#but there’s a kitchen with a rack to hang pans up and i have a little room for my art studio

[thotfuss]

hello online besties i miss you all dearly …

[casiavium]

My dream KitchenAid stand mixer is on sale.... today only.... Target why are you hurting me like this

[thevoidstaredback]

How To Balance Your Daytime and Nighttime Activities So That You Don't Burn Yourself Out More Than You Already Have

It was halfway through his shift the next day, just after he'd come back from lunch, that the anonymous tip came through. Dick had frozen when he heard it, but only slightly because the others were brushing it off as a prank call.

"'Blockbuster's after someone named Oracle,'" Officer Diaz had scoffed, "What a joke. Aren't kids supposed to know that their stupid prank calls clog the system? What if someone who actually had useful information had needed to call, huh?"

Dick didn't mention that that isn't how the tip system works, nor did he eve attempt to scold the officer for brushing it off, no matter how stupid it seemed. No, instead, he was stuck in his thoughts.

Blockbuster is after Oracle. Why is he after Oracle? It doesn't make sense! No one in Bludhaven, save for himself, should no who she is! Besides, he'd kept all of the attention on himself. No one was able to even think about the heroes or rogues in Gotham without him knowing! Or, so he'd thought. How does Blockbuster know Oracle's name? More importantly at the moment was who sent the tip.

There was another scoff from one of the others. Did he say that out loud? "Look, I know you're new and everything, but shouldn't you know the mean of 'anonymous'?"

He forced himself out of his head, rubbing his neck with his left hand with a fake smile. "Yeah, I do. I guess I'm just a bit out of it today."

"Well, get your head back in the game," Detective Soames snapped, hitting a file on the back of Dick's head, "File that for me, then file the rest on my desk."

"Yes, sir," Dick took the file, ignoring the snickers and snide remarks from his coworkers.

He knows he's not going to be able to fully focus on anything for the rest of the day, possibly not even until after he finds out who sent that tip and how Blockbuster knows Oracle's name.

Oracle. Dick knows she can handle herself, but he doesn't like the fact that anyone knows her name. Not even B knows about Oracle! Babs had spent so much time and energy keeping her online persona from B so that she could have at least something of her own that Dick had taken it upon himself to erase traces connecting him to Oracle. She didn't deserve to have Batman on her ass, nor did she deserve to have Nightwing's enemies go after her!

He shook himself back into the present with a soft sigh. He'll call Barbra as soon as he gets home.

***

"Danny!" Dick calls into the apartment, knowing full well that the kid is in the kitchen, "I'm home!"

"Welcome back," Danny responds from where he's standing at the stove. He, Dick realizes, does not sound happy.

He hangs his coat up on the hooks he installed beside the door, his shoes going on the rack below them. "You good? You sound a bit upset?"

"I am upset." Danny, after getting comfortable around him, has stopped sugar-coating his words, being brutally honest. Dick blinks. "I was going to message Tim, but I saw a lack of apologies from you."

Oh. Dick had meant to do what Danny said last night and apologise to that Tim kid for snapping at him, but he had been a lot more tired than usual and it had slipped his mind. "I was going to use my phone?"

"You don't have his number."

Another thing Dick had come to learn about Danny in the few weeks they'd been living together was that he can't be lied to. He somehow picks up on lies, so even Dick's best efforts - that have fooled even Batman! - are always thwarted.

"I meant to," Dick said, sitting on one of the new barstools at he island counter, "But I was really tired last night."

Danny sighed. "Because you were out longer than you're now used to." He turned the burner off, moving the pan to sit on the hotpad beside it. "You're body's gotten used to only being out for eight hours during the day and six hours at night. You going out for eight hours last night wore you out more than usual because you're no longer used to your seventeen hour work days."

Dick tilted his head, accepting the bowl of soup he was given. "But it's only been a few weeks?"

"It only takes eighteen days for your body to get used to a routine." He said, placing a bowl of homemade rolls on the island. "After about sixty-six days, it becomes habitual."

"But it hasn't been sixty-six days."

"No, but it has been twenty-one days."

He hesitated for a moment. "Has it really been only that long?" Then, "Have you been counting?"

Danny blushed, sitting beside Dick with his own bowl of soup. "I've been keeping track of your schedule, which means I gotta keep a calendar. I haven't been counting on purpose."

Dick smiled, eating the soup. As usual, it was really good. The first week of Danny's stay, he'd asked where he'd learned to cook, but Danny had given a non-answer, saying only that his parents couldn't make anything edible that wasn't fudge or cookies.

After they had both finished eating, Dick's portions and appetite being larger than Danny's because of the calories he burns as Nightwing, they settled into a nice quiet. Dick had changed from his uniform into sweats and a T-shirt while Danny had chosen a movie. Then, Dick cleaned up dinner and Danny changed into a hoodie and sweats.

"We still need to take you shopping," Dick pointed out when they were both sitting on the couch, ready to start the movie.

Danny shook his head. "Letting me stay here is already enough. Besides, your old clothes work perfectly fine."

"But you're room's so empty! And my clothes don't even fit you!"

There was a pause like Danny was thinking. Dick had the feeling he might not like whatever was going to be said next.

He was right.

"I'll let you take me shopping next week," Danny agreed, "if we go to Gotham tomorrow so that you can apologise to Tim in person."

Dick's jaw twitched. He didn't want to go to Gotham. Going to Gotham meant that he'd inevitably run into Bruce. He wanted to stay far away from that man.

Then again, he'd promised Alfred to come by some time. And, it'd be nice to see Barbra and Jim again. Maybe he could have Alfred make sure Bruce wouldn't be in the Manor?

"So?" Danny promted.

He sighed. "You're evil, y'know that?"

His grin said it all. "I could be so much worse."

"Please don't."

"Don't give me a reason."

Part 9 Part 11

[mountsmase]

a/n: hii 🫶🏻 this is a concept that I love and we’ve always spoken about it so I thought it was about time I turned it into a fic 🤭 i also just wanted to say a quick thank you to all of you on anon who send in these concepts because you gave me so many amazing ideas for this fic and I love doing concept nights with you all 🥹 I’m so proud of this fic so I hope you enjoy it 🩷 feedback is appreciated as always 😚

word count: 4.3k

genre: pure fluff

———————

Coming Home to You - MM7

Relief floods over you as you step into the warmth of your Manchester home, the front door clicking closed behind you as slip off your shoes and drop your bags by the door.

After a busy few days, down in London for work, you’ve never felt more relived to be back home. The 4 hour drive home having done nothing to alleviate the exhaustion taking over your body.

You love your job, it’s so rewarding and comes with some amazing experiences, and honestly, you couldn’t imagine yourself doing anything else. But, that doesn’t mean it comes without downsides and challenges. The long hours and the time away from home can be exhausting, and it’s times like these where you want nothing more than to snuggle up in bed, let your duvet engulf you, and sleep for days.

You let out a tired sigh, willing yourself to relax a little as you shrug off your coat and hang it by the door, making the decision to deal with your bags later.

The water is just starting to boil when Mason hears the front door open and close from where he is in the kitchen. After an earlier than expected finish at training, he headed straight home to tidy the house and get started on dinner. He knew you’d be tired and a little worn out when you got home, so he wanted everything sorted for you to get in and have a nice relaxing evening without having to worry about a thing.

He tuns the hob off and makes his way through to the hallway to great you, stopping in the doorway to watch as you pull off your coat and hang it up on the rack by the door.

A shriek leaves your lips when you turn and notice him standing there and he can’t help but chuckle at the surprised look on your face.

You weren’t expecting him home so soon, he was due to be at training for at least another hour, and in your rush to get inside and out of the rain, you hadn’t even noticed his car parked on the driveway.

You can feel your face light up at the sight of him, dressed all cozy in his dark green hoodie and black joggers and you can’t even give yourself time to wonder why he’s back so soon as he beelines for you, arms wrapping around you in a warm hug.

Your own arms wrap around his waist tightly, your face finding home in his neck and you nuzzle into his skin. You breath him in, the smell of his aftershave mixing with hints of his natural scent calming you instantly.

For a few minuets, you just stand there, basking in his warmth and enjoying the familiarity that he brings you. And, as time passes, you feel your self sinking further and further into his embrace, moving away seeming impossible and extremely unappealing.

You assume he’s feeling the same way as he tightens his grip around you and scoops you up, your legs instinctively wrapping around his waist as he carries you through to the kitchen and places you down on the counter.

“Hi sweetheart” he says, unwrapping himself from you and placing a kiss to your forehead.

“Hey, Masey” you reply, getting comfy on the counter as you watch him move around the kitchen.

“What’s all this?” You wonder aloud, spotting the pans on the stove and multiple ingredients lining the counters. “And how come you’re home so early?”

“Dinner, and just finished training a little earlier than expected because of the whether” he tells you, motioning to the window where you can see the poring rain through the glass.

You nod absentmindedly, relived to know that he’s not home early due to more issues with his recent injury, and also happy that you don’t have to worry about the cooking tonight.

If you were in charge of dinner tonight, you’d most likely end up ordering a takeaway. But, a home cooked meal definitely sounds more appealing right now.

“How was the drive?” He asks, adding the pasta to the boiling water before coming to stand in front of you.

Spreading your legs apart, he steps in between them, one hand landing on your thigh whilst the other reaches up and tucks a stand of loose hair behind your ear. You send him the softest smile you can manage, knowing just how much he dislikes and worries about you having to do that long drive so frequently.

“It was fine, boring as always but I’m just happy to be home now” leaning forward, you nudge your nose against his in a silent reassurance that you’re in one piece and happy to be home with him.

Your little moment is interrupted when your tummy rumbles loudly, the two of you giggling together as he steps back and continues cooking dinner.

“Sorry, I’m starving”

“Good job chef Mase is nearly finished making dinner then” He says, earning a very unserious eye roll from you as he adds a few more ingredients to the pan and finishes making dinner for the two of you.

You sit and eat together at the kitchen island, chatting about anything and everything and he can’t help but worry as he spots you shuffling around uncomfortably, your hand coming up and holding the side of your neck as you wince quietly.

“You okay?” He asks, the look on his face matching the concern in his voice.

“Yeah, just a little achy from the drive but I’m fine” you reassure him, still trying to get comfy and he just nods, wanting to ask more but reluctantly opting not to.

He knows you’re likely to try and brush it off as nothing, so he wouldn’t get an accurate answer from you, and that’s exactly what you were planning on doing. You wouldn’t want him to worry about something that’s probably just a little tension from the drive and you’re grateful when he doesn’t ask any more questions. But, you forget that he knows you almost as well as you know yourself, sometimes even better, so despite your seemingly reassuring answer, he’s still worrying as you finish up dinner.

You offer to help him tidy up but he doesn’t let you, not wanting to aggravate what ever it is that’s bothering you so you reluctantly sit back and watch as he loads up the dishwasher and tidies up the kitchen.

“C’mere” he whispers, helping you down from the stool once he’s finished putting everything away.

He pulls you into him, body flush against yours as he wraps his arms around your shoulders, your own snaking around his waist as you rest your cheek against his chest and melt into him.

“How about a bath and an early night?” He suggests, resting his head on top of yours.

He places a kiss to your forehead when he feels you nodding, tightening his arms around you when you try and step away, keeping you against his chest.

“Not so fast” he mumbles, tilting your chin up with his index finger and leaning down to claim your lips with his.

You kiss him back, a satisfied hum leaving you at the familiar feeling of his lips back on yours and you can feel the butterflies raging in your tummy.

Kissing him has always been one of your favourite things. His lips are always so soft and gentle and you feel yourself melting into him as he parts yours slightly, his tongue slipping inside and gliding against your own. Your hand moves up to his shoulder and squeezes gently, his arm tightening around your waist. His other comes up, hand framing your jaw and he brushes the pad of his thumb over the apple of your cheek as he continues to work his lips against yours.

He keeps the kiss fairly light, pulling away after a few moments to look at you, and the soft smile he sends you has your heart soaring.

“Come on,” he nudges his head towards the hallway, untangling himself from you and allowing you to walk ahead of him as you head towards the stairs, turning off all the lights as you go.

You stop short, bending down to grab your bags, but you’re brought to a halt when Mason comes up behind you.

“Let me get those” He utters, hand brushing over your hip as he steps past you and scoops the bags up himself.

You mutter a quiet ‘thank you’, sending him a grateful smile before scaling the stairs and heading straight into your shared bedroom.

You begin removing your jewellery whilst he goes into the en-suite, starting the bath and making sure the water is the perfect temperature before adding some of your bubbles and bath salts. He rummages around for some clean towels, laying them over the heated towel rail to warm them up and adds a few finishing touches to the room.

You see him re-enter the bedroom in the reflection of the mirror and he disappears into your walk-in wardrobe, re-emerging with some PJs for the both of you before coming up behind you. He leans around and places a delicate kiss to your cheek, sending you a smile in the reflection before leading you into the en-suite.

The water is still running when you follow him into the bathroom, piles of bubbles foaming on the surface and you can already smell your favourite combination of bubble bath and bath salts. There’s a few candles lit and scattered along the edge of the tub and counter tops, the main lights dimmed, causing the room to become enveloped in a soft, golden hue.

You get to work removing your makeup and he reaches over, checking the temperature of the bath before turning the taps off. Taking the pile of PJs he brought in, he makes some space on the heated towel rails, hanging some of your Christmassy PJ bottoms and one of his shirts on the rack before coming back over to you.

“Ready, bubs?” He asks, hands coming around your waist as he looks at you through the reflection in the mirror.

Sending him a smile, you nod, reaching to lift your t-shirt off and he gives you a hand, pulling the material over your head and discarding it into the laundry bin before helping you remove your leggings and underwear.

You catch him looking at you, his eyes shining with an emotion that you can only describe as adoration as they scan over your body, simply taking a moment to admire you before holding his hand out for you to take.

Helping you climb into the bath, he watches as you lower yourself into the warm water, stepping back and undressing himself so that he can join you.

You can’t help but watch as he pulls his hoodie over his head, his perfectly toned body and the tattoos that you adore so much making it hard for you to look away.

“Like what you see?” He teases, catching your staring, and he smirks when your eyes snap up to his, a deep blush covering your cheeks.

“Shut up” you mumble, voice quiet and he smiles, loving that he can still make you shy after so long together.

“But, for the record, yes. Yes I do” you add, and it’s his turn to blush as he steps into the bath behind you.

You shuffle forward, giving him room to slide in behind you and you settle back against his chest. His arms circle your waist, hands landing on your tummy where he traces random figures against your skin and you let your self sink into his embrace. Relaxing fully for the first time in what feels like weeks.

Your head falls back against his shoulder and you tilt it slightly so that you can look up at him. You meet his warm gaze, a soft smile sweeping over his lips before he leans down and touches them to yours.

He keeps the kiss slow and perfectly soft, only breaking apart when you separate to take a breath, and he takes the opportunity to brush his lips over your cheek, trailing kisses down your neck and along your shoulder. He kisses any inch of skin that he can reach, revelling in the giggles that leave your lips when his stubble tickles your delicate skin. His fingers continue tracing over your tummy as you lay there in complete bliss, all thoughts of work leaving your mind until all that’s left is him.

“Sit forward, my love” he requests, speaking softly as to not break the peaceful atmosphere. You do as he asks, sitting up and shuffling forward to allow him more space behind you.

He reaches over and grabs your body wash from the edge of the tub, squeezing a generous amount into his palm before lathering it up. His hands find your shoulders, massaging the soapy suds over your back and down your arms before rinsing them off. You think he’s finished, wanting to grab the bottle and return the favour but he takes it from your hand, placing it back down before finding your shoulders again.

His thumbs work over your skin in firm circles, fingers working to ease the tension in your back and he pays special attention to the spots that gain the most reaction from you. Soft hums leave your lips and you have to stop yourself from melting into him, the feeling of his hands working over your skin relaxing you and making you feel like you’re in heaven.

He doesn’t stop until he’s content he’s gotten rid of all the knots and tension, double checking with you that you’re no longer feeling any discomfort before scattering kisses along your skin and pulling you back to lay against his chest again.

You stay in the bath for quite a while longer, relaxing together in a comfortable silence until the water begins going cold and you decide it’s time to get out and start getting ready for bed.

Climbing out of the bath before you, he wraps a towel around his waist and takes yours off the heated towel rail, holding it open for you as you step out of the tub. The warm fabric engulfs you as you step towards him, his hands working to wrap the towel around you as he pulls you into his chest.

“How’s your back feeling, angel?” He asks, placing a kiss to the top of your head.

“So much better, thank you.” You lean up, placing a quick kiss to his his lips.

“You’re welcome, baby. Just let me know if it starts hurting again, yeah?” He says, more telling you to than asking, and as much as you don’t want him worrying about it, your heart warms at how attentive and caring he’s being towards you.

“I will, Mase. Seriously though, it does feel so much better already, thank you.” You roll your shoulders, still feeling a tiny bit of discomfort but it’s miles better than the pain you were in earlier.

Stepping back, he takes your towel from you, helping you dry off and change into your candy cane printed PJ bottoms and one of his t-shirts before getting himself dry and into a pair of boxers and his matching bottoms.

“Do some skin care with me?” You give him your best puppy dog eyes as you hop onto the counter next to the sink, knowing it’s impossible for him to say no to them.

“Sure, bubs” he says, sounding defeated, but you know deep down that he loves doing your skincare with you. He most likely would of ended up doing it with you even if you hadn’t asked.

You push his hair back with one of your headbands, unable to hold in your giggles at the sight of him with his hair pushed back, all messy and sticking in every direction.

“Oi, don’t laugh at me, I don’t have to do this with you, you know?” He teases, threatening to take the band of and you scramble to stop him, pulling his hands down and turning serious.

“No! No, sorry. You just look so adorable, it’s cute” A blush covers his cheeks at your words, his skin that’s already reddened from the heat of the bath turning even more flushed and it spreads over the bridge of his nose. You can’t help but lean in and brush a kiss to the patch of skin there.

Leaning over, you pull all of your different products out of the drawer - ‘potions’ as Mase likes to call them - and line them up on the counter ready to use. You run through your routine, using cleansers and moisturising before moving on to serums.

“What are we going for today? Hydrating? Brightening maybe? Or what about anti-aging?” You ponder out loud, adding the last part on as a joke and his reaction has you giggling, just not in the way you anticipated.

“Anti-aging?” He asks, a faux look of offence on his face but it quickly changes to one of amusement. His hands find your waist, sliding under the t-shirt as his fingers tickle over your skin and he quickly has you thrashing around, trying to escape his hold.

“S-sorry! It was a joke! Mase!” you say through giggles, aimlessly trying to grab at his hands.

“You think I need to use anti-aging stuff?” He stops his actions and you take a moment to catch your breath, worried that he actually took offence to what you were joking about, but the cheeky smile on his face tells you that he’s still messing around.

“Of course not, I mean, it’s always good to use it but you’ve got better skin than I have most of the time anyway” you reassure him, twisting the cap off of one of your serums before squeezing a few drops into your hand and massaging it into his skin.

He takes a moment to admire you as you do so. Watching the look of pure concentration on your face as you work whatever product you’re using into his skin.

He loves these little moments with you. Moments where you feel like the only two people in the world, moments where he gets to have you all to himself without any distractions or worries.

His eyes scan over your face, taking in your bare skin and all of your what you like to call ‘imperfections’. Little things that you always seem to complain about, but he loves. They make you, you, and you’re perfect to him. In his eyes, you’re the most beautiful girl in the whole damn world, and he wouldn’t ever want to change a single part of you.

“You’re so beautiful, angel” he whispers, speaking his mind, and you shy away from his gaze, bringing your hands up to cover your flaming cheeks.

Compliments are something you rarely received in your past relationships, but that’s something that quickly changed when you met Mason. He always wants you to know just how much he appreciates and admires you, and even after a couple of years together, you don’t think you’ll ever be used to how often he says those types of things to you. His words making you feel special and wanted in a way you never felt before meeting him.

His hands land on your hips, squeezing gently through the material of your PJ bottoms and you sneak a glance at him through your fingers, finding him already looking at you with the softest of smiles grazing his lips.

“Don’t hide from me, bubba” he gently wraps his hands around your wrists, tugging them away before nudging your chin up with the tip of his finger.

His eyes lock onto yours once again and you swear you can see every emotion thats swirling through them, the deep shades of chocolatey brown shining with so much love and adoration that you can’t quite believe it’s for you.

Warmth rushes through you when he steps forward, his hand coming up to cradle your jaw. His thumb brushes over the skin of your cheek and you sink in to his touch, eyes fluttering closed when he rests his forehead against yours and, for a few minuets, you just enjoy his touch and the peaceful moment together.

You’ve always heard people saying that home isn’t a place, but a person. And, until you met Mason, you didn’t think that could ever be true. But they’re right. He is your home, your safe space, someone you know you can always count on and trust. From the minuet he walked into your life he’s brought you so much happiness and light and honestly, you can’t even remember what life was like before him. He’s your rock, your person, and after a week of work like the one you’ve just had, there is no one else you’d rather come home to. You thank your lucky stars every single day for bringing him into your life.

You reluctantly pull away, suddenly filled with an overwhelming amount of love for him. Your lips place a kiss to the reddened skin on the bridge of his nose before trailing across his cheek and landing on his own. His hand moves around to the back of your neck, holding you to him as his lips move against yours.

The kiss is kept gentle, your lips working against each others slowly as neither of you really having the energy to go any further, but it’s filled with so much emotion and conveys your feelings perfectly.

“I love you so much, you know that?” you whisper against his lips, giggling to yourself as you pull away to catch your breath.

“You might of mentioned it a couple of times,” he responds, chuckling when he catches you rolling your eyes.

“But, I love you too, more than you’ll ever know” he turns serious, catching your gaze, wanting you to understand just how much he means it.

You nod, sending him a tired smile before taking his outstretched hand and jumping down off the counter so that you can brush your teeth.

He holds your shoulders carefully and turns you around so that you’re facing the mirror. Reaching around you, he takes your hair brush and a scrunchie from the draw before working to untie your hair from the bun it’s currently in. He brushes through your tangled ends, being careful not to tug too much and cause you any pain before separating your hair into three sections and doing his best to plait it for you.

“You’re becoming a pro at that” You say absentmindedly, watching through the mirror as he ties the scrunchie around the end of the neat braid.

“I know, I learn from the best” his eyes are twinkling when he sends you a cheeky smile through the reflection, “Summer is the best teacher” he adds, emphasising the fact that he didn’t say you and you jab him with your elbow, the two of you laughing together but you’re stopped short when you begin yawning.

“C’mon, let’s get you into bed, bubba” he chuckles, placing a quick kiss to the top of your head before guiding you out of the en-suit.

He helps you climb under the duvet, tucking you into the warm sheets and making sure you’re comfy before he stands again. He goes to leave the room, but he doesn’t get far, your hand reaching for his as soon as you realise he’s leaving.

“Where’re you going?” you pout, already battling against sleep.

“Just getting some waters from downstairs, I’ll be as quick as I can”, he tells you, but your grip on his hand doesn’t budge.

“Promise?” You whisper, his heart soaring at your tired eyes and pouty lips and he smiles to himself, loving how clingy you become when you’re sleepy.

“Promise, bubba” He squeezes your hand when he feels you loosen your grip, letting you know that he’ll be as quick as he can before heading out of the room.

You’re almost asleep when he re-enters the bedroom and climbs straight under the covers next to you. He leans over to grab the remote from the bedside table and turns the TV on, flicking through a few channels before deciding on Disney+ and you giggle when he selects Ratatouille. The familiar Pixar lamp bounces across the screen as he turns the volume down a little and puts the remote to the side.

He switches off the lamp off and gets himself comfy, laying on his back and opening his arms for you. Shuffling into them without hesitation, you snuggle up to his side and rest your head against his bare chest, the calming beat of his heart right underneath your cheek.

His hand finds its way under your (his) t-shirt, fingers tickling over your back and you snuggle even closer, tilting your head up so that you can look at him.

“Thanks for tonight, Mase” you hum, looking up at him through your lashes.

“You don’t need to thank me, bubs. You’d do the same thing for me and it’s only right my girl gets princess treatment after kicking butt at work all week” he grins, leaning down to kiss you and it’s calm and soft when his lips touch yours.

“I get princess treatment from you everyday” you say, head dropping into the same place as before and you sleepily nestle into him.

“As you should” he mumbles, fingers continuing their patterns on the skin of your back.

You lay there for a while, eyes growing heavy as you try and focus on the TV but the beat of his heart combined with his soft touches makes it hard for you to stay awake any longer.

“I miss this when I’m away” you stifle a yawn, snuggling even further into him as you finally give in and let your eyes fall closed.

“Me too” he leaves a lingering kiss to your forehead, “Now, get some sleep pretty girl. I love you”

“I love you too, Mase. Night.” You manage to get out before he feels your body go heavy against his, sleep finally taking over you as you snooze in his arms.

———————

a/n: I hoped you enjoyed! feedback would be really appreciated 🫶🏻🩷

[bubble-leaves]

Your Cooking Expertise - Reth x Reader

When you first moved to Kilima, Reth was so ready to show off his skills and impress you, the new human on the block. And, bless his heart, he thought he was so cool. I mean, you seemed to enjoy his world famous soups! He felt on top of the world being able to impress someone that knew nothing about him.

. . . until he learned that you were highly experienced with cooking.

Reth's eyes nearly bugged out of his head when he first saw you bring him a gift of pan-seared scallops. He was so pissed; it tasted delicious. And it got even worse, as you started a habit of bringing him morsels of dishes you were working on perfecting. Eventually, Reth became so intrigued and so jealous that he finally asked if you could teach him some of the basics of your fancy cooking. Which leads us to the present.

Reth stands in the inn kitchen. The inn is closed and empty, apart from Ashura packing up his things for the night. Reth leans against one of the counters, biting his nails as he awaits your arrival. His mind is sifting through all the terrible ways he could embarrass himself in front of you. Asking for your help was embarrassing enough, but what if he spills something and ruins the dish you two were going to make tonight? What if he accidentally cuts himself when chopping produce? Oh Dragon, what if he suddenly sneezes in front of the food?

His face is a shade of deep pink as he pictures several ways he could ruin how you think of him. Just as he's nearly consumed with doubt, your footsteps approach the kitchen entryway. Reth's heart leaps as he takes one look to his left and sees you in the arched entrance. You have a hand on your hip, simultaneously carrying a rattan basket, and a smile on your face.

"Nervous?" You ask.

Reth flashes his handsome award-winning smile and waves his hand dismissively. "Nah! Why would - what gave you that impression?"

"The nail biting. Now you have to go wash your hands," You chuckled, "Wah wah."

Reth paused, then flushed in embarrassment. Yep, first screw up complete.

"Oh, great. I'm on a roll with this fancy cooking biz," Reth sarcastically says, before looking up at you to add, "If you wanna hire me as your head chef at your culinary empire now, you can have all my details."

You laugh as he turns to the sink to wash his hands. He smiles genuinely as he listens to the sound. Your laugh makes him feel so much better, in an instant, like audible morphine.

Reth notices you placing items on the prep counter, each one being taken out from your basket. He finishes drying his hands to investigate. He comes close to see what the ingredients all are. With this distance, you could smell a delightful musk of spices and woodsiness eminating from him. It makes your heart skip a beat, yet you remain calm and act like all is natural.

"Huh. What — HOLY DRAGON," Reth shouts as you suddenly retrieve an expensive sernuk tenderloin from the basket.

You look up at him with raised brows, surprised by his volume. His mouth hangs open as he stares at the sernuk, trying to comprehend how he's possibly allowed to be near such a luxurious cut of meat.

"Wait-waaaait a minute, sweet tooth, that is way out of territory for me," Reth declares.

"You'll do fine," You assure with a gentle laugh.

You place the cut of meat upon a cutting board then reach for the knife rack, simply moving forward. Meanwhile, after a brief pause to comprehend what you said, sparkles fill Reth's eyes. Hearing someone as experienced as you say he'll succeed makes his heart pound. He looks at your face, studying its expression with awe. Damn. You're amazing. Oh, he's so screwed.

"You know, you have a lot of guts to trust me with something like this," Reth chuckles.

"Reth, stop that, I'd trust you with anything," You say with a smile, chastisingly swatting his arm. "Now, c'mon, this is an easy stuffed tenderloin. Slice it open for me."

"Oh, this is the end," Reth dramatically says, taking the knife you carefully hand him.

You ignore his doubts this time and lock into the recipe. You instruct, "Make a three-quarter slice down the middle."

"Bold of you to assume I know fractions," Reth quips before doing as you say.

While he makes a precise cut, you go over to the gas range stove and set the oven to preheat at a precise temperature. You then turn back to Reth, who already has a feeling about the next step.

"Guessing this part includes the salt and pepper you brought," Reth says, "You think I didn't have salt and pep, sweet tooth? I swear I'm not that incompetent!"

You laugh and shove his arm a little. "I bring every ingredient needed just because I can! Plus, you don't have to waste product, right?"

Reth makes an agreeable face and shrugs, simultaneously seasoning the sernuk. "Didn't think about that. Now I appreciate it."

"Don't mention it," You say, multi-tasking just as he was.

You got out a chopping board from a nearby cabinet and moved a medium-sized cube of cheese onto it. Reth raises a brow.

"What kind of cheese is that?" He asks.

"Manchego," You reply, retrieving a knife.

He cocks his head. "Never heard of it. Is it some kind of fancy rich people cheese?"

"Ehhh," You shrug. "Not really. It's just uncommon in every day cooking."

You slice thin sheets of the cheese and lay them flat along the cut of the meat. Again, Reth has the correct intuition of what comes next.

"And this is where the sage comes in, huh?" He asks.

"You got it. See, this isn't hard at all for you, right?" You say, looking over to him with an encouraging smile.

Reth feels his face get a little warm as he looks back at you. He can't believe how well you treat him despite what he's known for around here.

He lags a bit, then smiles back and says, "I just have a good teacher."

You softly chuckle, and for a moment he swore he saw you shift your lips to the side to hide any flustering. He doesn't bring it up, though, and simply retrieves the sage with a suddenly smug smile. Subtle flirting just does that to him.

"Oh, and don't use both sprigs, just use one," You quickly advise.

Reth replies with a quick "gotcha" before scattering the leaves of a sage spring along the sernuk. You're pleased with the even coating, and Reth sees it in your eyes, which shows clear satisfaction. He feels so in control, suddenly, like he actually knows what he's doing.

"Perfect," You praise, sending his heart in a whirl. "Now, could you get me the string in there?"

Quickly recovering from hearing that first word, Reth raises a brow and gets a spool of string out of your basket.

"Okay, officially confused. Is this the part where we sew 'live, laugh, love'?" Reth asks with an amused hum.

A loud cackle escapes your mouth, the sound making Reth's grin double. He motions his hands outward in a manner that signifies asking a question.

You giggle, "No, goofball, we roll up the tenderloin and tie it inch by inch so it won't unroll in the oven."

"Ohhh, gotcha, that was my second guess," Reth muses. "Also, 'goofball'? Is that my new nickname, sweet tooth?"

Once again, you lightly shove his shoulder, your cheeks feeling hot. "Now it is."

Reth smirks, as he knows you're starting to get bashful, just a little bit. He hasn't seen that from you before, you're usually incredibly confident and he's usually the one who seemed flustered by you. He likes the turned tables. Alas, you don't let him bask in the moment for too long. You readjust your posture and put back on a regular façade. Reth refrains from pouting; he listens for your next instructions.

You clear your throat and say, "Okay. Get the roasting tray. Sprinkle — "

"The other sage sprig and this thyme here?" Reth finishes with an uprising tone.

"Yes," You smile, then motion to the tenderloin. "I'll tie this up."

Reth does as you say. You both go into a spell of silence to do your tasks, but since Reth's takes less time, he's left to watch you complete yours. He watches as you tie the tenderloin in evenly spaced intervals. Then, of course, he gets bored and feels the need to chitchat again.

"Hm. I never asked, what are we gonna do with the 'loin when it's completely finished? Do we take it home for friends and family or do we have a little date?" Reth asks.

He sees you do that lip thing again; it must be a habit when you're feeling shy. How cute!

"Uh . . . well, I didn't really think that far, for some reason," You say with a subtly embarrassed chuckle.

"Can I give a suggestion?" Reth asks further, leaning upon the counter with his arms crossed to look at you.

Your face feels hot as he stares at you. He doesn't get an answer to his question, as you had just finished tying the protein.

"Could you get me the olive oil?" You request, pretending that you didn't hear his insinuating question.

Reth narrowed his eyes humorously and nodded his head. “Oh, I see. We’re just gonna have to find out, then.”

He hands you the olive oil, watching you simmer in your own fluster with a smirk. You drizzle some of the oil on the meat, looking at it like you’re asking it to help you out of this sudden shift of atmosphere. Reth glances away from you to look at the remaining ingredient, which is the last sprig of sage. Looking for one last chance to help out, he reaches out for the herb. However, at the last second, you also reached for it. Your hands accidentally make one brisk touch, before simultaneously pulling away.

It’s quiet. Reth looks at you with concern and a hint of curiosity. He worries about how forward he may have been, even if it was accidental. You look like you’re swallowing your words, he can see.

“I’m sorry,” You simply say.

Reth smiles. “It’s fine, no worries. It’s just sage, right?”

You sigh. “Uh, yeah. If you can sprinkle that on, that’d be great . . . oh, what is wrong with me?”

“Huh?” He asks as he cocks a brow.

Reth suddenly notices your face is flushed with color, making both his brows raise in surprise. Your hand rests over your heart wearily as you breathe.

“Aha . . . hold on, let’s just get this in the oven first,” You say.

“(Y/n), you better not peki out about telling me what’s goin’ on,” Reth replies, stepping over to the oven but keeping his eyes on you.

You shook your head. “I’m not, please; I’m just wanting to cook this tenderloin. Open the door.”

He hums a sassy, unconvinced “mmm-hm” and opens the oven door. A wave of heat billows out and he chokes and leans away. You laugh and make it quick as you slide the trayed tenderloin into the oven. You push it to the center before retracting your hands. Reth closes the door immediately after. He’s onto you immediately, too. As you set the timer, his interrogation starts.

“Kay, now, what did I do?” He asks.

“Oh, you didn’t do anything,” You chuckle with a tinge of anxiety. “It was just me.”

His eyes narrow suspiciously, although still playfully spirited. Feeling pressured, you give up more information to satisfy those eyes.

“My heart is just beating very fast,” You say with another laugh, this one sounding breathless and shallow.

That makes Reth’s own heart skip a beat. He’s doing all this to you? Huh. He may be more capable than he thought when it comes to flustering you.

He tilts his head. “My bad, my bad. Do I do that to you often?”

You blink and ponder on that. Your heart palpitations are lesser when you and him are in a room with other people, but you realize that this has only ever happened when you were alone with him.

After brief hesitation, you admit, “Only when no one else is around but me and you.”

Reth stares with complete shock while you bite your cheek in thought. It took him a second for him to process that you basically just confessed your feelings, but now that it’s hit him, he has even more questions.

“...me? Why?” He asks in a voice quieter than usual.

“Why?!” You repeat with passion, making him slightly jump.

You both are completely flushed in the face, hearts beating quick. He has so much he wants to blurt out with passion too, but he waits for you to go first.

“Reth, every time you get close to me or subtly flirt or compliment me or do anything when we’re alone, I get so bashful, I have to find a way to leave immediately,” You confess completely. “But seeing as I can’t leave mid-cook session, I’m . . . agh. I’m just . . .”

Reth’s lips are awkwardly pursed and his eyes are big. He didn’t exactly expect tonight to turn into a confession. He rarely ever saw you this vulnerable, maybe only once or twice. Right now, he can see how conflicted you feel, and hear your soft, deep breaths. He rescues you from the silence.

“Well. Um. I . . . honestly did not expect you to actually share any sort of feeling for me,” Reth suddenly confesses also.

Your eyes, once gazing to the floor, shoot up at him. “Wha — what?”

A soft laugh escapes his lips. “(Y/n), why do you think I act the way I do around you? You’re awesome; you’re so talented and so funny and so sweet and so tolerable of me, for some reason. Like, how could I not . . . y’know . . .”

Reth averts his eyes for a second then looks back with admiration. He sees your face swiftly display relief, which makes him relax too. You both stare at each other for a second, maybe a little too longingly too soon, but you didn't care. You feel the weight and tension graciously lift off your shoulders, as does Reth. The atmosphere feels light and airy, as if anything could happen, as if anything is possible right now.

“Why didn’t you just tell me, though? That I was making you feel like that?” Reth asks.

You lift a hand up before letting it fall back to your leg, as if to say ‘I don’t know.’

“I don’t really know what your stance on relationships is or whatever. Plus, we’re good friends, I wouldn’t wanna ruin it,” You frown.

Reth scoffs as if you said something completely nonsensical. “You really think that I’d just give you the boot? I mean, jeez, sweet tooth, I know I’m a career criminal, but I’m not heartless.”

You chuckle, “True.”

“Plus, I know for a fact that I’m not heartless because I feel the same tussle going on in my heart that you do,” He adds.

“Ah . . . you mean that?” You ask.

Reth’s eyes close halfway and he smirks. “I wouldn’t lie to you. Unless it was funny.”

You roll your eyes but smile widely. Your spirit feels so alive. Being so open with Reth about your feelings with him feels surreal, like a dream, especially due to his reciprocation. He was into you, too.

“Um . . . I’m still up to wine and dine over our fancy-schmancy sernuk,” Reth offers. “If you’d like that too, of course, you don’t have to — ”

You cut him off before he talked himself into a rabbit hole of doubt. “I’d love to.”

Reth processes your interruption, then smiles. “Ugh, you’re so amazing. Should we set up a table in the inn, then? I got fancy cutlery just for this special occasion!”

You laugh and nod your head. “Sure. I’ll keep you in check so nothing gets broken.”

“Ruuude,” Reth playfully drawls. “You’re probably right, though.”

-

The night ends with you and Reth chatting and laughing at a pristinely decorated table. There’s a luxurious tablecloth, folded napkins, shiny cutlery, and even an atmospheric candle between you two. Reth really goes all out to make this night seem like a high-class restaurant experience for you. You both have a cut of the cooked sernuk tenderloin on your porcelain plates. Although it wasn’t soup, Reth is obsessed with his meal. He is secretly proud of himself for how this night went. Reth managed to cook an excellent protein with you, somehow get a confession out of you that he reciprocated, and now he’s sitting across from you, watching you smile and laugh and enjoy the fruits of your labor. He could get used to seeing you so happy like this, but privately. Reth likes being alone with you, he realizes. You show him a side of you that you don’t show anyone else, and for some reason, it feels so right. He wants you to be that comfortable around him that you just let go and be yourself, he wants to be that safe space for you. Reth doesn’t know what the future holds, though. All he can do in this present moment is just laugh, crack jokes, and keep making your heart race for him.

[aticklishpercivalwriter]

Understanding Feelings

Tickletober 2024 - Day 3: Cleaning

Link(s) to Art: Kinich (@ToffyNarufy); Kazuha (@Genshin_7)

Summary: Kinich is jealous he can’t spend as much time with Aether compared to a certain Adeptus. Kazuha talks to him about it.

A/N: This took way longer than I wanted it to. I wasn’t sure how to describe everyone’s feelings in the poly ship and make it flow, but I made it work out in the end…to my liking at least. It isn’t easy writing with so many characters and considering how they love one another but I hope it comes off clear and to your liking. If you have any suggestions on how to write poly ships and all that, let me know. Even though it is self-indulgent, I want to do it right. On another note, hopefully, I did these two justice since I haven’t seen much fan work of them. Kinda nervous when you write a ship that’s not established or recognized in the fandom. Nonetheless, hope you enjoy this one :)

Word Count: 1656 Also on AO3!

—

“Well, that’s not edible.”

Kazuha, Sethos, and Kinich stared at the smoking pan that held what was supposed to be the pumpkin pie but was now a scorched, black waste.

“And more like a pile of garbage.”

Sethos and Kazuha eyed Kinich with an amused look.

“You're starting to sound like Ajaw. Are you sure he hasn't taken over your body?”

“I'm myself, don’t worry.”

Sethos went to open the window to get rid of the residual smoke while Kinich threw the contents of the pan in the trash.

“I’ll get the ingredients and stuff to bake a new one,” Sethos says. “You both can clean the kitchen.”

Before either of them could say anything, Sethos was out of the house.

“He's just like Gaming, always ready to help out,” Kazuha chuckled.

He looked over in the dining room and saw Gaming and Heizou hanging up the decorations. Heizou sitting on his shoulders putting up the decorations.

Gahahaming! Dohohon't squeeze my thihighs lihihike thahahat! I’ll fahahahall!

I’ll stop once you finish, so just work faster~

“Kaz, we got cleaning to do,” Kinich called out to him.

“Oh, right.”

Kinich was already running the water at the sink and soaping the dishes and utensils that were already inside.

“Can you grab whatever is left on the counter and put them here?” Kinich called over his shoulder.

Kazuha hummed in response, gathering the stuff that needed to be washed and placing them beside Kinich.

“Thanks.”

“No problem.”

Kazuha took whatever was dry from the drying rack and put them away before returning and wrapping his arms around Kinich’s waist and setting his chin on his shoulder, placing a kiss on his neck before humming a tune.

Kinich maintained his composure at the sudden affection and ticklish feeling that was starting to spread across his neck. Goosebumps rose on his neck and a smile he couldn't hold back appeared on his face. Unbeknownst to Kinich, Kazuha caught sight of it from the reflection on the window and grinned.

“What is that tune you're humming?” Kinich asks him, after a few moments of tranquility.

“Since fall is here and there are leaves around, it's my specialty to come up with something to accompany them and it's this.”

“Elegant as always, aren't you?”

“It all comes naturally to me.”

Another peaceful silence hangs over them before Kazuha breaks it with a question.

“How do you like it? Being with us I mean.”

“It's nice,” Kinich answers, turning off the water and thinking. “I never thought that loving Aether would bring me to meet you and everyone else. Though…”

An expression quickly flashes across his face, too fast for Kazuha to make out what it is.

“Though what?”

“Is Xiao usually by Aether's side all the time?”

Kazuha raises his eyebrows in surprise.

“Now that you mention it, he usually is. Aether and Xiao have been through a lot together and he has softened up as Aether became the shining light in his heart. Xiao promised him that he should call out his name if he needs anything and he will appear right by his side no matter what.”

“Oh.”

Kinich felt a tug at his heart as he remembered what he told Aether before.

“For you, I'll do anything, Aether.”

He clasped his hands in his before leaning forward and letting their lips connect into a passionate kiss.

Kazuha eyed the troubled look in his eyes, now understanding. Jealousy. He's seen it many times and has felt it too when he wanted to be with Aether and seeing him with one of their lovers (he loves his other lovers, don't get him wrong), he can't help feeling jealous in wanting Aether all to himself for some private time. He knows how it feels.

But he couldn't help but tease him a bit, a smirk making its way on his face as he nibbled his ears making him let out a surprised yelp and out of his thoughts.

“Is the great, ‘Malipo’ Kinich jealous?” he teasingly whispers.

Kinich gasps before turning and trying to glare at him, willing the smile on his face away.

“I'm not jealous.”

“Yes, you are.”

“I'm- AHAHAHAHA!”

Kinich threw his head back in surprised laughter when Kazuha blew a raspberry on his neck.

“What was that? I couldn't hear you over your laughter~” Kazuha blew another one, stealing a kiss from his lips too.

“MmphehaHAHaHA! Ihihi tohohold youhuhu I'm nohohot jehehealous! LEhehet gohoho!”

“I don't believe you. It's okay to say you're jealous y'know.”

“I'm nohohot jealous of ahahany-! Wait! WahAHAIT! Kahahazuhuhu! Dohohon't gohoho thehehere!” he panicked, feeling Kazuha's fingers starting to crawl up to his upper sides and ribs.

“Hmm?” Kazuha hummed innocently as his hands continued to slowly travel upwards.

“K-Kahazuhaha! Plehehease! Dohohon't dohoho ihihit!”

Kazuha never heard Kinich be so frantic before as he desperately tried to tug at his wrists and shake him off.

“Do you want me to stop?” Kazuha asks, slowing down with concern laced in his voice.

Kinich just looks away in response as the last of his giggles fade.

“Kinich? Was it too much? I’m sorry. I-”

“No, it’s fine I…”

Kazuha looks at his face and beyond the red hue from laughing, he sees a subtle blush dusting his face and the tips of his ears.

“It’s just I’m too…t-ticklish…”

A silence settles upon them and the longer it stretches his blush intensifies.

“K-KazuHAHAHAHA?!”

Kinich squeals as he feels fingers dart upwards and pinch his upper ribs and massage his sides, crumbling between the sink and his boyfriend.

“Is the great, ‘Malipo’ Kinich jealous and extremely ticklish?”

“NAHAHAHAT THEHEHERE! KAHAHAHAZ!”

He hides his laughing face in his hands as he leans on the edge of the sink for support.

“Oh Kimchi~ You are adorable~”

“IHIHI’M NOHOHOT A PIEHEHECE OF FOHOHOOD! AHAHAHAHA! OHOHOR ADORABLEHEHEHE!”

“I think otherwise, Kinichi~”

Kazuha starts nibbling his neck and makes nom nom noises along with kneading his ribs and sides.

“Om-nom-nom, so tasty~”

Kinich loses it, shaking his head to try and throw him off

“GAHAHAHAHA! NOHOHOHO MOREHEHEHE KAHAHAZUHAHAHA! HAHAHAHA!”

“Just say the words, Kin~”

“OKAY! OKAHAHAHAY! I’M JEALOUS OF XIAHAHAHAO! I SAHAHAID IHIHIT! PLEHEHEHASE! STAHAHAHAP! KAHAHAZ!”

Kinich slides down to the floor in exhaustion as Kazuha lets him, thinking it's over before gasping and letting out an undignified whine when he feels him straddling him. Kazuha took in his form, flushed face with tears of mirth threatening to fall. Giggles slipping out of him unrestrained as he weakly tries to push him off.

Archons, he's adorable looking like this.

He starts tickling him again, rubbing deep circles on his worst spot and Kinich howls in laughter and thrashes as much as he is allowed to.

“BWAHAHAHAHA! KAHAHAZUHUHU! IHIHIHIT’S TOHOHOHOO MUCH! NAHAHAHAHA!”

“Tell me you are adorable, and I'll finally stop.”

“NOHOHO WAHAHAY! I'M NOHOHOT SAHAHAYING THAHAT!”

“I’ll say it for you then,” he gets close to his ear, not slowing down the tickling. “You're so cute laughing like this, Kinichi~ Your beautiful laughter is music to my ears.”

Kinich is beyond flustered and swears he feels more ticklish as Kazuha continues to compliment him.

“WAHAHAHAIT! DOHOHON'T SAHAHAY THOHOHOSE THIHIHINGS!”

“Look at that blushing face. You like this huh? You're an adorable, ticklish one aren't you~”

“KAHAHAZHUHUHAHAHA! STAHAHAP IHIHIT! FIHIHINE! I'M ADORAHAHAHABLE! I'M ADORABLEHEHE! PLEHEHEASE! MEHEHERCY!”

Kazuha slowed down, nibbling his ears affectionately before kissing him and taking his breath away.

“Wasn’t that hard, was it?”

“Whahahatehever. You're cruel, you know thahat?”

Kazuha laughs, carrying him up and setting him on a chair by the counter, and grabbing two cups of water before sitting beside him.

“Back to what we were talking about before,” he says like he didn't tickle him to death a moment ago.

Kinich snorted, taking a sip from his cup.

“What?”

“You almost killed me with tickles, and you talk as if it was nothing. Ajaw would’ve been proud of you if you actually killed me through such means.”

“Oh, come on. You know I wouldn't kill you. Besides, you looked like you were enjoying yourself~”

Kinich blushed, hiding behind his cup.

“Can you stop teasing me?”

Kazuha chuckles.

“Okay. Okay. I'll stop. What I was about to say is that it's okay to be jealous.”

Kinich looks at him over his cup in surprise.

“Why do you say that?” he asks, setting down his cup.

“Believe it or not, I get jealous too. And the others too. We all want to be with Aether and spend alone time with him.”

“Oh. I never thought that you all would be jealous. I thought it was just me.”

“You’re not alone. We all want a piece of our small ball of sunshine, but we respect each other’s desires and who we want to be with. For example, if I’m not with Aether, I’m with Heizou, Scara, you, or one of the others. It’s really all about sharing each other with one another.”

“I see.”

“Yeah. Don’t stress about it. Besides, Aether somehow always makes time for each one of us and we all love him for that.”

“…Thank you, Kaz.”

“Who’s ready to make pumpkin pie? Take two this time.”

Sethos strides in with all the ingredients and necessary cookware with a grin on his face as he sets them on the counter in front of them.

“Right on time, Seth,” Kazuha says, rising from his chair and then looking at Kinich he says, “We all love you, Kin. Especially Aether, don’t forget that.”

He then moves close to his ear, whispering, “And how can we not love your adorable blush and cute laugh~”

Kinich looks away as another blush starts taking over his face.

“S-Shut up.”

“What did you say to him, Kazuha? His face is like a tomato. It’s pretty cute.”

“Ugh,” Kinich groans, covering his face in his hands making them both laugh.

“Okay, that’s enough teasing for now. Let’s bake that pie now, shall we?”

“Yup!”

“Mhm.”

—

Thank you for reading! :) -Perz ~Risus Amoris~

[kinardsevan]

30 day fluff prompt: day 8

comfort food

It’s been a shit day when Tommy comes through the door. Every fire he’s been sent out on has been a loss, the one rescue he was sent to ended in a loss, and his shift had ended in a stripping down after his captain had been less than pleased with him for trying—admittedly very riskily—to go the extra mile to make a save on the side of a mountain. 

He really doesn’t want to talk about anything when he gets there. He isn’t even all that interested in having one-on-one time with Evan, mostly just wants to crawl into bed and forget the past twenty-four hours. But as he clomps into the kitchen, fully intent on just going into the bedroom without another word, the smell hits him. He’s stopped in his tracks two feet inside the room as Evan stands back up from the oven, pulling the main course out. 

“You made dinner,” Tommy rasps, his throat tight. 

Evan glances up at him and nods as he places the pan on the stove, reaches up to turn the oven off. 

“I saw the news,” he replies as he reaches behind himself to untie his apron. He pulls collar over his head and hangs it up before walking over to Tommy and kissing his cheek. “Figured after a day like today, you might need some comfort food.” 

Tommy sighs, leans into him with his eyes closed for a beat. They’d texted a few times earlier in the day with his previous calls, but he didn’t know that the woman on the mountain had made the news. 

“Today fucking sucked,” he murmurs as Evan runs a hand through his hair, massaging his scalp lightly. 

Evan nods, pulling him in tightly. Tommy accepts the hug, letting out a long breath as he lets the safety of Evan’s love envelope him. 

“I know,” Evan murmurs back to him. “You tell me when you’re ready.” 

Tommy nods, and closes his eyes, content to just stand there for a few minutes. Between the feeling of Evan’s hands on his head and back, and the thumping of his heartbeat, it helps ground him. 

When he finally steps back, it’s only because his stomach has started to growl. 

“Think you can get through some dinner,” Evan asks, his hand still on the back of Tommy’s head. Tommy nods, leaning over to kiss his cheek. They part a moment later, and Evan grabs the pan off the stove with an oven mitt and walks it over to the table, settling it on a cooling rack. Tommy joins him at the table, sitting down as Evan portions them out each a plate with the main course and sides. Once he’s done, he sits down next to Tommy. They both eat quietly for a bit, otherwise quiet other than Evan’s toes running gently along the side of Tommy’s calf. It isn’t until Tommy pauses to take a drink that he finally speaks. 

“Thank you,” he murmurs, as he settles his glass back down on the table. “For making my mom’s meatloaf.” 

[laundryandtaxesworld]

I would like a romantic cuddle (maybe some kissing or petting) for Tevan after a long shift. I want Buck to take care of Tommy and spoil him 🥺 thank you 💕

Tommy sighed as he slotted his key into the door. His joints ached from his forty-eight hour shift. Evan had texted him earlier that he was going to start dinner when he got home from the grocery store, but judging by the lights off, he must still be at the store.

He glanced at his phone, 7: 30 pm. His last text still sitting on his lock screen. Evan: Going to the store to grab stuff for dinner, see you when you get home. 1hr

Tommy sighed as he pushed the door open, he probably got stuck in traffic. LA traffic is always terrible, but it’s a bitch to get through on a Friday evening. Tommy flipped the light switch illuminating the hallway. A coat rack which started to hang heavier coats as well as the pile of shoes on the floor they claim is a shoe rack.

Tommy kicked off his shoes, hung his jacket and grabbed his duffel bag. He dropped the bag by the washing machine as he unloaded his clothes and put the cycle on wash.

Tommy ran up to the bathroom, he stripped his dirty clothes and was met with the welcoming arms of the warm water. His eyes closed as he scrubbed his body, face and quickly washed his hair. As Tommy stepped out of the shower and drying off, he heard the door open.

“Hey, baby.” Evan startled and looked up the stairs. There Tommy was looking like a greek god, with a towel slung low on his hips and another running through his wet hair. “Tommy! When did you get here?” Evan asked as he shifted the grocery bags in his arms. “Not too long. Did you get stuck in traffic?” “Yeah, I meant to go earlier, but I got sidetracked.” Evan paused. “I wanted to have dinner ready for when you got home.” Tommy smiled as he looked down at Evan with his big puppy dog eyes. “It’s okay, babe. I’m just glad you’re home.” Evan’s face lit up. “I’ll get dinner started.” Tommy shook his hair like a wet dog and went into the bedroom to change into grey sweats.

•••

Buck hummed as he unloaded the groceries. He maybe hadn’t beat Tommy home and surprised him with dinner, but he could make sure that dinner was delicious. He pulled out pots and pans and got started. After awhile Buck felt eyes staring at the back of head. He turned around from the stove and there was Tommy, shirtless, low grey sweats on his hips and damp hair making his curls pronounced.

“Hey, baby. Dinners almost done.” “Smells delicious, what are you making?” “Chicken Parmesan.” Buck heard Tommy saunter into the kitchen and felt arms wrapped around his stomach. “Yummy.” Buck turned his head and pecked Tommy on the lips. “Can’t wait for you to try it,” Buck said as he pulled away, “it’s a new recipe.” “I can’t wait either.”

Tommy grabbed plates from the cabinet and set it on the kitchen table. Buck turned off the stove and put the pot of pasta and pan of chicken on hot pads in the middle of the table.

The table fell into a comfortable silence as they ate their food. “How was your shift?” “It was fine, no big catastrophes. I got to save a few cats out of trees!” “Were they difficult?” “One was a mean one but the rest were sweethearts.”

•••

As Tommy started the dish washer, he groaned as his back muscles spasmed. “Babe are you okay?” Evan called from the living room. “Yeah, my back just hurts.” Evan looked up from the couch as Tommy hobbled into the living room. “Come here, baby.” Tommy sat down next to Evan, who sat behind Tommy and started to give him a back massage. “This feel good?” Tommy just sighed and nodded. Evan smiled as he pressed kisses on Tommy’s shoulder.

“I love you,” Tommy whispered. “I love you too,” Evan whispered into Tommy’s shoulder.

here you go! i hope you enjoy it. i had a lot of fun writing this and making them happy.

[mikalei]

————————— Murder in My Mind +18

Killer!Husband!Scaramouche x Fem!reader

Modern AU

Synopsis: your work as a detective was never easy; you have been assigned to another murder case and was tasked to find and apprehend this killer, but what if it was someone you never expected—what if it was someone closer to you than you think…

tw: ya’ll thought it was fluff at first but it’s not lol, eventual smut, mentions of death, killings, knife, blood, violence, psychotic behavior, weird obsessive behavior,; contains: sexual activity, vaginal sex, oral sex, creampie, vaginal fingering, shower sex, rough sex, marking, biting, tit sucking, cunnilingus, and many more!..

cw: no use of Y/n, implied female reader, Scara calls reader “darling, my love,gorgeous, and my wife”, Scara is secretly a psycho but we still love him, not proofread.

part ii: prev ; masterlist ; ??

A/n: based on a c.ai bot made by Haniyyah (click hyperlink to visit their tt page, don’t forget to follow them!). If you’re reading this, I love how you write your bots. The prompt and idea was all from their Killer Scaramouche bot, this fic is based solely on what I encounter while using it. (Also I didn’t add the twins part in this story, I don’t want traumatised childrens on my fic just yet). Also sorry if there are any grammatical mistakes, I haven’t written anything for 2 years, I’m still getting the hang of it.

I woke up at the the smell of freshly brewed coffee coming from outside of the bedroom, it took me a second until I come to my senses and realize the event that happened when I got back from work, blood rushed to my cheeks as I now notice a red hand print on my waist and thighs.

“jesus christ, does he really need to be so rough to me during sex?“ I thought to myself. As I examine myself more, I just realized that I’m still naked. I look for something to cover my body, I’m not really in the mood to put some clothes on but I can’t just walk around butt naked in my house.

Soon, I successfully grabbed one of my husband’s black hoodie after limping towards his drawer—due to how sore my legs are after what happened, and put it on after looking for a fresh pair of panties.

I looked at the clock in our room as it states that it is already an hour past twelve. “Good thing that today’s my day off.”. I then head to the kitchen, still limping to which I assume where my husband is and I was right. There he was shirtless, wearing only his gray sweatpants and and apron as he puts some bacon into the pan.

His toned back is facing towards me he seem to be focused on the food that he is cooking. I just stand there, leaning on the table for support since I have a hard time walking let alone standing up. As I admire his body, I start to notice the red scratch marks he has on his back.

“Did I do that? Holy hell, that must sting so bad…” I thought to myself once again when I got interrupted by Scara speaking.

“My love, if you keep staring at me I might just melt” he chuckles as he turn off the stove and put the bacon and coffee on the table. He took off the apron he is wearing and hang it to the rack, before walking to me, pulling me in for a hug.

“Good afternoon, darling. I just woke up a few hours ago” he said as he kissed my forehead. I buried my head on to his neck as I lean in more to the hug. Being with him really gives me a sense of comfort. “You smell like bacon” I mumble to him to which makes him chuckle.

He picked up the chair that’s tucked in the table and let me sit there before pushing it closer back to the table ,then sitting on the chair across mine. We start to eat the breakfast he served.

While eating, he decided to spoke up once again. “Oh by the way, Hun, your boss was calling you earlier, but you’re still asleep and won’t wake up even with how irritating your phone’s ringtone is” he said the last part jokingly, to which I act like I was offended but then laughed it off. “My boss? You mean my manager?” I asked. “Not sure, I think the caller’s id was Gunnhildr?” He said as he take a sip of his coffee.

“Huh? That’s weird she won’t usually call me directly, most of the time she’ll just contact our manager if ever she wants to relay a message to me” I said as I look for my phone. I opened the contacts and listen to the voicemail her assistant left.

“Hello, this is President Gunnhildr’s office, I’m sorry to inform you that the head of your department has unfortunately passed away, his body was seen in an alley way near a bar and another detective is handling the case right now. The president wanted to offer her condolences to his family, friends and co-workers. She understand that you may also be grieving at his death so she’ll let you take some time off to properly grieve at his loss, as we look for someone who will take his place. We’ll keep you updated if we found a new replacement for him.”

The voicemail then ends, as I feel my blood run cold from the news I received. Scara looks at me concerned about what happened. He reached out his hands to hold mine to grab my attention. “Baby? What’s wrong? You’ve gone pale. Is everything alright at work?” Scara looks so concerned, he stood up from his seat and hugged me from behind.

“Remember the manager I was talking about last night? He was found dead in an alleyway earlier this morning…” I whispered, almost like there was something blocking my throat that stops me from speaking in a normal voice.

“Oh my… I’m sorry to hear that my love, it must be so devastating.” Scara turned me around so I can hug him too. But while I was nestling my face at the crook of his neck, a satisfied smirk in planted on husband’s face. Hearing about his work makes him so happy, and he knows deep down, you also feel some sort of relief knowing that there’s no one going to harass you on your work any longer.

Scara cleared his throat before breaking the hug. “So…uhm, what else did the voicemail said? Do you have to go to work today? Did they assign you to more work?” Scaramouche switches back to an empathetic look as he cups my cheeks on his large hands.

“No, my boss said that I can take a few days break because of what happened.” And with that my husband’s face almost lit up. He was again wearing that same dorky grin he has when he wants to do something he has in mind.

“What’s with that face?” I looked at him as he continues to wear a wide grin. “You know… I remembered we haven’t got the time to celebrate our wedding anniversary a few weeks ago because you’re always busy…” He implies, “…and I have been saving up for this really fancy date on a fancy private beach house that I rented on a fancy island…”

My eyes went wide when I heard what he had done. “You what?! Are you serious?!” The thought of my manager’s death instantly left my mind. “How long have you’ve been planning this?” I was still shocked at how he managed to those things, not that it’s the first time that we went on a fancy date but what he just said is way more fancier than the dates we used to have.

“I’ve been making all the arrangements for more than a month ago and coincidentally, the beach house is available right now and I’ve already bought the plane tickets for the both of us.” By this time I was speechless, how could he do all of this in such a short notice? I was just staring at him, mouth slightly open and still shocked with all of this.

“Why aren’t you saying anything? Did you not like it?” He asked, I can sense him pouting already. “No no no, I was just…surprised… wow, I mean, you really did all of that?” He just gave me a nod and I just swooned over him. I pressed a ton of kisses around his face while muttering “i love you so much” and “you’re amazing”

Scara just chuckled at my reaction “glad you like it, now the trip last for 5 days, and we can get on a flight tomorrow evening, why don’t we prepare today, maybe buy something for the trip?” He suggested, to which I agree. I almost ran to our bedroom to get change when I remembered that my body is still aching from last time.

My husband just looks at me with a smirk, “oh what’s the problem darling? Can’t walk properly” he teased as he now take in the sight in front of him: red marks are plastered all over my neck down to the cleavage of my breast. He looks so proud at his work before a playfully hit him. “You did this” I said to which he only reply with a chuckle, “and I will do it again” he smirked as he picked me up in a bridal style as he walk to our bedroom.

A few moments later, after we finally got dressed, we head on to the mall to buy the stuff we need. As we are walking, browsing from store to store, one had caught my attention. The lingerie shop. I grinned as a fun thought came to mind.

“Oh shoot, babe I think I left my phone at the car, can you go and get it for me? My shopping list is on my notes” It was a lame excuse but knowing my husband for more than eight years and being married to him for three, he will definitely do what I’ll ask even if it doesn’t make sense. Of course I would do the same for him.

“Ok, wait for here, I’ll be back shortly” he left after leaving a kiss on my cheeks. Once he has fade in the crowd, I immediately walked in to the shop.

I look in between the aisles, searching for something that will definitely surprise my husband, and indeed I saw the perfect one, this is way different than the ones I buy but since my dear husband made so much effort for this vacation, I ought to repay his kindness right? I giggle to myself as I pay for the lingerie. I hid it in my purse so he wont see it. It’ll be my gift for him once we arrived at the vacation.

After a few moments, I called Scara over the phone, I have it with me all these time, though I feel guilty for making him run to the car and look for my phone but again I’ll repay his efforts later.

After explaining to him that the phone was actually in my bag, and apologizing to him, he came back to the mall and we went on and buying the stuff we need.

Once we got back home, we started packing our things and soon get ready for bed. I was brushing my teeth at the bathroom’s sink when I felt a pair of arms wrapped around my waist, I looked at the reflection in the mirror to see my husband is clinging onto me.

“Yes? May I help you” I asked but all I can hear was mumbling as he hid his face in the crook of my neck. I finished brushing my teeth and that’s when my husband decided to start trailing kisses on my neck. Soon he found the spot that makes my legs quiver and starts to abuse it.

“Hun…you’re gonna leave a mark again-ah!” I squeal, his hands is now groping my breast—I wasn’t wearing any bra now since we were about to sleep. He is playing with my now hardened nipples through my shirt as he continues to suck on my skin.

“What has gotten-nggh hah- into you?” I tried to speak but he just continue his ministrations getting harsher and harsher each second. I’m starting not too like this. “Scara…scara…stop!” And just then he finally listened to me. I looked at him confusedly. “ ‘m sorry darling, I-I just…” he kept silent, he looks down at his feet before leaving the bathroom after giving me a kiss on the cheeks.

Now I felt bad, he looks so sad after I stopped him. I don’t usually mind it when he suddenly does something like that but somehow tonight was different. I finished preparing for bed, I saw a newly placed red mark over the hickeys that he also gave me from our last intimate moment. I went to our shared bedroom. There I saw him, sitting at the edge of the bed, his head still hung low.

I slowly approach him and sat next to him, I put a hand on his back and when I saw him flinch from my touch, I felt like my heart drops to my stomach. “Oh, darling… look I’m sorry about earlier… I was just stressed, my boss told me I need to go to work tomorrow even if I already told them we’re going to a vacation. You know how busy I’ll get when I’m at work and I might go home very late and I don’t want to miss our flight tomorrow night.” He kept rambling to me as I listen to him.

After he stops, I just pulled him into a hug “hey, it’s okay. You can go to work tomorrow, I don’t really mind.” He tightens the hugs as he puts his head again on my shoulder. “But our vacation, I planned the whole thing and you rarely have time for vacation, this is a once in a lifetime chance!” He rambles, “hey hey it’s okay, I’m okay with it my love. If it’s an urgent matter then you should go.” I said as I pulled away from the hug.

He still looks so stressed over his work so I decided to distract him. I pulled him once again for a kiss, a long passionate one. He was surprised at first but soon he returned the kiss, although he is still quite tense as I climbed on his lap.

“B-but… I thought… you don’t want to-mmph” he said as he tried to pull away from the kiss. “Shh, just relax. Do you want to do this?” I asked him, he stopped for a moment before giving me a small nod. “Words my dear, use your words” I lift his chin to make him look directly into my eyes, he looks so desperate. I can already feel his cock going hard under me-almost feels like he’s not wearing anything under his shorts.

“Yes, please~” he whines, I immediately crash my lips back to his as I slowly grind on his hardened dick while his hands are placed on my waist. I move my kisses to trace his jawlines down to his throat, as I start to suck on his neck, he kept whimpering. My mind was set on pleasuring him tonight, making sure he is free from any stress.

“D-darling nggh~” He released a loud moan as I start to palm his cock through his damp shorts, now I’m 100% sure he doesn’t wear anything under his shorts as his shorts is now wet with his pre-cum. “Yes yes, just relax baby~ I’ll take care of you tonight. Let me take away all your stress.” I stepped down from his lap and kneel in between his legs. He looks at me with desperation and lust on his eyes.

I trail kisses on his clothed bulge, before pulling down his shorts and freeing his cock that hits his belly. He takes a sharp breathe when I start to pump his dick. I start giving the tip a few licks before taking half of his dick in my mouth. His head was immediately thrown back when I started sucking him, his hand is tangled on my hair, pulling it up like a ponytail before trying to push my head down to take all of him.

I looked up at him as he breathe heavily while moaning my name, I can see his eyes roll back every time I bobbed my head down. “Darling-hah oh yes! God you’re mouth feels so great mhmp” he whines more, I feel his dick start twitching in my mouth indicating that he’s close. He is now thrusting his hips to gain more friction, fucking his dick in to the back of my throat, he is already lost in the pleasure as I feel the wetness dripping from my cunt.

“Shit shit shit-aah fuck! ‘m coming! Can I come in your-hah mouth d-darling?” He said to which I just bobbed my head faster, chasing his high. Soon, he cums down my throat with a loud moan while pushing my head deeper, his dick is hitting the back of my throat as he releases more of his load.

After finally calming down from his high, he pulls out his dick from my mouth. He looks at me while he holds my cheek with one hand, I swallowed his cum and pulls out my tongue to show him. He just smiled at me and help me stand up.

Just as he thought I was finished, I pulled down my panties, before sitting down back on his lap and grinds on his cock once again. “Shit…” I muttered as the tip of his dick grind on my clit. I adjusted myself before inserting his dick inside me, which made him moan once again.

“Oh fuck! So good~” I moaned as I felt his cock hit the spot that makes me see stars. I started to ride him slowly, bouncing on him as his hands are on my hips, guiding me. “Mmhm i love you-hah, i love you so much… my darling wife hnngh” he kept whimpering as he now controls the pace, thrusting his hips harder as he makes me ride him.

I pulled him once again to a kiss, my hand is on his shoulder for support while the other one is tugging on his hair, which makes him whimper in to the kiss. “I love you so much… baby~ aahh nghh” I couldn’t help but feel the ecstasy overflowing me as he kept pounding on that same spot. Sooner or later, we both ended up cumming on the same time, before laying down on the bed. He still hasn’t pulled out yet as some of his come drips down my thighs.

We are both breathing heavily, we pulled each other for one last kiss before sleep engulf us.

Extra notes!:

Another part done! First, I’d like to apologize for not uploading earlier, our vacation started last week but there are still a lot of things we had to do, especially the preparation for our recognition that happens today (I was one of the honor students so yay!). Secondly, this part might seem rushed especially the smut scene, don’t worry, I will get back at the next part. Lastly, I still don’t know how I will end this story, I don’t really have a story board for this, I just wrote it after I enjoyed the c.ai bot version of this. So I’m not sure how much part this will have.

Oh and also I’m accepting request, I still don’t have any rules regarding it, but you can still send in your requests already, I’m fine with writing whatever you want as long as it doesn’t mention incest, underage sex, or any particular trauma like SA.

[thatssomuchlove]

Fic-o-Ween Day 1

For Fic-o-Ween 2024 put on by @noots-fic-fests! All characters by @lumosinlove

The first (and hopefully not only) chapter inspired by the Mafia AU invented on the Hazelnoot discord server:

Sitting on the couch in his apartment living room, Leo was interrupted from struggling not to let his eyes skip lines during a very suspenseful moment in his book when he heard a loud crash from the kitchen. He jumped up and swung around the door jam to see all his nice pans on the floor…again.

His roommate looked up at him with wide eyes from where he stood by the coffee maker, “I swear I didn’t touch it!”

Leo sighed, “It’s not your fault, Finn. That rack keeps falling down because apparently these wall anchors do not hold their advertised weight!” He huffed. The cabinet space in their tiny New York apartment was abysmal, so hanging up his pans like they do in those fancy kitchens with marble counters or copper detailing seemed like the best option.

“Could also be these shitty walls,” Finn chirped and tapped the wall behind him.

“Yeah, that too,” Leo returned Finn’s grin and could tell he was also thinking about how well they can hear the music from the online Zumba class that one of their neighbors attends religiously. “I’m just going to have to get a stud finder at the hardware store. You have a drill, right?” Finn grimaced and shook his head. “Then a drill set, too.”

Finn clapped a hand on his shoulder as he brushed by with his travel mug, “I would offer to go with, but I’m headed into the office.”

“What? Finn, it’s Saturday.”

“A journalist never rests!” And he was out the door.

Leo looked at the small tear through the dry wall from the anchor being ripped out forcefully and sighed again. He stacked his pans on a clear spot on the counter and went to collect what he needed for a walk to the hardware store.

~

The bell on the door jingled overhead as Leo entered the shop. The closest one he could find on maps seemed to be a family-run place without much information on the page at all—just the open hours and a handful of reviews, no website or pictures of the inside. Leo would have to agree with kathybee309, it was surprisingly warm and inviting as soon as he stepped inside. He couldn’t see the check-out counter from the door, but clear, handwritten indices at each aisle directed Leo to the stud finders. He was holding two options in his hands, trying to think of a reason he shouldn’t just get the cheapest one, when a soft voice spoke up to his right.

“Are you finding everything you need?”

Leo noted an accent and looked up quickly only to almost drop what he was holding. The employee that spoke to him was decently shorter than him and had a combination of curly chocolate hair, bright green eyes, and prominent muscles—truly the way his heavy apron cinched around his waist and barely covered the width his denim-wrapped thighs was criminal—that had Leo a bit weak at the knees. “Umm, hi, yeah I think I’m um good,” he stammered. “Just,” a nervous laugh, “trying to decide.” Leo held up the stud finders and tried to make his smile friendly and not as painfully awkward as he currently felt.

The store employee walked closer to him and examined the options in his hands before meeting his eyes again. At this distance Leo could read his nametag: Logan. “What are you working on?”

“Oh, I’m just trying to hang up my pans. The darn wall rack keeps falling out, so I decided to go a little more heavy duty than dry wall anchors.” He held up one of the stud finders and tried to joke, “need some studs.” Logan gave him a smile, small and breathtaking.

“Well, they’ll both work for that, but this simpler one should be sufficient,” Logan tapped his finger on the cheaper one. Yeah, Leo would say that they were working just fine considering the person in front of him. “Is that all?”

“Yep,” Leo nodded, no thoughts in his brain.

“Trés bon, you can follow me back to check out.” Logan jerked his head back the way he had come and started down the aisle. Leo hurriedly put the other stud finder back and trailed after Logan, almost tripping when he noticed the way his ass moved in those tight jeans. He kept his eyes fixed on the back of Logan’s head for the rest of the short walk to the register.

It wasn’t until Leo had closed his apartment door behind him that he realized that he completely forgot about the drill. He leaned against the door and cursed quietly. At least this time he would be prepared for the hardware store hottie and maybe not make quite as big of a fool out of himself.

~

He had decided to give it a day, with the hope that Logan would not be working so that he could avoid further embarrassment. The other half of his brain really wanted to see the hot employee again, convinced that this time he would be able to successfully flirt.

“This is a terrible idea,” Leo murmured under his breath as he rounded the sidewalk and came upon the beautifully carved dark red-brown doors set into the corner of the building.

He beelined to the drill section upon entering and luckily didn’t have as much trouble choosing this time. He came from a Milwaukee household. His eyes bugged out a bit when he saw the prices, “Jesus, that’s expensive.” Good thing his new job paid pretty well.

“We actually have a sale going for those right now.” Leo jumped at the voice behind him and turned to see a familiar, unfairly handsome face.

“Logan, hi,” Leo recovered quickly and came to the conclusion that he would have been far more disappointed to not see Logan today.

“I feel a bit at a disadvantage with you knowing my name when I don’t know yours.”

“Oh lord, where are my manners? My name’s Leo,” and he reached out to shake Logan’s warm, callused hand. He couldn’t squash the urge to explain himself, “I realized yesterday that a stud finder is a little useless without a drill and screws .”

Logan turned to the opposite shelves and scanned them for a second before picking up a box of screws. “These should work well for dry wall and studs.”

Leo offered a winning smile, “What would I do without you?” and took the box from Logan, quite possibly deliberately brushing their fingers together.

Logan looked up at him for a beat too long before stepping back. He cleared his throat, “Just doing my job. Do you need anything else?”

After taking a quick survey of what was in his hands—drill, drill bits, screws—Leo responded, “nope,” and followed Logan to the counter. In effort to keep the conversation going as Logan was ringing him up, he commented, “the front doors are gorgeous.”

“Merci. That was a long project, but one of my favorites. I can’t stand painted front doors.”

Leo chuckled, “Neither can my mama.” He looked behind him in the direction of the front of the store, “I can’t believe you made them,” turning back to look at Logan again, “y- that’s incredible.”

He was rewarded with another small smile, but this one had a tinge of something sad, “Oh I didn’t do them on my own. I was mainly helping my father. This whole store was his passion project.”

“Hell of a successful passion project, I bet I’d be astonished to see what he could accomplish with his day job!”

Logan’s smile twisted confusingly wry, “His day job wasn’t as important to him,” then that same sadness again, “But we’ll never really know what all he could have done, he passed several years ago.”

Trying to temper his shame of talking with Logan about his dead father with the fact that Logan brought him up, Leo erased the shock off his face and brought one hand up to squeeze Logan’s shoulder, “I’m sure he feels at peace knowing you are carrying on the legacy of what he loved.”

“Well, he’s not the only legacy-carrier, are you Lo Bear?” a voice called, and a young woman emerged from the back. Leo dropped his hand. If he hadn’t already guessed that they were related from her statement, he would have known just by looking at her. They could have been twins, but her green eyes were piercing through him where Logan’s were a warm, solid weight.

Logan, with color on his cheeks, huffed, “Leo, this is my sister Noelle.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Noelle.”

“Likewise,” she cocked her head at him. “What brings you here this fine Sunday morning?”

“Oh, just trying to hang stuff up in my kitchen. Not enough cabinet space.”

“An eternal struggle in Gryffindor.”

Leo chuckled, “Yeah, I’m finding that out.”

“Did you move here recently?”

“Yes, actually I moved here only a few months ago.”

“For a job?”

Leo was starting to get slightly unnerved by the accuracy of her guesses but tried not to let it show, “yes ma’am.” Logan had finished putting his things into a bag and pushed it his way while glaring at his sister. He looked between the siblings for a second before politely saying, “well I’ll let y’all get back to work. It was nice to see you again, Logan.”

Logan turned back to him and his gaze softened, “come back any time, Leo.”

~

As soon as Logan heard the sound of the door swinging shut behind Leo, Noelle jumped up and hastily looked around the store, but it was empty. She turned back towards Logan, who furrowed his brows at her.

“Thank god I was here today. You need to be more careful, Lolo.”

“Quoi?” Logan looked around in confusion, “What are you talking about?”

“Are Jackson and Evgeni here?”

“Ouais, of course. What’s going on?” Logan’s eyes started darting around the store and his fingers gravitated towards the handgun strapped to the underside of the counter.

“Nothing right now.” Noelle flashed him a quick smirk, “I thought you were just flirting with a customer and wanted to come out and see, but then I got a good look at him. The tall blond cutie pie is not what he seems, he’s the newest detective on the Gryffindor police force.” At Logan’s wide eyes, she tacked on, “Ouais, the ones who would have us in handcuffs if they even so much as caught a whiff of what’s going on.”

“Merde,” Logan breathed out. While he wouldn’t have pegged Leo as a cop in a million years, he could see how his underlying air of quiet confidence would make him an effective detective. Still, he seemed too genuine to be at the shop secretly sniffing around for a case, and Logan had a good bullshit detector, “I will be more careful, Noelle, but I don’t think that’s why he was here.”

“I trust you, Logan, just don’t let that pretty smile blind you.” Noelle ruffled his hair and stepped back, “I’m gonna head back to Maman’s. I love you.”

“I love you too, Nolly.” Logan waved goodbye and waited until she was out of sight before he sat down with a loud exhale, running a hand through his hair.

He wished that knowing Leo was, in essence, his enemy had halted his fantasies about the man altogether, but it had unfortunately and predictably only intensified his desire. It was unusual for him to feel a connection with someone so quickly, without really knowing them at all, but Leo was special somehow, just like… Logan shook his head.

Why was such a seemingly sweet guy working for such a corrupt system? Why did Logan have the urge to trust him anyway? He opened his laptop and set to find out everything that he could about Leo, the new detective at GPD, for his family’s safety, of course.

[in-my-feels-probably]

MY HUSBAND CARMEN OMFG PLEAZE CARMEN X READER ALREADY IN A RELATIONSHIP AND IM JUST IMAGINING READER HAVING LIKE TJE WORST DAY POSSIBLE AND LIKE FUCKING EVERYTHING UP AT THE RESTAURANT AND JUSG LIKE PRACTICALLY IN TEARS BY THE END OF THEIR DAY AND CARMEN LIKE GIVES HER A MASSAGE AND TAKES CARE OF HER AND MAYBE LIKE SOME SWEET INTERACTIONS WITH THE OTHERS AT THE RESTAURANT IF IGS OKAY

Mishaps and Bear Hugs

Request: MY HUSBAND CARMEN OMFG PLEAZE CARMEN X READER ALREADY IN A RELATIONSHIP AND IM JUST IMAGINING READER HAVING LIKE TJE WORST DAY POSSIBLE AND LIKE FUCKING EVERYTHING UP AT THE RESTAURANT AND JUSG LIKE PRACTICALLY IN TEARS BY THE END OF THEIR DAY AND CARMEN LIKE GIVES HER A MASSAGE AND TAKES CARE OF HER AND MAYBE LIKE SOME SWEET INTERACTIONS WITH THE OTHERS AT THE RESTAURANT IF IGS OKAY

Hi! Sorry for the wait. I’m still getting used to writing Carmy’s character, so bear with me while I get the hang of it. Thank you for the request, this is a cute idea. I hope you enjoy it!

(Warnings: a shitty pun in the title, swearing, slight injury, a bad day, let me know if i missed anything)

—

“I’m gonna fucking kill Richie,” you said as you walked back into the kitchen, taking a deep breathe.

“You can’t kill him if he isn’t here,” Marcus called over as he loaded his trays of bread onto the racks.

“I’ll kill him tomorrow, then,” you said, walking over to Tina’s station. “Tina, I am begging you to work the register for a little bit. Richie called out, and I’m going to lose my mind if one more asshole walks in here and tries some shit. I’ll do your work for you, please—”

Tina laughed, putting her knife down. “Alright, alright, we can switch. You’re taking the heat if I slap someone, though.”

“Thank you, thank you,” you sighed in relief, pulling an apron over your head.

Tina nodded, walking through the kitchen doors and into the front of house.

You went back to Tina’s duties, chopping up the vegetables she hadn’t finished. You put a pot on the stove, turning on the burner. You added all the vegetables to the pot, looking around for any stock to boil them down in.

“Sydney, do you know where the stock is? I thought I brought it out this morning.”

“Walk-in, top shelf,” Marcus said, pointing. “Sorry, I thought you were done with it and I put it up.”

“That’s fine, thanks,” you sighed, going to the walk-in.

Of course it had to be on the top shelf. The one thing you needed, just out of reach. You stood on your toes, pulling it down. You managed to get it down off the shelf, but as you adjusted your grip on it when you turned to leave, the lid slipped and the container fell to the floor.

Luckily, the container didn’t turn over and spill. But it did send the stock spurting up at the impact, splashing you. Your apron took the brunt of the impact, but it still splashed up into your hair, coating your shoes.

You groaned, opened the door with your back and pushed through, the container now in your hands. “Marcus! When you put shit back, could you at least make sure the lid is on tight?”

Marcus took one look at you and stifled a laugh, biting his tongue. “Shit, I'm sorry. Need me to grab a towel?”

“Yes,” you muttered, returning to your vegetables.

As you looked in the bottom of the pan, you realized they had begun to blacken on the bottom from not having any liquid in the pot with them. You had taken too long with the stock, and now the vegetables were likely ruined and would need to be re-chopped and boiled.

You groaned, reaching for the handles of the pot to take it off the stove. When your hand touched the pot, it immediately singed your fingers, making you quickly retract them.

“Fuck!” You said, blowing on them to try and stop the heat of the burn. “God, that hurts.”

At all the commotion and the sound of your distressed voice, the door to Carmy’s office opened. He peeked his head out, only to see you standing by the stove, clutching your hand to your chest, fresh tears brewing in your eyes and threatening to fall.

“Hey,” he said softly, coming up to you and holding you by your shoulders. “What happened?”

You scoffed, nearly laughing with anger. What hadn’t happened? What hadn’t gone wrong?

“What happened? What happened is Richie didn’t show up to work, so I had to take his shift on the register. And then a man and his buddies came in and told me I was shit at my job because I couldn’t ring up their five hundred fucking sandwiches they ordered fast enough. So, Tina switched with me and I chopped up her vegetables she had left and put them in a pot. I was gonna boil them down in a stock, but the stock was on the top shelf in the walk-in. I got it down, but the lid wasn’t on tight enough, so it slipped when I got it down and splashed all over me and my hair and my shoes. I went to check the vegetables, and they had already burned to the bottom of the pot because I didn’t get the stock quick enough, so I went to pull the pot off the stove and burned the fuck out of my hand. I’m just having such a shit day, I can’t do anything right, I’m fucking it up for all of you—”

Carmy gently shushed you, taking the towel Marcus had brought over and wiping any stock he could see off of you.

“It’s fine, Y/N, it’s alright. It’s nothing we can’t fix. I don’t care about the stock, I care about that burn. Come with me, alright?”

You shook your head, groaning. “No, I made a mess and I need to clean it—“

Sydney interrupted you, already moving to fix the stock. “Go get your hand checked out, we’ve got this. It’s alright, really.”

“Sorry about the lid,” Marcus said, clapping you on the shoulder.

You shook your head, letting out a breath. “It’s fine. Thanks, guys.”

You let Carmy lead you into his office, staying quiet as he pulled out a first aid kit. He held your hand in his, turning it over to get a good look at the burn.

“It’s not bad. I’m gonna wrap it, though. Does it hurt?”

You shook your head. “It’s not that bad. It hurts less than my pride, that’s for sure.”

Carmy let out a chuckle as he wrapped your hand, finishing and moving his hand up to smooth over your hair. “You’ve got stock in your hair.”

You knew he was just teasing, and that he didn’t mean anything bad by it, but you could still feel tears well up again. Carmy sighed, pulling you into a hug. He let a hand rest on the back of your head, the other running up and down your back.

“Today fucking sucks,” you muttered into his shoulder. “I’m gonna kill Richie tomorrow.”

“Then who would work the register?” He joked, making you huff.

You pulled back, and Carmy brought a hand up to cup your cheek, wiping away some dried stock. He left his palm there, and you leaned into it, taking a deep breath.

“You’re alright, baby. Shitty day, I know. Tomorrow will be better.”

“That’s eerily optimistic coming from you,” you grinned, making Carmy smile.

“I didn’t say it would be better for me,” he said, bending down to put away the first aid kit. “But it’ll be better for you. Richie will be back, and you can yell at him tomorrow. I’ll put you with Marcus, he’s doing cakes tomorrow. You can help him, alright?”

You nodded, moving to wrap your arms around his waist. Your voice was quiet, defeated. “Thank you.”

Carmy pressed a kiss to the top of your head, wrapping his arms around your shoulders. He gently rocked you back and forth, and you could instantly feel yourself ease in his hold.

“You’re welcome, baby.”

—

A/N - Hi! Sorry this is a little short, I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks for the request!

[mintywolf]

A Long Road Home - Page 81

Page 81

Imogen’s outfit here came from some concept art I drew for a 1950s-themed Bells Hells cosplay.

(Which you can see in person on this post!)

The plant Imogen is using to stuff the mattress is lady’s bedstraw, which, as its name suggests, was traditionally used as mattress stuffing because of its vanilla-like scent and natural insect-repelling properties. (She is not actually stuffing fresh damp flowers into the mattress; there’s a desiccated pile of them next to her that she has dried out presumably with prestidigitation.)

The middle panel here was originally different and showed them settling into their new home:

Panel 3: Evening. There's a fire in the wood stove, now cleaned of rust. The loft is furnished with the straw mattress and the blankets and furs from their bedrolls. A sideways wooden box nailed to the wall forms a kitchen shelf on which are stacked a few dishes and cups. (NB every time we see the cups they have switched between being rightside-up and upside-down.) The washtub and some pots and pans hang on the walls. A table made of crates and boards holds a vase of colored leaves. There's a rag rug on the floor. Sitting by the fire, Laudna is sewing a quilt patch from odd fabric scraps she has collected, with Pâté and Calamari beside her. Imogen is stretched out nearby on the rug, reading. It's very cozy.

I even got as far as sketching it but I felt like I needed to address how the two most noodle-armed farm girls in Exandria managed to get the dead tree off the roof with their combined strength of 13. (As unfortunately it’s too early for Imogen to levitate it off using Telekinesis or Laudna to simply ask it to roll away with Animate Objects.)

My friend Snow and I brainstormed for a little bit and came up with using pulleys and levers, having a friendly monster carry it away, or just leaving it there and using it as a coat rack, but in the end I decided that Imogen’s lightning magic could probably break it into pieces with the least amount of visual explanation.

Laudna working on a quilt was meant to be a recurring visual motif throughout this chapter though so I will have to find a way to put that in later.

The underlying sketch of the last panel is REALLY old, it was from that unfinished comic I have mentioned before that I was channeling all of my frantic energy into between episodes 33 and 34. So long before they had any kind of established romantic interest in each other. They were just Like That.

It was late and by the time I was painting the interior objects I was too tired to create a new color palette so the rug is just the Southern Gothic server colors. ;)

[mae-gi-writes]

01. the note under your desk | minho (xo kitty)

”it all started with a note under her desk.”

genre: mentions of suicide, professional swimmer athlete! Minho x marine biology student! Reader (Nina Shim)

Thanks for reading <3 @myahwritesss @sparkysparking101 @suzzie63 @upsidedownjill @lovely-hao @lupinette @seoli-16 @rory-cakes

——— masterlist | 01. DEAR K. | NEXT ———

Everything sucks.

From the university, to the students that inhabit its walls, to the dining hall food that has nothing but salt to make up for its lack of taste, to the annoying jocks that keep partying every night, to the girls who can’t stop gossiping about who got laid first—

Yes. Nina Shim is convinced that everything sucks indeed.

Opening her door to her shared apartment dormitory, she catches sight of the stale pan that has been sitting over the stove for over two weeks, despite her reminder to her roommate this morning that this should be gone by the time she gets back. Nina sighs, pushing off her boots in one swift, clumsy motion before staggering over to the small kitchen island that makes up most of the kitchen space, grocery bags in hand her backpack still slung over her one shoulder.

October is almost over in Toronto and people have been hyping up the idea of Halloween since last week. As Nina puts away her stuff in the fridge, she takes note of the scattered pumpkin-coloured paper streamed across the couch, the paper-mache ghosts in a stack on the coffee table. Her roommate, as depressed as she states she is, is gearing up quite nicely for Halloween. Too bad she can’t be as excited to clean up her own flat space. Nina has been granted all of that in her stead.

And it isn’t that Nina wants to complain. She’s not one to, has a pretty high tolerance level if she says so herself. But the thing is, it’s starting to get on her nerves. She might not be as outgoing, as carefree, as Hanni is, but that doesn’t mean that she needs to clean up after the latter like a mother would do for her children.

She has a life, even if that extends to merely hanging out in the University Aquarium lab and checking in on the goldfish every now and then.

Her phone rings in the silent stillness of her flat. Nina quickly fishes it out from her back pocket, pressing the green call button before placing it at her ear, “hello?”

“Nina!” Her mother’s voice is so warm on the other end of the line. So warm that it makes Nina’s eyes sting with tears, “how are you doing?”

“I’m okay,” she forces the words, glad that her mother can’t see her face, for she would’ve read right through her like an open book. Instead, she puts away the remaining biscuits in the cupboard above her head, “and you? How’s dad? He’s feeling better?”

“Oh you know how he is, always so stubborn,” her mother sighs, “he doesn’t want to take his medicine! And then when he falls even sicker he complains like a baby! Aiya, sometimes I wish he would just stop making my life so difficult—“

On and on she goes and that causes Nina’s mouth to twitch upwards into a smile. She misses her mother dearly, more than she will ever admit, and hearing everything that’s been happening back home makes her feel a little better about being far away despite it all.

“—but Nina, tell me, how has your roommate been? Still as dirty as always?” Her mother’s question brings her back to attention.

The girl leans against the kitchen counter, “she’s alright…just, yeah—not clean. But what else is new?”

“You should report her, you know. It’s a violation of your space and if you can't cope then--"

"Ma it's fine. Just--leave it."

"I'm just saying it would help."

"Anyway, how's dad doing?"

"Dad's been...he's been good."

"Going to his appointments I hope?" Nina asks while pulling out a glass from the drying rack.

"Yeah, it's tough for him. You know how much he hates it."

"Yeah I know."

"And you? We never get news, Nina. How's school? Do you go out with friends? You should--" she's grateful when she hears someone call her mother from the other end of the line and quickly fishes for an excuse, "oh it's okay mom, you can go. I'll catch up on homework anyway."

Her mother leaves the call with another apology, and when Nina cuts off the call and tosses her phone back onto the table, she lets out a prominent sigh. Looking up at the ceiling, she forces her eyes to stay dry, to not cry. Because crying means that she’s giving up.

She’s never felt so alone.

———

“I can’t fail.”

Minho’s seatmate and good friend going by the name of Q, just chuckles before looking down at his friend’s paper, “uh sorry bud, but I think you already did.”

“What happened to you?” His other friend Dae asks with furrowed eyebrows.

“I don’t know, man,” Minho musses up his hair and moans as if the world is about to end. Well, to him it is.

“Maybe you need a tutor,” Q suggests as the class slowly starts to file out of class.

“Or maybe Mrs. Chung hates me,” Minho says snarkily.

“Or maybe,” Dae’s hand falls onto his shoulder, “you need to get your head back in the game. You haven’t really been focused lately.”

“Yeah he’s got a point,” Q says, “anything you’d like to get off your chest?”

“Girl problems?”

“Family problems?”

“Love problems?”

“Oh shut up,” Minho rolls his eyes, slinging his backpack over his shoulder as the trio exit the lecture hall and file out into the main corridor where lingering students are waiting for the next class to begin.

“You know what’s your problem?” Dae suddenly says.

Minho looks at him with a raised brow.

“You’re skipping too many lectures.”

“Aha,” Q snaps his fingers, “now that, my friend, makes a lot of sense.”

“In my defense I have to—“

“Yes yes, we know, you have a rigorous swimming schedule,” Dae rolls his eyes, “but I think maybe it wouldn’t hurt to talk to Coach Choi about it. He might understand.”

“You mean, he’ll kill me,” mutters Minho sourly.

“Or maybe you need help from someone smart,” Q reasons, “why don’t you ask uhm—what’s her name again? The girl who’s always sitting in the front row by the right corner?”

“Ah Kimberley Chen? Yeah she’s hella smart. I’m sure she can help you,” Dae says.

While it sounds like a good idea, Minho’s pride cannot take it. Him? Asking for anything from anyone? He’d rather eat chicken feet, and god knows he hates that stuff.

Though…that doesn’t mean he can’t ask her in secret.

So that’s what he decides to do a few days after their small discussion. He stalks her social media accounts with no success. Apparently, this Kimberley Chen character doesn’t want any distractions from the digital world, hence her lack of presence on Facebook or Instagram.

Minho had no other choice than to stalk her in-between classes. Finding out where this famous Kimberley Chen sits is an easy feat considering that she’s a creature of habit. Having gathered some information on her beforehand, Minho had found out that she’s actually in the block right after his lectures, meaning that he has full chance of getting his personalized note to her.

He waits for the right moment. As soon as the bell rings to dismiss class, Minho quietly sneaks between the rows of desks before smoothly slipping in the note in the shelf right underneath. Then, assuring that no one has spotted him doing such a thing, quickly walks out with his head held high.

He should probably mentally remind himself to check that said desk during their next lecture.

———

“There’s a study group happening in the library. You coming?”

Nina shrugs at her seatmate, knowing full well that it doesn’t matter whether she comes or not. The girl had just been asking out of politeness.

Honestly, her days at university had proven to her that it was almost impossible to make friends on her own. That, or maybe she had just been destined to be alone.

It hadn’t been the case in high school. Nina remembered the happiness, the excitement about attending events with her friends.

Now, she barely had any energy to get out of her house.

“Okay well, if you wanna come, it’s at three thirty,” the girl whose name she doesn’t remember gives her a quick wave of her glossy nail-polished fingers, “bye!”

“Bye,” Nina mumbles to no one in particular. She lets out a soft breath, waiting for the rest of the seats to empty out, before quickly gathering her stuff from her shelf underneath.

It’s as she’s packing up her books that a note falls from her stack. Curious, Nina reaches down to pick it up, turning the plain white letter over. No name. Weird.

Was it money?

Would it be rude of her to check?

It isn’t addressed to anyone, meaning that Nina isn’t practically breaking any boundaries by doing so.

Maybe it belongs to someone. Someone important.

She lets her curiosity get the better of her, breaking off the sealed tip and opening up the page as her eyes scan the contents:

Dear K,

My name is Minho. You’ve probably heard of me. After all, I’m on the professional athletics team. I’m writing you this to ask you for your services. I heard that you’re the top student in class. Well, since I am failing Mrs. Chung’s class, I would really like some help with some additional notes or some studying sessions. You will be rewarded for this.

Let me know if you’re down for it. Cheers.

Minho

Whoever this Minho guy is sure has some great nerve. Nina wonders who in the world would have such a big ego to write such a thing. It sounds almost too absurd to be true.

Wait…Minho. The name somehow sounds familiar…

Or not.

She crumples it up in growing annoyance and is about to throw it away, when she thinks better of it and slowly un-crumples the note.

Maybe she should answer back. Teach him a lesson. And what is this about “You will be rewarded for this”?

Uncapping a pen and flipping the paper over, Nina bends over the table and starts scribbling down her response. Satisfied, she then folds it back into its letter and places it under the desk.

Reward, my ass.

———

[maxverstappensflatbrim]

Show Me Yours | Matty Healy [45]

chapter forty-five, act six: be my mistake

masterlist

December 25th 2017

Sniffling and rubbing her nose with the back of her wrist she pulls herself to stand, still clutching the letter in her left hand she rubs her eyes and makes her way to the door. She pulls her familiar red zip up tighter around herself, covering up the AM shirt she wears as her hand meets the door knob.

The breath is knocked right out of her as she steps back and stars out the front door.

“Hey…”

She doesn’t say anything. Just closes her mouth and swallows the lump rising in her throat.

His eyes cast down to her hand and he nods his head towards the crumpled paper, “You read the letter?”

“I just finished it.”

Matty smiles weakly as he looks at her, “And?”

“And?” She repeats the word right back to him in the same tone.

She can’t stop staring at him. It’s him, it’s really him, it’s her Matty. He looks so much more healthy now. His face has colour again, it’s bitten red from the cold and he’s hiding in his long coat to try and fight off the air. His hair has grown back, she’d seen a photo of him online a few days after he got out. He’d shaved his head. But it’s back a curly mess on top of his head now.

“And,” He says slowly, hands pushing deeper into his pockets, “What did you think?”

“You were right about one thing.” She tells him and he raises one brow, “You’re a dickhead.”

He nods and looks down at his feet as he closes his eyes. Allen nudges at Tommie’s hand, the one still clutching the letter and she looks down at him. 

It’s as if he’s asking her if he can see his owner. Knowing the pain she has been in and that Matty is the one who caused it.

Allen’s ears are down and his tail is between his legs as he looks up at her, she smiles softly causing his tail to wag and then she nods.

As soon as he has her approval he jumps at Matty, his ears perked as he slobbers all over him and almost knocks him to the ground.

“Hey, bud, I know, I know. I’m sorry.”

“Do you wanna come in?”

He follows her in, hangs his coat on the rack, lines his shoes up against the wall and then lets her lead him to the living room.

His hand fiddles in his pocket for a few moments before he brings out a wrapped gift, “I uh-” He pauses and just slowly holds his hand out, “Merry Christmas-”

“Matt-”

“Please.”

She nods and takes it from him, “Wait,” He reaches out and clasps both of his hands around hers. She freezes, “Don’t open it yet.”

She nods, voice quiet, “Okay…”

Her eyes glance down and he lets go quickly. She realises her mistake and tries to reach out for him but he turns away.

“How-How have you been?” She asks him.

He nods and pushes his hands further into the pockets of his trousers, “Good.”

It’s a lie. They both know it.

“Do you want a drink? Something to-” She curses and then runs into the kitchen, he follows her quickly pursing his lips to try not to laugh when she brings out the burnt pizza.

She sighs, dropping the pan onto the stove and leaning back, “You never were a good cook.”

She hits his arm as he lets out a giggle and allows a smile of her own to show for just a moment. He studies it, from the way her eyes have that special little sparkle to the way her cheeks become rosy as they stretch. 

“How have you been?” He repeats her question back to her and she stands a little straighter.

“Good.”

“Really?”

She nods, giving him another small smile, “I’ve been good.”

“Keeping busy?” She nods, “Adam told me you’ve been helping Phoebe.”

“Her first album came out a few months ago.”

He nods, “I listened. Could see you in a few songs.”

“I helped with guitar.” She tells him, a smile brightens her face for a few seconds as she thinks of Phoebe. Some colour returns to her cheeks. When the smile falls again she looks paler than before.

“I saw what happened with Braun.”

She sighs and stops picking up the dog toys scattered around her living room to fully face him, “You want a drink?”

“Please.”

She walks for the kitchen and he follows after her as she reaches for two cups and sets them down.

She grips the handle of her fridge, “Preference?”

“I’ll have anything.”

She nods and grips a bottle of fanta, he purses his lips. Not his favourite and she knows it.

She pours two cups and passes one to him as she leans against the kitchen island, peering out her back window into the frosty air of Christmas day.

“Jamie and Adam both kept me updated on the court case.” She nods slowly. She knew one of the guys would be telling Matty. Of course they would. “I’m sorry nothing came of it.”

She shrugs, “We came to an agreement. I get half the writing credits and they get to keep the song under their name.” She scoffs, “Doesn’t matter, he still has my book.”

“You were forced to an agreement, there’s a difference.”

“It was either that or be harassed by his American fangirls because of what I did.”

She looks down and Matty blinks at her slowly, “What you did? You say it like you did something wrong.”

“He seems to think I did.”

Matty shakes his head and then moves from where he’s leaning against the wall to grab her hands, he bends his knees to meet her eyes. “Please don’t let him make you feel guilty.”

She refuses to look at him, eyes still staring out the window. 

Tommie has always been full of guilt. It’s one of her biggest issues. Guilt for leaving behind her family. Guilt for never being a good daughter. Guilt that even with all this money and influential power she can’t change issues in the world. Guilt for things out of her control. 

It isn’t a hard task to make her feel guilty about something. She probably already does.

“Baby, look at me please.”

The moment the old name is coming from his mouth her eyes have snapped to meet his. Her brows furrow and her eyes gloss over with stars. “You did nothing wrong.”

“Did you want kids?” She shakes her head and he nods at the same time, “Did you do what you wanted?” She nods and then he shrugs, “Nothing wrong. You did nothing wrong.”

“Then why do I feel so dirty?”

His shoulders deflate, his eyes soften and brows draw together as he quickly shakes his head. “You’re not.”

He can’t believe this. That she’s been alone with these thoughts for so long. Without anyone. Without him.

“Can you do what you said in the letter?”

“What’s that?”

“Hold me.”

His arms are tugging her into his chest the moment the two words leave her lips, one hand on her back the other pressing her head into his chest as his eyes close in bliss.

He has been waiting to feel her touch for months, years. He’s never felt so alive. It’s like there’s oxygen in his lungs once again. Like he can finally breathe.

“Tommie, I just want to say-”

“No.” She shakes her head quickly, her arms tighten around his waist, “It’s Christmas, let’s just be Baby and Roddy today.”

He nods and squeezes her a little tighter when she mumbles, “I missed you.” Her hands grip his shirt, knuckles turning white, “I missed you so much. Will you stay?”

“Only if you want me to.”

“I need you to.”

He nods again, “Then I will. As long as you need me to.”

An hour later Tommie is curled up on her sofa with a knitted blanket thrown over the top of her. Matty relaxes further back into the cushions, her head in his lap. He lets his hands run through her hair, twisting and twirling strands around his long fingers.

He’s missed her hair. He’s missed the way she’d always need to be near him. He’s missed that little crinkle on her nose. And her crows feet in the corner of her eyes. And her one dimple that always shows when she smiles. And her laugh. And her snort when she laughs. He missed the way she’d mouth the words to her favourite films. He’s missed hearing her hum the song stuck in her head all day. Missed feeling her fingers drum a beat on his thigh as she’d try to get inspiration. Missed trying to sneak peeks of her poetry or songwriting when she wasn’t paying attention.

He’s missed touching her. A soft hand on her shoulder, a squeeze of her wrist. Any kind of contact. Matty didn’t think it was physically possible to feel pain from missing someone but he has. An ache deep in his stomach, the pit of his heart. An ache that came from his guilt and loneliness.

“Where are you staying?” She asks, bringing him from his thoughts.

“At home.”

“Alone?” She shifts closer to him, hand curling under his shirt and pressing into his warm stomach.

He gasps at the cold touch but it’s worth it at the mischievous smile she hides into his thigh. There’s five things he’s missed all in that one moment. 

“If you need any help- anything, you’ll come to me, right?” She lifts herself off of him to look at him better, “You won’t suffer in silence. I know I probably won’t understand but I can try to help.”

He wraps his arm around her and pulls her into his shoulder kissing her hairline and letting his lips rest there. He wants to feel her as long as he possibly can, at least until he messes up again.

“You’re already helping.” He promises, “This is the healthiest I’ve felt since leaving.”

“Who picked you up?”

“G.”

“Have you seen the rest of the guys?”

He nods, “I have.”

“Ross?”

“Yup.”

“Ads?”

“Yeah.”

“Jam-”

“I’ve seen them all.” He laughs.

“What about Denise?”

“Last week.”

“You waited until last week?”

He nods, “She wasn’t happy. But I was just so- so scared.” She takes his hand that he's buried into her red locks and holds it between both of hers, turning it over to trace the lines of his palm with her eyes, “She did everything for me to not go down the same path as her. And I did. I did knowing the struggles and the things she had to overcome.”

“Doesn’t matter what you did, as long as you fixed it.”

He scoffs and she rises to sit on her knees. They push into his thigh and she moves his face to look at him, “You’re a good person, Matty.” She lowers her voice and leans so close their foreheads touch, “Please believe in that.”

She closes her eyes as she takes in the feeling of him.

Matty lifts his chin, his nose pushes against hers. Resistance. He should stop. Should think of her nose as a shield. A form of protection against him. He doesn’t stop.

He pushes forward connecting his lips with hers in a soft kiss as he pushes upwards. Her hands fist his curls and just as she lifts one leg ready to straddle his waist he’s stood from the sofa and pushed her aside.

“I-I… Tommie.”

She lands with a quiet ‘oomph’ on the plush cushions of her sofa. Falling between the mountains of pillows and throws.

“Matt, it’s fi-”

He’s shaking his head and begins walking to the hallway. By the time the shock and embarrassment wears off and she forces herself after him he’s got both shoes on, with his hand reaching for his jacket.

“Matt.”

“I have to go.” He tells her as he pulls his long coat over his arms. He tries to fasten the buttons, but his hands shake and she reaches out to stop him. She claps her hands over both of hers, dropping them to his sides and then gripping the coat to keep him close.

This time it’s his hands that cover hers, both of them engulfing hers smaller ones as he pries them from his jacket. He can’t look at her. But he can't tear his eyes away from her face.

“Matt?”

“I’m sorry.”

taglist

@thereisaplaceintheheart, @indierockgirrl, @sofaritsalrightt, @julezs-bl0g, @eaglestar31, @sophinthealpss, @noacfemcel, @if-my-heart-bleeds, @befrwime, @fallingforel, @sexorchocolateorpillowsorclouds, @3terna15unshin3, @1975sophie1975, @thesocraticjunkiewannabe, @littlesoldierelleora, @procrastinatinglikeapro, @beatr2x, @byyourside28

-let me know if you want to be added :)

[kierancaz]

So something I noticed when I was watching itsv and atsv that Uncle Aaron’s apartment in the movies is different. Like 42 Aaron’s isn’t just decorated different it’s a whole different place.

…. I may be watching these movies to much but ANYWAY here’s something that’s I noticed.

- do in itsv Aaron has a sword collection. He has I think two different racks and one of them is just katanas.

- in atsv he still has his swords but he also has many many more weapons on display and also a huge tire that’s just up against the wall.

- in itsv his apartment is… like an actual apartment. In atsv I think it’s some type of warehouse loft? At least that’s what I got from all the windows and through the windows you can see the Brooklyn bridge so wherever that place in it’s by the water.

- the kitchen setup is basically the same and I think they did that to fool you. This is NOT the same place, but if you’re not paying close attention you might think it is because you do get a decent look at 1610 Aaron’s kitchen and then he’s posed in front of it again in earth 42 and you can see he has the same pans hanging up and the same island.

- 42 Aaron also has an upstairs? When the camera first pans to Prowler Miles when he’s up on the crossbeam (support beam?) you can see stairs to his left that lead somewhere upstairs. (I wonder if 42 Miles just climbed the stairs and then got up onto the beam that way to be all dramatic when 1610 Miles woke up lol. Did Aaron help him with this? Did they plan out this dramatic reveal before 1610 Miles woke up? Lol)

- 42 Aaron’s place is just. Bigger. And decked out like a villain lair. Idk what to say but he has like chains and weapons literally all over the place it looks so evil but so cool. 1610 Aaron’s place seems like just a cool place to chill with all the plants and the neon sign behind the couch. I’m not even sure if 42 Aaron has a couch in that place. (He does have like barstool chairs at the island in the kitchen tho)

- and also, not really an apartment detail about his place but on the radio you hear what I’m assuming is J. Jonah Jameson talking about the Sinister Six Cartel. Which I’ve seen other people mention but haven’t really actually talked about. I wonder if they’re gonna show up in beyond the spiderverse? I think that would be cool and like why would they plant that little seed if not to use it for smth in the future sooo

Ok yah that’s all I have to say about 1610 and 42 Aaron’s apartments besides that they both look super cool in different ways and I want to hang out in both apartments at least once. (I may add to this if I notice something else or if I get my hands on some screenshots. Google and Pinterest are both failing me rn but at the same time ik not everyone is screenshotting every single frame of these movies so ig that job will be up to me 😕)

[just-jordie-things]

I've got one!!!!

#1 with gojo but they're grown ups and all the war (like,ij the manga) has ended and they wake up peacefully in each other's arms!!!

1: "Good Morning" Kiss ___

you'd spent years so violently plagued by nightmares that you'd grown used to waking up gasping, in a cold sweat, tears falling from your face as your mind conjured horrid images- images most often torn from your memories. you'd rarely known a full night's sleep, although you were in a stage in your life where a solid eight hours was much needed to get your energy up, eight hours felt like a luxury compared to the measly rest you'd been getting.

however this morning, you wake up with sun shining over your face. you squint against the light as you stir from your sleep, stretching your legs, and then your arms, while trying to keep the morning sun from penetrating your eyelids. but it was no use, you were awake now. your limbs fall back to the mattress with a soft sigh from you. staying in bed just seemed so good today. the matress felt extra cozy, and the sheets were warm tangled around you.

you realize they're tucked perfectly around you, and you turn your head to find the other side of the bed is empty.

odd, you think. he's never up before me. and when he wakes up before me, he always wakes me up.

there's a slight furrow in your brow as you sit up, trying to rack your brain for some kind of plan or appointment that he could've had this morning. nothing comes to mind.

it's then that a familiar smell wafts by your nose, and you notice the door to your bedroom is ajar.

bacon.

with a grin and newfound energy, you slide out of bed, tugging down the material of the oversized shirt that had ridden up on your hips.

the man was a giant, nothing would ever fit properly on you. but he liked it that way, and to be honest, so did you.

your feet pad softly down the stairs but with great swiftness. when you finally round the corner to the source of the delicious smell, you grin.

satoru's back is to you as he's dancing around to the quiet music playing from his phone. you can see he's pushing the bacon around in the oiled pan with a pair of tongs, and much to your delight he's shirtless. although you can see the strings of an apron tied around his back. it was most certainly a sight you could get used to.

"you gonna keep staring at me or are you gonna c'mere and say good morning?"

he doesn't even look over his shoulder at you, but he doesn't have to. he'd recognize your presence in a crowded room with a blindfold on. (which he has)

you make your way into the kitchen and smile when he finally does turn to look at you. just as he leans down to kiss you hello, you're laughing.

"when the hell did you buy that?" you snort, and he follows your line of sight to the apron he's wearing.

kiss the cook, it reads, with a big red lipstick stain under the text.

"it's a classic!" he declared with a proud grin. "i got it as soon as you moved in!"

you're still laughing, though satoru thinks you're laughing at him, and not at the comical apron.

"you don't like it?" he pouts, and you smile up at him as you wrap your arms around his waist, leaning your chest into his.

"no no, i love it,"

you're lying, you really just think it's sexy of him to wear the apron and just the apron, but truthfully, satoru's more than fine with that.

"good morning, satoru" you finally tell him, and he gazes at you fondly as you tip your head back to look up at him properly.

you're so cute in the mornings, with your sleepy eyes and disheveled hair, and his shirt that hangs off of you so perfectly for your bare legs to be on display for him.

it's been a year of mornings like this now, and still, he doesn't think he'll ever get used to it. but he's okay with being pleasantly surprised, every morning, to have you here with him, smiling because you didn't have a care in the world, smiling because you'd had another full night of sleep, smiling because he's with you and you're with him and you're here, safe, together, and it was going to be like this for the rest of your lives.

every morning gojo satoru woke up pleasantly surprised to have this happily ever after he'd never thought possible.

so with you hugging onto him now, he can't help but lean down and press a kiss to your lips- even though the pancakes he's made are going cold and the bacon he's frying is getting too crispy for either of your liking- he drops the tongs and cups your face in his hands as he kisses you longingly, deeply, pouring all of the love and happiness he held for you right into your mouth. he only hopes you feel at least an ounce of it.

you smile against his lips, and when he pulls away you steal one more chaste, sweet kiss, before you let him stand back to his full height, the two of you smiling at each other like a couple of lovesick idiots. (which you were)

"g'morning sweetheart" ___

a/n: i'm not caught up in the manga rn i'm stalling bc i don't want to hurt i want to live in my fantasy world where everyone is happy >.<

xoxo ~ jordie