#but ultimately she chooses to go back to him

[ogtarotreader]

There’s a lot going on huh? Anyway, here’s a quick energy read on jamen and ayo:

They are either separated or about to break up.  Ayo feels unfulfilled, apathetic, and wants to walk away. She ‘s looking for adventure and a fresh start. Jamen feels her slipping away and wants to cling but deep down knows what’s coming. Pulled the same cards from 3 different decks after meditating and exploring their energy. Similar cards pulled-death, 10 of swords, the hermit, the devil, eight of cups, 7 of wands, six of cups in reverse, 2 of swords ,4 of cups, page of wands page of cups.  

Ayo’s energy is making a statement this weekend. Freedom, carefree, I’m going to do me. Something’s up. Now if jamen happens to show up with her then that’s par for the course. It’s what he does. He inserts himself. No shade or judgement. He does recognize she needs freedom and deserves to be free, but it’s like he can’t help himself and needs to be around because of his insecurity.  However, there’s a shift I see in ayo’s energy where she’s more outwardly openly communication- give me some space. We have problems and I need space to think. Also to enjoy myself. Things have been HEAVY.

Is Jeremy in ny for the met gala? Yes Is it because of ayo? Yes. Was he at the SNL party to hang with ayo? yes Did she invite him? Yes. Is it also for promo? Yes/no.

I connected with both their energies Ayo said: I invited him as a friend. I wanted to hang out. Jeremy said: Yes. She invited me.   Jeremy is clear in his intentions.  He is there to support Ayo. He wants to be there for his friend. To support her. The met gala isn’t fully his scene, though I do  sense he likes fashion, but he wouldn’t be there if it weren’t for her.  Now, I keep saying friend because he is true to his word.

He is trying to rebuild his friendship with Ayo. His energy here is so different because he has her on the back foot. He is playing things cool. I mean cool. After meditating on his energy regarding his feelings about her and their dynamic I pulled nothing but swords king of swords, six of swords, page of swords, 2 of wands, 9 of swords, 3 of cups, queen of swords and king of cups, with temperance as an ultimate feel.  He is balancing his intellectual, logical, and rational side, and his emotional side which was a challenge for him in romance in the past. He has grown here. He is simply observing, watching, assessing.

Communicating clearly. He knows the truth. He is supporting his friend. There’s no intensity here. It doesn’t feel like he’s chasing her here. He is simply being. With the 2 of wands, he is recognizing a conscious decision needs to be made but saying “Not my decision. I know what I want.I know what the truth is. I will simply wait for the answer.”  He’s being patient. Wise. Chill. But also, not stressing whatever happens. He’s saying, “It is what it is.” His energy feels balanced.

This has Ayo on the back foot because it’s kind of making her look at him like…what is going on? Why are you so calm? Where’s your intensity I used to run from? But also like…whew okay..hey you wanna hang out? Her energy doesn’t feel fully balanced. More scattered, which is unlike her. I asked the same question for her energy regarding their dynamic and after connecting with her energy I pulled: three of wands, hangman, eight of pentacles, king of pentacles, five of swords, the lovers, the hierophant, and king of swords. Chile….she is wondering why he has changed in his approach to her? Part of her is like..okay I can handle this, but her true feelings and desires are like why is he this way?  

Cool as a cucumber. Girllllll. What you mean? Anyway, the hangman with the 3 of wands is her recognizing she is in a bind with this dynamic because of her current situationship. She recognizes a need to step back. A need to let go of old unhelpful patterns and beliefs so she can have the freedom she desires. At the same time she feels grounded around him still. She KNOWS she has to choose with five of swords and lovers. Choose between sacrificing her desire to avoid conflict with someone or making the right course and dealing with the drawbacks and consequences. Ayo doesn’t like conflict so there’s a struggle here, but she’s close baby.  Honestly Jeremy is the catalyst here, but this is bigger than him. This is all about her. She has grown. She is growing and she has to deal with this not just to be with someone more suitable to her needs, but because the universe is elevating her big time. It’s time for a change. with the high priestess here...she know HE knows. meaning jeremy. He knows.

Their outcome remains the same.  It’ll take some time like I said. Things are shaking the fuck up.                                                                                                                

[yuma-mukami-garden-god]

The Diaboy's reaction to a bride who is a extreme vegan who thinks them sucking her blood is wrong because they shouldn't consume animal products *a lil joke ask*

Shu Sakamaki

“You’re joking, right?” Shu stares blankly from the couch, one earbud dangling. He’s more confused than offended. “You think you’re an animal?” He sighs, dragging a hand through his hair. “I’m not changing my entire nature because of your ‘no animal product’ philosophy… but I guess I could go easy on the whole biting thing.” He starts avoiding feeding around her, more to keep the peace than anything. Though he teases her with lazy smirks like, “What if I use a straw? Still too carnivorous?”

Reiji Sakamaki

Reiji’s expression twists in visible disapproval. “Such irrational ideology. Do you believe denying your husband sustenance is a sign of moral superiority?” He tries to “re-educate” her on what he views as the flawed logic of her stance. Still, deep down, he’s intrigued by her conviction — even if he absolutely disagrees. He begins seeking synthetic alternatives in the lab, more for control than compromise.

Ayato Sakamaki

“You aren't some cow in a field! I’m not gonna starve ‘cause you read some freaky health book!” He’s loud and insulted, initially taking it very personally. But once he sees she’s genuinely distressed, he grumbles and gets sulky. “Tch… maybe I’ll just bite your arm instead of your neck. That way it’s less… delicious?” He doesn’t understand her views, but he learns to adjust (grudgingly).

Kanato Sakamaki

He stares at her blankly, then starts giggling. “Teddy says you’re funny. Are you afraid I’ll turn into a big bad wolf?” Her ideals amuse him, but they also annoy him if she’s stubborn. “Blood is blood. You’re mine. So give it to me.” If she resists, he becomes volatile — it’s not about nourishment to Kanato, it’s about possession.

Laito Sakamaki

“Aw~ Bitch-chan is so pure. It makes me want to ruin you even more.” He laughs at her logic but plays along with dramatic flair. “If blood’s an ‘animal product’, then what about kissing me? I’m full of sin, too~” While he finds her principles charmingly naive, he ultimately enjoys teasing her about them — and might even try to seduce her into “forgetting” her stance for a night or two.

Subaru Sakamaki

He immediately bristles. “I didn’t choose this, okay? You think I like being a monster?” Her disgust makes him insecure, but if she explains gently, he backs down. “Tch… I’ll just starve again. I’ve done it before.” Her beliefs make him struggle more with self-loathing, but he also respects her enough to keep his distance when she’s firm.

Ruki Mukami

Ruki raises an eyebrow, arms crossed. “Livestock don’t dictate the farmer’s menu.” He finds her stance amusing at first but recognizes the ideological passion behind it. Though he tries to manipulate her with reason, if she holds strong, he’ll compromise with medical blood packs or hypnosis. A curious admiration grows — she’s not like the others.

Kou Mukami

“Ehh? That’s no fun at all, M Neko-chan~” Kou pouts but plays up his charm to coax her. “But your blood is so sweet… not even cruelty-free substitutes could compare~” He complains, but behind closed doors, he switches to bottled blood more often than not, only teasing her for fun. It’s rare he respects boundaries, but hers make her more interesting.

Yuma Mukami

“What kinda hippie bullsh*t is that?!” Yuma is confused and yells a lot at first. “I ain’t gonna munch on some tofu instead of blood, Sow!” But he cools off when she says it’s not about him being a monster — it’s about her values. Eventually, he lets her teach him about her beliefs and grumbles through tofu dinners… though he still sneaks blood when she’s not around.

Azusa Mukami

“…If it hurts you… I won’t do it…” Azusa listens, nodding slowly, his voice soft and pained. “But… will you still love me… if I get weak?” He doesn’t quite understand veganism, but he fully respects her feelings. He starts viewing her ethical purity as something sacred — something that makes him feel unworthy but deeply devoted.

Shin Tsukinami

Shin laughs in her face. “You’re comparing yourself to a cow? That’s pathetic.” He mocks her mercilessly at first and might intentionally provoke her just to see her get flustered. But if she remains steadfast, he gets weirdly obsessed with how she resists his instincts. “You’re fun when you’re stubborn. Let’s see how long that idealism lasts…”

Carla Tsukinami

He watches her in silence, cold and calculating. “Such trivial morality… born of weakness.” Her beliefs are beneath him — but her audacity to hold them in front of royalty intrigues him. Carla won’t change, but he might give her the illusion of freedom — offering alternatives, until her resistance becomes useful leverage. Quietly impressed, but never openly.

Kino

“Wait, wait, wait. So I’m not allowed to snack on you because you think I’m a… carnivore?” Kino bursts into laughter. “You’re hilarious!” He jokes around endlessly, but deep down, he kind of admires the odd purity. “Fine, Princess, I’ll be good — but you owe me something just as sweet.” He never really stops trying to barter for a taste.

[justafewsmallsteps]

Currently crying in a corner because I remembered that Inuyasha visited the well at least every three days.

And I don’t think he was waiting for Kagome to “come back”

As much as he was waiting/trying to see if the well would open for him

So he could go to her

Because he chose her. Because he thinks they were born for each other. Because since she has people who love her in her era, maybe that’s where she belongs

But he truly believes that he belongs with her, wherever and whenever.

[o-wild-west-wind]

While I’m still a bit bummed that they didn’t go with a more book-aligned POC Fiyero for the Wicked movie, I’ve been thinking (heheh) about how his being white highlights the really interesting foil relationship between him and Glinda (and, in many ways, the audience yourself).

At its core, Wicked is a cautionary tale about propaganda, (literal) scapegoating, and what it means to uphold the status quo. The audience is watching through Glinda’s eyes—it is through her, arguably the most beautifully tragic character of the show, that we learn how lonely life becomes when you forfeit your values in favor of systemic power and likability (“No One Mourns the Wicked” is, in many ways, about HER).

Now, this is where Fiyero’s whiteness can get interesting—if you consider him and Glinda to share roughly equal footing at the beginning in terms of privilege/how much they have to lose (applying our real-world lens of race and power here, where whiteness is the apex), his storyline essentially represents what could have happened if Glinda had made the brave (and arguably wise and loving, if you’re picking up what I’m putting down 👀) choice to go with Elphaba and fight the good fight (this is also why I feel like a queer reading of G&E’s relationship is almost implicit to the story, but I digress).

As the POC/marginalized allegory, Elphaba has much less of a real choice in her curtain-pulled-back turning point. But Fiyero and Glinda—both representing privilege—get to choose. So in Act II, we see the consequences of both the choice to stay (Glinda) and to go (Fiyero). In Fiyero’s case, his ultimate rejection of his own power, privilege, and even beauty leads to immense physical loss—including his own body—but that is then compared to the loss of love, community, and identity that we see Glinda left with by the end. And this brings us to the question that the audience is left grappling with: in an unjust system where loss is inevitable (a.k.a. our own world, as the Wizard himself represents), which of these things are YOU more willing to give up?

It’s important that Glinda is an empathetic character because, in reality, most people are going to be Glindas (obvi this is nuanced among us Elphabas of marginalized identities, but I’d still argue that there’s some level of Glinda in us all)—and it’s important to be rattled by the end of the show when you realize that she is the one who has the sad ending. But it’s also so important that Fiyero is empathetic (which I’m SO glad this movie leaned into)—because he’s ultimately who Glinda—and thus we, as the audience—should have been.

And especially given the state of US politics right now…this is just all more relevant than ever.

[sippingdaisies]

although katniss is our protagonist and main character i think there's actually a much more fitting throughline when it comes to the presence of covey girls and their acts of rebellion.

lucy gray

lenore dove

primrose

i don't often see prim mentioned when it comes to covey lineage (most likely because her character is so aligned with their merchant mother in the original trilogy) but all three of these girls actively haunt the narrative.

lucy gray is the ghost whose songs of resistance endure in district 12 long after her name is forgotten. lenore dove paints her posters across the district and its haymitch's promise to her that forces him to keep going, keep fighting back until someone 'just like him but luckier' comes along to do what he couldn't. primrose is reason that katniss volunteers, she inspires a love so great that it defies the odds and brings her sister home.

they all have an immense strength but also an inherent gentleness - their love of animals whether this is lucy gray's snakes or lenore dove's geese or prim's refusal to hunt animals (not to mention lady and buttercup) - they are all drawn to creatures that are not widely seen as valuable or lovable.

they share a deep sense of optimism, each believe in the power of hope to transform one's circumstances. they each believe that a better world is not only possible but they are willing to take action to make it so. lucy gray uses her songs and performances, lenore dove engages in acts of sabotage and vandalises property. prim learns how to heal and chooses to enter a warzone in order to help people - in a world governed by violence, prim is first and foremost a healer.

and ultimately they are all taken from those who love them - they are girls frozen in time, forever filled with colour and light. three generations of covey girls, each doomed by their connection to the games.

[womanofwords]

Next is batfam x neglected clone reader superfam.

Back when Dick was Robin he and Bruce broke into a lab and in it was a clone of Batman and Superman (trying to make the ultimate hero). It was only a toddler then and they couldn’t let it stay to be turned into a weapon so they took it home.

They called Clark to let him know and yeah he has his reservations about clones of him. But this one’s still only just a toddler a little mix of him and Bruce. He’s ready to just take the child home but Bruce convinces him not to. That he has better resources and (at this point Clark and Lois aren’t together yet) Clark is always busy between reporting and hero work.

So Clark leaves raising them to Bruce but visits as much as he can. But he visits less and less as he gets busier trusting Bruce to care for their child. But in that time Dick left (not really liking that this sibling got to be a mix of his adoptive father and pseudo dad) Jason came and eventually died and Bruce began to wallow in his grief.

Little SuperBat loved their family and tried to cheer Bruce up but he gets angry that they seem to not care that Jason is gone (they care, a lot. But they’re putting their grief on hold to try and cheer up their dad). This is when the neglect really starts.

Of course Tim joins, Jason returns and all the other batkids follow. But they’re all following Bruce’s lead and the only ones who (should) remember that they’re a clone are Bruce, Dick and Jason (Tim was smart and discovered it on his own at some point in time). It’s when Damien attacks them and they try defending themself that they punch Damien (not even that hard) and Bruce pops off on them for “attacking him”. That they’re wrong cause they “could have killed him” with their “super strength” thus revealing their a clone.

Only Bruce doesn’t know they have super strength because they never showed signs of Clark’s abilities. He tested for a while when they were younger but stopped. They went through gaining and navigating their powers alone (afraid of Bruce’s no meta’s rule).

“But why not go to Clark?” well because Bruce is a control freak who during him yelling at them after Jason’s death, denies them going to visit Clark since (I believe that) Clark and Lois would (or could) have either just gotten married or had Jon on the way. Bruce basically projecting that they’re starting their own family and wouldn’t want a clone.

Angst all around as clone!reader is basically bullied by the entire family. Especially Damien who loves to tout about how he’s the only natural born child of Bruce not a “cheap failed experiment”.

Reader quietly leaves wanting to be alone goes to Mt.Everest. Meets Papa Clark again cause he thought someone was stuck crying on Everest and needed rescuing. Turns out it’s his baby and they’re crying in pajamas on the world’s tallest mountain. Listens to their woes and is furious. He asks why they didn’t come to him and they repeat all the things Bruce and the fam would tell them. How they’d risk exposing him cause they look so much like him and Bruce, how he was starting his own family and they would get in the way.

Clark is furious, but his baby needs him first. Takes them to meet Lois, Jon, Conner and his parents. They all adore clone reader. Lois and Martha Kent are upset that Clark never told them but even more mad Bruce said the things he did to keep clone reader home. Especially since she missed her own father’s wedding and the birth of her brother.

Some way some how the batfam discover clone reader is missing (choose however you want. personally my bet is Damien torments them when he’s bored and discovers their gone because of it). It takes them a while but discovers she’s with Superfam. Cue crazy yandere custody battle in costume and out of it

Great idea, but no thanks. Way too angsty for me. There are so many times I can make myself cry while writing, and I know I will be floating out of my house on a river of my own tears if I ever wrote this. I'm passing on this for the sake of my own sanity.

[lover-of-mine]

You should use your color theory powers to prove that Bobby is still alive

Okay, not exactly color theory but stay tuned to step into denial land with me.

One thing about the show is that it loves breadcrumbing. They do a lot of stuff that will make you go "oh, that is what that was" upon rewatch.

So, I made myself rewatch the lab stuff and from that we get Argument Number One: we never saw a body. We saw him pass out and a body bag. Bobby passing out does not mean he is dead because Chimney fully passed out and Chimney was bleeding a lot more than Bobby. And Chimney is alive. The seeing the body is important because we usually do see the body. We see Patricia's body, we have focus on Eddie with Shannon's body, we see Emmett's, we also Marcy's.

In other instances, like with Karen, Denny, Buck, we saw a monitor flatlining or some other confirmation that there is no pulse.

With Bobby we cut from him laying on the table to a body bag when they could've done a dramatic shot of Athena against the glass to parallel Bobby losing Marcy.

Argument Two: the song choice. Licensing Work Song by Hozier has to have been extremely expensive. And honestly, that song after the leaked scripts that he was gonna be buried alive was so...

When my time comes around Lay me gently in the cold, dark earth No grave can hold my body down I'll crawl home to her

Like, come on.

And not only that but the way the song overall can be interpreted as an suicidal alcoholic finding something to live for in love.

Boys, when my baby found me I was three days on a drunken sin I woke with her walls around me Nothin' in her room but an empty crib And I was burnin' up a fever I didn't care much how long I lived But I swear, I thought I dreamed her She never asked me once about the wrong I did

And the second verse catches my eye when we go back to Sick Day and we go back to bathena's dream house being an empty nest and Athena overall being the thing that tethers Bobby to life. Bobby wanted to die but starting to date Athena is the start of him accepting he found more to life than the things he lost. It all makes the choice of this particular song even more insane. He doesn't want to leave her. He will crawl back to her.

Argument Number Three: Bobby's halloween costume. He's a vampire.

An undead creature. An undead creature that in a lot of versions of the myth needs to go in contact with the virus venom then bleed out to be reborn. And coming back to the leaked script, in a lot of versions of the myth, the person needs to be buried to wake up in their second life.

Argument Four: Still on the buried alive line of thought, this happened in 811. Please note the way she grabs Bobby. We literally had someone be buried alive.

Argument Four bleeds into Argument Five: CDC recomendation for CCHF is to no autopsy, embalment, or do anything with the body beyond put the body bag in the coffin. @muddiedfoxglove has a more detailed post on that here. The situation in 811 is that the husband gave her cyanide, which should have killed her, but didn't, and buried her before checking for sure she was dead. Sounds familiar to everyone assuming the virus killed Bobby and not checking and him being buried with his full gear that includes his phone and will let him call 911 when he wakes up from this thing that should have killed him but did not?

Argument Number Six: the copilot from the plane disaster. In particular Athena's part in keeping him alive. He's powering through because there no other pilot, but then his heart stops. There's the whole effort to keep doing cpr while Athena fixes the situation and lands the plane, and then Athena chooses to stay in the plane, even thought it is on fire, to continue that and he ultimately makes it. Kinda like the way Athena fixes the situation with Chimney and is the reason Bobby has to stay alive.

Argument Number Seven: this parallel.

There's also the way Buck was dead, his light was on, Bobby's isn't on. We also had the full helmet in frame for Buck, and that did not happen with Bobby. But Buck makes it out of it alive.

Argumemt Number Eight: Jesus. 911 has added a lot of Jesus symbolism to Bobby this season. And it makes me wonder after meeting his mother in a church. And the fact that the episode aired on Holy Thursday. And the fact that the funeral is being filmed on the Hall of Crucifixion and Resurrection. The Easter of it all points to resurrection.

Edit: Wait, no, Argument Nine: 808 and the way Brad's character was supposed to be dead but has a "miracle recovery" no one could explain. Also plays into the Jesus of it all.

I think this is all I have for you. Hope you join me in denial land if you read this.

[sunshineandspencer]

Jogging

A/N: I’ve discovered that I, actually, despise angst. I hate reading it and I hate writing it, unless specifically asked for, my brain thinks only happy thoughts. On an unrelated note, I’m also a very emotional person and perhaps angst sets off my severe second-hand embarrassment and I’ve never finished an angst fic. So, from that unrelated note, have a finished fluffy fic :) 

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x Fem!Reader.

Summary: Aaron is incredibly attractive at the best of times, but put him in sports gear and it’s like flies to honey. Which is an excellent cultivator of jealousy for his jogging partner, until she overhears him talking to another woman.

Word Count: 1k

Warnings: fluff, kind of established relationship (you’ll see)

I have redone the form for the taglist now that I’m apparently expanding from Criminal Minds

Going for a morning run with her more-than-a-friend-but-not-quite-labelled man, was fun. Aaron taught her some proper techniques, and she got a kiss whenever they completed a lap.

There is an issue, unfortunately, and it’s one she’s desperately trying not to blow out of proportion.

Aaron is attractive, devastatingly so, and because he occasionally runs ahead to finish a lap and wait for her to arrive so that he can greet her with a kiss, people don’t always know that they’re out together. Added with him in those damn workout clothes - that she would burn if she weren’t mentally stable - it’s no surprise to her anymore to see women jogging up to him.

They’re almost always gone by the time she makes it over to Aaron, who kisses her and immediately moves on to their next lap. She tries hard not to let the clawing jealousy show.

Due to JAck, and both of them agreeing not to move too quickly so that they don’t confuse him, they’d just decided on not labelling anything yet. So she isn’t really anything official to him, and can’t do all the things her jealous mind screams at her to do.

Like today, for example, Aaron had pressed a kiss to her cheek and sped up to get to the end of their lap. 

The minute he’s not beside another woman, someone else runs up to him.

She hears the fading introduction of “hi, I’m Beth, I see you around here pretty often” and her stomach clenches.

Once again, her pretty, not-boyfriend is getting hit on by a woman who can actually keep his pace. She hates it, and hates the burning hole in her chest even more.

Deciding, this time, she would actually speed up and join the conversation. Which will ultimately be worth the burst lungs and exertion-flushed face. Until she turns the corner and sees them still talking, any semblance of confidence withers.

When she hears her name on his lips, however, she dives behind the nearest tree. Realising he just gestured to where she should be coming from, and hoping neither of them had seen her practically rush for cover to avoid being seen. Pressing her back to the bark of the tree and listening closely to the conversation.

“-out with my girlfriend, actually, we run together.”

If she weren’t hiding behind a tree, from a random woman and the man that just called her his girlfriend, she’d be doing a happy dance by now. Choosing to press her hands to her chest as the burning hole closed up, victoriously grinning as ‘Beth’ jogged on feeling pretty dejected.

Once sure that Beth was gone, she turned to place her hands on the tree, bracing herself to look around it to try and spot Aaron, that daft smile still on her face. But he wasn’t there, and that observation came with a pair of hands landing on her hips and making her jump and spin around. Meeting Aaron’s smug grin as he gently pinned her to the tree by her hips.

“Are you spying on me now?”

Refusing to meet his gaze, she started looking all around them - as if searching for someone, and that only made his stupid grin wider.

“Should be careful Hotchner, wouldn’t want that girlfriend you mentioned to catch you pinning a girl to a tree.”

“Oh?” Knowing she’d heard, he now has no plans to try and keep up the facade that he hasn’t wanted her, officially, for weeks now. “And do you think she’d be upset if I kissed the woman I pinned to a tree?”

Giving a dramatic gasp, she used it to breathe in fully to answer, realising that her lungs aren’t really cooperating with her right now. And he used that as his chance to lean down to kiss her, loving the sparky feeling he gets from her every time. Siling against her lips as she melted against him.

Pulling back with a soft nip to her lips that had her chasing after him. Before realising what she was doing and resting back against the tree, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of getting what he wanted.

“I think she’d definitely hate the thought of you doing that to anyone else.”

“Ah, so she gets jealous?”

As if she were caught out, her eyes darted away from his as she pouted - from a profiling perspective, she really does have cute tells when she’s been caught - tugging at the hem of his shirt.

“She pleads the fifth.”

Thankfully, as she knows he actually loves any jokes that relate to his time as a lawyer, he laughs, leaning down to kiss her again, hand trailing away from her hip to lace their fingers together. Pulling back with a soft hum and another soft peck.

Swiping his thumb across her knuckles as he waited for her to open her eyes again, loving the little flush speckled across her features that obscured her freckles.

“Will she forgive me if I take her to get ice cream?”

“Definitely.”

Tugging her away from the tree, he brushes the flakes of bark from her hair and clothes, spending a little too much time ‘brushing off’ whatever was on her ass, until she smacks his hand away with a laugh. Leading the two of them back towards the car, deliberating what kind of ice cream ‘his girlfriend’ would like the most.

But as they get in, he gives her another smile and laces their hands over the centre console.

“You do know I’m calling you my girlfriend, right?”

Shaking her head, she leant in to kiss him again, pulling away to pat his cheek lightly. 

“Didn’t need to be a profiler for that one, love.”

“Oh, so you’re a profiler now?”

“Best watch it, I’m coming for your job next.

Laughing, he lets go of her hand to start up the car, already knowing exactly which ice cream place they were going to - and exactly what she would order. Not that she’s predictable in the slightest, but she always orders the exact same thing.

“First my heart, now my job? At this rate you’ll have my house by the end of the week.”

“That’s the plan!”

He’s going to marry this goddamn woman.

Want more?! Good!

taglist ( ˘ ³˘)♥ @peliides ║ @peachsodameg ║ @angelinajolie0213 ║ @jiggly-puff-12 ║ @khxna ║ @kennedy2156 ║ @trulycayla ║ @none-of-your-bullshit ║ @alexxavicry ║ @meg-black ║ @princess76179 ║ @chicken-fifi ║ @averyhotchner ║ @punkyghoulz ║ @anotherpassiongirl ║ @princessjax ║ @gghostwriter ║ @pear-1206 ║ @justyourusualash (if your tag is here and not working check out this reblog to see if any of it could hopefully help!!)

[back2bluesidex]

Slide - The Ultimate Decision - MYG

Pairing: Producer!Yoongi X Lyricist!Reader 

Theme: Angst, smut, unplanned pregnancy. Fwb to ?

Word count: 2.2k+

Summary: 

"I can't feel my legs Hop right on the ledge, jump right off the edge"

Alternatively, 

Worst decisions are always driven by anger and alcohol; but sometimes those are also driven by Love.

Warnings: so much angst, reader's inner turmoil, unplanned pregnancy, yoongi is making things worse, Hoseok is the doctor but he is not to be shipped with the reader here, he is a catalyst though, pining, so much pining.

Listened to Slide by Chase Atlantics

Minors do not interact!!

Series Masterlist | Masterlist | Patreon (for early access)

A/N: The next chapter from the present timeline.

Taglist requests are closed for now

Read the next chapter

You fumble with your phone, scrolling down numbers after numbers but can’t find a single contact you can call at a time like this. 

The pregnancy testing kit lies on your left hand as if it has been tattooed on your skin. For some reason, you don’t feel dread creeping up through the path of your neck. 

Should you cry? Should you call Yoongi and curse him to your heart’s content? Should you ask him to take the responsibility when he is about to start living his old happy life again? 

Probably you should. 

But the thing is… you can’t bring yourself to do any of those. 

You don’t even know what you should feel or what you need to feel at a moment like this. 

You don’t even have any idea of what’s going to be your next move. 

Will you keep the baby? Or will you choose to abort it? 

But before everything, you should consult with someone, who is wiser than you. 

Your fingers hover above your mother’s contact ID, even though you know your calls are going to go unnoticed, unanswered, ignored as if you never came out of her womb. 

And things will turn even uglier if she answers your call and you manage to tell her what you have done to yourself, more or less willingly. 

So you let your phone fall limp on your lap. 

How funny - you have absolutely no one to confide in. no family, no friends, no one. 

As soon as the realization hits, your eyes start turning blurry. 

Tear drops escape one by one, dampening your cheeks, throat, collarbones. You caress your stomach. 

“What do I do now?” the mumble comes out choked. And then you are thinking of him again. 

How he cried in his sleep the first time you brought him here with you. How he repeated his actions again during his last visit here. 

Both of the time you stood on the sidelines, the center of his universe has always been Gyuri. 

In the end, though, you have been the one affected - with blooming warmth in your chest and in turn a presence of life in your womb. 

As you think of Yoongi, your mind runs back to the man who had helped you in picking him up from the streets. 

You still remember, his card said he was an obgyn. 

Your tears cease. 

Yes. As much as you need a friend or family right now, you need an expert too. 

Standing abruptly from your bed, you run toward the other side of it, reaching out for the night stand, where you had kept the man’s card more than a year ago. 

You don’t have to struggle much to find out the card, it’s there as if it has been waiting to be found all these times. 

Holding the card in your hand, opens the flood gate of fresh memory of that night, of Yoongi’s dirty face, vomit all over his clothes and him holding you tightly in his sleep. 

That was the first and last time. 

He never held you for a second time, unless you were having sex. 

Pushing down the depressing thoughts, you grab your phone and with swift fingers dial the number of the man - Jung Hoseok. 

The clock reads 9 pm on a Wednesday night. And you pray, this is not past his business hours, he has no such mentions in the card as well. 

The universe seems to grant your prayer this time, probably out of sheer pity, as the man accepts the call on the fourth ring. 

“Hello, It’s Dr. Jung Hoseok, how can I help you?” The man speaks with a professional tone that sets you on an unexplainable ease. 

“Hi, uh, I am sorry to call you like this but I had managed to get my hands on your card and I think I need your help. I, um, I’m pregnant. And I think I need an appointment.” your hands start sweating now when you realize all of it is real. You are pregnant with the baby of a man who doesn’t love you. 

Pathetic. 

“How many weeks are you?” the man asks with the same professional pronunciation. 

“I don’t know. I just found out a few minutes ago. This is my first time and I don’t know what to do.” you speak honestly. 

These are the same words you want to confess to a friend, to your mother as well and most importantly to Yoongi. But talking to a stranger, about how helpless you are, is much less nerve-wracking. 

“You are not a teenager, are you?” he speaks, suspicion laced in his voice. 

A sudden chuckle leaves your throat, “I’m twenty seven.” 

The other side of the line only hums and then after a beat he says, “we usually don’t accept appointments made via phone calls but I can guide you on how to book one. If that’s okay with you?” 

“Anything is okay with me.” 

And you are not lying. At this hour, alone in your apartment, robbed off options, in the lack of a confidant - any assistance is okay with you. 

Any assistance is fine if that means you will be able to figure out what you are going to do with a baby in your womb, gifted by the man whom you let destroy yourself for the sake of love. 

The appointment is due at 3 in the afternoon and right now the clock is at 1:26. 

The hospital is an hour's drive away, hence, if you leave now, you will still have a 30 minutes on your hand. 

But the problem is that you didn’t inform anyone formally about this secretive appointment. Applying an official leave would raise questions about the nature and reason of the appointment and you don’t want that. 

You want to protect this truth with every drop of blood your body owns. 

So, you decide to quickly drop by Namjoon's office and tell him you need the rest of the day off for some emergency. 

For a matter you know Namjoon is not privy enough to inquire about the so-called emergency. 

Much to your dismay, your plans shatter like a porcelain vase as soon as you open the door of Namjoon’s office. Because one, there is no Namjoon, two, there is Min Yoongi. 

Yoongi’s expression mimics yours as he takes you in, standing there, staring at him as if he didn’t fuck you raw and left you with consequences just a month ago. 

But then again… a month of radio silence, a month of stolen glances, a month of no skin contact, a month of no Min Yoongi was more painful than you’d dare to admit. 

Your heart thumps inside your chest as you realize, you are standing in front of the man whose baby is currently in your womb. 

You are carrying a baby! And that’s Min Yoongi’s! Screams your mind at the loudest possible volume. 

But still, by some miraculous strength, you manage to smile at him.

A casual, nonchalant smile as you are used to. 

Except this time, Yoongi doesn’t smile back. 

He looks at you with eyes so deep that you fear you will succumb to them yet again if you stay here for a moment longer. 

“Where’s Namjoon?” you get straight to the point, without wasting your time in any greeting. 

“Y/N. Wait.” but you have always been weak to the way Yoongi calls your name. This time, you are hearing it after what feels like an eternity. 

“He went out to escort a guest.” Yoongi says, flatly, his tone devoid of any emotions. It’s tough to believe he cried in your arms a month ago.

“Oh. Then can you please let him know that I have an emergency and I have left for the day? Thank you.” you don’t wait for his reply as you start turning your heels to run away already. 

His voice works like glue and stops you in your tracks. You are now unable to move. A cold, calloused palm comes in contact with your upper arm, forcing you to face the man. 

When you face him, you see his face and expression has softened. The stoic expression is now gone and you are afraid of what to make out of it. 

This is not pity, is it? 

“How are you? It’s been so long- I wanted to see you but-” 

“But there is no reason to do so, right?” you finish his sentence for him, “I am fine, Yoongi. How are you? How’s Gyuri?” 

“All good.” he ignores the mention of the woman, "What's the emergency? Are you alright?” He places the back of his palm on your forehead, checking your body temperature. 

Your eyes fill to the brim. You need to leave right now or you will start crying. 

“I- I’m fine.” you lie, removing his hand from your skin, “it’s just something personal.” 

Yoongi frowns at that “oh. You can tell me. If you need any he-” 

“I can take care of it myself, Yoongi. You have a life to lead, you have better days ahead now, why would you even care about me? I was just a fleeting chapter anyway. Please- please don’t act like our time together meant anything to you. Please, I beg.” try as you might, you couldn’t contain it anymore. 

Just like you, Yoongi, too, is taken aback with your outburst. Though his eyes are kind, if you dare to add, then those might as well be in pain. 

But his next words only break you further, “wasn’t it a given? A silent agreement that our time together wouldn’t mean much to any of us?” 

Is he challenging you? Trying to elicit a further reaction? Is it a knife to dig more in your fresh wounds? 

If yes, then you will do everything to disappoint him. 

You nod, “Yeah. You are right. Forget I have said anything. Bye.” 

Yoongi opens his mouth to say something but you are faster than his words. Before he manages to say a word, you are out of the door and shutting it on his face. 

He is cruel. 

He has always been. 

But you still love him. 

You have always had. 

The fact that Yoongi can be a little heartless has never been a shock to you. 

Nevertheless, it didn’t harm you any less when he let those careless words out of his mouth. Then again, you can not even blame him because you had been the one to place your heart in his hands and asked him to play with it. 

In the end, it’s your fault. 

And you are already paying the price in more ways than one. 

“Miss Y/N?” a nurse calls your name, pulling you out of your miserable thoughts, “you can go in now.” 

With a bow and a forced smile you leave the waiting area and enter the OPD room. 

A man is sitting at the desk, with his scrubs and white coat on, the nameplate on the table says he is the one who helped you out that night. He is Jung Hoseok. 

You failed to look at his face that night, being too busy with tending Yoongi. But now that you are looking at him, he seems to be the embodiment of everything that’s positive, light, bright - much unlike you (or Yoongi for that matter). 

His eyes light up as he takes you in, with a big smile he says, “oh? You are Miss Y/N? I remember you clearly. Please take the seat.” 

You wonder how it's even possible to recall you after seeing you once, that too a year ago, “You do?” 

“Yes. I still remember that night and your friend.” He mentions Yoongi.

If he sees the man’s mention dims you even further then he doesn’t say anything but he chooses to change the topic right away, “have you filled the form?” 

“Yes.” you hand him the piece of paper. 

He goes through it all at once, probably having everything memorized, but his eyes get stuck at one point. And you have an idea what it can be. 

“As I can see, you have not added anyone as your closest contact?” he says with a careful tone.

“Yes.” you reply briefly. 

“You need to add one person at least, maybe a friend, or a family, or the father of the baby.” he suggests. 

“I- No one knows about this just yet. I don’t have any immediate friend or family who could help me out.” your hands are now shaking. 

“Sorry to pry, but what about the father of the baby?” Jung Hoseok leans a little further on the table, as if trying to measure your facial expressions. 

“He is unaware of the situation.” 

“Are you sure you want the baby?” he voices in the softest possible tone anyone has ever used against you. 

“Yes. I want to keep the baby.” and that’s it. If the baby is one last proof of what Yoongi had with you for no less than a year, if the baby is a proof that Yoongi had once held you, cried in your arms, dipped inside you to forget his own complications, then you want to keep it. 

And this will be your ultimate decision no matter what anyone else says. 

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[atalana]

also as a further addendum to my bill made a huge mistake underestimating stan post - i was recently listening to the commentary for sock opera

and like everyone and their mother can draw the parallels between ford/dipper and stan/mabel, it's one of the major themes of the show

bill gets the first half of the equation just fine - he thinks dipper can be manipulated in exactly the same way as ford, and while dipper will grow past that by the end of the show, in this episode, he's right. the best ways to get dipper to do what he wants, are to tempt him with all the secrets of the universe, and to remind him that he doesn't owe mabel anything, when mabel's done nothing but hold him back and cause trouble for him. it's probably exactly how he talked about stan to ford back in the day, who was still nursing those grudges and wanted to be the one to discover things no one else had

but the fun thing alex hirsch mentions in the commentary for that episode, is that bill doesn't see mabel as a parallel to stan (bc lbr he barely even recognises stan as a person). he sees mabel as a parallel to himself. yeah dipper and mabel are a good team together, but ultimately when it comes down to it, mabel is a powerful creature of chaos who would choose her own happiness over anyone who relied on her. (alex hirsch at this point jumps into bill's voice to say "how about instead of doing something lame, you do something fun, and crush whoever you want in the process!", and that bill genuinely thinks that is going to work, because it would work on him)

he doesn't expect mabel to destroy all her hard work and crush her own dreams just to help dipper. when he says "who would sacrifice everything they worked for just for their dumb sibling?", he's speaking from experience. he wouldn't. ford didn't. given the type of people bill considers worth talking to, i doubt he's ever come across that type of loyalty before

but the audience has, plenty of times, and will see it even harder by not what he seems. because while mabel does have some of the anarchy and selfishness bill sees in her, that kind of loyalty is a huge part of what she shares with stan

and like in a lot of the commentaries the writers say they weren't sure at first if bill would be the big bad, or how exactly the ending would come together, but in retrospect it never could have been anyone else, and there never could have been anyone but stan to defeat him

because so much of this show is about the relationships between family (including found family), what you would or wouldn't give up for them, but then how much better your life is when you value those relationships over temporary personal gain

so of course the main villain is someone so incapable of understanding that that he is utterly blindsided by the person who embodies it the most

[cutielando]

she's all i wanna be 2.0 | lando norris

synopsis: in which you need some reassurance from your boyfriend

a/n: based on this request! this is basically another version of she's all i wanna be, but more focused on their conversation and Lando reassuring reader. it can be read as a standalone. i don't know if this what you had in mind, but i hope you still like it!!

pairing: lando norris x insecure!reader

my masterlist

The Monaco lights were shining brightly over the sleeping city, casting a cold glow on Lando's apartment.

He was yet to arrive home, having gone out with his team to a dinner bash with their sponsors.

Which meant that she was also there, while you were wallowing in your sweats and Lando's hoodie, wrapped up in your thoughts.

It was late, pushing almost 10:30 pm, and you were curled up on the couch with your arms wrapped tightly around your knees, a fluffy blanket draped over your shoulders.

You were staring at the floor, not taking in anything that was happening around you as the same thoughts swirled around in your mind over and over again.

She's so much better than me.

She's so much prettier than I could ever be.

She fits into his world much better than I ever would.

You deserve to be with someone like her, not someone like me.

We should break up.

She was effortless. Her perfect hair, her perfect body, her perfect confidence in herself. She fit right in Lando's world, right in with the people that Lando surrounded himself with, the kind of woman who would never doubt her place in his life.

You, on the other hand, felt like an outsider. A girl who somehow stumbled upon him and found herself in his orbit, unsure if you truly had a place in his life.

You didn't know where these thoughts were coming from. Lando had never given you a reason to think that he might be unfaithful or that he might want someone else other than you.

But how could you possibly believe that when people like her existed? How could believe that Lando would continue to choose you over anyone else when he was surrounded by women like her?

No, it wasn't possible. No matter how much you wanted to convince yourself that your thoughts were only that, thoughts.

You were so wrapped up in your own head that you hadn't even heard your phone go off with a message from Lando saying that he was on his way home, you didn't even hear the front door unlock and Lando getting home.

You were zoned out, somewhere far away from the place you currently were.

"Babe?" Lando called out as soon as he hung his coat in the hall and put his keys in the bowl next to the entrance door.

When he didn't hear anything, he started looking around the apartment, ultimately finding you in the living room, seemingly staring off into space.

"Y/N?" he called out once again, now much closer to you than he had been before.

No response.

Lando furrowed his eyebrows, concern slowly seeping into his body. He put down his phone and slowly kneeled in front of you, putting his hands on your knees and squeezing lightly.

"Y/N, love" he said, his voice now much quieter and careful.

You suddenly jerked back and came back to reality, your eyes looking around you confusedly for a second before landing on Lando, who was now rubbing soft and soothing circles on the skin of your knees.

"Hey, love. Are you okay?" he asked, his eyes desperately searching yours for an answer, an indication as to what was going on inside your head.

You swallowed, quickly contemplating whether it was worth bringing up the subject at all, but ultimately decided against it.

"Yeah, I'm fine" you said, attempting to give him a reassuring smile, but judging by the look on his face, you had failed miserably.

Lando sighed, his shoulders sagging in defeat.

He knew you oftentimes tended to get lost inside of your own mind, and nothing good ever came of those times, but he knew better than to let the the issues go unspoken about.

Lando exhaled softly, shifting himself so he was sitting on the couch next to you. He took one of your hands in his, his grip tightening while his fingers weaved through yours.

"Love, you know you can talk to me about anything. What's going on with you?" he asked, his voice and tone still soft and kind.

You hated it when he would be like this, coaxing every trouble out of you almost naturally. He could read you like an open book, always being able to understand what you were feeling better than you could.

It sometimes scared you how well he knew you, but other times you loved him even more for it.

You exhaled loudly, squeezing your eyes tightly willing yourself not to break down and cry in front of him.

But your brain had other plans, and the words slip out anyway before you could even register what was happening.

"Why me, Lando?" the question was simple, yet it bare so much pain and self-doubt.

There is a brief pause in which neither of you spoke. You were holding your breath in anticipation, the burden of the question hanging gravely in the air, pressing against your chest heavily.

Meanwhile, Lando didn't know how to react or what to say. What was he supposed to say? How was he supposed to answer a question he didn't even understand whence it was coming from, but a question that seemed like it meant everything to you?

How?

"What do you mean, love?" he asked, his voice no louder than a whisper, but you could clearly hear the confusion behind his words.

Your throat tightened, your brain working overtime in order to find the right words to describe what you were feeling.

"I mean, there are so many girls out there," you started with a shaky breath, feeling the weight of every single insecurity settle over your body like a blanket. "Prettier girls, skinnier girls. Girls who fit into your world, who know how to properly handle all of this," you motioned vaguely towards the luxurious apartment in which you were currently residing, to the lifestyle that feels worlds away from what you're used to. "Girls who don't feel like they're constantly competing with someone else for your attention"

Lando's face softens instantly, his concern briefly replaced with a knowing of what was going on.

His grip on your hand tightened slightly, like he's afraid you might slip away from him at any moment.

"Competing?" he repeats, like the world itself physically pains him. "Baby, you don't ever have to compete with anyone"

"It doesn't feel that way" you said, letting out a humorless laugh while also shaking your head.

Lando shifts on the couch so that he's fully facing you, his hands sliding up to cup your face. His touch is impossibly gentle, thumbs stroking your cheekbones.

"You are it for me, Y/N. You are the only one I will ever want to share my life with" he murmurs, his voice full of so much sincerity it made your chest ache and tears fall down your cheeks.

"She's everything I'm not, Lando" you said, your lip wobbling and your voice cracking.

Lando lets out a soft breath, shaking his head.

"Good, because I don't want her. I only want you" he said, his tone so firm that, for a second, it caught you off guard.

You try to look away, but he wouldn't let you. His fingers lifted your chin up, forcing you to meet his gaze, his green-ish eyes filled with nothing but love and adoration for you.

"I love you because you're not like everyone else, Y/N" he continues, his voice unwavering. "I love that you get nervous before my races and play with my bracelets when you're overthinking. I love the way your nose scrunches up when you don't like something, or the way you always make fun of me when I mess up on Tarkov" a small smile tugged at his lips, like he was remembering every moment as he spoke. "I love that you laugh at my dumb jokes when nobody else does. I love that you make me feel normal when the rest of my world is, well, insane"

A tear slipped down your cheek, but he caught it with thumb before it could fall too far.

"I love you" he murmured, like it's the easiest thing in the world for him. "Just you, always you. Just the way you are"

You let out a shaky breath, and his smile softens at that, if it could be possible.

"I love you too" you whispered, your voice soft and broken.

"Can you do something for me?" he asked, his voice now a soft whisper.

You hesitated for a second before ultimately nodding, albeit hesitantly.

"Stop comparing yourself to her, or anyone else for that matter. You don't see yourself the way I see you" he said gently.

"And how do you see me?" you asked, swallowing hard.

"As the best thing that's ever happened to me" he said, leaning in and pressing his forehead against yours.

A fresh wave of tears pricked at your eyes, but this time, they were not from doubt or sadness. They were from something much warmer, something softer that felt like love wrapping around your heart and squeezing you tightly.

Your arms looped around his neck, pulling him close to you. His scent, familiar and comforting, surrounded you as his arms wrapped around your waist, holding onto you like you were the most precious thing in the worls.

Which to him, you were.

"You're not getting rid of me that easily, you know. You're stuck with me forever, whether you like it or not, might as well get used to it" he teased you, his voice muffled against your shoulder.

You huffed out a little laugh, the first real laugh of the night and in a very long time.

"Forever? You promise?" you asked, your voice small as your heart needed to hear it coming from his mouth, a vow that would bind himself to you for the rest of time.

"Forever" he confirmed, squeezing you even tighter against him. "And I'll spend every single second of it reminding you just how much I love and appreciate you"

And for the first time in what felt like a long time, you believed him.

Because you loved him more than anything, just like he loved you.

And maybe that was enough.

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[obsessiveloveistheonlylove]

Hey, I've read your last yandere Bruce, neglected fam reader and it gave me an idea. What if instead of the reader wasting all that money or luxury, she saved most of it in a closed account and when Bruce bought the apartment she made him sign it in her name as a plan to when the right time comes or if she needs to, she will sell the apartment and use all the money she saved to leave to start over in another country. Imagine Bruce finding out when she reaches the point where she put her apartment for sale, or better, actually selling it to a friend or someone they know and actually leaving.

Yan!batfam with neglected!sister reader leaving the state/country

Anon your mind is fucking golden! I also thought of the reader having the apartment signed in her name just because Bruce wanted her to feel comfortable but I love the layers this adds.

Hopefully these couple of hcs are good enough while I work on pt 2. Also if anyone else has any questions about any other scenarios or certain characters feel free to send them in I'll try to respond whenever I have time and I write for any gender reader.

Word count ; 1073

Unedited

___

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ bruce is not happy with this turn of events at all. He wasn't expecting nor did he sense that this was going to happen, you didn't post about it or even reference moving on any of your social media apps which he lovingly stalks watches over to make sure you are content with your life and also because he likes seeing you happy and enjoying all the things he got you. And it hurts him a little that you didn't even say something to him … he knows you don't owe him that, not when your relationship is still in a fragile state but he's trying.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ he only figures out after someone in the fam(most likely dick) broke in dropped by your apartment and likely scared one of your friends shitless.. obviously both parties are shocked but your friend more so as they don't know who the hell just broke into their house, dick is shocked when this random person claims that he's trespassing in their home. After that awkward situation dick immediately reports back to Bruce about this over the comms and with some digging from Tim they're able to find out that you had sold the house and the exact date that you had, approximately a month ago. That sends off alarm bells for the entire batfam, where are you now?! It takes an hour or so of searching to find out exactly where you moved and when they do they can't decide what to do with the information.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚Alfred is the voice of reason in this family, he discourages the batboys from immediately doing everything in their power to bring you home, he advocated for you to live wherever you choose and says that it's your life and that the family cannot choose for you. Alfred loves you dearly you are basically his child he views you the way he views Bruce. He may be a yandere but he's a selfless one he truly only has your best interest in mind. His words are like a slap of reality for some of the Batfam mainly Tim, Steph and Jason all three of then become a lot more hesitant to go through with their plans to bring you home on the other hand dick, bruce, and damian are adamant that you aren't safe unless they can be nearby.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ Nobody can come to a decision the night they find out and so they decide to sleep on it until they can come to an agreement the manor will be tense for a week or two at most before they spring into action, they will all eventually cave to their selfish needs even if some feel guilty for doing it. Alfred will sigh disappointedly but ultimately allow them to go through with their plans he only hopes you can forgive him for not doing more

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ you on the other hand will be left unaware to all that's going down you'd gotten a new phone and lived in a whole new state maybe even country! They couldn't bother you here. You were happier than you have been for a long time. Even if you missed your old friends you still tried to keep in touch over the phone.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ as for why you did this? It's likely the other batboys' faults, Bruce is annoying but he's not nearly as demanding of your time as the others, namely dick. Dick is insanely clingy once you're on his radar and he becomes aware of how much his neglect affected you mentally. The guilt for him was all consuming when he found out how much he hurt you and that he neglected you for quite literally no reason, you just didn't matter to him at the time. the thought now makes him sick, of course you matter, what the hell was his problem!! Dick would have constantly broke your boundaries by hugging and touching and cuddling you he feels like he needs to make it up to you by being a good big brother, even if that's not what you need anymore after all it's far too late you're already an adult but he refuses to see it that way you're still his baby sister. He inserts himself into your life constantly and even if he'll pay for things he'll only do so under the circumstances that the money be spent ‘together’ like sure he'll take you to that fancy restaurant but it's going to be made into a sister-brother bonding moment, like yeah he'll let you use his card to go shopping but only if he's going with you. Even if you don't use him for money he will still find ways to insert himself into your life. He's overwhelmingly intense and his behavior mixed with the other overbearing members in the batfam plus the added overwhelming feelings of having people who ignored you all your life suddenly want your time and attention is probably why you felt like you had to leave.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ you won't be gone for more than a month or two before your dragged back to Gotham and back to your family, only this time you've got a metaphorical collar around your neck as now you're likely brought back to the manor always under surveillance and on the off chance you're still allowed to own your own apartment again just know it will be heavily bugged along with your phone courtesy of Tim even if he feels bad about invading your privacy he knows they need to see your texts to make sure you're not planning to leave Gotham again. Oh and now the bat members will each take turn patrolling your house and following you from the shadows to make sure you're safe.

___

All in all I'd say you'll have your fun for a little while but ultimately you'll just drive them deeper in their obsession and they will likely kidnap and bring you home.

[itspileofgoodthings]

one of the things that continues to strike me on reread is how much the character of Darcy, and Austen through him, finds Mr. Bennet dead. And how much Elizabeth, in growing and changing and discarding her past blindness, has to move past her way of seeing her father and thus of seeing reality, because the two are connected! Darcy’s letter exposes her father’s flaws to Elizabeth in a way she’d never been able to see before. Most especially the way his laziness and neglect of his own gifts have hurt his family and that ultimately he doesn’t. care. Not enough to change. It literally says that she comes home from Hunsford and tries to laugh at her sisters’ and mother’s folly (the way she used to; the way her father has taught her to by example for her whole life) and she can’t anymore! It sticks in her throat. She is grieved by the failures that she sees in him, all the more so because she IS his favorite and she loves him! And the thing about Mr. Bennet is he never changes. The Lydia/wickham situation exposes to him sharply his own conduct and the consequences and he feels it! Because he is neither stupid nor unfeeling. But he, like everyone, has free will. And he chooses not to change when the opportunity presents itself. He even jokes about how quickly his feeling bad will pass and how soon everything will go back to normal, to his laziness and his selfishness. He is set in his ways and he serves as a contrast to Elizabeth’s personal journey because he embodies a version of a person she could have become and was in danger of becoming if her only goal at all times was to laugh at and judge people from the sidelines.

[formula-ghost]

Wildflower (OP81 x fem!reader x LN4)

Chapter 6

SUMMARY: A baby, a hearing, and an ultimate question

WORD COUNT: 12.1k

WARNINGS: Mentions of pregnancy, vomit, abortion, blood, hospitals, medical emergencies, miscarriage, death, etc (MENTIONS not spoilers lol). Incorrect and vague descriptions of medical problems/systems. Use of YN/LN (your name/ last name). So much angst, as per usual. Also I fucked up the timeline again so we’re gonna pretend like Zandvoort/Monza/Baku is a triple header for storyline purposes thanksss

TAGLIST: @at-a-rax-ia @henna006 @linnygirl09 @cassielikereading @judelina @supertrashbread @fastandcurious16 @widow-cevans @czennieszn @irisesinthegarden @wierdflowerpower @sweetwh0re @reginalaufeyson-holmes @honethatty12 @suns3treading @obxstiles @mimiastroos @mrs-reeves-17 @milkysoop @amalialeclerc @starksztony @llando4norris @ginsengi @angxlzinthesky @makanirock05 @htpssgavi @lilypat @ameliaalvarez06 @scriptedinkbyxim @nefsburneracc @1-queenofpotatoes-1

A/N: Thank you all for being so patient with me as I try to wrap up this story during finals <3 I hope the extra length and melodrama make up for it!

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5

The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and Oscar Piastri woke up to the feeling of you curled up in his arms—everything should have been perfect. 

The house, it its stillness, beckoned him back to sleep, where he could greet your resting form, your chest softly rising and falling as you breathed in and out, still firmly cozied in your dreams. He hadn’t seen you this peaceful in a while. 

Instead of giving into his want of rest, he watched you, the way your eyelids fluttered with the rapid movement beneath them. He wondered what you must be dreaming of. You never did remember your dreams. 

Right now, all he dreamt of was snuggling closer to you and letting the birdsong of the Australian winter morning take you both away from the painful reality of wakefulness. But he couldn’t be so lucky.

His phone was buzzing, obsessively, and he knew exactly who it was. 

Carefully, he peeled the covers off his sore form, taking caution not to wake you, before grabbing his phone and stepping into the hallway before pressing the call icon. 

“Hi, Mum,” he said, bracing for the incoming lecture.

“Good morning, Oscar,” Nicole responded, in a tone far too calm to be genuine. “How was your flight?”

“It was fine,” he said, rubbing the sleep away from his eyes. 

“That’s good.” Silence rang over the line. 

“You can go ahead and ask, Mum, but none of it’s true,” Oscar said. He knew neither of you could run from the new reality of your reputation, but the least he could do was shield you from the initial awkwardness of the conversations that were bound to happen again and again.

“Really? That’s disappointing.”

“What do you mean?”

“I thought Lando might be treating YN better.”

“Mum—”

“Don’t,” she warned, her voice sharper than he’d ever heard it. “Don’t act like you don’t know exactly what I’m talking about. You’re lucky I’m not there. I don’t care what you do for a living, I am your mother and you’re never too grown for me to grab you by the ear and knock you upside your head.”

Oscar knew her words were empty, but the anger beneath them was very real. “Things have changed between us,” he explained, choosing his words carefully. “We’re a lot better now, Mum. Lando was…it was nothing, really. They just want to destroy her reputation.”

Nicole hummed in response, clearly awake that her son wasn’t telling her the whole truth. “If things are so good, why haven’t I gotten a phone call in months? Two crashes and you can’t so much as call your own mother.”

“I’m sorry,” he said. “It’s just been a lot, mum.”

She sighed, her voice hefty with an unfocused anger. “I know. I’m just worried about you, Oscar. And I’m worried about YN.”

“I am too,” he whispered, though you must still be asleep. “I’ll warn you, she’s… a bit of a wreck.”

“She never used to care about these kinds of things. What’s gotten into her?”

“It’s…complicated.” Oscar didn’t know how much to give, what to reveal and what to hold back.

“Oscar, I’m going to say something that’s hard to hear, but you both need to hear it.” He swallowed, listening intently to his mother on the other line. “This isn’t good for her. I don’t think…whatever you all have going on, is good for her.”

“But things are getting better—”

“Oscar,” his mother asserted, cutting him off. “You aren’t good for her.”

He was silent, his hands clammy against his phone.

Nicole continued, “I know you all love each other, but love isn’t enough. Her entire life, she’s been right there for you, but what does she have of her own?”

“She has me. She has us.”

“Son… you need to let her go.”

“She doesn’t want to go. She wants to be with me.”

“Well, of course she does. She doesn’t know anything else.”

His mother was right. Who was YN, without Oscar, without the Piastri family?

“You know how badly it would break her heart to hear you right now?”

“I told you this was going to be hard to hear.”

“Mum, she’s my best friend, she’s everything to me. I’m not leaving her. If she wants to leave, I won’t stop her, but I fully intend to stay by her side through all of this, to fix everything I messed up.”

Again, Nicole sighed. “It’s never that easy, son.”

“I know. I’m not choosing this because it’s easy, I’m choosing this because I love her and she’s worth it.”

“I’m not saying that either of those things aren’t true,” Nicole began, but Oscar wouldn’t let her continue.

“You really think I should leave her?” he said, his voice almost cracking.

“I just think she deserves better.”

“Then I’ll be better,” he said, a finality in his words. He could tell that his mother didn’t believe it. 

Nicole was forced to change the subject. “Hattie and I will be home later today,” she said. 

“I’ll see you then.”

When Oscar went back to the room, he prayed to God that you were still asleep, and therefore hadn’t heard any of the conversation that had just gone down. Thankfully, for once, his prayers were answered.

When he stepped into the room, he saw a sliver of light that had come to rest across your face, illuminating the surface of your skin. You were an angel in the flesh, curled up in the stitches of the old quilt, still sleeping to your heart's content. God knows you needed the rest.

Again, he carefully got back into the bed so as not to wake you, but you still stirred, instinctively reaching for him in your sleep. When your skin met his, you scooched up close to him, laying your head on his chest, and fell back into your deeper sleep.

He felt like his heart would burst. At this rate, he’d wake you up from the sound of his rapid heartbeat alone. Every day, it seemed, this feeling in his chest he couldn’t quite name grew bigger and bigger. It was something aside from love, which by now he couldn’t deny he felt for you, and had for a long time. 

But his mother’s words swirled around his head. He knew what she meant—it wasn’t really about you. Nicole had always loved you as if you were her own child, welcomed you into their home, and wanted the best for you. No, it was about him. She didn’t believe that he could be a better man.

And as you slept peacefully at his side and the initial anger subsided with your gentle breathing, he realized that he couldn’t blame his mother. After all, he hadn’t done much to prove otherwise. 

He could crash his car a million times, make gentle love to you every night, but what did it really mean, if at the end of the day, you still struggled, falling into restless sleep even when curled up next to him?

He brought his hand up to trace his fingertips up and down the surface of your arm. If it were up to him, you’d never struggle another day in your life. He was going to be better. He had to. 

He just hoped you’d stay by his side.

You fully woke up an hour or so later, and Oscar’s eyes traced your skin as you sat up and stretched, your palms to the sky, muscles straining underneath his old t-shirt you had donned in the middle of the night. He was enamoured with you, tracing your every movement as you stumbled out of bed and to the bathroom to brush your teeth and fix your hair. You weren’t gone long, though, and soon you got back under the covers and found your way back into his open arms, where he hummed as he traced circles into your bare skin.

“I don’t want to get out of bed today,” you said, a faint smile on your lips.

“Then don’t,” he replied, mumbling into the pillow, a testament to his own tiredness.

“I have eight billion emails to respond to.”

“It’s break—”

“And I’m the internet’s public enemy number one,” you snorted, your sarcasm unmissable. “You know they want us to have a meeting at MTC after break?”

“Us?”

“Yeah, your manager already scheduled it. Seems like the entire HR department will be there.”

“That’s a bit ridiculous,” Oscar said, opening his eyes fully to look at you across from him, though you anxiously stared at the ceiling. “All this for some internet drama?”

“It would be just internet drama if I wasn’t a Formula 1 employee. This is a professional misconduct hearing. I’m not allowed to fraternize with the drivers after hours,” you joked, moving closer to Oscar, scrunching your nose and pressing it to his in a gesture of intimacy. He smiled. 

“Well,” he laughed, not even taking the breath to make the joke. He didn’t need to; your closeness transcended words, though inevitably you’d have to clarify what had transpired between you two last night.

That realization hit you, and your smile faded. 

“Answer your emails, if you must,” Oscar said, shifting in the bed to get more comfortable, “and then come back to bed. We won’t have much time to just lay around and relax when Mum gets back, anyway.”

You took his advice, but sighed at the reality that kept dawning on you. You couldn’t ignore the emails, the inevitable conversations you’d need to have with Nicole and the rest of the family. 

But as you wrapped up your work, turned off your phone, and snuggled one last time next to Oscar under the old quilt, you could pretend, at least for a moment, that everything was alright. 

And it was. Oscar had put some random show on the television, but that was just background noise, your focus rather on the steady thumping heartbeat under Oscar’s chest, where you laid your head, and you both laid quietly in the half-sleep, drifting between dream and wake. 

You broke the soft silence. “When will Mum be home?”

Oscar turned over to glance at his old alarm clock on the nightstand. “A few hours, probably around dinner.”

You hummed. “Have you spoken to her about…?” Your voice trailed off.

Oscar bit his lip, remembering the conversation from the early morning. A soft anger still burned inside his chest. “Yeah,” he whispered. “I didn’t tell her much, though. Didn’t know how much you wanted me to say.”

“I don’t even know what to tell her. It’s all just…embarrassing.”

“You don’t have to tell her anything. We’re grown.”

“I guess,” you said, biting your own lip, deep in conflicted thought. “I’m just worried she’ll agree with what everyone else is saying. That I’m a…a whore, or something.”

“She’d never think that,” Oscar said, sitting up. “YN, she loves you like you’re her own.”

“Did she say anything about it, on the phone?”

Oscar took a beat, contemplating how much of the truth to tell. He cursed how you all always thought in sync. “No,” he said, deciding on a white lie. “She was more mad at me for hardly calling.”

You didn’t quite believe him, and he could tell. You knew you’d just have to hear it from her. 

But you pushed the thought out of your mind, choosing instead to take your place back in Oscar’s arms, drifting between sleep and wake, safely cocooned away from the world. 

Of course, the utopia was shattered when Nicole and Hattie arrived home.

Oscar could feel your anxiety from a mile away. When he heard the door open and you all shifted up in the bed, he pulled you closer to him, kissed your forehead, and said, “I’ll distract Mum. You���ll have to deal with Hattie on your own though.”

You laughed, though Hattie was the one person you really needed to see right now. 

When you met them at the door, you all exchanged hugs and pleasantries, and Oscar, true to his word, distracted his mother long enough for you to “help” Hattie lug her suitcase upstairs.

She thumped it on the floor and crawled onto her bed, sitting cross-legged, as you slumped into her corner beanbag, as if you all were still teenagers again.

“YN,” she laughed, “you look like shit. Is that why you haven’t been answering my texts?”

“Thanks, glad to see you too” you joked back, though you felt more lighthearted than you’d been in a while. “Really though, I swear, I can’t remember the last time I had a conversation with a woman who doesn’t hate me. You don’t even know the half of it,” you said, nervously scratching the back of your neck.

“And I have the entire night off, so I expect to hear the all of it!” she said.

“I don’t know how much I should say…”

“YN. Be real.” You nervously chuckled, knowing that you couldn’t keep anything from her. 

“Okay, okay, I’ll tell you everything, “ you said, then sighed. “But first I need to ask you the most embarrassing question I’ve ever had to ask anyone in my whole life. Do you still have that emergency plan B?”

Hattie laughed, thinking you were joking. “What, did you sneak Lando in last night?”

“Not Lando…” you said, giving her back a half-hearted laugh. 

“Wait, you’re serious?” she said, getting up to find the box and hand it to you. 

“Yes, unfortunately.”

Before she handed you the box, she tilted her head and raised a brow. “Wait, so who…?”

You grabbed the box anyway, and looked away from her. “Don’t make me say it,” you begged.

“What?”

“Who do you think I was here with last night?”

She looked perplexed for a second as you took the pill from the box and swallowed it, but her eyes widened when she finally realized. 

“I—you—my brother? Eugh!”

You playfully rolled your eyes, sipping your drink to get the taste of the pill out of your mouth. 

“I mean, Carlos Sainz is literally right there and you’re willingly sleeping with MY BROTHER?” 

“Hattie, hush!” you said, hearing Oscar and Nicole’s voices downstairs. 

“Do not let him baby trap you! Oh God, I’m too young to be an aunt. Wait, how long have you and Oscar been…?”

“It’s not like that—”

“Well apparently it is!” she whispered. 

“Look, I’ll tell you everything, but for now, just don’t say a word to anyone.”

“My lips are sealed,” she said, dragging her hand like a zipper along her mouth.

Your weeks at the Piastri family house flew by. Though you had been forced to tell Hattie at least some of the details, you were thankful that the rest of the family had donned a false amnesia to spare you some of the embarrassment. 

A problem remained, though. Your period was late.

A day or two, that was fine. Though it scared you to death, you knew your period tracker wasn’t perfect. It could be stress, or the effect of the pill, or a million other reasons you ran over in your head as you snuck into Oscar’s room at night, as if the entire house didn’t already know that something was going on between you two. 

But as the day turned into a week, and a week into two, you were losing your mind. The night before you all were set to leave for your flight to your mandatory disciplinary conduct hearing at the MTC, Nicole has taken it upon herself to insist on a “going away” dinner with the whole family. 

You didn’t want to go, but it was no use. 

Your stomach churned with nausea, from nervousness or…something else, you couldn’t tell. You couldn’t stop the train of thoughts that kept running in your head. 

“Okay,” you said, spritzing yourself with perfume, “how do I look?”

Truthfully, you felt like garbage. You had donned a simple dress, and the question was more one of approval rather than admiration. Still, when Oscar looked up from his phone, his eyes widened. 

“Wow,” he said. “You look beautiful.”

“You don’t have to flatter me,” you said, fixing a stray strand of hair in the mirror. Oscar walked up behind you, placing his head on your shoulder, leaning into you and gazing at your reflections. 

“I’m not,” he said. “You really are beautiful.” You resisted the urge to make some self-deprecating comment, biting your tongue both literally and metaphorically. 

“Can I kiss you?” Oscar asked, his voice low. Since that fateful night in the house, all alone, your affection had been practically nonexistent, reserved for the secret sanctuary of the nighttime, as you skittered around the house in fear of judgement. 

You just hummed in response, unsure of what to say. Usually, Oscar’s touch felt like home to you, his warmth being the one thing you needed to ground you. But now, it felt like just a weight, bringing you down to Earth in the worst way.

He meekly kissed your cheek, sensing your discomfort, and pulled away so you could lean down and fasten your heels. When you rose, and your expression was still sour, he reached out, running his hands up and down your arms.

“You okay?” he asked, and you looked away. You nodded. “Just nervous,” you said, praying he’d buy it.

He did, for now. “You’re gonna be fine. I’ll be there with you, and this’ll all be swept under the rug. People will forget about it and move on to the next stupid scandal.”

You gave him a flat smile in response. 

“Now, can I give you a real kiss?”

“Didn’t you just give me one?”

“Is that a no?”

Instinctually, your smile turned real, and you leaned forward, allowing him to give you, as he said, a real kiss. It was brief and safe, knowing that at any second, the sanctity of his room could be shattered.

But he didn’t care, instead wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you closer to him. 

“Third time’s the charm?” he asked, his eyes full of a lovesickness enough to melt even the coldest heart.

“Your family is downstairs waiting for us. And you have my lipgloss on you.”

“I don’t care—”

“Are you all gonna take all day?” Hattie said, yelling from the hallway, and you scurried away, out of Oscar’s arms, grabbing your purse and making your way to the door. 

At the dinner, you found no reprieve. Despite Nicole’s best efforts at avoiding the subject, the air was thick with an unspoken awkwardness regarding the events that would transpire tomorrow. 

In between plates of pasta, a group of random girls had come up to the other side of the table, focused intently on Oscar.

“I’m sorry, are you Oscar Piastri? Can we get a picture?” 

“Erm…” he said, looking for a convenient way to say no. The girls glanced at you, and their expression immediately went cold, as they eyed you with a look of disgust. 

“We’re having a family dinner right now,” Nicole chimed in, “but it was lovely seeing you all, and Oscar appreciates all the support!”

You were thankful for the distraction, but wanted nothing more than to be out of there. 

Even back at the house, though, you couldn’t escape this embarrassment that ran deeper than your own bones. 

“Alright, everyone, time for a real send off,” Nicole joked, as you gathered in the kitchen for homemade desserts and, more importantly, a bottle of wine.

A glass of wine to drown your sorrows sounded wonderful. But you couldn’t, not knowing if… you couldn’t even bring yourself to imagine the word. You wanted to puke.

It’s too early to tell. There could be a million other reasons why. It was going to be okay. You repeated it again and again in your head, but you couldn’t believe it, not truly. 

“Oh, I’m fine,” you told Nicole as she poured you a glass. 

“Oh no, YN, this is the good stuff, you can’t refuse!”

“No, really, I’m—”

“C’mon, YN,” Oscar teased, playfully elbowing you in the side. 

“I… I should just get to bed, I’m not feeling well,” you said, excusing yourself and running upstairs before anyone could argue with you. 

“Something’s up with her,” Nicole said, sipping from her glass, glaring at Oscar over the rim. He swished the burgundy liquid in his glass, avoiding his mother’s eyes. 

“Don’t start,” he warned. “She’s just stressed. You know how she gets.”

You fell asleep in the guest bedroom, but snuck into Oscar’s room sometime in the darkness of night, where he was solidly sleeping, aided by enough wine that you could still smell it off of him. 

Curled up next to him on the edge of the bed, that night, you dreamt, and for once, you remembered it. 

You never were the type to remember your dreams, at least not in anything beyond fleeting moments that vanished when you woke. But tonight was different. 

You were in a bedroom, a condo in Monaco, the soft waves lapping outside the window as sunlight spilled in. You sat in a rocking chair in the corner of a nursery. Across the room, huddled over a pink crib, was Oscar. He leaned down, and with a heave picked up the small swaddle of blankets and held it in his strong arms. Your newborn daughter looked smaller than a button in the vastness of her father’s arms. 

“She’s tiny,” he said, his voice soft as the morning birdsong right out the window. He gazed at her with love the like of which you’d never seen, as he held and gently rocked his entire world in his arms, humming to her. He leaned down and kissed her forehead and she cooed, and you sat and rocked, quiet in the early morning. A tenseness filled the room.

“I don’t think I can do it,” he said. His gaze never shifted from the baby in his arms. “I can’t leave her.”

“We’ll be fine. We always are,” you said. 

“I know,” he whispered, his voice on the edge of tears. “But she’s so small. I don’t want to miss any more of this. You don’t get this time back.”

“I know,” you said, your own voice tinged with a sense of melancholy. 

The somber peace was broken by the screeching of a little boy, the spitting image of his father, roaring into the room with plastic dinosaurs in hand. He roared as he pivoted the dinosaur towards his sister, the middle child, who stumbled in after him. 

“Hush,” you said to the two children, “the baby is sleeping. Go tell your father goodbye.”

The boy dropped his dinosaurs and ran over to Oscar, hugging his leg. “Don’t go, papa!”

Oscar put the baby back in her crib and picked up his son, who rested his head against his father’s chest. “You know I don’t want to, kiddo.” 

“He has to go drive the race cars!” whispered your middle daughter. 

“That’s right,” he said, fluffing her hair. He put down his son, who was growing too big to be held for that long. The boy bounded with energy, jumping as he reached the floor, his father now kneeled before him. 

“I’ll drive the race cars!” he exclaimed. 

“Yeah?” Oscar said, his smile wide.

“Yeah, I’ll go like vroom, and—”

The baby was crying.

No. You were awake, and your alarm was going off. And as you groped in the dark for your phone, a sudden wave of sickness hit you. You had approximately 30 seconds to get to a bathroom before last night’s dinner would be on the floor. 

You hit your phone off the nightstand, ending the alarm while also making far too loud of a noise, and half-stumbled half-sprinted down the hall to get to the bathroom. Kneeling on the tile floor, you made it just in time to, quite literally, spill your guts. 

A hand pulled your hair back out of your face as you heaved, and when you were finally done, you saw Oscar sigh and sit on the edge of the bathtub. You were a wreck: your dream had brought forth unstoppable tears, and your stomach still rolled and flipped even as you slumped against the sink cabinet. 

“YN,” he said softly, “you’re not okay.”

“I’m fine,” you insisted. “Just a little sick.”

“Then why are you crying?”

“I just had a bad dream. I’m sorry I woke you up—”

“I was already half awake,” he said, cutting you off. “YN, you’ve stressed yourself out so much that you’re sick. Talk to me.”

“I promise, I’m fine—”

“YN,” he said, and you were finally forced to look at him. His hair, still messy from sleep, endeared you to him; you locked eyes with the same orbs that had, in your dreams, gazed lovingly upon your newborn daughter, and you lost all semblance of order.

He kneeled down next to you. “YN,” he whispered. “What’s wrong?”

“My period is late.” The room stood still. 

Oscar froze. “How late?”

“Two weeks.”

His internal voice could only say one word: Shit. But physically, he couldn’t say anything.

“Are you just gonna stare at me like I’m crazy, or…?” you asked, as Oscar’s mind was clearly elsewhere, lost in thought.

“It doesn’t make sense. You took the pill, right?”

“Of course.” you sniffled.

“Are you sure? Because—”

“Yes, I’m fucking sure!”

“Then how could you be—”

“Because that shit isn’t 100% effective, Oscar!” you said, your voice low but harsh. Oscar, the unfortunate target of your anger, winced at your words. “You think I didn’t take it? Ask Hattie.”

“Hattie?”

“Where do you think I got the pill from?”

“My sister has plan B?” Oscar asked, his face contorting with disgust. 

“Really?” you asked, incredulous. “That’s what you’re concerned about right now? I’m… I could be…” Your voice trailed into a choked sob, as you couldn’t even get the words out.

“Hey, I’m sorry, look, it’s okay,” Oscar said, moving down to sit cross legged across from you.

“It’s not okay, Oscar,” you sobbed, as he reached out to hold you, and you were too weak to push him away.

“No, I promise, it’s gonna be okay. We’ll be okay,” he said, and you gave up, crying into his shoulder, the weight of too many bottled up tears. He ran his hand up and down your back as you tried, and failed, to pull yourself back together.

“What are we gonna do?” you whispered, your breath stabilizing in the comfort of his arms.

“We take it a day at a time. We go to the MTC, get this hearing over with, and then get you a test.”

“And if I’m…”

“If you’re pregnant,” he said, and you felt your stomach drop at the utterance of the word, “then we make it work.”

“No, no, we can’t do this. We cannot have a baby. I cannot have a baby with you.”

Oscar was hurt by your words, though you said them without thinking, too deep in your own panic. “Why not? What’s stopping us?”

“Are you serious? We’re too young, you’re a fucking Formula 1 driver, and I’m about to lose my job. I’d barely be able to provide for myself, let alone a baby.”

“YN, if you’re pregnant, you’ll never worry about having to provide for anyone ever again. I have more than enough money.”

“But you’d be gone all the time. And even if you weren’t, we’re… Oscar, we’re a mess! Hattie thinks you’re trying to baby trap me,” you snorted, your voice dripping with malice.

“Do you really believe that?” Oscar asked, his voice serious.

“No,” You sniffled. “It’s my own fault for sleeping with you when I’m not on birth control. I’m so fucking stupid.”

“None of that, YN. We both should have been more responsible. But I promise you, it will be okay.”

“If I am pregnant, I can’t keep it. Would you…be okay with that?”

Oscar looked at the floor, biting the inside of his cheek. “Honestly,” he began, “it’d break my heart. But I know it’s not my decision. And whatever you chose, I’d support you.”

A silence fell in the room. 

“I had a dream, just before I woke up. We had three kids. And they were perfect, but you were gone all the time. I don’t want that.”

You looked up at Oscar, the fluorescent lights hitting his eyes at the perfect angle to reveal the sheen of his own tears. 

“This dream… it was so real. And it terrified me.” You continued, “You’re so close to winning the championship, I can’t take that away from you.” 

“The championship is the last thing I care about right now,” he whispered. “We just need to take it step by step. First, we get on this flight. We get through the hearing. Then, before the next race, we get you to a doctor. Can we do that?”

“We can do that,” you echoed, though you felt incapable of anything besides crying on this bathroom floor. 

Oscar scooped you up in his arms again, gentler this time, as if his arms were the only thing keeping you whole. 

“We’re gonna be okay. Let’s go catch this flight, yeah?” he said, kissing you on your forehead.

And that’s what you did, taking a quick shower and readying yourself to be seen in the public eye again. You said a quiet goodbye to the Piastri family as you and Oscar made your way to the airport, where he refused to drop your hand despite your protests.

“Oscar, someone might see,” you whispered.

“I don’t care,” he said. “Let ‘em watch.”

Despite your instincts, you had checked social media earlier in the morning, only to find that the girls from the evening before at the restaurant had taken pictures of the entire family from across the building and sent them to the gossip pages. The comments were full of disparaging notes towards both you and Oscar, calling you every name under the sun. 

On the long, long flight to the UK, you couldn’t sleep, instead drifting in and out of some semi-conscious state that offered no real rest. 

When you landed, you felt like a zombie. You had only a few hours before you needed to be at the MTC. 

“You all have a good flight?” Zak Brown asked, those few hours later as he led you through the long, billowing halls of the MTC. You had made it, only just in time. Oscar’s words echoed in your mind—you just needed to get through it. 

“Yeah,” you said, giving a polite smile, lying through your teeth. Oscar had come before you, giving you a much needed nap, but it meant you were alone as you walked to meet your impending professional doom. 

Zak stopped in front of the door. “Look, YN, I’m so sorry we have to go through this, but it’s outside of my wheelhouse.”

“I understand,” you said. 

“Well, this isn’t just a formality. HR is on our asses about this. Of course, we’ll do everything in our power to let them know that you’re a good asset and that this is all a big misunderstanding. But before I open this door, I just want you to be ready.”

“Thank you, Zak,” you said, truly thankful that someone was looking out for you. “I’m ready, I’ll be okay.”

You weren’t ready, though. Zak opened the door, and you felt like you were going to puke all over again.

A line of stone faced, suit-clad human resource robot-people sat on one side of the room. On the other, a line of familiar faces. 

On the far side, Oscar, who you locked eyes with, his gaze pleading, I’m sorry. 

Next to him, Lando.

Next to him, Lily.

And then, the last open seat in the room, that had to be yours. 

You sighed, walked across the room, and took your seat.

“Oh, you must be YN LN, just on time,” one of the human resource people said—a woman, her hair in a perfect slick back bun, so polished and put together. “Let’s begin.”

You nodded.

“Well, thank you all for your time,” she began, “I know all of you have much more enjoyable things to be doing. We’re here today investigating allegations of professional misconduct that would violate the terms of YN’s contract. You all have been implicated in this as well.” 

You stared at the floor as she droned on. 

“Miss LN, I understand you’ve known everyone here for a while.”

“Yes.”

“How so?”

“Oscar and I were childhood friends.”

“And what is the nature of your relationship with Mr. Piastri today?”

You stuttered internally. Technically, you were violating your contract by doing…whatever it was you were doing with Oscar.

“Um…” you hesitated.

“She’s my girlfriend,” he interjected, causing all heads to turn to the end of the table. You locked eyes with him. “She doesn't want to say it because she doesn’t want to get in trouble. But this is all on me, really—”

“Please refrain from interrupting, Mr. Piastri,” the woman said. “Is that correct?” she asked you, and you nodded. Of course, Oscar had never asked you to be his girlfriend. But what else could you be called?

“And what is the nature of your relationship with Mr. Norris?”

“There isn’t one,” you answered, too quickly for comfort. 

“So you’re just complete strangers?”

“No, I know him. But I don’t talk to him.”

“How long has this been the case?”

“Since May.”

“Why is that?”

“He was rude to me.” Your words cut through the tension of the moment. You looked your interviewer in the eye, as if to say, are you really asking me this?

“This moment of rudeness, did it happen within the context of your working duties?”

“No. It was at a restaurant in Monaco. I told you all of this in the written report. Is there anything else you need to know?” Your anger grew with each question.

“Miss LN, you are facing serious allegations—”

“Remind me of them.”

“Engaging in illicit meetings activities with Mr. Norris, and being in a longstanding affair with Mr. Piastri, both in violation of the privacy terms of your contract.”

“I told them, nothing of the sort happened,” you said, your voice strained with exasperation. “Oscar and I have been together since…well, off and on since April, and yes, that violates my contract, I guess, but there was no affair. And Lando and I met in Monaco outside of work twice, as friends. If you want to have my job over that, go ahead, I don’t care anymore. This is ridiculous, having an entire hearing over a few grainy pictures on Instagram? You’re wasting all our time, especially since I wrote everything I had to say in the report—” 

“Miss LN, perhaps you should leave the room while we conduct the rest of the hearing.”

You inhaled sharply and left the room, fighting the urge to slam the door behind you. In the hallway Zak waited, and he raised his eyebrows when he saw you exit, so angry and far before he expected you.

“Done already?” he asked.

“No,” you huffed. “But they’ve decided to not let me ask any questions at my own hearing, so they’ll be having it without me.”

Zak sighed, running a hand through his hair, and said, “Look, YN, I get that you’re frustrated. Hell, I’m frustrated too. This is a waste of everyone’s time. But what HR says, goes. Just gotta get through it.”

“I know,” you said, taking a deep breath to calm yourself. “But, are they even trying to find out who leaked all this? Did they read any of the evidence or look at any of the statements?”

“I think we all know who leaked this,” Zak said, and you raised your brow. What did he know? “I don’t know much about the investigation. But like I said earlier, I’m gonna do everything in my power to help.”

“Thank you,” you said, giving him a weak smile. 

You didn’t know how long you sat in that hallway, only half there mentally, waiting for the hearing to end, until finally, you heard the voice of the same woman beckoning you back into the room.

Again you entered, avoiding Oscar’s pitying glance, and sat back down next to Lily, whose gaze was glued to the floor. 

“Thank you for your…cooperation, Miss LN,” the woman said, through politely gritted teeth. “The committee has come to the decision that your employment will be suspended through the next 3 races.”

“I—”

The woman verbally barrelled over you, continuing, “This suspension will give us time to finalize our decision, at which point we will let you know whether we have decided to reinstate or permanently end your employment. Unless, of course, you want to resign, in which case we will accept a letter of resignation at any point.”

“You want me to quit?”

“That’s your decision to make,” the woman said. 

You bit your cheek, keeping quiet only for the hope of maybe getting your job back. 

As everyone filtered out of the room, you went ahead, walking as fast as your legs could carry you just to get out of the oppressive environment. Still, behind you, you could hear the scuffling of three pairs of legs, memories of a once unbreakable bond now fractured. 

“So,” Lily said, her voice low in an attempt to avoid you hearing, “You and YN are official now, huh?”

“Don’t,” Oscar said, looking ahead. He didn’t stop walking.

“How long has that been? Since before or after you lied to me?”

“Lily,” he warned, his voice sterner now, “Not today.”

“When, then? When are you going to admit that you’re a fucking liar?”

You turned back, the air in the hallway noticeable thicker with the tension of Lily’s words. Everyone has stopped walking. Oscar nodded to you, a sign to keep going, though you walked slower now, unable to escape Lily’s magnetizing fury. Oscar hurried, though. 

“All you do is run. Run to YN, run from hotel to hotel, run from your mother, run from Lando. You can only run from the truth for so long, Oscar.”

“Let’s go, Oscar,” you said, sensing his anger rising.

“Don’t act like you’re innocent,” she said, “You know you’re just his safe bet. When he finds something better, he’ll leave you too. But of course, you won’t leave, since apparently you’ve been at his beck and call your entire life—”

You finally made it out the doors, but Lily didn’t stop her tirade until Oscar slammed the door behind him and cut her off. 

“Listen,” he said, his voice angrier than you’d ever heard it. “I love YN more than I ever loved you. She’s my soulmate. And every day I curse myself for actually being faithful to you and wasting my time when I could have spent it with her. The only reason I ever was with you was because I was too much of a coward to be with her. Not anymore. Say whatever the fuck you want about me, I don’t care. But leave her out of this.”

“You’re evil,” Lily retorted, her voice shaking. 

“I’m evil? Every time I’ve seen you, you’ve done nothing but accuse me of things I didn’t do! And harassing YN when she’s pre—when, when she’s going through all this…”

“When she’s what?” Lily asked. 

“Oscar, let’s just go, please,” you begged.

“What did you say?” Lily questioned, though Oscar turned to leave.

“Pregnant,” Lando interjected. He had been forgotten in the background, lurking, listening. “That’s what you were gonna say, right?”

“You’re pregnant?” Lily asked, looking at you with horror in her eyes. 

“I—I’m not…” you protested, but your expression gave you away, and any reputations were in vain. 

“Oh my God,” Lily said, tears finding both of your eyes.

“Okay, we’re leaving,” Oscar said, grabbing your hand and nearly dragging you away and to his car, walking fast enough that neither Lily nor Lando could keep up.

It wasn’t until he was speeding away in his McLaren, you safely in the passenger side, that he spoke again.

“I… I know I massively fucked up.”

“Don’t,” you whispered. “I’m not mad. But I can’t right now.” 

Oscar conceded, remaining silent until you made it up to your hotel room and collapsed on the bed. 

He just sat next to you, gently rubbing a hand up and down your back. 

“Do you want me to tell you what happened in the hearing, while you were in the hall?” he asked.

“No,” you whispered as you sat up, tears now flowing without restraint. 

He wrapped you in his arms again, but even his embrace couldn’t fix it. “What can I do to make it better?” he asked.

“I just want to go home,” you sniffled. He wordlessly got out his phone and booked you both a flight back to Monaco in the morning.

The words came later in the night, in that familiar and safe space, his arm around you, your leg draped over his. 

“It just isn’t fair,” you said, your voice barely a whisper against his skin. “If they fire me… we’ll hardly see each other.”

“They can’t ban me from bringing you whenever I want.”

“It’s not the same, though,” you said. “Besides, I don’t want to be a kept woman.” 

He sighed in contentment. It was only wrapped in the presence of the other that either of you could release all the tension and rest in the quietness between you. 

“I’m sorry I…answered for you, at the beginning of the hearing,” Oscar said.

Oh, yeah. He had called you his…girlfriend. The thought had escaped your mind, but it came back with a vengeance now, a familiar wave of nausea and nervousness resting in your stomach. 

He continued, “I didn’t mean to…to force you into anything. I mean, I don’t even know where we’re at, like, between us, it just kinda—”

“You want me to be your girlfriend?” you asked, cutting him off. 

Oscar, not expecting your interjection, was silent for a moment. “Of course I do,” he answered. “Why wouldn’t I?”

“I’m the same person I was before, when you said you could never be with me.”

“I’m not,” he said. “I still make stupid mistakes, but this isn’t one of them. I mean, we live together. You fall asleep in my arms almost every night. I tell you my fears and my hopes and my dreams. Your childhood plushie is stowed away in my closet back home—”

“Mr. Koala?” you asked, a rare smile crossing your face. “I thought I lost him!”

“No,” Oscar laughed, “I stole him. Got jealous of all the attention you gave him.”

“When we were ten?” you asked.

“Yes. YN, it’s always been you. And I want it to stay that way.”

Despite all the fear that ran through your veins, for once, you believed him. You pushed it aside. You had to. 

“Okay,” you whispered, tracing circles into his bare skin beneath you. “Then…we’re together.”

The moment was simple, quiet, the room full of nothing but the soft rhythm of your breathing, and the unspoken understanding of what had just happened. It had been too long, in that back and forth, strangled by fear and guilt and shame. But it held no weight in the space between your warm bodies, away from the world, your little haven of each other. 

“But I want my koala back,” you said. 

And when you fell asleep that night, the world continued spinning, though in your little hotel room, everything had changed.

Even back home, the light in Monaco seemed different. Brighter, somehow. 

The sunlight was infectious as you and Oscar walked the narrow streets, hand in hand, no longer caring who saw. 

Of course, this came back to bite you when you glimpsed the familiar face of Lily across the street.

You both kept walking, not acknowledging the other, though once she passed, you leaned over to whisper to Oscar, “What’s she doing in Monaco?”

“Shit, yeah,” he replied, “she mentioned it in the hearing. Orientation for a new company.”

You sighed, not angry at her, but more flustered and ashamed. Oscar tightened his grip, squeezing your hand, an unspoken reassurance.

But her image haunted you as you made your way back to your apartment.

“We should get a bigger place,” he said, closing the door behind him.

“I like it here,” you replied, opening the door to the balcony. “I like the view.” You walked out and leaned over the railing, basking in the light. Oscar followed you, wrapping an arm around your shoulder, resting his head in the space between your neck and shoulder. “Clingy much?” you teased.

“I’m not gonna see you for nearly a month,” he mumbled. 

“We’ll live,” you said, though you cracked a small smile. It felt nice to know you’d be missed. 

“Are you sure you don’t want me to—”

“I’m sure.” He huffed in mock annoyance at you. 

Days before, you had booked a doctor’s appointment for after Oscar returned from the triple header, unable to get one any sooner. The store-bought tests you had secured, sneaking in the middle of the night to a corner store to avoid any wandering eyes, had gone unopened. You were too scared, though now, it had been an undeniable amount of time; either you were pregnant, or something was very wrong. 

But you’d have to wait until he returned. You couldn’t do it without him there. Though, he had asked about a million times if you wanted him to cancel on McLaren and take you to a doctor now.

“I’ll be fine,” you assured. “You just focus on driving fast.”

“I can’t focus when I know you're here alone. What if something happens?”

“Well, the faster you drive, the sooner you can come home.”

He rolled his eyes at you, then gave you a peck on the cheek, before you both went back into the apartment to enjoy your last night together. 

When he left the next morning, you couldn’t lie to yourself and say that it wasn’t tough. It was only 3 races, not even a month, but when he closed the door behind him, your apartment was quiet in a way it hadn’t been in a long time. 

With no Oscar, and no work to do, what could be done to fill your time? It hit you then, how little of a life you had, outside of your new boyfriend and his job. It hurt. 

You confided this to him when he called after he landed that night. 

“How was your day?” he asked, clearly exhausted from his flight.

“Boring,” you confessed. “I have no life outside of F1. It’s kind of sad, actually,” you said, laughing, poking fun at yourself, though the admission cut deeper than you’d care to admit.

“Neither do I,” he said. “But what about those pictures you’ve been trying to edit?”

“Huh?” you said. “I’m not allowed to post any pictures. They literally changed your Instagram password.”

“Ew,” he said. “But I don’t mean photos of me. I mean, you’ve always got your camera, and you always say you don’t have enough time to edit all your shots. Hell, I don’t end up seeing half of them.”

“Because they’re bad.”

“Then fix them.”

The conversation didn’t last much longer, but eventually you did take his advice, going through the backlogs of all the shots you had acquired in your paddock days and nights on the town with Oscar. The shots often hurt; full to the brink with memories, from times before, when things were stiffer, more closed-off. 

And even if you didn’t have the memories at your disposal, you could tell from the subtle details of Oscar’s face what he was feeling. He was actually quite easy to read, and his smile ran from photo to photo, sometimes hiding pain, but sometimes hiding a deeper truth beneath them, a love he had been so scared to confess.

And as you clicked away at your computer, for a second, you thought, maybe I’m good at this. 

Your editing consumed your days, when not watching content from the race, of course. You worked into the night, taking breaks only to fulfill your most basic needs, as if you could lose yourself in all the snapshots you had taken long ago.

And in a way, you did. You could ignore the silence of your apartment, the nervousness as the day of your appointment inched closer, the nausea that always sat in wait in the pit of your stomach, waiting to strike. You stopped only when you were going to collapse from exhaustion.

The night before Zandvoort, that’s what happened; you had worked into the early hours of the morning, ignoring the clock, until you were forced to take a nap and set an alarm before the race.

But when you woke up, your room was dark, and you couldn’t quite move. Something was wrong. 

You dragged yourself out of the bed, only to be met with a horrifying sight: you were bleeding. And it was everywhere; staining your clothes, the sheet, and deep into the mattress. You barely had enough energy to hold yourself up, let alone register what was happening. 

You looked up at your TV, which you had left on as you slept. You saw Oscar’s frame, dashing down the pit lane, as the race was about to begin any minute now. He was there, unreachable, so close, yet further than he’d ever been. 

You were alone. 

Oscar was just as tired when he crossed the checkered flag and claimed the coveted first place trophy for the Dutch Grand Prix. 

He had coasted above the competition, winning easily. But he couldn’t shake the loneliness that had settled deep into his bones, knowing that you weren’t in the garage or in the crowd below the podium, waiting for him with a warm embrace and a smile wider than he could imagine.

But you were at home, cheering him on. He looked ahead past the crowd, into the reflective lens of the camera he knew was staring at him right now. He knew, somewhere, you could see him. 

And, he thought to himself as he exited the podium and went back to the cooldown room, you would always leave him a sweet congratulatory text for him to look forward to. 

He exhaled, truly, in the cooldown room, the cameras now gone. George and Max, his podium companions, chatted to themselves as Oscar stretched. Lando had been caught in an accident in the early laps of the race, a result of a lack of focus. DNF. Oscar was now ahead in the championship.

He knew it was too early to celebrate, and if he wanted that championship, he’d have to claw his way towards it, fighting for every point. But he couldn’t lie and say that a twisted part of him didn’t enjoy overtaking Lando, both on track and off it. 

But when he finally got back to his driver’s room and got his phone, he was disappointed to find no text from you. Nothing. That wasn’t like you.

He stuck his phone in his pocket. Maybe you were waiting to call him back when he was at the hotel.

But even then, no text, no call. His own texts went unanswered, his calls to voicemail. He made a sour face after going to your voicemail a third time. What else could you be doing?

He suddenly remembered, he had your location. Maybe you had just fallen asleep. Or maybe you were at the supermarket, or maybe…

You were at the hospital. 

Your little icon was in the middle of a hospital. And you weren’t answering him. 

He called again, and again went to voicemail.

“Hey YN,” he said, trying not to let fear waver his voice. “Just wanted to make sure you’re okay. Call me when you can. Love you.”

Straight, to the point, just like Oscar. But when another half hour went by with no word, he couldn’t help but panic.

Who could he call? His family was halfway across the world. All his coworkers were here. Monaco was a ghost town during race weekends. You truly were alone, and he was terrified.

He took a deep breath, his hands shaking as he dialed the one number he never wanted to call again. 

“You have got some nerve calling me,” Lily said, her voice sharp with venom.

“And yet, you answered,” Oscar said, unable to keep his snarky comments under wraps. “Look, Lily, I need you to listen. I need to ask something of you.”

“You really think you have the right to ask anything of me?” she questioned.

“It’s not for me. It’s YN.”

“I don’t care.”

“She’s in the hospital,” he said, his throat choking. “Lily, I haven’t heard from her since last night, and her location says she’s in the hospital, and you are the only person I know who’s in Monaco right now.”

On the other line, Lily was silent.

“She’s pregnant, Lily. And I am fucking terrified right now. Please, just find her and tell me she’s okay. Please.”

Though he couldn’t hear her, Oscar could picture her face in his mind, how she was biting her lip, turning the gears in her mind.

“You’re lucky I’m off tonight,” she said. “I’ll go check and call you back.”

“Thank you so much Lily, seriously, thank—”

The call ended. 

Lily’s shoes clicked against the sensible tile of the hospital floor as she made her way to your room. Her breath was tense with stifled anger. She knew this wasn’t about you. But to hear Oscar plead for you, in a way that he had never cared for her, hurt more than she would ever admit to. 

She gently knocked on the door before entering, but you were clearly not conscious. Your phone sat on the counter, your home page (a photo of you and Oscar, to add insult to injury), full of his frantic notifications. 

She sighed as she sat in the lone armchair next to you, watching as you drifted in and out of consciousness.

“Are you family?” a doctor asked, startling Lily. 

“No, just a…friend,” she said, forcing her lips into a smile. “Her boyfriend asked me to come check on her. Can you tell me what happened?”

“She stumbled here a few hours ago. Hemorrhaging pretty bad. We gave her a transfusion, but she’s been in and out.”

“Is she going to be okay?”

“Yes, she’s just in shock.”

“What about the… um,” Lily paused, unsure of how to continue. “Um… she’s pregnant.”

The doctor made a face, looking down to his clipboard of papers. “Give me a second,” he said, exiting the room.

Lily bit her cheek. Of all things, this is one she wouldn’t wish on anyone, even Oscar, angry as she was still from the way he spoke to her back at the MTC.

She typed up a quick text. I’m at the hospital with YN. She’s fine, but not awake. I’ll call when I know more. 

It wasn’t until an hour or so later that you came to, though you thought you were dreaming. The last thing you could remember was the deep red stain of blood soaked through the mattress…you thought you were going to die. Yes, you must be dead, because your personal hell would be what faced you now; sitting incapacitated in a hospital room across from none other than Lily Zneimer. 

Though you were awake, you were visibly confused. “Hey, YN,” Lily said, her voice gentler than you’d heard it in a long, long while. “You okay?”

“What’s going on?” you asked. 

“You had an… um, an emergency, I guess. I don’t really know.”

“What are you doing here?” 

“Oscar was scared because you weren’t answering his calls.”

“But Oscar’s racing,” you said, your speech slurred.

“YN,” she said, “It’s late.” You raised your head and craned your neck to see the twinkle of Monaco’s street lights against the velvety water. Lily was right—it was late, and you had no idea what had happened, how you had gotten here, and what was going on at all.

Your question was answered when Lily stepped out of the room and you finally got a visit from a doctor, who explained how you had dragged yourself, weak and bloody, into the emergency room before passing out shortly after they got you into a bed.

“You’ve had a transfusion, but all your other tests came back normal,” he said. “So nothing immediately life-threatening. We can release you in a few hours with a referral.”

“But what about my baby?” you asked, and the question nearly made you faint again. You had said it instinctually, not feeling the weight of the words until they had already left your mouth. It had always been ‘the pregnancy’; something sterile, detached, a condition. Not your baby. Not a real, tangible sign of your love with Oscar.

Your baby. Oscar’s baby. Our baby, you thought, and you wanted to cry.

“Miss YN, you’re not pregnant,” the doctor said, matter of factly. 

“I…I miscarried?” you asked.

“No,” he said. “Your tests showed no signs of pregnancy. You weren’t pregnant when you walked into this emergency room.”

“That’s impossible. I missed a period. I—I had unprotected sex and then I missed a period. That’s not how that works.”

“Missed periods can be caused by many things—”

“I don’t understand. How am I not pregnant?” 

“Well, it could be from—” The doctor’s voice droned on, but you weren’t listening. 

There was no baby. There never was a baby. Your mind went blank.

How were you supposed to tell Oscar?

“So, Miss YN, we’ll get that referral set up for you. I’d like to keep you here overnight, just in case, but you’ll be good to go in the morning.” 

You nodded, numb, as the doctor exited the room and Lily returned. She saw the expression on your face and immediately softened.

“YN, I am so sorry…”

“Don’t be. I’m not pregnant. I never was.”

Lily paused. “False positive?”

“Something like that,” you muttered. 

“Still,” she said, sitting tentatively at the foot of the bed, “I’m sorry. I can tell you aren’t happy about that news.”

“Lily, you don’t have to do this,” you said. What you left unsaid: you don’t have to pretend like you’re not relieved that I’m not carrying your ex-boyfriend’s baby. You don’t have to pretend like you don’t hate me. You don’t have to pretend like you care.

Lily bit the inside of her cheek. Even though you hadn’t said it, she knew. “I still don’t wish that on anyone,” she muttered.

“Not even me?”

“No. Not even you, or Oscar.”

The two of you fell silent, and the air was thick with tension.

“Erm, speaking of, you should probably call him. He’s freaking out.” You glanced over to your phone on the counter, but it was now dead.

“Can you just tell him I’ll call in the morning?”

“You can just use my phone. Seriously, YN, he’s scared. Just give him 5 minutes.”

You grabbed Lily’s phone from her hand, your hand shaking. It wasn’t that you didn’t want to call him, but you thought of him staring at his phone, hoping for a call from her name and number, and still, deep down, it made you sick.

Lily left the room again, and you found his number in the recent calls; his contact had been deleted. 

Many miles apart, Oscar couldn’t sleep, couldn’t rest, couldn’t hardly breathe. He knew better than to call and pester Lily again. But when her number showed up on his phone—he too had deleted the contact—he picked up within a single ring.

“Hello?”

“Hi Osc,” you said, your voice weak and shaky.

“Oh my God, YN,” he said, and you could hear an equal fear in his tone. He tried to swallow it down. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” you said. 

“You scared me.”

“I know,” you said, choking on your own words. “I’m sorry.”

“What happened? Why didn’t you call me?”

“I don’t really know what happened. I just woke up and I was bleeding everywhere. And, uh,” you said, a small laugh in your voice, “you were a bit busy running from Martin Brundle in the pitlane. So I just went to the hospital, but I don’t really remember how I got here, or anything really, between that and, like, 30 minutes ago.”

“Jesus Christ,” he muttered. You could imagine him rubbing the sleep and worry from his face.

“I’m sorry.” 

“Don’t apologize,” he said. “Is…everything with…” He didn’t have to finish his sentence. You knew what he was trying to ask.

There was no easy way to say it. “I’m not pregnant, Oscar. I never was.”

“Oh.”

The silence hung in waves, from Monaco to Zandvoort, across the line. 

“Are you…” he began, “Are you okay?”

You were silent for a moment. 

“Am I allowed to be sad?”

The tremor in your voice broke his heart. “Of course you are,” he answered. 

“I knew it wasn’t the right time. But I guess I had already…accepted it, I don’t know.”

“I understand,” he said. “I was already thinking about names.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. If we had a girl, Charlotte, or Amelia.”

“And if it was a boy?”

“Maybe Caleb. Or Elijah.”

The tears now flowed down your face unrestrained. “You’ll be a great dad one day,” you said, trying to hide the cracks in your voice, evidence of your weeping.

“And you’ll be a great mum,” he said. “I can already tell you loved the little one.”

“But it never existed.”

“But we believed it. And we loved them anyway. Isn’t that enough, for now?”

You couldn’t answer him. He continued, “We knew we weren’t ready. But now, we can wait until we are. We can be there for them, raise them everyday instead of being gone at races all the time. Because our little one deserves better than we could give them right now.”

“Stop calling it that. Don’t get that idea in your head,” you said. There was no baby, no ‘little one’, not even a clump of cells. All that rested in your womb was an empty idea. 

“It’s already in my head, YN. It’s in yours too.”

Again, silence fell. 

“They’re gonna keep me here overnight, but I should be back by tomorrow,” you explained. 

“Good, you’ll be home by the time I get back.”

“Oscar, you don’t need to come back,” you protested.

“Of course I do. You’re sick.”

“I’m fine, and you have a triple header to drive.”

“I don’t give a fuck about the races right now, YN.”

“Well I do!”

“You didn’t even watch the one today, because you were too busy bleeding out!” he retorted, his voice gaining a sternness to it. 

“We are both on thin ice right now. There’s no way I’ll get my job back if I cause you to miss a race.”

“YN—”

“No, Oscar, you’re not coming home. I’ll lock you out of the apartment.”

“YN,” he said, his voice like that of a tough father, “I thought you were dead today. I’ve never been more afraid in my life. I can’t drive knowing you’re at home, sick and alone.”

You refused to budge. “If anything else happens, I’ll call you, and you can come to my rescue, I promise.” 

“Has anyone ever told you that you’re impossibly stubborn?”

“Never,” you said, a soft smile on your lips. ‘Look, I’ll call you in the morning. If I feel good, you stay, and if not, you can come back. Deal?”

He sighed, “Fine.”

“Good,” you said, satisfied with your deal. “By the way, how did the race go?”

He echoed himself. “Fine.”

“What’d you place?”

“P1.”

“Oscar, that’s great!” you said, though a small pang of sadness rushed through your heart. You had never been absent for a victory. “We’ll celebrate when you get back.”

Celebrations were the last thing on Oscar’s mind, but he knew it was pointless trying to redirect you. “Can’t wait,” he said.

“I should probably give Lily her phone back,” you said, feeling it buzz with a notification. 

“Oh, yeah. I’m sorry I had to call her, I just…didn’t know anyone else to call.”

“It’s okay,” you said. “I’ll call you tomorrow. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

With that, you hung up the call. 

A few minutes later, Lily reentered the room, and you handed her the phone with a small thanks.

“I grabbed my charger,” she said, plugging up your phone.

“Thanks,” you said. 

A silence settled in the room after Lily curled up in one of the armchairs beside your bed, passing the time scrolling. After about half an hour of silence, you spoke up. 

“You know, you don’t have to stay here all night.”

She furrowed her brow. “I’m not going to leave you here alone.”

“Look, I really appreciate it, more than you know, but I know you don’t want to be here.”

“It’s not you I’m upset at,” she said, her voice lower. 

“You take it out on me, though,” you replied, refusing to lower your own voice. “And I mean, I get it, I’d do it too. But as you can tell, not everything on my side of this is sunshine and roses, so…”

“YN—”

“Lily, just, let me say this, please,” you said. “What was said outside the MTC… Oscar and I obviously didn’t go about any of this right. He didn’t just leave you and come to me and start treating me like a princess. He used me to get over you and I let him, because I wanted him for so long now. I mean, I don’t know who I am without him.”

“And at the end of the day, you still forgave him.”

“Because I love him. Because I want to be with him despite it all. But Lily, my life is falling apart. The entire internet hates me, and I deserve it. I lost my job, and I lost the baby I thought I was going to have, and…yes, Oscar and I are official. But it didn’t come without pain. And it breaks me because I know that this is what I get for all of it.”

“YN,” she said. “That’s not true. In that hearing, you think I didn’t realize that Lando was just using you? He was using me, too, I know. I got so overcome with anger, and I lashed out at you and Oscar, I just…” She locked her gaze toward the floor. “I sometimes feel like I’ve gone crazy. One day, I believe everything you and him said. But some days I think everyone was just lying to me for years, and I don’t know what’s real anymore.”

You could see her trying to hold back tears. “And I’ll admit it, even after all this time, I still love him, and I miss him, and God, I wish I was you. I want to be with him more than anything, but I’m angry and I want him to suffer for what he did to me. How did you not feel this when you were betrayed?”

“Because I didn’t love him,” you said, the image of your ex-boyfriend flashing in your mind. “Oscar is the only man I’ve ever loved. Ever. Since we were children.”

“It’s an endless pain, to be that consumed with love. He will hurt you. He already has.”

“I know,” you said. “And I’ll hurt him. That’s how it goes”

“That’s what I said, too. I told myself that’s the nature of love. But I always loved him more than he loved me. And then he left me. And even after everything, if he came to me today and apologized, I’d forgive him in an instant. But he never will. He never will.”

“I’m sorry, Lily.” You were bed bound, but you wanted nothing more than to hold her, for her tears to wet your shoulder as it had so many months ago, when you had assured her that none of this would ever happen.

“Deep down, I think I know he didn’t cheat,” she said. “At least not physically. But it’s easier to say that than to accept that he never loved me like he loved you. And he never will.”

What else could be said? The silence filled the room, like a funeral for what once was. Lily still never moved to leave.

“You should leave him,” she whispered. “Not so I can have him. But because you deserve better. And he’ll never be better.”

“You know I won’t ever do that. I can’t.”

“I know. Trust me, I know.”

In the morning, she helped you get home, then texted Oscar from her car in the parking lot of your apartment. Many arguments had been had in that garage. But today was different.

YN is feeling better. Got her set up at home. I can come check on her a few times until you get back, if you’d like. 

That would be great. Thank you so much for this. 

She gave the message a heart reaction, fully intending to leave it there.

Her phone buzzed again. 

And I should apologize for the exchange outside the MTC. I was really cruel to you. I’m sorry. 

Lily took a deep breath, unsure of how to respond. 

He kept texting. For you to go above and beyond for YN after I treated you like that shows the difference between us. Really, I am sorry. 

Lily knew she should send something distant. Like, ‘thanks for the apology’ or ‘no worries’ or ‘I appreciate it’. But she couldn’t. She poured her heart out into the message. 

I’m not going to sit around and let someone you love suffer. I did it because I know you love her, and I love you still. I’m not asking you to be with me, I know better. But I have to say it because it’s driving me crazy, going back and forth between anger and love. I know you meant what you said, that you’ve always loved her more than you ever loved me, and I have to live with that. It’s just hard. 

The three dots that bounced up and down sent Lily’s heart rate to dangerous levels, until his message finally appeared. 

Thank you for loving me when I couldn’t love you back. I’m sorry for wasting your time. I hope we can forgive each other. 

Lily was thankful for the privacy of the parking garage and her tinted windows. 

It wasn’t a waste to me. Was it a waste to you?

Oscar’s reply was lightning fast. 

No. But I do wish I could have been honest to you and myself. I just hurt us both.

Lily’s hand began to cramp with how fast she was typing.

I just wasn’t the one. You don’t have to apologize for that. Besides, I never wanted the wag life, all the attention. She’s good at that, despite everything she’d tell you.

When Oscar didn’t immediately reply, she sent another. 

I don't want to live with this anger. The years we had were good. I got to see the world, and I’m thankful for it, and even with everything, I want you to be happy. 

No reply. She sent another. 

Please tell her I forgive you both.

Oscar’s reply was swift again. 

I think you need to tell her yourself. It haunts her.

Lily typed a short message. I know. 

And that was it. There was nothing more to say. 

As Lily drove off, she soaked in the streets of Monaco, a place she had come to hate. It was Oscar’s world, your world, a place she was never meant to call home. Soon enough, she’d never have to come back here. She thought to herself, I hope he has a good, long life here. I hope they raise their children here. I hope this place treats them well. And I hope I never hear about any of it. 

The next day, you are awoken by the ringing of your doorbell. When you open the door, no one is there, but at your foot rests a card with Lily’s signature on it, and a bouquet of wildflowers. 

[thehomophobe]

How To Fluster Them 😳

A Guide To See How To Fluster Your Cybernetic Sweetheart. These guides are in no particular order so choose whichever you like.

Freddy 🐻: 

1. Surprise gifts: Gifts from fans are always appreciated; they put their heart into it when crafting little crochet plushies or keychains or drawings of him. But when you create something; even if it's a crappy looking drawing, Freddy would blush at the sight. Notice how it says surprise gifts, so you must catch the android completely off guard when you gift him. Those are the perfect fluster moments.

2. Second-Hand Embarrassment: Freddy doesn't know too much about humans and human behavior despite being an A.I. But even with that said, he still learning social cues and human nature so don't chastise him over it. However, if you notify him about anything that seemed a little offputting, Freddy would become flustered over it. A simple, yet quiet, apology may present a sense of childlike guilt like a five-year-old apology for saying something out of pocket, but inside he is a little anxious. Try to calm him down by holding his hand or his shoulder and rub it affectionately.

 Chica 🐔:

1. Catch Her (In the act of doing anything): Caught her eating out of your trash again? Or maybe wearing your clothes? Perhaps sleeping with one of your plushies? Whatever silly little thing she did, if you catch her off guard or mention it while casually cuddling together, that'll surely ruffle her feathers...

Er...metaphorically...

2. Surprise Gifts: Just like Freddy, if you surprise her with a gift, you'll definitely fluster her. Honestly, she'll be easier fluster with a gift than Freddy. Recommend surprising her with food from a restaurant or a bistro that she always wanted to go to.

Monty 🐊:

1. Flirting (Back): He flirts with you on a daily basis, to the point where you can't tell when he is or isn't flirting. But once you respond back--twice as hard---you won him over. He'll be a blushing mess, god damn where'd you get that from? (Him obviously)

2. Physical Affection: Run your fingertips across any part of his body, Under his chin, up his arms, across his chest. He's so down bad for you. A hum facsimile to a purr would emitted from him. But if you wanted maximum domesticity, crawl into his lap and kiss him anywhere. We recommend anywhere on the face to get the best fluster.

Roxy 🐺:

1. Words of Affirmation/Genuine Compliments: Compliments are key; give her one, but make it candid and sincere. She's gonna be thinking about what you said all day. All week depending on what you said. We recommend not making any sexual compliments though, they won't hit as hard as heartfelt ones.

2. Physical Affection: Massage her. You'll get a blush from her, even if you can't particularity see it. Comb through her hair, no please do it. We recommend that hair-grooming can result in flustring. Only do this for about 10-30 seconds, be prepared for her snapping at you to back off.

Sun ☀:

1. Words of Affirmation/Genuine Compliments: While not as starved for plaudits as Roxanne, be complimented on his talents would definitely result in flustering. Would recommend compliments on: acrobatics, artistic ability/creativity, singing voice, appearance (i.e. calling him handsome, cute and/or adorable), how good he is with small children. These all resulted in 100% flusteredness.

2. Physical Affection: Holding hands, brushing shoulders, bumping hips, any sense of gentle touches trigger blush for the android. An small interview with Sun noted that you make him feel "all sparking and buzzing on the inside" similar to freshly lit fireworks. Would recommend cradling his face for ultimate fluster and completely domesticity.

Moon 🌑: 

1. Words of Affirmation/Genuine Compliments: Mainly the same as his brother, yet somewhat easier to fluster as many of our research has resulted in. It appears complimenting his looks and singing voice result in 92% flusteredness. The 8% being snootiness/agitation. A smaller interview with the android had stated you give him the butterflies in his stomach when this is done. We highly recommend it.

2. Physical Affection: Once again like his brother, holding hands, cuddles, and cradling his face all result in blushing. You make him feel weak. In a good way. In a staticky, heart melting way. Just hold him close like how he holds you close. If he tries to look away keep your eye contact, tell him his eyes are beautiful and refocus his vision.

[dreadsuitsamus]

Bleach Men Taking Your Baby to the Grocery Store Headcanons

author's note: yes the premise is random but it's also very cute and perfectly in line with my recent onslaught of baby fever. also, the banners in this post were created by the always amazing @actuallysaiyan!! thank you for the gorgeous banners, babe! 🩷🩷🩷

pairings: kensei muguruma x reader, byakuya kuchiki x reader, grimmjow jaegerjaquez x reader, renji abarai x reader, ichigo kurosaki x reader

warnings: children ages 5 and younger and grimmjow's parenting lmao this is mostly fluff and some mischief mixed in from the babies

Kensei is definitely the tough parent of the two of you, and he relishes in that fact

But goddammit do those baby eyes make him waver

As he carries little Mila into the store, he tells her they're only there for necessities

No candy, no sugary cereals, only what you've tasked him to buy for dinner

Despite being only three and a half, however, Mila has a pretty good idea of how to get her way with Kensei

It's gotten slightly less effective since the pacifiers have been removed from her arsenal, but anything that cracks her dad's tough exterior is remarkable as is

It starts off innocently enough, though soon the way she sings her little song and bops her head around becomes rife with intent

"Daddy, can has hug?" She blinks up at him, holding her arms up

Either he's willfully choosing to fall into the trap, or Kensei is merely blind in the face of his precious girl

"Of course, baby." Kensei picks her up from the cart and kisses her wonderfully chubby cheek, leading the cart behind him as he continues through the store with Mila hooked on his hip

Mila curls up, humming as her eyes scan the shelves for something she wants

"Hold Momma's list for Daddy, okay?"

Mila's little fingers hold the list carefully, and soon Kensei is at a crossroad

"Broth. What kind of broth?" He mutters, fishing his cell phone from his pocket to call you

As usual, it turns into a bit of a squabbling match. He thinks remembering every little detail is silly, and you think you've made this dish so many times he should know you need chicken broth

Kensei is sufficiently annoyed by the time the phone call ends, and Mila strikes then

"Daddy, can has kiss?"

"Yes, baby." She gets a kiss on either cheek, and the kiss she gives his cheek right back is just about the final nail in the coffin

With Kensei holding her, she's able to reach the shelf and snag a little box of animal crackers

"Daddy, can has this?"

Played by the fucking toddler again!! That's three times this week!

"... Don't tell your brothers." Kensei sighs, hanging his head in shame

It's not all bad though; he does get another sweet kiss from his princess

Byakuya is a strict but ultimately fair father

Little Jasmine has grown up under his watchful eye, though through that she's certainly learned just how many of his limits she can press and how to get around them

Going to the grocery store is rare, and even more so if you're not present for the journey

But it's vacation time, and you're busy setting up the cabin for your family's stay, so Byakuya has been tasked with gathering enough groceries to make it through dinner and the morning's breakfast

Byakuya holds Jasmine’s hand and they walk inside together, Byakuya using a tissue to pick up one of the small hand baskets. There's no telling the last time this thing has been sanitized!

“What would you like for dinner tonight?” Byakuya asks the five year old, and Jasmine hums thoughtfully

How can she end the first day of this vacation with a delicious banana split?

Appealing to her father's tastes will increase the likelihood of success, and her father is quite fond of spicy foods…

“Can we have curry?”

The light in his eyes isn't missed by the girl, and she can practically taste an ice cream sundae with a waffle bowl already

“You're becoming more accustomed to spices, I see.” Byakuya hums and begins to survey the store's offerings, whereas Jasmine is mentally preparing her list for dessert

“Daddy?” Jasmine dials up the sweetness in her tone while Byakuya examines the various cuts of chicken on display

“Yes?” He hums

“Can we have a treat tonight?”

“What sort of treat?”

“A surprise treat. Please, Daddy?”

Byakuya pauses. He's no fan of sweets, and in general sugar is limited in the Kuchiki household

But she did say please

“Mm… I suppose.”

Byakuya doesn't meet your eyes when he and Jasmine return from the store with more ingredients for ice cream sundaes than dinner and breakfast combined

He is such a sucker, but he's happy to be played when he receives his banana split with a chocolate syrup drawing of his beloved Wakame Taishi from his darling daughter

Renji tries his best to be a strict father, but his determination wavers frequently. He wanted for many things as a child, and as a parent he doesn't wish to push that same feeling on his child as long as he's capable of providing a warm, loving home

Not to mention, that damn two year is old is just so cute it makes his heart melt at the mere sight of the toddler

“C’mon, honey, gotta get some soup for Mommy.” Renji murmurs as he carefully takes little Rin from his car seat, carrying him into the store on his hip

“Why?” is Rin’s favorite question right now, and Renji’s eye twitches a bit

“Because her tummy is upset.”

“Why?”

“... I don't know.”

“Why?”

“I don't know!”

“Why?”

Renji gently pinches his son's lips between his fingers. “Shhh… Quiet time.”

But of course, the moment he lets go, Rin is back at it again

“Why?”

“Because now Daddy has a headache.”

Rin, as gently as he can while simultaneously not managing much grace in the act, pats his father's sunglasses that sit atop his head

“All bedder?”

Renji's lip practically wobbles at the sweetness. “Yes, Daddy's all better. Thank you, sweetie.”

Rin rests his head against his father, playing with the Renji’s chain while he surveys all of the varieties of soup, Renji occasionally pulling the chain away from the baby's open mouth

Rin whines after his third attempt to eat the necklace, so Renji quickly grabs the first can of chicken noodle soup he sees and makes a dash for the checkout. No baby meltdowns in public, for the love of God

Renji gently bounces the baby, pleading softly with him to calm down. It's not working very well, however, and these damn checkout lines aren't moving at all!

Desperation wins and Renji's grabbing a lollipop before he knows it, tearing the wrapping off and popping the sucker into Rin’s teeny mouth

His plan to calm the baby works, and by the time he's actually able to check out and purchase the soup, the small pop is already gone and the tantrum is starting to blossom again

And just as Renji gets the baby strapped back into his carseat, he checks his phone to see a text you sent twenty minutes ago that practically sends his eyes popping out of his skull

Can you pick up a pregnancy test too?

He glances over at the toddler, and can practically see the boy as a big brother already

Even with a fussy baby in round two of the long lines, Renji's smile doesn't waver and he just kisses and coos at the hopefully soon-to-be big brother

Grimmjow is an interesting parent. Much like how every day with a four year old is a mystery, every day with Grimmjow is a deep dive into the unknown

So when sending the man and his mini-me to the grocery store, you're not quite sure what they're going to come home with. Hopefully it at least includes the items on the list, otherwise dinner is going to be very different from what you've planned

“Oi, keep up!” Grimm looks over his shoulder, the four year old having been distracted by a vending machine

“Want snack.”

“Too bad. Let's go.”

The toddler’s stare is a little too lead paint-y for Grimmjow's liking

“Zen.” Grimmjow looks on, unimpressed as he fishes a coin from his pocket. “Fine, brat. You win, you get a snack. I win, I get a snack.”

That gets the boy to smile, clapping his hands as he jumps in excitement

Grimmjow smirks. “Heads I win, tails you lose.”

The coin is flipped off of Grimmjow's thumb and he catches it easily, Zen waiting with bated breath for the results. Does Daddy win or does he lose??

Grimm sucks his teeth, shaking his head and tucking the quarter back into his pocket. “Heads I win. Tough luck, kid. Maybe next time.”

Zen pouts, watching his father slip a dollar into the vending machine and press the buttons for a honey bun. “Aw man…”

“C’mon.” Grimmjow opens up the snack, taking a big bite and grabbing the front of Zen’s coat, carrying him inside of the store like a handbag

The boy can't help but giggle as he looks up at his father; he loves air jail!

“You're in jail. Stop laughing, fuckin’ psycho.” Grimm shakes his son a bit, hiding his own laughter into the next bite of his honey bun. He's a hardass, but that baby's laugh is precious and melts him like ice cream on a sunny day

Heads turn at the way Grimmjow carries Zen, but Grimm is highly unbothered by such judgment. His kid is happy and healthy, and anyone that thinks otherwise can kiss his ass, for all he cares

“You got the list?” Grimm looks down at Zen, the boy fishing out the neatly-folded post-it note you lovingly tucked into his jacket pocket

Grimmjow perks a brow as he reads off the ingredients you've listed. “Say, kid—” he looks down at his son. “Whaddya say we ditch the list and get some pizza instead?”

Zen claps happily at the idea and Grimm grins menacingly, crushing up the grocery list and tossing it on the floor as he hoists his boy over his shoulder, stuffing the last bite of the honey bun in his baby's mouth whilst flipping off a scandalized woman at the checkouts

Growing up with two younger sisters was good for something after all, Ichigo thinks as he wrangles his twin girls through the parking lot with relative ease

The three year olds are stubborn and independent, having insisted they walk instead of having daddy carry them! But they still want to hold his hands, of course

why no he is not melting like a lava cake, why do you ask?

The girls gasp at the sight of a shopping cart with a racecar on the end that's the perfect size for two little ones!

“We don't even need a cart.” Ichigo deadpans, though it's in one ear and out the other as the babies pile into the little racecar, turning the steering wheels and beeping the (thankfully noiseless) horns

He feels like an idiot but as the dutiful father he is, Ichigo complies with his girls’ wishes and pushes the cart into the store

Chubby fingers point as little voices call out for candies and trinkets, and Ichigo's quick with each of his responses

“No.”

“I said no.”

“No ma'am!”

He's definitely cleaning their ears out when they get home, because clearly they can't hear him! Why else would they ask for things a million times over, hm?

“Daddy always say no.” Indigo pouts, her sister nodding in agreement. All they want is some candy!! Why is Daddy so mean?

Ichigo sighs in frustration as the aisle he needs to go down is absolutely packed, and he's stuck with this behemoth of a shopping cart. Settling it at the end of the aisle, he kneels down to make eye contact with the girls

“Stay put; I’ll be right back.”

Ichigo quickly rushes down the aisle, weaving between people to get to the pasta section

Now… If only he could remember what shape of pasta you told him to buy

Indigo and Imani look at each other, covering their mouths to hide their mischievous giggles

Those Push Pops they were eyeing are still nearby, and Daddy isn't!

As the tag team they are, Indigo and Imani spring into action, Indigo rushing to get the candy while Imani (who turns up the cuteness to a ten!) rushes down the aisle to her father

Ichigo frowns and picks up Imani, scolding her for leaving the cart

It isn't exactly effective, however, as the baby eyes and the cooing let her off the hook easily

When they get back to the cart after Ichigo remembers which pasta you've requested, he sets Imani back into the racecar

Indigo slips a blue Push Pop into her twin's hand, the two of them sharing a conspiratorial smile

They almost get away with it too, though when Ichigo's strapping them into their car seats he notices the lollipops

“Stop stealing!!!!”

These girls will surely be the reason he takes medication for his blood pressure, and he dreads the day when they become teenagers!