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spenceragnewfics · 5 months ago

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perhaps a fic where y/n does something stupid and reckless to get spencer's attention. and he's wildly concerned but also "wtf y/n you don't need to do all that, you HAVE my attention"

This took longer than usual, but I'm not going to stress myself out by trying to get something out every day and just take my time.

LIGHT BURNS | Spencer Agenew x F!Reader

TW: Jealousy, small injury

Word Count: 2.06k

Description: Spencer and Y/N are the mom and dad of the Smosh office, but what happens when a new games editor appears and takes a lot of Spencer's attention?

Love is a bizarre thing. Many people know this and have done awful, strange, and crazy things for it. That’s the current situation Y/N is in.

Y/N and Spencer have been dating for years. The two have been friends since before they started working at Smosh and dating since their college years. The two are practically married but are just waiting for the right moment.

Many of the new cast members see them as the company’s mom and dad with their relationship dynamic, at least until a new games editor came in.

“Babe! I want you to meet someone.” Spencer says, seeing Y/N sitting at her desk in the unscripted pod. She looks up from her screen with a loving smile, “Of course, is this the new editor people have been talking about?” She asks, getting out of her chair.

“Yeah, this is Cordelia. Cordelia, this is Y/N. She’s one of our unscripted producers and editor. She’s also my girlfriend.” He says, moving to the side to reveal a woman no more than 5’2” with thick curly hair and beautiful tan skin.

She’s never really been taken aback by a woman but there is no denying how beautiful she is. “It’s nice to meet you, Cordelia.” She puts her hands out for her to shake, and the girl hesitates before shaking it. “Nice to meet you too, Spencer don’ you think we need to continue the tour?” Y/N looks at the girl shocked then looking at Spencer.

“Uh, yeah, we can just give me a minute.” He says and she walks away without another word. “Is she…did I do something?” Y/N asks, noticing the weird behavior. “I think she’s just getting used to a new setting. I wouldn’t worry too much about it.” He assures, leaning in to kiss her cheek.

She feels her face heat up from the sweet gesture as she smiles, “Okay, whatever you, Mr. Director.” Spencer smirks at the nickname and hums as he pulls her in, “And since when do you call me that?” She shrugs as she wraps her arms around his neck and his wrap around her waist.

“I thought it’d be a nice addition.” She teases before leaning in, he leans in as well. Their lips are just centimeters away when, “Hey, Spencer, umm, really need to continue this tour.” Cordelia says, popping her head into the pod. Y/N leans her head on his shoulder as he looks at the younger girl, “I will be right there, sorry.” He apologizes and then kisses Y/N’s temple.

“Hey, I love you, and I’ll see you later. Okay?” He asks, leaning back to look at Y/N. “Yeah, I’ll see you later. I love you too.” He pecks her lips before walking out of the pod.

What she hoped was just a first-day standoff, turns out to be a constant thing. Cordelia is nice to everyone except Y/N. Whenever the woman is in the room or close by, she always walks away or gives her the silent treatment.

Usually, she would ask Spencer about this stuff but lately, he’s been busy helping Cordelia. It seems like no matter what, she always needs help, and since Spencer was the main editor for games for so long, he’s always helping.

She’s tried so many things to get his attention but he always assures her that they can talk later, but they never do. It’s been almost a month of this going on and she’s at her wits end with it.

“Honestly, I don’t know what’s going on! He’s been so distant lately and it’s killing me because he’s always with Cordelia. I don’t know why, but something about her feels off.” She says to Angela, Chanse, Courtney, and Amanda during lunch. “Really? She’s always nice to me.” Amanda says and Y/N rolls her eyes.

“That’s why it’s weird! She’s nice to everyone but me. It’s like she has something against me and all I’ve ever done was say hi.” Courtney looks at her confused, “Do you think she might not like you because you’re Spencer’s girlfriend?” They ask.

“What? Do you think she has a crush on him or something?” She looks around the table confused. “I think she absolutely does, girl. She’s always hanging around him and I know she can edit those videos herself. I’ve seen her do it but always ‘messes up’ so Spencer can come and help.” Chanse says, crossing his arms.

“You need to talk to him. I don’t think he understands what’s going on. Have you told him how you feel about all this?” Angela asks and Y/N shakes her head. “That’s where you’re messing up. You need to tell him how this whole thing is making you feel. Spencer is one of the few guys who understands how to talk about feelings.” Angela says, looking at the woman with sincere eyes.

“Okay, I will after this upcoming shoot. That’ll finish the shoot week and he’ll be a bit less stressed.” Y/N declares before moving topics of conversation.

About an hour later, Alex Tran comes running up to Y/N in her pod. “Y/N, we need someone to take over for Chanse. He got sick and we don’t have anyone else available.” He’s breathless and a small amount of sweat is on his forehead. “Alex, did you seriously run over here from the games stage?” She asks amused while giving him a tissue to wipe the sweat off.

“Yeah, I did. Spencer said it’s an emergency so I went with our emergency backup for games videos, you.” She had agreed to be an emergency backup for gaming videos when Specner became the director of programming. She thought with how much she and him played video games then she could do well when needed.

“I’ll be right there Alex. Grab a water from my mini-fridge before you go to cool off.” He nods, leaning down to grab water before walking away and Y/N is walking behind him. He holds the door open for her and it catches the attention of everyone on the stage.

“What’s up, every pony!” Her voice announces happily, excited to be filming with her friends. “Y/N!” Shayne cheers, making her laugh. She looks over to see Spencer is over with Coredelia, talking about something and not even looking up. Her face turns into a sad expression, not used to being ignored by him. Usually, he’s the first one to notice her but it’s like she’s not even there.

She sits between Arasha and Trevor, looking at her hands and not saying anything. Trevor wraps an arm around her shoulder, pulling her into his side when he sees how sad she is. “We’re playing one of your favorites, All Rise.” The game makes her smile as memories of the last time everyone played was when so many inside jokes were made. While she didn’t play herself, she was seated not too far away watching.

She hugs Trevor before sitting up, “Thanks for trying to make me feel better, Trev.” He shrugs like it’s nothing as Spencer looks up from Coredelia’s screen. “Oh, hey babe, I didn’t even hear you come in.” He walks over, kissing the top of her head before going over to the camera.

During the kiss, she looked over to Coredelia glaring at her. ‘She does have a crush on Spence!’ Y/N thinks to herself before turning to the camera. The group of Shayne. Courtney, Arasha, Trevor, and Y/N play the game full of laughs, inside jokes, new jokes made, and sweet times throughout the whole time. It helped distract Y/N from the whole thing going on with the new editor having a major crush on her boyfriend until the game was over at least.

It took no more than a minute for Spencer to call wrap and Cordelia walked over to him, “Hey, Spencie.” She says, making everyone shocked at the nickname. “Yes, Cordelia?” He asks, his voice neutral. “Can you show me how to-”

Y/N tunes out what she asks her boyfriend as she continues to sit at the table. Her fingers mess with the promise ring Spencer gave her last year on their anniversary as her mind races. “Hey, Y/N/N. We’re gonna go get some coffee. Do you wanna come with?” Arasha asks, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“No thanks, Rasha. I’ll be okay. Y’all have fun though.” The girl nods before hugging her and walking over to the group leaving the set. She continues to sit there, not noticing everyone leaving except Cordelia and Spencer. “I feel like such an idiot. I’ve been here two months and I still don’t understand this whole format.” Cordelia says, not noticing Y/N still on set.

“It’s okay. It takes time. Now that you got it taken care of, I think it’s best if you go back to the pod and finish up.” Spencer tries to get her to leave but she refuses. “Well, I wanted to talk to you about something.” She says, putting her laptop down as she stands up.

Y/N looks over confused until she sees the look on Cordelia’s face. It’s a flirty look, “Look, I know you and Y/N have been together a long time-” She starts and Y/N doesn’t hesitate to look around for something. Standing on her chair she reaches up to grab a stage light but burns her hand.

“Fuck, oh my god!” She yells, holding her hand as she starts to wobble on the chair. Cordelia and Spencer look over, and while she looks upset his face fills with worry. “Love, what did you do?!” He asks while running over to her.

Y/N doesn’t get to answer as the chair moves out from under her and she starts to fall, “Spencer!” She screams and braces for impact with the table but it doesn’t happen.

Opening her eyes, she sees her boyfriend looking like he almost saw her die. “Baby, baby, are you okay? What the hell did you do that for?!” His voice is full of concern but definitely louder than normal. Y/N doesn’t say anything, looking away from him.

“Spencer-” Cordelia starts to say before he looks at her, pissed beyond doubt. “Cordelia, you need to leave the stage right now or so help me God you will be out of here in two fucking minutes!” He yells. She doesn’t waste a second, running off the stage and leaving the couple alone.

“Now, Y/N, tell me why you did this.” He says, looking at her hand to see how bad the burn is. “It’s nothing, I was being stupid is all.” She mutters, not wanting to admit she was jealous and trying to get his attention.

Gently grabbing her face, he makes her look at him. His blue and hazel eyes locked onto hers, “I know you're lying. Tell me, please.”

“You’ve been spending so much time with Cordelia and I got jealous. I wanted your attention so I…I did something stupid.” He looks at her amused, “Why are you jealous? She’s just some girl. You’re my girlfriend, my soulmate, the love of my life.”

“You didn’t even notice me when I walked in. You’ve barely been acknowledging my existence.” She stresses, sitting up and moving away from him a bit. “I’ve felt like I’m on a lonely island for a month and it sucks, Spence. I like being a small island with you, not alone.”

“What do you mean I’ve barely acknowledged you? It may not be as obvious but I’m always looking at you or for you. You are my every thought when I need comfort or just to feel better. Babe, you are my everything and I need you to know that.” He assures her, moving closer and moving hair away from her face.

“I’m sorry.” She apologizes, feeling like an asshole. “It’s okay, now let's get your hand taken care of then we can figure out this whole Cordelia thing.” He helps her stand up and wrap an arm around her waist.

“You know, you’re really sexy when you yell.” She says as they walk off the stage and his response is a simple smirk.

#smosh #smosh cast #smosh games #smosh mouth #spencer agnew #smosh pit #spencer agnew x reader #smosh imagine #smosh x reader #fanfiction #fluff #spencer agnew fluff #romance #imagine #request

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bitchslapblastoids · 13 days ago

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Prompted by your post about dnp inviting audience interaction: it /is/ really brave, and so interesting! I haven't been watching them for long at all and one of the biggest things that just drew me in and deeply fascinated me about them is how so much of their work (not just on stage) is in some way a conversation/interaction with their audience and the more you watch the more you notice it. No wonder its easy to be parasocial about them and about the Phandom itself!

To me, at least, they seem to be the sort of performers/creators that need a relatively high level of audience interaction in order to be inspired or for their work to feel meaningful. Like, im absolutely sure they could also create things without this close relationship with their audience but it seems to be what their naturally drawn towards? Obviously the problem has been in maintaining boundaries within that but it seems like that's going better now than at some points in the past, which makes me really happy for everyone!

Sorry about the long yap, this is so interesting to me and I just needed to express it a little

(original post referenced) yes!!! i love this!!! so beautifully worded! no need to apologize at all - i am in such hearty agreement and actually think about this so often. i think the engagement with their audience is their superpower, and it runs so deep. what was one of dan's favorite things about phil before he met him? phil's interactive adventure videos, in which he was creating an interactive experience for his viewers.

when they film pinof1 together, what are they doing? they're answering an audience-submitted q&a. the audience interaction is literally baked into their foundation! <3

2010, dan's uni dorm. what's displayed behind him on his wall? art and letters sent to him by viewers. he films danmail vids where he opens and reacts to said art and letters and personally thanks the senders.

for years and years and years, what's at the end of every phil video? fanart! draw phil naked! (in retrospect literally so weird lol but shhh)

the ongoing avalanche of vyous and younows and tumblr reblogs/follows and responding to yt comments and retweets and and and. so much interaction. the videos directly engaging with twitter and tumblr creations. they see us, they know us, they get us.

their first book? included a double-page spread with dozens of pieces of phanart.

every single one of their tours has multiple essential audience interaction components, and even more brilliantly, with multiple different access points that are perfectly calibrated to their audience. too shy to speak up? send in a submission ahead of time. want to be a part of the masses? shout something out during the audience participation segments! and there's always the likelihood that they'll include fanart in the show itself, casually mention an actual actively popular fic, throw in an ancient phwedding manip, or just build whole segments of the show around our tropes and the world that we created with them. all of that keeps things exciting and engaging on stage, bc you never know exactly what's going to come next. but it also keeps their audience feeling seen, valued, and like co-creators in a way.

When you look at the other britcrew and big yters from the 2010s, they simply weren't generating that ongoing, authentic conversation with their audiences. their approach followed the simple format of: i post, you watch. and then it became: i post, you watch, then i try and sell you something while i call you my 'community' because you are all watching me and sometimes you talk to one another in the comments. but it's not like zalfie or joe and casper etc. were chiming in on the convos too, or at least not in any meaningful way. it wasn't a community in the same way.

dan and phil truly built community. i think communities require mutual exchange, communication, a sense of value and worth, commonly agreed upon truths, shared experiences, touchstones of connection, and leaders who have integrity. i know this is all starting to sound a little lofty, but i really do think dan and phil are good humans who have worked hard to wield their power and influence responsibly and compassionately. they set the tone for us, constructed this world, paid attention to what landed for us, how we responded to things, everything that we were up to in response to what they were up to. they listened. they made us feel seen and celebrated and appreciated, and in turn we continued to celebrate them. they created weird inside jokes, we adopted them, then we all shared the weird inside jokes. they existed, we created our own language and lore and encyclopedia in response, and now there's a whole stage show about it.

that's how you get people sticking around for 15 years. that's how you get people to actually want to spend money on you. and yeah, some more boundaries at times couldn't have hurt. they fostered a sense of proximity and entitlement that obviously put them in harm's way. but i'd say ultimately what they've manage to do has been a net good for them and a tremendous success.

you raised such a good point that it seems to be what they are naturally drawn towards. i think it's because they, too, were fangirls. phil was writing buffy fic. dan was running a lost wiki. they both understood the power of online fan community before they were the titans of their own. they get it, they get us <3

#dan and phil #don't think there are any tit specific spoilers in this #me yapping #you said 'let me submit a nice lil anon message' i said 'HOLD MY BEER'

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amethystarachnid · 1 month ago

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MRS. STARK

⤷ ANTHONY “TONY” E. STARK

ᯓ★ Pairing: Anthony “Tony” E. Stark x fem!reader

ᯓ★ Genre: romance, fluff

ᯓ★ Request from: MARVEL bingo

ᯓ★ Story type: one shot

ᯓ★ Word count: 8k

ᯓ★ TW(s): mentions of kids, mentions of pregnancy (only at the end), paparazzis are a pain in the ass

ᯓ★ Timeline: not in a defined timeline, more like an AU

ᯓ★ Request: Tony stark × marriage of convenience au Tony loses his company reputation because of his playboy reputation. The board of directors demands that he fix this. Pepper suggests an arranged marriage for this. At that moment, he meets reader who is evicted from her home and needs money and proposes. In time, love develops between them. (@binsan)

ᯓ★ Comment if you want to be added to the taglist (specify if you want the everything taglist or for a specific character)

ᯓ★ My Masterlist

ᯓ★ MARVEL Multiverse - choose an AU, pair it with your favorite character and make a request!

ᯓ★ Songs & Superheroes tales - The Game (to make a request, follow the rules on the link!)

ᯓ★ MARVEL Bingo (requests open)

ᯓ★ English isn’t my first language

You pace the small, dingy room you’ve called home for the past few years, the weight of eviction papers heavy in your hand. The landlord's voice echoes in your mind—“You’ve got two weeks. I can’t do this anymore.” It’s not as though you didn’t see this coming. The bills have piled up, and opportunities have been scarce. With no family to turn to and nowhere to go, you wonder how much lower things can get.

As you sit on the fraying edge of your sofa, rubbing your temples, you wonder what your next move could be. The clock ticks steadily, matching the racing thoughts in your mind. I need a miracle, you think, feeling the weight of your situation press down on you.

Meanwhile, across the city, Tony Stark is having his own personal crisis.

Tony lounges in a sleek leather chair in his office at Stark Industries, the weight of the boardroom conversation still lingering in the air. His playboy reputation, once charming and even beneficial to his image, has started to backfire. The board of directors is growing impatient—no, they’re furious—and they’ve made it crystal clear that his antics are ruining the company’s reputation. Something needs to change. Immediately.

Pepper Potts, his ever-practical assistant, stands across from him, arms crossed as she regards him with a mixture of sympathy and exasperation.

“We need damage control,” she says, her voice steady but firm. “The media is eating up every single party, every single fling. They don’t take you seriously anymore, and frankly, neither does the board.”

Tony raises an eyebrow, taking a casual sip of whiskey. “What’s your plan, Potts? A heartfelt apology tour? I’ll have to fit that between saving the world and engineering cutting-edge tech, you know.”

Pepper doesn’t flinch. “You need stability. Something solid, responsible. The kind of image that reassures people you’re not just a billionaire playboy. You need…” She hesitates, as if weighing her next words carefully. “…a wife.”

Tony nearly chokes on his drink, coughing out a laugh. “A wife? Are you serious?”

“Dead serious, Tony.” Pepper’s eyes narrow. “The board will back off if they see you’ve settled down. It shows commitment. That you're thinking long-term. And if the right woman is involved—someone respectable—then maybe people will start seeing you as the man behind the genius, not just the man at the party.”

Tony leans back, considering her words more seriously than he expected to. Marriage had never been on his radar—it’s never even been a blip. But this is different. A strategic move. A necessary one.

“Alright, say I’m interested,” he says slowly. “Where do you propose I find a wife willing to marry me for show?”

Pepper sighs. “There are plenty of women—”

“I’m not interested in one of those society climbers, Pepper. I don’t need anyone looking for a fifteen-minute spotlight or a big payout.”

Just as Tony is about to dismiss the entire conversation, the door to his office swings open. You stand there, slightly out of breath, a bundle of papers clutched to your chest.

Pepper blinks in surprise, but Tony just arches an eyebrow. “And you are?”

“I’m—” You pause, taking a breath. “I need to talk to someone. My home—” you stammer, fumbling with the words, "—I was told to come here. You helped my mother years ago. She said—if I ever needed anything—”

Tony watches you, his expression unreadable, though his eyes flicker with curiosity.

“Well, you’ve certainly come to the right place for help,” he says, his tone shifting from mild annoyance to sudden interest. “Why don’t you sit down? Let’s talk.”

You cautiously take a seat across from him, feeling out of place in his luxurious office. You’ve heard the stories about Tony Stark—the genius, the billionaire, the womanizer. But in this moment, you can’t afford to care about any of that. You need help, and he’s your last shot.

“Let me guess,” Tony says, leaning forward. “You’re about to lose your home. You need money. And you have nowhere to turn.”

You glance at Pepper, who looks back at you with quiet understanding, then back at Tony. “Yes,” you whisper, feeling the weight of it all pressing down on you.

He leans back again, studying you for a long moment before something shifts in his expression. A thought flickers across his mind—a spark of an idea. And then, he smiles.

“Let’s make a deal,” Tony says suddenly. His voice is calm, calculated. “I need a wife. You need a home. How do you feel about an arrangement that benefits both of us?”

Your heart stutters in your chest. “A wife?”

Tony nods. “It’s purely business. You marry me, I’ll make sure you never have to worry about money again. You’ll have everything you need—home, security, whatever. And in return, I get the board off my back. Simple.”

You blink at him, trying to process the whirlwind offer that’s just been thrown at you. It sounds insane. But then again, your whole life has become a series of impossible situations lately. And this one…well, this one comes with a solution, even if it’s wrapped in the strangest of packages.

Tony leans in, eyes locked with yours, a hint of a challenge in his voice. “What do you say?”

You sit there, staring at him as though he’s just suggested you rob a bank together. His words hang heavy in the air, and your mind races to catch up. A wife? Marry Tony Stark? The idea sounds absurd, but as your thoughts turn back to your eviction notice, you realize you might not have a choice. Desperation has a way of forcing your hand, and this—this could be your way out.

Tony watches you, his expression still unreadable, though there’s a glint in his eyes that makes you wonder if he’s enjoying your discomfort a little too much. He’s waiting for your answer, clearly expecting you to be as quick and sharp as he is.

“You’re serious?” you manage to say, your voice barely more than a whisper.

“Dead serious,” Tony replies, the smirk on his face both charming and infuriating at the same time. “It’s a win-win situation. You get stability, I get a new image. We play the part for the public, keep the board happy, and in a year or two, we go our separate ways. Clean and simple.”

You stare at him, searching for any sign that this is some kind of joke, some twisted billionaire’s game. But there’s nothing playful about his gaze now. Tony Stark might be a lot of things—reckless, arrogant, brilliant—but he’s not someone who wastes time.

“What’s in it for you, really?” you ask, folding your arms defensively. “Why me? You could marry anyone—some model or socialite who would be more than happy to play the part. Why pick a random woman off the street?”

“Because you’re not a model or a socialite,” he says simply, his voice dropping a little lower. “I don’t need someone who’s after the spotlight or my bank account. I need someone who won’t get in my way. Someone who’ll keep this business.”

He pauses, watching your reaction carefully. “You don’t seem like the type to get tangled in the drama. You just need help. And that’s the kind of deal I can work with.”

You feel a lump form in your throat. It’s true—he's offering you a way out of a sinking ship. A home. Security. All the things that have been slipping through your fingers, one by one. But still, the idea of entering into a fake marriage with Tony Stark? You’d be lying if you said the thought didn’t terrify you. You’ve seen the headlines, the rumors about his womanizing ways. Could you really trust him? Could you even pull this off?

And yet, the alternative is worse. A life of uncertainty.

“Why would anyone believe it?” you ask, biting your lip as you try to find holes in the plan. “I mean…we just met. People will see through it.”

Tony chuckles softly, leaning back in his chair, a picture of relaxed confidence. “Oh, believe me, people will believe it. I’ve built an entire career on controlling the narrative. I know how to spin a story. We’ll have a whirlwind romance, some well-placed public appearances, maybe a dramatic proposal. Before you know it, the world will be eating out of our hands.”

You inhale sharply, your mind still racing. Everything about this feels so…surreal. And yet, as crazy as it sounds, it’s starting to make sense. At least from a practical standpoint.

Tony watches you closely, as though sensing the shift in your thoughts. “Look, I’m not asking you to love me, or even like me,” he says, his voice taking on a more serious tone. “This is just an arrangement. You get what you need, I get what I need. And once it’s done, you walk away with enough money to start a new life, debt-free. No strings attached.”

The words no strings attached seem to echo in your mind. You swallow hard, looking down at your hands as you twist them nervously in your lap. It’s a cold, transactional proposal. And yet…you can’t deny that it makes sense.

“What’s the catch?” you ask quietly. There has to be one. With someone like Tony Stark, there’s always a catch.

He tilts his head slightly, considering your question before shrugging. “The only catch is that for a while, you’ll be living in my world. That means the media, the attention, and probably some uncomfortable dinners with people who think they’re more important than they are. It won’t be easy.”

Your heart pounds in your chest as you weigh your options. It’s not like you have many left. The thought of staying in this small, cramped room, waiting for the inevitable eviction, is unbearable. And as much as the idea of marrying Tony Stark terrifies you, it also feels like a lifeline being thrown at the last possible second.

“So?” Tony leans forward, his gaze steady on yours. “What do you say?”

You bite your lip, the papers in your hand crinkling slightly under your grip. This might be your last chance. Your final way out.

“Alright,” you whisper, barely believing the words coming out of your mouth. “I’ll do it.”

A slow, satisfied smile spreads across Tony’s face, and he extends his hand across the desk. “Then we’ve got a deal.”

You stare at his hand for a moment before slowly reaching out to shake it, sealing the arrangement that’s about to change your life in ways you can’t even begin to imagine.

As your hand clasps his, the weight of what you've just agreed to settles in. You're about to become Mrs. Stark — at least for the world to see. And as daunting as that may be, it’s still better than the alternative.

You meet his gaze, feeling a strange mix of fear, excitement, and something else you can’t quite name.

This is only the beginning.

ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ♡ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ

The next few weeks unfold in a blur of public appearances, carefully crafted smiles, and whispered conversations behind closed doors. You and Tony play the parts well, slipping into the roles of an unexpected, whirlwind romance. The media eats it up.

The first date is a public affair—dinner at a five-star restaurant in downtown Manhattan. The paparazzi are already outside when you arrive, cameras flashing like fireworks as Tony steps out of his sleek black car, offering you a hand. You take it, the warmth of his touch feeling almost foreign despite the fact you’ve grown used to his presence.

You force a smile, heart racing as you hear the shouts of photographers calling out for a picture, for a smile, for a kiss. Tony leans down, whispering in your ear, "You’re doing great. Just breathe."

It’s strange—how natural he makes it seem, how easy it is for him to slip into this version of himself, the attentive, doting boyfriend. To the world, Tony Stark is charming, smooth, and infatuated with you. And you? You’re the mystery woman who somehow captured the billionaire’s heart.

Inside the restaurant, things are a little less chaotic. You sit across from Tony, the intimate lighting making the scene feel more private than it really is. But the cameras are still there, outside the windows, snapping away.

“So,” Tony says, his voice low as he leans in, folding his hands casually on the table. “How’s the food? Pretending to enjoy yourself yet?”

You smirk, rolling your eyes as you push a piece of food around your plate. “Oh, I’m absolutely swooning. Can’t believe how lucky I am to be here with you.”

Tony chuckles, leaning back in his chair, his eyes glinting with amusement. “Good. Keep it up. The more they buy this, the less we have to deal with later.”

It’s a game. A performance. One that you both know the rules to. But as the weeks pass and the dates pile up, something shifts.

The next outing is a stroll through Central Park, and the one after that is a charity gala where Tony's hand rests on the small of your back, guiding you through a sea of high-society types who eye you curiously, wondering what you did to catch the elusive Tony Stark. And despite how staged everything is, there are moments where Tony seems less like the playboy billionaire and more…human. Moments where he cracks a joke, and you find yourself laughing a little too genuinely, or when he holds a door for you, and you catch the briefest flicker of something unguarded in his eyes.

But you’re careful to remind yourself: this is all business. You’re not here to fall for Tony Stark. You’re here to save yourself.

After weeks of these public outings, the media frenzy reaches its peak when Tony finally sets the stage for the proposal. You’ve both discussed it already—how it has to be big, dramatic, a spectacle that leaves no room for doubt.

You're dressed in a stunning gown, attending yet another high-profile charity event. The ballroom is packed, every face in the room belonging to someone rich or influential. The press is buzzing, and you can feel the weight of a thousand eyes on you.

Tony has been his usual charming self all evening, but there’s something different in the way he looks at you tonight. Almost as if this moment means something more to him. You push the thought aside, focusing on playing your part.

Just as the night seems to be winding down, Tony stands, clinking his glass to get everyone’s attention. The room falls silent, and your heart starts to pound. This is it.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” Tony’s voice is smooth, his gaze never leaving yours. “I’m not usually one for speeches, but tonight, I need to break that habit. Because I have something important to say.”

The crowd watches, captivated, as Tony walks toward you, his steps slow and deliberate. Your breath catches in your throat as he stops in front of you, taking your hand.

“I’ve spent my life building things,” he says, his voice echoing through the room. “My company. My legacy. But in all that time, I never thought I’d find someone who’d make me want to build something else. Something personal. Something real.”

He drops to one knee, and for a second, the world around you seems to freeze. The gasps from the audience are barely audible over the sound of your own heartbeat. He pulls out a ring, the diamond glittering under the chandeliers.

“I’m asking you, right here, in front of everyone, to make this official. Will you marry me?”

It’s all a show, of course. The practiced speech, the perfectly timed down-on-one-knee moment. But as you stare down at him, ring in hand, something about it feels too real. His eyes meet yours, and for a brief moment, you forget that this is all a charade.

You swallow hard, forcing yourself to remember the contract, the deal you made in private. This isn’t real. It never was. It’s just for the cameras, for the board, for the company. But still, you manage to smile as you nod.

“Yes,” you say softly, the word slipping from your lips like it belongs to another version of you. “I’ll marry you.”

The room erupts into applause, but you barely hear it. Tony slips the ring onto your finger, standing to pull you into an embrace. His arms wrap around you, his breath warm against your ear as he whispers, “Perfect. Now they’ll back off.”

Behind closed doors, things are starkly different. The moment you leave the public eye, Tony is already in his office, the papers spread out on his desk. You stand beside him, the diamond ring on your finger suddenly feeling heavy, reminding you of the weight of the bargain you’ve struck.

Tony flips through the pages with a calm, focused expression, glancing at you briefly. “Three years,” he says, tapping the contract. “That’s the timeline. We stay married, let the public eat it up, and after three years, we go our separate ways.”

You nod, staring at the paperwork. Your eyes catch the clause that’s been added in bold: Upon the dissolution of the marriage, Y/N will receive a sum sufficient to cover all debts and ensure financial stability for the foreseeable future.

“Once the board sees I’ve settled down, they’ll loosen their grip. By the time we’re done, you’ll have more than enough to start fresh,” Tony continues, his voice businesslike. “No strings attached. Clean break.”

You sign the papers without hesitation, feeling a strange mix of relief and something else—something you can’t quite name—as your pen scratches across the line. This is what you agreed to. It’s what you need.

But as you set the pen down, you catch Tony’s gaze, and for a brief moment, you wonder if he feels it too. The tension between what’s real and what’s part of the arrangement. The way his touch lingers a little longer than necessary when the cameras aren’t around. The way his eyes sometimes soften when they meet yours.

But before you can dwell on it, he stands, slipping the contract into a folder. “We’re good to go,” he says, his tone brisk again. “Now let’s give them the show of a lifetime.”

And so, with the contract signed and the terms laid out, you walk back into the world together—Tony Stark’s fiancée, destined for a picture-perfect marriage that will end exactly when it’s supposed to. Three years from now, you’ll walk away with everything you need.

Or at least, that’s what you keep telling yourself.

The galas become routine, a swirl of elegant gowns, expensive champagne, and the murmur of voices in rooms filled with wealth and influence. You’ve perfected the role by now—Tony’s perfect fiancée, charming, poised, always ready with a smile and the practiced story of how you two “met.”

The backstory you and Tony crafted is flawless, and it’s become second nature to you. You met at a charity event, of course. Something respectable, something that would explain why a billionaire like Tony Stark would fall for a woman like you—someone who wasn’t already a fixture of his high-society world.

Tonight’s gala is no different. The room is packed with the usual mix of celebrities, business moguls, and old-money aristocrats. You stand beside Tony, your arm linked through his as you make your way through the crowd, the warm glow of chandeliers overhead. Tony’s hand rests on the small of your back, and even though it’s all part of the act, you can’t ignore the comfort of his presence anymore.

“Y/N!” A familiar voice draws your attention, and you turn to see a woman with a dazzling smile approaching. She’s dripping in diamonds, her manicured hand clutching a flute of champagne. “You two look amazing tonight. I swear, every time I see you, you just glow more. It’s like you were made to be by Tony’s side.”

You smile graciously, the practiced ease of it making you feel a little guilty. “Thank you, that’s so kind.”

She leans in, eyes twinkling. “I just love your story. It’s so romantic! I mean, meeting at a charity gala and then falling in love like that? It’s like something out of a movie. How lucky are you?”

Lucky. You bite back the irony of that word, nodding instead. “It was unexpected, but…fate works in mysterious ways, right?”

“Oh, definitely! Tony must’ve been swept off his feet the moment he saw you,” she says with a conspiratorial wink, clearly enjoying the idea of the elusive Tony Stark being anything but untouchable.

You glance at Tony, who’s deep in conversation with some business associates nearby, the cool confidence never leaving his face. You know the truth behind that first meeting—how he found you when you were at your lowest, desperate and vulnerable. But none of these people will ever know that. To them, this is a fairy tale. And you? You’re the lucky girl who got to marry the prince.

Another couple approaches, and the cycle begins again. Compliments, questions about the wedding, and endless retellings of your "love story." You smile through it all, playing your part perfectly, while Tony occasionally sends a reassuring glance your way. He knows how exhausting these events can be, but it’s all part of the plan. You keep up the charade for the media, the board, and everyone else who needs to believe this romance is real.

The wedding comes faster than you expected. After months of public appearances, interviews, and carefully orchestrated photo ops, the big day is finally here. It’s everything the world expects it to be—grand, lavish, and utterly flawless.

The ceremony takes place in a sprawling estate, the gardens decorated with flowers that seem to stretch on for miles. The guest list is as exclusive as it gets—celebrities, politicians, business moguls. The kind of wedding that would dominate headlines for weeks, exactly as planned.

You stand in front of a full-length mirror, staring at yourself in the wedding gown. It’s breathtaking, really. The lace and silk hug your body perfectly, the veil trailing behind you like something out of a dream. It should feel like a fantasy, but there’s something surreal about the whole thing.

Pepper walks in, smiling softly at you as she adjusts your veil. “You look beautiful,” she says, her voice gentle. “Everything’s set. The press is buzzing already.”

You nod, taking a deep breath as you stare at your reflection, trying to ignore the knot in your stomach. This is it. The moment where you and Tony take your fake relationship to the next level in the eyes of the world.

Pepper gives you a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder before stepping out, leaving you alone with your thoughts.

The ceremony begins, and you make your way down the aisle, each step feeling heavier than the last. Your heart pounds in your chest as you see Tony standing at the altar, looking impossibly dashing in his tailored suit. His eyes meet yours, and for a brief moment, the world around you fades.

You force a smile, reminding yourself this is all part of the plan. But as you approach him, something changes. The look in his eyes is different—there’s a softness there, a vulnerability you haven’t seen before. It throws you off guard, and suddenly, you’re not so sure if this is just an act anymore.

The officiant begins, and you stand there, hand in hand with Tony, reciting the vows you both know are meant to be temporary. But with each word spoken, the lines between what’s real and what’s pretend blur just a little more.

“I, Anthony, take you, Y/N, to be my lawfully wedded wife…”

His voice is steady, but there’s something in his tone that makes your breath catch. You stare at him, searching his face for any sign that he’s just playing the part like you are. But in this moment, with the whole world watching, it almost feels like something else.

“I, Y/N, take you, Anthony, to be my lawfully wedded husband…”

The words slip from your lips, and as you say them, they feel heavier than you expected. Your heart beats faster as Tony’s thumb brushes lightly over the back of your hand. The gesture is so small, so intimate, that for a moment you forget everything—the contract, the deal, the carefully planned charade.

The officiant asks if there are any objections, and the crowd is silent, holding their collective breath. You can feel Tony’s eyes on you, and when he lifts your veil, the world seems to slow.

He leans in, his lips brushing yours, and for that brief, fleeting moment, it feels real. The kiss is soft, hesitant, as if neither of you are sure where the line between pretend and reality is anymore. The applause erupts, but all you can hear is the pounding of your own heartbeat.

You pull away, your eyes locking with his, and for just a second, there’s something unspoken between you. Something that neither of you are willing to admit.

But then the moment passes, and Tony’s signature smirk returns as he lifts your hand, showing off the ring to the crowd. The cameras flash, the guests cheer, and just like that, you’re Mrs. Stark—at least in the eyes of the world.

As the reception begins, you can’t shake the feeling that something changed between you two at that altar. Something neither of you expected. But before you can dwell on it too much, Tony is by your side, his arm slipping around your waist as he leans down to whisper in your ear.

“Congratulations, Mrs. Stark. You’ve officially survived the hardest part.” His tone is playful, but when you glance up at him, there’s a flicker of something deeper in his gaze.

You force a smile, nodding as you look out over the sea of guests. You’ve done it. You’ve played your part perfectly.

But deep down, you can’t help but wonder: Was it all still just an act? Or did something real happen between you and Tony in that brief, unguarded moment?

You push the thought aside, reminding yourself of the contract, of the plan. In three years, this will all be over, and you’ll walk away debt-free, just as promised.

But for now, you’re Mrs. Stark. And for better or for worse, that’s the role you have to play.

ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ♡ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ

The first few months of marriage pass in a delicate dance of closeness and distance. You and Tony keep up appearances for the press and the public, playing your parts to perfection. The media can't get enough of the two of you—the glamorous, whirlwind couple that keeps everyone talking. But behind closed doors, things are changing. Slowly, almost imperceptibly at first, the boundaries of your arrangement begin to blur.

At home, away from the cameras and prying eyes, Tony is different. It starts with small gestures. He brings you coffee in the mornings, just the way you like it, without you ever asking. You catch him looking at you when he thinks you’re not paying attention, his expression softer than the public version of Tony Stark. It’s in the way he lingers when you pass each other in the hallway, his hand brushing yours just a little longer than necessary, his gaze lingering a little too long.

The nights spent in the massive Stark Tower feel less like a performance and more like something genuine. You find yourselves talking late into the night—about everything, about nothing. Sometimes it’s about work, other times it’s about things neither of you have shared with anyone else. Tony talks about his parents, about how lonely it was growing up despite all the wealth and success. You open up about your life before all of this, the struggles, the dreams you gave up on, and the ones you still hope for.

There are moments when it almost feels real—like you’re not playing a part anymore. Moments when Tony’s laugh is so genuine, so unguarded, that you forget this is all temporary. There are nights when he falls asleep next to you on the couch after watching some terrible movie you both made fun of the entire time, his arm slung over the back of the sofa, just barely touching you. And when he stirs in his sleep and pulls you a little closer, you don’t pull away.

You tell yourself it’s still part of the arrangement—that none of this changes the contract or the plan. But deep down, you know better. This isn’t just about saving his reputation anymore. Somewhere along the line, things got complicated.

But as the months pass, the press starts to ask questions. At first, they’re subtle—tiny, whispered headlines about the perfect couple, alluding to the next big story. “Stark Wedding Still the Talk of the Town,” they say. But then, the speculation begins to shift.

“When are the Starks Starting a Family?” The headline is plastered on the front of every tabloid, and soon it’s the only thing people want to know.

You notice it at the galas, in the way people casually ask about your future plans with a knowing smile, as if it’s only a matter of time before you announce a pregnancy.

“Any little Starks running around soon?” A woman asks you one night at an event, her voice dripping with curiosity as she sips her champagne. You force a smile, your practiced response already prepared.

“Oh, we’re just enjoying married life for now,” you say, deflecting the question as you’ve done a hundred times before. But it’s getting harder to avoid. The press is relentless, constantly speculating about why you and Tony haven’t started a family yet.

And then one night, during a quiet dinner at home, Tony brings it up.

“We need to address this,” he says, setting down his wine glass and looking at you seriously. “The whole ‘when are you having kids’ thing. It’s becoming an issue.”

You raise an eyebrow, feeling a knot of tension forming in your chest. “What do you mean?”

“The press. The board. Hell, even Pepper has been asking me about it.” He leans back in his chair, running a hand through his hair in frustration. “They think if we don’t at least make it look like we’re planning to have kids, the whole marriage thing starts looking fake.”

You swallow, the weight of his words settling in. You’ve known this day would come—that eventually, people would start to question the validity of your marriage if they didn’t see the next logical step. But you didn’t expect it to happen so soon. Or to feel so…complicated.

“And what do you want to do about it?” you ask, your voice quieter than you intended.

Tony looks at you, his expression unreadable for a moment. “We can’t have kids. Not under this arrangement,” he says, his voice careful, measured. “That’s too far. We’ve been keeping everything business, and that… that’s different.”

You nod, relief and something else—something like disappointment—washing over you. The idea of having a child with Tony never even crossed your mind. It would complicate everything, not just the contract but your own tangled feelings.

“But,” Tony continues, his tone shifting as if he’s trying to solve one of his impossible engineering problems, “we could make it look like we’re…trying. Just enough to keep people off our backs.”

You stare at him, feeling a strange tightness in your chest. The idea of pretending to try for a family seems too intimate, too close to something real. But you understand what he’s saying. It’s part of the performance. Just like everything else.

“And what does that look like?” you ask, trying to keep your voice steady.

Tony shrugs, but there’s an edge of discomfort to his usually confident demeanor. “We drop a few hints. Let the media speculate. Maybe mention something in an interview about how we’re not ruling it out. We don’t have to do anything drastic, just… give them something to talk about.”

You nod, knowing that it’s the logical next step. But as you sit there, staring at him across the table, you can’t shake the feeling that pretending to plan a family feels more dangerous than anything else you’ve done so far. Because even though the idea of kids has never been part of the equation, the thought of what that implies—what it means for the two of you—makes your heart race.

The truth is, things have changed between you and Tony. You’re not just business partners playing a role anymore. Somewhere along the way, you’ve become…something else. And the thought of what that might mean, of what you could become, scares you more than anything.

Tony watches you carefully, as if he’s trying to gauge your reaction. For a moment, there’s silence between you, thick with unspoken things. And then he says, almost too softly, “This isn’t what either of us signed up for. I know that. But… I don’t want to push you into anything you’re not comfortable with.”

You look at him, surprised by the vulnerability in his voice. It’s the closest either of you has come to acknowledging that things between you have become more complicated than just a contract.

“I’m okay with it,” you say quietly, though you’re not sure if that’s entirely true. But it’s the only answer you can give right now. “We can give them something to talk about. We’ve handled worse, right?”

Tony’s smile is small, almost sad, and for a brief moment, you wonder what would happen if things were different—if this weren’t just an arrangement. If the feelings that had started to bloom between you weren’t confined by the terms of a contract set to expire in three years.

But you push the thought away, telling yourself that none of this can be real. Not the lingering touches, not the late-night conversations, not the way your heart skips a beat when Tony’s gaze lingers on you a little too long.

Because it’s all still part of the plan. Isn’t it?

The press will get their story about you and Tony ��trying for a family,” and you’ll continue to play your part. But behind closed doors, where the cameras can’t reach, the lines between performance and reality are growing more and more blurred.

And neither of you seems quite sure where one ends and the other begins anymore.

ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ♡ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ

The media frenzy never really stops. Every event, every gala, every time you and Tony are seen in public, the question of starting a family hangs in the air like a cloud, waiting to burst. At first, you both handle it with practiced ease—hinting at possibilities, making vague remarks about enjoying married life for now. The press eats it up, but as the months drag on, the whispers grow louder.

“Are the Starks having trouble conceiving?” “Is there tension in the Stark household?”

The headlines shift from speculation about when you’ll have children to rumors about why you haven’t yet. It’s a delicate dance, one that requires both you and Tony to show the right amount of affection in public, but with subtle hints of strain.

You both knew this would happen. The plan was to invent a story, an excuse that would explain why the perfect couple—the marriage that saved Tony’s reputation—was struggling to take that next step. And so, the story was crafted. You and Tony were “trying,” but it wasn’t working out. The media took the bait, sympathy replacing the pressure, as reporters switched from prying into your marriage to speculating about the emotional toll of fertility struggles.

It’s a brilliant strategy, really. The public buys it, the board of directors remains satisfied that Tony’s personal life is still under control, and you keep the illusion alive. But behind closed doors, things are different. The tension between you and Tony isn’t from some fabricated difficulty of trying for children—it’s from the unspoken truth neither of you can fully face.

Time is running out.

Three years. That was the deal.

You and Tony sit in front of the fireplace in the penthouse one night, the crackling warmth filling the space as the two of you remain lost in your own thoughts. The contract’s expiration date is approaching, looming over both of you like a shadow.

Tony leans back in his chair, his drink untouched beside him. He’s been quieter lately, more thoughtful, but you chalk it up to the usual pressures of running Stark Industries. Or at least, you tell yourself that’s all it is. But deep down, you know something has shifted. It’s been building slowly, a subtle tension, one you can’t quite place but feel all the same.

“You know,” Tony says suddenly, breaking the silence, “we’ve been doing a hell of a job keeping this thing going.” His voice is casual, but there’s an edge to it, a seriousness that pulls at something inside you.

You nod, turning to face him. “Yeah, we have.”

“And the press,” he continues, his eyes flicking up to meet yours. “They’ve got their story. We’ve given them everything they need. Sympathy, speculation, the whole package.”

You know where this is going, and the weight in your chest tightens. He’s bringing it up—the end. The divorce. The part of the plan that always seemed so far away, until now. You’ve kept the charade alive for years, and now it’s time to walk away, just like you agreed.

“Right,” you say softly, your voice catching in your throat.

But Tony doesn’t stop there. He stands, pacing slightly, his hands shoved in his pockets. His brow is furrowed, his face caught in that thoughtful expression he gets when he’s working through something complicated.

“Look, we’ve played this game long enough. And you’ve held up your end. More than held up your end, actually.” He pauses, glancing at you. “So, we could, you know…call it.”

You stare at him, feeling the weight of the conversation settle heavily on your shoulders. This is it. The moment where everything unravels, where you go back to being two people with separate lives.

But Tony isn’t looking at you with the same confidence he usually has when he’s broaching a difficult subject. He seems…uncertain. As if he’s weighing something deeper, something he hasn’t fully admitted yet.

You take a breath, trying to keep your voice steady. “Yeah. That’s what we agreed on, right?”

There’s a pause. Tony walks over to the window, staring out at the city below. His reflection is visible in the glass, but his expression is unreadable.

“We did,” he says, but the conviction in his voice is missing.

You watch him, waiting for him to say something more, to tell you what’s really on his mind. The silence between you stretches, the unspoken things hanging heavy in the air. It’s as if both of you are waiting for the other to say what neither of you is ready to admit.

“Tony…” you start, but he cuts you off, turning to face you, his eyes more serious than you’ve ever seen them.

“Y/N, I don’t think I can do this.”

Your heart skips a beat. For a moment, you’re not sure what he means. “Do what?”

He steps closer, his gaze locking onto yours, intense and raw. “Divorce you. Let you go. Walk away and pretend like none of this ever happened.”

The air between you shifts, charged with a tension that’s been building for months, maybe longer. Tony’s words hang there, vulnerable and exposed, and it hits you all at once—this isn’t just about the deal anymore.

“Tony…” Your voice is barely above a whisper, your heart pounding in your chest.

He closes the distance between you, his hands reaching for yours, his grip warm and strong. “I know this wasn’t part of the plan. I know we were supposed to walk away after three years and never look back, but…” He pauses, swallowing hard. “But I don’t want that.”

Your breath catches in your throat. Tony’s eyes search yours, his expression raw in a way you’ve never seen before. The walls he always keeps up, the armor he wears in public, are completely gone now.

“This thing between us, it’s not just for show anymore. I thought I could keep it separate—business and personal—but I can’t. I care about you. And I know we agreed that this was temporary, but it doesn’t feel temporary to me anymore.”

The truth you’ve been avoiding, denying to yourself for so long, crashes over you. It’s not just him. It’s you, too. Somewhere along the way, between the public dates and the private moments, the late-night conversations and the quiet mornings, you’ve fallen for him. Despite all your attempts to keep this arrangement strictly professional, you’ve found yourself caring more than you ever thought possible.

You stare at him, your heart racing. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying…” He exhales, his voice softening. “I don’t want to lose you, Y/N. I don’t want to walk away from this. From us.” He pauses, his gaze never leaving yours. “I love you.”

It feels like the world stops for a moment. His words hang in the air between you, and you can’t believe what you’re hearing.

Your hand tightens around his, your voice trembling slightly as you reply, “I love you too, Tony.”

It’s the first time either of you has admitted it, the first time you’ve said it out loud. And suddenly, everything clicks into place. This was never just an arrangement, not for either of you. Somewhere along the way, it became real.

Tony steps closer, cupping your face with his hands, his eyes soft and full of emotion. “Then let’s forget the contract. Forget the plan. Let’s do this for real.”

You nod, tears welling up in your eyes as you lean into him, his lips brushing yours in a tender, genuine kiss. The kiss feels like a promise, like the beginning of something you’ve both been building toward without even realizing it.

The contract, the public charade, the expectations—it all falls away. This isn’t about saving Tony’s reputation anymore. It’s about the two of you, finally being honest with yourselves, and with each other.

You pull back slightly, smiling through the tears. “No more pretending.”

“No more pretending,” Tony agrees, his smile mirroring yours as he kisses you again, this time with the weight of everything left unsaid now spoken. The future no longer feels like a ticking clock or an obligation to a deal. It feels like a life you’ve both chosen—together.

The night Tony confesses his love changes everything. The walls that once separated the two of you—the boundaries of your arrangement—come crashing down. That night, for the first time, everything feels real, not just in your hearts but in the way you move together, shedding the last vestiges of the deal that brought you into each other's lives.

After Tony’s confession, the two of you barely make it to the bedroom, too consumed by the need to be closer, to feel each other in a way that wasn’t hidden behind performance or pretense. His lips trace over your skin, soft but insistent, as if he’s trying to memorize every inch of you. You respond with equal intensity, your hands tangled in his hair, pulling him closer as your bodies mold together effortlessly. The chemistry that’s been building for so long, simmering beneath the surface, finally explodes into something overwhelming, passionate, and real.

That night is unlike anything you’ve experienced with Tony before. It’s not about appearances or duty—it’s about desire, love, and the raw, unspoken connection you’ve always felt but never fully acknowledged. In every kiss, every touch, there’s an unspoken promise of a future you both want—a future no longer bound by a contract.

You spend the night wrapped in each other’s arms, the lines between where you end and Tony begins blurred in a way that makes you feel whole.

Months later, everything feels different. The weight of the contract, the looming deadline—it’s all gone now. You and Tony are free, not just from the obligations of your arrangement, but from the barriers you put up to protect yourselves. And it feels good. Better than good.

The press still follows your every move, but now, when you’re photographed together, it’s not an act. You’re truly in love, and it shows in every stolen glance, every casual touch.

And then, something else shifts. A few months after that unforgettable night, you notice something’s changed—within you. At first, you dismiss it, but as the signs become more obvious, the truth hits you like a tidal wave. You’re pregnant.

Telling Tony is a moment you’ll never forget. He’s in his workshop when you find him, hunched over some new project, completely immersed in his work. You’re nervous, but when you say the words, his reaction is everything you could have hoped for. He freezes for a moment, blinking as if he didn’t hear you correctly.

“Wait, what?” He straightens up, his eyes wide, his face a mixture of shock and awe. “Are you serious?”

You nod, unable to keep the smile from spreading across your face. “Yeah. We’re having a baby.”

For the first time since you’ve known him, Tony Stark is speechless. He just stares at you, his expression softening before he breaks into a grin. And then he crosses the room in two strides, scooping you up into his arms, spinning you around as he laughs—really, genuinely laughs.

“We’re having a baby,” he repeats, his voice filled with wonder.

The night of the gala is perfect. The two of you arrive hand in hand, the press buzzing around you as always, but this time there’s something different in the air. You haven’t made the announcement yet, but tonight is the night.

You wear a stunning dress, custom-made to skim over the subtle curve of your belly. It’s not obvious yet, but you know the media will spot the signs—sharp eyes never miss a detail. And when you and Tony take the stage, everyone’s watching.

Tony steps up to the microphone, his usual swagger in full effect. “So, I know you’ve all been wondering,” he starts, flashing that charming grin of his, “about when the Starks are finally going to have some big news to share.”

The crowd murmurs in anticipation, cameras flashing as the press leans in, hanging on his every word.

He turns to you, his gaze softening as he reaches for your hand. “Well, the wait’s over. Y/N and I are expecting our first child.”

The room erupts in applause, gasps and cheers filling the air as the cameras go wild. Tony pulls you into his side, kissing your temple as you both beam at the crowd, the love between you palpable.

After the announcement, the two of you make your rounds, mingling with the guests, accepting congratulations, and soaking in the joy of the moment. But later, when the two of you finally find a quiet corner, away from the crowd, Tony’s hand rests on your belly, his thumb tracing slow circles over the fabric of your dress.

“So,” he says, his voice low, filled with affection, “what do you think? Boy or girl?”

You laugh, leaning into him. “I don’t know. But I have a feeling they’re going to have your charm and your appetite for chaos.”

Tony grins, his hand moving to cradle your face. “Lucky for them, they’ll have your heart and patience to balance it out.”

You roll your eyes playfully. “Let’s just hope they don’t inherit your knack for getting into trouble.”

He chuckles, pulling you closer. “Hey, trouble is part of the Stark legacy.”

You smirk, resting your hand on top of his. “Well, as long as they don’t inherit your driving skills, we’ll be fine.”

Tony gasps dramatically, pressing a hand to his chest. “My driving skills are impeccable! You love my driving.”

You give him a look, raising an eyebrow. “I love you, Tony. Your driving… not so much.”

He laughs, leaning in to kiss you softly, and for a moment, the world outside fades away. It’s just the two of you—together, happy, and ready for whatever comes next.

As the night winds down, Tony pulls you aside once more, his lips close to your ear as he whispers, “I can’t believe this is our life now. I can’t believe we’re doing this—for real.”

You smile, your heart swelling with love as you whisper back, “Neither can I. But I wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else.”

And with that, Tony leans down, pressing a playful kiss to your belly before looking up at you with a mischievous grin. “Just so you know, the kid’s first words are totally going to be ‘Iron Man.’”

You burst out laughing, swatting his arm. “Not if I have anything to say about it!”

Tony winks, pulling you into his arms. “We’ll see about that, Mrs. Stark. We’ll see.”

I hope you liked this story! <3

108 notes · View notes

cookybananas · 4 months ago

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It's Been A Long Time, Old Friend (Part II) - Unburnt!Darth Vader x Reader

author's note: apologies for the delay! but here is part II to 'Its Been A Long Time, Old Friend'. I am currently working on the third chapter, which will be the final part of the mini-series. I am hoping to release it within the next few days. please let me know what you think of the series so far! xx

summary: where Darth Vader arrives on the planet of Lianna. Only to discover that the Queen of Lianna was once his old flame during his Jedi years. part I: It's Been A Long Time, Old Friend (Part I)

You couldn't sleep as well as you thought last night. You felt overwhelming chilly and cold. Perhaps you accidentally left one of your balcony doors open.

Chira was doing your hair as you accessorized yourself with jewelry. You were expected to dress a certain way ever since you became a monarch. Displaying your wealth and status in the intricate, puffy gowns, bouffant hair, and excessive jewelry. At times, you felt the clothing and jewelry you had wore was a bit much, but to your dismay, you didn't have a say in it.

"Is everything alright Y/N?" Chira spoke up, noticing how you were less talkative this morning.

"Yes, Chira...It's just a surprise to find out that Lord Vader would be staying with us the next four weeks. Other than that, everything is fine." You gave her a small smile as you both made your way out of your chambers. Both you and Chira talked some more before you dismissed her to her other duties.

After indulging in breakfast with Kairos in silence as per usual, he eventually left as he had gone off to show Lord Vader the facilities to where his TIE fighters were being built.

You were in the palace's private library, reading away. Life in the palace was boring, but you selfishly prefer this than having to hop planets every week. You didn't have to work in terrible conditions and worry about when or what your next meal was. At times, you weren't sure how long you could get away living this life, or how long the Empire would reign for.

Vader's presence on Lianna left you on edge, you began to ponder at your ruminations. What if you hadn't fully cut yourself off from the force? When the Jedi fell, inquisitors arose and hunted any Jedi. Whether it was to turn them into inquisitors or just simply kill them off. At times, you wanted to reach out to Obi-Wan and see how he was doing. Though, you and Obi-Wan agreed to never disclosed your locations to each other, for the sake of each other's safety, you couldn't deny that you missed your old friend dearly. But there one person you missed the most, and it was your former lover, Anakin Skywalker.

You felt like a traitor when you were forced to marry Kairos. You felt as if you betrayed Obi-Wan, yourself, and most importantly, Anakin. The guilt ate you up for the longest time until you made peace with it, believing this was how your life was going to be from now on.

When Obi-Wan had broke the news that Anakin gone, you refused to believe him at first. You lived in denial for several months, drowning in your sorrow, and holding out hope that your husband would return to you one day.

There was one night, you had a dream of Anakin dying. The dream felt too real that you couldn't tell if it was the force telling you the veracious fate of Anakin. You searched your feelings, which only pushed you in believing that the Anakin you knew and loved ceased to exist. That same night, you made the decision to cut yourself off the force and try to leave your Jedi past behind.

Lightning flashed through the tall windows of the dimly-lit palace. The faint sound of thunder rumbling echoed throughout the night sky, masking the sound of Vader's heavy footsteps and breathing as he roamed the corridors. After a long day of touring the facilities and having to listen to Kairos at every minute of the day, Vader was ready to be done and meditate in his chambers. But before he could, Vader had to map out the palace, scanning the building to locate any secrets that may had any hidden passages, hiding any force-sensitive people.

After sending two probe droids and unit of stormtroopers to scan the exterior, Vader had made a beeline through every hallway and room he had encountered, making sure every crevasse of the interior of the palace was noted in his holomap.

When Vader had hit the throne room, the blue light emitted from his wrist, scanning over the objects and walls within the room. When the light had hit the large portrait of you and Kairos, Vader paused, analyzing the picture. Though the room was dimly lit from the lanterns on the wall, the flashes of lightning allowed Vader to take in the portrait clearly.

Vader studied you, his eyes scanning over your features. Your face didn't have any of the royal face paint on. Instead, your face bore little to no makeup, showing your true natural beauty. Vader furrowed his eyebrows as his eyes landed at the small scar on your right cheek. Vader couldn't tell if it was a doppelgänger, or that it was a coincidence that another woman in the space system happened to eerily look like you and have the exact scar on the cheek. He thought fate was playing with him.

"My Lord, we have just finished scanning the palace." The voice of one of his stormtroopers shook Vader out of his thoughts. A flash of lighting glared through the windows and on the portrait, as Vader took one last good look at image before leaving the room and into his chambers.

A week had passed since Vader made the decision to stay at the palace. You rarely saw him around at first, but he soon came around and would join you and Kairos for breakfast and dinner. Though he wouldn't eat anything and would just sit and watch you and Kairos eat in silence, perhaps it allowed him to come out of his shell, or just spy on you both.

The one thing you did notice, was how he took a liking to you, at least that's what you convinced yourself of. Whenever Vader was in the presence of both you and Kairos, you always felt like there were a pair of eyes watching you. When you would look back at him, he either continue to stare at you or avert his gaze.

Maybe you were going crazy, but you could still sense Vader's prying eyes on you before going to bed. Because of this, you had made sure to close and lock your balcony doors every night, but even then, you couldn't shake the feeling away that you were being watched.

There was one day you wanted to test the waters with Vader and mustered the courage to start a conversation with him.

"Lord Vader, I hope you are enjoying your stay with us." You stated, approaching the Sith Lord, who was gazing over the clashing waves of the ocean. Vader turned to look at you, surprised at your words.

"Your majesty, it would appear I am enjoying my stay here. It does feel great... To be here, where it is beautiful, and relaxing" He let out, turning to look back at the ocean. You raised your eyebrows, stunned at his response. You've heard Vader was often straightforward with his words, never did he find interest in engaging in intimate conversations, even with his own men.

"Well, I'm glad to hear that Lord Vad-"

"Vader. You can refer me as Vader m'lady. You need not use formalities when you address me, especially when we are alone together." He interrupted you, you were taken aback at his words, unsure what to say.

"Well, Vader. In that case, you can call me Y/N." You gave him a small smile. Anakin whipped his head at your words, his eyes widening under the mask. It was you, it has to be you, this has to be a twist of fate. Anakin's breath hitched in his throat at the revelation.

"Are you alright Vader?" Your tone became serious, noticing the sudden change in his demeanor. You unconsciously touched his well built bicep, a habit you had when expressing your concern. The sudden contact sent a surge of electricity through the both of you. Realizing your action, you pulled your arm back. Anakin on the other hand was disappointed when your hand was no longer on him. He felt that all the pieces missing to him have fallen in place when you touched him. The faint feeling of familiarity he felt when he had landed on Lianna, had become stronger by the moment when you had touched him.

"Oh would you look at that, it's almost time for supper, care to join us?" You cleared your throat, looking down at your pocket watch, quickly changing the subject matter. Vader couldn't refuse, he needed an excuse to be with you longer. He needed you to touch him again, or him to touch you, or something for him to feel that spark he had just felt.

"I...I would love that." He let out. You gave him a huge grin at his response.

A gesture that Vader would never do, he offered his arm to you, in hopes he that you'll ignite that spark in him again. You hooked your arm around his, as you both made your way to the dining hall.

To say that Vader was feeling conflicted at the moment was an understatement. Anakin began to feel that his heart was melting away the ice around it. The past two years, he had felt nothing but fear, pain, and suffering. All of sudden, you, you reminded him about this youthful self and his past, before he became a Sith.

Anakin knew he would have to bring you to the Emperor or have you killed, whether it by his hands or one of his inquisitors, but now he couldn't bring himself to do either. You were his, truly. You were his angel, his wife, and his Y/N. All of the visions he had of you dying were no longer true, there were fictitious. Anakin thought he had lost everyone he loved, but you remained.

"That was well delicious as always." Kairos said to one of the butlers, to which you nodded in agreement as the butlers took the plates away.

"It's getting late, we should head to bed honey." You spoke up, looking at Kairos, who nodded in agreement.

"Allow me to walk you to your room my dear." Kairos stood up from his seat, as did you. You roped your arm his as you turned to back at Vader who was seated across the table.

"Goodnight Lord Vader." You gave him a smile, before leaving the room with Kairos. The both of you strolled down the hallway in comfortable silence. Instead of walking into the direction of your private chambers, you both made your way out to the palace's lit up courtyard. Kairos stopped in his place, turning to face you, holding both of your hands in his.

"Y/N..." Kairos spoke up. You looked up to him curious at his strange behavior and sudden intimacy.

"What is it Kairos?" You asked.

"I've noticed our guest has taken a liking to you." He commented. You raise an eyebrow at his statement.

"I think you're reading into it too much Kairos." You turned away, walking back into the direction from where you had came from, not wanting to deal with whatever Kairos had to pick with you this time. However, Kairos grabbed a hold of your wrist, spinning you around to face him.

"Y/N, for once put your ego aside... I understand we may not get along and disagree on most things, but I do care about you... I trust you, but I don't trust Lord Vader. Don't think I haven't noticed his wandering eyes on you." You scoffed at his accusation, ripping your hand out his grasp.

"Are you hearing yourself Kairos? You seem jealous at Vader's closelesness to me. Perhaps-" Before you could finish your words, Kairos smashed his lips against yours. Your eyes widened as you shoved Kairos off, wiping yours lips in disgust.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?" You began to yell at him, never did you imagine Kairos to pull a fast one on you.

"I need you shut up and listen to me for once Y/N. I understand you may not like me, but Lord Vader is here for a reason." Kairos took a step closer to you, his hands holding yours arms that were resting to side. "You may not see it Y/N, but there is something about you that brought Vader here."

You took a step back from Kairos, letting the revelation hit you. Your jig was up, you realized you should have been more careful around Vader. You should have known better that your force signature was still lingering out there. You needed to get off this planet before Vader figured it out.

"I...I need to know. What exchange did you have with the Empire? What relation do you have with him?"

"I-I don't know Vader like that Kairos. I have no idea what you're trying to get at." Your voice trembled, failing to hide your sudden nervousness.

"I suppose, you don't have to tell me if you want to... However, I do think it's best you leave Lianna for sometime. Before something happens." Kairos' voice was softer now. He held your hands once again, his eyes boring into yours. "I'll make sure Chira comes along with you, I'll send you to a planet somewhere in the Outer Rim. The Empire and Lord Vader would not be able to track you as easily there."

"Thank you Kairos... Really, I mean it." You cupped his cheek, to which he closed his eyes and leaned his head into. Realizing what you needed to do and where you needed to go, you knew this would probably be the last time you would step foot on Lianna, at least for a long time. "I apologize for roping you into this.... I know we had our differences, but I did not mind being around you. Even if you were a pain in my ass."

Kairos chuckled at your words, amused at your humor during one of the few vulnerable moments shared between the both of you. You knew you couldn't bring yourself to love Kairos, despite being married. You felt your heart still belonged to Anakin, even when you convinced yourself that he was gone.

"Just know I did love you Y/N, but I knew your heart was somewhere else when I had choose you." You quirked an eyebrow at his words.

"Y-you knew? Why did you still choose me?"

"You were beautiful, and still are. In truth, I needed my father to get off my back, but I did feel alone for the longest time before meeting you." Kairos looked down, avoiding your gaze.

Your eyes soften at his state. Part of you believed that your relationship with Kairos could have worked out. You strongly believed that you could have been good friends at least, but you both were too occupied being enemies than wanting to get along.

"I won't keep you here any longer. I'll have a ship ready for you. Grab whatever you need. Chira and I will meet you by the landing pad." The sudden shift in Kairos' serious tone shook you out of your pondering.

"I'll be quick. Thank you once again Kairos." You gave a quick kiss on his cheek before breaking out into a run, making your way into your private chambers to grab your emergency bag that held your personal items.

the finale: It's Been A Long Time, Old Friend (III)

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lowkeyrobin · 8 months ago

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can you do a gally x reader where its like a lovers to enemies to lovers??? thanksss 🫶

thank you for requesting!! I hope you enjoyed bc this genuinley rotted my brain bc I spent way too much time overthinking it 💀💀 ; HOLY SHIT POST WRITING ROBIN HERE.... uh I didn't see the first lovers bit I am so sorry 💀 I actually apologize bc idk how to fix it now LMFAO ; also ending is rlly dumb but jsjskdndns ; send tmr requests please 🙏🙏🙏

GALLY ; i don't want to be your enemy anymore

summary ; a little enemies to lovers trope with Gally because why not

warnings ; language, guns, knives, WCKD stuff

word count ; 1.6k

masterlist

Being stuck in that peaceful, dystopian Hell with Gally for three years was enough to make you rethink every single life choice that could've probably led you there, which wasn't much considering most of your memory had been erased. But, after escaping the maze, WCKD, fighting against Mother Nature in the Scorch and the Cranks, making it to the Right Arm, raiding a WCKD train, and a no-plan-plan to storm the Last City, you never thought you'd see Gally again, for better or for worse.

You two had never gotten along whatsoever, prior to, or post Thomas entering the Glade.

Gally would always do anything and everything just to piss you off. From the frequent physical fights to dehumanizing and undermining you for whatever reason, it never stopped. You were truly enemies, always out to get each other back or glare at each other from across the entire Glade.

He thought it was dumb for you to be awarded the graciousness of being a Runner, for whatever reason. Builders didn't have a lot going up in the membrane and he just proved it, constantly. But, sometimes you'd do the same, you weren't any better than him, just short-tempered, you supposed.

All those wasted nights sleeping in the Slammer over fighting, all the alcohol wasted due to throwing it all over each other. You both had a fire burning in your hearts to just kill each other, but in a way, it was fun. It was fun to piss each other off and get a reaction, and to just yell and scream your emotions out at each other. Toxic enemies, perhaps.

Minho though, good Lord. He always had to tease you, his fellow peer, about it.

"Oh, you're so in love with Gally" and "You look at each other with hearts in your eyes." You couldn't go a day without him bringing it up at least twice.

But now, you were trying to get Minho back from WCKD, and that's all that mattered. What did matter was that Gally was fucking alive.

Of fucking course, just your luck.

How he wasn't dead was beyond you, considering you watched Minho impale him with a spear.

You thought for a moment he was working for WCKD, considering he killed a small child last time you saw him, and he and his buddies basically kidnapped you and your friends. But, he took you guys back to some Rebellion setup hideout just outside the city, considering you couldn't get into the walls, now knowing there were microchips in your necks tracking your every move.

You stuck back while Thomas spoke to Lawrence, the guy in charge, turned half-Crank. You didn't want to be anywhere near Gally while he took Thomas down, so you stuck with the others, silently looking for reassurance in each other.

༘⋆₊ ⊹★🔭๋࣭ ⭑⋆｡˚༘⋆₊ ⊹★🔭๋࣭ ⭑⋆｡˚༘⋆₊ ⊹★🔭๋࣭ ⭑⋆｡˚

The sun sets rather quickly, and you, Newt, and Thomas join Gally into sneaking into the city through a train tunnel. That in itself was its own thing. You don't even know why you agreed to come with them, considering you were being led by Gally, but, alright then.

He takes you three on a little tour of the city, showing you all the bright lights and the building that towered over the rest, WCKD's headquarters.

You're perched on a balcony, looking over at the building from afar. A telescope rests on the ledge of the wall, Thomas looking through it. Gally stands on his left, and then Newt and you on the right.

Newt looks over at you, sensing your discomfort from a mile away. "You okay?"

You nod, arms crossed as you look out into the city.

Thomas looks up and over at you two, telling you to look through the telescope to look into the windows of the building. Apparently, he'd seen something of interest. The blonde steps forward, looking through the lens as Thomas stands next to him.

Gally looks to you, a weird kind of look in his eyes. You shrug, silently asking what he wanted. He mouths a little message that he'll talk later, probably wanting to get back before doing so.

After returning, you find your way onto the rooftop, needing some alone time. You'd forgotten about Gally looking at you entirely, needing to clear your head over seeing him again and being shot at as per usual earlier. The fact WCKD was able to track you was what had you slightly scared. I mean, what if they were able to see you right now, trying to take a breath all alone on the rooftop?

You don't hear Gally sneaking up on you, but when the footsteps become closer and closer, you quickly turn your head back to see him a few feet away. He apologizes for running up on you, seeing the way you quickly turned around in defense mode like you were scared or something.

"I just came out here to talk, about earlier" He explains, sitting down next to you, although making sure to leave some room between the two of you.

"What's to talk about?" You ask, looking up over the walls of the city in front of you.

"I dunno, to apologize, and try to make amends, I guess" He answers with a little snark, "I'm not asking for forgiveness, but if we're gonna work together, I'm not acting like your enemy anymore, okay?"

You take a second to actually look at him, noticing his freshly buzzed hair and his desperately needed growth spurt, mentally and physically. You slowly nod and turn away, looking back up at the walls ahead.

He exhales through his nose, a little frustrated. He wanted an actual truce, knowing you. "Y/n, I'm serious. I'm not bullshitting, I don't wanna be that stupid kid a year ago that had fun fighting and making fun of you, I want to work on the same team. I don't wanna be best friends, but I don't wanna be your enemy either"

You bite the inside of your cheek, trying to conjure up a response.

"Yeah, fine"

"...Cool"

"Initiate phase four"

You and Gally await as Newt rounds up all the kids, keeping a close eye on Thomas forcing Teresa to give them intel and directions. Thankfully, she was halfway on your side.

Newt and Thomas send you two off with the children, all under the age of thirteen or so, directing them down to the bottom level of the parking garage where Brenda awaits. You're dressed in the slightly uncomfortable WCKD guard suits, you in the red variation like Newt, Gally in the grey like Thomas.

Once they were safe on the bus with Brenda, the two of you quickly scurried away to get lost in the crowds and hopefully meet back up with Newt and Thomas soon. You make sure your gun has the safety on while in your belt, deciding to work with handguns tonight, while he decides to go for the more bulky, electrical type of gun this night.

Somehow, Gally with a gun was kind of hot, but you'd never admit it aloud.

You power walk down the streets, making and pushing your ways through the crowds, fake patrolling the bottom layer of the WCKD tower, awaiting a message from Thomas. He tries to strike up some small talk as you also await Lawrence to bring the corporation down, since the Rebellion would never be stopped by just a few seventeen and eighteen year olds plus their forty year old father figure friend. Another plus, to properly destroy WCKD wasn't a bad idea, so the idea commenced with a very certain plan.

"Y'know, I didn't expect to see you again, like, if I ever saw you guys again. Not in a rude "I thought you would've died" way, but I didn't take you as one to try and take down the government and shit. You're a tough shank though, I'll give you that, " He speaks, speaking calmly, trying to give you that reassurance once more that he genuinely wasn't trying to start anything.

You nod, "Never thought I'd see you again either, but it's kind of relieving, to be honest. You changed in a good way. A really good way." You lightly smile, giving him a little shoulder nudge. "And don't worry about the past, it doesn't matter anymore, I couldn't care. Just... got a little scary seeing you again I guess" You shrug.

He nods. "Yeah, it's fine. Uhm... fuck, sorry" He says, trying to find the right words, "I'm not saying this like, to try and weird you out or distract you but I feel like to not hate each other anymore, we need to be open-"

"I like you too, if that's what you're getting at." You shrug, stopping in your tracks as he does. "If not, then sorry, kinda jumped to conclusions." You awkwardly chuckle, double checking your safety again.

He nods, "Cool. We'll talk about this later then?"

"Why not now? Under the soon to be burning building?" You joke with a light laugh.

"I missed that laugh" He mumbles

"Hey, hey, calm down now" You chuckle, shoving his shoulder, "We have a mission, here. We're children at war, Gally"

"The mission can wait a moment" He suggests, giving you a look, awaiting approval.

You dramatically roll your eyes with a smile, accepting his move before quickly pulling him in for a little kiss. You dragged him by the strap of his WCKD vest, almost making him fall on his knees for you.

"Now come on, we gotta go find some people to get in formation with and get to Newt and Thomas" You nod sideways, pulling your mask back up.

"Yeah, yeah, let's go"

#lowkeyrobin #tmr gally #tmr gally x reader #gally tmr #gally tmr x reader #the maze runner x reader #maze runner x gn reader #maze runner x reader #maze runner oneshot #gender neutral reader #gn reader #they/them reader #the maze runner #tmr x gn reader #tmr x reader

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mymoodwriting · 3 months ago

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Request for Anon (asylum patient!Changmin) 7.4k, yandere behavior, asylum patients, psychiatry, medication, needles, restraints, kidnapping, manipulation (@starillusion13)

“You’re nice… and pretty… real pretty…”

You were taken aback by the sudden compliment. This whole time you had been talking, and he hadn’t said a word until now. A childish smile adorned his face, and you weren’t entirely sure what to make of it. Although you were glad he was behind a glass panel. Today was your first day on the job, and after getting through the facilities tour you were given a patient to sit down and talk with. Ji Changmin, patient 0598, was in the asylum for a list of reasons, and he refused to speak to any physiatrist. So, as a way to break you in, the senior residents thought it was a good idea to give you this mock session with him. No one expected him to speak. Especially you.

“Uh… thank… you… but I’m not here to talk about me. I’m here to talk about you and-”

“Nope. That’s not why you’re here. I get to meet every new doctor since I’m so quiet and well behaved. I don’t usually talk but I like you, and I want to talk to you.”

“Oh… well, unfortunately I won’t be your physiatrist, but there’s nothing wrong with talking to someone. We’re here to help.” You gave him a shy smile, and then your watch beeped. “My time is up, but I’m sure I’ll see you around.”

“I don’t wanna talk to anyone else. I won’t. So I’ll see you later!”

Changmin had a big smile on his face as he waved, watching you leave the room. You stayed strong until you left the room, leaning against the wall to catch your breath. The other doctors had been watching, but the chief came over to you, Doctor Lee.

“Are you okay?”

“Fine. Just got jitters since I was told he wouldn’t talk, and I didn’t think his voice would be so soft.”

“Apologies. I didn’t know he’d do that either, but I am glad to know he can talk.”

“Has he really never spoken before?”

“Not since he was first admitted. Doctor Choi has been trying to get him to speak for years, but he’s never uttered a word before today.”

“Then… is he gonna-”

“No, no, you just started. I’m not assigning you a patient so soon. You’re just gonna shadow some doctors and help where you can. We’ll start simple with you joining some group sessions led by Doctor Bae.”

“Alright.”

The first incident with patient 0598 only had you shaken up for a bit. Once you were with Doctor Bae things settled down and you could really get into your job. For the most part you helped with supervision and getting things for other doctors. You followed a few of them as they did their rounds and checked in with patients. Some needed more than psychiatric help so it was important to provide their medicine and make sure it was taken. When it came to meals there was a huge cafeteria. The lower part was for patients, whereas the second floor was for doctors. All patients were divided into one of three categories.

The first group were the new patients, as well as those who were mostly calm and well behaved. The second group was filled with patients who required more hands-on care and certain doctors would be down there to keep an eye on them. As for the last group, they were deemed the dangerous ones. Those that needed more security presence to make sure no one caused trouble. You originally thought patient 0598 would have been in the first group, but to your surprise he was in the third. You watched from the balcony above as he got his food and then sat down alone in the corner. Everyone said he was well behaved, so you couldn’t understand why he was in the third group.

“You must be the new doctor.”

You were a bit startled when approached, but were quickly met with a friendly face. One of the other doctors had come over to you, holding out their hand with a smile on their face.

“I’m Doctor Kim, but you can call me Younghoon if it makes you comfortable.”

“Doctor Kim should be fine.” You shook his hand. “I’m-”

“Y/n, pleasure to meet you. It’s been a while since we had someone new.”

“Really?”

“Not all doctors jump at the chance to work at an asylum.”

“Yeah.”

“So, you interested in the dangerous ones?”

“What?”

“Many of the patients in group three are mine, and you seemed very intrigued by them. Curious, aren’t you?”

“I… well, a bit.”

“Ask away. As long as we’re not breaking doctor patient confidentiality.” Younghoon winked at you. “I’ll answer to the best of my ability. You are here to learn after all.”

“Right… I… well I don’t know if you know, but patient 0598, why is he in group three?”

“Changmin?”

“Yes. I was told he works with Doctor Choi but-”

“Chanhee does his best, but it’s more like he talks to a wall. As for why Changmin is in group three, well, he is dangerous.”

“I spoke with him earlier, and everyone says he’s well behaved.”

“He is, but the thing is he can’t be allowed to interact with patients from other groups.”

“Why?”

“Cause he doesn’t talk to doctors, but he’ll talk to other patients. He certainly has a way with words we don’t know about, so he’s a danger to others. At least in group three he knows better than to try and make conversation with these people.”

“So you’re isolating him and punishing him for no reason.”

“See what I mean, he talked to you once and now you’re defending him and looking out for him when he’s not even your patient.”

“… I…”

“All he did was call you pretty. I guess that’s all it takes.”

“Ya!”

“Easy. I’m not trying to make a jab at you. It’s important to care, but you should only care about your patients. It’s your first day and you’ve already proved to yourself why he needs to be in group three.”

“That’s not true…”

“My advice, don’t ever talk to him again, even if Sangyeon asks you too.”

“What?”

“The chief.”

“But he said-”

“It doesn’t matter. Changmin hasn’t spoken to a doctor in years, yet he talked to you. The reason the chief has all the newbies talk to Changmin is to see if someone will get him to open up. You did that, and it’s only a matter of time before you’re put in a room with him again. Refuse. If you ever talk to Changmin again, well, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Younghoon gave you a playful pat on the shoulder before walking off. His words rang in your mind, but you weren’t too sure you understood what he meant. Your thoughts were interrupted by the rumble of your stomach, and you went to get lunch. The food was pretty good, and Doctor Bae waved you over to join him at his table. You sat down, seeing Younghoon there, along with someone else.

“Be careful now, Chanhee.” Younghoon joked. “She’s out to steal your patient.”

“Ah, you’re the new doctor who got 0598 to talk, impressive.” The gentleman held out his hand. “I’m Doctor Choi Chanhee, pleasure to meet you.”

“Hello.”

“Younghoon tells me you’ve taken an interest in my patient.”

“More like… professional curiosity.”

“That’s one way to put it.”

“Leave her alone.” Doctor Bae interrupted. “Everyone is curious about those from group three, especially 0598. It’s the one patient all the doctors know.”

“Already on defense, huh, Jacob?” Younghoon teased. “I already told your newbie everything she needs to know about Changmin, so don’t worry.”

“I don’t even know what that means, but thanks I guess.”

“So, how are you taking things?” Chanhee asked. “Do you like the atmosphere, think you can make it here?”

“The structure here is good, and all the doctors seem to know what they’re doing and care about their patients. I’d say the atmosphere here is welcoming. I can’t imagine you guys deal with unruly patients often.”

“It is a rare sight.”

“I think I’ll like it here.”

“But do you think you’ll last?” Younghoon questioned.

“Younghoon.” Jacob hissed. “Behave before I throw you into group three myself.”

“You gonna send me to my people?”

“How do you… how do you treat patients from group three? Is their care different?”

“We don’t coddle our patients much. Very straightforward and direct.”

“The patients of group three tend to have criminal records.” Chanhee added. “So we must be more cautious. For the most part they get along well with each other, and are respectful towards the doctors. If there’s ever trouble, it’s rarely someone from group three.”

“That’s good to know.”

After lunch you continued following Jacob as he did his rounds. Most patients spend their days outside in the open space, especially after lunch, and you had a chance to see that. From what you noticed Jacob mostly worked with patients from the first group, and they were always friendly. A little later in the evening you sat with Jacob as he led a group session, getting the others to open up and share their burdens while providing some guidance and advice. It was nice to see him work towards making a difference.

The first few days you merely stuck with Jacob, and little by little he had you engage with patients more often, getting to know them and their needs. You were starting to get an idea as to what your routine would look like once you were assigned patients. To make it easier you’d be taking some of Jacob’s first, since you had already established a bit of a relationship. At the end of your first week Sangyeon had you come to his office, wanting to see how you were doing and adjusting to the new place. You were eager to do so, glad that you were seen as part of the team and not just a newbie anymore.

“It’s good to see you. How has it been doing rounds with Jacob?”

“He’s been very kind and patient with me, so I’ve been learning a lot.”

“That’s good. Since you’ll start seeing patients next week I created a list for you so you know who you’ll be treating.”

“Thank you.”

You took the file from Sangyeon, opening it up and being met with some familiar patients. Although when you got to the last page you froze.

“Uh… sir… why is-”

“I know he’s not exactly what you were expecting, but I have a favor to ask of you.”

“Sir, I don’t think I’m qualified to speak with him. He’s in the third group and-”

“Do you know why he’s here?”

“No. I haven’t inquired about him. It’s not my place.”

“I respect your professionalism. Although I still must ask this of you. Ji Changmin has been here since he was seventeen. He was admitted for aggressive behavior and being a danger to others. He’s mostly calm as you’ve seen, but he doesn’t speak to any doctors. His family makes yearly donations to this hospital to keep it operational and to help their son. You’re the first doctor he has spoken to. I’ve wanted nothing more than to help him, and I can see that you’ve been sent here for that purpose.”

“But-”

“Here me out for a moment. What I really want here is for you to talk to him, just that. Doctor Choi will help you outline sessions and choose talking points, so you just need to follow his plan. He’ll be listening in at all times, and make sure nothing happens. Do you think you can do that?”

“I… I’ll just follow the guidelines Doctor Choi gives me?”

“Precisely.”

“How long… how long do you intend for me to do this?”

“Unfortunately I can’t give you a proper answer, but I’m sure in time he can open up and will be able to speak with Doctor Choi directly.”

“Can I… can I think about it?”

“Sure. Take the weekend and get back to me on Monday.”

“Thank you.”

🖤

You did ponder over this request a lot, thinking about what Sangyeon said, while also remembering Younghoon’s warning. It was hard to decide who to trust. Younghoon works with dangerous patients, but Changmin doesn’t seem to fit that profile. He even told you Sangyeon would ask this of you, but he didn’t actually treat Changmin. Not to mention Sangyeon was in charge of the hospital. He oversaw all patients and wanted what was best for them. It was clear Changmin hadn’t properly been treated, and you had the chance to really help him. As a doctor, it would be unethical to refuse. So come Monday morning you told Sangyeon you’d accept his proposal, and he thanked you for making a good choice.

During the morning you meet with your new patients, Jacob following you around to offer his assistance when needed. Although after lunch you parted ways, heading over to the east wing of the hospital where those from the third group resided. Immediately you could tell how things were different. You had to pass through two doors of security before entering the east wing, and you had to show your ID multiple times to the guards. They always asked why you were there and checked their records to make sure you were supposed to be there. Once you got through all that Chanhee was there to greet you and welcome you. He said things would get a little easier once the guards recognized you.

“I told you to refuse.”

You jumped when you suddenly heard a voice, turning around to see Younghoon standing behind you. He gave you a questioning look, raising his brows in the process.

“So you better just be visiting.”

“I made the decision.”

“No you didn’t.”

“Look, I’m not actually treating Changmin.”

“Changmin? So you’re on a first name basis now?”

“No. Doctor Choi is basically just giving me a script to follow. I’m just trying to help both of them and hopefully lay down a path they could meet on.”

“This is still a bad idea.”

“Well Changmin isn’t your patient, and you said you shouldn’t care about other doctor’s patients. He’s technically mine now, so I will do my job.”

“Feisty. Well, just know, you can’t back out now.”

“I don’t intend to.”

“Hm, you’re gonna eat those words soon enough.”

You couldn’t really understand why Younghoon was acting that way, but it was the least of your worries. You went over the notes Chanhee had for you and were then led over to where you’d be meeting. The room was a modest size, as were all the others, except this one was different. A glass panel divided the room in two, and Changmin was on the other side. When he saw you walk in he jumped up with a big smile on his face.

“Hello! I knew we’d be seeing each other again! Gosh, you only got prettier.”

“Good afternoon. I’ll be your psychiatrist for the time being.”

“Great! Please take good care of me doctor!”

Changmin happily sat down, scooting his chair over so he could be as close to you as possible while still on the other side of the glass.

“How are you liking the hospital?” Changmin asked. “Everyone’s super friendly and-”

“Mr. Ji, I’m-”

“Changmin. Call me Changmin, please.”

“Alright then, Changmin. I appreciate your enthusiasm, although I’m not here to talk about me.”

“Ah, right, right. You’re here to learn about me and help me.”

“Yes, I am.”

“Okay, so, what do you want to know?”

“Well, let’s start off simple.” You glanced down at your notes. “You’ve been here for a long time, and you don’t really talk to anyone, isn’t that lonely?”

“Hm… a bit, but I’ve gotten used to it.”

“Do you think this loneliness started with your family?”

“My family? What do they have to do with this?”

“Your family is the reason you’re here. They sent you here to get help, saying you were a danger to yourself and others. Do you think that’s true?”

“Do you think it’s true? Am I a danger to others?”

“I don’t know enough about you to answer that.”

“But you could make an educated guess.” Changmin smiled brightly. “Am I dangerous?”

“You’re associated with group three, which labels you as dangerous, but like I said, I don’t know enough about you to answer.”

“So you’re gonna believe what everyone else says?”

“Changmin, I’m going to remind you that I’m not here to talk about me. I’m here for you and to help you.”

“It would be very helpful to know if you think I’m dangerous.”

You sighed. “Based on what I’ve seen, I don’t think you’re dangerous.”

“That’s right, I’m not. Do you wanna know something?”

“What would that be?”

“I wasn’t sent here because I was a danger to myself, they just didn’t want me hurting my brother.”

“… oh… why… why would you hurt your brother?”

“Cause he was born to replace me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Didn’t you do your homework about me? I’m Ji Changmin!” He got up and stood on his chair. “The rightful heir to Ji Industries. It’s my birthright!”

“That’s enough 0598!”

Regardless of what group a patient was in, if one got too rowdy they’d have to be removed, and that also applied to sessions. Once Changmin had started shouting and moving around so much you knew security would walk in shortly. They grabbed Changmin and pinned him against the glass. All you could do was watch as his hands were tied behind his back, but he didn’t seem to mind. He had a big smile on his face as stared at you, ultimately being escorted out of the room. A moment later Chanhee came in, having noticed that you had yet to move.

“Are you alright?”

“Huh? Oh, fine, just… that was all weird.”

“How about we go to my office and go over the session.”

“Sure.”

Chanhee helped you to your feet and the two of you went to his office. He got you a cup of tea and you sat before his desk. He looked over his own notes, giving you a moment to steady yourself and process.

“So, what did you get out of that session?”

“Well, you know him best, I’m not sure my opinion helps.”

“This is also a learning experience for you.”

“I suppose. We didn’t get to talk much, but he seemed to care very much about how others perceive him, specifically me. He wouldn’t allow the conversation to go elsewhere until I gave him an answer. Although, he did divert to that line of questioning when I brought up his family. I guess that’s a sensitive subject for him.”

“You didn’t look into him beforehand?”

“I didn’t know he was someone important. Sorry.”

“No, no, it was better that you went in blind. Things might have played out differently if you knew about his family.”

“What did he mean? When he said his brother was born to replace him?”

“I believe he’s referring to the fight he had with his younger brother. The one that led to him being admitted here. As you can imagine, he was set to inherit the family business but it seemed he wouldn’t be able to do so. The father then changed the title of heir to the youngest and that created a wedge between the two.”

“That’s what made him aggressive. He felt betrayed and abandoned by his family.”

“Yes. His family only tolerated so much, but when he seriously injured his younger brother they sent him to the hospital to get better.”

“I see. He was sent here by people he didn’t trust, so he won’t be inclined to trust the doctors around him, but for some reason he seems to trust me.”

“The reason isn’t entirely relevant.”

“I know, what matters is that we help him. I’m a means for you to get through to him and help him return home.”

“Precisely. For the time being I won’t schedule another session to give you both a chance to breathe. I’ll let you know when you should come back to the east wing.”

“Thank you, Doctor Choi.”

You couldn’t get the session out of your mind, and when you got home curiosity got the better of you, so you searched up information about the Ji family. It wasn’t all that surprising when the only articles that came up were all in relation to Ji Industries. A few spoke of the CEO but not the family. There wasn’t really anything about the heir either, which is not all that shocking. A family like that can certainly pay to keep their names out of the news. You closed your laptop having learned nothing, but instead left with more questions. Your opinion of Changmin didn’t change much, which was probably for the best.

🖤

The next morning you had to focus on your actual job, your actual patients, so you pushed your curiosities to the back of your mind and prepared for the day.

“You. Come with me.”

You had barely been checking in with Jacob when you were suddenly grabbed and dragged off by Younghoon. His grip on you was rather firm, and you couldn’t free yourself despite how hard you tried. You did ask him to explain himself, but he was very determined to take you somewhere. Next thing you knew you were heading to the east wing. Security didn’t even stop either of you, just opened the doors and let you through. You thought it very odd, but this area was Younghoon’s department, so surely he knew the guards well. Meaning that since he had you in tow, they weren’t gonna bother checking either of you.

“Younghoon, what is this!?”

“I told you it was a bad idea.”

You were walking down a hall towards the patients’ rooms. You noticed a door open all the way at the end, and a few guards and orderlies inside. That seemed to be where you were going. You were starting to feel uneasy, but you couldn’t do much as you were dragged into the room.

“Here. You happy now?”

As you walked into the room you noticed the patient was in a straight jacket and restrained to their bed. They were screaming and thrashing, desperately trying to free themselves, and then they saw you. Changmin smiled and rested his head against the pillow.

“Good morning.”

“… morning…”

“See. She’s here, so you can stop throwing a tantrum. Let’s go.” Younghoon pushed you out of the room. “Someone get him his breakfast.”

You were still processing what had just happened, and really unsure of how to respond. Although you eventually found the words.

“What… uh… what just happened?”

“It’s what you think.”

“Which is?”

“Changmin started throwing a bitch fit when Chanhee told him that he wouldn’t be seeing you today. He really didn’t take that well and had to be sedated and restrained, but that didn’t stop him. So I went to go get you. It’s probably best you come pay him a visit every morning, for everyone’s sake.”

“Absolutely not!” Chanhee’s voice interrupted. “What is she doing here?”

“You know wha-”

“I explicitly told you not to bring her! Giving him what he wants is the last thing we should do!”

“And restraining him was going so well.” Younghoon countered. “You’re welcome by the way.”

“Changmin isn’t your patient!”

“Then maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea for you to bring her up here every morning, like you’re bringing Changmin a gift. Maybe he’ll like you more if you do. Then you could actually do your job and not use a surrogate.”

“Both of you stop it.” You cut in. “If you had just told me what was going on from the start I would have come along. And if necessary I can come by every morning.”

“You don’t have to do that.” Chanhee stated. “It’s not-”

“Should we ask the chief?” Younghoon questioned. “Hm?”

“Fuck you.”

“That’s what I thought.”

“Don’t ever go behind my back on matters pertaining to my patients again. Got it?”

“He’s more like our patient than yours, since he doesn’t talk to anyone. Well, actually, I guess he’s her patient technically.”

“Whatever. You can go now y/n, very sorry to have troubled you.”

“I understand. I’ll see you later then.”

You returned to your usual work station. Your mind was still running but you had other patients to prioritize. As the day went on you heard some chatter about you and what had happened in the morning, seems news travels fast around here. You thought you’d get questions about it, but no one really brought it up. That made sense, after all, Changmin was a special patient, a VVIP technically. Talking about him in general could cause problems. It did become routine to go over to the east wing just to say hello to Changmin every morning. He was always so happy to see you. In a strange way you could say the same. Although once a new session had been scheduled you didn’t have to see him first thing as you’d be seeing him later on.

“Doctor! I’ve missed you so much! It’s good to see you again!”

“Hello, Changmin, how have you been?”

“I’m the same. What about you? It’s not fair I don’t get to see you so often.”

“I do see you everyday.”

“But I want to talk to you and spend time together. I’m your patient, we should have a session everyday.”

“Actually, you’re still Doctor Choi’s patient, I’m just helping out. He sets up the sessions.”

“You don’t have to do what you’re told.”

“I’m an employee here, Changmin, I have a boss, and certain procedures to follow in order to do my job. It also makes sure everyone is safe. I have no problem following the rules.”

“Those rules keep me away from you.”

“Hm, you don’t like authority figures?”

“No one should tell you what to do.”

“Well, those people are in place for a reason. You know, one can point to parents being an authority figure. You didn’t like doing what your parents told you, did you? Although to be fair that is normal. A parent and their child are prone to disagree at times.”

“That reminds me, I have something to show you.”

“Changmin, you’re avoiding-”

“Look!”

You knew bringing up his parents would be difficult, but it was an important point to discuss. He was quick to ignore the mention of them, and you intended to bring it back but were surprised by what Changmin had. He held up a little doll, something he clearly made himself. The doll had on some clothes and a white coat, bits of yarn making up the hair. What stood out was that it looked like you, at least what you had been wearing on your first day. It wasn’t entirely shocking giving arts and crafts were a monitored activity in the hospital. The only problem there was that Changmin was in group three, and none of those patients were allowed to do arts and crafts for fear of them getting their hands on scissors or needles.

“You don’t like it? I worked really hard on it…”

“Did you… did you make that…?”

“Yup. It turned out great, right?”

“When did you make that? How? You’re not-”

“That’s my secret.” Changmin giggled, hugging the doll. “I don’t like talking to you behind a glass wall. Do you think our next session can be in another room? You can tie me up if that’ll make you feel better.”

“No… uh… Changmin… why did you make a doll of me?”

“I only get to see you in the morning, and we don’t have daily sessions. I was hoping you could hug it for a bit so it would smell like you, but I guess you don’t like it.”

“I… it’s odd… Changmin… I didn’t think you’d make such a thing. Perhaps one of the guards can take it and-”

“No! It’s mine! The only person allowed to touch besides me is you! Nobody else.”

“Okay. I’ll see what I can do, but we should get back to what we were discussing earlier.”

“I just wanna talk to you.”

“We are talking. You and me.”

“No. You’re just reading Doctor Choi’s notes, you’re not actually caring for me. You’re a liar.”

“Changmin. That’s not fair. I’m still new here and it would be highly unethical for me to treat you. I don’t have enough experience or knowledge. It wouldn’t be right if I did this myself.”

“But I only want you! I won’t talk anymore if Doctor Choi is just using you like a puppet.”

“Changmin, I’m trying to help, honestly. You’ve been here for so long, and you’ve been so quiet and isolated. Don’t you wanna go home some day?”

“Home… would you still be with me if I left this place?”

“How would we ever know if you stay quiet and stay here.”

“Do you promise?”

“Promise what?”

“That you’ll stay with me when I get out?”

“I don’t know if-.��

“Answer me!” Changmin stood and slammed his fist against the glass. “Answer me honestly right now!”

“Changmin, please calm down before-”

“Promise me! Please, I don’t want anyone else…”

“Chang-”

The door on his side suddenly opened and guards came in. Unlike last time he did put up a fight, screaming and demanding an answer from you. In the fight he had dropped his little doll. As he was dragged out of the room you got up and went to the otherside, getting his doll and going after him. You yelled for the guards to stop and caught up to them. Changmin had his hands tied behind his back, and he was panting, but he looked at you with hopeful eyes. You gave him a simple smile and placed the doll in his hands.

“Look, I know things are difficult but I-”

“Don’t answer him.” Younghoon came up from behind and placed a hand over your mouth, pulling you away. “Get Changmin to his room.”

This time Changmin didn’t scream, but complied and was escorted away. Younghoon kept hold of you and dragged you along, heading towards the entrance of the east wing. It wasn’t until you were by the guards that he let you go.

“What the hell was that?”

“What were you thinking? Were you seriously gonna promise him something?”

“No, wait, how do you know what we were talking about?”

“Every available doctor listens in on your session. You were really just poking the bear bringing up his family like that.”

“It’s the root of the problem here, we need to talk about it.”

“And he’s gonna avoid the subject.”

“Then I’ll keep trying.”

“You think Chanhee is gonna let you have another session?”

“I-”

“The boy made a doll of you, that’s not normal.”

“I know that!” You sighed. “What else am I supposed to do?”

“You don’t compromise yourself for the sake of someone else, let alone a patient. Honestly, you should transfer.”

“What?”

“If you keep seeing Changmin, there will be problems. You can’t put yourself in there with him again.”

“I’m trying to help him.”

“Are you? He’s never thrown a fit before, not until he met you. Trust me, this is gonna end badly if you stay.”

“I appreciate the unsolicited advice, but I’m going to do what’s best for my patient.”

“Wow, so now he is your patient.” Younghoon scoffed. “Alright then, just remember I tried to help you before you got fucked. See you around.”

You didn’t take kindly to Younghoon’s words, but you weren’t gonna give him some sort of remark either. Even though he had left you at the entrance to the east wing you went off to find Chanhee, needing to discuss what had happened. Chanhee’s first concern was you, wanting to make sure you were alright. He apologized afterwards, not knowing how Changmin had gotten such a doll, or that the session would go in such a way.

“I don’t want you seeing him again.”

“Chanhee, I-”

“No. He’s exhibiting obsessive behavior and could wind up endangering you. I know he only talks to you, but it’s not good for either of you to meet. I’ll speak with the chief about this, so don’t worry.”

“But-”

“He’s my patient y/n, and I’m not gonna put you in danger. You could wind up doing more harm than good.”

“Ah… sorry…”

“Don’t blame yourself. We gave this a shot, so at least we don’t have to ponder on what if. I’ll also get that doll away from him, I have no idea how he got it in the first place.”

“Maybe leave the doll. He’ll probably be very upset if you take it.”

“Are you sure? It’s already a weird item for him to have.”

“If it keeps him out of trouble it’s fine.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, but you can go now. There won’t be anymore morning visits, or a reason for you to come to the east wing. Thank you for all your help.”

“Yeah. Let me know if you need anything else.”

🖤

You expected to hear from the chief, but you never did. Chanhee probably really hashed it out in regards to removing you from Changmin’s care. You wondered how he was doing, but you didn’t hear any whispers about him, and you couldn’t just go ask. It was better this way. You weren’t at all qualified to help him out, but maybe talking to you for a while will encourage him to open up to Chanhee. You focused on your own patients, getting comfortable in your position and feeling like you were actually helping. Jacob would still give you pointers and help you where you needed it. Even the others provided advice too.

Although Younghoon had given you the cold shoulder after that day. You’d see him at lunch, and sometimes he’d sit at the table with you, but he rarely said anything to you. He and Chanhee both kept quiet about Changmin, and of course you weren’t gonna ask. It shouldn’t bother you, since you and Younghoon don’t really work together, but you weren’t a fan of this silent treatment. You weren’t gonna say anything about it and just do your job, he already had a lot on his plate from working with patients of group three. You thought you’d never see him outside the lunchroom again, but you were strangely surprised one day.

“Come with me.”

As you walked out of a session Younghoon grabbed your arm and started pulling you along. It seemed that he had been waiting for you. This time around there wasn’t much urgency or aggression in his actions, but he still lacked an explanation.

“What’s going on?”

“You’ll see.”

“Younghoon, if something is wrong just tell me.”

“…”

“I have no business in the east wing anymore, so if you’re not gonna-”

“He wants to see you.”

“Chanhee?”

“…”

You sighed. “Has he been throwing tantrums?”

“He’s been very quiet and patient.”

“Then why-”

“Just come along.”

You got through security fairly quickly, Younghoon keeping a hand on you the whole time. Once in the east wing you felt a chill run down your spine. Something was telling you that you shouldn’t be here, and your instincts were right. As you were walking down a hall the lights suddenly turned off. For a moment you were drenched in darkness, then red lights illuminated everything followed by a siren.

“Let’s go!”

Younghoon began running, dragging you along. Your mind was still trying to process, and next thing you knew you were in an empty room, one that was used for sessions. Younghoon let you go and locked the door, glancing out the window. When you looked over you saw guards running by, and heard some muffled yells.

“What’s going on?”

“Lockdown. I’m sure orientation didn’t go into detail, but when that happens we’re supposed to get into a secure room and avoid all patients.”

“Oh… how long will this last?”

“No idea. It depends on what caused the lockdown. Although it could take at least half an hour since all patients and doctors need to be accounted for.”

“So now we just wait.”

“Yup.”

You were a bit nervous. The last place you wanted to be during a lockdown was the east wing, but at least you weren’t alone. You sat down on the floor, going through your phone to pass the time. Younghoon stayed by the door, watching the halls. After a while though he came over and sat by you.

“How’s the job?”

“Fine. I’ve been enjoying it, helping others that is.”

“The job is rewarding.”

There was suddenly a knock at the door. You tensed up a bit but Younghoon’s calm demeanor put you at ease. The both of you stood up, but then Younghoon pinned you to the wall. You didn’t even get the chance to question him before you felt the needle in your neck. You screamed, reaching up to get the needle out but the contents had already been emptied into you. All you could do was stare in disbelief as you started to feel dizzy.

“What…”

Younghoon reached into your coat pocket and took your phone before helping you slide back down to the floor.

“I warned you. What Changmin wants, he gets.”

You could vaguely make out Younghoon walking away and opening the door. You saw a blurry figure outside the room, and then the two exchanged items. Then the door shut again and you were with someone else. It didn’t take long to realize who.

“Neither of us have to be tied up this time.”

“… changmin… what… what are you…”

“Easy. I’m not gonna hurt you or anything. I just wanna talk, just you and me.”

“… this… this isn’t… others…”

“Don’t worry about that. No one’s gonna bother us. Some people from group two started fighting, and those from three took advantage to cause more trouble. We’ll be alone for a good while.”

“… how… how do you know…?”

Changmin gave a knowing smile. “Like I said, I wanted to talk to you. This way it’s just us, no one listening in, and no interruptions. I can be honest with you now.”

“… about what…?”

“Everything you’ve been curious about. For starters, I’m not crazy. My parents didn’t send me here to get help, they just wanted to get rid of me.”

“… what…?”

“It’s true. My father wasn’t happy with me. I wasn’t living up to his expectations so he figured my brother could do a better job. I heard the news when he broke it to everyone else, at the board meeting. Of course I got upset, but I didn’t think they’d go so far as to send me away to make sure I didn’t cause problems. What kind of parents send their kid to an insane asylum just so they don’t have to worry about them?”

“… changmin…”

“I know it’s probably not what you expected to hear, that I’m actually innocent in all this, but it’s okay. I’ve been patient, and I’m gonna get out of here soon.”

“… you can’t… you can’t just break out…”

“Who said anything about that? When you’ve been wrongfully admitted to an asylum and the doctor has been holding you here for years, well, it’s easy to walk out.”

“… what do you mean… what are you gonna do to Chanhee…?”

“Nothing bad. At most his license will be removed, maybe some jail time, but I won’t press charges so it’ll be a light sentence.”

“… don’t… don’t-”

“I’m not hurting anyone. I just wanna get out of here and reclaim what is mine. I’ve been patient and plotting. I’m not the only one who wasn’t happy with my father’s decision to remove me as heir. Many others have been supporting me too.”

“… regardless… you need a doctor evaluation… and I won’t-”

Changmin giggled. “Don’t be silly y/n, I’m not gonna ask you to do my evaluation. You’re not qualified, but you know who is, don’t you?”

“… younghoon… he… he works for you… doesn’t he…?”

“He works with me, and he’s been very helpful. Although at times he does as he wants too, but I know I can count on him.”

“… Changmin… I know what your family did was wrong… but… what are you gonna do… once you’re out…? You… you won’t hurt them, right?”

“Why are you worried about them? You should worry about me, you should be happy I’m getting out and taking back my life.”

“… but why… why me… what did I…”

“I like you… and I want to be able to give you everything. I just can’t do that while I’m in here.”

“You… you don’t have to… go so far… let’s just talk, you and me… honestly… none of this-”

“I knew you wouldn’t like what I had to say, but I didn’t want to lie to you and pretend. Which is why I did all this. Now I can’t have you getting in my way so I’ll have Younghoon look after you, but don’t worry, when I get out of here I’m going to take you with me.”

“Huh…?”

Changmin only smiled and got up, heading over to the door. You had gotten some of your strength back and managed to stand, but that’s really all you could do. Next thing you knew a few orderlies had come into the room and were restraining you.

“What… what is this…?”

“The best way to keep you safe is to keep you in one place. I can’t have you going home or telling others about me.”

“Changmin, you can’t do this!”

“They’ll treat you well.”

“Changmin!” You struggled with the orderlies. “You don’t like being told what to do, it’s not fair if you do this to me!”

“This is different though. I care about you and am I doing this for your own good. It’s okay if you’re mad at me, I know you’ll forgive me for it later.”

“Changmin, wait, this isn’t-”

You wound up with a gag in your mouth, being dragged out of the room. As you were taken out into the hall you noticed Younghoon leaning against the wall. He gave you a smile, but you merely stared and tried to yell at him. He followed behind as you were taken further into the east wing, towards a place you had never been. From what you could see it seemed to be the isolation area. You were taken into a room and pinned to the bed, completely restrained. You fought against the restraints, but it was no use. You only calmed down a bit when Changmin sat at the edge of the bed.

“This will only be for a little while, promise, and I’ll visit you every day.” Changmin laid down and placed his head on your chest listening to your heartbeat. “I’m glad I met you, and I hope we can start over once we get out of here.”

Even if you could speak you weren’t sure you had the words. You glanced towards the door, seeing Younghoon outside swinging around some keys. His previous warning rang in your head. You really had no idea what mess you had gotten into, but you were certainly screwed now.

“I should go, big day tomorrow since I’m meeting my lawyer. I’ll be back later.”

Changmin placed a kiss on your head before heading out of the room and shutting the door. You heard it lock and began screaming into the gag and trying to free yourself. All that did was exhaust you and you ultimately gave up. If you were gonna escape your psycho patient it wasn’t gonna be like this. You needed a plan, you needed time, but you weren’t sure how much of that you had. While in the asylum he was in control, but it sounded like things wouldn’t be any different on the outside. You should have gone somewhere else, you should have listened to the warnings, now you could only wonder.

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lovebugism · 2 years ago

Note

Having a unserious argument with band AU!Eddie and there’s a moment where you both stare at each other and then his eyes flick down to ur lips. Which leads to you making out and forgetting about what the argument was about in the first place

bug's blurb sleepover (⁎˃ᴗ˂⁎)!

You knew the argument was stupid, but you also knew you were too mad to care.

Like, otherworldly levels of mad. Levels that feel nearly unprecedented, even though you’re well aware it’s over something so damn mundane.

Night of the Living Dead was playing at a drive-in in the same city the Corroded Coffin tour bus had parked in for the next few days. And Eddie wanted to take you. He said he’s wanted to take you out for weeks now, but your schedules just hadn’t allowed him the time to do so.

His van hasn’t gotten much use in quite some time either. It’s just been dragging behind the tour bus and rusting more every time it rains. You, Gareth, and Jeff all told him that he wouldn’t have much time to drive it anywhere, but Eddie only said that “it broke his heart too bad to leave her behind.”

Now, he’s glad that he didn’t. It’ll be good to take you for a drive in it, to roll the windows down and turn the radio all the way up, to watch you in between watching the road and pretend like you’re teenagers again.

And it was really cute, how excited he’d been to take you to see a film you’d both seen a thousand times over. “Taking you to a drive-in actually sounds super fun, babe, and I don’t even mean that in a pervy way. I just wanna spend time alone with you,” he’d told you before smirking. “Even though I won’t be opposed to a little heavy petting.”

It was real adorable. Until you started to get all philosophical about zombies, that is.

Eddie tried to tell you that zombies were still human after they turned. You scoffed when you disagreed, telling him that if that were the case, you wouldn’t have to use the word turned to describe them — that you wouldn’t even need the word zombies at all.

He refused to listen to you, though, and kept on saying that they were “basically still humans but insane.”

And if you’d told yourself an hour or more ago that the two of you would be in a screaming match over this exact thing, you would’ve laughed. But now that it’s your reality, you’re absolutely fuming about it.

“They aren’t human anymore, Eds!” you argue in the confines of the bunk room, shielded only by the sliding door that does little to stifle your argument. You flail your hands around like crazy, eyes wide and glinting with annoyance. “It’s like a parasitic relationship! The zombie is just inhabiting the body of the dead human. Like a— I don’t know— like a fucking hermit crab or something.”

“They turn to zombies because they’re infected, right? Do you stop being a human because you get a little virus?” he retorts with a teasing lilt that only angers you more. “No! You don’t! It’s the same thing!”

“It’s not the same thing!”

“Well, you obviously don’t know what you’re talking about it!”

“I know what I’m talking about, asshole! I’m just not gonna listen to a guy who failed senior year three times!” you shout back, obviously angry and irrational with it.

You would’ve apologized for trying to hit him where it hurts if you saw that it had upset him in some way. But it doesn’t. Instead, he just keeps on teasing you.

“Ooh, you wanna kiss me so fucking bad,” he sing-songs to you, at you, with furrowed brows and lips set in a slight pout like a child.

That does little to quell your rage. Quite the opposite, really. He keeps dousing the fire in your chest with gasoline. You can feel the flames starting to prickle at your burning skin. But you make the mistake of flitting your gaze down to his mouth, only for half of a moment, but long enough for him to catch it. He grins, feeling like he’s won in some way.

“That’s okay, baby. You didn’t have to get all angry about it. If you wanted to kiss me, you coulda just said—”

“I hate you so fucking much,” you grumble to yourself, crossing your arms as you start to storm out of the room.

Eddie doesn’t let you get very far, though. His long legs rush the short distance over to you. He wraps two lanky arms around your frame and cages your own within his too tight embrace. You feel his chest rumble with the loud laugh that spills from his mouth, the breath of it on your skin when he noses at the junction between neck and shoulder.

“This is really fucking dumb,” he says with a hearty chuckle.

“Yeah, you are dumb, you’re right,” you monotone in return, not conceding to this imagined argument but not trying to squirm in his hold either.

“Hey! I’m trying to extend the olive branch here, alright?”

“Whatever…”

He smacks a loud kiss on your shoulder and loosens his grip on you when he’s sure you’re not still angry enough to storm out. You are, though — still angry — but rather than leave, you turn around to face him. Your scowl is met with a beam from the boy ahead of you.

“We’ll just have to agree to disagree, alright, doll?” Eddie tells you with a shrug, trying his best to stop the argument without either of you having to admit you were wrong.

“I don’t know,” you lilt. “I think this might be a deal breaker for me, Eds.”

“Well, we certainly can’t have that…. What’ll happen to the band?” he teases.

You feign a sad sigh. “Guess you’ll have to find another bassist, Eds.”

“What can I do to make it up to you, doll? The fans’ll be real upset if the world’s best bassist is suddenly MIA.”

You purse your lips to the side and flit your eyes to the ceiling, pretending to think about his offer. Your attempt to ignore all the butterflies fluttering in your stomach is futile when he starts to rub his palms up and down your arm, in a soft and soothing rhythm. His touch quells your anger, puts out your fire without really even trying. No one can strike a flame within you, make it burn all big and bright, then douse it with cool, sparkling water quite like Eddie can.

It feels good not to be angry anymore. You’ll be able to laugh about it soon.

Not now, though.

“Well, you’re going to take me to the drive-in tomorrow night and you’re gonna buy me all the snacks that I want—”

“I can do that,” he nods firmly.

“And halfway through the movie, I want to stop watching it and watch you while you eat me out in the back of your van—”

He sputters out a laugh. “I can definitely do that.”

“And until then, you’re gonna kiss me silly, Eddie Munson.”

The grin he flashes you then is no less teasing than it had been before, but it doesn’t make you nearly as angry. Instead, it makes you smile, too.

“I knew this was just a ploy to get me to makeout with you,” he lilts and presses the first of many kisses to the tip of your nose. “You don’t have to get all angry next time, alright? I’ll kiss you anytime you want.”

“Promise?” you wonder playfully, already knowing the answer. You just want to hear him say it.

“I can show you better than I can tell you,” he quips.

It takes no more than twenty seconds for him to get you into your bunk and squeeze in over top of you. In record time, he’s kissing you absolutely breathless — like he won’t be satisfied until he’s swallowed you whole. You want so desperately for him to.

And if your mouth wasn’t kiss-bitten and half-numb, if your lungs weren’t screaming for air every time he kissed you, and your brain wasn’t aching for him to keep kissing you every time he stopped — you might’ve made some stupid joke. You would’ve teased him, told him how obedient he was to listen to you without question, just to drive him crazy.

But you can’t. Because he’s kissed you so insanely stupid, he’s the only thought in your head.

And if Eddie’s this perfect now — just moments after a stupid argument that had you both seeing red — you can’t imagine what he’ll be like tomorrow. As the rough pad of his tongue ruts against your own, you imagine how he’ll feel in between your legs when he’s got them bent over his shoulders in the back of his van.

#bug's blurb sleepover #eddie munson x reader #stranger things x reader #eddie munson imagine #eddie munson smut #eddie munson fanfic #stranger things imagine #eddie munson #published by bug #rockstar!eddie #eddie spaghetti drabble #st drabbles

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inu-jiru · 5 months ago

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Jazz's "Apology Tour" ramble

Episode was trash, let's go.

First off, the whole "Fuck Blitzo" party is so stupid to me, like you're telling me this 30-something year old man had intimate relationships with ALL these demons and HE was the sole thing that ruined ALL of them?

And how did Verosika even find out about Stolas? Like I know Ozzie's happened, but how'd she hear about their "breakup" (they weren't together but whatever, show)?

Why the FUCK does Verosika care about Stolas being an uwu sad victim of mean old Blitzo aside from everyone being written to want to huff Stolas' sad boi farts?

Why is no one trying to kill Stolas like in Loo Loo Land, like suddenly we're just cool with the oppressive racist now (who am I kidding, the rank system doesn't exist anymore unless the "meanie supremacist" characters bring it up I guess)?

Don't think I'm trying to be "Blitzo's#1Bitch69" or anything, but Season 2 is just so gross in how they've written him. Either he's the big bully meanie for hating his abuser, or they've had him commit the most out of pocket atrocities (like possibly SAing Stolas since he was technically drunk or the circus incident or the shit he pulled with Verosika because what the fuck kinda trauma makes you steal someone credit card for horse riding lessons???) that they just gloss over because fuck having Blitzo actually progress normally or Stolas taking actual responsibility for his own actions, let's just speed through everything so it's back to Stolitz City, don't think about the implications. I just can't stand itttt, I still like and pity Blitz to an extent but his writing is killing meeee

Stolas, stop whimpering about being wanted YOU HAVE A KID WHO HAS STILL NOT APPEARED SINCE SEEING STARS WHERE IS SHE?

Am I really hearing that people are hating the dude flirting with Stolas like come on yall STOLITZ IS NOT OFFICIAL YET CHILL

I've honestly started skipping through episodes, like I can't fucking listen to "WAHHHHH BLITZO I WANT YOU TO WANT ME" for the millionth time, I wish this episode could've just been Blitzo and Verosika facing their issues or something I just don't wanna see this owl loser act like a victim anymoreeee

Man really said "when have I ever been condescending?" SEASON ONE???? How about every time you grab his face and call him out of his name and watch him be shot at while demanding he come over one a month? Oh, but when Blitz starts doing it back it's "Oh I'm uncomfortable ooOoOoo stop it Blitz hnnghhh I don't like it :C :C :C", like whatever man.

The Striker comment was dumb and wrong but that's because Stolas is dumb and wrong

Honestly I feel like I'm repeating the same points I and others have made in the past so all imma say is, I hope Octavia and Stella are enjoying their off-screen and better written adventures together. I'm gonna draw some AU stuff now to give my eyes something better to look at.

OH I forgot to talk about Verosika, uh, she was there? I honestly think she should just get over herself at this point, idk when she and Blitz broke up but what the fuck is it about this clown that she was so enamored over where she's this hurt? I can get being mad about her credit card and Blitz being a lazy partner but if that's the case, I fail to see how they got to a point where she got his name tatted on her arm. Idk it's weird

The Mayweather shit or whatever her name is was pointless and made no sense, like "I want you to kill this woman who made me attempt to kill her and myself but now we're dating" like? Hey Vivzie if yall can callback to that why can't yall call back to Stolas being a creep huh?

EDIT: They really made that fuckass "it's hell" excuse canon, huh? Like, it doesn't even make sense in the context of Blitz saying that, like people say "it's hell" because Biblically speaking, it's where those who truly oppose God in order to live a life of wickedness go as just punishment. Blitz the equivalent of a regular guy in Hell unlike the Hazbin characters, he shouldn't understand that there's a better alternative to Hell because he's not human and never had any opportunity to learn about Heaven or God (unless it's just in their DNA or something idk who knows with this show)

#jazz rambles #helluva boss critical #vivziepop critical #stolas critical #stolitz critical #this goofy ass episode had the nerve to come out on my birthday no wonder I've felt shitty it's the Vivzie curse sobbing #tw sa mention #slight blitzo critical #Like I said #I do pity him but he needs a rewrite badly #Like S1 Blitz should be getting this treatment not S2 Blitz

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jennay · 1 year ago

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Haunted Memories

Request: The reader has been tagging along with the guys while they are on tour. She is in a relationship with Noah. They are back in their hometown and the reader is walking through the venue when she is stopped by her ex, which she had an abusive past with. She immediately gets shaken up by seeing him. Instead of hanging out on the side stage to watch the guys like she normally does, the reader heads back to the bus. Noah notices that she isn't around before and when they are on stage, so he starts to wonder where the reader is. After the show is over, he finds out from someone backstage that she had went back to the bus before the show even started. When he gets on the bus, he finds the reader distraught and extremely upset. Maybe something along those lines.

Warnings: talks of physical abuse lots of angst but ends in fluffy goodness

Word Count: 2100

Noah Master List

You couldn't believe it. Of all the places in the world, the final show of the tour had to be in your home town. Noah had warned you about this, but you didn't think it would affect you so much.

You found yourself wandering around the venue, feeling like a ghost, while Bad Omens rocked the stage. This place was haunted by your past. You had so many memories here, some that made you smile and some that made you shiver.

You remembered the day Noah left Virginia, the day your best friend ripped your heart out. You sobbed when he hugged you goodbye, but you also cheered him on.

You wanted him to follow his dreams, even if it meant leaving you behind. You wanted to go with him, but you had things to finish in Richmond, things that couldn't wait.

You sighed as you walked to the merch section, looking for comfort in the colorful shirts. Buying new shirts from all the tours was your guilty pleasure. You told Noah once that you would make a quilt out of them someday, a quilt that would keep you warm and remind you of him when you couldn't tour with the band.

"Y/n?"

You spin around and freeze. There he is, the monster who ruined your life, the one you thought was locked up for good. Your heart sinks to your stomach, and you feel sick as your memories flood. How could this happen? Why did you have to bump into him here, of all places?

Why couldn't Noah be by your side to protect you from him? Your hands tremble as you back away, wishing you could vanish.

You try to speak, but your throat is dry, and your voice is gone.

He moves closer to you, a wicked grin on his face. He pretends he didn't do anything wrong, he didn't send you to the hospital with broken bones and bruises, and he didn't make you fear every man who looked at you.

"It's so nice to see you I-, I went by your parent's house last year. I wanted to apologize for, you know, things that happened in the past." He bites his lip. You can tell he's nervous, but you don't know if the regret in his voice is being faked or not, "I've changed a lot." He tells you.

You shake your head in disbelief, "Fuck you!" You roughly say. "You don't get to walk back into my life and say shit to me." You turn to walk away, feeling your adrenaline rush. Who did he think he was? Did he really think an apology would make you swoon and forgive him?

You feel a hand grab your wrist, and he pulls you back to him. You feel like you did all those years ago, "I've changed. I'm sorry for what I did. I went through therapy, and they said the best thing I could do was ask for forgiveness. It's part of the program I'm in. I'm not heavy in addiction anymore. I don't even know that person, and I'm so ashamed! Please just listen to me. Please, I'm sorry."

You feel your body tremble as you pull your wrist out of his grasp, "You knew I'd be here, didn't you?" You look down at his hand that’s reaching for you again. You quickly swat it away, "Don't fucking touch me. If my boyfriend sees you, of all people even near me, you will end up in the hospital."

He nods knowingly. "I know you're dating Noah now. I'm not here to step on your toes. I just need you to forgive me." He desperately says like this was the last thing on his list before he could move on.

You snap your head back, shocked by his words, baffled by how he could ever expect you to forgive him. “You don’t deserve a fucking thing from me.” You hissed. “I hate you. You shattered me beyond repair. You twisted me, and I could never heal from what you did. You wrecked all my chances of happiness, you ruined what I could’ve been for Noah, and you dare to ask for my forgiveness?” You snarl through gritted teeth. “You think you’re worthy of that?” You pause, feeling your jaw clench. “I hope you die with the guilt of what you did. I hope it torments you every time you touch another woman.” Your eyes fill with tears, “But most of all, I hope everyone you love abandons you.”

You see his eyes turn black, and before you can react, his hand is flying towards your face, just like old times. You shut your eyes, bracing for the pain, but relax when you hear a familiar voice, "Whoa there, buddy. What the fuck is it that you think you're doing?" You hear Steven's voice ring in your ears, and you open your eyes to see that Steven has David's arm in his hand over your head. He roughly throws it aside and quickly pushes you behind him. "I don't know who the fuck you are...but I suggest you get the fuck out of here before I cause a scene."

Steven wraps his arm around your shoulders, pulling you close as he walks away from David. He looks down at you feeling your body slightly shaking still, "I'm not going to ask if you're OK because obviously, you're not, but who the fuck was that and do we need security to follow you around from now on?"

You shake your head no, your eyes landing on the ground as you walk, "He'd nobody, and I don't want to talk about it."

Steven nods understandingly, "Let me walk you back to the bus. I'll know you're safe there, and I'll let Noah know where you are, okay?"

"I don't really want Noah to know about this." You say sheepishly.

Steven bites his lip, knowing he's about to say something you won't like, "You know I can't do that."

You take a deep breath, "I know."

After the show, Steven immediately finds Noah to talk to him about what he witnessed.

Noah clenches his fists as Steven tells him what he saw. “I don’t know who the bastard was, she wouldn’t tell me. She shut me out, and I didn’t want to push her.”

He wishes he could have been there instead of Steven, but he’s grateful to him for stepping in and stopping the assault before it happened. He knows if he had been there and seen a man try to hurt you, he’d lose it. He’d end up in jail, but he wouldn’t regret it. He’d smile in his mug shot, knowing he did the right thing. Whether you were his girlfriend or not, you would always be safe with him.

Before Noah opens the bus door, he takes a deep breath. He asked the others to leave you alone for a while before they came to check on you. He wanted to make sure you were okay, or at least not falling apart.

He knew you hated showing your vulnerability in front of anyone. Even with him, you tried to act strong and hide your pain. He opens the door, scanning the bus for you. He doesn’t see you anywhere until he hears a faint whimper from the bunk area. His heart breaks at the sound of your cry.

Noah walks softly toward the noise, stopping in the middle of the hallway. He sees you lying in his bunk, staring blankly at the ceiling. He notices the tear stains on your cheeks and the redness in your eyes.

You don’t look at him as he kneels by the side. He gently reaches for your hand, making you flinch out of your daze. Noah wants to kill the man who did this to you. He wants to smash things and yell at the world. He wants to make the pain go away. You didn’t deserve this. How could anyone be so cruel to you?

"Baby," he coos while brushing your hair out of your face, "What can I do to help?"

You tilt your head finally looking him in the eyes. You wipe your burning cheeks and turn on your side, patting the spot next to you.

He nods and slides into the bunk beside you, wrapping his arms around you as you snuggle close. He tenderly strokes your hair as you cry into his chest, letting out all the emotions that have been bottled up inside you. He holds you firmly, making you feel safe and loved in his embrace.

“I don’t want to feel this way.” You say in a shaky voice. “It’s like every time I think I’m healing, something triggers me, and I feel worthless and broken. The voice in the back of my head…” You pause, gasping for air, “It keeps telling me I’m not good enough, and I want to be good enough for you, but I’m so damaged, and I know you’ll leave me too because I don’t deserve you.”

Noah’s face twists with confusion and pain, wondering how you could ever doubt yourself so much. “Y/n…” He says softly, pulling away from you slightly, lifting your chin, and making you look into his eyes, “I will never leave you.” He kisses your nose and smiles gently, “If you ever want to break up with me, that’s your decision, but I’ll do everything in my power to keep you. I was serious when I said I was going to marry you someday. I know you might have thought it was a joke, I mean we were only fourteen, but I meant it with all my heart.” He says, pulling you back to his chest. “Was it David?”

He feels you nod your head against his chest. “Yeah.” You whisper, barely audible.

Noah feels his blood boil, he’d heard rumors from your friends about what he did to you, and he remembered the hospital visits, the bruises and the scars. You didn’t tell him the truth back then, but you opened up to him before you became official, just in case he changed his mind.

He kisses your forehead and whispers, “ I’m sorry he hurt you. I’m so sorry he made you feel this way. But you’re not alone. I’m here for you, always. I love you more than you can imagine. You’re beautiful, you’re strong, you’re amazing. And I’m not going anywhere, I promise. You’re stuck with me.”

You feel his words warm your heart, and you wrap your arms around him, holding him tight. You feel a flicker of hope, a spark of happiness. You smile and say, “I love you. Thank you for being here and being you. I’m not going anywhere either, I promise. You’re stuck with me, too.”

He laughs and hugs you closer, feeling a wave of relief and joy. “Sounds perfect to me. We’re going to be OK, you know that, right? We’re going to get through this together. We’re going to have a happy ending.”

You nod and kiss his chest, feeling loved. “I believe you. We’re going to be OK. We’re going to have a happy ending.” You repeat.

He nods and kisses your hair, feeling love and hope. I love you, Y/n."

“I love you, Noah. I love you more than words can say.” You cuddle up to him, feeling his heartbeat, warmth, and love. You close your eyes, feeling worn out from all the emotions of the day, and drift off to sleep, feeling safe and happy in his arms.

You dream of a better future with him, where you’re both happy and free—a future with only happy endings.

Tags: @thisbicc @yumikitten @lma1986 @chemicallady

#noah sebastian oneshot #noah sebastian fluff #noah sebastian fic #noah sebastian angst #noah sebastian fanfiction #noah sebastian x y/n #noah sebastian x reader #noah fic

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swervinonalatenight · 4 months ago

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I've rewatched Apology tour about five times now and I keep having this awful feeling whenever I get to the "Fuck Blitzo Party", because while the episode and tone of the section portray it as a group coping mechanism for all the people Blitzo hurt, it never feels HEALTHY.

Verosika says its them coping together and finding people who share the same pain to heal together, a group therapy session basically, but when the entire events of the session is a party, held every year solely dedicated to hating the person who hurt you despite caring about them still isn't group coping.

Its staying in the safety of your pain.

Everyone there, from Verosika to Stolas, is there because they hate Blitzo, but also still care about him. They throw knives at effigies and eat cake that looks like his corpse, yet they break down crying whenever they think of him actually getting hurt. They hate him with every fiber of their beings yet feel like shit for doing so, and they get with people who share the same pain but always come back to the same party about hating the same guy to get with people who also had their heart broken by them.

We don't know how long its been happening, but we can guess that practically everyone there is a repeat goer. even if they hook up, they always come back.

Because to them, its a form of safety. They know a place where there will be people who share similar experiences and pain, even as that place shoves that pain in their face and makes them revel in it.

It says a lot that the only person that we know ISN'T there is Fizz, and thats because Fizz forgave him after coming to an understanding with him. Fizz chose to let go of his hate after understanding what happened that night, and moved on.

I remember something my grandmother told me. Forgiving isn't letting in happiness, its letting go of pain. Fizz let go of his and is happier now, he was able to, with Blitzo's help, get free of Mamon and publicly be with Asmodeus, and the two are on better terms.

Verosika, up until Apology Tour, at any mention of Blitzo, immediately swung to mood into calling him out and embarrassing him publicly, she moved her office next to his JUST to piss her off, and it got her arrested in the human world. She throws a party to cope with her pain and heartbreak to feel better yet all it does is really make her feel like shit.

And yes, she deserves to not forgive Blitzo. She can hate him, and she is right to not want him in her life and she SHOULD show him how much he hurt her. And she has, and all she can do is KEEP doing it, keep reveling in her pain and sorrow even as she knows its bad and shitty is because its safe to her.

And she's right. Forgiveness is scary. Its like a needle in the arm, yes its going to hurt, yes its a scary thing to do, but ultimately, letting go of the hate that defines you is better, because now you can move on.

The only time we see Verosika smile, truly smile, is after Blitzo tells her he doesn't want to be the way he is and genuinely wants to change, and is truly remorseful for what he did, and she smiles. Its not one of "Im happy to see you in pain" because she's not looking at him. It reads more "You're actually trying to make things right and change, and i can get why you're like this."

The burden of proof is on the source of pain, on Blitzo, but its still a two way street for forgiveness, and Verosika should see that her "Fuck Blitzo Party" isn't going to give her the solace she wants from Blitzo.

#helluva boss #apology tour #blitzø #blitzo #verosika mayday #stolas goetia

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halsteadlover · 1 year ago

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Shadows From The Past

*Gif not mine credits to the owner*

• Pairing: Jay Halstead x Fem!Reader.

• Requested by anon: I don’t really know if this is how you make a request if it’s not correct me but would you possibly be able to write one where Jay has an episode because of a criminal that took tours in Afghanistan as well, like an episode in the show in season 5 I think. Where the criminal gets shot and dies and J is the only one there and you go to check up on him and he points gun at you because he’s having an episode idk I really don’t know, but could it end in him apologizing a lot and feeling really bad then just cuddles?? Thank u and uh if you see this could you pls just remind me when it’s done possibly. Thank you so much!!!❤️

• Warnings: mention of blood, gun, PTSD.

• Word count: 5825.

• A/N: hi everyone! Long time no see. I know this is ugly af but I tried my best. I hope you’ll like this piece anyway, please let me know what you think. Comment, like, reblog if you want this would be amazing! Thank you so much for your support, and for everyone who stayed even if I upload once every 100 years 😭 I love you all so much ❤️

Jay had always tried to do his job the best he could, giving everything in his power to every case he worked on, always trying to focus on nothing but bringing justice to the poor victims. He had always tried to be as objective as possible, leaving emotions out and thinking and planning every move to make lucidly. Some cases were easier, others a little less.

There were moments of his life, some shadows of his past, that still echoed in his present. They sometimes came back so strong and overbearing, they made him risk his present, all his progress and happiness, even his future.

And the case he was working on was one of those moments.

Following the discovery of a man's body, Intelligence was assigned to investigate this case. After questioning witnesses, analyzing the victim's life, talking to family and friends, suspicion fell on a person Jay met while serving overseas in Afghanistan. In fact, Don Stanton had served in the 3rd Battalion of the 75th Ranger Regiment at the same time as Jay, but he had never had the opportunity to speak in depth with him.

In fact, after returning home, Don didn't do too well, soon spiraling into drug, alcohol and illegal dealings.

From the moment they found out about this suspect, Jay felt something stir inside him, though he didn't know exactly what. He tried to disguise it or he would’ve estranged from the case but he couldn't hide his feelings from you, who knew him like the back of your hand and had learned to know every single nuance of him and recognize when something bothered him.

To try to get Don to confess, Jay offered to go undercover, build a relationship with him in a way that would make him trust him, and no one could be perfect for this role except someone who had gone through the exact same shit during the war as Jay.

It goes without saying that you didn’t agree with this decision at all and Voight would’ve even agreed with you if this wasn’t the only lead you got to catch the killer.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” you asked Jay as you adjusted his hidden microphone in his shirt. “You can always back out, someone else will go or we will find other leads to catch him.”

Jay sighed. “It's an undercover operation like any other Y/N, if anyone can do it it's me.”

You looked up at him, your hands still on his chest as you tried to analyze his expression on his face. “No baby, it's not an operation like any other. The suspect served in your own battalion, you met him and you can tell from a mile away you're upset about…-”

“Goddamn Y/N stop it! You've been asking me if I'm okay since this morning! I'm fine, I don't need a babysitter!” he snapped raising his voice and this sudden outburst made you withdraw your hands in shock.

Jay immediately regretted those words the instant he said them. He noticed the sad expression that appeared on your features and felt guilty like few other times in his life. “Baby… Shit…” he sighed again, running his hands over his face in frustration. He cupped your face in his hands, forcing you to look at him. “I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I don't know what has gotten into me. I’m sorry baby.”

You remained silent for a few seconds, looking at him for a moment before speaking. “Jay I'm just worried about you, I know it's hard for you but I want to help you… It breaks my heart seeing you like this,” you mumbled softly, your throat tight in a knot, your heart heavy.

“I know, I know, I’m so sorry love. Come here,” he whispered, pulling you into a hug and holding you with all the love he could. “It'll be okay. I can do it. You don't know what people like him are like, like me, he won't trust anyone and if there's someone who can make him confess it’s me. We served together, we saw the same crap, I can understand him,” he continued, pulling away from the hug and looking into your eyes.

You looked at him intensely, as if you wanted to read inside him, trying to discover a shred of hesitation or uncertainty.

“Jay, you are not like him, he is an alleged murderer, drug addict and alcoholic, you are a decorated detective. Don't even think for a second you're like him, okay?”.

He caressed your hair, and then nodded, smiling slightly. “I know, I know.”

“If something, anything, goes wrong you're out, you understand me?” you threatened him, pointing a finger at his chest.

He chuckled, caressing your cheeks. “Yes ma'am. Everything will be fine, I promise.”

If only he believed it too.

The truth was, Jay's mind was racing and image after image, memory after memory, everything seemed to be resurfacing, moments of the past he wanted to forget at all costs but which was about to overwhelm him like a river in flood.

He didn't want to talk to you about it, he knew he'd get over it – just like he had all time – he didn't want to worry you any more than you already were.

While he was in the car waiting for Don Stanton to show up, he read the message you sent and a small smile crept onto his lips.

From Baby D💕, 3.13pm

Be careful love. I'm here for whatever you need. I love you.

That message made the abyss in his heart grow and a feeling of guilt took over him. But the way he loved you, God, he didn’t know what he would’ve done without you.

From Jay, 3:16pm

I love you too babe, more than anything and everyone. Everything will be okay.

He put the cell phone back in his trouser pocket, trying to concentrate exclusively on the case. He sat in the car for about ten minutes before seeing Don in the distance. He looked around suspiciously before approaching Jay's car and quickly getting in.

“Drive,” Don ordered, and Jay gave him a confused look.

“Where? What is going on?”.

Don snapped his eyes at Jay. “Didn't you say you wanted a job? Drive then. Go straight, at the first crossroads turn left, I'll tell you from there where to go next.”

Jay understood there was no way to get an explanation and after letting out a sigh, he started driving, aware that you and the rest of the team would’ve followed him from afar.

After driving for about twenty minutes, he and Don arrived at an abandoned building. It looked shabby and it must’ve been unused for at least twenty years.

“What the hell is going on Stanton?” Jay asked, for the umpteenth time. Don stopped in his footsteps, turning to him, looking annoyed and angry.

“What part of ‘I'll explain in a moment’ you don’t understand?”.

“I won’t do anything until you explain to me what hell is going on. This place is clearly a mile away from legality and I'm not risking my ass for whatever bullshit is going on here. So either tell me what's going on or I'm out.”

Don sighed, glancing between Jay and the building, looking uncertain, even almost frightened. Jay noticed this and realized whatever was going on, they weren't alone and that there was nothing good about that abandoned building.

He approached Jay, walking fast and hands in his trouser pockets. “Then leave.”

“C'mon man talk to me...”.

“Damn it! I'm in deep shit man, I can't back out!” he exclaimed in despair.

“Why? What did you do?”.

They were all at the edge of their chairs as they listened through Jay's microphone conversation, knowing that a little nudge was enough to get Don Stanton to confess.

“Don, talk to me. I can help you, I know you're not doing well, I totally understand. You don't have to do anything, whatever it is...”

“You can't help me… I… I fucking killed a man!” Stanton exclaimed loudly, running his hands through his hair “But it wasn't my fault! They forced me! I… I really needed the money…”

There were some moments of silence in which you and Voight exchanged a look. He confessed, but why didn't Jay arrest him?

“What are we going to do here Don?” Jay asked, trying to stay calm as his heart was pounding.

“They gave me another job. A gang member… They want me to kill him and they’ll pay me almost ten thousand dollars.”

“Don, for fucks sale! No life is worth this money! How can you do this? You were a fucking soldier, you risked your life to protect others, to protect this country and now you're the one hurting people!” Jay exclaimed, more angrily than he would’ve liked.

“I know! I know! They've foreclosed on my house… I'm out of money… I need it man…” Don muttered.

“Halstead what are you waiting for? Handcuff him,” Voight ordered over his mic but Jay didn't seem to listen, in fact, he didn't even seem to be on this planet anymore.

You were worried sick, your stomach was in a vice. You knew Jay couldn't do this, he was too involved to be able to deal with all of this, to deal with his past.

“Voight we have to do something,” you said, turning to your now impatient boss.

“Let's just wait few seconds.”

But when you saw Jay enter the building your heart stopped for an instant and fear took over. Before Voight could say anything, you leapt out of the car at lightning speed, waiting for no one, thinking of no one but Jay.

You pulled out your gun from your holster before entering the abandoned building. It was larger than it appeared externally and at first sight there was no sign of Jay.

Your heart was beating so hard you could hear it pounding in your ears and with every step you took, fear ate you more and more. What the hell was he thinking? Why did he come in here alone with a criminal?

As you climbed the creaking stairs to the first floor, a shot rang out from the walls and you jumped. “Oh my god,” you murmured in a trembling voice before starting to run as fast as possible towards the place where the shot came from. Your mind began to project images of Jay lying in a pool of his own blood, dying, and the very thought made you die inside.

God let him be okay, please.

Once you climbed to the third floor, however, you saw him in the distance but before you could take a step towards him or even take a sigh of relief, a bullet was fired in your direction, forcing you to take cover behind a pillar.

A gun fight with some men ensued, and though you knew you had to focus on saving your own life, you couldn't help but glance at Jay from time to time, noticing him hunched over Don Stanton, trying to revive him.

The rest of the squad arrived at that moment and you managed to take down three men who were shooting at you. You approached Jay while the others explored the rest of the building for anything suspect.

“Jay,” you called but he didn't seem to hear you as he tried to stop Stanton's bleeding, “Jay,” you called him out again but still nothing, no answer. So you placed a hand on his shoulder, trying to make him aware of your presence but that touch made him stiffen and you almost had a heart attack when he pulled out his gun and turned, pointing it at you.

“Woah!” you exclaimed loudly, spontaneously raising your hands to let him know you were unarmed, “Jay, what the hell are you doing?!”.

His gaze was fixed on you but he wasn't really looking at you, his eyes were empty, without the light that characterizes them, his forehead was wet with sweat as his chest rose and fell quickly as if he had run a marathon.

“Jay put that gun down. It's just me. Can you hear me? Everything is fine.”

You continued to speak but your voice reached far into his ears which continued to ring incessantly. You didn't dare take a wrong step, or try to get him to put down his gun because you knew Jay wasn't there right now, that his mind was unconscious and his body uncontrollable. He was still in war and he saw you like an enemy and not his girlfriend.

But that didn't make the moment any less scary.

Jay, the person you most trusted in the world, with whom you felt safest, was pointing a gun at you and anything could trigger him to shoot you. You've never felt so small and helpless, even after facing the most dangerous and depraved criminals, you felt so scared and intimidated.

He'd had similar episodes, where the PTSD made him lose touch with reality, but he'd never come to that, never pointing a gun at you and threatening to hurt you.

“Jay!” you almost screamed and only then did Jay seem to come to his senses.

When he realized he was pointing his gun at you a wave of guilt fully overwhelmed him and he dropped the gun from his hands in disbelief at what he had just done.

What the hell had he been up to? Was he really point a gun at you? The love of his life?

He couldn't believe it, he couldn't believe he was capable of doing such a thing and as he watched your face contorted in an expression of pure fear and terror, as he watched you back away until you ran away, he realized he seriously needed help.

The case was finally closed but never like then it left you an unbridgeable abyss inside you.

Since you'd left that building you'd been trying to avoid Jay even though he'd been trying hard to talk to you. You knew it wasn't his fault, that what happened was just a consequence of everything he'd been through, that knowingly he wouldn't do anything that could hurt you.

But that episode had shocked you more than you could ever admit and the image of that gun pointed at you continued to haunt your mind.

You were at your house, sitting on the couch staring at nothing in particular, contemplating whether to respond to Jay's many texts and calls. You knew you had to talk to him, you couldn't avoid him forever, but you needed some alone time first, to digest everything that had happened.

But when the bell rang you understood this was not going to happen.

You stood up and your heart skipped a beat when you saw through the peephole it was Jay. You took a deep breath and opened the door, realizing you couldn't avoid him forever and sooner or later you had to deal with the confrontation.

Jay was a walking disaster.

He didn't know what to say, what to do, how to act and especially when he noticed the way you kept avoiding his gaze, he panicked even more. You made room for him to enter and he felt his heart break when, in an attempt to say hi, you pulled back slightly.

“Uhm… Hi… Come in,” you murmured nervously before going to sit back on the sofa.

Jay closed the door behind him, walking over and sitting next to you. You brought your knees to your chest and he didn’t miss this gesture, he didn't miss the way you tried to distance yourself from him, how you tried to protect yourself by moving away from him.

“How are you feeling?” you asked feebly, finally looking up at him and a chasm opened inside you as you saw his tired, destroyed eyes, the melancholy expression on his face.

“I'm fine but...”

“No Jay,” you interrupted him “Don't start with these lies, you know I can't stand them. You pointed a damn gun at me, you are definitely not fine.”

You knew it was tough, but it was time for him to face the shadows of his past that kept haunting him, it was time for him to face reality and realize he wasn't good at all, that he kept lying to himself and pretending to be in a state of well-being which, unfortunately, wasn’t true at all.

He sighed and it was him who lowered his gaze that time, unable to look in your eyes anymore. He rubbed his sweaty palms on his jeans before resting his elbows on his knees, his face in his hands. He was silent for a moment before returning to his previous position.

“You're right…” he murmured, almost afraid to admit it aloud, “I… I'm not okay I know, I’ve realized it… But Y/N, darling, I just want you to know I would’ve never done that… I would never hurt you…”

“Jay…” you sighed “I know that, but… But what if you won't regain control of yourself next time? What if you won’t come to your senses and shoot me?”

“No! No! Fuck… This will never happen again, I swear…”

“And how do you know this, Jay?” you asked, a lump in your throat, eyes brimming with tears as you tried to hold them back. “How do you know you’ll be able to stop the next time that in the grip of a similar episode you’ll point a gun at me again?”.

Jay had never experienced a worse feeling in his life. He always promised himself he would given his life to protect you, that he’d do everything in his power to keep you safe, that he’d rather die than know you were suffering.

He loved you more than anyone else in the world, more than he ever thought he’d love someone and knowing he was the one who tried to hurt you, destroyed him. He’d never forget the expression of fear, terror and pure shock with which you looked at him in that damned building, it would’ve haunted him forever.

“I would never hurt you Y/N, you… You are the most precious thing in my life. God, I'd die to protect you…” he babbled in desperation.

“I know, Jay. I consciously know this,” you answered, putting your feet on the ground and approaching him without touching him. “I want to help you, but...”

“But what?” he whispered, his green eyes bright with tears as he looked at you. A tear slid from your eyes onto your cheek but you immediately wiped it away before you spoke again. “You want to leave me right? You are afraid of me?”.

You remained silent for a moment.

“Y/N I… You can't leave me please, I can't do this without you, I need you. You're the only person I'm still here for, helping me through this shit… Please…”

You cried. “I have to protect myself Jay,” you wiped away another tear “I don't want to leave you, God. I love you so much…”

“But you're afraid of me,” he stated, swallowing the lump in his throat. He looked down at the floor and his shoes to try and mask the tears he couldn't control anymore and streamed down his cheeks. He stood up, suddenly feeling suffocated, and ran his hands over his face as he began pacing around the living room.

“Hey…” you said, standing up and approaching him. You placed your hands on his arms to make him stop and he directed his eyes at you. They were red and shiny from tears and God only knew how much it hurt you to see him like this, how much he didn't deserve all that suffering.

You placed your hands on his face, wiping away his tears with your thumbs. “God baby,” you whispered “I hate seeing you like this…”. He hugged you, squeezing you so tight it made you gasp for breath.

You hugged him back, putting your arms around his neck and letting yourself be cradled by that embrace. You stroked his hair while he hid his face in the hollow of your neck, letting go in a desperate and liberating cry.

“It's okay love, it's okay,” you whispered, as you too were crying, “Let's sit down.”

You sat back on the sofa and you hugged him, letting him rest his head on your chest as he let out all the anger – mostly towards himself – and sadness he felt.

“Cry all you want, I'm here. I don't want to leave, I'll always be here with you Jay,” you mumbled, caressing his hair. He wrapped his arms around your chest tighter, as if he was afraid to let you go.

“I'm so sorry my love. I didn't mean to scare you… When…” he sighed “When I realized what I was doing, the way you were looking at me…” he couldn't finish the sentence, because just remembering the expression you had in that moment pushed him over the edge again “God Y/N I will never forgive myself for what I did...” he got up, sitting on the sofa and running a hand through his hair “When I saw your face… That moment I understood I seriously need some help, I don't… I can't risk hurting you, losing you, I don't want you to be afraid of me. I want to be your safe haven, I don’t want you to doubt for even a second I can intentionally hurt you… I… I don't want you to look me with that terrified and fearful look again... I can't...”

“But I'm not afraid of you Jay, I know you were going through a lot , the case was heavy to deal with…” you tried to comfort him.

“Yes you do,” he smiled at you bitterly, eyes and nose still red from crying “No lies remember? You told me before and even now…” he tried to stop crying but failing “You hugged me and you were tense and the thing is, I can't even blame you… It's only my fault for believing all the shit the war brought me could just go away on its own and I will never be able to forgive myself for how I reacted, in that building, when you were putting my mic...”

“You weren't yourself,” you whispered.

“I know… But I won’t let you to suffer the consequences of what happens to me… But on the other hand I'm too selfish to let you go, I love you too much Y/N and I know if you're not here I… I'll never be able to face this alone.”

“But I don't want you to go through this alone,” you retorted, grabbing his hand with yours and intertwining your fingers as your eyes were on his. “Jay I will never leave you… You’re my whole life and I want to be with you at every step you take, I know it will be hard, I know it isn't easy, I know there is a long way ahead but we’ll do it together. I won't leave you alone… I was just scared in that moment, let's be honest, who wouldn't, but I don't want to abandon you, okay? I just need to know you’ll really, really, try to face these ghosts.”

“Absolutely, I don't want to hurt you anymore…”

“No baby, you don't have to do it for me but for yourself,” you didn't let him finish the sentence “Because you went though what no other human being can go through and you deserve to be happy, to fully live your life, to do your job serenely, you don't deserve to wake up in the middle of the night from nightmares. You are strong, one of the strongest people I know and if there is anyone who can do it, it’s you, love, okay?” you stroked his cheek and he nodded faintly.

“Promise me you'll really try? Not for me though,” you continued as he looked at you with all the love he felt for you. “I can take it, past the fear I know it's not your fault baby, you don't control it. I can't even imagine what you're going through, what you saw over there, anyone who didn’t experience it will never be able to, but I swear Jay I… I would die to give you all the happiness you deserve.”

“You are my happiness,” he retorted and you smiled feebly when you saw him calm down a bit “Tomorrow I’ll look for someone and start doing therapy, I promise I'll do it, for you, for me, for us.”

Your smile grew on your lips. “I know you will. I'm so proud of you.”

“So you won't leave me?” he whispered so softly he almost sounded like a child intimidated by the response he’d receive.

“No baby, never, I swear. I'd take a bullet for you if it means to make you happy.”

“Don’t even joke about that,” he mumbled. He placed his hand on yours which was still on his cheek, then bringing it to his lips and leaving a kiss on the back without his eyes ever leaving yours. “I love you so much Y/N, so fucking much I can't even breathe right now. I don't know what I did to deserve you,” you smiled again “I always want to see you smile like that, God… I can't even explain what you do to me. I… I want to make you happy as much as you make me happy. I'm so sorry baby, I'm sorry for everything...”

“Shh, it's okay, it's not your fault I want you to put it in this cute little head. I love you too Jay so much, more than you can ever imagine.”

You stayed on that sofa embraced for and indefinite amount of time, cradled in each other's arms. After some time you managed to get Jay to eat something before letting him take a shower, needless to say he was going to sleep over at your place.

You both got into bed and, due to the exhaustion, the intense emotions experienced that day, it didn't take long for Jay to fall asleep, his head resting on your chest as you held him and hugged him. But you couldn't sleep a wink, the events of that day still clear in your mind.

When Jay woke up in the middle of the night, it didn't take him long to realize you weren't there anymore. He sat up in bed and looked at the time on his cell phone, which read 1:32 in the morning, before getting up and walking towards the living room.

For a fraction of a second he thought he heard a sob but he thought he just imagined it. But when this sobbing sound was accompanied by a sniffling, he knew he didn’t imagine them at all.

He walked quickly to the living room and his heart skipped a beat when, in the dim light, he saw you sitting on the sofa, your knees drawn up to your chest as you cried. He turned on the lights and didn't miss the way you tried - in vain – to quickly dry your tears.

“Y/N… Baby… God, what happened? Are you hurt?” Jay asked after rushing over to you, kneeling right in front of you.

You mentally let out a curse, aware that you wouldn't be able to escape this. “I'm fine,” you replied though, hoping for a nano second he’d buy it.

“Oh baby don't lie to me, you don't cry if you're fine. Please talk to me, are you okay? What happened?” he continued to ask worried. He grabbed a handkerchief from the top of the coffee table and handed it to you, watching you intently as you blew your nose. He sat down next to you and started stroking your hair in an attempt to comfort you.

“Don't worry babe, it's okay. Nothing happened, go back to sleep you're tired.”

“How can you even think I'll leave you here alone?” he said “Wait, I'll go get you a glass of water.”

Before you could object, he was up and in less than no time he returned with a glass of cold water which you drank with pleasure. “You want another one?” he asked and after you mumbled a ‘no’ he took the empty glass from your hands and placed it on the coffee table. “Are you feeling better?”.

You nodded. “Seriously baby, I'm fine, go back to bed.”

“How about you stop lying to me and start telling me the truth? You're making me worry to death love.”

You sighed deeply, feeling the urge to cry coming back. “It's just… It's been a busy day and I needed to vent.”

Jay was silent for a moment, wiping away a single tear that slid down your cheek. “Talk to me baby, I'm here for you.”

You shook your head and then stood up. “No, there is nothing to say. Let's go to sleep, I'm getting tired too.”

“No, we're not going to sleep until you tell me what's going on,” he stood up too, looking at you with such intensity it almost took your breath away. God why did he insist so much, why didn't he just let you cry and forget everything?

“I told you Jay, I was just venting after today.”

“Yes, but it's not only that, I'm sure,” he retorted, taking a step towards you. “Baby don't you trust me? You know you can talk to me about anything, I just want to help you.”

“I-it's not that, of course I trust you.”

“Then talk to me,” he pressed, now on the verge of losing his mind “What...”.

“I don't want to bother you, you already have so much to think about.”

“Y/N I want you to listen to me very carefully now because I won't say it again,” he spoke, placing his hands on your face to force you to look at him. “There is nothing in this world I wouldn't do for you, and nothing, I say nothing, is more important than you. You never bother me and never will. You want me to be honest with you, to ask for help, but you have to do it too, you don't have to be afraid to tell me about something it’s bothering you.”

You started crying again and he hugged you, holding you close as he stroked your hair. “It's alright baby, I'm here. Cry all you want, let it go. I won't leave you.”

“It’s just…” you sobbed at a loss for words, letting go as a wave of guilt washed over you. You placed your hands on his bare chest as he continued to hold you.

“Y/N, please, I hate seeing you like this. What are you afraid of? Why don’t you talk to me?” he whispered, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear.

“Because I feel guilty,” you answered so feebly you feared he didn’t hear you.

Jay placed two fingers under your chin, forcing you to look at him. “And why’s that?”.

Another sob escaped your lips and at that point you slightly moved away from him, no longer able to hold his gaze, his closeness. You ran your hands over your face and then through your hair, not quite knowing what to say.

“Because I was fucking terrified! And… And I feel guilty because I know what happened wasn't your fault, you weren’t yourself…” you sniffed as the tears continued to flow in rivers, leaving you not even a chance to talk “I know you’d never consciously do anything to hurt me but seeing you point that gun at me… Jay, I…” you sighed “I've faced criminals, murderers, but I've never been so afraid and terrified as today and for a moment I really thought you’d shoot me. The way you looked at me… God I can't get it out of my mind and I'm hating myself because it wasn't your fault…”

Jay stood there attentively listening to every single word you said as every second that passed he felt a part of himself die.

“That's why I didn't want to tell you about this, because I know you’re blaming yourself for everything and you're already going through so much Jay and I don't want to add this other burden on you...” you continued and at that point he approached you again, putting his hands on your cheeks and wiping away the tears with his thumbs as you did with him.

“Y/N…” he said your name as a little prayer “You really think I don’t know that? I know you, I know when something is bugging you, I know when something makes you feel sad. I saw the way you looked at me this whole evening, the way you were tense and I'm so sorry for putting you in this situation my baby. I hate myself so much for this, you didn’t deserve any of that,” he left a soft kiss on your forehead.

“And I love you so fucking much,” he continued “You're willing to suffer alone just to not make me worry but you don't have to. Your feelings are as valid as mine, you have to tell me when you're hurt, when you feel like crying, when you're scared even if I'm the cause. I want to listen to you and do everything in my power to fix what’s hurting you and I promise I will. We have a long way to go, you said it too, but we can't do it unless we're both honest with each other, if we don't express our fears, our apprehensions,” he said wiping away your tears as you did nothing but keep crying “You are the best thing that has ever happened to me Y/N, you saved me from a chasm that I am trying hard to climb over, you are my lifeline and I want to be the same for you. I can never apologize enough for what I did today, but I promise I’ll do everything I can to put all that shit behind me. But you need to talk to me, okay? You are so fucking important to me and I'm okay if you're okay. I can't focus on anything else if I don't know you’re happy and to know that I need you to tell me everything that goes through your mind, and I will do the same… Okay baby?”.

You nodded and in response you pressed your lips onto his in a sweet, long-awaited kiss before hugging and squeezing him as if your life depended on it. He was right, God was he right about everything.

He was your everything.

Your sun, the love of your life, the reason for everything.

You were his salvation.

You were the light at the end of a dark tunnel, the first breath of fresh air after being underwater too long. You both knew that even in the most difficult moments you’ll be able to overcome everything and that you could always count on each other in joy, fear and pain.

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spectralscathath · 1 month ago

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Tour Guide to the Unexplained- a Gravity Falls Fanfiction

Chapter 7- Night of the Living Gideon Part II: Evil Bud

Stan and Ford didn’t expect much when getting shipped up to Gravity Falls to stay with estranged family. Not massive world-changing secrets, not being stuck in the trunk of an RV, and definitely not the Mystery Shack and their lying uncle who runs it. But with Ford’s smarts and Stan’s punching, there’s no mystery they can’t solve.

Ao3 Link

Dark. It was real dark. But that was better than being lifted off the ground by invisible hands, so Stan could handle dark. Even if he woke up to it. As long as he didn’t wake up alone.

“Ford? You here?” he was sitting half on something soft and half on something hard, a weight on his back.

“Ugh… I’m here, Stanley.” That was Ford’s voice! Stan reached blindly in that direction and felt hair, his hand quickly grabbed by a hand that matched his own in every way except the extra finger. He could breathe a bit easier now.

“Okay.” One down. The most important one. “Grunkle Dip?”

“Everything hurts.”

“You’re okay too!”

“Not what my statement means.” The soft thing Stan was half-crushed against moved under him. “For such a big RV you’d think there’d be more space in the trunk.”

“You weren’t kidding about Gideon being evil.” Stan squeezed Ford’s hand, unwilling to let go. He only heard snippets of that conversation over the sound of his heart pounding in his ears, but it sounded bad. “Just the fraud thing.”

“Yeah, I was way off.”

“At least you can’t deny that the supernatural exists now?” Ford spoke up. “I mean- what with the telekinesis and such.”

“Kid, I’ve always known.”

There was a pause. Then Ford’s voice. “What?”

“Hold on, I’ll show you-” Dipper shifted again, there was a rustle of fabric, and a quick mutter of something Stanley couldn’t hope to understand in a million years, before blue flame sparked into life, gathered around Dipper’s right hand. Stan expected heat, but the temperature in the trunk got icy cold.

At least now Stan could see him, his hat askew and his sleeve pushed up to show some of the intricate inked lines on his right arm, blurry to Stan’s bad eyes. The blue fire made him look pale and ghostly. It made the trunk they were in look way too small, too cramped, but at least this time it wasn’t dark, like the Gremobile that ate him. This time he wasn’t on his own.

Stan could see Ford too, half-crushing him, but now they had the light to move. Stan moved enough to see Ford’s face.

He’d never seen Ford make a face like that.

“You knew?” Ford’s voice cracked, high and sharp, clambering off Stanley and squirming towards Dipper.

“Y-yes?” Dipper looked puzzled. “I’ve got ‘paranormal investigator, monster hunter, and ghost remover’ on my business card?”

“But that’s all fake! It’s fake! You’re a conman!” Ford pointed right in Dipper’s face. “You said everything in the shack is just some fake magic trick!”

“Well yeah, I stopped doing live exhibits after what happened with the gremoblin in ‘85-”

“You’ve been pretending the supernatural isn’t real this whole time! You’re a liar!” Ford started hitting Dipper’s chest with each word, six-fingered fists beating down. “Liar! Liar! Liar! Liar! Liar!”

Stan tried to think of something to say- anything- but he’d never seen Ford do this ever, and he had nothing.

“Whoa, hey- ow-” Dipper pulled his hands back, leaving the blue fire where it was, floating in the space, and reached down. Stan tensed up, ready to pounce- to fight Dipper off? To take the hit for his twin?- and froze when all Dipper did was catch Ford’s fists in his, touching Ford’s hands like they were normal hands.

No one else did that besides Stan, except Mom and Shermie.

“I did lie. I’m sorry.” Dipper admitted, and Stan saw his brother go still at the apology.

“... Why?”

“I, uh- I lied because the supernatural is dangerous. I mean, really dangerous. I didn’t want you to make my mistakes.” Dipper’s face twisted and he let go of Ford’s hands. “Or suffer for them. But guess that didn’t work, since we’re in here.”

“I-” Ford started, before going quiet. Thinking hard, Stan could see it.

“Why does Gideon hate you so much?” Stan had to ask, filling the silence before it could set in.

“That’s the worst thing- he doesn’t.” Dipper facepalmed. “He has a massive crush on- on me.”

Stan felt all cold inside, shame curdling in his gut. “But he’s a guy.”

“Guys aren’t supposed to like other guys,” Ford pointed out, and it felt like he’d shoved a live bug down Stan’s throat, that's how awful it felt. “Dad says there’s something wrong with them.”

“Okay, there is a lot wrong with Gideon, but not that specifically? We’re gonna put a pin in that and have a talk later.” Dipper tugged nervously at his jacket. “The actual problem is Gideon is evil. Literally. He’s a massive creep who’s been stalking me for thirty years, he’s not afraid to hurt anyone to get what he wants, and now he’s got powers. And you.”

“Us?” Ford reached for Stanley’s hand again.

Stanley took it. “So we’re bargaining chips now? This is like something outta Grimdark Chronicles, when Lady Obsessa kidnaps Jon Tazer’s girlfriend to-”

“Force him to marry her and be a vessel for the ghost of her husband she murdered, yep.” Dipper finished. “Gideon’s not that different.”

“Uh- I haven’t read the Grimdark Chronicles, what happened to the girlfriend?” Ford asked nervously.

“It was awful,” Stan grinned as he got to describe one of the best scenes in the arc. “Obsessa used her as a sacrifice to summon her dead husband, it was super gory, like blood everywhere, Tazer’s fighting against her werewolf servants holding him back and the spirit of her husband, they do this cool split-frame where he has both faces at the same time, and then she makes Tazer stab his girlfriend to complete the merge! And Tazer’s gone for ages before coming back as a villain in a later arc and- you okay, Sixer?”

Ford’s face was pale as he made a strangled noise.

Stan tilted his head. “Too much?”

“Stanley! Don’t you get it?” Ford shook his shoulders. “We’re the girlfriend in this scenario! It’s a no-win situation! Also that comic sounds really upsetting, why do you like it?”

Stan squinted before he asked a question. “Grunkle Dipper, would Gideon kill us?”

“... Maybe? I, personally, like you kids a lot, so let’s- let’s avoid testing that? Sounds good? Sounds good.”

“You like us?” Stan blinked at him.

“Yes?” Dipper blinked back like Stan was the one asking weird things. “So… I’m going to agree to what Gideon wants.”

“You can’t!” Ford scrambled up closer to Dipper’s head. “Did you not hear Stanley? The girlfriend died in the comic anyway!”

“I’m not going to put you two in danger.” Dipper looked away. “Not anymore than I already have.”

“But can't you punch him?” Ford panicked. “You said you were gonna!”

“Hey, punching! That’s a great idea!” Stan grinned and drew back his punching fist, aimed at the trunk door. “Let’s punch our way out! Left hook!”

There was a grisly wet snapping noise as his fist met solid metal. It sounded exactly how it did the last time it broke.

“Stanley!” Ford’s voice cracked as he reached for his brother.

Stan blinked at his hand. It looked fine- but it- “ow…?”

“That- that sounded bad. C’mere, let me take a look.” Dipper shifted with a grunt, picking Stanley up and moving him closer to the blue flames that sat in the air. He held a hand out to Stanley. “Can I?”

Stan gingerly placed his wrist in Dipper’s hand, unable to move his fingers even though he was trying. His hand wasn’t listening.

Dipper’s fingers were light as they prodded gently at Stan’s wrist, which still made him hiss in pain. “Yep. That’s broken. Needs a hospital.”

“No, not a hospital!” Stan snatched his wrist back. “We need to break out and go tell everyone Gideon’s a monster!”

“I’ve tried that, people don’t listen.” Dipper reached into his jacket and pulled out a roll of bandages. “Can you at least let me wrap it up?”

“Do you just have those on you?” Ford wrapped his arms around Stanley and wow, it had been a long time since they did a sibling hug so easily. Stanley leaned into it, it was nice.

“I’m accident-prone.” Dipper defended himself, carefully wrapping the bandage around Stan’s forearm and up his hand. Stan bit his lip so he didn’t make any show of weakness. Tough it out, Stanley, be a man.

“I still would like to get this looked at by a professional,” Dipper sighed as he finished tying off the bandage. The pressure actually felt a bit better. “Shame there’s nothing to splint it with.”

“So… punching our way out won’t work.” Ford didn’t let go of Stanley. “I figured, even you can’t punch metal, knucklehead.”

“Just haven’t hit it hard enough, nerd.” Stan wrapped his right arm around his brother in return. “What do we do, then?”

“I’ve gotta agree to what Gideon wants, I guess.” Dipper sagged. “Some things you can't fight. You just… hold on ‘til it's over.”

“But there has to be a solution! There’s always one.” Ford scowled. Stan watched him think, practically able to see the brainpower working behind his face. “No problem exists that doesn’t have an answer. How does Gideon have powers? Let’s figure that out. Do you know?”

“Nope, telekinesis is new,” Dipper grumbled. “If he could do it the whole time there’d be no Shack.”

“If you didn't know he had powers why were we running so fast?”

“I’ll be honest: I thought Gideon was gonna call the cops, and the county jail is really cold overnight.” Dipper shuddered.

“I respect that.” Stan didn’t want to go to jail either. Dad would be mad if he did.

“Stay on topic! If Gideon didn’t have telekinesis before, that means there must be an external source, there must be-” Ford gasped, eyes lighting up the way they did when he had an idea. Stan perked up to mirror it. Ford’s ideas were always smart. “I know what the source is! We just have to get it off him.”

Dipper raised a brow, cracking a wry smile. “Alright, kid. What’s the plan?”

At some point they’d started driving away from the fairground. Dipper had tried to keep the kids distracted by telling them a bit about some of the ways he’d messed with Gideon- the time he broke into Gideon’s house to put dye in all his hair products and fabric softener got a laugh out of the twins- but they were smart kids, and when the engine started they’d shared a look that was a little too knowing.

Kids shouldn't have to know what danger felt like.

As far as being ‘shoved in the trunk of a car for nefarious reasons’, Dipper was reasonably sure this one wasn't going to end in foiling dark rituals like last time, but hey, who knew. Gideon had gotten some upgrades.

“Can you teach me magic?” Ford asked curiously as the silence lulled. “I mean- how much do you know? Is that why you have a tattoo?”

“I mean, I know a few spells, just stuff I’ve picked up here and there. Basic magic’s mostly just saying the right words.” He rolled up the sleeves on his right arm, showing the boys some of the intricate tattoos that reached from his wrist to his chest. “And this is a mishmash of a few things; protective sigils, warding runes, mostly keeps ghosts out.”

“Wow. Cool.” Ford stared hungrily at Dipper’s arm in what Dipper hoped was a ‘hungry for knowledge’ way. He hoped the kids weren’t going to ask for a tattoo, he didn’t think he’d be allowed to say yes to that.

“Are you gonna show us a bunch of cool monsters now?” Stan pulled off Dipper’s hat and fitted it on, clearly bored. It was a bit big on him. Ford snatched it and tried it on as well before Stan swiped it back, some sort of new hat-theft game established. Gosh, these kids were cute.

“Sure. How about this: tomorrow we go monster hunting on the lake, make it a- a ‘family fun day’?” If they made it through without more injuries.

“Family fun day?” Ford echoed curiously.

“On the lake?” Stan’s eyes shone. “You mean- on a boat?”

“You know how to steer a boat?” Ford had the exact same expression. Was there some significance there?

“I know how to steal a boat,” Dipper clarified, “which is what we’re gonna need to do. Lifetime ban, remember?”

“Oh no.” Ford’s face fell.

“Awesome!” Stan’s grin grew.

“Don’t worry, Ford, I’ve got a plan.” Dipper took his hat back from the boys, tipping it up at a daring Mr Mystery angle. “Most of the time Nate and Lee are the cops on patrol outside town, and they’re two halves of a whole idiot, Grenda’s the only real problem and she’s usually busy.”

Grenda was Mabel’s friend once. Something bad happened there and he didn’t know the details, but he did know she could lift an armchair one-handed. He’d already been dodging the cops before Gravity Falls, it changed nothing.

“I worry about how morally flexible we’re going to be at the end of summer.” Ford sighed.

“Can we go fishing?” Stan bounced where he sat, which was Dipper’s leg, so ow, but he was gonna have bruises anyway. These kids were bony, good ol’ Pines genes.

“You kids know how to fish?”

“Yeah, one time Granpa came over and took us outta Jersey to go fishing for the day! It was cool!” Stan nodded.

“I got a fishhook stuck in my finger!” Ford shoved his hand in Dipper’s face. “See? There’s still a scar! And I didn’t even cry!”

“Neat? I have no idea how to fish.” Dipper shrugged. “You’ll both have to teach me.”

“We’ll show you all the tricks!” Stan threw his hands up in excitement.

“You didn’t go fishing with Granpa as a kid?” Ford asked. Why did these kids ask so much about the past?

“Uh… no, that was always a thing he did with dad.” He and Mabel hadn’t been invited back then. It seemed boring anyway. Why fish on a lake for six hours when he could be exploring the area for monsters?

Never found any. Piedmont was pretty normal.

He clapped his hands together to shake the memories off like cobwebs. “Okay. That’s the plan for tomorrow. Remember the plan for when the RV stops?”

The boys nodded furiously, Ford checking his jacket for his supplies while Stan patted down his vest. Dipper did the same, just checking. Gloves, flashlight, swiss army knife, all his other various odds and ends he’d been collecting for forty years, extra chewing pens. Ready for anything.

“I’m never leaving the magnet gun at home again for sure,” Ford mused. “I bet with a reverse of the polarity it would have been able to pop this open easily.”

“You’ll know for next time we all get stuck in a car trunk,” Dipper deadpanned. The RV was slowing, moving jerkily in a way Dipper could assume was a really bad parallel parking manoeuvre.

“I hope this won’t become a regular occurrence, actually.”

“Keep hoping. Now,” he reached for his floating fire spell, cupping the blue flames in hand. Before he shook hands with Bill, they’d been the regular orange of standard fire. Some things didn’t leave a man unchanged. “When you put on a magic show, it’s all about making sure the other guy thinks they know what’s going on. Ready to put on a show?”

“Maybe?” Ford shrugged. “I mean, worth a shot?”

“Fight! Fight! Fight!” Stan grinned, one hand bandaged. Dipper definitely needed to get that to the doctors for an x-ray, he knew what bone snapping sounded like and that was it. Tough kid, much more than Dipper had been at his age.

“Good answers.” Dipper clasped his hands together, the fire winking out and plunging them back into the dark. Just in time too, the RV ground to a stop. Dipper reached for where he knew the boys were as he heard the crunch of shoes on grass and gravel, wrapping an arm around them both. No one was hurting these kids on his watch.

The hatch door was ripped open, Gudeon grinning down with his son at his side. “Well, aren’t y’all as sweet as berries baked in a pie, all cosied up in there?”

“Touch these kids and I’ll choke you with your own toupee.” Dipper threatened, goading him. They had a plan.

“This is my real hair!” Gideon lifted the boys out of Dipper’s grip with his powers and Dipper finally spotted what Ford had clocked instantly, the glowing pendant in his bolo tie. That had to be it.

“Buddy-boy, keep a good hold on the twins. Us adults are gonna have a chat.” Gideon tossed the boys at Bud, who secured them in an arm each. They both kicked, Stanley in particular growling out a stream of surprisingly creative threats and insults.

Gideon tutted and offered a hand to Dipper. “As for you-”

Dipper tensed.

“I’m so glad we can finally have a proper talk, my honeyglow.”

Ugh. At least Robbie just tried to kill him sometimes, Gideon’s entire thing was worse. Definitely worse. Dipper took to burning all those creepy stalker letters he still got a long time ago. Every one of them was addressed to Mabel, and he hated it. Hated what he’d read in her diary, about how uncomfortable Gideon made her feel. How he used crowds and big gestures to make it hard for her to say no. Before he’d even met Gideon, Dipper had hated him.

Dipper smacked Gideon’s offered hand away and got out of the truck himself, clicking out his spine. His back was killing him, the curse of having two preteens sitting on him for hours. “I am not your ‘honeyglow’, creep.”

Gideon loomed, or at least his pompadour did. Dipper squared his shoulders and tipped his hat back. Bring it on.

Gideon smiled and leaned back, chuckling to himself. “Now, now, I know you’re just trying to look all independent in front of the kids, I admire that, who knew you were so family-thinking? It’s an admirable trait, Ma-”

“Call me ‘Mabel’ and I’ll jump off that cliff,” Dipper warned, taking in the surroundings. Oh great, a creepy warehouse on top of a tall bluff, yay. That limited their options of escape. Alright. Just had to wait for the boys to pull off their part of things. Patience, Dipper.

“It is what it says on your paperwork, darlin’.”

“Have you been reading my mail? Every day you reach a new low, man.” Just had to keep Gideon talking.

“That’s quite something from you after all those nasty occurrences twenty years back, or was it ten?” Gideon smiled innocently.

“That wasn’t me.” Technically, as he was outside his body at the time. Also not in any legal way the cops could prove. Bill was careful when he wanted to be.

“Of course not, sugarplum! But I could make it all go away, all I want is the Mystery Shack and the Tent of Telepathy to merge together, the way we ought to be.”

“You’ll get that shack over my dead body.” Mabel needed him to finish the portal.

“Oh, I think it’ll be much less bloody.” Gideon reached into his jacket and pulled out a contract. “You’re gonna sign it over right now or my Buddy-Boy’s dropping those delightful lil boys off the cliff. Ain’t that right, son?”

“Sounds good to me, dad!”

Dipper glanced, meeting Ford’s gaze, and Stan’s. There was a faint tilt of Ford’s head that could be passed off as nothing, a smile from Stan that could be nerves, and it snapped him back to when he and Mabel could come to a decision in the tiny gestures, a conversation without words. Dipper flexed a hand, wondering if they’d read his stalling just as well.

“... let me find a pen.”

Ford put up a fake struggle alongside Stan as they were flung into Bud’s grip. Bud Gleeful was clearly built along Crampelter lines, fourteen and grew early. Crampelter had also been held back in school, which was part of what got the Pines stuck dealing with him and his gang of goons.

“So I guess Grunkle Dipper was right about you,” Stan hissed as Bud took a few steps back, too close to the bluff’s edge. “You’re totally evil.”

“Now, I think that’s uncalled for, evil is such an ugly word,” Bud defended.

“You’re quite literally complicit in an abduction case, any court would convict you for assisting a megalomaniacal TV personality, even if he is your patriarchal guardian.” Ford adjusted his glasses with some difficulty, deliberately making his voice haughtier as he used big words.

“Yeah, what he said.” Stan scoffed. “I take it back, you know.”

“Pardon?” Bud glanced down at Stanley, grip tightening slightly on both of them. Just like Crampelter, there was muscle there.

“When I apologised,” Stan shrugged. “I take it back. I’m not sorry.”

“Well, I just assumed it was all fake on your part either way. The Pines family do seem to have an aptitude for deception.”

“Yeah. You know, our mom’s a psychic too, like Gideon,” Stan said it casually.

“She’s very skilled at her extrasensory talents,” Ford chimed in, falling into verbal step. Sometimes, back in Jersey, Stan got enough of a read on one of their tormentors that they could turn the tables, using Ford’s smarts and Stan’s cunning to talk circles. It was a trick that they’d decided to practice after that run-in with the Sibling Brothers and the Jersey Devil, when they’d gotten in Ford’s head. If one set of twins could do it, why not them?

“So skilled. She’s able to know exactly what someone wants to hear, lies like a champ too,” Stan looked Bud in the eye, and Ford was very aware of the smokebomb in his own pocket, carefully modified. Just had to get Bud to take the bait. “She lies to us all the time too, that’s how I know your dad lies when he says he loves you.”

“Shut up. No, he doesn’t. You’re only projecting on me in an attempt to get under my skin.” Bud lifted his head proudly, and Ford thought that was it, but Stanley grinned.

“Oh yeah? Then why’s he got you in on this whole scheme? You had to ditch your girlfriend for this, didn’t you?”

“No, Carla and I had a lovely time, she understands that he needs me-”

“Bet she feels like crap, being second next to your dad.” Stan caught Ford’s eye. “Not very romantic of you.”

“Standard courtship rituals would tend to indicate that you should pay more attention to your significant other,” Ford rattled off, hoping he was picking up on Stanley’s cues.

“Your dad’s honestly kind of a jerk, making you constantly ditch your girlfriend. Doesn’t he want you to be happy?”

“Of course he does!” Bud snarled. “He just- he needs the Shack-”

Gideon cut him off, yelling something about dropping Stan and Ford off a cliff if Dipper didn’t sign something. Ford tried not to show fear. Not just for himself, although the fall would be lethal at this height, but for Stanley, who’d be terrified the whole way down.

“Sounds good to me, dad!” Bud called back, teeth gritting. “You hear that? One more word and I’ll drop you.”

“Actually,” Ford raised a finger, putting on his ‘smarter than you’ voice. “If you do that right now then you have not only thrown away your progenitor’s leverage over our temporary guardian, but will also immediately become guilty of murder in the first degree by way of windowless defenestration.”

“Bet your dad would let you take the fall for it,” Stan laughed. “What do you think, Fordsy?”

“Absolutely! He seems like quite the Machiavellian type, willing to manipulate anyone in his vicinity.” Ford was pretty sure he used ‘Machiavellian’ correctly.

“Man, Carla’s gonna miss you when you’re in jail for throwing us to our gory deaths,” Stan sighed, glancing at Dipper. Ford did the same, seeing him patting all his pockets like he was looking for a pen. “Or maybe she’ll think you’re a big jerk.”

“She’d understand why, she loves me. And- and my father wouldn’t do that to me, he’d smooth it over.”

“Can’t smooth over dead kids,” Stan made a face. “You can keep pretending that he’s a good dad, but it seems to me more like he cares about dating Grunkle Dipper more than you.”

“No, shut up, this is just all for the Shack, it’s just business-”

“Business doesn’t call people ‘honeyglow’ and ‘sugarplum’. What’s your mom think about that, Buddy?”

“I told you to shut up!” Bud dropped Ford, hefting Stanley up, hands closing around Stan’s throat.

Ford moved the moment his feet touched the ground, pulling out the modified smokebomb and leaping up, planting it right in the middle of Bud’s back, where the human skeleton couldn’t reach without serious joint flexibility.

“Smokebomb!” He pulled the cord and ran to get out of blast range.

Stanley’s hand reached into his vest at that moment and there was a flash of silver, an arc of red opening on the back of Bud’s hand. Bud yelped and dropped Stanley, clutching at the slash as Stan mirrored his brother in escaping.

The smokebomb on Bud’s back, a condensed mixture of all of Stanley’s smokebombs, amplified by Ford’s tinkering, began to sputter and spark, exploding with a massive puff of glittery smoke and popping flashbangs.

“Buddy-boy!” Gideon turned, distracted, and Dipper’s hand shot out, snatching the bolo tie from his throat. Gideon yelped, attention split. “My magic!”

The amulet glowed in Dipper’s hand, and that same toxic light began to shine through his sleeve in intricate lines, travelling up his arms and over half his chest. Was that the tattoo he mentioned?

“Oh wow.” Dipper grinned a little too wide, his brown eyes turning teal. “That’s powerful.”

Gideon began to back up. “N-now, we can be reasonable about this, my marshmallow-”

“Hm. Nah.” Dipper raised a hand and lifted the RV with it, clenching his fist and crumpling it into a giant metal ball.

“My dressing room!” Gideon panicked before he lifted off the ground, and began to reach for his throat, voice sounding choked. “I- I can’t- can’t br-”

Ford ran up to Grunkle Dipper and gripped the bottom of his jacket. “The plan worked! You got the amulet!”

“Huh?” Dipper looked down, genuinely surprised. Ford did not like how unsettling the teal glow in his eyes was. “Oh shoot- forgot you kids were here for a second.”

“Can I have a turn with the powers?” Stan made grabby hands.

“No.” Dipper looked consideringly at them before he glanced at Gideon and Bud, a glow surrounding Bud as well. He flicked a hand and threw open the doors to the warehouse. “What do you kids think, lock ‘em in then we go and wreck the carnival?”

“Wreck the carnival!” They chorused. Ford was all-in on that now, after today. Gideon destroyed his axolotl prize, now Ford was going to assist his Grunkle with revenge. Just this once.

“No! Not my carnival! It’s a rental!”

“Well, darn, Gleeful, hope you paid extra for insurance,” Dipper smiled innocently and tossed them both into the warehouse, the door slamming shut and a padlock sliding into place. Another flick of his glowing hand ripped the unsigned contract into tiny shreds.

Ford itched to take notes, the fact that without any practice a fine level of dexterity and control could be achieved suggested will-based control rather than a need for training, which was fascinating. He had to know more.

“Can I study the amulet?” Ford asked hopefully. “Please?”

“Definitely not. Sorry.” Dipper sighed, and threw it at the ground hard enough to shatter it. Ford was about to start yelling before he saw it make a skull-shaped puff of smoke as it broke. Yikes.

“Oh.” Well that was obviously a bad sign if there ever was one. “So the amulet was evil too. Fascinating.”

“Yeah,” Dipper blinked a few times, the teal glow fading from behind his eyes as they went back to brown. He stumbled slightly and clutched his head. “Whoo. That was a rush. Not a good thing. Definitely cursed.”

“You can tell that from one use?” Ford needed to pick his brains. He had so many questions.

“Aw, but it was super powerful…” Stan pouted. “How are we gonna get outta here now?”

“We’ll hotwire the RV-”

“Grunkle Dipper, you destroyed the RV.”

“Oh. Yes I did.” Dipper scratched the back of his neck. “... I’ll call Dan.”

“Okay!” Dipper ripped open the truck door and shoved his stolen prizes inside, the carnival mostly empty from the late hour. He still had to dodge some people, but he got what the kids wanted. “Axolotl toy for you, baby goat for you!”

“Hi!” Stan hugged the goat as it tried to headbutt his face, headbutting the creature back. “Welcome home, lil’ guy, you’re gonna have so much stuff to headbutt back at the Shack!”

“You got me a replacement axolotl?” Ford accepted the toy.

“Yeah, I think Gideon backed over the original. Sorry, kid.”

“No- I, it’s fine? I assumed it wasn’t in a state of repair.” Ford hugged the toy tight. “Thanks. Stanley, don’t let the goat eat any of my stuff.”

“Don’t worry, he can eat my stuff instead. Here, want some seatbelt?” Stan offered.

“You really shouldn’t feed him just anything,” Dipper hopped in the front, hooking an arm over the back as he started to reverse out, careful not to hit anyone’s car. “Did you kids rig up all the self-serve cotton candy machines?”

“Yep!” Ford grinned. “All eighteen! It’ll rain sugar for weeks!”

“I stole the cashboxes!” Stan gestured at the goods beside him. “We’re rich!”

“And I have some of the ingredients! I could build one and we could have cotton candy all summer!”

“Yeah! Let’s start a candy empire!”

Dipper grinned wide as he drove out of the carpark at an illegal speed. “Great work, kids!”

“What did you do?” Stan asked excitedly.

“And why did you tell Dan he wanted plausible deniability when he dropped us off?”

“Gideon stored all his fireworks in one place, I just moved them into the actual Tent of Telepathy. There was no one there to stop me.” Dipper took his hat off and waved it out the car window in celebration, sheer dumb luck managing to time it for the multicoloured chaos that exploded behind them, bathing Gravity Falls in rainbows. “Try and run your fake scam now, sucker!”

“Pines! Pines! Pines!” The twins chanted, punching the air in tandem as Dipper sped through an intersection. Safe driving was important but not when ditching a crime scene, he’d learnt that one after many a breaking and entering charge. Who knew most abandoned haunted locations weren’t open access?

Once they were out of the main town and past the suburbs Dipper took his foot off the gas, slowing down enough to check on the boys.

“You both okay? How’s the hand, Stan?”

“Not sore at all!”

“How far is the local hospital?”

“I’m taking you a town over, actually. Less risk of medical malpractice.” Between the vampire doctor he had to deal with, the one that thought ‘Frankenstein’ was life advice, and the general aura of ‘probably shouldn’t be allowed to handle sharp objects or heavy machinery’ that permeated the Gravity Falls townsfolk, he always went out of town for healthcare.

“Really? But that’s gonna take ages!” Stan kicked the back of the passenger seat. It was gonna have permanent shoeprints by the end of summer.

“Plenty of time to name your new friends, then.”

“We can name them?” Ford piped up.

“Sure, why not?” He had something else he wanted to take care of. Stan’s wrist, Ford’s whole… deal. “Hey, Ford?”

“Yeah?”

“I am sorry I lied to you about the supernatural.” It took a really long time to learn that sometimes an apology didn’t need any extra ribbons.

“I…” Ford hesitated. “No more big secrets?”

“Not that I can think of.” He felt bad for that one, but he couldn’t just tell them about Mabel- about what he did- without the certainty he was getting her back. He glanced in the rearview mirror, the streetlights throwing orange light into the back of the car in predictable intervals. “I’ll let you know if one pops up.”

“... Okay.” Ford pressed part of his face into his axolotl toy. “I think… Frilliam? If I have to name it?”

“That’s a good name.” If Ford needed to take his time to decide how he felt, that was fine. Dipper had spent too long working on impulse decisions fuelled by anger or hurt or the need to be right- which always backfired- so it was good to see someone in the family take the time to sort out their thoughts for once.

“I think I’m calling this guy Gompers! He’s a goat, but he’s got chompers! Gompers!”

“That’s silly,” Ford chuckled. “Suits him. Can I pet him?”

“Duh! He’s our goat now, Sixer.” Stan set him down in the middle, the baby goat bleating as it wobbled unsteadily in the moving truck. Ford hesitated before gingerly petting him, Gompers accepting it without trying to bite his fingers off.

Dipper smiled fondly before turning his attention back to the road. These kids.

Bill was right about one thing. He did get too attached.

#gravity falls #dipper pines #stanley pines #stanford pines #gideon gleeful #relativity falls AU but mabel is the author #gf #my writings

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