’m still… I’m still here,” she replied.

“Holy fucking shit,” I breathed, feeling a hand on my back.

“I’m still here,” she said, her breathing slowing.

I sighed, turning my head to face Steve, curling into his side the best I could with how we were sitting.

A tear fell from my eye as I looked at Dustin, feeling absolute devastation at the thought of losing him, and how stir crazy Mom would be. Then I looked back at Steve, the tears starting to flow as those same thoughts turned to him.

I don’t know what I would do if it was him that was cursed by Vecna. Scratch that. I know exactly what I would do; go into the Upside Down and kill that spell casting motherfucker.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

prev | current chapter | next

season masterlist

series masterlist

series playlist 

~~~

A/N 2:  hi, friends! pls be kind and reblog! it really helps us content creators out <3

Additional Note:

~~~

Forever / Everything Taglist: @stiles-o-dylan24​​ @stixnstripesworld​ @fandom-princess-forevermore​​​ @quanticobae​​​ @mischiefandi​​​ @kellyashcroft @lauren-novak​​​​

Steve Harrington Taglist: @madaboutjoe

If you’re tagged and didn’t want to be, please let me know.

~~~

*Please don’t post my writing anywhere else without my consent. The author of this work will always and forever be @harringtonstilinski​.

All characters, story lines, and plot aside from y/n and her storyline & plot, are all of the work of The Duffer Brothers.

*These works contain material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited.

No part of these works may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher.

Posted on May 14, 2024

[ifimdreaming]

Can you do something with Nolan Moyle ?

blurb!

im drunk

nolan moyle x reader

summary: you get very drunk and call nolan to come and pick you up (cw: mentions of throwing up, and drinking obviously)

authors note: this is not edited whtasoever its 3am rip

word count: 1.1k

-

It had been such a long time since youve gone out on a friday night and you were not about to leave because your friends decided to abandon you before midnight.

the club was starting to get busier and you were starting to forget how many drinks youve actually had by now. Just being able to dance with strangers and not worry about school or work or anything else was actually such a relief

After dancing to song after song by yourself, you squeezed your way off the dance floor to grab a seat at the bar. You were feeling a lot drunker than you normally would get and suddenly everything was catching up to you. You hadnt even found a seat at the bar yet before you begin tripping over your feet. you stumble slightly, and feel someone grab your arm as you almost reach the ground

“woah, you ok sexy?” an unfamilair voice says as you feel a hand placed against your back. This is exactly why you hated going out without nolan

“um. Im fine. thanks” you say shortly, trying not to let him get the wrong idea.

“yeah? you need another drink?” the tall blonde says and the hand he placed on your back begins moving lower and lower

“yeah no thanks. Im actually going to find my boyfriend” you lie, ripping his hand off of you as you run off quickly. and youre just silently praying you dont fall on your way down the long dark hallway to the bathroom

Being alone in the bathroom with the sounds of music and people now distantly murmuring in the background made you feel suddenly very vulnerable. The realization that you were in a crowded bar, alone, and you hadnt even told nolan you were going out tonight was fianlly hitting you. so you decide to give him a call

“Hello?”

“Nolaan? H-hiii”

“Hello? …Wher-” he starts and you cut him off, knowing hes probably about to ask a million questions just from hearing your inebriated voice. And honestly, rightfully so 

“I-im at the club! Im. im d-drunk” you say, “some guy cuaght me b-but im ok. Its ok”

“What? Where are you?”

“Um im. Imhere im just. Im drunk”

“Ok. just send me the address and ill come get you. Can you do that?”

If your mind was in its normal state you would be thanking god for how sweet of a boyfriend nolan is in this moment. But alas the alcohol is taking over and almost everything he is saying is flying over your head

“Where are you?” you say, forgetting you were in fact on the phone, and nolan wasnt at the bar with you.

“Im getting in my car. I have your location so im coming to get you alright?  Just please dont drink anymore, Ill be there in like ten minutes” he says and just the mention of alcohol makes you feel suddenly extremely sick to your stomahc 

You run into the bathroom stall, throwing up probably more than half of what you drank tonight.  nolans voice quietly echos through your phone that is now sitting on the grimy bathroom floor

“you there? What happened?” he asks worriedly

“i t-threw up” you say remorsfully. Suddenly your dizziness is gone, but an instant headache follows

“Yeah i thought so” “just try to relax ok? Im almost there just dont hang up the phone so i can find you”

-

“Nolaan?” “are you there?” you ask after just silently sitting on the phone while he is on his way to get you 

“Im here. Are you in the bathroom?”

“I-im. the toilet…”

“Ok just gimme a minute” he says and hangs up the phone, worrying you

Not even ten seconds later the bathroom door swings open and you see nolans feet from underneath th stall door

You push open the stall excitedly as he walks towards you, lifting you up slowly from your crouched positon beside the toilet.

“Hiiiii” you say with a giggle

“Hey baby. You ready to go?”

“S-sorry i got drunk… im...” you start, but are too tired to continue. You droop your head slightly against nolans shoulder as he maneuvers your arm around his neck, helping you walk out to his car

“Lets head home ok? And we can talk about what the hell happened in the morning…” he says with a laugh, shaking his head

“C-can we go home?”

“Yes baby.. I just said that” he says, unlocking his car and opening th epassengers side door. He is being as gentle as possible as he helps you into the car

nolan always looked insanely attractive when he was concerned. his eyebrows are slightly furrowed and his lips pursed as he buckles your seat belt for you, and you just watch him intently as he takes  care of you

“Hi” he says to you after noticing you just staring intently at him without a word

“can i have a kiss?” you ask keenly and face wrinkles as  a smile grows on his lips

He takes your face in his hands an dplaces a loving kiss against your forehead, and then squishes your cheeks in his hands

you wiggle your face out of his hands, “i meant on the lips..” you say with an exaggerated frown and pouted bottom lip

“Oh did you now?” nolan smiles and grabs your waist in one hand, stroking your hair softly with the other as you close your eyes in anticipation. he leans in towards you leisurely before moving his head to the side, blowing a wet raspberry against your cheek

 He giggles at your disgust and closes the car door, retreating to the drivers side.

“You have to admit that was pretty funny” nolan says, looking over to see you with your arms crossed over your chest, dramatically protesting his actions

“Im not talking to you!” you look over to your boyfriend as he drives you both home 

“Youre talking to me right now..” he says cleverly. Undeniably winning this feigned argument

“Then i, well you- then you dont talk to me then” you say,  nolans eyebrows contort as he hides a smirk and youve confused even yourslef with that sentence

“ok …lets just get you home baby..’ he says with a laugh and you huff in response

nolan places his right hand on your thigh as he drives, his strokes on your leg alleviating the annoyance of your dizzy mind and aching stomach

You place your hand over his and sink deeper into the passengers seat, basking in contentment as your drunken tiredness takes over

-

-

[tildeathiwillwrite]

Whumpuary Day 7

Whumpuary Masterpost

Prompts List

Prompts: unfair fight | insomnia | "no one is coming"

Fandom: Original Work

Words: 1000

Tag List: (message me to be added or removed) @fourwingedsnake @whumperofworlds @pigeonwhumps @mr-orion @scaewolf

@the-ellia-west

CW: captivity whump, dragged, headache, swearing, manhandling, thrown, blunt force injury, shoulder injury, lady whump

<- previous | next ->

----------

Twenty-four hours earlier….

The first thing that went through Jas’s head when she was dragged into the lower levels of her captors’ headquarters was how cliche everything looked. Dark stone bricks, metal doors, iron chains… the only things not straight out of a medieval castle dungeon were the lights, and even they were dim and flickering. Her guards were very out of place in their modern—at least by her standards—uniforms.

Four guards escorted her. The group included Jas herself, who refused to walk no matter how many times the guards tried to force her, two guards, one for each hand, a guard leading the way, and a guard behind her. Her shoes dragged on the floor, making a constant scraping noise.

Her head throbbed, the result of a scathing remark regarding the guards’ mothers. And she was guaranteed bruises all over her arms and legs during the initial scuffle ending in her current predicament. Of course, she could be worse off. At least two of her captors had newly broken noses, and with any luck, another three were still on the floor.

For how similar this planet was to her own, this dungeon was certainly low-tech.

“Did you steal this dungeon from a castle or something?” Jas asked, peering into an open cell door as they passed. It contained a wooden bench and iron manacles chained to the floor.

Everyone ignored her.

“Your uniforms suck, by the way. Sure, some of you have fire powers, but scarves? Really? They only kinda cover your face. Also the impressionist fire dye job is tacky.”

The two holding her were getting visibly annoyed now. The only reason they weren’t yelling at her again was likely because their squad leader, the one at the front of the group, had ordered them not to engage unless she tried to escape.

“Which room is mine? I hope it has a good view. Last prison cell I was in didn’t have a window. Which, where I’m from, violates a bunch of building codes and shit.” Jas was rambling, but she didn’t really care. Anything to piss off the people who decided it was a good idea to kidnap her.

The leader suddenly held up a hand, forcing the group to a stop in the middle of the hallway. He turned around to face her, and Jas grinned at the look on his face, even if half of it was obscured.

“On your feet,” he ordered.

“I’d rather be dragged, thanks.”

He exhaled sharply, and before she could blink he rushed forward, grabbing her by the collar of her flannel. The guards holding her arms let go, but they stayed on either side of her. The leader hissed through his teeth and lifted her until her feet dangled, barely touching the ground. She wasn’t particularly tall, but she had to respect the strength to accomplish such a feat with only one arm.

“You have no power here, foreigner,” he snarled.

Jas raised her eyebrows. “That’s racist.”

“I don’t give a damn. You will obey, or you will be punished.”

“In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t give a damn either.” The seams of the flannel dug into her underarms, and the cloth was making that squeaking sound it made when the fabric was being stretched too far. She looked him in the eye, and her smile vanished. “Whatever it is you want, you won’t get it from me. You can’t hurt me in any way that matters.”

For a moment, everything was still.

And he hurled her against the wall.

Her left shoulder hit the hard stone first, wrenching it painfully. She cried out, sliding to the floor, her right hand clutching at the injured arm. It didn’t feel broken or dislocated, but each movement sent waves of fire across her nerves.

“Such arrogance,” the leader hissed, standing over her. “Do you think you can escape from here? That you can be rescued? This place is impenetrable. No one is coming for you.”

Jas inhaled deeply, trying to regulate her heartbeat. Then she let out a harsh laugh, which jostled her shoulder painfully and turned it into more of a groan. “You,” she stated, “have no idea who you’re dealing with.”

He scoffed and waved his hand. The guards snapped into motion, grabbing both arms and hauling her upright. The one who took her injured arm treated her no more gently than before, and stars danced before her eyes.

“...fuck…” she mumbled, trying to focus on her breathing as they resumed dragging her down the hall. 

They didn’t go much further, as the group soon stopped again, this time in front of one of the open cell doors. The leader motioned silently, and the guards deposited her inside the cell, dropping her unceremoniously on the floor. Pain shooting through her injured arm, Jas pushed herself to a sitting position and flashed her middle finger at the group right before the door slammed shut.

“...asshole,” she muttered, taking in her new surroundings.

The cell was almost identical to the one she’d seen earlier, this one didn’t have the manacles chained to the wall. It did have iron rings cemented into one of the bricks, as if chains were intended to be there but had been removed.

Jas probed her shoulder, thinking. These people had found her and Killian rather quickly, only a few hours after exiting the portal. Could just be luck, and they were already looking for someone to catch and punish and she was nearby. Or perhaps they had been standing out too much and here that was a punishable offense or something. Not too far-fetched.

She didn’t want to think about the last possibility, that they were somehow monitoring interplanetary travel and arresting Jumpers.

Which meant that they knew she was from a different planet.

Which meant they at least suspected she had some sort of ability unique to her home planet.

Which they might try to exploit.

Jas exhaled slowly and stretched out on the cold stone floor. The pain in her shoulder was beginning to subside; that was going to be a bad bruise. From what she had seen of the fortress where her captors had taken her, they had no defenses against dreamshapers. No black glass to speak of, unless it was somehow mixed into the concrete or set into the doors. So if they knew about Jumpers, they hadn’t had contact with Somnia yet.

This didn't necessarily mean that nothing existed in the dream here. Jas had met quite a few people and creatures who dwelt in the dream on other planets, though they used different words to describe it. But if they did exist, they didn't exist in this part of the world, or they didn't interfere with the physical planet. Which, if anything, made her job easier.

She stared at the ceiling blankly. She’d been in worse situations.

But as the constant throbbing in her shoulder continued to break her focus and keep her from slipping into the dream, her frustration rose.

Killian, you better be finding a hole in their ‘impenetrable’ defenses.

[bethdutten]

“I won’t say it again, Red,” Frank snapped, slamming his hand down on Matt’s desk. “Stay the hell out of this.”

Matt sighed, fingertips massaging his temples like Frank was just a big headache he could make disappear. Like hell Frank would let it go that easily.

The door to the office opened sharply, and Frank had his gun out and facing the new guest faster than Matt could issue a warning.

It was a woman wearing a Yankees hat pulled low and a nondescript black jacket, no doubt an attempt to appear low-key. Because once Frank got a glance at her face, god damn. She was gorgeous.

Barely even registering Frank, she strode past him and tossed a manila folder on Matt’s desk. “It’s all there. Make me proud, Stevie Wonder.” She glanced at Frank, who had lowered his gun and was blatantly staring now, as she headed back out, raising an eyebrow. “Oh. Hey, Castle. Thought you were dead.”

With that, she was gone, Matt letting out an exasperated sigh as he took the folder she has left and waved it in Frank’s direction. “You’re lucky I have other things to worry about right now, Frank. But I won’t forget.”

Frank blinked. “Who the fuck was that?”

Pulling out a few papers and running his fingers over the braille, Matt’s brow furrowed as he turned his focus on the documents. “Huh? Uh, a detective I’m working with. She’s giving us information on a case.”

“Thought you hated cops.”

Matt smirked, shrugging. “Not ones that care about justice more than closing a case.”

Frank wondered if Matt was sleeping with her.

“No, we’re not together. Go for it.”

Rolling his eyes, Frank remembered once again why he hated being around Red. The bastard was way too perceptive. “Maybe I will. You can’t tell but she’s fuckin’ beautiful.”

“I can tell.”

“I don’t wanna know how,” Frank grimaced, giving Matt one last glare. “And I mean it, Murdock. Next time I won’t just be aimin’ for your shoulder.”

Matt wasn’t even paying attention as he sifted through the files, and Frank left hoping he didn’t need to deal with him again in the near future. He had bigger shit to deal with.

Like the fact he might be in love with the hot detective that just became one of the select few in the city that knew he was alive.

***

You left Matt’s office with your head down, headed towards the subway while keeping an eye out for any tails. You didn’t think you were being followed, but tonight wasn’t the usual drop-and-go.

Usually, you didn’t face the business-end of Frank Castle’s gun when you dropped off your findings to Matt’s office. It didn’t surprise you he was alive; the Punisher seemed like he would be hard to kill. It did surprise you he was back in New York.

You head footsteps behind you, and subtly checked over your shoulder.

A man with his hood up was behind you a few meters away, and you smiled softly when you recognized the sweater. You turned the corner, casually leaning against the storefront wall until the man appear.

“Hey, Frank.”

Frank wanted you to know he was following you. He could be invisible if he needed to be. But he didn’t want to scare you, either.

He took you in, slowly leaning beside you but keeping his eyes on the ground. “You, uh… don’t seem very concerned, Detective,” he said lowly.

You shrugged. “Matty defended you. If he was on your side, so am I.”

“That’s generous. You must trust him.”

“I trust his taste in clients,” you murmured, observing Frank. He looked okay— tired, maybe. Bruised and healing from a few cuts, but you wouldn’t expect anything less. “Do you need anything, Frank?”

He looked at you then, confused. He didn’t know you. You didn’t know him. He knew you were helping Matt and you were a police officer, but you didn’t seem too concerned about him being here. He didn’t even know why he followed after you, other than you were a beautiful woman who seemed to care about justice the way Matt and he did, and you spoke to him like he was a human being.

“I, um… need somewhere to stay, ma’am.”

You smiled softly, nodding. “I can help with that.”

So Frank followed you home, hoping to hell this woman wasn’t going to be his downfall. He wasn’t holding out much hope.

[thepenultimateword]

please write some fluff hero x hero as they’re trying to retire to get married and settle down 🙏🙏

tbh retirement age for hero’s must be like 30 at the latest. I don’t think they last long.

“Noooo,” Hero groaned, slapping their palms over their eyes

Other Hero paused in the middle of their dark decor, fanged mask in hand. “What?”

“You’re not hanging that in our living room!”

“How’s that any different?” Other Hero said, pointing at the candy blue cape hung on the other wall.

“It pops! Brings some warmth to the room. People like warmth not…” they made a circular wave at the dark mask, “reminders of their fading mortality.”

“Oh, right, that would be bad, we’ll just give them a headache instead.”

Hero stomped their feet together and folded their arms. “You liked it!”

“I liked it better on you.” They stepped up to their angry newlywed, tucking a piece of honied hair behind their ear. “Too big for you. So adorable and bright. It brought out your eyes.”

Their fingers trailed down their jaw.

Hero leaned in on tiptoe, noses just brushing, voice lowered to a whisper. “I don’t want the mask over the hearth.”

“Curse it!”

“But. To make it fair I’ll move the cape as well. Oh! Maybe let’s just have a show room! Dedicated to our mementos! A Hero and Other Hero collection. People would pay to see that!”

Other Hero shrugged. “They’ll forget about us soon enough.”

Hero's bright grin faded and their petite form wilted. Retirement wasn't as simple as they'd thought. It all made sense in their head; they wanted to live comfortably with Other Hero. So many times in their career they'd thought it would never happen. That one of them would meet an untimely end before they made this far. The last month had been torture. They'd probably called Other Hero's mission comm over a hundred times, checking in on them. And no, they weren't so old, but their bodies couldn't take the strain of the job anymore. They deserved to take it easy. And yet. Was that it?

They'd dedicated their life to helping this city, time, relationships, their own well-being. And it was nothing more than a blip in history. Other Hero was right. New heroes would step up to replace them and soon no one would even remember the two of them or anything they'd done.

Strong arms wrapped around their waist, and Other Hero's chin rested in the crook of the shoulder. "I'm sorry."

"Mm. Doesn't matter."

Other Hero traced the scars spattered over Hero's neck. "Yes, it does."

Hero turned around, sinking against their spouse's chest and reaching to cup their face in both hands. They roved the worn eyes, several-times-broken crooked nose, and the dark circles that still hadn't faded.

"More nightmares? You were tossing and turning last night."

"I guess I'm still getting used to not being on call."

Liar. That was one thing Hero wouldn't miss. They were going to spoil Other Hero rotten until all those inner scars faded away.

They looped their arms around Other Hero's neck. "Hey, remember when I used to sneak into your side of the agency?"

Other Hero snorted. "We got penalized at least a dozen times."

"Those dating rules were ridiculous. No relationships between departments?"

"To be fair, you were a TV hero," Other Hero said, rubbing circles into Hero's back. "You needed to be preserved. My training was to put the job above my life. They didn't want me getting attachments."

Another thing they wouldn't miss.

"I loved you from the moment I saw you." Hero grinned. "They didn't stand a chance."

The next thing they knew they were off the ground and in Other Hero's arm. "Everything is going to be ok," they murmured. "Yeah?"

Hero nodded, basking in the quiet warmth and the weight of their arms. After several moments, they said, "Should we start unpacking the kitchen? I'll make brownies. And this time we won't have to run out the door before they're done."

Other Hero kissed their forehead. "Sounds perfect."

Master Taglist:

@moss-tombstone @crazytwentythrees-deactivated @just-1-lonely-person @the-vagabond-nun @willow-trees-are-beautiful @cocoasprite @insanedreamer7905 @valiantlytransparentwhispers @whovian378 @watercolorfreckles @thebluepolarbear @yulanlavender @kitsunesakii @deflated-bouncingball @lem-hhn @office-plant-in-a-trenchcoat @ghostfacepepper @pigeonwhumps @demonictumble @inkbirdie @vuvulia @bouncyartist @lunatic-moss-studio @breilobrealdi @freefallingup13 @i-am-a-story-goblin @ryunniez @rainy-knights-of-villany @distractedlydistracted @saspas-corner @echoednonny @perilous-dreamer @blood-enthusiast @randomfixation @alexkolax @pksnowie @blessupblessup @wolfeyedwitch @thedeepvoidinmyheart @cornflower-cowboy @bestblob @a-chaotic-gremlin @espresso-depresso-system @prompt-fills-and-writing-spills @paleassprince @takingawildbreath @yindo @psychiclibrariesquotestoad @harpycartoons @pickleking8 @urmyhopeeee @goldenflame2516 @tobeornottobeateacher @talesofurbania1 @sweetsigyn

[novankenn]

My Wife is Dwarven Ghost! (Ep2)

Original Idea by @weatherman667 Additional Inspiration by @noneatnonedotcom

Kelric had a headache. A headache in the form of his recently deceased wife Thoria. Thoria was prior to her untimely death the Queen of the Dwarven kingdom of Red Mountain. It was during a pitched battle against a demonic beast.

Now however she was a spirit. A ghost that only he could see and hear with. Which lead to his current headache. HIs wife was listing off the various female members of her family that she expected him to get busy with! He has barely any time to grieve and his own WIFE was trying to shove him into bed with her sister... and various other members of her rather large family.

"There's my fourth cousin Helenia. She's a hoot, but keep her away from the Elvish Fire Wine... she's a bit of a lush..." Thoria droned on floating beside Kelric as he took shuffling steps along one of the great dwarven halls on his way to the temple.

"Oh and not's forget Mary!"

"Mary?"

"Yeah, Mary. She's my half-sister on my mother's side."

"I don't remember meeting anyone named... Mary."

"You didn't silly!" Thoria laughed her voice sounding like tinkling crystal. "She was on a diplomatic mission to... somewhere. Or was it a research expedition? I can't remember now."

Kelric sighed. Ever since Thoria had returned he was having a hard time just concentrating on everyday things, let alone sleeping. Who would have thought a hyper-active dwarven princess in life would be the same in death... with the hilarious additional ability of NOT NEEDING SLEEP!

Kelric didn't know how much longer he would be able to survive. Is=f Thoria wasn't listing the "Dwarven Booty" he would be partaking in, she was going over mental lists of what she felt would be great baby names! He needed to make it all stop. To get his wife to pass over to the afterlife, and then find someone skilled enough in Dwarven Legalese to help him find a loop-hole in his marriage contract... so he wouldn't have to marry and bed over half of Thoria's family!

Climbing the short set of steps he entered the portion of the under ground kingdom that houses the various temples and places of worship. Kelric couldn't tell you the names of any of the multitude of Dwarven deities, so he shied away from those temples, and made his way to a special alcove. A small room specially built for him.

"Thoria... please?" Kelric pleaded as even being on sanctified ground wouldn't prevent her from following him every where he went. "Can I have a few minutes... alone?"

"I guess I could do that snookums. Maybe I'll go see if Mary is back!"

Kelric sighed as Thoria drifted away, leaving him alone. He knew it wouldn't last so he had to move quickly. Pulling a silver chain from around his neck he clutched the holy-symbol hanging from it with both his hands, as he lowered himself down to his knees.

The Trolbane family followed the tenants of the human goddess of life and death, Kali. It was to whom he was fervently praying to at that moment. Seeking a vision, or message or even a hint on how to get out of insanity he found him trapped with in.

"I beseech you, my goddess. She who gives life with her left hand and takes it with her right. The ruler of the skies, and the realms beyond." Kelric whispered his eyes squeezed shut tightly. "I need you wisdom. Your guidance. Pleas..."

"Nope, sorry busy." came an ethereal voice. "I'm needed in the southern realms... zombie outbreak. Try... um... try someone else."

Kelric sat there his eyes wide in utter shock and disbelief. Had he just heard the voice of Kali? Then after a minute of reflection his shoulders drooped.

"She blew me off." Kelric muttered, in despair and annoyance. "She blew me off!"

"Oh don't mind Kali." came another ethereal voice. Kelric's eyes searched about but he could see no source. "How sweet and innocent! Thinking I would show myself? You're too cute!"

"Cute?"

"Yes, Darling, you are just the most cuddy, adorable, huggable emotional mess of a human I have ever seen!"

"Huh?" Kelric still looked about, completely confused and just a little creeped out.

"So I may have been eavesdropping but you say you need help? Help with something involving love, marriage, sex? Please say sex!"

"Um... no... my wife recently died, and now she is haunting me..."

"Sorry darling, I don't do undead. They're kind a of icky..."

"No please! I need help! She's trying to have me bed over half of the female members of her family!"

"She's a dwarf, right?"

"Yes?"

"Yeah... you kind of stepped into it there hon."

"I didn't realize it was going to be like this! I love Thoria! Only Thoria!" Kelric pleaded, pressing his forehead to the smooth stone floor. "I only want to be with her. Please help me... please..."

"How do you want me to help you, exactly?" the entity asked. "If it involves anything with exorcisms or banishments... I don't do that."

"Can you bring her back?"

"Back? Back... as in a resurrection?"

"Yes!" Kelric shouted his head snapping up off the floor. "PLEASE!"

"Ah... um... it's possible... but I'll have to look into it, so meet me back here in two days?"

"Two days?"

"Yes, two days... oh and I am the Goddess Freyja, call to me the next time you pray."

"Yes... okay... thank you."

"Oh you're so SWEET!" Freyja squealed, causing Kelric to wince.

"Thank you again goddess." Kelric spoke solemnly with his head bowed as he backed out of the small private chamber.

"Ah... why do the sweet ones all have to be sticklers for monogamy?" Freyja's voice took on a musical ringing tone as she started to laugh lightly. "Let's see if we can change that... shall we?"

/==/Other Episodes /==/

[maltmealo]

Chapter 6: Start a war

"Do you hear that?"

"hear what?"

A hiss of frustration left your mouth as you looked down at your chest, your own blood had come off reasonably quickly, but the bright blue substance had stained your skin. skin starting to flake off where it touched, great, you probably swallowed something that was disintegrating your stomach. A soft sigh left your mouth, leaving the stain alone for now.

Stream rolled off your body in waves as you stepped out of the shower, turning the water off after you. Grabbing one of the dusty cabinet towels you dry yourself off, stopping in front of the mirror. The bright blue stain on your chest stands out like a tattoo, you lean on the counter staring at yourself with a tired expression.

Killer, truck, aliens, you repeat in your head as you look at yourself. You got chased by the person who killed your friend, you got hit by a truck, and now you're temporarily living with aliens. your headache was gone though, that was good. You sigh and decide to finally exit the bathroom, running a hand through your damp hair and shut the door behind you.

"Human, do you feel better?" The deep voice made you jump, Optimus had been waiting for you in the exact same spot you had left him in.

"Yeah, thanks…" you say, leaning on the wall behind you. The metal red and blue giant kneeled down in an attempt to seem less threatening as he offered his hand again.

"You must be confused." He states as you climb into his palm, kneeling firmly in the center. He stands up and begins to move down the hallway, taking long strides to move, he keeps his hand as steady as possible to ensure that you don't get jostled.

"Very." You reply, looking up at him. "Can you explain to me what exactly is going on?"

“Yes,” Optimus replied, his face ever unchanging, the dull humming that was surrounding your ears changing. Instead of the constant humming, it sounded like a slow somber song, whispering melodies of long lost battle and even longer lost friends. “We are Cybertronians, a race of non-organic beings, our race has been divided due to a war between our factions, the Autobots and the Decepticons. Myself being the leader of the Autobots, and Megatron being the leader of the Decepticons.”

There was a moment of silence, the somber melody ringing in your ears as you speak.

“I’m sorry.”

“What for? You did not cause the war, nor are you wrong for asking what is going on.” Optimus speaks as you enter the room you first woke up in, Ratchet standing at the massive computer, not giving a second glance at the two of you.

“I’m sorry that you’re in a war, no one deserves to be in a war.” The silence comes back, you start to connect the dots, how rough they looked, how sad every word sounded. “I’m sorry.”

The repetition of the words echoed through the room, the metal walls making everything sound louder. Optimus lowered his hand so you could get back onto the platform. your bare feet touch the cold metal, a chill running up your spine as you severely regret not putting your socks back on, even if they were stinky.

“Optimus, Agent Fowler is bringing a human doctor with him to check her.” Ratchet grumbled, finally breaking the empty silence.

“Has this doctor been properly informed and given the proper clearance?" Optimus asked, turning his attention to Ratchet, after Ratchet nods, Optimus speaks again. "Tell him we will ground bridge him until this doctor proves that he is trustworthy."

Ratchet nods again and types something into the gigantic computer. You sit there in silence for a while, still trying to process everything that is going on.

"Human, I can assure you that you are safe here, there is no reason to stress," Optimus speaks, lowering himself so that you two were eye level again. The sharp glowing blue eyes drilling into you.

"Kinda hard not to." You retort, the ground is the most interesting thing in the room at the moment, choosing to turn your gaze to stare at that instead of the drilling stare.

"I swear to you, as leader of the Autobots, no harm will come to you as long as you are in our custody."

"It's not that I don't believe you, it's just the fact that I don't exist at all here and the fact that I'm being held by giant metal aliens is kind of, oh I don't know, shocking?" You say, returning your gaze to Optimus.

"Cybertronians." Ratchet corrects, not tearing his attention away from the screen.

“I understand your frustration, to be torn away from your home and then put in a situation where your life may be in danger is a shocking experience for anyone,” Optimus says, the somber melody changing to a slow yet determined beat.

“Wait, what do you mean my life is in danger?” you interject, “I thought you said I was safe here.”

“You are safe here, but if you were to leave the base even for a moment with the EMF reading you have right now, the Decepticons would undoubtedly find you, and they will not hesitate to torture you for whatever information you might have gained while you were here.” Optimus pauses, a huff of warm air blowing from the vents on his shoulders. “And whatever happened to your body while traveling through that portal.”

“What? What happened to my body?” you asked nervously, looking between the two metal giants, who were sharing a look.

“We are unsure of the effect this may have on you but…” Optimus starts to say, his face scrunching up in discomfort as he tries to explain what is happening to you.

“Your EMF signal is changing rapidly, for cybertronians, this could be an indicator that you had a multitude of things wrong with your body, but for a human…” Ratchet pauses, his eyes meeting yours. “We have no idea.”

“What do you mean my EMF signal is changing rapidly?”

“I mean your EMF is increasing at rapid speeds, it's quickly surpassing even our own EMFs,” Ratchet explains calmly, pulling up a chart of you when you first arrived.

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” You ask nervously, wringing your hands together in an attempt to comfort yourself, not even one day of giant robots, and you're already too deep.

“We have no idea,” Ratchet says not doing much to calm you down. God, were you going to die again? Was the rapid increase of your EMF going to fry your brain? Scramble everything up so you are nothing more than a lobotomized animal? Ratchet notices your increasing panic and begins to speak again, “But then again, you humans are resilient, you may not have any effects whatsoever.”

“Ratchet is correct, even though you may be small, humans have an incredible ability to bounce back from even the worst injuries,” Optimus confirm, giving a reassuring nod to you, “Even if you do not, we will make sure nothing bad happens to you, we will find a way to fix this.”

“Comforting.” You say sarcastically, sitting down on the floor and putting your head on your knees with a groan, “My body is dying and I'm at risk of being kidnapped by evil robots.”

“You're not dying,” Ratchet says firmly, his frown deepening as the calm beat gets overtaken by a steady wind chime sound off in the distance, “we won’t let you.”

You close your eyes, trying to focus on the wind chimes, not really caring where they were coming from at the moment.

“Thank you.”

They seem surprised by your sudden gratefulness, Optimus is the first to recover.

“Why are you thanking us?”

“Because you didn’t have to save me, and yet you did, so, thanks.”

“We did have to save you, as Autobots it's our duty to protect the innocent from the Decepticons.”

“Yeah, thanks for doing that.”

Optimus seemed even more surprised, even though he didn't show it, the windchimes slowly faded into the background as the slow melody returned.

“You are welcome, human.”