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skeeter-110 · 4 years ago

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A Canvas of Past Experiences

By: @skeeter-110 for @littlemissagrafina

Rating: General Audiences

Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Pepper Potts / Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Pepper Potts & Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe) & Tony Stark

Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark, Pepper Potts, Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

Summary: Penny loved getting tattoos and piercings. Of course, she only had her ears pierced in high school and a tiny stick-and-poke on her ankle; she wanted to look professional when applying to her dream college, of course. But she quickly learned that everyone was a lot more lenient about that kind of stuff than she thought. Although, of course, not everyone was lenient about it.

This fic is for @littlemissagrafina for the @friendly-neighborhood-exchange!!

They asked for the prompt: Peter or female Peter (whichever you're more comfortable with) has wanted tattoos and piercings for years and they finally start getting them. They hide them up until college when they get used to not covering up or taking the jewelry out around people and when they come home for break, Tony and the ironfam all have really shocked and surprised reactions. Especially Tony cuz Protective Irondad™

I really hope you enjoy this!!

Link to AO3

Penny had always loved the idea of tattoos and piercings. She loved the idea of someone being able to turn something so meaningful into a beautiful piece of art that you would wear forever.

Of course, when she started getting more into the idea of tattoos and piercings, she was one year away from high school, so the idea of getting a tattoo did not fly too well with her mom and dad. She was, however, allowed to get her ears pierced when she and Pepper went out for a girl's day, and that was good enough; for that moment.

But Penny never lost the love for it all.

Her first tattoo was when she was in high school. If you even really want to call it a tattoo.

She and M.J were having a sleepover together when the idea of doing stick and pokes came up. It was just a silly suggestion that passed, a “what if we got crazy tonight” kind of idea. But, after a while, the idea turned more into a reality, and before the two girls knew it, they were getting all the supplies ready.

It wasn’t anything crazy, just a tiny little star on her ankle. Penny knew she had to be careful with getting tattoos if she wanted to be able to get a professional job - and her parents would probably have a heart attack if they found out - so it stayed hidden underneath her sock. Although, none of that matters; the makeshift tattoo faded away before her junior year anyway.

But, despite wanting them, between wanting to look professional while she was applying for her dream school, and her overprotective father, Penny wasn’t able to get more than her ears pierced twice.

Until she went off to college.

Penny started considering getting another piercing - just to be able to test the limits of her newfound freedom - a few months after getting settled into her new life at college.

When she began asking her roommate who the best piercer in town was, though, her roommate really ran with the idea and the next thing Penny knew, they both were going with a group of friends to get tattoos.

It kind of just snowballed from there.

One tattoo quickly turned into two, and then three, and then four. And then the next thing Penny knew, she was moving onto piercings; getting a stud in her nose, her belly button pierced, even an industrial in her ear.

She didn't really think much of it at the time. Her tattoos were placed so she could show them off, but also hide them at the same time, and she figured that she could enjoy her piercings now and just take them out later when need be.

It was so normal for other students to have piercings and tattoos, though, that Penny felt comfortable enough herself to not even bother hiding hers.

Until it was time for her to go home for the holidays, that is.

Her Dad had told her a couple of weeks ago over the phone that they planned on spending Christmas together at the house in Malibu - something about Morgan begging to make sand mermaids, whatever that meant - so Penny was to meet them at the airport there.

Because MIT was in Massachusetts, Penny arrived at the airport in sweatpants and one of her Dad's old hoodies, so her recent modifications were all basically hidden under clothes and hair; except for the stud in her nose.

In the future, whenever Penny thinks back to this moment, she likes to partially blame all that for what happens later. But, right now, in this current moment of time, all Penny could focus on was not running and throwing herself at her parents; her piercings and tattoos were - and the thought of hiding them - was the last thing on her mind. Especially when she heard a familiar little voice calling for her.

"Penny! Penny, Penny, Penny!" Morgan calls out as she runs down the hall. Penny couldn't help but laugh when she saw her younger sister, instantly getting down on one knee and opening her arms up.

"Hello, M. Oh, I missed you!" Penny coos as Morgan slams into her, quickly wrapping her younger sister up in a tight hug.

"Hey, don't hog all of her attention. Her parents would also like to see her." Tony teases as he and Pepper finally made their way over to the two girls.

"Oh, don't worry old man, there's plenty of me to go around." Penny jokes back, lifting Morgan up in her arms as she stood up. As soon as Penny was upright, Tony pulled her into a hug, both of them breathing each other in. Three months was definitely too long.

"I missed you, Dad," Penny whispers, Tony giving his daughter one last squeeze in return before releasing her. And of course, that was the first time Tony had gotten a really good look at Penny since she went off to college.

"Woah, I know it's been a few months since we've seen each other, but I'm pretty sure you didn't have," Tony pokes the stud sitting in Penny's nose, "this when you left. What, are you joining a biker gang?" Tony questions, making both Penny and Pepper roll their eyes.

"Oh, Tony, leave her alone. It's just a tiny little stud." Pepper tries to placate while pulling Penny in for her own hug.

"I don't care if it's tiny, there's still a hole in our daughter's face where there wasn't a hole before." Tony continues to voice his displeasure.

"I think it's cool! Can I get one?" Morgan chimes in, causing Penny to burst into laughter at her father's reaction; he looked like he was about to have a heart attack at just the mere idea of Morgan also getting her nose pierced.

"How about we discuss getting your ears pierced in a couple of years instead." Pepper offers instead, everyone glad when that was enough to get Morgan off the subject for a while.

The key term there: for a while.

It didn't take too long for them to get the rest of Penny's luggage and to begin heading out to the beach house, but it definitely was long enough for the heat to reach it's high - causing Penny to sweat in her winter clothes - and for dinnertime to begin; causing everyone's stomachs to growl.

"Hey, Penny, do you want to go swimming in the pool with me while Daddy grills dinner?" Morgan excitedly asks, the small girl clearly over the moon to finally have her big sister back home.

"Yes, please. I'm roasting in these clothes." Penny whines, glaring at Tony when he began to laugh at her.

"That's what you get for wearing a hoodie and sweats when you know how hot it gets here." Tony light-heartedly says.

"Yeah, well, it's freezing in Massachusetts right now, you should know that." Penny snarks making Tony fondly chuckle. No doubt memories of when he went to MIT were flooding through his mind.

Almost as soon as they pulled up to the house, Penny was grabbing her luggage and dashing inside so she could change with Morgan right on her heels, both of them leaving their parents behind to get dinner started.

Penny took a bit longer than she usually would have getting dressed, taking her time afterward to put her stuff away and breathe in the familiar sight of her room.

Once she was dressed in a tank-top and shorts with her swimsuit underneath, Penny began making her way out to the patio where the pool was and where her Dad was, inevitably, grilling burgers. And that's where Penny messes up.

"Penny, what is all over your arms and legs?" Morgan calls from where she was sitting on the pool steps, making Penny cringe when she realized all her tattoos were on display.

"Penelope Virginia-" Penny heard her Father begin to grit through his teeth, making her whip around and put her hands up to try and placate him.

"-Dad, don't freak out-"

"-Stark! What the hell is all over your body?" Tony seethes as he walks around the grill and over towards Penny.

"They're just little tattoos; nothing too serious," Penny mumbles, knowing that any argument she gave in that moment wouldn't even be remotely good enough for her Dad.

"'Nothing too serious?'" Tony repeats in shock before spitting in his hand and rubbing it over the one tattoo Penny had over her shoulder.

"Eww, Dad, stop it, that's disgusting," Penny whines, pulling away and shoving Tony's hand off of her.

"Tony, leave her alone for-" Pepper begins to gripe as she walked out with more stuff for dinner, only stopping and gasping when she saw all the ink on Penny's skin. "Penelope, what did you do to yourself?"

"Can we please not make a big deal out of this. They're just tattoos and I promise that they're all in spots where they can easily be hidden and they all have meanings. Like the flowers on my thigh are all our birth flowers; they're not just meaningless little things." Penny tries to defend herself, knowing that it would be better for her if she could at least get her mom on her side.

One pissed-off parent is always better than two pissed-off parents.

"Well, I mean, Tony she is eighteen." Pepper gently slowly concedes.

"No. No, Pep, don't give in. This is bad. Our daughter permanently put ink all over her body." Tony says, already knowing he was going to lose this argument without Pepper on his side.

"And they can be hidden for when she gets a professional job, and they are meaningful. She's living on her own now and can make her own decisions so we can't stop or get mad at this." Pepper continues to soothe.

For a while all Pepper and Tony did was stare at each other, having one of the silent conversations that they've managed to master after so many years of being together.

Eventually Tony huffed before turning back towards Penny.

"I'm not happy about this, you know," Tony informs before pulling Penny into his side for a hug.

"Yeah, I'm aware." Penny chuckles a bit, relaxing into the hug.

"No more, though, young Miss. You're going to run out of skin at this rate." Tony says, trying - and slightly failing - to sound stern as he walked back to the grill.

"No promises," Penny says just to see the look on her Dad's face when she did so. She didn't really have any plans currently for more.

Figuring the excitement for the day was over, Penny was fully ready to just relax in the pool with her younger sister.

Penny jumped into the pool almost as soon as she could, smiling when she heard Morgan laughing at the water splashing her.

Morgan swam over to where Penny was, practically wedging herself in Penny's arms so her older sister had no choice but to hold her.

Once she was settled in Penny's arms, Morgan began to lightly trace one of the tattoos on her shoulder, making Penny smile at how precious the small girl was.

"They're really pretty." Morgan comments. Penny couldn't help but laugh a bit, finding Morgan's intrigue amusing. Although, it wasn't so amusing when Morgan shouted out her next question at their parents.

"Can I get a tattoo next?"

I actually really enjoyed writing this prompt because I also have eight different piercings and seven different tattoos so this one was right up my alley haha I really hope you enjoyed reading this and it was what you were looking for as your gift!

Tag List: @spideyspeaches @lost-lunar-wolf @joyful-soul-collector @hatakehikari @thatcrackheadsadbitchtm

#peter parker #penny parker #tony stark #the friendly neighborhood exchange #fanfiction #irondad

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atlafan · 4 years ago

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My Everything - Part Seventeen

A Take it Slow Sequel

What happens with Harry and Y/N after he proposes? How will the two navigate the engaged life while also continuing to juggle their jobs, friends, and families? Let’s find out.

Warnings: fluff and angst. TW: mentions of past abuse!

Words: 6.7K

a/n: This part is a little more serious, with some fun things sprinkled in between.

Masterpost

Many things were the same with this pregnancy as they were with Jack. Harry took a picture of you every week to watch your tummy grow, and he also insisted on doing a maternity shoot. You thought it could be even more fun to have Jack involved too. Harry had set up a nice space in your bedroom. You had a robe on and did your hair and makeup nicely. Jack was coloring on the floor sitting next to Buster.

“Ready babe? Drop the robe.” Harry smiles as he finishes getting his setting on the camera just right.

You take a deep breath and let your robe fall. Harry’s eyes grow wide and he clears his throat as he blushes. If Jack wasn’t in the room he probably would have fucked you before taking the pictures.

“How were you able to shave?”

“I didn’t…um…remember when I was with the girls the other day?”

“Yeah.”

“Well…Rachel bought a home wax kit and she waxed me.”

“The three of you…are a little too close.” Harry chuckles.

“Well at least it looks pretty now!”

“It always looks pretty, hairy or not.”

Harry positions you how he looks, getting a nice side profile. He always took really tasteful photos of you. Jack wasn’t paying much attention until Harry took out some paint. You put on a nude bra and underwear set.

“Jack, wanna come be in the pictures with Mummy?”

“Yeah!” He gets up and gives you a hug.

“Alright, I want you to stick your hands in the paint, and press them gently on Mummy’s tummy, yeah?”

“Okay!”

Jack was really excited, he loved paint, and he loved when you and Harry allowed him to be a little messy. Harry lifts him up and helps him press his hands on your stomach, around your belly button. You hold onto Jack so Harry can snap some photos. The hand prints looked really cool, and Harry was able to get a candid shot of you and Jack giggling.

“Were you able to find that crop top for the family photo? I’ll get this on a timer so I can do the paint too.”

“Mhm, let me go put it on.”

You come back out in a black short sleeve crop top and black joggers. Harry dips his hand on the paint and presses them to the sides of where Jack’s hand prints were.

“There, see Jack, it took all of our love to make this baby.”

Jack beams up at his father. Harry scoops him up and they position themselves to take some family photos. You put your hands in the paint and press one hand on Jack’s stomach, and one Harry’s back, making for a very cool shot. Harry had too many tattoos on his stomach for the hand print to be prominent. You get a shot with Buster too, and you all smile as they look them over.

“Pretty, Mumma.” Jack says.

“You think so? I’d say we’re a pretty good looking family.” You look at Harry lovingly. “Thank you so much for convincing me to do this again, it’s so special.”

“Of course, honey.” He kisses your cheek. “You just look so good, it would be a crime not to document it.”

Time was going by way too fast. You were due soon, and you were freaking out because it was only the middle of April. Someone would have to take over your classes for the rest of the semester. You were hoping to hold on for a couple more weeks, but Jessica Rose had other plans for you. You were in the middle of one of your lectures when you felt something.

“Oh my god.” You gasp, and squat. The whole class gasps. Your water had broken and it was seeping down your pant legs. “I’m fine, everyone!”

“Did your water just break?!” One of them shouts.

“Yes.” You breathe and reach for your cell phone. “I need, shit, to call my husband.” You press your phone to your ear. “Class dismissed, uh, Kelly, can you let the admin know what’s going on?”

“Sure thing!”

A few students hang back to make sure you’re okay.

“Harry?!”

“Hi! Aren’t yeh teachin’? Do yeh miss me?” He chuckles.

“My water just broke in front of my class.”

“What?!”

“Can you get over here? My go bag is in my trunk already, so you just need to, fucking hell, get here.”

“I’m gonna take a cab, I’ll be there in ten minutes. I’ll snatch Jack from day care, just get to your car.”

“Okay.”

A couple of your students help you outside to your car. Before you know it you see Harry running towards you with Jack in his arms. He grabs you by the back of your neck to kiss you.

“Okay, uh, I’ll get him strapped in, get in the car, babe.” He says excitedly.

Harry speeds to the hospital. Jack got a little frightened once you were inside and getting wheeled away. Harry called your mom and had her come pick him up.

“Where’s Mumma!?” He sobs.

“She’s…gone to pick up baby Jessica, Jack. And Daddy needs to go help her. But you’re really lucky, you get to spend time with Mimi. I need yeh to be a big boy f’me, can yeh do that?”

“I’ll try.” He sniffles.

Harry gives him a kiss and a hug before handing him off to your mom. He sprints down to your hospital room where you were chewing on ice chips.

“Is he alright?”

“Yeah, he’ll be fine. You know how he is when he first leaves us. I think he was just scared from all the commotion. I’m sure your mum will calm him down.” Harry takes your hand and kisses it. “How are you feelin’ this time around?”

“Remember when I told you what it was like when I got my nipples pierced? The first one didn’t hurt because of the adrenaline, but the second one hurt because I knew what to expect?”

“Yeah.”

“Welp.” You burst into tears. “I suddenly remembered what it was like to push a giant head out of my vagina, and I’m probably gonna tear open again, and…” You look up at him. “Tell me again, why I wanted to do this?”

“Because you wanted to have another baby around.” He smooths some hair away from your forehead. “And we really like makin’ babies.”

“We do, we really do.”

“It’s gonna be alright, love. I’ve got way more time off from work this go around, and you have the entire summer.”

“What if Jack doesn’t like her? He used to getting all of the attention. He’s only going to be three next month, he won’t understand.”

“Well, he took a liking to those dolls we gave him. Remember how good and gentle he was with the baby? I think he’s excited. He may not like it all the time, but like everything else he’ll get used to it.”

“I can’t wait for them to drug me up soon. I read that sometimes the second kid can come a lot faster.”

“Let’s hope.” He leans in and kisses your forehead.

Thirty-six hours in labor. You had no idea what was going on. Your water had broken, what was the hold up? You were uncomfortable and in pain and you just wanted this baby out.

Dr. Johnson comes in to check on you.

“So…I’d like to talk to you both about a cesarean.”

“You want to cut me open?!” You look at Harry, frightened.

“It’s much less invasive than it used to be, and you’d be in really good hands.”

“I don’t want to have a giant scar across my stomach!”

“You won’t, like I said, it’s not like how it used to be. The recovery time takes a little longer, but your vagina won’t tare open.” She tries to make a joke, but right now you weren’t sure what to say. “It’s up to you, but you’ve been in this hospital for two days.”

“Would I still be able to go in with her?”

“Oh sure! We’ll numb her up, you won’t even feel a thing.”

“What do you wanna do, Y/N?”

“I think I’m ready to meet our daughter.”

“Great, we’ll get everything prepped.”

They let you hold Jessica skin to skin, but Harry wasn’t able to until you were back in the actual hospital room. You felt disgusting. They had to give you a bed pan. You never thought you’d miss the mesh underwear so much. You found yourself crying every few minutes from the pain that was creeping into your body, but Harry would call a nurse and she’d give you some medicine.

You breast fed Jessica just as you did Jack. She was gorgeous. Harry couldn’t stop crying either.

“I just love her so much.” He sobbed as he held her close to him.

Eventually you felt strong enough to use the bathroom, and a nurse helped you through it. After another night of rest you told your mom she could bring Jack in to see you.

“Mumma!” He exclaims as he comes into the room. “Missed you!”

“I missed you too.” You say, tiredly.

“What about me?” Harry pouts at him.

“Missed you too, Daddy.”

Harry scoops him up.

“Come on, we gotta wash your hands. How was he, Lynn?”

“Very good, we had a nice few days together.” She comes over and kisses you on the forehead. “A c-section, huh? Had four of them myself, you know?”

“It’s much different now. I need to stay here a couple extra days, but at least it doesn’t burn when I pee.” You laugh.

“Where’s little Jessica?”

“Down at the nursery. A nurse is going to bring her in soon. We were exhausted.”

A nurse comes in shortly and you take your daughter from her.

“Harry, put Jack on the bed with me.” He does as you say. Jack’s eyes grew wide as he looked at the baby in your arms. “Now, Jack, this is much different than your baby doll. You need to be even more gentle, okay?”

“Okay.”

“Meet your baby sister, Jessica Rose.”

You tilt her towards Jack so he can see her face. He gives a gentle stroke on her cheek.

“Baby.” He whispers.

“God, look at them.” Harry blubbers while he takes his phone out. He takes a picture of the three of you.

“Here, let me get one of the four of you.” Your mom says.

Harry picks up Jack and sits on the bed with you. The four of you snuggle up close. It’s a great picture.

“Once you feel up to it, we can get a real portrait done.” He tells you. “What do you think, Jack? Ready to be a big brother?”

“Yeah, she smells good.”

You laugh as you hand Jessica over to your mom.

“That’s that new baby smell, buddy.” Harry says to him.

You had to spend a couple days extra in the hospital to make sure you were healed up properly. Harry was a saint. You were too weak to do much other than feed Jessica when you got back home. You didn’t breast feed much. You just pumped and put everything into the fridge. It allowed harry to feed Jessica much easier.

Jack soon discovered he didn’t like the sound of the baby crying. He also didn’t like how much attention the baby got over him, especially from you.

“Put baby down, Mumma.” He would whine.

“I can’t right now, honey, I’m giving her a bath.” You were bathing her in the sink.

“Jack, I think Jessica has the right idea. Let’s go give you a tubby.” Harry says.

“No, I want Mumma.”

“You can’t fit in the sink anymore, Jack.” You giggle. “You’re gonna be three years old very soon.” You pick Jessica up and boop her nose. You wrap her in a towel and hold her close. “I’ll put her down and then we can give him a tubby together.”

“You heard her.” Harry says to his son. “I’ll get the water started.”

“Harry?”

“Yeah?”

“Why don’t you lull her to sleep? I think Jack needs some alone time with me.”

“Alright.” He kisses your cheek and goes into the baby’s room.

“Okay, baby boy, let’s get you clean.”

You and Jack play with his water toys, and then you scrub his head. Just like Harry, he loved the way your nails felt while you washed his hair.

“Daddy and I have a big surprise for your birthday.”

“Really?”

“Mhm, it’s coming in a couple of weeks.”

“What is it?”

“Can’t say.” You smirk.

“No fair.” He pouts.

“Just know, it’s going to make summers even more fun.”

You wrap him in a towel and lift him out. You get Jack in jammies and get him tucked into bed. You read him one of his favorite stories until he falls asleep. You kiss his forehead before leaving his room. You let out a tired sigh after you close his door.

You go down the stairs to see Harry making dinner. Just a simple salad. He hands you a bowl.

“Thanks, honey.” You yawn.

“Sorry he’s been so clingy lately. I try to keep him busy most of the day. Buster helps tire him out, but it’s like the second he sees you…”

“He wants his, Mumma, I get it. Doesn’t mean he doesn’t like spending so much time with you though.”

“I know.” He sighs. “How are you feeling?”

“Much better. The extra rest you gave me was much appreciated.”

“Well, you needed it.” He sets his bowl down and wraps his arms around you. You rest your head on his shoulder.

“I’m tired.” You groan.

“Wanna turn in early?”

“It’s only seven.”

“So? I’m happy to go crawl into bed if you are.” He chuckles.

“Alright, yeah. Oh! We could watch something on TV and just relax.”

“I like the sound of that.”

“A pool!” Jack squeals when you let him outside.

You and Harry had saved up for over a year to get an above ground pool built in the back yard. You wanted to give Jack a pool party for his third birthday.

“We’re gonna have a big party here next weekend just for you, honey.”

“Just for me?!”

“That’s right.”

“Thank you, Mumma.” He hugs your legs.

“Go thank Daddy too.”

Jack runs over to Harry who was finishing getting the pool filled. He hugs his legs too.

“When can we go in?” Harry scoops Jack up so he can see into the water.

“Not for another few days. Gotta test it and make sure it’s safe.” Harry comes over to you. You were feeding Jessica. “I picked up a heating pad too, you can lay it across the water to make the water warm, just in case it’s too cold.”

“Good thinking, babe.” You hold your daughter up and pat her back to help her burp. “Jack, would you like Daddy to take you to the store so you can pick out some pool toys and floaties?”

“Yeah! Can we, Daddy?”

“Of course. We can head out soon. We can pick out something Mumma would like too.” He winks at you.

You needed a nap. You were exhausted. Even though Harry was more than willing and able to do the night feedings, you found yourself beating him to it. You bring Jessica up to her room and get her settled into her crib. You crawl onto your bed and close your eyes. Your body was still doing a lot of healing. You had started going for walks on the treadmill in the basement. You wouldn’t be able to go for neighborhood walks with Sarah until June when her school year ended. You’d be back in shape in no time.

You woke up about twenty minutes later to the sound of your phone going off. You wondered if Harry had a question about the pool toys. When you see Dr. Mara’s name pop up, you’re slightly confused. She still prescribed you your medication, but you hadn’t had an actual visit with her in quite some time.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Y/N, it’s Dr. Mara.”

“Hi, yeah, um, is everything okay?”

“Yes, well, there’s an article I saw online today…I think you should see it, but I wanted to call first before just texting it to you.”

“What does it entail?”

“Jake…” Your eyes grow wide. It was a name you hadn’t even thought about in years. “He’s been arrested recently. I know you never came forward with anything, but sometimes…well, sometimes when more people step forward on these things, it helps. Everything is up to you, of course. I’m going to send you the article. Do with the information what you will.”

“Okay, um, thank you for letting me know.”

You hang up and she sends you the article. He had been arrested on domestic violence charges. Apparently he had been divorced, and he had attacked his ex-wife. She was pressing charges, but the article didn’t get into it.

“Oh my god.” You feel tears prick at the back of your eyes. You lose all control and start sobbing.

Jack couldn’t wait to show you the things him and Harry got at the store. He races upstairs to your bedroom.

“Jack, mummy could be sleeping, hold on.” Harry whispers and picks him up. He opens the door to your room quietly. You were sitting on the edge of the bed, shaking, eyes red and puffy. “Y/N?”

“Mumma! We got so many toys.”

“That’s, that’s great, honey.” Your voice was hoarse and just as shaky as your body.

“Um, Jack, could you go color in your room for a bit?”

“But you said we could show Mumma.” He pouts.

“We will, I just need to talk with mummy alone quick.”

He sets Jack down. He grumbles as he leaves the room. Harry sits down next to you. You flinch when he tries to put his hand on you. You hand him your phone to show him the article. He gasps when he reads it.

“How did you even come across this?”

“Dr. Mara called me.” You say quietly. “She said…if I were to come forward…it could help this woman’s case. Get him locked up.” You sigh. “It’s weird, it’s like, I almost forgot I had been through anything.” You start crying again. “If I had just pressed charges back then this poor woman he married wouldn’t be dealing with this.”

“Y/N.” Harry gently places his hand on your back. “It’s okay.”

“I still have everything. I don’t know if the DNA would even still be on there, but I kept everything in a box just in case. I could go to the police station and give my story. I have to help.”

“You’re sure this is something you want to go through? You may end up needing to testify.”

“I made a mistake by not doing this before.” You put your hand on his knee. “We have children now. If something like this ever happened to either of them…I’d, I’d lose my goddamn mind! I can go to the police station this week. I know it’s cutting it close to Jack’s party, but I should do this sooner rather than later.”

“Do you want me to go with you? We could get a babysitter.”

“No, I should go by myself. You stay home with the kids.”

“I’m so sorry this is all being brought back up. Are you gonna be okay?”

“I don’t think I will be until I know that monster is properly put away.”

The next morning you rummaged in the basement for the box you had kept the bags of the sheets and dress in. You sighed when you found it. You weren’t sure what it would do, but you were thankful you kept it. Harry kisses you goodbye before you go. You wanted to leave before Jack woke up.

You drive out to the police department that had arrested Jake. You take a deep breath before walking in. You walk up to a woman sitting at a desk. There were a ton of people walking around, and loud phones going off. You shake all of the background noise away.

“May I help you?”

“Um, yes, I…need to report…a few years ago…you recently arrested Jake Robinson, and he raped me a few years ago.” That was the first time you ever actually said something like that out loud.

“Oh my.” The woman says. “You’re not the first person to come in about this. One moment.” She makes a call and a few minutes later a detective come out.

“Hi, I’m Detective Ruiz.” She says to you. “Would you like to come have a chat with me? I’m working the Robinson case.”

You nod and follow her back to her desk.

“These are, um, the sheets…and what I was wearing when it happened.” You place the bags on her desk. “It happened back in 2018, so I don’t know if they’ll be helpful.”

“They definitely will be. We can send everything off to the lab. They’ll be able to tell us what’s on it.”

“The woman up front said I wasn’t the only one to come in…”

“You’re not. We arrested him last week, and three other women came forward.”

“How’s his ex-wife doing?”

“She’s making it through.” She takes a note pad out. “Can you tell me what happened?”

“Of course. We had been on about four dates. He seemed like a really nice guy. We hadn’t been too intimate, mostly just kissing. On our fourth date, I invited him up to my place. We ended up on my bed. I thought we would just get into, um, some heavy petting, but before I knew it my head was being shoved into my pillows and he was just…well, you know. I didn’t feel safe enough to say no. I thought he might do something even more forceful. I certainly didn’t consent to sex. When he left I passed out from the blood on my sheets and the blood between my legs. My best friend, Niall Horan, came and helped me afterwards.”

“Did you happen to take any pictures?”

“No…the only time I used my phone…oh, wait, um…I do have a picture of Jake and I from our date that night. We had gone for a walk and taken a selfie.” You go onto your Instagram and scroll back really far. You weren’t sure why you kept this picture, but right now you were glad you did. “See.” You show her.

“Are you able to send that to me? He may claim he’s never met you before.”

“Of course. I feel terrible. I should have come forward when it happened.”

“All of the other women said the same thing, don’t worry. The others happened before you. It can be hard to talk about these things. Coming to us doesn’t exactly help make it all go away.”

“I just want to do everything I can to help now. I have a soon to be three year old, and an infant to think about.” You think for a moment. “I went to therapy for years. I know there’s doctor patient confidentiality, but I’ll sign whatever waiver that’s needed if you need more information to support the case.”

“Thank you, we really appreciate that. May I ask who you saw?”

“Dr. Pricilla Mara.”

She nods and writes the information down.

“Alright Mrs…?”

“Um, my husband’s last name is Styles, but legally I go by Y/F/N Y/L/N…I’m a PhD as well, that’s why I kept my name.”

“Kept my own name too.” She smirks. “No need to explain that. So, the lab process will take some time. We’ll be in touch, though.”

“Alright.”

“Thank you for coming in. You’re definitely making a big difference.”

When you get home you find Harry on the couch with Jessica in the crook of his arm, and Jack nuzzled up close in his other side. He was reading one of his books to them. You giggle slightly and take your phone out to take a picture.

“Mumma!” Jack exclaims and gets up to run over to you. “Where were you?” He pouts.

“I had to run an errand, my doll.” You pick him up and kiss his cheek. “But I’m home now. Can I sit there, Daddy?”

“Sure thing, Mummy.” You sit down and Harry throws his arm around you. He kisses your temple. “Jack really liked the story in this book. I pretended it was about a prince and a princess.”

“Ah, well, let’s keep reading then.”

It was a nice family day. You pushed Jack on the swing outside while Harry took Jessica for a walk in the stroller with Buster. Then he grilled up some food for dinner. Once both kids were down, you told Harry about what happened at the police station.

“So, they’ll call you if they need more from you?”

“Yup.”

“You’re being really brave, I hope you know that.”

“Thanks. You had a nice morning with them?”

“It was great. Jack crawled into bed with me and we had a nice snuggle before I had to get Jessica. She was so good for me too. I made Jack pancakes for breakfast after I fed her. We had a nice chat. He misses his friends at day care, but he said he’s excited that we’ll both be home for a bit.”

“Aw, he’s so sweet. We had fun in the backyard earlier. I like that you’ll be home with me a little longer than last time.”

“Me too. Mum and Gem are excited to fly in for the party.”

“They come Friday, right?”

“Mhm.”

“I can’t wait for them to meet Jessica.” You wrap your arms around his neck, and his hands rest on your waist. “We have a nice life.”

“Wouldn’t trade it for anything else.” He kisses you gently.

“Okay, I’m letting go before you think this is an invitation.” You chuckle.

“What?!” He laughs. “I wasn’t even making a move!”

“I could feel your hands sliding down to my butt, I can read you like a book, Harry. I know your moves.”

“Well, as much as I’d love to get my hands all over you, I know we can’t yet.” He rolls his eyes. “Even though my little friend stayed intact this time.” He wraps his arms back around you and pulls you close.

“Yeah, well, my stomach is still healing up.”

“I’m well aware, angel.” He kisses you again. “Doesn’t mean I can’t kiss you does it?” He mumbles against your lips.

“I suppose that’s okay.”

He leads you over to the couch, and lays you down. He hovers over you and sucks your bottom lip into his mouth. You can’t remember the last time you simply just made out with your husband. After the morning you had this was everything you could have needed. He knew that. He always knew what to do.

He deepens the kiss by licking into your mouth, and you have absolutely no problem with it. Your tongue finds his and you just feel like you’re getting lost in each other like you used to. You’re taken out of your intoxicated state when you hear Jessica cry through the baby monitor. Harry sighs into your neck. He slowly lifts off of you.

“I’ll go check her, why don’t you go take a bath or something. You’ve had a long day.”

“Thanks, yeah, maybe I will.”

You both go upstairs. Harry changes Jessica and rocks her back to sleep. He checks on Jack quick to make sure the baby didn’t wake him. He was sound asleep. Harry goes into the bedroom and sees the bathroom door open a crack, you were just getting into the tub. He opens the door and leans against the frame.

“I’d ask you to join, but I’m still a little self-conscious.” You blush.

“S’alright, can I sit against the tub just to be near you?”

“Of course.”

Harry sits down on the cold tile. You drape your hand over his head and mindlessly play with his hair. Times like these you almost forgot you were a parent. When you’d be able to just sit and talk with Harry about things. He’d be home with you through the end of May and for the month of June. You decided that since Anne and Gemma were coming here, that it would be a good idea to not go to England this summer, and to just make your trip longer in January.

“Are you sure you’re okay with not being able to see your friends?”

“You know that’s not the only reason why we go there right?” He turns slightly to look at you. “I love seeing Louis and all, but we go there to see other family. I go there to get some other work done. Besides, since we’re not going we’re making more money off the flat.” He shrugs. “And traveling with Jack and Jessica right now doesn’t sound all that appealing. It would be a lot. You’re still healing too.”

“I’m just saying, if you wanted to go…”

“You’re crazy if you think I’d use the time off from work that I’m supposed to be here helping to dart off to London.” He takes your hand and kisses it. “I’d never do that.”

“I’m really happy you’re taking so much time off. I appreciate it a lot.”

“And then when I go back I’m only doing half days until you go back to work.”

“Jessica won’t be able to go to daycare until she’s six months, so she’ll need to be with you.”

“That should work fine. Can you believe that Jack only has one more year of daycare until he’s at preschool? Time’s flying.”

“I know.” You sigh. “We should probably start looking at places we want to send him. Sometimes you almost have to book your spot a year in advance.”

“I wish the university had a preschool, we’ve been spoiled.”

“I’m gonna start asking around to see where other people have sent their kids. I don’t want pick up and drop off to be annoying.”

“Well, shouldn’t we look around this area? It would be better for him to meet more of the Milton kids that he’d actually end up going to school with.”

“Good point. I’ll talk to Sarah, she probably knows what preschools are good.” You look at your hands and see they’re getting pruney. “Could you hand me my towel? Think it’s time I get out.”

Harry stands up and hands you your towel. You stand and quickly cover yourself with it.

“You know, a few scars don’t scare me.”

You give him annoyed look as you step out of the tub.

“It’s not about you though. It’s about how I barely recognize my body half the time when I look into the mirror. It was easier this time around since I knew what to expect…but…still.”

You throw on a bed shirt and some shorts, hang up your towel, and crawl into bed. Harry gets in only wearing his boxers.

“I have liked just pumping instead of breastfeeding. I’m way less sore since I don’t have a little mouth nibbling on me.”

“Do you miss the bonding at all?”

“Nah, I mean, I still rub my nipple on her face to help with the acne like I did with Jack.” You giggle and roll on your side to face him. He faces you and puts his hand on your back to rub it up and down.

“I know it’s not about what I think, but you have to know I think you look incredible.”

“You also thought the same when I was as big as a house nine months pregnant.”

“I did! You were glowing, babe. You still are.” He leans in to kiss you, and gently slots a leg between yours to get comfortable.

“I haven’t been cleared by the doctor yet. It hasn’t quite been six weeks.”

“I’m not doing anything, just getting cozy. Just wanna snuggle you.” He pulls you in closer to his chest. “You have an appointment next week, right?”

“Mhm, on Wednesday. And then I’ll probably go back a month or so later for the IUD. I’m just not ready for another invasive procedure just yet.”

“We can just use condoms if you don’t feel like having it put back in.”

“But you hate using them…”

“I know, but if it makes it easier for you, I don’t mind.”

“I love you.” You snuggle into his chest and sigh.

“I love you too.”

The day of Jack’s party, you pulled out all the stops. It was dinosaur themed because he was very into dinosaurs right now. You put up decorations all throughout the house and in the back yard. The pool was ready to use as well. Harry made everyone a nice big breakfast, and once it was done you both creeped into Jack’s room to wake him up. You both sit on the edge of the bed while Gemma takes her phone out to film everything. You all had gone out the night before to eat, it was nice for Jack to be so excited about his Grammy and Auntie.

“Wake up, baby.” You coo as you stroke his cheek.

“Hm.” He mumbles.

“It’s your birthday, darling.” Harry says.

Jack shoots up in his bed and look at the two of you with a big smile on his face.

“I’m three?!”

“You’re three!” You both say at the same time and tackle him with hugs and kisses. His giggles fill the room and it makes you both so incredibly happy.

“Come on, I got you a new bathing suit.” You tell him and show him the new trunks that had dinosaurs on them.

“Oh, wow!” He gazes at them.

“Gotta go potty first though, son.” Harry picks him up and brings him to the hall bath.

You go into Jessica’s room where Anne was sitting with her in the big comfy chair.

“She’s absolutely precious.”

“She really is.”

“Harry made a nice breakfast, mum, let’s head downstairs.” Gemma says. “He’s just getting Jack washed up for the day.”

You all enjoy the breakfast Harry made. There was fresh fruit, pancakes, vegan bacon, and muffins. Something for everyone.

“When’s my party, Mumma?”

“In a few hours. Mimi and Grandpa are coming, and so are your other aunties and uncles. Some friends are coming too.” You smile as his face lights up. You had invited his best friend, Ryan, and his mother Lisa. “And your cousins of course. Michael and Melissa are very excited to see you.”

“Melissa’s party was fun.”

“You remember it, baby?” Anne asks.

“Mhm, we painted.” He points to the paper with splattered paint on the fridge. “It’s Buster.”

“So it is!” She beams. “It’s nice he has a cousin so close in age.”

“I know, they’ll be great friends I think. And Michael loves being the older cousin. I can’t believe my little man is six! He’s going to into the first grade in the fall.” You shake your head.

“He’ll be over here babysitting before we know it.” Harry chuckles.

“God, don’t even say that. You know my brother lets him text me sometimes. He sends me these funny videos of him dancing or just saying hi.”

“Clearly you’re his favorite.” Gemma says. “So, Jack, how do you like being a big brother so far?”

“It’s okay.” He shrugs.

“He think she’s loud and boring.” Harry says.

“Daddy!” He whines.

“Sorry, was that supposed to stay between the two of us?” He laughs.

“You think she’s boring?” You can’t help but laugh too. You look down at the baby in your arms. “Well, I suppose she is, isn’t she?”

“She just sleeps. She can’t even play.” Jack says.

“But she’ll be able to when she gets a little older. And then you can show her how to play nice with all your toys.” You explain. “Won’t that be nice?”

“How come you had a girl and not a boy, Mumma?”

You and Harry look at each other, then to Anne and Gemma who were cracking up, and then back to Jack.

“Well, buddy, Mummy’s and Daddy’s don’t get to decide.” Harry says.

“Why not?”

“It’s just how it works.” You say. “Are you sad you don’t have a little brother?”

“No, I like having a sister.” He gets up out of his seat and crawls up on you and into your lap. “She’s pretty, just boring.” He gives his sister a kiss on the nose and everyone at the table awes.

Your yard was full of people. Plenty of adults keeping their eyes on the kids in the pool. Jack was having a wonderful birthday. It was the first time your extended family got to meet Jessica as well. You were happy to pass her around. Anne and Gemma were big helps in keeping the food outside stocked up.

Harry tells you to sit down with Jack at the table as he comes out with the large cake. Jack blows out the candles when everyone is done singing. It was very cute. Harry cuts the cake for everyone, while you help Jack open up his various presents.

“What do we say?” You say to your son.

“Thank you everyone!”

Jack gets up and gives hugs to his family.

“I can’t believe how big he is.” Rachel says to you as she digs into her cake.

“I know! Too big if you ask me. Wouldn’t mind if he stayed like this.”

“Oh, but it’s fun to watch them grow.” Sarah says. “I love when my students come back to visit me.”

“Mumma, come swim!” Jack says to you.

“I can’t yet, honey. Why don’t you find Uncle Niall, he’ll swim with you.”

“He’s with Daddy.” He points over to Harry and Niall who were deep in conversation.

“Alright.” You squint over at the pool and see Kyle swimming with Michael. “Uncle Kyle’s in the pool with Cousin Michael, you can go in with them.”

“Okay!” He runs off.

“No jumping!” You shake your head.

“I’m glad you guys got one of your own, but you’re still welcome to come over once my school year is over.”

“Thanks, I’m sure we’ll take you up on that. He loves when Harry jumps off the diving board with him.”

“How have you been feeling?” Rachel asks. “Does it take longer to recover after a c-section.”

“Yes and no. I was in the hospital longer. I mean, it’s a major surgery. My scars are healing up nicely though. It’s just been six weeks, I have an appointment with Dr. Johnson on Wednesday. I’m hoping she’ll be able to clear me. I’m in some major need of loving with my husband.”

“I bet.” Sarah giggles. “Niall said he’ staying home the entire month of June with you?”

“Yeah, he said he wanted to be home to help more. He’s the best. He’s going to do half days after that, and then when school starts he’ll take Jessica to work with him until she can go to daycare.”

“You’re going right back in the fall?” Rachel asks.

“Yup, it’s fine though.” You shrug. “I was sort of spoiled last time. I’ve got the hang of things now.”

“Auntie Y/N.” Michael says coming up to you. “Are there any more juice boxes. There’s none in the cooler.”

“Oh! Sure, give me one second I’ll bring some out, my love.”

“Thank you.”

“Excuse me.” You say to the girls and go inside. Your phone had been sitting on the kitchen counter charging. You check and see that Detective Ruiz had called. “Shit.” You swipe your phone to call her back. “Hi Detective, I’m sorry I missed your call…my son’s having a birthday party.”

“No problem. I just wanted to let you know we got the lab results back.”

“Already?”

“We expedited things. His DNA was on there.” You take a deep breath as she continues to speak. “Thank you for bringing that in, it really helps with the case.”

“What are the next steps?”

“We may need you to come in and testify once the case is brought to court.”

“Will I need a lawyer?”

“You’ll want one, yes, just to help you. We’re hoping to get this moving along quickly. The other women have also agreed to testify. We have a strong case against him.”

“So…he would be there…in the courtroom?”

“Yes.”

“Okay.”

“I know that it won’t be an easy thing to do.”

“I said I wanted to help the best that I can, and that’s what I intend to do.”

#harry styles #my everything #harry styles imagine #harry styles series #harry styles fic #harry styles fanfic #harry styles x reader #harry styles x y/n #harry styles y/n #harry styles angst #harry styles fluff #harry styles smut #pls dont come for me if the investigation stuff isnt accurate #i only know what i know from shows like svu and csi sooooo #and i know those shows are incredibly inaccturate #hope you like!#pls tag if you reblog

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skiller0dani · 4 years ago

Text

For You | Monty De La Cruz

M A S T E R L I S T Timothy Granaderos Masterlist

smut requested requests info missed Part 1? read it here

important notice: 13 reasons why covers some really heavy stuff and their material can be extremely triggering. seeing as my writing is supposed to be for fun only I won’t be including many of the topics seen in the show. in fact, unless I say otherwise most of all my writings for this show will take place before Hannah Bakers suicide. if you or a loved one ever needs to seek professional help please call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline.

YAY. I changed the computer browser theme. took me fucking ages to get it all set up so those of you that are using a computer I hope you enjoy the knew layout! xx

...I will forever be angry for how badly the writers of that show treated Monty...

Catch up! Read Part 1 here!

Your eyes fluttered open upon hearing the sound of a car door closing next to you. It took you a second to remember where you were, and seeing Monty to your left only confused you further. You blinked the sleep out of your eye, “bout time sleeping beauty.” Monty teased as he pulled onto your street. You blushed as you shifted in your seat, a sharp pain shooting between your legs. Oh yeah. “Sore?” He sounds guilty, which catches you by surprise along with the concerned look in his eyes. You muster a smile and try not to grimace too much as you sit up. “A little.” You admit as Monty’s hand turns the wheel as he pulls into your driveway. Your palms are sweating a bit as you reach down to take off your seat belt. You reach for the door and when you stand, you collapse back against the car when your legs tremble underneath you. Monty is out of the car in a second.

“Parents home?” Before you know what’s happening Monty has swept you in his arms once again, beginning to head for your front door.

“No.” You say simply, reaching down to unlock the front door as Monty gently kicks it open. You hold onto his shirt as he traverses up the stairs, “you gonna be alright for school tomorrow? I didn’t mean to hurt you.” He sounds genuine, and the admission from Monty has your head spinning. You direct him to your room, which you weren’t expecting him to see today. Embarrassment swells in your chest when the door opens, your bed unmade and clothes scattered along the floor. “Yeah I’ll just get a hot water bottle tonight.” You tell him as he gently lowers you to the bed. Monty’s eyes take a moment to scan over your room and even though you had him balls deep in your pussy not even an hour ago, you still feel incredibly embarrassed.

“Who’s this?” He asks, his finger landing on a photo of your Mom. Your chest squeezes shut at the sight of her, you blink away oncoming tears before he can notice.

“My Mom, she died last year.” Monty hums, his eyes lingering on her before moving to the next thing on your desk. You’re appreciative he didn’t make a big deal about your Mom and start awkwardly apologizing. With a cocky smile Monty lifts a white paint marker from your desk, the marker you used to write on your bra. You raise your own eyebrow in response, challenging his cockiness with your own. “You know, feel free to make any more custom bras just for me.” Monty teases, turning with a wink before you can even respond. Your pulse is hammering in your chest when Monty’s fingers trail over the handle of your desk drawer.

“Hiding a giant 2 headed dildo in here?” There’s a teasing smile on his face and even though your cheeks are cherry red you maintain eye contact with a fierce look on your face.

Monty yanks open the drawer to reveal your small purple vibrator. “Cute.” He comments, hitting the button and listening to the device buzz in his hand. Your blush is so deep a pulse has started to beat in your cheeks. Seeing your flushed cheeks and mussed hair has Monty fighting another hard on as he turns to face you again. Kneeling at the end of your bed Monty grasps your ankles and yanks you towards him. Your hands land on his shoulders with a gasp, “m-my Dad could be home soon.” You breathe through a shaky voice as you feel Monty’s hand ghosting up your thigh. A half cocked smile plays at Monty’s face, “guess I better make you cum quick then. I wonder if this could help?” There’s a feigned look of innocence on his face as he pulls the vibrator out. You smile as you press forward to lock your lips with his, “hurry up then lover boy.” You mumble against his lips as his fingers reach for the button of your shorts.

Monty bites gently at the skin of your inner thighs, leaving little love bites scattered across your skin after he yanks your shorts off. You lean back on your elbows, biting your lip when Monty drags your panties down with his teeth. “You’re hot.” You blurt out as he kisses up your thighs and a smile is pressed against your legs. “I’m glad you think so. You’re hot.” Monty says with an amused chuckle. Why on Earth are you so cute?

Your head falls back when you feel his tongue lick a long line through your folds. “Fuck Monty,” You hiss as his lips wrap around your clit, sucking it into his mouth. Monty feels pride swell in his chest as your cries and moans of pleasure echo through the room. He’s the one making you feel like this. That thought alone is intoxicating to him. Monty clicks the vibrator on and slides it inside you as he continues to lick and suck at your clit. Your hips arch off the bed as you release a strangled cry of euphoria. Monty’s free hand plants firmly on your stomach, holding your wriggling hips to the bed as you grind against his face. “Please don’t stop Monty.” You plead, your voice a needy whine as his teeth nip at your clit. Hearing you beg and plead for him has his cock hard as steel. Monty thrusts the vibrator quickly as he continues to suck at your clit and soon you feel that coil burst and you cum all over his face.

“Fuck.” You’re breathless as Monty pulls away from you, returning the now wet vibrator back to the drawer in your desk. “I should go, but I’ll see you tomorrow okay?” Monty says and you nod weakly as he presses a long kiss to your sweaty forehead. “Wait,” you mumble, reaching for the flannel shirt he’s got on. You begin to tug at it and Monty rolls his eyes with a smile as he shrugs it off and tosses it to you. His heart grows 5 sizes bigger when he sees you throw your jacket off and replace it with his shirt, pulling it around you. You’re so tiny in it.

It’s only 10 minutes later that your Dad gets home with your little sister. The rest of the evening is ordinary and boring. Just as it usually is. You keep Monty’s flannel on, it smells just like him. It’s surprisingly comfortable, you never want to take it off. In fact you love it so much that you sleep in it and then decide to wear it the next day. You tie the front of the shirt making it a crop top as you squeeze on a pair of skinny jeans. Your navel is revealed by the way you tied it, and your belly button piercing is on full display. Hearing 3 honks you look out your window to see Zach parked out front. Seeing as he lives down the street from you it made the most sense for him to take you to and from school.

“Nice shirt. Isn’t that Monty’s?” Zach asks with a playful look on his face as he raises a brow. You flip him off as you adjust Monty’s red flannel so it loosely falls from your shoulders. Zach would be lying if he said he wasn’t concerned of whatever is happening with you and Monty. Monty isn’t known to have long relationships, he’s certainly investing more time into you then anyone else he’d been with in the past. “So do you know what you’re doing with Monty?” Zach asks as he begins to drive towards the school. You roll your eyes, “yeah I’m screwing him.” You say simply as you roll on some red lipstick, your eye makeup simple. Your breasts fill the shirt perfectly with the way you tied it in the front, Monty won’t be able to keep his eyes or hands off you.

Monty: My clothes definitely look better on you.

You bite your lip to try and hide your smile as you enter the school and simultaneously receive a text from Monty. You look up and see him standing with the rest of the baseball boys, his eyes burning right through you. You giggle to yourself when you see his hand curled tightly around the strap of his backpack. His eyes rake down your body, but they stop right at your breasts so perfectly presented for him in his shirt. “Damn Monty can I get a piece of that ass after you’re finished with her?” The same damn baseball player from yesterday says and Monty nostrils flare as frustration bubbles in his chest. “You touch her and I’ll break your fucking hand.” His voice is calm but the tone is tense. The guy freezes, swallowing thickly as Monty pushes from the wall to head in your direction.

Feeling a hand slide into your ass pocket you smile to yourself knowing who it is without having to look. “Montgomery.” You feel his chest press to your back as he presses a kiss to your neck. He pulls away to lean against the locker, his eyes fixed on the guy from earlier. You see the tension in his shoulders when you finally look up at Monty. “What’s up with you?” You ask, watching the predatory glare in his eyes that he shoots at any guy that walks past you. “Monty stop you’re freaking people out.” You laugh nervously, watching as his arms cross. Monty’s jaw clenches and he stands up straighter, “remember how I said I’ll beat any guy that comes at you? I think I’m about to.” He says, and you turn to see the ‘meathead’ from yesterday approaching you and Monty. “Oh hey Paul.” You greet politely, subtly reaching over to grab Monty’s hand. Paul doesn’t give Monty a second glance as he turns to you, “hey Y/N, I just wanted to ask you something because seeing as you and Monty aren’t dating you’re free to do whatever you want with whomever you want.” He snaps, his eyes boring into Monty’s.

A taunting smile spreads across Monty’s face as he stands straighter, and you can feel the tension building between the two men. “I wanted to know if you were free tonight.” Paul asked, but you figured at this point he was asking only to piss Monty off. It's working. You open your mouth to politely decline when Paul’s hands cup your cheeks and before you know it your lips are pressed firmly to his. In an instant Paul is ripped off you and thrown to the ground, “Don’t fucking touch her.” Monty spits, his fists curling as he puts himself between you and Paul. Your mouth is agape as you press your back to the lockers watching as Paul pulls himself to his feet. “She doesn’t belong to you Montgomery.” He snaps and Monty laughs sarcastically.

“Baby who do you belong to?” Monty asks, his eyes firmly on Paul. You swallow a thick lump down your throat as you stay stood closest to Monty, “y-you Monty.” You stammer and you mean that, really you do. It’s just that this entire situation is freaking you out. Are Paul and Monty about to get in a fist fight, over you? Monty’s face is hard as he eyes Paul, who rolls his eyes with a bark of a sarcastic laugh. “Sounds like she really has a choice.” Paul snaps, and by now there is a crowd gathered around the two men. Monty licks his lips, his fists curling tighter as he releases a breath. Soon Monty swings his fist into Paul’s cheek, sending Paul to the floor. “Fuck you! She has a choice.” He snaps and when Paul straightens up and smashes his fist into Monty’s left cheek you’re scrambling between them.

“Monty stop, please.” You plead, your hands on his stomach as you try to push him away from Paul. “It doesn’t matter what he says, I’m yours.” You promise before you press a kiss to his jaw. The simple action seems to release some tension from his shoulders. Monty throws an arm over your shoulders while flipping Paul off. When the two of you turn away from him you feel a harsh slap on your ass and just like that Monty is pushing away from you. “That’s it-” Monty’s voice is tight as he turns and throws a punch into Paul’s stomach. You gasp when Paul shoves Monty into the lockers, causing his right cheek to split open. “Stop!” You cry out, and before you can get in between them you see Zach push between Monty and Paul.

He harshly pushes both Monty and Paul away from each other. “Monty you need to calm down, Paul you’re a fucking dick. Now knock it off you’re freaking Y/N out.” Zach snaps and Monty’s eyes lock with yours, guilt flashing in his eyes when he sees you trembling. Monty shoves through the crowd and you’re following closely behind him. “Monty.” You say weakly but he doesn’t say anything as he shoves the doors of the school open. “Please,” You beg, voice swelling with tears. When he hears the emotion in your voice Monty stops immediately, turning to pull you against his chest. You hear his heart hammering against his chest.

“He hurt you.” You say weakly, tears falling down your cheeks as you see the trickle of blood dripping down his left cheek. “He fucking slapped your damn ass-” Monty seethes, his eyes fixed on the school but your tiny hands on his chest stops him from going back inside. “He did that to piss you off.” You say, wiping at your cheeks as you grab Monty’s hand to pull him towards his car. You push him to sit down in the driver seat, you standing between his legs with the door open. You reach for a rag in his backseat before dabbing at the blood trailing down his cheek. “Sorry.” Monty mumbles, the tension finally easing from his shoulders when he realizes you could be in there with Paul. But you followed him outside. You chose Monty. You shake your head with a smile as you lean forward to gently press your lips against his for a sweet kiss.

“Paul’s right though, we’re not dating so I can do whatever I want.” You start, biting back your teasing smile when you see a tense expression cross onto his face. “But I won’t. I just want you.” You finish and Monty releases a breath, a small smile on his face. He leans back as you continue to clean his cut, “poor girl.” He says and you frown deeply. “Don’t say that.” You argue as you finish cleaning his cut. You and Monty sit in silence for a second before he’s reaching into his pocket, “get in.” He orders and the tone in his voice has your knees weak. You immediately move to slide into the passenger seat, buckling your seat belt with shaky hands. “W-what are we doing?” You ask as Monty takes off away from the school. His hands curl around the steering wheel tightly and his jaw is clenched shut, “I need to fuck you. Right now.” Monty snaps, sending heat to simmer in your lower belly.

Monty slams the car in park when you arrive at what you assume is his house. Before you can even exit the car Monty’s mouth is on yours, hot and wet and so desperate. His hand tangles in your hair as his tongue slides across your bottom lip, and you moan against his mouth. His hands grasp at your hips to drag you across the middle console to settle in his lap. His lips move desperately against yours, the wet sounds of your lips sliding together sending arousal straight to your core. “Monty,” You mumble against his lips, your fingers pulling at the short hairs at the base of his neck. Monty’s hands begin to move your hips against his, grinding you down on his hardening cock.

“Be mine.” Monty says sharply, his lips trailing down to your neck. Goosebumps spread all over your skin as soon as the words leave his lips, “like, I’d be your girlfriend?” You mumble, your fingernails digging into Monty’s shoulder as he sucks at a sweet spot under your ear. “Mhm,” Monty merely hums in response, groaning as you grind down against his cock harder. He can feel the heat from between your perfect, inviting thighs and it’s driving him crazy. “I can’t handle shit like that, especially when I know you’re not mine so you can go fuck Paul whenever the hell you want.” Monty snaps, pushing your legs around his waist as he hauls you out of the car.

“Don’t want Paul, want you. I doubt his cock is even half as big as yours is. Fuckin fills me up so perfectly Monty,” You moan against his skin, beginning to suckle on his neck as he kicks his front door open. “So be mine baby, then you’ll get my cock whenever you want.” Monty says breathlessly as he navigates his house with you in his arms. You laugh, “don’t I already?” You tease, pressing your lips to his once more. Monty presses you against the wall, pulling his lips away from yours as he intently looks at you. “Answer.” He says, his eyes searching yours and deep down he’s afraid you’ll say no. You cup his cheeks and press one short kiss to his lips, “the answer is yes dummy.” You tease and a relieved smile overtakes his face before he’s winding his arms tightly around your waist.

Eventually Monty kicks open his bedroom door, his lips pressed against yours. God he’ll never get used to having you pressed against him like this. Monty carefully drops you onto his grey bed sheets, his hands pressed on the bed on either side of your head. His lips move with yours as his hands move down to remove those tight little jeans of yours. He groans when he sees your bare thighs and wet little pussy covered by your pink silk panties. You slide your hands up his stomach and he swiftly yanks his shirt over his head. “Am I seriously dating you? You’re like a living sex God.” You muse aloud, causing a cocky smile to spread across your now boyfriends face. Monty pulls your shirt- or his shirt- up and over your head and he groans once he sees your bare breasts.

“No bra today?” He asks, quirking his eyebrow up. You smile sheepishly, moaning softly when you feel his hands grasp your breasts in his large hands.

“Was kinda hoping this would happen.” You mumble as Monty leans forward to take a nipple in his mouth. He gently bites down at your nipple causing your back to arch and for you to cry out his name. What on Earth did you do to deserve someone as perfect as Montgomery De La Cruz? “Fuck, I really like you Monty.” You breathe, combing your fingers through his hair. Monty releases your nipple with a pop, his fingers still pinching at the other. “I would hope so, you’re my girlfriend now after all.” He begins to kiss down and around your navel, your breathing and heartbeat ragged as he approaches where you need him the absolute most. “Did you ask me only so I wouldn’t fuck anyone else? I really do care about you Monty.” You say genuinely and Monty stops what he’s doing to look up at you.

“Baby I wouldn’t care so much about you fucking other guys if I didn’t have fucking feelings for you. I care about you,” He says with a smile, before biting down on your hip causing you to whine while bucking your hips towards his face. “Do you promise?” You moan, feeling Monty press a kiss to your lips through the fabric of your panties. Monty rolls his eyes with a smile as he hooks his thumbs into your panties, “I fucking promise. Believe me yet?” He asks as he pushes 2 fingers inside you, causing you to cry out in pleasure. You nod frantically as Monty tongues your clit, his fingers pumping into you quickly. You feel that familiar coil winding quickly as you clutch the bed sheets so hard you’re afraid you’ll rip them. You feel yourself teetering on the edge and just as you’re about to cum Monty pulls away. You groan in frustration.

“Patience babe.” Monty smiles, reaching for the buckle of his belt. You lean up on your elbows to watch Monty finish undressing and you nearly cum just from his body alone, “I have the sexiest boyfriend in existence.” You say in amazement, causing Monty to laugh. Monty reaches over into his nightstand to pull out a condom wrapper, “that has to be the 3rd time in the last 10 minutes you’ve referred to me as your boyfriend.” Monty chuckles and you shrug, subconsciously spreading your thighs wider for him when he steps between them. “I’m excited. And happy.” You say with a smile, causing Monty to blush slightly. How cute. Monty leans down over you once he’s rolled the condom on, “me too.” He whispers against your lips before sliding into you with one languid thrust.

You’re not sure you’ll ever get used to the stretch it takes to accommodate Monty’s delicious cock. Not that you’re complaining, he hits deep inside you. Once Monty has slid all the way inside you, he groans as he just sits there and basks in the feeling. “Fuck, my girlfriend has the best, tightest pussy in existence.” Monty moans, using your words from earlier. You smile as you wind your arms around his back, your heart pounding against his chest. “Fuck baby, I need to pound you. Need to forget everything Paul did to you.” Monty grits through clenched teeth and you hold him tighter with a quick nod.

Monty pulls his hips back before driving them hard against yours over and over again, slamming his cock into you. Monty leans up, his hands grasping your hips as he fucks into you, “fuck baby that feels so good.” You cry out, your left hand reaching out to hold Monty’s. Your breasts bounce with each smack against your hips, and Monty keeps hitting that spot inside you that makes your toes curl. Monty holds your hips so tightly you know there will be bruises he’ll probably feel bad about later. Sweat trickles down the side of his face as he slams into you over, smacking your ass hard when he remembers how Paul slapped your ass. Your fists curl around the sheets as you cry out loudly, nearly sobbing in pleasure. Monty reaches down to thumb your clit which sends you headfirst into your orgasm.

You expect Monty to stop or at least slow down when you cum. He doesn’t.

He continues to slam into you at an ungodly pace, the frustration being released with each smack of his hips against yours. With each thrust Monty was pulling you back against him, making the impact of his cock hitting your sweet spot that much more intense. Your body shakes with overstimulation as you approach your second orgasm, almost screaming as Monty slams into you. As you cum for the second time on his cock Monty turns you so that you’re laying on your side. “M-Monty fuck!” You cry out, your face pressing into the sheets as you’re rocked against the bed. “One more time baby, cum around my cock one more time.” Monty nearly begs, almost as though he needs you to cum again. Tears of raw pleasure spring in your eyes and cascade down your cheeks as the pleasure is almost too much, “God Monty please make me cum again, please baby-” You begin to plead but you’re cut off when Monty reaches down to pinch your clit and as soon as he does you’re exploding all over his cock and sheets.

The both of you stay there connecting and panting for a few minutes before Monty slides out of you and collapses onto the bed next to you after discarding the condom. Monty props his arm under his head as you crawl up the bed to nuzzle your head into his chest. Monty’s arm curls around you to pull you against him tighter, “you okay? I wasn’t too rough was I?” Monty asks, worry in his voice as he looks you over. You smile as you press a kiss to his chest, “I’m in heaven Monty.” You sigh and he relaxes again, holding you to him tighter. You lean up to grab his phone from his jeans before you’re relaxing into his arms again. You open the camera and snap a photo of you laying naked on Monty’s naked chest making sure you’re breasts are concealed by smashing them against Monty. “What’re you doing?” Monty asks, his voice thick with drowsiness. You simply press a kiss to his peck as you open Paul’s contact in Monty’s phone.

Monty: hey Paul it’s Y/N. just wanted to say I just had the best sex I’ve ever had. oh and I saw your dick in the locker room & yours isn’t even half the size Monty's is. ;)

You attach the photo before pressing send and Monty laughs lightly. “That’s my girl.”

#13 reasons why #monty de la cruz #monty de la cruz smut #monty deserved better #13 reasons why smut #Smut #timothy granaderos #timothy granaderos smut

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morningfears · 5 years ago

Text

Rose Tattoo [Chapter One]

Rating: PG-13 | Swearing, mentions of death, mentions of a panic attack.

Summary: Inspired by this blurb. | Calum is a tattoo artist. Stevie is getting her first tattoo. She’s terrified but determined and though Cal looks tough, when he takes off his jacket, Stevie notices the marker staining his arms and realizes that he’s a gentle giant who lets his son use him as a living coloring book. They hit it off but are either of them ready for anything more? [I’ll come up with a better fic summary later, promise.]

Word Count: 8.3k

series masterlist | chapter two | chapter three | chapter four | chapter five

Stevie could see the clouds of her breath curling around her face, rising and disappearing just as quickly as they appeared, as she weaved through the crowds cluttering the sidewalk. She was uncomfortably aware of the eyes on her, small-town tourists staring at the shock of green hair atop her head, as she waited at a crosswalk. She focused on the music blaring in her headphones, on the bitter cold nipping at the slivers of exposed skin, on evening her breathing and keeping her face void of emotion, as she attempted to ignore them.

She hadn’t lived in New York long, barely two months, but the adjustment period had been painfully short. She’d learned, almost immediately, the best ways to avoid anyone asking her for directions or tips about the city. She’d also learned how to navigate the city through the path of least resistance (read: tourists). She rarely crossed paths with them, usually only on the subway to and from her office, as she tried not to venture too far from her own neighborhood. However, it seemed unavoidable today.

Stevie’s job kept her in the same general area. She usually met artists she was scheduled to interview near her office for coffee or in the park nearby if the weather permitted. Her neighborhood, though not perfect by any means, had everything that she needed to live - including an overpriced grocery store and a Vietnamese restaurant whose staff knew her, and her usual order, by name. There was a gym close enough and a coffee shop that made the best chai latte she’d ever had. The only things it lacked were the things that she rarely needed, like a good tattoo shop.

The tattoo shop at the end of her block with blinking neon signs and Sailor Jerry-esque artwork covering the walls didn’t appeal to her in the slightest. The owner, and the most prominent artist, lived across the hall from her and seemed more concerned with his reputation than with good art. The shop itself catered mostly to a certain brand of wannabe Instagram influencers and specialized in a type of tattoo that she didn’t want. So, to her dismay, she found herself having to step outside of the comfort zone she’d constructed and venture across the city to a tattoo shop a friend from work recommended.

Stevie felt a flurry of emotions swirling in the pit of her stomach as she drew closer and closer to the shop. She was excited, of course, because she had always loved tattoos. Her dream as a child was to be covered in them, a dream that she abandoned when she realized that she was too indecisive for something so permanent. However, she was also terrified. Needles had always been a fear of hers. Although she’d been pierced several times, her nose and ears and belly button were all bejeweled, none of her piercings took longer than a few minutes. The needle was in and out before she could really think about the choice she’d made and that was it.

Tattoos, on the other hand, were a different story.

She knew that the appointment would be at least a few hours long and the thought of sitting there for so long, immobile as a needle was repeatedly driven into her skin, made her nauseous as she stood outside the shop and attempted to control her breathing. She knew that she would be fine once they began the process, it was just getting into the shop and getting started that freaked her out. She knew, though, without a doubt that she had to get the tattoo. She couldn’t back out but the thought of postponing briefly crossed her mind as she stared at the bright blue neon sign in the window.

After sending Calum her references and telling him exactly what she wanted, he recommended two sessions. Her tattoo consisted mostly of fine lines and intricate detail, something Calum was comfortable with but knew would take more than the standard few hours, and neither really wanted to plan a day session. The first session was for line work, to get the basic outline of the tattoo onto her skin in black ink, while the second - scheduled for two weeks later - was to be spent adding color and detail. It made sense and she was happy that he didn’t push a day session but she almost wished she could just get it all over with immediately. At least that way she would only have to begin a session once.

As she stood outside the shop, gathering herself and hoping that she didn’t look as panicked as she felt, the world around her faded. She no longer heard the noise from the street or the loud hum of neon. She didn’t see the bright blue glow or the buildings reflected in the shop’s plate glass window. She didn’t notice the people passing her by, brushing past her without so much as a glance in her direction, nor did she notice the one person who decided to stop as her nerves held a firm grip on her. It was all white noise and a meaningless blur as she breathed in deeply through her nose and exhaled through her mouth.

Stevie only became aware of the person when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

Stevie jumped, startled out of her reverie, and turned to face the stranger. She recognized him from the few photographs she’d seen on his Instagram - there were very few of his face but he’d posted one recently so she recognized the buzzcut and fading blue dye - and felt her cheeks heat with embarrassment as she met Calum’s eyes. She had hoped that she would have herself together by the time she met him, she didn’t want to give him pause, but that seemed to be out of the question as he stood in front of her.

He didn’t look nearly as intimidating in person as he did in pictures and that eased some of the worry in the pit of her stomach. However, Stevie still found herself shrinking under his gaze. A few tattoos - the majority stark black and traditional, a mixture of intricate lines and simple designs from what she had seen online - peeked out of the collar of his shirt, a few more decorated his hands, and she tried not to stare as she took him in. His eyes, contrary to the mask of indifference he wore, were soft and concerned as he moved his hand from her shoulder and let it drop to his side.

Calum stared at her for a moment. He hadn’t made it a habit to stop and chat with pedestrians he happened across, regardless of where he happened across them (including in front of the tattoo shop where he worked). In the six years he’d lived in New York, he’d learned how to keep walking. He knew how to tune out the city around him and had gotten over the deep seated desire to help lost tourists or recent transplants. But something about this girl was different.

Her short hair, an artful mix of dark brown and green, was mussed - Calum assumed it was both the wind and her seemingly nervous habit of running her fingers through it - and her knuckles were white as she clutched her jacket tight against her body. Her face, illuminated in the late afternoon sun, looked mildly panicked but he could see a steely resolution in the set of her shoulders. It was interesting, the mixture of emotion he saw swirling in her eyes, and he felt compelled to speak to her.

“Sorry for scaring you,” he began, his voice quiet and soft in the din of the city as to not frighten her further but loud enough for her to hear, “but I just wanted to see if you were alright?”

It took Stevie a moment to gather herself, to formulate a response and push it through the thick cotton of panic that had formed in her mouth, but Calum seemed in no rush as he watched her knit her brows and internally assess herself. “Sure,” she nodded quickly, the word forced from her mouth and sounding garbled as she brought a hand up to run her fingers through her freshly dyed hair, “yeah. I’m fine. I’m just, uh, just a little nervous is all.” When Calum raised an eyebrow, inviting her to continue speaking, she added, “About getting a tattoo, my first one. I mean, I didn’t just pick a random tattoo studio to have a breakdown in front of. I know that it’s silly but, yeah.”

Stevie noted that Calum’s gaze were curious, maybe a little amused, but in no way judgmental. He understood her apprehension and saw it more often than not with his clients. Getting a tattoo was a big commitment; they hurt, they could take hours to complete, they could be expensive (if they wanted a good tattoo), and they’re permanent. Although he had more than his fair share, Calum still felt a lingering nervousness in the back of his mind any time he added a piece to his ever-growing collection (though it usually faded to a sort of excitement, something of an adrenaline rush) but he remembered how nervous he had been for his first tattoo and couldn’t blame her for needing a moment to settle her nerves.

“It’s not,” he assured her with a shake of his head. “It’s normal, especially for the first one. Nerves are a part of the process,” he stated with a nod that suggested finality as he moved out of the path of pedestrians. She stepped to the side - subtly, he noted, but just enough to put a small distance between them - and averted her gaze as he glanced at his watch. He lifted his head, turning his gaze to her once more, before he asked, “You wouldn’t happen to be Stevie, would you?”

“Yep,” she nodded, placing an emphasis on the ‘p’, before she huffed out a sigh, “although I wish I was anyone but at the moment. Calum, right?” When he nodded, Stevie copied the gesture and offered him a weak smile. “Sorry you’re getting stuck with such a baby for a few hours. I have to get this tattoo. I’m just…” She paused, her eyebrows furrowed and her shoulders dropping, before she added, “Needles.”

Calum raised an eyebrow at her explanation as he took in the septum ring and the several studs and rings in her ears. He was sure he’d seen a flash of silver when she opened her mouth and he felt certain that if he looked closer, he’d see a barbell in her tongue. “You have a nose ring,” he pointed out as he glanced at her out of the corner of his eye and took in the gunmetal ring looped through her septum, “and I’m pretty sure I saw a tongue ring.”

Stevie huffed indignantly and crossed her arms over her chest as she turned her head. Her cheeks, already pink from the cold, deepened in color as the embarrassment heated her body. “Tattoos and piercings are different,” she defended as she glanced at the people passing them by, “one lasts thirty seconds, at most, and the other takes hours. I’d rather be jabbed with a needle once than have someone keep stabbing me. It’s…” Stevie paused, searching her brain for the right words to adequately describe her feelings, before she settled on, “It’s the repetition, I guess.”

Calum laughed at Stevie’s explanation and she wanted nothing more than to turn and walk away from the conversation. She imagined that he didn’t mean any harm - she hoped that he didn’t, anyway - but she didn’t like feeling like she was being made fun of. She knew that she was being overly sensitive, that her anxiety lowered her threshold for rationality, but she still didn’t like it. However, she wanted Calum to tattoo her - she needed him to tattoo her - so she bit her tongue and stood still as she contemplated her next move.

Calum, sensing the shift in Stevie’s attitude, shook his head and pushed away from the wall. “If that’s how it is for you, that’s how it is for you,” Calum offered with a shrug as he attempted to catch her eye again, “but, trust me when I tell you that you probably won’t be my worst client this week. As long as you don’t faint, you’re miles ahead of a guy I had a few days ago.”

Stevie paled at the mention of fainting and Calum realized, too late, that that might not have been as reassuring as he’d intended it to be. He’d hoped to put her at ease, to relax her before he brought her into the shop, but with how tight she was wound, he didn’t imagine he would be able to. Instead, he sighed and stepped around her to head toward the door. “You ready to head in? I’ve got some designs drawn up. We can look at them and you can decide which one you like best.”

“Sure,” she nodded as she stepped through the door and into the studio itself. “Sorry I’m so early. You know how some people are chronically late? I have the exact opposite problem.”

“You should stick around, teach us your ways,” Calum hummed as he followed her in. “No one here is ever on time.”

“Fuck you. I am always on time.” Stevie turned just in time to catch sight of a crumbled ball of paper flying toward Calum’s head. The culprit, a man with inky black hair and an array of black and red tattoos, was seated at a drawing table and smiled at her when she caught his eye.

“When you own the place, I guess you can never really be late,” Calum deadpanned as he stepped around her and gestured for her to take a seat on the couch in the corner. “Hang out here for a second,” he instructed as he reached for the crumbled ball of paper on the floor, “I’ll go grab the designs and we can talk about placement and get everything figured out.”

Stevie nodded and watched as Calum navigated the array of equipment with practiced ease. He paused for a moment, long enough to nudge the - well, the owner, she guessed - and laugh as he messed up a line, before he disappeared through a door marked ‘staff only’. She glanced around the building, her eyes raking over the various paintings and prints and flash sheets that covered the walls, and found herself getting lost in the artwork as she waited for Calum to return.

**********************

As Stevie was twenty minutes early for her appointment - something that he appreciated; he would rather clients arrive early and have to wait for him to be ready than have them arrive late and derail his schedule for the day - Calum didn’t feel so bad taking a moment to breathe as he sifted through his files to find the few designs he’d created for her. Though it was barely three in the afternoon, his day had already been long. He’d been up since four that morning and he wanted nothing more than to finish her tattoo and head home.

The tattoo itself was fairly simple in concept, a bouquet of roses in shades of red and green with a ribbon tying them together (the only odd detail was a small skull pin on the ribbon), but the tattoo itself was quite large. He’d warned her, over email, that it would likely become close to a half sleeve if he made it as detailed as she wanted and she hadn’t been deterred at all. Despite it being her first tattoo, something she mentioned, she seemed incredibly committed to making it work.

Normally, Calum wouldn’t have minded sitting for a full session. The tattoo wouldn’t have taken more than ten hours and, though he hated marathon sessions, he could’ve done it. However, their schedules never quite clicked and the only time Stevie could get into the shop was after three in the afternoon. In another life, four years earlier, Calum wouldn’t have hesitated to accept staying in the shop until one in the morning. A session that ran late into the night would’ve just been another day at work for him. But, as fate would have it, he was no longer able to schedule his life so selfishly.

The deciding factor in his availability was - and had been for nearly five years - his son.

Calum became a father at the young age of twenty and his apprenticeship (back when he first began tattooing), his bookings now, his life; they all revolved around Tāne’s schedule. He had a babysitter, one that watched Tāne after school and kept him until Calum’s last appointment of the day finished, but it wouldn’t be fair to either his son or the babysitter to accept an appointment that lasted so long. Even if it was a one off appointment, he wanted to get home, to have dinner with his son and read him a bedtime story or just tuck him in, just as much as he wanted the babysitter to be free to go home and do her homework or see her own parents.

Calum had seen friends, men older than him and even some younger, that let their lives be consumed by their work and made their families pay for it. They chose local celebrity, fleeting online fame, over their home lives and he’d seen what it could do firsthand. He’d seen them end up divorced and alone, unable to get weekends with their children despite promising to be there for them. He’d seen them depressed, missing a part of themselves they hadn’t even known they’d had until it was gone. He’d met the teenage children of older artists and had been told stories about their childhoods, dealing with the absence of their fathers. And he desperately wanted to avoid that.

Calum wanted to be present for his son. He wanted to be a steadfast figure in his life, to be there whenever he needed him, so every decision was made with him in mind. His decision to cut a ten hour session into two shorter, five hour ones was made with Tāne in mind. It gave him time to pick up his son from school - they got out at 1:00 on Fridays - and spend a few hours with him before he had to disappear to the shop. It also helped ensure that he would be home in time to tuck his son into bed before he passed out himself. It ensured that he wouldn’t be dead on his feet, dragging into the living room as Tāne begged for chocolate chip pancakes and Saturday morning cartoons. It ensured that he wouldn’t be a shell of himself, present in body but absent in mind.

It ensured that he would be able to give his son the attention he deserved.

He leaned against the counter, staring at the transfer paper in his hands without truly seeing it, and took a deep breath. He could already feel the tension in his shoulders. It was present after the long morning he’d had and he could already anticipate the aching pain that came with sitting hunched over for hours at a time. He’d done a marathon session the day before, an eight hour tattoo that ended with a beautiful piece and a customer he could count on seeing again, but it left him aching and ready for a day off. However, as he lifted his head and turned to face the shelves, he reasoned that at least this session wouldn’t be so bad with the placement of Stevie’s tattoo.

After gathering himself, after clearing his head, Calum grabbed the items he would need from the supply closet and returned to set up his station. He imagined that Stevie would be sitting on the couch, waiting patiently as she attempted not to panic, but to his (almost lack of) surprise, he found her sitting on one of the extra artist stools with her chin in her hand as she watched Ashton outline a tattoo he was working on for Michael. Ashton looked calm, happy, even, as he explained the design to her and Calum rolled his eyes.

Stevie was cute, that much he could admit. Her hair, something she’d smoothed since stepping into the shop, was a shock of green among the blacks and blues of the shop. She was a strange mixture of hard edges and soft lines with but Calum imagined that that only added to her intrigue. Her cheeks seemed permanently flushed despite the warmth of the shop and Calum imagined that it was her nerves. Ashton, however, seemed to have a sixth sense for flirting with cute, nervous clients and it was starting to get old. He told everyone it was to help them be at ease, to calm their nerves before the tattoo, but Calum imagined it was more to help him get laid.

He let them be for a moment, long enough to drop the items he’d gathered onto the stand beside his station, before he decided to interrupt them. “If I could have my client back, mate,” Calum called, glancing over at the pair of them as he unzipped his jacket and began to shrug it off, “we can go ahead and get started.”

Ashton, used to Calum’s interruptions, shot him an easy grin as he nodded. “I was just keeping her company until you were ready for her. She’s all yours,” Ashton assured him with a mock salute before he returned his full attention to the drawing in front of him.

Stevie smiled at Calum, a little uneasy grin that seemed to be a reflex more than anything, before she returned the stool to the station she’d grabbed it from and crossed the shop to join him. As he arranged his set up, his movements steady and practiced, Stevie shrugged off her coat and paused for a moment. She glanced around the shop, empty save for her, Calum, and Ashton, before she asked, “I have on an undershirt. Like, I’m wearing a tank top beneath the long sleeve. Do I just…?”

Calum glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, an amused laugh leaving his lips as he watched her hesitate. “Yeah,” he nodded as he grabbed the black ink, “long sleeve has to go. You can take it off out here or there’s a bathroom over there.”

Stevie stood frozen, seemingly unsure, and Calum almost urged her toward the bathroom but before he could, she gripped the hem of her long sleeve with one hand and the hem of her tank top with another. She tugged the black garment up and over her head, huffing as it mused her hair even further and as she hit her elbow on the corner of the countertop behind her. She remained stuck in the garment for a moment, struggling to free herself, and Calum had to bite back a laugh as she rubbed her elbow with a frown on her lips.

“Right,” she nodded after dropping her shirt onto her bag and taking a moment to watch him set up - something he felt almost too aware of. “Where do you want me?”

Calum didn’t look at her as he arranged the little pots of ink on his workstation. Instead, he nodded his head toward the designs laying on the counter of his station. “Have a look at those for me,” he encouraged as he reached for the box of gloves beside him, “let me know which one you like the most and we’ll see how it looks in terms of placement and size.”

Calum’s station was in a corner of the shop. There were mirrors surrounding him, something that he felt almost neutral about most days, but he used them to his advantage as he watched Stevie through the mirror. He watched, curious, as she carefully traced her fingers over the designs laying on the counter and analyzed the emotions on her face. She hadn’t told him what the tattoo was for, he hadn’t asked, but he had gotten good at recognizing emotion in his years as an artist. He’d always been good at reading people, it was a gift, but he’d learned how to spot grief despite the many faces it wore as he’d done more memorial tattoos than he could count. Each circumstance was different, everyone dealt with grief in their own way, but the tattoo serving as a memorial explained why she felt so strongly about getting the tattoo (including the size and details) despite her obvious nerves.

Although he was outwardly the most reserved artist in the shop, he had always been the one that felt the deepest connection with other people. He empathized far too strongly for his own good and sometimes he hated that part of his job. He sat with people for hours, inking permanent memorials into their skin and listening as they told him stories of parents or grandparents or, God forbid, children that had passed and his heart bled for each one. He never knew what the session would bring - whether they would be an open book or whether the grief was too fresh to even consider speaking - and he didn’t know what to expect with Stevie. Usually, he knew what he was hoping for - more often than not, it was a happy medium that didn’t leave him emotionally drained by the end of an appointment - but with Stevie, he found himself unsure of what he hoped for.

But, by the way her hand shook and her breathing stuttered when she followed the outline of the skull with soft fingers, Calum knew that, regardless of the session itself, he hoped that the experience would bring her some semblance of closure.

Calum was finished setting up his station by the time she chose a design. He didn’t want to push, not when he could see tears glittering on her lashes, so he leaned against the counter and waited for her to speak. “This one,” she finally breathed, her voice quiet in the nearly empty shop. “This one’s perfect.”

The design wasn’t much different than her original request, it was still a bouquet of roses with the ribbon and skull (a detail she’d insisted on), but there were a few smaller flowers throughout as well as a few more intricate lines and details. It was, without a doubt, the hardest of the drawings to place onto her skin, it would bump the session up to twelve hours instead of ten, but it was his favorite, too.

Calum never gave his opinion on which design a client should choose. At the end of the day, it was their body. However, he found himself breathing, “I was hoping that’s the one you’d go for,” before he knew what he was saying. He didn’t know why but something about her vulnerability made him want to assure her that she was making the right decision.

Stevie looked up from the counter and when he met her eyes, his heart broke for her. He could see a glassy sheen of unshed tears and beneath the layer of nerves, he could see just how lost she looked. It was a jarring change, gone were the flushed cheeks and doe eyes, replaced by sadness, and it was hard to keep himself together as he watched her nod. “Let’s get this stencil on, then, and see what it looks like,” he mumbled, his voice quiet as he reached for the stencil and beckoned her closer to him.

Stevie seemed lost in her own thoughts so Calum worked in silence. He didn’t speak as he placed the stencil on her upper arm, exactly where she’d asked for, and was glad to see that the measurements he’d used had worked in just the way he’d hoped. It was a big tattoo, especially for the first, but - and Calum wasn’t sure if this was his own selfish desire to make his tattoos look as if they had always been a part of his clients’ bodies - it looked like it belonged.

Calum stared at it for a moment, his eyes raking over the pale purple lines on her skin, and he decided that it was beautiful. It fit her perfectly, exactly the way he’d hoped it would, and she echoed the thought as she breathed, “It’s beautiful. It looks perfect.”

“The placement is okay?” he asked, just to be sure, as he nudged her toward the full length mirror to get a better look at the angle. She stared at her reflection for a moment, her eyes glued to her right arm, and nodded. Calum, happy that she was happy, repeated the gesture and pointed to the chair. “Okay. Take a seat for me and we’ll. Get started.”

Stevie settled into the chair and kept her eyes on her hands, folded across her lap, as Calum settled onto his stool beside her. He could see the shaking in her limbs, the rapid rise and fall of her chest as she tried to steady her breathing, but she was quiet. She didn’t want to give him pause, he realized that, and he admired her follow through as she was clearly panicked. The only sound that echoed through the shop was the scratch of Ashton’s pencil against paper and the sound of traffic outside. Calum almost didn’t want to break the silence. It wasn’t awkward, just pensive, but he had to get started so he said, “I’m going to start with a line, just to give you a feel for it. Remember to breathe for me and let me know how you’re doing. If you need a break, tell me and I’ll stop.”

Calum kept his eyes on her arm as he traced one line onto her skin. He heard a sharp intake of breath over the hum of the machine but, to his surprise, she kept perfectly still. She was rigid, almost alarmingly so, and had her nails dug into her palms but she nodded at him. “I’m fine. It’s fine,” she assured him, her voice tight as she stared straight ahead at the artwork on the wall, “Go ahead.”

Stevie kept her posture for the first thirty minutes of her tattoo. Those long minutes passed in silence, Calum focused on the bigger lines that gave the entire image shape, and Stevie kept her eyes on the wall. He glanced at her every so often, just to make sure she hadn’t passed out, and was somewhat surprised at how well she seemed to be holding herself together. Her anxiety faded as they went on, her body relaxing and her breathing evening, and nearly an hour into the process, Calum could feel her eyes on him.

Stevie watched him work but her gaze wasn’t scrutinizing, just curious. She was engaged in the process and Calum was glad to see that she’d calmed at least somewhat since their initial meeting. He didn’t mind silent sessions, ones where the clients didn’t speak at all, but he was curious. He wanted to know exactly what the tattoo stood for so he asked, “Why a bouquet with the skull?”

Stevie hesitated, her eyes glued to his hands as he traced another line, and he almost retracted his question. However, before he could open his mouth, she sighed and leaned her head back against the headrest. “It’s for a friend,” she offered, her voice quiet and barely audible over the buzz of the machine. “She died a few months ago.”

Calum occasionally offered his ear to clients - some he didn’t have to offer it to, they were more than willing to spill regardless of his feelings on the matter - and he felt the need to listen to Stevie’s story. So, as he paused to wipe at the ink on her skin, he asked, “You want to talk about it? I’ve been told tattoo artists are like therapists. Just, less frequent visits. For most people, anyway.”

Stevie cracked a smile at Calum’s attempted banter and he was surprised at the feeling of accomplishment that blossomed in his chest. He never really invested himself in his clients’ lives, he had his own shit to worry about, but he felt for her. Losing a friend so young - she had to be his age or younger - and one that meant enough for her to face her fear and get a tattoo for had to be hard. And, if her accent was anything to go by, she was a long way from home and likely didn’t have anyone to vent to. So, he felt compelled to offer her an open ear.

“It was cancer,” she finally answered after such a prolonged silence that Calum had almost forgotten he’d asked. He glanced up from the line he was working on and frowned as she kept her eyes on the ceiling. “Her name was Angela. We were best friends for ages. She was the first friend I made when I moved after Katrina and we did everything together. We went to college together. We were going to move up here together. But she got sick.” Stevie paused for a moment, gathering herself, and Calum almost reached for the box of tissues on Luke’s station but stopped himself as he continued tattooing. “She dropped out, couldn’t keep up with the work because of the chemo, and that was it. She died. She had this bucket list, all these things she wanted to do before before she died, and I promised her I’d finish it for her. The tattoo was the next thing on the list. She really wanted the roses. You wouldn’t have thought it, looking at her, but she loved flowers.”

“Shit,” Calum breathed, his voice barely audible despite the absence of the buzzing machine. “That’s… I’m sorry.” He wasn’t sure what else he could say.

“Don’t be,” Stevie shrugged before quickly apologizing for the movement. “She’s not suffering anymore. It got really bad toward the end. She was in a lot of pain. I would’ve preferred she got better, of course, but an end’s an end, I guess.” She paused for a moment, her eyes narrowing as she attempted to blink back tears, before she added, “The skull is this ring she wore literally every day. Her mom gave it to me.” She lifted her left hand and pulled a long chain from beneath the neckline of her tank top. At the end dangled a small silver ring in the shape of a skull with two red gems for eyes.

Calum, despite his countless jokes about how much they annoyed him, couldn’t imagine losing any of his friends. They were his brothers, they always had been, and he knew that no matter how much they exhausted him, he’d be lost without them. They made his world better, they made his son’s world better, and if he lost one of them, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to properly function. He admired what she was doing, finishing her friend’s bucket list, and felt honored to be part of the quest.

However, before Calum had the chance to tell her as much, Stevie shook her head. “Sad hours are over,” she laughed as she brought her left hand up to wipe at her eyes. “What about you?” she asked, glancing at his arm. “Your tattoos are beautiful. I really like the intricate line work - it looks good on you - but it looks like someone’s been coloring outside the lines.”

Calum was mildly thrown off by the sudden shift in her attitude but found himself glancing at his forearms, at the tattoos she could easily see beneath the rolled sleeves of his shirt, and flushed as he caught sight of the neon marker staining his skin. “My son,” he explained, smiling sheepishly at her. “He likes coloring in my tattoos. Some of them are a little too intricate for him to stay inside the lines but he likes it and the markers stain.”

Calum could see Stevie’s face light up with a smile out of the corner of his eye. The crushing sadness, the loss, that had been so clear only a moment earlier faded slightly as she took in the marker staining his skin. “That’s so sweet,” she cooed, her accent growing thicker as she brought her left hand to her heart. “He’s got a living coloring book. How old is he?” She paused for a moment, considered her question, and then added, “If you don’t mind me asking, sorry.”

“No, it’s okay,” Calum assured her, a soft smile on his lips as he nodded toward the photo of Tāne he kept on his station. “That’s him. He’s almost five.”

“Four and three quarters, thank you,” Ashton, who had been silent throughout their conversation, interjected with a bright grin as he was given the opportunity to talk about his pseudo-nephew.

“Four and three quarters,” Calum agreed with a laugh, “yeah. He gets offended if you forget that part.”

“I’m the same way with my height,” Stevie nodded, “I get it. He’d adorable. He looks just like you and I’m assuming he’s got the artist thing down, too?”

“He’ll put us all out of a job one day,” Calum agreed with a smile as he glanced up at her. “He was a tattoo artist for Halloween. Had Ash give him tattoos like mine and everything,” Calum confessed with a grin as he thought back to the shock of seeing his son, dressed in a small pair of Docs and covered in Sharpie.

“I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that was incredibly adorable but also got you a lot of funny looks.” When Calum laughed, Stevie smiled. “I’m guessing the curls are what you used to look like?” she asked, glancing at the photo once more before she returned her gaze to Calum’s buzzed and blue hair.

“Mm, yeah. Once upon a time,” Calum nodded. Calum studied her, glancing at the green and brown mess of curls, before he asked, “What about you? I’m guessing the same was true for you before you chopped and dyed yours?”

“Brown, yeah. Curly? No. I wish. My hair was limp as fuck,” Stevie laughed as she tousled the green curls with her left hand. “It was gross and unhealthy so I cut it all off when I moved up here. I dyed it, too. I always wanted green hair and people don’t give a shit about your hair color here.”

“They did back home?” Calum asked, reaching out to wipe at her skin. When Stevie nodded, Calum asked, “Where is home?”

Stevie paused, staring at him as he added another line, before she said, “I’m sure you can tell by the accent, but I’m from the south. New Orleans. Well, not really New Orleans because if I was from there, they wouldn’t have cared about the hair - they see far weirder shit on the regular, believe me, but that’s the closest city you’d know.”

Calum nodded, certain that was true - he barely knew anything about New Orleans, let alone Louisiana as a whole - before he asked, “Why New York?”

“We had this running joke,” Stevie began, shifting in her seat as the discomfort of sitting still for nearly two hours started to set in, “that I was going to move to New York to become some obnoxious fucking fashion blogger or something and that Angela was going to follow me and be my photographer. That’s not exactly what happened but, well, close enough.”

“How close is close?” Calum asked as he pushed away from her and pulled off his gloves. “We can take a break for a second. Get up, move around. I’ll grab you some water.”

It was unlike him to be so invested in a client’s life but he felt at ease chatting with her. Something about her was easy, like talking to an old friend, and he felt himself growing more and more curious about her life. So, he kept the conversation flowing and was happy to hear her answer.

“I write for Rolling Stone,” Stevie told him, her voice following him as he moved toward the back to grab a bottle of water for himself and one for her. “Angela was going to be a photographer. Her editing skills were out of this world and she had an eye for detail like no one else. All of my work, the writing samples I sent in, they were a package deal. They all came with photos from her. We both had jobs lined up but… Anyway, I couldn’t stay at home so I took the job. Packed it all up and here I am.” Calum watched as she wandered around the shop, her right hand flexing as she attempted to wake it from where she’d sat with it so still for nearly two hours. She moved slowly, carefully, and paused at each flash sheet to study it just a little closer. “What about you?” she asked after a moment of silence, turning her head to glance at him over her should. “There’s a twinge of something not New York there.”

“Australia,” Ashton answered for him, a wide grin on his lips as he stood from his drawing table and stretched his arms. “All of us hail from the land down under. We packed it all up and moved here after Cal, Luke, and Mike finished high school. It was supposed to be a temporary thing but here we are, six years later.”

“You’re a lot farther from home than I am,” Stevie noted as she returned her gaze to the flash sheets on the wall. “But I guess some places just become like home, regardless of whether you mean for them to,” she offered with a shrug and Calum couldn’t help but agree.

He hadn’t meant for New York to become his home. He, like Ashton said, hadn’t intended to stay very long at all. The goal was to get enough experience under a talented enough artist to return home and open his own shop somewhere in Sydney. He wanted to be near his parents, near his sister, but something about the city sank its claws into his heart and kept him rooted in the Big Apple. He’d decided to stay before Tāne and now, now he couldn’t imagine disrupting his son’s life. Now, New York felt more like home than his real home did, though he sometimes felt the familiar ache to return to warmer weather and familiar scenes settle in his bones.

As the conversation lulled, Stevie returned to the chair and Calum found himself surprised at how quickly her appointment seemed to pass. Her initial nerves, the crippling fear that had seen her almost have a panic attack on the sidewalk in front of the shop, disappeared after the first few strokes of his machine. Getting started had been the hard part. Every part of her body had been tense and Calum was worried that she would stop breathing and pass out on him. However, once he’d settled into a groove and got her talking, sharing stories of her hometown and telling Ashton what bars to avoid should he ever venture down south for Mardi Gras, the appointment flew by.

He didn’t get attached to clients often, didn’t truly enjoy their presence beyond them being easy to work with, but he liked Stevie. She was his dream client, easy to work with and good at sitting still. She didn’t seem to mind the pain - or, if she did, she didn’t say anything about it. She sat calmly, never forcing conversation but letting it flow naturally, and Calum found himself at ease as he worked on her. The rough morning he’d had melted as he talked with her (and occasionally Ashton) about music and he was almost surprised when he added the last stroke to her outline. Her upper arm was covered in a beautiful bouquet of roses, only missing the red and green ink, and he had to take a moment to admire the beautiful, finished (for now) product.

“Alright,” Calum began as he pulled away from her and nodded his head toward the full length mirror she’d first taken a glance at her arm in, “take a look and let me know how you feel.”

Stevie walked across the shop, groaning as she got the blood flowing in her legs once more, and stopped in front of the mirror. Calum watched her face, his eyes on trained on hers, and breathed a sigh of relief at the awed look she wore. Her left hand came up to her arm, her fingers not quite touch the fresh ink, as she stared at herself in the mirror. She was quiet, scrutinizing, but Calum could see the approval in her eyes. It looked like she’d wanted it to, exactly as she imagined it would, and that was all he wanted.

Stevie was quiet for a moment, gathering herself, before she turned away from the mirror to look at Calum. “She would’ve loved it,” she breathed, her voice cracking slightly as she smiled at him. “I know it’s not finished yet but it’s already so perfect. Thank you.”

“Of course,” Calum nodded, a small smile on his lips as he gestured for her to return to the chair, “I’m glad it’s doing her justice. Let me wrap it up and we’ll get you out of here.”

Wrapping her tattoo took only moments and, after she paid, Stevie was out the door with a final heartfelt thank you and an agreement to return the same time two weeks later. Calum watched her leave, his eyes glued to the door, and remained in his spot behind the desk until Ashton said, “She was cute.”

Calum blinked, surprised at the sound of Ashton’s voice, and rolled his eyes as he let the comment settle in his mind. “She’ll be back in two weeks,” he informed him with a sigh, “you can ask her out then.” Normally, that wouldn’t have irked him so much, imagining Ashton taking one of his clients out for drinks. However, something about him asking Stevie unsettled him and he didn’t like the annoyance he felt in the pit of his stomach as he imagined Ashton flirting with her.

However, the annoyed was short lived as Ashton tossed another ball of paper at his head. “Not for me, dickhead,” he huffed as he stood from his chair and turned off the lamp at his station. “For you. You two would look good together.”

At that, Calum turned and stared at his friend. It wasn’t in his nature to attempt to set him up, to even encourage him to date, and he wondered what the change of heart was about. However, he didn’t bother to ask as he stated plainly, “No,” and moved to clean his station so he could get home to Tāne.

“Look,” Ashton began as he crossed the shop to help him clean, “I know that you don’t want to make things difficult for Tāne and you’re still on edge after El but it’s been three years. One date won’t be the end of the world, mate.” He paused, weighing his words carefully, before he added, “You talked more with her today than you ever have with a client. You guys clicked.”

Calum was quiet as he considered Ashton’s words. He had spoken more with Stevie than he ever had any client. He’d felt comfortable with her, the conversation flew naturally and five hours passed in the blink of an eye, but he couldn’t bring himself to consider that as an option. He knew that time had passed for him to move on, he had moved on, but he didn’t want open himself up to another heartbreak. Not when the first one was still weighing so heavily on his life. So, instead of telling Ashton that he was afraid of loving and losing once more, he deflected the conversation.

“El’s lawyer called this morning,” he sighed as he returned the box of gloves to his station. “I’ve got other shit to deal with that doesn’t involve finding a girlfriend. And Stevie - she’s nice but she’s got other shit on her mind, too. Just leave it, mate.”

“Wait, El’s lawyer? She’s not still trying to get custody, is she?” Ashton asked as he stopped cleaning and turned his full attention to Calum.

“Mm,” he confirmed with a sigh as he dropped the bottle of antiseptic cleaner and took a seat on his stool. “Still thinks I’m an unfit parent. She thinks that she and fuckface will do a better job. They want to move to Boston and she wants to take him with them.”

“Fuck, Cal,” Ashton breathes as he reaches out to place a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, man. She doesn’t deserve custody and I’ll help you however I can. You know that, right?”

“Yeah,” he nodded as he reached for the discarded tissues he’d used to wipe at the ink on Stevie’s tattoo. “I know.”

Calum knew that his friends would help however they could. He knew that, like Ashton, Michael and Luke would do whatever he needed of them to help him keep his son and the job he loved so much. He also knew that, when the dust settled around the latest in his ex’s attempts to unsettle his life, Ashton would return his attention to the topic of Calum’s lack of a partner and, for the first time in a long time, he didn’t exactly mind it. He was steadfast in his decision to focus on one problem at a time - his most pressing being his impending battle for custody - but maybe, just maybe, there would soon be room in his life for someone else. And maybe, just maybe, that would be the girl with the rose tattoo.

______________________________________________

Author’s Note: So. Thoughts? Feelings? I’m really excited for this. I’ve had this fic in mind for ages. The first chapter wasn’t as fluffy as I was imagining it would be nor is it as filled with Calum being a dad but there are some soft moments and I’m really looking forward to continuing it. I have it all planned out and I’m already halfway through chapter two I’m pretty stoked. Also, I’m trying to do it from both perspectives (Stevie’s and Calum’s because a) there are things about Stevie I don’t want you to know yet and b) it’s about single dad!Cal so. Anyway!). Let me know your thoughts!

Tag List (like this post or message me if you want to be added!): @toolazymyguy , @irwinkitten , @jamieebabiee , @glittersluke , @spicycal , @lusbaby , @everyscarisahealingplace, @brokenvirtualheartcollector , @if-it-rains-it-pours, @blisshemmings , @calumscalm , @lovemenowseemenever , @ijutreallylovezebras , @rhiannonmichelle , @p0laroidpictures , @tomscuddles , @loverofmineluke , @harrytreatspeoplewithkindnesss , @blueviiolence , @loveroflrh , @empathycth , @luckyduckydoo , @tobefalling , @bandsandbooksaremykink , @watch-how-she-burns , @megz1985 , @wokeupinaustralia , @lucidlrh , @canterburyfiction , @cal-is-not-on-branding , @t-i-n-y-d-i-n-o

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jobrookekarev · 4 years ago

Text

Little Turkey (Updated)

Summary: Jo and Alex celebrate Thanksgiving with everybody in Meredith’s backyard and Jo tries to induce labor.

Chapter: 1/1

Fandom: Grey's Anatomy.

Relationship: Alex Karev/Jo Wilson Karev.

Characters: Alex Karev, Jo Wilson Karev, Meredith Grey, Maggie Pierce, Jackson Avery, Amelia Shepherd, Atticus Lincoln, Zola Grey Shepherd, Ellis Shepherd, Derek Bailey Shepherd, and Carina DeLuca.

Rating: General Audiences.

Additional Tags: thanksgiving, pregnancy, birth, babies, and tiny adorable turkey onesies.

AN: New edits because I forgot to add the reason why Jo didn't realize she was in labor and her water breaking because I was in a rush to get this posted!! You think that someone who studied to be a doula would get it right but nope. LOL. So hopefully this makes more sense and seems more realistic.

Read at AO3

Read at FFN

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Jo pushed open the gate to Meredith’s backyard and was greeted with the sight of the socially distant Thanksgiving dinner in full swing. It might be the holidays, but there was a rise of COVID in the past few weeks and the governor had shut down the state. Despite how the group was constantly tested at work, none of them were willing to take any risks for an inside formal dinner. Which meant that tables were 6 feet apart, plates of food were already set out, and masks were required. Jo didn’t mind the outdoor activities, even with the November air as her pregnancy meant that she often ran hot.

Amelia and Link were at one table with her godson, the three kids and Meredith were painting at one table. Maggie and Winston were off to the side, and Jackson, April, and Harriett were at the third table. The last table was for her and Alex, Meredith had already set out plates for them that were already filled with turkey, stuffing, casseroles, and Amelia’s pie.

“Hey, Aunt Jo,” Zola said, being the first one to greet her and waved at her with her paintbrush still in her hand. She wore a white and purple butterfly mask that matched her butterfly coat.

Everyone else followed Zola’s hello with waves as Jo walked up to the only empty table. Link bounded over like a puppy and hugged her as tightly as he could with her full belly between them. The two of them had been together for most of the pandemic with her and Alex helping them with Scout and Link and Amelia returning the favor to help with Jo’s pregnancy.

“Where’s Uncle Alex?” Zola asked holding up her turkey painting to show Jo.

“That looks very cool Zola and he is on his way. He had a meeting so he's just running a little late,” Jo said as she put a hand on her belly and eased herself into the lawn chair and put her feet up on Alex's empty chair. “I see you all left me the good chair.”

“Yeah well the rest of us didn’t want to hear you complain about it for the entire night,” Amelia said, sending Jo a wink.

“I did not complain last time!” Jo insisted, looking over at Link who just looked at her wide eyed.

Jo knew that Link’s mouth was open under his mask as he was trying to find something to say to her before retreating back over to Amelia.

Ellis grabbed a plate of paint and dragged her cat chair to Jo. “Aunt Jo, can I paint your belly?”

“What?”

“She wants to paint your baby belly,” Meredith clarified for her, handing Bailey a plate of food. “She saw a picture of someone doing it online and now all she talks about is painting your belly.”

Jo looked back down at Ellis who looked up at her with the biggest puppy eyes and Jo knew that she was pouting under her mask. Jo smiled and nodded, how could she refuse Ellis’ request. Jo put her feet down and grabbed a pillow, putting it behind her back before she pulled up her shirt and tucking it under her breasts. Ellis giggled and grabbed her brush to paint a streak across Jo's belly. Jo shivered at the cold paint, but the feeling of Ellis’s brush was oddly soft and Jo found herself relaxing back as Ellis painted.

The party continued and the conversation flowed. It had been a while since everyone had gotten together outside the hospital, especially with the kids and it was nice to relax and enjoy the night.

“Oh that’s so cute,” Jo said as Link handed her a small canvas of one of her godson’s baby bumpkins. “I can’t wait to do that with this baby.”

Jo smiled as she stared over at Amelia and her godson. Back when she and Link were serving coffee, just trying to make it through college. They talked about how their kids would grow up together and be friends. They would be each other’s family. After Jo left, she didn’t think she’d ever see him again, but she was so glad he came to Grey-Sloan and gave her a second chance.

“Yeah, it does make a good keepsake for Christmas too,” Link said, smiling back over at Amelia and the baby as well.

“Nuh-uh,” Jo mumbled, shaking her head as she took a bit of the nacho that she had dumped hot sauce on. “I’m having this baby tonight.”

Immediately all eyes were on her.

“You're in labor!” Meredith shouted standing up and pulling out her phone, no doubt to call Alex.

“You're in labor!” Maggie freaked out as she dropped Zola’s painting.

“The baby’s coming today!” Zola cheered her eyes sparkling as she raced over to them.

“The baby’s coming!” Ellis shrieked, putting both of her hands on Jo’s belly that was still wet with paint.

“Oh my god, Jo why didn’t you say anything?” Link said, dropping down to his knees and putting a hand on her shoulder.

“No, I’m not in Labor,” Jo shouted above the noise.

“Josephine Brooke Karev are you still trying to induce labor a week before your due date?”

“Uncle Alex!” All the kids screamed, so excited to see him, they all talked over each other as they showed him their paintings.

“For heaven's sake Jo,” Link said, his eyes wide as he sat down on the grass leaning on the arm of her chair. “Between you and Amelia, the stress is gonna kill me.”

“Why would you want to have your baby today?” Meredith asked, moving her chair over to sit next across from Jo.

“Well, our anniversary is Halloween. I just thought I’d keep with the theme, that way we'd always remember and it’d be extra special,” Jo said, with a shrug as she felt the baby kick inside her as if they were agreeing.

“Regardless of the date it will be special, trust me. You're never going to forget your baby's birthday because it's also your labor day,” Meredith said her eyes sparkling and Jo knew that she was smirking over at her.

“I know, but I just thought I'd be fun,” Jo said, putting a hand on her baby belly where Ellis hadn’t painted, feeling them kick again as she turned to see Alex talking to the kids.

He was nodding along to everything they were telling him and acting like Bailey's messy painted turkey was the greatest piece of artwork he's ever seen. She loved seeing Alex with all the kids so much that she didn’t mind being second best to her husband. He was so good to them, always listening to them talk and going along with whatever they wanted. She couldn't wait to see him with their kid and she knew that they already had them wrapped around their finger.

“I painted Aunt Jo’s belly!” Ellis said putting her paint covered hands on Alex’s shirt.

“And now we match,” Alex said looking down at his nice button up shirt to see two small handprints.

Jo laughed as Alex looked down at the sight of his ruined shirt. Meredith got up and took Ellis inside to wash her hands and Alex sat down next to her. He pulled down his mask to greet her with a kiss and settled in. Jo grabbed another bite of her pineapple spicy nachos and Alex took a piece from her plate.

“Hey,” Jo said, pulling the plate away from him.

“Sorry,” Alex laughed before feeding her the chip.

Jo thought that he would have long since learned not to get between a pregnant woman and her food, but apparently not.

Alex’s eyes turned serious as he looked over at her. “How are you feeling?”

“My heartburn is better than it was this morning, my braxton hicks haven't been as intense as they were yesterday, and I did a hepatectomy on a guy who almost burnt down his house trying to cook a turkey with Jackson,” Jo said in between bites of her nachos.

“Yeah I’m surprised I got here before you,” Jackson said as he held Harriett and offered her a bite of green beans. “You finished the resection before I was done debriding his wounds.”

“I scrubbed in on a surgical extraction with Dr. Bailey right after,” Jo said with a laugh, remembering the case. “Some guy shoved a corn husk up you know where.”

“A corn husk?” Meredith asked in disbelief. “I can’t believe I missed that!”

“You can scrub in with me next year after COVID is cured and you can come back to work.”

“I’ll hold you to it, Karev.”

“It sounds like you had a good day,” Alex said, leaving in to wrap his arm around her shoulders.

“I did.”

Jo could see Alex smile under his mask as his eyes wrinkled and sparkled. Jo leaned in and pressed a masked kiss to his cheek. Alex chuckled, squeezed her shoulder as she leaned in and put her head on his shoulder.

They watched the kids paint and ate too much of April's pumpkin pie and stayed long after the kids fell asleep as the alcohol came out for the adults. It was the first time they had all congregated outside of the hospital and no one was eager to leave. Her sober buddy, Amelia, came to sit next closer to her, and Jo cooed at her godson, gushing over his cute little baby cheeks even after he fell asleep.

The cold night air set in and soon they were all bundling up in blankets, but no one wanted to head home first. Jo put the baby down inside and curled up against Alex as her braxton hicks started up again. She didn't mean to fall asleep but the next thing she knew Alex was shifting against her and pulling her onto her feet and putting one arm around her as he half carried her to the car, Jo mumbled goodbye to everyone.

Jo fell asleep in the car and she didn't remember getting into bed, but the next thing she knew it’s 4 a.m. and she's waking up with a braxton hick. She rolled over in bed realizing that Alex changed her into pajamas. Jo’s not sure if it's because she was exhausted or what but, as soon as it passed she rolled over and fell asleep again.

Somewhere around sunrise, just as the sun was shining into the windows, Jo got up with another braxton hick. She knew that moving helped and she had to pee anyway, but Jo only made it to the table behind the couch before she felt a trickle of water run down her leg. At first, she thought she had an accident, but the trickle of water just kept coming as Jo tried to clean herself up. Then she realized it was amniotic fluid. Her water broke.

Jo turned around to wake up Alex, but before she could she doubled over in pain as her next contraction started. She knew that her contractions would increase in pain after her water broke that this was on a whole different level.

Jo leaned against the table she tried to call out to Alex but she can’t speak. She was frozen in place until it passed. She knew that these weren't braxton hick, these were contractions, she was in labor. When she felt like she could move again Jo looked back at Alex, but she couldn't manage to call out to him. Instead, Jo got out her phone and pulled up her contacts, she blindly pressed Alex’s name and waited to hear his phone ring. Instead, she heard someone else answer her call.

“Hey Jo, what’s up”

Meredith’s voice was music to her ears. Jo opened her eyes and shook her head as she looked down at the phone. Jo was so relieved to see her friend. Although she had originally planned to just call Alex, it seemed she had set up a video call with Meredith. Because of the restriction, Jo couldn't have anyone other than Alex with her when she gave birth. Despite her initial plan to have Meredith with her, they had agreed to have Meredith be there over video call to support her through it. In the midst of a contraction she could barely speak, but Meredith seemed to know exactly what was going on.

“Are you in labor?”

Jo nodded, closing her eyes and swaying her hips, she wasn't sure why but somehow it seemed to help.

“How long have you been having contractions?”

“I don't know,” Jo said, blowing out a breath as the contraction passed. “A few hours maybe.”

“What do you mean maybe?” Meredith asked, glaring at her. “When did the pain start?”

“Before I went to bed last night I think.”

“So you've been in labor for six hours, Jo how did you ignore this?” Meredith said as she rubbed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose

“I have a high pain tolerance, and I'm used to sleeping through the pain and I was really tired,” Jo said, the memories of when she used to fall asleep after Paul beat her were not once she liked to remember, but as a result, Jo often ignored her pain out of habit.

“Well, where's Alex? He should have been keeping an eye on you.”

“Alex he's …” Jo shook her head, and trailed off as she had another contraction.

“Do you need me to get Alex?”

Jo nodded, the contraction had passed but she was so exhausted and let Meredith help her.

“Okay, hang on Jo I'm going to call him from a second phone,” Meredith reassured her as Jo heard her stuff laying around on the other end of the phone. “Amelia gimme your phone Jo’s in labor.”

Jo chuckled as Meredith continued to harass Amelia for her phone. Ever since Meredith had recovered from COVID she had been working from home and harassing them all via phone call. Especially her as Jo continue their work on the mini-livers from their lab at the hospital.

“Okay, I'm calling him now.”

Jo looked back at Alex who was still sleeping peacefully in their bed. The blanket was pulled back on her side and his arm was laying over her pillow leaving the impression of an empty space where she had been. Alex had that evening morning scruff that she loved and his lips were parted as he snored. He was completely oblivious to how his world was going to change in a few hours.

Alex’s phone rang, the sound bouncing around the apartment. He rolled over and reached for his nightstand, cursing as he looked for his phone. Another contraction distracted her from calling out to him, but she heard him silence his phone and roll over again.

“Jo, Meredith is calling you.”

“No, I'm calling you,” Meredith yelled at him through Jo's phone. “Your wife is in labor Karev, get the hell up.”

Jo looked over to see Alex sit up and stared at her. He blinked once and then twice before he scrambled to get up, getting tangled in the blankets and tripping several times before he made it over to her.

“You're in labor?”

“Yes,” Jo and Meredith yelled at the same time.

“We’re having a baby!”

“Yes, we're having a baby!”

“Okay well let’s go,” Alex said and Jo could see it on his face as he went from paranoid dad to helpful husband. “Let’s have a baby.”

“Let’s have a baby.” Jo smiled as Alex kissed her before another contraction hit and she closed her eyes in pain. They were for sure having a baby today. Happy Thanksgiving to her.

“How far apart are the contractions?”

“Every four minutes,” Meredith answered for her.

“Has your water broken?”

“Not that I can tell.”

“Jo?” Alex asked looked down to check, but Jo shook her head.

“Okay, let's check how dilated you are, but regardless we're going to head to the hospital. I'll call Carina and tell her to have a room waiting for us.” Alex said as he put his arms around her waist and Jo heavily leaned in on him.

Alex helped her over to the bed and Jo laid down, sinking into the mattress. Another contraction hit and Jo closed her eyes taking a deep breath and slowly letting it out.

“That’s it Jo, deep breaths, you're doing so good,” Alex praised her as he held her hand, and mirrored her breaths.

Jo felt the tears collect in her eyes and Alex spoke, she was so thankful that he was there cheering her on. He had been so supportive through her pregnancy. He braided her hair and rubbed her back when she puked. He tied her shoes and helped her reach for things. He rubbed her back and her feet when they ached, and he talked to their baby when they kicked her ribs. When the contraction passed and Jo opened her eyes to see Alex smiling down at her. She sighed and relaxed as he leaned forward and kissed her.

“He is right, you're doing everything like you're supposed to, you're doing great Jo,” Meredith said, from where Jo had left her phone propped up on the table.

Jo returned their smiles and squeezed Alex’s hand. “I’m having a baby.”

“You are, and you're handling it like a champ,” Alex said, moving back and putting a hand on her knees, Jo saw his face shift from proud and supportive husband to concerned doctor. “Your contractions are pretty close together. Can I check and see how dilated you are now.”

Jo nodded and lifted up her hips as he pulled off her pajama pants. Jo put her feet up by her hips and let her knees fall apart. Alex waited for her to nod before he checked her cervix, despite how many times they had sex, he always waited for her consent. Alex quickly checked her and then smiled looking down at her.

“Jo, have you felt the need to push?”

“No, why?” she asked, confused as she pushed herself up on her elbows. He had pulled back his hand, but didn't give her back her pants.

“You’re about 9 cm dilated, but we should get to the hospital before you have this baby in the car,” Alex said as he patted her knee and got up. “I’m gonna grab your bag and stuff and put it in the car then come back for you.”

“Oh my god!” Jo shouted as she sat up and watched Alex run around their apartment.

“Hey it’s okay Jo, just take a deep breath,” Meredith said, Leaning into the phone so Jo could see her whole face.

Jo nodded and took a deep breath, knowing that panicking wouldn't get her anywhere, and put a hand on her belly. She couldn't feel her baby kick, only the contractions that seemed endlessly painful. After a few deep breaths, she held herself calm back down and had to open her eyes and look back at Meredith who greeted her with a nod.

“Wait Alex, give me Meredith,” Jo shouted as she heard him open the door.

Alex stopped everything and grabbed the phone before handing it to her and running off again. Jo just smiled as she watched him go, running around like a mad dad, panicked as she labor. After everything they had been through, he was still so excited and nervous for their baby.

Another contraction hit and Jo closed her eyes, tuning out everything as Meredith talked her through it and Alex ran around with the bags. Finally, he came back and helped her down the stairs, and into the car.

Jo barely remembered the car ride to the hospital. In between her contraction, Meredith and Alex talked to her and tried to distract her. She was so exhausted and could barely think as Alex and Meredith prompted her to move and breathe when they got to the hospital. It sort of worked, but it was all just a blur as they got her up to a room.

“Hello Jo,” Carina said that she came into the room rubbing fresh hand sanitizer over her hands before she reached for a pair of gloves. “I wasn't expecting to see you so soon.”

“I need to push,” Jo shouted, already bearing down, this baby was coming now, regardless of whether anyone was ready for them or not.

“Now!” Alex shouted in disbelief. “Shit we should have been here hours ago.”

“She said now!” Meredith insisted, yelling through the phone.

“You don’t have to do that you know,” Alex said, as he crawled in behind her, rather than push on her back they had her upright and Jo sat on the end of the bed while Alex held her up and squeezed both of her hands.

“Jo wants me to advocate for her, this is me advocating.”

“Okay Jo push on the next contraction,” Carina said, shutting them both up as she got ready to catch the baby in between Jo’s legs.

Jo closed her eyes and tried to breathe as another contraction hit and she pushed with every bit of energy she had left. It felt like an endless circle of pain and pushing, then a break, and then more pain and pushing. She was so exhausted and she couldn't imagine doing this for an endless amount of hours.

“You're doing great Jo, just a little bit longer and they're gonna be here,” Alex whispered in her ear.

“He’s right Jo. Everything is perfect and your little bambino is going to be here very soon,” Carina said giving her a short nod.

Jo pushed for what seemed like hours and then Carina was announcing she could see the head. Jo knew that she had to keep going and pushed again and suddenly her baby was out and Carina held them up for them to see.

The second their baby cried, Jo's heart stopped as Carina held up this tiny little red baby screened in their ears. Jo pulled down her gown so they could do some skin to skin and Carina quickly placed them on Jo’s chest. Jo's arm instantly moved to cradle them and she leaned back against Alex as the tears filled her eyes. She and her baby's cries filled the room.

“She's so beautiful,” Alex sobbed on her shoulder as he wrapped his arms around them both.

“It's a girl,” Jo said in astonishment, she looked down to where the baby laid in her arms and their daughter looked up at them with big eyes as her cries quieted.

“Alex do you want to cut the cord?”

Alex nodded and moved to cut the cord, taking the surgical scissors from the nurse. Meredith took a few pictures and Jo was glad she had asked her to beforehand because all she could focus on was the beautiful little girl in her arms.

Jo looked down at her beautiful, perfect daughter and moved to stroke her cheek. She hardly noticed the nurses cleaning her and taking their daughter’s Apgar scores. All she could think about was a perfect little baby in her arms. For her, falling in love was a gradual process, but Jo loved their baby from the moment she found out she was pregnant and she was so overwhelmed with love for her baby as she stared down at them.

Jo looked over at Alex as he moved out from behind her to stand next to her. As all the nurses attended to her and the baby. He looked so nervous as he stared down at her shifting his weight on his feet and stuffing his hands into his pockets. It was so unusual to see him so concerned and nervous.

Jo looked down at their daughter, she’d had her for nine months and although it felt like she had only been holding her for a few minutes, Jo was sure that she was ready to watch Alex hold their baby for the first time.

“Do you want to hold her?” Jo whispered, already moving the blanket that had been placed over both of them to loosely swaddle her and transferred their daughter into her chest.

Alex just nodded and took off his shirt so they could do skin to skin, then held out his arms for their daughter. Once she placed her in his arms, Alex slowly sank down in the chair next to her bed. He held her close to his chest before he seemed to remember how to hold a baby and cradled her in his arms as he relaxed back into the chair. She watched as Alex just gazed down at her with an expression of pure love.

Jo could tell by the way that his eyes sparkled that he was smiling down at their daughter under his mask. Tears collected his eyes and a few escaped the corner of his eyes as he whispered to her. The baby opened her eyes and squirmed, crying out for a moment before Alex soothes her as he began to rock in the chair. The baby flailed her arms out and Alex reached out to hold one of her hands as her tiny hand wrapped around his big finger.

Jo finished pushing out the placenta and laid back onto the bed before Alex put their daughter back on her chest and put the blanket over both of them. Jo just stared down at her in amazement. She was so perfect, from her tiny little forehead to the thick tufts of dark hair. She stretched out her legs, kicking Jo before she curled back up into a tiny little ball and closed her eyes.

“She’s perfect,” Jo said to Alex, not taking her eyes off her daughter. “Even if her big head caused me a second degree tear.”

“Sorry about,” Alex said, sliding in to sit next to her.

“Well you and her big Karev heads are perfect and I can’t feel anything down there anyway,” Jo’s legs felt like mush and she couldn't tell how many stitches Carina was doing.

Alex wrapped an arm around her shoulders leaning in to kiss her cheek. Jo turned and tilted her head to give him a proper kiss.

“You did so good Jo, I'm so proud of you and she is absolutely beautiful,” Meredith said with a smile as they all look down at the baby. “I’m gonna let you two enjoy your baby and I’ll send you the pictures I took in a few minutes.”

“Thank you,” Jo said as she looked over at Meredith who smiled.

“It was my pleasure,” Meredith said, tilting her head as she looked down at the baby. “Besides if it wasn’t for me you would still be laboring in the loft and Alex would be fast asleep.”

“Har har,” Alex said as Jo laughed.

“But you Jo Karev,” Meredith said turning a pointed finger at her. “You have to keep remembering to watch your braxton hicks and not sleep through your labor until your nine centimeters dilated!”

“Meredith is right Jo, your labor progressed very quickly without you realizing it,” Carina said, as she set Jo with a look. “Next time, I want to see you in here as soon as your braxton hicks are consistent for more than an hour. I'd rather send you away with false labor then put you or your baby at risk.

“Yeah, we can’t have the next one on the couch in our living room,” Alex added, kissing her forehead.

“I know I said I wanted two kids, but let's not talk about a second one until my vagina starts hurting from having the first one,” Jo said as she glared at him as Alex turned to look down at their baby girl.

“She needs a name,” Alex said, changing the subject as he trailed a finger across her little hand as she wiggled her fingers.

“Meredith does make a really good name,” Meredith sang, raising her eyebrows and giving them a look.

“We'll take it into consideration,” Jo said looking back at Alex. They had a list of names they were still arguing over, some of the names were new, but others were after friends and family.

Meredith ended the call and most of the nurses left, it was just them and Carina, who was finishing the last of Jo’s stitches. The baby fussed, turning her head and opening her mouth, signaling that she was hungry. Jo moved her down and Carina helped her and the baby get a good latch on her breast. Soon their baby was making happy little eating noises as her parents smiled down at her.

“She does need a name,” Alex whispered to her, setting his head on her shoulder and he looked down at their daughter as she nursed.

“You know which one I like.”

“I know,” Alex sighed, looking away from her.

“You should call her,” Jo said, turning to look at him as he gazed off into space. “Call her and then decide, and if you still don't want the name. we can choose a different one.”

“Okay.” Alex nodded and kissed her shoulder as they turned their attention back to their baby girl.

After their daughter finished eating and Carina finished her stitches, Alex ran to grab her some food from the cafeteria. Jo chatted with Meredith again for a few minutes about the pictures before Alex came back and they ate. He put on a movie some kind of Christmas movie that Jo wasn't really interested in so she closed her eyes. She must have fallen asleep and slept for a few hours only to be woken up by Carina and the nurses checking on her.

It’s still later in the early afternoon but the closed blinds and curtains made it seem like night and it was easy for her to close her eyes. She stared at the baby in Alex's arms before she fell asleep again and when Jo woke up and the baby was in the bassinet next to her bed. She reached out an arm to lay a hand on her chest feeling the baby breathing under her hand and fell back asleep.

When Jo woke up again she heard Alex talking faintly on the phone again. The baby was not under her hand and for a moment Jo panicked, she looked around the room and she saw Alex holding the baby in a football hold, as he rocked back and forth with his back to her. Jo relaxed and closed her eyes as she listened to the baby gurgle and coo as Alex talked on the phone.

“Yeah, thanks Mom, we can’t wait for you to see her,” Alex said as he walked back over and sat down next to her. Jo blinked and caught his eyes and he smiled at her. “Hang on Jo’s awake, let me give her the baby.”

Alex set the phone down and unswaddle the baby before setting her on Jo’s chest. The baby settled on Jo as she put a hand on her back tracing her spine and noting her clean skin. While she was asleep, Alex and the nurses must have bathed her and they put her in a plain hospital hat and onesie and Jo safely tucked those away for safekeeping. Jo reached over to the bag on the chair next to her and pulled out the little turkey onesie along with a dark orange hat to match.

Jo sat the bed up and put the baby on her lap as she changed her clothes, the baby slept through the whole thing and Jo pulled her close to whisper to her daughter. She tried out the names they had on their list, including Meredith, and just as she expected, the name Jo wanted for her fit.

Jo looked up at Alex as he finished the call with his mom and smiled at him as he put down his phone and came to sit down next to her. “She needs a name. We can't just call her baby forever.”

“I know,” Alex said, looking down at the baby as Jo shook her head.

“Let's try them all out and see which one fits,” Jo said, she knew that Alex was still hesitant, but that he would know that the moment he heard it and connected the name to the sight of their daughter.

“Okay, hello Stephanie,” Alex said looking down at their daughter before he shook his head. Jo chuckled, she knew Stephanie would be disappointed, like Meredith they had considered the name as they wanted her to be named after someone they loved, but it just didn't fit. “Okay, you do the next one.”

“Alright, hello Meredith or Edith for short,” Jo said to her, it was the name Alex wanted and Jo liked it too. Meredith meant so much to them and they had agreed to have it as her middle name regardless, but it wasn’t her first name.

“You're right, it doesn't fit,” Alex said as he sighed and leaned back into the chair.

“No,” Jo said looking down at the baby in her arms. She took Alex's hand and pulled it over to hold their daughter's hands that had wiggled out from the swaddle. “Her name is Helena, after your mom and Mrs. Schmidt.”

Alex smiled as he looked down at their daughter and rubbed the back of her hand. “Yeah, she's Helena.”

“Helena,” Jo said as their daughters fluttered open and she stared up at them.

Alex's phone lit up with a video call from Meredith. He looked over at Jo, they had agreed to the video call beforehand, and although Jo hadn't had any time to shower or even wash her face she knew none of them would care and nodded as he answered the call. They were greeted with the sight of their family. Meredith, Amelia, Lincoln, Maggie, Winston, Jackson, April, Ben, Bailey, Richard, all the kids, and even Levi and Helm joined the call. Everybody cooed and gushed over the baby and the kids talked about how excited they were.

“Have you two decided on a name yet?” Meredith asked as everybody went silent waiting for them to respond.

“Guys say hello to Helena Meredith Karev.”

#alex karev #meredith grey #jolex #grey's anatomy #otp: home and heart #grey's anatomy fanfic #My Fanfiction #My Writing #My Work #jo wilson

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skylarmoon71 · 4 years ago

Text

Earth 2 Harrison Wells x Reader (Extra)

“Yes, just keep track of his heart rate, we don’t need another spike.” The nurse on your side took notes. You checked your patient’s pulse again before pinching his cheeks. He giggled, cuddling the teddy bear in his hand. “How are you feeling John.” he grinned.

“I’m better Ms.(L/N)!” The peppy tone of his voice made you happy. “Well that’s good, I’ll be here tomorrow. “ He bobbed his head excitedly and you gave one last smile before exiting the room. You made your way over to your office. When you were safely inside, you closed the door, pressing a hand to your forehead.

For the last couple of days you didn’t feel like yourself. You weren’t sick per say. Because you went through every possible test, checking to see if you contracted something. Everything seemed normal yet, you could tell something was different. The dizzy spells, unusual heart beats. There was no explanation. Frustrated with the lack of answers you decided maybe Caitlin could help. It couldn’t hurt to try. She was a fellow doctor, maybe she would spot something that you missed.

At the end of your shift you made your way to S.T.A.R Labs. You had a paper bag with a big belly burger, for Harry of course. You smiled, not quite sure why he was so obsessed with the food. You stepped into the lab, going straight to Harry’s room. He was mostly likely sitting at his desk messing with some tech.

Turning the corner you moved to his door. You knocked, entering. Just as you thought. He was at the desk, doing something to Cisco’s glasses. You closed the door and he looked up, just noticing you. “(Y/N).” you smiled, raising your hand. Harry dropped the tool in his hand instantly. He twisted his chair, reaching out for the burger. You moved it out of his reach.

“Wow, I’m starting to think you like this burger more than me.” He gave you that Harry stare but you didn’t relent. He knew his piercing looks didn’t work on you. At least not the ones he used to scare Cisco with. “You know that doesn’t work. “ you snickered. He stood, pushing his chair back and you gulped at the new look in his eyes.

“Then what does work on you (Y/N)..” his voice dropped a few octaves. He backed you into the wall and the burger fell out of your hands. You looked down. “S-Shit sorry I-I” when you turned back his hands were resting on your shoulder. He didn’t seem to care, the food already long forgotten.

His head tilted and he pushed the lab coat off your shoulders. Your skin tingled when you felt him brush the back of his palm down your arm. The intensity of his stare left you partially breathless. “Harry..” you couldn't stand his teasing. He was just stroking his fingers up and down your arms. It was driving you mad.

You could see the smile tugging on his lips. “Yes Dr. (L/N).” you groaned, his lips were now hovering over your neck. The warmth of his breath was doing sinful things to your body. He didn’t lean in though, he was enjoying watching you squirm.

All at once his lips were on yours in a heated fury. You responded with just as much need. The both of you were leaning and tugging at each other. Kissing as if it were the last time you would get to do so. Your hands reached around his torso, pulling at the black shirt that covered his chest. He got the message, pulling away to pull it over his head.

He discarded it quickly, flinging it behind him. You made quick work at the buttons of your blouse, dying to feel his skin against yours. When all the buttons were loose, you shoved it off, latching back unto Harry as you continued your desperate make out session. He hiked up your skirt, raising one of your legs to brace around his waist as he pressed into you. You moaned at the feeling. You went to reach for his belt buckle to relieve him of his pants. You stopped when you felt a strumming in your chest. You pushed Harry away lightly, gasping.

Harry was baffled at your sudden stop, but his eyes turned worried when he saw you fighting for a breath. When your eyes connected that’s when he saw it, the sparks in your eyes. One second you were right in front of him the next you were gone in a burst of wind. Harry turned on his heel, running out the door. When he passed the cortex he skated to a stop. Cisco and Caitlin were in there, watching the speeding light run around the lab, up the walls, on the ceiling, across the floor. You were just going.

Cisco was spinning around trying to keep track. “What the hell is wrong with Barry!” he exclaimed. Harry's eyes watched in amazement. “That’s not Barry.”

Cisco’s perplexed gaze moved in Caitlin’s direction. She shook her head, clearly just as confused at the situation. Barry walked in, equally as stunned at the speedster racing around the room. He rushed, grabbing the person to try and stop them. When he got a hold of your wrist you stopped. Both speedsters stumbled, stopping right at the entrance. Your eyes were still darting around the room. When you noticed you were no longer running you looked up.

“(Y/N)!” Barry’s shout of surprise caught everyone’s attention. Cisco and Caitlin were just as taken by the sight.

“B-Barry! W-What the hell was that, h-how am I a speedster!!” you demanded. You were losing your mind. He was about to try and figure that out, but then his eyes moved to your chest. Red covered his cheeks and you stood there waiting for him to say something. He just started mumbling incoherently, letting go on your hand.

“The better question is why are you shirtless?” Cisco quipped. You completely forgot. Your hands moved to your chest instantly, covering your bra that unfortunately the majority of Team Flash already saw. His eyes moved over to Harry, just realizing the dark haired male was also without a top. He looked between the two of you for a few seconds before smirking. Harry directed a glare at Cisco.

“Can it Ramon.” he walked over grabbing a coat that was hanging on the chair. He came back to your side covering you. You accepted it gratefully. Pulling the material over your chest.

Barry cleared his throat. “Uh...so how did this all happen?”

“I have no idea.” you answered.

Caitlin dropped the sample of your blood into the machine, analyzing it.

“I tested your blood and I’m comparing it to Barry’s, maybe this way we can get some answers. “ You could hear the machine in the background, you were still trying to wrap your mind around what happened. “Maybe we can retrace your steps. When did this start happening?”

“W-When Barry caught me in the cortex, it came out of nowhere I just started running.” you said in disbelief. Barry nodded. “What were you doing before, were you maybe exposed to something with dark matter that you didn’t realize.”

“Before..” when you recalled what you’d been doing before it happened you flushed. Your eyes immediately found Harry’s. “N-Nothing! I wasn’t doing anything!” you denied. Harry held back a chuckle at your embarrassment.

They’d already caught the both of you so your denial just made Cisco raise a brow. “Hah! It was when you and Harry were about to do the dirty!” he pointed out. Caitlin smacked his arm and he grumbled. “It’s the truth.” he muttered. You just looked down. “A-Anyway I can’t see how that would have anything to do with me suddenly getting these powers. Wait a second..” your mind moved through the last couple of days.

“For the past week I’ve been sort of sick but not really. I’m not sure how to explain it. I was coming here to ask for Caitlin’s help. I didn’t think about this before but it started shortly after I healed Barry. “

“That’s it.” Harry said. He got up, moving to one of the boards. He uncapped a marker, writing equations on the board. Whatever he was jotting was lost to you. “Your abilities deal with the removal of pain from your charges. You did the same for Barry, but until now you’ve never healed a meta am I correct?”

“Umm I suppose so. I've mainly been helping sick kids and a couple others at my hospital. “He continued scribbling. Cisco stood, from the look on his face he apparently was getting where Harry was going with all of this.

“No way!” Cisco's enthusiastic response made you stand. “W-What is it!”

“You can draw and transfer energy into your body!!”he blurted.

Just as you were about to inquire, the machine beeped. Caitlin took out the samples,clicking on the computer. She opened her mouth in surprise.

“He’s right..” you basically ran over to the desktop, reading her results.

“T-That’s..”

“Impossible.” Harry finished. You weren't sure what to say. “I-I’m not sure what to do. I can deal with healing powers but speed too. Barry I’m not like you I can’t face danger everyday. B-But if I have these abilities and don’t use them then what good am I as a person..” your world felt like it was spinning. Harry was by your side in seconds. He held your shoulders, calming you down.

“Don’t freak out, breathe (Y/N).” he instructed. You did as he said, leaning into him, steadying your breathing and your thoughts. “S-Sorry. “

Barry gave a small smile. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Listen, you have nothing to worry about, from what I gathered they should wear off in a few days. “ Caitlin said. You looked at her hopeful. “R-Really!!” She nodded.

“You can only concentrate for a short while. In a lot of ways it works the same way you heal. The damage to your body is never permanent. So this should react the same according to my calculations.”

“That’s a relief.” you exhaled with a grin. It was cool being a speedster but no way did you want to be a superhero. Caitlin squinted at the computer. She turned back staring at Harry.

“Harry are you feeling okay?” He gave her a look. “Yes, is there something wrong?”

She was unsure of what to say. “It’s just...I think I should test you too. (Y/N)’s abilities now have transferring properties. Since you're the last one to have contact with her it’s possible she may have passed some energy unto you.”

“Do you feel any different?” you quizzed.

Harry just shook his head. “I feel fine.”

“I’d still like to run some tests, just to be sure.” He followed as Caitlin guided him over to the med bay. When they were gone you looked at Barry.

“So...Wanna race?” He grinned so wide. “First one to CCPD.” he challenged. “You’re on!” you didn’t wait for him to give the okay, you just took off.

“Cheater!!” he laughed dashing behind you.

~~~~

You and Barry came bursting through the cortex with joyous laughs. You’d run practically everywhere around Central City. You were starting to understand why Barry loved it so much. The rush was amazing. When your feet grounded to a stop you caught the sight of the flame on your jacket. “Crap!!” you shrugged off the garment in a hurry stamping on it to put the fire out.

“Hey that happened to me once.” he cheered. You just giggled.

“I see the both of you were having fun. I don’t appreciate you trying to catch my girlfriend on fire Allen.” Harry’s tone made Barry stiffened. You brushed it off. “Quit being a worry wart, I heal quickly too remember. “ Harry’s gaze landed on you.

All you saw was the white light that trailed from his body. One minute you were next to Barry, the other you were pinned against the wall of the cortex. You let out an unsteady breath. “H-Harry you-”

“He’s a speedster too!!” Cisco cried pulling a rope from his body. “Dick move tying me up Harry!!” you looked back at your boyfriend. He just grinned.

“Just a little payback Ramon. “ he snarked.

“Wow..” you mumbled. “His powers should wear off the same time as yours (Y/N).” Caitlin informed. “Yeah..” you answer distractedly. You could see the light shining behind his eyes. It was an unbelievably sexy sight.

He scooped you into his arms. “Now that this is all sorted out, we’ll be taking our leave.” Harry didn’t even wait for a response. He ran off, nothing but the backlash of wind left on exit. Cisco huffed at the paper that landed on his face.

“That’s really annoying. “

Harry zipped over to your apartment, placing you down when he stood out the door. You steadied yourself, still adjusting to the fact that Harry also obtained speed abilities.

You opened the door, laughing at all that took place that day.

“I have to say, life is never boring with you guys around.” You bent to unbuckle your shoes, then pulled off your coat hanging it at the hook by the door. Harry didn’t say a word since you entered and you turned to see why he was so quiet. He moved in your direction slowly and you had to will your knees not to buckle at his darkened eyes.

“How about we test out these powers in some more beneficial ways. “ you held back a shiver.

“What do you have in mind?”

He smirked. “Oh, a few ideas you may enjoy very much.”

Looks like being a speedster came with a lot more than you expected. You sure weren’t complaining.

#harrison wells #speedsters #healingreader #cuteness #powers #relationship #flash #ciscoramon #CaitlinSnow #barryallen #doctorreader #harrisonxreader #Central City #metahumans #cortex #starlabs #earth2wells

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bolbianddolanhouse · 4 years ago

Text

BNHA self insert AU [Book 4]

Foo... here's book 1, 2 and 3. CATCH UP!

Chapter 2: I Thought You Were Bae!

As summer break approaches, the twins gear up for their respected challenges. But of course, this is the middle school years...there's the added bullying to top of trying to do anything.

"Hey Iida-chan" jested a boy from Hanaka's homeroom "why do you put on makeup, you're still ugly."

"Leave her alone you jerk!" Petti snarled at the bully.

"I'm not talking to you feather brain" the bully pushes Petti aside to corner Hanaka up to a tree "Iida-chan, why even try to look pretty? Your face is all round and darker skinned. And you have fat calves."

"Please leave me alone" Hanaka warned "I wasn't bothering you."

"Your ugly face was bothering me" the bully tried to grab her arm but the surface of Hanaka's skin was scorching to the touch "YEOWCH! With a temper and quirk like that, who could ever love you?! You'd burn anyone that tried to get close to you! I bet your parents never hugged you, thats why you're like that."

That tipped Hanaka over the edge and she combusted into flames. It was too much for her to control, so everything caught fire. On one side, it made summer break come earlier. But on the other, it pushed bunch of things back like the mock trials to middle of summer break. Luckily nobody was hurt, but Hanaka's self esteem went down the drain. Their parent's said it was best if the twins were separated until Hanaka sees a doctor. Tensei was more than willing to be away from home and his cases for a while. The Ashido's housed him for the time being.

"Okay boys I'm going on my work trip" announced Ashido-kun's mom, Mina "I'll be back tomorrow evening, your father is coming in an hour. No funny business! And I want that room spotless Masaru."

"Yes mother" groaned Ashido-kun "We'll behave!"

"I know Tensei will, I was talking to you" His mother said sternly "Okay, I'm off! Bye Bye!"

"Bye Mrs Ashido!" Tensei waved.

Masaru waited until the front door closed "Okay she's gone, what do you want to do?!"

"Want help to clean your room?" Tensei suggested.

"What, no! Something fun!" Masaru paused to think "Wanna....sneak out to Huei-kun's?"

"I don't want to get in trouble with your mom" Tensei scowled in reply "Plus your dad is coming home in an hour! He's gonna know we're gone."

Masaru groaned "Come on Tensei, loosen up a little! It's summer break, extendo version" he scrolls on his phone "I'm gonna shoot a text to the boys and see what kind of adventure we'll get into."

Tensei leaned on the wall he was sitting by "Fine! I'll play along but don't expect much from me."

Masaru's phone chirped "Huei says that he has a cousin that recently opened up a shop nearby and we should go check it out."

"A shop? I guess we could pop in and see" Tensei crawls over to his duffle bag "Let me change my shirt real quick, I don't want to get clowned for wearing a button up and glasses."

"See? You're loosening up!" Masaru encouraged as he stood up "I'll just write a note for my dad and we'll be set!"

The boys met up at the shop after a short walk.

"Wait, this is a tattoo parlor!" Tensei freaked out "You said shop Huei!"

"Yeah, same shit" Huei shrugged as he walked toward the front door "Relax Tensei, my cousin isn't going to do any work on us. He just needs a few bodies to fill the space to attract clients."

Masaru and Tetsu walk in casually while Tensei follows after very stiff. The inside was very 90's style grungy and aesthetically pleasing to the boys.

"Yo! It's my lil cuz Beni!" greeted the shop keeper "Are these your little band members?"

"Hello Maito, yes these are my band members" Huei peered over to the opened boxes behind the glass counters "You're still unpacking things?"

"Nah I just got my order of piercings but it looks like I have to return them" he pointed to one of the boxes "They're fine except I got a bunch of curved ball piercings when I ordered the straight barbells." He sighed "It's gonna suck because half of my services are piercings and I won't have all my materials. But what can I do?"

"May I see the curved ball piercing?" Tensei asked politely.

"Um sure dude” the shop keep handed Tensei the metal piercing.

Tensei looked it over carefully “And may I see what a straight barbell looks like?” The shop keeper gave him the one he had on display “Oh these are the same gauge, it’s an easy fix.”

Tensei used his quirk to straighten out the curved piercing. Leaving the shop keeper speechless and the boys wide eyed.

“Wow! You have metal powers” gasped as the shop keeper picked up the fixed piercing from Tensei’s hand “Absolutely flawless! Can you do that to all these? I promise to make it worth your time.”

“Um sure” Tensei stretched his arms “I have time to kill. I won’t take too long.”

“Yay Tensei to the rescue!” cheered Masaru “Your loosening up bro!”

It literally took Tensei 20 minutes to straighten out the piercings for the shop keep to sanitize before putting them on display. All the while the shop got some traction.

“Thank you so much lil dude” bowed the shop keep “As thanks, how would you like a piercing, on the house.”

“A piercing?” Tensei pondered “Don’t I need parental permission to-”

“Just get the damn piercing you nerd!” Huei huffed “Seriously Tensei, loosen up and do it! When will you ever get the chance to do something like this again?”

“Yeah! Do it Tensei!” egged on Tetsu “I think it’ll look so cool on you.”

Tensei looked at his friends “Oh okay! I’ll get one.”

“Cool, just sit over here and I’ll get my tools” gestured the shop keep as he put on some gloves “So where do you want the piercing? I’d say you have the eyebrows for a super sick eyebrow spike.”

Tensei thought about it for a moment “On the bellybutton, that’s a thing right?”

The boys gasped.

“Why there?” asked Masaru.

“Why not? I figured that if I want to hide it from my parents, I should get it somewhere I could easily do so” Tensei explained as he got prepped for the piercing “Plus I can’t go to my mock trials with a visible piercing, I wanna be professional until the shirt comes off.”

“Excellent choice my dude” said the shop keep as he clamped the area for the needle “I need you to take deep breaths and relax, this might hurt a bit.”

Tensei looked away and did his breaths. But it was over in a matter of seconds and there was his first piercing.

“Oh wow that wasn’t bad at all!” Tensei said getting up to look in the full length mirror “Wow....who am I?”

Tensei was slowly spiraling into a crisis. He didn’t regret the piercing! It just changed his perception of himself. In fact, he feels more himself with this on and it was making him question a lot of things. So when it came time to go home, he sped to tell his twin what he did.

“Rosa! Okay, okay, okay” he said quickly before calming down a little “I did…a thing…wait- Iwa? When did you get home?”

“I got here late morning but whats the haps lil bro?” the older brother asked “You look like you landed in a trash heap.”

“I can neither confirm nor deny that happened” he said closing the door behind him and locking it “But back to the thing I did. PLEASE don’t tell mom and dad! Because I’m still very fresh from the thing I did and I’m still processing it.”

“Okay just spill it” Hanaka was getting annoyed “You keep saying thing like you don’t know other words! What thing did you do on your sleep over with the boys?”

“This” he lifted his shirt up to his chest, revealing a belly button piercing.

Tensei watched as his brother and twin’s eyes bulge out in shock. They never expected goody goody Tensei to do something like this.

“What the- where in Japan did you go to get pierced?” Hanaka asked genuinely “Those jewelry places don’t let you get one without adult permission if you’re under 16.”

“Don’t get mad, but one of my band members has a cousin that’s a tattoo artist and does piercings at the place they work at” Tensei started to get red faced “Sooo I showed him that I could fix his little barbel piercings for free when the boys and I walked into his shop for fun… And he gave me this as payment.”

“Tensei! You got this i l l e g a l l y?!” Iwata harshly whispered “Why did you agree to it?”

“Yeah! It’s not like you to do those things” Hanaka scowled in concern “What’s gotten into you lately? Ever since you came back from Nationals, you’ve been acting different.”

Tensei pulled down his shirt and sighed “I’m sick of being praised of being as good and law abiding like dad. I’m nothing like him inside! I’m not some capri-wearing rectangle!” he huffed “I’m way cooler, smarter and talented then people give me credit for. I don’t need the signature quirk to make my way in this world! And I wanna change my image so people take me seriously…no more orderly Tensei, I wanna be anarchist Oro!”

Hanaka narrowed her eyes, like she was shooting needles into her twin’s soul “Is this because you lost and can’t accept the L?”

Tensei turned red and scrunched his nose “No! I’ve already grieved over that and took and L” he crossed his arms “Nationals was just a tiny part of the whole reason.”

“What?” Iwa was lost in this timeline of events.

Hanaka leaned over to Iwa and whispered “Tensei cost his team majorly on all his debates. So bad that the team barred him from going to more debates this season and has to prove himself all over again to get back in the top 3 teams at school.”

“Oof that’s some sad boi shit” Iwata winced at the recap “It’s okay to still not be over that L, you don’t have to spiral like this.”

“Well it’s too late, I got the damn piercing already and planned the next one” Tensei took a deep breath “I’ve been wanting this for a while, to just rebrand and have respect as my own identity. Not some clone of my father or just be the ‘other’ Iida twin. But until I take the next few steps, please don’t tell our parents about this. I want to tell them myself when the time comes.”

“Okay sure” his twin and older brother agreed.

Tensei turned to open the door “Thanks guys, it means a lot to me that you support me.”

Crisis averted...for now.

-Mock trial day-

Tensei took time to get dressed up in his nice suit and fixed his hair. But he couldn’t help but to look at himself in the mirror and not like what he saw. All he saw was a spitting image of his father and every male in that side of the family that had a portrait in the lineage hall. Same eyebrows, eyes, hair type and jawline...only difference was that belly piercing. As he put on his glasses and let out a sigh, Hanaka was having her little tantrum downstairs. That was his cue to head out. His twin was upset that she had to go with him to his mock trials, only because she’d be home alone otherwise.

Halfway through the trials, Hanaka tugged on Tensei’s sleeve.

“I’m bored! I’m going to walk outside” huffed Hanaka “That’s how bored I am!”

“Fine, this next one is my last trial” Tensei glanced at his watch “Don’t wander off! Mom is going to pick us up at exactly 4 and she expects us to be together.”

“Okay DAD!” spat his twin as she turned to leave the multi-purpose room.

Tensei groaned and turned to his debate partner “I envy you so much Tanaka-kun. You don’t have siblings to deal with.”

“I don’t know Iida-kun, I wish I had a twin” Tanaka smiled “It’s like having a built in friend. Hanaka-chan and you must of gotten along at some point.”

“Not since we were babies” Tensei recalled.

While the next trial was going on in the building, Hanaka was biding the time by finding white clovers in the grass area.

“Is that you Hanaka-chan?”

Hanaka looked around to find the voice that called out to her “Oh, Huei-kun! What are you doing here?”

“I was inside doing volunteer work for the trials” he responded “I’m done now and I was going to head home but it looks like you might want some company.”

“Ummm sure, I was pretty bored in there” Hanaka sat under a tree and held out her harvest of white clovers “Help me make a flower chain!”

Tensei had full view of the two from his spot of the trials. Keeping a watchful eye when he wasn’t speaking or doing cross-examinations. Hanaka was having seemingly normal conversation with her twin’s friend. Both of them have known Huei since elementary school, so he’s to be trusted.

“Hanaka-chan I think that bully was wrong” said Huei “I don’t think you’re ugly or unloveable.”

“My older brother gave me a whole pep talk about it” Hanaka sneered as she did the last knot on the flower chain “I don’t care what that bully has to say anymore.”

“No like, I think you’re pretty”

Hanaka stopped what she was doing. Something about the way Huei said that didn’t settle well in her.

“Huh? What are you saying?” she looked up at his face, showing her discomfort.

“Aw don’t hurt my feelings like that Hanaka-chan” Huei responded in a flirty but creepy way “I’ve always liked you.”

Hanaka stood up quickly “Stop, you’re being creepy.”

The boy loomed over Hanaka “But I love you Hanaka-chan.” He grabbed her by the arm “I know you want to fall in love with me too.”

“No I don’t! I don’t like anybody” Hanaka tried to loosen his grip “Let go of me you weirdo!”

Tensei caught the moment Huei grabbed Hanaka. Knowing his twin’s faces, he could tell Hanaka was in trouble and wanted out. Hanaka was in her own dilemma, she doesn’t want to use her fire and cause another accident. Nor hit her twin’s friend knowing that Tensei will get mad at her for doing so. Tensei stands up to make a run for the side door to save his sister.

“Iida sit back down, we’re in a middle of a closing statement.”

Tensei tried to explain “But coach, theres-”

“Sit back down or you’re out of the team” the coach threatened “I don’t care if your sister caused another fire, that’s her problem.”

Appalled but collected, Tensei sits down calmly to give his closing statement.

“Here’s my closing statement” Tensei clears his throat, then does an arm chop “My opponent is using their phone to look up additional sources under the table. This judge is clearly biased and only chooses the affirmative side in every case” He points to his coach “And you coach, I know you’re cheating on your wife with the school nurse!”

The audience gasped at Tensei’s outburst. No more Mr nice Tensei, Anarchist Oro is here to make his debut. As he got up to leave he turned around one last time.

“Oh and one more thing” Tensei flashes both of his middle fingers to everyone in the room “This school administration is garbage and can suck my ASS!” He gave a forehead salute “Tensei OUT!” and teleported outside.

Hanaka was basically pinned to the tree at this point.

“I said knock it off!” struggled Hanaka.

Huei grabs her chin “Come on don’t be a tease!” he growled “Give me a kiss Hanaka-chan.”

Tensei ran at full speed and tackled Huei off his twin.

“Tensei!?” Hanaka gasped at his display of heroism.

“What the hell man?!” Huei yelled as he picked himself off the ground “Can’t you see I was having a moment?!”

Tensei wasn’t holding back “I trusted you Beni-kun! After all these years of friendship, starting a band together and letting you in our home. This is how you repay us?!” he stood between his twin and Huei “You dare to take advantage of my sister? My twin at that!”

“It’s not like you were going to do anything about it! She didn’t even try to push me off” Huei tried to get closer but Tensei didn’t let him “Oh you’re a tough guy now that you have your little piercing huh? Come on then, hit me!”

Tensei gritted his teeth “You’re out of the band! And I never want to see you near my sister or any of her friends ever again.”

And before Huei had the chance to speak, Tensei sucker punched him so hard that Huei was knocked out cold. The side door slammed open and the sound of his coach yelling for him to get back inside. Instead of obeying, Tensei grabbed his twin by the hand and started running toward the front gates.

“What are you doing?!” Hanaka asked as she was being dragged along, confused by her twin’s actions.

“What does it look like?” Tensei responded, picking up more speed “We’re getting outta here!”

Hanaka looked back and saw the school administrators were catching up quick. She activated her engines and took the lead, dragging Tensei along. She ran for what seemed just minutes and collapsed in a patch of grass.

“Where are we?” Tensei asked, rubbing his eyes.

Hanaka said out of breath “We’re...in the...park.”

“The park?!” Tensei looked around “Hanaka, that’s like 5 miles away from the school!”

“So? We were running away” Hanaka turned her head to face Tensei “We were going to get caught if we went your pace. That was the point right? To not get caught?”

“Yes but-” Tensei groaned and threw himself next to her “Man, I don’t know anymore. Who am I anymore? I’m just a huge fuck up now. Not that my silly little problems matter to you Hanaka, you were born perfect.”

“What are you talking about? You’re the one with the talent and intelligence” Hanaka responded “I’m the huge fuck up, look at the mess I started this time. And you swooped in to save me, I know I messed up if you’re involved in my mess.”

“Nah I saw that you needed my help and I just acted on my instinct” he sighed “I offended that entire room Hanaka, just to save you. Trust me, it was worth it.”

Hanaka looked up at the clear sky “You gave up your one chance to redeem yourself to save me? But what are you going to do now? Debate was your everything.”

Tensei shrugged “Guess I’ll do music now.” He took off his glasses and held them up to the sky “I’m going to change into my truest myself, someone I can face in the mirror and be content with what I see. Who cares about what anyone else has to say, not like they cared before!”

“I care” Hanaka responded meekly “And I support you on your self image journey.”

“Thanks Hanaka”

“Hey, it’s what twins are for!” giggled Hanaka as she reached out to his hand to squeeze it “We’re supposed to support each other.”

They laid on that patch of grass watching the sky turn into it’s late afternoon phase. Tensei’s phone started beeping.

“Oh crap, mom is probably at the school looking for us!” Tensei sat up quickly looking at his phone. “FUCK! Now what?!”

“Okay, what if you teleport us home before mom leaves” Hanaka suggested, wiggling her eyebrows “She doesn’t have to know what happened at school if she never makes it there.”

Tensei glanced at the time “Fine, we have 2 minutes before mom would have to get in the car to pick us up.” He puts his phone back in his suit and t-poses “Assume the position sis.”

Hanaka hugs him tightly “Ready!”

“1, 2, 3- JUMP!” they chant before teleporting onto their uncle Jin’s front lawn.

“Close enough” Tensei shrugs “You can let go of me Hanaka.”

“But I wanna keep hugging” pouted Hanaka, still clinging on to her twin “We haven’t hugged in so long!”

The twins walked up to the front door of their home, pretending like nothing happened.

“Hi mom” Hanaka announced herself to their mother “We’re home!”

“Oh? I was just about to go pick you two up” Their mother said in a normal tone “But I just got off the phone with the school funny enough! You two wouldn’t be accomplices to a string of school offenses would you?”

The twins started to sweat. They forgot that the school could easily call their parents.

“Noooooo” said the twins innocently.

Their mother gave them the look and they tried to run back outside. But alas, their mother used her telekinesis to grab the twins before they could open the door.

“I can’t believe it! Both of you?!” their mother scolded “It would make sense if it was just Hanaka, but you too Tensei?! Telling off the entire room, shouting profanities AND getting into an altercation?!” She faces the little sister “And you assisting his escape by using your quirk?”

“But mom-”

“HUP! No buts!” their mother shut them up “I want you two to kneel facing the front door, so you can tell your father what you did when he comes home.”

“Yes mother” the twins obeyed and kneeled when they got set down.

Their father came home an hour or so later. Shocked by the scene of the twins kneeling and diverting their gaze, clearly guilty of something.

“Both of you did something?!” their father gasped as he took off his shoes “Explain yourselves!”

The twins took turns telling their sides of the story to their parents.

“...then I teleported us home.” Tensei finished “I know I didn’t have to tell off the entire room but they upset me with that comment about Hanaka. They don’t know what’s going on and what gives them the right to say that the team was my priority?!” he bowed his head “I’ll accept capital punishment, Hanaka didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Well, it’s clear to me that you’re the guilty one” their mother spoke up “But that doesn’t mean you’re going to take all the punishment. Hanaka was an accomplice to your crimes, out in the field we call that the ‘get-a-way driver’ clause. She also gets punishment for helping the criminal.”

“I’m sorry but we don’t have a choice but to administer house arrest” their father nodded to his wife “No travel, no visitors, internet use for homework only and limited phone use. Starting now until the end of summer break.”

The twins didn’t show it but they we fuming internally.

“Yes sir” they uttered and bowed their heads.

After a shower and some screaming into their pillow, Tensei laid in bed face up with his hand out. It was sore from that hard punch that knocked out his ex-friend. He’s never used so much force but this wasn’t adrenaline fueled. It felt like he gathered all the energy from his body to focus on his fist? He couldn’t explain it logically.

“Hey, can I come in?” asked his twin from behind the door.

“Sure.”

Hanaka tip toed in and gently closed the door. She then jumped onto her twin’s bed to hug him.

“I don’t think I thanked you for saving me” she looked up to her twin “Thank you, for caring about me enough. It was pretty heroic of you.”

Tensei chuckled “Heroic? I just did what was right. I’m not a hero.”

“But that’s exactly what heroes do!” Hanaka argued “I didn’t know you had the strength to knock someone out! And for once I felt this admiration for you. Yeah you do good things all the time, but that’s textbook good! What you did was out of pocket, immediate justice!”

“Are you...trying to convince me to become a hero?” Tensei gave her a look “Is my twin, using debate tactics to have me in favor of becoming a hero?!” He was in disbelief “Wow, today isn’t real. It can’t be! I’m going to bed.”

“I’m serious Tensei- DON’T FAKE SLEEP ON ME!” Hanaka started slapping her twin’s chest “Dead ass, you’d be a great one. You know laws and stuff, plus you can control your quirks better than me.”

“Only my metal one” Tensei retorted “I don’t really know how to control my teleportation, you saw when we landed in uncle Jin’s front yard. It’s not exact.”

“But imagine if you could?!” Hanaka wiggled her eyebrows.

Tensei briefly imagined it to amuse his twin “Am I really that much of hero material to you?”

“Yes! Plus the girls and I are going to start training too!” she squealed “We’re going to apply to UA.”

“Hol up twin, you forget that we have our parent’s quirks” Tensei put his finger on her forehead “You’re gonna have to ask dad for quirk training.”

Hanaka deflated of all excitement “Awww wack! No queiro!”

“Pues?”

“FINE! I’m gonna ask dad for help” Hanaka pouted “What are you going to do?”

“Ask mom and Iwa for help. Seems like they had success in quirk training with each other, how bad can it be?”

-The next day-

“Hey mom, what can you teach me about my quirks?” asked Tensei bluntly to his mother, who was trying to relax on the couch.

His mother snapped her eyes wide open and turned her head to face her son “Why?”

Tensei felt like this wasn’t the best way to open up the hero school talk but proceeded anyways.

“Just asking because I was such a late bloomer, ya know” Tensei struggled to keep his composure, afraid of her answer.

His mother sat up “Well you have facet of my quirk and your grandfather’s quirk. Which is rare, considering all the factors.”

“Factors?”

“Yeah, you’re a male telekinesis user with a second quirk AND a twin with supporting quirks.”

Tensei was trying unravel all that “Wait, what do you mean by that second part?”

“Hm? The twin part?” she asked, Tensei nodding his head “As a twin, it’s rare to have both children with quirks, usually one or both are quirkless. I thought you didn’t have a quirk since Hanaka came out breathing fire!” she chuckled at the memory “But I noticed that you had the gold skin tone and knew that you had my father’s quirk. I was so happy that you had it, because it meant I didn’t have to separate you and Hanaka.”

“But what does that mean?!”

“Haven’t you noticed that you don’t get burned by Hanaka’s flames?”

Tensei paused to think “Now that you mentioned it, I don’t!”

His mother smiled “That’s because my father’s quirk has two facets to it, manipulating metal and fire resistance. Most users are born with the gold skin tone, before they show signs of the metal bending part.”

“So I’m immune to my sister’s power?” Tensei looked at his arm “And I wasn’t a late bloomer?”

His mother shook her head “Nope, you were also born with your power. And I feel like it couldn’t be more perfect! But of course, your father gets worried and wanted to separate you two” she sighed “He meant well, but I wanted you two to be in the same crib so you could help your sister control her fire as babies.”

“When what about my other quirk?”

“That was a surprise! I didn’t think you’d get teleportation” she responded truthfully “Thought everyone was going to be a turbo baby. But I was happy that it was teleportation and not my mother’s erasure quirk. We were NOT going to have fun with that in the mix, I’ll tell you that!”

Tensei felt a little more confident in himself “Then, can you train me?”

“What is it this time?” she tiredly sighed “Hero? Agent? Vigilante?”

“Ummmm yes?” Tensei panicked that she picked up on his true agenda.

“Mijo you don’t have to hide or feel ashamed about a change of direction” she floated off the couch “I know you wanted to do Hero Law, but who says you can’t be a hero that does law?”

Tensei’s mind was blown “A hero that DOES law! That’s genius! Yeah! I wanna do that!”

“We’ll do training some other time though” She stretched her arms “When you’re not on house arrest.”

“Right, I forgot” Tensei’s new found excitement was crushed by his current reality.

Meanwhile, his twin was having less of a good time.

“OF COURSE I’LL TRAIN YOU! OH HOW I’VE DREAMT OF THIS DAY!” cried their father, holding Hanaka in a tight embrace.

“You’re...crushing me” gasped Hanaka against his chest.

“Sorry! Sorry, I’m just so excited that you decided to pursue hero work” her father gushed “You kids are so unpredictable, I would’ve never guessed you want to get into hero stuff.”

Hanaka diverted her gaze “I’m not doing it because of our family name! I’m trying to make a name for myself” she crossed her arms “It’s not like I have anything else going for me. With quirks like mine, it would be disrespectful not to!”

“Whichever way you’re going, I can help this time” he beamed proudly “Because this time I’m the expert in the quirk.”

“How do you do it?” asked Hanaka, looking at her own engines “I exhausted myself after a short use when I was running away with Tensei. We ended up a few miles away in like, 2 minutes?”

“And is that your best time so far?”

Hanaka nodded.

“From the bruising on your legs, you’re not strong enough to support the kick the engines give” her father presented his engine “You need solid leg support to start any type of quirk training. I started when I was a child by my father and brother, so we have lots to do before those entrance exams!”

Hanaka started to get whiny “Hmph! Wack! Why so much work?!”

Her father put his hand on her head “Yes it’s hard work, but you should know how hard work pays off! And I want you to have all the skills to get to the top of this male dominated job.”

“I do like feminism” Hanaka contemplated briefly “Okay dad, when do we start?”

“Physical stuff after house arrest” he fixed his glasses “We start the study part now.”

Hanaka didn’t have the right to complain, she literally asked for this. To make matters worse, their father kept every single hero book, notes and study guide that he looked at during his school years. So Hanaka had to go through the whole bookcase full of study material to be up to par to someone studying their whole life to be a hero.

The twins take a deep breath and hunker down on their first step into becoming heroes. Both filled new determination and direction, who knows how far they’ll go?!

-Chapter 2, End-

#bnha #mha #self insert au #book 4 chapter 2 #will update regularly #ask me anything #//Palma-sama Speaks #Here's the part in book 3 where Tensei does many bad things to find his true self sub-plot #Hanaka has newfound respect for her twin and finally embraces her second quirk #Also...a Mina cameo! And name drop for her son/Tensei's friend #Tensei has his turn at couch talk with mom! And of course he finds out some truth but he's not questioning it like Iwa #As you might of guessed...the title is part of a 2 parter on the twin's time in house arrest and how they come out of it #I heard you in my inbox! You like cat-girl bird-girl shiny-girl and fire-girl squad. I do too more than the boy squad.#And yes...Huei is cancelled and won't be making a return to the book. But that doesn't mean there isn't going to be a new member of the band #I'm doing pretty good so far with consistency :3 I've had this chapter queued for awhile...lets see how long it lasts!

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maddie-the-princess · 4 years ago

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If You Love Me, Let Me Go Part 6

Fandom: Sanders Sides

AU: High School

Pairing(s): LAMP

Summary: Virgil and his family are new to the neighborhood. He starts a new school where he learns to love himself, and maybe, love his new friends.

Warnings: Cursing

Thank you to @kuroyurishion for helping me with this chapter. Please enjoy the story.

Chapter Six: Introducing the Gossip Gays

Virgil’s POV

And just like that, I received three new numbers on my phone. That brings the current number of contacts on my phone to five. Sighing to myself, I walked home after school in a comfortable silence. No one was home, as per usual, so I went upstairs to my room and began my homework. Slipping my headphones on, I played a playlist, appropriately named ‘Emo Playlist’ and worked.

Hours later, while I was grumbling over Math homework, the playlist stopped. There was a new text from Remy.

-Group Chat: The Dark Sides-

Mr. Sandman: I’m borreedd

Double Dee: You’re always bored.

Trash Goblin: Put Redbull in your coffee!

I laughed out loud at Remus’ comment. Thinking quickly, I texted a reply.

Me: What’s up Remy?

Mr. Sandman: Babe! So glad you can join us!

Double Dee: Hey there shortstack.

Trash Goblin: Heya shortie!

Mr. Sandman: Remember what I said earlier at lunch? About the new store opening up?

Mr. Sandman: It’s opening on Saturday. We can go then.

Double Dee: Wonderful idea. My parents already said yes.

Trash Goblin: My parents don’t give a shit, but I told them anyway!

Mr. Sandman: Sweet. Hbu babe?

I bit my lip. Would my parents even say yes? I texted back.

Me: Let me ask them.

Mr. Sandman: Let us know babe.

Trash Goblin: Even if they say no, we’ll break you out of your house!

Double Dee: That’s illegal, Re.

Trash Goblin: Boo, you’re no fun.

I smiled at their texts. I felt happier. I’ve never been invited out by anyone before, even if it was just to go to the mall. I placed my phone down and resumed by playlist, looking again at the math worksheet in front of me.

Hours later, I hear the front door opening just as I was finishing up my homework. I peaked out of my room and heard the grumbling of my parents. I go down to greet them.

“Virge, honey? We’re home!” my mom calls out. She smiles at me. My dad follows her, holding a pizza box.

“Hey sport.” he says, placing the pizza box on the table. “Our co-workers treated us to pizza today, so we brought home some for you. Hope you like onions on yours though.”

I didn’t like onions on my pizza, but I nod nonetheless. Taking a deep breath, I decided to ask them. It’s like a bandaid. You just have to rip it off.

“Hey mom, dad?” I asked hesitantly, hoping my voice wouldn't waver. They give me a hum in response. Hurry, before I lose my confidence. “Can I go to the mall with my friends on Saturday?!” I ask quickly. The two of them stopped in their tracks.

“You have friends?!” my mom exclaims. “And they’re inviting you out?” I flinch. I know she didn’t mean for that to sound harsh, but still. Even my dad was giving her a questioning glance.

“What your mother means,” my dad interjects, “is that we’re surprised you’re making friends this quickly. But sure, sport. We have work on Saturday, but it seems ok with us.” He turns around and grabs a slice of pizza from the box and presents it to me. “Now, wanna have a slice?”

After the pizza dinner, I went back upstairs to get ready for bed. I texted my friends before I slept.

Me: Raincheck on breaking me out of my house, Re. They said yes.

Trash Goblin: Aww man! My services are still available to you if you ever need it!

Double Dee: Remus, no.

Trash Goblin: Remus yes!

Mr. Sandman: Enough you two. Thanks for letting us know babe. My dad will pick us all up at about noon, so give me your address.

I sent my address to them.

Mr. Sandman: Thanks babe. See you tomorrow at school!

Double Dee: Good night shortstuff.

Trash Goblin: Do let the bedbugs bite tonight shortie!

Me: Thanks guys. Good night.

With that, I plugged my phone in and got comfortable underneath the comforter. Today was Wednesday, and I found myself waiting excitingly for Saturday to come.

***

The rest of the week went by quickly. I was getting accustomed to class, and to Patton, Logan, and Roman in them. Before I knew it, it was Saturday. I was pacing nervously in the living room. My mom left for work already, but my dad was still getting ready while giving me a talk.

“If you’re ever in trouble, don’t hesitate to call me or your mother. Or find mall security.”

“Ok dad.”

“Don’t wander from the group. Use the buddy system if you have to.”

“Got it dad.”

“I’ll let you borrow my card if you want to buy something.”

“Thanks dad.”

I continued to pace around, looking down at my outfit, making sure it was ok. I wore my signature black ripped jeans and my black Doc Martin boots, with Fall Out Boy T-shirt and a purple flannel wrapped around my waist. I wore my usual black eyeshadow but decided to paint my nails a dark purple this time. My black backpack contained my sketchbook, phone, wallet, and other necessities.

There was a honk outside the house. I raced towards the door, and found a large silver car with Remy in the front seat. The window rolled down, and he smiled cheekily at me. “Hey Mr. Sullivan!” Remy called out as I went towards his car. My dad smiled and waved me a goodbye as he also left the house for work. “I’ll have your son home at a reasonable time!” Remy said as I got into his car. Dee and Remus were already there with Remus sitting by the window. I greeted them happily. I was excited for this little excursion.

“Looking good shortie!” Remus cackled. I sent him a kind hearted glare and Dee sighed in exasperation.

“Let’s get this show on the road babes!” Remy cheered and we drove off. Along the way, Dee pointed out different places around town that we could visit at a later time, like a coffee shop, ice cream parlor, and other restaurants, and some small businesses run by families. Ten minutes later, we arrived at the mall. It was huge, maybe with about 2-3 floors! Remy grinned at my stunned expression. “Haven’t seen a mall this size, huh Vee?” he teased.

We entered, and Remy dragged us to the store that just opened. Turns out it was a piercing store, and there were people already lined up for it. Remy whistled.

“Damn, there’s already a bunch of people here.” he exclaims. A woman holding fliers spotted us and grinned, walking towards us earnestly. She had long neon pink hair and was heavily inked.

“Hey!” she greeted, handing each one of us a flier advertising the new store. “This is Tears for Pierce, a piercing store that also doubles as a tattoo parlor. This flier I gave you tells you guys a bit about what kinds of things we do here.”

I looked over it. There were a lot of selections, including belly button piercings or ear piercings, and some selections for tattoos. The prices are beside the selections. The girl continues, “If you want to have a tattoo or body piercing done, you have to be at least eighteen or older. But that excludes ear piercings.” She points to the top of the flier. “My name is Amelia Stone, and there’s my contact info if you have any further questions.” She walked away to hand out more fliers.

The four of us were in stunned silence. “None of us are eighteen yet.” Dee noted seriously, looking straight at Remus, who was pouting like a child. Remy whistled and pocketed the flier.

“We have a couple more years.” he said, and the four of us went on our merry way. Dee, Remy, and Remus showed me the best places to go and hang, pointing out their favorite stores and restaurants. Remy obviously liked Starbucks, but also liked tea stores. Dee prefered Aeropostale or Hollister. Remus’ favorite store was hands down Spencers. When they asked me, I answered Hot Topic with no hesitation.

“Of course the emo loves Hot Topic.” Remus said fondly. He slung his arm around my neck, draping it over my shoulders. “We’re gonna head over to some shops, but first, let’s have lunch.” And we had lunch at the Food Court, with Remus stealing put fries and having a mini food fight. Then, Remus hauled us over to the various stores scattered throughout the mall.

Around we went, in and out of stores, checking out what they had. Remy went and bought a couple new leather jackets and comfy sweaters, while Dee bought a new pair of pants and a couple new shirts. Remus dragged me to Hot Topic, and the two of us had a fun time picking out different band t-shirts and jewelry. I bought some chokers and more band T-shirts, because you can never have too many band T-shirts. Remus bounded over to Spencers, where we found him in the very back.

We continued like this, trying to find styles that we liked. After hours of walking around, trying to find what I liked, Remy and I walked into a store while Remus and Dee took a small break. Remy hummed as he looked through racks of pants, picking and choosing what looked good for either him or me. I wandered off and looked at flannel shirts.

Then, something caught my eye. It was a gothic black and purple plaid skirt, with black ribbons in the front. I picked it up, and internally cheered when I found out it was my size. I admired it for a bit. It looked pretty, and I really liked how it looked. It kinda… suited me?

“You want it?” I heard a voice ask. I whirled around in surprise. Remy was looking at what I have with an amused smirk. I blushed in embarrassment.

‘Oh god, what if he thinks I’m a freak.’ I thought miserably. And before the second week of school, here I believed a friendship had been ruined, ‘He’s gonna gossip about me to the entire school. He’s gonna bully me and everyone’s gonna think that I’m a weirdo and-’ My thoughts were stopped when I felt Remy gently place his hands on my shoulder.

“Vee,” he said soothingly, “breathe for me. I know what you’re thinking.” He took the skirt from my hands and observed it. “Frankly, I don’t give a shit if you wear a skirt. If you’re comfortable in it, then go on and wear it. But if you want my opinion, I think you’d rock this skirt.” he declared.

I perked up. “Seriously?!” I exclaimed. Remy nodded. I nearly cried happy tears.

“You lack confidence, Vee.” Remy said, turning away with the skirt in hand. I followed after him. “You're shy and anxious. As your friends, Dee, Ree, and I want you to be comfortable with yourself. He went to the counter and paid for it before I could protest. He stuffed the skirt in my bag. “Don’t worry about it babe.” Remy said when I asked why he paid for it. “Think of it as a welcome gift.”

When we walked out of the store, Dee and Remus looked proud.

*** Before we left the mall, we stopped at Starbucks. The barista took one look at Remy and immediately started making a cup of coffee. I looked at him amused. “Kinda famous in this place.” Remy muttered fondly. “What do the rest of you want?”

Minutes later, the four of us were sitting at a high table, chatting idly.

“So shortstuff,” Dee starts off, “I’ve seen you getting a little close to some boys in our class. Care to share with the class what’s been going on there?”

I choked on my drink. “What?” I coughed.

Dee rolls his eyes. “I know a lot of things shortstuff.” he says teasingly. “That day when you had a misunderstanding? I did some observing.”

Remy raised an eyebrow. “Spill the tea, Dee.” he demanded lightly. “Seems I’ve been missing something.”

I signaled for Dee to stop talking with a light glare. He didn’t. “It seems to me that shortstuff over here is pining over three boys.” he drawled. “Patton Hart, Logan Owens, and Roman King.”

Three things happened simultaneously. One, I put my head down and tried to hide from the world. Two, Remy outright laughed at me. Three, Remus actually spat out his drink all over the table. Dee grimaced and went to clean up the mess with Remus’ help.

“Holy shit.” Remus cackled. I shot my head up and glared at him. “I fucking knew it! Roro’s gonna be so jealous. I didn’t even tell him that you were coming with us today!”

I stared at him. “You’re brothers.” I stated, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Remus nodded. “I’m the older twin, by like a minute, and obviously the hotter one.”

“Yeah, sure.” I teased. Remus gasped, offended.

“I totally am!” he declared. “Double Dee, you think I’m the hotter twin right?” Dee didn’t even grace him an answer, so Remus pressed again, leaning against him with a pout on his face. “Double Dee?” he whined. He leaned further into Dee’s space, his face close to Dee’s. Remy and I were looking on with suppressed giggles. Looking closely, you could see a faint blush on Dee’s cheeks.

“Yes, Remus.” Dee answered with a sigh. “You’re the hotter twin.” At this, Remus cheered happily and turned to me with a victorious look on his face. Remy snickered under his breath, and muttered “whipped”. Dee turned to him with a teasing grin.

“And what about you, Remy? Keep in touch with a certain cartoon loving person?

Remy spluttered. Damn, nobody is safe from Dee today. I tilted my head in confusion.

Dee explained. “Remy hung out with an upperclassman last year, and became really close. He’s in his first year of college right now studying to be a therapist.”

I gaped at my friend. “An older guy, huh? In college no less.” I teased. I couldn’t help it. The three of us laughed as Remy groaned into his hands.

“You’re all terrible people. I hate you all.” Remy grumbled. That sent the three of us into another fit of laughter.

Remy’s dad brought me home near 10:00 in the evening. “We’ll see you at school Monday Vee!” Remy called out. “And you better wear some of the new things we got you!” With that, the car drove off after making sure I was safe inside my house.

Putting all of the new clothes away in my dressers, the skirt remained folded and placed gently deep inside my closet, I did my nighttime routine. I lay in bed, thinking about today. I had fun with Dee, Remus, and Remy. They’re really nice, really accepting, and just generally an awesome group of people. I really liked them. Smiling to myself, I turned underneath the covers, glad that I found a group of friends that like me, and I like them in return.

Anyone wanna be in my taglist? Let me know!

Taglist:

@sure-i-exist

@theoretically--speaking

@sups-stuff

#sanders sides #virgil sanders #roman sanders #patton sanders #logan sanders #polysanders #ts lamp

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utterlyhopeful-fics · 5 years ago

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Broken Edges

Get ready for the angst! Part 2 is ready to go because I kinda word vomited and wrote 4k.

Masterlist

Steve Rogers x Reader

Word Count: 1.8k

Warnings: language, angst, cheating

******************************************

The diner was brightly lit aided by the help of signature neon signs and harsh fluorescence. What Y/N loved most was the feeling this hole in the wall provided. Strange security. It took her back to happier times allowing her to disappear into a 1950s daydream, the closest to home she had felt in some time. The tile was chipping, the floral wallpaper showing early signs of decay, but she found peace within its barren walls.

No one knew who she was, just what she ordered, and that was the way she preferred it. Seen but never detected. Noticed but never approached, until he entered the picture. Y/N was pulled from her thoughts when the waitress gently tapped her shoulder shaking her from current desolation.

“What will it be tonight, honey?”

Y/N glanced towards the glittering name tag; Dolores, before meeting her calm gaze. If Y/N were a betting woman she would say Dolores was somewhere in her mid-fifties, slim build of a mother’s body, brown hair diminishing to gray tightly spun into a delicate bun, and lastly, a glazed smile that didn’t quite reach her charcoal eyes. Y/N mused while taking in the haggard woman standing in her glory. Her age lines meant one of two things; the first meaning she had lived a life full of smiles or a harsh reality that had shown its fading delicacy over the years. Y/N went with the latter option.

She was an Avengers for god’s sake and she still couldn’t fathom a rhythm or reason for her importance on this planet nonetheless dear ’o’ Dolores. At least, not anymore. He made her question everything, altered her reality in such a vehement way that she wasn’t sure she wanted to go back to the stranger she formerly was.

Y/N mumbled unsure of herself; “Coffee, black. Please.”

A soft sigh slipped through Dolores’s lips as she moved to tuck her ordering pad into her apron; “You can’t survive off caffeine alone darling. Trust me, I’ve tried.”

“Thanks for the uh advice, but that’ll be it for now. I’m not.. I’m not feeling very hungry at the moment.”

“Well if you change your mind, just holler my way dear.”

Y/N hesitated before simply nodding as she watched the woman wonder behind the kitchen counter, her attention turning elsewhere.

(Earlier that day)

Tonight, was the night. Excitement electrified throughout her as hopefulness grabbed a hold of Y/N. Her damn cheeks hurt from the inevitable smile that she couldn’t seem to wipe away. Tonight, was the night she was going to tell Steve Rogers she was in love with him. A task easier said than done.

For the past two years, they trapped themselves in a revolving game of cat-and-mouse. Steve had made himself approachable, caring, and most importantly, interested in what she had to say. At first their friendship grew as any other; spending countless missions by his side, endless inside jokes during movie nights, pouring her cup of coffee every morning.

It only felt natural when they fell further into each other’s arms. She distinctly also remembered how Steve had lured her into their simple arrangement all while guaranteeing the best of both worlds; friends with benefits. Granted she blindly agreed to be a willing participate if it meant she got to spend those moments with him in hidden whispers and jest. Those times were her absolute favorite, when his Captain America facade faded and he allowed his true colors to blossom. Temporarily suspending his concrete walls and purely living in the moment.

“Jarvis, what’s the time?”

“Good Evening Y/N. The current time in New York is 6:17pm.”

“Can you tell me, when are Steve and Nat estimated back?”

The computer system came alive and replied; “Mr. Stark arranged Mr. Rogers and Ms. Romanoff to arrive promptly at 6:20pm this evening. Is there anything else I can further assist you with?”

“No, that’ll be it. Thanks Jarv.”

“Have a pleasant evening Ms. Y/N.”

Seven days of radio silence. Seven daunting days without so much a simple hello and Y/N was itching to hear his voice unraveling all impure thoughts in the process. She craved his touch, the press of his body against hers, and finally, to tell him exactly what she had been hiding for so long.

Minutes ticked away sluggishly turning into hours with no sign of her solider in sight. Strange, she pondered. Y/N hadn’t been completely updated to the delicate details of the mission, but she knew better that Tony would have told her of any last-minute changes. At least she thought as much.

Y/N launched from her comfy spot in bed and made her way to the door. She didn’t bother locking the door behind her knowing full well she would return shortly. Y/N skipped towards the elevator, the red button coming alive as the elevator shifted downwards. The doors closed rapidly behind her as she punched the Quinjet dock lever flying her upwards, further increasing the butterflies in her belly.

As the door opens, Y/N was shocked to see the Quinjet parked and empty. Hmm, maybe Jarvis hadn’t been updated yet. Tony Stark was a man dedicated to two things; Pepper and his work. So much so, the freak designed his lab directly next door so he could be aware of all incoming traffic that left the headquarters. Y/N knew she would find him hunched over his latest obsession and she was never wrong…well most of the time.

Y/N raised her hand to meet the cool steel but Tony startled her already alert of her presence.

“Y/N, come in.”

“How did you--?”

“Tile sensors, I can literally pick up any foot print that steps into this glorious building of mine. Pretty cool, eh?”

“Uh, if you’re into that kinda thing then yeah, yeah I guess.”

He swiveled his chair around meeting her piercing green irises, “But, I don’t think that’s the reason you’ve come. I’m surprised you’re not with Goody Two-Shoes.”

“Whoever do you mean Mr. Stank?”

“Hey now, don’t forget who signs your paychecks and don’t play stupid with me kid. I know about you and Blondie. You’re like an open book kiddo.”

Shock temporarily overcame Y/N wondering just how exactly Tony always knew every secret confined within his walls.

“First- you don’t pay me and second- You are really creepy; you do know that?”

“That’s why they pay me the big bucks. State-of-the-art HD cameras all over the joint, and well, you guys are shit about hiding your ‘nightly activities’, if you know what I mean. Wink Wink.”

There was no attempt at hiding the blush that overtook Y/N’s cheeks as she tried to salvage her remaining pride. But with no such luck claimed her.

“Are they home? Did they make it back safely?

“You’re telling me you haven’t seen Cap yet?” Tony’s eyebrows raised slightly seemingly answering his own question.

“No no, not yet.” Her heart accelerated pace as unease slide down her backbone. Something was up and she couldn’t put her finger on it.

“Jarvis, buddy. Can you inform me on the whereabouts of Steve and Natasha since arrival?

“Certainly Mr. Stark. Their infrared scans show them in his suite. Shall I alert them of your activity?”

Y/N’s mind was running a mile a minute as she immediately contemplated the worst-case scenario. Steve did always like to finish his report immediately after missions. Maybe she was there to ease the paperwork?

“Nope, that won’t be necessary.” His attention guided back to Y/N as he tried to reaffirm the nervous Avenger in front of him.

“Don’t do that.”

“Do what?”

“That. Overthinking. It’s a dangerous path. Wo-man up and get your man.”

Y/N leaped into his arms hugging him tightly; “Thanks boss man. You really are the best. But, if you ever tell anyone I said that, I will deny it until the day I die. Got it?”

“Anything for you, Y/N.”

With her nerves momentarily in check Y/N found herself instinctively walking towards Steve’s door. Her ears drums pulsated, a slight shake to her fingers as her hand guided into a ball feeling the sooth coldness of metal.

Erogenous moans echoed down the hall just before her knock unhinging her own worst nightmare. Her body switched to auto pilot, simply going through the motions. Before she knew what was fully happening, Y/N pushed his door wide open and blankly stared straight ahead. Nausea churned violently; her throat tightened while the edges of her vision blurred.

Y/N didn’t realize the tears streaming down her already soaked face. Her mind riddled with anxiety and numbness. She read many stories of shark attacks and fatal lightning striking, but never in the slightest did she think she would reach such an unfortunate choice of fate. This, this felt similar to drowning, suffocating for air as her inflamed lungs gasped for resolution.

They continued, ignoring their surroundings as Steve slid deeper into Natasha. Her legs tightened around his hips as she dug her manicured nails into his back muscles., pulling him closer to her glistening body.

“I’m so close. Don’t fucking stop.” Natasha whimpered breathlessly as she clenched around him igniting another groan to escape his lips.

A shock wave zapped Y/N as she stood there unnoticed. She wanted to scream but every sound died on her tongue. This couldn’t be happening. Steve had promised to return to her. And her only. She had a fucking plan. But now, she knew of their repulsive secret. He always made her feel jealous, crazy about being called out for his attraction to Natasha. All to understand, Y/N was rightfully so.

Y/N took two steps back, directly moving out of their line of sight and threw her back against the cool wall. Her hands clamped over her mouth covering her lips. She silently sobbed as she felt her heart crack into sharp, broken edges. All of a sudden, her tears dried up and she felt an emptiness spread inside of her.

Sometimes you have to accept the fact that there are things that will never go back to how they used to be. We don’t create fantasy worlds to escape reality, we create them to be able to stay. And from that moment on, Steven Grant Rogers was dead to her. And that was her only form of tangible truth.

-------

Requests Open!

#marvel #steve rogers x reader #steve rogers imagine #marvel imagine #my writing #mcu #avengers #fanfic #fanfiction #steve x reader #natasha romanoff #steve rogers x reader angst

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ezmodo · 5 years ago

Text

Mom’s Workshop

Ruby sat at her workbench, enjoying a quiet Saturday afternoon. The house was silent save for the booming bass of Grimmplosion’s latest single blasting out of the headphones that rested around her neck, the noise drowning out the happy panting of the corgi beneath her feet. The family pet luxuriated under the attention, Ruby rubbing her feet up and down the dog’s velvety belly along with each riff, playing the corgi like an electric guitar. She was still in her PJs (it was a PJs sort of day), consisting of a supremely comfy, if ratty, old shirt and equally worn pajama pants.

Crescent Rose lay disassembled before her, each part resting at its designated spot. It didn’t need maintenance - she had given her baby a thorough cleaning after returning from her mission three days ago - but it helped her visualize future upgrades. She flipped through the weapons magazine on her lap, coming back to the page she had dogeared earlier that showcased hard-light dust. She could tinker up a way to surround and reinforce her main blade to provide extra piercing power to counter the thick hide of a Goliath or maybe install a mechanism at the base of the pole that could sprout a second scythe blade to surprise human opponents! Hard-light dust was so dang cool! And so dang expensive. Too expensive for now. Maybe she could call up Weiss and ask for an early Nondescript Winter Holiday present…

The dog beneath her suddenly stirred, rolling to its feet as it stared past Ruby to the door behind her. Looking back towards the door, Ruby clicked her headphones off and listened.

tmp tmp tmp tmp tmp

Ruby smiled to herself. Somebody was finally up.

tmp tmp tmp tmP TMP TMp tmp tmp tmp

The sound of little feet went zooming past the workshop and faded as they padded further down the hall.

“Drei.”

The corgi looked up at Ruby, its entire backside wagging in anticipation.

“Fetch.”

The dog shot off like a rocket and squeezed out through the cracked door to chase down her target. Ruby placed the magazine and headphones on the table before standing to stretch. She only had to wait a moment before she could hear giggling off in the house and soon enough the tmp tmp tmp of feet approached the workshop.

Drei pushed the door the rest of the way open as the dog barged in, giving a single bark as she sat proudly at Ruby’s feet. Ruby knelt down to give the dog a scratch behind the ears in reward as the boss of the house herself came to a stop in the doorway.

Primrose Arc stood just beyond the door rubbing the last bit of sleep from her silver eyes. Her blonde hair was pulled up into a loose knot on top of her head for her nap, some bits that came loose sticking out at odd angles. She was, like her mom, still in her pajamas from the night before, a purple top and bottom Yang had gotten her that barely fit the four-year-old. ‘I Can Sleep All Day. What’s YOUR Semblance?’ it read, something that always made Ruby grin. It probably was time to retire the set, even though Prim loved everything her aunt got her - she was growing like a weed. She could practically hear Jaune correcting her in her head; like a flower he would say in that cheesy yet completely serious way that only a doting dad could that would leave the rest of the room cringing.

“Have a good nap?” Ruby asked.

“Mmhm,” the girl mumbled back. She tugged the shirt down, trying to stretch the too small shirt down to cover her stomach. Whenever she stood straight the cloth would come up, exposing her belly button.

She lingered there by the door, distracting herself by messing with her shirt but kept sneaking glances up at Ruby. The workshop was off limits to her, after all, ever since Prim had snuck in and nearly cut herself on Crescent Rose. Jaune had freaked out a tad much about that in Ruby’s opinion, but it’s not like that rule applied if Ruby or Jaune were in the room.

“C’mere sweetie,” Ruby said, extending her arms out to her daughter.

Prim crossed the room in an instant, clambering into her mother’s arms to hook her chin over Ruby’s shoulder. Ruby stood in one fluid motion, bringing the girl up with her as Drei settled down on the floor for a nap of her own.

Ruby noticed something - someone - missing. “Where’s Pete?” Ruby asked. The girl took the stuffed bunny with her everywhere. It was a hand-me-down, the very one Jaune had as a boy that his mother had patched up for her granddaughter. Ruby was surprised she still had the thing. Would she end up being that crazy?

“Daddy still needed him,” she said, nuzzling further into her mother’s neck.

Go ahead and mark her down as crazy. Prim had both of her parents wrapped around her finger and neither cared. Ruby kissed the girl on the cheek and began to sway in place as she held her daughter.

Jaune must have fallen for Prim’s naptime trap. First she asks for a story. Then, a song. And for the finishing blow, she asks you in the sweetest voice imaginable to lie with her until she falls asleep. Before you know it you wake up three hours later and you’re half falling out of her tiny bed with a serious crick in your neck. Prim would usually still be there, waking up early but playing quietly by herself or fiddling with her parent’s scroll. It was scary how a girl so little could already navigate the device as well as her mom and dad.

“That was very sweet of you,” Ruby told her. “Daddy needs all the rest he can get for his big mission tomorrow.”

“Mission?” the girl asked, tightening her arms around Ruby’s neck. “Daddy’s turn?”

“Yup,” Ruby replied, “Daddy’s turn this time. It’s a reeeaaaaal short one though.”

---

Even before Primrose was born, Ruby and Jaune knew that they both couldn’t keep going on missions together full time. Though they had a near endless line of grandparents and aunts ready and willing (some aggressively so) to look after Prim while they were out on missions, it would be unfair to their daughter to leave her without her parents for the majority of the year. And if one of them stayed home with Prim while the other was out on a mission they’d be effectively cutting their income in half. They’d built up a nice nest egg over the years but between buying a home on Patch and Prim’s birth they’d be running dry in no time with only one of them getting paid at any given time.

Jaune confessed that he had been thinking about teaching for a while now, back when they spent most of their time out on missions together, only coming home to their crummy little apartment for the occasional recharge. He had even spoken with her father and Ren, who had started teaching himself at Haven years ago, about it without her knowing. It seemed like the perfect fit - they’d have a stable home for their daughter, be able to live comfortably financially, and Ruby would be able to dial down the number of missions she had to take on so she could be home more. They’d even have a couple months out of the year when school wasn’t in session where Jaune would be able to go on the occasional mission with Ruby. Not to mention the sweet, sweet benefits that the teaching staffs of huntsman academies got to enjoy. With the second salary and the dirt cheap healthcare, they’d finally be able to start adding to their family.

Leading up to and following Prim’s birth, Jaune worked towards getting his teaching license. Academics were never his strong suit but those days he rarely went long without a book in his hand, Prim often occupying his free arm. With Ren and her dad’s old study guides and Ruby’s surprise pop quizzes keeping him sharp, the written exam didn’t even slow him down.

Huntsman experience he had in spades, easily meeting standard mission requirements. The necessary teaching hours came easily too. He bounced back and forth between Signal and Beacon to observe and assist with classes and before long was escorting Beacon teams out on their school-directed missions. He earned his teaching license before Prim’s first birthday.

But there were no open positions at Signal or even at Beacon. Headmistress Goodwitch’s glowing endorsement brought offers from several other academies on other continents, none of which they would take. Patch was their home and they planned on keeping it that way.

For the next three years they kept doing exactly what they had tried to plan against - they took turns out in the field. When Ruby was away, Jaune was home. Thankfully, when Jaune was home he had opportunities to visit Beacon for work. Glynda Goodwitch, the scourge of their short time at Beacon, had become their savior, practically inventing temporary positions and jobs for Jaune to work around the academy to further beef up his resume and earn lien on the side. Goodwitch herself would watch Prim when Jaune was working at Beacon - the headmistress adored the girl and showed a tenderness that Ruby didn’t know a woman as tough as her could possess. Naturally, Beacon’s headmistress walking around campus with a blonde baby and meeting regularly with an equally blond temp teacher led to all sorts of embarrassing rumors that made Jaune the butt of many a joke once word reached their friends.

Her dad kept assuring her that once a spot opened, Jaune was guaranteed a teaching job at Signal. The current combat teacher, a hardened old lump of a woman, was the closest in age to retirement but showed no signs of stopping. She could still swing her staff for hours on end, busting the backsides of any student who thought they could give “grandma” a run for her money.

It was frustrating. They were getting by just fine but Ruby wanted more than ‘getting by.’ It felt like she only saw Jaune in passing, only ever in the house at the same time for a few days at most before one of them had to head out on another mission. She wanted her daughter to have the normal childhood she deserved and she wanted to give her a little brother or sister, maybe more. But with not enough money in the bank, especially not enough for her to stop working entirely if she were pregnant, they had no choice but to hold their current course.

But the end was in sight. The combat crone finally decided her time teaching the future huntsmen of Remnant was over and now she could spend her twilight years relaxing by traveling Remnant...with some Faunus dude young enough to be her grandson, according to her dad. Good going, granny.

So finally, finally, Jaune would get her spot. Tomorrow he’d board the bullhead to Argus to spend a week at Sanctum for a final assessment. He’d take the role of a full professor - teaching classes, grading papers, counseling students, the whole shebang, all while being observed by a third party. They had gone with Sanctum because it was a school he’d never visited before and they didn’t want to give the impression that he’d gotten the job at Signal based off family connections. Not that it mattered, really. Goodwitch said it was mostly formality at this point and, even if it weren’t, Ruby knew Jaune would pass with flying colors.

Professor Arc would soon be born and more Arcs would follow.

---

Ruby hummed happily as she shared an impromptu dance around the workshop with her daughter. In a week’s time things would be settled. She wondered if Prim would understand - as far as her daughter was concerned, Daddy already was a teacher.

Prim was fully awake now, sitting up taller in her mother’s arms. Ruby could feel her head turn this way and that depending on which way she danced and realized just what the girl was looking at. Ruby came to a stop in front of the workbench and watched as Prim shifted in her arms to get a better look at the disassembled Crescent Rose.

She’d worked on Crescent Rose in front of Prim before and it was hard to miss how enraptured the girl was with the process, asking an endless string of childish questions. Ruby couldn’t help the pride that bubbled up in her chest. Her daughter was on the road to becoming a weapon nerd.

“Wanna help Mommy put Crescent Rose back together?”

“I can?” the girl asked, eyes still glued to the weapon.

“Yup. But,” Ruby said, turning the girl to make sure they were looking each other in the eye. “You can only touch when I say you can. Okay?”

“Kay!” she exclaimed excitedly, rocking back and forth in her mother’s arms.

Laughing, Ruby nudged the chair closer to the table and set her daughter down, letting her stand on the seat. Prim immediately leaned forward, placing her hands on the table to get a better look. Her eyes darted from part to part, never able to stay still for long.

Ruby took her place next to Prim and placed a steadying hand on the girl’s back.

“Okay,” Ruby said, taking the upper receiver and bringing it closer for the girl to see. “What’s this?”

“The…” Prim paused, wracking her tiny brain for the made up word Ruby had taught her before. “Thingamabob!”

Ruby sucked air dramatically through her teeth in an exaggerated wince. “Oooo, so close! This is the thingamajig! This part over here is the thingamabob…”

Jaune slept most of the afternoon away while mother and daughter rebuilt Crescent Rose. One day Ruby would teach her the real names for each part and watch Prim put it back together again without help. Ruby might even, if Prim decided to follow her mother’s footsteps even further, help her build a weapon of her own. Or maybe she’d change her mind somewhere along the way and pick up some other calling, possibly something Ruby didn’t know the first thing about.

Ruby couldn’t wait to find out.

#rwby #rwby lancaster #ruby rose #jaune arc #primrose #writing

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sinsbymanka · 5 years ago

Text

The Viscount’s Muse (NSFW, Smut Ahoy)

Post DAI - Maria Cadash finds the Viscount’s smut and gets... inspired. This can also be found at AO3! Smut is under the cut. Thank you @tuffypelly for the inspiration!

“Sod it all.” Maria mumbled under her breath, collapsing in Varric’s desk chair. It groaned as if it too thought the situation hopeless.

“My lady?” The steward asked blandly, stopping his long recitation of matters needing her attention.

“Sorry, keep going.” She waved him on, glaring at her husband’s desk. “The Comte de Launcet wants what again?”

The steward continued his droning and Maria listened with only half an ear. Varric’s latest serial, The Murderous Magpie, had been more of a hit that anyone could have dreamed. His next Hard in Hightown, according to all the critics and a rabid fan base. Who couldn’t love a daring, rakish heroine from the streets framed for countless murders of mighty nobles by a shadowy faction with nefarious motives?

It was transparently based on Bea Cadash of course, but beyond their little circle, nobody else had made the connection. Bea herself actually picked up a copy, read the whole damn thing, then wrote a real honest-to-goodness letter critiquing it in detail. Maria herself usually got mere notes, laced with profanity, from Bea. A letter was nearly unheard of.

So, of course, both Varric’s editor and publisher were breathing down his damn neck for the next chapter. Because her husband, of course, didn’t have enough things spinning on his many plates. Ruling the city, managing both their affairs with the guild, raising their daughter, making sure the little operation trying to track Solas down at the Gallows didn’t collapse while Maria vanished into the crossroads for months…

She’d been gone too long the last time she left. Poor Varric must have been drowning in it all. She swallowed the thought guiltily and brushed aside the neat stacks of papers on his desk impatiently. She promised she’d read it before he sent it off but she couldn’t sodding find it. She was about ready to push it to tomorrow when she seized upon a neat stack of Varric’s handwritten notes in a drawer.

She lifted them triumphantly and let her eyes scan the page.

Mariele’s plump lips opened in greedy anticipation, silver eyes flashing dangerously beneath the black lace of her mask. Viktor already felt himself swelling to attention under her hungry, predatory gaze. She looked as if she’d swallow him whole. A lesser man would fall to her whims immediately…

Oh for the love of Andraste and all their bleeding ancestors, Varric must have finally given into Cassandra’s urging to write the next chapter of Swords and Shields. Set in Orlais, by the sound of it. Amused, Maria flipped to the next page.

Her nimble fingers undid his trousers before he could even protest and the bard dropped to her knees in a rustle of pale silk. The moonlight in the garden turned her skin to pearl and marble, turned her hair to flickering crimson flame. She released his heavy manhood into the night, wrapping slender fingers around it and letting her pink tongue dart out over those tempting, kiss swollen lips.

Viktor couldn’t help himself. He dropped his hand to the bare shoulders exposed by the wispy gown, traced his thumb up the pale, white scars accenting her silken skin.

“Mariele…” He shuddered under her expert fingers. “Sweet Andraste…”

“Oh,” The beautiful creature purred. “But I’m so much sweeter.”

Crimson hair. Silver eyes. Scars climbing up her shoulder. Mariele and Viktor. She wondered if she’d make it through the rest of the draft to find out Mariele only had one blighted arm after losing the other to freak elven magic shenanigans.

“My lady?” The steward asked, taking in her sudden, frozen posture. “Is everything quite alright?”

“Of course.” She answered mechanically. “Tell the Comte we can’t assist him at this time. Where is the Viscount at the moment?”

“Meeting with the shipbuilders guild, my lady. Then luncheon with some merchants from Antiva, contract negotiations with the city of Markham, and then you’ve both accepted an invitation to a dinner hosted by one of the Merchant Guild’s…”

Perfect. She’d been considering cheerfully murdering him, witnesses be damned, but a Merchant’s Guild dinner would be far, far worse than death. “We haven’t sent our regrets about not attending yet?”

“I believe your plan was to feign an emergency.” The steward remarked wryly. “Fire in the kitchens was next in your rotation of excuses.”

“We’ll save that for the next one. Please send a note to my husband stating we’ll be attending the guild dinner. I’ll meet him there.”

“Are… are you certain?” The steward asked, agog. Maria shuffled all the papers in the drawer into a neat stack and leaned back in Varric’s chair. She lifted her eyes to the steward and raised one eyebrow.

“Did I stutter?” She asked sweetly, the tone dripping honey and venom.

“No! No, ma’am.” He added, gulping nervously.

“And can you ask the Hawkes if they’ll keep my daughter for the evening? I think we’ll be returning late.” Maria lifted the first paper to her eyes in clear dismissal and watched with a rather large amount of amusement as the steward scuttled away.

Varric, Varric, Varric… she thought with no small degree of hidden fondness. If this had made it to his publisher, she’d shave his chest hair off herself, but deep down she knew it hadn’t. He’d been naughty, though. That wasn’t in doubt.

He’d missed her. So he’d written smutty literature starring them. She could already tell it was absolutely awful. And glorious. She couldn’t wait to tell Cass.

At first, Varric thought his wife had been kidnapped and the note sent under duress. After all, the only person who hated guild dinners as much as he did had to be Maria. After he’d managed to ascertain that, yes, she did indeed order the steward to send it, he’d assumed it was a joke.

Until he went searching for her and saw his finery laid out neatly on the bedspread, a command if he ever saw one. After that, he desperately tried to track her down, but as usual if Maria didn’t want to be found, nobody could find her. The only one who could, their precocious daughter, had already been shuffled to Hawke’s to spend the night. That, of course, meant Maria was indeed deadly serious about attending the guild dinner.

With absolutely no other explanation offered, of course, because she was the most maddening woman he’d ever met.

He took his time making it over to the quarter, showing up rather later than fashionable. Shocked, skeptical expressions latched onto him as soon as he entered the hall. Followed, immediately, by a bronto’s charge of dwarves in his direction. Complaints. Flattery. Threats. Varric reached for a glass of wine, immediately wished it was something stronger. He was going to absolutely murder Maria for putting him through this. Particularly since she was nowhere to be found. Clearly, she needed a distraction for something and decided this was the best one she could offer up.

“The price of parchment is outrageous!” A dwarf growled, spittle catching at his beard as he worked himself into a proper frothing rage. “The tariffs at the harbor are bleeding us all dry. If you can’t allow free trade, I’ll…”

“Surely the young mistress is getting a bit old to be unbetrothed.” A woman with elaborate, heavy braids sighed. “It isn’t good for a girl’s reputation to…”

Their Sunshine was barely five and not for sale regardless. For the love of…

“There you are.”

Oh thank fucking Andraste. Maria’s good arm slipped into the crook of his easily, her lips curved up in wicked, sinful amusement. “Having fun?” She asked, far too sweetly.

He shot her a pained glare even as her mere presence caused everyone to wisely take one step back. Despite the elegant gown and the pretty braids in her hair, Maria’s every move screamed lethal grace. No guild seat or crown could ever quite make her reputable in the eyes of the very worst of Kirkwall.

And tonight, apparently, Maria had no plans for appearing even slightly respectable. Her gown was nearly the same color as her hair, blazing ruby red among the dull, drab colors of the guild. It dipped scandalously low, displaying her cleavage with delicious perfection. The thin straps fell off her slender shoulders in wisps of chiffon. The silk bodice curved and clung to her wicked figure like a glove.

Varric’s mouth went dry as he took her in and he nearly forgot how annoyed he was. Nearly.

He dropped his lips to her ear and bit back the smug satsifaction at the nearly imperceptible shiver his breath sent through her. “This is not my idea of a good time, Princess.”

She laughed, low and soft, the ripples sending heat right into his belly. “Come dance with me then.” She challenged, tossing her head back proudly.

Anything to get away from this crowd of vultures, besides, he never could tell her no. “As my lady demands.” He smoothly slipped his other arm around her waist, admiring the way the silk warmed with the heat of her skin underneath it. The crowd around them parted with muttered, muted disappointment pierced with disapproving glares.

The ballroom floor itself was full of nothing but awkward, gawking teenagers. After all, dancing was for the young. And humans, of course. Certainly not for respected members of the guild and their stolid, unimpressed wives. The ones Maria outshone without any effort.

The youths scattered before them, ducklings before swans. Varric took Maria’s hand and stepped back, bowed over it, then placed a searing kiss on the back of her palm. Because he wanted to, (dammit he never could resist that red dress) he pressed another even more desperate one on her fingertips.

Her lips tipped up, amused in spite of herself, and then she slipped into the space between his arms like she was meant to be there, like it was made only for her. Her hand rested lightly within his and she pressed her delectable breasts against the silk of his tunic. “There’s a disappointing number of buttons done up on this shirt, Varric.” She whined quietly.

“Hey, you picked it. Thought you were trying to tell me to show some decorum.”

“Never.” She sighed happily. “How can I possibly flaunt you when you’re hiding your best assets?”

He chuckled, squeezed her fingers within his and dropped his voice low. “For fucks sake, Maria, why are we here?”

“We were invited.” She replied, gray eyes widening innocently in her face. “Ages ago, remember?”

“I tend to block out those invitations. Makes them easier to ignore.” Varric’s fingers traced the stiff boning of the gown at the flare of her waist. “You’re not going native on me, are you?”

“Dressed like this?” Maria asked, laughing as Varric spun her under his arm. He caught her securely and she pressed even more firmly against him, a predatory smile dancing on her lips. “The Guild wouldn’t even know what to do with me.”

They never did. Fools, every single one of them. “You were awfully late arriving. Suspiciously late.” He pointed out.

“I was on time, actually.” She purred, delighted with herself. “You were the late one, serah. I took advantage of your appearance to extricate myself from a rather lascivious Master Dace and explore all the hidden little nooks and crannies in the garden.”

He groaned and dropped his face into the coiled braids framing her face. She smelled like honey, cloves, cinnamon. A unique and beguiling scent that clung to her no matter what. “So you sacrificed me to snoop around for something.”

“In a manner of speaking.” She agreed, nuzzling into his neck, her breath warm against his jaw. “I read something very interesting today and this was the only way to get to the bottom of it while ensuring the guilty party squirmed a little.”

“Nobody’s listening, Princess.” He chuckled and jabbed his chin at the empty dance floor and the disapproving crowd miles away. “Don’t spare the salacious details. I demand to be entertained if I’ve got to be shoved into this bucket of rats.”

Maria hummed lightly under her breath, her smile wicked and sharp as diamonds out of the corner of his eye. The music stopped, but he tugged her more tightly to his form and waited for the next song to strum up. As soon as it, Maria lifted her lips to his ear. “I’ll try to remember what I read. You’ll have to make allowances if it’s not verbatim. It got me rather… hot under the collar.”

Was it his imagination, or was there a slight, breathy undertone to that statement? It of course could mean that she’d been furious by whatever she’d discovered, some nasty little guild secret. Maria’s temper meant there was a pretty good chance he’d be needing to have blood cleaned up off of some surface…

But when she purred the words, he pictured a rather different kind of heat. One well suited to the red dress she wore.

“I was in the study upstairs.” Maria recounted quietly, little puffs of air against his overheated skin. “Looking for that next chapter of your serial, the one that definitely isn’t based on my sister. I never did find it.”

“That’s because it’s on the desk in the library.” He supplied less than helpfully.

“Good to know.” She laughed. “Instead… well, I’ll just tell you what I found at your desk.”

He made a mental note that he needed to remind the messengers, again, that guild correspondence went right into the rubbish bin. “All ears, Princess.”

“Let me think…” Maria trailed off, her thumb lightly tracing his palm as they glided smoothly, thoughtlessly, together. Easily in tune with each other, just the way they always were. “It started…”

He waited, eager and amused at her drawing it out. It had to be damn good if she was taking such care to tell the story.

His amusement vanished almost instantly as the words began to pour from her lips, hot and filthy in her sultry, smoky voice.

“Mariele had many a man in her time as a bard, surely. A woman of her exquisite beauty didn’t lack for lovers on cold, lonely nights. But Viktor was no fumbling knight. It had been years since he left his sinful, boisterous exploits behind him, but his deft, practiced fingers remembered exactly how to turn a beautiful woman into a puddle of pure, uncomplicated need…”

Shit. Shit, shit, shit.

“Forget the steps, Varric?” His wife teased dangerously as Varric very nearly stumbled to a stop in the middle of their dance. She took over leading, eyes sparkling with danger. “Your sinful, boisterous exploits a thing of the past?”

He was a dead man walking. She’d brought him here to torture him before she shot him. Probably with his own crossbow. “I can explain.” He protested weakly.

“I’m not done.” Maria’s imperious voice brooked no argument. “I forget the next part. But I clearly remember this bit…”

He groaned, tried to beg her to stop, but she didn’t heed him at all. “Viktor nearly forgot what it felt like to have a nubile young lady on her knees, but Mariele could hardly be called a lady, particularly with his steel between her perfect, plump lips. ‘Is this what you wanted?’ Viktor asked, twisting his fingers in the crimson braids she wore. The only answer was Mariele’s pleased, throaty moan…”

Maria twitched her hips to the side threateningly and Varric pressed hard up against her to hide the effect her words were having on his own cock. His filth spilling from her lips was… sweet Maker, he hadn’t known he could want her more than he usually did. “Maria…”

“My favorite part went…” Maria paused and brought her lips closer to his ear until he could feel their feather light touch as she whispered. “Viktor ripped the delicate silk covering her glistening mound, too crazed by her teasing grin and wicked silver eyes to do anything but plunge his sword into her snug sheathe and…”

His breath whooshed out, leaving him dizzy. His hands dug into the silk covering her hips and he struggled to think past the liquid arousal running through his blood. “How dead am I?” He asked weakly. He could feel her wicked grin against his neck.

“What happened to no kissing and telling, Varric?” She asked lightly. “Does Cassandra really need to know about the birthmark on my…”

“Fuck, it wasn’t for…” Varric couldn’t think. Her perfume was too heady, her eyes sparking, mouth curled up dangerously just the way he loved best, and he couldn’t stop thinking about his cock in her mouth, her warm wet heat…

“It was just for you?” Maria’s words sent shivers up his spine and she untangled her hand from his to twist her fingers through his loose hair. “Your dirty little secret when I’m gone? Dreaming up what Mariele and Viktor get up to in elaborate Orlesian gardens…”

“Yes.” He confessed as she rolled shamelessly against him. He could barely hear the music over the pure, screeching need thrumming in his veins. He missed her, Maker he missed her when she was gone. All he could do was spill out the things he wanted to do to her while he waited for her to come back and warm his heart, share their bed, send his entire life into chaos and…

She pulled away and beamed into his face, flushing prettily pink under her freckles. She traced her fingers from his neck, over his jaw, down his chest and hummed thoughtfully under her breath while her eyes sparkled with mirth and…

Lust. An inferno of roaring lust.

Maybe she’d kill him, but it would be the best kind of death.

She twisted her fingers with his again and turned, hiding his bulging cock strategically with her skirts while she dragged him off the wooden dance floor. Varric chuckled breathlessly as he followed her right through the crowd. Several guild members attempted to approach, but thought better of it as the Viscount and his wife slipped into the evening air of the gardens. He couldn’t see her face, but he’d seen Maria march into enough battles to know exactly what it looked like.

He wouldn’t get in her damn way either when she was a woman with one thing on her mind.

Thank the damn Maker that one thing was him.

She shoved him into a dark nook, one she’d clearly scoped out for this purpose alone. It was hidden by a tall hedge and the soaring walls of the mansion behind them. As soon as the shadows enveloped them, Varric reached for her like a man starving, pressed her hard against the stones looming above them. “Minx.” He growled against her lips. “You’re a menace, Maria. You brought me here just to…”

She brought her one arm up to her generous bosom and pulled something from the bodice, something dark and…

Lace. A lace mask just like the one in his filthy smut. Varric’s cock doubled in size and he reached out with unsteady fingers to pluck it from hers. Her grin was as smug and self-satisfied as a cat who’d eaten a canary, but his imagination was already on fire. “Turn around, baby.” He directed softly.

“Is Viktor rather bossy, then?” She asked, but she turned and he gently fit the mask over her eyes, tying it with a simple knot over her braids. He dropped his hand to gently run his knuckles down the line of her neck, lower over the dip of her spine. He dropped his mouth to kiss down her right shoulder, tracing the scars that were left there, the remaining marks of the anchor that nearly…

Nearly, he reminded himself. But she survived, she was here, and she was warm, willing, pliant under his large hands when they settled over her waist. She tipped her head to the side to look over her shoulder at him, silver eyes shining in the moonlight, framed to the best effect by the black lace just like he knew they would be.

She fluttered her lashes, the perfect imitation of an Orlesian coquette, and smoothly turned, dropping to her knees in one sinuous motion. His stomach knotted itself as her fingers reached to undo his laces with one efficient tug.

“And what information am I trying to seduce out of you, my lord?” She asked in an almost flawless Orlesian accent, ruined only by the hint of her reckless laugh under the surface. “I couldn’t quite glean…”

“I’ve got to admit, Princess.” He saw stars, fought to keep his voice even, as her nimble fingers circled his cock. “The plot was secondary.”

“Oh really?” She stroked him with her one hand, nothing but a light, teasing touch. “You know, some people read for the plot and skip these steamy scenes.”

Those people must not have a damn pulse, but before he could retort, her lips opened and the sheer anticipation made him groan, thoughts fleeing as his mind was erased by warm, wet, sweet, sweet bliss and…

“Shit.” He swore, one hand steadying himself on the stone above her, the other twisting in her elaborate braids. He watched her mouth stretch around his girth obscenely, her eyes flicking from the task at hand to meet his and hold them as she worked to take his cock into her mouth inch by torturously slow inch.

The sight alone was almost enough to make him cum. He ran his thumb over her cheek, voice unsteady, praise falling from it effortlessly. “You’re so beautiful. I love my cock in your mouth, baby. Sweet Andraste, Maria…”

She laughed, a little bubble of it that brought something warm and bright to life in his chest. She pulled back, cock slipping from her swollen lips, eyes wicked and teasing. “She may be sweet.” She answered pertly. “But I’m sweeter.”

His cheesy line from his smutty story. He laughed as well, but it tapered off into another long moan as she resumed her work. She slid him almost to the hilt inside her mouth, fingers wrapping around the last inch or so she couldn’t quite fit, slicking him with her saliva as she began to bob her head.

“Maker I miss this when you’re away.” He continued, watching with worshipful zeal as she licked and sucked. His voice trembled with lust and awe. “It’s all I can think about at night. All I want. It isn’t enough to imagine your lips around me, isn’t enough to think of warm and wet your sweet cunt gets…”

She moaned around his length and the vibrations had him seeing stars. He curled his hand against the stone into a fist and watched her, the great rise and fall of her chest, her shining eyes on his framed by the sexy black lace. She sucked eagerly and his heart thumped unsteadily, liquid heat pooling in his groin. He tugged gently at her braids. “I want you. I want all of you, Maria baby please…”

The wicked glint in her eyes resurfaced and she hummed around his length. Varric’s hips bucked in spite of himself and he tried, valiantly, to fight the urge to do it again and again until he spilled down her throat. She was ruthlessly driving him insane, playing into his fantasies, his desires, and he couldn’t…

She squirmed, shifting on her knees, and Varric knew she had to be as affected as he was, knew she had to be as needy and desperate. Perhaps more, in fact, since she’d been planning this little encounter all damn day without his knowledge. If Varric thought this would happen every time they came to one of these dinners…

“Did you touch yourself?” He asked in a low growl. “Reading all that smut, knowing how bad I wanted you, what I wanted to do to you? How hot under the collar did it make you, Princess?”

He could just picture her on their bed, legs spread, ass in the air and fingers dancing between her legs while she brought herself off to his words.

She pulled off of him with an obscene plop, her lips shimmering with saliva, his cock shining the same way. She smirked up at him, that crooked little smile that belonged only to him. “Maybe a little.”

Too far gone to be gentle, he grabbed her by the upper arms and hauled her to her feet, shoving her roughly back against the hard stone. Her fingers grabbed for the fasteners of his tunic, undoing them, sending at least one of them snapping, a button falling to the ground as she whimpered, his mouth devouring hers. She nipped his lip in sweet revenge and he began to pull up her skirts, rucking them around her hips and lifting her by her spread thighs.

“Yes.” She keened, nails gouging his shoulder as she arched her back, pressing the creamy tops of her breasts to his greedy mouth. He wanted them out of the bodice, wanted her naked and in their bed begging for him as a fair turnabout for this little trick, but first…

First, he was going to fuck her thoroughly against this wall.

His fingers felt the sopping wet lace of her smalls and tore through them in a moment, the shredded fabric falling in pieces to the grass. She laughed again, but he captured it with his mouth and her arm twisted around his neck, holding him to her as he thrust smoothly inside her.

Her cunt clenched down on him, muscles rippling with his sudden entrance, but her thighs curved around his waist, scrabbling for purchase, the hard heels of her boots urging him on as they pressed against the small of his back.

“Tease.” He growled, moving from her lips to nip lightly at her exposed throat as he started a bruising pace, making sure to thrust right into the spot he knew she loved so much. “Wanton little…”

“You love it.” She bit the lobe of his ear. “And you deserve it. Writing that terrible, amazing smutty…”

One particularly brutal thrust made her words drop away into a pure, animal moan of need, one that changed into his name as he tightened his grip on her ass. “Strong criticism from someone who wanted to reenact it.”

She giggled, caught out, pressing an almost sugary kiss to his jaw. “I had a thing for Viktor.”

Be still his heart. This woman. This amazing, wonderful, insane woman of his. He captured her lips with his own again, tenderly this time, even as his furious pace continued and Maria shuddered in his arms, muscles tightening, body going rigid.

“Wait.” He muttered against her lips, liquid heat pooling in his spine. “Wait, baby. Wait for me, please Maria…”

“Varric…” She half sobbed his name in desperation, but that was all it took. His movements became stiff, wooden, his cock swelling inside her. This tipped her over the edge and she half wailed her approval, milking him of his seed and burying her head into his shoulders, trembling against him. He thrust deep one final time and pressed his lips against her temple, mind going hazy at the edges as he spent inside her welcoming body.

He lowered Maria back to the ground, both of them leaning against each other, too drained to stand. The garden was quiet. No sound but their ragged breathing. Varric wondered exactly how many of the Merchant’s Guild illustrious members had heard them. At least, he thought smugly, it had been a fine performance.

And since they’d made a brief appearance at an event, they were free and clear of the guild for months.

“Do you think they’ll finally kick us both out?” Maria asked quietly with a satisfied giggle.

Varric huffed weakly in return. “Doubtful. They’d never risk making us so damn happy. Poor Sunshine’s gonna inherit both those seats and spend the rest of her days cursing us both.”

Varric bent to retrieve the scraps of lace on the ground, but she stopped him. “Don’t.” She ordered, eyes shimmering with mischief. “Leave them. I want to hear about their reaction tomorrow.”

He laughed and settled on doing his trousers back up while she leaned against him, unsteady as a drunk. He kissed her forehead sweetly and wrapped his arm around her waist.

“I unlocked the gate back here.” Maria snuggled into his shoulder. “And I told the kitchen staff to leave the side entrance open.”

“You think of everything.” Varric murmured, smoothing her gown back over her hips.

“Not everything.” Maria smirked in the moonlight, rightfully smug. “This was, after all, your idea.”

Varric softened, pulling her tightly to his side as they wandered down the pristine garden paths in the darkness. “But you, as always, are my muse.”

#varric tethras #varric romance #inquisitor x varric #inquisitor cadash #cadash x varric #non-canon romance #shameless smut #fluffy as hell #dragon age inquisition #dragon age #post dai #post trespasser #cadash is a bit of an exhibitionist #varric digs it #varric and maria keep trying to get kicked out of the merchant's guild #the merchant's guild sucks

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