#but I feel like it isn't getting any better

[princesssmars]

dry humping with abby aka car sex 2.0

nsfw, fxf smut. dry humping, boob stuff, scratching and pulling. just quick and freaky.

wc : 1.100

“yeah, just like that baby, fuck- show me how much you want it.”

look, you didn't start the day thinking you'd be dry humping your girlfriend into the driver's seat of her car until you were both breathless, but sometimes things like this just happen.

it was no fault of either of yours, anyway. you were equally dedicated to your studies as you were to each other, even holding hour-long study dates every thrusday that you'd yet to miss in months. but with finals just around the corner, both of you were strung thin, barely having the time to greet each other on the phone, let alone spend some quality time together.

so, of course, that had both of you very pent up. you were both studious, yes, but that didn't mean you didn't rock each other's worlds on the frequent occasion. but for the past three weeks, all you've gotten were rushed moments in the dead of night with your moans shared over a phone, hands aching with the force of your thrusts, and hearts aching at the shared sadness of not having your girlfriend there to soothe the ache for you.

so the second you finish your last final, you truly didn't have only sex on the brain when you told abby to pick you up afterwards, ready to spend the rest of the evening in the comfort of her bed and arms as you caught up over everything else that had happened in your lives recently.

but after stopping for some quick dinner and snacks at a store, you can't pretend to ignore how her large hand rests on your thigh, fingers inching higher and higher the closer she gets to her apartment. all it takes is a flutter of your lashes and a throaty moan before the blonde covers your entire cunt through your panties with her hand. and all it takes is a whimper and a buck of your hips before her other hand is roughly serving the steering wheel, finding an empty parking lot and parking the car near the back, away from the streets and any prying eyes that could witness what was going to happen.

it's rough and fast how she grabs you, unbuckling your seat belt for you and literally picking you up from underneath your thighs and dropping you in her lap, cutting off your surprised cackle with her lips crashing into yours.

“abs, fuck, abby-”

“i know, baby, god, i missed you-” she groans into your mouth, a large palm coming up to the back of your neck, pushing and gripping like she mesh the two of you together is she tries hard enough. it's not like you're any better, hands in a similar position on her bare shoulders and scratching at the freckled skin to draw more whines from her throat.

it's not even a few minutes before the sloppy make-out session isn't enough for you anymore, desperation taking hold as your hips start to grind down into hers, the friction of your jeans pushing into your clit sending pleasurable shocks throughout your entire body. abbys hand travels from your neck down to your chest, squeezing your breast through your shirt while her other hand anchors itself on your hip for leverage as she grinds herself up and into you.

seeing abby below you, writhing and panting as her head drops back onto the seat, adorable blue eyes lidded as they stare up at you on top of her only makes you feel hotter, hands rushing down to tear off your shirt to alleviate the heat and so that she can fully grasp your tits in her hand.

“god, you wanted this to happen, huh?” abby breathes, voice light as she takes notice of your very braless chest.

“says the one about to cum in her pants, ohhhh-” your rebuttal is cut off with a drawn out moan traveling up and out of your throat, head tilting back when abby’s mouth wraps around one of your nipples and starts to bite.

she always reacted when you talked back to her.

it's almost like a challenge to see who can bring the other over faster, with abby continuing her sucking and biting on your chest as you continue to scratch at her arms and pull at her hair. it's when her palm sneaks its way down to your behind and squeezes before giving it a harsh smack that you realize you're close to release, deciding some near-orgasm rambles are just going to have to do the job.

“abby, abby, feels s’ good, you make me feel so fucking good-”

“yeah? you like that, beautiful?” her voice is strained, hips bucking at an angle that you know feels just right on her oh so sensitive clit, her freckles barely visible with the intensity of her flush.

“yeah. missed you, missed your talking, your kisses, your fingers…”

“ohh, shit, nghh- baby…”

using the last bit of un-fucked out intelligence you have left, you wrap a hand around her wrist and yank her hand up to your mouth, keeping eye contact as you envelop two of her thick fingers into your mouth.

“missed having you inside me, absy.”

your shared orgasms are a quick sequence of intense events, abby’s moaning combined with her fingers thrusting deeper into your mouth triggering your own muffled cries as you use that last bit of energy to keep humping until you’re thoroughly satisfied.

when it ends, you're left lying on her chest, bodies at a slightly odd angle as she pushes the seat back as far as she can to make space for you without removing her skin from touching yours. after a minute of catching your breaths, you look up at her with your chin rested on her chest.

“guess we were a little pent up, huh?”

she laughs, a breathy and sweet sound that makes your heart flutter in your chest. “yeah, guess you could say that. someone seemed to enjoy it, though.”

“oh please, my throat is still sore because someone got a little too excited at the end there.”

“oh yeah?”

you don't get a chance to respond before you're somehow being lifted and placed in the backseat of the car, abby’s frame placed above you as her hands rest on either side of your head.

“then it’d only make sense if i made some other parts of your sore then, yeah?”

[uncle-fruity]

[Image ID: tags from Tumblr user strawberri-syrup that read: #how do u translate knowing u do this into actually fixing it #my lack of communication has killed all my friendships and idk where to start /End ID]

Hey, good question! It's one thing to know about what your behaviors are and another thing to know how to change them into new (hopefully helpful) behaviors. Idk if this will help you, but I'm going to bring up some strategies to help folks break free of their people pleasing habits.

Let's focus on you, first. Being a people pleaser requires you to objectify and dehumanize yourself in the process, so that is what you're working against. When you people please, there is a part of yourself that has decided your comfort and your needs are not as important or worthy as other people's comfort and needs. This isn't usually a conscious decision, but rather learned through past experiences and current insecurities. It's why a lot of people pleasers have a history of emotional abuse: the abuser requires you to shut down your emotional needs and predict their moods, and when you can't do that (no one can forever) they punish you. So you might very well have picked up the message that you are only as good as you are useful or only as good as you are patient/nice and that any amount of "negative emotion" (anger, sadness, disappointment, etc) will not be tolerated even by people you love.

That is a hard cycle to break out of. So, to start, I think it's good to take some time to reflect on what emotion or belief drives your need to people please and bottle yourself up. Working against feelings of insecurity, fear of abandonment, fear of ridicule, fear of conflict... that's the hardest part of this, but it's also the most important thing to practice. But there are things that will help you.

So let's say you've already figured out why you act like this. You know why you tend to people please and you're in the middle of processing your feelings about it. Good! That will be an ongoing process. But reflection and wanting to change aren't much without action behind them, and that is much harder than just thinking about things.

So! First really actionable thing you can do is set some boundaries! You don't have to do the scary telling your friends part yet, you just need to know what your boundaries are. A lot of people pleasers don't know what their boundaries are. They might have boundaries, but they let people walk over those boundaries because they don't recognize that they were boundaries to begin with. So, define those. Maybe you don't like being touched in certain ways. Maybe you get anxious and need to leave in certain situations. Maybe you need to have a dedicated time for just yourself without anyone contacting you... idk what your needs are; I'm not you. But you are you and you know what you need and want -- or at least have a better chance of figuring it out than I do.

Remember!! Boundaries are something *you* enforce for yourself. Obviously, a good friend will respect your boundaries, but if someone doesn't respect your boundaries, it is your job to respond to that. Let's say you have the boundary, "Don't yell at me/raise your voice in anger when we're having a disagreement." Well, you can't control someone who doesn't care about your feelings and will walk over your boundary even after you told them about it. What you can do is control your response. So, when you think of the boundaries you have, you should also consider what you will do in response to someone crossing that boundary. In our example, perhaps a good response would be to walk away, leave the conversation until the other person can talk to you with respect for your needs.

I've spent a long time on boundaries, but that's because it's one of the most important things for a people pleaser to understand about themselves. Think of people pleasing like muscle memory. If you do it enough, it will be your default mode of action. You won't have to think about it to do it. But breaking your current muscle memory and rebuilding that memory into something else will require intention and dedication. Boundaries help you focus your intentions and define your needs. Many smarter people than me have talked about boundaries before, so look into some resources about how to make and maintain boundaries if you want to learn more.

Next, setting expectations. This is about understanding where your limits are and having conversations with the people you love before it becomes an issue. Best example I have is one of my own experiences. I am very bad at responding to texts and messages when I'm overwhelmed or busy. I can go weeks without responding if the matter isn't urgent. But this can be a problem in my relationships if that behavior goes fully unaddressed. People start to feel like you're avoiding them or blowing them off. So I started setting expectations for folks -- I was open about the fact that my response times are bad. I was clear that it was not a personal thing when I didn't get back to people. And I made sure to reassure people that even if I'm not responding, I am *looking* at the messages soon after they're sent, and I *will* respond if there is an emergency or if there's a time sensitive question. I haven't had a problem with this since having open and honest conversations up front *before* it became a real problem.

All that to say, if you know you have preferences or behaviors that might conflict with your relationships, talk to your friends about it and make sure y'all are on the same page. A lot of times, people pleasers feel like they need to anticipate the needs of the people around them. That can be good and bad, depending on how you go about it. But it is much easier when you actually talk to them about their needs and expectations. This should be a two-way conversation. Everyone involved should state their needs and together you should define expectations within the relationship.

The communication part is really the key here. It isn't bad to want to care for your friends. It isn't even bad to occasionally put your own preferences aside in order to compromise. But if your friends don't know that something is upsetting you, they can't do anything about it. Which cycles around to the emotional abuse pattern of "mind reading." When you hide your anger or resentment, you are essentially making your friends read your emotions and anticipate your needs. It destabilizes the friendship. If your friends don't know what upsets you, how can they know that they're upsetting you if you don't speak up? Not only that, but if they're trying to figure out why you're upset, they might read it wrong and find solutions for problems you don't have while the original problem continues to churn inside you. That is ALSO a thing people pleasers do.

Another example. I have a people pleaser friend who has the history of emotional abuse etc etc. There was a time (years ago) when she'd get drunk and show me her tits and like. Yeah. I appreciated looking at tits. Love that stuff. But what she anticipated is that I would want to have sex with her. So she offered one day (she was sober, fwiw) and I said sure! But I always like to have a conversation about what people are into and all that. She dodged so many of my questions about what she liked, what she wanted, etc. Not only that, but I felt like she wasn't really listening to me when I was talking about what I liked and she didn't ask any questions to get to know my preferences better. So when we finally got to the sex part, I was stressed out. She sounded like she was faking her pleasure. She didn't want to touch me in any way that really felt good to me. She just expected me to use my strap and have my fun. It made me feel absolutely terrible about myself. Like, I didn't need to have sex with her. I didn't think that her showing me her boobs was naturally going to lead to sex. Looking back, this was a particularly rough time for our friendship, so we eventually had a conversation about it. It came out that she only had sex with me because she assumed that's what I not only wanted but expected from her. I honestly felt extremely hurt. I'd originally thought she *wanted* to have sex with me, and that was the only reason I agreed to do it. I felt ugly and undesirable when she didn't want to touch me. I felt like her fake pleasure sounds were condescending. Not to mention she tried to dirty talk in a way that supremely turned me off, which might have been avoided if she was actually engaged in our conversation talking about what we wanted/liked in bed.

The point of that story, though, is that it really damaged our friendship and was a blow to my (at the time) fragile self-esteem. These days, I'd be able to spot some of these red flags and choose not to have sex under those conditions, but at the time it was hard to recognize what was happening until it was over. I learned that she would not be forthright with her own needs and desires and whatnot, so I had to start checking in with her when she offered to do certain things. Questioning her like, "Do you really want that? Do you *know* what you want right now?" And being clear that she could not read my mind and that I didn't appreciate her trying to. That if I wanted something from her, I would ask directly and respectfully and that she was always allowed to say no if she didn't want to and I wouldn't get angry at her for refusing me. Years later, we are still friends. There are still rough spots we need to work out, but she has gone to therapy and is finally dating someone who doesn't treat her like an emotional support girlfriend. It has taken her years, but she is finally working to correct some of her people pleasing behaviors, and we have a better relationship for it. It took her awhile to believe me when I said I would tell her directly if I was upset and that she didn't need to worry about me dropping subtle hints at her.

Which, I think, finally brings me to my last point. So far, I've talked about defining your boundaries and setting expectations within your friendships. I've explained through example why the behavior can actually recreate patterns of abuse or cause harm. A lot of this stuff you can work on alone, but there is another thing you need to be able to work on changing your people pleasing ways: a good, trustworthy friend.

I started being able to talk about my emotions, my needs, my annoyances, my angers when I finally felt like I had someone who would listen to them without getting angry and flying off the handle. When I first started dating my current partner, I was in awe of how level headed our conversations were when there was conflict. They listened to me. They told me how they were feeling. We worked together to see where the issue was and what we could do to address the issue in the future. It was my partner who brought up problems they had, and it was those direct conversations that made me feel safe enough to speak up when I had a problem. It gave me a space to practice being vulnerable with someone I knew loved me and wanted the best for both of us. On the other side of this, I believe my friend that I mentioned above really started to make progress when she started therapy and when I showed her that I was serious about being open and honest with my emotions and that she wasn't obligated to fix my problems for me. It also helped that she got out of a cycle of dating toxic fuckheads who enabled/encouraged her people pleasing behaviors so they could take advantage of her.

The fear of abandonment, fear of ridicule... the stuff I talked about up front. Those are not illogical fears when most of your life you've been taught that you will be punished for your emotions. You need to surround yourself with people who will encourage you to speak up for yourself. You need a friend who will check in with you and make sure you're not just saying "yes" because you feel like you should. You need people who are clear about what they want and need from your friendship.

Standing up for yourself, expressing your emotions, stating your needs, setting boundaries -- you can only do so much alone. The hardest part is deciding to take that leap of faith in your friends and gritting your teeth hoping for a good outcome. Hopefully, you have decent friends who care about your feelings and who will make an effort to support you. But let me be clear: if your friends treat you badly because you've done the hard emotional work to start setting and maintaining boundaries, those are not good friends. I am a big believer in cutting toxic people out of your life when you can, because you *do* deserve better. And, thankfully, most people are not going to react badly to you having preferences and opinions and feelings. It's normal for someone to have their best interests in mind, and as long as they aren't hurting other people, it's okay to have hard emotions like anger, disappointment, sadness, etc. But it's okay for you to have standards for how you are treated in your friendships/relationships. It's not just okay, but it's absolutely essential for healthy relationships to thrive. And it is hard to trust when you've had a lifetime of feeling like you can't trust others to treat you with respect, but you still have to try. And you don't have to be emotionally invested in people who treat you like an object whose job it is to keep them happy. Even just having one friend that you feel safe to be vulnerable with can make a huge difference and give you a way to practice these things.

Tl;dr -- define your boundaries, have a plan for how to respond if someone crosses a boundary, have conversations with your friends to set expectations within the friendships even if there is no current conflict, and believe that you deserve to have a voice and that you are worthy of the full range of human emotion. Ultimately, you have to find a way to convince yourself that you are worth caring about, and you need to surround yourself with people who do care about you and who will help you learn healthier behavioral habits.

Sorry for the long post, but hopefully there's something you can take away from it. Perhaps others will have other strategies they'd like to add, but knowing your boundaries and learning to care about yourself are at the core no matter what.

You're not actually a better friend for not articulating and respecting your own needs, limits and boundaries. Your lack of communication and boundaries is not some impressive sacrifice. You're not doing anyone any favors by acting like you're okay with things you aren't okay with. You're just building burnout and resentment that will eventually damage the relationship in question. And when you eventually snap and walk away because you silently overburdened yourself to be a "good friend", it won't be the other persons fault

[moon-fics]

Run Hot

Pairing: Bob Reynolds x Reader

Summary: The heating in the tower has broken in the middle of winter. This leaves everyone trying to find warmth any way possible.

A/n: I can't write angst anymore. I love comfort fics with Bob. He doesn't deserve pain.

This had to be a punishment or some sort of payback from Valentina. There's no way a fully operational and multimillion-dollar tower suddenly lost heating in the middle of winter. It's freezing, and the number of windows that cover half the building isn't helping.

You walk into the main room, where a fireplace is displayed on one of the screens. Almost no one is there due to how cold it is. The only people around are Alexei and Bob, who are sitting on opposite sides of the room.

Alexei is using alcohol to fight the cold. He's sitting on one of the couches with a bottle of vodka next to him. You don't try to disturb him as he watches his phone screen and laughs to himself.

That leaves you with Bob, who is reading a book near one of the windows. He's created some sort of nook in the corner to relax. There's a large bean bag that he hoards along with blankets and a pile of books. Ever since he settled into the tower, he's been reading wellness books.

"Anything interesting?" You ask while crouching next to him. You don't encroach on his space. "I haven't read a wellness book in years." You admit.

He looks up from his book with a subtle smile. He doesn't close it, but he leaves his thumb in the middle of the crease. You don't understand how he can sit this close to the window and not be shivering. He actually looks rather warm.

"It's mostly on how to create positively," He explains with a shrug. You won't ask further because that sounds like someone only he'd be interested in. "Hey, where did everyone go?" He asks while glancing around. You're astounded by how oblivious and unaware he is.

"It's like 5 degrees in here. Everyone is in their rooms under the covers," You say with amusement. "Did you not notice?"

"No, not really. I mean, I'm pretty comfortable with the temperature. It's actually nice." He scratches his neck. You can't stop yourself from glaring at him and feeling a bit jealous. Of course, the guy with god-like powers doesn't get cold either. "I usually run hot, so not having to prevent myself from sweating is pleasant."

"I hate you." You grumble while moving to sit on the floor. Your legs are aching from crouching, and you don't want to end the conversation here. "I hope the heat turns back on and you sweat through all your clothes." You tease.

"You can just sit closer to me," He suggests while patting the bean bag. There's enough room for both of you, so you don't hesitate to climb on. The moment you do, you can feel his warmth. He's practically radiating it.

It's not enough to keep you from shivering, but it's better than nothing. You glance down at his book and read a short passage. He's too far into it for you to understand what is being told, but you continue to read anyway.

"I could read it to you," He places the book on his knee for you to get a better look. You honestly doubt you'd be able to absorb the words he'd be saying. "If not, you could pick a book from my pile and read with me." His offer is sweet. He wants to include you in his activity and space. The only other person he's offered that to is Yelena, and she usually doesn't take up on reading.

"I don't mind just looking out the window," You say. You glance out the window to see the snow falling over the city. From this high up, you can see the rooftops that are blanketed in snow. The people below are leaving trails on the sidewalk.

After a few minutes, you can sense yourself growing tired. Even as you force yourself to follow snowflakes as they fall, you can sense it. You can't stop your head from lulling a few times, nearly hitting Bob's shoulder.

After the fifth time, he shuts his book and places it down on the floor. "You can use me as a pillow. I'm not going to... You know." He gestures to his head, and it makes you smile. Out of everyone on the team, you fear Bob the least. "I've got it under control for the most part." He says in a quieter voice.

"Yeah, but you're busy reading. I don't want to disturb that." You say. You rub your face to stay awake. The feeling of your cold hand against your cheeks gives you a tiny boost of energy.

"Just use me as a pillow!" He says a bit louder. Bob is never one to shy away from physical touch. If it's gentle, he'll happily accept it. So, you let out a groan and do something you'll probably regret later. You swing your legs over his and position yourself against his chest.

There's a moment of silence where you debate standing up and rushing to your room. Before you can suck up your dignity his arms wrap around you. His body is like a furnace that prevents you from running.

You go to look up at him, but he quickly places his head on yours. You force your eyes to roll up as high as they can. You can barely see his face, but there's no mistaking the redness of his cheeks. You also notice his hand reaching for his book again. He opens it but fidgets with the page instead of reading it.

"All good?" You ask. He clears his throat and nods his head as best he can without hitting yours.

"A- all good," He confirms. He can't hide the rasp in his voice or how his words escape him. It's like seeing him in the vault all over again, meek and nervous. "Just, uhm, just trying to read." He lifts his book slightly to show proof.

With his confirmation, you shut your eyes. Except you don't sleep. You're listening to his heartbeat and how fast it is when his hand begins playing with a strand of your hair. It's light, and he avoids pulling on it.

"Bob?" You whisper. He lets out a hum in response as his eyes scan the page. "Do you want a better strand?" You ask in a joking tone. His fingers let go of your hair, and you're disappointed. You enjoyed the feeling of his hand twirling the small strand.

"N-no, sorry. I didn't realize..." He mumbles. "I'll leave it alone."

"You don't have to. I wasn't complaining." You assure him. You take his free hand and lift it back to your hair. You're about to let go when his grip tightens around yours. His rough palms slide against yours, and when you don't pull away, he lowers them.

"Then is, uhm, this ok?" He asks with hope in his voice. Although you're feeding off his warmth, you can now feel your body producing its own. Your face burns, and you're so glad he can't see it right now.

"Perfectly fine." You say while trying to hide any signs of being flustered.

You stay like that for a while, and eventually you do fall asleep. Unbeknownst to you, so does he. This gives Ava and Walker a great opportunity to snap a photo for later. Just to save in their 'We Knew It' album.

[oureddie]

is anyone else's brain just one big

what do we need him for? what's your problem man. what are we measuring here buck. you can have my back any day. i love kids. i love this one. they weren't my type. i thought you just dressed alike. buck gave me a heads up. does this boy crush on eddie mean you're finally ready to move on from abby. uh, you should meet his kid, though. i can see the pollen. i can hear it. ooooOOOOooo you made him cry. you dont find it son, you make it. you two have an adorable son. why are you in hospital jail. i got you. dear buck you are an awesome firefighter love christopher. GET UP your life isn't over just bc you arent a firefighter anymore. says the firefighter. there's nobody in this world that i trust with my son more than you. BECAUSE YOU'RE EXHAUSTING. did you ever stop and think for a minute what that could do to US. a total impulse buy, not like you at all. c'mon eddie if you're not gonna be honest with frank at least be honest with me. i could still take you. you think so? i know. wanna go for the title? uhhhh this is eddie's house im not really a guest. just wait until he gets to the 'i dont have to do what you tell me' phase. aren't you still in that phase. you hungry? wanna grab a bite after we drop him? weeeee have visitors cap. eddie!!!!!no!!!!!nonononnonoedddie!!!! CLAWS AT THE GROUND. you wanna do a rope rescue??? of course you do. i mean that wont happen to US. to abby. his fiance is ABBY. welp. at least it's not a tsunami. hey man you might want to talk to your kid about playing fair. buck can we go to your house and play video games. uhhhh sorry kid i think we might be kicking it old school for a while. he's on the phone with dr. copeland, emergency therapy session. what do you have to apologize for? did you say anything that wasn't true? yeah she's worried about me *drop kicks a punching bag* yeah can't imagine why. i had to do it. i know you did. trauma bag? yup. sorry whhaaaatttt was that? check. do you ever replay a conversation in your head and worry you sound like an idiot? have you met me. it's like the universe is scREAMING at you and you refuse to listen. the universe does not scream. am i interrupting book club. you're late. there was construction on sunset. had to take a detour. buck. buck you have to help chris is- right here. you sure that's a smile? that's the same face buck makes when he's gassy. but just be sure that you're following YOUR heart. *gets sniped* eddie- eddie i need you to hang on. are you hurt? where's buck? he's got a harder job tonight. the team feels off without eddie. he doing okay? better than me. i kind of lost it when i told him you got shot. hey since we've got a minute... uh is everything alright. it got me thinking. what would happen if i hadnt. so i went to my attorney and changed my will. so someday, if i uh, didn't make it, christopher would be taken care of. by you. don't you need my consent. my attorney said you could refuse. but you know i wouldn't. but you knew i wouldn't. because evAN. you act like you're expendable. but you're wrong. good idea. eddie really shouldn't be exerting himself right now. this isn't me an eddie bagging a turkey in south pasadena. he takes christopher there all the time, got the place memorized. my kid loves her. is that enough. ice goes on the eye bud. *gets kidnapped and held hostage together* my abuela would eat this up. she loves a good telenovela. oh cuz uhhh you don't? i know you watch them with christopher. that's how we practice our spanish. look man you don't need to pretend with me. buck you need to move on, i have. eddie get away from the door im coming in. what are you afraid of. that im never gonna feel normal again. buck already took him to school, figured you could use the sleep. chris drew this? uh, that one's mine i misunderstood the assignment. cuz he got the help he needed, and that started with you. i just wish i could- fix it? yeah. what are you offering? right now? bobby's famous lasagna. buck, you dont even have a couch. bUUUUCK where the hell are you going. you can live without a

spleen- right? she's gonna be ok. how did the age of absolutely turn into alfalfa smoothies? give me one second let me grab eddie. YO. i dont know. feels weird to congratulate him. alright cowbody go get em. BUCK!!!!! do more! i just feel like she sees me. sorry about this. yeah it's gonna suck. uh hey do you have any plans for the weekend? i was thinking about go-karting, place in the desert, supposed to be a blast. welcome back to the world of the living buck. you were missed. actually i was kind of hoping you would. i just dont want him to uh- end up like me? you didn't end up like you. hey cap, need a lift? you took the chevelle? how'd you talk him into this he always says no to me. like sea monkeys! in fact, i havent been able to uhhhh yeah since i found out. yeah. well i uhhh wish i could help with that! this doesn't change a thing between us. i thought you couldn't bring a date to a bachelor party. UBBBEEERRR!!!! we don't need a key we're firefighters. he's crockett he's tubbs. actually im crockett and HE'S tubbs. eddie who's kim. does that poor woman know she's a dead ringer for your ex wife. oh eddie. what you always do. talk to him. i dont wanna break down the door buck i want him to open it. well uh, he probably won't. ok well why does it have to be me? you're the fastest runner. we beat the bees! im guessing it's probably an allergic reaction of some kind. to what bad juju? you owe me five bucks eddie. i never watched glee. give it back im serious. we know you're serious that's what scares us. whatareyoulookinateddiehehehe. he knows how to stay, unlike some people. yup, i am freddie fakeman, you would do that for me? you and for christopher. mmmmm like it's nothing. it's not nothing. look i know this whole thing between us has been messy and hard. you do matter to me. i know. eddie would never do anything illegal eddie has a silver star!! you're his dad. he doesn't have a mom. if you don't damage him who will? dad up!! sorry i had to go to the airport to pick up this one. said i was gonna get groceries. it's fine. doesn't seem fine. the trials and tribulations of evan buckley. a tragedy in 97 acts. you've been spiraling since the funeral and nobody knows how to talk to you about it. i don't know buck i wasn't there. eddie- jerk. airport and texas are not the same. they don't even have the same amount of letters. heard some dick was being mean to you, thought you could use a little cheering up

or is that just me rn

[narxcisse]

Hear me out... Shadow Milk with a lactation and mommy kink... 🙏

CW: explicit sexual content, mdni, probably ooc, sub Shadow Milk, lactation/breastfeeding kink, mommy kink, possessiveness, dry humping, brat behavior, praise and degrading, afab reader

English isn't my native language.

Absolutely obsessed with your milk. The taste, the warmth, the intimacy—it drives him mad.

Loves when the milk drips or spills—he calls it “liquid honesty”, like it’s some pure, indulgent truth only he gets to drink.

Will beg to nurse at your chest even outside of sex. Curling up in your lap, head resting against your breast, suckling lazily while muttering praise or delusional little truths under his breath.

When you’re leaking? He’s on his knees, tongue out, eyes wide—he wants it straight from the source, messy and indulgent.

Gets drunk off the experience—slurred praise, glassy eyes, needy moans. He gets so overwhelmed by the taste that he forgets to be performative.

Uses “Mommy” in a teasing tone at first, but eventually falls into saying it with raw need. The more vulnerable he is, the softer the “Mommy” gets.

He wants to be praised for being a “good boy” when he drinks from you. He’ll do anything to earn your affection: grovel, perform, degrade himself—it’s all worth it for that sweet validation.

There’s a possessiveness under it. He doesn't like to share you. The idea of someone else having your milk makes his eye twitch.

Will get bratty if you deny him. Teases, whines, tries to rile you up—but the second you give in and let him suckle? He's instantly docile, blissed out, affectionate.

He ruts against you when he’s nursing—fully clothed or not, he can’t help it. The sensation, the comfort, your scent—it makes him grind against your thigh or hip like a desperate mutt.

Loves when you coo down at him while he suckles, petting his hair or telling him how good he is for drinking it all. Your voice keeps him grounded.

Gets jealous of anyone else who touches your chest. Even casually. You’re his source of bliss, and he guards that role fiercely.

Sometimes, in the middle of feeding, his playful persona drops. You’ll catch a look in his eyes—quiet, almost broken—like he’s finally feeling something real.

“You’ve ruined me, you know,” Shadow Milk purrs as his gloved fingers trail possessively over your hips. “Reduced me to a needy, milk-drunk little fool.”

He grins wickedly, mismatched eyes alight with glee and craving as he lowers himself, tongue darting out before he wraps his lips around your nipple. The first warm drop of milk hits his tongue, and his body visibly shudders. He moans—loudly—like he’s savoring something forbidden, holy.

You whimper, hand sinking into his hair. His suckling is intense, greedy, like a starved creature finally getting his fix.

“There it is,” he sighs, pulling back just to admire the milk running down your breast. “So good… better than any lie I’ve told, any truth I’ve warped. You’re a miracle, Mommy.”

He says the title with a teasing, reverent groan, rubbing his face against your chest like he wants to drown in your scent, your warmth, you. And all the while, his hips grind against your thigh—slow and rhythmic, almost desperate. You feel how hard he is, straining through his clothes, dragging himself along your skin like an addict seeking relief.

“Let me come like this,” he begs into your chest, nuzzling and licking. “Let me rut against you while you feed me. Let me fall apart where I belong…”

And he does. The grinding gets rougher, needier, his breath hitches with every suck, every pulse of milk he draws from you. You can feel the wet spot forming through his pants as he rocks harder and faster, moaning your name between gulps.

“Mommy, Mommy—hah, I’m gonna—” he gasps, then groans deeply, body seizing in your arms as he comes, rutting sloppily against your thigh.

Even after his climax, he doesn’t stop. His lips stay latched, suckling gently, dreamily, like he’s high on you. His voice is softer now, trembling at the edges.

“Don’t let go… not yet. Just a little longer. I’m still hungry."

[them-faetale]

I am baffled by how even someone with such obviously nonsense views can look at a post calling for better communication and say "obviously a man wrote this".

Like, the stereotype is that men *don't* communicate, isn't it? Or is this interpreting "tell me how you feel instead of being vague and manipulative about shit" as equivalent to the masculine tendency towards weaponised incompetence? Like, there is a world of difference between "I can't read you mind if you are intentionally not telling me how you feel about stuff" and "I can't look after myself because I choose not to learn any tasks, do them all for me or I will throw a tantrum."

Feckin hell, what a nonsense response to a perfectly reasonable request to be interacted with like a person.

Also, that rant finishing with "get bent" thoroughly sent me 😆. A+, excellent work

I hate that thing some people do where it's like. "I left my wallet on the table to see if you'd say anything" or "I wanted to see if you'd wash the car if I stopped doing it"

Cause like

I dont know about anyone else

But I am perpetually hovering three inches above the strong subconscious belief that everyone knows what they're doing at all times except me, so if you change your normal patterns and I notice, then I will assume it is an intentional choice with a thought-out plan behind it and I will avoid interfering

And if I don't notice, because I won't, because why would I, because not much bothers me and if you don't say anything to indicate you are bothered then how would I KNOW

[hitomisuzuya]

hellooooo ^^ i'd like to request modern uni au kinda, where scara and y/n live together and their domestic life mostly pleaseee :> extra fluff with smut toooo

I absolutely adore the way you write scara in ANY au / version of him,,, its just feels so him djhtfkjyfkyt i love your writing so much O_O

scaramouche x fem!reader. fluffy fluff fluff. smut. fingering. clit stimulation. college au.

aww thank you so much❤️ i hope this turned out to your liking 🥺 you guys can pick what is cooked here. but for the sake of smooth narration, and because i got this idea from making a frozen pizza, that's what i wrote in.

scaramouche knew he was serious about you the moment he kissed you for the first time, drunk at the party, devouring your mouth with his tongue after you had just chastised him being an asshole.

he hasn't wanted anyone so badly ever since.

the following year, being the trust fund boy that he is, he splurged on a luxurious apartment right outside of campus to move into with you. and honestly, he is quite enjoying domestic life. it's quiet, peaceful and he got to wake up next to you every morning.

life is spoiling him in areas he never thought it would. to him, you are way out of his league. so far out of his league that you weren't even playing the same sport. yet, he hit a home run anyways and locked you down.

to be fair, the chores are split down the middle. more often than not though, scaramouche did your chores in the morning for you if you were nervous about an exam and wanted to study a little more that morning, or if you didn't feel well.

usually, the cooking is left up to him. since his mother couldn't cook, he had been dead set on perfecting cooking growing up. anything to be better at something that his mom could never be. good at.

today in between classes, you insisted that you wanted to make lunch today. you flashed him the cutest smile with an even cuter blush on your cheeks and declared you wanted to prove that you are future wife material.

he stood next to you in front of the oven, where a pizza sat baking perfectly positioned on the center rack. you even left the oven light on so you could keep an eye on it, glancing up at the kitchen timer ticking away on top of the stove. you have such a determined, concentrated expression on your face.

"you know staring at it isn't going to speed up time," he couldn't help but tease. you just look so fucking cute.

you let out a shy squeak. "i know, it's just..i am nervous. it's my first time making anything for you. i know there is no way for me to mess this up but still," you glance up at him for a moment before looking away shyly, "i have something to prove after all."

how cute you are so afraid of messing up in front of him.

scaramouche sighs, putting a hand on your head. "stop being so nervous. i am going to eat it no matter how it turns out." you followed the directions down to an exact tee. he is sure not even the great gordon ramsey would find fault with your method.

"scara, that's not the point. i want it to taste good," you reply a little exasperated. "i don't want you to just eat because i made it. i want you to eat it because it's good," you cock your hip restlessly, looking back at the oven light.

"you are way overthinking this," scaramouche chuckles softly. to soothe you, he pets his hand through your soft hair.

the oven timer dings. "oh, it's done," you said, hesitating while you open the oven.

the next series of events made a flutter of panic shoot through scaramouche. you only put on one oven mit to pull the rack out, and took it off. you reached into the oven with your bare hands to take hold of the tin foil.

"what do you think you are doing?!" he spoke so suddenly that it startles you. he quickly grabs your hands. "you don't have oven mittst on! you could burn yourself!" he took the pizza out of the oven, and kicks the oven door closed, turning the oven off.

"scara, tin foil doesn't get hot," you try and reassure, "i didn't burn myself, honest," you put your hand in his when he took hold of it.

"you almost burnt the side of your knuckle on the inside of oven," he murmurs, feeling relieved he didn't see a burn mark. he brushes his fingers over your unmarred skin. his future wife is delicate, damn it.

"but, scara, what about your hands. you reached into the oven without any mitts on either," you intertwine your fingers through his, squeezing his hand before bringing it to your lips. "you could've burnt yourself too. your fingers are too beautiful for that."

just as his concern for you made your heart flutter, scaramouche felt his flutter. and watching you flit about the apartment, trying to prove that you could be his little wife really made his cock ache.

"maybe i scalded them a little," he said, taking his hand out of yours. he brought his fingers to your lips. "be a doll, and soothe them for me," he taps two fingers on your lips.

your cheeks flush as you open your mouth. your tongue glides along his fingers as he pushes them into your mouth. scaramouche has such capable, fucking beautiful fingers. your tongue tingles as he gently presses down on it.

putting a hand on your hip, he backs you so that you are trapped between him and the kitchen counter. you gag softly as he pushes his fingers into your throat. his cock pulses feeling your eager little mouth start to suck wetly on his fingers.

he sighs shakily seeing the lovestruck look of adoration in your eyes for him, drool collecting at the corners of your mouth. "look at you," he slowly pumps his fingers in and out of your mouth, "you can never get enough of me."

the hand on your hip wanders down between your legs. moving your thighs apart, he cups your cunt outside your jeans. "the pizza may smell good, but you look even better," his cock gets harder watching the blush on your cheeks darkening at his praise.

scaramouche unbuttons your jeans, hardly hesitating in dipping his hand inside your dampening panties. "let's tend to both my hands, shall we?"

you muffle a moan on his fingers as parts your folds, and finds your clit. he is delighted to discover you are already getting very wet, very fast. "you just keep sounding all cute while i make you cum," he slowly rubs your clit, teasing it until your walls clench around nothing.

your clit throbs underneath his fingers, making you squirm as your hips rock into them. he knows your body inside and out, having no trouble reducing you to drooling mess, muffling the sweetest moans on his fingers.

he smirks hearing your moans try and rise in octave. "go on, pretty. cum all over my fingers. you've been such a good girl," he purrs pushing his fingers inside of you. he hooks his fingers accurately into your sweet spot, taking care that they always rub over your clit pumping in and out of you.

his sweet words are all it takes to make you come undone. your body shakes as your orgasm washes over you. sucking eagerly on his fingers in appreciation. scaramouche hums in approval seeing the state he has reduced you to. "now," he said, pulling his fingers from your mouth, "let's sit you on my cock for a while. the pizza can wait."

[ghostlyferrettarot]

♡ 💋Pick a Picture: ♡₊˚💋 Which Bratz you embody?💋♡₊˚

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💋Masterlist💋 💋Masterlist 2💋

🎀🛼🫶🏻🌸🛍️Pile 1: Chloe

Hi Pile 1! I feel like you're probably someone who always sees the glass half full, even when things aren't going as expected. You're someone who brightens other people's days with your positive energy and your bright outlook on the world. Like Chloe, your personality reflects a warm light; there's a softness in you. You have a natural way of making others feel good because your enthusiasm is genuine, and it shows. I feel like sometimes your dreams may seem a little too big or unattainable, but that doesn't hold you back. You know that, with determination and a positive attitude, you can achieve whatever you set your mind to. Even when you face difficulties, you never lose hope that everything will get better. That belief that things will turn out okay is one of your greatest strengths. You're the kind of person who can make others see the good in any situation, and nothing stops you when you set your mind to something. Falling doesn't define you; You're always ready to get up and keep going with a smile <3.

You're that friend who always has words of encouragement, who encourages you to keep fighting, and who reminds you that good things are yet to come. If you ever feel a little lost or stuck in a rut, just take a moment to think about what you're truly passionate about, because you know that what you dream is possible, and you always have the strength to keep going.

🎀🛼🫶🏻🌸🛍️Pile 2: Jade

Hi pile 2! I LOVE YOUR ENERGY btw, you're the kind of person who isn't afraid to be authentic, even if it means standing out from others. You're always looking for new ways to express yourself, whether it's through your style (which can be pretty amazing btw, fashion icon), your projects, or even the conversations you have. You don't settle for what's "normal"; you like to push the boundaries, break boundaries, and do things your way. That's something that makes you incredibly special. You're very independent and don't easily get swayed by what others think. You know what you like, and when you're passionate about something, you go for it without hesitation. While some people may see that as bold or even a bit risky, you aren't afraid to be brave. In fact, you enjoy it. You love exploring new horizons and don't mind if you don't fit into traditional molds. Being different is part of what makes you so authentic. Sometimes, the people around you don't fully understand your way of thinking, but that doesn't stop you. You have a unique outlook on life, and that perspective is something others can admire, even if they don't always fully understand it. At the end of the day, what really matters is that you're true to yourself, and that's something that sets you apart. Your creativity and energy are contagious, and people lucky enough to know you know that when you're around, the world looks a little brighter.

🎀🛼🫶🏻🌸🛍️Pile 3: Sasha

Hi, Pile 3! You're someone with very strong energy, like the energy is insane as I channel your messages. You're that person who isn't afraid to be authentic and challenge the norms when necessary. Life has never seemed like a straight and easy path to you; you love taking control and deciding for yourself, even if it means going against what others expect of you. You're a person with character, and it shows in everything you do. You have a strong sense of justice and know what's right. If something doesn't seem fair to you, you speak up, you fight, and you make sure things change. You don't mind standing up for what's right, even if it means being in the eye of the storm. You have an incredible ability to stand firm in what you believe in, and that makes you a natural leader, someone who knows how to make difficult decisions without hesitation. Sometimes people may not understand why you make certain choices, or they may feel threatened by your confidence. But you, like Sasha, know that you can't please everyone, and you don't try. You know that the people who truly matter will respect your honesty and determination, even if they don't always agree with you. What a boss you are, pile 3!

You're the kind of person who pushes your friends to be better, to take risks, and to never settle for what's easy. What makes you special is your ability to be true to yourself, to fight for what you believe in, and to be a leader who inspires more than just guides. People follow you because they know you're someone they can trust, someone who will never give up, no matter what.

🎀🛼🫶🏻🌸🛍️Thank you for reading and let me know if it resonated!🎀🛼🫶🏻🌸🛍️

[towasdandelion]

Can you also make a part two with sinostra frostheim and mortkranken with hickey smau?

👉👈

Yes! Here it is, the last part basically hehe. Hope you like it! Warning suggestiveeee

Sinostra, Mortkranken and Frostheim ghouls when they leave a hickey on you

Taiga... Do I even have to say anything? He treats biting you like a full time job. And he doesn't care about his surroundings either. You can be minding your own business taking a walk around the campus and he will just appear out of nowhere and bite your neck, getting a very embarrassing sound out of you. Shame? Not in his dictionary. So yeah, don't expect him to take your whining seriously in any way. It's not going to change anything whatsoever. But hey, at least he's usually careful enough not to hurt you with his sharp teeth!

Romeo will literally lie through his teeth. He always says how unhygienic and weird it is and how he would never bruise your skin like that but then somehow, mysteriously some marks appear on your neck. Naturally you just had to confront him about it. And behold, there's your one in a million chance to see Romeo embarrassed. He's annoyed with himself. Why couldn't he just resist? What was so good about it that made him think about doing it again? Well, I advise against teasing him too much or he will legit get upset. If it happens again don't bring it up either. Just accept his love bites.

Ritsu hmm I guess he would sneak one in here and there when he's feeling extremely affectionate. Or when you two are studying and he catches a glimpse of your exposed neck. He's not really embarrassed about it either. It's just one of the ways to express his love after all, so your reaction is a bit confusing. Oh, so it's about your image? You do have a point then. As the best lawyer, he cares about his appearance a lot after all. It won't really make him stop biting you though, no. He will just leave his love bites somewhere no one else can see them from now on.

Don't ask me why but I see Jiro being addicted to biting you. He just loves seeing and tracing the small bruises with his fingertips whenever it's just the two of you. He genuinely doesn't realize the effect he has on you. Affection is a normal part of every healthy relationship, isn't it? You could say it's very straightforward for him. He doesn't see the point in hiding anything. If he likes someone, he shows it - fair and simple. So long as you're okay with it, he won’t stop marking you with those subtle signs of how much he cares.

The "this is unsanitary!!" guy number two - Yuri. He swears he would never do something like that, adding how's there are many better ways to show affection. And yet... One day you see a small purplish mark on the back of your neck. (Yes he was trying to be sneaky hoping maybe you wouldn't notice it there) Let's just say he's less than pleased when you bring it up. It's just for science he says! (Science my ass he's just delusional and won't admit his desires for you) Well, he understands your embarrassment because he's pretty embarrassed himself. Probably won't do it ever again unless you reassure him it's okay. You should also promise him that you won't be bringing it up each time it happens.

Jin’s definitely an actions speak louder than words kind of guy, so marking you is right up his alley. He loves reminding you that you’re his whether it’s his hand on your waist everywhere you go, or draping his jacket over your shoulders like it’s second nature. Though his favorite is actually marking you. He doesn’t see why you’d get so embarrassed about it. To him, it’s just natural and instinctive. A quiet, physical way of saying mine without needing to say a word. And if you catch him glancing at it later with that faint smirk? Yeah, he knows exactly what he’s doing.

Tohma usually goes for kisses rather than hickeys, so you might feel caught off guard when you notice a small mark on your collarbone peeking from underneath your unbuttoned shirt. Oh, so at least he was considerate enough to leave it somewhere a bit less visible. When you ask him about it later, he’ll just smile, asking you to show it to him. That one picture from you makes him sure - this is not going to be the last one. It’s rare for him to act like that, but now that he’s started? He’s definitely not planning to stop.

Lucas isn’t the type to act on impulse, especially not with you. He’s always measured, always gentle, so when you catch a mark low on your neck it genuinely catches you off guard. You send him a photo later, asking if he’s aware of what he left behind. He doesn’t deny it of course. He feels a little embarrassed getting exposed like that but that's something he can put aside. What he can't however is your reaction. He's hoping he didn't make you feel to uncomfortable or weird. What can I say, sometimes even someone like Luca will give in to his desires

Kaito is not exactly known for bold moves. Don't get me wrong he wants to make a move here and there but often he just.. chickens out, thinking its probably not a good moment. And so the tiny mark just under your collarbone unexpected, to say the least. He’s more the type to apologize for breathing too loud. You decide to confront him about your finding. The 'read' appears immediately but there's no reply. He's probably screaming into his pillow right now. Five minutes later your phone buzzes with a flood of texts - panicked, and awkward. He may be spiraling but deep down he’s also a little proud, smug even. Just too scared to admit it out loud.

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Wayward 5

Warnings: non/dubcon, arranged marriage, and other dark elements. My username actually says you never asked for any of this.

My warnings are not exhaustive but be aware this is a dark fic and may include potentially triggering topics. Please use your common sense when consuming content. I am not responsible for your decisions.

Character: Duke!Steve Rogers (Medieval AU)

A Knights, Kings, and Knaves Story

Summary: you accompany the court to a foreign kingdom for a tournament of four kings and find yourself entwined with a staunch duke.

As usual, I would appreciate any and all feedback. I’m happy to once more go on this adventure with all of you! Thank you in advance for your comments and for reblogging ❤️

"What chance," Duke Rogers' timbre chafes in his throat.

You feel a similar tightness as you stare up at him. You're stunned. To think you could be married to a duke but one such as his. And that other epiphany. You will be going very far away from home.

His lashes flick, "you look disappointed."

"No, my lord," you assure him sharply. "No, it is only--"

He pauses and tilts his ear towards the doorway. His eyes narrow.

"Hush," he grabs your wrist and draws you with him. "Here."

He leads you to an alcove and urges you within. Confusion knits between your brows and you step into the shadows. He follows as he lets you go. He stands across from you in the tight space, back to the wall, though you are nearly touching as it were.

Then you hear it. Footsteps. Your eyes search past the wall's edge and you see your father. He stomps and huffs around, muttering darkly. "Where is she... I swear..."

Your mouth falls open and Rogers quickly smothers it with his hand. He stands closer and breathes another shush into your hair. You wait as your father paces and clucks, finally retreating back into the feast hall.

Even after his footsteps fade, the duke clings to you. You squirm at his closeness and his hold on your tightens. You feel a tension in him, almost rippling through him. You think you feel him inhale your scent though it might simply be the flutter of his breath.

Rogers lets you go, his knuckles brushing along your bodice errantly. You lean back against the cool wall. He chuckles.

"Rather outlandish. A duke hiding from the likes of him." He snorts.

"Perhaps but you saved me," you say. "He is rather skilled at ruining a fine time."

"Ah, and you are having a fine time?" Rogers challenges. You look at him through the dim and shrug.

"Better than anticipated," you reply.

"Let's hope I can keep that up," he cranes to see around the alcove wall. "I think we are clear."

"He'll find us sooner than later." You drone as you step out with him into the open air.

"If we go back, certainly," he girds. "I didn't have time to fully explore the grounds. Would it be trouble for you to show me around?"

You consider him. You shouldn't accept. It isn't proper. Even if you are betrothed. That thought makes your nose wrinkle.

"Oh, my lady, do I inspire such a face?"

"No, no, I only..." You've never been alone with a man so long that wasn't your father. "I don't much know my own way around."

"We will figure it out together. Shall we?"

He bends his arm and offers it to you. His muscle bulges as he does. You cautiously hook your elbow through his.

"I should warn you, I've a terrible sense of direction," you say.

"Getting lost is much preferable," He glances to the archway.

You let him take you away. Your father will be mad but you'll deal with it later. You know no matter what you do, he'll find reason to be unhappy.

Despite his proclamation, the duke winds his way through the hallways and out into the courtyard. You're not certain you could find it yourself without help from Sefu.

A sigh escapes you as the night greets you with a breeze. It swirls in your skirts and sweeps around your bodies. You look up at the moon.

"So beautiful..." you utter without thinking.

"The stars?"

"The moon," you say and let your eyes fall. "The flowers. Everything. At home..." You shake your head. "Well, that's all rather dull, isn't it?"

"Hm," he hums.

He's quiet as he strides on, easily leading you. He directs you to the gardens and slowly walks along the vines and petals. You lean in to smell a bloom instinctively.

"You stifle yourself rather often," he comments.

You stand straight, "sir?"

"You begin but do not finish. Your thoughts dry up like mist before they can be said," he remarks flatly.

"Oh, my lord, I do not mean to ramble--"

"I did not say 'ramble'," he intones.

"Then I do not mean to speak without meaning. I only..." you carefully untangle from him and move away. "Perhaps, your wife won't be so wise."

He follows but you keep ahead of him. You're mortified. Your mother always chides you for speaking out of turn but sometimes you don't even realise you are.

"Do not flee me," he bids.

You stop and face him. He nearly crashes into you; instead, he steadies himself with his hands on your shoulders. The moonlight limns him as it washes over you.

"Your words are not wasted. You were correct. My wife will be beautiful and kind. She is," he assures. "She will make tolerating her father much easier."

"Sir," you squeak bashfully.

"I hope to make some things simpler for her as well. If I can."

"You are... kind."

"It is as a husband should do," he squeezes your shoulders. "The fates confound me. How it should be you."

"I hope it isn't terribly displeasing."

"You are too low in spirits. These things can be... complicated so let's not worry yet for that," he turns you and steps up next to you. His hand goes to your lower back and he ushers you along. "Let us enjoy the flowers and the moonlight."

[so-i-did-this-thing]

I don't know where else to ask this but honestly I sometimes wish I was trans, from what I hear the transitioning is wounderus to go through (not so much the transphobic people obviously) and I just can't seem to find any joy anymore

I also can see why this is horrible as trans people have to go through so much just for being trans and i

just don't know what to do anymore

Idon't feel uncomfortable in my body or seek to become a woman so I don't think I'm actually trans, but the idea of becoming happy for once in my god damn life just seems so good

I'm sorry if this is a horrible thing to say but I just want to be happy

Hey there, Anon. Sounds like you're in a bad place right now.

Fwiw, medical transition for me was the clearing out of a lot of background radiation so I could do the actual hard work of becoming a better man. There is a lot of shit about myself I've had to fix that HRT will never improve. It's been a long road and continues to be so.

I feel like you're looking for a blueprint for happiness, and maybe it seems to you that trans people have a clear path, given how dramatic physical transition can be.

But I'd ask you to dig deeper, and look for inspiration in all the groundwork that goes into transition. And see how this work could apply in your case:

Realize you are not alone

Understand there is a lot of work to do - a lifetime of it - but it will be worth it

Constantly self-reflect

Articulate who you are and who you are not

Set goals and find role models for who you want to be

Work out a plan for what steps - even modest ones like a fresh haircut or change of clothes - you need to take to be your best self

Empower yourself to experiment with how you present yourself to the world

Get comfortable with the idea that your "best self" might look very different in the future than how it looks now

Stand up for yourself & uplifting others

Reach out for community - ask for help when you need it, and help others when you can

Get professional help when it's necessary

Learn the benefits, risks, and limitations of medication

Track your progress & being kind to yourself on the bad days

Relentlessly look for joy

Find strength in vulnerability

Don't be afraid to cut out toxic people from your life

Give yourself permission to take up space in the world

Acknowledge that change takes time and is the accumulation of mostly a lot of little steps, with the occasional big leap

Transition is deeply rooted in how we see ourselves and how we want to be perceived by and move about in society. And honestly, isn't that just being a human being?

It seems to me like you're unmoored right now. And possibly isolated. A good way to find help is to connect with other human beings (seek out community) and learn tools for making better connections (work with a therapist).

Hopefully with some time spent working on these connections, you can connect better with yourself and forge your path towards happiness.

[jelloapocalypse]

Hey Jello, a few nights ago I actually ran the Cinnamon Josh one-shot for my friends and had a great time. I really enjoyed the flexibility and imagination that the mini-game system encourages for character creation. Had an absolute ball during the design process with most of my players-had some truly knockout gimmicks arise from it. Unfortunately for one of my players they had a hard time clicking with the openness of the system and kept trying to push power first without a hint of flavor, got any advice for working with a “power-gamer” in a system where the design space is so improv based and cooperative while not throwing balance out the window?

Hey, sorry for the super long wait.

I actually forwarded this question to @eternal-savvy-blog because she has a lot more experience playing AC-based tabletop systems than I do. Here's her answer:

There's a couple of different approaches to this kind of a problem! I've had plenty of times that I have run games for "power gamers" and it kind of depends on the person as to what the best solution is

Don't

The easiest, but also harshest, being "This game isn't for power gamers". With any TTRPG there is a measure of tailoring the choice of players to who you think fits. This works both ways! There are games that reward power gaming and trying to do too much flavour gets in the way. And for AC, to a large extent, if you aren't down with flavour-first combat, it's not easy. I generally only reserve this option for if you've already tried everything, or the person in question is stubborn/not receptive and you know it!

2. Specific Questions/Prompts

If you reckon they just need some guidance, try altering how you talk/ask questions while running AC. Instead of "It's your turn, what do you do?" which will prompt them to lean on their instincts of "pick thing on sheet" or "what's the best damage", try making your questions have more context and specifics.

"Cinnamon Josh caught the cactus and is on his way out! how do you wanna fuck with him to stop this? He's running past the sandtraps."

Something like that is subtle but COULD be enough to stop someone from going "big number" and instead go "Maybe I can trip him into the sand?" This approach is not always gonna work. A lot of the time Power-Gamers are not open to thinking that way and are pretty dead-set on doing "the optimal thing". But for that same reason, if you suggest certain actions to be "optimal" it can nudge some people into the right mindset 3. Tailor the Character

Sometimes it's a matter of making their character in such a way that it feels more familiar and easy to run for that player in particular. But then injecting stuff into the kit that encourages some creativity. A LOT of people will get intimidated and paralyzed by an ability that says "make an item". Giving specific limitations can help most people get MORE creative like "make an item that is related to cats" Suddenly they'll be throwing explanations at you for why something "is TOTALLY a cat item"

Power-gamers are a little different. Instead, give an itemized list of options WITH EFFECTS and make ONE of the options WAY more open ended. That way they'll always be able to just pick something but over time they'll see that "hmm…. yaknow i can usually just think of something better using the last option" Something like: "Magic cat bell. Summon a magic collar that gives you a cat-like ability! (Claws for +2 damage, perfect balance, Enhanced scent, etc.)"

Notice it still has options to choose, but leaves it open to what "cat-like" means. It gives attractive "numbers" options, but is clearly showing it can be ANYTHING they can think of! 4. JUST TALK TO EM!

This one is pretty spicy! Just talk to them plainly!

Don't accuse them of being a power gamer or whatever. The idea isn't to say "you're playing wrong", just "Hey I noticed there was a mismatch!". Just establish that you noticed they play different and may be used to more number heavy games. Then just clearly explain "Hey, Anime Campaign is an open and flavour-first system. it's less about the numbers and what's 'Best' and more about being silly on purpose! Try taking a different approach next time we play!" Most people just don't realize that different TTRPG's operate differently and just need it CLEARLY said to them how the game expects people to play

If they're receptive, they'll try it out! Maybe they'll come around! But they may also try it and go "ehh, not really for me!" and that's fine too! Either way it's a win.

And if they aren't receptive. Welp. Option 1 is there for a reason!

[futuristicstarfishcollection]

It's worth noting that "Several decades of worsening standard of living" is debatable and largely about shifts in proportion of spending. The graph above shows median household income against CPI-U, which includes medical expenses, shelter, food, energy and a bunch of other things. The typical US household has access to about 30% more goods and services than they did in 1990.

However rent as a proportion of household expenditure has increased noticeably over that same period

(Actually kind of difficult to find good charts showing rent as a % of income over time, that's why this only goes up to 2009)

And while it's true that one reason for this is an increasing number of women in the workforce, so dual earning households are more common 50th percentile wages have risen by above 20% since 1980, albeit more slowly than rent.

I don't mean to say that this isn't bad. Expenses shifting from commodity goods to rent is going to feel worse because housing costs are fixed and non-negotiable in the short term. If times get tough spending less on food is much easier than spending less on rent.

Nevertheless I think the narrative of "Constant decline in living standards" is at best complicatedly true, and uncritical acceptance of it is likely a large part of the explanation for the popularity of MAGA.

Also I dislike decontextualized complaints about "The destructive effects of living in late capitalism" because I think it implicitly assumes that creating a better environment than 21st century developed countries is easy. I don't think this is true nor do I see any particular reason to think this is true?

The closest I come to being sympathetic to it is finding it not implausible that people in pre-agricultural societies in very specific regions of the world had pretty okay lives. But the problem is that that's an unstable equilibrium, it is comparitively easy for less egalitarian societies to destroy those ones.

[drdemonprince]

I don't know if I should express that I was hurt because of something my autistic friend did, because the behaviour that hurt me is a way in which they communicate authenticaly. I'm afraid if I tell them how I feel it will make them mask more around me which isn't what I want, I just want them to know that this behaviour can have a negative effect on others. Like is there any point in telling them they triggered me, when the way they did it was by communicating in the way that's most natural for them? I don't want to hurt them but, whilst this is an old wound I'm healing from, I don't want them to unknowingly hurt anyone else basically.

Well, what was it about their comments that hurt you? Was it something specific to the situation, or a general tendency they have that you do not vibe with?

If the Autistic person failed to be a supportive friend to you during a hard moment, I think you are well within your rights to let them know how they could show up for you better the next time, and if you can give them examples of this, so much the better. If it was a random trigger that this Autistic person set off because they did not know it existed, you can let them know that it exists, so they can tiptoe around it in the future. If on the other hand it's more of a general quality to how this person expresses themselves that just rubs you the wrong way, then you may just need to take your own space from it when you need to, or even re-evaluate what needs you get met in that friendship.

Generally speaking, Autistic people would prefer to hear if there are specific things we should or shouldn't do to make our friends feel comfortable, especially when that friend is in crisis, and knowing what rulesets to follow for which situation is not a painful act of "masking." It can even be freeing, because uncertainty makes us far more likely to feel threatened and to mask. What might be a problem is telling one of us that the way that we speak/carry ourselves/interact is bad in a general way. It's okay to just not like someone or to not enjoy their company in all situations, but if it's a matter of interpersonal taste like that, then that's probably on you to take care of and make your own decisions around.

[odoraful]

𝑰𝑰: 𝑳-𝑶-𝑽-𝑬𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑵𝑨𝑳𝑳𝒀

xiao follows through with baizhu's advice and realises a lot more about his own feelings for you

⟡ part I: doctor, doctor!

⟡ content — xiao x gn!reader ; first love/confession ; perhaps a tad bit sad at the start but it gets better i swear!! ; zhongli and hu tao appearance ; xiao was oblivious in the first part, but he definitely isn't in this one hehe ; both of you are yearners for each other ; 4.3k words

⟡ a/n — finally finished!! i posted doctor, doctor in february and it's now may... omg i'm so sorry my lovelies for the wait 💔 i was a little sleepy when editing but anyway i really hope it's a good continuation :')

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In the past, Xiao would have never thought being bad at talking to be a disadvantage. He was once taught that it was a slower way of resolving things compared to the pointy end of his spear. Now, he silently wished he could speak with ease. Like the honeyed tales Zhongli could weave, or the precise lectures of Cloud Retainer. Xiao’s words were always blunt and rather clunky. And it didn’t help his speech if you were in his presence too.

Speak to Y/N about how they’ve been feeling, Baizhu had recommended. He had agreed so quickly in the moment because it sounded easy. Of course he could ask you, he had spoken to you dozens of times before. This time was no different, in fact, this was right in his repertoire: making sure you were in good health. Yet, with you standing beside him by the balcony at Wangshu Inn, his tongue became all tied up. Maybe it was the way the breeze toyed with your hair, your eyes glittered, or skin glowed in the morning light. The sight of you made all his words fizzle out.  

Archons, what has come over me? he wondered.

You turned to face him. He quickly tore his gaze away.

“What did you want to talk about, Xiao?”

Your question was to be expected. He was the one who had mentioned he needed to speak to you about something (which was the exact reason the two of you were standing out here). Yet, it still left him somewhat flustered.  

He kept his gaze on the vast landscape of Liyue—a brilliant canvas of yellows and greens.  “I wanted to tell you that you needn’t hide secrets from me,” he said.

You cocked your head to the side. “Secrets?” he was met with the sound of your light chuckle. “Do you think I’m living a double life or something?”

Xiao glanced to his side at you. It was enough to see you wiggling your fingers at him as you continued to tease, “Maybe I’ve secretly been a Fatui agent this whole time.”

He shook his head. “What I mean to say is… you can speak to me about anything. I know well that emotions can be confusing, but I will always try to understand them.”

Though Xiao seldom followed along with your joking remarks, he always replied to them in his own dry manner that you enjoyed. However, this time there was a seriousness to his words that caught your attention. Emotions? Confusing? Your chest grew tight as you straightened your back.

“Xiao, I wouldn’t hide anything from you,” you answered, genuinely.

Sensing your own concern, he faced you fully. “I know, but something has been different recently.”

Shouldn’t such trust and closeness between people mean being able to talk to them about anything? Both the good and the bad? Xiao was prepared to shoulder any of that weight for you. He reached for your hand that wrapped the railing of the balcony, encasing your fingers beneath his.

“Tell me what has been troubling you, please.”

It came out as a plea. Small and anguished. You had never heard Xiao sound like this before. And it was because of you.

There was only one thing you had been keeping from him. Something (or someone) that had been on your mind for a longer time that you cared to admit.

“Nothing’s been wrong,” you still denied, ignoring the open warmth that radiated from his hand into yours. A silent invitation from him to you. 

“I won’t accept that,” he responded gruffly. “It is bad to keep your emotions… bottled up.”

Xiao echoed the metaphor Baizhu used when they met. The mortal expression had sounded unusual when he first heard it, but now he understood—corking up emotions for too long can lead to spoiling.

“When you’re with me, you appear tense. If I am the one causing your trouble—”

“No!” you exclaimed, leaning in towards him. “W-well, yes, maybe. I-it’s complicated.”

What am I doing!? you thought. His touch was too hot. You pulled your hand back, fidgeting with your fingers, not knowing what else to do in your embarrassment. If Xiao had been offended, there was no hint of it on his face, only worry as he let his empty hand fall to his side.  

“Complicated? If there is a reason why, I will listen.”

You tilted your head upwards, staring off into the endless blue above, as if calling upon the Heavenly Principles themselves to give you strength and confidence.

You exhaled a breath.

This was it. The time to confess and be done with it.

“Xiao, I like you.”

The words you spoke felt foreign on your tongue. To be fair, you never thought they would ever come to light.

Every miniscule sound became too loud in the silence between you two. Your thrumming heart in your ears. The chatter of people echoing from below. The wind rustling through the golden leaves above.

Anticipating a greater reaction, you were surprised to see Xiao’s face remained neutral. Only a slight frow in his brows.

“I like you as well...” he said, carefully though obviously confused.

“No, no,” you shook your head, sighing deeply, “for me, it’s in a different way. I like you as more than just friends.”  

At your clarification of the distinction, Xiao’s eyes widened.

He had spent enough time observing people to know of romantic affiliations. Though, he never realised it could be directed at himself. Strangely, something within him stirred hearing you. A tether. A want. However, it seemed locked away in an unfamiliar space of his heart, collecting dust. Whether he intentionally cast such desires aside himself long ago, he could not say. Reciprocate, whatever inside him seemed to call out. But his old habits stifled such new feelings, knowing the hardship of entwining yourself too closely with others. His own karmic debt tainting all those who came near.

You saw the change in his reaction—knowing that he understood what you meant now—and hurried before he could say anything else.

“I can’t pinpoint when it started, but I know I���ve liked you for a long time, and that’s the reason I’ve been so jittery lately.”

You recalled his strong grip when he caught you from falling and his words of concern in your home accompanied by his gentle touch. You decided not to divulge too much of the private thoughts you had in those moments.

For all your previous hesitations, the words now seemed to uncork and flow freely out of you. “And I know people may see you as abrasive or unfriendly, but you have shown me just how caring you are so, so many times and every time I can’t help but like you more and more.”

Xiao remained motionless, processing everything. He was locked with parted lips and wide eyes staring into your avoidant gaze. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to reply to you. He just didn’t know how. The tether in his heart begged him to speak, but his lips might as well have been glued together.

“Please don’t answer me yet,” you spluttered. “I know what you’re going to respond with…”

There was a sad finality in your tone that struck him. You knew Xiao did not like you in the same way. He had expressed before his affections towards you as only friends. All the little gestures he did, no matter how fluttering, could not be interpreted as anything else, you believed.

You looked at him properly for the first time since your confession. “I want some time to prepare myself before I hear from you. Is that okay?”

Xiao nodded, finding the strength to move his body when his mouth failed him. “I-I would like some time to think, as well,” was all he could reply, his voice ragged.

He also needed to sort through his own tangled mess of thoughts. Figure out whatever in Celestia he was feeling inside. Emotions truly were confusing.

You gave a small smile. Meant to be a sign of reassurance for him that you were not so troubled anymore, but the wobbled corners of your lips perhaps betrayed that. “Alright, we’ll speak soon.”

You turned away from the balcony’s edge. Xiao watched as your figure disappeared down the steps and out of his sight.

One question had been answered, but it had left many, many more for him to understand.

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The consultant of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlour had experienced much of life (and had an eclectic set of memories to show for it). He did not shy away from unknowns as they would eventually become facts to him through reading a scroll passed down through a family’s generations, listening to the slightly drunken tales of a wizened sailor, or any other method of storytelling that he had the honour of encountering. And because of his wealth of knowledge, Xiao decided to meet with him.

Zhongli was inside Funeral Parlour. Not at the front desk, which the Ferrylady was currently standing behind, sorting through a ledger, but to the side in a waiting area. There were shelves filled with all manner of books and oddities, and comfortable seats for clients who generally needed to seek relief. Zhongli was drawing a finger against the spines of each book, wondering whether the collection needed updating, when the door to the Parlour creaked opened.

“Xiao! It’s lovely to see you,” Zhongli welcomed, surprise filling his face.

Xiao closed the door behind him gently, his eyes landing on Zhongli by the shelves. Recognising who the adeptus was, the Ferrylady simply nodded in acknowledgement, leaving the pair to catch up.

“Had I expected you, I would have provided more fitting refreshments,” Zhongli commented. “Here. Have some tea, if you wish.”

Xiao nodded in thanks as he was poured a cup of jasmine tea. He waited for Zhongli to be seated down first before he followed.

It had never been difficult for Zhongli to read Xiao. The distracted gaze, shoulders somewhat bowed, hands clasped in his lap. It was like Xiao was just another book on the Funeral Parlour’s shelves. Zhongli raised the cup of tea to his mouth, peering at the young adeptus from the rim before taking a sip.

“You seem... troubled. Is something the matter?”

Xiao watched the steam rise lazily from his teacup. Of course, Zhongli could easily pinpoint what was happening with him. Lingering emotions from the conversation Xiao had with you three days before bubbled up. It still felt surreal to him that it all happened.

“Yes, there has been something troublesome,” he admitted. “Y/N... told me that they liked me.”

Zhongli stilled his movements. You were no stranger to him. Naturally, he knew of many residents in Liyue, and he had also assisted you with his expertise in the past for commissions with the Guild. Now, he would never go so far as to say spying, but he also wouldn’t deny that he kept a special eye on you. Your close relationship with the young adeptus was something he was pleased to see blossom. Which was why it was confusing to see Xiao so unsettled in telling him the news of your confession.

Zhongli gave a comforting smile, placing his cup back on the table. “Y/N has confessed to you? I scarcely believe that that would be troublesome, but rather exciting.”

Xiao could only give a grunt in response.

Detecting this internal conflict, Zhongli lowered his voice, “Well, how do you feel about them?”

“I-I don’t know, which is the root of my problem.” A frustrated sigh escaped the yaksha. His mind was in all manner of disarray. “How do you know if your feelings for someone are different?”

Your words echoed in his head—as more than just friends.

“By different, are you perhaps referring to love?”

Zhongli’s pointed emphasis on the final word made Xiao redden. Again, he was not unfamiliar with the idea of romance. He had seen it in the streets of Liyue Harbour, from the young, sheepish sweethearts to the old, contented couples. Xiao had believed himself unworthy of it. But now, hearing the word spoken aloud, that wanting tether within him pulled again.

At Xiao’s sudden shyness at love being brought up, Zhongli had to stifle a chuckle. Still so new to the world, he thought.

“You know I cannot speak for your feelings, Xiao, but judging from how you came to me, it does seem there is more to your affections than what you first believed,” he observed.

Xiao ruffled his hair with his gloved hand. Zhongli was right. There was something more with you. There always had been.

“At rest, I have always sensed my karmic debt,” Xiao said. “But, since meeting them, the pain has lessened. I feel peaceful.”

The endurer of eons knowing peace. It felt foolish for Xiao to say, but it was the truth. He had never known safety and warmth to be with another person until you. His past had locked away these comforts from him, but the dust collected from forgotten emotions now seemed to blow away.

“Is this truly...” the word choked up in his throat. Zhongli had said it so easily before (even with the tiniest hint of amusement), but the word had not yet found its rightful place in his vocabulary yet.

“Why must this be so difficult...” Xiao instead groaned.

Zhongli gazed fondly at the young adeptus. “It is your first time. Do not be so harsh on yourself.”

He began to muse aloud. Xiao watched on, letting the sentences Zhongli weaved take hold. “Love enters each of our lives in many ways. Someone’s presence can come swinging like a sledgehammer, unexpectedly knocking us off our feet.”

With a knowing smile, Zhongli continued, “Or... it can be more subtle, like a pebble dropped into a still pool of water, rippling the surface from the centre outward.”

Xiao looked down at his filled cup of tea. Ripples. That was exactly it. Unassuming how you entered his life, and how impactful your stay had been. Finally, he took a sip of his tea, finding it less bitter than he would usually taste.

“Thank you for your guidance, as always.”

Zhongli laughed, “You needn’t be so formal, Xiao. I’m pleased you sought me out. Though, I do hope you come visit me again with some good news.”

Xiao nodded, albeit bashfully.

The old companions continued with the conversation. Largely, Zhongli tried to get Xiao to speak more about you. He knew full well that chance to be young and hopeless in love had been robbed from Xiao for centuries. So, with each short response Xiao gave about you between stutters, the redness never leaving his face, Zhongli was left more than satisfied.

After a short while, Xiao said goodbye, going back out to fulfil his duties with a newfound lightness. As he closed the door behind him, a shrill voice exclaimed from the stairs leading to the second floor of the Funeral Parlor.

“Was that the Conqueror of Demons?!”

Hu Tao had her hands on her hips, looking expectantly at her consultant.

“It was. You’ve just missed him, unfortunately,” Zhongli replied, leaning back in his chair.

The funeral director hurried down the steps, standing directly in front of his seat. “Oh, come on, you could have totally interrupted my meeting to have me say a quick hello!”

Zhongli gave a disagreeing hum. “We both know that you don’t enjoy funeral business being interrupted.”

Hu Tao puckered her lips and blew air out, creating a trill sound. Of course, Mr Zhongli was correct in saying that, but she was just making a joke! She slipped in the chair Xiao was just in, crossing her legs.

“So, why did Xiao swing by anyway?” she then gasped, “Is there new clientele?”

Zhongli shook his head, a smile playing at his lips.

“I’m not sure you would believe me if I told you.”

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You had always left the invitation open for Xiao to visit your home if he wished for a change of scenery. Though Wangshu Inn was gorgeous (and you would do anything to wake up to a view like that every day) there was still some charm to the quaint housing on the outskirts of the Harbour that you knew he would enjoy. All you asked for is that he did not teleport directly into your house unless you were in some peril, which he would know when his named was called. For every other time, however, he would have to knock before he could come in.

There was no peril here, but you did need to see him. Desperately. It had been three days, and your insides had stopped roiling since confessing. You were only left with preparedness now at hearing his answer. No matter how hard you tried to suppress it, there was a small part of you that hoped. Hoped Xiao might have a sudden change in his affections and realise he saw you as more than his friend.

You closed your eyes and steadied yourself.

You opened your mouth, beginning to say his name—

Knock. Knock. Knock.

The sudden noise pulled your focus away.

You weren’t expecting anyone at this time. Perhaps it was your elderly neighbour passing over some food she made, or a salesman looking to find customers for his wares. Frowning in the direction of your front door, you walked over and opened it ajar, just enough so you could see who was standing there.

You hadn’t even said his name, yet he knew he needed to come.

Familiar dark-greenish hair framing the amber eyes of a once harsh gaze, now softened since the day he met you. His chest puffed up and down, as if he had just run from somewhere. He looked at you like your parting had been years and not just a handful of days.

Your hand slipped from the handle, letting the door swing open fully.

“Xiao?” his name fell from your lips.

This was a very rare occasion where Xiao hadn’t thought things out fully before executing a plan. All he knew was that he needed to see you as soon as his meeting with Zhongli concluded.

“Hello,” he swallowed, composing himself. “I would have come sooner, but you instructed that I do not use my powers—”

“I know, unless I’m in grave danger,” you finished. “Thank you for knocking.”  

His politeness despite everything brought a small laugh from you as you spoke. It was a moment of your liveliness that Xiao took to like a moth to a flame, fluttering with desire.

You stood aside, allowing him to enter. The last time he was here he was convinced that you were ill and, quite innocently, wanted to nurse you to good health. Now, he knew the true reason for those symptoms and had come to an understanding of his own.

His boots tapped against the wooden floorboards of your home, and he came to a stop in front of you. Neither of you wanted to sit down, too filled with mirrored jumble of anxiety and hope.

“I have my answer,” he said.

He had never known his nerves to be this weak until now. His palms were sweaty beneath the fabric of his gloves, and his breath constricted. He can’t have imagined the amount of courage it took for you to have done the same thing.  

“Alright,” you folded your arms across your chest to bury your sinking heart. Even in matters like this, Xiao still got straight to the point. “I’m ready to hear it.”

Xiao flexed his hands at his side, trying to ground himself.

Although he could never paint flowery words with his speech, there was one thing he could always rely on—his bluntness.

“I-I love you.”

...

Oh.

This certainly had to be a dream.

A dream where the man you like just said that he loves you.

“I love you,” he repeated, his voice raw and gravelly.

Did he say it in a strange way? Xiao silently cursed himself looking at how motionless you were, hands falling to your side. He knew he should have practiced it aloud beforehand.

“Was that... wrong of me to say?”

Your head spun. Delirious laughter almost spilled from you.

What he had just said was the furthest from wrong. Any small hope that remained in you unfurled and bloomed brilliantly.

"This... isn’t a dream, right?” you whispered.

Xiao moved closer.

“No, it isn’t.”

This had to be real, otherwise, why did his hand feel so warm as it brushed against yours? His fingers gently took your hand. It was the only proof he could offer that this wasn’t a dream. That he was here, and his words were true.

“You love me? Really?” you had to confirm again.

“I do.” He did not waver in his answer, “I do love you. I should have realised it sooner.”

Your breath caught in your throat. The urge to cry became more tempting each time Xiao repeated that he was in love with you.

“I-I was sure you weren’t going to feel the same way,” you sniffed.

His chest seized up hearing your voice shake.

He recalled a fleeting memory. Resting beneath a shaded tree, dappled light cast across his face as conversation drifted through the air. The commotion from four others whose voices he could never forget for as long as he lived. They were speaking about falling in love once the war was over, how it would feel like when love found them. Peace in these lands must be achieved first, one had said. To which one commented what a buzzkill that was, which was followed by laughter from the others. Perhaps Xiao should have listened more closely to learn something then, rather than closing his eyes, letting the sound lull him.

“I... have little experience or knowledge of these things. These distinctions are quite new to me.” Xiao held your hand tighter. His pale cheeks dusted with pink. “Speaking with someone else helped me understand what my feelings for you meant.”

He was so close once again. Yet, you didn’t freeze up like before, afraid of revealing your hidden affections. Instead, you melted into his touch, adjusting your grip to feel more of him. There was nothing to hide between the two of you anymore.

“I’m sorry for making you uneasy for so long,” he quietly added.

“You don’t have to apologise, I’m not angry at all.”

Relief washed over him. There was even a smile on your face. Bright and warm and enveloping him like the morning sun. Playfully, you swung his arms back and forth.

“In fact, I’m really, really happy right now,” a chuckle accompanied your words.

Xiao’s lips curved into a smile too seeing you in higher spirits. “I am glad. To be honest, I feel much... lighter.”

Weightless, even. The taut desire he felt three days ago when you confessed had eased. He had gotten the courage to tug and pull on that tether until he was standing here with you in his arms.

“I think I have loved you for a long time but never believed myself to be worthy of it. You are too good natured and kind, and if something happened to you because of me,” he closed his eyes, unable to even stand the very idea, “I wouldn’t forgive myself.”

You had never once thought Xiao could hurt you. Even in the beginning when you met, though he was coarse as gravel, he always remained attentive. There was much of his past that left painful memories and only fed him sorrow and doubt. Despite it all, however, he still had a soft heart.

You reached out a hand, grazing your fingertips against his cheek.

“Xiao…”

His eyes fluttered open hearing his name being called so sweetly under your hushed breath.

“Can I hug you?” you asked. “Usually this is the part where people would hug each other.”

He nodded, burning to hold you as well. You encircled your arms around his chest, entwining your fingers behind his back. He wrapped his own hands at your waist and pulled you in, your body flush with his, fitting together like pieces of a puzzle. Your breath tickled Xiao’s ear as you tucked your chin by his shoulder. Both of your heartbeats drummed with ineffable tenderness. It almost dazed him how much content swelled inside. He knew now why so many couples liked to hug.

Xiao was the first to lean back to look at you again. You were struck by this intensity of his eyes, seemingly lost with desire. Before you could think of anything else, your chin was tilted upwards.

Then, his lips were on yours.

You didn’t think Xiao could surprise you twice in such a short time.

The kiss was soft, like a falling petal brushing against skin. How much time had passed? Seconds, minutes, hours? You couldn’t tell. All you could focus on was the warmth from his lips and the shiver that it caused up your spine. This time, you were the first to pull away. Your cheeks were hotter than probably any of the springs in Natlan.

“How did you—” you stuttered.

Xiao cleared his throat. The spell he was just under seeming to disappear as he blinked away from your gaze, his blush intensifying. “I’ve seen many couples in the city do it. I-It just felt right to do.”

Shyly, he added, “Was that alright?”

He had a habit of second guessing himself when it came to his affections. Luckily, you were someone who was more than happy to give reassurance.

“It was more than okay,” you beamed. “It was perfect.”

You both stayed like this a moment longer, your hands around his back and his on your waist. Xiao spoke of meeting with Baizhu and Zhongli, which displayed a commitment to you that was far too endearing for your heart to handle.

There would be good news indeed when the time came to tell your companions what happened.

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⟡ taglist (hello lovelies!! thank you again for your patience 🥹🫶 i've never tagged people before so i hope this works) — @sizzles-z-4002 @redninjakitty14rp @butterescapism @fuyustuffs @unstablemiss @evilenbypotato

[daryldixouns]

soft spot - dean winchester

summary: dean's never thought of himself as a softie. he's always been one to keep people at arm's length, frightened by the consequences of getting too close. you, however — the kindhearted angel of his dreams — seem to see right through him. with you, being vulnerable doesn't feel so scary.

content: fem!angel!reader, soft!dean, fluff, hair brushing, light kissing, emotional intimacy, religious themes

word count: 1.2k

a/n: ooo i've never posted on here before this is so scary :'( but writing this made me so emotional like that's my baby! please enjoy <3

"How're you so soft?"

Dean's question makes you giggle. You lean forward to rest your forehead on your knees, your hair cascading over your shoulders. He's mesmerized. He brings the brush back to your head, bristles gliding through the silky strands.

You feel his exhale against the back of your neck when he laughs, too. "No, angel, 'm serious," he insists, running his fingers through a section of your hair. "You feel like Heaven… everywhere. Like, damn." He says it like he's proud, admiring you.

There's also the faintest hint of jealousy deep in his gut. You're everything that contradicts what he is — so naive and unaware of the plethora of dangers on Earth. It's silly, but sometimes, that's exactly what he longs to be.

Dean sighs as he brushes through your hair. He wouldn't be caught dead doing this for anybody else, but he can make an exception for his angel girl. He always does. Your delicacy makes him want to turn into a whole new version of himself and take care of you.

"You are, too," you murmur then, hushed. You're sitting in front of him, between his legs on the floor of his room in the bunker.

Setting the brush down, he brings his fingers to your scalp, carding through your hair. "I'm what?"

"Soft."

He almost chokes on a laugh. "Honey—"

"You put the brush down 'cause you wanna touch me instead, right? You like the way it makes you feel," you continue, not letting him interject — partly because you don't totally understand the formalities of human conversation yet, but Dean finds that adorable. He doesn't correct you.

"You treat me like I'm fragile because… you're soft on the inside. Aren't you?" You lean your head back, settling in his lap, your hair fanning out across his jeans. When you look up at him, he's already staring, enchanting you with that inviting green gaze.

For a moment, he doesn't know how to respond. His fingers work on their own, threading through your smooth locks. The smallest smile begins to crinkle at the corner of his eyes.

"Well, hell, angel," he huffs, slightly impressed. He thinks he wants to wrap you up in his flannel and keep you hidden away from the rest of the world. His to cherish, his to learn and love, only his. "You sure you're not a mind reader?"

You smile, cheeks pink. It's only been a few weeks since you discovered the wonders of makeup, but Dean's convinced you're going to overload on that pretty new blush. "I don't have to read your mind. I can see you, Dean. Really you, all of you."

Everything about this situation is entirely unfamiliar to him. He doesn't know if it's your grace that enables you to see right through him, or if his actions truly make his feelings that obvious to you.

He shakes his head, reaching out to cup your face in his hands — and his touch? It's soft.

"Yeah?"

His voice is low, his thumbs brushing over your cheeks, your skin so flawless that it makes him nervous. Then he's leaning down, lips hovering over yours before he closes the distance.

It doesn't matter to him that the angle is awkward — it's not like you would know any better. Plus, he thinks you're gorgeous, even when you're upside-down.

This kiss isn't the first, but it may as well be. You taste just as sweet as you did then.

You let your eyes flutter shut, still trying to grasp the concept of this kind of intimacy. You appreciate the way he keeps things gentle, simply a ghost of his lips against yours.

You part with a quiet sound, and then a beat of silence passes. Dean doesn't want to scare you off, and you don't want the moment to end.

He watches for your reaction, wanting to know that he's not overstepping.

He's about to say something when suddenly, you shift. You sit up, picking your head up from his lap and turning to settle on your shins, kneeling in front of him.

It should be him in that position, he thinks — praying to you, for you, worshipping everything that you are because damnit, you make him a better man.

When you speak, your sweet voice echoes in his ears. "Dean?"

"Angel," he answers.

He tries to make sense of your neutral expression, but you've got the best unintentional poker face he's ever seen. It warms his heart. One day, he'll have to teach you how to use that to your advantage.

You reach out, placing your hands on his knees. "Do you feel holy?"

That hits him right in the chest. "That's a loaded question," he says, a light chuckle accompanying his words.

He swallows, hesitant to be completely honest. He wants to shy away, to brush off the question and silence you with his lips instead, but your eyes are so curious when you look at him that he's compelled to respond.

So he thinks.

Does he feel holy?

The short answer is no, he doesn't. Dean Winchester doesn't feel holy. He's been neglected by God and burned by angels he once thought were on his side more times than he can count. He doesn't bother having faith anymore.

But he's seen things differently ever since you came along, winged and divine and all. You've made him a believer, a follower — not of Heaven, but of you. He means it when he says you could have him on his knees if you asked.

"Am I… allowed to say that it's complicated?" he eventually mutters. He hasn't let himself be vulnerable like this in a long, long time. His eyes flit across your face, searching for something, but he doesn't know what.

When you give him a nod, he feels relieved, even though he doesn't doubt that you'd be supportive no matter what his answer was.

"Yes," you tell him. Your palms still rest on his knees, offering him a stabilizing comfort. "I understand."

You don't pry any further. It's so clear that he's letting you in, he's letting himself be vulnerable with you, and that's enough. He's tense, but with one look at you, it all fades away.

You really are an angel, he thinks. Definitely too good for him, but you're here and you're staying.

Dean can't resist the urge to tuck a strand of hair behind your ear, touching you like you're the most precious thing he's ever held. Maybe you are, he realizes.

He dips his head, his lips finding yours again in a kiss that's careful but certain. As they did earlier, his fingers slide into your hair, and you feel safe here. You're tethered to him in such a meaningful, intimate way. It feels like a prayer and a promise.

The kiss lingers, but he never takes it too far. He's afraid to break you.

That's why he's gentle when he pulls you up from your knees, guiding you into his lap. One of his hands smooths down your arm, stopping at your fingers to interlace them with his own.

He's well aware of how different this is than anything he's used to, but he needs to do this for you. He wants to show you that you're right about him.

"Guess you've really got me down, angel," he murmurs, his lips brushing against yours.

He smiles. You're his soft spot.

reblogs and feedback are greatly appreciated! still in the process of setting up my account but definitely open to making a taglist!