#budding questions deserve blooming answers ~ [ answered asks ]

[two-sides-halved]

Father son bonding time go!

[poisonsage808]

oh good flight!

may I ask anything for Pod (my softie boi) with fake dating? like I don't want to give too much guidelines, because I think that all your ideas are FANTASTIC, but maybe either him saving reader from a weirdo or being the one to pretend to be your date, after having been stood up! (those are just ideas, I am fine with anything that you come up with!)

hope it's alright and have a lovely day!

♡ As You Are ♡

Podrick Payne x F!Reader

a/n: as we talked about this isn’t exactly what you asked for, im so sorry about that and i hope you like what i came up with <3 thank you for your constant support, friend

“King Cunt thinks himself a hero,” Ser Bronn says all too nonchalantly as he scours over the lavishly decorated room.

A ball in the midst of a war. Celebrating a minor victory that Joffrey hid through just about the entire time. Only a delusional king would do something so foolish.

“He’s making a point.” Lord Tyrion raises a brow then his own cup to his lips, “He won. Stannis lost.”

“That's what I said. He didn’t do shit though.”

The two talked bitterly amongst themselves, more so the shorter man than the sellsword. While Bronn was no longer Commander of the City Watch, he was knighted after the battle and still reaped just as many benefits as before. Tyrion was stripped of his title as Hand and demoted to Master of Coin, further souring his taste for this event, and as a slap to the face he was moved into a closet that served pitifully as his new chambers.

However nothing changed much for Podrick Payne.

He killed a man to save his Lord but felt it was justified, there was no horror in what he’d done to keep him up late at night. He received no knighthood and likely he never would, Tyrion wasn’t a knight and couldn’t perform that for him. Still, the youngest Lannister attempted to repay the debt of his life with… many beautiful women. He may not be a Ser but the title Pod the Rod was earned shortly after that day.

Vines fell from the ceiling and wrapped around pillars, pretty white flowers blooming or budding in various spots. An absurdly high mountain of food spread across the longest table Pod’s ever seen. (Was it not just days ago the city was famished? Not that the people of the Red Keep should care, the reach of its effect stopped with the bread riot.) At the desert end of the table was arguably one of the prettiest things of this whole dumb ball.

Truth be told, Pod didn’t feel he deserved the moniker that, depending on who called him that, made his ears flush pink or his eyes roll. All he did was ask the ladies questions. What would make a woman happy? What do women like? How can he please one, really please them? They didn’t charge him for answers. They cooed and fawned over him for- what he always assumed was- doing the bare minimum.

The reason for his seemingly endless string of questions ended right over there, biting into a round finger cake that was sprinkled with blueberries. The object of his desires ever since he came into Lord Tyrion’s service. Pod had invited you to take a walk with him in the gardens that first day, it shocked him that he asked and stopped his heart when you agreed! However wars prove to take up most people’s time unfortunately and he was no exception. But gods above, you were as sweet as dessert, pretty as the dainty ruby necklace and once he was a knight, Podrick would surely be worthy of your affections.

Your gown matched the crimson red of his leather. Everyone was wearing red if they could help it per King Joffrey’s demand. Yet you stood out so effortlessly.

“Hungry, Pod?” Tyrion looks into his cup with a smirk.

His eyes go wide and the tips of his ears red like the rest of the room.

“Podrick would you mind fetching me something sweet? Perhaps with cherries?”

“Yes, m’lord.”

Bronn snorts, “Get yourself a slice of pie while you’re at it, boy.”

He threw the sellsword a vicious glareHow convenient you just happened to be standing there. From above Tyrion pats himself on the back.

“E-Excuse me, m’lady.”

Your lips pull into a soft smile when you hear that voice.

You’ve had plenty of short conversations with Podrick Payne and plenty more longing looks from a distance. He was kind, offering to carry things for you then rushing dutifully back to Lord Tyrion. You’re not sure you’ve seen him doing genuine work of a squire but you do see him putting the fullest extent of his efforts into what he does.

“Hello Podrick,” You smiled, setting your plate down.

For a second he just stares at you with a dopey grin, “Hello.” Then his eyes go wide and he bows suddenly, like he remembers it’s what he should’ve done in the first place. You laugh, politely covering your mouth with your hand but it does little. Podrick doesn’t mind either way. He likes that sound, he likes making you laugh and seeing the way your eyes crinkle in delight when you do.

“Your duties are never done, it seems.” You say teasingly as he grabs a plate and stacks cherry tarts on it.

“I don’t mind being-being kept busy, ‘specially now,” Pod exhales nervously, still grinning, “Lord Tyrion doesn’t have much work for me to do since, y’know, he’s not Hand anymore.” He quickly adds, “M-M’lady.”

With his eyes on the table, the young man doesn’t see the way your lips go from a pout to a sly smile. You dare to take a step closer, turning as if also scanning the display of desserts to make it look less obvious to any wandering eyes. Your shoulder barely brushed against his and yet Pod’s breath caught in his throat.

“Well,” Your voice hushes, innocently enough but it sends the hairs of his neck on end, “If you ever find time, I’d love for you to take me on that walk you promised me.”

You remembered that? Pod blinked away his disbelief by the time you stood face to face, still a respectable distance apart. You raised your eyebrows a bit, lips tugging into a smile. Crap, he didn’t answer! Before he can say anything, Podrick’s view is suddenly cut into blocked as if he wasn’t there in the first place. It was an older man from the Westerlands who wears the Lannister armor of crimson and gold to fit the theme of tonight’s celebration.

“We keep bumping into each other, my lady.” He says.

Your smile loses its genuine happiness instantly, pressing to a polite one. You’ve been avoiding this particular knight for a good portion of the evening. He’s asked you for a dance twice already and both times you found an excuse to slip away without accepting or embarrassing him.

“Yes, well, the room is quite small with so many people inside. I’m grateful I’ve avoided any casualties thus far.”

He laughs a little too loudly at your jest, gaining eyes from different directions. You and Pod both obviously lean around the armored body to try and see the other.

“I shall personally see you make it through the affair unscathed,” Ser steps to the side you leaned towards, blocking your view again and smiles while you try not to frown, “Do you have time for a dance just yet?”

“I’m actually in the middle of talking to—“ You again lean around when the knight's hands find your waist and elbow, “Hey!”

“Nonsense, we’re practically in step already.” He tried to give a harsh tug towards the dance floor, his smile curling to a snarl.

“‘S’cuse me, Ser.”

Both you and the soldier whip your head to see Pod hadn’t left. Your relief is palpable but brief as the man holding you doesn’t relent. Podrick’s face was harsh for a change, eyes cold and staring right at the knight.

“M’lady and I weren’t finished with our conversation.”

“My lady, not m’lady,” The man scoffs out a bitter laugh, “Gods, you’ll make a sorry excuse for a knight. And you,” His attention is back on you with far less enthusiasm, “You’d rather be fondled by a squire than dance with me?”

You’re released the moment a claps the older man’s shoulder and yanks him back so hard that, with his heavy armor, you hoped thought he might topple over. Your hand flies to your mouth to stifle the mix of a gasp and laughter that threatens to spill. Your eyes meet Podrick’s but he’s just as surprised as you, like he can’t believe he’d done that.

And worse, more eyes than ever are on you at the scene that was made.

Just as the old knight fumbles to get to his feet, a new voice cuts in quickly, “Lad, why don’t you take your lady friend for a dance. I’ll keep ‘im occupied for you.”

Podrick can’t bring himself to move an inch, not until your hand finds his arm and you gently tug him to the outskirts of the party. It’s there that you two can all but run from King Cunt and his terrible flock of gossips guests.

You brought Pod to the beach, secluded and quiet aside from the crashing waves against the rocky shore. He looked down at his hand and started laughing, then you did too. He was still holding onto the plate of cherry tarts! He took the liberty of offering you the first before taking one for himself, looking away as he calmed his chuckles.

Gods that fucking smile of his was as contagious as greyscale and all the more inviting to catch.

“By the way,” You said after biting into the dessert, “I think you’ll make a great knight.”

“Yeah?” Pod asks all too hopefully. It broke your heart to hear him ask that way, like no one else had ever told him so.

Your reply is earnest, “Of course.” Then it’s not, “Pod The Rod just doesn’t have the same ring as Ser Podrick Payne, does it?”

“Oh gods!” Pod groaned, his cheeks blushing terribly red even under the moonlight, “You heard about that too?”

You didn’t even try to hide your giggles this time, “Only the people living under rocks haven’t heard that! Let’s hope the tale doesn’t make it into any future songs they’ll sing of you.”

“You-You think they’ll sing songs of.. of me?”

You smile brightly, “If they don’t, I’ll compose them myself.”

“Oh,” Pod blinks away his surprised expression, “You’d d-do that?”

“You’ll have my favor at tourneys, too.” You say softly but firmly enough to make his eyes jump from the rocks to meet yours, “If you ever compete, that is.”

“R-Really?”

“Yes, really! Podrick, I fancy you quite a bit and have for quite a while. I would be yours as a knight,” Your hand finds his in the radiant glow of the moon, “Or as you are right now. As long as you’re Podrick Payne, I would like to be yours. Does that sound alright?”

Does it!? Pod holds your hand tighter and lets out a breath of a laugh. Partly in disbelief but mostly in relief. He looks down where he’s interlocked your fingers with his and smiles so big his cheeks hurt. He’s blushing, he knows it but he doesn’t care.

“That sounds... perfect, m’lady.”

In that moment Podrick Payne doesn’t think he could be anymore blessed or lucky or whatever he should call this feeling! He makes a vow that even if he never gets the proper title of a knight, if no one else but you calls him Ser he’ll be satisfied with that. He’ll be strong with a sword to protect you, he’ll be gallant and honorable to do right by you and be a knight in every conceivable way but name.

He feels your lips quickly press against his already rosy cheeks and he thinks he died and went to one of the seven heavens awaiting him.

“Don’t faint on me now, Payne!” You laugh and tug on his hand, “You still owe me that walk.”

[two-sides-halved-comic]

Master Tag Post

ooc answers artwork backstories comic edits characters

[crazyunsexycool]

Here is a list of future series that I will be posting. Some of them I have already started writing or outlining for. My asks are open so if you want to know more about these stories or want drabbles please feel free I would love to answer questions!!

Stucky:

Blooming (working title might change it) 

Stucky x Villain!Reader, soulmate AU

Your mission was simple, infiltrate the Avengers and inform your handler of any useful information. This would be your most important mission to date and the longest. You had to start from the academy and work your way up. The last thing you expected was for your soulmates to be none other than Captain Steve Rogers and Sergeant Bucky Barnes. But the marks on your rib cage that resembled flower buds, one for each soulmate, came to life. That was all it took for them to want to get to know you better and you saw it as your opportunity to complete your tasks. As you got to know more about Steve and Bucky the more you started to question your mission. Will you give in to the unbreakable bond with your soulmates or will you betray them for the sake of your mission?

Undercover

Detective!Stucky x Informant Reader AU

Your life has never really been easy but the past few months take the cake. You were a dancer at a club just to keep a roof over your head, it was never your intention to get involved with the darker dealings of the club owner. But witnessing a double homicide pulls you into a world of deceit, drugs and murder. While you had initially reported what you saw to the cops they decided to use your position to gather as much information to finally put an end to the Red Skulls. Detective Rogers and his partner Detective Barnes assured you they would keep you safe. With your life on the line every day the case was open and the undeniable attraction you felt for both detectives would you be able to escape unscathed or would the leader of the Red Skulls use you as an example for being a rat?

Sam/Bucky

Siren’s Call

Hunter!Sam/Bucky x Siren!Reader AU

Sam and Bucky have known each other their whole lives and have been partners both in work and romantically for years. In a world full of creatures they were the most feared and respected hunters. Most of the time going after monsters that didn’t respect the rules set by the council of both creatures and humans. If they weren’t busy hunting they were taking contracts and they had no idea that the last contract they took would change their lives forever. You had lived all of your life at sea, your mother’s voice was in your head repeating the warning to stay away from the human world. But it was too late, now you would see first hand the evil you were warned against. Your song had no effect on the men that had taken you and you found yourself imprisoned. Just as you had given up hope you felt it. The calling of your true mates, they were close and you knew that if you could only talk to them you could convince them to save you. Once Bucky and Sam realize the truth their only objective is to keep you safe but the man that hired them will stop at nothing to own one of the most elusive and priceless creatures to ever roam the earth.

Steve Rogers & Ransom Drysdale:

Alpha, past and present

Alpha!Steve Rogers x Omega!Reader x Alpha!Ransom Drysdale:

Steve Rogers was your alpha and you were his omega. It was an undeniable truth. Your parents were against it, saying that a weak alpha like him wouldn’t be able to provide and protect you like you deserved and that if you had any pups they would be just as sickly. When Steve told you that he was accepted into the army you felt like your world was ending. But you would follow him to the ends of the earth, so you used your nursing degree and followed him into the battlefield. Somehow in the fight to end Hydra you ended up in the 21st Century with Steve. It’s at one of Tony’s Stark’s infamous parties that you meet the cocky alpha Ransom Drysdale. Slowly and surely you begin to learn about the freedoms an omega has. Your only question is could you have both your alpha from the past and an alpha from the present? 

Andy Barber & Ari Levinson:

Scent of an Omega

Mob Boss Alpha!Andy Barber x Plus size Omega!Reader x Mob Boss Alpha!Ari Levinson

From the moment you presented your parents, especially your mother, always reminded you that no alpha would want a plus sized omega. Although hearing those things from your parents hurt you didn’t let them affect you. You had shown them that true alpha’s didn’t care about your size, you were still desirable. It was your confidence that grabbed the attention of the most feared men in Boston and it was your sweet and delicate scent that drove them wild. Although Andy and Ari knew each other for a while and even had done business together, they were willing to end everything in order to be the one to claim you. The decision was up to you, the only problem was that you couldn’t choose.

Steve Rogers:

What happens in Vegas

Steve Rogers x Reader 

What was supposed to be a bachelorette party weekend for your best friend in Vegas gave way to more problems. The first being waking up in bed with a stranger, until you realized that said stranger was none other than America’s golden boy Steve Rogers. As if having to do the walk of shame wasn’t enough you were faced with an incredible mistake, you were now Mrs. Rogers. If the matching rings on your fingers weren’t enough the marriage certificate sealed the deal. What started out as a one night stand and a mistake became so much more. Steve’s PR team wanted to keep the marriage going for some time, the strained relationship with your friends was at its breaking point and family secrets were soon to be revealed. With your world falling apart you could only hope that Steve took the vows for better, for worse seriously.

Unknown 

Steve Rogers x Shield Agent!Reader

When Steve woke up from the Ice in a new world he felt alone and lost but you gave him a life line. You had been assigned to help him adjust and from there a friendship form, one that led to something more. The Avengers were formed and you fought alongside him but soon your relationship started to crumble and before you knew it you went your separate ways. Until you found Bucky in a cryo chamber and you knew Steve needed to know. That would be the last time he would see you. Steve regretted the break up as soon as it happened but he would come to hate it more the next time he would see you. In the middle of a city in Europe with no memory of who you were and no recollection of the time you spent together. Would he be able to remind you of everything or would it all remain unknown?

Guarded 

King Steve x Guard Reader

The marriage was political as most royal marriages were. Your job was simple, keep Princess Natasha safe. In a world where most guards were men you had been chosen at a young age. You had been taken from your family and trained by the best knights in your kingdom. While most people only saw you as a lady in waiting, you had the skills to ward off any kind of attack that would hurt the princess, unfortunately that would leave you vulnerable. When the day finally came you met her future husband, the kind and noble king Steven and the moment your eyes met you knew you were in trouble. Steve had felt it too, before that moment he had been willing to marry a woman he hardly knew if it meant the safety of his people and an alliance that would strengthen his kingdom. Now with you in his life, Steve was willing to give up his crown if it meant he could hold you close. But he knew better than to give into his desires especially as his enemies were preparing to strike. You would have to make a choice, give into him completely or guard your heart the same way you guard the Princess.

Bucky Barnes:

Ex Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes x Winter Soldier!Reader

Bucky had be saved by Steve, after years of missions and torture he was free. But Bucky still felt guilty for walking away. Not because he enjoyed the things they made him do but because he left you behind. You were in the same situation he was. He didn't even know your name or how you ended up in the hand of Hydra but you had been the only good in his life for years. Hydra wasn't known for their kindness even letting you and Bucky be together was a way for them to control you. Now without Bucky you suffered the consequences until you couldn't remember him anymore. In his new found freedom Bucky hadn't asked for much until he was face to face with you on a mission. He knew he had to save you even if you refused to be with him ever again. How could he not save the love of his life.

Tony Stark:

Scars

Tony Stark x Reader soulmate AU

Soulmates were determined through scars, if you were hurt it would appear on your soulmate’s skin as a birthmark. Imagine your surprise when you received a birthmark in the middle of your chest, there was no way your soulmate could have survived whatever gave them that injury so you thought they had passed. It wasn’t until the press conference in which Tony Stark revealed he was Ironman that you realized that he was your soulmate. Of course it was your luck that your soulmate was someone unattainable, until your friend interferes and you find yourself working side by side with the man himself. But it wouldn’t be as easy as meeting him and falling in love, he was in a relationship and so many people had tried to convince him they were his mate that it put him off of the idea. All you could do was sit by and watch him fall in love with someone else.

Thor Odinson

A love for the ages

Thor Odinson x Reader soulmate AU

It was a love for the ages. One that outlived the people that saw it transpire. Lovers destined for each other bound together by fate, separated by a curse. Thor Odinson was an immortal who had given up on finding his soulmate, something that he found liberating allowing him to travel anywhere he wished seeking glory. You had been an unwilling time traveler, the only one of your kind. At first it was difficult, you had no one but slowly you began to make friends in different time periods. It was bittersweet to see them at different times in their lives as they found their soulmates and were able to live their lives freely while you couldn’t even control when or where you traveled too. So you had given up on finding your soulmate, what kind of life could you have if you couldn’t control how long you stayed somewhere? The last thing either of you expected was to find your soulmate in the middle of a battlefield but there you were. After so much time apart, finally being tethered to your soulmate came with the feeling of being home. Too bad you would absolutely hate each other.

Sam Wilson

Dragon Rider (working title)

King!Sam Wilson x Dragon Rider!Reader AU

There had been peace in all the realms for a few years. But there had been a price to pay for peace. For you it was the loss of your father, the last dragon rider and his dragon. Or so everyone thought. Before he died he taught you everything he knew and left you with the last dragon egg, which would hatch when the rider was ready. Now with the threat of a new war and whispers of a dragon rider you had to leave your home to find safety in another village. That’s how you found yourself in the kingdom of Sam Wilson, The Falcon King. It didn’t take long for the King’s men to find you and bring you to the king. What you never expected was for him to be welcoming and promise protection without even asking why you were running. When the threat of war becomes a reality you and Sam will have to put any feelings you might have for each other in order to protect the kingdom. 

Ransom Drysdale:

Lights, Camera, Action

Actor!Ransom Drysdale x Plus Size Actress!Reader

This was your big break, to be cast in a leading role that had nothing to do with being plus sized. You wanted to show everyone that any actor of any body type could play a role other than the designated fat friend. Although you were a series regular on a show this movie would be the role that would put you on the map and you were more than ready to act your ass off. Ransom Drysdale was Hollywood’s golden boy, but much was left to be desired when it came to his attitude on set. So when you find out the leading man had been recast and Ransom took the role you had to prepare yourself in order to work alongside him. However you were caught off guard when he began to treat you and only you differently. As you begin to get closer and a relationship starts to form he lets you see who he really is. But this is Hollywood and the only happy endings that exist are in movies, or are they?  Between filming, falling in love and rumors of cheating Ransom will have to prove that he isn’t the person everyone says he is and you will have to decide what you believe.

Someone You Loved

Ransom Drysdale x Plus Sized!Reader

As hard as it is to believe now Ransom Drysdale wasn’t always an asshole, at least that’s what he called himself. You had been in college when you first met and you were smitten. It should have never worked, you were from different social circles, your families from different economic backgrounds, he was the most eligible bachelor on campus and you were, well you. You didn’t know who was worse: the men that asked you out as a joke saying they could never date a fattie or the women that talked behind your back and criticized everything about you. Then Ransom noticed you and nothing else mattered. Not his family or yours. He would be your first and only love until he broke your heart. You wouldn’t see him for a few years until you move back to Boston and you come face to face with the trustfund prick. Ransom knew he fucked up the best thing he’d ever had the minute he saw the tears in your eyes, and having you back in his life gave him hope for a second chance. You just won’t make it easy for him.

Unwritten

Ransom Drysdale x Single mom!Reader

You were running from your abusive ex and with your money running low you couldn’t be more thankful to land a job as a personal assistant at a publishing company. That was all you needed to keep you and your daughter safe and away from your ex. Ransom Drysdale was on thin ice with HR and his grandfather for sleeping with every single one of his personal assistants. This was his last chance to prove he could do the work and not think with his dick. The moment you stepped into his office he knew he had to have you but you had other priorities. He was demanding and irritating and you made sure to put him in his place if necessary. Once Ransom realized you weren’t going anywhere he decided to change tactics which caused you to introduce him to your daughter. She was crazy about Ransom and sure enough he was crazy about her. Your life however, couldn’t be this easy and soon enough your ex finds you. He doesn’t count on the fact that you aren’t alone anymore and that Ransom will fight tooth and nail to make sure his girls are safe.

[blisschi]

Hi, can i request a zhongli x male reader angst to fluff hanahaki au where male reader was a God a long time ago who died to hanahaki because of zhongli and guizhong, but male reader is resurrected as a mortal and zhongli sees them again

Hey! I'm not completely sure if that is what you meant nonnie, but this idea was stuck in my head for a while now and I just had to write it! It's certainly not one of my best pieces but.. I hope you like it.. 💕

🌸In another life🌸

Pairing: Zhongli x Hanahaki! M! Reader

Warnings: Major Character Death, Angst to Fluff..? I think.. It's really bittersweet.

Notes: u_u ... I can't english

Zhongli turned his head towards the storyteller, who clearly caught his attention with the words that just left his mouth. Although for most people it was unknown, forgotten, Zhongli never forgot a single event in the story he started.

"Once upon a time, there was a young god who loved every creature in Tayvat."

He lowered the cup that he was holding, focusing his attention on the words of the story.

They always started out the same.

"The god that loved every creature in Tayvat, the same god that would offer everything to everyone by his love, lost life."

They always ended the same way.

Zhongli closed his eyes and took a deep breath, remembering the moment he met the young man with a smile on his face.

The man told him that he was visiting Liyue out of sheer curiosity, and that he was coming back to it out of curiosity as well.

"Do you think I could be any kind of a threat to you?" You laughed softly, turning your head towards your friend. Although you were a weak god and you were far from strong, somehow the Geo Archon decided to devote a moment of his attention to you. The moment that sprouted into feeling.

Morax smiled slightly and walked closer to you, gazing out at the sea of ​​clouds.

"Things that are dangerous, not often have to look like a threat."

Just like love.

Love can be beautiful, but won't it turn into poison in the blink of an eye as soon as you lose control of it?

Like flowers, can delight with their amazing charm, when their roots must dig into the very center of the heart, almost breaking it.

"He taught him to understand."

"The young god introduced himself by the name [Y / N]. He befriended Rex Lapis, despite different views and observations." The storyteller continued.

Zhongli looked down at his cup, half full of tea. His mind was full of the thoughts he always chose to leave to himself. He thought that from the mortals, he probably would never hear this name again.

Morax sighed softly, smiling as you pulled his hand along the fields of flowers. He never really understood why you loved them so much, but he could accept that the time you spent with them made you feel relaxed.

"You have some really beautiful plants here, you know?" You laughed as you let go of his hand and ran to one of the trees, immediately sitting under it. The other male calmly approached you and watched as one of the butterflies sat on your finger.

Maybe it was your charm that all creatures loved so much? Until then, he was unable to answer this question. Why did he choose to protect you? Is it because he really thought you were a dear friend to him? Maybe it was because you seemed so vulnerable and weak, just making him feel pity.

You lifted your hand up, showing the creature to your friend. It's wings were golden that gleamed like the light of the setting sun.

"It's so small. but it was not afraid to sit on my finger.. just like I was not afraid to make contact with you, Morax." Glistening pupils looked at you now, taking their attention away from the butterfly. "If you wanted to, I would have been lying underground a long time ago. If you only thought that I was a threat.. ha.."

You laughed softly as you watched the butterfly fly away from your sight.

"You wouldn't hesitate to attack me, would you?"

"He taught him to look up to the future."

Sometimes being weak has its advantages. Not everyone sees you as their enemy, the stronger will usually ignore you, or offer help caused by feelings of pity. Pity over your existence and weakness.

Where do you see this land in a few hundred years, Morax? It was one of your first questions to him that he had to think seriously about. Of course, he cared about Liyue, but admittedly he never thought about what everything would look like in the future.

Will he still dominate these beautiful landscapes? Will he still be able to be called their Archon?

"He taught him to take care."

Zhongli smiled, closing his eyes. He would never have thought it would end this way. True, his life was not over, but the divine era certainly came to an end. People, although weak - will cope.

A soft laugh broke the silence in the room as you ran one hand through the god's hair. This was one of those days where you spent time together, without any worries. You gently braided Morax's hair, smiling to yourself.

"Maybe you should wear this hairstyle more often?" You asked, gently tangling some pieces of flowers into his hair. He just closed his eyes and relaxed in the feeling of your touch. Your hands always seemed extremely delicate. "No? The great god who rules over all Liyue doesn't have time to spend a few minutes making a hairstyle?"

"I didn't say anything." The man sighed and turned to face you. "Why should I worry about a trivial thing like my hair?"

You raised your eyebrows and tilted your head slightly, apparently surprised by his answer.

"Isn't it nicer to look at Liyue when everything is in its place?" You asked, getting up from the ground and placing both of your hands on his shoulders. "If you take care of every smallest element.. eventually these elements will fit together and create perfection.. No matter if it is the perfect weapon.. power.. or hairstyle.."

You were happy watching your friend become attached to more people. At first you enjoyed it, you thought you helped him open up to the world. On your journey together, you met a large number of amazing beings, but suddenly one goddess appeared that seemed to take the person dearest to you away.

"The young god taught him feelings that Rex Lapis did not understand before. He helped him open up to new things, to new people."

Zhongli gritted his teeth as he remembered the rest of the story. Even though you taught him so much, he still understood so little back then.

"[Y / N] had feelings for Morax stronger than to any other being. But it was not his will that made the love strong." The storyteller continued, drawing the attention of more people. "For one-sided love is the strongest. For one-sided love hurts the most."

Goddess of dust, beautiful and gentle, good-hearted and wise. She was a weak god, just like you, maybe that was why Morax had paid more attention to her back then? Maybe he forgot that in fact your strenght was nothing, but his presence near you. He spent every free moment with the goddess. You dreamt that he could give you more attention, but apparently it was not given to you.

You taught him so much and all he offered you was jealousy. Jealousy was eating you from the inside as you saw the goddess slowly pull Morax towards her. It hurt your heart when you had the opportunity to meet a man less and less. But you yourself didn't have the heart to stop it all, because you knew that this goddess meant well for him.

You understood that it was easy to fall in love with someone like him.

"The years passed, the gods drifted apart. The young god was helping Rex Lapis to understand the newer and newer feelings that the goddess had helped him to experience this time."

You understood that you are not the only one who deserves this feeling to be returned.

Zhongli shook his head and opened his eyes, staring at his reflection in the already cold tea. If he knew you thought so.. If he knew he was slowly breaking your heart while spending time with the goddess, it would have all ended differently.

Anyway, it never came out of his mouth that they were 'just friends', it never came out of his mouth that they were something more..

Zhongli clenched his fist, remembering your last moments with him. He remembered your tears, your painful, but smiling face.

"Over time, his feelings did not diminish, but bloomed like the flower buds that he admired so much on his first visit to Liyue. The feeling became unbearable, breaking his heart, hurting him, making him even weaker. The young god then wanted the feeling of love to become something alien to him. "

He remembered you asking him to tell you one of the old stories that he once told you at the beginning of your friendship.

"Why do you suddenly want to hear it? I must say, it's not one of the most interesting ones.."

You laughed quietly, but apart from the laughter, a choked cough escaped your mouth, which you tried to hide with all your might.

"It just.. this story really brings me good memories.. remember? You told it to me when we were sitting under the same tree.. years ago.."

Morax closed his eyes and leaned against the tree, staring up at the sky.

"Well then.."

Zhongli stared at his hands placed on the table in front of him. If he himself lost his life, would he be able to meet you again?

"It was their last meeting. The young god left after him nothing but flowers, which slowly choked him from the inside. Rex Lapis never lost the abilities he had received from his friend. Rex Lapis never forgot, he carried his feelings to the end. One can only hope that after the death of the God of Geo, the two met again."

"Master Zhongli, right?" A soft voice snapped him out of his thoughts, making him look up at the person that called his name. "Can I sit here?"

A joyful smile on the face of a stranger, unusually similar to the smile of a young god who left this world many years ago. The same gaze, that looked at his face with love and affection.

Zhongli nodded slightly, not taking his eyes away from the face of the newly met person.

"I see you here a lot, so I figured I'd introduce myself!" The male laughed, painting a smile on Zhongli's face as he reached towards the consultant. "[Y/N]."

"Maybe in another life, they'll be happy together'."

[javisjeanjacket]

Safety Net - (marcus moreno x fem!reader)

A/N: I have nothing to say for myself except that i’m not sorry at all and don’t look at me. YES IM AWARE ITS A KIDS MOVIE BUT LIKE ...he hot🥺

Word count: 2.6K

Warnings: marcus moreno’s sexy ass, NSFW, 18+, eating, unprotected sex (wrap it up gang), oral sex (m recieving), fucking in a chair, f masturbation, cursing, i think that’s all:)

The smell of a hot pan cooling on the stove wafted through the house, and you breathed in it's scent gratefully.

"Mm, smells so good, honey." You noted, flicking your eyes up from the steaming lunch on the plate before you to meet Marcus's eyes.

Marcus grinned and chewed the bite of vegetables he was crunching in his mouth.

You scooped a helping of veggies into your mouth and chewed, the flavor of the spices Marcus used enveloping your taste buds in warmth. You tapped an impatient finger on the kitchen table and trained your eyes on the spot where the pad of your finger met the texture of the wood table below.

Marcus swallowed and asked, "You okay?"

You looked up to him and swallowed your bite. "Can we...talk?"

Marcus's eyes widened and the dark rims of his glasses made them look almost cartoonish. He put his fork down on the rim of his plate and wiped his hands on a napkin. He took in a deep breath and answered, "Sure."

You bit the inside of your lip and began, "We've been together for...awhile now."

Marcus nodded eagerly, his chest burning with the words he knew would be tumbling from your mouth any second. He could feel the disappointment and the melancholy that would fester in your absence already settling over his shoulders.

"And we still haven't, well, you know." You raised your eyebrows at him, trying to indicate what you were thinking. 

Marcus swallowed against his dry throat and nodded that he understood.

"So what I'm asking is," Your chest pounded so loudly you could feel it's reverberations in your ears. "Do you-,” You sighed, trying to summon the courage to finish your question. “Are you attracted to me? Like, sexually?"

He reached across the table and grabbed one of your hands. "Sweet girl-" He pressed your knuckles to his lips, pressing soft kisses to each dip. His dark eyes looked into yours and flames began to sizzle in the pit of your stomach.

Your hips shifted slightly in the chair, the movement warding away the inkling of want in your core. "If it's me, I think I deserve to know." You added, your voice afraid.

Marcus dropped your hand from his lips and shook his head vigorously. He leaned back in his chair and let out a flustered breath.

The light from the windows behind him cast a dark shadow around his form that reached across the table and to you.

He took off his glasses and set them on the table, then rubbed the heels of his hands over his eyes. "No. No, honey, it's not you. Believe me.” He dropped his hands from his face and let out another heavy sigh. “It's not you."

You dropped your gaze from his eyes to his unfinished food in front of him. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Marcus crossed his arms over his chest. He looked into the kitchen and lost himself a moment before replying, "The last time that I was with anyone was with...." The ending to his sentence too precious for him to bring to life again.

"Your wife?" You whispered, the words tender and shivering on your tongue.

He pulled his lips into his mouth and nodded slowly. He looked back down at his plate and you could see the tops of his ears growing red.

"I don't mean to put pressure on you, Marcus. If you want to wait, we can wait. I just wanted-" You tried to assure him.

"No, I don't. I don't want to wait anymore.” He looked down at his hands and the small Heroics symbol tattooed across the skin by his thumb. “Not with you." His dark eyes looked up to yours and it was their force that knocked the wind from your chest. 

Struggling under his gaze, your rib cage seemed to breathe in it's own marrow- inhaling the surging adrenaline fizzling to life in your veins. Your eyebrows tensed and you reached your hand across the table towards him. "Are you sure?"

He took your hand cautiously and ran his thumb over your digits softly. "Yes. I'm just...kind of..." He trailed off, getting lost in the texture of your skin under his.

"Afraid?" You finished for him.

Marcus's eyes looked back up to yours, emotion sitting underneath them and bubbling in his chest. The need and desire on his face was matched fully by the fear snarling underneath the surface. His grip tightened on your hand and you took in a shaking breath.

You stood from your chair and walked towards him. You ran a tender hand through his thick, dark, hair and cupped his cheek.

Marcus's eyes shifted over your face and his chest thumped rapidly as you leaned closer to him. 

"Just tell me if you need to stop, okay?" You whispered, gently brushing your lips against his.

He reached a hand up to your neck and nodded as he gently pushed, bringing your mouth to slot against his.

You melted into his kiss, your eyelashes fluttering at the softness in his touch. You rested a hand on his shoulder and the other sprawled over his face, his stubble tickling your soft palm.

He moved his second hand to grip your waist, his thick fingers fiddling with the hem of your shirt. He swiped his tongue across your bottom lip and you opened your mouth for him.

You could feel passion growing within him and smiled into his kiss as his hand on your hip guided you towards his lap. You sat on his thighs and the fire kindling in your stomach began to crackle and pop, the bulge in his jeans moving across your needy core. You moved your hands up to work through his hair and pulled softly.

He moved his hands to cup your ass, one of his wide palms shifting upwards and underneath your shirt. The warmth of his skin sent a jolt of pleasure through your simmering body.

Your hips jerked involuntarily and you cooed into his kiss. Your hands grasped at his green t-shirt, pulling it up and over his head to drop it on the floor behind his chair. You nuzzled your face into his skin, sucking and biting tenderly at his exposed chest.

Marcus hissed as you laved your tongue over the bites you adorned him with. His hands moved up your torso to your bra, his thumbs swiping across the cups and his fingers squeezing your body.

You kissed up to his ear and whispered his name as your hips began to rock against his, the rough fabric of your pants and his sending heat through your pussy.

"Hmm?" He answered, his hands now unhooking the clasp of your bra.

"Is it okay if I get on my knees for you?" You breathed on his ear and could almost see the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

Marcus tried to stifle a moan and his hands shook as they gently pulled your bra and shirt down your arms, dropping them to the ground beside the table. He let his fingertips drag lightly down your skin as he looked over your body. He bit his bottom lip and whispered, "Yes."

You lifted yourself off of him and unzipped your pants enough to give your fingers access to your throbbing core, then sank to your knees, careful to move his chair so you wouldn't hit your head on the table. You unbuckled his belt and unzipped his pants, wiggling the pants and boxer briefs down his legs as he stood.

He sat back down and ran clammy hands down his bare thighs. "I've never been this scared before." He admitted, his gaze trained on you.

You shifted your eyes up from his impressive length up to the deep pools of his eyes. You ran your hands up his thighs to meet the shaking ones resting near his hips. You curled your fingers around his wrists. "Do you want me to stop?"

Marcus shook his head no, his blood pumping hotter and hotter in his veins. He had never faced something as overwhelming as this. He had never had to risk as much as this, never even wanted to consider the possibility before he met you. The fear of loving and losing was paralyzing. Anxiety surged through his body and was ticking rapidly in his chest. He felt the love he had held for his wife and how overcome with love he had been for her. He thought of the space between that love and the hollowness, the nothingness, he had felt when he lost her. More than anything, he wanted to just be a man in love with someone wonderful again. Not a Heroic or a widower, just Marcus. There was nothing more he wanted than for you to feel the fullness of his love blooming in his chest, and give you all he could despite the monstrous fear looming in his heart. Marcus was without a safety net, having had to live through the perils of falling from the life he once knew and down, down, down, into someplace he thought he would never make it out of alive.

He ran a hand through your hair, cupping your cheek in his hand. "I just-the last person I did this with, I lost. And I couldn't-" He let out a sigh and looked down from your gaze. "I couldn't do that again."

Keeping your eyes locked onto his, you pressed timid kisses to his legs. Your heart broke at his words and the expression on his face. You ran your hands back and forth over his knees, trying to soothe him. “Look at me.” You whispered. 

He swallowed tightly and flicked his eyes up to you, his face still cast downward.

"You're not going to lose me, sweetheart.” You whispered.

Marcus tilted his head from one side to the other, his eyes piercing. 

You pressed tender kisses to his legs, moving cautiously closer to his cock. “I’m not a superhero.” You said, then pressed your lips to his thigh. “I have a normal job in the city.” You kissed his opposite leg and let your hands shift higher up his body, your fingers brushing against the trail of hair near his belly button. “It’s safe, Marcus.” 

His dick twitched and wept for you, hungry for the friction of your walls around it. His hips bucked and he let out breath through his teeth as your hands moved steadily closer and closer to his penis. One of his hands gripped your hair and the other planted itself on the chair behind him.

"Let someone save you for once." You whispered, taking his cock in your hand and pressing your lips tenderly to the throbbing member. You looked up at him through your eyelashes and slowly swirled your tongue around the tip of him. You took a small portion of him into your mouth and bobbed up and down slowly, allowing him time to adjust to the feeling of being pleasured by someone other than himself.

He dropped his head back against the chair and let out a soft moan. His hand in your hair loosened it's grip, his fingers weaving in between the strands slowly.

You sunk more of him into your mouth and let your spit coagulate and drip down him. You gently moved your lips up and down his thick cock. You could feel his thighs tense around your torso and you moaned around him.

His body jerked subconsciously and his eyes fluttered closed.

You pulled off of him and whispered, "Tell me how it feels, baby." You took him back into your mouth and started to quicken your earlier pace, your hands working the skin where your lips couldn't reach.

Marcus opened his mouth and began to form a response, but the sound fell out of his lips before his brain could create the word. His body squirmed under your touch and he moaned low in his chest.

You cooed around his length and reached your hand into your underwear, rubbing the soaked folds at the same pace your mouth moved up and down him, faster and faster until you dropped him from your mouth to ask, "It's been so long, hasn’t it?"

His hand in your hair tensed and he growled, his hips moving to fuck your mouth. The chair underneath him squealed as he moved it over the floor little by little.

You took as much of him as you could into your throat and wiggled your mouth as far down as you could, choking as he pushed against the back of your throat. You moved your free hand to gently tease his balls and the other circled your clit, bringing a groan of pleasure out from your chest.

Marcus's hand in your hair tugged hard and he pulled you away from him, his chest heaving. "Stop, stop. I'm gonna cum."

You ran your hands up his abdomen and around the curve of his hips. "I want you to cum, Marcus." Your eyes flicked back up to his innocently.

He licked his lips and pulled you up from your knees. "I want to fuck you first."

Your eyes met his and you could feel his passion burning and crackling in his chest. Your pussy clenched at his words and you shivered as his hand brushed against your ass, moving you back towards him. You straddled him, taking a moment to align his cock with your entrance. A wild whimper escaped your throat as you settled on him. Your hands clenched into his broad shoulders and your eyebrows tensed. Your body subconsciously began to grind against his, and the sheer mass of him inside you sent rockets of pleasure bursting and popping behind your eyes.

Marcus hummed low in his chest, the rumble sending warmth through you. His hands clutched at your hips, squeezing and guiding them as they squirmed, trying to adjust to his size. His mouth nipped at your breasts, sucking softly and rubbing the skin back and forth over his teeth hard enough to leave a mark. His mind began to blank, the pleasure of you around him pushing the doubt and anxiety so far from him he couldn’t remember what he had been scared about in the first place. He moved a hand from your hip to grasp your bouncing breast, his thumb teasing and pulling at the raised nub there.

You threw your head back and closed your eyes as you moaned.

"Okay?" He asked, his breath short and hot on your skin.

You nodded yes and wrapped both of your arms around his neck. You could feel yourself clench around him, the pressure so long awaited that you struggled to pace yourself.

Marcus's hand ran so softly up and down your body it almost tickled. He moaned as he thrust into you, the chair underneath squeaking with his movement.

Your back arched as you began to roll your hips against his. You whimpered and clutched at the ends of his hair desperately. Warmth ran up from where your core met his and wrapped itself around your lungs, your breath becoming shallow.

He hissed and moved both of his hands back to your hips as he picked up his pace. Your name fell from his lips followed by a loud groan.

You echoed him and tucked your face into the crook of his neck. His skin was warm under your lips as you whispered, "I've wanted this for so long. Fuck, you feel so fucking good."

Marcus kissed your cheek harshly and then groaned, his chest shuddering, "I'm sorry, honey."

"Wha-?" You asked breathlessly

He chuckled. “I'm gonna cum already." His arms flexed as he hugged your body to his and you could feel his cock twitching inside you.

You let out a few stacattoed yelps at his pointed thrusts, and said once you caught your breath, "Cum for me, Marcus."

His breathing warmed the shell of your ear as his pounding into your core became frantic. His hips snapped loudly and his jaw went slack. His face began to twitterpate and his chest heaved against yours. He grit his teeth as he reached closer and closer to his peak and you could feel the tension against your cheek.

Your mouth hung open and you braced yourself on the chair behind him. You cooed at the passion with which he loved you.

He growled and his pumping slowed as you felt the hot ropes of his release shoot into you. His body began to tremble and his breath fanned over your skin. "Holy shit." He stuttered. His arms relaxed, allowing you to sit up again.

You ran a gentle hand over his cheek and down his side while your mouth placed soft kisses to his jaw line and shoulder, soothing the trembling man underneath you.

"I never thought I’d feel like that again." He chuckled, running a warm palm down your thigh towards your ass. “I almost forgot how good it feels.”

"Well, I'll be here whenever you need a reminder." You teased him, pressing a kiss to the side of his mouth.

He gripped the back of your neck and pulled your lips to his, smiling as he kissed you. "I think you might need to remind me again, I’ve already forgotten.”

MARCUS TAGLIST: @artsymaddie​ @apples-of-february​ @anetteaneta​ @supernovafeather​ @phoenixhalliwell​

GENERAL TAGLIST: @softly-sad​ @autumnleaves1991-blog​ @over300books​

[m88n]

[8.02 pm] - when mark lee gets angered by your cheating boyfriend

angst, smut, fluff

►listen to it’s you - zayn, so beautiful - dpr ian

“He did.. what?”

You look off to the side, almost guiltily.

“Yeah… I ended up finding out that, he really did sleep with Vanessa.” You say, looking down at your hands, restlessly fiddling on your lap.

Mark rakes his hair in bewilderment, proceeding to rub his face with one hand, seemingly trying really hard to digest the information he’s been presented with.

“y/n… You mean to tell me, you gave him all those chances when you obviously shouldn’t, only for him to run off with some girl?” He asks you bluntly.

“Mark….” You simply say, feeling hurt by his insensitivity.

He palms his face for a moment once more, then sits down in front of you on the sofa, looking straight at you with his clear eyes.

“..I’m sorry, y/n. It’s just frustrating to see you deal with him all the time,”

“Well, I’m sorry Mark, if I tire you by talking about my problems all the time, I thought you told me I could rely on you like this,” You say with a quivering voice, unable to hide your disappointment with the way he’s dealing with your vulnerability.

“You could, y/n—”

“Then why be that blunt with me when you know I obviously need comfort?!” You ask, raising your voice, tears starting to brim in the corners of your eyes.

He pauses to take in the look of your face.

“Because I can’t keep on seeing you like this, y/n!” He exclaims.

You look at him taken aback and puzzled, not entirely understanding what he means.

“I hate seeing the girl I like keep getting hurt by some assbag, while I sit here and do nothing about it, okay?!” He finishes.

You look at him, wide eyed, completely stunned by his response.

“M-Mark, I…”

He quickly moves to sit right next to you, and you could see the silent burn behind his dark irises.

“Do you know how it feels like, to have someone you cherish so much, crying about someone who treats them like shit?” He asks in a low voice.

“Mark, I’m-I’m sorry, I di—”

He stops you completely in your tracks by firmly taking your shoulders and pressing a warm, haste kiss on your lips. After you feel the touch of his lips leave yours, his gaze lingers on your eyes, his clear eyes weighted by what seems like agony, then looks down as he still keeps his grip gentle on your shoulders.

“I can’t handle seeing you cry, and apologize, for someone that keeps on hurting you, I can’t do it, y/n,”

You feel his hands ever so slightly quiver on your shoulders. You examine the way his black locks cast shadows over his paled face, his cheeks dusted light pink. Then your gaze flits towards his lips—he’s biting his lip.

After a moment of silence, Mark shuts his eyes, fully realizing what he just did.

“I’m sorry I did that, y/n, I was just feeling so much—”

You stop him from finishing his sentence by planting one gentle kiss on his forehead, then looking at his eyes with nothing but tenderness.

“It’s okay, Mark.” You say gently, eyes fixed on Mark’s.

“B-but—” Mark stops himself, feeling your thumb graze across his lower lip. His face grows warmer, face flushing a shade of vibrant pink at your featherlight touch.

You smile at him, before leaning over towards him with your eyes fluttered close, gradually closing the gap between your faces, until your lips finally touch. The kiss feels soft, almost sacred, as you two finally cross the line that you’ve been walking around for the longest time. Mark sighs into the kiss as his grip on your shoulders slide down to your arms, your fingers ghosting over the back of his neck, finally softly gripping his hair to nudge him even closer to you. His supple lips melt onto yours, making its home in the comfort of your touches. His hands slide down towards your waist as he positions himself in between your legs, gently pushing you against the arm of the sofa. As the heat of the kiss slowly makes itself known through soft moans and utter impatience in getting lost in each other, Mark suddenly pulls back from the kiss, only for you to hold him back with your firm grip behind his neck.

“Hold up, y/n, stop,” Mark tries to say in between kisses.

“What, why?” You respond breathlessly, as neither of you tries to stop kissing each other despite Mark’s futile attempt to.

“Is this okay...? I mean,” He says, before you interrupt him with a peck.

“Don’t you want this..?” You ask him with half-lidded eyes. Mark’s eyes darts towards your lips for a moment, before shutting his eyes and shaking his head a little.

“I mean, of course I do, but, what about him?” Mark says, touching your hands behind his neck, and you finally cease trying to kiss each other.

You sigh at his question, leaving it hanging in the air. He looks at you with apparent concern, pupils wavering, however visibly restraining himself from forcing an answer out of you.

“…I’m sorry it took me ages, Mark…” You start, while looking down at your lap. Mark looks at you questioningly.

“Him sleeping with Vanessa obviously hurt me, given that I’ve spent…. Or maybe wasted, 2, almost 3 years with that guy, but it really served as the wake-up call I needed.” You continued, gently pulling your hands away from Mark and fiddling with your nails with your hands on your lap. “A-And I guess, I was just really confused, like I’m still learning all about this relationship stuff and how it works for me or whatever…”

Mark looks at you with raised brows, obviously waiting for you to continue.

“When I discovered he did that… I realized that I got angry not because I love him, I don’t even think I do anymore, I realized—I think I got angry because I let this stuff happen to me for far too long.…” You try to explain.

Mark’s gaze softens upon you, his hand slowly reaching towards the hair framing your face, before he stops himself.

“What I do know, is when you said you.. like me,” You say, feeling your cheeks heat up, “I just--just feel butterflies.. I don’t know, I’ve always loved being around you, I guess this kind of pure affection is just so.… Foreign to me.” You finish, finally braving yourself to look up to his face despite the feeling of bashfulness taking over your entire body.

Mark looks down at you with an unreadable expression, though you could tell that his gaze is nothing but gentle. He slowly takes both of his hands and cups your face with them delicately, looking at you like you’re the most precious thing he’s ever seen.

“It’s everything you deserve and more, y/n.”

He kisses you with everything he has, caging your body with his hands firmly propped on the arm of the sofa. The kiss he gives you is gentle, yet forceful enough to leave you breathless. He takes no time in deepening the kiss as his tongue enters your mouth, taking one of his hands onto your jaw, running his fingers through your hair, before ever so slightly grasping onto your strands. You could feel him desperately trying to hold onto this moment, afraid that you might slip through his fingers anytime soon.

“Mark—” You try to speak in between his kisses.

He stops, panting lightly as he looks at you with his blown-out pupils and swollen lips. You gently take his face with your hands, cupping it and locking eyes with him.

“Baby, I’m not going anywhere.” You say, almost in a whisper.

A soft sigh leaves his lips, pupils quivering before seemingly bracing himself for the next thing he is about to say.

“Are you sure about that?”

You look down, before bringing your bottom lip between your teeth.

“Why would I leave something that’s so good for me?”

Mark looks at you, seemingly debating your answer for a moment. He settles on placing his lips on your neck instead, working his way down your chest, his hot, wet kisses leaving fiery trails in its wake. You take the back of his head, gently pulling on his hair, sighing onto his touches. He brings one hand to your shoulders, slowly pulling down the straps of your dress, revealing your bare chest. He continues planting kisses down to your nipples, taking the sensitive bud with his soft lips and tongue, soft moans passing through your lips.

“You’re so beautiful, baby, I want you to be all mine.” He murmurs against your chest, still shallowly sucking on the skin, small bruises starting to bloom across your decolletage.

“….I’m all yours now, Mark.” You finally say affectionately, in between soft breaths.

He looks at you for a second, before capturing your lips in a heated kiss, devouring your lips and tongue, as he continues to fondle your breast with one hand. He slides his hand below your hips to lift you up in a princess carry, which takes you by complete surprise, as he really doesn’t seem like the most built type.

He walks you to his bedroom with ease, swiftly closing the door to his bedroom with one leg, then gently dropping your body onto the center of his queen-sized bed. He proceeds to take off his dark grey t-shirt, revealing his lean yet toned musculature, you note, especially throughout his biceps and torso area. You can’t stop yourself from staring at Mark Lee completely topless in front of you, his body looking much more toned than you’d imagine. He’s always worn some of his vast assortment of hoodies when he hangs out with you, and you’ve never paid too much attention to him, so this is definitely a surprise to you, albeit a pleasant one.

“You wanna show me just how much?”

“What?” His question snaps you out of your daze.

“You wanna show me just how much of you are mine now?” He drawls, and you turn to take a good look at his eyes, still distinctly clear as it’s always been, however now visibly darkened in a hungered gaze as he takes in the sight of you on his bed, like a predator carefully examining its prey.

You’re completely unfamiliar with this more dominant side of Mark, and instead of provoking you to fight back, it feels like a call that is beckoning for you to submit to. You fumble with your answer for a moment, and you see Mark trying to fight off a smirk, while he slowly makes his way closer to you on the bed. Your heart is beating erratically fast from the distance closing in, despite being all over him just moments ago. He looks at you, again, with that indecipherable gaze, as he takes your cheek with the light touch of his hand, and you’d be surprised if he couldn’t hear the sound of your thumping heartbeat. Since when did Mark have this kind of side?

“Since you said I’d be that good for you,” He starts in a low voice, almost a whisper.

He slowly puts his lips closer to your ear, breath fanning your sensitive spot. The heat coming off of his body and his warm breath sending you into an intoxicating trance, your mind slowly slipping off of its senses, core throbbing from the sensory overload. Before you knew it, he closes in even further with his presence, completely shrouding you with his aura as he slips his fingers in between yours on the surface of the mattress.

“You wanna show me just how good you could be for me?”

He whispers onto your ear, not forgetting to leave a small peck on the spot under your ear, sending shivers down your spine. He locks eyes with you, jet black eyes attempting to hide the last bits of his burning desire from bursting out of its feeble confines. He is still the same guy. He’s Mark. Something else just awakened this part of him. You get chills thinking that something is really none other than you.

You almost forget to respond, so you nod timidly, eyes still maintaining its gaze upon Mark’s. He smiles with heavy lidded eyes full of pure ardor. You almost couldn’t believe that this is the same cute boy with innocent eyes that you’ve grown really close to—or at least you thought so. You suddenly feel his thumb graze your lips, as you maintain your gazes towards each other. As if instinctual, you take his thumb into your mouth in a light suck, and he smiles a little wider, looking down at your utter submission to his cues.

“Good girl.”

He suddenly places both his hands on your waist, lifting you up effortlessly, earning an abrupt yelp from you. He places you right on his lap, on top of his long legs extended across the large mattress. You gingerly put your arms around his neck in order to anchor yourself, before realizing that your very own throbbing, slickened core is rubbing against a certain hardened bulge—Mark’s hardened bulge, through his sweatpants.

“..I can feel you on me, baby.” He says in a low voice, almost growling.

Your face heats up from the sound of his throaty groan, as well as the sheer hardness of his cock, and the implication that he might’ve felt your wetness through your pants. It takes you by surprise when Mark suddenly jerks his hips against yours, causing you to moan loudly from the friction you’ve been needing. You could feel him tightening his grip on your waist, as you follow suit with your grip on his back to steady yourself on his lap. Lost in a trance from the pleasure you’ve been permitted to feel, you take no time in grinding your hips against Mark’s, head thrown back.

“Fuck, yeah, baby, keep doing that,” He breathes on your neck. “Shit, already so wet for me,”

You keep grinding on his hardness, whimpering against Mark’s bare shoulder, both from the pleasure and also from desperation in craving for his actual girth.

“M-Mark, please…” You plead.

“..Please what, baby?” He asks you in between broken breaths.

“I want it s-so bad,…” You continue, still rocking your hips against Mark’s, fully clothed from the waist down.

“You need to say it for me, baby, ask for it from me,” He says, lightly grabbing your chin with one hand, forcing you to look straight into his eyes.

Tears starts to brim on the edges of your eyes from the utter shame and neediness you’re displaying, but you honestly couldn’t care less at this point.

“..I need you to fuck me, Mark, please,” You whine.

With that, he takes no time in reaching for his waistband and freeing his erection from the restraints of his sweatpants. He brings his hands to the article of clothing still limply hanging off of your body, gathers it, and finally takes your dress off of you, tossing it in the general direction of the floor. As he does so, you take off your panties and throw it in the same direction, leaving you completely naked for him.

“Fuck, look at you, so beautiful like this,” He mutters to himself, bringing his hands to cup your breasts, playing with your nipples, getting you to moan needily from his touches.

“Wanna be a good girl for me?” He breathes out, keeping his grip loose on your waist. You take this as a signal to do it yourself, so you do what you need to. You lift your body from his thigh, placing your hands firmly on Mark’s back, before taking his cock into you.

You let out a guttural moan, feeling the unexpected length and girth of Mark’s cock, as you haven’t been able to clearly see due to the darkness of his bedroom. You grip his back even tighter as you try to fully sheathe his dick into you, hip stuttering, feeling the mixture between pain and pleasure from having you been broken into by his cock.

“F-fuck, baby, feel so tight, so good around me,” He says with gritted teeth, hands tightening around your waist. “Sucking me in so much, fuck,”

You whimper as you try to move yourself against his hardness, proving it to be a harder task than expected as you might be a little tight for him. After settling into his size, you begin to gain a momentum as you continue to bounce on his cock, your high-pitched moans bouncing off of the walls with every thrust. Mark moves his hands to your ass, and attaches his lips on yours hungrily, kissing you sloppily as you continue to ride him, your cries diminishing into throaty groans.

“F-fuck, so fucking big,” You moan in between breaths. “You make me feel so, so good,”

The bedroom is filled with sounds of slapping skins, wet kisses, grunts, pants, and moans, as both of you eagerly tries to reach your highs. Mark attaches his lips on your neck, sucking at one spot without any care for leaving a mark.

“God, I’ve wanted to do this for so fucking long,” He groans against your neck.

You throw your head back from his cock hitting your g-spot as you have been trying to grind deeper down on him, Mark working to meet you with his thrusts, filling you exceptionally deep with his cock, causing each thrust to knock the air out of your lungs.

“F-fuck, now I’m all yours, Mark,” You stutter. “We can do this all day, all night, whenever you n-need,”

Mark groans at your remark, before he lifts you and pushes you against the surface of the mattress, fucking into you quickly and deeply, leaving you breathless and gasping his name like a mantra, your toes curling and eyes rolling back from pleasure. Your mind loses itself as you feel Mark’s breathy groans on your ear and his cock reaching your absolute depths, causing your core to tighten, approaching its climax.

“Cum for me, baby,” He mutters against your ear as he continues to pound into you mercilessly.

Taking your lips in his in a heated kiss while raking his fingers through your hair, he continues to pound into you fast and hard, your moans muffled by the kiss. As he keeps on hitting your sensitive spots, you finally begin to see white and feel your legs quiver uncontrollably. In feeling you’ve reached your high, Mark finally spills his seed into you with muttered swears, his warmth seeping into your insides. He continues to fuck into you through your high with deep, erratic thrusts, sending you into a blissful trance as you ride the rest of it letting out the loudest whines and cries of pleasure.  

You pant to calm your pacing heartbeat as your body comes down from the high, still twitching as it settles. Mark peppers soft kisses onto your face, then to your shoulders, stroking your hair, looking at you with gleaming, round eyes that seem to hold the whole universe in them.

“…I still can’t believe you’re kinda... Mine now.” He finally breathes out, taking in the sight of you entirely. “You are... Right?”

You smile sweetly at him, seeing just how preciously he’s looking at you, feeling the gentleness in the way he’s holding you, wondering after all this time, you’ve been coming home to the wrong place, when home is actually much nearer than you’ve ever expected.

“I’m yours just as much as you want me to be, Marky.”

[genshin-scenarios]

For the flower ask game! Pink gardenia with Diluc (romantic) please and thank u!!

Rules to the ask game here!

And tagging @genshin-obsessed too! This... got a lot longer than I planned 😅

Diluc + pink gardenia:

The gardenia symbolises trust, clarity, renewal and hope. Pink carries the meaning of affection and love, which ranges from friendship to marital attachment to gratitude.

Diluc has always been grateful for your partnership; when you were friends and nothing more (even if romance had been budding) you stuck by his side despite his reluctance to let you into his world.

Said world was the dangerous part of his life, one of scorching flames and long nights spent away from Mondstadt - yet even then your faith in him did not waver, and every time he answered your questions vaguely you'd smiled and nodded, accepting that it was all he could bring himself to say.

Once he felt ready to open up, you had a long chat in the comfort of Dawn Winery. Leading up to this, he did his best to warn you in case you'd like to back out, but you never did. It's an inconvenient and charming trait you have, that stubbornness - just what did Diluc do to deserve the trust you had in him?

He wonders about that to this day; a week after you started wearing a ring from him on your left hand. A week after he'd mustered the courage to offer you something more substantial than just his love, even if you might argue otherwise.

A promise with a gem that glinted under the light. A promise he would do whatever it took to keep.

Diluc is in awe of you, truly - how your eyes lit up and swelled with joy, tears and affection as you wrapped your arms around him. He's aware he worries you with his work - battles are nothing to scoff at - yet your will did not waver even with the uncertainty of fate.

As Diluc returned the hug, he held you as if he was afraid this may be a dream. Your warmth, your hair tickling the side of his cheek - he closes his eyes and burns it to memory. The comfort and happiness that you give him is something that not even an army of soldiers or palace of gold could replace.

He swore to himself that he'd protect you with the might of both if you needed it. Years later, when you call him your husband, you still chide him for his dramatics. You both have taken quite a liking to spending time in the greenhouse nearby your home, where flowers of different kinds bloomed and perfumed the air with their delicate scent.

It's beautiful here during the day, when the sun peeks in through the glass walls and touches the ground. It almost feels like a place enstranged from time, where you could be having tea with your husband one moment and teasing the Diluc from the past in the next - it's where the both of you have dedicated to store your memories in, with the flowers as your monuments to different events in your lives.

Thus it was only appropriate that out of all kinds, gardenias were the most prominent in your little hideaway. No matter how much time passes, being here makes you feel like you're transported back to when you first met Diluc - it's nostalgic, and touched with the littlest bit of uncertainty, but it's home; home to the things you had to let go over the years, and a home for your new hopes and dreams to settle and grow.

The transparency that glass walls create took some time getting used to, but there's also a sense of pride in it. You'd flaunt your love to the world for all you cared, for it's something that you and Diluc cultivated together - what's not to be proud of that?

[voidmakyr]

Call me anyway (Bucky Barnes x F!Reader)

This is set in the TFATWS 3rd EP.

You are a former Flag Smasher living alone in Madripoor. You quit the gang some time ago. When the winter soldier stands in your door one night, you expected to be killed. But this wasn’t your end. It was the start of something that nobody saw coming. 

Warnings: smut, swear-words, (sexual) persuasion.

A/N: As always, english is not my first languagge. I am way too lazy to proof read. I really wanted to do something for Zemo but I just can’t get over Bucky? 

You tossed your keys down the hall table and stretched. You changed into a pair of boxers. It was another hot night, and as you pulled out the futon, you really wished the air conditioner were still working. You turned the box fan on and fed your cat. As soon as he’d polished off his fancy feast, took up pacing in front of the sliding glass door to your balcony.

Lightning flashed and you went over and slid back the glass door, moving the screen into place. You’d leave the thing open for only a little bit – the night air smelled good for once. Not a whiff of the usual garbage of madripoor.

You ducked into the bathroom. After brushing your teeth and scrubbing your face you ran a washcloth under some cold water and rubbed the back of your neck. Cool rivulets ran down your skin, and you welcomed the shivers as you walked back out.

You frowned. Something wasn’t right…

You went over to the glass door and you saw that your cat had sat down on his haunches and was purring as if he were welcoming someone he knew.

What the…

The man from last night was on the other side of the screen. You leaped back and dropped the washcloth, dimly hearing the fleshy flop when it hit the floor.

The screen slid open.

You panicked, but found you couldn’t move. You knew this man. He was called the winter soldier.

Oh, man, he really was handsome. He was tall and with your apartment being small to begin with, he turned it into a shoe box. He looked even better than the photos you‘ve seen. Dressed in black with dark hair and matching brown eyes. He wore gloves despite the heat.

Wait a minute.

What were you doing, measuring him for a suit? If this really was the winter soldier, there was no time for staring.

Running, you should be running. You should be making a break for the other door, running like hell.

But all you could do was stare at him.

You craned your neck to look up at his face.

God, he was gorgeous.

He must be coming to kill you, you thought. You didn’t know what you’d done to deserve a hit, but the longer you looked into his eyes, you could barely remember where you were.

You body swayed as he closed the distance between them. You were terrified of what was going to happen when he reached you, but noticed, absurdly, that your cat was purring and wrapping himself in and around the mans ankles.

That cat was a traitor. And if by some miracle you lived though the night, the cat was getting downgraded to mediocre cat food.

Your neck jacked back up as you met the man‘s steady, feral gaze. His stare burned.

And then the extraordinary happened. As he stepped in front of you, you felt a blast of pure, unadultered lust. Your body got wickedly hot. Hot and wet.

Your core bloomed for him.

It was chemistry, you thought numbly. Pure, raw, animal chemistry.

Whatever he had, you wanted.

„Don’t be afraid, (Y/N). My name is James. I wanted to ask you some questions“, he said.

His voice was low, a deep rumble in his solid chest. He had the sliver of an accent you couldn’t place.

„What questions?“, you breathed in a whisper.

„About your friends. The Flag Smashers...“

Dizziness made you reach out for the wall.

„Karli? Why..“ Confusion closed your mouth. „What do you want from them?“

His metal hand crossed the distance between your bodies and he took your chin between his forefinger and thumb. He tilted your face to one side.

„Are you going to kill me fast?“ you mumbled. „Or slow?“

„No killing. Just answers.“

As his head bent down, you told yourself you should fight him off in spire of his words. You needed to Gotthold arms of yours working, your legs, too. Trouble was, you didn’t really want to push him away. You took a deep breath.

Good heavens, he smelled fantastic. Fresh, clean sweat. A dark, masculine musk.

His lips hovered over your ear. The leather of his jacket creaked as his chest expanded.

„You are not one if them,“ he said softly, „not anymore, right?“

God, this had to be what people talked about when they waxed poetic about sex. You didn’t question the need to have him inside of you. You only knew that you were going to die if he didn’t take his pants off. Now.

You reached out, curious to touch him, but when you let go of the wall you started to fall. In what seemed like on motion, he turned around and caught you easily. As he swept you off the floor, you leaned into him, not even bothering to put up a pretense of fighting. He handled you as if you were weightless, crossing the room in two strides.

When he laid you down on the futon his dog tags fell forward, and you lifted your hand, touching the metal. You lifted your hands higher, touching his dark hair. They were thick, soft. You put your palm on his face and though he seemed surprised, he didn‘t pull back.

God, everything about him radiated sex, from the strength in his body to the way he moved to the smell of his skin. He was like no man you‘d ever came across before. And your body knew it just as clearly as her mind did.

„Kiss me,“ you said.

He hovered above you, a silent menace.

On impulse your hands went to the lapels of his jacket, and you tried to pull him down to your mouth.

He captured both your wrists in his metal hand.

„Easy.“

Easy? You didn’t want easy. Easy was not part of the plan.

You struggled against his hold and when you couldn’t get free you arched your back.

Your breasts strained against your Shirt, and you rubbed your thighs together, anticipating what it would feel like to have him between them.

If he‘d only put his hands-

„Sweet Jesus,“ he muttered.

You smiled up at him, relishing the sudden hunger in his face. „Touch me.“

The winter soldier started shaking his head. As if he were trying to clear it.

You opened your lips and moaned in frustration.

„Pull up my shirt.“ You arched again, offering your body to him. „Do it.“

His eyebrows were drawn tight, and you had some vague thought that you should be terrified. Instead, you brought your knees up and lifted your hips off the futon.

You imagined him kissing the insides of your thighs, finding your core with his mouth. Licking you. Another moan boiled out of your mouth.

——

Bucky was dumbfounded.

And he wasn’t a man who got struck stupid very often.

Holy Shit.

You were the hottest thing he’d ever gotten anywhere near. And he’d cozied up to a lightning stroke once or twice before.

You groaned again, your body undulating in a sexy wave, your legs opening wide. The scent of your arousal hit him hard as a body shot. God, he would have been sent to his knees if he hadn’t already been sitting down.

„Touch me“, you moaned.

Buckys blood pumped as if he were in a flat-out run, his erection throbbing like it had its own heartbeat.

„That’s not what I’m here for,“ he said.

„Touch me anyway.“

He knew he should say no. This wasn‘t fair to her. And they needed to talk. He had questions about... what again? Maybe he should come back later in the night. Try again.

You arched up, pushing against the hand he‘d clamped around your wrists. As your breasts strained against your shirt, he had to close his eyes.

Time to go. It was really time to go. He would check back with Sam and Zemo and just come back later, or tomorrow, or-

Except he couldn‘t leave without at least having a taste.

Yeah, but he was a selfish bastard if he laid one finger on you. A nasty, selfish bastard to take any of what you were offering without knowing who he really was. Dangerous, murderous, broken... a monster.

With a curse, Bucky opened his eyes.

Man, he was so cold. Cold down to his marrow.

And you were hot. Hot enough to make that ice go away, at least for a little while.

And it had been so long for him.

He let your wrists go.

Your hands grabbed his jacket, trying to push it back from his shoulders. He wrenched the thing off, and as it hit the floor with a thud, you laughed with satisfaction.

Bucky bent down over you and captured your lips with his mouth.

This time, when you thrust your breasts out, he got rid of his gloves and slid his normal hand under your thin shirt and onto your smooth, warm skin. Greedy to know the rest of you, he peeled your shirt off and tossed it aside.

Your breasts filled his palms, your nipples tight buds underneath the soft satin of your bra.

Buckys control snapped.

He let out a hiss and latched onto one of your nipples with his lips, drawing it into his mouth. As he drew circles with his tongue, he shifted his body and stretched out on top of you, falling in between your thighs. You absorbed his weight with a throaty sigh.

Your hands came between them as you reached for the front of his shirt, but he didn’t have the patience to let you undress him. He lifted up and ripped the material off his body. When he came back down, your breasts hit the wall of his chest and your body surged under his.

He wanted to kiss your mouth, but he was way past anything soft and gentle, so he worshipped your breasts with his tongue and then moved down to your belly. When he got to the waistband of your boxers, he drew them off your smooth legs.

Bucky felt something in his head pop as your scent reached him in a fresh wave. He was perilously close to orgasm, already. His release poised in his shaft, his body shaking with the need to take you. He put his hand between your thighs. You were so wet and hot that he growled.

Crazed though he was, he had to taste you before he invaded you.

He pressed kisses over your hips and across the tops of your thighs. Your hands tangled in his hair as you urged him exactly where he was headed.

He kissed your softest skin, drawing your core into his mouth, and you came over and over again for him until he couldn’t fight his own need any longer. He pulled back, shrugged out of his pants, and covered you with his body once more.

You wrapped your legs around his hips, and he hissed as your heat burned his erection.

He used what was left of his strength to pull back and look down into your face. Waiting for your okay.

„Don’t stop.“ you breathed. „I want to feel you inside me.“

Bucky dropped his head into the fragrant hollow of your neck. And slowly drew his hips back. The tip of his erection slid into place beautifully, and he sheathed himself in your body with one powerful stroke.

He let out a bellow of ecstasy.

Heaven. Now he knew what heaven was like.

____

You eased into consciousness slowly. It was like surfacing from a perfectly performed swan dive. There was a glow in your body, a satisfaction as you emerged from the buffered world of sleep.

„You are beautiful,“ he whispered.

His mouth came down on hers. But he wasn’t looking for anything. The kiss was not a demand. it was closer to a thank you.

Somewhere in the room, a cell phone went off. The ring wasn’t yours.

He moved so fast you jumped. One moment he was by your side; the next he was at his jacket. He flipped open the phone.

A flip phone? Weird.

„Yeah?“ The voice that had told her you you were beautiful was gone. Now he growled.

You pulled a sheet around your chest.

„Give me ten.“ He hung up the phone, put it back in the jacked, and picked up the pants he‘d been wearing. His metal arm reflected the tiny lights coming through the blinds.

The threat of re-dressing brought back some reality. God, had you really just had sex - really, really good, mind blowing sex - with the winter soldier?

„James... You are the winter soldier, right?“, you asked.

As he pulled black leather up his thighs, you caught a terrific shot of his ass.

„Not anymore. Don’t be afraid.“

When he sat down next to you, „I‘ve got to go. I might not get back tonigh, but I‘ll try.“

You didn’t want him to leave. You liked the feel of his body taking up more than its fair share of your bed.

You reached up to him, but took your hand back. You didn’t want to seem needy.

„No, touch me,“ he said, bending his body down, giving you all the access you could ask for.

You put your palm on his chest. His skin was war, his heart surging in an even pump.

„I need to know something.“, you said softly. „What the fuck do you want from me, if you’re looking for the flag smashers?“

He smiled a little, as if he liked your swearing.

„Are you trying to stop them?“, you asked.

„Yes, but-“

„Get out. I am not helping you.“ You stood up and put your clothes back on. There was no way, you were going to be a snitch. Even if you were no longer part of the team.

„(Y/N), they have... we need to stop them. They are dangerous.“, he said while looking to the ground. He didn’t seem to confident about that.

He now stood in front of your door to the balcony. Slowly you opened the glass door, took a look outside then went back to your bed.

„Because of the serum.“ You said calmly.

„You know about the serum?“

You laughed. „I don’t just know about it.“ You positioned yourself and got in a strong stance. You smiled. „I got it.“

With one forceful kick to his chest, Bucky got pushed out of your room. He could barely grab the railing to not fall eight down on the street. In front of him the glass door closed, big metal bars flew from the top to secure the entry even more. The blinds closed and he couldn’t see you anymore.

He couldn’t remember the last time he was taken by surprise. It wasn’t pleasant. When he looked down on himself, he saw a little piece of paper in the small pocket of his jacket.

It was a phone number.

XXX-XXXX-XXXX „Call anyway.“

[two-sides-halved]

The woman kicked the door open and strolled right into the house after two days smelling… to put it bluntly, rank- it was like a skunk sprayed the hybrid- in her arms carried multiple canvas.. most of them blank apart from… the one detailed with a singular swirl of pink and purple slightly resembling the portals the Lion is known to create… and bags of vegetables and a sack of meat strapped to her back.

“Who’s ready to feast!!! I brought the meats, boys!! I even have vegan options… just in case.” She was half sure that one of the siblings preferred a more healthy approach!

@erisdiamas (hii)

Gem Steven face was glued to the screen on his phone trying to set up his champions to go on his missions for extra stuff in his MMORPG. The smell ripped him from his thoughts unable to tell if it was actual skunk or some strain of weed. He set his phone down.

"Good evening, Eris. It's been like 2 whole days since I've scene you." Gem Steven went to the kitchen to clear off a place for her to put the ingredients down. "No one's gonna wanna eat with you smelling like skunk... Now did you get sprayed or is it just weed... either's fine but one would make me far more disappointed than the other." Gem Steven replied, leaving it vague.

[yandere-daydreams]

I neeeeeeeed more Hades and Persephone with their darling! Maybe a continuation of the last one, but it’s Hades’ turn with darling?

He’d have to steal his Darling away for that, wouldn’t he? Persephone is far from a demanding captor, but with how on-edge she is around Hades, it’s not hard to believe she’d be hesitant to leave the two of you alone. She deserves to be paranoid, at least. 

Part One.

TW: Minor Acts of Violence, Past Kidnapping, Current Captivity, Emotional Manipulation, and Mentions of Starvation.

~

Hades’ garden was the only place in the Underworld with sunlight. 

Well, ‘sunlight’ might’ve been the wrong word for it. There was no sun, no sky, no heat - there couldn’t be, not this far underground. But, there were slivers in the ground where rays of light spilled in, flowing down like sparkling streams of water and bouncing off of gemstones and smooth stone until the barest hints of their radiance reached the plot of land designated to buds that bloomed into thorns rather than petals, trees that’d bleed magma rather than sap, fruits of the dead that’d dye your fingertips red for days, even if you didn’t dare to pluck them off their stems. You couldn’t see it, but if you sat on the stone and closed your eyes, you could feel it, you could imagine the ghost of its warmth on your cold, frozen skin. You savored the garden. You relished the garden. You loved the garden, as much as you could love any part of your gilded cage.

You just wished you could enjoy it alone, for once. 

Hades was like a shadow. Persephone was easily dissuaded when you expressed an interest in venturing beyond the confines of her palace, but Hades was an aura, a chill, a pair of eyes you couldn’t shake or stop from prying into your skin more painstakingly than any dagger ever could. This was his domain, his kingdom, and yet, away from his throne and his crown and his mistress, he seemed more like one of the spirits he ruled over than a god cast off of Olympus. You’d long-since come to terms with it, hiding yourself away and holding your breath, limiting your movements, being as quiet and as still as possible in hopes of coaxing him out, as a hunter would for a timid fawn. Some days, it took a few minutes and others, a few hours. Today, he must’ve been feeling confident. Your lungs had only begun to ache by the time he gathered the courage to show himself. 

You kept your attention centered on the flower in front of you, as he approached. A translucent rose, jagged shards of glass curling around a crystalline core and emerging from a base of emerald, the edge of each petal just starting to blacken and wilt. A thought played on your tongue as Hades came to a stop at your side, as he muttered an affectionate greeting under his breath. You meant to return the gesture, intent on keeping your relationship with your captors as civil as it had to be, but you were already asking before you could stop yourself, posing a question you weren’t sure you’d like the answer to. “Will it die?” 

That seemed to catch Hades off-guard. He hesitated before he answered, his hands twitching where they were folded behind his back as he fought the urge to scan over you. You were almost thankful he was the more concerned of the two. Persephone would’ve clicked her tongue, pulled you into her side, and told you that they would, but that you also shouldn’t ask after such morbid things. At least Hades wasn’t so patronizing. “They will,” He confirmed, finally, his tone steady. “Eventually. They last longer than plants in the mortal realm, but I made them to be living things.” A pause, a bite to the inside of his cheek. “That comes with a certain set of requirements, unfortunately.” 

You shouldn’t have been surprised. You’d had to step over half a dozen shattered flowers just to get to this part of the garden, and you knew he wouldn’t design something that went against the law of nature he worked so tirelessly to uphold. “I’m a living thing,” You mumbled, the words barely audible. “Does that mean I’ll have to conform to your requirements, one day?” 

Hades didn’t see fit to answer, this time. “You haven’t been eating.” 

Technically, you haven’t eaten at all, not since you’re arrival. Hades had tried his hand at locking you in your room, raising his voice, making threats of what would happen if you didn’t take your meals with gratitude, and Persephone had gone on about how torturous hunger could be for an hour or two before growing frustrated and leaving you to wallow in your pain, but neither seemed to understand the notion that you’d much rather face the pangs and the aches and the weaknesses that came with starvation than accept the fact that you’d be thoroughly, completely, utterly trapped here for the rest of your now-eternal life. Among the dead, you had no appetite, no desire, no will. Not when the consequences of submission were so unignorable.

You wanted to stay warm far more than you wanted to make them happy. 

You must’ve been silent for a moment too long. For the first time, Hades let out a sigh, the man shaking his head as he turned to face you. His lips were barely turned downward, his brow furrowed in something more akin to irritation than rage, but it was the angriest you’d seen him, the angriest at you he’d ever been. “There’s no point in putting it off.” He didn’t make excuses, didn’t make it sound like submitting would do you any good, but that almost made it worse. Unlike Persephone, he knew he was in the wrong. Unlike Persephone, he didn’t try to make it sound like he thought he wasn’t. “You’re here because there are two people in the Underworld who love you more than anyone in the mortal realm ever could. By behaving like this, you’re not just hurting yourself, you’re hurting us. That’s not the kind of action you should be able to take without guilt.” 

“Because my pain is the only kind that doesn’t matter,” You replied, tearing your eyes away from Hades and forcing yourself to direct your glare at the ground, at the dull, shriveled jewels that littered the ground because he wasn’t kind enough to share his immortality with the creatures who needed it. You hadn’t asked for this. You hadn’t prayed for it, or begged it, or needed it, as much as he’d like to pretend you did. You hadn’t wanted it, and you refused to act as if you had. “You might love me, but I don’t love you. As soon as I get my chance to leave, I don’t plan on sacrificing it for a slice of a pomegranate. If that hurts you, then maybe you should be--”

He didn’t hit you, he didn’t lash out, but he didn’t have to. The iron-clad, ice cold fingers soon wrapped around your wrist were enough to stop you, enough to remind you that Persephone wasn’t the only deity you had to be afraid of, here. Reflexively, you snapped toward him, but you couldn’t help but shrink into yourself as soon as your eyes met his, grey and metallic and so, so wrathful. “I don’t want to hear a word of what you just said get back to Persephone,” He growled, his grip tightening, his nails biting into your skin drawing fresh, hot blood. If he noticed, though, he didn’t care, only pulling you forward as he went on. “There won’t be a second warning. If you dare to say something so careless to my wife, it’ll be her mercy you’ll have to rely on. I can guarantee you mine will be out of your reach, by then.” 

He let you go, scowling as you pulled your injured arm to your chest, not caring how the pooling blood might stain your clothes. You could only nod and avert your stare, your throat dry and your mind so blank, you almost forgot you’d ever thought you were capable of thought. 

All you knew was that, quite suddenly, the garden felt just as frigid as the rest of the Underworld.

[raina-ffxiv]

September 1, 2022: Cross

Raina tromped through the heavy brush of the Black Shroud. She had strayed from the path in her quest for wildflowers suitable for the vases back home. The sun was beginning its descent into the west, and Raina knew she would only have so long before it began to get dark. She glanced down. Her basket was still mostly empty. Most of the flowers she had come across were already wilting. Glancing back towards the way she had come from, Raina debated her options. She could return home without the flowers. However, as she turned her red eyes before her, she spotted a clump of vibrant wildflower buds just ahead. Raina couldn’t help but smile. Perfect.

Determined, she began to make her way towards the flowers only to stop short upon looking down. She was standing on the bank of a wide stream. Raina frowned. While her heels were the most comfortable footwear she owned, they were not well suited for crossing water. The stones were covered in wet moss and looked slick. 

“Dare I ask what you’re getting up to this time?” said a voice from behind her. Raina started and placed her hand to her heart. She turned and saw a man standing a few yalms behind her. His arms were crossed, and his signature cheeky grin rested on his face.

“You startled me, Cassian.”

He unfolded his arms from across his chest, put one hand to his heart, and bowed but kept his grin in place. “Not my intent, dove.” The pet name made her heart hiccup in her chest and she pursed her lips to disguise the smile that wanted to creep up. He seemed to see right through her though because his smile widened. “But you didn’t answer my question. It’s a little early to be looking for more moon lilies.”

“I just was going to cross the stream to get some of the wildflowers on the far side.”

His smile flickered a little as he glanced down at her feet. “In those?” Raina turned to look back at the rocks and a frown creased her brow. She heard a half exasperated sigh from behind her. “Well I can’t very well let you do that and watch as you slip and fall to your death.” He came up next to her and bent his knees holding his hands out behind him. “Hop on.”

“W-what?”

“Hop on,” She hesitated and he chuckled. “Have you never ridden piggyback before, dove?”

She knew he was teasing her, but she flushed all the same. “How is this any better?”

“Would I offer to carry you if I thought it unsafe?”

“I don’t know. I barely know you.”

He straightened and turned with a mock look of hurt written across his features. “You wound me! I thought we had a connection.”

“I’ve only met you once before and in the middle of the night at that.”

“And I graciously bestowed you with one of my moon lilies. Is that not deserving of your trust? Now, do you want your flowers or not?”

Raina didn’t move save for a twitch in her leporine ears. She didn’t think Cassian would hurt her. And should he intend to, it would be a poorly conceived plan to have them both fall in the stream. Letting out a soft huff, she approached him. “Just don’t drop me.”

He grinned and bent his knees again allowing her to clamber onto his back. “Wouldn’t dream of it, dove.” Raina wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders taking care not to dump her few already gathered flowers from her basket. She was met with his warm and fresh scent. Once he was satisfied she was situated, he started forward towards the stream, crossing it easily in two strides then bent again so she could slide off his back on the far bank. 

Not wanting to keep him waiting, she rushed over to the patch of wildflowers and snipped a couple that looked like they were nearly ready to bloom. She placed them carefully in the basket tucked in the crook of her elbow then turned back to where Cassian stood watching her with his hands resting on his hips. 

Their eyes met and he grinned again. “Someday you’re going to have to show me your collection of flowers.”

She allowed herself a small smile this time. “Someday,” she repeated.

“I look forward to the day,” he said, his voice a little softer this time. Raina felt her heart flip again. “Now, ready to return?” She nodded and approached him again. “Excellent. All aboard!”

[scapegrace74-blog]

Ginger Snap, Chapter 6

A/N  Well, here it is.  The last chapter of Ginger Snap.   As an unplanned fic inspired by a vanity license plate, I’m happy with how it turned out.   There will be a short epilogue posted in the next week or so.  In the meantime,  thank you so much for coming on this unexpected ride with me!   This chapter’s themed title is Fire in the Belly.

Previous chapters are best enjoyed on my AO3 page, because I have a bad habit of going back and editing them after they’ve been posted.

The next five months were some of the most difficult of my life.  

After our talk, Frank and I agreed that it would be best that we parted ways.  The Southside flat was close to the university, plus I’d never truly felt at home there, so it made sense for him to keep it.  Fortunately, we’d never combined our savings and I still had money tucked away from my time as a medical resident in Boston.

Geillis wanted me to move into her sprawling Murrayfield home, at least temporarily, but I knew that I needed a place of my own.  To stand on my own two feet, as it were.   Which was how I found myself moving my few belongings into a modest Morningside walk-up as the rest of Edinburgh celebrated Hogmanay with fireworks and drunken revelry.

I scheduled the written component of my medical licensing exam for February.  This was likely foolhardy, but I’d already wasted enough time.  As a result, almost every waking hour was dedicated to studying.  The flat remained an empty box whose naked beige walls bore witness to my rudimentary existence.

Geillis called regularly, reminding me to eat and to occasionally step outside for a breath of fresh air.  Returning up the high street from one of our weekly coffee dates, a bright flash in a shop window caught my eye.

I stopped and stared as the afternoon sun lit the vase like a shard of stained glass.  It was a profound shade of blue: the colour of a field of indigo, of the night sky in a Byzantine icon, of Jamie’s eyes when he laughed.  It sat on my windowsill, filled with the season’s first daffodils, as I pored over practice exams.

***

“Geillis, I passed!  I fucking passed!”  An elderly woman seated across from me on the bus muttered under her breath about vulgar Sassenachs, but I was too elated to care.

“Of course ye did, ye brilliant disaster.  Now I can brag tae the neighbours I have my own personal physician.”

“Not so fast, Duncan.  I still need to pass the clinical exam, and that’s no small thing.”  My gut twisted just thinking about it, but unlike the written exam, there was little I could do to prepare.  Either I knew how to perform as a doctor or I did not.  The long months since I’d last treated a patient loomed like a large shadow over that question.

“Och, yer bum’s oot the window Claire,” my friend dismissed blithely.  “Ye’re gonna do great.  When do ye head down tae yer homeland, then?”

“May first.”  The practical examination took place in Manchester and needed to be scheduled three months in advance.

“Sounds like ye’ve got some time on yer hands.  Whate’er are ye going tae do with yerself?” Geillis asked in a singsong voice.

Fortunately for me, spring was Edinburgh’s most pleasant season.  Its many gardens and laneways erupted in carpets of buds and blooms.  The air smelled fresh and green, like biting into a tart apple.  I took long walks and fell in love with the city I now called home.  There were secondhand bookstores to explore and a weekly craft market where I gradually amassed an assortment of items that made my flat feel like a home.  With each passing day, my existence felt more and more like a life; one I defined for myself.

I also started to explore my options for employment, hoping for a job offer from one of the city’s hospitals that was conditional upon my successful completion of the licensing process.  It was to that end that I found myself walking down the corridor of The Royal Edinburgh hospital after what I hoped had been a rather successful interview with the deputy director of surgery.

“Claire?”

I recognized her voice immediately.  Before turning around I closed my eyes and sent out a fervent appeal to the universe.

“Jenny, hi.  How are you?”

She looked just the same, her straight black hair such a contrast to her brother.  Next to her stood a man, but not the man I had conjured the moment I heard her voice.  I was unclear whether that meant my prayer had been answered or not.  Seeing my gaze stray, Jenny jumped to introductions.

“This is my husband, Ian.  We’re here fer treatment on his leg.”

“Nothing serious, I hope.”  

“Jes a fitting fer a new prosthetic.  Jenny keeps beatin’ me o’er the head with the old one, ye see.”  I laughed, instantly liking his easy-going manner, so in contrast with Jenny’s intensity.

“Ye must be the Claire I hear sae much about,” he went on, and I wondered what had been said about me in the Fraser household.

“Nothing bad, I hope.”

Ian smiled warmly.  “Only good things, I promise ye.”

“What brings ye tae the hospital, Claire?” Jenny interjected.

I explained how I was in the process of qualifying to practice medicine in Scotland, provided I could pass my exams.  Jenny and Ian were both delighted, congratulating me as though I’d already accomplished my goal.  As we spoke about Wee Jamie’s latest exploits and the ongoing growth of Ginger Snap, I couldn’t help notice that Jenny was staring at my hands.  At my left hand in particular.  Finally, I couldn’t resist temptation any longer.

“And, how is Jamie doing?”  I tried to sound casual, but I was certain my faltering voice betrayed me.

“Very well,” Jenny replied.  “Busy, as ye can imagine, but he thrives on chaos.”

I nodded, trying to be satisfied with the news that he was well.  It was the most I could hope for, really.  Jenny eyed me shrewdly before continuing.

“He’s a good man, my brother.  Any lass would be verra lucky tae have him.  I’d like tae see him settled, but he refuses tae be rushed.  Says the right woman is worth the wait.”  She paused before adding,  “I reckon ye ken wha’ he means.”

“Yes,” I breathed.  “I know exactly what he means.”

***

I took the overnight train from Edinburgh to Manchester.  It meant I was likely to arrive at the testing centre deprived of sleep, but I rationalized that most of my residency could be characterized as one long evaluation under similar conditions, and I hadn’t killed anyone yet.  Still, as the velvety darkness slipped by outside my window, studded by the lights of passing farms, my doubts got the better of me.

I texted Geillis, looking for moral support.  For once she didn’t reply immediately.  There was one other name on my laughably short list of contacts.  I deliberated for all of a minute, but the late hour and creeping panic made me impulsive.

Hello.

Best to start with something innocuous, rather than the slightly more revealing “I miss you.  I think about you every day.”  A reply bubble appeared immediately after I hit send.  At least I hadn’t woken him up.  A small tempest stirred in my gut.

Arsonist.  Hello.  How are you?

I tried to picture him.  Was he at home?  Working late?  Or, in a scenario that played out far too often in my mind, on a date?

I’m alright.  Well, to be honest, I feel like I’m going to puke and cry.  Not necessarily in that order.

Och, lass.  Do you need me to come over?

Damn it, this man.  I had done nothing to deserve his unswerving loyalty but mislead him and then disappear for months on end.  And yet here he was, willing to come to my aid on the flimsy pretext of a late night text.  Guilt and tenderness warred for possession of my heart.

That may prove a bit difficult, Jamie.  I’m on a train to England.

There was a long pause, and then a two letter reply.

Oh.

I realized at once that he’d leapt to the wrong conclusion: that I had left Edinburgh for good.  I rushed to correct the error.

I’m taking the second stage of my examination to practice as a NHS doctor tomorrow.   It’s all hands-on situations, and the licensing facility is in Manchester.

Arsonist, that’s wonderful news!  I’m so proud of you.

I blushed, then leaned my heated cheek against the chilled pane of glass.  It had been a rash impulse, but this conversation was exactly what I needed.  I wasn’t alone in this.  Geillis and Jamie were in my corner.

What has your stomach in a twist, then?

What if I’ve forgotten what to do?!  It’s been almost a year since I’ve so much as used a stethoscope, Jamie.  The exam is eighteen real-life situations and you’re given eight minutes to respond to each one.  Not a second longer.  I’m just...  what if I fail?

And there it was.  The kernel of fear that lived at the heart of everything I did.  What if I failed?   What if my best wasn’t good enough?

Claire, listen to me.  You’re a doctor, just as I am a chef.  It wouldn’t matter if I had not set foot in a kitchen in ten years, I would still remember how to cook, and I know that it’s the same for you.  I believe it with everything in me.

On some level, I knew that he was right.  But it still comforted me tremendously to hear it from someone I trusted.

Alright.  That helps.  I should let you get to bed.  Thank you for talking me off my ledge, Jamie.

Anytime, Arsonist.

As I got ready sign off, another text bubble appeared.

Oh, and Claire?  Don’t burn down their wee laboratory, okay? ;-)

I laughed out loud, muting my phone and reclining my seat.  Outside, the stars shone brightly, tiny fires in the firmament to guide me on my way.

***

It was a lovely late spring day, and the retractable doors to the fire station were open to the warm breeze.  I could hear Angus’ voice as he led a cooking demonstration for a group of young women; a bridal shower by the look of their ridiculous costumes.

“Mind the coriander, lass.  Tis a verra powerful aphrodisiac, ken?  I willna be held responsible if ye canna resist my considerable charms after ye eat yon soup.”

There was an outburst of giggles as I rounded the corner and entered the reception area.  Jenny was on the phone.  She halted mid-sentence when she saw me walk in.  I rubbed my hands down the front of my jeans, trying to stay calm.

“He’s in the storeroom, in the back,” Jenny prompted before I could even offer a greeting.  I smiled gratefully, relieved I didn’t have to make small talk.  I had only so much courage stored in reserve, and I didn’t want to use it all up before reaching my destination.

The storeroom was long and narrow, lit by a single naked bulb and girded with shelves.  Jamie stood with his broad back to the door, his curls absorbing the light like amber.  He had a clipboard in one hand, performing some kind of inventory.

“Jes how many lentils dae ye reckon we need, Janet?  There’s nine cans of them here already, and ye have us ordering ten more.”

I’d almost forgotten how much I loved his voice, the undulating grit and silk of it.  I had to remaster the art of speech before I could reply.

“It’s not Jenny.  It’s me.  Claire.”

He froze, and if it weren’t for the sudden rapid flow of his breath I would have assumed he hadn’t heard me.  My nerves got the better of me and I blurted out, “I like lentils.  You should listen to your sister.”

“Claire.”  More sigh than word.  He slowly turned.  It was when our eyes met that I knew nothing had changed for him.  It was still there, after all these months.  That look that told me I was the map to his journey, the focus to his vision, the reason to his why.  

Hopefully he could read that same certainty on my face.

“I passed my exams,” I began.  “I’m a doctor again.”

“Ye never stopped bein’ a doctor.  This jus’ makes it official.”

“I’m still a disaster in the kitchen,” I continued.  “Last week I ruined two saucepans.”

“Tha’s only a tragedy if ye dinna have someone willin’ tae cook fer ye,” he replied with a strange squinting motion I understood was meant to be a wink.

“I’m still learning who I am.  How to be true to the person on the inside,” I confessed.  This is what had kept me away for so long, worried that I would escape from Frank’s orbit just to be caught up in another.  Jamie never once expected my submission, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t offer it out of habit.

“I’ll let ye in on a secret.  Sae is everyone else,” he replied.

Without realizing it, we’d both been moving until we were crowded together amongst the dried herbs and canned goods.  My hand rested against the solid metronome of his heart.  Just one more confession to go.

“I burn for you in a way I’ve never burned for anything before.”

There.  It was said.  A thousand wings of rapture beat against the cage of my ribs, clamoring to break free.  Jamie carefully pushed a loose curl behind my ear before cupping my jaw.

“Wee arsonist.  Come, set my life on fire.”

[katsukikitten]

Part 3 please let me know what you think! Enjoy!

Part 1 ××× Part 2

Bakugou finds himself wandering around the seemingly endless house in a combination of avoiding you and giving you space. 

And truth be told he's a bit curious as to how far the house really goes. He hadn't had the opportunity to get far the first time around. Mei spying him heading towards the kitchen and steering him in the direction of the oversized dining room. 

He sighs, the halls darkened and painted in red hues from the dying sun that peeked in through the woven tatami blinds that separated the inside from the engawa. He passes by what must be one of the many bathrooms as he sees steam seeping from the door and hears children laughing on the other side, he walks further past other large rooms with the tatami sliding doors half open inviting guests into the endless darkness. 

Soon the halls are painted in the soft light of the moon. He has lost time in his deep thoughts. 

Thoughts forever leading back to you and his screaming arm. 

The funny thing is that before this trip, before you sank to your knees in front of him in the apartment, he never really had given you a second thought. The only time he did was when you made that damned ramen you bribed him with. 

So why were you all he could think about now?

Suddenly he finds himself in a familiar hallway that leads to a set of open doors, light flooding the wooden floors. He realizes too late that he is standing in the light and potentially disturbing the inhabitants or worse yet spotted by them. He takes a step back but it's too late. 

"Bakugou dear please come in." Sobo calls as Bakugou damns himself for being so careless. Company was the last thing he wanted.

But he does as he's told. Stepping into the study with new eyes, now having the time to look it over, where as before you rushed him in, forcing him to bow to not one but two strangers today. This time around he notices bookshelves that line the room closest to the door while the rest of the walls are covered with photos and awards. Famous politicians, CEOs, and heroes in each photo, each one having a younger version of her in it. 

It's uncanny how much you look like her, especially in the one standing next to a young All Might, not a hair out of place as she wears the crane kimono in the photo. Finally his eyes fall to the elderly woman who summoned him from his aimless walk.  She is sitting stick straight, eyes fixated on a set of white flower buds that gently sway in the breeze.

"Look," Her voice velvet as she points with a skinny finger, "They are blooming." 

Bakugou stays standing and grunts in response, apple red eyes fixated on the petals that seem to reflect the silvery glow of the moon as they slowly open. 

"Do you know what makes a moon flower so wonderful and awe inspiring?" Sobo asks but Bakugou does not answer. Instead he bites his lip and watches as her elderly features bloom into excitement before she speaks, "It's ability to thrive in the dark. To have so little light to work with and yet to embrace it wholeheartedly. I know there is at least one person in your life that reminds you of this flower." 

The hot head isn't sure where she is going with this...lecture of sorts. She gives him a knowing smile as the words play over in his head a few times. Sure there were a few people he could think of. 

She pulls him from his deep thoughts with a question as she places a board between herself and the empty cushion. 

"Have you ever played the game Go before Bakugou?" He has but he isn't so inclined to play. 

Playing house was enough for him this weekend. 

"No." His voice is even and his body still full of tension.  Of fight and a bit of pain from the altercation from before. 

"Come, I'll teach you." She smiles as she gestures to the seat before him. He hesitates for just a second before he thinks he hears you nagging in the back of his head. 

Reluctantly he sits on the pillow with agitated and poor posture. 

Grandmother goes over the rules slowly and Bakugou feigns interest as he is already familiar, this game was about strategy and cornering your opponent. Things he did for a living. 

 Finally she makes the first move, placing a piece onto the board, the diamond of her ring catches Bakugou's eye and he wonders how he missed that before. 

He places his own small tile, deep black bruises catching Sobo's pitying eyes. 

"I'm thankful she didn't break your arm." She places another piece and in such an odd spot. Bakugou ignores it, going head first into the game as he does everything else. 

"Believe it or not. I've seen her do worse." He counters, Sobo keeps her eyes on the board. Taking her time as she goes while Bakugou waits patiently. The pieces go back and forth as the conversation goes on. 

"It is hard to believe. My granddaughter is normally level headed. Not much gets under her skin." She gauges his reaction, noticing his facial expression changing ever so slightly, "You did us a favor. She would have never forgiven herself should she have hurt Shoji. Or worse yet kill him.  But that's not who you were protecting was it?" 

"I was acting on instinct. I'm not a pro hero for nothin." Gruff voice carrying pride into the hallway. 

"What you said wasn't." He swallows thickly at her comment, she places another piece. He can't understand her placement, if anything she was losing, backing herself into a corner of sorts.

Kinda like this conversation, still she acts as if she is in control. 

"You mentioned the house. You mentioned me. Not too many people know that her dear old Sobo is her true soft spot." 

A suck of his teeth trying to end the little bonding talk without just up and up leaving.

He was supposed to be your fiance for god's sake so he had to tolerate this just a little bit longer. 

Still it didn't help that Sobo was poking around in uncharted territory for him. It's true, he did act on instinct but his words had been carefully thought over now that he looks back on it. 

Silence blankets the room as the night wanes on, Bakugou seeming to dominate the board. 

"Are you sure you haven't played before?" Sobo had a teasing tone to which Bakugou shrugs his shoulders, leaning back on his hands for support. 

"Beginner's luck." He shrugs, devilish smile threatening to blossom on his lips. 

"That's twice you've lied to me now." She holds her tile, waiting to make a move as she reads Bakugou. Nothing gives him away, except for that sweet sugary smell permeating the air as it's carried on the light breeze. 

"You lied about playing before. And you lied about being engaged. You two aren't even dating are you?" 

Blush plumes up his neck and cheeks still he remains silent, vermillion eyes fixated on the board. 

"It's not obvious if that's what you're thinking. The two of you almost had me fooled. But I didn't see a ring.  I know she has lied about boyfriends before for my sake. And I know my granddaughter can be a handful at times but I see the way she looks at you." She pauses for a moment, wishing for Bakugou to meet her eyes, she continues when he doesn't, "and how you look at her. You already fit right in, mago." 

He looks up at her then, holding those fierce earthy eyes, she offers a soft smile. 

"You may have lied to me a few times already but I know you were telling the truth when you said you'd die for her." She finally counters Bakugou's move, ending the game in his utter surprising defeat, the light dances on the diamond of her ring catching the attention of scarlet eyes once more. He bites his lip, returning his deadly gaze to the board. He hadn't even fathomed she'd make that move, she smiles a bit mischievously motioning for Bakugou's hand. She takes his calloused hand into her wrinkled, capable hands smoothing out his warm palm and fingers until his hand is fully open. Something cool is pressed against his skin before she slides his fingers over the object, holding her hands over his. 

"Think on it." She says before she let's go, "Thank you for humoring this old woman." 

She smiles and Bakugou takes that as a dismissal. He stands, head a little hazed as he steps into the hall. 

Finally he opens his hand to reveal a ring, the very same ring that was on her finger moments ago. 

His heart pounds in his chest, leaping up into his throat before he closes his palm again.  The diamond bites into the flesh of his palm. Suddenly he is no longer curious just how far the house goes. 

He finds the shared bedroom and is thankful when he does not see you in it. He turns on the string lights and paces before he shoves the ring into his book bag. 

"What the hell is that old hag thinking?!" He snarls, fisting his ash locks. He looks around, noticing all of the small things in your room that clearly hadn't changed since you had left for UA and college. The posters of old animes, of aged jpop idols and photos of long forgotten friends and never to be forgotten family.  He sighs, almost ripping the tatami door as he slides it open.  He notices an odd and obviously old fissure snaking through the Earth, all the way to the base of the mountain. 

What made you angry enough to do this? 

The question runs through his mind over and over until he fishes out his phone video calling the only person he can semi trust his odd feelings with. They pick up with a gleaming sharp toothed smile. 

"Oi shitty hair." 

×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*×*

Mei had better have taken Bakugou and his things back to what was supposed to be his bedroom for the week. The last person you wanted to see was Bakugou.

Every second that passed between now and the incident in the dining room was washed over in tones of red and black. Furthering yourself self aimed anger as you damn yourself for not keeping control. 

What would have happened if he wasn't there to stop you? 

Would the house have caved? Would you have accidentally killed Shoji? Worse yet what would have happened to Sobo and the children. 

Still Shoji deserved the scare from both you and grandmother. 

His selfish actions costs countless unsuspecting victims their quirks. 

Your friends and Uncle Sozen among them. Mei had only just told you in the bath when you brushed off hurting Bakugou with a simple. 

"Uncle can fix him right up."

Her silence was answer enough. It would explain why he had been checking on Sobo in person more often. No longer able to activate his quirk to both heal and track people's vitals. 

Hesitating before your door you think if you should just rise early and take Bakugou back to the station first thing. 

You think of telling Sobo the truth. 

A sigh leaves your lips as you settle on an in person apology for now, which you would do as soon as you shed this tattered towel from your form and dressed. 

Little did you know the opportunity to apologize would arise so soon. 

Sliding open the familiar tatami reveals Bakugou Katsuki lying on his side on the futon, idling scrolling through his phone. 

"K..Katsuki!" You stutter, pulling the already straining towel around your thick frame. His eyes are pulled to you, the source of his annoyance before you shout out. 

"Keep your eyes closed, pervert!" 

"Aren't you the pervert for walking in here with nothing but a towel?" His tone is deadly velvet as he holds eye contact. Scarlet beginnings to drag southward. 

"Hey! Stop! Please!" He notices the blush in your cheeks that starts to bloom at the tip of your ears. He smirks to himself, shaking his head. When he closes his eyes he thinks of you on your knees again, his jaw clenches in response. 

Quickly you dig through your bag for something, anything. But you keep coming back to your lace bralette and cotton black underwear. 

You thought you would be in your old room alone. Not having some fucked up sleep over with the one roommate you were never really close with! 

But you always put yourself in fucked up situations don't you? 

You dress quickly, keeping your eyes on him as you do. He keeps his own scarlet eyes locked away behind long eyelashes. Long enough they kiss the apples of his cheeks. Body slowly going slack as he waits for you cue. Head still propped up on a strong arm while his other hand held his unlocked phone that illuminated with his social media. His lips are relaxed instead of set in their usual harsh snarl. 

He looks...different like this. 

Softer. 

Your breath hitches as your heart summersolts.

"Oi. What's wrong? How long does it take a shitty woman to get dressed." He snarls again, almost breaking the spell. When he opens his eyes he scoffs. 

"It took you that long to get dressed in next to nothing?" He bites, locking his phone and pulling his shirt over his head with one hand. 

"It's not like I was expecting company!" You hiss, his broad hands go to the waist band of his pants, "What are you doing?" 

"Getting ready for bed dumbass." Another scoff as he lifts his hips just slightly to slide his pants off of his toned legs. Your cheeks heat as you try to ignore the indentation in his boxer briefs. 

"Um can't you w..wear something else?" 

"I normally sleep naked sweetheart. So beggars can't be fucking choosers." He finally slides under the blanket of the futon and returns to his phone. Your eyes narrow, would this have gone differently had you brought Kirishima or hell even Izuku for fucks sake? 

"Oi, are you gonna come to bed or stand there all night? I'm not gonna fucking bite." He snarls, before his lips turn upward in an assholish teasing way, "Much." 

You hit him with your pillow. Causing him to almost drop his phone on his face. He growls as you reach to turn on the heavy duty fan to keep the room at a somewhat comfortable temperature. 

Exhaustion runs at you full force as you're pulled under with the aided sounds of the summer crickets and loud fan. 

But Bakugou finds himself lying awake, too hot in the shared bed as you block all of that sweet cool air. The only thing he gets is a lukewarm breeze that makes him question his life choices. 

Questions and answers circle around in his head while the moon gets lower and lower in the sky. He turns over to face you and noticing for the first time tonight that you're shivering. 

He cannot fathom how. It had to be 79 plus with the sun down, he lets his hands hover over you, feeling the breeze from the fan. The air is cold enough it reminds him of standing close to Todoroki. He sighs, activating a bit of his quirk before placing his warmed palm on your chilled skin. You sigh into the touch, scooting closer to the source of warmth until your ass is pressed against him. 

He groans from agitation and other things before he gently climbs over you so he could bare the brunt of the icy wind to his back while you warmed up. Snuggling into his chest with a soft smile. 

His heart explodes, skin becoming hot and cold all at once from just that small smile. 

He sighs, pushing some hair away from your face wondering how someone could be so perfect in the moonlight. 

[fatefulfaerie]

Honesty Part 7 (Last One)

Part One here

Part Two here

Part Three here

Part Four here

Part Five here

Part Six here

Zelda supposed it was the adventurous spirit in both of them that led them to sit upon the roof, gazing at the stars and yet very aware of the person next to them. Sometimes they shared words, small talk about this or that. Sometimes they shared silence, just as comfortable, just as safe. Either way, Zelda found herself forgetting about her troubles in the company of Link.

“It’s hard to believe that it’s been a week already,” Link remarked, obviously attempting to strike up another bout of conversation. Zelda turned her head. “I feel like I just got here and now we are journeying to rendezvous with Urbosa early tomorrow morning.”

Zelda smiled to herself.

“You did sleep through a pretty big chunk of it,” she jived, Link offering a slight chuckle in reply.

“Damn mushrooms,” he said before their words faded again, Zelda listening to the chirps of crickets and the rattles of cicadas. 

She thought of the words of Link’s mother, the advice that the line between a deep friendship and a romantic relationship was farther away than she thought. Zelda knew she could cross over at any time, but it was that trepidation, that hesitation that seemed to drive them both to pure flustered anxiety when around each other, like one move would cross a line they could never come back from, that they would fall so deep in love that they would fall from a great height, and thus so would Hyrule.

Link’s mother reminded her that shutting him out because of that fear may be just as detrimental. There had to be a balance.

“Hey, Link?” Zelda prompted, keeping her gaze on the stars and her weight on the hands behind her.

“Yeah?”

Zelda didn’t know that Link had taken the opportunity to look over to her, to admire the way the pale light of the stars and the moon made her completely ethereal, the way she outshined them, captured their light and proved herself the better conduit for it.

“I just wanted to thank you,” Zelda said. “For this week...tolerating me, you know, the spoiled princess I am.”

“You’re not spoiled,” Link said quickly. Zelda smiled to herself and was glad the darkness of the night sky hid any blush. “I mean...you deserve a break just as much as I do. I’m glad I got to give that to you, and...well I like having you around.”

Zelda kept smiling. This felt more normal, and even better, it felt more natural.

“I like having you around too,” Zelda said in reply. “I think you...”

Zelda stopped herself. She had to temper her honesty, balance telling him how she felt without pouring out her entire heart and drowning them both in their dangerous love.

“I think you may be the best friend I’ve ever had,” Zelda said, Link hiding his surprise well. “I know you are under orders to protect me, but you were never under orders to forgive me for my prior immaturity, nor were you under orders to befriend me and support me like you have. No one has ever had my back like you do, no knight assigned to me, not even Urbosa or my father...oh gosh this is probably sounding horribly strange...I think I just want to let you know that I have your back too, no matter what. I...uhmm...I care about you a lot.”

She finally overcame her anxiety and looked over to Link, who was looking so intently at the night sky that it seemed quite the oddity.

“What are you doing?!” Zelda asked with a resummoned petulance. “Are you even listening to me?!”

“Yeah,” he said. “I’m looking for flying pigs.”

“Goddesses,” Zelda said, playfully shoving him, which made him laugh. “I was trying to be sincere and you turn it into a joke! I can’t believe I li...”

Link looked over to her immediately as her intended word cut short and slowed down, hanging on the syllable as she tried to save it. Her heart burned with panic and embarrassment and somehow the brain she was often praised for failed her, Zelda forgetting every word she had ever learned.

“...ke...you,” she finally finished, closing her eyes filled with regret, and scampering off the roof quickly.

“Princess, wait!” Link said with an outstretched hand, coming to a kneel to watching her run across the bridge towards the center of town.

Link sighed as he followed suit, hopping down to the roof of the stable, as if it was a stepping stone downwards, soon meeting his feet to grass. 

He bursted through the door to his house, nearly scaring his mother half to death where she stood cooking.

“Link!” She said breathlessly with a hand on her chest. “What in Hyrule are you--”

“Do you remember where I put the sword?” Link asked, frantically looking everywhere.

“For goodness sake, Link, I’m sure it’s here somewhere,” Ruth said as Link ran upstairs. She furrowed her brow, looking up at the loft. “Would you calm down?!”

“Can’t,” Link replied, sword in hand and running back down the stairs. “I’ll be back for dinner.” Link slammed the the door behind him with as much haste as he had opened it. Ruth rolled her eyes and shook her head.

“Hylia, help that boy.”

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

Link knew exactly where she would run, and thus, his legs burned as he ran up the hill to Purah’s laboratory as fast as he could.

Knocking on the door, he panicked with worry. She could have been in danger and even if she wasn’t, she was likely ashamed for something she simply shouldn’t be. Link always assumed she didn’t like him back but now his mind overflowed with possibility that was once a fantasy. Most of all, however, he just wanted to see her okay.

“Linky!” He heard as soon as the door opened, the young Purah standing there with excited red eyes. Link gave a nervous and forced smile before return to his concerned expression.

“Is the princess here?” Link asked.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this serious Link,” Purah observed like she was studying him. “And your face is completely flushed. Tell me, do you have any other symptoms?”

Link sighed.

“Just answer my question,” Link demanded.

“She’s around back,” Purah said, Link immediately walking to find his Princess. “Wait,” Purah said, stopping him and prompting him to turn back around. “I thought you two were past her running from you.”

“We are,” Link said. “Well, we were...there was just a misunderstanding. I’ll fix it.”

“Well then I wish you the best of luck, young knight,” Purah said before closing the door.

Link tread around the lab, finding Zelda hugging her knees and staring out at the vast sea, lit by the moonlight. Link questioned whether or not she knew he was here, whether she would have run and whether he had the courage to make himself known.

“I was trying to bridge the gap without letting that out,” Zelda said suddenly, alerting Link to the fact that she did in fact know. He leaned casually on the outside wall of the lab, his ears penned for her next words. “I don’t want to lose you because of the distance I have to keep to not...get too close. I was trying to follow your mother’s advice to not let this get in the way of still being there for each other.” Zelda laughed at herself. “I did a great job.”

“Don’t beat yourself up about it,” Link said. “Besides, I get where you are coming from. When we talked about focusing only on defeating the calamity, I think we both had this in mind...of course thinking that the other person didn’t. And yes, Your Highness, that means I like you back, for better or worse.”

Zelda tried not to let her heart flutter with joy, not to jump up and into his arms. She tried to look at the ocean and forget that his eyes were the same, beautiful color.

“I can’t erase my feelings,” Link said. “Can you?”

Zelda shook her head.

“No,” she replied.

Link finally stepped forward and knelt next to her to match her eye line, Zelda looked over to him once he did. They couldn’t but smile at the sight of the other.

“This is insane,” Link said. “I mean you of all people like like me.”

“The irony is not lost on me,” Zelda said with a slight laugh. Link moved to sit on his heels and took her hands into his. Zelda reveled in the feeling, in the moments, in his touch, in everything about this.

“This is still a bit bizarre for me,” Link said. “And new and scary, but...I’m willing to wait for you until after the calamity is defeated...to wait to truly pursue this. I will support you and care about you sincerely until then but if you feel I’m not worth the wait--”

“You are,” Zelda said quickly with a smile. “You are.”

Link blushed, his head hanging down as he chuckled, filled with disbelief. He was almost tearing up at what he had found in her, how lucky he was. He raised his hand, pinkie outstretched.

“Let’s make a promise then, to pause this budding romance until we defeat the calamity once and for all, to still be there for each other with the same love, care, and support, but not risk our common sense because of it.”

Zelda eyed his outstretched pinkie.

“A pinkie promise?” Zelda asked with a raised brow. “That’s how we are going to seal this?”

“Do you have a better idea?”

Zelda smiled as she brought her hands to his, clasping his pinkie back into his fisted hand and holding it.

“How about a kiss?” She asked. “Just this once...for now at least.”

“What?” Link asked, his smile fading and his face reddening as much as Zelda had ever seen it. Zelda laughed.

“Link,” she said. “It’s okay.”

“Are you sure,” Link asked. “I mean you’re royalty and I’m just--”

Zelda surged forward and met her lips to his, Link soon giving in, placing his hand on her cheek as something stoked with their very souls, their silent promise continuing. The passion of their blooming love was balanced by the hesitation of their first kiss.

“You better remember this,” Zelda said as she withdrew.

“Like I could forget,” Link said jokingly.

[iwantitiwriteit]

Love Lockdown - Part 3

Lovesick

Pairing: Chris Evans x Reader

Summary: Chris braces himself for his FaceTime with you.

Warnings: Angst, Pandemic backdrop, Profanity

Notes: First In My Feelings Monday™ on books! Hopefully there’ll be more musings as the weeks go on, but I loved the whimsy the mindset added to me day! 🥰 This part was kind tough to write cos it required me to get into an opposing mind frame from the Reader, but a fun challenge nonetheless! Read the previous part here!

As much as he loved Winter in Boston, it was Spring that really captured Chris’ heart.

He’d been watching the beautiful day pass by outside his home office window while he took a few remote meetings with his team. Lockdown didn’t mean shutdown, for Chris at least, as he’s in preparation mode for an upcoming virtual press junket.

However, as soon as those glorious words, “That’s all for today,” were uttered, he upped and gathered his jacket, Dodger and headed for the front door.

“Going for a walk!” He called over his shoulder, his way of saying he’d be back soon.

“Alright, let me grab my jacket!” Scott said in response. Chris sighed and laughed to himself as he waited by the door for his brother. “What?” Scott asked when he got to Chris, who was shaking his head at his brother’s self-invite. He just laughed lightly as they bounded for the street, locking the door behind them.

It took Chris some growing up to appreciate this season. Truly appreciate it. But he’s so glad he does now. There’s a polarity in its elements that make it unique from the other seasons. 

The bright sun peeks from behind thick clouds every so often, fully exposed and giving light gloriously. The flowers, shy and budding in March, are now in April, with just a little time, bold and in bloom. The trees billowing in the cold wind are unaware of their own fierce presence, so gentle in their saving grace that is their shade.

Kind of complex, Spring in Boston. Could be perceived as annoying in its inconsistency of temperature within a 24 hour period; cold one part of the day then hot the next. But he loved that not everyday or every hour was the same. Kept him on his toes in a way.

 He couldn’t help but imagine how you’d like it here at this time of year. How he’d like you here with him. To have you on this walk right now. To hold you close when the sharp wind cuts through, chilling you both. You’d say what you always say when you snuggle up to him for warmth; that your southern bones feel the cold more than he does.

Maybe it’s true. Or Maybe it’s a lame excuse to be closer to him. Either way, he’d never complain. He loves it. He loves you.

Chris smiles to himself at the thought. Yeah, you’d love it here in the Spring. Definitely more than you did in December. What a start to a shit show that turned out to be. Chris hates to think about it. But his brain can’t help but go back there sometimes.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Scott asks, walking alongside his brother.

Chris lets out a long breath. He’s back there right now. But it doesn’t start and stop there. December makes him think of January. January makes him think of February. Then March, and before he knows it, he’s been through the chain of events that led you two here: Him in Boston, and you in Tennessee. In love but hurting from it. In the midst of a pandemic? Your relationship is just as uncertain as the end to the world’s madness.

Chris kicks himself at the painful memories. Shaking his head, he looks over to Scott who is patient as his brother finds his words.

“I’m thinking that despite the craziness of the last few weeks, months even, and being on lockdown...”

“Uh-huh…” Scott says knowing there’s more

“In an odd way, I’ve felt more free than I have in a while.”

“How’s that?”

“Well… hasn’t it been kinda great being, ya’know, solo...?” Chris eludes, not wanting to say the actual words.

“Huh? Oooooh!” Scott says as he catches Chris’ drift.

Chris won’t lie; the last 3 weeks away from you have been headache free. The bachelor lifestyle coming back to him with ease. He’s spent enough years on his own to know how to revel in the perks of singleness. No side eyes when he’s yelling at CNN or football, no being told to do stupid, necessary chores that can wait til he’s ready, and no one to get hurt when he’s inevitably fucked up in some way or another.

“Only problem is, I’m the only one of us who’s actually single.”

“Right… I know, and don’t get me wrong! I feel really lucky she hasn’t left me yet, and that she’s stuck it out with me for this long. I really can’t imagine my life without her.”

“But…” Scott prompts.

Chris is hesitant as he starts again. “But lately, guiltily...I wonder if that would be such a bad thing. If we were to… ya’know,” Chris makes weird hand motions that Scott eventually interprets as “breakup”.

“It’s a wonder you’re any good at charades.”

As much as he feels bad and knows he could’ve done some things differently, handled some things better, Chris is sooo frustrated with you.

“Why won’t she just tell me what she’s really thinking— exactly what she’s feeling. I’m not a fucking mind reader! You would think it’d be easy for her, considering what she does for a living, I don’t get it man.”

Scott waits for his cue for Chris to ask the golden question, but when he doesn’t hear it, he looks over at his older brother. Chris looks every bit a boy that’s absolutely lovesick, kicking the rocks in his way, pouting down at his feet. “You want my opinion?” Scott eventually offers.

“Please. I don’t think Dodger’s gonna give me anything good.” Chris bends down to pet the pup quickly before continuing their walk

“I think she has told you what she’s feeling— just not explicitly from her mouth.”

“If that’s the case, then her shutting down every time we’re addressing an issue is supposed to mean…?”

“You’ve got to give her some room to emote, cos you can be a bit, well, you know.” Chris did know, but it didn’t make it sting any less.

Accusations from past girlfriends of him not listening, only hearing, what’s been communicated have not gone unnoted. That, coupled with his bubbling emotions have led to many a breakup in his life. Relationships demoted to damn near flings the way women have come and gone from his life. But what he has with you couldn’t just be another relationship for the books. Chris wants to break the cycle with you… for you.

“I thought I was doing that when I suggested we social distance separately. Then last night she made it very clear that I was very wrong.”

“I could’ve told you that you were very wrong. Tax free.” The two men make their way back to the house. Looking at his brother before him, all sad and distraught, Scott was not going to let him start his own pity party.

“I don’t want to lose her. She’s the one. She’s my one. I know it.”

“Then don’t lose her.”

“When’s anything EVER been that simple?”

“I’m not saying it is, but if you know she’s the one, don’t give up so easily bro. Try everything in your power to give her the relationship she deserves. And she will do the same for you. But, if the problems still persist, then maybe, it would be for the best if…” Scott trails off as he sees his brother’s eyes start to look like those of the dog by their feet. “Look, I’m just telling you from personal, very recent experience, that it isn’t all that bad being friends on the other side of it all.”

“Ugh, God! I think I’d rather have a limb caught off and force fed to me than try to be friends with her if we ever… I can’t even say it.” Chris pokes his tongue out like he’s tasted something awful.

“You’re being hella dramatic right now.”

“But bro, I’m not even exaggerating!” The brothers laugh as they walk up the driveway. As they cross the threshold of the front door, Chris’ reminder for your FaceTime call sounds off, echoing in the foyer. He turns it off and looks up at his brother. “That’s the call to my love’s fate” he tries to joke.

Scott wears a soft, empathetic smile “Everything’s gonna be just fine. No matter what.”

Chris tries to wear some optimism, but the possibility of this being the end of your relationship tugs at him. He won’t let it get a hold of him. “Thanks, bro. I’ll see you later. And DO NOT eavesdrop.”

“Whaaaat??? I would never!” Scott feigns offense. Chris looks unconvinced. “Dodge and I are gonna enjoy an afternoon movie, isn’t that right Dodgey Wodgey?” 

“Dodger’s not even buying it. Stop it.”

“Yeah, that was weird. See ya later, man.”

Chris takes the stairs to his bedroom two by two. He sets up his laptop, making sure to plug in its charger; wouldn’t want it to die on this call.

He paces around the space in front of his desk. As many video calls as he’s done the past few weeks, none of them were as important as this one. Nervousness washes over him. He decides to embrace it; it’s natural, and a good sign. He still cares. He can only hope you do, too. 

The digital clock strikes 2. It’s time.

He calls you, the laptop ringing for a while longer than his beating heart can take. His heart sinks and doubts creep in. Is this is it? Is she done with me? No fight, no… nothing? This can’t be it. But then the ringing ceases and the screen says “connecting”, a sigh of relief involuntarily escaping him.

He can’t help but beam, proud he knows you better than his negative thoughts do. Happy that you wouldn’t leave him high and dry. 

Then he sees your face. Your beautiful face. The natural lighting of your room bouncing off your gorgeous, brown skin. Your hair is the perfect combination of defined curls and loose wisps, neat but not overly so. You are the epitome of effortless, natural beauty. He almost feels like he’s seeing you for the first time.

“Hey baby! For a second there, I thought you wouldn’t answer,” he nervously chuckles. 

You smile at him but it doesn’t reach your eyes. He senses your apprehension, even through a screen. He hadn’t done a good job of setting up this conversation with peace of mind for you, now that he thinks about it. “We need to talk” is almost always followed by some heavy, unwanted shit. Not that this talk will be easy, but he most certainly doesn’t want you thinking the worst. He genuinely wants to talk; explain his fuck ups and frustrations. And try to listen.

He figures since he’s put you two here, it’s his job to steer this ship to calmer, nicer waters. Here goes. He tries some small talk, anxiety making him ramble. “So, how’s the… weather? That’s a stupid— ugh, I’m sure it’s, like, hot. You’re down south, where it’s hot—”

“Chris?”

“Yes honey?”

“I don’t wanna do this with you.”

There it is; his worst fear. Losing you. No. He was determined to let his optimism win. Determined that his ears were deceiving him in this moment.

“What do you mean?”

Chris is too all in to go down without a fight, and  fight for you he was prepared to do.

Part 4 | What’d you think?