#but they love each other. they’re a family.

[lupinqs]

CHAPTER FOURTEEN ━━ Show a Little Loving

❀ ━ pairing: paige bueckers x oc (jo jacobson)

❀ ━ word count: 6.4K

❀ ━ warnings: detailed make out but it doesn’t go any further

❀ ━ links: my masterlist, nobody gets me masterlist

❀ ━ author’s note: think TATBILB

THE NEXT MORNING, Jo woke up feeling like she was in a completely different reality.

Nothing looked different—the room was the same, the dim winter light slipping through the curtains, the soft weight of the blankets tangled around her legs. The air in the cabin was cool, and the scent of coffee and something sweet, maybe cinnamon, lingered in the air from downstairs. Normal. Everything was normal.

Except for the fact that Jo was—and still is—decidedly not.

She’s never been less normal in her entire life.

Because for the first time in her entire life, she likes someone who isn’t Asher Davis.

And that someone is Paige.

When she woke up, Jo stayed frozen under the covers, trying to process it—like if she just laid there long enough, she could force her brain to make it not true. But the weight of it merely pressed down on her, undeniable, suffocating. She felt like she’d just unlocked some secret part of herself she wasn’t supposed to find, like she’d just opened a door that can’t be shut.

She spent the entire night tossing and turning, hyper-aware of every single thing Paige did.

The way Paige curled up beside her like she always does, shifting close like she’s drawn to Jo in her sleep. The way her breath tickled against Jo’s neck, steady and warm. The way she tucked her face into Jo’s shoulder, lips brushing against her skin. Jo barely slept because of it. She just laid there, rigid, heart hammering against her ribs like a drum, panicking.

And then later this morning, when they were brushing their teeth together in the tiny bathroom, Paige kept nudging her shoulder. Jo doesn’t even know if it was on purpose—Paige is like that, casual and comfortable, always touching Jo like it’s second nature—but Jo noticed. She felt it. And it was so stupid, so small, but it sent a wave of something through her, something warm and unbearable and foreign.

And now—now they’re on the ski lift, and Jo is trying so fucking hard to act normal.

It’s not going well.

Paige is sitting way closer than necessary, thighs pressed against Jo’s even though there’s a whole chunk of space open on the other side of the lift. The cold metal bar rests against their laps, and the mountains stretch out below them, snow-covered and endless, but Jo can’t focus on any of it.

She can only focus on Paige.

She doesn’t get it. Paige has always been touchy with her. They’ve shared a bed countless times, always leaned against each other, always sat too close. This isn’t new. This isn’t different. But now, it feels different. It’s like Jo’s senses have been turned all the way up, like she’s suddenly attuned to every single point of contact, like her body is tracking Paige without her permission.

And she doesn’t like it.

She shifts slightly, just enough to put some space between them, but Paige only grins and leans in closer, bumping their shoulders together. “You’re quiet,” Paige says. “Cold?”

Jo forces a shrug, not trusting her voice. She knows it’s uncharacteristic, but everything about her seems to be that way today.

Paige hums like she doesn’t quite believe her, but she doesn’t press.

Jo bites her tongue inside her mouth and stares straight ahead, pretending to be interested in the scenery, pretending her heart isn’t trying to climb out of her throat.

She cannot be weird about this.

She won’t be weird about this.

Because if Paige notices something is off, Jo has no explanation. What the hell is she supposed to say? Sorry, I just realized I have a thing for you and now I can’t function like a normal person anymore?

Absolutely not.

And worse—what if her family notices? They know her better than anyone. If she doesn’t get her shit together, they’ll realize something’s up.

Jo swallows hard, stomach twisting. She can hardly survive herself knowing this—if other people did, she doesn’t know what she’d do.

So she keeps her mouth shut, keeps her body still, and hopes to God this feeling will go away before she completely loses her mind.

And then, thankfully, they reach the top of the lift. Meaning Jo has something else to focus on.

Getting off of it on a snowboard isn’t hard, not really, but it’s definitely not something you want to mess up unless you enjoy face-planting in front of a bunch of strangers. Jo angles her board as the bench slows, pushing herself forward with practiced ease, gliding down the short slope leading away from the drop-off point. She turns just in time to watch Paige follow behind her, arms slightly outstretched, knees stiff.

Paige doesn’t fall—which is honestly impressive for a first-timer—but Jo can tell it’s more luck than skill.

They then make their way over to the side, where Jo’s family is already securing their bindings. Jo sees Paige watche, then follows suit, crouching down and clipping in her back foot like she’s done it before. For a second, Jo thinks maybe she has—that maybe she totally overestimated how difficult this was going to be.

Then Paige stands up.

And just stands there.

Jo doesn’t even have to say anything—she can see the exact moment Paige realizes she has no fucking clue what to do next.

The thing about snowboarding is that, once both feet are strapped in, there’s no casual shuffling around like with skis. You have to commit to your movements, shift your weight with intention, trust the board to follow. Paige, currently, looks like she doesn’t trust anything. She’s frozen in place, weight too evenly distributed, arms slightly hovering like she’s trying to counterbalance pure fear.

Jo’s family doesn’t notice. Of course they don’t. They’re already pushing off, racing down the slope like they forgot they just dragged a complete beginner onto what is definitely not a beginner run.

Which means it’s entirely Jo’s problem now.

Jo sighs and turns back to Paige, who immediately schools her expression into something completely nonchalant, like she wasn’t just panicking a second ago.

“I’m good,” Paige says, nodding.

Jo lifts a brow. “Are you?”

“Yes,” Paige insists, overconfident. “I ski all the time. How hard can it be?”

Jo snorts, shaking her head. “That’s like saying, ‘I can ride a bike, so how hard can a unicycle be?’”

Paige glares. “That’s not the same thing.”

“It’s exactly the same thing.”

Paige groans but doesn’t argue further, which is good, because Jo is pretty sure that if she lets her go down the slope without at least trying to teach her something first, she’s going to have a very injured best friend by the end of the day.

Which—yeah, Paige doesn’t need any more injuries.

Jo drops down onto the snow, motioning for Paige to do the same. “Okay, before you kill yourself—”

Paige sighs. “Very encouraging, thanks.”

“—I’m gonna teach you the basics.”

Paige rolls her eyes but listens as Jo explains how to shift her weight, how to stop using her heel edge, how to not immediately die the second she starts moving. She nods along like she gets it, but Jo knows she doesn’t, because when she tells her to try stopping, Paige just stares at her.

“Like this,” Jo demonstrates, digging into her heel edge and coming to a smooth stop.

Paige squints. “I don’t think my feet can do that.”

Jo gives her a look. “They can. You just have to actually try.”

Paige glares at her, then attempts it—and immediately wobbles so hard she almost eats it.

Jo bites her lip, trying so hard not to laugh, because she knows if she does, Paige will shove her straight into the snow.

Still, watching Paige struggle is… entertaining.

Actually, no, it’s worse than entertaining, because Jo is finding it way too endearing, and that is a problem.

But it’s hard, because Jo is stuck here watching Paige, her flushed cheeks, her concentrated little frown, the way she huffs whenever she messes up but refuses to ask for more help.

Jo has to get it together.

She clears her throat and moves on to the next part—teaching Paige the “falling leaf” technique, which goes just about as well as expected. Paige flails. A lot. She makes little frustrated noises, glares at Jo when she tries to help, insists she’s got it even when she absolutely does not have it.

Jo grins, probably too much, but she can’t help it. She’s never seen Paige like this before. Paige is good at everything—basketball, school, literally any sport she tries—but right now, she’s an absolute disaster.

And Jo finds it so ridiculously cute, it makes her chest constrict.

Why, why, why, why, why?

By the time they move on to full turns, Paige is mildly competent. She’s still wobbly, still too tense, but she starts linking her turns together, starts actually looking like she knows what she’s doing.

Jo watches her, nodding approvingly. “Look at you.”

Paige looks at her, grinning wide, blonde hair slipping out from under her beanie, flushed from the cold, happy.

And Jo—Jo feels something tight in her chest.

Something warm and annoying and confusing and—

She tears her gaze away before it turns into something worse.

Eventually, they decide Paige is ready for the slope.

Jo isn’t entirely sure that’s true, but there’s only so much practicing they can do before Paige gets impatient and wants to actually go somewhere. And Jo gets it. She does. Paige isn’t the type to sit around mastering the basics—she’d rather dive in headfirst, figure it out on the way down.

Which is how they end up at the top of the easier slope—the one Jo’s family didn’t go down.

It’s still not technically beginner-friendly, but it’ll have to do.

Jo studies Paige as she shakes out her arms, shifting her weight back and forth like she’s hyping herself up. She’s still pretending she’s not nervous, but Jo can see it in the way she breathes in deep, lips slightly parted, exhaling like she’s about to take a game-winning shot instead of just… sliding down a hill.

Jo shakes her head, telling the blonde, “You’re gonna be fine.”

Paige doesn’t meet her eyes. “Yep,” she says, sounding uncharacteristically unenthusiastic.

“Mhm,” Jo confirms.

Paige rolls her eyes but doesn’t argue. Instead, she pulls on her goggles. And then she takes a final breath, gives Jo one last I’m totally calm and confident nod, then pushes off.

Jo follows immediately, ready to intervene if Paige immediately eats shit.

She doesn’t.

In fact, Paige actually does an okay job.

She’s still stiff, still a little too tense, but she’s making turns, shifting her weight properly, keeping herself upright. Jo even hears her let out a small whoop at one point, though it quickly turns into something that sounds suspiciously like a scream before she regains control again.

Jo has to laugh. “Not bad, huh?”

Paige breathes out hard. “I’m doin’ great, thank you.”

Jo grins but doesn’t argue. Paige’s balance is still shaky, but she’s improving with every turn, her confidence visibly building—until they get too close.

Jo realizes it a second too late.

She shifts left, trying to create space, but Paige is still a beginner, and she wobbles at the exact wrong time. She catches an edge, stumbling forward, and Jo barely has time to react before she gets caught in it.

“Shit—”

Then, they’re both tumbling.

Jo crashes backward into the snow with a heavy thud, the impact sending a jolt up her spine, her board kicking up powder. Paige lands right on top of her, effectively knocking the air out of her lungs.

Jo groans, blinking up at the sky for a second before lifting a gloved hand to shove her goggles up.

“Shit, bro, that hurt,” Paige mutters against her chest, fumbling with her own goggles, breath puffing out in visible clouds.

Jo exhales sharply, trying to process—not the fall, not the pain, but the fact that Paige is on top of her, head pressing into her heavily layered chest like it belongs there.

She’s too close.

Jo feels it everywhere—Paige’s weight, the warmth of her breath against the fabric of Jo’s jacket, the way her hand is braced against Jo’s sides as she tries to push up, but she’s still struggling with her goggles, fingers catching on the strap.

Jo shakes her head. “You’re a mess—”

Without thinking, she reaches up, gloved fingers brushing against Paige’s cold skin as she pushes her goggles back, slipping them up over her helmet.

Paige shakes her head a little, her other hand dropping to Jo’s side to keep herself balanced.

The world is quiet around them—just the muffled sounds of distant snowboarders, the crunch of powder under shifting weight, the occasional gust of wind.

Paige blinks down at Jo, blue eyes so blue in the snow-bright lighting, her face flushed from exertion, from the cold, maybe from something else too.

And Jo—Jo can’t look away.

Her chest tightens.

Her fingers are still against Paige’s face, and Paige isn’t moving, isn’t pulling back, just watching her with something unreadable in her expression.

Jo’s gaze flickers down—to Paige’s lips, slightly chapped but still soft, still way too close to her own.

And for a second, for one reckless, impulsive, insane second, Jo thinks about leaning in.

The thought sends a jolt through her.

She shoves it down so fast it makes her stomach churn, immediately pushing Paige off of her before she can even fully process what just happened.

“You’re too heavy to be laying on me like that,” she says, trying for humor, but the words come out a little strangled.

Paige grabs her own bearings, letting out a startled laugh, sitting up on her knees. “Hey!”

Jo rolls over, sitting up quickly, dusting snow off her sleeves, trying to act normal, trying to breathe properly, trying not to think about how she almost—

God.

She can’t do this.

PAIGE STEPS out of the bedroom, rubbing at her arms as a shiver wracks through her. She knew changing into just a t-shirt and sweatpants was a bad idea, but her sweatshirt is still damp from falling in the snow earlier, and putting it back on felt like asking for hypothermia. She’ll have to live with it, she guesses, even if the cold air nips at her skin, goosebumps rising along her forearms.

The day has been long, another one spent out on the slopes. Since Paige’s first time on a board yesterday, she’s improved tenfold, and today had been much much more enjoyable, only a few falls to round it out.

She hears movement in the kitchen as she rounds the corner, the soft clinking of mugs and the faint hum of Jo moving around.

Paige slows her steps.

Jo’s back is to her, standing at the counter, stirring something in a mug—hot chocolate, probably, based on the rich scent of cocoa that lingers in the air. The sight of Jo, standing there so effortlessly domestic, makes something warm curl low in Paige’s stomach.

Paige is used to it, at this point. It happens constantly, the unshakable heat that rises whenever Jo does literally anything. Yesterday, it had been on the slope, when Jo helped her up from the snow, when she brushed Paige’s hair out of her face, when she looked at her with something so unreadable, so intense, that Paige had felt frozen in place.

And now—now, it’s just the way Jo stands there, all soft and warm and anything but hers in the low light of the kitchen.

Paige hesitates for a second, then smirks to herself, an idea forming in her head. She moves quietly, barely making a sound as she steps up behind Jo, hands flexing at her sides, anticipation bubbling in her chest.

Then, before Jo can realize what’s happening, Paige strikes—

Cold hands pressing firmly against the back of Jo’s neck.

Jo screams.

It’s high-pitched, startled, and absolutely hilarious.

She jolts forward, nearly sloshing cocoa over the counter, then whirls around, eyes wild, before smacking Paige’s arm, sending a weak but retaliatory shove into her shoulder.

“What is wrong with you?” Jo yelps, voice still breathless from the shock.

Paige is cackling, clutching her stomach. “Oh my God, your face—”

Jo glares at her, rubbing at the back of her neck with a dramatic shudder. “You suck. I hate you.”

“No, you don’t.” Paige grins, stepping beside her, nudging her lightly with her hip. Jo just mutters something under her breath and turns back to the counter, still grumbling as she grabs another mug and pours some hot chocolate for Paige, shoving it at her without another word.

They end up drinking together, leaning against the counter in a comfortable quiet, warmth settling between them.

Paige takes a sip of her cocoa, sighing into the comforting heat, before glancing over at Jo—only to immediately snort.

Jo blinks at her, confused. “What?”

Paige just shakes her head, grinning. “Joey, you got a little—”

She gestures vaguely, but Jo just frowns, not getting it, so Paige doesn’t think much before she lifts her hand, reaching out, swiping her thumb carefully across Jo’s upper lip to wipe away the hot-chocolate mustache.

And Paige—Paige really should’ve thought about what she was doing before she did it.

Because suddenly, Jo is looking at her.

Really, really looking at her.

Those wide, dark eyes staring up at Paige, so open, so deep, so endlessly fucking beautiful, and Paige’s breath catches somewhere in her throat.

Her thumb lingers at the corner of Jo’s mouth, pressing lightly into the soft skin there, and Jo doesn’t move. Paige doesn’t even think she breathes.

Her lips part, and Paige’s gaze drops, just for a second, just long enough for something unspoken to crackle between them, thick and heavy and—

The sound of footsteps breaks them apart.

Paige jolts, snatching her hand away so fast it’s almost unnatural.

Jo takes a sharp breath, blinking rapidly, stepping back, shifting away.

And then Peyton waltzes in, completely oblivious to the moment she just shattered, announcing cheerfully, “I’m making cookies, and you two are gonna be my helpers.”

Paige’s heart is still racing, and she shoots a glance at Jo, who looks… composed, somehow, like she didn’t just—like they didn’t just—

But Paige knows her.

She sees the way Jo’s fingers twitch against the mug she’s holding, the way her jaw clenches just slightly, the way her shoulders are drawn just a little too tight.

And Paige knows.

Whatever that was—Jo felt it too.

It doesn’t really undo anything in Paige like it should. Because, recently, things have just been like that. It’s weird.

Paige swallows hard, turning back to Peyton with a too-easy grin. “Oh, yeah, we’ll totally help.”

Jo lets out a quiet laugh beside her, and when Paige glances over, she finds her smirking too, They both know they’ll be no help—if anything, they’ll be a nuisance, eating all of the dough before Peyton can even put it in the oven.

For now, the tension’s been almost buried under something playful, something safe.

But still—Paige knows.

She felt it.

And no matter how hard Jo tries to act normal, no matter how hard Paige tries to shove it down—

It’s still there.

JO LEAVES Mia’s bedroom, closing the door softly behind her as she rakes a hand through her hair. The faint scent of strawberry-scented hair chalk clings to her hoodie, and her fingertips are slightly stained pink and blue from helping Mia color streaks into her light brown hair. It had been cute, how excited she was about it—sitting cross-legged on the bed, practically vibrating with energy as Jo carefully twisted sections of her hair and dragged the chalk down in soft strokes.

Jo’s family does their gifts on Christmas Eve—Jo’s parents are firm believers in the magic of sleeping in on Christmas morning, rather than waking up at the crack of dawn to open presents—and tonight, was just the same as always. The living room had been a mess of ripped wrapping paper and scattered boxes just an hour ago, Jo and her sisters laughing over their gifts, their parents watching with fond amusement. Paige had fit into it like she belonged there, pressed beside Jo for the entirety of it.

Jo frowns slightly as she steps into the hallway, suddenly aware of the quiet that’s settled over the cabin. It had been loud earlier—Peyton arguing with their dad over the rules of a board game, Mia showing off her new gifts, Christmas music playing softly in the background—but now, it’s peaceful. Dim lighting, the distant hum of conversation from the living room. She wonders where Paige went.

She heads toward the kitchen, where her mom is finishing up the last of the dishes, running water humming over the faint clatter of plates. “Where’s P?” Jo asks, leaning against the doorway.

Her mom doesn’t even glance up as she says, “Oh, I think she went out to the hot tub.”

Jo nods, but her chest tightens, just a little.

She turns on her heel and makes her way to the room she and Paige are sharing, stepping inside and closing the door behind her. She exhales, standing still for a moment, debating.

She thinks about joining Paige. Thinks that it’s normal for best friends to do that, to sit in the hot tub together after a long day, soak in the warmth and relax. But she also knows herself, and she knows the way her thoughts have been slipping these last few days, the way she catches herself looking at Paige for too long, noticing things she shouldn’t be noticing. She knows that if she goes out there, if she lets herself be alone with Paige like that, she might not be able to control the way her mind wanders.

Whatever, she decides. She wants to get in the hot tub.

So, she grabs the bikini she packed, changing quickly before wrapping herself in a towel. The air in the cabin is warm, but she knows the second she steps outside, the mountain air will cut through her like a blade. Still, she forces herself forward, padding toward the back deck, bare feet light against the wood floor.

When she opens the back door, the cold hits her immediately, biting at her exposed skin. She shivers, hissing, “Shit, it’s freezing out here.”

Paige startles slightly, turning her head. She’s sitting in the hot tub alone, the water bubbling gently around her, steam rising in wisps. Her eyes catch the deck light for a second, flickering bright, and she huffs a quiet laugh. “It’s warmer in here.”

Jo rolls her eyes, setting her towel down on a nearby chair. “Oh, really?” she says, sarcastic, before stepping into the hot tub.

And then her gaze fully lands on Paige, and—well, fuck.

She looks good.

It’s not like Jo hasn’t seen Paige in a sports bra, in oversized sweats, in all kinds of casual, effortless outfits. But this is different. Her blonde hair is down, slightly wavy, damp at the ends. Her bikini is turquoise, standing out against her skin, making her eyes even more blue in the soft deck lighting. And—shit, Jo shouldn’t be looking—her biceps. Jo knows she’s been training through her ACL recovery, knows she’s been getting stronger, but she hasn’t let herself really notice until now. Hasn’t let herself register the way Paige’s arms look, the lean muscle in her shoulders. And then there’s the cross chain hanging at her collarbone, resting against her skin, catching just enough light to make it glint faintly.

Jo swallows hard, forcing herself to look away, sinking into the water as she exhales. The warmth is immediate, a contrast to the crisp night air, and she tries to focus on that instead of the low, lazy grin Paige is giving her.

“You finally decided to join me,” Paige murmurs, shifting slightly, the water rippling around her.

Jo smirks, because it’s easier than letting anything real show. “Yeah, well, I figured you’d get lonely.”

Paige rolls her eyes but doesn’t argue, stretching her arms along the edge of the hot tub, tilting her head back slightly. Jo catches herself staring at the curve of her throat, the faint glisten of water against her collarbone, and quickly looks away.

This is fine.

Paige doesn’t seem to notice the way Jo’s whole body is too tight, too aware, too much as she leans back against the edge of the hot tub. Instead, she shifts slightly, gaze flickering away from Jo, looking out toward the mountains. Jo follows her line of sight, letting herself focus on the view instead of the heat curling in her stomach, the undeniable feeling of wanting something she isn’t supposed to want.

The view really is something.

The mountains stretch high and dark against the night sky, the peaks dusted with snow, the stars scattered above them like someone spilled glitter across the horizon. The air is sharp with the scent of pine and frost, the only sounds the occasional distant rustle of wind through trees and the soft bubbling of the water around them. Jo’s been coming here since she was a kid, since before she could even really appreciate how incredible it was. It never gets old.

Paige exhales, voice quiet, almost reverent. “It’s kinda perfect here.”

Jo glances at her again, at the way the dim deck lights reflect in her eyes, making them almost glow. And for a second, Jo doesn’t think she’s talking about the view at all.

“Yeah,” Jo agrees, looking away, looking anywhere else. “It is.”

Silence settles between them, thick but not uncomfortable. Jo tries to let herself relax into it, but then she hears the shift of water, the subtle movement before she feels it—before she realizes that Paige is moving closer to her.

She tenses before she can stop herself, her fingers curling under the water.

And then Paige is looking at her again, something soft in her gaze, something almost vulnerable, like she wants to say something but isn’t sure if she should. It’s a rare look for Paige, whose confidence is as natural as breathing, who always seems to know exactly what to say and when to say it.

“Thank you for inviting me,” Paige says, and her voice is quiet but serious, enough that it throws Jo off for a second.

Jo swallows, holding eye contact with her for a long moment before looking down at the water, watching the way the steam curls off the surface. Her face suddenly feels warm in a way that has nothing to do with the hot tub. “Well, it’s not like I’d ever let you stay at campus by yourself on Christmas,” she murmurs.

Paige tilts her head slightly, considering that. “Yeah,” she says slowly, “but a lot of people wouldn’t have just let someone tag along with their family for the holidays.”

Jo looks up again, furrowing her brows, because the way Paige says it—like she was expecting Jo not to invite her—rubs her the wrong way. “You’re not just any someone, though, P,” she says, voice firm. “You’re my—”

She stops short, the words catching in her throat, because—well…

She doesn’t actually know what this is anymore.

She’s never let herself think too hard about it, about the way they slipped into each other’s lives so fast, like gravity pulling them together. Her roommate, her teammate, her best friend. But none of those words feel right for this, for the way her heart is hammering, for the way Paige is looking at her.

Paige shifts closer still, the movement rippling through the water, stealing the air from Jo’s lungs.

“Hm?” Paige hums, like she’s waiting for Jo to finish.

Jo forces herself to breathe, gripping the edge of seat in the hot tub just to have something to do with her hands. She exhales sharply, shaking her head once, barely. “You’re just—my person,” she settles on, because best friend doesn’t suit the way her pulse is thrumming, doesn’t suit the way her entire body is tuned into Paige’s every shift, every breath.

She makes eye contact again, and—Paige isn’t looking at her eyes anymore.

She’s looking at Jo’s lips.

That’s definitely not something best friends do.

Jo’s stomach flips violently, her entire body going stiff with tension, with awareness, with want. Paige’s gaze flickers back up, just for a second, and Jo swears she sees something shift in her expression—like realization, like something clicking into place, like maybe, maybe she’s been thinking about this just as much as Jo has.

The air between them is heavy, electric, charged with something neither of them are saying.

And then it snaps all at once when Paige shifts even closer, so close Jo can feel the faintest brush of her knee against hers under the water, and Paige says, “Jo?”

It’s quiet, almost hesitant, and it’s the first time Jo has ever heard Paige say her name like that, like it means something more.

It undoes her completely.

She doesn’t think. Doesn’t even hesitate.

She just moves.

Leans in instead of pulling away, lets her eyes flicker shut as she presses her lips to Paige’s, her heart slamming against her ribs.

And Paige—Paige doesn’t pull away.

Paige kisses her back.

It’s soft at first, like they’re both testing the waters, and Jo melts into it, lets herself get lost in the warmth of it. Paige’s lips are soft, gentle against hers, and Jo feels like she could drown in the way Paige tilts her head just slightly, deepening the kiss.

And then—something shifts.

The hesitation begins to fade. Paige moves in closer, her hands finding the skin of Jo’s waist under the water, and Jo exhales shakily against the blonde’s mouth because oh.

Paige kisses like she plays basketball—effortless, confident, like she knows exactly what she’s doing. Like she’s taking her time memorizing Jo, mapping her out piece by piece. Jo barely has time to process it before her body reacts on instinct, her fingers reaching out, finding Paige’s shoulders, gripping just tight enough to keep her as close as possible.

The heat between them rises, spreading through Jo’s chest, making her lightheaded. She’s hasn’t felt something like this in a long time—if ever, really. This dizzying, overwhelming need. She can’t remember if it was ever like this was Asher. Jo was always just so used to him—but Paige… Paige is entirely different.

Paige kisses fast yet slow, soft yet rough, the perfect mix. She shifts again, pressing in closer, and Jo can’t help but chase her, tilting her head, her fingers slipping up from Paige’s shoulders to thread into damp blonde hair. Paige makes a soft, pleased sound against her lips, and Jo swears she feels it all the way down to her toes.

Jo’s needy now, desperate in a way that catches her off guard, but she hardly finds it in herself to care. She tightens her grip on Paige, her nails digging into her scalp, pulling her impossibly closer because it’s still not enough.

Jesus fuck, Paige is a good kisser.

The blonde lets Jo take control for a moment, lets Jo press her back against the edge of the hot tub, but then—just as quickly—Paige is taking the lead again. Her grip on Jo’s waist tightens, fingers pressing into slick, warm skin as she shifts them, pulling Jo forward, guiding her onto her lap. Jo’s breath stutters as her bare thighs press against Paige’s, her knees pressing into the edge of the seat on either of Paige’s hips.

Paige’s grip is firm, her touch sure and steady in a way that makes Jo’s skin feel like it’s burning.

She should say something, do something, anything other than let out the small, helpless sound that slips past her lips as Paige pulls her in tighter.

But she does. And Paige hears it.

And something about it—about that quiet, desperate little noise—seems to spur Paige on, because then she’s tilting her head, chasing Jo’s lips again, capturing them in a kiss that’s deeper, hungrier than before. Her tongue slips into Jo’s mouth, licking around, and Jo inhales sharply at it.

Jo’s mind is a mess, spinning wildly, but all she can focus on is this—Paige, the way she tastes, the way she feels, the way every press of her lips, every swipe of her tongue, sends electricity straight through Jo’s veins.

The second Paige’s lips leave hers, Jo almost whimpers at the loss.

Her breath is uneven, chest rising and falling rapidly as moves beneath her, her lips ghosting away from Jo’s mouth, trailing down, down, down—until they’re pressing hot, open-mouthed kisses against the sharp line of her jaw.

Jo swears she forgets how to breathe, her hand tightening in Paige’s hair, half-gripping her chain, as well.

Paige doesn’t stop. She presses a kiss to the spot just beneath Jo’s ear, and Jo shudders, her fingers tightening in Paige’s hair. She can feel the heat of Paige’s breath against her skin, feel the way Paige’s lips part just enough for her tongue to sweep out.

Paige’s hands grip onto the skin of Jo’s waist before one begins to slide up, fingertips tracing Jo’s spine before settling firmly at the back of Jo’s neck, holding her in place. Paige’s other hand trails from her hip, down to the curve of Jo’s ass, palming and kneading it in a way that makes the brunette feel the need to clench her thighs together—anything to relieve the ache growing between them.

Instead, she makes a noise—something soft and high-pitched, something that she doesn’t even realize she’s made until Paige reacts to it.

Paige groans a little, exhaling sharply, her lips nipping along the column of Jo’s throat, her tongue sweeping across the skin to soothe it. Jo’s head tips back before she can stop herself, before she can think, before she can do anything other than feel.

And God, she feels everything.

Paige’s mouth, Paige’s hands, the firm grip keeping her exactly where Paige wants her.

Jo’s heart pounds, and she doesn’t know if it’s from heat of the water or the heat of Paige, but she feels like she’s burning from the inside out.

She tries not to think about what this means, about how everything is changing, about how she’ll have to deal with this later.

She tries not to think about whether Paige wants this the same way she does.

Paige has a roster. That much, Jo knows. She’s seen it, heard it, talked to some of it—mostly just Celeste, but still. Jo knows that all of this stuff is casual and fleeting for Paige, just another part of her life.

But Jo isn’t like that. She doesn’t do this kind of thing. She doesn’t let herself get swept up in the moment, something that could be nothing, in something that might not mean anything to the other person. Seriously, she literally dated the same person for nearly six fucking years.

But then—what could this be? Paige is her best friend, her teammate, her roommate. If they became something more, they couldn’t fuck it up because it could ruin everything. Not to mention the fact that it hasn’t even been a month since Jo and Asher broke up. She’s still trying to mend that crack in her heart.

All of these thoughts should make her pull away. It should make her stop.

But they don’t.

Because right now, with Paige’s lips on her neck and her hands holding Jo so close, it feels like none of that even matters.

Right now, Jo doesn’t care if this is just another fleeting thing for Paige or if she should even be doing this with a break-up so fresh.

Because right now, Paige wants her.

And Jo wants Paige.

So, she lets herself have it.

She tightens her grip in Paige’s hair, tugs just slightly, just enough to pull Paige’s mouth back to hers, just enough to draw another satisfied sound from Paige’s throat. Paige’s nose nudges Jo’s as she tilts her head, pressing into the kiss again, deep and slow and absolutely devastating.

And Jo lets herself get lost in it.

That is, until the sound of the back door opening shudders around them.

Jo feels her entire body jolt like she’s been electrocuted. The heat from the hot tub is nothing compared to the fire scorching under her skin, the way her heart slams against her ribs like it’s trying to break free. Beside her, Paige reacts just as quickly—springing away, water sloshing violently between them, the absence of her warmth immediately and startling. Jo doesn’t dare look at her, doesn’t dare move, because if she does, she’ll have to genuinely acknowledge what’s just happened. She’ll have to process the way her lips still tingle, the way her chest is still heaving, the way Paige was just kissing her like she fucking meant it.

But she doesn’t have time for that, not when Mia—innocent, unsuspecting Mia—is standing by the back door in her little Rudolph-themed swimsuit, eyes bouncing between Jo and Paige like she’s trying to put the pieces together.

“Hi…” the little girl says slowly, tilting her head.

Paige is the one that moves first.

“Um,” she stammers, her voice higher than usual, her hands flexing uselessly at her sides as she stands up too fast, nearly slipping in the water. “I’mma—uh, I’m just gonna—shower. Yeah—shower.”

Jo watches, still slightly frozen where she sits, as Paige snatches up her towel with more urgency than necessary and books it inside without so much as a glance back. The door slides shut behind her, leaving only the ghost of her presence and the realization of what’s just occurred.

Jo is still stuck, still trying to catch up, still trying to make sense of the fact that she kissed Paige—she kissed Paige—and Paige kissed her back—and—

And then Mia lowers herself into the water, grinning.

That fucking grin.

Jo narrows her eyes before Mia can even open her mouth. “Don’t.”

Because… yeah, she just—can’t talk about this yet. Maybe never.

Jo clenches her jaw, her teeth grinding together as she stares down at her hands as if they hold all the answers. Maybe they do—because just moments ago, they were holding Paige.

Jesus, what has she gotten herself into?

[smilingcrittersthingig]

Family AU won, here we go

So basically some of the critters are now siblings

The AU is mainly centered on one family though, The Rishment Family. A family with Picky Piggy, Touille and Maggie Mako

They love each other but their living conditions aren’t the best.

They have two neglectful and abusive parents who don’t care about them so they’re forced to fend for themselves.

Picky, the oldest, became the parental figure for her younger siblings and will protect them at any chance she gets even if she gets badly hurt in the process.

Touille is a grumpy kid, he’s jealous of other kids who have it better than he does. He just wants a better family.

Maggie is the youngest, she keeps up a birght and cheerful persona to keep the spirits of her older siblings up! She wants to do more to help but being just a small child, she has to be protected.

I’ll reveal the other family critters on a later date. For now you have them!

Yes the AU is centered on them healing and attempting to escape their situation, they’ll get their happy ending no worries

[itheunknown]

odi et amo - (02) none for me

negelected! meta! reader x platonic! batfam

masterlist / prev / next

(TW) : emotional neglect, self-destructive behaviour, self-harm, suicide, depression, unhealthy coping mechanisms, underage smoking, underage drinking, alcohol abuse, depression, bpd, depictions of mental illness, violence, trauma, ...

alfred fears he's failed you.

you always were a quiet child, swallowing all the hurt you felt and buried it within your soul. he fears the hurt has consumed you.

he can't confidently say that he's done all he could for you, trying to manage the manor along with the other dysfunctional residents amd their nightly activities, which rendered him unable in giving you his undivided attention.

if he could to back, he would change it all in a heartbeat.

he vividly remembers the day commissioner gordon had phoned him about you, and was briefed about your background and the “accident” through the call, feeling a sense of relief that you had a somewhat normal background. when he saw you, he took that back. the chair you were on looked too big for your malnourished frame, the bandages swallowing your entire body and a couple bruises here and there. but what struck him were your eyes. they were so distant, bags heavy, with no light in them. the eyes that wordlessly show the hidden horrors you’ve been through.

you reminded him of bruce.

you were understandably skittish, settling into a completely new environment and seeing unfamiliar faces that you just had to accept were your now family. he assumed that with time you'd be able to overcome it after mourning the loss of your aunt, along with the help of everyone welcoming you with open arms and getting you accustomed to your new life as part of their family.

yet, that never happened.

he sees them dismiss you.

he’s seen you stand politely outside bruce’s office until he’s done with his tasks before requesting something (the bare necessities), all because previously, the first time (and only time) you had mistakenly interrupted his meeting in order to hand him the papers that alfred had asked you to, bruce had raised his voice at you for being a nuisance.

he’s seen the way you stare at dick when he interacts with the other members, showering them in brotherly love, yet walking past you like you were a piece of furniture, not noticing you.

he’s seen the way you had recommended jason books based on what he had read, only for him to scoff into your face and undermine your intellect, purposely limiting his interactions with you.

he’s seen the way you curiously looked through tim’s door that was left ajar, only for him to give you a scornful look and slamming it in your face, calling you annoying.

he’s seen the way you had agreed to every one of damian’s snide and hateful comments about how you were never good enough for the last name you do not hold, just because he was the only person who paid you any mind.

he's seen the way cassandra could easily read people, but never seemed to think you were worthy enough to give you the time of day, even while your eyes would try to find hers.

he's seen how easy it was for you to cry yet you never allowed yourself to do so, you'd curl your hands into tight fists until it pales and bleeds.

he’s seen the emptiness in your gaze when they’re locked on everyone during dinner, talking and engrossed in each other’s conversation, taking part of each other's lives while leaving you in the sidelines, standing at the doorway before you'd leave to your room, never joining them.

do they not see you?

a few months after you'd settled in, you had requested alfred that he would only really need to come clean your room once a week if at all, claiming that cleaning gives you a sense of control and there's a particular way it needed to be done. you rarely asked anything of him, you were self-sufficient to a fault, never allowing yourself to rely on anyone but yourself. he had offered to learn how you liked the cleaning to be done, but you remained unconvinced. so as to not overstep, he obliged.

he wished he didn’t. he sees you retreat further into yourself. he sees you spiral. he sees it all, yet was unable to stop it. he sees, but does nothing.

alfred cared. but that didn’t mean he could save you.

the weather was gloomy, the grey sky stretched on above you as you watched the soft puffs of smoke escaped from your lips floated up to join the clouds. the familiar comfort that a cigarette brings you feels like a blessing these days. smoking helps lift the weight that weighs heavy on your skull, you try to soothe it even more by pressing harshly against your eye with your other hand void of the burning cigarette. you know it's a bad habit that you should ideally kick, especially worse if you were caught by anyone, but do you actually care?

“thought i'd find you here.”

you don't even need to turn around, recognizing the voice too well.

“what is it this time?”

another voice chippers, the peaceful atmosphere you were surrounded in was interrupted. you sigh and put out the cigarette, waving your hand around to fan the smoke away from your only two friends. they both giggle and extend their arms towards you to pull you up.

“you know, with the amount you've smoked lately, alfred might find out. like, i can smell you before i see you.” they tut at you half-heartedly, watching you brush the dirt off your uniform.

it has become a routine for you, to linger behind after school ends at the more secluded areas, where you hide your bike inside the overgrown bushes (in fear of it being stolen yet again) and smoke away your troubles before making your way back. it's not a habit you started recently, you first smoked when you were working that shitty job to keep you and your aunt afloat, and having mental breakdowns behind the restaurant during break on every shift started to become too much of a nuisance, which was when a coworker had offered you theirs; but you can tell your friends could see that you've been turning to it more often.

with the chatter following behind, you start walking your bicycle towards the main gates of the school, ready to take your usual route home. occasionally joining in their conversations, you're about to bid your friends goodbye until you catch the weird looks the other students throw at you while trying to increase their distance. your hands tighten around the handlebars, trying to remain unfazed as you stood there.

you couldn't even consider yourself a complete social reject, you had tried to remain on everyone's good side to ensure a smooth educational experience: you were helpful and nice, you had good grades and were consistently the top 5 students in your year, and taking parts in various clubs and after school activities. however, no amount of effort could erase the somewhat unsettled look your classmates throw your way and the worried look you teachers would cast at you.

for once, you hoped to not be seen.

does the disdain come from how they never saw your family show up to anything that involved you? or was it because you were a tryhard? it's not like you did it to prove yourself to your family or classmates, but it was a good distraction from the numbness that's eating you whole. you don’t understand what you’ve done. you were clearly not lacking in terms of academic achievements and extracurriculars, so it only left your social life to be judged. your social circle, which only really included your 2 friends, are the sweetest and most supporting characters you’ve known despite being constantly ignored by others, so you come to conclude that you must be the problem. the duo gave you a worried glance, patting your shoulder as you stood there. “hey, don't mind them, you can't please everyone you know.” “yeah, you can't control everything! just let it go.” your other friend chimes in, pushing the back of your bike, prompting you all to walk again.

you smiled, your friends have always been your source of comfort, it was a bond you’ve built on trust and wordless understanding, they had been so compassionate about what you’ve been through even if you rarely opened up - they might be the only people keeping you sane. they understood you more than you did yourself.

you compose yourself and hop on your bicycle, turning back to wave at them. with a sigh, you pushed off, their silhouette fades into into the distance as the wind caresses your face as you pedal. you try not dread having to go back to the manor, enjoying the few short moments you feel at peace within your daily routine, you cycle on the familiar path you've taken countless times before - it's just another day to return to the house that was not your home.

damian was rummaging through your room. mostly out of boredom from roaming the countless empty halls within the manor absent-mindedly, walking past countless doors before he noticed yours. he really didn't have any malicious intentions, despite his distaste of your existence, he was not one to seek you out to make your life harder, he was above that - at least, that's what he believes.

there's not much to see in your room, a couple band posters peeling at the edges, books scattered next to the table lamp on the carpet, bed tidy but not neatly, opened notebooks on your desk. it fills him with contempt. you are less than: no prophecy to fulfil, no legacy to uphold - but also, no trauma to drag you down, your past a clean slate. sharing the same father, but not cut from the same cloth.

unlike him, you were ridiculously normal. unlike him, you were free.

maybe he resents you more than he initially thought.

his eyes lands on a small shirt hung on the wall, it might as well be baby attire.

it was a ragged looking thing, really. the colours worn off, the edges a little frayed but not from use, but rather the quality. curiously, he steps on your bed reaching for it to investigate further.

"what are you doing."

embarrassingly, damian did not care enough to get caught being nosy in your room in the first place. so when you opened your door that was oddly left ajar to see damian standing on your bed with his shoes on after a long day of school, he feels compromised. before he stumbles off your bed, his hand manages to snag the edge of the shirt, pulling it off the walls. your eyes finally catches on to what he was reaching for and your heart rate quickens.

despite how increasingly difficult it was for you to remain calm, you try to smile, "please give that back, damian" you're so nervous your hands almost shake trying to urge him to return it. damian feels humiliated being forced to confront the person whose room he was snooping through, so he fists the article tighter in his hand and snarls at you. seeing as he is not intending to return it, you take a cautious step forward, raising both of your arms.

like a threatened dog, he pushes you harshly with his entire body weight to make way for the door. you stumble back in shock, but grab onto his shoulder before he manages to leave your room. "damian, please, that's very important to me" you plead, trying to pry his fingers off it.

in damian's mind, this was no longer about what's yours, this was his power being questioned.

"you don't even need rag this anymore" he slaps your hand away. your patience wearing thin, frustration bubbling to the surface of your composure, you start forcefully trying to snatch it back. soon, you both were fighting for it, pulling back and forth. you were obviously at a disadvantage, but in your desperation, it didn't matter. you scream at him to let go.

and damian? he's starting to get entertained, having never seen you this emotional before. this was like a game to him, it's too easy to overpower you, so he drags the fight on despite you landing a few hits on him yourself - he's mocking you. the brawl continues, until the sound of fabric ripping stills you.

in your hand was nearly half of your shirt, the other half still firmly held in damian's grasp.

colour leaves your face, you stare in horror at the torn up shirt, nor being able to uttee a sound.

meanwhile, the fun was over for damian, so he saw no purpose in remaining in your room as he wordlessly let go of the fabric and walked out, stepping on it on the way as if for good measure.

you grabbed him by the shirt, eyes holding back tears. "that was the only thing left from my mother."

the revelation stills him, he feels bad, and he hates that he feels anything for you besides hatred.

"so? that's not my problem. it's not my fault your peasant of a mother couldn't afford anything else to leave you with" he taunts, "in fact, she couldn't even afford to raise you, so now you're here leeching off while haunting the manor with your unnecessary presence."

"what do you know about my mom" damian's eyes widen, taken aback by the seriousness in your tone, contrasting all the times defaulted into being a pushover when with him. you're so upset, your grip on his shirt tightens as you glare through the tears streaming down your face, "i didn't even get to know my mom!"

it's no surprise that with the ruckus that you both caused, it would go unheard. so when alfred came to check and inquire what all the noise was about, he witnessed you yell and push damian to the floor harshly. before you could even register alfred's presence, a force had struck you - your head snapped to the side while the sting starts to burn on your cheek.

alfred had slapped you. alfred. slapped. you.

you and damian stare at him in shock, alfred himself is in disbelief. what had he done? he tries to justify his actions to you, trying tomake himself believe he did the right thing.

"damian is younger than you, as the older child you must understand. this is, in no way, an acceptable display as the older sibling."

you're almost catatonic, eyes wide staring at him in disbelief, not believing your ears.

"you must understand."

he stares into your eyes, almost pleading that you'd forgive him. but all that was reflected in your gaze was a look filled with horror and betrayal.

you pushed through both of them, the call of your name falling on deaf ears, storming into the bathroom and slamming the door, locking it.

alfred cared, but not enough.

heyyyyyyyyyy 👋☺️... i uh.. may or may not have used actual events that happened to me in here #projecting am i right :heh: thank you for all your lovely comments 🫶 you're all so skibbidi it really helped motivate me (not to abandon my writing)! as always interactions are very appreciated ⊹ ࣪ ˖ (TAGLIST) lmk if you'd like to be added to the taglist :yowaimo: @confused-they @hoeinthehouse @strwberryglass @heartjwonie @glitchmshade @bat1212 @buddee @eyeless-kun @thereeallink @icantcryicantstopcrying @bunbunboysworld @gh0str00m @wizzerreblogs @lazy-kari202 @dotomuses @gwyneveire @gh6st24 @roseapov @kore-of-the-underworld @kingshitonly @plsfckmedxddy @unknownloner1345 @moon-2232 @lilithquillete @v3vina @froggy-voidd @angrybuttooshorttofightyou @sami0169 @m3vlOvesu @pix-stuff @bunbunbread @agent-nobody-knows @cxcilla @horror-lover-69 @redkarmakai @mariadvorak @shirp-collector-of-fixations @batboygirlie @diejager @noclue-0 @sick2mystmch @novs9011 @kitkatkitmeow @crazycaoticsimp @majonla @hebaoffside

[wolls-angel]

୨୧ ‧₊˚ what took so long? - j. woll ˚₊‧ ୨୧

pairing: j. woll x fem!reader summary: After almost 20 years of pining, it finally happens... request: in desperate need of jo woll childhood best friends to lovers. like i’m talking best friends since birth, and then admit they’re in love with each other at age 26. biggest slow burn ever 😫 word count: 1.6k warning(s):fluff, cheating (not between joe and reader), not much dialogue, longer than normal, not proof read notes: i have a love hate relationship with this fic. joe is so cute in it so i like it more. lmk what you think. i hope you love it !! xoxo

Everyone knows Joseph Woll as a hockey superstar. Young guy with his whole hockey career ahead of him. One of the most promising young goalies in the NHL. It's true. He is all of that. But to you, he's Joey.

You met Joe when you moved into your grandparents house. You were 8. Joe was the son of your grandmother's cleaning lady and she was eager to introduce the two of you. "It's nice when you have someone you know in a new situation," you remember her saying.

It was summer, so Shelley invited you over to her house to meet Joe and her other kids, Michael and Emma. You were sold when she said they had a swimming pool.

A few days later, she picked you up with Joe and Emma in the car and drove you to the Dunkin' near Joe's house. At this point, you and Joe had only exchanged one word. You both ordered the same thing (a lemonade) and your remember looking over at him and smiling. It was the first time you saw his face in full and, even at eight years old, you could tell it would be the end of you.

Your friendship only grew as you went to school together for years, learning all about each other and you just kept falling for him. You went to all his hockey games, helped him with his English homework, gave him advice about girls (even though he never took it). You watched him grow into a gorgeous, 6'4, kind, compassionate and respectful man. The man he is today.

As teenagers, you tried confessing your love so many times but your fear always paralysed you before you told him anything. What if he said no? What if he didn't want you? What if it ruined the friendship you had worked so hard to develop? It wasn't a risk you were willing to take.

All the way through high school, Joe never had a girlfriend. He would have a crush here or there but never pursued it. He always made up an excuse as to why he couldn't take a girl out.

"I'm too busy with hockey" was the usual response when they asked about his love life. Then his family would look at you and smile, as if to say "Well, she's right there".

You never dated either. For a much different reason though. You just kept holding out hope. Always thinking maybe that Valentine's day he would ask you. It never happened. And it wasn't even like you couldn't have went out. People were always asking you. It just wasn't Joe.

Joe took you to prom because neither of you had partners to go with. It was his mom's idea but he wasn't upset about it. You wore a beautiful dark red gown and had your hair in an updo, very stylish at the time. Joe knew you wanted the night to be special so he saved up to rent a limo. You told him he didn't have to but he insisted.

"It's the least I can do. You're going to the prom with me."

Joe also took you to the NHL draft with him in 2016. You remember the look on his face like it was yesterday. It was exactly where he wanted to be. An NHL prospect.

The next few years were hard. You went off to university in New York City while Joe went to train with the Toronto Maple Leafs. You would visit each other as often as you could. You'd go up for reading week. He'd come down for Spring Break. Things like that.

Summer was really the only time you would both spend time in your hometown. You would go boating with Joe, babysit his little sister, go to a party or a bar. It was nice. It felt like in the midst of all this change, there was something normal.

Then, in your third year at NYU, you met Charlie. He was kind, tall handsome and a pre med major. You met him at a cafe near campus, where you were both studying for midterms. He asked you out and you realized it was kinda embarrassing to keep waiting for Joe when he lived so far. He probably had a girlfriend. He just didn't care enough to tell you.

Charlie took you out one Friday after your lecture and swept you off your feet. He was a true gentleman. And you were happy. You called Joe a few days after you and Charlie made it official to tell him the good news.

"Oh... wow, Y/N, that's... amazing. I'm so happy for you," is all he said.

You were too happy to question Joe's sad tone or his hesitation in congratulating you. You were too happy. Your relationship with Charlie only lasted 3 months though.

You had made plans to meet Charlie at his place after your lecture. You had ended early because you had a headache and wanted to just chill before you went out for your 3 month anniversary dinner. Long story short, you caught him cheating. On your anniversary with some girl from his bio class.

You were heartbroken.

But enough about the past. Let's jump to the present.

Joe's NHL debut. You were so excited to get your mind off the break up and the fact that you needed to find a job after graduation. You just wanted to see Joe and support him. Fittingly, the game was against St. Louis and all of Joe's family and friends came to support him.

The game was amazing. Toronto won 3-2 in overtime, but Joe saved 32 shots. You could tell how proud the rest of the team was during the hug line. Joe didn't know you were there to watch him so after the game, you and his mom left to take you home to surprise him.

Once there you hide behind the couch in the living room. Joe walks in and the whole room explodes with applause and congratulations from his friends and family. You can't hold it in any longer and...

Oof.

You run into Joe at full speed, knocking him off balance.

"Wha-... Y/N?", he says, in complete shock. You giggle into his chest, squeezing him tight, "Hey, Joey. Miss me?". The smile on his face when you look up could have blinded you. Almost immediately, he engulfs you in the biggest hug possible. "Fuck yeah, I missed you," he mumbles, his head buried in your neck. After a second or two he lets go and you two enjoy the party as usual. That is, until right after dinner.

"Y/N, can we chat in the other room?"

You feel a hand grab your wrist. It's Joe. You brow furrows in confusion but you nod and he pulls you hastily into his bedroom. He motions for you to sit on the bed while he closes the door.

"I missed you, Y/N. How's school?" he sits down beside you. "Good. I'm so ready to be done," you respond with a smile. "Maybe when you're done, you can move up here. Be near me again". You giggle, "I'd love that, Joey".

"So, no Charlie today?"

You sigh. Right. Charlie. "Uh, no. We broke up a few weeks ago," you look up at Joe and his eyes soften. "Shit, I'm sorry. Are you ok? What happened?". You feel you eyes well with tears. "He cheated on me. With some girl in his class," you sniffle and lean into Joe, "I was finally happy, you know? Not just waiting".

"Waiting?" he asks, "Waiting for what?"

Shit. You have said too much. You look down at your hands, sitting in your lap, "Nothing, don't worry about it".

"Y/N, tell me," he places his hand on your chin to force you to look up at him, "I have known you for almost 20 years. I can tell when something's wrong".

You look into his eyes and realize maybe it's time you were honest with Joe. What's the worst thing that happens? He says no and things stay the same. Maybe.

You get up and stand in front of Joe who is still sitting on the bed. "I have been waiting my whole entire life to say these words, but I'm scared and I have every reason to be. You are my best friend, Joe, and I don't want stuff to be awkward between us. But I may have had too much beer earlier at the game and I'm a little tipsy so fuck it. I have been waiting for you. To ask me out. To care. To love me the way I have loved you since we met when we were 10 years old. And I have never been sure if you wanted me but I talked to my therapist last week and she asked me what I wanted and all I could think of was you. I want you, Joseph Woll. So if this is the end of our friendship, so be it, but I want you to know that I want you to want me, Joe. It's ok if you don't but," you pause and collapse down onto the bed beside him, face in your hands, "I don't know. I'm so sorry".

There is a few beats of silence before Joe speaks.

"Y/N, baby, what took so long?"

You freeze. Huh? What? Excuse me? You look up at Joe, bewildered, and all he does is smile. And then he leans in and before you know, his lips connect with yours. His lips are oddly soft and all you can smell is his cologne. You let yourself melt into him and he feels like home. Where you were always meant to be. Suddenly, Joe whispers into the kiss, "I want you too, Y/N. I really do".

[firestarishomophobic]

ok I’ve been pondering this … op ur so smart. I have a proposition…

at the gathering, cinderpaw sees and meets deadfoot, the Windclan deputy with a twisted front paw. fireheart sees how envious, how sad she looks, and devises a plan.

he takes cinderpaw to the Windclan border behind bluestar and yellowfang’s backs. fireheart is still on good terms with deadfoot, so when he meets a patrol with deadfoot at the head, he convinces him to bring cinderpaw back to Windclan with him. deadfoot has a soft spot for cinderpaw, noting her passion and determination, and he sees himself in her. with a love for his former apprentice, tallstar accepts cinderpaw into Windclan. they’re so low on numbers, and another, fiery new apprentice will surely help the clan grow strong.

deadfoot mentors cinderpaw enthusiastically, teaching her to work with her disability and not against it, not in spite of it. cinderpaw adores deadfoot, listens to him closely, and grows into a strong, capable, and intelligent warrior. despite being from thunderclan, she proves incredibly fast and a good hunter. she makes good friends with whitepaw, another windclan apprentice.

finally, cinderpaw passes her assessment and earns her warrior name. she recalls how deadfoot has spoken about his name, how he loves that it reflects his work and his liveliness. during her ceremony, cinderpaw asks that tallstar name her cindertwist to reflect her disability. when the rest of the clan calls her new name, she sits proudly and reflects on how hard she worked to get here. she continues to work hard for her new clan, and goes on a lot of patrols with whitetail. they can’t officially be mates, but they are in everything but name. cindertwist is eventually even given the chance to mentor deadfoot’s son, crowpaw, after deadfoot dies.

after the great journey, at the very end of tallstar’s life, cindertwist is named deputy instead. mudclaw is furious that a former thunderclan cat could be windclan’s new deputy, a position that he deserved. the whole mudclaw situation ensues, and cindertwist emerges as the rightful leader of Windclan. after all, her mentor was the former deputy. cinderstar is the first leader to be given her lives at the moonpool. lives are given to her by tallstar, deadfoot, onewhisker, bluestar, yellowfang, and others.

at the next gathering, cinderstar sits proudly next to firestar on the branches of the great oak. cinderstar gazes down at her mate and the rest of her new family. sometimes she still misses her brothers and her sister— she was so proud when they became warriors themselves— but she will forever be grateful to firestar for risking himself to follow her dream.

in this au, onewhisker is mates with tansyfur (tansypaw/melody). each of them die soon after their kits are born for one reason or another. cinderstar and whitetail take care of the remaining kits together, and mentor them personally. they are proud when heathertail and galewhisker become full warriors of windclan.

weird as hell that cinderpelt is denied becoming a warrior after her leg got mangled on the exact same book that deadfoot is introduced. do you think she was pissed as hell when she found out that another three-legged cat is the deputy of windclan

[aliencatwafers]

My contribution for Black History Month

@creatingblackcharacters

Blackness is humanity! Black people are human! Black people deserve love!

I brought in a quote from Desmond Tutu because he was a priest who fought against apartheid in South Africa and he supported women and gay rights. From what I’ve read about him, he was a loving man and he acknowledges the truth about society. Our humanity depends on each other since we are social. If you deny one person’s humanity, you deny your own in turn. We are human and we must acknowledge the humanity of the oppressed. It is good to celebrate Black excellence, but we must also celebrate Blackness in joy and humanity. We must celebrate the humanity in Blackness. Celebrate Black love!!

I wanted to submit my piece for Black History Month! Beatrice is the main character in a horror novel I have in the drafting stage (and likely won’t be ready for several years). These are her siblings! Beatrice is the oldest (20 years old), followed by Layla (18 years old), Damon (15 years old), Nina (11 years old), and Tyrone (7 years old). While she’s separated from her siblings in the story, I wanted to have them all together. Beatrice looks after all of them best she can. She loves English, reading, history, has her special interest in Native American history and culture alongside Black culture, and adores slam poetry. I wanted to try a hairstyle from Flexi Rods on Beatrice. Her earrings are very important to her. Layla adores fashion and setting trends - she reads up on the latest fashion trends and decides to set her own. She also wants to design her own clothes too and wants to own a nail salon. Damon is the shy track star of the family, but he secretly wants to be an artist - he feels he can’t show his softness in society and that he will be shamed since art isn’t seen as lucrative as sports is. Still, Beatrice encourages Damon to hang out more with Layla and be his own person no matter what others say. Nina is most likely to go towards STEM. She’s the astrologist in the family - she is full of adventure and loves studying the stars. She insists Pluto is the planet and NASA is drunk. We then have the very quiet and observant Tyrone. His giant trench coat and pants are from the thrift store. He loves mystery novels and watching crime documentaries. Tyrone can easily stomach true crime like it’s nothing. Many get concerned that he’s a drug dealer or a murderer in the wings but that’s very racist and far from the truth. Tyrone is a sweetheart and an acquired taste - he’d probably be a detective in the future. They’re all loving siblings and deserve the world.

[reyesstrand]

If you are still taking some....I wish you would write a fic where Carlos and Lou 2 are bonding and get caught by TK.

TK has a grin on his face the whole ride home.

“Babe.”

“You totally miss him,” TK says instead, turning his head to stare at Carlos—his husband—in all his sun-kissed glory, his post-honeymoon glow. His curls are still lightly tousled from the days of a constant sea breeze and he drives with one hand on the wheel and the other on TK’s knee. “Admit it, you love him.”

Carlos throws him a look, before focusing back on the road. They’re a block away from home and as much as TK loved their suite and the beach views and the kisses that tasted of tropical fruit and the saltiness of each other, he can’t wait to get back to the loft. He’s eager to see their friends tomorrow and he’s eager to start his new life back in Austin with a ring on his finger and a husband at his side. Most importantly, he can’t wait to see Lou, and he knows his husband shares in that longing.

“I just thought he might like a treat, that’s all,” Carlos mumbles, not wanting to admit that his suggestion of stopping at a local pet store to grab a couple of things coupled with his text to Nancy last night asking about how their pet was doing was all TK needed to know that Carlos hadn’t just come around on the bearded dragon; he loves him, as much as TK does.

“Because you love him,” TK says, and Carlos sighs but smiles through it, picking up TK’s hand and pressing a kiss to his ring.

When they get back home, lugging their suitcases into the elevator and wincing as they always do when it creaks between the second and third floor, TK drops everything to run to the tank by their dining table.

“Hey buddy!” TK exclaims, gently reaching in to pick up Lou; to trace his finger lovingly down his scaly back. “Did you miss us?”

Tiny eyes look up at him, and TK would swear that he gets a smile.

“Babe, I think the carry-on’s still in the trunk,” Carlos says, already meticulously sorting through their luggage. “Can you grab it so I can start on laundry?”

“So romantic,” TK sighs, only to hold his hands up in mock defense when Carlos cocks a brow at him. They’ve already talked up their plans for tonight, anyway. They don’t plan on being quiet about their celebratory return home as husbands, especially right before they’re forced back into the real world tomorrow.

Carlos grabs his forearm and pulls him gently before he can walk outside; presses a kiss to his mouth that knocks him off-kilter. “Be quick.”

TK grins and nods and pecks his husband’s cheek before dashing downstairs and out into the garage. He fumbles with the fob before getting the trunk unlocked, grabbing their shared carry-on and the canvas bag of souvenirs they plan on gifting to friends and family they also forgot. Once back in their home, TK drops the carry-on onto the couch and digs into the bag of knick-knacks and hats, about to ask how they plan on divying everything up, when he stops dead in his tracks.

Carlos is holding Lou. Not just with his arms outstretched and a grimace on his face; actually holding him like TK does, against his chest like he’s a baby. Carlos smiles down at their pet and TK makes a sound like he’s dying.

“Yeah, yeah,” Carlos turns and leans into the touch as TK slings his arm over Carlos’ shoulders. “I love him. And I missed him. I missed you with him.”

TK grins and accepts Lou when he’s passed over gently. Meeting his husband’s eyes, where his gaze is soft and warm, he says, “I love you.” He can’t quite believe this is his life. Carlos gives him a look like he can’t believe it either, and a kiss to convey his happiness for it, too.

[mirisss]

Chapter 12

Wordcount ≈ 4.2k

Warnings: Some talking of anxiety but mostly this is a fluffy chapter,

Taglist: @ayoo-bangtan, @lose-lose07, @kingcarrot-thecarrotking, @starjane312, @reighlee-greaves, @hi-39024, @queenmea604, @septicrebel, @justayoungandwisefangirl @imasimplol, @k-p0p-4ever, @detectivedoodle, @hehe-24-hehe, @jinnie-ret, @0325tiny, @borahae-reads, @shycreationdreamland, @kiaralynn3838, @blondechannie, @theydy-madamonsieur, @boi-bi-ahaha, @riri321, @3rachasninja, @kkamismom12, @yuki-sama6, @fun-fanfics, @turtledove824, @skybluelixie, @ellisdefrog, @odetteskies, @xxeiraxx, @aalexyuuuhm,

Please reblog! 

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, 

Jeongin joined Seungmin in the kitchen, helping with the final pieces of the clean up, before he went to the living room, joining the hug-pile on the couch and letting himself fall asleep as well. Perhaps, the afternoon, will be kinder on all of them.

Third person POV

Seungmin stayed awake, looking over his loved ones during their nap, he checked in on Jisung and the others as well, most of them were asleep, though Chan was half awake as he recently woke up from his nap. “How’s everyone else doing?” Chan whispered, “They’re asleep on the couch, Innie is there too, I prepared some tea for everyone, I was thinking of going out and getting some cookies as well, Felix is asleep so he can’t bake any and we don’t have any left at home,” “Sounds good, Min, be careful,” 

And so, Seungmin left to buy the group some cookies, a much-needed sweet treat after the morning they had, hoping it would cheer both Jisung and (Y/n) up. Chan checked Jisung’s temperature, happy to see it was going down, he went out to the living room, smiling as he found the pile of his loved ones on the couch. He carefully woke Minho up, the dancer mumbled a curse at him, but once he opened his eyes and found Chan in front of him, he stopped complaining and did his best to leave the couch without waking anyone else up. 

The two eldest made their way into the kitchen, Minho saw the preparations for tea, the cups, the bag of tea, everything was prepped and ready. “Seungmin’s out to buy some cookies, he also prepared tea before he left, I woke you up because I wanted to talk about what happened, I never thought this could affect Ji so much, perhaps it wasn’t a good idea to take her in or?” Chan looked down at the kitchen counter, he was tired, sad, and worried. He felt responsible as the oldest and the leader, should he have been thinking differently about this whole thing? 

“I don’t think it was a mistake, she completes us, we all love her and she loves us, we’re family now. Everyone has baggage and some of us are more open to sharing it with each other, Jisung cares a lot, and so he took on too much of her anxiety and past on himself, he’s an empath, we all should have been more careful but none of us regret saying yes to adopting her, this isn’t your fault, it’s no one’s fault,” 

Minho put his hand on Chan’s shoulder, trying to reassure him that everything would be okay. “Thank you, Minho,” Minho smiled, “Let’s go wake everyone up so that everyone’s awake when Seungmin gets back,” 

Minho went into Jisung’s room to wake Jisung, Changbin, and Felix up, while Chan went to the living room to wake (Y/n), Hyunjin, and I.N up. “Hey, guys, time to wake up,” Chan said as he sat down beside them on the couch, Hyunjin was the first to wake up, followed closely by Jeongin, and finally, (Y/n) after some gentle shakes to wake her up from her deep slumber. “Hmm, what’s going on?” (Y/n) mumbled lowly, her voice husky from sleep, “It’s time to wake up, we can’t sleep through the entire day,” Chan said, assuring smile on his face as (Y/n)’s eyes searched for any anger or emotions alike it in his eyes. 

Meanwhile, Minho went into Jisung’s room, finding Changbin already rubbing his eyes as he looked up at Minho tiredly from the floor. “Hey, how are you?” Minho asked as he went over to Felix, to wake him up. “Tired and my neck hurts a little, I fell asleep with my neck bent awkwardly,” Changbin answered as he stretched his neck from left to right to try and straighten it out. “That’s why we don’t sleep on the floor,” Minho said teasingly. “Felix, Lixie, wake up,” When saying his name didn’t work, Minho began lightly tickling Felix who jumped awake at the feeling, swatting at Minho’s hands. 

“Sorry, but nap time is over,” Minho said as he walked over to Jisung, who was still sleeping soundly. Minho was relieved to see that Jisung seemed to have calmed down, anxiety is no joke, it can be detrimental, so he was happy that they all had each other, they weren’t alone and they would never be alone again. The same was true for (Y/n), she had been alone for most of her life but now that she had them, she would never live in the shadows again. 

“Ji, time to wake up,” Minho sat down on the edge of the bed beside Jisung, after no luck with trying to wake him up by just saying his name, Minho opted for gently (and then not so gently) shaking Jisung until he woke up. “Uh? What?” Jisung woke up with a jolt after Minho shook him, “Sorry, Ji, but you needed to wake up, Seungmin’s gonna be back with cookies soon,” Jisung instantly perked up at the mention of cookies. “Oh, cookies, that sounds nice, how’s (Y/n)?” Minho smiled at Jisung’s concern for the hybrid. “She’s fine, just tired, like you, we’ve all been tired lately from working so hard, so we deserved a day off,” 

Jisung smiled, relief washed over his face, “That’s good, then,” “Now come on, let’s go join the others in the living room,” Minho got off the bed and waited for Jisung to follow, which he quickly did, Jisung stretched his back and his arms a little before the two walked to the living room just in time for the front door to open, and Seungmin came back home. 

Minho went to help Seungmin bring the bags to the kitchen, while Jisung walked into the living room, happy to find (Y/n) sitting there smiling as she talked with Jeongin and Hyunjin. “Hey Ji, how are you feeling?” Chan asked as soon as he saw Han standing in the doorway to the living room. Jisung walked over and sat down beside Chan, “Better, I’m still tired and a bit hungry I think, but otherwise, I’m good now, I’m sorry that I caused some inconvenience,” “Hey, Han, don’t even apologize for your mental health, I much rather make sure we have a day off at home to handle everything and make sure everyone’s okay, even if that can be inconvenient than us going to the company and having no time to take care of ourselves,” Chan put one of his hands on Jisung’s cheek, to show his sincerity. 

(Y/n) looked over from her spot on the couch, relief and happiness filling her as she saw that Jisung looked okay, she tried to see with her other senses if he truly was okay, her hearing heard his heart beating soundly in a calm and normal matter, her nose told her he was still a bit tired and stressed but way less than earlier in the day. The bunny took in a big breath, happy to see that her family was safe and sound. She stood up and walked over to Jisung and Chan, sitting down on the other side of Jisung, without a word, she embraced Jisung in a tight hug, her muscles once again relaxing as she inhaled his sweet and warm scent, the familiar scent of home. 

“Hey, bunny, I’m sorry if I scared you earlier.” “I’m just happy that you’re okay.” (Y/n) stayed there, embracing Jisung for a few minutes before Sengmin and Minho came into the living room with tea, cookies, and a few sandwiches. It wasn’t until then that (Y/n) let go because finally, everyone was there, everyone was okay. 

The rest of the evening, the group stayed close together, cuddling, watching movies and just enjoying one another’s company. Before they knew it, it was time for bed. Because tomorrow they need to go back to the company, and they need all the rest they can get. 

That night, (Y/n) would sleep in Hyunjin’s room, she was excited about it because she had spent some time in there with him previously when they were painting. She wished she could paint some more with him, not tonight but hopefully soon. Even though they had taken a long nap during the day, (Y/n) was exhausted now so she was sure she would fall asleep quickly. Once dressed in her pajamas, she walked over to Hyunjin’s room, it was empty because he was still getting ready for bed. (Y/n) walked around and looked at the paintings he had out in the room, the bunny was in awe at all the art, she knew he was talented but she was still surprised. 

After looking around for a little, she laid down on her bed, getting cozy in the sheets, she had to fight the sleep away so that she could stay awake and say good night to Hyunjin. Hyunjin finally walked into his room, ready to sleep, he found (Y/n) blinking rapidly, trying so hard to stay awake, he walked over and gently scratched behind one of her ears, he placed a kiss on her forehead. ���Good night, Bunny, sweet dreams,” “Night, Jinnie,” The words were mumbled but Hyunjin understood what she meant, and only seconds later, small snores could be heard from the bunny as she fell into a peaceful slumber. 

The next morning, the alarms rang early, causing all residents of the SKZ dorm to groan as they reluctantly woke up. “Morning, (Y/n), did you sleep well?” (Y/n) sat up in her bed and rubbed her eyes as she yawned. “Mm, I did, what about you?” Hyunjin too sat up, throwing his legs over the edge of the bed. “I slept very well,” (Y/n) smiled at the response as she once again yawned and tried to find some energy to get through the day. Hyunjin thought she was so cute at that moment, he just wanted to wrap her up and put her in his pocket. 

“Come on, let’s get ready, did you shower last night or do you want to shower now?” “I’ll shower now because I was too tired last night,” “Okay, great, go get some clothes for the day and jump in the shower, I’ll pack some things for today, we have 1 and a half hours until the driver is here, so take your time,” Hyunjin took out a bag and walked out of the room while (Y/n) got up and walked over to Jeongin’s room to get some clothes and once she had a pile in her hands she went to one of the bathrooms and took a shower. 

It wasn’t until the water was running through her hair and down her body that she realized, just how comfortable she was now. She used to be terrified of water, but not once since Minho found her, has she feared it, that’s how comfortable she is around the boys. The baths she has taken, the showers, have all been calming and nice, it has been nothing to fear. The realization made her smile, these boys are her home and they had helped her so much already in their short time together, she never wanted to leave them, she wanted to get closer to them. 

She finished her shower, got dressed, and headed out to meet the others. Most of them were dressed and ready to go, once again they would eat breakfast at the company, (Y/n) thought about the first time they ate the company and how crowded it could be but also how nice it was to meet people who treated her fairly, like an equal. 

“Okay, everyone we still about 30 minutes until the car is here, so anyone not ready should hurry up. Anyone hungry? Make a smoothie or a sandwhich because we won’t be eating breakfast for a few hours,” Chan listed of his morning speech, and at the mention of a smoothie, (Y/n) couldn’t help but want one. They are just too delicious. 

“Here, (Y/n),” Changbin put a smoothie down in front of her, she was shocked, she hadn’t asked for one. “Why?” “I figured you’d want one, if you don’t just give it to someone else,” “No, I really do want it, I just didn’t think you would have prepared one already, thank you, Binnie,” Changbin smiled and put his hand on her head, “Of course, anything for you bunny,” 

(Y/n) didn’t wait a second longer until she began sipping on her smoothie, it was just as good as the others she had tasted. Sometimes she wondered if this was all a dream, or maybe something like heaven, just a few months ago she couldn’t imagine life could be this good, but now, here she was. 

Chan looked over at (Y/n), she sensed his stare immediately and met his gaze, he looked nervous. “Could I talk with you, alone?” (Y/n), became a bit worried, what could this be about? But she nodded and took her smoothie with her to leave the kitchen and talk with the leader. 

Chan sat down on the couch and (Y/n) sat down beside him, still worried about what this talk could be about. “It’s nothing serious, sorry if I made it seem that way, it’s just a little awkward for me to talk about so I didn’t know how to bring it up, the vet mentioned earlier that as you begin to become more healthy, your heats could be triggered, and he messaged me yesterday about having a check in to see how everything seems, and to ask if you want to take surpressants or have your heats come naturally,” Chan’s entire face became red as he continued speaking, (Y/n) was surprised at how cute he looked, he tried to be supportive even though he was embarrassed. 

Not to say that (Y/n) wasn’t embarrassed as well, because she was, a lot. But she was relieved, her anxious mind instantly went to thoughts of being kicked out after the previous days events, but she argued with herself, she should know better, these boys aren’t like the other humans she has met. 

“Oh, um, well, I don’t really know, a lot of other hybrids took surpressants at my previous, um, place-” Chan reached out and held on her trembling hands, to show that he was there, she was safe. “- I won’t call it home, because it wasn’t one, but they seemed to like taking them, but I don’t know anything about heats or surpressants so maybe it’s best if the vet has an opinion on this,” Chan smiled, to reassure her that they wouldn’t do anything that she wasn’t comfortable with. “Yeah, that’s probably the smartest move here, I’ll talk with the vet sometime today and book an appointment, this time we have to go the office though, he can’t do the check ups here,” 

Even though, (Y/n) was a bit scared of going to a vet’s office, it was new and scary, she felt safe because she wouldn’t be going alone, she would have at least one of the boys with her. The past is in the past, she was living a different life now, she had met this vet before and he seemed nice, so it would be fine. “That’s okay, as long as someone comes with me,” Chan smiled, he noticed how her small bunny tail was twitching, he knew she was anxious but he was proud to see that she tried her best to be brave about it. “Of course, anyone in particular you want to come with?” 

(Y/n) took a second to think about it as she took a sip of her, almost empty, smoothie, “You, I want you to be there with me,” Chan felt happiness surge through his body, he knew he was a safe space for the bunny but he had thought she would have asked for Minho, Felix or Jeongin, he didn’t expect her to ask for him. “Then I’ll come with you, now, let’s go down, the car should be here any minute,” 

“Chan,” “Yes?” “Thank you,” “For what?” “Everything,” Chan almost teared up as his eyes once again met the hybrid’s, they were shining with life and happiness, such a stark contrast from how dull they had been when Minho had found her, how scared she used to be to just speak around them, and now, here she was, speaking freely and smiling. “No need to thank us, darling,” (Y/n) blushed at the nickname, yet she yearned to hear it again. 

~ Time Skip ~ 

It was lunch time for Stray Kids, (Y/n) had been sitting in the dance studio, watching the group dance from morning until now, she was glad she drank that smoothie in the morning because they had all been so focused on perfecting the last parts of the dance that they forgot to eat breakfast, but finally it was time for lunch. 

“Ahh, I’m so hungry, I want to eat like a horse or something,” Han exclaimed loudly as the group was walking toward the cafeteria. “Anything in particular that you want to eat today, (Y/n)?” Seungmin asked as he walked beside the bunny at the back of the group. “I don’t know, maybe a soup or stew, it sounds good because it’s cold outside,” “Oh, yeah, a nice stew does sound really nice, they should have something like that,” “Do you think it will be full like last time?” “Probably, it’s unfortunate that they don’t switch the lunch times for everyone around so that not everyone had lunch at the same time,” “Yeah, but it was kind of nice sitting with just you, last time” Seungmin smiled, feeling warm inside from the bunny’s cute confession. “I’m glad to hear that,” 

Chan’s phone suddenly rang and so he stayed behind to take the call while the other eight went to the cafeteria. As usual it was packed with people. (Y/n) found two people that were familiar to her just in front of them in the line to order food. It was two of the girls from Itzy, though she wasn’t too sure which ones they were. As the girls heard the familiar voices behind them, they turned around to say hello. 

“Hi, guys, hey (Y/n),” “Hey, girls, how are you?” Felix asked, they continued their conversation with each other as the line slowly moved forward. (Y/n) tried to remember the names of these two girls but she drew a blank and she didn’t want to seem rude and ask them. “Lia, Chaeryong, nice to see you two, it’s been a while,” Suddenly Chan came up behind her and said the girls’ names, (Y/n) felt her anxiety wash away. “We’re good, how are you (Y/n)? Are the boys taking care of you?” “I’m good, and yeah, they are,” “That’s good to hear, if they start slacking, you just come to us and we’ll take care of it,” Chaeryong said jokingly, (Y/n) smiled at the joke, and seeing how well they got along with the SKZ members, though she knew, that she would never have to ask for help because she knew that SKZ would take good care of her for the rest of her life. 

Just then, it was time to order food for the Itzy girls so the conversation died down. “So (Y/n), I just talked with the vet and we have a time booked for tomorrow, at 2 pm, I have taken a few hours off around it so that we can go,” “Okay, I hope it isn’t to much of a burden for you to take time off for this,” “No, not at all, right now we’re mostly doing the finishing touches for the dance, and we’re scheduling which variety shows to attend, and things like that can be dealt with by Changbin for a day or two,” “Your, um, comeback? is quite soon, right?” “Yeah, it’s just 2 weeks away, and once it starts our schedules are going to look quite different from now, we’ll be travelling around more, you can of course come with us but if it seems like too much for now, you can stay at home or maybe be with the Itzy girls, if you’re comfortable with it,” 

“It sounds like a lot, but I want to try being with you guys, but I also want you to be honest with me if my presence becomes a burden or a distraction, I know you love me and you’re not saying it to be mean, but I don’t want to be the reason you guys can’t work,” Chan reached out and petted the hybrid’s head, “I promise, if it ever becomes a problem, we’ll talk about it,” “Good,” That was the end of the conversation, they ordered their food and went to sit down at a table, fortunately they managed to get one that fit their entire group this time. 

The rest of the day went by quickly, and before anyone knew it, the group was home and ready to head to bed. Now it was time for the sweet bunny to sleep in Jisung’s room, she was excited because she had barely been in his room, since she moved in. “Hey,” Jisung said with a yawn as (Y/n) came into his room, they were both exhausted after the day. “Hi,” (Y/n) answered with a shy wave, feeling a bit awkward for some reason. She noticed a few plushies in the room, but they all seemed to have been recently moved from the bed, as they didn’t seem to belong on the floor, half in a bookshelf, or on the desk by his computer. 

“Um, so, I heard that you cuddled with Changbin, the night you slept in his room, and well, I was wondering if you might want to do it with me as well? Only if you’re comfortable with it of course,” He looked shy and nervous, maybe even anxious if the bunny focused on his scent. While it did seem a bit scary, she was also intrigued and quickly agreed with the rapper’s proposition. “Yeah, I’d like that,” 

(Y/n) went over to her bed and picked up the pillow from it and brought it over to Jisung’s bed, she laid it down beside his own pillow, and then she got into the bed. It felt a bit weird but she was excited to cuddle again, she has come to love being close to the boys. The two laid there, facing each other in silence for a few minutes, just looking around and into one another’s eyes. Blushing. Like two high school kids having their first sleep over with their first love. 

“I’m really happy that you live with us now, I know it hasn’t been that long, but I really do love you, we all do,” Jisung shyly reached out and caressed (Y/n)’s cheek as he gazed into her eyes. “I love you too,” The bunny reached out and mirrored Jisung’s action, caressing his cheek too. They stayed like this for a minute, before their eyes met once again, and they both leaned in, slowly, milimiter by milimeter until finally. Their lips met. In a short and shy kiss, their lips pressed against each other, their eyes fell shut as they basked in the presence and feeling of each other. 

As their lips parted from the short kiss, their cheeks were painted as red as a rose. They looked away from one another, their eyes instead falling on the other’s lips, (Y/n) took a deep breath, searching with all her senses for an answer as to what this meant, while she recieved no such thing, she slowly fell into a deep slumber, surrounded by the scent of Jisung, the warmth of his arm around her, the sound of his breathing and his heart beats, and the feeling deep inside of her, that she yearned for more, to be closer, to all of them. 

And so the two fell into a deep and calm slumber, no nightmares of anxiety in sight, nothing but sweet dreams of their future together. 

~ To be continued ~ 

And that ends chapter 12! What did you guys think? Finally a chapter with little to no angst, did you enjoy it? Or do you miss the angst? 

In the next chapter, (Y/n) and Chan will go to the vet, what will they find there? What will happen with the bunny’s heat? And what will happen once the boys finally have their comeback? 

Thank you to everyone who reads this! I appreciate you all, have a good day/night! 

[beautysurvives]

today I am thinking about the way Amara imposes her love onto Dean, saying that it’s inevitable, assuming that his being drawn to her is him taking a romantic interest because why wouldn’t he want her? How could he not? Isn’t it obvious? The way that Amara is associated with giving up, giving in, allowing the world to end and relinquishing hope for a future, and especially being tempted towards “evil.”

I’m thinking about that, and then the way that Dean apologizes to Cas at the end of the season — while they’re on their way to buy drinks, when Dean has totally accepted defeat and is content to merely wait for the world to end — for making him feel so unvalued that he went to Lucifer. and then immediately following it up with, “you’re our brother.” How this, for Dean, is not only a moment of surrender/accepting defeat (to Amara) — but also accepting that Cas will never have romantic feelings for him. This is Dean (who not only relates to Amara, but has also been told by GOD that he is like her, and has ALSO been told repeatedly for years that his desire to have others close to him is selfish) releasing Cas from any obligation to return his affection.

Dean is apologizing for not being focused enough on him to keep him from being seduced by Lucifer, and yet at the same time accepting that he is not deserving of the kind of relationship he wants — saying “this is the closest I’m ever gonna get, and that’s fine.” Dean sees himself as responsible for Cas’s fall from grace by being a temptation, imposing himself on him, assuming that Cas must feel or will eventually feel the same way.

Edit bc I can’t stop thinking about this:

Because despite it being his way of letting Cas go — he’s still doing exactly what Amara does to people when she consumes their souls (she describes it as preserving them, keeping them from being harmed). Dean is keeping Cas stuck in the same emotional in between phase that they’ve been in for years — like purgatory. Treating Cas like both a lover and a family member, and preventing either of them from moving forward in any direction — not closer to each other, but not further away either. And that is exactly what Amara’s version of the apocalypse is — she’s saving God’s creatures from suffering by keeping their souls perfectly preserved inside her. Protecting people from harm by making sure that nothing will ever be done to them ever again.

[sunshinesickies]

Feveruary Day 3— Caught in the Rain— Arcane Caitlyn x Vi

Yes, I know getting sick from being in the rain is somewhat of a myth but I’m pretty sure us sickfic writers don’t care 🤷‍♀️

Post-War, Violyn established relationship, mostly fluff because they deserve it

Warnings: swearing, slightly suggestive if you squint

“You almost ready, Cupcake?” Vi calls out gently to Caitlyn, dawning her signature red jacket while her girlfriend puts the finishing touches on her ‘casual’ makeup look for the evening. Violet smiles to herself as she recalls the conversation they’d had earlier where the two of them agreed that neither half of their shared date night required anything too fancy, yet Caitlyn has still been in the bathroom for the last 45 minutes doing heck knows what.

“Just a second!” Caitlyn’s accented voice travels through the rooms, and true to her word, she emerges only seconds later, looking so gorgeously stunning that Vi may or may not have forgotten how to breathe for a hot second. Vi can’t believe she finally gets to call her, hers. Although she loves when Cait does something a little extra, she thinks she looks perfect all the time.

It’s been about 6 months since the war with Noxus and the tragic losses that came with it, and the two of them have worked hard to adjust themselves into a new way of life, and a life with each other. Even though it’s been tough at times, Vi will never get over how much she loves being in Caitlyn’s life, and how lucky she feels to have her. Her blessings throughout life have been few and far in between, so Vi makes sure to savor every last ounce she has now, and she makes it her daily mission to make sure Cait knows she’s her top one.

“Violet, are you speechless?” Caitlyn muses with a half smirk-half smile as she approaches her girlfriend, wrapping her arms around the shorter girl’s waist. Violet can feel her face blushing, one hand nervously rubbing the back of her neck. “W-what? Speechless…noooo…” she rolls her eyes playfully and Caitlyn chuckles.

“Well, if you have nothing to say, our night awaits.” Caitlyn’s hand finds Vi and she starts leading her towards the door before Vi can answer. A knowing smile spreads on Caitlyn’s lips when she feels Vi tug her hand gently, signaling for her to stop. “Cait…” She turns around to face Vi. “…you really do look beautiful tonight.” Vi hums softly, pulling her girlfriend close and pressing a warm loving kiss to the lips that now feel like home.

“And you, my darling Violet, charming as ever, are looking very hot tonight.” The end of her sentence comes out almost in a purr as they pull away. “Oh?” Vi quirks an eyebrow, smirking. “You better show me why later.”

She tugs on Caitlyn’s hand this time, and they finally make their way out the door, into the hall, then out into the quiet streets of the Kiramman’s neighborhood, strolling together in the golden rays of the last sunlight of the day peaking around the buildings.

The two of them had been planning this date night for weeks now. A joint date night, where they each choose a part of it, Caitlyn wanting to show Vi her favorite restaurant in Piltover, and Vi wanting to show Caitlyn around the Lanes—now that it’s becoming a less rough place to be.

Piltover’s Finest walk hand in hand as they make their way towards the first part of their evening, Caitlyn leading Vi through the city streets, conversation flowing with ease. They walk longer than Vi expected and by the time Caitlyn finally pulls Vi to a gentle halt, they’re no longer in extremely high end part of Piltover.

The street they’re standing on appears to be a working class one, with dozens of stores for shopping, restaurants with outdoor seating areas, and little kids running through the crowd of people chatting happily away, their families close on their heels. Vi couldn’t help but smile at the scene before her. The energy was chaotic, but infectious in a good way, making her want to run around like the kids and press her nose against shop windows. Caitlyn watches her take it all in, a soft smile on her own face as she finally gets to show Vi a place that means so much to her.

“Cait, where are we? Gotta be honest this isn’t what I expected when you said you were taking me out to dinner.” Vi chuckled for instead of answering, Caitlyn just smiled wider, gripping her hand tighter as she began to pull Vi through the crowded street. Even with her street skills, Vi struggled to keep up with her girlfriend as they jogged, dodging kids and dogs left and right until Caitlyn skidded to a stop.

They both pause a moment, slightly out of breath and Vi gaped at the storefront before her. “Pizza?” She inquires, looking up at the bright neon sign that pointed down to a small, bustling joint, a strong smell of yeast and various cooked toppings wafting out from the propped open door. “Best in the city.” Caitlyn pulls her inside.

They ended up each getting a few slices to go, Caitlyn insisting they needed to walk around so Vi could see the street lit up at night. “I’ve gotta say Kiramman, this is the best pizza I’ve ever had—not that I’ve had a lot, but still.” Vi spoke through a mouthful of hot cheese as she started wolfing down on her second slice. Caitlyn laughed and handed her a few more napkins.

“My dad brought me here once when I was really young. Only the one time. It was because I begged to join him on a last minute business meeting. It ended up being way too boring and ran much longer than expected. By the time we were on the way home, it was getting dark, and I was a wreck. I gave him every reason to just pick me up and continue marching home, but instead he bought me this pizza and we walked around a while. It was one of the first times I saw so many families together, so many fun looking shops, it was my first time in this part of the city, my parents didn’t often let me leave the few surrounding neighborhoods in our area.” She explained and Vi listened to every word.

“I never told my parents this, but often, when I could, I would sneak here after school, buy a slice and just sit in the window and watch people go by. Even convinced Jayce to accompany me a few times at night so I could see everything lit up like this again. I spent most of my days alone, no siblings, private tutors for school, so I cherished these moments when I could tuck myself into the crowds, be a part of so much light.” She finished and Vi was gazing at her now, the reflection of thousands of twinkling lights reflecting in her soft blue eyes.

“I see what you mean. There’s so much life here, you can feel it. Everyone’s in their own world, but somehow we all fit perfectly into the chaos, creating this atmosphere together.” Vi replies as they keep walking, strolling at a leisurely pace now. “Exactly.” Caitlyn nods, finishing her food and taking Vi’s hand back in her’s.

They walk in a comfortable silence for a bit, letting the energy of everyone around them fill their sense. “We should bring him here next time.” Vi leans over to speak in Caitlyn’s ear to make sure she hears her over the noise. “Huh?” Her brows twist in slight confusion. “Your dad. I bet he’d like to come with us next time.” Vi clarifies.

“On our date?” Caitlyn jokes and Vi bumps their hips together, rolling her eyes. “You know what I mean.” She laughs as they reach the end of the street where the crowd starts to thin and the various bright lights fade to just street lamps. “Ready for round two?” Vi questions and Caitlyn agrees. “We can’t have dinner without dessert.” Vi winks up at Cait as she begins to pull her towards the river, the barrier between Zaun and Piltover.

Once they reach Zaun, still hand in hand, it’s Caitlyn’s turn to follow Vi as she leads her through an intricate dance of twists and turns. They don’t see many others along the way, as Vi had planned out. Luckily for her, some things are still the same and her backwards ways of getting through the streets still simultaneously efficient and much safer than traveling through the main streets.

Even though both cities have been hard at work to make Zaun a more peaceful place, Vi’s not taking any chances since Caitlyn’s with her. She knows without a doubt the Piltie can handle herself if necessary, but she’d rather not them get anywhere close to that point, plus if she’s being honest, Vi likes running around through the Lanes like this. It reminds her of being a kid when she would work her way through the maze of streets, mapping out every route in her head, creating new ones and secret ones each day.

Not much later, Vi leads Caitlyn to a more central street, not as busy as the one in Piltover, and no where near as nice, but it’s special in its own right, and to Vi, it’s absolutely perfect. She’s actually really relieved to see this street stayed the same. So many got destroyed and so many businesses shut down over the years, but as fate would have it, the one place she wanted to bring Cait was still running, as gloriously tacky as ever.

“This isn’t going to be like when we first met right?” Caitlyn asks as she eyes the many strange looking establishments the line the dim street. “If you mean Jericho’s, no don’t worry. Dessert will be perfectly normal and non-fish related.” Vi chortles, amused by how hard Caitlyn is trying to be polite. It’s clear as day to Vi that she still isn’t used to environments like this.

Vi pulls her closer into her side. “Ease up Kiramman, it’s time to embrace the Lanes.” Her voice holds no ridicule, the softness of her tone easing the slight unease in Caitlyn’s shoulders. She relaxes under Vi’s comforting touch and smiles, a slight blush rising in her pale cheeks. They walk until it appears the shops have been left behind them, but Vi keeps going a little further until they reach a small staircase jutting out into the street, the uneven steps leading down to a surprisingly brightly colored door.

Vi leads Caitlyn confidently inside, holding the door for her as she unveils her part of date. “It’s…a candy shop.” Caitlyn takes in the warm tones from the lamps, a stark contrast to the darkness of the street, and she her senses are immediately overwhelmed by a sweet sugary scent that makes her mouth water. Vi smiles at her girlfriend’s surprise.

“Best in all the Lanes.” She mimics Caitlyn’s earlier statement, hands spread out in front of her as if she owned the place. “Get whatever you want, Cupcake. Though if you need help deciding I’ve got some favorites I can steer ya towards.” Vi smiles wide as Caitlyn starts slowly strolling through the large room, taking in all the colors. Candies of all kinds, some she recognizes and some she doesn’t covers ever surface in the place, all circling back around towards the entrance where a small case of larger, finer desserts are displayed by the register.

“Whenever Vander was able to scrape up enough for a special treat, he’d bring us all here. Claggor, Mylo, Powder, Ekko, all of us.” Vi starts explaining her own reason for the chosen spot as she follows Caitlyn around. “When we got older, he let Mylo and Claggor take us when he had to work, but sometimes he’d close up a little early to join. Some of my best, only, good memories are here.”

“It’s wonderful, Violet. I didn’t know there was such a place here. Well to be fair, I really don’t know much about the Lanes anyways.” Caitlyn stops to pick up a small bag of her favorite chocolates and Vi smiles at her choice, reaching to grab another bag of something Caitlyn doesn’t recognize.

“Well good thing you’ve got me to show you where all the best sweets are.” Vi leans in close, wrapping her arms around Caitlyn as she lowers her voice. “Though I can think of something much sweeter, Cupcake.” Her warm breath tickles Caitlyn’s neck and she laughs, pushing Vi away playfully.

After a little more perusing, they pay for their chosen treats and sit down in a little corner of the shop that has sprinkling of tables and chairs, similar to a cafe, though there’s nothing to be served, its simply a spot for people to enjoy their sweets.

They stay here for a long while, talking and munching on chocolate, watching as customers wade in and out, until the owner comes over and alerts them its almost closing time. Wrapping up the rest of their candy, Piltover’s Finest thank the owner and make their way back up the stairs and out to the street where they’re taken by surprise by the heavy rain that’s now falling from dark puffy clouds. They can see others running into stores to get out of the storm.

“Shit.” Vi murmurs as they linger under the awning of the store. “We don’t happen to have any emergency umbrellas do we?” She jokes, knowing the answer even before Caitlyn shakes her head. “Well, we can’t wait it out here. It shouldn’t last too long. I don’t know what normal weather is for you guys up in Piltover, but down here, sudden storms like this are common.” Caitlyn watches as Vi shrugs off her red jacket.

“Here, love.” She motions for Caitlyn to take it and put it over her head to shield her as best as they can from the rain. Caitlyn frowns. “What about you? You’ll get soaked then.” She tries handing it back but Vi only smiles and shakes her head. “Like I said, it’s common. I’m used to it. Spent many hours in the rain by choice as a kid, I’ll be fine. Rather not have you catch a cold or something.” She reassures and steps out into the downpour.

Caitlyn chuckles with a shrug. “If you say so, darling.” She follows, the thick leather jacket actually doing a pretty good job of keeping her dry. She looks at Vi as they start hurrying through the streets, her bright red hair is already glued to her face which is practically dripping with as much water as any one of the clouds. Vi hears her girlfriend murmur something about her being ‘too stubborn for her own good’ as they make their way back home.

By the time they reach their bedroom, Vi is absolutely soaked through to the bone and Caitlyn hums softly, watching Vi shivering as she stands, a puddle of water quickly gathering by her feet. “Hot shower and bed?” Caitlyn tosses Vi’s jacket aside and quickly finds a soft towel to shove into Vi’s hands. “Only if you join me.” Vi smirks through chattering teeth and Caitlyn raises an eyebrow before turning around, knowing Vi is watching and following as she makes her way towards the adjoining bathroom.

After a long hot shower, it was evident they were both tired from the day and decided to just go to bed, so no sooner was Caitlyn helping Vi into some sweatpants and a t shirt was she wrapping her in her arms and pulling the blankets tightly around them as they sink into their cushy bed. The shower had helped and she was no longer uncontrollably shivering, but Vi still help cold, like the chill of the rain had settled its way into every cell in her body.

“Are you warm enough, darling?” Caitlyn murmurs sweetly as Vi tucks her face further into Cait’s neck, throws her leg over her waist, and tries to get as close to her girlfriend as possible. “Not really, I don’t know how I’m still this fucking cold.” Vi complains against her skin. Caitlyn kisses her pink hair with a small chuckle.

Caitlyn get up for just a second, much to Vi’s dismay, but returns with two more blankets to wrap her up in, so Vi doesn’t grumble too much about her momentary absence. “Here, Violet.” Caitlyn tucks them both in again and they cling lovingly to each other, Caitlyn reveling in the comforting feeling of her girlfriend’s body against hers, and Vi doing her best to retain as much heat from Caitlyn as possible.

“Tonight was really fun.” Vi whispers after a while, unable to fall asleep. Caitlyn, often taking much longer than Vi to fall asleep, is still awake too. “It was, love. Thank you for letting me share more of myself to you, and thank you for doing the same.” She murmurs and Vi smiles at the sound of Cait’s sleepy sounding voice. “Anytime, Cupcake. Let’s do it more often, because you know I’m still thinking about that pizza…” Vi presses a kiss to Caitlyn’s collar bone, and the last thing she hears before falling asleep is Vi chuckling at her own musings.

Although she had fallen asleep cold, it was only a few hours later that Vi’s body takes a turn, becoming a radiator of heat. Turns out the rain got one of them sick after all. Still asleep, deep in a fevered slumber, Vi subconsciously curls away from Caitlyn, the shift in position and movement of the blankets causing the latter to stir awake.

At first she just attempts to go back to sleep, used to Vi moving around a lot in her sleep, but Caitlyn soon notices an uncomfortable heat lingering under the blankets. She rolls over to find Vi, curled into herself, clutching the blankets tightly to her chest, a restless furrow etched into her brows. Even in the dark, Caitlyn can see a thin sheen of sweat coating the Zaunite’s face and a deep pink flush strewn across her cheeks.

She frowns, her own brows knitting together as worry bubbles in her chest. She sits up slightly, reaching to place the back of her hand gently to Vi’s forehead, she gasps slightly at the amount of heat she feels. “Oh darling.” She sighs, cupping her cool hand to Vi’s cheek, momentarily unsure of what to do. Should she let Vi sleep? Or wake her get some medicine in her?

The decision is made for her when Vi stirs and lets out a sleepy groan. The soothingly cool sensation of Caitlyn’s hand against her face pulling her from her slumber. “huh…wha?” Vi slurs feverishly, her eyes fluttering open for a moment or two before growing too heavy and closing again.

“Violet? Vi honey, you’re sick, love.” Caitlyn murmurs gently to help orient her, her thumb softly stroking Vi’s cheek, her hand having never left its position. “oh, well, go back to ‘sleep, ‘m okay.” Is all Vi mumbles with a heavy sigh.

“So stubborn.” Caitlyn whispers so softly that Vi doesn’t seem to hear. “No way, darling. I’m going to take care of you, okay? You gave me your jacket and now look at you.” Caitlyn fusses, a bit of guilt rising in her even though Vi had made her decision and one of them was going to get soaked either way. “Better me than you.” Vi murmurs back and Caitlyn can’t believe her ridiculous girlfriend.

With a sympathetic hum, Caitlyn makes her way out of bed, hearing Vi let out a single groan, but doesn’t hear any more protests as the sick girl is too out of it to really notice her absence.

“Open your mouth.” Vi hears the words distantly, but she does and Caitlyn gently places the thermometer under her tongue. “Close and hold for a moment.” She instructs softly, one hand holding the thermometer steady, the other returning to Vi’s cheek, her thumb brushing lightly against her hot skin.

Vi’s silver eyes flutter open and she gazes hazily up at her girlfriend as they both wait for the small beep. “When I said you looked hot earlier, this is not what I meant.” Caitlyn frowns deeply at the high number shown on the tool.

Vi groans softly as she moves to sit up, Caitlyn immediately helping to ease her up against the plush pillows. She brushes Vi’s sweaty hair away from her face so she can see her more clearly. Vi offers Cait a small smile, trying to ease the worry she can see in her ocean eyes. “Don’ worry, cupcake, I always run hot, ‘member?” She reassures and Caitlyn’s face softens a little, though her worry stays.

“I know, Violet. I just hate that you feel so miserable…here drink some water, it’ll help.” She remembers that she’d grabbed a fresh cup of cool water and holds it gently to Vi’s plump lips. She drinks more than half, surprising both of them at how thirsty she is. But Caitlyn doesn’t set the cup down, instead, offering Vi a couple small fever-reducing pills which she begrudgingly takes with another gulp of water.

“Let’s get you back to bed, hmm? You look exhausted, love.” Caitlyn hums and Vi nods, the two of them finding their way back to laying cozily under the blankets, though Caitlyn made sure to toss a couple of the extra ones off. She doesn’t want Vi overheating any more than she already is. Vi clings to Caitlyn, burying her face in her chest with a noise somewhere between a whine and a groan.

“Cait?” She whispers a moment later, her voice uncharacteristically small as she feels her girlfriend’s gentle touch, soothing hands running along her back. “Yes, darling?” Caitlyn murmurs in return. “I-I don’t feel good.” Vi grumbles with a whine.

“I know, Vi. Just try and rest. I’ll be here.” She promises, one hand remaining on her back, the other moving to run through her damp hair. She holds her a touch closer and Vi hums contentedly. “mmkay.” She presses a featherlight kiss to the closest bit of bare skin she can reach on her girlfriend, and moments later her fevered mind is drifting off to sleep, knowing she’ll probably wake up feeling even crappier, but that she’ll be okay, because she has Caitlyn.

“Sleep well, my darling Violet.” Caitlyn whispers with a kiss to her forehead before promptly following her to sleep, making a promise to herself that from now on, anytime they leave the house, especially if they’re going to Zaun, Caitlyn will make sure to have an umbrella tucked away somewhere in her pockets or bags, just in case.

[araybiaaa]

hi! can you write a story where rafe and sofia had a daughter when they were very young, but then they broke up because of how difficult their relationship has become, but still had to remain in each other’s lives because of their child. then after years they’re both all grown up and mature, so when their daughter asks rafe to spend new years with her and sofia, he can’t say no to his little girl, and sofia can’t reject her wish either. so they have to spend the night together, maybe leading rafe and sofia to get a little tipsy, get into an argument as they always did but then end up like sleeping together? they both realize that they still love each other deep down.

i don’t know if this is stupid you don’t have to write it if you don’t want to🫶 i just had a dream about this😭😭😭

❝ reconciliations, r. cameron. ❞

ooo. 𝒑𝒂𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈… rafe cameron & sofia

ooo. 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔… mild sexual content, angst, marriage separation, mutual pining, denial of feelings.

ooo. 𝒔𝒚𝒏𝒐𝒑𝒔𝒊𝒔… request!where their daughter inadvertently helps them reconcile after she asks for rafe to stay over.

ooo. 𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒔… i think this is my first official fic of rafia as parents?? this was so much fun to write. i kinda deviated from the ask a bit (not too much though so it’s fine lol.) also this was not a stupid request anon. i think this is probably one of my favorites asks that i’ve gotten.

she seems him before he sees her.

(which is astounding considering the fact that his towering height usually gave him the advantage of overseeing nearly everything in his path.)

he’s barely walked through the room that’s filled with rambunctious toddlers who were all running around and squealing loudly in mirth as they chased each other — probably at the precipice of a sugar high from the chocolate milk they had during snack time, he considers — when he hears iliana’s familiar clamor of “daddy!” that has him averting his eyes away from her teacher whom he greets with a haste wave and genial smile, before shifting his attention on her.

she scoots out of the chair that she was previously seated in, absentmindedly abandoning the uncapped markers and crayons she was using while coloring, and snagged the piece of paper off of the table before making her way towards him.

he smiles, that soft adoring smile that’s always on his face whenever he looks at her and met her halfway, stepping around the clutter of legos that a little boy was playing with on the mat and crouched down with extended arms. he catches her as she runs into his arms, hefting her in the air and adjusting her so that she’s hoisted high against his chest.

“hey, baby.” he greets, leaning forward and pressing a kiss against her cheek.

iliana shuffled the paper that she was carrying around, switching it to her other hand. she extends the now crumbled up paper towards him, smiling widely as she avers, “look what i did!”

with his curiosity piqued, rafe retrieved the paper from her grasp and looked at it. skewed messily across the middle written in a heavy dark pink marker was iliana valdez-cameron; the words were shakily written, contrary to the dexterous feat of a toddler but still tangible enough for him to decipher to make out the gist of it. he could tell she’d worked hard on it as there was still residue of the pink smudge from the marker on the side of her hand.

he gasps, “you did so good baby.”

iliana reveled in her father’s praises, her gapped smile widening. “i did a painting too!” she accents, pointing across the room where the kids’ artwork was still drying on the easels. he followed her directions; maneuvering through the room until he reached hers.

it was a picture of their family; her penchant for details captured his slender physique as he wore his signature suit with the blue tie with red fishes that she gifted him for father’s day, sofia was standing on the other side of him with her widened smile and big eyes, that shone brightly and made his heart flutter even through a child’s painting. and at the end, iliana painted herself, her hands intertwined with her mother’s as they all stood in front of their house, smiling.

he smiles despondently at the sight.

“it’s dry, you guys can take it home with you if you want.” rafe turns his head at the sound of ms. goodwin’s voice approaching. she smiled at iliana before shifting her gaze over to rafe, gesturing towards the painting. “she worked hard on it. she said she wanted you to hang it up somewhere in your office.”

rafe nodded, chuckling softly. “my whole office is decorated with her artwork so that’s not surprising.”

there were drawings, pictures, gifts handmade by her, all around his office. he liked the memorabilia’s she’s made for him as every little piece held a special place in his heart. it was like that at home too — the refrigerator served as a makeshift exhibit, displaying all of the pieces she’s made for him throughout the years.

“hey, baby, can you go run over there and grab your bag and jacket so we can go?” he asks iliana who nods avidly, wriggling herself free from his grasp as he sets her down and allowed her to go over towards the cubby area.

“she’s such a sweet girl and she’s so smart for her age.” ms. goodwin compliments as they both stood there watching iliana multitask in grabbing her bag while also talking to one of her classmates.

“she definitely got that from her mother,” rafe says with a chuckle, “i barely made it through school.”

it truly was astounding how iliana’s nearly a prodigy, so naturally good at school when he was barely able to make it through school himself. if it weren’t all those tutors that his father paid for growing up, he probably would’ve had to repeat a few grades.

“she tells me that you read to her every night. that helps a lot,” she says but rafe doesn’t mention the fact that his reciting bedtime stories for her was usually done over the phone. after the separation, he moved out of the house which unfortunately split the time he got to spend with his daughter. “you’re both doing great with her,”

he hates that his and sofia’s decision affected iliana to where she’s now reduced to spending time with one parent one day and the other the next. he never envisioned co-parenting with sofia; he’d always hoped that when they finally started a family, that it would be all of them together as one but instead he was in a house all alone with nothing but torturous thoughts of regret that haunted him every night.

he was still active in his daughter’s life, but it was nowhere near the same as actually being there, and he felt the repercussions of their decision every time he comes home to a vacant house instead of returning to the one he previously shared with his wife and daughter.

rafe nodded as he looked over at her, a soft smile of adoration tugged at his lips. “thank you,” it was validation that he needed to hear because sometimes he questioned it himself.

he wasn’t always there to tuck her in at night, to kiss and hug her good morning, to comfort her whenever she had nightmares and needed someone to lay in bed with her until she fell asleep again. sure, he was present in her life, but he also felt solemnly absent and withdrawn from his family.

when she’s finally got her arms shoved through the straps of her little mermaid book bag, she hobbles back over to where he’s standing, proffering her arms up in the air in an unmistakable gesture that indicated she wanted to be held. rafe, never being able to deny her of anything she asks, reaches down and tucks his hand beneath her armpits before hefting her in the air.

she entangles her arms around his neck, nestling herself against the comfort of his chest. ms. goodwin observes the two in awe, unable to constrain the adoring smile that stretches across her features.

“tell ms. goodwin, bye.” he says, brushing a hand over her back as she peeks her head up from where it was hidden comfortably against him. suddenly feeling timid, iliana raises her hand in the air and wriggles her fingers, gesturing a small wave. she murmurs a soft and haste bye before turning her head to bury her face back in its respective perch. ms. goodwin fawns over her adorableness, resting a hand over her chest.

“bye sweetheart, i’ll see you next week!” she bids her farewell, before diverting her attention back to the remainder of her students. rafe walks over and snags her now dry painting off of the easel, bringing it along so he could hang it up at home.

…

she’s at home, stood over the stove prepping for tonight’s dinner when she hears the front door opening and iliana’s clamor of “mommy!” that has her smiling as she turned around to see her daughter running towards her in approach. sofia picks her up, wrapping her arms around her small body as she pressed a kiss against her cheek.

“hi, mi amor! did you have fun at school?”

iliana nods, “mhm. i made drawings for you and daddy today!”

“really? well, i can’t wait to see them and hang them up.” she smiles, pressing one last kiss against her cheek before steadying her to her feet. “i’m almost finished with dinner. but why don’t you can go play in your room while you wait, okay?”

“okay, mommy.” she concurs before she skips off down the hallway towards her bedroom. sofia turns around and gauges a look over at rafe who stood tentatively by the doorway with his hands slacked in his front pockets.

“thanks again for picking her up,” she says, tucking her arms across her chest as she leaned her body against the counter.

he shakes his head, dismissing her good naturedly. “you know that i don’t mind, sof. i love any extra time that i get to spend with her.”

she nods, “yeah, i know but still thanks.”

she watches as his face furrows in an indescribable expression; he looks briefly at her before hurriedly averting his gaze. the sudden shift has her curiosity piqued. she was with him long enough to be able to detect all of his tells and idiosyncrasies — she knows rafe better than she knows anyone; which is why she knows with the way he’s pursing his lips and writhing his hands inside of his pockets that something was bothering him.

and almost as if he’d read her mind, he begins to vocalize his thoughts. “so, uh, iliana told me about the trip you guys took to the aquarium last weekend...” sofia nods, albeit blanking confusedly on why he was mentioning it until the realization suddenly dawned upon her. “with uh, what’s his name again?” rafe questions, though she knows it’s rhetorical because with how detail oriented iliana is, she doubts there was anything her daughter forgot to mention while reciting the story of their outage to her father.

she sighs in deep exasperation, already knowing the direction of where this conversation was headed towards. “it wasn’t a big deal, rafe. we were already there and we happened to run into him while he was there with his son.” she clarifies, though she’s not entirely sure on why he felt like she was obligated to explain herself to him any way.

he nods, though still looking visibly abhorred. “i just find it funny how he was around while we were together and he’s still around even now that were separated,” and this time it’s sofia whose eyes narrow in offense because she did not appreciate what he was insinuating in the least.

he was deflecting, trying to blame and fault her to attempt to absolve himself from his own residual feelings of guilt that he still carried.

“what exactly are you trying to suggest? because scott is my friend! i’m allowed to have friends, rafe.”

he scoffs disbelievingly, “your friend? sofia he’s in love with you! i’ve seen how he looks at you! but you’re just too blind to see it.”

sofia’s eyes rolls at the absurdity of rafe’s accusations. but she doesn’t even have the opportunity to rebuttal against them, because their conversation is interrupted by iliana who skips into the room again. she pauses, looking between her parents with curious eyes.

“is dinner ready yet?” she asks and sofia exhales a soft sigh of relief; thankful that she didn’t inadvertently overhear their loud bickering.

the last thing she wanted was for their daughter to hear or witness their disagreement. prior to the separation, they’ve had countless whispered arguments in their bedroom, wary of iliana possibly overhearing them. though they know she doesn’t fully comprehend all of the complications behind the separation, it was still imperative for both of them to remain united in front of her. because even though they were no longer together, it was important for her to know that they were all still family regardless of her and rafe’s relationship (or lack thereof.)

sofia smiles softly as she averts her attention on her daughter. “not yet, baby. it’s just a few more minutes until everything’s done.”

“okay.”

sofia’s eyes wander waywardly towards rafe who sighs softly as he rubbed a hand over his clenched jaw. he placates a halfhearted smile on his face, masquerading his anger and softening his voice before he addresses her. “alright, baby. i have to go.” he says, walking from where he was previously posted by the doorway to now sauntering in the kitchen where they stood.

rafe crouches down in front of her so that their heights are leveled. he reaches for her hands, brushing his thumbs over her knuckles. “i’ll see you next weekend, okay?”

iliana’s eyes look at him pleadingly, her lips jut out in a petulant pout as she stumbles forward and throws her arms around his neck. “can you stay daddy? i don’t want you to go! i miss you.” she murmurs, though the sentiment is loud enough for sofia’s heart to break as she stood there listening to her daughter’s plead.

though it’s been two and a half years since their separation, they know iliana still hasn’t fully adjusted and it’s becoming more evident in how clingy she’s gotten recently. she’s always been a daddy’s girl but this past week she’s been more insistent than ever in wanting to be cemented by her father’s side. the other night, she made rafe read her three bedtime stories — trying to prolong the conversation so she wouldn’t have to say goodbye to him.

he holds her against his chest, pressing a kiss against her forehead. “i know. i miss you too, baby,” he says as he tries to assuage the conversation. though through the weariness lilting in his tone she could tell that his feelings were reciprocal of iliana’s. “but remember you and mommy live here together and i live somewhere else?”

she nods curtly against his shoulder, but doesn’t relent in her persistence. “i know, but i want you here again.” she avers, her words had yet to cease in their onslaught of breaking sofia’s heart.

sofia bites on her lower lip, contemplating. it’s after a brief moment of consideration that she concedes to her daughter’s ask. “hey, how about daddy stays over for the night?”

both iliana and rafe’s attention piques at this; their expressions aghast. iliana vocalizes her excitement with a squeal and an affectionate squeeze that she gives rafe, while he looked over her shoulder, staring at sofia with his face marred in a confused but appreciative look.

…

it’s after their bellies are full of food and iliana’s freshly bathed and tucked in that rafe and sofia find themselves alone again.

throughout the night; they remained cordial for iliana’s sake — laughing and engaging in conversation as she talked animatedly about her day. her excitement about rafe staying the night was apparent especially with how she preferred him to be the one to bathe and tuck her in bed tonight instead of sofia.

“you always tuck me in mommy! it’s daddy’s turn this time.” iliana said when sofia teasingly feigned offense over it.

she stood in the doorway, watching with a soft smile as rafe tucked her in and pressed his lips against her forehead. sofia’s smile turned despondent as she reminisced on the times where this was a nightly routine for iliana instead of a seldom one. their separation disrupted the familiarity that she’d gotten so accustomed to and it’s now that sofia realized the extent of how their decision affected her.

“okay, now it’s your turn,” iliana beseeched, retracting sofia away from her thoughts. she blinks, giving her daughter a small smile of adoration as she treks across the room until she’s stood just at her bedside.

sofia leans down and kisses her cheek, her smile widens at the sounds of iliana’s hearty giggles. “sweet dreams, mi amor.” she whispered, before leaning over to turn off the lamp that’s perched on the nightstand. her nightlight turns on; substituting for the loss of light.

rafe and sofia make their stealth departures as iliana suddenly begins to succumb to her exhaustion. she leaves the door ajar, giving her one last brief look over before eventually retreating down the hallway to the living room with rafe following in tow behind her.

“it might not be the most comfortable but these should help,” she says as she extends a pillow and blanket towards him.

he nods, “thanks and thanks letting me stay over. it really means a lot,” he says, his voice soft as he looks over at her.

after their unresolved conversation earlier and seeing him tucking iliana into bed, there was so much that sofia wanted to say to him about everything that happened between them.

things were easier when they first started dating, then somewhere done the line it got so complicated that sometimes rafe wouldn’t even come home and if he did he would sleep on the couch rather than in their bed with her.

they tried so hard to make it work, but it eventually got to the point of no return despite their efforts. of course there were times where she wondered if they gave up too easily on their relationship; but it’s been two years since it’s ended and he hasn’t made one indication of wanting to reconcile. so she conceded, pushing her feelings away until they were buried and dormant, choosing to focus solely on coparenting instead of rekindling their relationship.

it wasn’t until tonight that those feelings decided to resurface again.

“yeah, no problem. iliana really wanted you here so,” she shrugs, watching as his expression weened slightly at her insouciance. “i’m gonna go to bed. goodnight.”

rafe nods somberly as she brushes past him “yeah. night.”

…

he can’t sleep.

he’s laid wide awake, staring vacantly at the ceiling with his mind wandering on sofia. being with her and iliana tonight felt reminiscent of how it used to be when they were together as a family. despite their constant reassurances to iliana that they would always be a family regardless if he and sofia were together or not; it didn’t feel the same as actually being with them like he is tonight.

being here and being able to eat dinner with them as a family only made rafe mourn what he lost when he and sofia separated. he knows that he should’ve fought harder for her and their marriage. she was the best thing that ever happened to him and he let her slip away from him all because of his own insecurities. and now he’s carrying the brunt of his regrets.

he sighs deeply, running a hand wearily over his face. he couldn’t sleep, couldn’t think with sofia being in such close proximity to him. he sits up, rubbing a hand over his neck that had began to ache from tension. “fuck,” he murmurs before clambering to his feet.

he retreats into the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water. as he’s standing there chugging down the drink, he’s taken aback when he hears the sound of footsteps approaching. at first, he thinks that it’s iliana — she used to sneak into their bed to sleep with them all of the time when he used to live here, but he’s pleasantly surprised when he looks up and sees that it’s sofia rounding the corner instead.

“hi,”

she jumps, startled, resting a hand over her heart. “ay dios mios you scared me!”

“sorry.” rafe says, swallowing down the remnants of his drink before turning around to set the dirtied glass into the sink. he averts his attention back on sofia. “can’t sleep either?” he questions and when she shakes her head, his mind curiously wondered if the reason for her insomnia was the same as his.

“it really was nice being here with you guys tonight. it felt like old times,”

she nods, turning away from him as she tugged the refrigerator door open. “yeah, she was really happy to see you here again.”

rafe scoffed a bit ruefully as he shook his head. “why do you keep doing that?” he wasn’t trying to get upset, but any attempts at he made at trying to hold a conversation with her, she dismissed.

he’s aware that it was iliana’s doing that allowed him to stay over for the night but part of him foolishly hoped that maybe tonight would be the start of them reconciling. that seemed improbable now especially when she could barely look or talk to him without the subject regarding iliana.

she furrowed a confused look at him. “why do i keep doing what?”

“any time i try to talk to you, you dismiss the topic by bringing up iliana. i thank you for letting me stay, your response is that iliana wanted me here. i tell you that it felt like old times being with you guys again, you say iliana enjoyed seeing me again.”

“well what do you expect me to say?” sofia rebuttals, closing the door as she finally turns around to look at him again. she raised an expectant brow and shrugged, “last time i checked any and all conversations that we have are about her and her only. there’s not anything else that we need to talk about.”

there’s a sullenness that weighs down heavily on his chest at sofia’s disregarding behavior towards him. sure, they weren’t together any more and haven’t been for a while now, but did her feelings for him completely disappear after the separation?

“wow,” rafe surmises in disbelief. “so, that’s it?”

“what did you expect, rafe?! to come back and suddenly we’re one big happy family again? if that’s what you wanted then you shouldn’t have given up so easily!” she abhors, tears line in her pupils and despite her efforts at a callous demeanor her expression wavers the moment her lip trembles. “you gave up first. you pulled away and shut me out. then you moved out and left us,” she says and rafe feels his heart break at her accusations.

his own emotions begin to unfurl.

“i-” he shakes his head, blinking through the tears that fell from his eyes as he sputtered through an explanation. “i left because i thought that’s what you wanted. you weren’t happy anymore, sof. i saw how miserable you were being with me.” he laments, reminiscing on the trajectory of their marriage and how it started off so good but then transgressed into days with them not speaking or touching each other.

sofia nods, “i was miserable, rafe. because you were pulling away. suddenly the job seemed more important than us—”

“don’t say that! you know that’s not true.” he interjects, feeling offended that she would ever insinuate such an absurd statement. “there’s nothing in this world that’s more important than you guys. you two mean everything to me. it fucking kills me knowing that i didn’t fight hard enough to keep our family together. it’s the biggest regret that i carry with me. i love you, sof. i never stopped loving you. all i want is to come home to you guys, not just for one night but for every night for the rest of our lives. i’m sorry that i was distance and withdrawn and didn’t pay you the attention you deserved but i promise i’ll be better, baby. please just give me another chance to prove it to you,” he begs, pleadingly in his spiel.

he’s desperate for her forgiveness.

all he wanted was his family again and he was willing to do anything to ensure that happened. he knows saying i’m sorry wouldn’t even begin to absolve for everything that he’s done, but he hoped it was enough for the moment.

“sof, please. i’ll do anything, baby. please.” he whispers, his desperation is getting more palpable with each passing second that she stands there looking at him with an indiscernible expression on her face. he hoped his pleading apology was enough for her to believe in him again.

it’s after a moment’s contemplation that she’s nodding her head, murmuring a soft, “okay.” that has him releasing a sigh of relief.

he reached forward and cradled her face within his hands and leaned down, brushing his mouth tentatively against hers. “mmfh!” she murmurs against his lips, slightly aghast by the abruptness of it but slowly succumbing to the feeling of familiarity that washes over her as she indulges into the kiss.

his hands slide down her sides and grabs her by the waist, gently pressing their bodies together, before he’s leaning up and slotting his mouth over hers, swallowing away any lingering questions or trepidations.

it’s slow and suave, with rafe’s lips moving delicately against hers. he parts his lips and seeks after her tongue, sucking on the sensitive flesh. sofia moans softly, leaning into the kiss as she slowly loses herself in the feeling of him.

…

his forehead’s hot against her skin as he tucked his face in her neck. sweat’s slick all over his body, causing his hair to dampen and for the salty body fluid to stick against her body. pleasure spreads from the tip of her ears down to her toes that curl when he shifts his hips and thrusted into her without preamble.

sofia writhes beneath him. her hand glides over his ass, tugging his boxers down even further so she could feel more of him against her. she hikes her night gown over her thighs, pulling it up so that the vision of his cock thrusting inside of her cunt is in her view. he revels at the sight; seeing himself filling her with every thrust that he gives.

“fuck, sof.” he murmurs, sliding his hand underneath her thigh and lifting it up to where she’s bracketing it around his waist. this allowed for a change in pace; allowing him deeper, sharper strokes that has her back bowing as pleasure engulfs her.

she whimpers, her fingernails carve into the skin on his back as she feels his pelvis chafing against hers as he rolled his hips into her, swiftly, fluidly, unhurriedly, with such vehemence and vigor that it’s impossible to replicate.

she could feel him twitching inside of her with every pull her cunt gives. she keens and tosses her head back in pleasure.

“sofia-” he grunts again, his body trembling atop of hers. he’s already so close and isn’t positive that he can last any longer with the way she’s clenching around him.

she cums when he presses his thumb against her cunt and massaged at the swollen flesh.

she cries in pleasure, feeling her chest contract as she lulled down from her orgasm. rafe’s seconds behind her, body stuttering and spasming as he fills her with his warm.

“i love you,” he murmurs against her skin, squeezing his eyes shut.

she turns her head and smiles softly at him, leaning forward to meet his lips in another soft kiss. “i love you too,” she says, so naturally, like it’s the easiest thing in the world for her. her smile sages a bit as she sighs. “rafe?”

“yeah, baby?” he murmurs, pressing soft kisses against her skin.

she chews on her lip, shaking her head as she looked over at him. “what’s going to be different this time?” she heard his promises and reassurances earlier, but she needed to know how they were going to make this relationship work better this time.

she didn’t want them making the same past mistakes just to end up separated again.

rafe looks at her in deep consideration. “well, firstly, we’re going to communicate with each other better. i want to know everything you’re feeling and i’ll do the same. if you’re feeling like i’m not giving you or our family enough attention tell me and i’ll do better. you guys have always been my first priority and i’ll do better at showing you that.” he avows, brushing his hand over her back as he leaned down and pressed a kiss against her forehead.

“secondly, we’re not going to give up on each other again. no matter how hard shit gets, we’re not separating again. it’s been hell being without you and iliana and i don’t want to experience that kind of loneliness ever again. i’m going to prove that i’m worth being your husband again, sof.” she smiles at the vehemence behind his words, there’s a sincerity in them that has her clinging onto belief. it’s everything that she wanted to hear all those years ago and now that he’s saying them, there’s not a doubt in her mind that he won’t fulfill his promises.

she leans forward to peck a kiss against his lips, whispering a soft i love you, that has rafe’s stomach fluttering and heart swooning. she cuddles against his chest, tucking her face in the comfort of his neck as he holds her against him with his arms barred around her body like he was afraid of letting her go.

[momo-minomo]

Striking out on his own during Red Robin must have been the hardest thing Tim has ever done. Tim who’s greatest fear is loneliness, who throws himself into befriending everyone and leaving no bridges burned. Who Bruce admits is the Robin that LOVED the teamwork moves so much that he and Bruce developed entire playbooks together so they can take down overwhelming forces with perfect synchronicity. WHO developed even MORE team tactics with Nightwing to the point they learned each other’s signature weapons and their own weapons can be broken down or put together with a twist to form the other’s. Tim is the Robin the others turn to for Ðick’s flippy acrobatic bullshit when he’s not there because they practiced every move together until Tim can do Dick’s part with any of the bats. Tim who makes allies to fight with even on his solo cases and with people no one else would DREAM of allying with like Klarion, lady shiva, early days Red Hood, and all his fellow Young Justice kids. Tim’s been on like 10 separate teams over the years from the batfam to Young Justice, to the Titans, to the Outsiders, to the freaking Psyba-Rats.

So think of how soul crushing those first months were entirely alone. No family, no team, no friends, no backup because they’re all dead, missing, or gave up on him (in his mind). Ra’s sending the agents he did to Tim was a stroke of diabolical genius. How do you steal the loyalty of a person who’s loyalty is their defining trait? Take a look at Pru, Z, and Owens and tell me they don’t remind you of the original Young Justice team? Misfits who love too deeply and NEED someone who cares are Tim Drake’s personal kryptonite. His fondness for them has been both his biggest weakness and his greatest strength. It was a gamble on Ra’s part because yeah, Tim fell for his weakness hook, line and sinker but his strength kicked in and he walked away with Pru’s total loyalty. With Ra’s pouring on the paternal approval on top of it might have worked to at least divide Tim’s loyalties a bit if Ra’s hadn’t tried to control Tim by keeping Tam hostage. No one can control Tim, he’s the ultimate wild card and threatening innocents hits his rage button.

[harmless-variety-of-garden-snake]

Okay, I'm not doing this from a kitchen between board games, so I can actually post this the way I'd prefer. This is for Day Two of @bucktommyfluffebruary: Cooking Together. This is also on tumblr here!

---

They have two diametrically opposing cooking styles: Evan is hyper-focused on getting everything absolutely right from the start, Tommy goes with the flow and throws stuff in as he sees fit. It means that sometimes Tommy feels like he’s in the eye of a storm (something he’s now intimately familiar with) when he and Evan are in the kitchen together. Normally, they trade off or act as a sous chef to the other one. This, though, is too big a dinner to leave for just one person, because it’s Thanksgiving dinner.

It’s actually Saturday-after-Thanksgiving dinner, because almost everyone had been working on the actual holiday or had other family obligations. Miracle of miracles, they’re all available two days later, and Evan had enthusiastically volunteered their place when the plans were getting worked out.

There’s an Excel spreadsheet printed and taped to the fridge, there are multiple timers going with Post-Its placed on each one noting what the timer is for, and Evan had actually suggested they buy a couple of countertop burners until Tommy reassured him that they’d be fine with their double oven and seven burner stove. He’s calmly stirring the sauce for the ravioli he’s making as a starter, because his Nonna, Prozia Camilla, and Zia Vivi would rise from their graves and deliver a lethal dose of Italian guilt if he didn’t have a proper il primo corso. Evan is feeding potatoes through a ricer and glaring at the turkey in the oven like it’s personally offended him.

“It’s not going to be dry,” Tommy says for the probably tenth time, sipping his wine. “You almost done with those?”

Evan puts the bowl of riced potato next to Tommy’s elbow. “Yep. Two minutes to spare, too.”

“Good,” Tommy says, setting down his wine glass and reeling him in by the waist for a kiss. He lets the wooden spoon rest against the inside of the pot and brings his hand up to cup the back of Evan’s head, nearly smiling against his lips when Evan melts against him.

He loves Evan, even when he’s wound up and obsessing about timetables. Being able to feel Evan let go of that for a moment and find peace in Tommy’s arms is humbling, and he still doesn’t know if he knows what to do with the responsibility that comes with carrying Evan Buckley’s heart alongside his own.

When he breaks the kiss, the lines of tension are gone from Evan’s forehead, and he looks soft and content.

“It’ll be perfect, even if it’s not, because it’s Thanksgiving with our family in our home,” Tommy reminds him. It’s become his mantra ever since Evan had walked into their living room two weeks before and confessed that he’d signed them up to host. “For the first time.”

“Not the last,” Evan finishes, and Tommy nods. “I love you.”

Tommy presses a kiss to his cheekbone. “I love you, too.”

A timer goes off, and Evan reaches back to the island to grab it and silence it. “Yams are done.”

Instead of rushing off, though, he picks up the wooden spoon and tastes the sauce before having Tommy do the same.

“‘S good,” Evan says, nuzzling his shoulder. Then he rushes off to the bottom oven and takes out the tray of yams.

Tommy chuckles and picks his glass back up. He shoots off a text to the Thanksgiving group chat that people can start arriving whenever they want, because the yams coming out means there’s only an hour left until the turkey needs to come out to rest.

“Can you text—” Evan starts to ask, then his phone buzzes on the counter. He looks at Tommy with a relieved smile. “Thanks, babe.”

“Mhm,” Tommy hums, putting the sauce to simmer and turning on a burner under a giant pot of water. Then he goes to the fridge and starts pulling out everything for the antipasti, because there’s meat and cheese to slice and brined things to put in nice bowls.

He turns up the music playing on the bluetooth speaker that’s perched on their fridge, humming along with Perry Como. He likes listening to old music when he’s cooking, because it reminds him of being a little kid in a kitchen while his mom, her sister, their mom, and their aunt squabbled and gossiped in a mix of Italian and English.

A hand presses against his hip, and he smiles when a pair of lips press against the side of his neck.

“Aren’t you supposed to be making cranberry sauce?” he asks, tilting his head and sighing when Evan kisses him again.

“I asked Bobby to make some,” Evan says, nuzzling his neck. “Frees up a few minutes.”

“I’m sure your blood pressure appreciates that.”

“Mhm,” he hums against his skin, and Tommy sets down the knife before it slips. “Dance with me?”

Tommy feels his breath catch for a moment and turns just as Evan starts the song over on his phone and tucks it in his back pocket. When a hand is offered to him, Tommy’s heart flutters and he can’t suppress the breathless laugh as he takes it. He pulls Evan close, a hand splayed over the middle of his back, and Evan’s other hand curls in the fabric of his sweater, his knuckles pressing into Tommy’s bicep. Tommy closes his eyes and presses his cheek to Evan’s, swaying in their kitchen as Perry Como sings about not letting the evening get him down now that he’s around the person he loves. It feels so much like a moment from a movie, something that happens to other people, but it’s his and it’s theirs.

The song fades into another, and Evan’s hand leaves his bicep to cup his cheek and he presses a sweet, gentle kiss to Tommy’s lips. When Tommy opens his eyes, Evan’s smiling at him and everything else feels hazy.

The doorbell rings, breaking him from his reverie, and Tommy kisses him quickly.

“Go back to the gravy, I’ll get the door,” he says.

“Okay,” Evan says with a dreamy smile.

–

People trail in with side dishes, appetizers, desserts, wine, and board games. Their kitchen is crowded on the far side of the island, and there’s chattering and laughter and teasing and gossip while kids run around. Tommy carefully upends the container of fresh ravioli he’d made into the boiling water and leans into Evan when he slips an arm around his waist and hooks his chin over his shoulder.

“It’s the last thing,” Tommy says, and Evan hums in agreement. “And then we did it.”

“We did,” Evan says, kissing his shoulder. “And we’re not doing it again for, like, four years.”

“Yeah, no, absolutely not,” Tommy agrees, taking another gulp of wine and handing the rest to Evan for him to polish off. “Can you get the strainer?”

“Already next to the sink.”

Tommy snags his hand after he sets the wine glass down, kissing his knuckles and knowing that the next time they do this, there will be a ring there.

–

The song they dance to is "And I Love You So" by Perry Como.

[vampiricstoryteller]

I Only Have Eyes 42

Hey! Omg y’all I’m so nervous about this fic. It’s finally time for me to start this Richter x Annette x Alucard journey I’ve been wanting to go on. Here is the first of three chapters, I really hope y’all like it.

Summary: Annette does not want to be paired with Richter Belmont for this philosophy project. She would rather sweep the ocean floor. Richter has no real opinion on philosophy but Annette has captured his attention in a way no one has in a long time. Adrian, just loves making pizza and wants his friend to be happy. The three of them together brings about a love none of them were truly prepared for.

Read story on A03 here

All mistakes are my own

Warnings: cursing, smut thoughts, implications, polyamory

Chapter One: Double the Fun, Triple the Time for Love

Annette is vaguely aware of Richter Belmont, because they have Philosophy of Humanity together on Mondays, Wednesdays and alternating Fridays. It’s a year long class worth double the credits with less than twenty students. How could she not at the very least, know his name?

He sits two rows behind her, in the same spot, to the left and usually wears a royal blue hoodie with an emblem on it she had to ask a friend for clarification on.

“Oh, thats his family’s legacy.” Edouard told her right around Halloween. The two of them knee deep in alterations for a costume party they were going to.

“Richter’s family can be traced back centuries over in Europe. London specifically.” Edouard explained further. “They provided a lot of weapons during the wars, then his great great grandfather pivoted towards politics and they’ve been untouchable since.”

Annette took the clump of information in stride. Old British Money was not something she ever wanted to get mixed up with. She’d rather sweep the ocean floor than ever have to be in the same room as a Prime Minister.

She must sit with what her friend tells her for too long because he smirks later that night when they part ways, and gives her one final bit of information.

“Rumor that went around for a while was that Richter and his grandfather Juste basically hate each other, but they both love Richter’s mother Julia, Juste’s daughter, so they comprised by giving him space over here in America but paying the way for it.”

Besides what Edouard tells her, and she seriously wonders how deeply her friends web of information runs, Annette knows next to nothing about The Belmont Family line and as an exchange student, she has no real interest in learning about families with old money. It’s not like they were going to give any of that money to her.

So Annette brushes him from her mind. She’s trying to earn back to back degrees with no break while pay half the tuition out of pocket, there’s barely enough hours in the day for herself; her thoughts about Richter are nonexistent.

Until they’re paired together for a project thats worth their entire grade.

It’s the second day back from winter vacation when their Philosophy professor hands out a thick packet and explains that after covering the basics during first semester, it’s now time to learn how to apply the information in real life.

“You’ll find your partners name on the inside flap, please use today’s class time to introduce yourselves and compare schedules.” Dr. Higsmen says, his stubby hands folded on the podium. “You should be meeting three times or more a week. We’ll start presentations on May 1st.”

Annette flips her packet open and stares down at the name listed underneath hers.

Richter Belmont

Her left eye twitches, she can feel the headache forming underneath her temples already and Annette has just started contemplating if it’ll look bad for her to ask to a new partner when a shadow appears over her shoulder. She closes her eyes for a second, takes a deep breath then turns and tilts her head up.

He is, quite possibly, the most handsome man she’s ever seen. Tall and lean, pretty blue eyes, dark hair that he actually knew how to comb and long fingers that are tapping rhythmically on his packet; Richter smiles down at her nervously.

“Hi, you’re Annette, right?”

She blinks then nods slowly, lifting her backpack from the seat next to her. “That’s me.”

“Cool,” he flashes her a smile as he pulls the chair out a bit and sits next to her. “I’m Richter, it’s nice to officially meet you.”

He extends one of his hands to her, his blue eyes searching over her and her desk while she eyes him warily before she puts down her pen and lets her hand slide into his.

His skin is softer than Annette could have ever expected it to be. There are callouses, of course, and a lot of them but his long boney fingers are soft to the touch and she barely keeps her thumb from stroking the back of his hand.

“Nice to meet you too.” She murmurs, ducking her head when he lets go of her.

“You’re new here aren’t you?”

He sounds genuinely curious so Annette nods, keeping her eyes from rolling. “Yes, I was accepted into the exchange program.”

“Oh nice,” Richter smiles, his face turning thoughtful as he adds on. “Your accent sounds very island based, maybe Dominican or Haitian?”

Annette blinks in surprise, ever since arriving at the end of last summer she has heard the same misplacement of her accent over and over. They all automatically assumed she was from Jamaica, which was ridiculous when one actually thought about it. But if Annette was learning anything in America it was that most people don’t put real thought into anything that doesn’t directly benefit them.

Her accent was just a placeholder in small talk, a tidbit of trivia they all wanted to tuck away and use later when they thought it would come in handy. It didn’t actually matter where she was from, just her not being American was enough for most of them to decide if she was useful or not.

And Annette made sure that she was not.

It’s Richter’s tone, however, that keeps the warning bells from ringing through her mind. He sounds……pensive, like he’s truly thinking about where she’s from. And not for any means to an end, just to know. Which was, new…..

Annette clears her throat, mentally shaking herself.

“I’m from Haiti, yes.” She narrows her eyes a bit, trying to remain playful. “You’ve been there before?”

Richter nods, “Once when I was a kid. My grandfather took me when he had a business trip there.” He tilts his head as if remembering.

“And?” Annette prompts, letting one hand rest against her cheek. “What did you think of it?”

“It was beautiful, I was only ten so I couldn’t leave the hotel a lot but I remember the food being amazing.” Richter taps one finger on top of his packet, his blue eyes flickering over to her. “I remember the people were very nice and everywhere smelled amazing, like the earth and warm clay.”

Annette watches him reminisce, a very clear memory playing in his mind judging by the way he subtly jerks and then his cheeks tinge pink.

“Sorry.” Richter reaches back and scratches at his neck. “That must sound weird as hell.”

Annette laughs, surprised at both herself and him.

“No, no it’s alright. I understand what you mean. It does have a very earthy aroma.” She picks at her fingers. “I think it’s one of the things I miss most.”

A beat passes between them, not uncomfortable exactly but there’s definitely a shift from the casual pleasantries. Annette clears her throat and taps on her packet,

“So, uhm, when’s a good time for you for us to start meeting up?”

Richter shrugs, leaning back in the chair until the front legs come off the ground. “Whenever is good for me honestly, do you have a busy schedule?”

“Kinda?” Annette glances at him. “I work a lot but I’m pretty sure I can talk to my boss about it,”

At his curious look; Annette waves dismissively. “I work in the school library, most the time it’s just me sitting there studying and doing nothing. They always tell me I can take time for school work but this is my first actual project so,”

Richter nods, “okay good to know, do you think it’ll be cool for me to join in the library sometimes?”

“I don’t see why not.” She replied.

He reaches into the pocket pouch of his hoodie, pulling out a phone. “Wanna swap numbers? Or instas?”

Annette grabs her own phone from the front zipper on her backpack. “I’m not on social media.” She says unlocking the screen and pulling up the numbers keypad. “So number, if you don’t mind.”

They trade phones, Annette feeling heat rise in her cheeks at how sleek and new his is compared to her cracked screen, duct tapped to hell one. Richter doesn’t seemed bothered by it at all, he taps his number in and makes his own contact. She does the same, unsure if putting her full name is presumptuous or leaving it with just her first is vain.

She decides on her full name, quickly typing it out and hitting save. Annette hands the phone back to its owner, taking hers and putting it back in her bag without even looking at the screen.

Richter taps at his phone for a second, seemingly texting someone back before he puts the device away and turns his blue eyes back to her.

“Do you have any other classes today?” He asks, flipping through the first few pages of his packet. He produces a pen, seemingly out of nowhere, and begins underlining things on the pages before him.

“No but I’ve got to work from 2pm til 8 tonight.” Annette sighs, already exhausted by the long hours she’ll be sitting in that backless chair at the checkout counter.

“Wanna get lunch together then?” Richter asks casually. “We can start brainstorming for our project, get ahead of everyone else.”

Annette blinks and says uncertainly, “Sure, that sounds good.”

He glances at her, “I know a place, has great pizza. It’ll be my treat.”

“Oh you don’t have to—.” Annette starts, shaking her head but Richter only looks to the clock on the wall and nods to himself.

“Come on, we can get there early and be first in line.” He swings his backpack up into his lap and puts his packet inside.

Annette tilts her head at all the different pins that are hooked into the sturdy fabric of his bag. She sees his family emblem immediately but there’s numerous others, different causes, brands, pop culture references and though she can’t place them all she finds the display of individualism somewhat endearing.

Richter looks down at his bag, chuckling a bit. “Oh yeah, I always forget I have so many pins on here.”

Annette smiles. “They’re cool, where’d you get them?”

“My sister got a button maker for Christmas like three years ago and hasn’t stopped since.” Richter says, shaking his head. “She gives them out like candy now.”

Annette nods, putting her packet away as well. She glances around the room, noticing that most of the other pairs have already left. She stands when Richter does, putting on her coat, hiking her backpack up over her shoulder and looking at him expectantly.

He grins at her, “Let’s get outta here.”

Dr. Higsmen bids them a good day as they pass him, packing away his papers into his briefcase.

“Off to Alucard’s then?” The hefty man asks.

Richter nods, opening the classroom door for Annette. Over her head he smiles at their professor and says,

“I always try to get the first slice of the day at least three times a week.” He puffs his chest out proudly. “It’s basically my job at this point.”

Dr. Higsmen laughs, something Annette’s not sure she’s ever heard him do, and waves them on.

“Be sure to tell him hello.”

Richter calls out a goodbye over his shoulder but as they walk down the hall he turns his attention to Annette.

“You like pizza right? I should have asked. Although he does offer other stuff too.” Richter taps his chin. “There are these stuffed garlic knots that will really blow your mind.”

Annette raises both eyebrows, “Pizza is good, as are garlic knots but I’m not that hungry.”

Richter glances at her, at the end of the hall he pulls open the door that leads to the buildings parking lot and motions for her to go first.

“It’s alright, whatever you don’t eat I definitely will.”

It’s a nice day outside, the sun has managed to break up the winter clouds and shines down on the left over snow that remains on the grass from days ago. Annette’s still not exactly used to the snow, it is very pretty but the novelty of it wore off after the second time she slipped on ice.

“Come on, we can take my car.” Richter says stepping into the wet slush of ice that awaits them.

Annette chuckles, “good cause mind doesn’t arrive for a good forty minutes or so.”

When Richter looks back at her in confusion, Annette pointedly stares at the bus stop where a few other students stand waiting for it.

“Right, sorry, dumb of me to assume everyone has a car.” He says shaking his head.

Annette chuckles, raising her hands. “Don’t worry about it.”

When they reach his car, a grey Ford Ranger, she blinks at the sheer size of it. One wheel alone is almost as tall as she is.

“Here, one second I gotta move some stuff around.” Richter says quickly fishing the keys from his jeans.

The truck chirps and he yanks the passenger door open. Annette wakings patiently, her hands shoved into the pockets of her coat as Richter tossed a duffel bag, gym shoes and two more hoodies in the back. He pats the dark colored seat then steps back and offers a hand to her.

“It’s a bit of a up step.” He explains when she raises her eyebrows. “Trust me, you wouldn’t be the first person to fall out of my truck. Maria does all the time.”

Annette chuckles, letting her hand slide into his again. She keeps her eyes on her feet as she climbs into the imposing vehicle. The step up is pretty large, enough to throw her off balance about halfway; Richter’s hand tightens around hers though and he lifts her when her legs fail her.

“All good?” He asks once she’s slid into the seat and their hands disconnect.

“Why is it so high off the ground?” Annette asks exasperated.

Richter chuckles, “Tall people problems, don’t worry you’ll get used to it.”

He shuts the door before Annette can reply, leaving her to force a blush down while he casually walks around the front of the truck to the drivers side. Her eyes track him the entire way, searching his face for any kind of break in his cool demeanor.

When he gets into the truck, Annette rolls her eyes at him not having to jump or or climb; his legs are long enough that he doesn’t even seem to need the step assistance already at the bottom of the door.

“You ready to try the best pizza you’ll ever have?” Richters excitedly, starting the truck and throwing it into reverse.

Annette laughs softly, relaxing back against the dark seats. “I will be the judge of that.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It only take about 10 minutes to reach Richter’s destination. He takes her through the back streets, telling her about how much he hates Main Street because it’s full of nothing but tourist attractions and showing her little connecting alleys that she can always use if she’s running late.

Annette finds that she enjoys hearing about the town from the perspective of someone who was basically a local.

“When did you move here?” She asks when they come to the last stop light before the plaza they’re going to.

“Officially four years ago but, my family came to this town for vacation every summer since before I was born.” Richter shrugs, his fingers tapping on the steering wheel. “My great grandmother was born and raised here, so my family always tried to come back.”

Annette nods, filing the information away under the mental folder she’d created tilted ‘The Belmonts’ and turning her attention to the plaza he’s turning into.

The plaza is fairly small, there’s only seven places of business in total and a small play area for children that only has a jungle gym and two swings. Richter turns into the second section of parking spaces and Annette sits forward a bit to look up at the restaurant.

It’s sign is elegant and in neat cursive, braced on awning of the plaza to look as if the name is double outlined.

‘Alucard’s Pizzería and Wines.’

Annette tilts her head to the side, her nose scrunching a bit as she eyes the outdoor patio and the dark interior design thats visible from the storefront window.

“You don’t like wine?” Richter asks curiously, shutting the truck off and popping open the middle console.

“I have no real opinion on it.” Annette shrugs.

“Oh he’ll love that.” Richter snickers, he stuffs a simple black wallet into his jean pocket and turns his bright blue eyes to her. “You have your passport, right?”

Annette nods, patting her backpack between her feet. “I am not from here; of course I have my passport with me.”

Richter grins, “Let’s go then, im starving.”

Annette has to literally leap from the truck but she manages to land squarely on her feet; her combat boots kicking up a bit of slush at the impact. Slinging her backpack over her shoulder, Annette shuts the stupidly heavy truck door and joins Richter at the front.

“So, you and this Alucard are friends?” She asks as they walk towards the glass doors, their steps in sync.

Richter laughs, “Yes. He is a friend of my family. His dad and my grandfather were army friends.” He pulls open the glass doors for her, smiling down at her when her shoulder brushes his chest. “And Alucard is a nickname; his actual name is—“

“Shouldn’t you be in class?”

Annette startles slightly, blinking her eyes rapidly to adjust in the sudden dimness of the restaurant. About few feet away stands a man, his hands on his hips as he awaits an answer from Richter.

He steps towards them and Annette feels her eyes widen, her breath disappearing from her lungs. If she’d thought Richter was handsome beyond belief, his friend of the family is an angel from above. Long straw yellow hair that’s currently tied up into a bun at the crown of his head, his golden eyes flicker between the two of them curiously despite the disapproving frown on his very very pale face.

“I did go to class! We got our project partners and Mr. Higsmen told us to go get acquainted with each other.” Richter says defensively. “He says to tell you hi by the way.”

He steps behind Annette and puts both hands on her shoulders, guiding her closer to his friend.

“This is my philosophy projects partner, Annette.” Richter sounds proud, though she can’t even begin to ponder what for. “Annette, this is my best friend, Adrian.”

She watches as the blonde rolls his eyes before he steps to them and bows his head deeply to her. He offers a hand, holding Annette’s one in both of his once she reaches out.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Annette.” He says with a smile that could melt iron. “I’m sorry for your unfortunate luck in project partners.”

Annette lets out a laugh, a real one, while Richter squeezes her shoulders and sticks out his tongue.

“Now is that any way to treat your first paying customers of the day?” He steers Annette towards one of the booths near the kitchen door.

“I never make you pay Richter.” Adrian calls after them.

He lets Annette choose which side of the booth she wants to sit on, sliding into the seat across from her with practiced ease. She puts her backpack between herself and the wall, folding her hands on top of the table as she looks around.

“First impressions?” Richter asks, his tone light but Annette can see the genuine worry in his eyes.

She smiles, shrugging one shoulder. “They’re good so far, he owns this place? He seems kind of young to already have his own restaurant.”

“Adrian’s going to be thirty this year.” Richter snickers. “He’s practically an old man.”

“Ah yes, thirty the year of mortality rate, in the stone ages.” The blond deadpans as he approaches the table and lays out two menus, he rests his hip against the back of the bench Richter’s sat in. “So much older compared to your baby like wonder of twenty four.”

Annette watches the two of them over the top of her menu as they descend into a battle of banter. She can see immediate fondness between them, Richter looks up at Adrian with adoration in his gaze despite the jokes flying from his mouth. And Adrian, gives as good as he gets, verbally baiting Richter with little quips until he ends their conversation by tugging on the tuffs of hair around the younger man’s ear.

“What’s your favorite kind of pizza, Miss Annette?” He asks turning his golden gaze to her.

“Ugh please, it’s just Annette.” She scrunches her nose. “I’m twenty three, not thirty three.”

Richter bursts into laughter while Adrian blinks in momentary surprise. He reaches up and pulls hard on Richter’s hair again. “You’re so hyena like today, Richter. Shut up.”

He looks back towards the dark skinned woman and nods, “Annette then, favorite kind of pizza?”

“Pepperoni and black olives.” Annette shrugs. “Weird I know, but I love it.”

“No weirder than this nut job.” Adrian shrugs and tilts his chin at Richter. “When he was a kid he would only eat pizza with macaroni as the topping.”

“Hey!” Richter protests when Annette sticks out her tongue in disgust. “I was a growing boy and needed the nourishment!”

Adrian pats the top of his head. “It’s okay Richter, we’re not judging you.”

“Oh I definitely am.” Annette grins.

Adrian laughs, “you’re going to fit right in Annette.” He pushes away from the booth, the bell above the front door jingling to signal the arrival of new customers. “I’ll bring out some cheese garlic knots, and start your pizzas.”

~~~~~~~~~

Richter hadn’t been lying. Adrian’s pizza was the best Annette had ever had. Hot, thick and gooey with extra cheese; Annette devours the personal one he sits in front of her about twenty minutes after he brings them garlic knots and Arnold Palmer’s.

She’s never had a pizza so deeply rich yet not greasy at all. Even the cheese stuffed garlic knots, slathered with butter, don’t leave much of a stain on the napkin she uses throughout the meal.

It’s very impressive.

As she and Richter eat, they decide to try and meet up twice during each week and once over the weekends up until it’s time to present their project.

“I can always pick you up from work and stuff,” Richter offers. “Do you stay in the student dorms?”

“Yes, but the ones not on campus.” Annette says, “you know the ones that are supposed to replicate real adult life.”

“Except for the RA’s are constantly prowling the halls like vigilantes.” Richter chuckles. “Yes I do know those dorms.”

“They’re the worst.” She sighs shaking her head.

“It’s okay, we can always hang at my place or here. Adrian won’t mind.” Richter says with a firm nod.

As if summoned by Richter’s thoughts alone, the blond appears at their table momentarily.

“Do you guys want dessert?” He asks, a sizzling pizza balanced over his shoulder.

Richter motions towards Annette. “You want a slice of cake?”

She shakes her head, pulling her phone from her backpack. “My shift is gonna start soon.” Glancing at the digital clock on the screen she relaxes at bit when she realizes it’s only 1:15. “Maybe next time?”

Adrian smiles at her, “I have the feeling we’re going to be seeing a lot of each other Annette, so I’ll hold you to that.”

He excuses himself to go drop off the pizza to the family of four waiting. Across from Annette, Richter stuffs the last bit of crust from his own pizza into his mouth. It puffs his cheeks out exaggeratedly and she can’t help the smile the creeps onto her lips.

In her hand, her phone vibrates and the screen lights up to show that Edouard has texted her.

Edouard: still need a ride to work?

Annette blinks, she’d forgotten that originally her plan was to go back to the dorm after philosophy and take a much needed nap. Obviously those plans had been completely derailed.

Annette: yes but I’m not at the dorms. I’m at Alucard’s pizza place. is that too out of the way?

Edouard texts back before she can even close their messages out.

Edouard: I’ll be there in 15 :)

Annette hearts his message in thanks before locking the screen and pulling her attention back to Richter. He’s munching on a left over garlic knot, trying not to watch her but clearly failing as their eyes meet the moment she raises hers.

“Everything okay?” He asks quietly.

“Yeah, my friend was just asking if I still needed a ride. He’s on his way,” Annette explains, sipping at the watered down left overs of her drink. “We work the same shift on Mondays and Wednesdays.”

Richter nods, “That’s cool, I wouldn’t have minded dropping you back off.”

Annette waves dismissively. “It’s out of your way, I’m sure you’d rather hang out with Adrian.”

Richter snorts, glances around the restaurant. “I see him all the time.”

She smiles, “I’ll let you take me back next time.”

Richter grins at her, nodding in agreement. They clean up their table for Adrian, stacking the plates and wiping the surface down. The blond looks incredibly grateful when he passes by them next, snagging the stacked plates with one hand and carding the other hand through Richter’s hair.

Annette catches the faint blush spread across Richter’s cheek and she glances over her shoulder towards the kitchen doors that Adrian disappeared behind. Her mind attempting to fit together the puzzle pieces that have fallen into her lap today.

In her lap, Edouard’s text alerts her to the fact that he’s pulling up and Annette begins shrugging her coat back on. Richter stands when she does, insisting on walking her out of the restaurant.

The smile on her friends face is blinding when he sees her exist the pizzeria.

“Oh,” Richter says happily. “I didn’t know you and Edouard knew each other.”

“Heeeeyyyyy Richter!”

He bends at the waist and waves to the other boy. “Hey Edouard, long time no see.”

Annette rolls her eyes, shaking her head as she sighs out dramatically. “Why am I not surprised, how do you know him?”

“We had three classes together freshman year.” Richter shrugs. “He’s a good dude.”

She hikes her bag up higher on her shoulder, “He is, when I got here last semester I didn’t have any friends and he went out of his way to hang out with me.”

“Yeah that sounds like him.” Richter chuckles, he gently bumps her arm with his own. “Well I hope I can be added to your exclusive friends list this semester.”

Annette blinks, heat burning her cheeks. She’s unsure what to say, should she confirm that she already thinks of them as friends after only one study session where they got basically no studying done? Or would that be too weird?

A beat of silence passes between them and Annette steps back, chewing on her lip. “I’ll uh, text you later I guess?”

“Yeah definitely! Ha—Have a good shift at work.” Richter steps back too. “Thanks for having lunch with me, Annette.”

She nods, waving to him. “See you, Richter.”

They turn from each other, Richter going back inside the pizzeria and Annette ducks into Edouard’s car. To his credit, her friend has kept relatively silent but the moment she closes the door, he reaches over and smacks her arm twice before grabbing the sleeve of her coat and shaking her in excitement.

“Bitch! Not you getting an invite to Richter’s safe space! Bitch!” His voice fills the inside of the car. “Ahhhhhhh! Bitch!”

“Edouard!” Annette laughs, trying to break away from his grip and failing. “Stop! He could still be watching! Go!”

Her friend complies with her wishes, pulling out of the parking space he parked crookedly in and turning in the direction of the college; his laughter and enthusiasm lasting long after they’d clocked in at the library.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Your new friend is very pretty.” Adrian comments to Richter later that night as the two men close up the pizza shop.

“Yeah, noticed did you?” Richter teases, placing the last few chairs upside down on their assigned tables.

“How could I not? You’ve never brought any girl here before.” Adrian says, watching Richter from the corner of his eye. He counts out the days profits slowly, making sure to not miss a single cent.

“There’s a first time for everything.” The younger man replies, making his way over to Adrian and hugging him from behind.

“Yes, there is.” Adrian pats Richter’s forearm across his stomach. “And I’m sure there are plenty more brewing in that chaotic mind of yours.”

“She’s different, not superficial and doesn’t care that my last name is Belmont.” Richter says defensively. “I want to be her friend.”

Adrian smirks, folding the days money into the bank envelope for the morning and waiting. Belmonts, very rarely had friends.

“And eventually I want to fuck her.”

The blond snorts. “There it is.”

Richter pinches his hip bone. “I saw you staring at her too, you want her just as much as I do.”

“Why are we having this conversation, Richter?” Adrian asks, twisting his torso so they can look at each other. “What’s your endgame here?”

“I thought you might like to join.”

Adrian blinks, pale eyebrows climbing up his even paler forehead.

“And what gave that impression?”

Richter smirks. “You hate olives on pizza.”

Adrian rolls his eyes. “It’s rude to comment on a customers food choices.”

“Never stopped you before.” Richter laughs, he reaches up and grips Adrian’s chin. “It could be a lot of fun.”

Their lips come together slowly, Richter’s slotting over Adrian’s and his tongue flicking out to run over the bottom lip he’d come to know so well.

It’d taken Richter a long time to convince the older man that he wanted to be affectionate towards him and it was genuine. They’d grown up together, went to school together, Adrian had been there when the problems with his grandfather started and he’d been waiting in America with open arms when Richter couldn’t take being a Belmont anymore. How could he have ever thought that Richter wouldn’t be somewhat seriously in love with him?

They’ve been trying out this friend’s with benefits thing for a little over a year and Richter always made sure that Adrian knew what he was thinking when it came to them. There were no secrets between. He’d never communicated with anyone as much as he did with Adrian. But he’d also never cherished the friendship of someone the way he did his with Adrian.

Neither of them expected it to last long, especially not after Richter has to take over the family business. But that’s at least another three years away, they have time.

“You cannot lie to her, about anything.” Adrian says firmly, the moment they pull apart. “Not about me, not about this, not about your intentions with her.”

“I won’t.” Richter promises. “She’s observant, I wouldn’t be surprised if she hasn’t already thought something’s going on between us.”

“Still, I don’t want you hurting people just for the sake of experience.” Adrian reaches up and cups Richter’s face. “She could be really good for you, don’t ruin it with something stupid.”

“For us.” Richter corrects kissing the inside of Adrian’s wrist. “She could be really good, for us.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It’s uncanny, the way Richter slips seamlessly into Annette’s life. As if he’d always been around and always been her friend. They text all the time, Richter quickly becoming the first person she speaks to in the morning and the last one to wish her sweet dreams at night. They text so much in fact that her phone graduates from backpack zipper pocket to her pant or jacket pockets at all time.

Richter rarely lets more than an hour pass between conversations and Annette, well, she looks forward to talking with him. Her heart beats faster every time she gets a notification with his name on it; he’s great at making her feel like she’s the only person in the world worth his attention.

After that first lunch at Alucard’s, Annette found more often than not she ended up tucked away in the same booth most days of the week. Between classes, work, homework and Edouard, she’s grateful to have the small space to escape to. Adrian had even been nice enough to extend an invitation to her stating that she could always come into his restaurant, even when Richter wasn’t there.

“Your seemingly never ending calm is always a nice change of pace from Richter’s constant energy.” He’d told her when she’d double checked if it was alright for her to hang out one lunch break while Richter met with his counselor.

He’d given her free refills and a slice of cake for the road when she finally packed up her stuff later that day.

Her best friend, is over the moon about the entire situation. Edouard has become not only an even closer friend, he’ll be addicted to the stuffed garlic knots before the month is over, but Annette’s biggest cheerleader in what he calls:

“The Pursuit of Belmont……And Friend”

No matter how hard she tried to emphasize that they are partners on an educational project, Edouard has already begun to plan her outfits for her and Richter’s first few dates. He sends Annette videos on different ways to do her makeup, helps her learn to thread her eyebrows and even started reading the relationship horoscopes for her sign, Richter’s and Adrian’s.

Annette would kill him if she didn’t appreciate his friendship so much.

It’s been three weeks since they got their philosophy packets, and the first Friday that Richter’s asked to meet up on. He’d texted her after his last class, knowing she still had close to an hour left in her lab and Annette responded like she usually did; insisting that she could catch the bus to meet him and that he didn’t have to wait.

She doesn’t even try to be upset when, an hour later, she steps out into the buildings parking lot and sees Richter relaxed in the driver seat of his ranger; waiting for her.

“How was class?” He asks when she approaches the driver side window.

“Good, learned a module while dissecting a rat.” Annette shrugs though she doesn’t move to walk around the truck like she usually would.

“What? Did something happen?” Richter asks, his blue eyes looking over her frame a few times. “You okay?”

“I just, need to go home and change.” Annette looks down at herself. “I smell like lab equipment and sterilized rat.”

Richter chuckles, starting up the truck. “Yeah I figured, come on I’ll take you to your dorm.”

Annette bites at her lip, the same question as always rising on her tongue.

“Are you—.”

“Yes, Annette.” Richter smiles, his eyes determined. “I’m sure, now get in. We can stop by the store on the way back and pick up a few things to make our study session more exciting tonight.”

She sighs dramatically, “alright fine, if you insist.”

He smirks at her, watching her as she makes her way around the front of the car to the passenger side. When she pulls open the door, Richter leans across the middle console and offers his hand.

“Up you get.” He teases with a handsome smile.

She takes his hand, throwing him an unimpressed look as Richter easily pulls her into the truck.

“Do you have to pull everyone into this damn thing?” She grumbles, wiggling in the seat to be more comfortable.

“Just you,” Richter chuckled, starting the truck and backing out of the parking space. “And Maria but she doesn’t count, other than you two I don’t really let anyone in my truck.”

“Right, you haven’t told me much about your sister.” Annette says. “How come I haven’t met her yet?”

“She’s only sixteen, still in high school. She’s not really my sister but we’ve always been close like siblings.” Richter shrugs. “My aunt Tera, her mum and my mum, Julia, are second cousins. So we are related, just distantly. Tera and my mum are the same age and spent every break from school together.”

Annette nods, “Tera and Maria are…”

“In the next town over, directly across the highway. I spend most holidays there but I got my apartment here when I was accepted into the college.” Richter smiles. “You’ll meet Maria soon, she’s obsessed with Adrian teaching her to make pizza. She’s just very popular at school. Head of the debate team, class president, in yearbook club and plays volleyball.”

“A true go getter then.” Annette chuckles.

“She really is, she has big plans for her future and I know she’ll achieve them all.” Richter says proudly. “But she’ll be here for the week of spring break, I know you two will love each other.”

Annette smiles, enjoying seeing Richter talk about his family. She’d been subtly trying to find out more about the Belmonts but so far Richter was willing to admit two things about the people he was related to.

One: He loved his mother, his aunt Tera and Maria.

Two: He hated every other single person he shared blood with. All of them. There was no love lost and he didn’t want to talk about it.

So Annette didn’t push. It wasn’t her place. Not yet anyways.

She doesn’t have long to think about it because soon Richter pulls into the parking garage of her dorm.

“I would invite you up but the RA on today can get pretty mad about coed’s being in each other’s dorms.” Annette says apologetically.

“No worries,” Richter says still unbuckling his seat belt and reaching for the door handle. “It’s Greta working today right? She used to always take Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.”

Annette laughs, opening the truck door and sliding out of the seat.

“Why am I not surprised that you know Greta.” She shakes her head in disbelief. “Do you know everyone in this town?”

Richter grins at her when they meet in front of the truck and walk together towards the lobby front doors.

“Mostly everyone yeah,”

His words have never proved more true than when they entire the dorm lobby and suddenly everyone turns to stare at them.

“Richter! Hi!”

A brunette bounds over to them, she can’t be much older than them judging by the backpack she has strapped over one shoulder. Her green eyes only flicker to Annette once before she turns her full attention to Richter.

“Hi Stella, nice to see you again.” He says with a pleasant smile. “Where’s Loretta?”

Stella rolls her eyes, “She’s at the gym, she’s obsessed with taking off the ten pounds she gained over Christmas.” She waves a hand dismissively. “Anyways, she’s not important. How are you, Richter? What are you doing here?”

Annette grips the inside of her coat pockets, it’s very clear that Stella intends to ignore her this entire conversation and if it’s one thing Annette refuses to do, it’s stay someplace she’s unwanted. She shifts her backpack, and her nerves and prepares to quietly step to the side when Richter lifts the arm closest to her and drapes it over her shoulders; ruining her plans for escape.

“Annette has to change, she just got done dissecting rats with Professor Stiensworth, you know how that goes.” He says, a different smile on his face. “We’re going to grab some pizza and work on our philosophy project.”

Stella’s entire body goes still, and her green eyes finally look to Annette and take her in completely. Her eyes zigzag over Annette’s clothes, her mind clearly calculating whatever she thinks she’s discovered.

“Oh, you’re going to Alucard’s then?” Stella asks.

“Yeah, I basically work there now anyways.” Richter’s fingers tap rhythmically on Annette’s shoulder and she fights the urge to lean into his side.

“Alucard’s such a nice man,” Stella says dreamily. “Greta really fucked up letting him go.”

Richter nods, pointing to the ceiling. “Is Greta upstairs?”

“Yeah! She’ll be happy to see you.” Stella says excitedly.

“Thanks Stella,” Richter nods, his fingers squeeze Annette’s shoulder and she takes that as a cue to start walking.

They step around Stella together, the brunette trying not to pout as she says cheerfully. “You’re welcome Richter! It was good to see you, message me on Facebook sometime. We should hang out.”

“Yeah maybe.” Richter replies, guiding Annette into the elevator thats thankfully opened up right when they need it to. “See you Stella, tell Loretta I said hello.”

She waves at them until the doors of the elevator ding closed and they start rising up towards the third floor.

“What the hell was that all about?” Annette asks, looking up at Richter with raised eyebrows.

Richter shrugs. “Stella’s nice, just a bit too opportunistic. Her family is old like mine.”

Annette tilts her head back in understanding.

“Her twin, Loretta, is much more fun to be around.” Richter says, his eyes watching the numbers at the top of the elevator.

Before Annette can reply, the doors ding open to signal their arrival to the third floor. They step off together, Richter’s arm still resting across her shoulders. To the left of the elevator sits a small desk and chair, the allotted space for the RA’s who unfortunately get stuck on night duty from time to time.

Tonight, it’s Greta who sits at the desk. A thick tomb of a book in her lap. She looks up when they step into the carpeted hallway, her gaze curious.

“Annette you’re back early.” She says. “How was—“

“Hi Greta.” Richter says over Annette’s head.

She stands, placing her book on the desk and coming to stand in front of them, her hands on her hips.

“What are you doing here, Richter?” She asks flatly.

“Damn, I just said hi.” He chuckles. “Annette and I have a class together and we’re paired for the semester. She needs to change and then we’re going to go study.”

“At Adrian’s?” Greta narrows her eyes.

Richter blows out a breath through his nose. “Of course there, he’s my best friend.”

Greta snorts, rolling her eyes before she turns her attention to Annette. “You know he’s nothing but trouble, right?”

“Uh…everything’s been fine so far…” Annette says slowly, unsure what the best response would be. “It’s just a philosophy project, Greta.”

The woman hums disapprovingly, her eyes take in the sight of Richter’s arm over Annette’s shoulders. She presses her lips into a fine line then says,

“Leave the door open while you’re in your room.”

Annette’s face flushes and she nods quickly. “I’m just changing, it won’t even take five minutes.”

“I trust you, Annette.” Greta says sighing. “It’s your new friend that needs to be watched though.”

Richter raises both hands in surrender. “I’m starving, I’m just trying to get to pizza.”

Greta clicks her tongue but accepts his answer, stepping from in front of them with a nod. “Five minutes you two.”

Annette practically runs down the hall to her door, slipping from under Richter’s arm in the process. She misses the heat of him immediately but shoves the thoughts from her mind as she unlocks the door and pushes inside.

Her dorm is always clean, because Annette is not a heathen thank you very much, but she still snatches her pajamas out of sight and kicks a few socks underneath her bed.

“Here, you can sit.” She says motioning to the lone chair in her room. “I’ll be right back,”

Richter does as she says, flopping down in the chair which makes his long legs seem even longer. Annette has to step over them to be able to get to her tiny closet.

She pulls out the latest outfit Edouard has arranged on a hanger for her; a pink mini skirt and a black high neck halter tank and pretty much sprints into her bathroom.

The main reason Annette chose to live in the off campus dorms was because each room had its own shower. They were small, the water pressure nonexistent and the sink barely more than a basin but it was a private bathroom all the same. Communal showers disgusted her on a deeply personal level.

She works quick. The shower water barely warming up before she’s already lathered her body with soap, washed her face and brushed her teeth. She’s out of the half closet of a shower stall just as fast as she got in, drying her body, applying her favorite lotion and massaging some oil into her locs. She needs to retwist them but there’s no time, the new growth will just have to wait.

She pairs the black tank with a simple golden chain to give it a bit of personality and smooths her hands down the front of her mini skirt. It’s cute, Edouard somehow knowing her size perfectly. It hugs her hips tightly and Annette does several mirror checks, bending at the waist and looking to make sure the skirt still covers her. Not that she has plans to be bending over at a pizza place but…..

An imagine flashes in Annette’s mind, Richter standing behind her and pressing up against her. His huge hands hold her hips, run over her stomach and lift her chin with one long finger so that their lips are centimeters apart. His hand on her hip travels down, the rough pads of his fingers making contact with her bare thigh the moment their lips meet and Annette aches, already dripping for him—

A knock on the bathroom door startles Annette to the point she drops the deodorant she was applying.

“Hey not to rush you but Adrian texted me and said he’s gonna put our pizzas in the oven soon.” Richter calls out to her.

Annette tries to steady her breathing, crouching to pick up the deodorant stick and return it to the medicine cabinet.

“Okay, I’m ready, here I come.” She calls back, grimacing at how her voice shakes.

She heard Richter step away from the bathroom door and Annette sucks in a deep breath. In the back of her mind, her most recent conversation with Edouard replays for the hundredth time.

“Girl you have got to text me when he finally makes a move. We’re getting close I can feel it.”

“Edouard, you can’t possibly know that. We’re friends! Richter’s given no indication that—“

“Oh bitch boo, you’re literally his passenger Princess now. Every time I see you where are you? In the front seat of his truck that he doesn’t let anyone ride in!”

“We have to put effort into our philosophy project! It’s worth the whole year’s grade!”

“And what about Alucard? You probably owe him close to a thousand dollars in all the pizza he’s just been supplying you with.”

“That’s different—-he and Richter—“

“Are lovers and they want to put some of that love down on you! And if you don’t let them I’ll lose my shit because girl they have never—.”

Annette shakes her head hard, shooing the memory away and squaring her shoulders. She was going to studying and eat pizza, it didn’t mean anything.

“Girl that mini skirt definitely means something.” Edouard’s voice teases in her head.

“Shut up,” Annette mumbles both to herself and the imaginary Edouard.

She turns, yanking open the bathroom door and stepping out into the chilly air of her dorm.

Richter stands in the doorway leading out into the hall. He’s leaning against the frame, looking down to text and whistling an off key tune.

“You ready?” Annette asks softly, throwing her towel onto her bed and pulling the only pair of flats she’s owns out of the shoe rack she keeps hooked on the end of her bed frame.

Richter turns, a smile on his face. “Great, I was just telling Adrian—oh! Oh….wow..”

The smile slips away, a look of awe spreading across Richter’s face as he watches Annette step into her shoes. His blue eyes widen as his gaze travels up her legs, to the mini skirt and then her halter top and finally rest on her face.

“What?” She asks self consciously. “Is my outfit too much? Adrian said that on Friday nights most people come a little dressed up. Did I over do—“

“No!” Richter practically yells, making them both jump.

He clears his throat, “Sorry, didn’t mean to yell.” He offers her a smile. “No you look great, I—I love your skirt.”

Annette smiles shyly. “Thank you, Edouard picked it out.”

Richter chuckles, “he has good taste, it looks perfect on you.”

They smile at each other for a second, then Richter’s phone buzzes in his hand and the moment between them breaks.

Annette puts her coat on, zipping it all the way closed and wondering how strange she must look with her legs bare but her winter coat bundled.

“You ready?” Richter asks. “Adrian says our table just opened up and he’s going to save it for us, but we gotta hurry.”

Annette nods, motioning for him to lead the way. “Just let me lock the door.”

She grabs her phone, wallet, chapstick and keys, following Richter out of the dorm and to the elevator. They bid goodbye to Greta, who waves to them without looking up from her book. And soon Annette is back in the passenger seat of Richter’s truck.

Your seat. Edouard’s voice reminds her.

The conversation flows easily between her and Richter, she really likes that he always seems ready to discuss anything she wants. But her eyes, which usually find the most interesting things outside of the car window, keep falling down to the console between them.

Richter’s forearm rests casually on the black leather, his limb so long that his hand dangles over the edge; his fingers naturally dipping down on her side, close to her bare knee.

Annette chews on her freshly moisturized lips, eating away the chapstick she just put on as she debates with the idea that just popped into her head.

If Richter wanted to touch her, he would right? That’s why he hasn’t yet because he’s not interested in her. He and Adrian very clearly have something going on between them. But Annette knows Edouard isn’t completely delusional. Both Richter and Adrian do treat her differently than they treat everyone else. They’re mindful of her and her thoughts and her emotions. Richter usually starts every day by asking her how she feels. Adrian, so far, is always ready to lend an open ear to her problems; even the incredibly stupid ones.

There was something there, even if she couldn’t figure out what yet. And deep down, Annette wanted to find out. She wanted to put herself between these two men and make sure that she wasn’t reading too much into things.

She could start right now….

Annette gathers her nerves, shoving them out of her body as she clears her throat, shifts in her seat and pushes her knee into Richter’s fingers.

He sucks in a sharp breath, freezing for a moment and Annette waits; her gaze firmly on the world passing them by. The pause only lasts a moment, it’s not even a full minute before Richter’s fingers brush against her skin. Testing to see her reaction.

Annette sighs softly, pushing up onto the toes of that leg so that there’s even more skin for him to touch. Richter takes the offer, his fingers stroking long lines from her knee cap to the middle of her thigh.

“Is this okay?” He asks lowly, his voice rough.

“Yeah,” Annette nods, “It’s good.”

She tries not to think about the way Richter smiles the entire rest of the way to Adrian’s.

To Be Continued……

[ghostinthelibrarywrites]

🪄💍🎄 (Pretty much any MSI fic to be honest!)

Thank you for the ask!

🪄 From the Edwin-goes-undercover MSI fic:

“They’re called the Burgess Society,” Niko says. “That sounds familiar.” Edwin wracks his brain, but can’t place the name. Crystal perches on the edge of Niko’s desk. “That’s because they’re named after Roderick Burgess. He was some rich asshole in the 1920s who claimed he’d captured the Angel of Death and was keeping him locked up in his basement. He had a pretty big cult following before he died.” “Having the Angel of Death locked up in his basement didn’t stop him from dying?” Honestly, Edwin has heard some preposterous things in his day, but that takes the cake. “That does seem like poor planning on his part.”

💍 From Wedding Vows and Other Lies:

“It could be fun, mate.” “Dinner with my family will not be fun. It will be an evening of being insulted, second-guessed, and watched like a hawk. I would rather be abducted and held for ransom again.” Even with his phone held away from his ear, he can hear his mother’s voice growing louder the longer he goes without replying. “No matter how much we ‘sell it,’ they’re never going to believe us.” “But what if they do?” Charles has that gleam in his eye that usually spells trouble. “Look, maybe if we convince them that this thing is real, they’ll leave us alone for the next year?” “Highly unlikely.” “Or they have to spend dinner watching us act like we’re mad about each other. They’ll hate that, won’t they? Trust me, I’ll have them convinced by the end of the night.”

🎄 And from the MSI holiday fic that definitely isn't a month late:

Edwin looks into Charles’s face. It’s a nice face, with a wide smile and kind eyes. He likes the way Charles looks at him, like he matters. And he likes how soft and cozy Charles’s green jumper looks. So soft and cozy that Edwin can’t help but lean forward to rub his face against it. It feels as nice as it looks. Charles makes a strange noise. “Mate…” “And this is why I love visiting London,” Thomas says, laughing. “It’s never boring around here.” Edwin snuggles closer, pressing his face into the place where Charles’s neck meets his shoulder. “You smell nice,” he says into the softness of Charles’s sweater. Charles makes that strange noise again. “HR is going to have so much fun with this,” Thomas says. “Will you shut the fuck up?” Charles demands. Edwin gasps, wounded. “Not you, mate.” A hand settles on the top of Edwin’s head, which he takes as permission to keep nuzzling. “This wanker.”

Make Me Write (Again)

[kitamars]

taking a minute