#big thanks 2 lilly for the idea

[yandereend]

Yandere Househusband

The wedding

P. 2/?

TW : normal yandere stuff, dubcon, reader is into it?, Tyler talks about children, both are like 18 or 19

Btw English is not my first language so please keep that in mind

🩵Also thanks to everyone who wrote nice comments under the first post🩵

You sometimes watched those trashy shows about the bridezillas who were obsessed with their weddings and made everyones live hell. Like many people you hopped to never be in a situation like this. But here you were sitting besides your fiancé while he discusses flower arrangements, acting like a giant brat.

Is it so hard to put together bouquets with ALL pink flowers?!

Sir we dont have enough pink lillies for all your decorations. You should reconsider some of your choices-

I‘m surrounded by idiots!! My spouse wanted pink lillies so i don’t care if you don’t have them stocked!! Just buy them!

That would be even more expen-

Just do it !!!

And with that Tyler took your hand and you both exited the flower shop. It was almost comical how such a small thing could affect a grown man so much, but hey it’s his day. Tyler had a big pout on his face so that called for your attention and pampering.

Tyler don’t be upset.

But its our day my darling, everything should be perfect! We spend so much time picking out your (suit/dress/whatever you want its your wedding) and my suit. The flowers have to match or everything was for nothing my dear!

Not everything has to be perfect.

Oh yes it does! Have you never been on pinterest ?

That was the whole wedding planning in a nutshell , just an avid pinterest user placing together the wedding of their dreams( yandere style). Sometimes it was cute seeing Tyler being so invested in the wedding, other times it was more than annoying to cater to his perfectionism.

You also often thought about how quickly things progressed. I mean you just graduated high school and are already engaged and working for your fiancés father. Tylers father, Eric, was a great boss, you often wondered why people were scared of him. It’s just your nice father in law! Always explaining everything to you and hyping you up as the next in line of the family business. I mean you’re almost a part of it.

And Tylers mother, Ramona, was the same, always acting like she’s your real mother and caring for you. Not to mention Tyler himself. You were not suprised when he didn’t went out to look for a job or university, he always promoted the idea of a traditional family with you as the breadwinner in the center. And hey, his parents gifted you a house as an engagement gift, so its safe to say that you wont suffer in the presence of those saints.

At least that’s what you thought of them, little did you know that they were the reason why most of your friends cut contact and your family hardly called after you moved out. But hey who needs them anyways.

So while all these thoughts ran through your mind here you were, walking down the aisle with your father and finally seeing the man of your dreams in his perfectly tailored suit and styled hair, with tears in his eyes witnessing your beauty.

Your wedding vow was rather short but still packed with the love you felt for your husband. And after he put himself together, because of his happy tears, he read the most beautiful wedding vow you ever heard touching your heart and everyone else’s in the chapel. So when you finally get to put the rings on each other’s fingers you both stand up there with tears in your eyes.

And when you both finally unite in a grand kiss your fate was finally sealed. Tyler had you finally completely in his grasp, even if you didn’t realize it. And he,as well as his family, will never let you go. So enjoy your wedding party with your family and friends, you won’t get to see them any longer my dear.

Till death do you apart.

🩵Thanks a lot I hope you enjoyed it, I am planning on making this a series so please comment ideas for your life with your new husband 🩵

[fug0th]

Pst! You know what time it is? New cosplay time! I decided to remake one of if not my favorite cosplays in my collection, Naven Nuknuk from Epithet Erased

This has been by far my most time consuming build (as well as expensive). this cosplay took a total of 279 hours over the span of roughly 8 months to make. That time doesn't include redoing sections or details that didn't make it into the final look.

And now for a detailed look at this whole outfit because dang, I put so many tiny details in.

Starting off with the earring and beads, I used a tequnic called lampwork to make them. The best way I can explain lampworking is like miniature glassblowing

Lampwork uses glass rods heated in a flame to create generally small pieces like beads or buttons. Lampworking can be incredibly detailed. While I'm still fairly beginner at all of this I was able to learn a tequnic called implosion to make the flowers look more 3 dimensional. I also used lampworking to make the buttons on the undershirt!

I did all the 3d modeling for parts like the glasses and the belt buckle. (Stealing pictures from my Instagram because the progress tracker i use corrupted my images)

While I don't usually focus on the 3d modeling in my builds it's a huge passion of mine. After making a model of the belt buckle I put my 3d print into casting clay. After carefully removing it I poured tin in to make the final belt buckle.

I also taught myself basic leather working and tooling to add some apple blossom inspired designs onto the belt and painted it.

Next thing I think I should talk about is the embroidery. I wanted to incorporate more details about naven into his outfit. After asking jello some questions we came to the conclusion that the embroidery should be lillies and carnations. Because of my constant insanity I hand embroidered everything. I also did some embroidery on the pants and used an embroidery floss that changes colors in the sun for fun.

Before I get any questions about materials I'll add in, the white shirt and embroidery are both silk. I struggle to embroider with cotton dye to the sound and feeling it makes, and I felt like being fancy so silk shirt too. The pants are a cotton twill (pretty much jean fabric without the indigo) and the green strips are silk. A perfect Segway into the tatting and knitting!

For those who don't know tatting is a traditional form of lace making found in many different places around the world. There are 2 main forms of tatting, needle tatting and shuttle tatting, I tend to use shuttle tatting due to how nice and portable it is. I thought tatting would be fitting to add to navens outfit due to it's other name, farmers lace.

And now for the big beast of this outfit, the knitting. Like with everything else in this outfit I dyed the yarn myself. It's 80 percent wool to 20 percent silk blend.

Huge thanks to jello for suggesting so many ideas, this outfit wouldn't be nearly as cool as it is otherwise.

Anyways I hope all y'all like the outfit! I had so much fun making this insanity

[punkshort]

Will you eventually do a Swept Away, likes and dislikes post for Joel? The little taste of his character is just delicioussss, he’s so mysterious. I’m dyingggg to crawl inside your brain and see how his character is going to unfold 😍💋

I would love to! I love getting this ask because it always gives me good ideas for future chapters, so thank you!

Let's jump in:

Likes:

1. Sunsets: he loves the colors and how every day is different. He loves it because it's a work of art that everyone in the world can appreciate, no matter who you are.

2. Boxing: it's the only form of exercise he actually enjoys. He really likes taking his anger out on a punching bag, and he tends to hold in a lot of anger from his job.

3. Money: I mean, come on, that's not a big surprise. He likes to live comfortably and without having to worry about the cost of anything. And, sure, when he slaps his black card down and someone does a double take, he feels a rush of pride.

4. Cigars: he didn't used to like them but they have grown on him throughout the years. A colleague of his convinced him to join a cigar club and he found it was a great way to network and rub elbows with the elites.

5. Poetry: he will never admit it, though.

6. Filet Mignon: he loves a perfectly cooked medium rare steak. When he was choosing which restaurant to lease space to on the first floor of his hotel, he only looked at steakhouses because he liked the idea of having a good steak a mere elevator ride away.

7. The Natural Look: he prefers women who don't use too much makeup or plastic surgery/fillers. Almost all of the women he knows, whether through set ups or spouses of his colleagues, all look like they've gone to the same doctor and had the same procedures. He likes women who are comfortable in their skin and aren't fake.

8. McDonald's French fries: it's his Achilles heel. Every now and then after a long, boring art gallery opening or cocktail party, he will instruct his driver to go to McDonald's on the way back to his penthouse to get some fries.

9. Private Jet: he loves being able to come and go whenever he pleases, anywhere he wants. And he especially loves not having to go through security and be surrounded by people squished into a tin can. He likes that he can stretch out and eat a good meal and even sleep in a real bed when he travels, which is often.

Dislikes:

1. Kale: it's a vile weed and he won't touch it.

2. Surprise parties: he absolutely loathes being surprised. Especially when it's been a long enough day and he thinks he's going home to relax and suddenly his penthouse is filled with fifty people drinking all his booze and making a mess of his home and he has to pretend to enjoy it.

3. Lifting weights: he thinks it's obnoxious and he doesn't care about glamour muscles but his trainer always makes him do one day a week where he lifts weights. He gets it over with as quickly as he can.

4. Satin sheets: too slippery and his pillow always ends up on the floor.

5. Campfires: he hates the smoke from campfires because it gets stuck in his clothes and he has to send everything he was wearing to the cleaners right away before it spreads to other fabrics.

6. Lillies: they remind him of funerals.

7. Tea: he could never find a tea he actually enjoyed. All tea tastes like hot water with a dash of some vague flavor and it's just never worth it. Unless he's sick with a sore throat. Then he might have some.

8. Boats: he tends to go out on yachts and sailboats quite a bit, but he doesn't like the open water. He gets seasick and he always has to take pills beforehand.

9. Golf: because all my Joels hate golf, for no particular reason.

[froggy-demon]

Oh Deer - Part Four

A/N: thank you again for all of the support!! I had to rewrite this one a couple of times because I just couldn’t decide, I hope you like it <3 I’m so excited to share my writings and I’m so astonished every time y’all leave nice comments I love them so much, thank you!! All of that said, enjoy!

Chapter Summery: Lilly is treated to a glamorous night out under the Vs’ roof, accompanied by a familiar demon, angst and tension ensues.

Masterlist | Part Five

——————————————————————————

I rolled my eyes, again, and waved away the idea. “No way, we both know Alastor fucking hates me, he just hates Lucifer more I guess.” Angel was positive that Alastor was sincere in his display earlier, I was not quite as delusional though. “He quite literally said he was fucking around.” I added. Even if I found myself fascinated with the demon, I wasn’t so naive to think that feeling went both ways.

“Maybe, or maybe he just wanted an excuse.” Angel paused and had a look of realization on his face as he broke out into a smile. “If you want some real attention though, y’know the Vs are throwing that big party if Velvette ain’t already dragging you to it you could be my plus one! Val usually keeps me pretty fucking busy all night, but they are actually pretty fun. Lots of cute demons and free booze if you know what I mean!” Angle said with a wink and laughed. That’s not a terrible idea actually, get out a little and have some fun. My streak hasn’t been so great recently so I could really use a win on that front.

“Y’know that actually does sound fun. Velvette hasn’t brought it up at all yet so she probably won’t need me there, but I also don’t have anything to wear for it, I’ll need something new. I could use some retail therapy anyway.” I said and rested my head on top of the pillow in my lap smiling. I can’t believe I didn’t think of that! Angel lit up at the sound of going shopping.

“Oh I will make sure you are the best dressed demon in the whole fucking party, don’t worry about that tuts! We want something that will show you you off!” He held up his fingers like he was mimicking a camera taking pictures of me. “You got it all babe! The tits, the ass, the smile! They are going to eat you up, especially once I’m done with you!” He ranted making me laugh. I don’t think in my whole before and afterlife I’ve ever heard someone describe me that way. “I’m serious! Al will see what he’s missing tomorrow night!” Angel teased very proud of his scheme.

“This has nothing to do with him, but I do like that idea. As soon as I get off work we need to hit the shops so we still have enough time.” I said trying to plan out the next night. Angel agreed and we worked out the time table to make sure we would stay on track. Work, then shop, then hotel to get ready, then back across town to the party. Excellent, tomorrow night will be all about what I want, it’s been a while since I could say that.

After a couple more hours of giggling and gossip, like hearing allllll about how Husk and Angel made eye contact today and it was riveting, we settle down to fall asleep while the purple lights twinkled above our heads. I tried to calm my mind, but it raced just thinking about tomorrow. This party is for high profile souls, overlords and wealthy demons in hell, hopefully I don’t stick out too much, but I like to think I’ve learned a good amount from my work. Maybe it will be enough to actually go a whole night without thinking about the radio demon, I can only hope.

The next morning there was a renewed joy in my step as I walked down to the kitchen to make my morning coffee. It didn’t matter that it was far too early to be awake, or that I was about to be yelled at for the next ten hours of my day, no, I would do it all with a smile because today I actually had something to look forward to. I cozied up in a chair in the lounge with my mug and breathed in the steam while I watched the fire in the fireplace dance.

1-2-click 1-2-click 1-2-click

I can’t help but wonder what makes him need to be up so early, what business could he have at 4am? He walked through the lounge and I tried to hide the fact that I was watching by playing on my phone. I couldn’t stop myself from taking in the sight of him with curious eyes, he was less put together than usual. His ears were tucked back and he wasn’t wearing his waistcoat. It was an odd sighting for him to not have it on. Without it you could see his sleeve garters which gave him an almost rugged look like he had been pouring over his desk for hours, and then you could see his little deer tail. He didn’t greet me and I was not going to be the first one of us to say anything so he passed through the room quietly. After he did, I took another sip of my coffee. Maybe his broadcast had given him some sort of trouble, or perhaps he had been returning to his M.O. from before his absence of torturing souls he saw fit on the air. I don’t care to listen to his broadcasts, when anything important happens I will know either from sinstigram or Velvette yelling about it the next day.

After a few more minutes of enjoying the peace and quiet of the early morning hotel I cleaned my mug out and made my way to work.

Upon arriving I could tell I was going to have a few extra duties today. They were already decorating the main event space elsewhere in the building, I could tell by the exorbitant number of tables and decor being moved around through the halls, and if there is one thing Velvette loves it is to micromanage how something looks. I go up to the studio and start collecting my clipboard and the ever growing list of what must get done today. Between keeping tv personalities well dressed, reshoots for the launch of Velvette’s fashion line, and now the party I think I’m going to need a second pair of arms. I guess that’s what we have the studio aids for.

“I need the Art Director for Velvette’s line in the studio, we need to confirm details and revisions.” I spoke into my earpiece and waited for confirmation before moving onto the next task and then the task after that. Finally some time later Velvette joined us in the studio and started barking her own orders as well. I joined the collection of demons flocking to her side for their morning abuse.

“Fucking finally, Lilly I need you to make sure everyone to set downstairs before you leave today. Make sure you have the vision plan and everything else I had them work up so you actually know what the fuck you’re supposed to be checking. If a single fucking chair is at the wrong angle it is your fault. Me and Vox have put too much fucking work into this party tonight for it not to look right I need perfection from you today. Even the seven bloody deadly sins are coming so if anything is not exactly the way I fucking pictured it, your leash will become very short.” She ordered and I nodded quietly. “Until then I need the stupid fucking art director for my line up here now!”

“Yes Ma’am. The Art Director is waiting for you with the concept photos for final approval.” I stated. She smiled, not exactly rare, but not exactly common especially while she was working.

“Finally you use that fucking brain of yours to get shit ready before I have to tell you to. How refreshing! In that case find the makeup artists, they keep running off to hell knows what and I’m this close to snapping one of them in half to set a fucking example, ungrateful little shits!” And with that she left to yell at the next soul she could find.

I spoke into my earpiece again, “Creative Director for Events, where are you? We need to check in immediately.” Upon confirmation that they were downstairs in the event space I headed there myself and we went over the binders of planning and inspiration the Vs had laid out. The event hall was really more like a grand ballroom, as hypermodern as the Vs were, it would seem they still found charm in some old world aesthetics. With massive crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, white marble floors, and dramatically draped floor length windows, it nearly looked straight out of a period piece. The colors for the party were blue and black, sounds like Vox won that argument. The tables were being set up with black tablecloths and vibrant blue hydrangeas, I didn’t even know you could grow those in hell. There were demons running all around the space sweeping, bringing things in, decorating the stage, the bar, exchanging the drapes out to match the color scheme.

I checked every chair and table to make sure they were level, every centerpiece for dead flowers and leaves, the stage for splinters, the drapes for snugs in the fabric. “Do we have the staff apparel ready?” I asked the director. She was a short demon who was lizard like with one large eye in the center of her head.

“No, we hadn’t coordinated that yet.” Of course not. I mentally rolled my eyes, luckily costuming was my bread and butter.

“I’ll handle that then, how much staff will there be tonight?” I asked clicking my pen so I could jot in down. 100 serves, 10 bartenders, 5 bands, 45 miscellaneous staff on the floor, okay, doable. “Keep a handle on everything down here, I’ll track all of that down, do not let them fuck it up.” I said and she gave a polite nod. Awesome, 160 coordinated outfits, because that won’t take all day or anything.

I spent a good few hours tracking down various sizes of royal blue suit vests and dress pants, royal blue suit jackets, royal blue button up shirts and black ties, royal blue knee length skirts, shoes, but it was possible with the size of our costuming department. By the end of the day I had neatly organized racks of outfits for each position and each size with a skirt or pants option. Staff was just beginning to trickle in the door and I assigned a few studio aids to help make sure everyone had the clothes they required for the night. Before it was too late I did one last once over of the ballroom. Centerpieces were good, chairs good, all the ambient candles were lit, I could see the bartenders just beginning to organize the bars, the bands were setting up their equipment, I think I might have actually pulled this one off.

I breathe a sigh of relief and I finish triple checking my work. Everything is set in place which leaves only one more thing: myself. I handover to the Event Manager who has arrived for the evening and she thanks me for getting us here, something I’m not very used to hearing. I thank her and text Angel Dust that I’m on my way out the door at work and am heading out to pick out a dress. He immediately texts back that he is on his way to the front of the building as well and we will meet there. I gather myself and get there just as he is.

Angel is in good spirits as he links his lower arm with mine, which is still a bit tall for me, and we start wadding through shop after shop. We know we are on a time crunch, but Angel seems to have something very specific in mind. Finally after trying on at least two dozen dresses and probably half as many shops, when I step out of the dressing room his eyes light up and a big smile spreads across his face.

“Oh baby, that is the one!” He spins me toward the mirror and I can’t help but feel a little self conscious. “You are going to be turning heads all fucking night in this little number! We might need to hire security for you!” I laughed at the idea and attempted to pull the hem down just an inch more. It was a very short black, strapless dress with a wide square neckline and a low back. It came with a pair of matching black elbow length gloves and I could already imagine how I would pair it with accessories at home. He was right though, it looked stunning. It hugged every square inch of my body and admittedly had more cleavage than I was used to as it seemed to defy physics by still being supportive, it was beautiful.

“Angel, it might be too much, I don’t want to go overboard.” I said biting my lip, but I couldn’t stop turning in the mirror to see myself at every angle. Angel grabbed my shoulders and looked at me in the mirror.

“It’s perfect.” He assured. We bought it and took it home with just one hour left to get ready for the evening.

When he stepped out Angel was wearing a black version of his typical suit jacket and shorts, exchanging his pinkish red gloves for a baby pink pair and kept his thigh high boots, he looked incredible and I told him so, he nearly blushed for a second before lighting back up as we walked downstairs.

“Me? Fucking look at you! Little miss straight-laced, you look drop-double-dead-gorgeous tonight!” He beamed, this time it was my turn to blush. I had added a pair of dark tights and my royal blue Mary Jane shoes, with a delicate royal blue ribbon tied around my neck like a choker. I pulled my gloves up a little more to make sure they were all the way on before running a hand through my hair. I hope he is right.

“Thank you Angel, I try my best.” I said sheepishly. Angel instead upon stopping by the lounge where the rest of the group was gathered to say goodbye before we were off. We stepped into the room and I smiled awkwardly as Angel presented me, very proud of his work.

“I give to you, the new and improved Lilly!” He sang and motioned to me. Charlie looked surprised but happy, Vaggie was about the same, but had a hand on her girlfriend’s shoulder. Sir. Pentious had a light blush but reassured me that I looked very nice. Husk was trying to hide it, but absolutely eyeing Angel. Niffty squealed with joy and ram little figure eights around us manically giggling about how nice we looked. Alastor was nowhere to be found though. “Where’s the big guy? I said I needed everyone!” Angel frowned.

“Please excuse my tardiness, I too was getting ready for tonight!” Alastor chirped as he walked into the room. He was dressed very well, his suit looked new just for the occasion as it was a slightly deeper shade of red than his normal suit and it was more simple with a short tail coat and a chain across the chest and it had a very faint pinstripe pattern to it. He looked like he had gotten a fresh haircut and maybe it’s my imagination, but even his old cane looked a little fresher to match. As I finished drinking him in I realized his eyes were going over me in the very same way.

“Since when are you fucking going to a party that Vox is throwing?” Angel asked the demon who chuckled.

“Oh I wouldn’t dare miss it, so many important demons and souls there tonight. I couldn’t give Vox the chance to twist a narrative if left to his own devices! Plus,” he pulled a small paper from his breast pocket. “He invited me.” Alastor had a wicked smile on as he stuffed his invitation back into his pocket. Angel gave me a small look that told me this was news to him, as it was to me. I guess Alastor is an overlord and Vox does seem rather keen on him. Even if they are enemies, best to keep him close.

“Well, I guess we should all get going then.” I said and before I could turn towards the door shadows crushed over us and just as quickly as they appeared they dissipated and we were in front of the event room door.

•

As soon as I saw her in the lounge I couldn’t tear my eyes away. Her dress was the most revealing thing I’d even seen draped across her figure. The visual mixing with her timid posing made something within me tick. Every curve was on display, the dress hardly covered her ass as the hem just barely brushed the top of her soft thighs, it scarcely managed to contain her chest if she didn’t have perfect posture it could be quite the display, her exposed back left her looking delicate and accessible. An anger burned in me, traipsing through a gala in such a vulnerable position, she should be locked away from such prying eyes where only I can look upon her form like this, where I can revel in it. The gentle look in her eyes made my mind race. How dare she look like that and yet so innocent at the same time, I wanted to ruin that innocent look, I wanted her eyes to hold nothing but pleasure and lust as I did so. If a soul should so much as hover their eyes over her a moment too long I might have to restrain myself from slaughtering them. As we walked into the event room Angel was quickly called away but Valentino, who blew us a sarcastic kiss from across the busy room. My eyes stayed trained on her though, she would not be leaving my sight tonight whether she knew it or not.

•

Alastor seemed in no rush to find any friends as he walked behind me through the crowded space. Hundreds of demons and overlords and hellish elites mingled around me. I secretly enjoyed his company, but me and Angel had agreed that tonight was about me and as much as I was intregued by Alastor, I knew that went one way. “Alastor, if you are going to accompany me tonight,” I turned and flashed a smile at him. “Would you perhaps be able to hunt down a drink for me to sip on? It’s awfully warm.” I asked, anxiously adjusting my gloves again. He casted his eyes across the room before answering.

“Why don’t you join me, My Dear? We’ll find it together. Then I can brief you on who not to talk to.” He stressed the end of his sentence like it was very important I don’t meet certain souls in attendance tonight. He reached to place a hand on my shoulder blade to guide me forward but I stepped to the side.

“Please Alastor, I’ll find my way to somewhere quiet until you return, I’m a big girl.” I teased a little and batted my eyes at him. I don’t know what his deal was tonight, maybe he had more foes than friends in attendance, but still I know how to get out of a sticky situation when I find myself in one, especially here.

“I insist, I wouldn’t want to abandon a lady at an event like this, who knows what kind of unsavory figure could swoop in.” The static crackled off his voice at the beginning. I felt his hand meet my shoulder successfully. His eyes burned into mine and I felt there was danger that I wasn’t aware of. I gave in and slowed to allow him to guide me towards the bar. It was quite busy and in the crowd my back was nearly pressed against his chest as we walked. I could feel the heat coming off in him, he smelled like fresh rain in the woods. I kept my hands clasped in front of me and kept a polite smile on as we finally reached the edge of the crowd for my drink.

Alastor left my side by less than two steps to order me a drink, I took the chance to look around the room. There were hundreds of finely dressed demons in attendance, a part of me was very pleased to see everyone enjoying the space I had helped to create and so far not a hair out of place.

“For you, My Dear.” He said graciously as he handed me my glass, if I remember the menu correctly this is a mermaid mule, giving it a violently blue color. “Now I think it’s about time we start making the rounds to say hello, don’t you think?” He grinned and placed his hand back on my shoulder blade as we reentered the crowd. It wasn’t really a question that explain answer. I looked up at him from the corner of my eye, he was quite cautiously watching the crowd. I couldn’t tell if he was looking for anyone in particular or not, but his mind certainly had a goal it was focused on.

“Alastor, I appreciate the escort, but really I was hoping to be on my own tonight.” He did not bother to look at me, but he did seem to see someone he wished to talk to as we gently started heading a different way. “I fear you might not be the most suitable wing man.” I teased trying to smile at the taller demon.

“I’m afraid not, besides please allow me to introduce you to the darling Rosie, overlord of cannibal town!” He motioned to the women just a couple of feet ahead of us now. She was tall and remarkably pretty even with her hollowed out eyes and her sharp teeth she managed to look friendly and lively. “Rosie! A pleasure as always!” Alastor sang.

She turned and lit up upon seeing him, waving us over. “Alastor darling, it’s so good to see you! Who’s this little number you brought along tonight? You better keep a close eye on her. I could eat her right up!” Her smile reminded me of his, but it was more sincere. She spoke with a very old dialect, but it left me thinking she ought to be sipping tea on someone’s porch with a novel in her hand. I returned her smile and Alastor introduced us.

“This is Lilly, an associate of mine from Charlie’s hotel.” He said and Rosie gave a small applause.

“It is very nice to meet you Ma’am, I am very lucky to be a resident under the princess’ trust. I hope you are enjoying the evening, I helped put it together, so please feel free to let me know if there is anything at all you need. I am positive we can make it happen.” I offered and she giggled.

“Oh such a sweetheart, you are! What a very nice swaray this is turning out to be, thank you! I can’t imagine need anything not already provided!” She assured me and she and Alastor continued to talk for a few more minutes. I watched Alastor as he did, he seemed to genuinely enjoy her company, it was a nice look on him, but his ears would twitch every so often giving away that he was still on high alert.

Eventually Alastor excused us, in search of another overlord to greet. We repeated this pattern a few times, one even joked that if Alastor was going to keep such a close eye on me he needed to put me ‘under contract’, or he would. I felt Alastor’s claws ever so slightly press themselves a little harder into my skin and his laugh was clipped. Once we had a moment to ourselves again I scanned the room for Angel or Valentino, I hadn’t seen him since our arrival, but with no luck. I did however spot another V. I could see Vox chatting up an interesting looking demon, he was tall and owl like and dressed quite regally, I recognized him as Stolis, rumor had it he did love daytime dramas so I guess I can’t be too surprised.

“Alastor, maybe I should go find Angel, just to check in on him.” It almost felt futile, of course I enjoyed Alastor’s company, and the feeling of his hand sent electric currents through my skin, but it also felt hopeless to think that he was thinking what I was thinking. Thinking about how he had looked so delightfully disheveled this morning, how he might look beneath his well tailored clothes, how the heat of his body might fully wash over mine, how his hand might feel elsewhere. It wouldn’t take more than a couple skilled movement to have me out of a dress like this and I was sure he was skilled. I nearly blushed at just the passing thought.

•

It took all the strength I had to not sink my claws into her. Why did she want to walk away so badly, I have been nothing but the perfect gentleman all evening and still she is not content. I flicked my eyes back down to hers, I could smell a faint scent of attraction from her, how sweet it smelled. Maybe I could use that to keep her close. Clearly she wanted some kind of attention tonight, I could give her a little taste. “Do I bore you? I apologize if meeting so many people was overwhelming, but it would have been rude not to.” I grinned, I allowed my hand to drop to the bottom of her back, just above her dress. “I appreciate your cooperation, truthfully,” I walked us forward and bent down ever so slightly so I could whisper into her ear. I could smell the perfume of her attraction better here, her back was stiff and I could see her chest rise and fall with every deep breath she was taking. “I don’t trust a single soul here to be alone with you, My Dear.” I said, my tone was soft but I couldn’t help the static creeping into my voice. It was true after all, none of them deserved to even lay eyes on her.

She looked up at me with sweet wide eyes, “Is that why, Alastor, you’ve kept me on such a short leash tonight?” She asked. Oh I would love to put her on a leash. “Afraid I might find a new overlord to pester?” She smiled at her own jab. “Don’t worry, I was just hoping to find a little bit of, y’know, company tonight.” Her face flushed softly and felt that pit in my stomach grow.

She wanted some disgusting demon to see her like that, to touch her like that. The idea made me sick, and more so my anger grew. The image of her sprawled out, eyes so innocent and inviting, her hair like the halo she deserved on the pillow beneath her, for someone else? I had to control my anger or before I could explain myself we would be back in the hotel, back in my room, and I needed to be here tonight unfortunately.

And that reason was walking towards us now as my smile widened I was keenly aware of my hand moving to grip Lilly’s waist instead to keep her even closer to me.

•

Alastor’s grip was strong, I followed his eyes to see what he was looking at, surely what I said hadn’t upset him like this. Then it made sense, Vox. While they have been throwing punches from afar via broadcast this is the first time they will have seen each other face to face since Alastor’s return. Vox was in the same suit he always wore, but it at least looked a little better pressed today.

“Alastor! Has anyone ever told you it’s rude not to greet the host.” Vox remarked as he walked into range. “I didn’t think we were inviting just anyone tonight?” He laughed, Alastor produced his invitation from his pocket again.

“Why, you personally signed it. There was a kiss and a heart on my invitation just like you always did.” Alastor remarked, flipping it over between his fingers to prove it, making Vox scowl slightly. I held in a giggle. His annoyed eyes landed on me and I suddenly wanted Alastor’s shadows to whisk me away from here. Work is one thing, I tolerate whatever abuse the other two Vs wish to throw my way as politely as I can to keep Velvette happy, but I’m not working now, and my back is against the chest of the soul Vox might just hate the most in all of hell. The other part of me wants to stand tall, who says I can even rely on Alastor for defense here, he’s so hot and cold with me. “And Vel’s pet, what a combination! I must say Velvette has only had the pettiest complaints tonight so that is as close as a job well down can be for her, congratulations!” Vox held out a hand for me to shake. I wanted to look at Alastor for approval or an excuse, I really wanted to not have to shake his hand, but I did. An acute ringing appeared in my ears.

“Thank you, Mr. Vox.” I said plainly. There was tension in the air between the two, but they both remained polite. It would cause too much of a scene for them to duke it out here in public. I felt the anger pooling in Alastor’s muscles as it felt like he was entirely still, not even feeling the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed behind me anymore. I could feel his eyes bore into me, something I normally treasured, but now I couldn’t shake the animosity that was behind them even if that was not necessarily directed my way.

“I rather think red and black would have been a more flattering theme, but I guess blue is nice to some people.” Alastor quipped, adjusting his suit jacket proudly, Vox’s smile strained.

“It looks to me that someone prefers the blue.” Vox smirked and reached for the ribbon I wore around my neck, but before he could actually make contact Alastor moved us a step back. He held me with a force that threatened the delicate fabric of my dress.

“A gentleman would ask permission before reaching for a lady that way, and concede when she denies. Maybe you yourself are too modern for basic manners?” Alastor teased. His eyes burned bright red, contrasting his airy attitude and smile. I could feel his breath ticking the nape of my neck, under different circumstances I might let myself dwell on that feeling, I knew he was fired up. As bloodthirsty as Alastor may be, he has his values.

“You know I could introduce you to at least twenty demons here tonight who could show you a better time.” Vox couldn’t help but keep the irritation out of his voice as he stood with one hand on his hip, it almost sounded like a threat, I’m not sure if I wanted to know exactly what a good time entails for him. Vox played with Alastor’s protectiveness tonight. Ironically, here was someone who was basically offering me exactly what I claimed I wanted, but now that it’s in front of me and especially coming from him I had no interest. I was repulsed by the idea. I kept my back straight and tried to shake off Alastor’s grip a little, I don’t want to be intimidated by Vox right now. He doesn’t hold any direct power over me more than any other demon here. I’m sick of being pushed and pulled around so much.

“I’m plenty satisfied with my company. I’d like if you left us be now, I’m sure you can find time to taunt Alastor on any other day. We would like to enjoy the night.” I asserted. His plasma smile inverted. He looked like a petulant child being told play time was over.

“You’re welcome to reconsider, I’m sure Velvette would like-“

“Velvette does not care for my company, Mr. Vox.” I cut him off. I held back my shame thinking about her and forced myself to continue. “Goodnight, Sir.” He couldn’t hide his displeasure in my answer, clearly he had wanted to demean Alastor in some way by whisking away his date. He took two steps towards us, leaving just a foot of space in between. Baring his LED teeth he looked down at me.

“You ungrateful bi-”

“Be so kind as to let us get on with our evening wont you?” Alastor cut him off, static crackling off his words, he loomed behind me, his eyes practically begging Vox to push him further. He wouldn’t make the first move, but he wouldn’t step down once Vox did. Without looking past me Vox took a deep breath and straightened his tie returning to his dry smile.

“Enjoy the night. We’ll see you in the studio tomorrow.” Vox nodded in my direction with a glint in his eye. I stood in silence as he turned his back to us and rejoined the crowd.

I turned around to face Alastor. Part of me wanted to run away from here, be enveloped in his arms and just dissolve. Another part of me wanted his fingers to find somewhere else they could mercilessly sink into and to free me from my dress as we fell onto his bed. The part of me that won, however, was the part that looked at his angry eyes and smiled, requesting another drink. We could stay here if it meant he would keep holding onto me, if it meant he would continue to be just a step behind me no matter what, if it meant I was the center of his attention for a little bit longer. I knew I might have to pay for my disrespect in the morning, but that felt so far away at this moment. Right now I was safe, I was with Alastor, and that's all I wanted to think about. The ambient candle light danced in his eyes as he looked at me, and as much as he would hate to hear it, the contrast of the rich blue background only made his red hair and eyes look all that much more alluring.

He indulged my request and his grip on my waist was no longer lethal as he guided me to the closest bar in the event room. I ordered my drink and downed it to try to steady my head. Alastor gently hummed along to the band playing while leaning his back against the bar a little, he looked content and for a moment he almost looked like a regular person enjoying his night. If you wanted you could imagine him in life, whatever that had looked like, it was haunting.

“Alastor, would you dance with me?” I asked, unable to keep a smile off my face at his display. He stood up and took one of my hands in his and his grin grew as he gave me a small bow.

“Of course, My Dear, I’d be delighted.” He replied and we joined the dance floor not far away. I was, unfortunately, not a terribly skilled dancer, but Alastor led and I was able to follow. His arm snaked around my waist while the other kept my hand, my free hand rested on his shoulder. His eyes consumed me and I savored it. We had been close all night, but for the first time the proximity felt purposefully intimate. I nearly couldn’t bear the way he looked at me, half lidded eyes slowly raked over my figure before landing back on my own eyes. I wanted him to say something. Beside the fact that I was heavily focused on not tripping over my own feet, my heart raced and I’m not sure I could muster anything worth saying. This was the closest thing I could call a confirmation that he might be thinking what I’m thinking. Maybe he had been all night, maybe that was why he couldn’t let me out of his grip for more than thirty seconds. Or maybe he just liked putting on a show.

I was able to match his steps as we spun around the floor. He had a slightly softer smile playing on his lips. I hoped my nerves weren’t showing through in my smile, I felt like I had it under control, but as I held his gaze I wasn’t so sure my eyes were on my side. “You are a marvelous dancer, no need to worry, you are doing perfectly fine.” Alastor cooed, thinking that must be what’s caused my anxiety. I allowed myself I look past him for a moment to collect my thoughts. I wasn’t even an okay dancer, but it is sweet he would say so.

“I think you are the first dance partner of mine to say that. I stepped on many date’s toes unfortunately in life.” I admitted. Back in my dancing days I quickly fell down the rank of ladies at work to take out, I might be able to make you laugh but that’s about all I was good at on a date.

“Maybe the problem was more so with the partner.” Alastor said and twirled us around. “I seem to have no such problem.” He pulled me ever so slightly closer to him, my chest nearly against his. He was right, I hadn’t actually had much of a misstep at all. He was an excellent dance partner. He knew how to lead and to help me stay in time with him. Alastor gently guided my waist in the direction changes, or gave my hand a gentle squeeze. We were working in tandem quite gracefully.

The song came to an end and I wished it would last just a couple of minutes longer. Alastor released me and gave a slight bow, he was completely serious but I couldn’t help from giggling a little. Such a gentleman tonight. His hand returned to my shoulder blade and we melted into the crowd again. I thought about Alastor more, he is difficult, but it just makes me want more of him. I never know what I will get with him and as frustrating as it is it is also alluring. I pulled up the tops of my gloves a little, just to busy myself, as I caught my breath. I almost felt cold now without the heat of his body so close to mine, even though he was just a few inches further away than he had been it was enough for a chill to sweep through me. I hugged myself a little to compensate and blushed slightly when I realized how pronounced it made my chest. Almost immediately I felt a warm soft fabric cover my shoulders. I looked down at it as I pulled it closer to me and realized it was Alastor’s suit jacket before looking back at him.

“You looked cold, understandable given your attire, we wouldn’t want you to catch a chill now would we?” Alastor offered before I could even question him with a pleasant smile on his face. I smiled back.

“Thank you, though I paid good money for this dress, I ought to show it off. I don’t know when else I’ll ever get the excuse to.” I said and soothed the hem of my dress that just barely came down long enough. I moved to shake off the jacket, but his hand on my shoulder kept me from doing so.

His smile widened. “I think you look particularly lovely just like this!” His voice rang in my ears. Such a protective gentleman. I couldn’t help but to want to tease him.

I shrugged off his hand and his jacket, offering it back to him. “Please, Alastor, I insist.” He begrudgingly took it back and slipped the jacket back on, adjusting his cuffs. I looked up at him with shy eyes as I slowly traced my hands over my silhouette, seemingly to soothe my dress to anyone else. I watched as Alastor’s eyes followed my hands. “Thank you, I think I look rather nice, don’t you?” I asked sweetly. His eyes flicked back up to mine before I spun a little to give him a better look. His grip on his cane became tight. He looked at me like I was prey he was stalking in the forest, absolutely trained on me watching what I would do next. It burned into me and I loved it.

“You look very nice, My Dear. I think you know that.” He said, his voice was clipped, but not dangerous. I smiled. It was fun to get under his skin a little, especially given how he does it to me.

“Maybe, but I was just curious if you also thought so. You look quite handsome yourself, I rather like this suit on you.” I teased and adjusted his lapels a little. I could feel his breath again on the top of my head as I did so and when I looked at his eyes they were glowing a deep ruby color. His hand curled around my wrist, plucking it off of him. I could tell he was trying to decide exactly what to say, so I continued to press him. “Oh, does the touching only go one way? You’ve had your hands on me all night. I thought I might return the favor.” My heart was pounding in my chest as I looked at him. My vision darkened and for a moment all I could see was the glowing of his eyes and his crazed grin. When it lightened back up I knew I was back in the hotel, but in a room I had never seen before. My eyes found the forest that looked like it had been patched onto the room and I knew. This must be Alastor’s room.

The confidence I had held just seconds ago evaporated upon the realization. Alastor gently guided my chin so that my gaze was directed back at him. I knew my eyes were wide and my heart thudded against my ribs as I wasn’t sure if I should be terrified or thrilled, or both. His ears were flat against his head as his eyes drank me in one last time. “You have no idea what you’ve been doing to me tonight.” His voice came out low and no louder than a whisper. One of his arms wrapped around my waist like when we were dancing, but now his claws nearly pierced my skin through the delicate fabric of my dress. He held me close there, I had no answer.

Alastor used his other hand to slowly run the sharp edge of a claw along a path from my jaw, down my neck, over my shoulder, then across my back. My skin hissed at the sensation, it wasn’t even enough to truly break the skin but it sent shockwaves through my system. I stood perfectly still, I wasn’t even sure if I was breathing. I wanted him to just tell me, tell me if he craves me the way I crave him or not. I wanted more of his touch, but I was in no position to demand such a thing.

“As soon as I saw your little getup tonight,” He started to explain, deliberately fiddling with my dress’ fabric. “I wanted to whisk you up here, keep you away from any other soul who might see you in such a state.” I felt my face growing increasingly warm as he combed his free hand through my hair. “I didn’t think they deserved such a sight, but I didn’t want to upset you, My Dear, so I settled for keeping a close watch over you.” I melted into his touch as he held my cheek in his hand while he spoke. “I restrained myself then, but you have pushed me too far.” Alastor leaned his head in closer to mine, until our foreheads almost touched. His eyes were still a glowing deep red. “I’ll tell you a secret. All night I have been able to smell the lust pouring out of you, and right now is the strongest it’s ever been. You smell so sweet.” his neck dips even lower and his lips threaten to brush against my neck, the promise of sweet kisses tantalizing close. I could hear the sound of my blood pumping through my veins, I was hyper aware of every inch of my body that Alastor was touching, my muscles screamed for me to do something. Either run away or grab him and never let him go, waiting was torture. “You have to go.”

My mind raced. Alastor wanted me to leave? We were still tangled together, he made no real move to let me leave. My body ached for more of his touch, I desperately wanted more. I didn’t want to leave this moment. “Please, let me stay.” I begged, my voice breathy almost as if I was gasping for air. I didn’t need air, I needed Alastor. He slowly straightened back up and released his grasp on my waist. My skin hissed at the lack of his heat, the dewy scent of him retreating as he took a step back. He did not raise his eyes to meet mine though, instead his voice was low and gravely, charged with static and energy as he commanded me again.

“Leave.” It was not a question. I held myself back from arguing with him and backed away towards the door behind me. His shadows pooled around him on the floor. Some seemed to deliberately run in my direction as if to grab me and pull me back but any time one headed my way another would smack it back. I watched Alastor while my back was still waiting to find the wall. He was not his normal composed self, no this was raw. He almost looked ashamed, yet angry, searching for something to take that out on. I would pray for whatever creature he takes that out on if I thought it would help. The heavy rise and fall of his chest gave away just how agitated he had become.

Finally my back pressed against the wall while my hand began to search for the doorknob. I couldn’t look away, I couldn’t speak, I could barely move. Did I do something wrong? Can I fix it? I don’t want to push him too hard, but it gnawed on me, if I’d caused this outburst I want to make it right. I opened my mouth to call out his name, but before the first letter could fully form a shadow shot out to me, wrapping itself around my throat and jaw. I froze, I’ve been in the position before and did not want to make him more angry. Alastor slowly turned towards me, his breathing was labored and as he lifted his head I could see a gruesome grin on his face.

“I. Said. Out.”

I was forced backwards by the force of his shadow and only was able to disconcert the sound of his door slamming back shut as I realized I was now on the other side of it. I had fallen back from the force and found myself just staring up at his door. I suddenly felt small and alone here. Just a minute ago I had been the center of Alastor’s universe as we danced and now I was thrown aside and shut out. I wracked my brain for what had set him off so terribly.

I remembered his words, he had confessed to being attracted to me, and knowing I was attracted to him, it felt humiliating. I had felt so exposed and vulnerable in that moment, he hadn’t technically rejected me, but it sure felt like he had. My confidence had crashed. I wanted to curl up and die. I also wanted to march back in Alastor’s room and scream at him for making me feel this way, for building me up just to crush me in the end. Hot tears stung the corners of my eyes, but I forced them away. I don’t want to break down, instead I redirected the energy. You want me to leave? I’ll leave alright.

I slowly pulled myself back up and dusted off my dress, fixing myself and taking a long deep breath for comfort.. I cast one last hurt glance back at Alastor’s door and headed downstairs.

Shame, humiliation, and confusion swirled in my mind, perhaps distorting my decision making capabilities. I debated my next move, but I wasn’t in the headspace to think wisely. My feet carried me forward as if the speed of my steps could out pace these feelings. Soon my heels were clicking down the grand staircase outside the front door while my nails dug into my palm, my gloves didn’t protect me. I wasn’t sure exactly where I was walking, but I eventually found myself down an all too familiar path.

I could see the massive glowing light of the Vs’ studio signage even though I was still a solid mile away. It was as daunting as it always was, the blue neon looked like a bruise on the hellish red sky. It was fitting. The place that I looked forward to leaving everyday was suddenly a constant I could cling onto. I knew exactly where I stood here, I knew what to expect, what to do, how to act, who to be. I was thankful for that role, thankful for the rock it gave me to sink my nails into in order to hold onto something, anything, that made me feel better. Here I didn’t have to be myself and everything that entailed, I could simply be Velvette’s errandgirl, someone who did not care what that deer demon was doing back at the hotel right now. Someone who didn’t dwell on whether or not she would be able to bring herself to look into his deep ruby eyes the next time they met. Someone who didn’t miss the way he looked at her back in the ballroom with a playful possessiveness as the candle light danced behind them. No. I would be too busy for any of that.

I straightened out my back when the building came into focus drawing on a polite shy smile.

Quietly, I rejoined the event space. The party had of course continued in my absence, none the wiser to my personal angst. I cast my eyes about the room in search of Angel, unlikely as it was I couldn’t help myself. A friendly face would be nice right now, but no such luck. So I took a step forward, ever still conscious of my looks and of the crowd, and made my way back towards the bar. Alone this time, but the night was just beginning.

Part Five

Tags: @cannibalcoyote

[lilacargent]

This is an add on to my previous idea of old weapons being redundant and everything being rays/plasma/energy based. But humans are weird little things that like hoarding weapons…

This story plays on a spaceship called the Serpentine.

Important crew:

Primoz, captain -Limoyh a four armed species-Krag, second in command (brother of Primoz)

Kit, dokter -avian, bird like, she has feathers like a swallow-

Ortez, ASR (all species resources, human resources in space) -kiltak, insectoid species, think ants but exoskeleton-

Lugea, helmsperson (does the steering) -rock like alien-

Artex, engineer/mechanic 1 -also Kiltak-

And then our humans:

Kamari, navigator -Eritrean woman- (has cat named Sidra)

Markus, weapons expert (knows how to use them and upkeep, also shields) -Swedish man-

Petrus, mechanic/engineer 2 - Italian man-

Lilly, administrator/note keeper (learns languages for fun)-english woman-

~~~~~~

Ouroboros

The mood on the Serpentine is at an all time low. Right now they were supposed to be on planet earth, getting a tour from the deathworld residents. Krag was very disappointed that the humans celebration for their 15 year tenure on the ship had to be cancelled, after all the stories he had really wanted to see the planet, at least more than the embassy or a space travel base.

Sadly this had to be put on hold, as the Counsel is at war. The big four armed alienwas looking at his brother, the captain, pacing the bridge while they slowly moved to the deserted front lines of the attack, hoping to maybe find something that gives the Unity an edge.

This had started no more than a month ago, an exploratory vessel had found a planet beyond the borders of Avian territory, on the southern side of Unity (direction is always measured from Unity as that is the point of convergence for most species and space faring) now new planets were interesting but not usually to the average person. The last message received was a voice note screaming about a wormhole in the planet the sent hundreds of ships and the ship it self failing on all fronts and shutting down.

From that day a line of dark crude ships started eating away at the Avian territory, within a week they had lost 19 colonies. Nothing is stopping them, ships that got too close shut down for no reason and were never recovered as the unstoppable line of enemy ships progressed. Weapons fired from far away did nothing as whatever beam they threw vanished when it gets close.

All that and the Unity still kept sending forces, because what else were they going to do?

So here they are, on their way to a probable death sentence with no clue about the enemy. Through his somber thoughts Krag hears laughing from the mess hall, yes, these are the moments he is extra thankful for the humans. After 15 years they were pillars in the crew, right now Lilly and Petrus were teaching the crew human “sea shanties” which were apparently doing their job of lifting spirits as the humans had explained, Lilly is writing the english words down for Kit who is learning the language in her analog book, one of her human oddities. Markus is showing some of the newer recruits the ins and outs of the weapon systems. Lastly Kamari, their leader and confidant, she has made herself indispensable to Ortez over the years. Now she was sitting in a corner listening to people pour their hearts out, giving the best advice she can.

As the ship is approaching the seemingly desolate piece of space where 23 ships float without direction or crew, hulls torn open and ransacked, the crew of the Serpentine watches in horror as there are only Unity ships, non of their enemy.

Artex and Petrus helm the out board arms in trying to get any information or remnants that are usable, when the ship shivers and stills. As the sound of something attaching to the outer hull comes through, the ships lights and computers shut down.

“DO NOT PANIC” the captain yells, “grab your weapons, and prepare for battle” as everyone prepares Markus grabs a weapon from his bag, a long gun, which Primoz recognises as an old earth weapon. “Why would you carry that?” Primoz grabs Markus’ arm, who contorts his face in one of the more terrifying human grins, one usually reserved for enemies “well we know the blasters don’t work. I thought let’s try this!” Now that the captain is looking he sees that the humans are all carrying an old weapon, Kamari seems to have a smaller version of Markus’ gun, Petrus has a sword on his hip and Lilly had several sheets with daggers strapped to her hips. Primoz turns around as Krag grabs his shoulder “if it gives them hope, let it go, what are they gonna do?”

Lugea catches their attention “something is boarding in sector three!” Immediately the armed crew members ran toward the sector, Markus directing people into an ambush formation. Blasters ready they wait.

The doors as everything else have lost power, but with a flash electricity runs through it the doors open and two tall lanky aliens skitter in (the silence from doctor who but in body armour) with voices that sound like nails on a chalk board they use the captains language “sssurendderrr, and youuu won’t ssssssufffer. Yourrr weaponsssss aree ussssseelll-“ with a swoosh Lilly’s knife flew past the ranks and embedded itself a bit in the body armour. Three blaster shots follow her knife but dissipate in mid air. Kamari’s eyes light up as she grabs her glock “looks like old does the trick!” A big bang makes the other crew members cover their ears. But the bullet hits its target, and dark yellow blood pours from a head wound.

“Thats it!” Petrus runs in and goes for a decapitation, sadly no such luck as the left over alien grabs his sword and not caring for life and limb tries to touch the human. Before he can a second loud shot rings out, Markus got a good aim.

Now there are two dead aliens but still no power. Through some investigation Kit figures out the aliens are like leeches for energy, electricity and a lot of what their stuff runs on. The ship the creatures came with is empty and sending out a signal, worried more enemy troops are coming the crew discusses. No useful ideas come up until Petrus starts speaking: “what if we make thrusters like the old ones on earth? Y’know like a fire powered one. Heck i know we have several things that are flammable in high quantities. If we put that behind the other ship we could propel ourselves away maybe find council ship? And while we are at it we could Ouroboros this ship when those leech man comeback. right Markus?" Markus gets a pensive look on his face “yea we probably could, but even if we can propel the other ship far enough how do we stop our people from trying to blow us up?’ Now Lilly speaks up ‘we can paint it? I have paints in my room, our space suit will still keep the pressure out but won’t supply oxygen. We could hold our breath.’ Rumbling Lugea intercepts ‘while i do need a little oxygen i can survive up to 58 kliks without it, i could do it?’ More and more of the crew start to speak up, Artez offers to help Petrus with the thrusters. Kit knows several flammable liquids she keeps in the med bay and has enough chemical knowledge to know what can be used as fuel so she is in on gathering the necessary ingredients. The two brothers started with decking out Lugea, and gathered several steel ropes to pull the ship in so people could get on with as little exposure as possible.

Ortez realises noone asked what ‘ouroboros’ meant and finds Kamari in a fight with Markus ‘you’re right that we’re gonna need the push if we want to get anywhere but there has to be another way?!’ The dark woman whisper shouts with a resigned look Markus grabs her flailing arm ‘we have no electricity to make a remote to do it from a distance moon, I don’t see another option.’ The fact that Markus is using Kamaris nickname and gets no scolding look makes the insectoid realise this is very serious ‘what about Lilly then? You know she won’t let you.’ Now the man looks stern ‘we dont tell her until it is too late.’ Skittering into the light Ortez speaks up ‘what exactly does ‘ouroboros’ a ship mean and why can’t you tell Lilly?’ Startled the two humans look at him, Kamari takes the word ‘ouroboros is a plan we made up for blowing the ship up, without power source. Ya know- serpentine -serpent -ouroboros is a serpent eating its own tail’ as she is speaking Ortez gets more anxious ‘okay several things 1, you made plans to blow up the ship?! 2, you just said you don’t have a remote which means you are planning on staying behind’ focussing all six eyes on Marks. Who squares his shoulders and nods.

It took two hours to get things in place, another hour to prepare and calculate the blast range.

Almost everyone has boarded the enemy ship, save for Primoz, Kamari, Krag and Markus. With tears in her eyes Kamari hugs him, Primoz grabs him by the shoulders ‘are you aure? The thrusters might be enough.’ A sad smile crosses his face ‘but it most likely won’t be captain. It was an honour serving with you.’ The three salute him while he walks to the bridge so he can see the ship and calculate when to start the chain reaction.

As the captain and his brother close the secondary doors behind Kamari, Lilly realises what has happened ‘NO,’ running for the door Petrus grabs her ‘PLEASE NO,’ as she fights and struggles the man starts whispering to her while she screams for Markus. Krag looks away towards Artez ‘start the thrusters’ now weeping Lilly cries out ‘WE LEAVE NO ONE BEHIND, we leave no one behind.’ the ships starts moving and as calculated their beautiful Serpentine blows up the shock wave propelling the now brightly coloured ship to safety.

It takes 5 hours for them to be found, after explaining the situation they are immediately transported to Unity. Where the group of humans show Lillies notes and the enemy ship. Plans are made and the human civilisation shows exactly why they are so scary when in les than a week they mass produce weapons that can hurt the newly dubbed leeches.

With the crew on the frontlines scattered over separate ships they beat back the leeches, destroying the wormhole and any stragglers are mercilessly killed off.

Humans are terrifying if you hurt them, because they never come after you alone.

~~~~~~~~~

This is technically the end of the serpentine but much room for stories in the 15 years before.

Hopefully people enjoy this.

[masterhallmark]

I'm really sick of the "Pirates are Lost Boys who grew up and escaped Pan" theory

1) The book is a children's story, not a horror novel.

2) The idea Peter kills boys who grow up is based on one throwaway line that says he "thins them out" if there are too many, which can mean several different things.

3) HOOK WAS A PIRATE WITH A CREW BEFORE LANDING IN NEVERLAND! He literally has a backstory in the book and several speeches J.M. Barrie gave about going to Eton, running away, and becoming a pirate. The crew arrived in Neverland AS IS.

4) The book mentions Peter will travel with the souls of dying kids halfway to the afterlife so they aren't scared. He also desperately begs children to save Tinkerbell, tries to sacrifice himself for Wendy, saves Tiger Lilly while commenting that the pirates were being unfair when capturing her, even tries to help Hook regain his footing during a fight, and saves the Neverbird's eggs from being destroyed. Does that sound like a psychopath to you?

5) The ONLY TIME we see Peter try to kill a Lost Boy is when he mistakenly thinks said Lost Boy killed Wendy, and said Lost Boy told Peter to kill him. Once it turns out Wendy is alive, not only is the boy forgiven, but the only punishment Tinkerbell (the actual culprit) gets is banishment.

The entire purpose of the book is to contrast the innocence of youth with the responsibilities of adulthood. The negative traits Peter has are meant to show the dangers of refusing to grow up, while Hook is meant to show the dangers of growing up TOO much. Hook OBSESSES over good form and acting proper to the point he almost FAINTS when Wendy sees a stain on his shirt.

Also, the entire book "Peter and Wendy" and every other variation of the story JM Barrie wrote is FREE on the internet. Anyone can read it RIGHT HERE http://neverpedia.com/pan/Read:Peter_and_Wendy

There is no good reason for this misinformation spreading. It is easily available.

Passages from the book under cut, since last time I posted something like this someone tried to argue with me

At first Mrs. Darling did not know, but after thinking back into her childhood she just remembered a Peter Pan who was said to live with the fairies. There were odd stories about him, as that when children died he went part of the way with them, so that they should not be frightened.

-----

"It lifted Michael off the ground," he cried; "why should it not carry you?"

"Both of us!"

"It can't lift two; Michael and Curly tried."

"Let us draw lots," Wendy said bravely.

"And you a lady; never." Already he had tied the tail round her. She clung to him; she refused to go without him; but with a "Good-bye, Wendy," he pushed her from the rock; and in a few minutes she was borne out of his sight. Peter was alone on the lagoon.

The rock was very small now; soon it would be submerged. Pale rays of light tiptoed across the waters; and by and by there was to be heard a sound at once the most musical and the most melancholy in the world: the mermaids calling to the moon.

Peter was not quite like other boys; but he was afraid at last. A tremour ran through him, like a shudder passing over the sea; but on the sea one shudder follows another till there are hundreds of them, and Peter felt just the one. Next moment he was standing erect on the rock again, with that smile on his face and a drum beating within him. It was saying, "To die will be an awfully big adventure."

------

Nevertheless the bird was determined to save him if she could, and by one last mighty effort she propelled the nest against the rock. Then up she flew; deserting her eggs, so as to make her meaning clear.

Then at last he understood, and clutched the nest and waved his thanks to the bird as she fluttered overhead. It was not to receive his thanks, however, that she hung there in the sky; it was not even to watch him get into the nest; it was to see what he did with her eggs.

There were two large white eggs, and Peter lifted them up and reflected. The bird covered her face with her wings, so as not to see the last of them; but she could not help peeping between the feathers.

I forget whether I have told you that there was a stave on the rock, driven into it by some buccaneers of long ago to mark the site of buried treasure. The children had discovered the glittering hoard, and when in a mischievous mood used to fling showers of moidores, diamonds, pearls and pieces of eight to the gulls, who pounced upon them for food, and then flew away, raging at the scurvy trick that had been played upon them. The stave was still there, and on it Starkey had hung his hat, a deep tarpaulin, watertight, with a broad brim. Peter put the eggs into this hat and set it on the lagoon. It floated beautifully.

The Never bird saw at once what he was up to, and screamed her admiration of him; and, alas, Peter crowed his agreement with her. Then he got into the nest, reared the stave in it as a mast, and hung up his shirt for a sail. At the same moment the bird fluttered down upon the hat and once more sat snugly on her eggs. She drifted in one direction, and he was borne off in another, both cheering.

-----

"It was poisoned, Peter," she told him softly; "and now I am going to be dead."

"O Tink, did you drink it to save me?"

"Yes."

"But why, Tink?"

Her wings would scarcely carry her now, but in reply she alighted on his shoulder and gave his nose a loving bite. She whispered in his ear "You silly ass," and then, tottering to her chamber, lay down on the bed.

His head almost filled the fourth wall of her little room as he knelt near her in distress. Every moment her light was growing fainter; and he knew that if it went out she would be no more. She liked his tears so much that she put out her beautiful finger and let them run over it.

Her voice was so low that at first he could not make out what she said. Then he made it out. She was saying that she thought she could get well again if children believed in fairies.

Peter flung out his arms. There were no children there, and it was night time; but he addressed all who might be dreaming of the Neverland, and who were therefore nearer to him than you think: boys and girls in their nighties, and naked papooses in their baskets hung from trees.

"Do you believe?" he cried.

Tink sat up in bed almost briskly to listen to her fate.

She fancied she heard answers in the affirmative, and then again she wasn't sure.

"What do you think?" she asked Peter.

"If you believe," he shouted to them, "clap your hands; don't let Tink die."

Many clapped.

Some didn't.

A few beasts hissed.

The clapping stopped suddenly; as if countless mothers had rushed to their nurseries to see what on earth was happening; but already Tink was saved. First her voice grew strong, then she popped out of bed, then she was flashing through the room more merry and impudent than ever. She never thought of thanking those who believed, but she would have like to get at the ones who had hissed.

"And now to rescue Wendy!"

[rustboxstarr]

🏖Grown Ups🏖 part 2

Summary: You've been pulling away from Eddie recently its not until summer vacation that you finally find your way back to him.

Pairings: Dad!Eddie Munson x PlusSize!Mom!Reader

Warnings: Smut, Fluff, Angst. Swearing, use of Y/N, kinda hints that reader is tall, and not blonde but if that aint u just ignore it haha, Steve once again being an insightful mama hen, accidental hurting animals (the bird scene), slightly persuasive of venturing out of comfort zone (friend to reader) but its all in good nature, age gap one sided flirting, accusations of cheating, talk of depression, oral m receiving, soft dom!Reader, mention of blood, sexy photos, talks of masturbation, P in V, sexual powerplay, mean degrading, blood, slapping, angry makeup sex for deep set feelings after a long time, smoking, R comes from abusive home, crying, bad views on emotions from R, talk of death, loosing a parent, homelessness, allusion to deadly overdose.

Wordcount: 22 k

A/N: Holy hell this took some time, life has just been beating the crap out of me lately but thank you all so much for all the support and love and patience, it means so much to me ❤️

Eddie is not a dick ok, he doesn’t only think about sex all the time, he just comes off as one because its smut hahahaha.

Lets just ignore the fact that big girls chafe haha.

Eddies tall now because I said so, sorry not sorry, he's like 2 cm taller than me, sue me for having a preference.

Love yas!

Part 1

Drawings I made for the fic for some visuals 😊

Grown Ups masterlist

Check out my other works!

Max (35), Lukas (35) - twins Eric (6) and Billy (6)

El (35), Mike (35) - no kids

Dustin (35), Suzie (35) - Willow (11 months)

Eddie (41), You (40) - Ophelia (10) and Roxette (7)

Gareth (37) - single, no kids

Luke -unnamed freak (39), Simone (38) - Tom (5) and Oliver (3) - not that it matters but Simone is african american so the kids are mixed incase it might be nice to visualise 

Jeff (37), Tracy (45) - Ariana (16) (Tracy's daughter)

Will (35), Winter (33) - no kids

Steve (40), Nancy (39) - Mercy (11), Lousie (9), Rachel (7), Marcus(5), Bianca (3) and Dustin (2)

Jonathan (39), Charlotte (41) - Emma (6), Charlie (4) and Lilly (2)

Robin(39), Vickie(39) - no kids

Argyle (40), Eden (38) - no kids

Holly (26)- no kids

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

The sun was blaring down on the two men as Steve hovered behind Eddie going through the motions of checking the vital parts of the engine to the Harrington-Wheeler Chrysler minivan. 

Sweat beads threatened to drip down Eddies forehead under his damp bangs, his hair tied back in a low bun as he bent over the hood, grime building up under his nails and staining his fingers as he picked and pulled at parts, finally he stood up, cracking his back, only prolonging the inevitable as Steve watched him expectantly. 

“Your oxygen sensor is malfunctioning” he wiped his hands off on his trunks, making a mental note to wash them later, “And that means?...” Steve crossed his arms and leant forward to inspect the different mechanics he had no idea about “The engine computer won't be able to correctly set the air to fuel ratio, which means lower fuel economy, higher emissions and a high probability of damage to other components, such as an overheating the catalytic converter” Eddie stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, his professional vocabulary shining through “Jesus dude english” Steve groaned, all the unfamiliar words working up some anxiety in his chest, worrying he would have to trade in a new car which would undoubtedly cost them a lot just when they'd gotten settled and comfortable with the economy. 

“You're gonna have to get it replaced” Steve relaxed but only a little bit “but you're not taking this hunk of junk out on the road” just as Steve was about to complain about how they needed the car to get back home a rusty Chevrolet Chevette whizzed over the gravel, screeching as it came to a stop, haphazardly parking squint between two cars, cutting off his train of thought as he mimicked Eddies reaction of wincing at the loud noise. 

The formerly cherry red now prominently rust door opened and a short blonde figure in a low-cut, cropped, baby pink tanktop and daisy dukes emerged with a wide grin on her face “Holly!” Eddie greeted as he turned to face Nancy and Mike's younger sister who he hadn't seen in nearly 10 years “Hiiii!” she waved happily as she closed the door and walked over to the pair “Lovely to see you” Steve let his arms fall to his sides as Eddie closed the hood to the car “You too Steve. So what you two up to?” 

Her arms crossed at the wrist as she played with her bracelet, looking up at Eddie with wide doe eyes “Just checking out Steves tin can” Eddie chuckled as he did a quick scan of the girl in front of him before meeting her eyes, a smirk tugged at her lips as she made a subtle show of pushing her breasts together further with her crossed hands. Steve frowned behind Eddie's back as Holly continued her pleasantries “Oh that's right you’re a mechanic, real man's job” she gave a sultry smirk as it was Eddie's turn to frown slightly in confusion, “What do you do again Steve?” Steve cleared his throat and stood up straight “Uh I’m an accountant” for some reason Holly's comment made him suddenly insecure about his job. He felt the need to puff out his chest to stand up for himself in some strange way. Holly only hummed in response, “Uh Mikes over there and I think Nancy's inside” Eddie pointed towards the beach. Holly gave a wide smirk and walked off with a wave of her slim fingers. 

Eddie cleared his throat “Uh ok anyway, yeah you can't take the car out on the road but I can pop by an auto shop and pick up the parts, saves you a fortune of doing it here” they both began strolling over to the beach again as they went over the costs for the parts. 

-

Your eyes drifted from looking out over the lake with the squealing kids and laughing adults to see Holly make her way over to the group of what you all still considered to be the kids, namely, Dustin, Suzie, Max, El, Mike and Lucas scattered on towels soaking up the sun. Gareth sat beside you deep in a monologue about some car he was working on, if you were completely honest you weren't really listening, simply content in being in the sun during summer, away from work and enjoying time with your kids and Eddie, still on a high from being reconnected with him. 

You were pulled out of your peaceful bliss when you felt a tug on your hair, turning around to be met by the man himself, your husband, who smacked a kiss to your forehead, further lightening your mood as Dustin clapped his hands together. “So, who’s coming on the hike? There's a tree swing which I think the kids would like, goes over the water” he grinned as he looked around. 

-

Soon enough Luke and his eldest Tom, Dustin with his Willow, Steve and Nancy with Mercy, Louise and Rachel as well as Robin, and you and your little family -save for Roxette who was left in Ariana's room as they gossiped about the music industry- were gathered outside the cabin as Dustin pushed off, leading the group behind him. “Knew you'd wear the shorts” Eddie breathed in your left ear as you watched Ophelia run off to chatter happily with Steve's girls.

You giggled as you felt a strong large hand squeeze at your right asscheek, “They're are the only ones I had, seeing as someone thought my cargos were their cargos and switched them out for their own denim ones” you pulled at the black denim fabric on his thigh as evidence to your point “Maybe I did it on purpose” he grinned as he slipped around to walk next to your left, slipping his fingers between yours to hold your hand. “I would hope so, I still have hope for your fried ass brain, be nice to know its not too far gone that you can't tell the difference between an article of clothing twice the size of yours” you grinned up at him, gum peeking through at the front where it threatened to fall out from the loose bite around it. 

“How dare you? I was like the smartest person in our grade” he grinned wickedly at his joke as he slipped back behind you to walk on the narrow path through the woods, switching to his left hand to hold yours without being in an awkward twist. “First of all, that would be me, I mean hello? Trailer trash, near drop out and community college degree” you flashed a grin towards him before staring intently at your feet to make sure you wouldn't trip “But sure, they held you back three years to make sure you held up the average 4.2 GPA” he squeezed your hip at your cheek causing you to giggle again. 

“Y/N can we talk?” Nancy rushed over once the path opened up again, leaving Steve behind you both as she looked between you and Eddie. “Sure” you grinned knowingly and let your hand slip from Eddies. 

“What you think they're talking about?” Eddie asked as he watched Robin hold back to join the two of you, abandoning her conversation with a bunch of the kids. “What do you think, dumbass?” Steve snorted as he witnessed Robin jumping up and down excitedly “Why does everyone have to know what's going on all the time?” Eddie rolled his eyes “In her defence, you've been scheming with us on how to get her into bed, but I will admit she and Nancy have been talking about it for a while” 

“What?”

“Well I mean Nancy gives hints, she keeps talking my ear off about girl code and how she swore she wouldn't tell anyone” 

“I’m sorry, are you that interested in my sex life?” he gestured towards Steve's obvious distaste for the aforementioned ‘girl code’.

“No, but I can't be the only one who enjoys listening to my wife's gossip” 

“Ok true, but wait why would she talk to Nancy about this and not me? I’m the husband, and like the actual person who it concerns!” he threw his hands out in annoyed defeat as Steve shrugged. “Don’t forget, Robin too, but she really won't tell me shit” Eddie sent him a glare at his remark. “Girl talk? Guess she just feels more comfortable talking about it with another girl. I mean, do you tell her everything?”

“Yes” Eddie deadpanned after drawing his eyes away from your giggling “Oof, eh well maybe like, establish some… rules? I don't know, just like make her aware you're willing to listen”

“Why do you know all of this? Weren't you like super unpopular with the ladies after the breakup senior year?” 

“First of all, I’m smart and I communicate with my wife” he gave a knowing glare at Eddie, as if to tell him something you should be doing more “And secondly, so were you, she's like the only one you've been with” 

“Didn't have to be popular, been with the same girl since I was 17” he grinned smugly. 

“Hey Ophi, when we were kids your parents used to talk us into doing the craziest stuff” Dustin's voice was heard over the chatter of the group as he leant down to pass Willow over to your daughter for her to carry. “That's right” Eddie grinned a few metres away, “Yeah, I remember one time we, uh got our shower curtains, put ‘em in shopping carts and went shopping cart sailing” he stood up once he saw Ophelis was secure with his daughter and flashed a grin towards you. 

Luke laughed as you shouted out a “Yeah!”, “Wait, how did you steer?” Tom piped up in confusion “Well we-we didn’t” he grinned towards his son “How’d you stop?” Louise turned, walking backwards to give her attention to Luke. “You just smashed into something” Eddie explained “That was the fun part” you piped up as Eddie found his place walking next to you again. 

“We used to shoot bottle rockets at each other” Robin laughed “You always go for the guy’s face cuz’ you wanna blind him” she smirked as Mercy frowned, “Okay, no that's a little much pal” Steve patted her on the shoulder “No! No I know, kids, don't do that” she covered “You know what, erase, reboot” she waved her hands back and forth as she mimicked the sound of a cassette rewinding, Rachel and Ophelia laughing at her antics. 

“Oh ho ho ho! The rope swing!” Dustin pointed as you all arrived at your destination “Oh rope on a tree baby! You know what that means” Luke inched towards the swing as Dustin held onto it excitedly. “We get to hang ourselves?” Mercy's bored voice sounded “Mercy” Steve scolded as Eddie interrupted “Are you kidding me? You see a rope and a lake and that doesnt wanna make you go nuts?” he pointed towards lake Michigan which you were now only further up the coastline of.  

“It makes me wanna- you- you- you know what? Let me show ‘em, let me show ‘em” Luke stuttered excitedly as he shuffled down the cliff and towards Dustin. “Yeah baby” Dustin forced the rope over to Luke to grab onto “Dude, get on the top rock!” you shouted as he began to steady himself, multiple adults chiming in with yeah’s at your suggestion. 

“Class is in session” Luke made a deep teacher's voice as he prepared to jump from the rock “Who wants to see a double flip!” he shouted as he ran off the edge of the rock, “Whee!” he exclaimed as everybody egged him on “Too high!”

“Now drop!”

“This was a mistake!”

“I can’t let go I’m to scared!” he shrieked as he turned back around on the rope, smashing right into a thick tree. He screamed guturally as he let go of the rope, doing a flip in the air and landing on the forest floor with a loud thump, he rolled over with the slope of the hill ramming right into a bush, rolling right over a high edge and thudding loudly onto the last bit of earthy floor before the shore of the lake. 

The previous crowd shouting with sympathy pain silenced as he came to a stop. “That was awesome!” his son shouted excitedly, suddenly Luke popped up and into view, his face scrunched up in pain as he shrieked “Oh god! Oh god! My leg snapped!” he held onto his thigh as he shrieked, a grey and brown bone protruding from his skin, “Oh my god! The bone’s sticking out! I need help!” he continued as everyone began shrieking in horror. 

“It's a stick! I got you!” he threw the supposed bone away with a clap of his hands, squirming his body in an attempt at a victory dance. Some sighed in relief as some laughed “AAHAHAHA that was good!” Dustin pointed at him as Steve, you, Eddie and Robin all laughed. 

“Daddy that bird is hurt!” Rachel squealed as she pointed past Luke to something nestled between the leaves behind him. The bird flapped and chirped in strain as it attempted to rise from the ground, “Oh my god” Robin shimmied down the rock towards the bird “We’ll go get a shoebox when we get back” Nancy comforted her daughter as she clung to her leg, hiding her face. 

Eddie too shimmied down towards Luke as Robin picked the bird up and placed it in a makeshift pillow which was her hoodie. Eddie reached a hand out to help him up as he asked “Hey, did you really land on that bird, man?” he watched as Luke stood up and dusted himself off “Um.. I’m not sure. I-I did hear a chirp and then a crunch-like noise, but.. That could have been anything” he shook his head dismissively as Eddie snorted “Okey”. 

The group of hikers made their way back as all the kids flocked around Robin to get a look at the bird.

“After lunch I’m gonna head into town with Steve, need to get a part for the engine” Eddie caught up to you again and bent slightly down to speak to you, “Oh ok, us girls were talking about heading to that shopping mall outside of the town later” you pulled your shorts up and tugged your t-shirt down since both had adjusted after talking a large step over a fallen tree “Alright great, I’m sure the girls’ll be fine, I’ll ask Luke if he can keep an eye on them” he said as he fell behind you. 

-

You and Eddie took it upon yourselves to cook lunch, near 10 bags of fresh pasta boiled in two large pots as Eddie heated up a hefty amount of tomato sauce. Once Robin had set out all the plates and cutlery she leaned over and whispered to Eddie “Geez, she’s really bossy” she referred to the multiple orders you had nearly shouted out and multiple warnings not to touch the food. “I heard that” you deadpanned as you stirred the pasta, Eddie only laughed “Don't worry, she’s a lot more bossy when we do other things too” he smirked, earning him a smack to the back of the head from you. 

Soon enough everyone had eaten and 11 of you packed into two cars, save for Holly and Ariana who were getting to know each other in their now shared room. You with Nancy, Tracy, Simone, Charlotte, Suzie and Eden in Jonathan and Charlotte's minivan and El, Robin and Vickie, and Max in her car. The mall wasn't too big, mostly clothes shops but too many to all collectively decide on so you all split up. 

A cute little independent shop was where your group was headed. 

“Oh. My. God! Y/N this is perfect for you!” Charlotte squealed as she held up a dress from the maternity section where she had already found a collection of things to try on “What, maternity clothes?” you laughed as you walked over to her, so far all you'd found was a cute set of panties with a matching teddy which you had reasoned you may as well treat yourself too since it seemed you were becoming more comfortable with yourself again. “Yes a maternity dress but seriously you would look gorgeous in this” she passed over the black silky smooth t-shirt fabric flowing from a hanger. You held it up to look. 

Sleeveless with a turtleneck and shapeless, something you usually shied away from as it made you look like you were wearing a garbage bag, but sliding the fabric through your hands you discovered it had slits up the side, decidedly high up on the sides, no doubt past your thighs. 

“Babe this would look horrible on me” you sighed as you motioned it back to her, she didn't take it, instead she insisted “Girl this is going to look absolutely stunning on you, at least just try it on” she compromised. “Fine” 

You picked up a few more things before you, Charlotte, Simone and Nancy went to try all of your chosen items on. 

You most definitely felt the confidence boost as you put the dress on, hips and thighs half on display, the slits hem resting just above your hip, but as you looked in the mirror that confidence washed away. Hip dips, stretchmarks and cellulite were all on display, sure you loved your body and had no issue showing it, but on your own terms, this was definitely a dress for skinny curvy girls, and your point was proved further as you turned to the side. Plump round breasts which honestly yes they looked fucking good, but below that your stomach, devided by your bellybutton and forcing the fabric out. At least the dress wasn't skin tight, the fabric hung from the roundest part of your belly, the bottom, not sucking right back in to show the roundness of it but you weren't keen on the rolls showing. 

“Is it on?” Charlotte squealed excitedly as she and the others sat on a pouffe outside, all done with their try-ons, “Yes” you sighed as you turned to look at your front again “Ooh show me, show me!” you sighed again as you hung your head, walking out to show the outfit. “Oh my god, that dress was like made for you” Simone commented as you walked out. “Yeah, Eddies going to love that” Nancy told you with wide eyes. “Babe, it looks amazing! You have to buy it!” she clapped as you made your way over to the full length mirror on the floor, twisting and turning.

“Really?” you asked anxiously as you examined the back, rolls on show and bra straps clearly digging into your fat. “Yes! Come on, it's only like $15!” you contemplated it, it wasn't much money, and you sure had spent more on clothing that you never wore “Eh what the hell?” you shrugged. 

You visited a few more stores and were all sat excitedly talking about it as you made your way home. “You should wear that dress tonight” Charlotte piped up from the back as you drove her minivan. “It’s a restaurant with kids, it's not appropriate” you laughed as you pulled into the parking lot of the cabin, “So? We’ll all wear what we bought. We’ll all be inappropriate, Simone you shoulder wear that strappy mess you call lingerie” you all laughed at her response as you parked up. 

She kept pestering you all the way out the car, getting the other girls to join in and agree on wearing their new outfits not lingerie which Simone stated clearly “Fine! Fine! I’ll wear it!” you laughed as you entered in the huddle “Wear what?” Eddie chuckled as he slid over to you, dropping a kiss to your lips and naturally grabbing the bags to let you slip your shoes off. “Just this dress Charlotte made me buy” Charlotte in question smirked all smug as she leaned in “You're gonna die when you see her in it” you felt on the spot as Eddie turned with a matching smirk as the pair looked at you “Oh am I?” you only rolled your eyes and grabbed the bags, ruffling Ophelia's hair as you made your way up to check on Roxette.

-

Thankfully the dress covered up all the hickies, was all you could think as you looked yourself in the mirror, you’d decided against the new lingerie as you riffled through your new things, you weren't 100% ready for it yet but that was ok, instead your worn your usual dark black t-shirt bra and an matching thong which had also been picked up today, only for the purpose of the dress, topping the outfit off with your old beat up converse. 

Before leaving for the trip you'd packed some of your old jewellery which hadn't been worn in months, now you were thankful for it, it really pulled the outfit together. A beaded black bracelet with a star hanging from it, a black chain necklace with a ruby in the shape of a crystal tower upside down hanging low from your neck and a collection of different earrings in your various ear piercings. All matching your simple winged eyeliner, mascara and blood red lips. 

“Mom, you look like a vampire!” Roxette squealed excitedly as she ran over to you at the bottom of the stairs, you laughed at her comment, pulling her greedy hands away from you as she grabbed onto the fabric. “You look really pretty mom” Ophelia smiled from her spot on the couch next to her dad who was now fully distracted from his conversation with Steve. 

You could feel his eyes rake over your body painstakingly slow, drinking you up. He cleared his throat as he blinked, remembering that not only were a bunch of people around but his kids too “You look really beautiful” he breathed as his eyes found yours. “Thanks” you beamed as you followed Roxette who was dragging you over to the dining table. Surprisingly what mattered the most was the opinion of your daughters, and all insecurity was shunted away as they showered you in their own version of praise. 

You felt comfortable within yourself as you sat down next to Argyle to see the comic he was telling Roxette about. Not feeling the pair of wide eyes staring at you from across the room as his daughter tugged on his arm. The only way to describe Eddie right now, was speechless. He couldn't even begin to comprehend what he was seeing. The thighs, the stomach, your tits so clearly visible from the side, round and plump. Snake tattoo framed by vines spread wide on your right thigh while a spider creeping out of a skull occupied your left. The girls initials on the back of your left arm, the flower with the eye further down, the dripping moon on your upper arm, and on your other the large spider web on your forearm, a spider resting in its creation, the dagger dripping blood above it next to the butterfly with the eye. 

Eddie always liked to joke about your fascination with spiders and eyes but right now all he could do was stare at them all in a daze. He couldn't say all of his favourite parts, nor nearly all, because every part of you were his favourite parts, but most of them were on display. All for Eddie to drink up and fascinate himself with. Not only did you look so incredibly sexy but also so goddamn pretty, beautiful, breathtaking, he couldn't decide. The gods above he didn't believe in had created this devine goddess and on top of that you were his wife??

Compliments were exchanged between all the girls who wore their brand new outfits as well as some teasing directed towards not only Eddie but Jeff, Luke and Jonathan whose wives all had worn something slightly frisky. Finally after lots of back and forth everyone set out in their cars to Woodmans. 

Eddie looked behind him to see both girls hot in an argument about why being the knight while playing princesses was better than being a princess and decided the coast was clear. He would love to shower you with dirty compliments but he couldn't, so the best he could do was lay a hand high up on your thigh and grasp on tightly as a sign of affection. You grinned and turned to him as he gave you a meaningful look, desperately trying to convey his message. The message being, If I could, I would fuck you right here, right now. 

“Dad, you're hurting mom!” Roxette screeched from the backseat as she witnessed the skin under his hand turning a deeper shade, he quickly retracted his hand and placed it firmly on the steering wheel “No I’m not” he retorted, as if he himself was a 7 year old child too. “Yes you are, and mommy had bruises too, did you do that” she strained against her seatbelt as she attempted to look her father in the eye, you snorted before turning in your seat “No baby, I’m ok, he's not hurting me” you explained. “See” Eddie smugly chimed in as Roxy stuck her tongue out at him. 

He cleared his throat as everyone made their way into the restaurant, both girls running off to talk to their friends “So uh are you not wearing any underwear?” he whispered into your ear as his free hand landed on your hip, the other occupied with holding your hand behind you “Wouldn't you like to know” your neck craned to give him eye contact as you turned, beginning to smirk as you felt his hand slip under the fabric in search of something “Is-” his fingers found the hem of your thong, slipping under it and following it down to the crook of your cheeks where it disappeared in between them “Is that a thong?” he frowned down at you in surprise “Well my normal underwear wouldn't work with this” you explained as his hand found your hip again and you adjusted the fabric to sit back over your ass. 

A guttural groan left Eddie's throat as you all entered the restaurant. 

The restaurant was packed with people but luckily the server brought you to a room at the back which was mostly empty, seating you all down in a cluster of tables. Dim cozy lights shone up above as 80s music played from tinny speakers. There was a lot of ruckus, convincing kids to sit down and everyone finding their seats, Luke telling his kids he was going to sit over with the grownups at a long table while they sat with the other children.

“Hey Dustin” Mike called from across the table, “Remember when we used to come here late at night after we got wasteeed!” he grinned as he sat down next to El, Lucas and Dustin hushed him just as Eric piped up “What's wasted?”, “Nice one Wheeler” Lucas groaned, “Uh wasted, uh, kids is, something that happens.. When you have a hankering for ice cream” Lucas explained to the kids now all listening in. 

“I wanna get wasted” Billy stood up excitedly “I wanna get totally wasted!” Louise exclaimed, “I wanna get wasted every single day of my life!” Emma chimed in. “I wanna get chocolate wasted” Roxetted agreed, “No you don't need to get wasted, it's ok” you patted her on the back as Eddie grinned, watching you walk over from the kids table and sit down next to him. 

An old round lady made her way over tugging a notebook out of her apron, “Alright everybody, you know what let me make this easy” Luke explained as silence fell over the group, “41 burgers and 41 fries, okay? And uh.. That’ll be for me, what are you guys having?” he laughed as a shared collection of awws and laughs sounded around the room. Individual meals were ordered on separate tabs despite Will and Winters offers of paying and soon enough all the food was eaten and most of the kids and adults were off playing games in the arcade across the building. 

-

“So Eddie” Holly scooted over on the bench once Robin and Vickey walked off to play the games, now sat right next to Eddie whose conversation with Dustin had been broken off to go change Willow's diaper. “Hm?” He asked, looking up from his drink and turning his head towards her “Tell me more about your job, I never got a chance to ask before” she smiled as she crossed her legs and faced towards him, her knees pressing firmly against Eddies thigh. 

“Uh pretty self explanatory really, just fixing cars days on end” he shrugged, instinctively moving his leg away at the contact but turning his torso towards her to give her his attention.  “Mmm” she hummed “I bet it's really tiring, your poor muscles” she reached a hand out to grab his shoulder, squeezing lightly a few times before letting her hand linger. “Uh, it's- uh… it's not too bad” Eddie frowned, confused at the action. 

Next to him you were brought away from your conversation with a few others turning to see Holly squeezing at your husband's shoulder. Not only was she touching your man but he was also letting her? You frowned as Holly leaned in “I could help loosen them up if you want” she smiled a sultry smile as she looked up at Eddie with glossed over doe eyes “Uh no thanks, my wife usually does that” apparently the mention of you didn't have the intended effect, Holly only leaned in further, her hand sliding down his shoulder to grasp at his bicep. 

“Is your wife here?” her voice was dropping lower by the second as her hand slid further down to plant a firm grasp on his thigh. “Yes” you leaned past Eddie to look Holly dead in the eye, she quickly ripped her hand away from his thigh “So would you please stop flirting with my husband” you frowned in disgust as Holly stuttered. “I-I uh, I’m so sorry” she looked down towards her lap. So far you hadn't ever spoken to Holly, you hadn't seen her since you were roughly 20 and she was a mere 6 years old but now that you had you found you weren't particularly fond of the 26 year old nonetheless. 

Holly scuttled off embarrassed, pushing through the double doors to the room and out into the general restaurant area. “Thanks” Eddie breathed as he turned towards you, you only hummed annoyed in response as you turned back to the others. Eddie frowned at your reaction, bending down to give a kiss to your cheek in yet another thanks, you however made no reaction as you started talking to Luke. 

Just as he was about to ask you what was wrong Steve leaned over the table to get Eddie's attention, sliding over a check in thanks for his work on the minivan earlier in the day. 

He didn't get any more chances to talk to you as it seemed both of you were busy talking to other people at all times, he furthermore couldn't talk to you since you and Roxette were sat with Steve and Nancy surrounded by some of their kids in their newly working car on the way home, trading places so that Ophelia, Mercy, Louise and Emma could all sit together in your car.

Anxiety was bubbling up in Eddies chest, he had just gotten you back he didn't want to lose you again.

-

Finally after putting the girls to bed much too late you both got a moment of peace. Eddie whispered a hey as he wrapped his arms around you the second you came through the door from brushing your teeth. “Hi” your tone was flat when you answered him, already pulling away to put your things down. “What's wrong?” he sighed as he sat down on the foot of the bed, watching as you rummaged through the bags to find your sleep shirt. “Nothing” your tone was still flat but it let up in an exasperated “I’m just tired”. This time as you took your clothes off, Eddie wasn’t oggling like some teenager, he knew that I’m just tired and he knew it was bullshit. 

Once you'd thrown the t-shirt over your head he beckoned you over, pleased when you stood between his thighs and letting his hands run up and down the backs of your own instead of ignoring him and going to bed. “I just” you sighed “Just Holly, really bugged me” you rolled your eyes at the fact that it affected you so much, it didn't normally. Normally when you heard someone flirting with Eddie you’d feel smug, knowing you had him first, but maybe it was seeing it hands on, literally, while you were right next to him. Blatant disrespect for your relationship. “Ah, well I don't think she knew we were married babe, either way you know I only have eyes for one girl” he squeezed teasingly at your ass as he grinned up at you “I know” you rolled your eyes at his cheesiness before a slight grin crept up on your features. 

“Besides now you know how I feel” he ran his hands up your sides to hold onto your clothed hips “How you feel?” you asked confused, “Yeah, guys are always fuckin’ staring at you at bars and shit” 

“No they're not” you laughed, “Oh believe me, they are, I know that look, I’ve done that look” he widened his eyes as he stared up at you, but you only chuckled in response “Sure babe” you pulled away from him and rounded the bed, walking over to your bedside table, slipping all your jewellery off but leaving your wedding band and engagement ring on. 

“I’m serious, it's the same way Greg looks at you” he stood up, pulling his shirt over his head and tossing it to the bench next to the bags. “Greg?” you turned around frowning as you unclipped your earrings. “Yes Greg, any excuse to stare at your ass in those pencil skirts and he takes it” he unbuckled his belt as you pulled the covers away from the bed, sitting up against the headboard. 

“Oh please, he’s married and I'm really not his type, have you seen his wife?” you countered as he pulled his pants down. Greg's wife was short, skinny and blonde, basically the opposite of you. “Oh trust me, you're his type” he rolled his eyes as he placed his jeans next to his shirt, “Keep rolling your eyes, maybe you'll find a brain back there because you've clearly lost yours” you scoffed eyes following Eddie as he walked over and slipped under the covers and sat next to you. 

As he removed his rings and watch he spoke “He stares at you like you're something to eat, and I bet he just loves spending late nights at the office with you” you scoffed once again, sliding down in the bed and laying on your side with you back to him. “You're ridiculous” 

“Am I?”

“Yes”

“Is it really that ridiculous that I’m just a little bit worried that some sleeze is hovering around my wife, spending long nights working on a supposed project, not only that but the fact that I haven't even seen my wife the past six months?” you gasp in offence as you turn around to face him, sitting up with your legs to one side, bedcover gathering around your waist “Are you saying you think I’m cheating on you?” your glare is menacing, but not enough to break Eddie.

“Well are you? I mean we havent had sex in fucking forever”

“We had sex yesterday!” 

“Yeah and that was the first time since christmas, its june. Maybe you’ve been so busy fucking him huh?”

“How fucking dare you? No I am not cheating on you you absolute asshole, I’ve been fucking depressed. But only King Eddie is allowed to feel down is that it? You're the only one who gets to say no yeah?”

“You've been depressed?” Eddies anger dissipated instantly as he watched your ragefilled eyes “Fucking obviously!” you threw your hands out. “I-I didn’t know..” he mumbled shamefully as he looked down towards his lap “Of course not, because you're too busy trying to get me naked to even notice” your hands rub angrily over your face. 

“I- Of course I noticed, I just didn’t know it was that bad. Why didn't you tell me?” His heartful gaze was too much to bear as he looked up at you with sad eyes, you looked away to fiddle in your lap as you sheepishly admitted “I didn't want to bother you” tears were threatening to build up by your waterline so you furiously blinked them away. Eddie moved in front of you to sit on his knees, warm hands wrapped around your shoulders bringing you into his naked chest “Baby you could never bother me. I-I know you didn't grow up in a household where you could talk about your feelings but I’m not your mom, I’m your husband, you can tell me anything ok?” you felt him kiss your forehead as you were brought back down to the bed. 

You were having trouble registering his next words, his previous statement building a sensation through you, shoulders tensing, and stomach knotting as warning bells sounded in your head that you were about to crumble. 

“I’m here for you, always. But you just have to talk to me” with one arm around you he used his other to manoeuvre the cover to sit over the both of you before wrapping his arms tightly around you. “Ok” you whispered against him “Ok?” he breathed back “Ok”.

You pulled away from him to look up at his face, eyes swimming with infinite love for you, pink lips tugging into a smile. You kissed those same lips, smiling up at him once you broke apart, both the furious insistence that you not let his words get to you and the fact that his smile could light up a room made the worry slowly melt away. Eyes flitting down to his lips deciding to kiss him again, and again, and again until suddenly you were moving on the mattress to straddle his hips. Slowly hardening cock pressing against your thong as a hand came down to grab desperately at your ass. 

Well that switched up quickly, he thought, but he couldn’t bring himself to continue the conversation. A subconscious decision he would find out later, might not have been the best idea. But his body worked faster than his brain, skin on fire with the feeling of you against him.

A groan left Eddie's throat as your tongue licked at his lips, begging for entrance while simultaneously beginning to grind against him. “Hmmph fuck” he breathed as his hand slid under your shirt, grabbing hungrily at your tit. You continued like that for a near minute before a wicked idea popped into your head, sure it was cruel but it was too fun of an opportunity to pass up. 

You pulled away from him and sat up, a look of surprise spreading over Eddies face as his hand slipped from under your shirt “I don't wanna do this” you breathed, “What?” he whispered, you could hear the confusion in his voice “This” you gestured between your bodies “We don't have to if you don't want to, we can just you know, do it another time” his hands found yours in an attempt to reassure you. “No Eddie like… at all” it was so difficult not to burst out laughing as Eddie looked up at you extremely confused, slight hurt and disappointment peaking through his gaze.

“But-but we had sex” he was trying to wrap his head around the whole thing, not understanding how you switched up so fast, again, you initiated the kiss after all. “Just because we had sex doesn't mean we have to” one of his hands left yours to run through his hair in an attempt to cool his annoyance. “But if we both want to?” you shrugged “I guess, but I don't want to” the fact that you weren't climbing off him was just confusing him further “So were just.. back to no sex?” 

“I dunno Eddie, it's just not the same” you sighed. 

“Not the same?” he was deeply frowning now. 

“It's not… fun… anymore” you had to avoid his gaze in order to stifle off your laughing. “It's not fun?” he inquired, voice raising in pitch to show his utter confusion. You couldn't help let out the snort bubbling from the back of your throat. You looked up at him and suddenly burst out in full laughter “Oh you fucking-” he breathed a sigh of relief as you laughed maniacally. 

“You should have seen your face!” you wheezed as he wrapped his arms around you, bringing your body shaking with laughter back down to him “Not nice” he pouted. You looked up “I’m sorry” you mimicked his pout “You want me to make it up to you?” cupping his cheek as you spoke before sitting up and running your hands down his chest and stomach slowly. Eddie cleared his throat when he understood what you were insinuating “Ahem I mean only if you want to” you flashed him a cheeky grin as you slid down his thighs. 

Bending down to peck at his lips you began trailing kisses down his torso, it was his turn to be embarrassed now so you opted for leaving a trail of hickies all the way down to the hem of his boxers, looking up at him with those eyes he always swore would be the death of him as you effectively palmed him over the fabric. 

This was too god to be true, not only had he gotten to eat you out, and then fuck you after months and months of desperation, but you were now sliding further down his thighs, planting yourself on his calves about to give him a fucking blow job. Yep, it was too good to be true. 

You hummed seductively as you pulled his boxers down under his balls to reveal his excruciatingly hard cock, precum beginning to collect and dribble from his concealed tip, pooling just under his navel. He let out a strained sigh as he felt your soft lips connect with his undercarriage, a soft kiss to the velvety skin which had him near panting. 

In an agonisingly slow pace you kissed down his shaft, each kiss further spurring his heavy breathing on until a soft moan left his throat at the sensation of your tongue sliding up hot from the bottom of his shaft to the top. Your soft fingers wrapped lightly around his tip, one lazy stroke bringing his angry red tip to view beneath the skin, he couldn't help the borderline loud groan as he felt your tongue kitten lick at his slit, humming at the taste of his precum. “Mmm you missed this baby?” your voice was smooth and sultry like velvety smoke as you spoke, pulling back to adore the view of Eddie's half lidded eyes staring up at you in desperation and need as his hands gripped the sheets so hard his knuckles were threatening to turn white. “Y-yeah” he stuttered, trying his best at keeping his voice level and not letting it fall into a high pitched whine, inevitably revealing his pathetic need for you to touch him. A need which was unfamiliar to him, something so strong he hadn't felt it since he was a teenager and it was his first time doing this, it was intimidating. 

“Yeah? You been thinking about this alot?” you stroking him lazily up and down was not helping him mask his desperation, each time revealing his tip before hiding it again, much too slowly for his liking. “Fuck, so much” he let his eyes flutter shut, soaking up each and every sensation of your hands on him instead. “Yeah been thinking about my lips wrapped around this big cock? Sucking as if my life depended on it?” at this point you were revelling in his poorly hidden desperation and spurring it on was only feeding your ego more. “Look at you, so desperate. Maybe I should hold off more, watch you work yourself up until you're just a whining mess beneath me more often? I’ve barely touched you baby” you hummed, tightening your grip only slightly. 

“No!” Eddie almost shouted at your suggestion, eyes snapping open to look at your evil smirk. “P-please don't- don't do that” all you did was hum at his pleading. Bending down you softly wrap your lips around his tip, sucking with minimal effort yet it still has his hips bucking up into you, forcing nearly half his cock down your mouth, only stopping with the resistance of the back of your throat. 

You hum in faux annoyance as you release him with a pop, “So desperate, you have no self control baby” to further accentuate your point you pin him with a harsh stare and a pout as he opens his eyes again “I’m sorry” the whisper is so quiet it nearly goes unrecognisable as spoken words to your ears, but you hear it and you grin wickedly as you soak up the scene before you. Your husband beneath you with your hand wrapped around him as another rubs softly up and down his thigh, bringing the sparse hair with you and then smoothing it over again. His slack jaw betrays the absolute bliss he's experiencing at the feeling of pushing at your throat only seconds before. Eyes glossed over and dripping with infinite adoration but also pure unfiltered hunger. 

You hum again at his response, wrapping your lips around the tip and forcing his hips down with your free hand at the prospect of him bucking up into you again. A strangled whine leaves his throat as he writhes beneath you, his neck stretching taut to reveal thick muscles as his eyes roll to the back of his head. There's a thought to bring your hand up and squeeze at those same muscles but you dismiss it as his hips start to shake slightly, the task of forcing them down more pressing than choking him slightly. 

You bob up and down on his tip a few times, what makes up only a near fifth of his cock threatening to be too much for your mouth to handle. A desperate whine leaves his lips as you pull off him with another pop, his eyes opening once again to understand why you released him, they fall closed again, crinkling at the corners as he screws his face up when he feels your hot tongue run over one of his balls. 

“Fuck!” he's way too close to being loud enough that everybody else will hear him at this point. You bring him into your mouth, sucking gently while still lazily stroking him, he’s releasing a mix of whines and whimpers when your tongue traces patterns on the soft skin before moving to the other after a few seconds, giving his other side the same treatment. 

You release him again to watch his screwed up face, his hand not soon before finding yours and grasping onto you in a bone breaking hold. “Look at you” you tut “So desperate, whimpering even” you chuckle lightly as he opens his eyes to glare at you “Hm” you hum in faux pity as you sit up slightly, hand on his hip working its was up to cup his cheek, sliding down and pulling at his bottom lip with your thumb, watching it slap back into place. “Don't worry baby, just tell me what you want”. 

“N-need you..” he closed his eyes in embarrassment after voicing his request “Need me to do what pretty boy?” he whines at the pet name, writhing beneath you in desperation as he tried to will his mind to stop blocking him for telling you what he wanted. “S-suck” is all he manages to get out. You ponder the idea of pushing him further but he looks so desperate from where you're sat, you decide to indulge him, humming pitifully before bending back down and wrapping your lips around his tip, sucking him down to half his length and then back up again. 

You repeat the process revelling in the desperate groans and now only occasional whines as you tongue at his cock. The hand not holding yours finds its rightful place at the root of your hair, tugging slightly as he guides you up and down. You increase your pace and hear his groans go louder as well as feel his thighs tensing tremendously. “Shh baby you gotta be quiet” you whisper as you come up for a deep breath. He works his fingers out of yours to bite down on his flexed knuckles. You hum in approval and go back to his cock, determined to take him deeper you force him down to the back of your throat, taking deep breaths through your nose each time you pull up. 

With your now free hand you opt for massaging his balls lightly, close to laughter as his hips buck up, this time not restraining him. 

For only a mere 15 seconds you get to continue before you feel his whole body shake beneath you, one particular thrust of his hips unveiling his angry red head, millions of nerves on fire as they brush over your tongue and throat causing his inevitable orgasm. That and the fact that his hand is pressing your head down as far as you'll go, forcing his cock right down your throat, while his sack tenses in your hand, is the only sign of him no longer teetering over the edge but about to fall right off it. It’s all the warning you get before hot spurts of cum shoot down your throat as he groans loudly against his hand.

It feels as though your lungs begin to close up as his neverending release continues. Finally however his shaking simmers under your touch and you pull off him quickly, panting to find your breath again. As you pull away his hand slips from your hair to thud against the mattress. 

Once you've found a steady pace of breathing again you look down and chuckle breathily, Eddie's face is still screwed up and he's biting down hard on his knuckles, no doubt leaving marks. His abs are prominent as he still clenches his stomach, as well as all his other muscles. Your hands sliding smoothly over his torso has him fully relaxing beneath you, he's still panting heavily after his orgasm but each breath slowing by the second. 

You grin as you climb off him and fall onto the mattress next to him, even after you've pulled his boxers back up and wriggled your way under the duvet he's still in the same position, finally softening his features and letting his hand fall to his side. With his eyes still closed you pick up his hand to inspect the deep red indents in his skin, beads of blood collecting in each. 

Eventually he opens his eyes to find you grinning down at him “Holy shit” he breathes as he rolls over on his side, wrapping his arms around you and pulling you to his chest. “I have never seen you that desperate” you giggle as he grasps onto your hand against his chest “Shut up” he chuckles as he closes his eyes and snuggles his forehead against the top of your head. “I mean jesus dude”, he only hugs you tighter in response. 

Suddenly he pulls away from you, looking down at you intensely “Wait, was this all a distraction?” you frown at his words “Do you actually not want to have sex anymore?” his face is painted with worry and desperation for an answer. “Jesus Eddie can’t I just suck your dick?” you laugh, his face relaxing into exaggerated and with a shrug he says “No you can” you giggle again and nuzzle your face into his chest. 

-

Just as the night before it seemed that no matter how you fell asleep you always ended up on your side with Eddie curled up behind you. Eddie woke up suddenly, rushing out of bed to get to the bathroom as he passed his kids in the hall making their way to your room, not stopping to say good morning before ripping the door open and shuffling inside. 

“Moooom” you awoke with a scream as you found Roxettes widely grinning face less than an inch away from your own, “Jesus christ” you sighed as Roxy laughed and made her way over to her sister rooting through the bags. “What’s this?” Ophelia asked curiously as she held up a blood red lace teddy, you jumped out of bed ripping it away from her hands and shoving it into a ball back into the bag it came from. She frowned “It's just underwear” you sighed as she continued frowning “It didn't look like underwear”, “Well it was”.

As Eddie came back to the room he was greeted by the full view of your ass as you bent over to look through the bag next to Roxette who was now viewing her two outfit options she had laid out on the bed and Ophelia nagging you to find her swimsuit. He cleared his throat, alerting you all to his presence “Oh hi, can you go check downstairs if Ophelia's bikini is there?” your voice was rushed as you quickly turned back to look through the bag. “Sure” was all he said before he was out the door without a second thought. 

As you suggested Ophelia find her clothes for the day while Dad looked for her swimsuit, the Dad himself leisurely made his way across the hall and down the stairs. Gareth burst out laughing as well as Luke and Jeff who were all sat around the kitchen table. “What?” he asked as he made his way over to the couch, spotting the swimsuit immediately. “Real sexy man” Jeff commented as Eddie stood back up, suddenly realising he was in nothing but his boxers he instinctively covered his crotch with both hands. “Guess she got you back then” Luke gestured to his chest and down his stomach laughing as Eddie looked down to see the trail of hickies down his torso. 

“Man fuck all of yall, least I’m getting some” he gave the group the finger as he promptly walked past the armchairs and up the stairs. 

“Dad you have bruises too” Roxette slapped a hand to Eddie's stomach, causing him to groan as he threw the bikini at Ophelia, unintentionally throwing it at her face, she frowned as she picked the items off her head. “Mhm, yep” he pulled the shirt you had thrown at him in response to his attack on your daughter, over his head. 

-

Breakfast had been eaten and Eddie said his goodbye as you gathered the girls and took them down with you to the beach. Pulling all his things out of his pockets he haphazardly tossed them onto the coffee table before joining Jeff, Luke, Gareth, Steve and Jonathan out on the dock where they were throwing the canoes into the water. 

Within 10 minutes they were all in their boats and paddling away, Eddie and Jeff sharing one, Luke and Steve, and Garet and Jonathan sharing the others. 

“This reminds me of when we were 14 going out on Lovers lake” Eddie commented as they slowed down a few hundred yards away from shore, “Got my first boob that time we all went together” Gareth supplied proudly, “I know you did, it was my wife, and may I add accidental” Eddie grumbled as the group laughed. “No regrets, perfect tits” the group exploded with laughter as Eddie threatened that he had no issue jumping out of his canoe and pulling Gareth out of his. 

“Alright Emmerson, that all you think about? Chicks?” Luke laughed, “Yeah relax dude most of us got daughters” Steve added, “That's all you guys think about too, especially this guy” he pointed towards Eddie “Difference is, I can do something about it”

“That's not true! Alright it's true” Eddie laughed.

“You wanna know what I fantasise about?” Luke asked as he stared at the back of Steve's head, turning to Gareth and Jonathan he continued, “Candy-bars”

“Candy-bars?” Jeff laughed, “No, I had a bad blood sugar test at my last checkup and Simone cut me off” Luke threw his hands out in slight annoyance as he explained. “You're a grown ass man, how do you deal with that?” Jeff accused as Luke placed his paddle in the boat and leaned back with his hands behind his head “Oh, I got my own hidden stash, I’m not stupid” the group laughed as he continued “Seriously, I got it all. I got Reese’s, Butterfingers, 3 musketeers. I hide ‘em under my clothes in the bottom of the hamper” he demonstrated with his hands before rowing again “It's great because the smell in my sweat socks masks the chocolate smell”

“And the looks of your underwear match the chocolate stains” Jonathan laughed, earning the same reaction from the rest of them. “Hey, hey, hey, hang on, guys I gotta make a sissy” Steve held his hand out, seemingly not distinguishing between his kids and a group of men when it came to his wording. The group began protesting as Steve repeated himself in a shout “I gotta make a sissy!”

“Come on, you made three already!” Jeff groaned, “It must be just oozing out at this point” Steve gave Jonathan the finger as he stood up in the boat “Shut up I’m trying to concentrate”. “It’s taking a piss, not the SATs” Eddie rolled his eyes “Yeah you should know, you took 21 of them”

“Fuck off” 

Steve screwed his face up in concentration as the group heard his intermittent stream, Eddie held his hand out in confusion “Are you peeing or is a diesel truck turning off? What the hell is that?”

“Listen to hamper bottom” Luke laughed “I think he’s sending a message in morse code” he held his finger up “Getting old. Stop. Can’t pee. Stop. Reeks like asparagus. Stop. Even though I didn't even have any. Stop.” he laughed as Eddie spoke “The good news is these girls are gonna have to say hi to it” he waved as a motorboat full of girls in bikinis drove by. “What’s up ladies?” he grinned. 

“Hey girls!” Gareth waved enthusiastically, the group of girls shouted complaints at the men as Steve awkwardly waved at them, “They don't all look like that ladies” Jonathan grinned. Just as Luke was about to say something Steve turned, spraying a little bit over the front of his t-shirt before turning back to the water “Aah! Come on!” he whined. 

-

After a near hour round trip they made it back, Luke swearing as he ran off to throw on a clean shirt, without warning Eddie ripped his own off, tossing it onto the wood as he slipped his shoes off and cannonballed right in between you, Ophelia and Roxette. Both girls squealed as you splashed him in the face when he resurfaced. “Asshole” you shrieked as you pounced on him, dunking his head under the water with force from behind. 

Before you had a chance to react you felt Eddie's hands wrap around your thighs and before you knew it you were hoisted into the air on his shoulders. You didn't even get a chance to breathe before he flung you off to back-flop into the water. As you resurfaced both girls were already hounding their father for him to do the same for them, you giggled as you watched him throw your eldest off him. As he continued you gazed around the beach, the water filled with happy little kids splashing away as the group canoeing collected on the wooden chairs not far from the various towels scattered over the beach with various occupants. 

Out of the corner of your eye you noticed Holly sat next to Ariana watching intently, you rolled your eyes and chose to ignore her, instead joining in with throwing the kids about. 

-

The kids had set up a blanket fort in the attic and were all gathered munching on their sandwiches as the adults ate their lunch in the mixture of a dining and living room. “Oh Rob, can you pass me my wallet” Eddie raised his voice as he sat next to most of the younger ‘kids’ by the dining table, Robin looked up from her conversation with Charlotte and Winter on the couch and motioned towards the black leather on the table, “Yeah that one” Robin picked it up and flung it across the room towards him as something slipped out and floated to the floor in front of Gareth who was making his way to the fridge for a beer. 

Eddie caught his wallet and frowned as he saw Gareth bend down and pick up a polaroid, “Is this you?!” he exclaimed in surprise, clutching the photo Gareth turned to you in one of the arm chairs “Huh?” you asked as you looked up. Before Gareth had the chance to show you Eddie was jumping over the table, knocking a glass of juice over in the process and ripping the polaroid away from Gareth's hands with a “Give me that!”

“Holy shit!” Gareth exclaimed as Eddie shoved the photo back into his wallet “What?” you placed your plate on the floor and stood up, walking over to Eddie who was now giving Gareth a death glare. You pulled the wallet from Eddie, opening it up to see the same family photo from when the kids were 4 and 7 in the plastic pocket. Examining it further you realised a collection of polaroids were shoved in one of the pockets for dollar bills. 

You gasped as you pulled them out, looking up to Eddie's embarrassed and awkward face as he shoved his hands in his pockets. You felt Gareth leaning over your shoulder as you looked through them and quickly pulled away from him. “I thought you kept these at home” you whispered angrily as Gareth chuckled and continued his mission of getting a drink. 

“Well I didn't” Eddie answered sheepishly as you continued looking through them. A whole collection of photos from one particular night where both girls had been away at a school sleepover, leaving the house empty for the both of you in late September of last year. It seemed the photos had been kept in the order they had beentaken in, a couple showing you in lacy black underwear with thigh garders connecting to your hips, one in the doorway and one stood between Eddies thighs, a few more of you giving Eddie a blow job, one of Eddie eating you out, one of your bare pussy, one of you on your back holding your legs up to your chest, pussy on show as well as every other intimate part of you, four of just your naked upper body, laid on the bed, staring up at the photographer with an assortment of fuck me eyes and wide, open mouth, eyes rolled back’s and one last one, crumpled up seemingly the one Gareth had seen. 

You on your back, breasts free from their confines and spilling to the side, eyes closed and a happy smile on your face, and long thick ropes of cum painting your stomach and chest. 

“Is this the one he saw?” you whisper, it seemed the rest of the group had gone back to their conversations after the interruption “Yeah..” you give a bratty and annoyed grunt as you shove the photos back into Eddie's wallet and thrust it into his chest angrily. He takes it and makes a show of stuffing it into his pocket before you turn away and sit back down in your arm chair. 

He was so fucked, and it seemed not only he knew it but the rest of the table who were looking at him with awkward sympathy, as well as Gareth grinning wickedly, not only from the photo but your reaction to it. He wasn't sure what to do, you were making it quite obvious you didn't want to talk to him given the fact that your back was now turned to him, half twisted in your chair. He felt like he should talk to you about it, apologise, but instead his feet steered him back to the table, “Shit” he mumbled under his breath as he saw Dustin bent down cleaning up the juice with a rag “Here let me” he grabbed the towel and continued mopping up the spilled drink, wringing it out in the sink and hanging the towel up on the oven handle he caught an annoyed glare from you which made him fold in on himself as he sat back down. 

He took his chance to talk to you as he heard you excuse yourself to the bathroom, cornering you just outside the door. “Babe, I am so sorry” he pleaded as you turned to face him, you looked behind him to see Mike walking down the hall and quickly grabbed his hand, pulling him into the bathroom and locking the door. 

“Are you ok?” his voice was soft as he spoke to you, leaning up against the counter as you turned and made a beeline for the toilet. “I’m fine, I’m just..” you took a second to think over your words as you pulled your calf-long green flowery skirt up and in turn your underwear down, “embarrassed” you finished as you sat down. “I’m sorry, I wasn't thinking when I asked Robin to throw it” he spoke as you began peeing. 

“It’s fine” you sighed as you wiped and stood up, bumping his hip with yours to get him to move away from the sink. He wrapped his arms around you as you washed your hands. “Is it actually fine or is this one of those times where you say it's fine but it's actually not?” his eyes found yours in the mirror, moving with you as you dried your hands and spun around in his grasp. “It's actually fine” you couldn't help the small tug of your lips as you looked up at his wide eyes. 

A smile painted his features as he saw your face “They been in there the whole time?” you snort slightly when he nods, “What do you even do with them?” definitely a stupid question, but for some reason you wanted to hear him say it. “What do you think I do with them?” he laughed “I jerk off to them, obviously” he rolled his eyes playfully as you grinned. 

“That what you do when you spend an hour in the shower without it even running?” your eyebrows tugged down as you tried stifling an ever wider smirk, “Yeah as if you hadn't already figured that out” you shrug as he fakes a look of exasperation “At least you're not making the water bill worse than it already is” he rolled his eyes again. “Keep rolling your eyes, maybe you'll find a brain back there” The sentence this time said under slightly nicer circumstances. Your grin breaks into a giggle as he begins tickling you. 

After some shrieking at him to stop he finally does, and when you catch your breath you look up at him again “What else do you jerk off to?” he snorts a laugh at the sudden change in demeanour but looks down at you with some trace of seriousness “Mostly just that kind of stuff” he shrugs, he definitely had a lot more photos stashed at home, but he had to admit that little collection was by far his favourite “Really? For six months? Jesus Christ, aren't you bored of my body yet?” 

“I’m beginning to think you're the one with no brain now, I’d never get tired of your body” he squeezes you ass playfully, beaming when you giggle again.

“I just remembered I brought my yoga tape, we could do a little yoga sesh tomorrow, what do you think?” is the first thing you hear as Charlotte makes her way up to you with a beaming smile, pearly whites on show as she holds her hand together above her stomach hopefully. “Sure, sounds fun” Charlotte jumps happily as you feel Eddie kiss your cheek before walking back to the dining table. 

-

Eden and Argyle set up games for the kids outside as the rest of you are scattered about the property. You smile as you hear shrieking from the kids playing tag, happily chatting to a group on the wrap around porch as Vickie paints your now acrylic nails. She's gone through most of the people who wanted their nails done by now, including Eddie who got black and white spider webs painted on his natural nails, over the moon that she got so many people to practise on in preparation for her new job as a nail tech. 

“Hot” Eddie grins as he leans over your shoulder to see your medium length, almond shaped, blood red extensions, you grin up at him and peck his lips when he bends down, your kiss cut short as he shuffles to the side to let Roxette through, sick of running around she lets out a loud sigh as she finds a seat in your lap. “Whatcha doooin?” she asks as she inspects Vickies work “Getting our nails done, you wanna?” she happily nods and tells Vickie “Can I have black? Like monster nails, this long!” she shows an exaggerated length by holding her hands apart a near foot, Vickie looks up at you concerned as you turn to your daughter, “Maybe not that long baby, how about something like this” you show on your own nails, now finished as Vickie switches the UV light off, demonstrating half the length of what you have. 

She sighs but agrees and you ask Vickie if that's ok, to which she nods before going to work on a fresh set of nails. 

“Dad look!” she squeals as she finds him laying in the grass next to Jonathan, Argyle and Dustin who's playing with Willow. “Wow!” he exclaims in mildly faux excitement, “Aren't they a little long?” concern paints his features as he holds onto her hands “Moms are longer” is all the argument she gives before running off to watch Ophelia get her nails painted bubblegum pink. 

-

The clock neared 9 pm as everyone sat gathered in the empty boathouse to watch Dustin's homemade movie screen, Star Wars: A New Hope playing in the projector as it shows on the white bedsheet hanging on the wall. Most of Hellfire spent the afternoon dragging down couches and armchairs from the basement, setting out snacks and drinks as well as multiple blankets and pillows to set up movienight. Pizza had been ordered and now you were comfortably snuggled up to the arm of a couch as Roxetted curled up in your lap, watching intently. Ophelia sat with the Harringtons barely paying any attention as they whispered to each other excitedly. 

Next to you sat Eddie who had Jeff and Tracy on his other side, all munching away on their slices of pizza, both Jeff and Eddie watching intently as you and Tracy giggled at their intense gazes despite them having seen the movie hundreds of times. From the other side of the room Robin waved a pack of cigarettes at you, a silent invitation for you to join her, you grinned and nodded before bowing your head down to whisper “Think you can sit with Dad for a little bit?” in Roxettes ear. She nodded and with her eyes never leaving the screen she shifted over, pizza slice hanging from her mouth while she plopped down in Eddie's lap. 

The scene was absolutely comical, Eddie automatically moving his plate out of the way and settling her in his lap while both of them never wavered in their watching the movie. You left both of them to awkwardly climb over people on the floor, whispering sorry’s until you got to the door. 

Robin handed you the packet of cigarettes and you lit one as you walked off the peer and onto the grass, sitting down next to her. “So Vickies becoming a nail tech” you kept your voice quiet, it seemed a shame to disturb it as silence fell over Muskegon, the only sound being the movie playing softly in the background. “Yeah, she's real excited, I’m proud of her” you smiled at the love Robin had for her girlfriend. “How’s it going with the ring?” when Robin had first announced that she was going to propose you, Nancy and Steve were all over the moon, squealing excitedly and talking nonstop about the wedding. 

“Picking it up on sunday next week, called today” she grinned “Yeah that's why I asked doofus” suddenly the door opened and you both turned to see Nancy making her way across the wood panelling making grabby hands as she got closer. 

-

The three of you sat chatting for a near 40 minutes until the door opened again, gaining the attention of all three of you, you stood up when you saw Eddie carrying Roxette, her arms flung over his shoulders as her head bobbed with each step. “Want me to take her?” you whispered once you got to them, you smoothed your hand over her curls which she had inherited from her father, “You sure?” he stood with his side to you, showing her peaceful face as she slept in his arms. “Yeah, go watch the movie” you whispered back. She stirred as he handed her over to you with a thanks, you waved a hand to the girls, telling them you'd be back in a few. 

Walking back with Roxette in your arms proved to be heavier with each step but eventually you made it down to the basement and placed her on the mattress next to Ophelias, making sure to be as quiet as possible as to not wake the other kids who had been unfortunate enough to miss the movie due to their age. Slipping her shoes off as well as her jean shorts and tucking her into bed you gave a kiss to her forehead. When you were certain she was asleep you tiptoed back out the room and up the stairs. 

-

Once the movie was over and most of the stuff from the boathouse was brought back inside you both tucked Ophelia to bed. “Ugh I forgot I have to shower” you groan once you step over the threshold to your bedroom walking straight to the bench across from you to pick up your toiletries and towel. “I gotta shower too but you go first I’ll just wait here” Eddie says as he sits down on the foot of the bed, “We can.. shower together if you want” you suggest as you make your way back to the door. 

Nah this was just too much, only a few days ago he wasn't even touching you and now you wanted to shower with him? Was he high? Was this all a dream? Was he gonna wake up tomorrow to find himself back on day one of this trip, disappointed because you hadn't wanted to do anything despite the change of scenery? 

“Hello?” you wave a hand in front of his face, “Huh what?” he shakes his head and looks up at you “I said we can shower together, if you want to?” 

“Hell yes” he stands up so quickly you think he might fall over, but instead he just rushes to snatch his towel up and tap your ass to get you out the door. “How are you already hard??” you whisper as he eagerly tears his shorts down and steps out of them, hard cock slapping his stomach before standing out proudly, “I’m getting to shower with my wife” he says with wide eyes as he pulls his shirt over his head, leaving him in nothing but a silver chain, a deep red pick with your name written in acrylic resting below his collarbone “You do realise shower means shower right? It's not a codeword for sex” you explain as you pull your thin corroded coffin t-shirt over your head. 

“Still, it's you, naked” he grins as you unclasp your bra, you roll your eyes playfully as he watches you like a child promised candy. “Well get in then” you gesture to the shower, pulling your bra off and letting it fall to the floor. He walks slowly, eyes never leaving your figure as you pull your skirt down. “Jesus Eddie, you've seen me naked like a million times” you laugh after he knocks his shins into the bathtub wall, he grins sheepishly as he steps over it. 

He shakes his head as if to force out all of his dirty thoughts before turning the shower on, the fact that Eden had just stepped out of the shower minutes before played in his favour. He stepped under the stream of warm water after checking the temperature with his hand, running his hair back and away from his face he soaks up the feeling of the water pattering against his skin. 

He turns instantly when he hears you step over the small wall and into the bath, not giving you a second to hang your toiletry bag up next to him before circling his arms around you, inevitably pressing his hard cock against the soft dough that is the middle of your stomach.

You reach behind him and fumble blindly until you manage to hook the bag onto one of the metal bars connecting to a shelf already full of wash products. When you pull your arm back you wrap it around his neck to join your hands behind him. 

Eddie hums happily and squeezes you tighter, when the hug stretches to 20 seconds long you pull away from him, “As much as I do like hugging you I did actually come in here to shower” he rolls his eyes and groans as he lets you move around him to stand in the firing range of the water. 

His hand stops you before you can wrap your fingers around the shampoo bottle, non-verbally telling you he would do it, you shrug and smile at him. You tip your head back slightly as he squirts a hefty amount of frosty gel into his hand, rubbing both together before smoothing them down the surface of your hair. 

You let an open mouthed hum escape your lips as the tips of his fingers begin massaging your scalp, you feel his hands twitch for a second at the sound before no doubt pushing through and continuing his work in your hair. 

You decide not to tease him by making the sound again, instead you stay quiet and enjoy the sweet and in some way, very much needed, moment between the two of you. It seems Eddie drags the time out of washing your hair because by the time his hands retract you’ve closed your eyes in a lull while a content daze creeps through you. 

You whisper a thanks as you turn around, you close your eyes and bring your arms up to run your fingers through your hair and rinse under the water. Not noticing as Eddie's eyes trail down your body. Soaking up every beautiful sight that he’s rewarded with, from your relaxed face, down your thick arms, soft skin pulled with the weight of gravity, to the litter of fading hickies running down your neck to your collarbones, further to your now slightly perkier tits, weight following your raised arms. Down to your soft stomach and hips, he leans back to examine you further, wispy hairs curling over your mound, plush squishy thighs to your calves. He always argued with you when you called them chicken legs and watching you now even strengthened his point that you were wrong. 

He snaps his eyes back to yours as you pull your head forward and open your eyes. This time you don’t reach for the next item in your routine, instead you turn around as Eddie pulls the conditioner from the plastic pocket. 

Once he’s gone through the motions of running his hands through your hair, smoothing product into the strands you motion for him to switch places. He stands expectantly before you as you sigh, “Babe I hate to break it to you but you're like 6 foot 3, you either gotta bend down or sit on your knees” you chuckle as you can feel him roll his eyes at you. “Mm, you want me on my knees, kinky” he grins at you from over his shoulder, bright teeth on show as he grins wider at your mimic of his reaction, you roll your eyes. 

The first thing he says as your fingers come into contact with his own scalp is “Ugh I’ve missed this” his feet slotted between yours after he folded himself down to his knees against the ceramic. “What having someone else wash your hair cuz’ you’re too lazy?” chuckling you work your fingers through his hair, making sure to get every square inch, partly to prolong the moment just like he had but also because you know damn well he is actually too lazy to wash his precious curls properly. You giggle as he nips at your thigh gently, “Shut up, I wash my hair” he grumbles, “You sure? Because there seems to be a lot of dandruff here” another nip to the thigh has you laughing again, the volume dampening quickly when you remember there are people on the other side of both walls. 

“Shut up” he laughs, for a long time that sound hadn't had any particular effect on you, but in this particular moment, you feel the formerly black, now neutral, vines colour in a bright shades of golden orange hues. Happiness flowing through you from your chest as his genuine, honest laugh plays like music to your ears. 

You let the gold take over you, all the way up to your mind as you rest content with Eddie's head in your hands for a few minutes. Both of you sulk at the all too soon retraction of your hands, after rinsing your hands you let them trail from his shoulders as he stands up, you smack his ass playfully before he turns to face you. Just as he opens his mouth to give a snarky remark you beat him to the punches, “How, how are you still hard? All I did was wash your hair!” you gesture your hands toward the near 8 inches which keeps the two of you apart, he shrugs happily as he washes the product out of his hair. “I’ll give you three guesses” he smirks down at you. 

In retaliation you spin around and back up into him, forcing him against the shower wall and in turn you under the water “Hey, wha-”, “Need to get the conditioner out” you shrug as you let the mixture of cream and water run down his front. “Not fair” he fakes a pout as he wraps his arms around you “Can you at least move?” without his hands ever leaving you, the two of you shuffle around and switch places. 

He’s trying so hard, he really is, but he can't stop himself from pressing up against you and slotting himself between the globes of your ass. Even though his dirty mind was being painstakingly presented to you he still wanted to respect your obvious hinting at no sex. But as he feels himself surrounded by your wet skin he can't help the moan that slips from the back of his throat. 

You sigh and turn in his hold once your hair is clean “Do you want me to suck your dick? Is that what this is?” there's a hint of annoyance painted across your features as he looks down at you “What? No! I just, I dunno’, babe you're naked, its extremely difficult to practise self restraint right now” you stare up at him expectantly “We don't have to do anything just let me feel you” the shrug he gives up doesn't portray any sort of casualness as his face pleads with you. 

“Fine” you grin and point a finger at him “But when you're actually on your knees, begging, I will be giving you an ‘I told you so’” he sticks his tongue out in retaliation with a “Try me” murmured through a smirk. “You really wanna go down that road?” you raise your eyebrows, feeling smug as Eddie makes a face of nonchalance “Alright, no sex and no touching and I’ll give you 20 bucks” you wait expectantly until Eddie pulls away from you, hand held out in offering “Heh deal” and you shake on it. 

“Now you just stand there and look pretty so I can get on with my shower” you hide a sneaky smirk as you turn and pull the body wash from the bag, face neutral as you turn again with a handful of soapy liquid. Eddie's smug face falls way too fast as he watches you transition from lathering it onto your arms to smoothing your hands over the swell of your tits. 

You grin evilly at him but it goes unbeknownst to him as his eyes are trained on the way your plump flesh moves rhythmically with your hands. “Giving me my 20 bucks yet?” you tease as you hold your tits up, bouncing them slightly against each other. Eddie shakes his head as if snapping himself out of his trance and manages to meet your gaze “Never” he whispers with narrowed eyes. You shrug and continue your way down your torso. 

You know you have him when you turn around, spreading your legs wide and bending down to work your way up your calves. The muffled squeak you hear from behind as Eddie is met by your pussy on full display furthers your knowledge of winning this little impromptu contest, but when you hear a sharp intake of breath and the sound of feet pattering once, twice, away from you, you begin to falter, maybe he’s stronger than you anticipated. 

You stand up annoyed and quickly spin around, met by Eddies guilty looking face and a hand ripping away from his dick you groan mildly “I said no touching, that includes yourself”, “I wasn't!” he quickly jumps to offence “You're a shit liar babe” you laugh, “Fine, you get your $20, now can I please touch you” he holds his hands together as he begs. “Hmm, well I am finished with my shower..” Eddie beams, “But I do need to brush my teeth” you pretend to wonder as his smile falters. 

“If you can wash yourself at the same time.. Fine” his smile shines brighter than the one before it “But you only have so much time, the waters already getting cold and I wanna’ go to bed warm” before you can even say anything else you're being flipped around and bent over by two strong hands at your hips and back. You only just manage to brace yourself on the wall before you feel the head of his cock pressing at your hole, the whine that rings throughout the room resembles one of a bratty teenager as he slips inside all the way to the hilt. 

As he arches his back in strain all you can feel is his hips against yours and his cock buried deep within your walls until he lets out a heavy breath above you and his forehead rests between your shoulder blades. “Did you.. Did you just cum?” you laugh breathlessly, “No” it's an annoyed grumble against your skin “Oh my god! You totally did!” you eyes widen as you twist your neck to find a wet mop of curls splayed across your skin “How?!” he shamefully admits that the scalp massage and press of your tits against the back of his head may have been a little too much for him, and that he may or may not have slipped up for a couple of minutes. 

You slap a hand to your mouth as you roar with laughter, still echoing within the four walls as Eddie slips out of you and you turn around, “Shame, I was looking forward to a good showerfuck” you tut but break out into a sympathetic grin as you realise he’s properly ashamed of himself, with a hand cupping his cheek you reassure him “Baby it's ok” when his face contorts into a pained one you tell him “Seriously baby it's ok, happens to the best of us” he rolls his eyes at you. 

You press a kiss to his lips and then to his forehead before you tell him to switch places with you so you can do the bodywash. His shame melts away as your hands slide over his inked skin, smooth fingers running over the anatomical angel, wings spreading far over his shoulder blades, its feet resting over a series of tattooed vertebra that runs down his own spine. 

-

After what must have been half an hour shower the both of you tiptoe across the floorboards in your towels, quickly changing into fresh underwear and wrap yourselves up with each other after you've dropped a t-shirt on to the floor next to your side of the bed for tomorrow morning. Just as any other night you’re back in his heavy arms, that alone would be enough to make the daze of sleep take over you but it seems it's not enough. You feel as Eddie drifts off into dreamland behind you, his breathing evens out into soft puffs of air and his arms loosen their tight grip around you. 

20 minutes after initially getting into bed you snap your eyes open, stifling a groan of annoyance as you pinch your eyes shut in frustration. The air in the room was humid and stifling, Eddie's arms suddenly felt like they were suffocating you despite them only resting gently around your waist, the comforter only adds to the pressure and within seconds you start to feel like you're being smothered. Technically you could try harder at falling asleep, you could push Eddie off you, kick the blankets away and crack a window but once your eyes focus on your leather handbag leaned up against the wall it's over for you. You slowly slip out of bed, extremely cautious of your husband's sleeping form surrounding you. You throw the shirt over your head and begin your search for the pack of cigarettes hidden at the bottom. 

The soft whine that leaves Eddies throat has your movements halting, bent over in a strain you slowly turn your head to find Eddie rolling onto his back, when it seems he's fallen back asleep you resume your desperate search, a relieved sigh whispers throughout the room as you finally find what you're looking for. When you open it you find that the usual AC/DC lighter shoved between the rolled up papers is gone, you roll your eyes. Before you get the chance to root through your bag further you catch a glimpse of Eddie's zippo in the jumbled mess that was the contents of his pockets poured onto his bedside table. 

Making an effort to be as quiet as possible you make your way around the bed, just as you level with his knees you stop dead in your tracks, another whine echoes in the room, this time frustrated as Eddie turns back on his side and blindly starts patting his hand around your vacant spot. In his sleep filled haze he seems to register your absence because his eyes snap open as his head forces back to examine the empty mattress. The sound of a floorboard creek makes him whip around to face you, he frowns. You can't help but smile as you examine his face, he’s cast in darkness but you can still make out the shape of his furrowed brows above half lidded eyes, predominantly black irises peeking through under his long lashes, his soft laugh lines, etching deeper with each year that passes, a tug of his full pink lips, pursing them as the corners pull down slightly. Your smile turns embarrassed as he sits up “What are you doing?” his voice is laced with sleep, a deep throaty husk as he presses a knuckle to his eyes. 

“Was just going for a smoke, go back to sleep” you whisper, arriving at your destination and pulling his lighter from a tangle of childish hair bobbles, loose change and a deteriorating pack of gum. “Mm mm” he shakes his head “I’ll come with you” before you get a chance to protest he's already pushing the comforter off of him and setting his feet to the floor with a groan. 

Without another word uttered into the silence of the night his hand finds yours and leads you out the door, quietly down the other end of the hall across from you and out onto the balcony. It seems the night air has a positive effect on the both of you, you immediately feel your hot skin cool down as the cold rushes to Eddie's own skin, waking him up. He adjusts his eyes and finds one lonely chair on the old wood, he pats his thigh once he's sat down, gesturing you over. 

You hold the small flame up to Eddie's awaiting cigarette perched between his lips, watching as the rusty colour of orange and red lights up within the tobacco. Eddie's arm wraps around you once again after you tossed both the carton and zippo onto the floor. The cool night breeze brushes against your legs while the scent of smoke, chia shampoo and conditioner, tangerine body wash, a fading old spice and redwood and a musk you could only describe as uniquely Eddie fills your senses. 

You allow yourself to soak up the moment, relaxed in Eddie's lap, a strong arm enveloping your waist, deep blues painting the sky, purely and simply at ease. “I think we should talk” his words break the comfortable silence, your neck stretches to look up at him, head resting on his shoulder “About what?” the softness of his voice eases any worry that most definitely could have bubbled up in your stomach if his tone had been any different when speaking those five words. 

“Sweetheart, I know you have a hard time telling me how you feel about things, but I think it's important you try. I had no idea what you were going through, I still don't. But I feel like it's something I should be made aware of, you know? We need to be able to tell each other things so that we’re on the same wavelength.” you turn your eyes up to the sky as you sigh at his words. 

This was going to be difficult. Throughout your whole childhood you had been told time and time again that showing any trace of feelings was a definite sign of weakness. Even the fact of registering your feelings as not only feelings but allowed, permitted, was something you were partly deeply uncomfortable with and something that was scarcely new to you. Untread territory. A deep breath reaches Eddie's ears as you prepare for the unpreventable fate. 

“She died” you barely manage a whisper as you confess to the incident which happened months ago. The words tasted sour on your tongue, bitter, you hadn't spoken those words to anyone, saying them now made you shudder. “What?” he's having trouble wrapping his head around what you've just said, “My mom.. she died, uh december 18th” both cigarettes left forgotten you find yourself tearing up. The stupid emotions showing your vulnerability only fuels anger, a bead of salty fluid drops down your cheek, you wipe it away in frustration. Why were you even crying? Crying about a mean old drug addict who had abused you all your life, verbally, physically, emotionally. Why were you shedding tears for the woman who kicked you out at 16 after losing your job at the gas station, the job that paid for the trailer you never bared to call a home, the job that paid the bills, the food, the dangerous toxins which she put into her body. 

The woman your own kids believed to have passed away in your early childhood, the woman who you insisted on shielding them from. The same woman who broke down every single part of you until she left you to fend for yourself, to build yourself back up, bit by bit, piece by piece, day by day. 

“She.. she died?” his hot breath fans across your cheek as he nuzzles his face to the side of yours “Why didn't you tell me?” his words are muffled as his lips ghost over your skin. For once in your life you feel yourself let go, if only a miniscule fraction of what normalcy is, you let yourself experience your feelings, with one single hiccup. “I don't know” the sadness in your voice makes his heart break, but still you refuse to let it tremble. “I just, I didn't know how to feel, what to think, I needed time to figure it out” your eyes flutter shut as you manoeuvre your face into the crook of his neck, stubbing your cigarette out on the wall behind him and dropping it to the floor. 

Eddie copies your movements and rests his cheek to the side of your head, he stays silent as he waits for you to continue, “I knew logistically people are sad when their parent dies, but it just made my head spin, I didn't feel sad, I couldn't, not for her.” your voice vibrates against his throat as you speak. 

Eddie knew the two largest reasons as to why you couldn't feel sad, she didn't deserve it, and you simply weren't able to access those emotions. You found some comfort in his awareness, had you been forced to explain everything in intimate detail you would only feel worse. “And the kids didn't know so I couldn't just go around moping so I guess I just… distracted myself?” he knew the reason as to why for that too, endless thoughts swirled around his head as he managed to come to the conclusion that you had been lost, you probably still were. So confused as to how or why you were feeling the way you did, refusing to address the issue head on and finding any way to cope. 

Your hours spent in silence -at home, at work, at any activity you could find and drag out the time with, at events, hanging with all your friends, dinners at Wayne’s- had closed you off, in the moment it may have worked but a nagging thought at the back of his mind told him it didn't. Not for you, not for him, not for the girls. So many thoughts threatened to make his head explode, and in the mix of it was roaring guilt. Guilt from not taking a second to ask how you were, guilt for not realising there was something deeper nestled below the surface, guilt for not only the idea he constantly convinced himself was untrue but actually accusing you of cheating, guilt for selfishly missing you in all ways possible and guilt for only focusing on that. 

“I’m so sorry” unlike yours his voice shook as he spoke, arms wrapping tighter around you in agony. “Why? You don't have to be sorry” he couldn't see the confused frown spread over your face, but it was there. You simply couldn't wrap your head around why a whole other human being was feeling sorry or even affected by your problems. “I-I didn't do anything, or-or say anything, you were clearly struggling and I never knew, I wasn’t there for you” his own water lines began to flood, just as you had he distracted himself, by running a hand up and down your arm. “I didn't do or say anything” you admit, “I should have told you, I just, I was worried, that you would have.. expectations from me, how I would feel, act. Not only that but I think there was just this gnawing thought that you would think there was something wrong, with me, if I didn't do the normal thing and grieve” his hand was now soothing up and down over your hair. 

“Baby, look at me” his hands pulled lightly at your shoulders, gesturing you to turn and straddle him, face to face. “She has never earned the right to your grief” his thumb swiped under your eye as you let out a sob and a hot searing tear rolled down, “She never did a single thing to earn even a glance from you” as your eyes closed tight he continued, “What you did was normal. It was normal for you, there's nothing wrong with not knowing how to go through some things in life, and there's nothing abnormal with trying to process it in your own way” your shoulders threatened to collapse against him but he held on softly to one as he cupped your cheek. “You just need to remember that I'm always here for you, you can tell me anything. I won't judge you, or expect anything from you.”

For the very first time, you actually sat down and accepted your feelings, you accepted them, talked about them and learned to understand them, all thanks to the one person you had shut yourself away from the most. For over an hour you talked, both showing and explaining the raw emotions you found within yourself. By the second hour you walked through the details of what had gone down and at the end you felt a weight lift from your chest as well as some understanding for yourself. A promise was made, to not only communicate with him but also to learn how to access and express what was going on in your head, in therapy. Something that initially seemed so frightening but was slowly dampened with another promise, that Eddie would come with you if you needed him. 

Your mother, or rather the woman who had birthed you but failed to raise you, had been forcefully put in rehab years ago. An expensive resort, you found yourself still keeping her afloat with your hard earned money as you sent in monthly payments. An old ‘friend’ had shown up and before the personnel had a chance to alert you to it, she had escaped. Run off with her friend to, what was probably her opinion, be free. Once some hours had passed they had tried calling you, too busy slaving away for your promotion at work you had missed every single one. When they finally got hold of you, the soft pitiful voice on the other end of the line explained to you how she had been found, collapsed only a yard from the abandoned house occupied by the homeless, with no pulse. 

It was bound to happen, but just because it was destiny that you would come from a broken home didn't mean you yourself had to be broken. An absent father who had bolted the second the pregnancy had been announced to him, and a mother who for 16 years had constantly reminded you of how unwelcome you were in her life. Even up till your thirties where she would filter in and out of your life unwanted. You had kept the secret from your friends and boyfriend for three months, living under the bridge by the docks with only the clothes on your back and a few newspapers you found. You had lied to your friends and explained that your mother had donated all your clothes as punishment for coming home after curfew, a curfew you didn't have and probably wouldn't have been cared about if you did. For 2 months and 3 weeks you lived off a duffle bag of Eddies band shirts and sweatpants. It was bearable, the life you had at the time, even with the thunder storms and hammering rain, but by peak december when the cold was at its worst you realised that wearing multiple layers wouldn't cut it and shamefully knocked on Eddie's door, asking for a place to stay. 

Wayne had become the father and mother you never had, and you would spend your entire lifetime trying to pay him back, but nothing could ever come close to the love he showered you with, the money he spent, the food, clothes, shelter he gave you. 

The time showed 1:26 am when you finally made it back to your room, the cold biting at your skin forgotten until the warm duvet swallowed you whole, a reminder of how extremely cold you were. Wrapped in Eddie's arms, cheek pressed to his chest, you soon fell asleep, no longer sad or gloomy, but tired and happy, every vine in your body glittering with fierce gold. “I love you” the soft whisper from below him made him realise that the words accompanied by your voice were strange to his ears. He hadn't realised it at the time but you had stopped saying those words to him in what must have been mid spring. Tears pricked at his eyes again as he beamed “I love you too” 

(A/N was thinking of leaving it here but I know we’re all horny fucks here so OBVIOUSLY I have to continue)

-

You awoke with a light, happy heart, and just like every other fucking morning, as the little spoon again. Instead of calling them in you pulled yourself out of bed and answered the knock at the door, wrapping your girls up in a warm hug before they had a chance to whiz past you to their clothes. It might have been that you were content with the duration of the hug but it was more probably the fact that both girls were wining and squirming trying to get away from you when they felt they'd been pressed together for too long that you broke apart. You chuckled as you let them go and climbed back into bed, Eddie was still fast asleep, it seemed the giggling voices of two happy little girls weren't enough to wake him from his slumber. 

Although he seemed not to be fully passed out when you shimmied back down the covers once the girls had left, because he hummed happily, and automatically wrapped around you in a warm embrace. After a while he fell back asleep, arms clutching you close to his chest in contentment, his nose buried in the scent of your hair. You began to grin when you felt something familiar poking at your behind, Eddie's morning wood was appearing just as the sun began to rise. Jitters built throughout your body at the sensation, you were no doubt used to waking up just like this, even during your rough patch, but for maybe the first time since the early stages of your relationship, it wasn't just funny and exciting but thrilling. The feeling of Eddie's slowly hardening cock pressing up against you sent tingles up your legs, awakening butterflies that situated in the bottom of your stomach. 

He must have been wavering between being half asleep and fully judging by the fact that he groaned loudly as you wiggled your hips to situate him between your ass cheeks. The groan spurred you on and you forced your hips against his, earning a tighter hug to hold you infinitely closer to him. Your grin widened when he let out a second groan as you forced yourself back again, one final time had his eyes fluttering open and his hand snaking up under your shirt to squeeze softly at your boob. “Morning” your voice was soft to his ears since it came out in a whisper. 

For the first morning in a while the deep raspy “Morning beautiful” had your thighs clenching. Maybe you should talk about your feelings if it made you feel this connected to Eddie and especially this desperate for him. “Love the sound of your voice in the mornings” you chose to push the feeling of spewing random and intimate -to you- thoughts, right down. Forcing them out of sight and allowing you to properly express yourself, even though it may have been an admittedly mild statement. The action, telling him exactly what you were thinking. “Mm you do?” he hummed behind you to which you nodded, hair brushing up and down against his nose. The grin you were fighting off made you once again feel like a teenager, talking to your crush… Holy shit were you flustered? 

“Maybe I should talk like this more often” he was slowly waking up now, slight hints of clarity lacing his voice as he stirred behind you, “You really should” your cheeks were heating up now, Jesus Christ you hadn't felt like this since you were an actual teenager, talking to the same man, at that time a boy. “Mm it doing it for you?” he hummed, despite the obvious comic tone in his words the sound sent fiery lightning straight through your body as you let out a stifled girly giggle “It really is”. 

You felt yourself swoon as his hips pressed against yours, a pleased hum followed from his lips as you took a deep breath to centre yourself. “Fuck, you don’t know how good this feels” had the ruckus downstairs from all the kids and newly awoken parents been closer the words would have fallen on deaf ears for it was all but a whisper, a mumble from soft plush lips grazing your scalp. All you could do in response was hum, the feeling of Eddie's thick fingers massaging the soft skin of your breast, catching your nipple between them and near searingly hot skin pressed flat against your back along with his throbbing cock grinding against you left you speechless. 

The tingles fluttering throughout your body were only growing more violent when Eddie let out a long groan of relief, the pent up frustration echoing through the room as strong arms held you even closer to him. Eventually, it got too much to bare, as soft whimpers began to escape your lips, matching up perfectly to the near obnoxious groans the man behind you was making, you slid your hand from under your cheek to slightly aggressively grab onto the hand massaging your boob, leading it down your front till his fingertips nudged the hem of your brazilians. 

Immediately he got the hint and carefully slunk his fingers under the offensive undergarment and soon enough callused fingers were running lazily up from your hole to your clit, collecting you slick and rubbing slow circles into the nub he since long ago had no trouble finding. A needy moan broke from your throat and you were quick to cover your mouth by turning your head and smooshing your bare face into the worn fabric of the pillow beneath you. Your now free hand slunk up behind you to grasp on firmly at the roots of Eddie's curls. His own display of arousal rang through the room before he followed your lead and buried his face further into your hair. 

“Shit, fuck, babe, need- need to be” his voice broke off before he had a chance to fully voice his request, your hand was already pulling at the hem of his boxers, prompting him to wriggle awkwardly while his hand was still attached to you. Within seconds your back was arched, your thigh was lifted into the air and your panties moved to the side as a small hand wrapped around his base, leading him to the opening of where you needed him most. The both of you synchronised in desperate whimpers as he sheathed inside you and bottomed out, once he was fully seated you took a deep breath to steady yourself before laying your leg back down.

The added pressure of your thighs squeezing together causing for a delightful sensation as your pussy pulsed around him. Not before long he was rocking into you, matching the slow rhythm of his fingers. 

This, this was utter and complete bliss. A lazy morning with your lover, early morning sun filtering through the thin flower curtains, the rambunctious sound of happy children only to be heard as white noise, heavy strained breaths pleasing your ears, warm skin on warm skin, wrapped up in soft colourful sheets with Eddie slowly thrusting in to you. Yeah this was the best fucking feeling. 

Soon enough the faint thuds against the very depths of your pussy became repetitive, each pause of Eddie pulling back and thrusting back in shorter when his hips sped up. With each passing second you realised that the thickness of the plush pillow wasn't enough to muffle your moans, the lone hand resting under your cheek came up to plaster over your mouth, forcing it hard against the chubbiness of your cheeks. Once again Eddie was on the same page as you, with his mind and body quickly awakening, the arm squished between the mattress and your body ripped quickly out from under you, a clenched fist coming up to his lips as he bit down hard onto the skin. 

Each thrust was growing faster and faster, deeper and deeper, harder and harder, and in turn the slow circles on your clit, matching the pace of his hips with the added pressure increasing. “Fuck babe, roll over” with the help of his body forcing you in the right direction you rolled onto your stomach, a frustrated whine leaving your lips at the loss of Eddies fingers harshly pressing into your clit before you had the chance to cover your mouth again. 

Your whine was left discarded as Eddie manoeuvred himself on top of you, his thighs straddling the backs of yours, his left hand slipping under your armpit and lacing his fingers with your own right hand. Before you knew it, plush lips were kissing repeatedly up and down your right shoulder and up the side of your neck. Just as he began thrusting again his free hand planted a deathgrip on your hip, callused tips of his fingers pressing harshly into your skin, no doubt leaving a bruise. 

Your left hand found its place splayed across your mouth once again just as the thrusts became hard and evenly spaced. “Fuck feel so good baby, fuckin’ -shit” his breath fanned against your ear, a mewl from the back of your throat only spurring him on. “Fuckin’ love these curves, you’re so sexy” you had long since passed the point where you’d flush with embarrassment at the compliments showered upon you about your body, instead his words had the intended effect, muffled moans became much less muffled, the volume breaking through the barrier of your hand. “Fuck princess you gotta be quiet, think you can do that for me?” you most definitely couldn't, but you sure as hell would try. The deep husky voice whispering against you skin as he kissed it, knuckles gripping tightly onto your own, hand holding firmly onto the meat of your hip and his dick thundering in and out of you overtook all senses, all you wanted to do right now was worship this man who made you feel so Mother. Fucking. Good. So yes, you sure as fucking hell would try. 

“Good girl” you could feel the smug smirk against the slope of your neck at your eager nod, could hear it in his voice, knew he was just filling up with pride at the feeling of your whole body tensing with the force of not letting out the excruciatingly loud moan you were so desperate to set free. “So good for me, takin’ me -fuck- so well, oh fuck holy shit” despite how badly he wanted to shower you in endless praise he couldn’t help the endless string of swares as he felt your pussy clamp down around him at his words. 

“Fuck fuck fuck, oh shit, oh my fucking god” his neck went slack as his forehead landed on your shoulder with a thud, hips working faster than ever at the feeling of your pulsing around him, intensified with the hard incessant squeeze. You couldn't pass it up, you just couldn't, you knew exactly what to do to get him riled up, despite his whole body working in overdrive you wanted, no, needed to know what would happen if he was pushed just a little further towards his limits. Throughout heavy pants once your hand was lifted only slightly from your lips you managed to get out the words “Seems hmmghf seems you’re enjoying this more than me right now” a smirk slowly spread across your lips. 

“You sure about that sweetheart?” his voice was strained as he spoke and it only made the tingling between your thighs strengthen. “Yeah” you breathed, “I don't know about you, but with time things get… old”

“Old huh?”

“Boring” with every ounce of power you had in your body you managed to even your voice in a smooth breath, unnamused and bored. “You can't please me anymore. It's the same old dance every time. It gets boring”

“Oh I can't please you anymore?”

“Not in the slightest. Judging by this maybe I should go find another man, someone who knows what he’s doing. Someone new, exciting, better.” before your grin had a chance to widen at his “Oh you fucking-” a strong hand gripped tightly onto your roots and you were yanked up to a sitting position. 

He pulled the flimsy t-shirt your thrown on earlier over your head before the hand holding yours found your hip in no time, leaving identical bruising on your other hip while the tension in your scalp quickly soothed as his other hand no longer gentle forced itself under your panties, diving straight for your clit to circle it fast and harsh. “Oh yeah? That's how we're gonna do this?” with the upper hand, amusement sounded in his voice between the heavy pants he was releasing. But the fact that both your legs were pressed together betweens his was not working in his favour. He wanted so badly to just let loose and scream at the feeling of your thighs tightening you around him but he was trying his hardest never to let the pants transition into deep groans or even loud moans. As he waited for your answer his hand smoothed up your side to plant a firm grasp on your left boob, “Y-yeah” how it was even possible you were even more worked up than he was, your pants faster and louder, threatening to echo deafeningly throughout the room and reach unexpecting and innocent ears. 

Just knowing there were people around who could hear you if you dared raise your voice, who could catch you made it all the more exhilarating. 

Your head lolled onto his shoulder with your eyes closed and mouth open in a mute scream as your body moved up and down with each push of his hips, in sync with the low squeaks of the old bed frame. “Yeah you wanna be in charge? Go ahead sweetheart” the smug and evil laugh vibrated through his chest at the sound of your pathetic whine in protest “You sure?” the mocking tone only made you squeeze harder around him. The squeaking increased as Eddie breathed, “Fuck” had it not been for the fact that you were almost completely silent you wouldn’t have heard it, but you did and it flipped a switch inside you. Even though you were clearly the whining mess at the hands of your husband, you did in fact have the upper hand despite his insistence that you didn't. 

It had most definitely been a while, but you decided you most definitely wanted to push him to his limits, you wanted to see him angry. With some extreme power you didn't know you withheld you managed to clear your head from all the sensations and purely focus on speaking, knowing you would be rewarded by it soon enough. “You act so tough” the near clear tone of your words caught him off guard, “You give off this idea that you're all big and strong. But you're all bark. No bite” you slowly opened your eyes to watch him out of the corner of them, “What did you just say to me?” fury began to swim in his eyes as his jaw twitched with the tightness of the grit of his teeth. 

“You heard me.” a loud exhale managed to escape your lips but you forced yourself to reel back in your head and stay focused on your mission, “Everybody thinks you're this mean, inked up, scary metalhead who could crush anyone into a pulp within the matter of seconds, but on the contrary you're just a mushy wuss who plays dress up, watches cartoons and likes baking every sunday with his wife” ok maybe the jab at him playing princesses with the kids might have been a little harsh, but it was no doubt working. 

For a moment, it left him speechless. His hips were still working furiously but his grip on your chest slackened. Even before the dry spell it was on rare occasions where you were this mean, this assertive. It threw him right off course.

He managed to regain his mental footing however, “Who the fuck do you think you are right now?” the grin spreading on your delicate features only fueled his anger, “I’m the woman whose body you've worshipped and will continue to worship until the day you die. I’m the woman, the only woman who can get you on your knees, begging, whining for you to touch me” hmm, might have been the wrong direction, judging by the fact that he too was now grinning. The squeaking only increasing with each passing second.

Dammit, you had to rethink your tactics. His hand found your hip again as he watched your tits bounce with amusement. Before you had the chance to even mull over how to play this next his words cut you off, “I know you like to think you're the one who calls the shots sweethea-” “Shut up” he frowns at you as he instantly shuts his mouth in sheer shock. “I am the one who calls the shots, just the other day you were whining and whimpering like a pathetic little baby and I hadn't even touched you” now that seemed to be working. His confused frown shifted into one of anger again, “And I don't think I even need to remind you how you got all hard and needy from just the prospect of getting to see me naked, let alone shower with me”

It was definitely working when an angry twitch of his lips graced your presence, each word blowing oxygen into the bottom of the slow burning fire rumbling in his stomach. “I don't think I need to remind you this either, but I will” you sat up now, his cock still working its way in and out of you, still proving how desperate he was, twisting your neck to face him you forced a sneer “-you came within two seconds of slipping inside me” hot fury glared at you from once almond brown soft eyes, now black with a stare unwavering. “Pathetic” you landed the final punch with a scoff. 

“Get off me” the hands once gripping you with need and desperation now held onto you with pure rage, manhandling you to slip off him and almost collapsing onto the ground. Shit, did you take it too far? Did you read the signs wrong? Was he actually not into it? Worry glossed your eyes over as you watched him stand up. “I’m sor-” you tried to apologise as you found your balance “Shut. The. Fuck. Up” without warning he was in front of you, pushing you at your shoulders to bounce onto the bed. With harsh movements he brought you to the edge of the bed, forcing your thighs up. 

He looked you dead in the eye as he said the words “Not so tough now are we?” and then he broke into a wide smug smirk, soaking up every inch of your shocked face. “Wha..?” you breathed, a breath that quickly turned into an even more shocked, gasp. Without any caution or warning whatsoever he ripped the soft, expensive polyester lace that lay delicately over your stomach. Within a second he ripped the other side, his fingers finding the discarded -now backpiece- easily, pulling it out from under you and tossing it towards his nightstand. 

“Those were expensive!” you chastised him but all he did was smirk even wider. Despite his previous manhandling and legit throwing you around the touch of the tip of his cock running through your folds was soft, gentle. The sensation made you shiver as you felt it brush over your clit before returning back down again and repeating the process as he spoke. “That's the thing sweetheart, you act like a brat and you get treated like one” his words were laced with malice before the loud moan you let out had Eddies eyes shifting to the door, just out of view of his peripheral before zoning back in on you. Watching smugly at the once again evident shock on your face after he had just pushed himself into the hilt. The head of his cock brushing dangerously at your cervix from the force he was putting at his hips to get as deep as possible. 

The tut he let out at your reaction only made anger bubble up within yourself too, “Tsk tsk, thought you could be quiet” this time your sneer was 100% real, “Not when you just force yourself inside me with no fucking warning” your backtalk only made him more angry. He retaliated with another hard snap of his hips against you, this time you were ready, biting so hard into your bottom lip you were sure you would soon enough be drawing blood but it didn't matter, he wasn't going to win, maybe before but not now. 

His knees were beginning to ache from the awkward bend he was in to reach you on the bed, being tall seemed it didn't always come with its perks but- “Wanna see your face when you cum for me. See you fall apart for the only man who can make you beg and whine, like a pathetic. Little. Baby.” He threw your words right back in your face just before he began a furious pace of his hips, same if not more furious than when had last been inside you a minute ago. You thanked whoever made that stupid old bed for it at least not squeaking when moved the other way. 

His cock stretching you out at the new angle, the head of his cock hitting that stupid ‘danger zone’ was now sending you careening towards a fast and undoubtedly strong orgasm. Damn him. Not only that but you found as you bit down harder you did in fact manage to draw blood. “Yeah that's it” his smirk was still shining brightly on his soft and once kind features. The right hand that had been situated on your hip moved up to grab onto your tit once again while he watched the other one bouncing up and down. If the sound of the rest of the house had registered to him before it definitely wasn't now. Now all he could focus on was the way every part of your body bounced with each thrust, had it been under any other circumstance he most definitely would have praised you endlessly on how he loved the bounce of your tits, your soft stomach, your thighs, but right now it didn't even cross his mind to voice his opinions on it. The fiery anger grew more threatening at your next words “Piece of shit” you gritted out, the metallic taste of your blood sour in your mouth “Fucking pervert, bet you just love watching me like this, at your mercy or whatever” you scoffed, “Is it giving you your ego boost?” 

The hard slap landed at your cheek had you gasping but not regretting your words, no, far from it. This was exactly what you wanted, you had a feeling treating and being treated rough was something very much needed for the both of you. All sorts of built up feelings being released in a strange form of love rather than distance or petty arguments. This was much better, not only in the absolutely earth shattering way his cock was pistoning into you and every other sensation of this moment but the fact that it could be channelled into complete euphoria for the both of you and not hurt feelings. 

Strong fingers wrapped around your throat as he responded “Such a fucking slut, let anyone else do this to you? ‘Cause you seem to be taking this very easy” you rolled your eyes at him “Obviously not. Jesus christ I really regret marrying someone so fucking dense” pressure was added to your throat as another hand left your hip, fingers splayed over the soft pudge of your stomach as his thumb connected to your clit. 

If there had been any slight worry that he might actually be angry it would have dissipated the second his skin came in contact with your own slick one. “Hah! No you don't. You and I both know no one could treat you this good” he began to sense the loss of air you were experiencing and drew his hand up to your face, fingers resting at the back of your throat while his thumb sat just in front of your ear. “Drop anything to be at your aid, treat you like a goddamn goddess. No one could ever love you like I do.”

And there it was, love. His anger was beginning to melt, he’d gotten everything out and now all he could look at you with was adoration. “No one could ever love me like you do” you confirmed, a soft smile only hinting at your lips as you stared up at him. In less than a second his hand below your navel disappeared and was found slinking under your back, lowering himself down to capture your lips in a deep passionate kiss.  One hand circled under his arm to grasp onto his shoulder blade as the other ran through his hair. Multiple long kisses venturing between soft and hard were shared as well as breathy I love yous’s before you whispered a breathless and whiny “I’m gonna cum” Eddie breathed a heavy sigh of relief “Oh thank god” and soon enough the orgasm you had been teetering over the edge of for a long time came crashing down on you, biting into Eddies shoulder to suppress a loud moan as he led one final thrust before hot spurts of cum painted your walls.

[two-sides-samecoin]

i kinda want to do this for every ep which i have to go back on ep 1 but i just finished rewatching agatha all along episode 3 after the finale with the reveals and things are making soo much more sense now

1. holy shit agatha is looking at billy sooo fucking much

2. fr when no on is paying attention to agatha she just straight up has no idea what’s happening

3. agatha lists off the things that the other three want which ends up happening. jen was unbound = she faced being bound. lillie was reversing her fate = she saw her younger self literally reversing her age and also seeing death. alice was what happened to mommy= she sees her mom

4. billy literally noticing that agatha didn’t drink her wine so her wine bottle fills up a little bit. he took notice kind of calling back the “it’s not loyalty it’s analysis” right now billy is only capable of analyzing agatha based either on what she does or what other people say about her.

5. lmaoo agatha’s comment of sure with billy wanting to drink the wine makes so much more sense now.

6. billy saying “i stray not from the path” and agatha’s “thank you teen” comment is actually so much more fucking hilarious. girls like well yeah you made the rules happen no shit buddy.

7. billy’s comment of “anyone can become a proper witch with training” about sharon is very interesting to me. like it’s now realized she doesn’t have magic but he believes that she can learn but girl doesn’t want to learn lmaooo

8. the door is an oven which i think is interesting when the girls just spent the whole episode talking about the stereotypes that witches gain over the years.

9. the way jen is the first one to walk forward towards the first trail - she really is the path ahead

10. holy shit there are so many shots just in general of agatha being in front of teen and teen/billy being off to the side. it really makes the whole rio comment of “you’ve been distracting me from him” so much more real. the audience is literally perceiving this that agatha is at the forefront and billy at the side

11. oh my god i just noticed another shot. when they start walking towards the house: jen is stationed by herself, billy and agatha are together, and lillie sharon and alice are all in one section together. bro they’ve literally been showing through shots what their future is going to be i’m screaming

12. broo the fucking card invite literally is a fucking reveal after you realize. “my age has value” billy kept changing ages in wandavision and now. “i’m no fun alone” billy has a twin and ends up teaming up with agatha at the end. “i mess with your mind” legit the fucking powers he has and also wanda’s spell in wandavision. “my tricks are well known” he’s literally the son of the scarlet witch

13. waiiittt agatha’s comment of “sounds like a witch” hits so much after that invitation cuz girl put it together.

14. you can really tell now that agatha is trying to figure out how this works cuz she’s shouting at certain points of “sure we do something terrible but if we don’t follow these obvious breadcrumbs and we won’t get the big prize” she literally was the one to come up with the idea of the wine being an awful experience since she wanted to see what would happen.

15. you really notice how much teen is coming up with this because people are saying shit. sharon brings up “to get these wrinkles out” which that happens her face is swollen. jen says that they’ve been poisoned and well look at that they all feel the affects of the moment. then jen describes the poison which suddenly they all experience the effects.

16. jen said “you’re the canary in the coal mine” about sharon and look she dies in the fucking oven

17. billy stares at agatha again noticing that she’s faking the face and pretending to be effected

18. “you can’t cheat agatha” ohhhh so much to unpack

19. oh god you really get how billy is pushing them and going back and forth. the drink in a very commending cold tone of voice and then he’s goes slightly softer as he says the word fine i’ll do it oh oh oh

20. agatha and jen interactions are soo much more interesting now and has so many fucking layerings

21. “they can steal your power but not your knowledge” actually has soo many connotions now. while yes it’s about jen it’s also so much about the fucking road and billy in general. billy commands the road and makes everything happen because of his fucking knowledge about a lot of things. he just doesn’t know it yet.

22. agatha’s vision is soo fucking interesting now because i think it’s her more so realizing that billy can just hear stuff and would make it happen even in fucking hallucinations. and also billy ms comment of “what did you see” makes so much more sense. he can’t see into her mind - he doesn’t know the entire meaning of this to her. and he’s so curious about it because he can only analyze her

23. lmaooo her cutting into billy so quickly actually makes so much sense now

24. sharon’s death is actually so interesting when you think about it. she technically was cured by the dosage and the door opened when she received it but also the clock was ticking anyway. and then she dies after the trail. part of me wonders if she dies because billy knows that they’re not a full coven because sharon isn’t a witch thus killing her off because she isn’t supposed to be there. but also with his comment about “anyone can become a witch” i wonder if he thinks that she is part of the coven especially since she went under the drinking the wine and at the end he carves her name on the door. soooo yeah all of the coven has to die except for one. billy and death are exempt simply because their both outliers in the idea of death as one is death and one is upsetting the balance and literally creating the road

[crystalelemental]

After some deliberation, I've decided that I'm skipping Volo. I'm not especially impressed with his kit, sadly, and I just don't want to use that many gems in a month. I will not buy gems, I will delete the game if that desire comes back. But that leaves the other pairs.

Giacomo and Clavell are easy skips because I don't care. Giacomo seems like an absurdly powerful damage dealer but I'm fine on Dark thanks, while Clavell is a really interesting charge/reload type that I think will do great but I am so thoroughly covered on water types forever thanks.

Fall Iono is super neat, I like her design and I like Flutter Mane. I think she's pretty competent too. Strike/Support special Ghost DPS. Her sync is whatever, and her DPS is...well it's not great, but she has Hit the Gas, the Support sync is to really hammer in that her function is DPS, and her Buddy move is one-use with a Rebuff/debuff effect built in. It's wholly competent, but partners were tough to parse, because the good ones are the last two I missed. SC Irida has persistent Free Moves Next, so she's not a bad pick, but I think Summer Gardenia is kinda top dog here. Ghost Zone setting with a strong 2-gauge move is very nice to complement Iono's strengths. And as luck would have it, I actually nabbed Gardenia on the Mix banner. Oh when the stars align.

That said, I love my Anni Lillie and am loathe to let her go. A big issue I'm seeing with how I played this game is that, I now go through Battle Rally, and barely touch the majority of my roster. I kinda regret pulling as many options as I did, given that I never use so many of them. This in mind, the question arises: do I like Iono and Gardenia more than I like Lillie and Cynthia? And the answer is of course fucking not. I can't even say I like Flutter Mane more than Lunala and Giratina. So realistically, while this Iono is good and has merit, I think she's a skip.

Which leaves Shauntal. Shauntal and Froslass have an...interesting approach. Shauntal is a gun with three bullets: Buddy move on par with SS Lysandre, Tech sync with Sprint sub-role which refreshes 1MP at 3/5, Buddy move again. Her Buddy move also doubles any debuff on the foe, and sure-freezes. Given that Shauntal's main attraction is three random -1 debuffs on a foe each time they're hit, she can rack up some decent, if non-specific, stuff. She also plays heavy into evasion, boosting the team's and debuffing all foes' accuracy when she sets Hail. With Hail extension, she's also keeping her needed power boost up.

"So what's the problem?" Lack of partners, mostly. Shauntal is plagued by a few issues. First: she gets Hail, but no real multipliers under Hail, and no Ice Zone. She'd like to have a partner who does that, which is realistically Irida. She relies on sync too much to consider Gladion and Weavile, and Grusha, while passable, buffs physical. She cannot cap her own offensive needs, she wants special. But Irida's not a great partner either, given that Irida is...also a bit more of support? Like she can target debuff Sp Def which is nice for ensuring Shauntal's damage, but that's all she can ensure. And among damage dealing partners, special Ice is all AoE. NC Red is the exception, but much like SST Red, I don't consider Red worth wasting the idea of "partners" on. He already sure-freezes and packs disgusting DPS, it's not like he wants Shauntal's help over Irida's.

Given her desire for a good single-target DPS pair on her side, her partners tend to fall into...well, SS Silver and SS N territory. Both can debuff, both have strong single-target damage, but they're both physical. This maybe matters significantly less now that CS isn't really a big deal, but it still bugs me that they're misaligned. Also Silver's debuffs suck.

There's also the issue of partners, as Shauntal's only sync multiplier is Brainpower, and she doesn't cap her own Sp Atk or crit. Which is something specific to keep in mind. She's kinda locked in to specific partners who can accomplish that goal. There are, by now, plenty of options, with Penny being notable for having targeted debuffs she can capitalize on, but it's still a tall ask for a limited pair to need that much.

Shauntal does get my priority though, if only because my Ice roster is an atrocity. Iono is under consideration should Shauntal show up early. Sorry but I'm not pulling Volo. Every time someone I want shared with a Lysandre alt, I have that Lysandre at 5/5 and them at 0/5 and Lysandre will show up again until pity.

[heat--end]

20 questions for fic writers

i saw this from @tearsoftime0086 and figured why not

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

14, though i think one MIGHT be privated?

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

453,462

3. What fandoms do you write for?

basically just pokemon, lol. one day i wanna branch out, but i really like writing for pokemon, so i don't mind that all too much

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Iridescent Bonds - my first ever fic, a dawn/irida story that involves them falling in love over the course of PLA's storyline and some other events. dawn is transgender! it's good! i hold this story very close to my heart, and i'm actually rewriting it right now, which is fun!

Bloom - trans girl lillie during the sun/moon story. its basically just a deeper dive into lillie as a character, while also making her trans, because Me Like Trans Characters. im very proud of this!

God Cannot Give You Relationship Advice - a very short, very silly one-shot that i threw together on a whim and is my 3rd most kudos'd work lmao. still, it's fun and cute, i can see why people like it so much

Shining Beyond Space Itself - my current project other than BFS! a rewrite of iridescent bonds, really fleshing out the idea and doing it proper. currently on 17 chapters out of 20, so its wrapping up soon

Jewel Box - my dawn/irida oneshot collection, based entirely on the universe established in iridescent bonds/shining beyond space. it's just a big fluff collection, but damn if i dont love it LOL. plus it really helped me develop the framework for SBS

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

LOVE responding to comments, only time i dont is if i feel i cant really add much or the like. but i really enjoy adding on to people's questions, or further explaining stuff, or even just thanking them for nice comments because i love comments!!!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

honestly, i don't really write angsty endings - i do enjoy writing angst, but not in my endings. i guess maybe Stardust Memories, but even that ends on a nice note???

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

probably Iridescent Bonds, since that just ends on dawn and irida getting married lmao. it's mushy and sappy but damn it i am a mushy and sappy gal!!!!

8. Do you get hate on fics?

thankfully no. i got one comment on iridescent bonds though that was like "this was great until the trans shit" which like. that's in the 2nd line, bro lmao

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

nah, probably wont ever

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

MY PRIDE AND FUCKING JOY, BUILD FIGHTERS SHINING. a crossover fic between pokemon and gundam build fighters, but to be more specific, it's a crossover between iridescent bonds/SBS and gundam build fighters. i love love LOVE writing this story, it's my other project next to SBS (it's taken a small hiatus because of SBS wrapping up - all my focus is going into that). LOVE build fighters shining. my pride and joy. my brainchild. i pour my heart and SOUL into this story

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not that i know of

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

not that i know of, but i wouldn't mind someone doing so

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

i haven't no. might be fun, though!

14. What’s your all time favourite ship?

incredibly easy answer lmfao. akari/irida, 100%. dawn/irida as well, but that's just a variant of akari/irida really. i love love LOVE this ship, i think the game really lets these two build a strong relationship over the course of the game and they grow so incredibly close that i think its so cute, i love irida as a character so i think shes gay, and i love dawn/irida cause thats MY variation of it. girls gay. gay women. go check out @iridawn for all my autism about this ship

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

probably the akari/irida WIP i had where akari gets burned bad from the fight with lord arcanine, and irida has to help her while the others get materials to help. i cant really find the angle i'd want on it, and i'm a little worried about inaccurately writing a burn injury lmfao

16. What are your writing strengths?

i like to think i'm good at writing emotional stuff when i really need to, especially when it's just sappy and good. i also think i can write action scenes pretty well. not FLAWLESSLY, but im proud of it

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

definitely how i describe certain things and my habit to repeat words, lmao. i fall into writing ticks a lot, stuff like "a bit" or just sticking to certain words, and i dont give AS much detail as i should sometimes when decorating a scene. its something im slowly working on, but def my weakness

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

not a bad idea at all, yeah. i say its good

19. First fandom you wrote for?

published was pokemon, but first i WROTE for was DBZ. i wrote a very small piece a long, LONG time ago, and i never published it or anything, it was just a small little idea i had. i think its lost to time now though lol maybe ill go look for it one day

20. Favourite fic you’ve written?

GOD, this is hard. i love everything ive written, but i really have to give it to build fighters shining. despite not being done yet, BFS is my brainchild, its my self indulgent baby, i have poured my heart into that fic and i love developing the world in it and the custom gunpla and everything. i fucking LOVE build fighters shining, it is so fun to write for lmao

[azzysecondary]

Alright Brain Rot Addendum Time for my Art post…… Behold my

✨Witch’s Heart D&D AU Ideas Dump!✨ (with spoilers)

I may have made a list of which class each character (for the humans, might decide some for the Demons later) would be….so let’s do this in order of in game introductions:

Claire: she would be a monk because of her skills of being very good at kicking and punching things!!….. however as she isn’t very big brain I think it would be funny if she only went to Level 2 in monk, and then took up barbarian because she is extremely strong. Also buff, no thoughts head empty Claire go burrrrr (´▽｀) (I haven’t decided on her Barb sub class, and if she ever didn continue monk probably sun soul)

Ashe: he is, out of the cast, the most likely to be a legitimate character straight out of D&D- he radiates Assassin Rouge energy! Like legitimately, I have a build already in the works for him (might post some day^w^!) his backstory literally is perfect rouge material, edgy, and having people close to him die! Absolutely Rouge~ (also he would have a high as frick constitution because man is he resilient-)

Wilardo: Druid. I know Druids don’t usually use metal……. But P L A N T!! He took up being a Druid awhile after picking the Dark Lilly, in hopes of being in tune with nature helping him find it someday. I mean that’s why I think he became a florist in game (besides it just being his time with gramps),maybe plant based gun to make it fit? Idk people get bored when they’re immortal;w; maybe shepherd circle? Idk this might be one subclass for home brewing-

Noel: MY BABY BOY!!! Wizard Bard for sure!! Wizard is obvious because of the whole “I’m not your prince, I’m your Magician” thing, but bard is where it gets interesting~ I see Noel as more of a support magician so bard is a perfect fit! Also he canonically is a really good singer, so imagine if he used some of that for bard- he’s definitely a school of illusion wizard because of how demon powers work (fantasy spaces and Dream manipulation are kinda like illusions), as for bard either collage of spirts (because demon), or lore because he’s into studying stars! I also think his spells would have an star motifs when he casts magic! I also think rather than a normal human…… he would be a shifter, except instead of wolf it’s uhhh…. Flesh monster-

Sirius: alright, he’s totally just a wizard. He’s a book nerd through and through and if I remember correctly he was kinda Dorthy’s apprentice while she was alive:3 (also because he looks up to her so much, he would want to be a wizard himself it’s just the perfect fit 030). As for subclass, definitely Abjuration because wards are his main attack in game. Also possibly order of scribes cause he’s a N E R D!

Alright….. that’s my Ted talk thanks for reading my brain rot if you made it this far….. maybe I’ll actually do something with all of these one day-

[notasimpleslater]

TBH i wasn't rlly on board with the idea that ethan and lily might have been having marriage problems that led to this until i considered that not even 5 years of marriage by itself is, in my opinion, not really long enough to facilitate the kind of issues that would lead to that. obvs cheaters gonna cheat and there's no real rhyme or reason to it but i feel like in a ton of relationships, esp. those i know personally, this kind of cheating (1)

meaning months-long affairs as opposed to a one-night stand kind of deal, usually happen in much longer, older relationships. again not making excuses and obviously that could just be the case here, but when i considered how much time they spent apart back when they were just dating before they were married, plus how this has all unfolded only 4.5 years into their marriage, it definitely seems incongruous with most other cheating mentalities and suggests that there were some other factors. (2) i guess what i'm saying is that i feel like these kinds of long-term affairs (where one partner involves their spouse and lover with one another, no less) seems more like an 'older' relationship kind of affair, if that makes sense? which was what made me think this came out of nowhere. but when i realized how much they must have been apart from one another, plus all of the moving (i'm really glad that other anon brought up how upset ethan seemed to be moving out on NY for lily's job, (3) thank kind of thing can DEFINITELY push a couple apart and create a ton of resentment) it makes a lot more sense to me and imho points to some pretty clear indicators that perhaps ethan was uncomfortable in the relationship prior to this cheating scandal. (4)

Yes, I see what you mean about how they haven't been married long enough to have issues that lead to a months-long affair, hence it seemingly coming out of nowhere. But like you said, it makes sense that they could have considering everything that's happened the last 3 years.

I'm scrolling through Ethan's ig right now as I'm typing this, and I'm noticing that he hasn't casually posted a pic of Lilly on his ig that wasn't an anniversary post since 2020 (he also mass deleted 200+ posts last month, so it's possible that I'm missing something. I'll need to consult the @ethanslaterupdates archives). So that one anon pointing out Ethan being upset about moving (and the fact that they moved many times) may be a big indicator on what the last 3 years of their relationship might have looked like.

[ratabethchase]

I posted 19,126 times in 2022

That's 4,359 more posts than 2021!

51 posts created (0%)

19,075 posts reblogged (100%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@existentialvoidofexistence

@jelly-pies

@ironghostie

@wouldthehill

@an-odd-idea

I tagged 461 of my posts in 2022

#ask - 10 posts

#asks - 9 posts

#slay - 3 posts

#&lt;3 - 3 posts

#percy jackson - 3 posts

#!!! - 2 posts

#i dont want him to think its not in a bro way and i dont even know how much physical contact we have even had but. like. yearning dude. - 2 posts

#nice - 2 posts

#the 1 by taylor swift - 2 posts

#i have three windows open at all times - 2 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#friendly reminder that space junk in orbit that is more than 10 cm in width (i think) can do incredible domino effect-like damage. and this

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

TAYLOR SWIFT WROTE MASTERMIND ABOUT ANNABETH CHASE

9 notes - Posted October 22, 2022

#4

JUST READ UR BIO WHEN WAS UR BIRTHDAY???????

OMG SLAY!! MY BIRTHDAY IS 6TH OF SEPTEMBER AND SINCE IM AUSTRALIAN THAT MEANS ITS 6/9 😎😎😎😎😎😎

9 notes - Posted October 20, 2022

#3

neurotypical friends do not understand

26 notes - Posted May 1, 2022

#2

woah woah woah! i might delete this a bit later cause i think im gonna work on it some more tomorrow but. still reeling over that fact i made this.

[ID: two similar glass cups of tea next to each other. the one on the left is a reference photograph for a painting on the left. the reference has a big leaf in the cup and a simple background whereas the left does not have either. the painting has two hearts above it, one brownish-pink and the other green.]

26 notes - Posted June 10, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

ten songs i love by different artists

omg thank you @existentialvoidofexistence for tagging me!! i was very close to reblogging your post just to be an asshole but you're lucky <3

Stand Tall from Julie and the Phantoms

I could listen to this song a million times and i would literally never stop going absolutely bonkers at it. I love it so so much dude i need to rewatch jatp

2. Hate Myself by dodie

just. such a good song. i struggled to pick a dodie song because i love all of them so much but this was the first to come to mind

3. Bad Reputation by Joan Jett

This is such a headbanger and i have been listening to it recently bc my band might do a cover of it which will be fun. i dont know if i can sing like joan jett though

4. That's Not My Name by The Ting Tings

i have no idea how i even found out about this song but it goes so hard .

5. Madison by Orla Gartland

madison is my proof to my irls that i listened to orla gartland before heartstopper because when i was writing my english creative piece i had it stuck in my head so i named the two characters madison and orla.

6. Waiting in the Wings from Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure

legit have not even seen this show. i just watched this animatic on youtube and i have been hooked on it ever since. it just makes me Feel Things.

7. Real Gone by Sheryl Crow

the song from cars. my brother has watched cars so much out loud that i have grown to love this song. my teacher also saw me listening to it once and got excited that i also liked sheryl crow

8. My Tennessee Mountain Home by Dolly Parton

omg showing off that broad music taste. country music gets so much slander and for what. i love this song so much.

9. 1985 by Bo Burnham

slaps.

10. Bright Lights Bigger City/Magic from Pitch Perfect

i am obsessed with pitch perfect. it is so misogynistic and so feminist at the same time.

honestly though. these are just the most recent songs ive listened to lol!

no pressure tags for some mutuals and some people i see in my notes quite often:

@yaznomarbles @woweejoeyrichter @wands-n-lillies @ironghostie @guyhusbands @franken-pigeon @hillerska-official @fluencca @an-odd-idea @wouldthehill @whyare-youlooking

@insanitysmiles @comradebacterium @auaddict @bluedragonbaby @coffeeflavoredtears525600 @cowboy-lesbian @darkarfs @murkat @brorphine @repetitive-tautology

jeez that was a lot more tags than i thought i would do but. yeah. do it or dont do it

34 notes - Posted June 27, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[engliterature-blog1]

“She was fearless and crazier than him. She was his queen, and God help anyone who dared to disrespect his queen.”

[placegrenette]

You Probably Should Not Be Getting Your Kazakhstan Information From Tumblr, But In Case You Are, Here's Your FAQ

Introductory note: as I write this it is ~10 am New York time (GMT -5) / ~9 pm Astana time (GMT +6) on Friday 7 January 2022. This post will go out of date very quickly but hopefully the links will still be useful.

What's been happening in Kazakhstan?

Protests began in the southwestern town of Zhanaozen on 2 January and quickly spread to a whole bunch of other cities. In Almaty, the largest city, protests were quickly accompanied by violence and looting, including destruction at city hall and the airport. In response, the current president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, has condemned the protests as the work of outside foreign agents and is using both internal security forces and forces provided by CSTO, a network of allied states spearheaded by Russia, to regain control and suppress dissent.

Wait. Are you Kazakh or Kazakhstani, or otherwise certified as an expert on Kazakhstan?

No.

So why should I be listening to you, anyway?

Excellent question! Let me suggest to you a bunch of alternatives. My two favorite English-language Kazakhstan news sources are Eurasianet and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (which is US-state-funded). The Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs just published a big roundup of background resources on Kazakhstan. And here is a (non-exhaustive) list of links to the Twitter feeds of actual experts:

Erica Marat

Diana T. Kudaibergenova

Assem Zhapisheva

Assel Tutumlu

Aigerim Toleukhanova

Paolo Sorbello

Nargis Kassenova

Joanna Lillis

Some of those tweets will not be in English, but on a lot of mobile devices now you can highlight text and Google or Apple will give you the option to translate. (Note that this works more easily, in my experience, with Russian than with Kazakh or Turkish.)

Thanks. But I already did some reading, and I saw some people saying that the CIA had a hand in this. Is that true? It does seem awfully convenient that problems would start in Kazakhstan just when Vladimir Putin seems to be gearing up to invade eastern Ukraine.

I don't think so. Again, I'm not an expert (though none of the experts I linked above seem to be taking the CIA idea seriously). But let me explain why I don't think so:

The initial kickoff for the protests was a doubling of gas prices. The doubling of gas prices, in turn, was caused by the Kazakhstani government's efforts to liberalize the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) industry, since a lack of investment has meant that the infrastructure is deteriorating and it's becoming more and more expensive to subsidize LPG, which is what a lot of Kazakhstanis use to gas up their cars. Those efforts started in January 2019, which means that if the CIA was behind this, they would have had to see three years into the future.

Even if the CIA was capable of that, which I doubt, they probably wouldn't have wanted to focus their efforts on Kazakhstan, which has arguably been the most stable of the former Soviet states in Central Asia. Not that there hasn't been discontent--there has been, over inequality, corruption, and more recently a tanking economy--but the Kazakhstani government has been historically pretty good at shutting down protests, jailing protestors, keeping speech decidedly unfree, and generally not allowing any popular movements to keep it from going its usual authoritarian ways. If you were a CIA agent looking to get ahead by destabilizing central Asia, Kyrgyzstan would be a better place to start.

And even if the CIA did plan for all that, the move seems to have backfired mightily, as Tokayev's calling for the CSTO to come in (the CSTO has never, in nearly thirty years of existence, actually sent in troops before) has resulted in Putin apparently being able to buy a lot of influence in Kazakhstan at a very cheap price, fewer than 4,000 troops total.

So either the CIA didn't do it, or the CIA is simultaneously all-seeing and very stupid. I'm going with the former as more likely.

Okay, so if the CIA isn't involved, how did the protests get so ugly and destabilizing so fast?

That's the big question that no one can answer yet. There's a lot of reports going around of peaceful protests, especially in Almaty, being suddenly swamped with groups of violent men who want to smash things, including stores, cars, and anyone trying to photograph or videotape them. Apparently a similar dynamic was observed in Ukraine in 2014, where the groups were dubbed titushky, and Krygyzstan in 2020. But there's just not enough information out yet to tell who's in this group of violent actors right now in Kazakhstan, and who might be funding them, and whether they're trying to discredit the protests or accelerate them or just taking the opportunity to wreak some havoc.

Why is it so hard to get information? Kazakhstan has Internet, doesn't it?

Normally, yes, but the country's been under a government-imposed countrywide Internet blackout since Wednesday. (NetBlocks is tracking the blackout.) This has meant, among other things, that a lot of Kazakhstanis can't buy food, since they're used to mobile payment systems, but now the stores are only taking cash, but the ATMs aren't working because the Internet is down. I've seen scattered reports that it's coming back in some places, but it will probably remain down in Almaty for a while.

So what's the state of things right now?

The short, short answer: not good.

The longer, more complicated answer: first understand is that Kazakhstan is huge, territorially speaking. It's got fewer people than New York state or Burkina Faso, but it's one of the largest countries in the world. Throw in the lack of Internet connection, and it's pretty easy to imagine that people in different parts of the country wouldn't be able to coordinate, and the protests would develop differently in different cities. (If you've listened to your Mike Duncan, you know that the French Revolution was a different experience if you were in Paris than if you were in, say, Grenoble, Lyon, or Toulon.)

So what's happening in Almaty is not necessarily what's happening everywhere in Kazakhstan. Almaty, from the little footage that's gotten out, looks like a war zone. But I've seen reports that in western cities such as Zhanaozen and Aktau, protests are continuing, relatively peacefully. There was footage circulating earlier in the week of police officers in Aqtobe seeming to ally with the protesters but I haven't seen more recent reports and that may not have held up. Astana, the capital, has been relatively quiet but under heavy guard.

But I want to emphasize: when you see headlines along the lines of "Protesters loot buildings in Kazakhstan," realize that's not the whole story: a lot of protesters are acting peacefully, and it's not even clear yet that the looters are actually protesters. (I've even seen one report, which I can't verify at all, that parts of Kazakhstan are actually much more peaceful than is being depicted by Russia media outlets.)

This is important, because President Tokayev is basically conflating the two, denouncing everyone as "terrorists," and has given orders to shoot protesters to kill on sight.

So this has not been a week for the advancement of freedom of expression and reform and ordinary people's lives getting better in Kazakhstan.

Sadly, no. And hopefully such a week will come, but I don't think it's coming any time soon.

Understood. Well, it's nice of you to have provided this explainer and all, but let's get down to brass tacks: how are your faves doing?

I don't know. (If you're seeing this as a reblog and have no idea who I am, bless you for having stuck with this whole post, and here are the guys I'm talking about.) I wish I knew. As best I've seen--and I'm not good at seeing, since I don't have an Instagram account--no one from Ninety One or Juz Entertainment has posted anything since the mess started. They're presumably all in Almaty and would thus be affected by the Internet blackout, and also I would also presume that communicating with international fans is not their highest priority right now. If information does emerge, Sara, who runs the @ninetyonekz Tumblr (also @bbcblackjack, and bbcbabyz on Twitter), will be a better source for it.

I know this is tacky: people in Kazakhstan are suffering and dying, and here I am worrying about a bunch of pop stars. But I've written before: the whole reason I started learning about Kazakhstan in the first place was because of a bunch of pop stars. I'm an American; I don't speak Russian or Kazakh, or have any relative or close friend who does; I don't have any ties to Kazakhstan, or a job that would require me to study the place; I like to think of myself as a curious person, but I'm not so open-minded that I thought to myself, hey, let's learn about Kazakhstan today. It took the prompt of some guys willing to sing and dance and be goofy and likeable, and then eager to talk about their country and some of its discontents, onscreen. And now, tacky as it might be, I care about those guys, and every time I see a report along the lines of dozens killed and more than 3,000 detained in Almaty, my heart seizes a bit. (It does not help that historically, death tolls from mass protests in Kazakhstan are usually undercounts.)

This all sounds fairly awful, and I feel helpless. Is there anything non-Kazakhstanis can do?

Not really, I don't think. The only suggestion I have at the moment is this GoFundMe fundraiser by a group led by Akbota Karibayeva, who I believe is from Kazakhstan but is in graduate school in the US at the moment, where the money will eventually be used to support NGOs once the banks re-open fully and Karibayeva's group figures out how to get money to NGOs without the government seizing it (or detaining everyone in the NGO on the grounds of it being foreign-funded). If you've got a few spare bucks and donating makes you feel better, it's worth a shot. Also if you're the praying type, pray that as many Kazakhstanis make it through this as unscathed as possible. I wish I had more to offer.

[abbatoirablaze]

Teller Morrow Tragedy, The Prequel, Chapter 9

Word Count: 2.5k

Warnings: fluff, dirty talk/mentions blowjob/sex.

Alicia's POV

"Hey," Gemma smiled as I walked into the office, "you've got some admirers there, sweetheart."

"What?"

She ran back into the clubhouse before appearing with not one, but 4 bouquets, 2 boxes of chocolate, and a teddy bear, "your father is very curious as to who sent everything, but I wouldn't let him open the cards. I’ll admit it though, I wanna know who sent everything, so spill, kiddo."

“I have no idea who sent everything, but I’m not against finding out!” I laughed as I pulled the first card from the pink and white roses. That was the biggest bouquet. When I opened the card I smiled, "I'm sure he knows who sent these."

"It's tradition," she laughed with a shrug. Gemma pulled me into a hug and gave me a kiss, "we always get you girls big bouquets, and a box of chocolate. But I’m talking about the other stuff! That other one looks almost as big as ours."

I rolled my eyes before looking at a large bouquet that was still wrapped in the film. I opened the card and sighed. "Please forgive me, Alicia. I'm not like my family. From David."

Gemma rolled her eyes, "that boy just won't take a hint, will he?"

I shrugged it off, and put that bouquet off to the side, before picking up the smaller bouquet of red roses. It had a smaller box of candy with it. I opened the card, and my eyes welled up.

"Well, who's that from?" Gemma asked, peering over my shoulder. She gasped and covered her mouth as we both saw that it was from Jax.

Ever since he and Tara argued about her getting attacked, he hadn't spoken to me, but he had also broken up with her. While he had put in a lot more effort with Mikayla, he hadn't said a word to me.

'I've been an ass. But I'm trying to make this right. You are an amazing mother to our daughter, and an equally amazing woman. Thank you for putting up with my bullshit. I'll always love you, Jax'

I felt the tears start to well up in my eyes as I looked back at Gemma, "did you put him up to this?"

She shook her head, "I had no idea he was doing that."

I smiled and held the roses for a second, before placing them with the other bouquets. That's when I saw the last one. It was a bouquet of orange lillies, baby's breath, and a single white rose in the center. The teddy bear came with that one, "who's this from? They have all my favorites?"

Gemma shrugged, "I don't know. Your father and I got you the first one. I thought you’d be able to tell me."

I opened the card that came with it,

'you are as vibrant as the orange lily, and as delicate as baby's breath. But you are more powerful than the rose, who's protected by the thorns.'

I blushed and Gemma grabbed the card, "looks like you have someone who really likes you!"

"Who is it from?"

"Doesn't say," she said, flipping the card over a few times, "You are as vibrant as the orange lily and as delicate as baby's breath. But you are more powerful than the rose who's protected by the thorns. I wish I can show you one day, just how much I would love to protect and cherish you. You are a gift from above. Your secret admirer."

I looked at the bear for any sign of a clue, but there was none. It didn't have anything significant on it, or another card, "I wonder who sent that."

"Could be Happy," Gemma said, offering up a suggestion, “you two have been awfully cozy lately…right?”

"He doesn't know what flowers I like," I sighed, secretly upset that it couldn't be him, “I don’t know who knows my favorite flowers…”

"Kozik?" she asked, "I know he's gotten you flowers before."

"Maybe," I admitted, "he does know what flowers I like. Is he in town?"

Gemma nodded, "yeah, a few guys from SAMTAC stopped by earlier in the week to do a run for the hospital. He could have ordered them and had em sent down if he was busy. I hear he’s quite the charmer.”

"Hmm," I said, finger to my lips, "I wonder what I could do though. I mean, what do girls get guys for Valentine's day?"

"blow jobs," Luann said, sitting down on the couch, “girls get their man a blowie for V-day. Or their pussy.”

"Where did you come from?"

"Could hear you guys from the garage. Otto is working on some bikes today, and I heard you guys talking about it. Guys love blowies, especially on Valentine's Day."

"I'm not going to advise my stepdaughter to give her secret admirer a blow job on Valentine's Day," Gemma laughed, “especially not since the guy is in the club. Clay would have his dick by the end of the day just to make sure it didn’t happen.”

I laughed, and Luann pulled me down to the couch right next to her, "it's simple. It's quick, and it doesn't cost anything. I'm telling ya, just get him that."

"I don't even know it's Kozik," I said with a laugh, “and I’m not going to walk around just giving all the guys in the club a blowjob. I’m not a croweater.”

"Whoever it is," Luann said, "he's a romantic. I heard Gemma and you reading that card. If Otto said some stuff like that to me, I'd be riding him in that garage right now."

"Well, if that's all it takes, get your ass back in here, I'll read that card all day," Otto yelled flirtatiously, “come on gorgeous. I dare ya!”

I began laughing and I felt my mouth drop, "oh my god. You guys are so gross."

"I second that," Gemma laughed, “If the two of you start going at it in the shop I’m charging you set rates, because lord knows half the guys would start filming it, you little porn star.”

“Hey, this ass sits in a director’s chair, Gemma,” she smiled happily as she blew Otto a kiss, “all thanks to my old man, and my ass paying plenty of dues.”

I grabbed the flowers, and headed out of the office, and through the clubhouse. I stopped when I got to the kitchen and inhaled the flowers. I smiled, thinking of who could have possibly sent them.

"Ya alright ther' lass?" a voice asked from behind me. I jumped and turned around to see Chibs with a big smile on his face, "what ya got there?"

"A secret admirer," I said with a smile. I bit my bottom lip, "he got me a teddy bear too. Wish I knew who it was from."

I turned back around and looked for a vase, "ya like tha fla'ers, do ya?"

I nodded, placing them into the vase, before filling it up with water, "I do. The card was so romantic, too. I'm gonna keep these on the desk all week so I can smile every time I start my shift here."

"The card?" He asked, "what did it say?"

"Oh," I smiled, thinking about it. I felt my face heating up. I saw him chuckle, "it told me that I was beautiful...and delicate...and strong, and that he wanted to protect and cherish me. I think this is really my favorite gift ever."

"Yeah?"

I nodded, "Come here. I want to show you the bear." He laughed, and I took his hand, leading him into the office. Gemma and Luann had made their way to the garage. I put the vase down with one hand, and grabbed the bear, holding it out. He laughed, "it needs a kutte or something."

I held it against myself and closed my eyes. That's when I noticed it smelled so good. Is that what he smells like?

"Ya alright therelass?"

I opened my eyes, and realized that I'd inhaled strongly against a bear, "I uh...I just noticed that it smells like a man...I was thinking maybe it smelled like him."

"Maybe," Chibs laughed, "so you think he put his cologne on it, so ya'd remember him? You got other gifts too, why not put those in water?"

I bit my lip, "I don't know...I guess I got so excited about this one I just forgot about the others."

Chibs POV

She came bounding into the clubhouse, with the flowers, and headed into the kitchen. I excused myself from the card game Bobby and Chico were having. I walked in and saw her back was to me. I heard her take a deep breath, holding the flowers up to herself.

"Ya alright ther' lass?" I asked from behind her. I watched as she damn near jumped out of her skin and turned around to see me. I couldn't help but grin, seeing that she was still holding the flowers I picked out, "what ya got there?"

"A secret admirer," she said with a smile. I watched as she bit her bottom lip, "he got me a teddy bear too. Wish I knew who it was from."

Before I could see her reaction, she had turned back around to look for something, "ya like tha fla'ers, do ya?"

She nodded, grabbing a vase and placing them into it, before filling it up with water, "I do. The card was so romantic, too. I'm gonna keep these on the desk all week so I can smile every time I start my shift here."

"The card?" I asked, pretending not to know anything, "what did it say?"

"Oh," she smiled, thinking about it. She had this dreamy look on her face, and she began to blush. I chuckled, watching her go from this confident woman to someone so giddy over the flowers, "it told me that I was beautiful...and delicate...and strong, and that he wanted to protect and cherish me. I think this is really my favorite gift ever."

I felt my heart soar at her admission, "Yeah?"

She nodded, "Come here. I want to show you the bear."

I laughed, and she took my hand, leading me back into the office. I felt a spark when she grabbed my hand, and I wanted nothing more than to drop my charade and tell her that I was that secret admirer. She put the vase down with one hand, and grabbed the bear, holding it out.

I smiled and laughed, "it needs a kutte or something."

She held it against herself and closed her eyes. I saw her body relax ever so slightly and some goosebumps rise on her skin. She must have smelled the cologne I sprayed on it.

"Ya alright there lass?"

She opened my eyes, and I saw her get red again, "I uh...I just noticed that it smells like a man...I was thinking maybe it smelled like him."

"Maybe," I laughed, playing along, "so you think he put his cologne on it, so ya'd remember him? You got other gifts too, why not put those in water?"

She bit my lip, "I don't know...I guess I got so excited about this one I just forgot about the others."

I smiled and Gemma and Luann walked in, "oh hey Chibs, you see the gifts this girl is getting? She’s breaking some major hearts now that she’s hitting that legal age."

I laughed, "bet she's a real 'eartbreaker."

"It runs in the family," Gemma laughed. I grinned ear to ear and kissed her and Luann on the cheek, “all Tellers and Morrows break hearts.”

"Well 'appy Valentine's Day to ya ladies," I said, sitting on the office couch. I crossed a leg over the other, "any plans?"

Both women shook their heads and I looked over to Alicia," and you?"

She shook her head and laughed, "no. I'm going to go home and soak in the tub after the shop closes. Jax said he'd take care of Mikey tonight so I'm just going to unwind."

I nodded, trying not to think about the image of Alicia in a bubble bath. What I wouldn't give to be in that bath with her.

A customer came in, gave me a dirty look, then began to ask about her car. Alicia said that she'd get the paperwork from the garage. A few moments later she came back, and then grabbed the customer's keys. She followed Alicia out to the car at the end of the lot.

I found myself turning to watch her walk out of the office. The way her hips swayed. I had to turn away to stop myself from drooling.

Gemma hit my shoe, "I know it's from you."

"I don’t know what you’re talking about, Gemma,” Isaid with a shake of my head, "must 'ave me confused with someone else."

"Bullshit," she laughed, "I know you've got it bad for her. I saw how you've been looking at her lately."

"I'm not doing a thing," I said simply with a shrug, "other than givin a beautiful woman flowers."

"Alright Chibsy," Gemma laughed, raising a brow, "she is 18 though. And she is single."

"Clay'd have my hide," I laughed, “and you know it.”

Gemma shrugged, "never know. He seemed to like the idea of Happy being her old man…and you know he’s got a soft spot for you.”

I rolled my eyes and got up from the couch, "I uh, gotta go back to my card game."

"I'm sure you do," Gemma smiled. She let me pass her and I headed back into the clubhouse. I smiled, thinking about what she said. None of those other gifts had mattered...but the one's I'd given her had made her light up.

"You okay there Chibs?"

I nodded, "of course,"

Tig laughed, "lookin like you are in love or some bullshit."

"Naw," I laughed, “Just out in the office. Girls were showing me just how many things Allie cat got from admirers.”

"No, really," Tig said, ignoring the man’s prior statement, "you got that lovesick look on your face. Or maybe you are just sick. I felt that way the other day when I had something in the fridge. Did you eat out of the container that said Bobby on it too?"

"You are loony."

He waved me off and went over to the card table. I had one of the sweet butts pour me a glass of whiskey, and I sat there thinking about Alicia.

I couldn't tell her that I was the admirer. No. I shouldn't have even sent it to begin with. I'd fought off the urge to send it last year. Why hadn't I been able to stop myself from sending it this year?

'ya like her, dumbass.'

I rolled my eyes at my inner self and looked down at the glass. You can't fall in love. You can't go for someone, least of all Clays' daughter. I sighed to myself and downed the last of what was in my glass before having the girl pour me another one.

'fuck. ya already have feelings fer tha girl.'

"Fuck," I muttered to myself. I looked down the hall and could see into the office where she was smiling, playing with the flowers and look at the card, "she's gon be the death of ya."

Chapter 10