#but yeah... me dropping something without breaking it is WORSE than him dropping and actually breaking it...

[heartshattering]

Feeling like I want to give up again...

[katsukistofu]

hihi !! thinking about a hurt/comfort fic with shinsou where reader feels like she’s boring/annoying to him

good parts

contents ౨ৎ ⋆ h. shinsou x fem reader. 1.5k words — hurt/comfort. fluff. slightly suggestive. ⭑ no matter how dark your brain gets, hitoshi is determined to help you see yourself in the same light that he does.

Hitoshi visibly softens the moment he opens his door at the sight of you standing there in the dimly lit hallway.

Dark violet pools swimming with worry drift from the way you’re chewing the inside of your cheek, like how he’s noticed you usually do when you’re anxious, to the hem of your pajamas balled up in your fists.

“What's up, love?” Hitoshi says in his softest voice, faltering when you finally meet his eyes with your reddened ones. His heart drops. Have you been crying?

At your uncharacteristically hesitant mumble of “Can I come in?” is when he feels said heart nearly split into two.

“Of course.” A concerned frown tugs at his lips. Something’s definitely wrong. You usually never bothered to ask twice, not that he minded of course, before barreling into his arms the second he turned the knob so many times before. “You can always come into my dorm.”

“I know, I just…” Your sweet voice that he’s missed all day trails off guiltily, and you take a deep breath as you fiddle with the edge of your pajamas.

“Actually, sorry, I didn’t mean to bother you. I think I’ll just go back to my room.”

“What, who said that? You never bother me.” Hitoshi’s gentle yet firm grasp on your sleeve stops you from turning to leave, and you huff at his stubborn attempt to make you stay.

“Toshi, let go.”

“I’m afraid you’re gonna have to amputate my arm first, and not that you couldn’t but I don’t think you don’t have the tools for that at the moment, pretty girl.” The edge of his lips tilt upward in a wry smile as he playfully tugs you towards him. “You’re not escaping me that easily.”

You huff and turn away, looking anywhere but into his warm, patient eyes. It’s a trap, you know it, once you do you’ll be spilling your guts out in no time, and the sickening aftertaste of burning shame is just something you can’t stomach right now.

Plus he’s wearing that gray hoodie he knows is your favorite, which just makes everything worse because he looks ten times more handsome than usual.

“Come on, sweetheart.” Hitoshi coaxes. “Talk to me. You know you can tell me anything, right?”

A beat of silence. 

Your lips press into a firm, thin line, and you finally surrender. 

“Yeah. I know.” You sigh, and he rubs your shoulder encouragingly.

“Go ahead then, I’m listening.”

“Okay, uh…” You mumble slowly, suddenly feeling very silly. “Do you think I’m annoying or that you’ll ever get bored of me, Toshi?” 

“Never.” He answers without skipping a beat. “To both. You never annoy me, and you’re anything but boring.”

“Really?” Your voice breaks a little and his heart clenches in his chest at the way you sound so doubtful of his words. Hitoshi reaches out to tenderly brush his knuckles against your cheek.

“Really.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Well when I wake up everyday, my first thought is that I look forward to seeing you.”

Your eyes widen, when it really shouldn’t be a surprise at all. “You do?”

“Mhm, I do.” Hitoshi moves to sit down on the edge of his bed. You gasp as he smoothly pulls you into his lap, quite literally sweeping you off your feet.  “And you know how else I know I’ll never, ever get bored of you?”

"What?" You shyly adjust your legs to straddle him more comfortably. He guides your arms to wrap around his neck in response, unwavering, intense eyes staring into yours. He’s so close that his lashes brush against your cheek when he blinks, and his warm breath fans across your lips teasingly.

“Toshi,” you whine. “You’re making me feel flustered.”

“I know it makes you feel flustered.” Hitoshi grins slyly. “That's why I love doing it.”

You gently bat his bicep. “Stop distracting me and answer my question!” 

“Yes ma’am.” Hitoshi chuckles as you retort by cutely puffing your cheeks and laying your head down on his shoulder. His arms are snug against your waist and he squeezes you in his lap. You always feel so nice, sitting so prettily on him. 

“I know I’ll never get bored of you because when someone asks what the best part of my day was, I always mention you in some way. Could be a cute doodle you made on a note you left me, you spending five solid minutes trying to push a door that says pull at a restaurant, or seeing you get excited over a new season of your favorite show coming out, anything as long as it's you.”

His expression is warm as he watches your head perk up at that, which quickly turns into a scowl when you realize exactly what he’s referring to. “The sign on that pull door was really faded, you couldn’t see it either!”

“That’s why I made you my guinea pig so I could come in and heroically save the day for you.”

“Heroic my ass,” you mutter into his hoodie and he laughs, then presses a soft kiss to your neck in response and you shiver. 

“And you have no idea just how much I love listening to you talk about your day.”

“...Even on the days I don’t do anything special?”

“Especially on those days.” He nuzzles his face into your neck and you giggle. “Love hearing you talk about mundane shit. Love when you send me a picture of what you’re having for breakfast, or when you tell me about some weirdly shaped cloud you saw outside during training.”

He pauses thoughtfully, and continues, “Hell, you could probably read me your grocery list and I'd still be hooked on every word. I love your little quirks, even the ones you think are weird. Your whole personality. Your cute voice.”

Hitoshi squeezes your hip. “So keep telling me all about it, okay? I wanna hear it.”

You let out a sweet little contented noise of agreement and your boyfriend grins. 

“So I think it’s safe to say that the chances of me finding you boring or annoying are real slim.” Hitoshi smirks, tickling your thighs that are still wrapped around his waist, and you squirm out of his hold and escape further into his bed while giggling. 

“Real slim meaning zero times infinity.”

“Isn’t that just zero, though?” You let out a soft sigh, completely out of breath as you flop onto his pillow.

“Shh, let me have my moment. Everything times infinity makes it more special.” Hitoshi’s arms come up from behind to hug you against him. “Like my love for you.”

“Ew.” You wrinkle your nose. “You’re so corny.”

“I know. Took you long enough to realize I’m obsessed with you.” He rolls his eyes, bending his head down to brush his lips against the nape of your neck. “Everyone in class already calls me a simp, you don’t need to rub it in.”

You flip around to face him, snuggling the side of your face into his pillow that has the faint, comforting scent of the laundry detergent he likes to use. “Good thing I’m also a simp.”

Hitoshi softly gasps in mock surprise. “Really? Oh my god,” his eyes flicker around the room as if he’s looking for the mysterious person who won your affections. “Who’s the lucky person?”

You laugh and the side of lips quirk up in that fond way that only happens when he’s with you. “You, you silly goose!”

“Me?” He sweetly brushes his nose against yours. “Wow. Feels like I’ve won the lottery.”

A warm feeling spreads across your chest, like honey being stirred into a hot cup of tea and Hitoshi’s eyes are half-lidded as he whispers in a low tone that makes the butterflies in your stomach flutter to life.

“Come here, love. Give me a goodnight kiss.”

You lean in to kiss his deliciously soft lips, and you can feel him grin against your mouth at your eagerness. He kisses you back twice as gently, agonizingly so, while his hand trails to cup the dip of your waist and you feel dizzy at his adoring touch. Your heart is pounding way, way too fast for this late at night.

He sneaks another tender kiss onto your neck, then on your collarbone, and Hitoshi laughs as you shyly smush your flustered face into his pillow.

“One more thing.”

You peek over to glance at him, and the way he’s looking at you makes you feel warm and tingly all over and your burning face is begging for you to return it to the cool depths of his pillow.

“Promise you’ll always tell me when you feel like this. No more keeping it in.”

Your eyes soften at his stern expression. “Okay, I promise.”

“Pinkie promise.” He says sagely, lifting his finger, and a laugh bubbles up in your throat at his serious tone when you raise your own, his larger pinkie overlapping yours. 

“I pinkie promise.”

“Good girl.” Hitoshi smirks, which is short-lived when his eyes widen in panic and it’s too late by the time he reaches to catch you as you proceed to tumble off the bed.

[hannibals-favourite-meal]

enemies to lovers w/ spencer reid plzz 💗

.⋆｡Whispers in the Dark｡⋆.

Spencer Reid x plus size reader

You and Spencer have been at each other’s throats for months and the team is sick of it. So while on a case in a conveniently tiny town, they do something to fix it

Warnings: usual cm warnings (kidnapping, murder, serial killer), enemies to lovers, one bed trope (i’m not sorry), confessions, little bit of partial nudity, Spencer and reader are horny for each other and neither know how to deal with it, implied smut WC: 2.4k

6k Follower Celebration Bingo

Library- @hannibals-favourite-meal-library

If there was one thing that was a guarantee in this life, it was the DOCTOR (as he always liked to remind you) Spencer Reid would not keep his fucking mouth shut. You used to think it was endearing the way he so passionately spoke about anything and everything but after the 30th time he interrupted you (in front of every mind you), it got annoying real fast. And somehow, it was even worse today.

A series of kidnappings occurring in a small town in the middle of buttfuck nowhere that exactly replicated the town’s urban legend about a vengeful spirit killing those who tried to leave without offering sacrifice. Given your extensive knowledge on the development of folklore specifically tied to serial killers, it was an unspoken agreement that you would be taking the lead on the case.

But Reid had a very different idea.

“This is obviously someone using the story to get rid of people they have a vendetta against.” You fought the urge to roll your eyes at the young doctor. His lean body blocked the column of victim photos as he pointed to the map of the town beside it. He had drawn over several places with a red marker and although the abduction sites did fall into his contracted triangle of a comfort zone, something in your gut told you it was more than that.

“Look, I’m going to keep saying it. This goes way deeper. This has been happening for generations. 2002, 1985, 1968, hell even all the way back to the fucking 1820s! It’s either all 17 year olds getting killed or 17 people killed total each year it occurs, with it switching each time.” Spencer made a sound that was almost a scoff but with Hotch’s steely gaze fixed on the both of you, he covered it up by clearing his throat.

“Mark Adin was 18.”

“He turned 18 the day he died, Reid! And if you looked at his birth certificate, you’d see that his time of death was an hour before he would actually turn 18.”

“If you would just-“

“Alright!” Derek placed a firm hand onto Spencer’s shoulder, making him stumble slightly. “We get it, you’re both freakishly smart but I think it’s late and we all need some sleep.” He shot you a look as you crossed your arms over your chest, red hot anger and frustration still bubbling up inside you.

It always ended like that, one of the other members of your team stepped in before insults could be hurled (it’s happened once or twice before) and suggested a break while you and Spencer continued to glare at each other. He continuously undermined your theories and in return, you questioned his intelligence. 

“I’m sure Y/L/N will realise how ridiculous she’s being after some undeserved rest. I mean, when is she ever right.” Your stomach dropped and Derek’s smile dimmed for a second before he wound an arm around the young doctor’s shoulders and guided him out of the conference room the team had commandeered far quicker than he normally did.

You opened your mouth to shout something back at him but Emily grabbed your forearm before you could. “It’s not worth it.” You met her gaze and quickly deflated.

“Yeah okay.” She gave you a soft smile as you both left the room together, missing the weighty glance Hotch and Rossi shared.

——————

“I can’t believe that you and JJ are doing this to me,” you whined, hiking up the strap of your go-bag higher on your shoulder, “you promised last time that we had to share rooms that it would be you and me. I don’t want to get stuck with Hotch again, he snores like a fucking freight train.” Emily poked your ribs as she passed by, shooting you a mischievous grin.

“You were too busy flirting with Reid to notice us making sleeping arrangements.” You huffed and followed her out of the elevator.

“I wasn’t FlIrTinG with him and by the way, that’s disgusting you even thought of that.” The hallway was dead silent save for the faint buzz of the ice machine at the very end.

“Yeah, that’s definitely why you totally weren’t checking out his ass while he was setting up the white board.”

“Emily!” You hissed but she only laughed in response. 

“Come on, it’s so obvious that you like him! This childish rivalry you have is just sexual tension so for all of our sakes can you please just fuck him already so we can actually do our jobs.” 

“Alright maybe I would like him if he wasn’t such an ass to me all the time.” You conceded, earning you a sly grin from your friend as you both came to a stop outside your hotel room door. “But! He constantly undermines me and makes me feel like shit so it’s never gonna happen.”

Emily stood by her own door, her key-card already in hand. “And you love to rile him up. So, never say never.” And with that, she slipped into her room, shutting the door before you could retort.

You rolled your eyes as you unlocked your own door and stepped in. The shower was already running but what mainly concerned you was the lack of a second bed. You sighed heavily, dropping your bag on the empty side away from the door.  You were too exhausted and frustrated to even be mad about having to share both a room and a bed with your boss. Too exhausted in fact to notice the sweater on the chair in the corner couldn’t have possibly belonged to the older man.

Quickly, you stripped down to your underwear and slipped on your sleep clothes, figuring you could wake up early and shower before heading back to the police station. You sighed as you crawled beneath the sheets, the worn mattress immediately cradling your soft body.

Your eyelids had just begun to flutter shut when the water turned off. You turned onto your other side in anticipation of the bright light from the bathroom fully waking you up but what you didn’t expect was the accompaniment of the one voice you hadn’t wanted to hear until you had at least 6 hours of sleep and a massive coffee.

“What the hell?” 

“Fuck me.” You sat up and took in the sight of a very damp Spencer Reid wearing only a towel around his waist. You refused to look down at his naked torso (no matter how badly you wanted to). 

“You’re not Morgan.” He retorted.

“And here I was thinking you were a genius. Do you usually walk around half-naked with Derek?” He didn’t dignify you with a response this time, only grabbing his bag and retreating to the bathroom once more. As soon as the door shut, you launched yourself at your phone.

<I’m going to fucking kill you

>We’ve all packed noise cancelling headphones so don’t hold back ;)

>BTW before you even ask, there’s no more rooms available. Small towns are just great aren’t they

<I’ll get you back for this

>Sweet dreams

You could scream as you shut off your phone, Emily’s texts disappearing, leaving you staring at your reflection on the black screen. You should’ve known something was up when Hotch insisted that everyone take separate SUVs to the hotel under the guise of everyone splitting up first thing in the morning. The man was a fucking menace. 

The mattress groaned as you laid back down, far closer to the edge this time. If Spencer took your hint and just left you alone for the rest of the night, you would consider it an overwhelming success. This time when the door opened, the light was already off, letting you breathe a sigh of relief.

The bed dipped and your body tensed for a moment. You waited for him to speak, but when he didn’t, you finally relaxed. In the silence and darkness of the room, you could pretend that you were anywhere else.

“Will you stop hogging the blankets?” You knew this peace couldn’t have possibly lasted.

“If you had turned on the heater I wouldn’t have to.” You grumbled but still released your hold on the covers just enough for him to take some more of it.

“Not my fault you’re always freezing for no reason.” The blanket lifted from your leg as Spencer fully wrapped himself up. You sighed but decided not to pick a fight, Emily’s words still circling your mind. Instead you wrapped your arms around your stomach as you drew your legs up, curling around yourself. You just wanted to sleep.

“What, no witty comeback?” You sighed heavily and squeezed your eyes shut.

“I get that I don’t ‘deserve to rest’ but I’m exhausted Spencer. Neither of us want to be here so can we just try to get some sleep and leave each other alone.” Thankfully, he stayed silent, for a moment at least.

“You called me Spencer.”

“Oh my god, can you please just let me sleep? Yes I called you Spencer, it’s your name isn’t it?” You snapped although you knew what he meant. You had never even referred to him by his first name in the almost 18 months since you had been on the team, just the same as he did with you. 

“I’m sorry.” 

“Fine.” You pressed your face into the thin pillow beneath your head, determined to finally fall asleep.

“No, Y/N I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t have said what I did. There’s a lot of things I shouldn’t have said to you.” The bedsprings screamed in the quiet of the room and suddenly you could feel the gentle brush of Spencer’s breath along the back of your neck. You suppressed a shiver as best you could. “You don’t deserve to be treated like that.”

“Why are you bringing this up now? Are you trying to get laid or something?” Your tone held no bite but you could still feel the way he flinched. A sour taste bloomed in your mouth. “Sorry. For what it’s worth, I’ve been an asshole to you too.”

Tentatively, you rolled onto your back, your shoulder now brushing his. Soft light bled into the room from the light in the hallway, dimly letting you see his silhouette. Already, Spencer’s hair was a mess, different strands sticking up or to his face. His right hand rested on his chest while the left was by his side, barely a fraction of an inch from touching your own. He turned his head, making eye-contact with you for probably the first time since you had known him.

“Why— What did I do to make you hate me so much?” You muttered, suddenly unable to speak any louder than a whisper. You watched his chest hitch and then deflate.

“You didn’t do anything. I guess— it was easier to hate you than admit the truth.” The warmth of his skin made you breathe a sigh of relief as he pressed his hand to yours.

“And what is the truth Spencer?” Even in the limited light, you could see the way his eyes dropped to your lips. His lithe fingers curled around your wrist and gently lifted your hands so that it rested between your heads. 

“That when I’m around you, I can’t concentrate on anything besides how beautiful you are, how intelligent, how capable. You’ve had me wrapped around your finger since the moment we met and it’s angered me.” You didn’t realise how close you were to him until the tip of his nose bumped against yours. You sucked in a breath but it did nothing to ease the floating feeling in your stomach.

“Why’s that?” You were both now on your sides in the middle of the bed, on the edge of something more, if only one of you would fall first.

“Because I knew that the second I accepted it, there was nothing I could do to stop myself from falling for you, even if you would never feel the same.” 

You smirked. “And here I was thinking you were the smartest man alive, Dr Reid.” He pressed his lips to your knuckles with a smile and before you could tell him that he was wrong and quite frankly dumb for not seeing through you (like everyone else on the team did), his hand was on your jaw and his lips on yours.

You moaned into his mouth when he leaned onto you. You grabbed at his back under his shirt, your nails digging into the surprisingly well-defined muscles along his spine. Spencer’s head tilted, encouraging the kiss to become more passionate as his tongue traced your bottom lip. You tangled your fingers in his messy hair, tugging at it slightly as your mind began to go fuzzy with the lack of oxygen. 

Spencer smiled against your lips, placing two or three more soft kisses against them before rolling onto his back once more, leaving you breathless beside him. You followed him down, putting your head on his pillow. You stole another peck from him as he clutched at your wide hips.

“I can’t believe how long it’s taken us to finally talk this out. We were both being really stupid.” You giggled against his now swollen lips.

“Yeah we have.” Something tugged at your mind, breaking you away from the warm bubble of affection you were lost in.

You shot up. “What, what is it? Did I do something wrong?” Spencer practically pleaded, his hand tightly gripping at your thigh.

“You’re right, we were both being stupid! We’re both correct. What if it’s not just one unsub, but a whole family of them? 17 years between killings, Spencer!” Now it was his turn to sit up, his brown eyes wide with realisation.

“It’s a coming of age ritual. The unsub is killing people they know but under the guidance of the person that did it before them.”

“So the place where they’re keeping the victims before they kill them should be in the comfort zone and it should line up with all the past ones!” He beamed at you. “But maybe we should wait till morning to tell the others, they do need their beauty sleep.”

“And we don’t?” His hand moved higher, slipping beneath your sleep shorts, making you shudder.

“Definitely not.” You swung your leg over his hips and sat on his thighs, kissing him once more.

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Criminal Minds

@lokiandbuckysdoll

[rhettabbotts]

baby, if you only knew - dilf!rhett abbott x babysitter!reader

pairing: dilf!rhett abbott x babysitter!reader

summary: tensions boil over and everything changes for you and rhett one night at a rancher’s event you attend.

w/c: 5.4k (she’s a mammoth)

warnings: 18+ only. smut. age gap (babysitter 20s, rhett 40s). dirty talk. making out in an elevator. daddy kink. possessive rhett. slightly rough sex. cunnilingus. hair pulling. overstimulation. size kink. aftercare. rhett’s grey hair. some fluff.

a/n: i can see you by taylor swift is to blame for this. enjoy the filth! also couldn’t stop myself from adding some babysitter lore. also see green, green dress from tick, tick…boom! for the dress reference!

Six months. Six long, tortuous months of working under Rhett Abbott’s roof.

Okay, it wasn’t as bad as you were making it out to be in your head. His daughters were angels, and you appreciated that he worked with your school schedule as you attended your graduate program. And he let you live in his guest room rent free.

But it was sweet torture. You had fallen hard for the single father of two and it made every day even harder than the last. Rhett was a wonderful man, an attentive father, and a hell of a cook. A hard worker and he was so handsome, you could hardly breathe around him. Who wouldn’t fall in love with the cowboy?

You tried everything in the world to rid your thoughts of him, but you were highly unsuccessful. And he only did things that made it worse. Every time you brushed by him in the halls it felt like electricity coursed through your entire body. He had to feel it too, right?

Delusional. That’s what you were. You were the babysitter. Nothing more. Eventually, the girls would grow up and you wouldn’t be needed anymore. And that thought caused your chest to tighten painfully.

What a thought to have while washing the dishes. You heard your name but it sounded far off, like your ears were full of cotton.

“Tilly, come quick!” Grace shouted once more to get your attention. It made you turn abruptly, soap suds went flying as you dropped the ceramic pot you were washing. “Sorry,” she mumbled when you glared slightly at her.

“What’s wrong, Gracie?” you questioned as you wiped your hands off with the flower embroidered kitchen towel. Something you bought and put out to leave your own touch on this place.

“Oh. Nothing. Ellie just wanted to show you that we won our game.” The girls had been obsessed with Super Mario Brothers and had been playing it for days.

“That’s great guys! How about we take a break and you help me get dinner started?”

“Can we have ice cream for dessert?” Ellie, Rhett’s younger daughter pouted, bright blue eyes pleading. She and Grace were the carbon copies of Rhett. Same eyes, same nose, same crooked smile. You could never say no to them.

“Of course. But don’t tell your dad,” you whispered, placing your finger to your lips like it was a top secret.

The girls helped you finish the food just as Rhett came in from another long day of herding and branding cattle. He was dusty, covered in dirt and sweat and tendrils of his hair stuck to his forehead, the ends curling up. You wanted to run your fingers through it, sweat be damned.

“Daddy!” “Daddy, look at what we made!”

The girls ran towards Rhett, pausing when they got close enough to smell him.

“You stink,” Grace commented flatly.

“Thanks. Love you too. Listen, I’m gonna go shower and I’ll be down in a bit. You all can start without me,” Rhett said as he kicked his boots off by the door and took the stairs two at a time. “Oh, and Tilly?” He called from the upstairs landing.

“Yeah?”

“I gotta ask you something later. Don’t let me forget.”

You just nodded, stomach turning at the thought of what it could be.

Grace and Ellie helped you set the table, always eager to follow your every move. It makes you smile. Sometimes you felt like an actual family. And then you had to bring yourself back to reality. Just the nanny. Nothing more. Dinner was quiet, everyone was hungry and occupied with getting their bellies full.

You were resting on the couch as Rhett finished bath and bed time with the girls, trying to read your latest book but your mind was going a thousand miles a minute. Your heart started to beat faster as you heard Rhett descend down the stairs.

Rhett took himself to the kitchen, busying himself by pouring a glass of whiskey. A bottle you bought for him for Christmas the year prior. You peeked at him over the top of your book, watching his back muscles flex in the tight black tee he wore. Your mouth watered at the sight of his strong arms and his soft stomach as he turned to face you.

You quickly raised the book above your eyes, fearing that you had been caught staring. You missed Rhett’s knowing smirk.

“Move over,” Rhett poked at the bottom of your foot, the motion tickling you ever so slightly and causing you to jerk your leg towards you. “What are you reading? New dirty novel?” He teased.

“No…” you said quietly, a little shamefully.

“Liar. Is this one better than the last at least?”

“So far. Hey, what did you want to ask me earlier?” You stretched your legs back out and they landed in Rhett’s lap. He didn’t seem to mind. His unoccupied hand landed on your shin, calloused thumb lightly brushing the bone there. Your mind went blank and you could hear nothing but static in your ears.

“I got invited to this rancher’s event. They want me to give a speech. Stupid, but I agreed. And I… I need a plus one. And I figured maybe if you wanted to-“

“Yes!” You said eagerly, spine straightening. “I mean- sorry- go ahead…” Your cheeks felt hot at your abruptness. He was probably going to ask you to set him up with someone. Probably Lisa, Ellie’s dance teacher. She always had her eye on him.

“I wanted to ask if you wanted to come with me. Give you a break. It’s the weekend my parents wanted to take the girls camping. That is.. if you didn’t have any plans…”

Rhett sounded nervous. He was looking down at where his hand rested on your leg, avoiding all eye contact.

“Oh. Yeah. I don’t have anything going on. I’ll go with you. As-“

“Friends, of course.”

“Right. Friends. What’s the dress code?” You asked, heart sinking slightly.

“Black tie,” Rhett grumbled. He hated dressing up. If he can’t wear flannel, he doesn’t want to be there.

“Perfect. I’ll find a dress to wear.”

“Well. I’ll leave you to the reading. Goodnight, Tilly.” Rhett tapped your leg a couple of times before moving you so he could stand.

You sighed deeply as he left the room, trying to ignore the gut wrenching feeling you had at his response. You couldn’t focus on your book and you eventually went upstairs to attempt to sleep.

“I want you so bad,” Rhett growled against your neck, teeth sinking into your skin causing you to whimper and arch against him. His leg was in between yours, keeping your thighs separated and your barely covered cunt brush against his suit pants. “You’re fucking soaked, sweet girl. You’ve wanted this for so long, haven’t you?”

“Rhett, please!” You whined pathetically, grinding down on his thigh, searching for any sort of relief.

“Beg for it, baby. Beg for daddy. Tell me what you want.” Rhett said, voice low and gravelly. He pressed you into the wall harder, flexing his thigh as you keened. “I know you want me to fu-“

“Tillyyyyyy, wake uppppp,” a tiny voice called from the other side of the door. Your eyes shot open so fast it made your head spin. Your entire body was hot even though you just had the sheet covering you and the ceiling fan was on. You were having a dream about Rhett. A fucking wet dream. And now Ellie was yelling at you in the hallway. You felt like you were being punished.

You checked your phone. 5:37am. Jesus, why was she awake?

“I’m up, El. Hold your horses.” You went to the en-suite bathroom to splash cold water on your face. “Get yourself together. Now,” you said through gritted teeth, pointing a finger at yourself in the mirror.

The four-year-old stood outside your door with her stuffed horse tucked under her arms. Her eyes were a little red and she was sniffling.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?”

“I feel sick,” she whispered weakly, clutching the horse to her chest tighter.

“Come on, bug. I’ll get you some medicine.”

You picked her up and perched her on your hip as you carried her down the stairs. Her forehead felt a little warm. She sat patiently on the counter while you poured the medicine in the little cup and you rubbed her back as she swallowed it.

“Good job, El! I’m proud of you. Here, drink some water and let’s get you back to bed, okay?”

She nodded as she took a big gulp of water from her sippy cup. You trotted back up the stairs, bouncing her slightly to make her giggle.

“Alright, you got your water here and Honey is right here with you. Try to get some sleep, bug. I’ll fix pancakes when you wake up.” You tucked Ellie in, kissing her forehead before you stood up.

Her eyes were already heavy and she mumbled something you couldn’t hear.

“What was that?”

“Luh you, mama.” She repeated sleepily, snuggling her horse and then started snoring softly immediately.

“Oh… I- I love you too, bug.”

You didn’t know how to react. She had never called you that before and it made your eyes misty with tears. You couldn’t go back to sleep. Not after the dream and not after Ellie calling you mama.

The next few hours went by in a blur. You had planned to go shopping with your friend Tabitha to find your dress for the dinner. After dropping the girls off at school, you met Tabitha at the mall. You were in a daze, barely listening to her rant about her latest failed Tinder date.

“Hellooooo,” she snapped her fingers in front of your face. “Are you even listening?”

“Yeah, sorry. No, I’m just- I don’t know what I’m doing,” you sighed as you placed your face in your hands.

“What do you mean?”

“With Rhett! It’s like- why am I going to this dinner? Why do I keep torturing myself? And Ellie! She called me her mom this morning! I want a family and I feel like I have it but it’s not really mine, you know?”

“You need to get laid. That’s what you need,” Tabitha said nonchalantly. She looked through the dresses on the rack in the store you were in. “Oh. My. God. This. This dress. Go try it on. NOW!”

She shoved a velvet dress into your arms and pushed you towards the fitting rooms. It was a deep green color, the fabric felt soft against your skin. It wasn’t a dress you would pick out for yourself but once you slid it over your head your jaw dropped at the sight in the mirror.

The bodice was a corset type, something you didn’t typically reach for but was pleasantly surprised at how it looked on you. The dress was form fitting but not uncomfortably so. The strap tied around your neck, lifting your chest and displaying the tops of your breasts tastefully.

The dress hugged your every curve, accentuating parts of your body you weren’t necessarily happy with, but now you felt sexy. Powerful. You opened the door and called for Tabitha. She came running with a few other options in her hands but her reaction matched your own as she laid eyes on you.

“Holy fuck. Yeah, no, forget these. You have to get that one. If he doesn’t fuck you, I will.”

You rolled her eyes at her antics and looked into the mirror once more. You felt so beautiful in the dress. It made you a little giddy at the thought of Rhett’s reaction. If he even had one. You tried to shake the negative thought away. If he didn’t appreciate it, someone else would. Maybe a nice cowboy who’d be down for a one night stand at a fancy hotel.

The week passed by in the blink of an eye and before you knew it, Rhett was packing the girls’ bags for their camping trip and was shouting up at you that he was going to pick up his suit in town from the tailor’s.

You took your time styling your hair the way you liked and you did your makeup, keeping it light but putting on a red lip. Just to be a little bold.

You hid in your room until you heard Rhett finish getting ready and head down the stairs.

“Tilly, you ready? We should leave so-“ Rhett stopped as he turned at the sound of your heels clicking against the wood. “Wow…” he breathed. “You look, ehem, you look nice. That’s a pretty dress.” He fiddled with his cuff links, avoiding eye contact.

“Thank you,” you responded shyly. He held his arm out to escort you to the black pickup truck. The ride was silent except for the radio and the hum of the engine. You couldn’t stop from looking to Rhett. His hair was slicked back, the gray hair looked more prominent. His temples were nearly white. He had a shadow of stubble on his jaw and his suit fit him in all the right places.

You pulled up to a beautiful hotel. It was a grand building, accents of gold sparkled in the setting sun and gorgeous flowers lined the walkways. Rows of trucks indicated that you were at the right place. And the men in bolo ties and cowboy hats gave it away.

Rhett forwent his Stetson and chose a sleek black tie, looking a little out of place but you thought he looked beautiful.

He parked and inhaled deeply, gripping the steering wheel with both hands and closing his eyes.

“Everything okay?” You questioned, placing a perfectly manicured hand on his forearm.

“Huh? Yeah. M’good. Just nervous. I can’t stand half the people in that room,” he mumbled, smiling softly at you. It made butterflies erupt in your stomach.

“You’ll do great. I can fake an emergency if needed.”

“Fall down the stairs if I give you a look,” Rhett joked.

“You got it, boss,” you winked at him. You reached for the door handle, preparing to get out of the truck but his hand on your arm now stopped you.

“Wait… I have something for you. A token of appreciation for coming with me. Also, an early birthday present.”

Rhett pulled a long, rectangular box from the side of the door. He opened it to show a diamond bracelet.

“Rhett- that’s- I can’t-“ You couldn’t stop from reaching out and running your fingers along the jewels.

“You deserve it. You work so hard and I don’t say it enough but you mean a lot to me. To the girls. Just wanted to give you something nice,” he said, voice a little shaky.

Something shifted as he clasped the bracelet around your wrist. His touch lingered on your skin and it was hard for you to breathe. You tried so hard to keep things professional, but it’s changed. Everything has changed in the cab of Rhett’s truck.

You headed inside, arm linked with Rhett’s as he greeted the people inside. He was so charismatic, putting on a face you’d never seen before. It was sexy. He was controlling the room. Everyone loved him.

You could feel eyes following you as you walked towards the front of the ballroom. You heard a few whispers from the older women, surely gossiping about the obvious age gap between you and your employer.

“I’m gonna grab some drinks. You gonna be okay here?” Rhett whispered in your ear, his warm breath washing over your skin and sending a chill down your spine.

“I’ll be good. Can you get me a Long Island?”

“Of course. Be right back.” He hurried off towards the bar, getting stopped several times along the way. You felt like a fish out of water here. You chewed on your thumb nail, anxiously waiting for Rhett to come back.

“I think you’re the most gorgeous woman I have ever seen,” a voice said from behind you. You turned to see the chair to your right being pulled away and a young man, around your age, sat down beside you. His black cowboy hat hid his eyes but he had a wide smirk on his face.

“I bet you’ve said that at least ten times tonight,” you responded, trying to ignore him.

“Name’s Wes. And you are-“

“Not interested. Beat it, buddy,” Rhett growled as he sat your drinks down and sat on the other side of you, wrapping his arm around the back of your chair possessively.

“I see how it is. Rhett… good to see you.”

Rhett hummed as he glared at Wes over the rim of his glass, silently willing him to scram. It was hot.

“That wasn’t very nice.”

“He’s trouble,” Rhett mumbled.

The evening went on without a hitch. Dinner was decent and you joined in on a few conversations. Rhett’s speech was wonderful and informative about the cattle business. He looked good on stage but you knew he was nervous. He made his way back to you, smiling slightly.

“Come dance with me, honey,” he spoke lowly.

“Let me go freshen up a bit,” you squeaked, rushing to the bathroom. Your nerves were getting the best of you. It was just a dance. A quick dance and you’d be heading home. Nothing more.

You made your way back to the ballroom, catching Rhett’s eyes and you trembled slightly at the heat that formed there. A slow song started just as you made your way to the dance floor.

His large hand engulfed yours as his other splayed on the low of your back. You could smell his cologne as he pulled you close to him. You felt a piece of paper in your right palm as Rhett swayed the two of you around.

“What’s that?”

“You can read it when we’re done dancin’,” Rhett drawled, looking down at you. Even with you in heels, his frame still towered over you.

The song ended too quickly for your liking and Rhett was called over to a table filled with older gentlemen, leaving you standing in the middle of the floor. The crumpled napkin had been left in your hand and you spread it out to read the note.

Meet me at the staircase by the piano - R

You gasped slightly and looked around, meeting Rhett’s eyes as he chatted with the group he was with. He was expressionless but there was a fire in his eyes again. One that made your body react and you tried not to squeeze your thighs together in front of everyone there. You made your way back to your table to drink the rest of your drink, a little liquid courage, before you made your way to the staircase.

You stood there for what felt like ages but in reality was only a few minutes. You bounced on your feet, nerves building every second that passed.

“Hey, you,” Rhett’s voice called from behind you, approaching you with his hands in his pockets.

“Hey,” you responded, feeling awkward.

Rhett pulled a key from his pocket. A hotel room key. Room 475 engraved in the key tag.

“You can say no. You can tell me to fuck off. You can quit-“

“Yes,” the answer came without a beat.

“Yeah?” His eyebrows raised slightly, a small smirk forming on his thin lips.

“You have no idea how bad I want you, Rhett,” you confessed, breathless.

Rhett let out a desperate noise as he reached for you and crashed his lips against yours in a bruising kiss, one hand cupping the back of your head. You moaned wantonly as his tongue expertly licked into your mouth. You should go upstairs, should stop before anyone sees you.

“Rhett, we should- we need to-“

“Yeah… Yeah.”

His hand linked with yours as he pulled you to the elevator, not wasting time pushing you inside and against the wall, the railing digging into your lower spine a bit uncomfortably. His lips reconnected with yours, a low grunt escaping his throat.

“So fucking beautiful,” he muttered, lips barely leaving yours. Hands explored your body, gripping at your soft hips and thighs, circling around to grab handfuls of your ass. The touch caused you to arch your body towards his, back bowing as he traveled higher and started palming your breast.

“I’ve thought about this - thought about you - for longer than I’d like to admit,” Rhett spoke, deep voice rattling in his chest. “Makes me feel like a dirty old man.”

You just whined pathetically, gripping at his lapels to anchor yourself. You were about to grind against the thigh that had pushed its way between your thighs but the high pitched ding of the elevator caused you to jump apart. Moving so fast, you would have thought you had been electrocuted.

A little old lady walked into the elevator, not missing the way you and Rhett looked disheveled. It was blatantly obvious what you were just doing. Rhett cracked a smile at her, nodding his head in her direction. Your chest was still heaving and your knees felt shaky.

She only went up two floors, a quick ride that felt like an eternity. Rhett’s pinky brushed against your hand where it rested on the rail, the small touch sending shocks through you.

“Have a nice evenin, ma’am,” Rhett said sickeningly sweet and you had to slap a hand over your mouth to stifle a laugh at the look she threw his way as she exited the lift.

Your stop was next and nerves bubbled in your stomach at what was about to happen.

Silence surrounded you and Rhett now as you walked to the room. Not a word was spoken as he unlocked the door and made his way inside. You stood in the middle of the room awkwardly, wringing your hands together as you looked toward the wooden floor.

Rhett tossed his jacket haphazardly onto the floor, approaching you slowly. Giving you the chance to run. It reminded you of a lion stalking a gazelle before it pounced. His calloused hands rubbed the length of your arms before his touch brushed the side of your neck, eventually cupping your face. A rough thumb caressed your cheekbone.

“Darlin’, look at me. Please,” Rhett spoke quietly, as if not to scare you. You continued to look down, which caused him to pinch your chin and lift your gaze to him. “Are you sure about this? We can- we don’t have to-“

“No. No, I want to. I have for a while. A long, long while.”

“Good,” he said, coming out an octave lower and his eyes landed on your red covered lips. His thumb ran across the pout of your bottom lip, tugging it down slightly. “I want to devour you.”

A shaky breath escaped you before you wrapped your lips around his thumb, sucking softly on the digit.

“Fuck,” he moaned.

You stood there for a moment, his thumb in your mouth and your eyes locked on each other. It made tensions rise tenfold. You pulled away with a ‘pop’, a trail of saliva following in its wake.

Impatience got the best of you as you started clawing at his tie and shirt buttons, nearly sending them flying through the room. Rhett chuckled at your huffy breaths of frustration as you yanked on his clothing. You threw the tie behind you, his shirt was shoved off his shoulder and into the chair next to the door. His belt made a loud clink as it hit the window.

“Easy, girl. Don’t destroy the room. Or my clothes,” Rhett teased, stopping your hasty movements. You finally took the chance to pause and look at the man standing before you. Hairy chest on full display. The dark hair traveled down in a continuous line all the way down to the waist of his pants. His soft stomach and love handles made your mouth water.

“You’re so- fuck, Rhett. You’re so sexy,” you said.

“My turn.” He untied the neck of your dress slowly, taking his time pulling the bow loose. He turned you so your back was to him, unzipping you unhurriedly. You let the dress fall to your feet as you turned to face him again, leaving you in your lingerie and high heels.

“My god. Look at you.” Rhett took in the sight of you. Black lace left little to the imagination.

Things moved in a blur after that. You nearly tripped over your own feet as you tried to remove the heels and he almost ripped your bra as he unclasped it with one hand. He tossed it aside and you tried not to giggle as it landed on the lampshade of the lamp that sat on the bedside table.

The edge of the bed knocked against the back of your knees as he pushed you softly so you landed on your back, bouncing on the mattress slightly. He stood between your spread thighs, undoing the button of his slack and pushing them down, revealing the tight black boxers he wore underneath.

You let out a quiet whine as your eyes traveled down his torso and stopping at the large bulge that was confined by the cotton. Even in the low lighting, you could see a small wet spot from the precum.

Large hands massaged your inner thighs as he spread them apart even farther, causing a slight burn in your muscles. He groaned at the sight of your barely clothed cunt. Rhett fell to his knees swiftly and delved into you without warning. Expert licks moved against your wetness through the thin lace, which had been quickly ripped away. His nose bumped against your bundle of nerves as his tongue explored your folds.

His long fingers soon joined his ministrations, finding that spongy spot inside of you in a matter of seconds. You’d question how he did that later. As of now, you tried to control your shaking limbs as he pushed you higher and higher towards your peak. Scratchy stubble rubbed against you, causing a delicious burn.

He stuck true to his word and devoured you, not leaving one part of you undiscovered.

Rhett’s lips wrapped around your clit and started sucking softly, tongue flicking against the bud. You trembled beneath him and your back bowed off the mattress, bucking against his mouth. A strong arm slung itself over your middle, keeping you pinned to the bed.

Your hands gripped his locks tightly, tugging hard when his tongue sped up.

“Rhett. Oh, Rhett. Fuck. Daddy!” It didn’t take much for your moans to become near screams and for galaxies to explode behind your eyelids as you came against Rhett’s face. Your body was jerking involuntarily as you traveled down from your high. Rhett placed feather light kisses against you before pulling away, hair sticking up in places and his face covered in your release.

He traveled up your body and kissed you soundly, the tangy taste of your desire mixing with something so Rhett made you both moan into each other’s mouths.

“Lay back, sweetheart. Gonna take care of you,” Rhett said quietly. You made yourself comfortable against the soft pillows as Rhett stretched you in preparation for his cock. “Damn pillow princess,” he joked. It made you smile.

He had three thick fingers inside of you before you stopped him.

“Stop! Please! I- I wanna come with you inside me,” you pleaded, gripping his wrist. He nodded and pulled his fingers out fleetingly.

You blindly shoved at his boxers and he clumsily kicked them off the end of the bed, his hard cock slapping against his lower stomach. Fuck, he was big.

Rhett pulled back and sat on his knees, gripping the base of his dick and placing it on your stomach.

“Look, baby. You think you can take me? Think you can handle daddy’s cock?”

“Please! Please, fuck me. Need it. Need you. Please!” You begged, lifting your hips and causing the leaking head to brush against your already sensitive clit. You simultaneously let out a loud moan. He rubbed himself through your folds, teasing you and him both.

“Wait, hold on.” Rhett pulled away and searched for his trousers, pulling his wallet out and rummaging through it. He pulled out a foil wrapper and ripped it with his teeth. You had never seen anything sexier.

“Can I do it?” You asked shyly, propping yourself up on your elbows. He handed the condom to you and kept eye contact as you rolled the latex down his length carefully. He was heavy in your hand.

You laid back once more, a trembling breath escaping your mouth as he lined up with your entrance. Even with his prepping, it was still a stretch. The slight burn caused you to hiss and dig your nails into his biceps. He took a break between each inch, time passing slowly as he made small thrusts. He eventually bottomed out, a broken moan coming from his chest as you squeezed around his length.

You stayed like that for a moment, both breathing heavily as his forearms caged you in.

“Daddy. Move. Please,” you whined, fingers moving tangle in the curls at the base of his neck. He slowly pulled out, nearly all the way, before thrusting back into you, the girth and length of him touching places you’d never been able to reach before. It started slow, he was allowing you to get accustomed to him.

However, it didn’t take long before his thrusts became a little rougher. His hands now were placed a the top of your head as he put his body weight into his movements, grunts escaping him with each pass, your high pitched breaths matching him.

“So tight. Taking me so well. Like you were fucking made for it. Made for me. All mine, all mine,” Rhett rambled. The headboard started to smack against the wall slightly as he pounded into you. You couldn’t breathe. You were approaching a feeling you had never felt before. Your brain was becoming fuzzy and your ears were beginning to ring.

“Da-daddy. M’gonna- I’m almost there,” you squealed as a particularly harsh thrust hit your g-spot.

“C’mon, sweet baby. Come for daddy,” his deft fingers started rubbing your swollen clit in tight circles and you let out a scream as your release washed over you. Rhett continued fucking into you until he pushed deep inside you and threw his head back towards the ceiling, filling the condom with his own release.

He collapsed on top of you, full body weight covering you like a blanket. You felt like were floating. Your hand absentmindedly rubbed against Rhett’s back, his skin covered in a light sheen of sweat. You stayed silent for a while, both trying to catch your breaths as you came down. He eventually pulled out of you slowly, causing you to wince. He discarded the condom and went to the bathroom to grab a warm washcloth and a glass of water.

You were quiet as he took care of you, smiling softly as he pulled you to sit up and take a few sips of water. You had never been cared for like this after sex. It made your chest constrict. You moved under the covers and waited for Rhett to follow suit. He immediately pressed his warm body against your own, pulling you tight to his chest.

“I can’t believe we just did that,” you said with a slight giggle.

“I can’t believe it took us this long,” Rhett retorted, fingers dancing along your spine.

You both laughed a little before it fell silent once again.

“Rhett?”

“Yeah, honey?”

“What does this make us?” You asked as you ran your fingers through the thick chest hair.

“Well… I think this means you’ll be sleeping in my bed when we get home. But don’t call HR on me.”

“You are HR, Rhett. Seriously, though. Are we like-“

“I want you to be my girl. I have spent the past several months falling in love with you. And I know it’s soon, but damn it, darlin’. You’ve stolen my heart,” Rhett confessed, his words causing your eyes to well with tears.

“Rhett… I- I love you, too.”

“The girls are going to be excited. They’ve been begging me to ask you to be my girlfriend since you moved in.”

“They’re trouble, I swear,” you laughed, snuggling closer to your man.

“They’re the reason I have all of this gray hair.”

“Yeah, but it’s hot. Very… very… very hot,” you responded, emphasizing the T. You giggled as he rolled over on top of you and started kissing against your neck playfully.

You kissed each other softly in the dark until you fell asleep holding each other tight. And when the sun rose in the morning, a new beginning would be awaiting you.

tagging those who may be interested:

@ryebecca @whisperofsong @floydsmuse @laracrofted @lewmagoo @withahappyrefrain @hangmanapologist @sebsxphia @bobfloydsbabe @callsign-magnolia @attapullman

[sun-kissy]

stars & spaghetti | r.b.

a/n: here i go again, not taking a break 😭 i swear i just needed to write this! thank you @lovemenotts for encouraging me to post it 🫶 i love you lily

tw: eating disorder recovery

Regulus knows where to find you, but he also knows better than to act like he was looking for you with two bowls of food in hand.

“Hey.”

You almost jump at the sound of his voice. You turn around from where you’re sitting on the porch, giving him a small smile. “Hi.”

His heart drops a little when he sees your face, with your sunken eyes and tired expression.

“I didn’t realize you were home already. Did you come through the back?”

He hums an affirmative, sitting down next to you on the steps leading out the house.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watches as you slouch onto the railing on your left, blankly staring out at the road. “How’s your day been?”

Regulus casually twirls his fork into the spaghetti in his bowl before bringing it to his mouth. Maybe he believes he’s being slick, you think, but it’s obvious that he’s got twice his usual serving.

“Today’s been fine, yeah. Just busy. How was work?”

He nods in response, “Good, actually. Mark finally sent me the files I needed to get that huge contract signed, and —” He presses his fork into the pasta again, but this time brings it up to your mouth (hoping you’re too distracted to mind).

His heart drops and how instantly you swerve backwards, almost crashing into the step behind you.

“Reg,” it comes out as a betrayed hiss. You take a shaky exhale before sitting back upright. “I don’t want any; I’ve eaten dinner already.”

“Have you?”

“Yes, I —“

“Then why’s the kitchen completely clean?”

Regulus never takes a harsh tone with you, and he wasn’t going to start now. There’s nothing but quiet, genuine concern in the way he asks. Guilt claws at the back of your throat anyway.

It was one of your worse days; thoughts of excessive calories and not having worked out being all you could think about. You’d stared at yourself in the mirror for what seemed like hours, cursing every flaw of your body and wondering why me.

Without your boyfriend home, it had just felt like there was no reason to fatten yourself.

“Hey,” Regulus mutters, laying his palm facing upwards on your lap. You take it. “You’re getting in your head again.”

“Sorry.”

“Nothing to be sorry for, lovely girl.” He reaches out to gently brush a stray hair away from your face. “But do you think you could try to eat something? Please?”

Your heart stops, and it’s like your mind is reeling back into its hiding spot already. No lies on the tip of your tongue.

“It doesn’t have to be a lot, dove, he continues quietly, rubbing your fingers. “Just a few bites. You need fuel, you know.”

Regulus is looking into your eyes with that silent look now, the one which makes you feel like he’d do just about anything to save you from yourself. You don’t think you could ever say no to him.

And it wasn’t like you’d eaten anything today. You were allowed this, for your boyfriend, right?

“Fine.”

He smiles softy and tugs you closer, stamping a kiss to the side of your forehead and picking up the bowl of pasta from beside him. “So, remember that bouquet I bought you last week?”

He starts to make casual conversation as he feeds you, and you do your best to listen. It goes all the way from those flowers were expensive! to maybe we should get a cat — or a new apartment — but NOT a dog.

The food gets lodged in your throat every now and then, but you force yourself to swallow. The ‘full’ feeling starts to creep up on you like your shadow.

Regulus can sense it. “Okay, but why the hell do you like dogs?”

You decide to indulge him and go off on a tangent about the fluffy beasts, which pulls your mind away from its dark corner. The conversation makes the chore of eating easier.

You’re sure he knows what he’s doing, but you’re going to let him anyway.

Before you know it, you’re laughing so hard you don’t even realize the bowl is empty. He stands up to put it away before you get the chance to think too hard about it.

Regulus sits back down next to you. He starts to tell you about the stars, then, and you listen intently. It’s late, but you wouldn’t know what time it is. Time didn’t exist in your little bubble.

At one point you’ve curled into him the furthest you can. Your eyelids are being pulled down by the weight of fatigue, his comforting presence lulling you closer towards sleep.

He thinks you don’t hear it when he murmurs a soft I’m proud of you. You do.

[glorious-spoon]

been broken one too many times [9-1-1 | Buck/Eddie | 1/1]

1K words | Teen arguments | angst | feelings realization | minor buck/tommy | pre-relationship buck/eddie | post-ep for 8x05: Masks

been broken one too many times [on Ao3]

"You need to stop picking at those," Eddie says without glancing up from his phone.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Buck drop his hand. "I wasn't."

"You were."

"Fine," Buck snaps. He shoves his chair back and stands, stiff jerky motions that grate on Eddie's already frayed nerves. "I'll stop picking. You know I'm not a toddler, right? I'm a grown man. I have an EMT certification. You don't have to talk to me like I'm five."

Irritation flares. It's never very far beneath the surface these days. "Okay, fine, pick at your scabs, fuck up your face, see if I care. Since you're a grown man and all."

Buck breathes out hard through his nose. Eddie glances up from the article he hasn't actually been reading this whole time and takes in the look on his face, the very clear fuck you behind his teeth.

Just say it, Eddie thinks, something ugly and eager surging up the back of his throat. Just say it. Pick a fucking fight for once. Maybe that's why he's even here, sitting in Buck's kitchen when he knows damn well he's not good company for anyone right now, including himself. Maybe he's just got to break one last thing, since that's all he seems to do these days.

Buck doesn't say it, of course, because he never gives Eddie the satisfaction of a fight when he really wants one. It makes Eddie want to be mean, makes him think of all the things he could say, all the insecurities he could throw in Buck's face that would make him flinch and recoil and maybe finally think better of letting Eddie hang around. It's not like either of them is exactly having a good time right now.

He doesn't speak. Buck scoffs again, then moves back into the kitchen to refill his coffee cup. It was already more than half-full, so Eddie knows he's just doing it so he doesn't say something he'll regret.

"You want more?" he asks, without turning. It's not exactly a peace offering, but it's close.

"No. Thanks."

Buck nods. Eddie watches him pour coffee and switch the pot off. He pulls the fridge open for a container of creamer—it's a different brand than he used to use, and Eddie wonders if that's Tommy's influence. One of many stupid little details that gets under his skin the way that everything seems to get under his skin these days. Eddie watches as he stirs it into his cup and puts it back in the fridge. He braces his palms on the edge of the counter; his shoulders shift as he breathes in, and then slowly out, and then finally turns back around.

"Sorry," he says, disarmingly rueful. "Tommy's been on me about that too. I'm a little sick of hearing it."

Eddie shrugs, strangling down his own anger. It burns beneath his skin, but that's nothing new. He doesn't need to take it out on Buck, especially not over something this stupid. He'll go home after this, and beat the shit out of the heavy bag in his garage until his knuckles hurt and his chest finally has space to breathe. He'll call his son and endure ten minutes of stilted Facetime conversation while Chris plays on his Switch and refuses to look at him. He'll cope, just like he always does. "Like you said. You're a grown man."

"Yeah, and my face itches," Buck groans, and that's a peace offering, Eddie knows, that wry little note of self-deprecation in his voice.

"It's getting better," Eddie says, and it is: after Billy Boils' makeshift funeral Buck finally went and got a prescription for prednisone like he should have in the first place, and the giant painful-looking cysts have shrunk down until they don't look much worse than a bad breakout of acne. Still not pretty, but not nearly as gruesome as they were a week ago.

"Says you. My own boyfriend still won't kiss me."

Eddie snorts. "Yeah, well, I wouldn't kiss you either with those things on your face. No offense."

"Um, offense absolutely taken," Buck says, but he's smiling a little now as he moves back to the table with his coffee cup. "Besides, that doesn't count. You don't want to kiss me the rest of the time anyway."

"That's—" Eddie stops. His fingers twitch around his coffee cup; he thinks with a sudden vague sort of panic that it's a good thing it's resting on the table right now, because if he was holding it, he'd probably drop it. Broken shards of porcelain and coffee spreading out across the tiles and the words that's not true resting as easily on his tongue as if they've always been there.

"Eddie?" Buck asks, and he becomes aware that he's just been staring fixedly at his half-drunk coffee, that his breathing is coming faster than it should. Jello, he thinks. You're jello, you're jello, you didn't say anything, you're fine, just breathe. It doesn't help. He still feels like his heart and his lungs and maybe a few other internal organs are about to crawl up the back of his throat and spew out red and bloody across the floor.

That's not true, he thinks again, with an incredulity that borders on hysterical. He wants to start laughing, suddenly.

He has to get out of here.

"Yeah," he says, and this time he's the one pushing his chair back, standing jerkily. Buck takes a step back, wary.

"You good?" he asks. His face still does look pretty bad—lumpy and swollen, blotchy red in spots. It's not even a simple straightforward attraction, which would be bad enough. Because Eddie was lying just now, wasn't he—he'd still kiss Buck, even looking like this. He'd still want to, because he's always wanted to.

Fuck.

"Yeah," Eddie says. He grabs his phone, shoves it in his pocket. "I just realized, I have to—" he has no plausible excuse on hand. Chris is in Texas. His grocery shopping is done. His house is clean. His empty life is empty of any good reason to get him out of here, but he needs to get out of here, now. "I have to go."

Buck looks like he wants to keep pushing, but Eddie doesn't give him the chance. He scoops up his keys, moves quickly toward the door, pulls it open.

"I'll see you around, Buck," he says, halfway over his shoulder, and pulls it shut behind him before Buck can answer.

He doesn't feel he starts breathing again all the way down the stairs.

[dovesdreaming]

Soft spot for the merc with a mouth

Reader is known for being grumpy but there’s one person that breaks through this exterior and it’s no other than Deadpool, someone known for being deathly annoying.

I want to write more for this dynamic!

Warnings: none

-

You weren’t exactly known for being the friendliest person around. In fact, most people would describe you as grumpy, prickly, or just plain difficult. You didn’t go out of your way to make friends, and you certainly didn’t have patience for the kind of nonsense most people seemed to thrive on. You preferred your solitude, your routine, and your quiet. But then there was Wade Wilson. You didn’t know how it happened, how this loud, obnoxious, ridiculous man had somehow wormed his way into your life and worse, into your heart. It was like one day, you were minding your own business, enjoying your solitude, and the next, Deadpool was there, cracking jokes, causing chaos, and, for some unfathomable reason, you found yourself actually tolerating it. Hell, you more than tolerated it. You.. liked it.

It wasn’t that he wasn’t annoying-oh, he was annoying as hell. He never stopped talking, always had a smart-ass remark, and seemed to get a kick out of pushing every single one of your buttons. But there was something about him, something that made you let your guard down just a little, something that made you.. softer. Not that you’d ever admit it out loud. “Hey, Sunshine!” Wade’s voice rang out as he barged into your apartment like he owned the place. “Miss me?”.

You rolled your eyes, not even bothering to look up from the book you were reading. “No. And I thought I told you to knock”. Wade plopped down on the couch beside you, completely ignoring your grumpy tone. “Yeah, but knocking’s so boring. Plus, I like to keep you on your toes. Keeps the relationship spicy, y’know?”. You shot him a glare, but he just grinned at you, completely unfazed. “Wade, one of these days, I’m going to lock you out, and I won’t let you in until you learn how to use a doorbell like a normal person”. “Ah, but you won’t, because deep down, you love my spontaneous visits. Admit it, you missed me”. You huffed, trying to keep your face neutral. “You were only gone for a couple of hours”. “Exactly! That’s a couple of hours too long”. Wade’s expression turned mock-serious as he leaned closer, his face inches from yours. “I can see it in your eyes, babe. You were lost without me”. Despite yourself, the corner of your mouth twitched, fighting back a smile. But you weren’t about to give him the satisfaction. “If by ‘lost’ you mean ‘enjoying the peace and quiet, then sure”. Wade chuckled, clearly seeing right through your tough exterior. “You’re adorable when you’re in denial, y’know that?”. “Adorable?” You scoffed, though your voice lacked its usual bite. “You’re the first person to ever call me that”. “Well, that’s because I’m a trendsetter,” Wade declared, wrapping an arm around your shoulders and pulling you close. “Now, tell me how much you missed me.”

You rolled your eyes again, but didn’t pull away from his embrace. Wade might have been the only person on the planet who could get away with this kind of behavior without getting a swift kick in the shins. “You’re impossible”. “And you’re irresistible” he countered, his voice dropping into a playful whisper as he nuzzled his nose against your neck. “It’s like we were made for each other”. You snorted, but the sound was more affectionate than derisive. “You’re so full of it, Wade.” “But you love it,” he teased, pressing a kiss to your temple. “Admit it. You’re totally into me”. You sighed, finally allowing yourself to relax into his hold. “Yeah, yeah. I’m into you, Wade. Now shut up and let me read”.

Wade let out an exaggerated gasp, clutching his chest like you’d just confessed your undying love for him. “You said it! You’re into me! Oh, this is the best day ever!”. You couldn’t help the small smile that broke through your grumpy facade. “Don’t let it go to your head”. Wade grinned, his eyes shining with that familiar mischief. “Too late. Now, come on, put the book down and let’s do something fun. I brought tacos!”. You raised an eyebrow. “Did you actually bring tacos, or are you just saying that to get me to move?”.

Wade gave you a look of mock indignation. “I would never joke about tacos. They’re sacred. And yes, they’re in the kitchen. I thought we could have a little taco picnic and watch some crappy movies together”. You rolled your eyes, but the idea of spending the evening with Wade, eating tacos and making sarcastic comments about bad movies, was more appealing than you cared to admit. “Fine. But if you eat all the guac, I’m kicking you out”. “Deal”. Wade hopped up from the couch, practically bouncing with excitement. “I knew you couldn’t resist me”. You watched him disappear into the kitchen, feeling the warmth in your chest that only he could bring out. Yeah, Wade was annoying, loud, and sometimes downright infuriating. But he was also the only person who could make you smile, who could break through your grumpiness and make you feel… well, happy.

Maybe you were still the grumpy one to everyone else. But with Wade, you could be soft. And that was something you’d never take for granted. By the time Wade returned with a plate full of tacos, you were already grabbing the remote to pick out a movie. He plopped down beside you, handing you a taco with a wide grin. “To us” Wade said, raising his taco like a toast. You rolled your eyes one last time, but clinked your taco against his. “To us”.

As the night went on, you found yourself laughing more than you had in a long time, your usual grumpiness melting away in the warmth of Wade’s presence. And for once, you didn’t mind letting someone else in.

[rotdistressxox]

Sorryyy that the requests have been closed and I've been lacking in writing. Here's a treat <3

"I don't care"

Raian Kure x Afab!Reader

Content: 18+, Reader is on their period, Messy cunnilingus, Vaginal Fingering, Dirty talk, Blood play, Raian being himself

Didn't use a word count, but it's most likely 1500+ words. I didn't double check for errors either hehe

It was the second day of your period, which also happens to be the worse day of the cycle in your honest and humble opinion. Without the help of acetaminophen, you probably wouldn't have been able to go on a date with Raian. You had been going out with him for around two months, despite knowing him for years. It was a long story

Dates with Raian are a pain in the ass at first with his attitude, but it's always rewarding hanging out with him anyways. Despite feeling like a water balloon, you hobbled out the door. Looking the best you could in your current condition.

Raian was waiting for you infront of your apartment complex, staring down at his phone with a resting bitch face. If you weren't dating him, hell if you didn't even know him, you'd turn in the opposite direction. It looked like if anyone talked to him he'd snap in an instant. Lucky for you, that wouldn't actually happen.

"Raiaaan" you sang weakly, hoping he heard. His head raised and turned in your direction. The moment he laid eyes on you he smirked and shoved his phone in his pocket.

"Hey there" he said amused "Hope you have all your shit with you, because when the day is over you're coming to my place" your face slightly dropped. Did you have enough pads in your bag? You'd have to break the news to him somehow that you couldn't stay over. Or in other words, have sex.

"What's with that look?" His smirk dropped into a slight frown. "Nothing" you mustered a smile for him, and he hummed. You latched onto his arm and looked up at him, hopefully pleasing his ego a little "Let's go"

He rolled his eyes, and the two of you began to walk to your destination.

It was an active day to put it simply. It was a lot of walking, a little more than what you could handle in your current condition. It was mixed with window shopping, sightseeing, and eating. You were finally sat down and waiting for you food at a restaurant. Feeling almost too exhausted to even eat, and your feet were extremely sore.

Raian was talking about how the village was doing, including the recovery of Ohma which he probably shouldn't talk about in public. Fatigue washed over you as your eyes felt droopy, nodding along with his stories.

Unbeknownst to you, Raian had stopped talking completely, but you kept nodding and humming. Your eyes widened once you realized that you were responding to air. His face was littered with confusion, his white pupils staring you up and down.

"Okay, what the hell is going on with you?" He asked sternly, sitting up and crossing his arms.

"What do you mean?"

"You know damn well what I mean"

"I'm just tired Rai, that's all"

"I can see that, but you've been acting off all day. Is there something you're not telling me?"

"It's not something I should say in a public setting"

Raian gave a grin, clearly he thought you meant something else by that. "Oh yeah? Well it's not like anyone's listening"

It was the first time your cycle had ever landed on a date with Raian. You were extremely lucky to have avoided that for 2 months. But this time you weren't so lucky. You'd only piss him off if you held off telling him any longer.

You curled you finger, gesturing for him to lean closer. He chuckles and leans in with a playful look glazed on his face.

"I'm on my period"

The playful look he had turned into one of realization. He sat back in his seat and sighed "That explains it"

Now you were the one confused "huh?" Your eyebrows raised.

"I grew up around women. Dunno why I didn't see the signs beforehand" he rested his head on his palm while looking at you. "Plus your scent is different. That's a dead giveaway"

You were taken aback by that comment, almost flustered. He laughed and pointed at you, shaking his head.

"The look on your face is fucking priceless" his pointy teeth showed through his laughter. You pouted and looked away from him in embarrassment. So he could smell you? But you had taken a shower the night before and put on fresh clothes.

"Don't dwell on it now sweet cheeks, the foods here"

~~~~~~

"You don't have to come back to my place y'know. What I said before doesn't matter anymore" his eyes darted to the side to look at you while his hands were in his pockets. He wasn't one for handholding, unless you asked.

"It's fine Rai. You did this all for me" it seemed awfully selfless of him to resend his words because of your period.

Raian had his own smaller residence on the Kure clan property. It was all his, and it was lucky that it wasn't attached to the larger portion of his father's. Let's just say the lovemaking between the two of you was rather...thunderous on a good day.

A small part of you thought that he'd still ask for something in return. Like a blow job, a hand job if you really felt lazy. You wouldn't mind it, it's not like he was picky about touching yourself infront of him.

" 'M gonna change, do whatever you want to get settled" Raian slid open the door and kicked his shoes off before entering. He headed straight to his room, leaving it up to you to decide what to do.

'I should change my pad again' your cramps started worsening after dinner, the pain relievers had worn off slowly but surely. You headed straight to the bathroom. Once there was a fresh pad attached to your underwear, you rummaged through your bag for more pain relievers. You opened the bottle to find that there was none left.

Swearing under your breath, you mentally face palmed as you looked in the mirror as yourself. "What shall I ever do with myself" you said dramatically. You were here now. At your boyfriends house. With no way of soothing the aches that grew stronger by the minute. Maybe you could ask the family if they had a heating pad of some sort.

You trudged out of the bathroom to Raians room and slid open the panel. He had already set up the futon, except he had placed black sheets over it. Your lips curled into a smile at his thoughtfulness.

"You're sleeping in those clothes?" Raian leaned on the door frame in a grey tank top and sweatpants.

"Uh- I didn't bring any pajamas with me" you bit the inside of you cheek while looking at his muscles. Fuck. You could never get over how effortlessly hot he looked in those. It almost hurt to look because you actually just wanted to lay down and cry because of the discomfort you were in.

"Just use one of my shirts. Not like I give a shit" he opened a drawer and grabbed whatever was in there and tossed it to you. Shrugging, you turned around and took off your clothes.

The Kure raised his eyebrows and sat down while watching. The shyness you had previously of stripping infront of him had vanished apparently. You were desperate to get your clothes off anyways, spending the whole day in nice clothes was almost a sensory overload.

The only thing you had on now was his shirt and your underwear. You felt so free that you felt like frolicking through a field of dandelions. Until you realized that you just stripped infront of Raian.

"Why'd you stop? It was just getting good" He licked his lips while leaning back on a pillow.

You groaned and plopped down next to him. It wasn't worth it to fight back now. Cuddling into his side, looking for any heat that you could. Half of your body was on top of him, pressing some of your weight down to relieve all of the tension you built up.

Raians muscles tensed at your touch but eventually relaxed. His hand landed on your lower back, softly rubbing it in circles. He slightly lifted the shirt to feel your skin against his hand. It was warm, you could feel his callouses brushing against your flesh.

"Have you been cramping the whole day?" Raian asked bluntly, but in a softer tone of voice.

"Kinda"

"What about now?"

"Yeah...I'm out of medicine for it"

He looked down at you with a hardened gaze. "You didn't take or bring any?" His fingers tilted your head to look at him.

"I did, but I ran out tonight" you could tell he wasn't angry, moreso concerned. His eyes softened in understanding. Your hands rested on his abdomen, feeling him breathing in and out. You felt the butterflies in your stomach as you looked his body, your eyes tracing from his neck all the way down to his crotch. You could see the outline of his cock in his sweatpants.

He's done so much for you today. Might as well. Your hand wandered to the bulge in his pants and began stroking it softly, trying to get it hard. He jumped at the sensation and grabbed your wrist.

"What are you doing?" Raian huffed in your ear. You looked at him as innocently as you could.

"I just wanna give you something in return. I feel bad for making you carry my weight for the most of the day"

"The fuck are you talking about?" he moved your hand away from his crotch, not letting go of your wrist. "If I wanted something in return I would've asked. You don't need to force yourself to do anything"

"I know but woAH-" before you knew it, Raian had flipped you onto your back. Not roughly as you would expect it to be. His hands rested on you hips as his face hovered over yours.

"Don't think I haven't noticed how you've been looking at me since we got here. Even on your period you're still so needy" he said in a lower, more seductive tone. "Let me take care of you then if you need me so bad" his lips pressed into yours. You whimpered into his mouth as you felt yourself throb with want.

He parted from your lips and lowered himself down to your own crotch, his fingers pulling on the elastic of your underwear.

"Wait!" You shouted in protest. "I'm bleeding, we can't-"

"I don't care" he pulled them down, sliding them accross your legs and throwing it to the other side of the room. "I like the taste of blood"

You didn't know if you were disgusted or turned on. But your body yearned for him, and there was no stopping Raian when he wanted something carnally.

Raians hot breath over your aching entrance made you squirm. His arms were hooked under your thighs to make sure you stayed put. His mouth pressed into you as his tongue began to play and lick at your folds. You could feel his nose press into your clit as he began eating you out like a starved man.

You softly moaned, grabbing both sides of his head. His tongue pushed its way into you, causing your fingers to tug on his hair. He made sure to lap up every drop of blood he tasted. The taste made him hum in satisfaction.

Biting your bottom lip as you felt the vibrations of his voice shoot through you, you couldn't help but squeeze his head with your thighs as your vision got blurry. Raian chuckled and sucked your clit, holding your hips down whilst the sounds of his mouth along with the sensations of him ravaging you made you come closer to your orgasm.

"Rai...fuck...Rai ph-please" you whined.

"Fuck" he groaned into your pussy, feeling his muscles flex. His strong arms holding you down with his lips latched onto you. By this time his nose and mouth was covered in your juices mixed with blood. It was repugnant, but it felt too good. He looked absolutely mesmerizing with his eyes closed, obsessively eating you out like there was no tomorrow.

At this point your cramps were an afterthought. His tongue made you spiral in delirium. The coil inside you was going to burst, and before you knew it-

"Raian!" You screamed his name as you orgasmed, bucking your hips the best you could to ride it out. He gave your folds one last lick before separating himself. He was ignoring the boner straining in his pants because of his craving to see you get off as many times as you could tonight.

"We're not done" Raian wiped off his mouth with the back of his hand before straddling you once again. His left arm caging your face in to look straight at him. He took pleasure in the erotic look you had on your face while you panted.

"Look at you, what a lewd expression" his right hand slid between your legs to rub at your swollen and abused clit. You whined and pressed your palms into his chest. "I'm going to make you forget that your period even exists. You're going to wish you begged me to do this before"

His middle finger pushed its way into your entrance. You had forgotten how big they were compared to yours. You whined as you felt it curl inside you.

"What? Too big? Come on now, it's just a finger, not the real thing. Take it like the good slut you are" his palm pressed into your clit as he slid it in and out. Slowly accelerating the pace and which he did it.

Your back rolled with the movement of his finger, searching for as much pleasure as possible. You mewled and writhed under him, squeezing your eyes shut.

"Look at me. Open your eyes" he assertively stated while grabbing your chin. You obeyed, tears of ecstasy filling your eyes whilst your pupils looked into his.

"That's it. Look at me while I make you cum again. Your tight little pussy fucking soaking my finger. You wanted this so bad" he grumbled while stroking your g-spot. His finger thrusting into you at an intense speed. You could hear how wet you were, the sounds echoing through the room.

Everything about this was smutty. It only made your spine twinge with thrill and your nails dig into Raians chest. He groaned, his nose touching yours while watching your expressions twist. The animal in him only wanted to ravage you until you were a complete mess. But tonight was different. Tonight was about you this time.

God you were close again. Your back arched as every thought left your head. "Fuck-" you managed to sob as your thighs trembled.

"Gonna cum? Yeah? Your wet cunt can't handle any more. Cum for me" the thrusts of his fingers got shorter but rougher. His thumb rubbing circles around your clit. "You like me fingering you and eating you out. Making you helpless beneath me. I wanna shove my cock in you so bad"

"Fu...ck. .uhn...Yes- Rai....gonna-" You were cut off as his lips crashed into yours again. You moaned into him as you came on his fingers. Gasping for air as your hips shook. He pulled his finger out of you, circling your sweet spot for good measure before licking all the fluids off of his hand.

Rendered speechless, you weakly smiled at him as your back collapsed back onto the futon.

"Shit. You're a mess" he sat up and wiped off his forehead. He rolled his eyes watching you stupidly smile. "Let's get you cleaned up" he hooked his arm under your knees and shoulders and picked you up with ease.

Raian carried you to the bathroom to wash the both of you off. He wasn't very experienced in aftercare, but it'd be nasty to leave blood all over his face, hands, and between your legs.

"What about you?" You asked as you sat on the bathroom counter as he used a wash cloth to clean off your inner thigh.

"Huh? You can worry about that later. Now shut up and let me work" he huffed. You ruffled his hair and lazily sat back, completely exhausted. Atleast you weren't cramping anymore

[steddieas-shegoes]

Request: wrong number au, Eddie texts Gareth something personal but puts in 1 wrong number & ends up texting Steve. The two of them hit it off & start chatting & then when they meet IRL they are completely head over heels in love & its cute as fuck

MY LOVE MY LOVE MY LOVE!!! LOVE A GOOD WRONG NUMBER AU!!! I can't believe I've never written it before now. I also had to actually include Gareth because I am actually obsessed with him lately, and I just think it's really neat that we can make these characters our own. This was such a fun and cute request! I didn't do the inappropriate route because I thought this was hilarious so sorry about that. I made up for it with something else! - Mickala ❤️

----------------------------------------------------------

GARE BEAR! You won’t believe it but i dropped my phone in a sewer. Lost everything.

He had never been so happy about having his closest friends’ numbers memorized. His phone was somewhere under the streets of Chicago, floating through dirty water and sewage, dying a slow and painful death.

He texted everyone else one at a time, let them know he had a new number and to completely delete the old one because it would never be recovered.

They were used to things like this happening; He lost his phone annually at this point and it was cheaper just to get a new number than transfer everything to a new one.

He went to dial Wayne, the old school part of him insisting on phone calls instead of texts still, when Gareth’s name popped up with a new text.

Not sure who Gare Bear is, but sorry about your phone. That’s shitty.

Eddie let out a loud laugh.

did you mean to make a pun?

Did it make you laugh?

yes

Then yes.

Eddie sat down on a bench, entirely focused on his conversation with this stranger.

Did you find your Gare Bear yet?

Not yet but i think i’m pretty happy talking to you for now

Smooth, Eddie.

Admittedly, he was in a hell of a dry spell.

Going on almost two years, actually.

A little flirting with a stranger never hurt anybody, not when he clearly needed some practice.

Not sure if your Gare Bear would like it very much though

Wait, what?

Eddie stared at his phone, trying to comprehend what that could mean. Why would Gareth not want him talking to a stranger?

I hope you find your partner though!

Oh.

Oh!

Eddie hit the call button in the corner before he could even register what he was doing.

“Hello?”

Oh no, he sounded hot.

“Hi. So, Gareth is very much not my partner. He probably actually wishes I would really forget his number,” Eddie rushed out.

“Um. Okay?”

“He’s been my best friend for ten years and he thinks I’m a mess. Not a partner,” Eddie further clarified.

“Got it. Not a partner.”

“Yes, exactly.”

They stayed silent for a moment before Eddie coughed.

“I’m Eddie, by the way.”

“Steve. Sorry about your phone, seriously that sucks,” he sounded genuinely apologetic, like he personally threw Eddie’s phone in the sewer.

“Oh, no big deal. I lose my phone more often than I go out with someone,” Eddie said.

Why did he say that?

Steve let out a laugh and it was like music.

Eddie couldn’t help the smile taking over his face at his laugh, already knew he wasn’t gonna be able to let this guy go without learning more about him.

“So you’re, what? Celibate?” Steve asked.

“Far from it. Well, maybe not far from it. Temporarily, maybe. It’s been a while,” Eddie admitted.

“How long?” Steve asked, a loud bang coming from his end of the phone. “Sorry, I had to go outside for some privacy.”

Eddie wasn’t going to read into that. He wasn’t.

“Two years give or take. I mean I’m not counting shitty dates that ended before they got worse. So, yeah. Two years.”

“Been a year for me, but. Yeah, I get it. My last relationship didn’t end on the best terms. She decided I was too in love with her I guess,” Steve sighed, voice sounding pained.

She.

Steve was probably straight.

There was no way he’d be lucky enough for Steve to like men.

Or for Steve to like him.

“I can’t really imagine breaking up with someone because they loved me too much. I’m usually the one who falls too hard,” Eddie admitted.

“Yeah, well, same here,” Steve sounded sad, a bit withdrawn.

Eddie wanted to hear him laugh again.

“I doubt either of us have ever fallen as hard as my phone did down a drain,” Eddie said sadly.

Steve let out a loud laugh and Eddie smiled.

“This might sound crazy, but I’m kind of glad your phone decided to live in the sewers,” Steve said when he finally calmed down. “And maybe a little too happy that you typed your friend’s number wrong.”

“Oh really? Why’s that?”

Was this flirting? Was he successfully having a flirtatious conversation with a potentially very hot guy?

“So I can be bold and ask if you maybe wanted to meet up somewhere?” Steve asked hesitantly.

“So you’re in Chicago?” Eddie asked.

“Yeah. You?”

“For the last five years, yeah.”

“You busy tonight?”

Eddie’s heart stopped.

He was really going to meet up with a stranger just because he liked his laugh and hoped he was hot.

He’d done more with less.

“Yeah, actually. I’m getting dinner with this guy I accidentally texted,” Eddie smirked, looking down at his feet.

“Dinner? What a lucky guy. Where are you going?” Steve sounded amused.

“Well, it depends on what he likes. I’ve been craving some pierogies. Ever been to Staropolska?” Eddie asked.

Gareth’s family owned it, and he used to eat there two or three times a week while they were in college, usually working off his bill in the kitchen doing dishes after.

He hadn’t been in a couple months, work keeping him busy and his budget being pretty tight when he moved into a studio apartment by himself.

He had enough to treat himself tonight though.

“The one on Milwaukee? Yeah. One of my favorite places to get devolay,” Steve sounded surprised that he knew it.

“You won’t believe this, but the friend I was trying to text when I got you, his family owns that place.”

“No way! Then we have to. We owe it to the guy who has almost my exact phone number,” Steve responded.

“Meet you there at seven?” Eddie asked, suddenly more nervous.

“Seven sounds good.”

“Okay.”

“Okay.”

Steve giggled. Eddie fell in love.

“We should probably hang up.”

“Should we?” Eddie asked, not wanting to stop talking to him yet.

“Yes, I have to do my hair. Gotta impress the guy who drops his phone in the sewer and texts strangers about it.”

“He sounds like a loser. Don’t put too much effort in,” Eddie sighed. “But okay. See you at seven.”

“See you then.”

They both stayed on the line for a minute.

“Okay. For real. Bye,” Steve laughed.

“Bye, Stevie.”

He hung up before he could convince himself to talk to him for the rest of the afternoon.

He breathed out a loud sigh, smiling as he realized he had a date.

He dialed Gareth’s real number immediately.

“Gareth, I have a date!”

“What is this number, Eddie?”

“Oh, I dropped my phone in the sewers. Not important. I have a date!”

“Jesus Christ. Okay. Come over then.”

—-----------------------------------

Gareth had been his pre-date hype man since high school, though he wasn’t very good at it.

Mostly he calmed Eddie’s nerves and helped make sure his hair didn’t look like he just woke up, which was often its unfortunate state of being.

“So, you don’t know this guy,” Gareth said from his bed.

“No.”

“And you talked for like two seconds and decided you’re in love with him,” he continued.

“Yes.”

“And you think this is totally normal and sane?”

“I didn’t say that. But we just…I dunno. We clicked. I haven’t been that at ease with someone in a long time. It felt natural,” Eddie fell back on his bed, starfishing so his arm and leg hit Gareth’s legs.

“Dude, I’m not discouraging it. I’m happy for you. I just don’t want you to be disappointed if it isn’t as easy when you meet,” Gareth said softly.

“Yeah, thanks. I think it’ll be okay, though.”

“Alright. Tell babcia I’m coming by tomorrow for lunch.”

Eddie sat up and gave Gareth a quick hug.

“Thanks Gare Bear!”

—-------------------------------------------

He arrived 20 minutes early so he could sneak in the back to say hi to Gareth’s grandmother, who still insisted on getting her hands on the food every day for a couple of hours despite being nearly 80 years old.

“Babcia!”

“Eddie! My kochany! You forget to visit and I forget what you look like!” she rushed over, flour and oil stains all over her apron.

He should have kept some distance so his shirt didn’t get ruined, but he ignored the part of his brain telling him to look perfect for his date so he could get a hug.

“You know I have to watch my money,” he said against her shoulder.

“And you know I feed you for free if you clean up after yourself. No excuse,” she pulled away and looked him over. “You look handsome. Why?”

Eddie put his hands on his hips.

“What? Don’t I always look handsome?”

“Of course, but this is different. Your hair is smooth and you smell like the perfume store,” she smirked. “Is it a girl? Or a boy? Or a someone?”

“It’s a boy. We’ve never met in person, so I wanted to make a good first impression,” he admitted.

“Oh! How lovely! What’s his name?” She was back to kneading dough, but kept her eyes on him.

“Steve. He actually has been here before, loves the devolay?”

Babcia froze.

“Steve? Oh goodness.” She turned to the sink and washed her hands, muttering under her breath about something.

Eddie’s heart sank. Babcia didn’t seem happy about this.

“What’s wrong? You know him?”

“Oh, yes.”

“Is he not a good guy? Has he been mean to you? I’ll call and cancel right now,” he insisted, reaching for his phone in his pocket.

“No, no. Nothing like that. He is a very sweet boy. He got broken up with in this restaurant a few months back. Tore me to pieces. He just sat here for hours crying. I moved him to a corner booth for his privacy and he left me a $100 tip and ever since then when he comes in I make sure to give him as many szarlotka as he wants.” She touched Eddie’s shoulder. “You be good to him. He has a nice heart.”

Eddie’s mind raced.

Why had Steve agreed to come here for a date if this is where he’d been broken up with? Why did he even bother coming back if it held such bad memories?

What if he didn’t see this as a date?

The front door chimed and he heard the employee at the front welcome someone.

“He will be good for you, drogi.”

Eddie nodded before making his way to the front, stopping in his tracks when he saw the most beautiful man he’d ever seen standing at the podium, talking to the employee with a smile.

“That’s him,” Babcia said from behind him. “Go get him.”

She shoved him forward, nearly making him trip, which caught the attention of Steve.

He looked over with a curious smile, and then realization seemed to hit him.

“Steve?” Eddie managed to ask, loud enough to be heard over the few full tables in the restaurant.

“Eddie?” he asked back, hesitantly moving towards him.

“I, um,” Eddie started, then cleared his throat. “I usually sit by the window, if that’s okay?”

“That’s perfect,” Steve nodded.

It was cliche, like the room around them closed into just them existing together, like the stars had aligned exactly right for this moment to happen.

They sat down at the table Eddie usually sat at, staring across the table at each other in slight awe.

Eddie really hoped that Steve was having the same feelings he was.

But one thing was stopping Eddie from being completely enraptured.

“Is this a date?” he asked suddenly.

“What?” Steve seemed surprised by his question. “I mean, yeah. I’d like it to be. I thought it was.”

Eddie nodded once, but remained quiet, thinking.

“Oh God, it wasn’t, was it? You were just being nice. What is it with this restaurant? If I didn’t love the food so much or babcia, I would never step foot here again, I swear-”

Eddie put his hand on Steve’s to calm him down, frown on his face.

“Woah. What?”

“I just. I don’t have the best history with dates here and I guess I didn’t learn the first time something bad happened, and now I’m being too much too fast again in this place and-”

Eddie pulled Steve’s hand up to his face, placing a soft kiss to his knuckles.

“Stevie, calm down. This is a date. I’ll have as many dates here as you want to to get rid of whatever negative stuff you associate with this place. Babcia would hate that I ruined this place for you,” he said quietly.

Steve seemed to relax at his words.

And if you wanna tell me about what happened, you can. If it’ll help,” Eddie offered.

Before Steve could reply, Gareth’s cousin, Ben, came to take their order.

It was a quick order, both knowing exactly what they wanted, and then Steve looked back at him.

“It’s just. My last girlfriend, who I was with for almost three years, dumped me here. It was kind of out of the blue for me, and I had a really hard time that night.”

Eddie felt his heart break.

How could someone do that to Steve? He didn’t need to know him better to know that he didn’t deserve that, especially not if babcia had taken him under her wing so quickly.

“She must be awful to have let you go like that,” Eddie squeezed Steve’s hand in his, resisting the urge to go to his side of the table and hold him.

Steve shrugged and looked down at their hands.

“I mean, I should have known. She was never much for romance or spending time together that didn’t involve work or school. I was looking at engagement rings and she was looking at apartments to get away from me. I was just…really blinded by what I thought was love,” Steve smiled sadly at him.

“It wasn’t?”

“Well, it may have been a type of love. It was more comfort than anything. She was kind of all I had for the first year we were together, and I think I just ignored how unhealthy that was for both of us. And then I met Robin in college, and she was like the opposite of Nancy in every way. A few months before Nancy broke up with me, I told her that Robin’s parents kicked her out when she came out to them and that she needed a place to stay until we graduated. She agreed, then never made any attempt at getting to know her. And I didn’t read into it, Nancy isn’t like, super talkative with people she isn’t already close with, and Robin just kinda stayed to herself when Nancy was home.” Steve took a shaky breath. “But it turns out she didn’t bother getting to know her because she already knew she was gonna break up with me and leave the apartment to me and Robin, so.she just. Didn’t bother. Robin warned me, but I didn’t listen.”

Eddie wanted to cry.

Steve’s voice was full of pain, but not in a way that told him he still loved her, or still hoped they would get back together. More that she broke a part of him that he still hadn’t been able to fix no matter how hard he tried or wanted to.

“Was she jealous?” Eddie asked, trying so hard to understand what could have happened.

“I dunno. I mean, Robin’s a lesbian, and I definitely never had feelings for her anyway. Nancy was always so sure of herself, I can’t imagine she’d be jealous.”

“It sounds like she didn’t appreciate you very much.”

“What do you mean?” Steve didn’t sound mad, just curious.

“Well, she didn’t even make an effort to get to know your best friend, right? And it sounds like she was too busy focusing on her future to even think about what you looked like in it, and instead of trying to plan it with you, she made a future for her. She sounds a bit selfish,” Eddie shrugged.

Instead of being upset, Steve laughed.

God, Eddie loved that laugh.

“Sorry, it’s just that you sound exactly like Robin. You’d probably be two peas in a pod.”

“Tell me about her,” Eddie genuinely wanted to know more about the person who kept Steve going.

Their food arrived in the middle of the story of how Steve and Robin met, but it didn’t stop him from continuing.

Eddie listened with a fond smile, filling in Steve’s gaps of silence as he chewed a bite of food with questions or something related to what he’d been talking about.

It was easy.

It was fun.

Halfway through the meal, Steve’s foot rested against one of his and it felt like electricity shooting through his bones.

Eddie told him about Gareth, and his family who had pretty much adopted him when they both moved here from a small town in Indiana. He talked about his uncle who raised him for most of his life, who visited every Christmas despite being on a really tight budget.

Time passed quickly, but not at all.

They hadn’t realized how long they’d been sitting there until babcia came out without her apron to hand deliver an apple tart.

“You boys enjoy. I’ll see you both soon!” she said as she smacked a kiss on top of each of their heads.

Both of them blushed, but tried to cover it up with a bite of food.

As they finished, Steve looked outside to see how dark it was, how few people were left walking the streets.

“Guess we should head out,” he muttered, sounding like that was the last thing he wanted to do.

“Would you wanna come to my place? We don’t have to do anything except talk, I promise. I just don’t really want this to end yet,” Eddie suggested.

“Really? I haven’t bored you?” Steve asked, just a hint of self-deprecation in his tone.

Eddie shook his head.

“Not at all. I’d really like to get a chance to love you the way you deserve,” Eddie said.

Steve’s eyes widened.

Eddie should back up, should say something less intense.

But if this ruined it, then at least he said what he was thinking.

“You think you could love me?” Steve asked, barely more than a whisper.

“I think I already do a little,” Eddie admitted.

Steve blinked at him for a moment, mouth slightly agape.

“I need to kiss you,” he finally said.

“Now? Here?” Eddie smiled.

“Now. Here.”

“I won’t stop you.”

Steve stood from the table and stood in front of Eddie, placing both hands on his cheeks and leaning down.

Their lips brushed in a barely-there kiss, softer than Eddie expected.

Steve stayed there for a moment, eyes closed, and Eddie couldn’t help the words tumbling from him.

“You’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen.”

If someone had said it to him, he would think they were just trying to get him into their bed, but that wasn’t the case here and he hoped Steve knew that.

“People used to call me a charmer, but I don’t think I’m half as good at it as you,” Steve whispered, his breath ghosting against Eddie’s lips.

“Just honest.”

“Take me home,” Steve said, opening his eyes and staring at Eddie, his eyes glowing with something close to love.

—-------------------------------------

They stayed up all night, never doing more than kissing and mapping out patterns on each others’ skin.

They talked about everything, even the painful parts of life, even the parts that they hadn’t shared with anyone else.

It didn’t make any sense that someone who had been a stranger not even 24 hours ago could already mean so much.

When the sun started to shine through the curtains of Eddie’s apartment, Steve sighed and buried his face in Eddie’s neck.

“I have to go to work,” though he burrowed his entire body further into the bed and Eddie’s side.

“You could call in sick,” Eddie suggested, pressing a kiss to the top of Steve’s head.

“Robin would kill me.”

He and Robin worked together as team teachers at an elementary school. When one of them missed, it left the other with 34 kids alone.

Plus, Steve loved his job, worked hard to be a teacher, and hated missing a day if he didn’t need to.

“Maybe you could bring Robin here after work? I can make dinner?” Eddie’s job was pretty easy, marketing for an Indie record label based out of New York remotely really kept him busy for a couple hours a day and the rest of the time was spent writing his own music.

Steve sat up and looked down at him, his hair ruffled from Eddie running his fingers through it for the last eight hours.

“You’d wanna meet Robin?”

“Yeah, if you want me to. She sounds like fun.”

Steve started crying.

“Oh shit, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to make you cry. Good job, Munson, already ruined something good,” Eddie was reaching for a tissue from his bedside table.

“No, no, I’m sorry. I’m just tired and emotional. And just. It means a lot that you’d wanna meet her,” Steve said between gasps for air as he continued to cry.

“Of course I do. I could even invite Gareth over, too, if you want. He won’t believe that our date went well,” Eddie joked, brushing the tears away from Steve’s cheeks.

“I’d love to meet him,” Steve said, sniffling.

“When can you guys get here?”

“Usually we’re done by four, but sometimes we stay later to finish grading stuff. Maybe we should say six?”

“Got it. Any allergies?”

“Robin is allergic to shellfish. She says she is. I think she just doesn’t like them,” Steve rolled his eyes.

“No shellfish, got it. Any preferences, my love?”

Steve blushed at the term of endearment, looking down before he leaned in to kiss Eddie softly.

“Anything you make will be great.”

“You wanna borrow some clothes for work?” Eddie asked.

“Do you have any business casual stuff?”

Eddie gagged.

“Unfortunately, it’s required for the job sometimes. Far left of the closet should have something,” he nodded towards the small closet by the bathroom.

Eddie watched as Steve walked over and picked out his only pair of khaki pants and a navy button down. Steve looked back at him and winked before he nodded towards the bathroom.

“Could use some help working the shower if you’re willing to,” he smirked.

Eddie jumped up from the bed and ran into the bathroom, ignoring the way Steve was laughing.

“The hot water is tricky sometimes. I should probably get in there too to make sure it stays hot,” Eddie said as he stripped off his pants.

“Definitely. Wouldn’t want me to get cold,” Steve put a hand on his shoulder to slow him down. “Kiss me?”

Eddie leaned in to kiss him slowly, letting his tongue brush along his lips just to get a taste.

“Okay?” Eddie checked in.

“Yeah. You remember what you said last night? About loving me like I deserve?”

Eddie nodded.

“I want you to. And I want to love you back.”

“I think we can arrange that.”

[rizzyu]

▵▿— Hard Work Pays Off

Pairing: Satoru Gojo x gn! reader

Category: fluff

Warning: none

Summary: Satoru finally got time to relax with you after coming back from a 4-week-long mission

A/N: have been obsessing over this boi lately. Eyy no you do that too yea i see you

How long has it been?

Your husband took on an important interstate mission from the higher ups a month ago, and you hadn’t seen him since he left for that mission. He did text you between the 1-minute breaks he had. But later on he became so busy that he barely had the time to text you anymore, to the point where you started the get worried. Worried that he didn’t even let himself rest, or maybe something worse happened.

As you sat on the couch in your and Satoru’s shared home, your mind began to wander off again. Recently you were stuck in this cycle where every time you returned home from your missions for the day, you would helplessly think of nothing but Satoru. Guess this was just how much you missed him.

Your thoughts were cut short when you heard the doorbell ring. When you cautiously opened the door you a tall figure before you who was none other than Satoru himself. With a tired yet joyous smile on his face, he showed you a bag of your favourite dessert he bought just before returning home. “Darling I’m home.” Without another word, you wrapped your arms around his torso, nuzzling your face into his chest. “Welcome home, ‘Toru” Your voice starting to break. “You were gone for so long, I was starting to get worried.” “M’sorry, the higher ups are really working me to the bone, y’know?” Satoru snaked his arms around your waist to pull you close. “But I’m home now… we can finally relax together…”

Next thing you knew was Satoru’s long ass body fell limp onto you. You hastily tried to support his sudden weight by adjusting your arms, careful not to completely drop the man onto the floor. “’Toru?” Satoru nuzzled his face in the crook of your neck.

“’M so tired…” His voice was muffled.

“’Toru stand up straight, I ain’t carrying you.”

“But I’m so sleeepppyyy…”

You sighed in defeat as you mustered up enough of your remaining strength to give the man a scuffed piggy pack. “You big baby…” You plopped him on the couch with a huff. You placed a little peck on his nose before heading to the kitchen to make him something to eat. You found some cake and instant ramen packets. As you were boiling the ramen, two arms snaked around your waist. Satoru pulled you close to him from behind and buried his face in your neck once again.

“’Toru I thought you wanted to sleep?”

“I can’t sleep without you acting as my pillow.”

“Satoru does this mean you haven’t slept at all during your mission?”

Satoru didn’t respond, only watched as you stopped stirring the boiling ramen and turned to make eye contact with him. “I was bweeesyyyy… (busy lol)” You brought a hand up you pat his head. You sighed “Take a quick shower and go to sleep after eating, ok? Can’t have you exhaust yourself under my watch.”

▴▿▴▿▴

You sat at the dining table with Satoru as you enjoyed your steaming hot ramen and cake. “Waaa this cake is still so gooood! It’s so sweet and fluffy! Wait, when did you get this??”

“Heh I got this specifically for you while you were still on your mission. I guess I’m just amazing when it comes to buying cakes.”

“And I have good taste in cakes right?”

“Yeah yeah whatever you say.”

“Tsk you’re so mean…”

▴▿▴▿▴

“Alright since you’re finished with your food, go take a shower. I’ll be waiting for you on bed.”

As Satoru showered, you couldn’t help but smile at the thought of Satoru acting like a little child after just arriving home. You knew Satoru barely had the time to actually enjoy the trip with so many tasks at hand, so it brought you joy to cheer Satoru up. You thoughts were cut short when Satoru stepped out of the bathroom, towel around his neck and damp bangs falling over his forehead. You’ve got to admit he looks so fucking captivating after shower. It honestly was taking you all your strength to not nosebleed. (I wrote this bc I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE.)

“Hey you’re staring…”

You didn’t even notice yourself staring that Satoru until he told you. “WHAAT? No I’m not…” Satoru treaded over and got on bed with you. “Yea you were. Can’t resist my charm hmm?”

Smug bastard.

He crawled over you and caged you underneath him, watching as your cheeks and the tips of your ears immediately turned a pretty shade of pink. “Hey don’t you think this is the perfect time to make out?” “Satoru!” You turned your head to the side. “It’s late, plus you just got back from a mission. It’d be better if you rest now.” Satoru pouted at your response and gave you the most precious puppy eyes. You sighed. “How about tomorrow? If you sleep now, we can do whatever you want tomorrow.” Satoru perked up at your offer.

“Really? Anything I want?”

“Anything.”

With a cute little yay, Satoru laid beside you and pulled you close. You felt his soft lips capture yours. Satoru brought a hand up the cradle your face and tilted it to deepen the kiss. When you pulled away to catch your breath, he buried his head in your chest. “Then good night baby…” His voice gradually became softer and softer. “Satoru?” You tenderly called out his name before hearing little snores come from his plump lips. He was so tired he fell asleep in a matter of seconds. Cute. You placed a peck at the crown of his head and held his sleeping body close to you.

“You worked really hard didn’t you?” You softly chuckled “Good night to you too angle boy.”

[firstelevens]

WIP Tag Game

Rules: Share a snippet from whatever you’re currently working on, and then tag 5 people.

tagged by @abarbaricyalp

no-pressure tagging @sesamestreep @philtstone @trans-elrond @iasmelaion @sambambucky

the actual thing that I am currently working on is the next chapter of the D&D AU and I'm trying not to jinx that, so instead here's an excerpt from an idea that came from a "loss of powers" prompt and immediately got way too long

In the eight minutes that it takes for Yelena to pilot the jet down the runway and up to the mouth of the hangar, Sam has managed to envision every possible bad situation. He thinks about the aftermath of explosions, about alien poisons and unknown creatures rising from the sea. Even as the gangway comes down and Sam hurries on board with two of the medics, he’s envisioning something nightmarish.

It’s more frightening, somehow, to see what’s actually happened: Bucky is laid up on a stretcher, paler than Sam’s ever seen him and shivering uncontrollably in spite of the multiple blankets and jackets that Yelena has laid over him. His lips are nearly blue, his breathing shallow and rattling just a little. There’s bruising showing beneath the collar of his compression shirt, winding back towards his left shoulder.

“Dislocated shoulder?” asks one of the medics, peering at the bruises when Sam shifts the collar out of the way.

“Unlikely,” says Sam, biting back the impulse to say something more cutting about knowing who the hell he’s treating. Bucky is unconscious, but Sam still murmurs an apology when he stops the gurney transfer to hit the plates of Bucky’s vibranium arm in the pattern that Bucky taught him. He catches the arm as it detaches with a click, hefting it against his shoulder. He doesn’t know if the bruises came from the arm or from something else, but he’ll be damned if he lets them get worse.

The medics wheel Bucky back to the infirmary and Sam hands the vibranium arm off to Torres, trusting him to find somewhere safe for it. He turns to Yelena and motions for her to follow as he stays by the gurney’s side.

“Are you okay?” he asks her, as she joins them. “If you’re injured at all, the medics can take care of it for you.”

But Yelena waves off the offer, focused on Bucky. “He was cut on his stomach,” she says, before Sam can ask, “but he could walk after, so it was not so bad, I think. He took another one to the leg. That was worse.”

“And the shrapnel?” asks Sam.

“Grenade,” Yelena says. “He pushed me out of the way. Would have been fine, except they were trying to blow up the door from a steel shipping container. It came down on his leg.”

“Fractured?”

Yelena shrugs. “He would not let any of us see. Was his ankle, maybe.”

Sam steps back and lets the medics transfer Bucky to a bed. His shivering gets worse with the blankets removed, but there’s no way to check on those injuries without cutting open his shirt.

There are bruises everywhere, still purple and angry. As they cut the shirt open, Sam braces for the sight of a bad gash on Bucky’s stomach and is met instead with a dressed wound, a fresh compress taped down at the edges.

He turns to Yelena. “When did you do this?”

“He did,” says Yelena. “This morning. Or maybe yesterday? Time is strange; we lost hours on the jet.”

“Yesterday?” repeats Sam. “When did all this happen?”

“Thursday, late night,” says Yelena. “He said it was okay. We came to the safe house, he cleaned the wound, he hopped around on one foot, and I laughed at him and it seemed like it was fine.”

“And then what?”

“It should have healed overnight,” says Yelena. “Alexei and Walker, they were caught in the blast, too. By morning they were back to normal.”

“Yeah, that’s how the super soldier healing works,” Sam says absently. 

It takes a second for his own words to sink in, his eyes dropping to Bucky, laid out on the table with all his injuries still fresh.

Sam has seen Bucky break a rib and rough-house with the boys twelve hours later. He’s seen new cuts turn to scars over the course of a jet ride home. The last time Bucky got shot, the only reason they rushed to treat him was because there was a chance the wound would heal over the bullet before they could get it out.

Particularly bad injuries will leave their mark for a few days, but normal bruises have never lingered like this on Bucky’s skin, and lacerations heal so quickly that Bucky tends to refuse butterfly bandages for them on principle. (Except for the one time that AJ and Cass were there to see him get patched up, when he was suddenly a model patient, and allowed Sam to fuss over him for twice as long without a single complaint.)

“But how…?” he starts to ask, then looks up at Yelena. “You said there’s no change?”

“None,” she says. “But there’s something I didn’t tell you.”

She goes into one of the many pockets on her vest, patting around until she gets to the right one. She unzips it and pulls out an evidence baggie, which she holds up for Sam to see. Inside is the kind of dart that would go in a tranq gun, but the vial at the back is broken.

Sam takes the bag and peers at the dart. “Where’d this come from?”

“I don’t know,” Yelena says. “I found it embedded in Alexei’s body armor. The blast must have broken it.”

“What does it have to do with Bucky?”

“Because someone in a sniper’s nest shot one at Walker also,” says Yelena. “And I thought I saw Barnes pull something from his neck before the grenade.”

He frowns. “And they didn’t fire them at anyone else?”

Yelena shakes her head. “They missed when they fired at Walker, so maybe it’s nothing.”

“But you don’t think so, or you wouldn’t have brought Bucky back here.”

“Whatever this is, it’s dangerous. I think it is not so good if the Contessa knows about it.”

It’s not too much of a stretch of the imagination for Sam to picture what Fontaine might do if she found out about a chemical compound that could affect the serum this way. Hell, it’s not a stretch of the imagination to picture what most powerful people would do.

Sam thanks Yelena and tells her to rest up before she flies back. She’s going to say no, he thinks, and then Kate appears and says something about mac and cheese, and Yelena is being pulled along with her whether she likes it or not.

When Joaquín comes through the doors a second later, Sam is surprised to see him already wearing his flight suit. “How did you–?”

He grins. “Give me a little credit, Cap. This is Bucky we’re talking about.”

He can’t find it in him to argue the knowing grin on Joaquín’s face. “Thank you,” he says, handing over the evidence bag. “Fly safe.”

“I always do,” Joaquín says, zipping the baggie into a pocket and turning on his heel. “I’ll let you know when I get there.”

As the infirmary doors swing shut behind Torres, Sam looks down at Bucky, who’s back under multiple layers of blankets as one of the medics gets an IV in his arm. The shivering has come down, but his lips still look blue, his breaths still shallow.

He brushes away some of the hair sticking to Bucky’s forehead—the only part of him that Sam can reach—and opens up the app that Bucky made him download a year ago, insisting that he might need it one day.

There are exactly two contacts saved in the app. Sam hits the second one and waits.

[sc0tters]

Out of It | Mat Barzal

summary: as your relationship with Tito finally hits a breaking point, what happens when Mat is there to pick up your pieces?

request: yes/no

warnings: cheating, failed relationship, drinking, allusions to sex, swearing.

word count: 3.2k

authors note: Kei said I could use the chaotic ending so I did, probably means we’re gonna have to have a part 2 (let me know if you want it). Request said something sad for Tito but happy for Mat and this is what my mind came up with. I actually enjoyed writing this one a lot so I hope you all enjoy reading it! But also don’t cheat on your partners, that’s very fucked up!

part two | part three

Things hadn’t been good for months.

When Anthony was first traded to the Canucks your boyfriend of three years always just assumed that you would join him. But you didn’t, your entire working career was spent in New York building up the your name and you weren’t ready to leave it for some city in Vancouver without the guarantee of a job waiting for you.

That seemed to be the first sign that things were changing as the boy took it as you not loving him.

Tito slammed his hands against your kitchen counter “do you ever support me in this move?” The man groaned in frustration making you taken aback by his outburst.

The accusation hurt you “of course I do.” You yelled back making his irritated tone “the fact that you think I’m gonna pack my life up at the drop of a hat makes me question how you feel about me though.” You crossed your arms sending him a glare.

This argument had gone on for the last fifteen minutes and there was still no clear sign of the end of this argument “look I can’t live in Vancouver but I can split my time between the two cities.” You offered growing tired of the way this was continuing to drag on.

But Anthony didn’t like that offer, in fact that almost felt worse than you just staying in New York “don’t bother.” He sighed pushing past you.

The hockey player moved towards the door “where are you going?” You croaked feeling your throat grow tight “I’ll spend the night with Mat.” Anthony sighed grabbing his shoes from the rack.

Your feet pulled you to the door “we don’t go to bed angry,” you reminded him “you promise.” Tears began rolling down your cheeks as you felt like you were loosing the love of your life “I’ll be back in the morning.” The boy mumbled kissing your forehead.

His lips left their print on your skin before he walked out of the apartment leaving you alone.

You two never actually spoke about that argument again, instead just choosing to ignore the fact that for the first time since you two moved in together Anthony didn’t sleep at home when he was in New York.

It felt like it was meant to be the one anomaly in your relationship or at least until February hit. Valentine’s Day you were meant to be in Vancouver with flights booked and everything but when a last minute meeting came up you had to pull out. Much to the annoyance of Anthony though.

Thinking you were doing the right thing you told him to go enjoy the dinner reservations he made. But after your long day of work when you came home the last thing you expected to see was the rumour mill that twitter made talking about how Anthony had a new girlfriend.

She was taller than you and looked like a blonde supermodel. Through frustration you grumbled something to yourself before you dialled in your boyfriends number “hey y/n!” Anthony was always good about picking up on the first or second ring “yeah I’ll be done in a sec,” he added clearly talking to someone on his side of the call.

You never liked admitting that you felt insecure in your relationship, but how could you not when you were with some hotshot hockey player? It also wasn’t helped by the fact that he lived 3 hours behind you and in a different country “don’t tell me she’s there,” you choked on the words as tears formed in your eyes.

Anthony clicked his tongue hearing the soft whimper you let out “who baby?” His nickname always had you melting into his hand but now you felt repulsed by it “that girl-“ your eyebrows knitted together as you thought the boy was playing tricks on you acting all oblivious.

The hockey player cut you off “told you that Twitter isn’t good for you.” His reminder felt condescending as you sat down feeing like you were having his lecture in person “why are they all talking about it?” Your voice was soft as you wiped your cheek with the back of your hand to clean the tears away from you.

He almost forgot he was on the phone to you as he stared at the girl who was on his couch pointing at her watch to signal that they were late “when she realised that we both had no plans tonight I said she should come with me.” Tito explained leaving you silent as he wasn’t denying that he spent the night with this bombshell of a girl “she’s just a friend though baby you got nothing to worry about.” Somehow his attempt to comfort you only made your nerves stick out more.

You tried to formulate a coherent sentence as you felt stupid for getting all upset “look I’ve got a few days off next week, why don’t I come see you?” He proposed causing that stupid love drunk smile to form on your face “I’d like that a lot.” You nodded missing your boyfriend now more than ever.

From the moment he arrived in New York you two could feel that something was different. As you invited some of his favourite old teammates over for dinner you felt relieved that you weren’t having to spend the night alone with him.

But of course that sense of peace had to be disturbed “baby why don’t you leave those for the morning?” You asked seeing Anthony’s back towards you as you entered the kitchen.

If there was one thing that usually fixed your problems it was sex. Sure that sounded stupid and like you were both teenagers, but as a couple your favourite way to end even the smallest of fights as with sex.

Which is why you thought it was the fix this problem needed “I want to wake up to a clean kitchen.” The Canadian always felt this rewarding feeling whenever he got to see an empty set of sinks in the morning.

You decided to try a little harder as you walked over to him “think I’ve got something a little more fun for you to do before that though.” You mumbled letting your hands slide up the front of his shirt.

That only seemed to piss him off “Jesus y/n let me finish the fucking-” the moment he began lashing out you stepped back keeping your lips shut until he spun around to look at you.

It didn’t take his eyes long to make their way down your body as you tied the string around your robe up clearly deciding that it wasn’t right for tonight “oh,” Anthony’s voice was soft as he realised that you were wearing his favourite lingerie.

The set was something you bought when he was on a long road trip once and you sent him pictures of each set you tried on in the store and when he picked the blue set you went to the airport to pick him up in a coat with nothing on underneath besides for that new set “forget it.” You rolled your eyes now feeling embarrassed as you turned around heading back to your bedroom where you sat on your bed for fifteen minutes waiting for him to come after you.

But he never did and you felt like an idiot.

April came around and you were now onto month four of feeling like something was wrong but you never felt confident enough to talk to Anthony about it so instead you let your relationship get to the worst it had ever been. Excuses were made each time one of you was meant to see the other and as the time between phone calls grew, the amount of fight you put up to see the other person decreased.

Tonight you were going out with some of the guys from the Islanders team. Mat invited you along as they were celebrating their place in the playoff “I know they are your friends.” You rolled your eyes at the phone call as Anthony couldn’t understand how his best friend invited you along.

It was somewhat amusing because Mat was the one who introduced you to your boyfriend “I’m going to support the boys okay?” You heard a knock at the door making you open it.

A smile formed on your face seeing older Canadian as you ushered him inside motioning to him to keep quiet as you were on the phone “yes I’ll let you know when I’m home.” It sounded like you were talking to a parent rather than your boyfriend.

Mat made himself comfortable on your couch as his spread his legs leaning into the soft fabric “I’m going to go now.” And with that you hung up. It irritated you how the first time he called you in over a month was because one of his old teammates mentioned that he was seeing you tonight “you okay kid?” Mat asked furrowing his eyebrows.

Despite the fact that there was only a two year age gap between you both when he met you, you were a freshman in college in your Maple Leafs jersey as you willingly spent your morning in a cafe arguing with the Islander player about how the Canadian team was better. Mat would never admit this to you or Anthony but he thought you were hot, that’s why he invited you to the game when the Maple Leafs came to visit. Why he scored a goal and pointed right up to the box where you sat, but even more so why he scored three goals. But no matter how hard Mat tried to impress you, it was no match against Anthony’s soft smile that he sent you making you weak in the knees.

You sighed sitting next to him “Tito is mad at me again.” You mumbled fiddling with the bracelet that the older boy gave you for your twenty first, the piece of jewellery that you now never take off.

Mat slipped his hand onto your knee giving it a squeeze “don’t worry about him.” The Canadian wanted to act like his crush on you had diminished over the years but when you called him in tears because you realised that you were drowning your sorrows in too much Chinese food for one person to ear during Anthony’s first night in Vancouver. The speed Mat drove across the city going through each red light told him otherwise.

Having him around always comforted you “think I just need to let loose tonight.” You mumbled running your hand through your hair pushing it back unintentionally revealing your collar bones that were highlighted by the low cut of your dress “finally give you a reason to keep up with me.” Mat always drank faster than you as you wrote it down to his lack of a college career where he never got the chance to grow out of it.

You rolled your eyes letting out a laugh “think you’ll be keeping up with me tonight.” You mumbled looking down at your phone to see the time “we’re late,” you groaned quickly getting up. Mat followed your actions with a smile “only means we have to make up for the lost time.” He pointed out making you laugh.

Oh how pretty that sound was.

The bar was packed full of players and their partners with you being the only plus one without a romantic connection to the team. You had practically drunk your way through the bar as the wags believed that you were making up for lost time after you turned down each of their offers to join them on girls night since Anthony left. It was stupid sure, but you always felt out of place when you were with them, so you thought that you’d feel worse without your boyfriend there.

But instead you surprisingly felt like you fitted in as Mat’s arm snaked around your waist “you want another one?” He asked motioning to your empty glass.

The girls had smirks on their faces as they watched your cheeks turn pink feeling his breath on your neck “I’ll come!” You blurted out making them bite the inside of their cheeks to hold in the giggles.

Whilst everyone thought you would marry Anthony, it made all of the girls happy to see you smile and until you or Mat did anything that crossed a line. They didn’t see the point in telling Anthony that his friend was taking care of his girlfriend.

Because to them everything that Mat and you did was friendly, the touches, the smiles, the looks. But what none of them knew was how each of your heart rates increased at the mere thought of the other. Mat locked his hand into yours as he pulled you through the crowd “two refills please.” He asked the bartender with his signature smile.

When the hockey player turned to you he realised you had been staring “what are you thinking about kid?” Mat’s voice was soft as he sat you in the barstool in front of him “how bad would it be if we left?” You cocked your head staring at his Hazel orbs that seemed to be locked into your soul.

Your question made Mat laugh “you had enough?” He frowned wanting to have more of your company for longer. You were quick to shake your head “no of course not,” your cheeks turned pink as you panicked “I just want ice cream and some vodka right now.” The pairing was weird but it seemed to be the only thing going through your mind “well it’s a good thing that I have both of those in my apartment then isn’t it?” His comment made your eyes light up with excitement.

Without thinking he held his hand out to you “they’re all so drunk I don’t think they’ll notice us leave.” Mat mumbled causing you to nod as he pulled you out of the bar somehow without anyone noticing.

During the drive back to his you remained fairly quiet as the Uber driver continued to talk to Mat about what it was like being a hockey player “I’m telling you I think he loves you.” You got the words out between your fit of giggles.

Mat groaned shaking his head “was nervous to have such a pretty girl in his car.” The boy shot back shoving his spoon back into the Häagen-Dazs ice cream container as he ignored the workout he was going to have to do tomorrow.

His compliment made your stomach do flips “think he’d be more affected by you,” you shook your head taking a sip of the expensive vodka that he had given you to drink “if he was gay-“ before you could swallow you let out a laugh resulting in a cough from you.

The hockey player grew alarmed watching your face turn red “you okay?” All you could do was nod until your throat calmed down “you care about me.” You teased rubbing your elbow with his as you smiled.

As much as Mat tried to ignore how he felt about you it was no longer working “of course I do.” The Canadian wanted to scoff that you would ever even consider to think that he didn’t.

But what he didn’t expect as your eyes locked with his was that you would lean forward to kiss him. At first Mat melted into the kiss as this was something he always wanted but as you moved to his lap he was reminded of the fact that you weren’t his “what about Tito?” Mat gasped forcing himself to feel guilty about the situation. Your lips formed a frown “he doesn’t love me anymore Mat,” you shook your head as tears formed in your eyes “and I don’t love him.” It was the first time you had ever actually said that out loud.

Yet it was all true, the fire that was once burning underneath your relationship turned to an occasional spark that had gone into hiding for the last few months. Mat stared at your soft facial expression “why don’t you leave him?” He asked furrowing his brows “don’t want to be alone.” Your confession made you seem week.

Truthfully though you had grown used to Anthony’s company and you were scared to see if you could survive without a boyfriend in your life “you aren’t alone.” Mat sighed tracing his finger along your jaw letting his thumb settle on your lip.

Maybe it was the alcohol talking but if he showed you that he was here for you then maybe you’d leave Anthony for good “prove it to me then baby.” You pushed your lips back into his as the boy walked the two of you to his room letting your body hit his mattress.

Mat was finally going to have his way with you.

The next morning.

You let out a groan as you heard a loud knock at the door “baby go get it,” you grumbled wanting to go back to sleep “fine.” Hearing Mats voice from beside you had the events of last night quickly falling back into your head.

Somehow though the boy seemed calmer about it all as he sent you a smile “could get used to this.” You were wearing one of his old Islanders shirts, the first time you were wearing a piece of merch from the team that wasn’t from Anthony.

It reminded you of the fact that you still had a boyfriend but here you were in his best friends bed covered in hickies whilst he was covered in scratches “you should answer the door.” You pushed your hair out of your face as you began to feel sick. You weren’t upset about last night, you loved the reminder of feeling what it was like to be loved.

To put it simply you felt bad that you had done it to a guy like Anthony, your mother raised you better than that “I’ll send them on their way and then we can talk about last night.” Mat wasn’t an idiot, he could see that you weren’t thinking about Anthony by the way you stared at the promise ring on your finger that he gave you when he came back in February.

It only took you two months to go ahead and fuck that one up “okay,” you nodded biting the inside of your cheek as you struggled to comprehend how you would talk to Anthony after this.

Your stomach did flips as you stared at yourself in Mats bedroom mirror. In that moment you felt like a horrible person and there was honestly no denying that you were one. Your precious Anthony would never cross a line like the one that you had and you only hoped that you had enough time to fix it before everything was thrown back in your face “what took you so long dude?”

That voice sent a chill down your spine as your eyes went wide with any desire of wanting extra sleep quickly being thrown out of the window.

What the fuck was Anthony doing at Mat’s door?

[vole-mon-amour]

1x09, part 3.

I'm so sad for him. He would literally forgive her ANYTHING.

He's TERRIFIED at the idea of losing her. And he's so right, Vi can't bring back Powder. It was so obvious when Jinx lit a fire & Vi got a taste of what Jinx is like these days. Vi wouldn't be able to control her, nor would she be able to love her when she's like this. The problem is, it IS her nowadays. There is no Powder anymore. It's such a fucking tragedy that Silco dies.

Honestly, say it, Silco. V is into Caitlyn now way more than she is into Jinx. Actually, she's not into Jinx at all. Again, there is NO Powder. Every time Vi calls her that, I cringe. I can't stand that name, it's simply not her. Just like Silco says, "that girl does not exist anymore".

And it's only them, you see? And she's his daughter, you see? ;______; The way he loves her, help. ;___; The look he gives her. It doesn't fucking matter she kidnapped him and tied him up and gagged him, he doesn't fucking care, he only wants her and he wants her to stay with him. ;_____; All the walls around him fall apart for her sake. He's the most vulnerable with her.

"I'll never forsake you." The voice acting. The animation. I feel unwell.

Gods, he's so scared she will leave him. So confused about her dropping her gun.

He's like a caged animal when he grabs Jinx's gun. Vi only made it worse for Jinx. But yeah, just like Jinx said, it's up to Vi if she gets Jinx or Powder, and Vi's shouting and SIlco's death sealed the deal.

She really caresses behind his ear as he's bleeding out. Oh, the fucking tragedy. ;___;

"Don't cry. You're perfect." FUCK OFFFFF. The pain is real and I am feeling it. Like, no stills or gifs can truly makes you feel the same if you don't remember the tone of his voice, the feelings in his voice.

"I hope you know we had everything, When you broke me and left these pieces."

Honestly, the difference between Jinx getting Vander killed and Jinx getting Silco killed is that Vi means it and she leaves her. Yes, they were kids, full stop. She gave into those emotions, though. For the moment, she hated Jinx & she meant it. She can never love Jinx.

Jinx kills Silco? He tells her not to cry. He tells her JINX is perfect. She kills him and yet, she's his entire word. "I'll never forsake you. <...> I never would have given you to them. Not for anything." and he MEANS it. As he bleeds out while she holds his face, he tells her not to cry and that she's PERFECT.

"'Cause I, I was meant to be yours."

Yeah, they can all burn, indeed.

V is so confused because how can her sister feel all those feelings for Silco? How can she cry for him? He's a monster, he deserved to die, didn't he? Yeah, she just doesn't understand. Fuck. (breaks down) I love Silco so much.

"Even though I'm different." That's exactly the problem. Vi can't love her as she is now. Silco could. He did.

I'm going to miss him so much.

I hope she doesn't die in s2 (or turns into something that's completely unrecognizable). I really fucking hope so. ;____; And man, Silco is so beautiful. Was? Anyway.

She's alive! My girl is alive! Maybe she'll take over the undercity without Silco? "What we could've been." right when they focus on her and Silco's empty chair. Gods. I'm hurting. The song at the end is absolutely perfect and I can't stop crying.

Oh, Ekko found himself a friend. Oh, what could've been, indeed. This is such a great alliance because Ekko is somewhat a scientist himself and he's open-minded and he has nothing to gain, so he gladly shares about his experience with Heimerdinger.

The animation is incredible. And Vi still chooses Caitlyn over Jinx. Like I said she would. :(

Even Viktor looks hopeful. Season 2, "Devastating"? "No one is going to be happy after watching it"? Oh, they're going to break me.

[piratecaptainscaptainpirates]

You asked for prompts! How about Stede noticing Ed’s pearl necklace and maybe telling him how pretty he looks wearing it? Or maybe it breaks and Stede fixes it for him? Either way some excuse for Stede put it around Ed’s neck and kiss his neck or WANT to kiss his neck while he does it? Basically neck kisses or yearning please!

Yes! Yessss! Neck kisses >>>>

Send me a prompt and I'll write a 1k word fic!

--

“Oh, shit. Fuck. Shitdamn.”

Ed’s frustrated voice filtered in through the open kitchen window - that was what Stede was calling the hole in the kitchen wall they hadn’t gotten around to patching up yet - and Stede looked up from where he was trying to figure out how to debone a fish. Turned out the little fuckers had a lot of bones, and just all over the place, really.

“Ed? You alright?”

Beat.

“Uh, yeah, all good!”

Ed’s tone had been overly cheerful, in the exact way it always was when Stede knew all was most certainly not good. He’d definitely sounded upset, but he was usually pretty good at letting Stede know if he’d just accidentally hammered a finger or miscalculated something, so it had to be something more serious, then. Stede quickly washed his hands, deciding to leave the fish for later, and hurried outside to check on his boyfriend.

Ed had said he was going to be working on reinforcing the front steps, after Stede accidentally stuck his foot straight through the boards a few nights ago. What he was actually doing was sitting on the broken step, looking down at something in his hands, his shoulders very tense and his lips pursed like he was trying not to cry.

“Ed?” Stede slid down next to him on the step, and Ed quickly clenched his hand into a fist to hide what he’d been looking at. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah,” Ed sighed, his voice small and creaky. “It’s stupid.”

“It’s not stupid if you’re upset.”

His heart broke a little, as Ed’s lip wobbled, but he didn’t force it. If he was just quiet, and calm, and gave Ed time, then soon enough-

“I was taking my jacket off,” Ed started to explain, “and my necklace got caught on one of the buttons. I didn’t mean to pull it - I think I broke it.”

“Oh,” Stede said, quietly, and he held out his hand. “Can I take a look?”

Ed looked like he was halfway expecting Stede to yell at him, but he slowly let the necklace drop into Stede’s palm.

“These pearls are so lovely,” Stede said, trying to get the smile back on Ed’s face as he inspected the damage. It was a nice necklace, with a knot on either side of each pearl so they wouldn’t slide off the string even if it snapped, but Stede was relieved to see the clasp was just twisted open. Necklaces like this were delicate, so the damage looked worse than it actually was.

“They were lovely,” Ed corrected dully. “Until I ruined them. They were so nice, and now they’re fucked.”

“You didn’t ruin-”

“Probably for the best.” Ed rested his arms on his knees, hunching over to hide his face in his arms. “Needed to throw ‘em away anyway.”

Stede frowned. He reached out a gentle hand, hovering over Ed’s shoulder, and was relieved when Ed leaned sideways into his touch. “Why would you say that?”

Ed shrugged. “They were too nice for me. Was always gonna ruin them eventually.”

“Ed? Can you look at me?”

Stede waited until Ed raised his eyes, scrubbing at his cheeks with the back of his hand, and then he held up the necklace. “This is fixable. It’s a pretty easy fix, too! The clasp is just twisted.”

“Oh.”

“You haven’t ruined a thing,” Stede assured him. “I used to fix necklaces all the time - Mary never had the patience for it.”

Stede led Ed back inside, finding the smaller tools they kept in the kitchen and selecting a little pair of pliers. It would take a careful hand, to correct the bent metal without breaking or warping it further, and Stede wanted to do a perfect job.

“I haven’t had a necklace like that before,” Ed admitted quietly as he watched Stede work. “Too nice for me, like I said.”

Ed said it like he was trying to convince himself, and Stede scoffed.

“Ed, you put everyone else wearing a string of pearls to shame,” he promised. “You wear them well. They’re so pretty, and they look beautiful on you.”

He looked back in time to see Ed’s eyes flick shyly to the floor. “Thank you.”

Stede held the necklace up to the light, making sure the clasp looked perfect. “All done,” he declared, holding it out for Ed to see. “May I?”

“You may,” Ed said, aiming for a light, teasing tone, but too obviously flattered to really pull it off.

Stede stepped behind him, gently moving his hair out of the way, and Ed shivered at Stede’s fingers brushing over his bare neck.

“There we go.” Stede gently secured the necklace, and before straightening Ed’s hair back into place, he kissed the back of Ed’s neck. Ed hummed in delight, pressing back into his touches, and Stede pressed kiss after soft, loving kiss to the side of Ed’s neck, from his jaw down to his collarbone. “So pretty.”

Ed leaned back into Stede’s arms, sighing happily as Stede dropped a hand to his waist, holding him there. “Can you call me that again?”

“You’re so pretty, Ed,” Stede said, kissing the sensitive skin at the base of Ed’s neck, right where the string of pearls lay. “You deserve to wear whatever you want.”

“I thought you liked me best with nothing on at all,” Ed teased, pressing back into him.

Stede hooked his chin over Ed’s shoulder. “Well, the pearls are a close second.”

He hoped, someday, Ed would know that he could have the nice thing he’d always wanted but had been too scared to enjoy, and understand he wasn’t doomed to break them. He hoped Ed knew that Stede would support him, and help him find the fine things he wanted to wear, clothes and accessories that made him feel good and pretty and like himself.

But, for now, Ed had this lovely string of pearls, and it was a fine thing he knew he could keep.

[figgrrr0]

can i request florist boyfriend!tighnari with a gender neutral reader smut? i don’t really mind the length of it, but maybe ‘nari needs to… “unwind” after dealing unruly customers demanding to see the manager and treating him badly (when in reality, he is… in fact, the manager)

i just think ‘nari is the sweetest boy! he’s so used to taking care of us and giving us gifts, so perhaps it’s time that we take good care of him and shower him with some intimate and loving nighttime indulgences (top!reader x sub!tighnari)? <3

i hope i followed the format correctly :>>

Got a bit carried away, I hope this is what you wanted!

I didn't end up doing any actual penetration, it didn't feel needed with the way I took it! But if you want to see it, feel free to send in another ask and I'll try again! This is my first time writing smut so please be gentle with me!

Want to skip the lead up? Look for the NSFW sign that marks the smut!

Stressful Business

Character: Sub!Tighnari // Reader: Dom!Gn

Genre: Smut // CW: massage, nipple play, handjob, slight biting, praise, pet name "baby" quite a bit, dumbification?

Plot: Yes // Word count: 3.8k

Two long hours. Is that really how long it's been? You double check the clock once more, but it doesn't change what you are now certain that you'd seen a second before.

Tighnari, your competent boyfriend of the past 3 years, has never once been home late from working at the flower shop he owned. Not without warning you of the possibility of such in the morning. But he hadn't done that today. He wasn't supposed to be late.

As much as you know you shouldn't worry about him - don't have to worry about him - you can't help the feeling that something has gone wrong...

'POP!' The gurgling crackle of the overflowing pan you'd left on the stove breaks your tense reverie.

"Oh shit!" You exclaim, before promptly forcing yourself to calm down once you realise it's not as bad as you thought, and move to turn down the heat and place the pan in the sink. You hope the contents haven't burned... that'd make Tighnari's night even worse than it likely already is.

He's been dropping hints lately that he'd been craving a particular dish that you knew him to be fond of: mushroom stew. Mushrooms were his favourite, after all. And, after planning to make it today, you'd kept it a surprise, knowing that regardless of his mood in the evening (right now), the reveal of the food would cheer him up! Hopefully.

You'd just started stirring the pot for a final time, when the front door to your and Tighnari's shared house suddenly opened. Had you been so lost in thought as to not even hear his keys jangling outside? (He often gets his keys out before even trying the handle to see if the door was indeed locked. Because of this, he'd locked himself outside plenty of times before now, and you're certain he'll do it again)

You wait to hear him call out to you as he always does, but his voice never comes. You're relieved that he's home, but now you're more worried as to whether or not he is okay... It's unusual for him not to seek you out first thing after returning home.

"Tighnari? Are you home? I'm in the kitchen!" You say, raising your voice only slightly, knowing that he'll hear it wherever in the house he is. In return, you hear his distinct voice uttering a displeased grumble, followed by a painful sounding hiss. At this, your brows furrow, and a minute later, his arms sneak around your front to hug you from behind, peeking over your shoulder. Turning your face slightly, you greet him with a quick peck on the cheek.

"You making dinner?" He asks simply, his voice holding a barely hidden sigh as he slumps behind you, obviously tired.

"Yeah," is your reply, keeping your voice a bit hushed to not hurt his sensitive ears, what with his extremely close proximity, "are you hungry? You seem a bit off..." He nuzzles his face into your neck, hiding his eyes as he leans on you for support against the counter top.

"Got a headache from work today... I'm not much in the mood to eat right now. Sorry..."

At this, you turn around and tenderly cup his face in your soft hands, making him look you directly in the eyes, wanting to properly convey your next message. "There's no need to apologise, 'Nari. It's okay if you're not feeling well, but I promise you're gonna want what I've made for you." You end, sending a knowing smile his way, and move to start serving the food.

"Go sit at the table, Nari! If you really don't want to eat it, that's okay. We can just heat it up later when you are hungry. Or I can make you an extra 'special' breakfast tomorrow~" Putting some emphasis on the word 'special', you shoot him a wink, to which he huffs and turns around quickly to hide his reddening cheeks, taking a seat at the table behind you, further back in the room. "Well, that's odd..." you think, normally he'd hit right back with some teasing of his own. He must've had a super hard day at the shop.

After a couple minutes of relatively comfortable silence, you break it, eagerly wanting to hear about what kept him away tonight, and brought him home in his testy mood. "Sooo... what happened? Bad day?"

He let out a sad sounding sigh, "To say the least... a few weeks ago, I had a customer come into the store wanting a bouquet comprised of hard-to-get flowers... because they don't grow in Sumeru."

You look over your shoulder as you let out an understanding hum, seeing him rearranging the vase of flowers displayed in the middle of the table. He'd brought them home a few days ago, and even then he'd spent an hour getting them to lay 'perfectly' as he'd said. He was just never satisfied, always having to focus on something. Perhaps that's why he's been getting so stressed recently... he just needs some help taking his mind off things... to relax.

"I told them then that it'd take a couple of weeks for the flowers to be shipped over, and even then, they weren't likely to make the journey healthy enough to survive. But, still, they wanted me to try anyway. Even though it wouldn't likely work." He rolls his eye, adding in an annoyed scoff, " they came in yesterday, and even I was surprised that they looked well; they stood tall, their colours vibrant, no fallen or ripped petals or leaves, and they looked amazing in the bouquet I arranged."

He lifts his head to look you in the eyes, his face softening upon seeing you so interested in his story, despite being busy with the food. "I honestly think it was the best one I've made yet, I would've loved for you to see it." He let's a weary smile make its way onto his face as you approach, holding a bowl of the mushroom stew in each hand, and setting it on the table in both of your places.

Upon realising what the food was, his ears perk up, nose twitching as he took a revering sniff, picking up the spoon you'd laid in front of him at the same time. "Oh, love... you really shouldn't have-"

"Shhh!" You interrupt, "I know what I do and don't have to do, Tighnari. And I know what I want to do for you." You take his hand across the table, gently running your thumb over his knuckles and feeling him soften under your touch. "Now finish your story and eat your dinner."

He gulps, his Adam's apple bobbing in his throat, the flush rising higher on his cheek bones. "Right... uh.. s-so the customer came in this morning to retrieve the bouquet, but then- and this is the most ridiculous complaint I've ever gotten thus far: the flowers weren't the right colour! They never specified a colour!" He threw his arms up I'm the air, still holding the spoon, as if he were still in disbelief. "They said, when they made the order, 'The colour doesn't matter'!"

Though his voice was full of fury, his eyes betrayed him: eyes wide and tearing up, he was blinking quickly in succession to try and bid them away. As he finished, his throat was wracked with barely fought down sniffles, "I spent the last two hours arguing, trying to come to an agreement with them, and eventually I had to make up a new flower arrangement including what we already had in the store..."

You stand up from your seat abruptly, taking your dish and stepping behind Tighnari. As you pass by him, you rest your hand on his shoulder, rubbing his taut muscles through the fabric, "you know that this incident has nothing to do with your skills, right, 'Nari? None of it was your fault. You had no obligation to continue helping that person, but you did because you're a good person. Unlike them." He pushed into your touch, a faint whine forcing its way through him before he could repress it. You could tell be the way that his alert ears pricked up then went slack that he'd liked your response, his inner instincts keening at the venom your voice held towards the rude customer, proud that you'd agreed with him.

Before he can get ahead of himself, you step away into the kitchen, but not before leaning down to press a slow kiss and a nip onto the back of his neck, and whispering next to his ear: "Finish your dinner, Tighnari. Don't keep me waiting too long..."

To which he replies with a barely audible, "Y-yes, Y/N..." with a certain shake in his voice.

Then, you place your bowl on the counter, ready to be washed later, before heading to the bedroom. Opening the door, you look back to see Tighnari shovelling the stew into his mouth, eating almost as quickly as possible, when he then notices you staring at him. He nearly chokes and looks away in embarrassment, covering his face with one hand. At that, you step into the bedroom and close the door behind you. He really can be quite immature, sometimes... as endearing as it is...

...

While undressing yourself and changing into some light sleeping clothes that you knew Tighnari liked, you begin some preparations. It seems as though your dear boyfriend could do with some... stress relief, to say the least. After everything he does: working so hard at the flower shop, being so caring towards you, and even bringing home some flowers every now and then for you, you decide that it's time for you to pay back some of those amassing favours to him...

You start by blowing out the flames of the scented candles around the room, preventing them from disturbing Tighnari's sensitive nose, but still letting their calming scent and effects roam through the air. Then, you go into the bathroom, open a cupboard, and pull out some massage oil and a towel; after touching his shoulder earlier, you knew that his muscles were extremely tense, and you were going to help him with that tonight.

No more than 10 minutes later, Tighnari opens the door, walking into the dimly lit room, the only light being that of the few unscented candles that you'd left burning. His eyes met your own as you sat on the bed, your lips upturned in a welcoming smile as you motioned for him to come closer. He eyed the towel and bottle of lotion next to you with an air of suspicion, then met your eyes again, one of his eyebrows going upwards in a questioning manner.

In response, you sigh and roll your eyes playfully, starting, "I'm giving you a massage, silly." You pat the bed in front of you, urging him to sit on the edge. "C'mon, 'Nari, hop up here and sit down like a good boy!" You knew just how to get the reaction you wanted.

He growled in warning. There it was.

Usually he'd try to put up a bit of a fight when you did this, denying the praise and demeaning acts, declaring that he "hated being treated like a pet!", but you knew better. You knew the truth.

You knew he loved it. And you knew he was too exhausted to play his usual games tonight, that he'd accept and do anything you wanted. Because tonight, he wanted to hear those words.

"Good boy." You let out as barely more than a whisper, voice soft and encouraging as he comes closer, turning around to sit between your thighs, sitting right on the edge of the bed. Just where you want him. "I knew you could do it, 'Nari." He looked back at you over his shoulder, a deceiving glare shadowed his features, but his tail was wagging discreetly. After the years of living with him, of loving him, of playing with him, you knew exactly how to read his reactions.

Not paying any mind to his slightly rude actions, you slowly slide your hands up under his shirt, making him flinch a bit in surprise before he eases into your warm touch. Splaying your fingers flat against his stomach, tracing each curve and line, dragging your nails lightly against the tight skin of his abdomen, you do anything you can to make his breath hitch, to make his chest rise faster and faster, until he can't help but beg you to do more. To touch him more, to give him more. He could be so greedy sometimes, your Tighnari, but you were glad that he was comfortable enough to act that way around you. You wouldn't want him any other way.

"Are you going to take your shirt off for me, baby?" You chuckle softly at his confused expression. During your ministrations, his eyes had drifted closed and his lips had strayed open to let out his content breaths, but upon your arm pulling away, his eyes had shot open, his mouth has slammed shut, and his hand had darted out to grab tight a hold of your receding wrist. "Well how else am I gonna give you a massage, hmm?"

"You could always just give me one through my clothes... or are you not that good?" He smirks at you over his shoulder, the light that can usually be found in his sly eyes finally shining bright again.

"Oh, but then it wouldn't feel as good! And tonight is all about helping you, Tighnari, I want you to relax for me..." You place a hand on his cheek and guide him to face you, giving him a deep kiss. When you pull away, he chases after you, trying to capture your lips with his again. "Do you think you can do that for me?"

He grumbles an answer, and even just from the implied tone you can guess what it meant, but you want to be sure, you want to take care of him and give him what he needs. "I want you to tell me properly, baby. Tell me you want this. Tell me you want what I'm going to give you." You look him in the eyes, imploring him to obey.

And, just like that, he crumbles.

"I want you, I want this, please, Y/N..." He begs, shifting to take off his shirt in a hurry, as if he couldn't possibly wait to feel your hands on him again.

This is how things always go between you and Tighnari; he pretends he doesn't need your help, pretends he will be fine without your touch, when, in reality, he craves it, begs for it with so much as a slight prod or a threat of receiving nothing. He's so easy to read, and yet, still just as fun as when you first met.

As soon as his shirt is peeled from his body, he casts it off into the room, only to be found in the morning, and as soon as it is out of the way, he reaches to grab your arms. You let him, of course. You just can't help giving him what he wants, especially when he's being so open about it, so... needy.

He leads your hands straight to fondle his nipples as he coaches your fingers to play with them just the way he wants, pinching, pulling, flicking and circling them as he groans, whines, whimpers and cries. This is the loudest he's ever been so soon after starting, and you haven't even really done anything yet... maybe you should just let him use you however he wants at some point? Make him tell you exactly what he wants, where he wants it, make him tell you how to do it, as if you don't already know what makes him cum the hardest... and the fastest... let him think he has control, only to make him submit and beg for forgiveness when you refuse to help him anymore, watch as the embarrassment paints his face a deep red as he realises he was giving you what you wanted the entire time... Well. That's for another night, perhaps. Tonight, right now, all your generous, caring boyfriend needs is some loving touches and sweet pleasure.

Once he is certain that your fingers will continue the set rhythm on his perky, pink nipples, Tighnari moves his hands to traverse his own body, surfing across the soft planes of his stomach and thighs, working himself up for you, just as you've taught him before now.

One of your hands moves away from him and to your side, reaching to grab the massage oil you'd planned to use before Tighnari got ahead of himself. He complains about it, but you know this will make it all that much better for him in the end, so you ignore his pitiful questioning whines and shuffles.

You spurt a few small pumps of the oil onto your palms, running them along his body where he'd been stroking himself a few mere seconds ago, giving him more lubrication to warm himself up and provide more pleasure in even the simplest of touches. In addition to this, you begin kissing and nipping his neck, littering bruises and bite marks of different sizes and severity trailing from his jaw down to his shoulders. Each bite earns a high keen from deep within him and a tilt of his head, readily giving you even more access to the surface he so wants you to bite into, to mar and stake your ownership.

"You're such a good boy for me, baby... so, so good. You want me this much? Yeah? Want me to claim you as my own, make you mine and let everyone know?"

He lets out an unabashed moan at that, nodding desperately in agreement, "mhm! W-want you so bad, wanna be yours, wanna be your- mmh! Y-your good boy!"

Leaving his hard nipples lonely before they become uncomfortable sensitive from your teasing, you smooth your fingers along his strong, slender shoulders, pressing into the crevices and rubbing in the oil, continuing the massage that he was so ready to forget and push past, wanting to skip straight to the main act. But, as you've come to learn, while Tighnari loves to care for you and your well being, he can be quick to forego his own. Well, you're going to show him right now, that taking care of himself can feel amazing. Starting with a massage.

You press and grind into all of his muscles, slowing the frantic pace that he has set for himself. He cries out, upset that you're teasing him further, but he quickly shuts up when you pull lightly on the base of his tail.

"Shush, baby. Trust me here... it'll feel good."

You gradually work your way down, following after his own hands in their wanton display of lust, feeling out the tense knots in his muscles and working them beneath your insistent fingers and the lubricant oil until the stresses on his body yield and he sighs and moans in relief. You work his abs, his arms, his thighs, all the way to the top, where you pull away just before making it to where he wants you most.

He breaks.

"Pl- hah! Please! Please Y/N, touch me! I'll be such a good boy! I need it so bad!" He sobs, crystalline tears finally falling, begging as he shakes under your calm gaze.

"Awh, 'Nari... there's no need to cry, baby... you know I'll always give you what you want, right? I just want to take care of you first."

You press your lips against his again to take his mind off of it, pushing your tongue into his mouth when he gasps. For a few seconds, he tries to take control, pushing against your tongue and attempting to set the pace, but he quickly learns that he much prefers when you take the lead, letting his spit swap and mix with yours as your tongues slide against each other, swallowing each other's noises.

Again, you uncap the oil bottle, spilling a generous drizzle onto your open hand, and take it to his ready and aching cock. Instantly, as your hand wraps around him, the clear oil mixes with milky white, precum drooling from his sobbing slit. He mewls at the touch, unconsciously bucking his hips up into the wet, tight heat enveloping his cock head. One hand slipping over his hard cock over and over again, and the other swapping between each nipple, giving them both equal attention, you proceed to kiss him at the same time, nipping his lips with each pullback for breath. You're overwhelming his senses, making him feel so much more, and even the lewd 'shlik shlik shlik' that resounds around the room only serves to make him shudder and whine and beg for more.

"Please, please- Ahhn~ Please~!" Is the constant moan streaming from his mouth, as if there were a dam inside of him that could no longer be contained.

Just from his erratic mannerisms you knew he was close: the tightening of his hands on your thighs, the shaking of his legs as they hang over the side of the bed, his ears twitching and tail jerking faster and faster.

"Cum for me, baby. It's okay, just relax... let it all out..."

As soon as the words are out of your mouth, he stiffens, a silent cry forcing his lips wide, tiny squeals of his voice intermittently ringing out when his throat loosens enough to let them escape.

Still, as he's coming down from the high of it all, you continue to stroke his now sensitive cock until he begins shaking, and his face scrunches in displeasure. Only then, do you release him, guiding him to lay back comfortably in the pillows of the bed.

5 minutes later, after a short break and a continued massage all the way up both legs, -which he did, admittedly, enjoy- Tighnari leans up onto his elbows, staring down at you in your position between his thighs.

"Uh.. mmm.... do you.. -I mean, should I return the favour? Can I make you feel good? Or is that not allowed?"

Ah. It'd seem as though he's beginning to regain his wits enough to start being snarky again, accompanied with that signature little smirk he always wears when he's proud of himself. Seems the shock to his senses was just what he needed.

Maybe he could do with some more.

Want to send a request/brainrot with me? Check my rules!

Thank you for reading! 🩷

[cal-daisies-and-briars]

LETS GET THEM MARRIED ⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️

HELL YEAH!

144 for ⚡️:

---

“Thank you,” Buck tells him when he breaks the kiss. “For talking sense into me.”

Eddie lays back down next to him.

“You want to know what I was thinking?” 

“What?” Buck asks. 

“How would Hen handle you?” 

Buck bursts out laughing. “Fewer kisses and sweet remarks, I think.”

“Well, okay. It’s a modified version.”

☆☆☆

Bobby knocks on their door before they even have a chance to eat breakfast. Which is bad, because no one has had coffee and Buck slept terribly. But good, because it can only mean that something has happened. 

“I have a venue for you,” Bobby announces, grinning smugly, as Eddie hands him a mug of coffee. Like Buck’s insistence one couldn’t be found was a challenge he could personally overcome.

Buck blinks. “Wh-what? How?”

“I stayed up late calling Department contacts,” Bobby explains. “They got me in touch with the LAFD Historical Society.”

“Historical Society?” Eddie asks, dubious. “Are we getting married in a classroom?”

Bobby smirks. Oh, he is enjoying Eddie’s doubt. Damn. 

“Why, yes, Eddie.” He says, delighted. “The same Historical Society that operates the LAFD Museum in Hollywood.”

Buck ‘s jaw drops so quickly Eddie’s afraid it’s going to fall off. 

“No,” he gasps. 

Bobby grins. “Yes.” 

“A museum?” Eddie asks.

“Bobby, that’s the coolest thing I’ve ever heard!” Buck practically squeals.

“A firefighting museum?” Eddie asks again. 

“Yes, Eddie!” Buck says, a little shortly. Like he’s miffed Eddie isn’t also trembling with excitement. “You know this museum! I’ve taken Chris.”

Right. Because Eddie remembers every nerdy thing they’ve ever done without him.

“Yes,” he says anyway. “Of course.”

“Bobby, how?” Buck asks. “And can we afford it?”

“Well, that’s the best part,” Bobby says. “It’s free.”

“Free?” Eddie asks. Fuck nerdy. This museum sounds great. 

“Free,” Bobby repeats. 

“How is that possible?” Buck asks.

“Okay,” Bobby’s expression switches to nervous for the first time. “So I might have milked it a little. Heroic queer firefighting couple who have been shot, crushed, and struck by lightning for this Department, only to have to put out the fire at their venue days before their own wedding…”

“Oh my god,” Eddie mumbles.

“Yes!” Buck exclaims. “Wax poetic about us! We deserve it!”

Eddie thinks this is truly something Buck would only ever say under the pressures of wedding stress. 

Bobby chuckles. “So it’s free. For your service to the city.”

That’s… That’s actually pretty fucking cool? Not that he’s ever thought of them as a heroic queer firefighting couple before. Whatever. He’ll take it for the hundred percent discount. 

“Bobby,” Buck says, eyes tearing up. “Oh my god.”

Bobby smiles triumphantly. “I had a feeling you’d like it.”

“It’s like… It’s like the coolest thing ever.” 

In that moment, Eddie thinks Bobby looks more like a dad trying hard to impress his kid more than he’s ever seen. He knows that exact feeling. Like you’d do anything, move a fucking mountain with your bare hands, just to see your kid smile. Damn it. Why don’t those two just call this what it is? They’re worse than Buck and Eddie were. 

“I’m happy it’s a good substitute,” Bobby says.

“Are you kidding? It’s better!” Buck proclaims.

Bobby grins.

Eddie feels a profound sense of relief. A restaurant wedding is more his style than a museum wedding, to be honest. But Buck had been so distraught. Seeing him this excited? That feels like a supreme win. 

“Thank you, Bobby,” Eddie says. “Seriously. I can’t believe it’s even available at such short notice.”

“Yeah, I couldn’t either,” Bobby admits. “Funny thing… There was a big birthday party there, but it got canceled. Same day. Life’s funny like that, I guess.”

The thought crosses Eddie’s mind without permission.

 It’s meant to be. 

Oh. Oh, boy. He’s not used to having thoughts like that. But it feels true, doesn’t it? That Buck would get this sort of dream venue, instead of nothing? 

Eddie feels a strange emotion overcome him. 

“Wow,” Buck says. “Okay. Amazing! We just have to get decorations and stuff sorted, then. Right?”

Another smug smile from Bobby.

“Your sisters are already on the job.” 

🗲🗲🗲

The night before their wedding, they go out with their families for a nice dinner. They didn’t want to do the whole big wedding week of preparations. Mainly the expenses. So they’re not having a proper rehearsal dinner. Just a dinner they booked months ago at a place that serves handmade pasta that Buck personally thinks is to die for. 

He’s feeling a lot more relaxed about everything. Or, less catastrophic anyway. As excited as he is for the museum, he’s still nervous that it’s not what they’d planned. That he doesn’t have a clear image in his brain. That things need to be delivered to a new address. But overall, he thinks he somehow scored the coolest wedding ever. 

Well, not somehow. Bobby. Bobby did that for them. Buck and Eddie would have never thought of it. Or have the necessary connections, likely. 

Buck finds himself watching Bobby a fair amount during that dinner. He’s chatting easily with Eddie’s father. Saying something that makes Ramon laugh. Across the table, Buck can’t quite hear it.