#camp koala

[vladstocker]

You'll be missed Camp Koala 😭😭

[kombination-of-lifes]

[greypetrel]

❄️ and ⛅️ please! (And hello! C:)

Hi Mo, thank you!!

Ok, the second was difficult, I'll admit... Particularly because I'm overtly critical of my work and if you ask me what's my favourite piece I've drawn/written, I'll always answer "the next one".

Buuuut... Let's try it.

First is from next chapter, it's the one light moment of it and I am still considering whether to keep it. I quite like the dialogue in this too, I think.

Second, under the cut, is from Chapter 28 in Monster Fic, if you want to avoid the spoiler... But yeah I got a thing for Aisling and Radha quarrelling, they just hit each other the best.

❄️Share a snippet from a WIP of your choosing.

The same Dorian who is now skimpering back in the light of the camp, shoulders at ear level and a high-pitched whine in his throat, making a bee-line for Aisling with the air of a person who just stepped in something extremely unpleasant.

She’s sitting cross legged in front of the fire, consulting maps and tracing courses with Radha and Cassandra, and doesn’t need to be told anything by the Altus to shift around and spread her legs, outstretching her arms as if it was the most normal things in the world. By the way no one reacts to the scene, it could as well be. Dorian sits down heavily amidst them, with confidence surely dued to a friendship Cullen never really notice just how close-knitted was until now. Oh, he was told, but seeing them was different.

“What am I looking for?”

“I put my face in a spiderweb and I’m sure the fucking spider is still there. Please take it away, please.”

He sounds extremely distressed, his voice is higher, and the elf doesn’t wait to get to work, giggling as behind her Radha huffs and Cassandra lets out a disgusted noise just for show.

“I’m sure there’s nothing!” Aisling coos, fingers threading in his hair nevertheless, eyes kin on his head as she separates locks from locks.

“There is, I can feel it crawling!” He insists, shivering.

“And women are the weaker sex.” Cassandra snorts, but there’s amusement in her face, lips quirking upward as she observes the two, everyone taking it as a pause from the activities.

“I am sorry I wasn’t cut from stone as you and I mind having something with too many legs and too many eyes taking a walk on my head!” Dorian quips, piqued.

“Give Sparklers a break, Seeker, he had to peel his own grapes today, he needs to relax from so much exhertion!” Varric adds in, a laughter in his tone, and met suddenly with another disgusted noise.

“You should keep the spider, it’ll weave its web in your hair and you will stop complaining about mosquitoes.” Radha adds, moving a compass on the map and noting some numbers on a piece of paper, lips quirked up in a smile.

Aisling turns to pout at her, reproach in her eyes as her fingers keep working. It’s quick, just the time for her sister to notice and raise one eyebrow at her and the mage is back to the task.

“You all are not helping!” She complains, but there’s no real bitterness in her tone.

“Come on Lucky, we are! He’s not crying, look at him!”

“Of course he’s not, because there is no-” And with that she stops, eyes growing big and fingers stopping.

The whole of the party stops to look at her, expecting, making Dorian noticing and starting to pale considerably.

“What? What??” He asks, frantic, patting the outside of Aisling’s thigh with a purpose to make her talk.

“It’s… Ah, it’s nothing! I got distracted noticing just how much hair do you have and how thick it is…” Aisling quips back, grimacing as she picks something from the back of Dorian’s head with her right hand and retreats the hand keeping it as far from her body as she can. Her left keep on ruffling his hair in circular motions. “… and I hate you for that, you’re truly despicable. And there’s no spider here.”

She grew better at lying, even if her voice is cracking a little… As she looms with concern at the big fat hairy spider she is holding from a thick leg between her index and thumb. The creature is still alive, weaving all the legs around with a vengeance, and from the colour it’s easy to guess it’s not just any spider: it’s bright red and black, very visible and shiny in the firelight. She shakes her hand and glares at Radha without saying anything: but everything is apparently enough for the elf to understand, since she raises up the piece of paper she was writing onto so that the spider can be let fall on it. Briskly and minding to keep the paper well away from her body and the spider still on it, the rogue raises up and walks away from the camp, as silent as a mouse with her bare feet. Cassandra grimaces at the show, understanding it was something venomous, and Varric can’t contain chortling under his breath. Which instantly trips Dorian off even if Aisling returned to ruffle his hair, now mindlessly, with both hands.

🌤️Share your favorite piece of dialogue from your WIP.

“What do you want? How much will you ask until you believe we love and care for you, that you’ve been one of ours from the start, it never mattered that you weren’t born with us, and that we won’t abandon you, that we’re your family? How much more, Aisling?”

This is a low hit, and the lowest she could go. Aisling tho, refuses to cry.

“Do you think it’s easy for me?”

“I think it’s not as difficult as it should be, if at the first impediment you just run away.”

“I’m not running away. You don’t understand. You can’t understand.”

“What now? I can go back but you don’t? It sounds like nothing we did has ever mattered!”

“I can’t go back!” Aisling yells, stomping her foot and unwillingly willing the flames to burn hotter and more.

Radha steps back, hissing through her nose and avoiding the fire lapping forward. A moment, and she goes back to face her, unbothered by the outburst and just glaring at her.

“I don’t know who convinced you of this, but-”

“You know it too. I will never be able to go back, I will…” She snorts, tossing her arms to the side. “The Inquisition will never let me go. I won’t ever be able to leave because I have this-” She shows the Anchor, pouring a little bit of magic into it, just enough to have it glow green. “- and so I am needed here.”

“You could resign. Step back. You hate politics.”

“Yes, and then what?” She laughs, mirthlessly. “There’ll arrive another crazy overlord searching for this mark, and the clan won’t be able to stand the tide. I’m stepping back from them because it’s the only sensible thing I can do. Do you really think what happened in Wycome won’t happen again? Or that the next time it will all go smoothly as this one? Do you?”

[base0h]

HOW HAIKYUU CHARACTERS WOULD REACT TO YOU COMPLIMENTING ANOTHER PLAYER

a/n - I’m alive I swear 💀 I just rewatched some of haikyuu so I’m more familiar with that rn 😂😂

warnings ⚠️ - g/n reader, fluff/crack, pre-timeskip characters btw, I don’t feel like making picture banners for all of them like I do with one piece forgive me for just putting text 🥲

HINATA

- yeah you just broke your bro’s heart into a billion pieces

- remember that time when he got nailed in the crotch by a ball in S4? Yeah that’s what it felt like

- “Isn’t he so cool Hinata?!” -you

- but he’s also torn because he also thinks they’re awesome af 😭 so he can’t decide if he’s more saddened by the fact that you’re not saying that about him or if he’s excited that you also like one of his idols

- “…Yes he’s— very cool.” -hinata

- “…You do know my fav player’s always gonna be you though right?”

- oh you don’t even KNOW. How happy you just made him. You just turned his life around with just a single sentence

- bro could burst through the ceiling now

- he basically smothered you with a hug after that and did one of those koala hugs where he was basically just clinging onto you with pure adoration and affection

- it’s one thing if some random other student or little kid came up to him saying he was cool— like don’t get me wrong he’d probably freak out in a good way about that too

- but when it comes from you? He could have all haters but if he still had you? He’s totally fine. All bro needs is your support

- but do be careful because he might actually suffocate you one day if you compliment him too much

- each time you say something good about him his hugs get stronger?? If that’s even possible idk 😭

- you’ll have a great free chiropractor tho so woo hoo😁👍

GOSHIKI

- bro has a thing for getting compliments or getting praise. I saw it VERY clearly when Hinata gave him that compliment about his spikes during the shiratorizawa training camp

- and then when Tendo said his bangs were cool bro was so happy 😭 (he’s so sweet oml)

- but of course when you watch his matches— I mean— you’re gonna be impressed by ushijima

- who wouldn’t be? Bros a literal nuclear bomb ahh spiker 💀

- after one of his matches you went up to him and started talking about ushijima and how cool his spikes and serves were

- “I feel like he’s gonna literally pop the ball everytime he hits it! It’s awesome!” -you

- he agrees wholeheartedly with you! But— man. He wanted you to say that about him 😭

- “Yeah— he’s amazing right..?” -him

- “He’s a third year right?”

- Goshiki nodded and scratched the back of his head sheepishly, looking a bit down

- “Oh so he’s just clearing the way for you then! There can only be one ace so he’s gotta move out of the way for you.”

(I couldn’t find the proper meme to put here so here’s the actual screenshot of him)

- bro could ascend

- he could die right then and there

- but then he remembered he has to show off for you still so he stayed on earth

- ushijima heard you say that btw

- it looked like he wanted to murder you but in reality he thought it was very nice of you to say that to lift goshiki’s spirits

- he just— looks like he wants to crush you and send you to mars 💀

- also Tendo makes fun of him for being so happy about being praised

- “HAHAHAHAH— you LOVE it when y/n ever tells you something positive about you huh~??” -tendo

- yeah no he’s not gonna leave your poor bowl cut boy alone about it now

BOKUTO

- like the other two, he’s big on praise

- I mean before every match the manager tells him someone in the audience said he looks cool so he plays better 😭😭

- having you supporting him at his matches is like having an entire stadium full of people cheering his name

- you make Akaashi’s life less stressful. Good job y/n, Akaashi loves you for that and will legit pay you money to keep coming even though he knows he doesn’t have to. He’s that grateful for you

- I ain’t kidding one time Akaashi just started tearing up thanking you for being his fail safe plan if his 2000000 other plans to get Bokuto out of his emo mode don’t work

- he knows just like one compliment from you will cure Bokuto

- yeah so guess what you had to go and say right before a match started?

- “I just saw itachiyama play and wow that Sakusa guy who’s one of the top 3 spikers was just as good as they said he was!” -you

- akaashi might just do a backflip off of the stadium roof at this point 🙂 hardcore parkour

- the way you could literally see Bokuto’s hair droop down is insane

- konoha and sarukui were like: holy shit we’re absolutely cooked 😀

- this wasn’t an emo mode this was an avant garde mode

- but right as Akaashi was about to seriously jump off the roof, you saved everyone from the disaster you created

- “I don’t know why you’re not in the top three though, imo you’re a lot better than that guy, and a lot cooler looking too.”

- Akaashi looked like he was gonna live again

- Bokuto’s hair flipped back upwards and he excitedly smiled at you, giving you a big hug before going onto the court with an ecstatic air about him

- Akaashi is genuinely terrified of how you can simultaneously destroy their team and bring it back together with singular sentences

- you’re Bokuto’s weakness number 38 which akaashi does not have a solution for 💀

AKAASHI

- Akaashi is honestly happy you’re just with him

- he doesn’t really mind it if you can’t come to see him play, of course he’d love for you to be there but he totally understands if you can’t, and won’t be destroyed about it

- he loves your support and will always appreciate you for cheering him on (and being his mental support because taking care of Bokuto is life draining and he probably gets about a month taken off of his life everytime Bokuto goes into his emo mode)

- during the match with nekoma, you noticed how the setter on their team was also quite an intelligent and skilled player despite seeming so bored and uninterested in the sport entirely

- he had a hold on Bokuto for a good while and it was impressive how he managed to put Bokuto in a slump so smoothly and discreetly

- after the match, you congratulated fukurodani on their victory, and akaashi thanked you for coming like the gentleman bro is

- “That setter on nekoma was really good— he was so calculating and calm about his strategy to make Bokuto go into a slump!” -you

- Akaashi was still a bit traumatized by Bokuto literally forgetting how to do cross shots entirely so uh— 😀

- yeah it didn’t really sound great to him

- bro had to pull out a whole ass speech plus hinata to get Bokuto back on his feet and then you say that 🥲

- he isn’t mad or anything but he isn’t very overjoyed either

- “Yes, he was a really tough opponent. Kuroo-san was too.” -Akaashi

- Akaashi was good at hiding his displeasure, so it just sounded like he was saying something normal like he usually would, in a straight steady tone

- “No match for you and the team though, you guys definitely deserved the win. And you actually look interested and not like you want to die on the court unlike that setter on nekoma— he looked like he wanted to collapse and sleep forever after the first set.”

- he wasn’t expecting you to say that, and he looked pleasantly surprised

- Bokuto grinned and put his arm around the setter

- “Y/n’s right as always, Kenma’s no match for akaashi!” -Bokuto

- the rest of the team wholeheartedly agreed, and akaashi felt glad, happy to know that his team, and especially you thought so highly of him

- no one else could handle Bokuto like he could, and no one could be as cool in your eyes as he was

- you could probably tell him his glasses looked nice and he would never take them off again—

- he’s the type of guy to listen to whatever you say a bit too much sometimes 😭

- he legit remembers the outfit you wore the day he first met you

- kinda creepy but sweet ig? 🤷

OIKAWA

- bro has a billion fans and only really cares abt you cheering him on

- like ofc he needs other people to be cheering him on too because he’s extra like that but it’s 80% you

- don’t ask abt the 20%

- yk how all those girls were asking for his picture and stuff? Ever since he got together with you, he’s been avoiding them a lot more

- he knows it’s probably especially annoying for you to see a bunch of random people asking your boyfriend for pictures and giving him handmade things

- just know that he thinks you’re better than any girl combined and if you ever like start walking away before he’s finished trying to get the girls away from him he will legit sprint after you while screaming

- “Y/N-CHAN WAAAAAAAAAIT!!!”

- my dude is running, and I mean running like a mf track star. You piss off his fangirls so much bro it’s so funny how they look at you like they want to poison you in your sleep💀💀💀

- he reassures you on the daily that you’re beautiful and amazing, but still it’s annoying to see all the girls fawn over him

- so you decided to give him a similar taste of his own medicine

- at the next matches, you were watching with him a match with karasuno and shiratorizawa. You know VERY well that he does not like karasuno or shiratorizawa

- ushijima is probably the one who’s the worst…

- perfect.

- “Whoa Ushijima’s serves are so cool!! And he uses his left hand too damn that’s unique! I’ve never seen a left handed player like him before, and those spikes look like they’re about to tear karasuno’s blocker’s arms off!” -you

- I don’t think he’s ever been more simultaneously heart broken, and pissed at ushijima at the same time before

- he’s such a baby about it too

- he’ll cross his arms and act like he doesn’t care when obviously he does, and with the way he’s pouting about it like a little kid was proof that your little plan worked very well

- “Hmph, I guess so.” -him

- “What, you salty since you lost?” -you

- “Would you mind not rubbing salt in it? It’s only been like two days!”

- you couldn’t help but burst out into laughing because of how upset he was by this— it was ridiculous

- if you had your phone out you would’ve taken a picture of his face and sent it to iwaizumi for shits and giggles

- “I’m joking Oikawa, I think you’re much cooler than ushijima. You have a lot more personality than him.” -you

- “That’s damn right I do!” -him

- “…I didn’t say a good personality or anything.”

- “Pardon me?! I’m very demure and cute thank you very much.”

- “You saying that just proves you’re anything but that.”

- “Y/N BE NICE TO ME :(“

- “No. :)”

- “I knew I shouldn’t have let you hang out with Iwa-chan, he’s turned you against me!”

KUROO

- you’re the carbon to his dioxide

- the hydrogen to his peroxide

- the deoxyribose to his phosphate group (I paid attention in science kuroo, yw)

- even if he doesn’t get to be interviewed by some reporter, and even if he doesn’t get to go to nationals

- if you’re there and supporting him he feels better

- talking to you and hearing you say how cool he plays is more than an interview could ever mean to him

- seriously you make him chemically insane

- like he does not understand how just being around you releases endorphins somehow (you’re magical)

- you had heard of their opponents nohebi from eavesdropping on a couple of random people’s conversations in the lobby

- they were a strong team, and you were intrigued by how a lot of people seemed to dislike them a lot for the way they played.. which was very underhanded

- but even with their underhanded tactics, they were a solid team with good technique and teamwork

- “Whoa the captain of nohebi is actually pretty good!” -you

- “Ugh I know right? Come on nekoma!” -Akane (Yamamoto’s little sister)

- I feel like kuroo has horrible eyesight but then absolutely amazing hearing? Idk 💀 but whatever the case was, he heard that

- loud and clear

- mhm he’s ready to kill nohebi now

- bro is legit a one man Great Wall of china now

- he’s “powered up” as Kenma would say

- Kenma took note that you were kuroo’s power up skill, and would remember to use you in the future as well

- I’m serious bro is flexing so hard on you rn 😭

- he is working double time, sweating, tryna channel his inner Bokuto

- yaku hasn’t needed to save the ball because kuroo’s trying so hard to impress you 💀

- honestly it’s kind of amazing— seeing him sprinting left and right and slamming balls down like it was no one’s business but his

- he checks like every five seconds to see if you’re watching his amazing skills

- and after the match— Kenma went up to you first and thanked you bc Kuroo did like 70% of the work for him 😭

- Kenma legit gave you a Nintendo gift card he’s had in his back pocket since 2019 as a thank you gift and as a “please continue making kuroo do all the work” gift

- god knows how it’s stayed in his pants that have probably been through countless wash cycles 💀

- “Oh kuroo! Fukunaga’s last spike was so cool! He totally hit that line shot perfectly!”

- way to stab kuroo in the back 🥲 he’s legit about to collapse from emotionally throwing out his back

- old man down over here

- he was so destroyed— you left no piece of him intact he’s in literal shambles

- “But kuroo you were so cool! You kept blocking and repelling the balls like you were oppositely charged from the ball!”

- and he’s alive again, you’re a magician

- complimenting him using a science reference?

- oh just marry him already 😭

- he knew you must just be dopamine bc he smiles like an idiot whenever you’re around

- somehow his smile gets even dorkier when you compliment him

- if it’s a science compliment he could quite literally ascend to the moon

- “Hehe thanks y/n.” -him

- “Were you tryna show off in the last set?” -you

- “…Why? Did it work?”

- “…Hm. Perhaps hypothetically, yes.”

- “How does one go about making that hypothesis a true statement? 😏”

- kuroo is so nerdy and his pickup lines are so bad that it just takes whatever smoothness he had (very little to start with btw) away 😭😭😭

- like pls when he first met you when yall were paired up to do a science project about magnetism— bro said

- “Even Neodymium would lose if it were to compete against your magnetic personality 😏🌹”

- “…What? 💀” -you

- you weren’t really sure if you should love bro for his effort or be scared of how bad his pickup lines were

- the answer is both

- it all ended up ok anyways— you’re bonded to him together since yall are oppositely charged ✌️

a/n - no I don’t know how to make pickup lines 💀

[13uswntimagines]

Eras of Us- Era 3: Ugh Oh, I'm Falling in Love (Taylor Swift X Morgan!Reader)

Eras of Us master list

This is the Era where they're falling in love, learning more about each other, and how to navigate their relationships with their friends and families.

warning- Sexual content in this chapter.

Author's note: Hey everyone, i'm so sorry this took so long. theres just a lot of stuff in this chapter that i really wanted to get right. I hope you enjoy it! let me know what you think. comments are literally my favorite thing.

February 2017 'Cause you could be the one that I love I could be the one that you dream of

As it turned out, being Taylor’s girlfriend was far easier than you imagined it would be. It wasn’t all that much different than when the two of you were just friends, actually. 

You two still texted continuously, now each message was dotted with a heart or a little kiss. You two still talked on the phone all of the time, though you had developed a bad habit of falling asleep on late-night calls with her. 

The only thing that had really changed was that now the photos you sent her were slightly more… suggestive on purpose. 

And now you actually got to kiss her, which was fun, except you had barely seen her since you two started dating. 

Between the holidays and dealing with your shitty agent about yet another fucked up trade, you hadn’t had time to fly to her, and she had been tied up with her family and recording her new album to fly to you. But the two of you made due (ie falling asleep on the phone with her nearly every night). 

It still sucked you wouldn’t get to see her until after January camp. At least you only had 1 more game to play in. 

“Hurry up you two,” Rose called over her shoulder, idly swinging Emily’s hand next to her. 

You groaned, adjusting your grip on Mal’s legs as her arms squeezed more tightly around your neck. “It’s not my fault this koala demanded a piggyback ride,” 

Mal had been insanely clingy since the start of camp, draping herself all over you at every opportunity. It wasn’t something you noticed at first, but it had become so constant, that it was beginning to grate on your patience. 

Especially after she interrupted you every time you tried to talk to Taylor. The only moment you had gotten alone was at 3 am, and you had been too drowsy to do more than stare at her. 

“I’m not that heavy ducky,” Mal hugged, pinching your ear. 

“No, but it’s been like 2 miles,” You huffed, tilting your head away from her, and picking up your pace so you were even with Rose and Emily. 

Emily rolled her eyes at you. “And whose fault is that?” 

You shrugged as much as you could with Mal on your back. “Cheney said they have the best mochas,”

“And it’ll make it very hard for Alex to beat you this week,” Rose snorted, gesturing towards the shiny watch on your wrist. “If you’re gonna make us take a hike to a coffee shop, you should at least be honest with why we’re taking it,” 

“She should be more active in her rest time,” You said, earning another eye roll as the four of you finally made it to the cafe Cheney had mentioned when you talked to her over the holidays. 

It was just a bonus that Alex would need to find 4 extra exercise miles to match you in her stupid little app. It’s what she had done to you with Kelley’s family’s stupid 10 mile Christmas morning hike after all. You had to go on a beach run to make up for it. 

“Or maybe you should be less competitive,” Emily grumbled, holding the door open for you and Mal to walk through. Her gaze stayed glued out the door even after you stepped through. 

You rolled your eyes. “And what fun would that be?” 

You dropped Mal’s legs as you got in line next to Rose, and she landed on her feet, but she didn’t let go of your neck like you had hoped she would.

“We would be behind in the practice scrimmages against the vets too,” You added as you turned your attention to the menu above the cashier. 

There weren’t any… normal drinks. They all had fancy names, so you had to read the description to figure out what the fuck it was. You sighed internally, deciding that you absolutely shouldn’t have listened to Cheney, because long complicated descriptions like delectable dark roast, mixed with Dutch hand-made chocolate ganache, and essence of citrus aurantium topped with creamy dreamy whipped cream and powdered orange blossoms: written out in small, tight together cursive was going to take you forever to decipher. 

Especially with the way all the L’s and E’s kept flipping places, and how Mal kept shifting your entire body each time she moved. 

You were going to have a headache by the time you actually made it through the menu. 

“Ok, those guys are totally following us,” 

You blinked in the direction of Emily’s voice, and away from the migraine-inducing menu. You followed her hand to where she was pointing at two men wearing aviators sitting at a stable near the back of the café. 

The one facing you was older, with dark salt and pepper hair, wearing a leather jacket, while the other was younger and blonde with his back to you. 

It made you roll your eyes again. 

Tony and Zach had been your shadows since you and Taylor started dating. You saw them outside your apartment building in Chicago, and ran into them everywhere you went, even when you attended a Bears game against the Chiefs. 

You could tell that they were trying to be discrete since you had brought up the issue with Taylor the first week you noticed them, but it was still annoying that she wouldn’t budge on her stance. 

“I’ll take care of it,” You grumbled, carefully untangling yourself from Mal’s grasp, ignoring the high-pitched whine she let out at being displaced. “Just order me the closest thing to a mocha please,” 

At least now you didn’t have to read the menu.��

You ignored the feeling of their eyes on your back as you walked up to the table your two bodyguards were sitting at, knocking on the wood when you were close enough. “I thought I made it clear that I don’t need a babysitter,”

“I prefer the term watchman,” Tony hummed, barely even looking at you. 

Zach nodded. “Watchmen is a much better term,” 

You glared at the blonde man, before turning back to Tony. “I prefer that you don’t follow me around and creep out my friends,” 

Tony paused, lifting a finger to shift his aviators down to the end of his nose so he could peer at you over the rim of them. “We’ll try to be more discreet,” 

You shook your head. “No. You will stop following me,” 

“Can’t. Bosses orders,” Tony shrugged, readjusting his aviators back over his eyes. “And frankly, the team doesn’t have enough security,” 

Your glare deepened. “Because no one knows who the fuck we are,” 

“Still, I shouldn’t have been able to get your room number from the front desk receptionist,” He countered. “or have Zach get into the changing room at the practice field,”

“Normal people don’t do that shit,” You grit back.

His point proved nothing. 

No fan was trying to sneak into your locker room to leave notes in your cubby and no other people had interest in your room number. 

Sure, the note and the peanut butter cookies Taylor had delivered to your room were cool, but two men staking out every place you went certainly was not. Not when Emily wouldn’t shut up about your mysterious friend being in the mob because now you had people following you. 

She couldn’t give up on the angle, going so far that even Mal was annoyed with her. 

You had been annoyed 5 weeks ago when she brought the idea up for the first time during New Year's when she spotted them after you came out of a fried chicken place in Atlanta. 

Tony sighed, fixing his leather jacket.“If you're really insistent about this, you know who you need to take it up with. Otherwise, I think Ms. Sonnett, Ms. Pugh, and Ms. Lavelle have finished ordering,” 

It irritated you that he always referred to your friends so formally, even if he had never met them. 

“I will,” You grit out, already pulling your phone out of your pocket. “Because you two are ridiculous,” 

Tony made a face, dipping his aviators to peer at you again. “And Taylor is ridiculous for caring about your safety?”

You opened and closed your mouth several times. That wasn’t fair. 

Tony slid his glasses back into place as a waitress brought them 2 coffees. 

Your jaw clenched and you didn’t your best not to glare at the smug way he sipped the steaming glass. You hadn’t even seen them order. 

“Your friends have chosen a table,” He hummed, tilting his head to where Emily, Mal, and Rose were all staring at you with wide eyes. 

“This isn’t the end of this conversation,” You muttered, grabbing one of the 3 chocolate chip cookies that had been delivered with their coffee. 

“We will try to be more discreet,” Zach said, passing you a napkin. 

You took a bite of your cookie. “You better,” 

“We’ll do our best,” Tony chuckled, gesturing towards your friends with his chin again. “Go enjoy your overly fancy coffee,”

You made a low noise, turning on your heel and heading back over to your friends, who were overtly staring at the men now. 

“You’re in the mob right?” Emily asked before you were even fully seated in the chair next to Mal. 

You didn’t reply, instead breaking the cookie into 3 and passing the larger part to Rose for her and Emily to share and the other to Mal, who was already wrapping herself around you again. 

“Emily stop,” The forward whined loudly in your ear as she took the cookie. 

“Oh come on, just answer the question,” Emily said, her lips pulling into a teasing grin. “it’s totally obvious,”

“I’m not in the mob,” You grumbled, taking a sip of your coffee and frowning. 

You liked mochas, they were your go-to order, but this one had caramel in it, and was far too sweet. You would drink it anyway though, because one of your friends had paid for it. 

Rose leaned forward in her chair, resting crossed arms on the table in front of her conspiratorially. “Then why was our coffee already paid for?”

You frowned, your cup hitting the table with a low thud. “What?”

“I gave them my name and she said someone had already paid for us,” Rose said, her voice low. 

Your eyebrows pulled more tightly together. “Who?”

“Someone named Athena,” Rose wiggled her eyebrows at you, and you rolled your eyes. 

It had been Taylor. Of course, it was her, she had even sent the goons she had following you coffees and an extra cookie. 

Of course that was the name Taylor used. 

She had been making fun of her nickname since she found out that it was her contact name in her phone, and you blushed through your explanation that she was a goddess and the smartest person you knew. 

“See, totally a mob boss name,” Emily said accusingly, gesturing wildly with her hands. “who else would call themselves Athena,”

You were afraid that if you rolled your eyes again they would fall out of your head, so you refrained. 

No matter how good it would have felt. 

You pulled away from Mal and wrestled your phone out of your pocket. You flipped to your messages, ignoring the one aptly named Athena for now, opening the thread you shared with Alex to get it to stop buzzing. 

Alexandria🐬: Did you have to walk to a coffee shop across the city? Haven’t you ever heard of an Uber?

MiniMorgs: Wanted to get some fresh air, and Cheney recommended it

Alexandria🐬: More like you wanted to win this week’s challenge. Was it worth the walk?

MiniMorgs: I didn’t have to read the overly complicated menu, so yes. #dyslexic problems

Alexandria🐬: LoL. Maybe we should get you yellow-tinted glasses to help with that

MiniMorgs: Whatever. Good luck catching up on miles

Alexandria🐬:🖕🏻

Another coffee cup landed in front of you with a clink, and you blinked up from your phone at the waitress. 

You frowned up at her. “Ugh, thanks?” 

You hadn’t ordered another coffee. 

“The person who paid for your order also asked us to make an extra mocha, no caramel, no whipped cream, and no sweetening syrup,” The young girl explained quickly, her hands fidgeting in front of her. “it also comes with a heart and a little winky face,” 

“Oh, thanks,” You sent her a genuine smile, the dimple on your left cheek poking out just a bit. 

She blushed.

“No problem,” she said, turning away from you and your friends very quickly before practically running back to the counter. 

You didn’t watch her as she left, instead sipping your new coffee and sighing in content. 

It was exactly what you wanted. The perfect cup of coffee if you did say so yourself. 

You glanced back down at your phone, flipping through your messages to the one labeled Athena👸🏼

Thanks for the coffee. It’s much better than the sugary shit Emily ordered.

“Do you have to flirt with every woman you see?” Mal scoffed, placing more of her weight on you as she draped her arms over your shoulders. 

You grunted, slipping your phone in your pocket and adjusting in your seat so she didn’t knock you over. “I wasn’t flirting, I was just being nice,” 

You practically felt her roll her eyes as Emily snorted across from you. 

“What? I was!” You bit out, your voice dripping in incredulity. 

“You used the smile you use when you’re trying to get into someone’s pants,” Mal hummed, her lips caressing the shell of your ear as her hand dipped its way under the hem of your Alexia Putellas Barça jersey.  “I would know,” 

You jerked away from her, nearly spilling your coffee. Your chair squeaked as you pushed away, creating space between the two of you. 

You didn’t want her touching you. 

Not like you had in the past. 

There was a time when you craved her touch. Where you twisted yourself into knots to be worthy of her affection. 

You allowed yourself to get closer to her than you had to anyone else, and in the end she had decided that you still weren’t good enough. 

She decided that you would never be good enough for her. Not like Dansby was. But even after that you had pined after every little scrap of care she sent you, and you allowed yourself to believe that it was all you deserved. 

That it was real.

Even in your short time with Taylor, you knew that real was something very different.  She didn’t make you feel like you were always making up for something. Like you had to earn her care. 

She made you feel worthy and had butterflies flapping in your chest. She made you feel seen, even before you were together, and you wouldn’t do anything to put that in jeopardy. 

“Whoa, easy there,” Emily chuckled. “Didn't think you were so sensitive to the mention of your history,” 

You shifted uncomfortably, fixing the edge of your jersey. 

“Just tickled me,” You muttered, taking another sip of your coffee as Mal didn’t even hesitate to wrapped herself around you again. 

You ignored the knowing look Rose sent you, and cleared your throat. “We should probably head back though. Think you can walk on your own this time?” 

You gently elbowed Mal, sending Emily a cheeky grin when she wiggled her eyebrows. 

Mal sighed heavily, her lips returning to near your ear. “I don’t think so. I think I still need a piggyback,”

You huffed at her pouted words, shoving your extra coffee cup into her hands as you stood. “You have to carry the cups though,” 

“Deal!” She cheered, already trying to climb on your back. 

You didn’t have the heart (or the stomach) to tell her that you didn’t want to carry her back. You couldn’t when it made her light up so much. 

“You’re such a pushover,” Rose muttered as she held the café door open for you. 

You shrugged as much as you could with Mal on your back.

You were a people pleaser to your core, and you couldn’t help that. Mal was your friend and you liked to make her happy. 

Taylor would understand. 

*****

You were sweating your ass off by the time you made it back to the team hotel, and your legs felt like you had just played 90 minutes. 

You supposed walking 4 miles with a fully grown forward on your back would do that to you, and the detours Emily kept taking because of the “Mob Guys” following you made the journey more like 6. Dawn was not going to be pleased, and you felt like you needed a recovery day to recover from your recovery day. 

You dropped Mal’s legs as you stepped into the welcome AC of the lobby, ignoring her yelp at the move. 

“I’m done being your pack Mule,” You muttered, breathing hard. “Use your own damn legs,”

“Not a mule. A graceful stallion,” Mal hummed, leaning in and placing a kiss on your cheek before she skipped off. “Thanks for the ride,” 

She missed your eye roll.  But Kelley didn’t. “Coming on a bit strong, isn't she?” 

You blinked at Kelley, pulling your sunglasses up to rest in your wavy curls, taking in the way she was shifting awkwardly from foot to foot. “Don’t they always?” 

“You didn't have a friends-with-benefits relationship with most of the people who hit on you,” Kelley shrugged. 

You made a sound low in your throat, scratching the back of your neck. “I’m not interested in continuing that,” 

You didn’t know she knew about that.

“I know,” Kelley nodded, her hand landing warm and grounding on your shoulder. “You’re interested in burrito girl,” 

You hummed. 

You were more than just interested in Taylor, and Kelley knew that. She had been getting regular updates after she talked you off the ledge the morning after, and it was kinda nice to get to share with someone. 

Kelley shifted again, and you scratched harder at the back of your neck as a very uncomfortable silence settled over you. 

“I didn’t bring you coffee,” You said, finally looking at her. 

Your eyebrows pulled tightly together. She was spinning the ring on her forefinger more rapidly than you had ever seen, and shifting like she was… nervous. 

“I know,” She said, her eyes flicking up to meet your blue before rapidly looking away. “Can we chat though?” 

You frowned. “What’s up?” 

Kelley bit her lip and led you over to an isolated meeting room, closing the door behind you. 

She took a steadying breath like she was stealing herself as she turned to look at you. “I’m going to ask your sister to marry me,” 

You stared at her, your mouth dropping open at her words. 

She was going to ask your sister to marry her. 

Her and Alex were going to get married. 

But weren’t they practically married already? They had been together since you were 10. They lived together, had 2 dogs and were actively looking for a team to transfer to together. 

You shouldn’t have been surprised, but you were.  So you did what you always did when you were caught off guard. 

You painted a playful smirk on your face, wiggling your eyebrows. “Alex right? Because I don’t think Jen or Jerry will react well,” 

Kelley sighed. “I’m being serious. We’ve been together for almost 7 years. I love her,” 

You raised an eyebrow at her, your smirk melting a little. “Ok, and?” 

She spun her ring a little faster. “I’m not asking your permission, but-“

“You want my blessing or some shit?” You cut her off, your eyebrows furrowing impossibly deeper. “Jesus Kell, her and I haven’t had a proper conversation since I was like 12. My opinion doesn’t matter,”

You actively avoided conversations with your sister. She barely knew anything about the adult version of yourself. 

There was no way she could care what you thought about her marrying Kelley. 

Kelley shook her head, closing the distance between you and catching your hand. “I think your opinion is one of the only ones she cares about,” 

Her voice went very soft, and you swallowed hard. You weren’t at a place to consider what she meant. You couldn't deal with all of the baggage that came with the implications. 

Yes, you were fairly content to interact with her through the stupid app the two of you competed on, but that was nothing deeper than just that. A competition. 

It didn’t mean anything. Not like Kelley was assuming it meant. 

You shook your head, swallowing down your feelings and locking them into a little box in the center of your chest. 

“She might be my sister, but I’ll kick her ass if she hurts you. Or says no, even though she’s not going to say no. She loves you. I guess I’ll kick your ass too if you hurt her so don’t,” You said softly, drawing up the courage to meet Kelley’s eyes again. 

A brilliant smile broke across her face, and her eyes lit up like the two of you had just won the World Cup. “I promise I won’t kid,” 

“Good,” You ran a hand through your hair, sucking in a long breath through your nose. “Is there anything else?”

“Don’t you want to know how I’m going to do it?” Kelley asked, her eyebrows furrowing. 

Your shoulders lifted and fell. 

Maybe a part of you cared about whatever romantic thing Kelley had planned for her, but the larger part just… wasn’t interested.  It wasn’t like you were involved in Alex’s life. You didn’t get to see the ins and outs of her relationship with Kelley, and that was your own choice. If you got too close, you knew you would get hurt. 

You had before anyway. 

“As long as it’s not during or directly after sex, I think it’ll be fine,” You huffed out, covering your wavering curiosity. 

Kelley rolled her eyes. “I’m going to do it when we go to New York. I have a reservation for the top of the Empire State Building,”

“That’ll be pretty,” You hummed, your voice going soft. 

You knew how much your older sister loved city lights. It was nearly as much as she loved to look at the stars. 

When the two of you were young, you would sit on the roof outside of her window for hours staring at the sky, naming the constellations. It was what got you so into Greek mythology after all. You wondered if she still remembered all of the stories. 

“She loves the lights,” Kelley agreed, watching you carefully. “We’re going to have dinner after. Jen and Jerrie will be there,” 

You nodded. “I’ll be there too,” 

“Excellent,” Kelley’s smile just got wider. 

“Yeah,” You said, trailing off and looking towards the door. “I told Alyssa I’d watch film with her before the game tomorrow, so are we done?” 

Kelley chuckled, not at all surprised that you wanted to escape this conversation. “Wouldn’t want to keep the head of the Department of Defense waiting,” 

You always pulled away when your family was mentioned, and that habit was only magnified when emotions were also involved. 

“Nope,” You muttered, practically running towards the door. 

She wished things were different.

Alex was making the steps to bridge the gap in your relationship, and for the first time in a long time, you seemed willing to meet her halfway.  Neither of them were sure exactly what had caused the rift, or why you had always been so… reluctant to let her fix it. Or to talk about it in general.

She hoped that the little steps would actually lead to something this time.  She hoped that you would let your walls down. She hoped that you would actually let yourself be happy. 

*****

Rain pounded down around you as you tracked the ball across midfield. 

Games like this were your favorite. 

The USWNT was up by 4 and there was only 30 seconds of stoppage time left. You had a goal and 2 assists and you had played incredibly well. It was 75 degrees so the rain was like the mist from a shower, warm and comfortable. 

It let you take your mind off of the stupid phone call that had come just before you loaded up the bus to head to the stadium. It drowned out Roary Dame’s voice explaining that you were a great play, just not what they needed. 

Explaining that he had put your name in the trading block for the highest draft pick they could get. So they could finally have their star striker because you were the wrong Morgan for that. 

This game made you feel… good. It made you feel powerful. 

You smiled at Sam as she came to a stop beside you. 

Alex and Mal were getting ready to take a time-wasting corner to end the game, and you and Sam were just there in case Jamaica got a counter opportunity. 

“Emily says you’re in the mob now,” She said conversationally. “And that you have two huge dudes following you around,” 

You rolled your eyes. “I’m not in the mob,” 

“But you do have 2 dudes following you,” She asked, tilting her head to the mouth of the tunnel where Zach and Tony were huddled under an umbrella. 

They were right, it was kinda scary how far they could get without any real security clearance. They shouldn’t have been able to get into the stadium, much less on the field, but here they were. 

“I have a very overprotective friend,” You muttered as the ref blew the signature three whistles to signal the end of the game. You paused before you ran off.

Taylor wasn’t your friend, she was something much much more. You didn’t feel right calling her a friend. 

You turned back to Sam, scratching the wet hairs off the back of your neck. “Well, a very protective more than a friend,” 

A smile broke across her features, and you couldn’t help but match it.  “Don’t mention that to anyone though,” You added, suddenly nervous that she would tell the team, and then the rumor mill would start.

You weren’t ready to answer questions about Taylor yet. Or to listen to your teammates tease you. You also didn’t want to share her yet. 

Sam winked at you. “Your secret is safe with me,” 

“Thanks,” You said, heading towards the tunnel, pausing at a young girl waving a soaked-through Morgan sign a few feet away from the tunnel. 

You could see a big 13 painted on the sign, so you knew it wasn’t meant for you, but still it was your name too. 

“Hey, I like your sign,” You hummed, flashing the girl a million-dollar smile, ignoring the phones pointed in your direction. “Even if it has the wrong number on it,” 

The girl blushed deeply. “I like you too. I just wasn’t sure what number you would be wearing,” 

It was a good excuse, you thought. Or it would have been over a year ago before you made the switch to number 12. 

You hated when they pretended to give a shit about you just because you were the one standing in front of them. You knew the only Morgan they really cared about was your sister, and you wished they would just own it. 

“Well thank ya,” You winked, ignoring her little lie. “I know it’s just because she’s a striker. Everyone loves a good goal scorer,” 

The red in the girl's cheeks got even more pronounced, and your grin turned slightly wolfish. She didn’t hear the bitter note in your voice. 

Everyone wanted the star striker, something you would never be. 

“Do you have something you want me to sign?” 

The girl shook her head, looking at her friend who also shook her head. The girl looked back at you, biting her lip. 

“Can I get your jersey?” She asked hesitantly, and your smirk only got wider. 

“I think I can do one better,” You said, turning back towards the field. Your eyes roved over the players until you found the one you were looking for. 

“Hey Al,” You called out, cupping your hands over your face to amplify the sound. 

Her head snapped in your direction, and you waved her over. You tried not to let it bother you that the girl's squeals got so much louder as she jogged over, a questioning smile on her face. 

“What’s up?” She asked as soon as she was close enough, and you could hear the slight surprise in her voice. It was one of the first times you had actually spoken to her since last camp.

You tilted your head towards the fans beside you. “You’ve got a fan and you owe me because I beat you 5 weeks in a row,” 

“And?” She raised an eyebrow at you. 

“I’m cashing in,” You said, again tilting your head towards the fans. “She would like your jersey,” 

Alex never took her eyes off of you as she stripped off her soaked-through jersey, and passed it to the girl. It was like she was trying to figure out what you were thinking.  But she had lost the ability to read your mind years ago. 

“Thanks,” You said, flashing her a grin and turning back towards the girl. “Now you’ve got the jersey you actually want,” 

Alex’s lips pulled downward at the sarcasm in your tone, hidden by false cheeriness. It was the same tone you used when something was annoying you, but you didn’t know how (or have the courage) to vocalize it. 

“Oh my god, thank you!” The girl cheered, looking at Alex instead of at you. 

“Both of you,” She added quickly when Alex raised an eyebrow at her. 

You waved her off, throwing a “No worries,” over your shoulder as you headed towards the tunnel to get out of the rain. 

Alex waved at the girls too, sending them a smile before jogging off after you. There was something so… off about that interaction, and she wasn’t willing to let it go anymore. 

Her and Kelley had discussed it, and while she understood the defender's advice to not push you. To let you come to her, she was tired of waiting. 

The texting was nice, but it didn’t carry over to your real-life interactions and that was… frustrating. It wasn’t getting her anywhere. 

She caught your arm as you rounded the corner to the locker room, spinning you on the spot and stepping into your space so you were pinned against the cold concrete wall of the tunnel, unable to run away this time. 

“What the fuck was that all about?” She asked, keeping her voice level, even though the two of you were nose to nose. 

Your eyes flashed up to meet hers, identical blue boring into yours. It made you feel like she could see into your soul. Like you were naked in front of her.  You so badly wanted to look away but you couldn’t.

“She had a Morgan sign with a huge 13 on it, so I went to say hello,” You shrugged, trying to sound nonchalant, but Alex saw through it. “And they asked for a jersey, but I knew it wasn’t mine they wanted,”

There was something in your voice, in your posture that she couldn’t place. 

“But they asked you for it?” She pressed, and your eyes flicked away from her as you gave her a barely perceptible nod. 

“It would have been a consolation prize. They wanted yours,” You said, twisting your arm free and finally squeezing out from where you were trapped. “Everyone always wants yours,”

You muttered the last part under your breath as you tried to make your way down the hallway, but Alex heard you anyway. 

She again caught your arm before you could walk away, again spinning you around to face her. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing Alex,” You grumbled, shaking your head and again breaking her hold on you. “Just drop it,”

“No. I will not drop it,” She bit back, not letting you walk away from her. “I’ve been dropping it since you were 10 and look where it’s gotten us. I can’t fix something if I don’t understand what’s wrong,” 

It was as if she let you leave. If she let you go before she understood you would be gone for good. You would lose the progress you had made. 

Your eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “Fix it?” 

What did Alex mean that she wanted to fix it? She didn’t have a Time Machine. 

“Yes. Fix it,” She said, fighting to keep her volume low and her tone even. You didn’t respond well to exasperation. “We were so close and now it’s like we can’t even stand each other. I don’t want us to be this tense for the rest of our lives,” 

You stared at her like she had 3 heads. There was nothing that she could do. No magic wand she could wave to change it. 

The world preferred her over you, and they probably always would. You had learned from the time you were small that you weren’t worth as much as Alex was. You were invisible when she was there. You accepted it. The only person who didn’t make you feel that way was Taylor.

You shook your head. “There is nothing to fix Alex. You can’t do anything. Now let me go,” 

Her face fell, and something broke in her eyes. It made your heart hurt, but it was the truth. 

You twisted your arm out of her grasp and turned on your heel heading into the locker room. Alex stared after you, something you said gnawing in her brain. 

Everyone always wants yours

It was nearly as bad as the “Now that everyone is watching you care. Now when it’s convenient” you gave her on the practice field in November. 

She wasn’t sure what had happened between the two of you, or why you were so… frustratingly stubborn about allowing her to build a bridge over the mile-wide gap between you. 

Your attitude shifting was also giving her whiplash. You seemed so… open over text. So willing to interact.  She didn’t know how to navigate it all, and it seemed that you weren’t at all willing to help her. 

“You good?” 

Alex jumped at Kelley’s voice in her ear and gentle hands on her shoulders. 

“No,” she shook her head, relaxing back into the defender's grasp. 

Kelley hummed, and placed a kiss just below her ear, soothing her. “What happened?”

“Y/n called me over to give a girl my jersey, and then told her that she had the one she actually wanted,” Alex explained, frustration evident in her voice. “and when I asked, she told me that everyone always wants mine,” 

“Al, we talked about this,” Kelley sighed, as your sister pulled away from her. 

“I know,” Alex grumbled running a frustrated hand through her soaked hair. 

They had many conversations about it. They both agreed that the best move was to take it slow. To let you dictate the pace, but neither of them expected you to be so… passive-aggressive. 

Not when you let people push you too far because you didn’t know how to set limits, or you just pretended like they didn’t exist. 

She didn’t know how to act when you went out of your way to interact with her and then tried to run away. 

“But we never accounted for this,” She gestured wildly towards the locker room door. “She called me over,” 

“And then you chased after her,” Kelley countered. “Because she told you a snippet of what’s bothering her that is supposed to make sense, but it doesn’t because you don’t have context. And you need to understand. I know,” 

“She said I can’t fix it, Kell,” Alex’s voice finally broke, and Kelley was quick to pull the striker into her chest as her shoulders shook. “What am I supposed to do?” 

Kelley closed her eyes, resting her cheek on the top of Alex’s head, holding her tightly. 

She could see it from your side. 

Alex had spent years unsure of how to bridge the ever-widening gap between you. You had spent years being compared to her, being crucified by the media for not being her, so it made sense for you to be wary. For you to try and protect yourself.  What didn’t make sense was the hot and cold way you were going about it. 

“I’ll talk to her,” Kelley said, holding your sister together as she crumbled. “But we need to take this at her pace. And that means one step at a time,”

*****

Slipping out of the locker room undetected was far easier than you expected it to be, but then again you had retreated to the showers long before most of the team was even off of the field. You hadn’t been planning to escape, but when the text came through on your phone, it was a no-brainer. 

You smiled widely as you made the final turn down the tunnel, revealing Taylor leaning up against the large Visitors sign texting. “Fancy meeting you here, I thought you had album stuff,” 

“Heard you didn’t like my henchmen,” She smirked, pushing herself off the wall and meeting you halfway. “So I thought I’d come to check on you myself,”

You nearly fell with the force of the hug, burying your face in her neck and squeezing her tightly to you. “I don’t like the henchmen. I don’t need babysitters,”

She hummed, leaning back just enough to look you in the eyes and brushing your wet curls out of your eyes. “You don’t need babysitters, but you do need protection. Let me be a little overprotective of you,” 

You could feel her breath on your lips, and you couldn’t help but lean in and connect your mouths. Your hands slipped into the back pocket of her jeans and you squeezed lightly. 

It was slightly scary how addicted to her you were. How you craved her touch. 

She made a low sound in the back of her throat. One of her hands hooked into the hem of your sweats, and the other wove into the short curls at the back of your neck, pulling you tighter to her. 

You stumbled forward molding yourself to her, as the kiss changed. Her tongue slipped into your mouth, running against yours, and you could feel her desire. 

It didn’t surprise you. You knew what she wanted. What she expected. It was the same thing that every girl expected from you, so you just let it happen. 

You let her pull you into the closet (unsure of how it appeared out of thin air, or where her shirt had suddenly disappeared to), pushing her against the only wall not covered in athletic equipment, and pinning her there with your hips. 

Your lips dragged across her neck, and you longed to pull the velvety skin into your mouth. To place a mark, a claim out in the open where everyone could see. But you didn’t. 

You trailed down to her collarbone, skimming your teeth along it as your hand slid into her pants, past her underwear, and through her warm wetness. 

You couldn’t help the smirk that graced your features. “Is this all for me?” 

“You’re hot when you play,” She keened as you teased at her entrance, gathering her slick on your middle finger. “And even hotter when you’re drenched and you kept pulling your shirt off to wipe the rain out of your eyes,” 

You hummed, tracing her lower lips and brushing your middle finger across her clit. Her hips jolted, knocking into your thigh and it reminded you of how players always fought you for ball possession. 

How they would press back into you while you tried to tap it through their legs. How they always bucked back to keep you from picking their pocket. 

Taylor’s head hit the wall, and you worked your lips back up her neck, lingering on the underside of her jaw. “Please y/n,”

You hummed, dragging your teeth along her chin, and slipping your finger inside. She was warm and tight, squeezing your fingers as you dragged them against her walls. 

Her hand tightened in the short curls at the base of your neck, while the other clawed at the bare skin of your shoulders. 

She tasted like sweat and rain, and something just so Taylor. 

It was like the sun on your face during the perfect practice, using your arm to wipe the sweat off your upper lip after you sank a ball past one of the keepers.  It was like your teammates pulling you into tight hugs, running their fingers through your hair after you scored on a scorching summer day, their hands slipping through yours as they headed back to their starting positions. 

She shuddered against you as you curled your fingers, finding the spongy patch inside of her, and you carefully ran your teeth across the special spot right below her ear. 

It made you feel… powerful to have her so on edge already.  Nearly as powerful as when you were 5 goals up on a team, or when a player couldn’t make it past you in midfield. 

“Y/n,” 

It was like playing with Mal, and how you knew where she was going to be before she moved, so you could pull the opposing players and set her up for a goal. 

Except it was better. It was what you imagined scoring in the World Cup would feel like. Or assisting in a goal. 

“Y/n,” Taylor panted, using the hand in your hair to tug you away from her neck. 

“What baby?” you asked, glassy eyes blinking blearily up at her as you again curled your fingers. 

Her head fell back and hit the wall with a thump.  “Oh my god,” She moaned low in her throat, fighting to get out whatever she was saying. She swallowed hard, her hands keeping you from continuing your ministrations. “The door,” 

As if on cue, three loud rasps sounded from the door just to your left. “I know you’re in there Y/n. We need to talk. Now,”

Your head fell forward and landed heavily on Taylor’s shoulder as you let out a groan at Kelley’s voice. “One second,”

Why did she always have to pick the wrong moment? 

You pulled back, meeting Taylor’s eyes. “Just stay here,” 

She nodded, sucking in a deep breath as you removed yourself from her, and ran your hand through your hair, trying to straighten your ever-messy curls. Your other hand fixed your rumpled shirt, and she frowned.  She could have sworn you took yours off when you devested her of hers. 

You opened the door just a crack, pushing your head out and glaring at Kelley. “What? I’m busy,”

Her eyebrows were pulled tightly together, a frown firmly set in her features. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

You felt Taylor’s hand on the top of your back, warm and heavy, comforting in a way you weren’t sure you would ever really deserve. 

“A lot of things,” You grumbled, shifting so Kelley couldn’t get a good look inside the closet.  “I’ll need more information to give you a more defined answer,” 

Her eyes narrowed. “You told Alex that she couldn’t fix it between you,” 

“She can’t,” You shrugged. “Are we done?” 

“No,” Kelley bit back, her hand finding the door to prevent you from slamming it closed. “Not until you talk to your sister and fix this shit,” 

You were already shaking your head. “Talking is not something that Alex and I do,”

Kelley snorted. “But you’ll text,” 

You shrank a little at her tone. 

The texting was different. It was safer, more controlled. She wasn’t close enough to hurt you. You needed that distance. 

You felt a hand on your back, rubbing gentle circles at the point that always grew so tense when you were stressed. 

You let out a breath. “That’s different. We only text when one of us is winning,” 

“Is it?” Kelley pressed, unwilling to let it go.  “Because from the outside, it looks like you share more than just your exercise routine,” 

The hand grew more insistent, and you closed your eyes. “I don’t want to argue with you,”

You could understand why Kelley was upset. She was protective over the people she loved, and while you knew she cared for you, it was nothing compared to how much she loved your sister. She would always choose Alex over you. 

And that was ok. It would be weird if it wasn’t that way. 

“No, you just want to get back to your quick fuck,”

Kelley's mouth twisted around the words, and it felt like a knife slipping into your chest. 

You flushed red, and a hand caught the back of your collar as you jerked forward. “Don’t call her that,” 

You knew what your reputation was, but you never expected Kelley to try and use it against you. Taylor was far more than a quick fuck. You cared about her more than you cared about nearly anyone. 

his was why you hadn’t told Kelley yet. 

Kelley took a step back, sucking in a calming breath through her nose. “Look, all I’m saying is that you need to cut Alex some slack. It’s not fair for her with your hot and cold routine. You at least have to meet her halfway,” 

“I’m trying,” You sighed, running a hand through your wild curls. “What else do you want from me when my own team is fucking trading me because I’ll never be the striker that she is,”

Kelley frowned. “What?”

“Those kids said they didn’t know my number because it was new. I changed it over a year ago. They didn’t have anything for me to sign, because they didn’t want my signature. They wanted Alex. Everyone always wants Alex, and that’s not something she can fix,” You explained, your voice going soft and… honest. “I wasn’t being cruel. I was being honest,”

“Oh,” Kelley’s frown deepened, as your comment to Alex suddenly made sense. 

The fans had lied to you when you were already hurt from the trade. They made you feel more unwanted. 

“Yeah oh,” You said, running another hand through your hair. “We text when one of us is winning. That’s our relationship, so just leave it. Is there anything else?” 

Kelley shook her head and cleared her throat. “Bus leaves in 30,”

You painted a smirk across your features.

“Cool, I’ll see you in 29 then,” You said, as you slammed the door, and turned to lean against it. You slid down until you were seated, drawing your knees to your chest and letting your head fall against it with a low thump. “Fuck me,”

Why did Kelley always have to make things difficult?

Sure she was kinda right, but why did she have to remind you of that and get you to admit why you were upset? It was so infuriating that she wouldn’t let you keep her at arm's length. 

“I would but I don’t think that’ll help,” Taylor chuckled, settling down beside you, resting a hand on your knee. 

You groaned, blinking at her. You had nearly forgotten she was there. And that she was shirtless…“You’d be surprised. There’s something very… freeing about losing yourself in someone else,” 

There was something freeing in having all of a woman’s attention. Of you just being enough for them even if it was only for a moment. Of having something Alex never had, and of being in the only situation where you couldn’t be compared to her (though a few girls had mused about it afterward, it’s why you started skipping the after-cuddling). 

Taylor made a low noise, shaking her head. “I think talking will help you more in the long run,” 

You shrugged. You didn’t want to argue with her. 

“I’m sorry Kelley interrupted before you could…you know…” You blushed deeply, rubbing harder at the back of your neck. You couldn’t say the word orgasm. 

Taylor frowned, her thumb pausing on the inside of your knee. “Y/n,” 

You didn’t stop though. You didn’t let her ask you the hard question. 

“I’m surprised the goon squad didn’t stop them, especially since your goons are here too,”  You said, scratching your neck, and tugging off your sweatshirt by the hood. “Here,” 

You passed her the item, watching with rapt attention as she pulled it on, and her abs flexed.

“Jason is getting the car, and Tony is at the end of the hall,” She hummed, doing the button on her pants once your hoodie was on. “I don’t really like having an audience,”

You wiggled your eyebrows, painting a charming smile back on your face, even though it took too much effort. “And you assumed I’d jump you?”

It was slightly alarming how easily you locked your emotions away. How you could pretend like there wasn’t something bothering you when it had been so obvious just seconds before? 

It set off red flags in her brain because a talent like that wasn’t inherent. It was learned. 

“No,” She shook her head, deciding not to comment on how easily you flipped that switch. “I just knew how much I missed you,” 

Your mask fell slightly. “I missed you too,” 

You meant it. Being away from Taylor was harder than your pride would let you admit. 

You had never been so… taken with someone. So addicted to them. But she made you feel seen and safe. It made you want to spend every second with her, wrapped around her. 

“Can I take you to dinner?” She asked, squeezing your knee. 

You shrugged. “I have to go back to the team hotel first to do cool down and check-in,” 

“I can pick you up afterward,” Taylor suggested. 

“That sounds agreeable,” You nodded, your lips twisting into a devilish smirk. “But what are we going to do in the,” You looked at the time on your phone. “25 minutes we have before the bus leaves?”

Taylor matched your smirk, catching the front of your shirt and pulling you closer. “I can think of a few things,” 

OoOoOoO

March 2017

I, I loved you in spite of Deep fears that the world would divide us So, baby, can we dance  Oh, through an avalanche?

You didn’t particularly enjoy fancy restaurants. You didn’t particularly like most restaurants to begin with, but ones with a dress code always made you uncomfortable. Their menus always had a small font, and the white tablecloths never stayed white. 

The stuffy atmosphere usually lent itself to stuffy conversations, and it reminded you too much of business lunches or dinners with your parents to ever really enjoy yourself. 

You had learned over the years that your opinion didn’t really matter. That everything wasn’t about you. So you were fairly adept at painting a charming smile on and acting normal. 

It has worked for most of the night with your sisters and Kelley anyway. 

It was easy when Jen and Jerri were gushing over the new diamond ring on Alex’s finger. When they kept asking for every little detail of how Kelley proposed on top of the Empire State Building. 

And you played along, never speaking directly to Alex, but not being weird enough that anyone would notice.  You wouldn’t ruin this for her, or for Kelley. 

“You alright over there space cadet?” Jerri asked, nudging your shoulder and pulling your brain from where you were trying to decipher the tiny writing on the menu. 

You blinked up at the four women, realizing that they (and the waiter) were staring expectantly at you. “What?”

“Kell asked if you were ready to order,” Jen supplied patiently. 

You were just grateful that no one giggled, but you blushed anyway. 

You tried to cover it by snapping your menu closed. “Oh, yeah,”

Kelley blinked at you, gesturing towards the waitress. “What are you going to order?”

You felt the heat in your cheeks travel up to your ears, but still, you tried to play it off. “Oh, you guys can go first,”

Jerri shook her head, placing her hand gently on your arm. “We already have sweetheart,”

You frowned, squinting down at your closed menu. You had missed them ordering, and now you didn’t have time to try and decipher the hieroglyphic font the restaurant had chosen. Not that you would have been able to. 

The letters tended to go more haywire when you were stressed, and you would be damned before you asked someone to help you. Your jaw worked as you thought of what to say.  What could you say?

“You love chicken parm, and I heard it’s good here,” Alex said casually like it was normal to suggest food items after everyone else had already ordered. “or they have a very good salmon in pink sauce if you’re feeling something lighter,” 

Your eyes darted to her for the first time since you had sat down at the stable, and your jaw hung open. 

Alex intervening so seamlessly when you were struggling wasn’t something that had happened since she moved to Berkeley (you couldn’t help how you sneered the word in your head). 

Jerri nudged you again, and you cleared your throat, your eyes still glued to Alex. 

 “The salmon sounds good actually,” You mumbled, finally getting your voice to work. 

The waitress hummed, and you heard her little ticket book close. “I’ll go put that in,” 

You were sure that Kelley or Jen responded to the girl, but you didn’t look away from Alex. 

It was just so…not Alex of her. For her to have options ready and waiting meant that she had to have thought that you might have trouble. She had to have consciously decided to look for options that you would like too, and to have more than one so you actually got to choose. 

It meant that she cared. 

You swallowed very hard. That thought was too overwhelming. 

Now, at the dinner, after she just got engaged was not the time to contemplate if Alex even had the capability to care about you. It would again make the evening about you when it most certainly was not. 

You could feel the eyes of Kelley and your sisters, despite the way they restarted their conversation. It was like they were watching a car crash or a roller coaster derail. 

You felt like a spectacle. Like you were drawing attention when you absolutely should not be. It had alarm bells ringing in your ears. 

What would your parents say when they heard you had ruined your sister’s engagement dinner? 

It was like the walls were closing in, as the conversation at the table blended with the noise from the restaurant around you. It was suffocating. 

You didn’t think before you pushed yourself to your feet, nearly knocking over the chair behind you. 

“I’m gonna take a bathroom break,” You said, turning on your heel without waiting for a response, not that you would have registered it through the pounding in your ears. 

You needed to get away. 

To leave. 

To put space between you and this version of Alex that somehow gave a fuck about you. 

You bypassed the hallway that led to the restroom, knowing that someone would eventually find you there. You turned right, brushing past the hostess and out the glass doors into the city. 

The chilly air hit you like a gasping breath after being underwater for too long. Like water after a practice in Houston in July. 

You paused just outside the crystal doors, filling your lungs like you had been drowning. 

You knew you couldn’t stand there forever, blocking the entrance to Osteria Carlina, so you headed left, in the direction of your favorite hole-in-the-wall pizza place between Canal and Broadway. 

You didn't plan to eat there, but you thought that maybe the walk would help you clear your head, and you could be back in time to eat your overpriced salmon. Something about the smell of fresh sauce and baked cheese always made your thoughts clearer. 

It reminded you of when you were tiny and Alex would take you for pizza after your u6 games. It reminded you of riding on her shoulders on top of the world, even if none of the goals actually mattered. 

Even if you lost. 

You just needed a minute to not think, so you could go back and pretend like everything was fine. Like you didn’t feel entirely out of place with your sisters and Kelley. And you knew that the sounds of the city and the familiar comfort would do that. 

You could already feel your airway opening, but you reached up and undid the top two buttons of your shirt anyway as though it would help. It was all in your head anyway. 

It was always all in your head. 

You ran a hand through your hair, your nose scrunching involuntarily at the sticky gel you had used to keep your curls in place. You had forgotten your normal wax in Chicago, and the CVS near your hotel wanted 15$ for it. 

You wanted to look nice for Alex and Kelley, but 15$ wax was not in your budget. Still, you couldn’t not do anything with your hair. Wild curls would draw attention to you, and you couldn’t do that. 

You couldn’t make this night about you and ruin it for them. 

God, you probably already had. 

“If you’re going to ditch us can you please slow down? It’s the least you could do,”

Your heart stopped at Alex’s voice, and your feet paused before you consciously decided to listen. You had to swallow down a groan. 

Of course, she had come after you. 

It was such an Alex thing to do. 

You ran another hand through your hair and turned to face her. “What are you doing?”

Her eyebrows pulled together as she finally caught up with you. “I’m making sure you’re okay,”

She said it like it was obvious. Like it was normal. Like she wasn’t sure why you would ask. 

“I’m fine,” You mumbled, your hand dragging through your curls to the back of your neck. “Go back to dinner and I’ll rejoin you in a bit,”

Her eyebrow arched. “I think running out of the restaurant constitutes just about anything other than fine,”

You couldn’t help how your nose scrunched.

This was the part of your relationship that you had forgotten about. The one that had been masked by annoying persistence since she moved out for college. 

The one where she actually cared enough to force you to admit when something was wrong. 

She was pushing you, but it didn’t feel like it was for her benefit. It was for you. 

Your hand fell. “I just needed some air,” Your voice came out horse, strained. 

Alex hummed, stepping closer to you. “You got overwhelmed.”

It was a statement, not a question, and it struck you how well she knew you, even though the two of you hadn’t had a real conversation in nearly a decade. 

You stared at her, trying to understand her game. Trying to figure out why she was pretending to care. Trying to dissect how this would benefit her and her perfect image. 

“What do you want from me?” You were thrown off by how small you sounded. How young and… terrified the words that left your lips were. 

Alex caught your arm pulling you into her, closing the little space left between you. “I want you to talk to me,” 

“No,” You instantly pulled away from her, tangling your fingers in your messy curls yet again. “I will not be a distraction,”

“What?” Her eyebrows pulled more tightly together. 

Your fingers caught in a curl at the back of your head, the one that always seemed to tangle no matter what you did. You harshly tugged at it, the little pinpricks of pain helping you stay grounded. 

Except this time it didn't help. 

It didn’t give you enough to focus on to crack some smart-ass remark or shove your feelings into a tiny box. 

It was too much. 

“It’s all I’ve ever been,” The words spilled from your lips before you could stop them, like blood gushing from an open wound that you had tried and failed to stitch together too many times before. 

Alex softened, and she took a step towards you, gently catching your arm and pulling it towards her, effectively stopping your from ripping your hair out. 

“Monkey,” She said softly. 

You jerked away, like a wounded animal. You would not let her pretend that she didn’t think that. That she didn’t hate how you followed after her when you were young, that she didn’t despise how you distracted from her.  

“No! I heard you. I’m just the spare Morgan chasing after you, taking people’s attention off of you, and joining in uninvited on your opportunities. This will not be like that. I won’t fuck this up for you. You need to go back, and I’ll be there in a few minutes,” 

The words forced themselves out of your lips like they had been waiting to leave for forever. They broke you apart as you choked trying to hold in your emotions. As you fought to close the lid back on Pandora’s box. 

Alex caught you again, pulling you into her, and you quaked against her chest, sucking in strangled breaths. Her arms wrapped around you, squeezing you tightly, just like she did when you were little after a busy trip to the mall when the crowds had made your tummy flutter. 

You didn’t fight her, instead burying your face in her neck, curling into her like you hadn’t since she left for college. 

She held you like the two of you had all the time in the world. Like you weren't on a random sidewalk with random people walking around you. 

She didn’t pull back until your trembling had slowed and your breathing had evened out, and she very gently ran her thumb under your eyes. 

You hadn’t even realized you were crying. 

“What the hell are you talking about?” She asked when your eyes met her identical blue. 

“You said it,” You mumbled, sniffing lightly. 

Alex’s eyes scrunched and a crinkle appeared between them. “When?” 

 “I was trying to surprise you at Berkley. Mom thought I had practice, and I took the bus. I heard you,” You said, your eyes closing as that day played back through your head. 

It had taken some serious convincing from Jen that Alex missed you, and that she was desperate to see you since you had gone radio silent on her. You had been so excited as you waited near the Berkeley bleachers for their practice to finish. 

She had been walking with one of her teammates, and they were talking about someone Coach McGuire was going to invite to practice. 

“It just makes no sense, why would he extend that kind of an offer to a kid?”  The girl you didn’t recognize said, nudging your sister as they stepped off the field. “Like fuck, it has to suck to always have your younger sister getting opportunities off of your hard work,” 

Alex hummed, shifting her bag over her shoulder, and you moved to be more hidden under the bleachers. 

The little sound was like a knife in your chest, deflating the balloon of excitement that had been there since you snuck out this morning. 

Alex didn’t want to see you. She thought you were getting things off of her hard work.

“Don’t they understand that you want something that’s yours?” The girl continued, and you bit down hard on your lip to stop the tears from leaking down your cheeks. “You should have to deal with her being a distraction from your greatness,” 

You would never cry for Alex again. 

You shook your head and refocused on Alex in front of you, shoving away the cracking feeling in your stomach. 

“Go back to your dinner. I’ll be there in a bit,” You said, forcing your voice steady. Emotionless. In control. “I promise Alex. I just needed some air,” 

“No,” Alex said sternly, her arm tightening around you so you couldn’t pull away.  “Don’t do that. Don’t shut down on me. I'm not going anywhere,”

You blinked at her, fighting to swallow the warmth that spread through you. It couldn’t be real. She couldn’t be honest about this. 

You had already resolved that she didn’t actually care about you. That she loathed the responsibility of you from when you were younger. You couldn’t wrap your head around anything else. 

And before you could stop it the strangled “Why?” Fell from your lips. 

She chuckled, running her thumb under your eyes again and wiping away the tears that would not stop. “Because I fucking love you, and I can’t read your fucking mind, no matter how many times I told you I could when you were little,” 

You knew the comment was meant to draw a chuckle or a smile, but it didn’t. 

Alex ducked her head when you tried to look away, not letting you break eye contact. Not letting you bury your emotions and draw back into yourself. Making sure you heard her. “I want to fix our relationship. I’ve wanted to fix it since you stopped talking to me when I moved out. I don’t understand what happened, even though I probably should, and I can’t if you don’t tell me,” 

You sniffled, unable to stop yourself from leaning into her touch as her thumb ran circles under your eyes, clearing away the tears as they continued to fall. It warmed your cheeks, and traveled down to your tummy. It made you feel… safe. Something you hadn’t really felt that way (aside from when you were with Taylor) since you were 12. 

The two of you stood like that for a long minute, stuck in your own bubble, uncaring of the crowds rushing around you. 

It took you another moment to realize Alex’s eyebrow was raised, and that she was looking at you like she always had when she expected a response. 

You swallowed hard. “Ok,” 

The word was simple but held a weight not lost on either of you. What you were agreeing to wasn’t lost, and neither was the vulnerability it took to let it out. 

Alex’s head tilted, a smile tugging at her lips. “Ok.” 

You nodded, finally pulling yourself out of her grasp and wiping your face with your arm. “I’ll try. Old habits die hard,”

“I know,” Alex hummed, and you knew she was saying more.

She was saying that she knew how hard it was for you to voice your feelings sometimes. How difficult it was for you to be open. 

She was saying that she knew you. 

And it had a warm feeling filtering deep in your tummy. 

You looked away, clearing your throat. “We should go back. It’s your night and you should get to enjoy it,”

Alex sighed.“ This doesn’t change my ability to enjoy my night. If you need more time, we have plenty,”

Your shoulders rolled, and your back straightened.  Your fingers tangled in the baby hairs at the back of your neck. 

It was something Alex had seen a million times. The way you pieced yourself back together, even when you didn’t necessarily have to. Even when you weren’t ready to. 

It was unsettling, how little this part of you had changed. 

“The only bad thing about the city lights is that you can’t see the stars,” She said, watching how the abrupt change in subject took an immediate effect. 

You blinked at her, your eyes instinctively glancing upward towards the sky, and your shoulders relaxing. 

Bingo she thought. 

You might not have had a conversation with her in years, but she still knew you. And your obsession with astronomy… well more like your obsession with Greek mythology and stars… hadn’t changed. 

You hadn’t changed all that much. Well, most of you, no matter how much you wanted to pretend otherwise. 

“Canis Minor is there,” You mumbled, pointing up at the sky barely visible surrounded by the neon lights of the city. “And Vela and Volans are there. It’s hard, but you can make them out,”

She hummed, not at all surprised that you could pick out the constellations even when you could only see a small part of them. But that wasn’t the point.

The point was how you relaxed. 

You looked back towards her, your hand dropping as you let out a shaky breath.  

“Let’s go back,” You said. “I don’t want your food to get cold,” 

Alex nodded. “As long as you’re ready,” 

You made a low sound in the back of your throat and turned back towards the restaurant. “Let’s go,” 

She signed, reminding herself that everything wouldn’t be fixed in a day. You wouldn’t be fixed in a day. It would take baby steps, and you had given her more today than you had in years. 

“Ok,” She agreed, letting you lead her back towards the restaurant, and your family. 

*****

“You sure you don’t want a ride kid?” Kelley asked, wrapping an arm around your shoulder. 

You nodded, forcing a smile across your lips. “Oh yeah, I’m good,” 

The end of dinner had actually been nice. 

No one had said a thing when you and Alex returned to the table, just before your food arrived. The conversation had been light, focused on the proposal, and no one had tried to force you to join in. 

They hadn’t even batted an eyelash when you pulled out your phone to text your girlfriend about where you would be sleeping, and made eye contact with the two men who had taken up a table in the back corner of the restaurant.

Desert had been… almost pain-free, which set you on edge. 

Nothing in your family came without a cost, and you wondered what it would be. Especially since Alex had come after you. 

But everyone said their goodbyes and headed to their cars with very little fanfare. 

All except for Kelley who was worried when you lingered near the entrance of the restaurant. 

“You don’t have to stand here with me,” you said, glancing down the street, looking for the familiar black Escalade you assumed Taylor would be sending to retrieve you. You figured Tony was driving, since he had disappeared, leaving Zach to linger a few feet away from you. “I'm just waiting for my Uber,”

Kelley made a low noise. “And while I’m sure your new mob friends could take care of you, Alex would kill me if I left you here without knowing your plan,” 

You blew out a breath, a strange warmth in your stomach at the thought that Alex would care. “My ride should be just around the corner. You can go, and I’ll be fine,” 

It didn’t even bug you that Emily had apparently convinced her you were in the mob too. 

“Burrito girl?” She asked, her features softening. 

You nodded, glancing sideways toward where Alex was standing. “Satisfied now?”

You weren’t ready for your older sister to know yet. You weren’t ready to hear about how you weren’t mature enough. Or how your reputation would impact your relationship. 

You didn’t want to be lectured about how much older Taylor was. 

Kelley wiggled her eyebrows as a black Escalade pulled around the corner. “Very,”

“You’re far too smug about this,” You huffed, again glancing towards your sister, who still seemed oblivious to your conversation. 

Kelley followed your eyes, and her smirk softened. “You know she wouldn’t be upset that you’re seeing someone right? She just wants you to be happy,” 

“I know,” You mumbled, feeling the kid you had forced over your emotions rattle in your chest. You had already been too vulnerable tonight. “I just… I’m still figuring it all out, and I don’t want the pressure yet,” 

Kelley made a low noise of agreement in the back of her throat. Like she wanted to argue with you, but knew you weren’t in a place to listen.

You wondered how much she knew about your earlier moment with Alex. How she knew so well not to push. 

The black Escalade came to a smooth stop in front of you, and Zach stepped up from behind you to stand near the rear passenger door. 

You appreciated that he didn’t say anything. 

“Tell your burrito mob boss hello,” Kelley said, patting your back. “And I’ll take care of your sister,” 

You rolled your eyes goodnaturedly at her before Zach opened the door for you and you slid into the backseat of the car. 

Zach closed the door behind you and was in the passenger seat before you could think too hard about what Kelley had said. 

“To Taylor’s apartment?” Tony asked you, glancing at you in the rearview mirror. “Or did you want to make a pitstop first?”

You blinked at him, not expecting to have a choice in where he was taking you. You figured Taylor had given him instructions already. That he would do whatever she told him to because she was the one paying his (probably incomprehensibly expensive) salary. 

You cleared your throat, meeting his eyes in the mirror. “Taylor’s apartment is fine, thanks,”

“No problem kid,” He winked, his eyes returning to the street ahead of him. 

Zach reached forward and flicked the radio, letting quiet pop fill the car, and you relaxed back into the leather seats. 

It was weird. This was weird. You felt so… off balance after your moment with Alex. It made you feel so vulnerable. 

You needed to get rid of the raw feeling in your chest. You needed control. 

You swallowed hard and looked out the window as the lights of the city passed. 

*****

One thing you absolutely loved about Taylor’s apartment was that it was always stocked with sweets. And since you had started dating, your favorites seemed to appear alongside the treats that she enjoyed. 

“How was dinner?” She asked you, passing you the container of chocolate frosting as you sat on her kitchen counter. 

She was dressed in short shorts and an old Philadelphia Eagles shirt, her feet bare. She was relaxed and comfortable. Which felt like a stark contrast to needles prickling in your stomach. The pins tingling the back of your neck. 

She had been waiting for you near the elevator when the SUV pulled into her private garage, and she welcomed you with a hug that was so… warm that it almost made you forget how raw you felt. 

She held you as you ascended to her apartment, and all the way into her kitchen, asking if you were up for a bit of dessert. 

You were surprised she hadn’t immediately tried to get you to talk about dinner with your sisters and Kelley. That she didn’t pry into it the second she had the chance like Mal would have. 

Now you found that you didn’t mind the question. 

“Fine,” You shrugged, sticking a spoon in the frosting and twisting it around, lifting it to examine the scoop you had made. “They mostly gushed over the ring Kelley picked, and how romantic it was to propose on the Empire State Building,”

You licked your spoon, pulling it into your mouth, and your eyes closed at the taste. 

It was silky and smooth, much better than the cheap frosting you always brought. 

“You don’t think it’s gush-worthy?” Taylor asked when your eyes fluttered back open. 

You paused, thinking about it for a long second as you got another scoop of frosting. 

You actually thought Kelley’s proposal was sweet. It combined some of your sister’s favorite things and one of her favorite places. It made sense. 

But it was so cliché.

 “For Alex it is,” You shrugged, sticking the spoon in your mouth, swirling your tongue around the ridges to get all of the delicious chocolate. 

Taylor hummed, stepping up between your legs, her hands running gently over the dark denim of our jeans. “But it’s not what you would want?”

You shook your head, scooping a bit more frosting on your spoon. 

“I think I’d want something more creative,” You said, your lips quirked up, as you held the spoon out for her. “You know, like under the Eiffel Tower,”

“So original,” She rolled her eyes, letting you slip the spoon past her lips.

Sharing food with her was a habit you had picked up. Something that settled the nagging feeling in the back of your mind that she was too skinny. That there was something… wrong with her relationship to food. 

Her fingers tightened around your thighs and you tilted the spoon up and her chin tilted to follow, exposing the long lines of her neck. You traced them with your eyes, swallowing hard. 

It had want bubbling in your stomach alongside the needles. It had you leaning into where you knew this evening was heading. Into the coping mechanism that hadn’t failed you yet, even though you so desperately wanted things with Taylor to be different. 

But maybe tonight they didn’t have to be. 

You hummed, pulling the spoon away. 

She let her tongue trail along it, her eyes fluttering open to make eye contact with you. “That’s good,”

“You bought it, so I would hope you like it,”

You dipped the spoon back into the container, pulling up a glob of frosting and bringing it to your lips. 

She watched you intently, waiting for the spoon to leave your mouth with a little pop before very slowly leaning in. It gave you enough time to pull away if you wanted to, but you didn’t want to. 

You needed this. To feel in control. 

You leaned forward, connecting your lips in a languid kiss. Her tongue gently pressed against your lips, and you opened your mouth to grant her access. 

It carefully explored around your mouth, dancing with your tongue in a slow waltz, licking the residual frosting from every surface it touched. 

She let out a low noise in the back of her throat as she pulled away. “That one tasted better,” 

You wiggled your eyebrows, dropping the spoon back into the container. “Did it now?” 

“It did,” She nodded, her thumbs running up and down your thighs. 

You leaned forward, connecting your lips again and slowly sliding off the counter. Your hands landed heavily on her hips and her arms draped across your shoulders, pulling you closer, her fingers playing with the baby hairs at the back of your neck. 

It was easy for you to snatch control of the kiss, Taylor gave it to you willingly. 

It should have smoothed over the frayed edges of your nerves. It should have quieted your thoughts and made you more present. 

Instead, you slipped farther into your head. 

You replayed the feelings of Alex’s hand in your hair, the weight of her arm around you. How you had made a promise you weren’t sure you really wanted to keep. 

Your lips never left her as she took a step back towards the hallway that led to her room, and you slipped your fingers under the hem of her shirt, skating along the waistband of her shorts.

You loved the smooth skin there, and the goosebumps that trailed after your light touch. They distracted you so much that you didn’t notice her turning down the hallway until you were stumbling over your feet to keep up. 

Her lips tilted into a smirk as she used her newfound leverage to switch your position. 

Your back hit the wall with a low thump. Her lips reattached to yours, one hand tangling in the hair at the base of your skull, and the other cupped your chin as she pressed you into the wall, her thigh landing heavily between your legs. 

It was more demanding, more needy, more in control. 

It jarred you out of your head. Out of the rabbit hole of how being honest with Alex would help you link the back line to the front line better. Of how it would allow more line breaking balls through towards the edge where your sister always danced to stay onside. 

“You didn’t think I was a pillow princess did you?” She asked, winking at your surprised eyes. 

You let out a sigh at the pressure against your core, doing everything in your power to prevent your hips from pulling back when she rocked against you. 

This you weren’t used to. This you had never done with anyone besides Mal. 

You sucked in a breath through your nose, deciding to focus on the things that you enjoyed. You leaned into the kiss. 

You liked the way her tongue explored your mouth. You liked how her fingers twitched against your jaw before they made their way to your collar. 

Your head tilted to give her more room as she began trailing warm, wet kisses down your neck.

A shiver ran down your spine when she hit the spot just below your right ear, and you let out another low sigh. She echoed the sound, her fingers deft as they undid the first button of your shirt. 

She let the blunt nail of her pointer finger graze your collarbone, trailing after her as she moved to the next button, leaving flames in its wake. 

Goosebumps erupted on the newly exposed skin, and you felt her smirk against your neck. 

Her long fingers splayed across your abs, tapping out a rhythm you couldn’t define. 

“Do you know how amazing these are?” She asked, her warm breath hitting the damp skin of your neck and sending a shiver down your spine as her fingers tapped you a bit harder. “I think about them all the time. It’s not fair that I’ve only gotten glimpses of them, especially with how much you show them off,”

“You were a bit distracted,” You smirked, projecting confidence that you didn’t feel, your fingers closing around her hips, trying to maintain a sliver of control. 

She flexed her thigh again to prevent you from flipping your positions though. 

“Hmm,” She hummed, a devilish smile cracking across her lips as she dropped to her knees. Your breath caught in your throat, and you splayed your hands on the wall behind you, trying to hide how much they were shaking. 

You didn’t know how to handle this. How to do this. 

“Well I’m not distracted now, and I’m going to give them the attention they deserve,” She said, her hands moving the edges of your shirt out of the way. 

You raised an eyebrow at her. “Are you now?” 

Your voice barely wobbled as you spoke, and you took it as a win. 

“I am,” she nodded, determination glinting in her eyes. She leaned forward, placing an open mouth kiss on the abb right above your left hip. Her tongue followed the ridge of the muscle to the other side. 

you bit your bottom lip and allowed your head to fall back against the wall with a low thump. 

You liked this touch. More than any touch you had ever had before. You had never let anyone get this far before, not even Mal really. 

Things had been quick with her, like touching you was an unpleasant chore. One neither of you had ever been fond of. 

This. This was different. 

Taylor took her time, lavishing each individual muscle as her warm mouth traveled around your stomach. A chill trailed after her lips, the air landing on your wet skin sending goosebumps across your flesh, stoking a foreign fire in your belly that was almost enough to quiet the growing dread. 

Almost. 

She made her way up your stomach, placing a line of kisses up your chest and collarbone before she again landed on the special spot on your neck. 

“Let’s get you out of these pants,” 

You sucked in a harsh breath through your nose, forcing yourself to remain relaxed. You tried to enjoy the feeling of her hands tracing the residue left on your stomach. Tried to focus on the softness of her lips on your neck and the scent of her perfume. 

Tried to let it drive away ghosts of calloused fingers and gruff voices. 

It almost worked. 

Then her thumb flicked open the button of your jeans, and you couldn’t temper your reaction. You couldn’t quell the growing anxiety in your chest. You froze, every muscle in your body going rigid for a split second before you could force them to relax again. 

You hoped that Taylor wouldn’t notice, but she did. 

“Y/n?” She said softly as she pulled back, her hands retreating from their position at your waist to cup your cheek, and her leg falling from between yours. 

Your eyes slowly fluttered open and met very worried blue. You could see the questions forming. The concern dripped from her form. 

But you knew you couldn’t answer.  You weren’t ready to unlock Pandora's box yet. Not when you knew you would never be able to shut it again. You only knew one way to stop her from asking. One way to regain control. 

You surged forward, your hands on her hips giving you the leverage to push her back against the wall opposite of you. Your mouth landed hot against her neck, lavishing the soft skin with open-mouthed kisses, and your thigh slotted between her legs pressing into her core with the perfect amount of pressure to distract her. 

“I’m ok,” You muttered hotly into her ear, pressing more firmly into her center. “Let me make you feel good,” 

She sucked in a breath, her hips stuttering like they wanted to grind against you, but she wouldn’t let them. 

You dragged your tongue down her neck, letting your teeth just barely graze her sensitive skin, and rocked your hips. Your thumbs scared along the sliver of skin just above her shorts trying to convince her to just go with it. 

To let her let you distract her. 

You thought for a second that it had worked, as a low groan left her lips. You thought that maybe you had… derailed her enough to forget about your momentary lapse in the hold you had on your emotions.  But just as you went to slip your hand into her pants she stopped you. 

Her palm pressed firmly into your chest, insistent until you pulled away enough to make eye contact with her. 

“I want us to both feel good,” she said sternly. 

You swallowed at the comment, fighting to keep your face neutral. 

“Making you feel good will make me feel good,”  You said, trying to lean back in, but the hand on your chest stopped you. 

“Y/n you tensed,” She said, her blue eyes burning into yours, looking for answers, the charge between you melting away. 

You sighed as you pulled away from her until your back hit the wall opposite of her. You ran a hand through your messy curls and glared up at her ceiling, unable to look at her. 

You were afraid that if you did, she would be able to read your mind. She would see the… brokenness you fought so hard to hide.  But you had never been able to hide from Taylor. 

Even before you were dating, you had let her closer to you than anyone had ever gotten before. She was scarily perceptive and had been able to read you from the beginning of your friendship even better than Mal could (and that was saying something). Her abilities only seemed to get more acute as you got closer. 

This was the only area she hadn’t seemed to pick up on. 

You let yourself slide down the wall, your eyes closing as you sucked in another breath.  You still felt so raw from your talk with Alex. Too… vulnerable. Like opening up again would finally crack your chest in half. 

“I’m,” You started and stopped, unsure of what you were actually going to say. “I’m not good at receiving,”

You settled on the phrase, drawing up the courage to finally open your eyes, pulling your knees close to your chest and resting your chin on them. 

You were surprised that Taylor had slid down her own wall so she was sitting across from you and mirroring your posture. 

She made a low sound in the back of her throat, and her eyebrows furrowed. “You’re not good at it?” 

There was no judgment in her voice. None of the disgust you expected. 

“I can’t ever get out of my head enough to… enjoy it I guess,” You cleared your throat and looked away from her, ignoring the heat in your cheeks. “No one’s ever noticed before”

It was a semi-truth. In your slew of hookups, no one had ever cared. No one had pushed back when you stopped them. No one had ever not let you distract them. 

But then again, Taylor was nothing like your hookups. 

You actually had feelings for her that stretched beyond self-loathing and the need to be in control of something. To be good enough. There was nothing quite like the rush that came from making a beautiful woman fall apart under you. It was irrefutable evidence that you were capable. 

Taylor’s eyes tightened. It physically hurt her that none of your past partners (if she could call them that) had cared enough beyond their own needs to see the obvious. And that you were willing to bypass your own comfort so someone else could feel good. 

She wanted to kick herself for not noticing that something was wrong sooner. 

“You’ve never talked through limits or likes and dislikes with any of the people you’ve slept with?”

You ran another hand through your hair (making it impossibly more messy) and let out a very long breath. 

You shrugged. “We were never doing anything beyond vanilla and it never progressed past a few one-sided orgasms,”

You had never let any of them touch you. Hell, you hadn’t even gotten undressed for most of them. The thought of doing anything… kinky sent a shiver down your spine so you hadn’t. It was just easier to keep distance from the people you slept with. It was safer that way. 

Taylor shifted, very slowly scooting towards you, reaching out to place a gentle hand on your foot like she thought you would freak out if she moved too fast. 

“Well, I think there’s a need now,” Taylor said, watching your every movement. 

Your eyes were scarily hollow, accented by the red that rimmed them from the time you had made it to her apartment. She had wanted to ask about it. Pushed just a little to find out if you had been crying, and why. But you didn’t seem to want to talk about it. 

You had pivoted to sex almost as soon as she tried to bring it up. It sent red flags up in her mind. Red flags that only got brighter. 

She couldn’t help but replay every interaction the two of you had had in her mind. There would be time to agonize over every little detail later, but even now, your… reluctance to undress, or allow her to touch you was glaringly obvious. How the moment she flipped your typical script, you couldn’t hide it anymore. 

She was slightly ashamed she hadn’t noticed it before. That she had ignored the signs of your discomfort, even if they were well masked. 

Have you ever wanted to have sex? Had she put you in a position where you didn’t feel like you could refuse? 

She never wanted you to feel forced, whether that was about talking about how you were feeling or having sex. She wanted you to feel comfortable enough to tell her when you weren’t ok with something. 

Your nose dipped behind your thighs, your forehead pressed into your knees, and you squeezed your arms more tightly around them like you were literally trying to hold yourself together. 

Her heart broke a little more at the barely audible “ok” that left your lips. 

She scooted closer to you, her hand carefully drawing up your shin and weaving in your curls. Her nails scratched gently on your scalp, and you practically melted. 

Your shoulders relaxed and you let out a long breath before you shifted to look up at her, your chin balanced on your knees. 

She brushed a curl from in front of your eyes. “When did you start to feel uncomfortable?”

You scrunched your nose. It was a hard question. 

 You weren’t sure how you were supposed to explain that your mind went to soccer as soon as anything remotely intimate started. How were you supposed to explain that you were just defective? 

But maybe you didn’t have to. 

She didn’t ask you that. All she asked was when you started to feel uncomfortable, and that answer was easy.

It was the moment your back hit the wall. The moment you were jarred out of the safe space in your head.

The moment she forced you to be present, unlike every other girl you had ever been with.  

But you weren’t entirely uncomfortable. Maybe at the start, but you had enjoyed parts of being with her. You wanted to enjoy being with her.  But you were just… incapable. Defectives 

You settled for a shrug, curling tighter into yourself. You didn’t want her to see how… fucked up you were. It would only push her away.

That’s what pushed Mal away.  And Alex. And your parents. 

You would never be good enough, and you had just wanted to pretend as long as you could. You weren’t ready to lose Taylor yet. 

“Ok. It’s ok,” Taylor’s voice was gentle, and her hand trailed to tangle in the baby curls at the back of your neck. “Let’s try something else. Can you tell me what you liked?”

Your eyebrows furrowed. “This time?” 

“Any of the times,” She said soothingly, her fingers never stopping their gentle scratches at the back of your neck. 

You closed your eyes, leaning back into her hand. “I like it when you do this,” 

She hummed, and you could hear a smile in it. “Anything else?”

“I like kissing you,” You mumbled, feeling the red flair in your cheeks. 

Her lips always tasted like coffee, and something so… Taylor. They were addictive in the best way. 

“And I like holding you,” You added. There was something comforting about having her in your arms. Something that made you feel safe. “And I like it when you hold me,” 

“But the rest?”  She asked you gently. 

Your shoulders lifted and fell. You did what was expected of you. What you knew worked. 

You went with the flow just like Emily told you too, and then had been too caught in your head to savor the moment. To take in all of the little details that you wanted to remember. No matter how hard you fought, you just… couldn’t. 

You quite liked touching her too, but you knew there was something wrong with your inability to remain in the moment when you did. You knew that she deserved for you to be present. 

“I’m just not good at receiving,” You repeated, misery leaking into your tone. 

It was the only response you could come up with. The only explanation that remotely made sense. This was when she would realize you were… defective. This was when she would leave. But she didn’t. 

She gently squeezed the back of your neck. A silent request for you to look at her and a comforting touch that told you that it was ok. It took you a second to gain the courage to look up, but when you did, you didn’t see the disgust you expected. 

Her eyes were soft, sad, and they held another emotion you couldn’t quite put your finger on. “I like holding and kissing you too,”

She shifted a little closer to you, so her knee was touching yours. “And I’ll hold and kiss you for as long as you’ll let me, at whatever pace makes you feel comfortable,” 

You made a low noise. 

It was strange. Conceptually, you could understand what she was saying, but you had never been with someone who didn’t judge you based on your ability to give them an orgasm. You wondered how long her patience would last. How long would she stay when she realized how deeply you were fucked up. 

“How about we go cuddle on the couch and watch a movie?” She asked, squeezing the back of your neck gently. 

Your nose scrunched as she pulled away, pushing herself to her feet and holding her hand out to you. “You know I don’t like movies,” 

You didn’t have the attention span for them, and you would inevitably get bored halfway through. 

She hummed, wiggling her fingers so you would take her hand. “How about survivor then?” 

Your tension melted at the mention of your favorite show, and your easy smile returned to your features.

“Yes! We have to watch Heroes vs Villains so you can see Russel at his finest,” You said, allowing her to pull you into her side.

“Whatever you want sunshine,” She kissed your forehead and guided you back towards her living room. 

It felt like going to her bedroom was too much, too fast. She didn’t want you to think she had some… expectations despite the clear signs that you were not ready to progress past cuddling. Not while you would so easily compromise your limits. 

Not while your limits still felt so unclear. 

She knew that it would take time to work through that, and she was willing to wait and help you for as long as it took. 

*****

Soft morning light filtered into your consciousness, waking you gently. You breathed in deeply, shifting on a bed that you knew wasn’t yours. 

It smelled like lilacs and Taylor’s perfume, sweet and inviting and safe. You could hear soft music from somewhere else in the apartment and felt cool sheets next to you. 

You frowned, pushing yourself to a sitting position with a yawn. It was rare you woke up after Taylor. That you slept in in general. 

But it shouldn’t have surprised you with what had happened last night. Sure, the two of you had fallen asleep together just after Pavarti and Russel had schemed to take down the Hero’s tribe during the merge. Taylor held you just like she promised, but you should have known it wouldn’t last. 

A good nights sleep had opened her eyes. She had reflected and decided you were too… broken to be worth it. 

“Fuck,” You mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of your eyes with the palms of your hands. 

You should have stopped her before she got to your pants. You should have been more subtle and slipped your position instead of tensing. 

You should have been prepared to lose hold on the iron box that held your emotions. You should have had more control. 

But you didn’t, and now you were most likely going to lose your girlfriend. 

She would break up with you in the sweetest way possible. She would say that it was her. That she was the problem, and you would accept that. 

You would nod along, and make it easy for her.  Just like you had with Mal when she told you that Dansby was her soulmate. That he was so good and perfect. 

You dragged your hands up your face, and into your hair, ruffling your messy curls as you pushed yourself out of bed.  There was no point in drawing this out longer than it needed to be.  

You stretched, pulling your shirt down over your boxers as you padded out of Taylor’s room towards the sound of the music. You could also make out soft voices as you got closer. Your eyebrows furrowed. Who was Taylor talking to? 

You peeked your head around the corner, your frown deepening when you saw a redhead sitting at the island across from Taylor, a large stack of papers sitting to the right of her, drinking a cup of coffee and humming to a song you had never heard before. 

Why was she here? 

Taylor turned from the stove, catching sight of you before you could hide back behind the wall. “Hey babe, good morning,” She said brightly, smiling widely at you. 

“Morning,” You said slowly, stepping out from behind the hallway wall. 

She gestured to the woman across from her. “This is Tree,”

“Hello,” You waved awkwardly at the redhead. 

“She just swang by to hear a bit of the new album,” Taylor explained easily, turning back towards the cabinets. “Do you want some coffee?”

Tree smiled brilliantly at you, showing off perfectly white teeth in a way that surprisingly didn’t feel forced. 

But you could sense the lie in Taylor’s explanation of why her publicist was there. Of why the woman who handled all of Taylor’s outward appearances appeared with a massive contract right after you had shown her how defective you were? 

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” She said, pushing out the stool next to her, a clear invitation to sit. 

You shifted awkwardly from foot to foot and dragged a hand through your hair. 

Neither of them seemed… angry. Or like they were plotting the fastest way to get you out of the apartment. But you didn’t trust it. All of your instincts told you not to. 

“Nice to meet you too,” You said slowly, stepping towards the stool and gesturing to the stack of papers. “Listen, I’ll sign whatever you want me to sign. Can I just take a shower before you kick me out?”

“What?” Taylor and Tree said in unison, Taylor nearly dropping the mug she was holding and Tree’s eyes tightening. 

“I just hate to put on clean clothes without showering,” You scratched more insistently at the back of your neck, your fingers tangling in the tight curls at the base of your skull. “And Alex and Kelley would think it’s weird if I show up to their house in what I wore last night, and I won’t be able to accurately answer their questions,”

Taylor’s eyebrows pulled tightly together and she set the mug down, stepping closer to the island. “Y/n, slow down,” 

You ignored her. You knew you were rambling at this point but you couldn’t stop yourself. “I promise I’ll be in and out in like 5 minutes. I won’t even do my hair,” 

“Y/n stop,” Taylor moved around the island, catching your hand as it began to tug at the roots of your curls.

“What are you talking about?” She asked you softly, ducking to catch your eye. 

“You’re going to break up with me because of what happened,” You rushed out, catching her frown and immediately backtracking. “Which is totally fine. I understand that you want someone… with less baggage. I just want to take a shower before you make me leave,”

“I’m not breaking up with you,” 

You blinked at her.  What was that supposed to mean? 

Was she going to make you do it so she could be the good guy? Was her publicist there to witness it so they could write a story about it? 

“Do you want me to break up with you then?” You asked, softly. You hated the fragility in your voice. 

Taylor’s head cocked to the side and she raised an eyebrow at you. “No,” 

It was your turn to frown. “I don’t understand what’s happening,”

“I’m not breaking up with you. You’re not breaking up with me,” She said like it was simple, tugging you towards the stools. “You’re going to sit down and drink your coffee while I make breakfast. You can talk to Tree if you like, or just listen to some of the tracks from my new album. But no one is getting kicked out or leaving,”

“Oh,” You breathed out, your shoulders dropping. “I don’t like eggs,”

“I know,” Taylor rolled her eyes, an amused smirk on her lips as she turned back towards the counter. “I’m making pancakes,”

“With chocolate chips?” You asked, watching her warily as you took the seat next to Tree slowly. 

You felt like you were in a stupid rom-com that Alex would like. Like you were the idiot boyfriend who was lost. 

“Of course,” Taylor hummed, sliding you a mug. “Drink your coffee,” 

“So I heard you’re going to be playing for Washington this season,” Tree said, and you really looked at her for the first time. 

Her eyes were kind, and she actually seemed… interested. 

“If they ever get me a place to live,” You shrugged, clearing your throat. “Their manager keeps giving me the runaround and preseason starts in like 2 weeks,”

Her eyebrows pulled tightly together and she tapped her perfectly manicured nail on the edge of her mug, just beside the tea bag string. “They haven’t figured that out yet?”

“No. The only option they sent me doesn’t allow pets, which is a serious problem for my 3 huskies,” You sighed, pinching the bridge of your nose. 

To be honest, your move to DC was nearly as painful as the one from North Carolina to Chicago. You just hoped that this time there wouldn’t be a dismembered toe in whatever apartment they put you up in. And hopefully, you had working AC…

The redhead's frown deepened. “Don’t you have a manager that takes care of that?” 

Your nose scrunched. “He’s not helpful,”

Your manager, Travis, had never been… involved. You were one of his 70 clients, and he preferred to do nothing besides collect his paycheck while teams fucked you this way and that. He rarely ever answered your calls, and when he did, he acted like a total slimeball. One more than one occasion he had insisted that he could turn you straight. 

Taylor turned away from the stove, meeting Tree’s frown. You could tell there was a question on the tip of her tongue, one you probably didn’t want to answer just as much as you didn’t want to talk about what had happened last night. 

Tree shook her head slightly, a movement just barely perceptible, making a low sound in the back of her throat and pulling out her phone. “I’ll take care of it,”

You blanched as Taylor turned back to the stove, flipping a pancake. 

You reached for Tree’s arm before she could fully stand from her stool. “No, that's ok. I can figure it out,” 

You didn’t need anyone else to get involved. You didn’t need to make a big deal out of this. You were sure it would only make it worse for you when you arrived. 

You’d heard that the Washington coach Richie was no better than Paul or Rory, and you knew the only way to deal with it was by not making waves. By gritting your teeth and keeping your head down. 

Tree smiled, squeezing your arm and grabbing her phone as she stepped towards the back balcony. “I’ll be right back,” 

You sighed when she disappeared through the glass doors, sinking into the stool, looping your hand through the mug handle, and taking a long drag of your coffee. 

It was perfect. Sweet and light exactly how you liked it, and the soft music playing in the background only made it better. You had never heard this song before. It was just a guitar track, with Taylor’s voice and you found yourself entranced by it. 

I know that it’s delicate, delicate.

You pressed your fingers into the side of your mug as you took another long sip, your eyes following Taylor as she hummed along to the song while flipping the pancakes onto a plate. 

She turned back towards you, sliding the plate across the marble island, and leaning against it. She waited for you to take a bite of your favorite breakfast, smiling when your eyes practically rolled back into your head at the taste. 

Her new music wasn’t the only reason Tree had visited. But she knew she had to explain that very… carefully. She didn't want to set you off, especially when you still seemed so frazzled from the night before. When you thought she would kick you out for tensing. 

She had her suspicions about why your reaction had been so strong, suspicions she had briefly discussed with Tree, but she knew she had to tread carefully. She had the feeling that if you felt too vulnerable, you would shut down entirely. 

But considering the pictures the news media had tried to splash across the headlines, she wasn’t surprised that you had tried to use sex as a distraction (or something else she couldn’t quite put her finger on). It seemed like it was your go-to method, and explained why you had been so content to leave a trail of bodies in the wake of your reputation. 

She also wasn’t surprised that it had ended… the way it did. You had already been emotionally vulnerable. Too vulnerable to have the kind of sex that was deeper than just movements and orgasms. 

She sighed. She would have to tell you why Tree was there, preferably before Tree herself told you. 

“Paparazzi got pictures of you and Alex last night,” She said, trying to stay casual. Trying to make it seem like no big deal. 

You paused, fork full of pancake freezing midair in its trajectory to your mouth for a brief second before you dropped it with a clatter back onto the plate. 

“Fuck me,” You groaned, dragging your palms over your face and through your hair. “Fuck me hard,”

It was another problem. Another thing for you to deal with. When honestly, you just wanted to pretend like last night had never happened. 

All you needed was for the fans to get ahold of a photo of you crying. 

She suppressed a chuckle. “It’s ok, Tree already took care of it,” 

You paused, your fingers scrunching in your hair before you dragged them back down your face and picked up your fork. 

Your eyes stayed closed for a long second before they opened slowly and you resumed eating like nothing had ever happened. 

It was like watching an actor pull on a mask, how you folded all of your emotions up neatly and pushed them inside. It was… incredible and sent alarm bells blazing in Taylor’s mind. 

“Oh. Um. Thanks,” 

You could feel her eyes appraising you. 

“It’s no problem,” She said with a little shrug, bringing her own mug to her lips. 

You went back to your pancakes, the only sound between you the scraping of your fork on her plate and the song playing again in the background. Your mind wandered through the chorus, enjoying the way the beat drop tickled the little spot in the back of your head. Your eyes swept across the kitchen landing on the giant stack of papers in front of Tree’s empty stool. 

“What are the papers?” You asked after a moment, pointing to it with your fork when the music died down and the song restarted. 

Taylor reached for it, placing it between you and spinning it so you could read it. You didn’t. The print was small and close together, and you didn’t want to give yourself a headache. 

“You said that no one has ever discussed limits and boundaries with you, so I thought it might be nice to do that,” Taylor explained carefully. 

You raised an eyebrow at her. “So you printed a packet?”

“Well, no,” She shook her head. “I know you said that you had never done anything beyond vanilla, but I have, and I think it’s important to thoroughly know my partners limits,”

You let a teasing smirk play across your lips, sinking into the teasing to cover how… off kilter you felt. 

You had never discussed limits. With anyone. And it scared you what she could discover. What if something you said turned her off? What if she didn’t want you after you filled out her packet? 

“I didn’t know you were kinky Miss Swift,” You said, wiggling your eyebrows. “Or is there some other title you prefer?” 

A bright red blush spread across her cheeks, traveling down her neck, and she looked away from you. 

Before you could follow up, to make the gorgeous red color travel further, the sound of the glass door opening echoed through the kitchen, and Tree stepped back inside. 

“Ok. I’ve got your housing settled, and I ordered a moving crew to help you,” Tree said as she sat back down beside you, seemingly oblivious to the tension between you and Taylor. 

Or maybe she was just better at ignoring Taylor’s reactions.,

You blinked owlishly at her. “I’m sorry, what?”

“All you have to do is text this number with the date you want to move and they’ll help you get all of your belongings down to DC,” She said, handing you a sticky note with a number on it. 

You had no idea where she had gotten it, but you were thankful for it. 

“Oh, uh, thanks,”

She nodded. “If you have any more issues, call me and I’ll take care of it until we can get you a good manager,”

You swallowed your surprise. You weren’t even sure how to go about finding a new manager, and you doubted you could afford one. You weren’t entirely sure how the whole thing worked actually. But Tree seemed to know exactly what to do. 

You turned back to your plate, taking another bite of your pancakes.  They were like heaven, second only to the Pancakes Kelley made. But something nagged at the back of your mind. Taylor didn’t have a plate in front of her, and there wasn’t one in the sink. You supposed she could have placed it in the dishwasher. 

“Aren’t you going to eat?” You asked, your fork pausing midair. 

She shook her head. “I’m not hungry,” 

A frown pulled at your lips.  Now that you thought about it, Taylor was not hungry a lot. She rarely ate snacks when you did, and you were pretty sure she had never finished a meal with you. 

“Then I'm not hungry,” You responded, already pushing the half-finished plate away from you, despite the way your mouth watered for more. “Unless you want to share these?”

She sighed heavily, but took your fork nonetheless, stabbing a tiny piece of pancake not drowned in syrup and bringing it to her lips. 

“Happy?” She asked you, and your smirk turned real. 

“I’m always happy when I’m with you,” 

*****

“I don’t understand what that means,” You muttered, reading number 372 of Taylor’s limit questionnaire. 

Touching while under sense deprivation

Most of the list had been easy. Things you knew you liked (like kissing), and things you knew you would never want (impact play with a cane). The rating system had also been easy to understand: things you liked and had done, things you wanted to try, things you would only try with lengthy discussion, and things you never wanted to try. 

Taylor highlighted her preference in green Sharpie and you did yours in orange as the two of you worked through her packet cuddled on her couch. She had been insistent that the two of you fill out the packet after lunch, and Tree left to give the two of you some privacy. 

“It means the use of a blindfold or headphones that cut off one of your senses,” She explained, already highlighting a would like to try in her green highlighter. “It can be fun. When one sense is taken away, others tend to heighten,”

You swallowed hard, biting your lip as the red in your cheeks got impossibly darker. 

“I,” you swallowed hard and looked away from her. “I don’t want to do anything where I can’t see you,” 

You had enough problems remaining in the moment with her. The idea that you wouldn’t be able to see her terrified you. 

It scared you to think about where your brain might take you. 

“Ok,” She agreed easily, placing a perfect orange swipe over never try, already moving on to the next one. 

It made your head spin how… comfortable with this she was. 

It was like she had done this before. She said she liked to know her partner's limits, so maybe she had. You had never asked about past relationships before. 

“This isn’t your first time going through this list, is it?” you asked, but the question was more of a statement than an actual question. 

She paused, halfway through reading hands restrained while partner touches- giving and looked at you. 

“No, it’s not,” She admitted gently. “I… I would rather be over prepared than cross a line that I didn’t know was there,”

Your head tilted, and you raised an eyebrow at her. “And you were doing kinky shit like touching your partner while their hands were restrained?”

“Sometimes,” She shrugged, her eyes narrowing. “But I feel like that wasn’t the question you actually wanted to ask me,”

It was slightly scary how well she could read you sometimes. 

You bit your lip. Your questions weren’t polite, but then again you were discussing allowing her to restrain you while you had sex. It was more… intimate than anything you had done with any of your partners, but Taylor seemed… comfortable. 

She had done this before, and you wondered… how many others had been in your position. 

“You’ve had relationships before?” You asked slowly, picking your cuticle and looking away from her. 

“Yes?” She asked back, using a finger under your chin to gently get you to meet her eyes again, as she raised her eyebrow. 

“I was wondering if you would tell me a little bit more about them,” 

“I’ve had a few, some vanilla, some not so vanilla. A few with men, but the serious ones have only been with women,” She said, her voice soft, like she knew you were insecure about asking. “Is there anything specific you would like to know?”

Your fingers picked more instantly at your thumb. “Were you-… did they-…”

Her thumb ran over your elbow. “Relax and take a deep breath,”

You did, except it didn’t help you. You felt like a fish gaping out of water. You forced your mouth to close, dragging in a deep breath through your nose. 

“You said you weren’t a pillow princess,” You mumbled, and a rye smile crossed her lips. 

“You want to know if I was tying people up or if they were tying me up?” 

You gulped but nodded. That had indeed been your question. 

“Well. The dynamic I had with my partners changed with each partner,” She explained thoughtfully. “I found early on that I preferred to give rather than receive, but sometimes it’s nice to just let go and let someone else take care of you,” 

You made a low sound as you took in the information. Really, it should have been obvious with the way she already took care of you.  She waited for you to ask a follow-up, as the silence stretched between you. When it became clear that you weren’t going to ask, she asked a question of her own. 

“Can I ask you a question?” Her head tilted, and she waited for you to nod. “The situationship?”

Your nose involuntarily scrunched. “What about it?”

“I was wondering if you would tell me a little bit more about it,” she mimicked your phrasing gently. 

You pulled your chin from her hand and looked away from her again.  It was… hard for you to talk about what happened with Mal. It still stung in a way you didn’t expect, even though you didn’t… want her anymore. Not like you had. 

“It was a teammate. We were under a lot of pressure, and it just kinda… happened,” You mumbled.  “I got hooked and she didn’t, so she chose someone else,”

Taylor made a low noise of understanding in the back of her throat. “But not before stringing you along,”

Your lips pressed into a thin line and you shook your head. “No,” 

You didn’t want to give her more details, to let yourself remember the agony of how it all devolved. How it felt like she was running you over broken glass every time you interacted. Giving you hope just to swipe it away at the last second. 

“For how long?” Taylor asked softly, drawing your eyes back to her. 

“Almost 4 years,” You sighed, running your hand through your hair and massaging the back of your neck. “The last time we hooked up was like 3 months after you and I became friends,” 

Her eyes tightened as she did the math in her head. That would make you 13 or 14 when it started. A shiver went down her spine. “So young,” 

You shrugged, your fingers digging more deeply into the skin on your neck. “Weird things happen at youth camp,” 

“Apparently,” She muttered. 

Your reaction to her trying to touch you was starting to make sense. If you had started young, and had a… bad experience… 

You cleared your throat. “How long was your last relationship?”

She blinked at you, pulling out of her thoughts. “5 years and some change,”

“Do you talk to any of your exes?” You asked.  “Like the serious ones?”

“No, those bridges went down in flames, but I keep up with a few of the less serious ones,” She shook her head. “I’m assuming you still talk to your ex situationship?”

“She’s one of my best friends,” Your shoulders lifted and fell, and your lips formed a very thin line at calling Mal a friend. You disliked how she UNC all over you, and things were… weird when you interacted, but you couldn’t exactly do anything about it. She was an integral part of your friend group and of the team. “Does it bother you?”

“No,” She said thoughtfully, reaching over to catch your hand as it again ran through your hair. “Because I trust you,” 

“I trust you too,” You said back, and you meant it with everything in you. You trusted Taylor more than you trusted nearly anyone. 

She smiled gently at you. “Do you want to continue this list?” 

You nodded slowly. “Let’s do this,” 

You glanced back down at the stack of papers between you. Yes, it was uncomfortable, but you trusted Taylor. 

OoOoOoO May 2017 You come around and the armor falls Pierce the room like a cannonball Now all we know is don't let go

“You are too fast for your own good,” Ali Krieger sighed, settling down on the bench beside you as you squirted more water into your mouth. 

You shrugged. “You and Dydasco keep leaving a gap for me to split, and Mal is good at finding space,”

The Washington Spirit captain hummed, sipping her own bottle. 

The defender had taken you under her wing as soon as you stepped foot in DC. She had shown up at your apartment ready to help you unpack, only to find it immaculately set up. She had taken you to lunch instead and introduced you to the rest of the team. 

They were wary at first given your reputation, but they were slowly finding out that you weren’t what everyone claimed you were. 

“Dude, that little through ball is sick!” Mal said before Ali could respond, throwing her arm around you and sitting on the bench practically in your lap. “We can totally use that against Sky Blue,”

You shuffled away from her as far as you could without being obvious, taking another long sip of your drink. “Kelley will be looking for it. She’s seen us do it too much,”

Ali had noticed that there was something… odd about the way you interacted with Mal. 

The two of you were inseparable, and your chemistry on the field was entirely unmatched. But there was just something she couldn’t quite put her finger on that bothered her about how Mal was with you. 

How you tried to squirm away from her without drawing attention to it, and how Mal would only move closer. How there was a depth to your relationship with the forward, a history, that Ali hadn’t been aware of before. 

Mal grabbed your water and squirted some into her own mouth while squeezing your shoulder. “Maybe we can discuss a new game plan over drinks?” 

Ali raised her eyebrow. “You’re both underage,”

“Hasn’t stopped Y/n before,” Mal shrugged, nudging you with a giggle. “She can take down a case of beer all on her own,”

You scrunched your nose, and brought your free hand to the back of your neck, pressing deeply into the skin. 

“Um, no thanks,” You said. “I have plans,” 

Mal froze, dropping the water bottle into your lap, and inadvertently getting your pants wet. 

“Plans?”  Mal’s eyes narrowed at you, and the edge in her voice made you shiver. “Which one of our teammates are you fucking tonight?”

A grimace crossed your features, but you smothered it under a mask of indifference, as you brought your shoulders up to touch your ears. “None of them,” 

Mal relaxed, ever so slightly. “Ah, so you finally got the app Lindsey suggested?” 

“No. I don’t use straight dating apps,” You huffed, righting the water bottle. “I don’t need the internet to pick up interested parties, but I’m not seeing some rando either. Not that it’s any of your business,” 

“Who was in your pants used to be entirely my business,” Mal mumbled, pressing a finger into the spot right below your ear, dragging it down the curve of your chin, and using it to tilt your head to make eye contact with her. “You liked it being my business,”

You stared her down, something passing between you that Ali didn’t understand. 

“And you made sure that it wasn’t anymore,” You said, your voice cold as ice as you pushed her hand away, and squirted more water into your mouth. 

“Ok,” Ali said, breaking the tension between you and the forward. “So Kelley will be wise to the through ball, what do you suggest?”

She had never seen you be so… direct. 

You put more space between you and Mal, your lip caught between your teeth for a long moment before you shrugged. “I’m sure Richie has a plan. He’s the master strategist isn’t he?” 

“You’ve had enough film sessions with him, so you tell me,” Ali countered. 

A dark look crossed your features, there for a split second before it was gone. Replaced by an easy smirk that Ali was learning wasn’t so easy. It was the face you made every time something made you uncomfortable and you didn’t want to talk about it. 

You took another sip from your water before you squirted it at Mal. “I’m sure he’s got a plan for his superstar,” 

You pushed yourself off the bench and ran off towards the midfield coach before either of them could stop you, and Mal went tearing off after you. 

Ali shook her head.  If only she had as much energy as you two. But still, there was something… nagging in the back of her mind. Red flags she couldn’t quite place. 

*****

You hummed quietly to yourself as you lit the final candle on your dining room table. 

The table was set. The dinner was in the oven set to the exact temperature Kelley recommended (after she walked you through how to turn it on), removed from its take-out containers and placed in glass dishes, and the trash had been removed taking with it any evidence that your meal hadn’t been created in your kitchen well before Taylor arrived at your apartment (and you had sworn Tony and Zach to secrecy). 

You had cleared off the counter in your kitchen, save for a thick off-white envelope, and a bottle of the red wine you knew Taylor preferred.  It would be the perfect date night. 

Taylor had flown in from Nashville to spend the midweek break with you, and you were fucking stoked. The two of you had seen each other in passing, but getting really quality time together during the season was rough. Nothing would stop you this weekend. 

“This is gorgeous,” Taylor hummed as she stepped into the kitchen area. “And it smells amazing,”

You smiled widely at her, pulling out a chair. “Thanks. I was just about to pull it out of the oven if you wanna sit?”

“Such a gentlewoman,” She said, as she sat, and you felt a bit of red color your cheeks. 

You had been called many things, but a gentleman (woman- whatever) was never one of them. People tended to believe your reputation and take you at face value. 

You were pretty sure Taylor was the only person to ever look past it. 

You turned away from her, moving towards the oven. “Only for you,”

She hummed, and you felt her eyes as you got the food out of the oven, and turned off the device before you brought it over to her. 

“It looks amazing,” She said as you placed the cookware on the table, and more red bloomed across your cheeks. 

“Thanks,” You mumbled, joining her at the table. “It’s coconut curry with chicken, broccoli and rice. It’s got a lot of good fats and protein,”

It was a habit you had started in March, listing out the good parts of your meal. You noticed that she never saw food as fuel or something to be enjoyed. It always seemed like a chore she dreaded or a part of her day she just omitted entirely. You worried and you hoped that your little talks might change her view. So far you had been (mildly) successful. 

Taylor hummed and spooned herself a good portion. “I like coconut curry. I have it a lot after shows,” 

“Good,” You smiled as the red bled up your cheeks towards your ears. “It’s one of my favorites during the season because it meets all of my macros and is filling,” 

Taylor hummed again. “What’s the envelope on your counter?”

You rolled your eyes at the thought of the off-white envelope, with your address written in perfect cursive. “A wedding invitation,”

Taylor’s eyebrows pulled tightly together. “I thought they got engaged in March? They’re already setting a date?”

“We have to plan around tournaments, so they picked the only time everyone will be available,” You mumbled, chewing your too-large mouthful. “Spring of 2018”

“Still seems like a fast turnaround,” Taylor said thoughtfully. 

You shrugged. “They’ve been together for like 10 years. Alex has probably been planning this for years. She can read minds, and she’s a control freak so she probably knew Kelley was going to propose as soon as Kelley started looking at rings,” 

“Ah, I see,” 

You fidgeted in your chair, your fork aimlessly scraping your plate. “Do you want to be my date?” 

It nigged in the back of your mind that the two of you might not even be together in a year and a half, and that you were probably asking her to be your date way too far in advance. 

“Unless you hate me by then,” You added, forcing a playful smirk across your lips. 

She rolled her eyes at you, swallowing her bite. “I won’t hate you by then, and I would love to be your date,”

You nodded. “I’ll talk to Alex and Kelley about getting a plus one,” 

Taylor hummed and took another bite, chewing slowly. “I also wanted to talk to you about maybe trying something new,”

You raised your eyebrow at her. “What did you have in mind?” 

“Well,” She started. “When we filled out the limits sheet you mentioned that you didn’t like all touches, so I thought we could maybe walk through those boundaries, and I’ve never seen you naked, which is kinda criminal,”

“So? You want to what?” You asked, watching her carefully. 

“Shower together,” She said, meeting your eyes. “This way it’s something we’ve done, just-“

 “I’ll actually take my clothes off this time?” You asked, meeting her eyes. 

“And you can show me where you’re comfortable being touched and where you’re not,” Taylor continued gently. “I think it might be a good exercise in intimacy without expectations,” 

You nodded, taking a shaky breath. “Ok,”

“Ok,” 

*****

Water cascaded down your body in ripples, rolling over the goosebumps that littered your skin. Your fingers tapped against your hips, as you tried to force yourself to relax. 

“We don’t have to do this Y/n,” Taylor said from behind the shower curtain. 

You thought that this would be… easier if you get into the water first. That it would ease the bubbling anxiety in your chest. 

It didn’t. But you weren’t ready to give up yet. You wanted to trust her. 

“No,” You said, your voice more shaky than you would have liked it to be. “It’s ok. You can get in,” 

You turned towards the water, letting the spray hit your face, as you heard the distinct crinkle of the shower curtain. 

You felt her warm presence behind you, though she didn’t reach out to touch you. 

You took a deep breath, steeling yourself before you turned back to face her. 

“I want to do this,” You mumbled, meeting her eyes, trying not to scan down her body. You appreciated that her blue orbs remained steadfastly locked with yours. 

“As long as you’re sure,” Taylor said softly. “You can tell me to stop at any point, and we will. Red, yellow and green still apply,” 

Your lip disappeared between your teeth and you nodded. 

You understood the stoplight system that the two of you had discussed. Red for stop, yellow for slow down or discuss first and green for good. You swore you would try for her, so you would. 

“Remember that I need a verbal?” Taylor asked you. 

“Yes. I’m ok. Green,” You said, your voice shaking more than you wanted it to. “Just…”

You looked away from her, finding a spot on the wall above her head. “Just go slow,”

“Of course,” Taylor promised you. “We’ll go at your pace. Even if today we just stand there, that’s ok,”

You nodded again. 

You didn’t like how… vulnerable you felt without your top on. 

It was too close. Too intimate and that’s part of the reason you had never done this with anyone before. 

But Taylor wasn’t just anyone.

You wanted to give Taylor this. 

You closed your eyes and let out a long breath. It shook as it left your lungs, disappearing into the steam building between you. 

You reached out slowly, catching her hands. “Let me show you where my boundaries are,” 

You went to tug her hands forward, but she resisted. 

“Can you look at me while we do this?” She asked, her voice gentle. “I want you to be present, here with me,”

It took you a very long second for you to open your eyes, and another for them to drag down her forehead and meet her blue. 

She smiled softly at you. “Thank you,”

Your head bobbed briefly, and you squeezed her hands. It shouldn’t be this hard for you to let someone touch you. 

The two of you stood there for several minutes before you gained the courage to pull her forward again. She went with you this time, letting you bring her hands to the hard lines of your stomach just below your belly button. 

“Here is ok,” You said, trailing her fingers up the center of your abs to your diaphragm before you moved them out to your sides and back down to the original level. 

“My whole back is ok too,” You murmured, feeling her nails dragging across your lower back, meeting at your spine. 

Your eyes slipped closed at the feeling. At how you could feel the body heat rolling off of her because of how close she was to you.

“Color?” She asked, and you could feel the words on your lips. 

Your eyes blinked open, meeting the fire burning in hers. “Green,”

“Good,” She said. “Stay with me, ok?”

“Ok,” You breathed back, as her fingers moved up your spine like she was counting each of them. 

You did your best to remind yourself that it was her hands on you as they finally reached your shoulders. They outlined your collarbone, and her thumbs brushed against your neck. 

It felt like a warm flame traveling from the point of her touch up to your cheeks, and down in your chest. 

“Will you let me wash your hair?” She asked, and her thumb swiped around your cheek. 

“Yeah,” You breathed out, making no move to grab your shampoo. You were afraid that if you’d turned, you would forget it was her. 

Her head tilted to the side. “Color?”

“Green, right now,” You murmured, more red flooding into your cheeks. “I just… I need to be able to see you when your hands are on me. When we’re… like this,”

“Ok,” Taylor agreed easily like it wasn’t a big ask at all. “I’ll stay where you can see me,”

You nodded, swallowing hard again. “Maybe we just do this today,” 

“That’s ok too,” Taylor hummed, her thumb running over your cheek to the sensitive skin behind your ear. “We’re doing this all at your pace,”

You swallowed hard again. “Thank you,”

Her lips tilted upwards. “Anything for you. I want you to enjoy our time together too. We’ll work up to the rest. My main concern is your comfort, and maintaining your boundaries. We’ll take it one step at a time,”

You could do that. You could do this. One step at a time. 

[nknoxe-n]

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥Happy Campersೃ⁀➷

Synopsis: You're their special person of interest, one of you forgets a sleeping bag when you go camping together and has to share with the other <3

Warnings: [Shidou, that's it]

w.c 1k

note: If anyone wants, I will make little drabbles on each of them based off of these headcannons

(They'd forget their sleeping bag)

Isagi Yoichi: Sweet boy he's so embarrassed at first, he forgot his sleeping bag, and it's soooo cold out would you please let him share, he had the immediate idea to share almost like he was waiting for something like this to happen. He's so smitten once he gets inside the sleeping bag with you, once the both of you are half asleep he starts to wrap his arm around your waist and snuggle up to you, no doubt you'll wake up in a tangled mess.

Nagi Seishiro: He wouldn't care all too much but he 100% takes up most of the sleeping bag, just because he likes you doesn't mean he'll give up his precious sleeping space even if it's actually yours, besides he's just so big you can't expect to have a lot of room anyway. Nagi is totally a cuddle bug because there is too much hassle in having shame, if he wants something he'll just ask, you wouldn't mind right?

Bachira Meguru: Awh he's so sweet, when he realizes he forgot his sleeping bag he just pouts at the campfire for a good solid ten minutes before lighting up and asking if he can share with you, which how could you say no to that face? You'd have to convince him to not get naked because he sleeps naked no doubt in my mind about it, personally I don't see him asking if he can cuddle you he'll just do it but also respectful af he would pull away if you asked, surprisingly has cold hands all the time.

Reo Mikage: He did it on purpose… you both could have just stayed at his cottage to camp, but he insisted you go in a tent out in the woods with sleeping bags. He'd beg you with those big, stupid, purple, puppy eyes and I mean actually beg you, if you asked he'd get down on his knees for you (He loves to give, also soft dom or actual big bottom energy). If you end up agreeing he's actually kind of nervous, he wants it to go perfectly so he's mumbling bashfully like a school girl if he can hold you because he's a little cold, poor thing.

Niko Ikki: Ugh this little pathetic shrimp boy he's adorable, doesn't want to even ask permission to share a sleeping bag with you, he's too embarrassed, you'll have to be the one to ask or else he WILL sleep on the floor of his tent with nothing. I know for a fact this twink cuddles like a koala, doesn't matter if you're bigger or smaller than him, he will be climbing you.

Shidou Ryusei: He did it on purpose, he wants those cheeks, that's it. (#1 Shidou hater)

(You would forget your sleeping bag)

Barou Shoei: This man? You expect this man to forget, no way in hell, he'd rather march back to the house than get caught forgetting his own. He'll realize you forgot your sleeping bag before you and has already mentally prepared to share with you, in his mind there's no other alternative, what you want to freeze to death? He's super warm but will not hold you even if you ask, if you want to so badly you have to initiate it. Not only that, but he moves a lot in his sleep and finds it really hard to get comfortable, and will wake up with you on your back and him half on top of you and an arm around your waist.

Rin Itoshi: He will act SO mad at you when you tell him that you've forgotten your sleeping bag, how else are you supposed to camp now? I still will always believe Rin would never like someone unless you've known him since pre-brother removal or since he was young at least, so you've probably had sleepovers with him before. No matter how close you are just because he likes you doesn't mean he's going to act happy about it, but he's completely different once your asleep he's still awake, I see him being awake for a while just thinking because this man is emotionally constipated, but he'll cuddle you once he's sure that he can play it off in the morning as your fault for being clingy in your sleep.

Kunigami Rensuke: BIGGEST doofus ever, he is so sweet about it, instantly offering to go home and camp some other time since you don't have a sleeping bag but when you mention sharing he's a flustered mess, a MESS I say, but he'll agree to it. He asks if you're cold once you get settle and if you say yes he offers to hold you, not like there's much difference since it's a tight squeeze. He drools in his sleep so be prepared to wake up with that also he will have one of your legs in between his idk it's a comfort thing.

Tokimitsu Aoshi: Does anyone like this dork? Well I do so buckle up mf's, he was so worried about the entire trip of course he didn't forget his own sleeping bag, also how did you get this man in the woods at night? Either way, he is dying at the thought of sleeping in the same place as you, especially one so cramped because he likes you so much, and he has to make a perfect impression because in his mind he's so uninteresting and what if you hate him? It goes smoothly in reality, but he doesn't end up sleeping that night because he's afraid he might snore and wake you up. The end. No, but if you actually ask to cuddle he'll let you, but he will not only be awake all night he'll be tense too.

Shidou Ryusei: So in another universe where I don't hate this man, here's his headcannon. He wouldn't forget his sleeping bag, and he's already suggesting you two share the sleeping bag once he finds out you don't have yours, and he will cuddle up to you no questions asked. If he likes you, he LIKES you, he might try to turn it into something sexual, but if you don't want that he won't take it that far. He grips you in his sleep like he will have a fist full of your shirt, your thigh, hell even your hair. He dreams about hurting people and talks in his sleep also had the funniest bed head no questions asked.

[bitin-and-barkin]

Intertwined Fingers

What would the aftermath of your so called death look like?

Warnings: Arthur Morgan x Reader, Gender neutral reader, he's going a bit insane ngl, implied self harm, dog symbolism, smut, fun fact: Pomade was commonly used as lube in the 1800s, Dom reader, sub Arthur, soft sex (I finally did the soft sex thing), No mentions of your genetalia, you just jerk off Arthur because you wanted to take care of him tonight, sorry probably not what the people were looking for but its fine, weirdly described sex to the point where it's not even porn, just an art piece, more yandere shit in the next part but you can smell the start of it here, overuse of the word Intertwined

READ MORE UNDER THE CUT + Pt 2 to another story, Pt 1 here, Pt 3 here

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

That night in the hotel room, Arthur sheepishly asked if he could stay with you for the night.

You, of course, accepted.

After climbing into bed, he couldn't keep his hands off of you.

Well, he usually can't, always clinging to you like a koala bear. But especially not tonight.

Rubbing his hands up and down your chest. Feeling the grooves in your skin. The curves and marks. Wrapping his arms around you, nuzzling his nose into your neck.

Making sure all of his touches were gentle, as not to cause you pain.

Feeling your stomach rise and fall as you slept peacefully. Hearing your heartbeat.

Still softly sobbing, keeping it quiet so you could sleep, not daring to let go.

He felt like sinking into you in that moment.

For the first time in ages, Arthur slept peacefully. He could sleep for ages with your hands intertwined with his.

When you tried to get up in the morning, he pretended to be asleep so you'd stay with him for longer. When you tried to get up anyways?

He pretty much begged you to stay with him.

You ended up laying in bed for another hour before you finally were able to leave.

While taking you back to camp you told him about the doctors. How you already went to the one in Valentine, but they could only do so much.

He said he was gonna get a doctor to come here and properly check you out again, as he knew one that owed him some favors.

Worries of discreetness be damned.

Once you had gotten back to camp, people stared at you like they were looking at a ghost.

In fact, Sean fainted when he first saw you. They thought you were dead.

You even looked the part.

Hours had passed and it was sundown. Arthur had brought in a doctor named "Alphonse Renaud." By now, he had been in there for hours, Arthur right by his side.

His hands were soaked in blood, helping the doctor deal with everything they did to you.

The sick fucks had put nails in your legs.

Nails.

Your back was ripped to shreds, with some marks looking even like they came from whips.

They were irritated too, and Dr. Renaud guessed that they had poured whiskey into your wounds.

He was wondering how you managed to let him hold you the night before without wincing and whining out in pain.

Just imagining how much pain you must've been in, when he thought that he needed to hold you?

How much pain you must've been in when he was asking you on the ride back home if you felt okay?

He felt like the worst shit on earth.

Alphonse estimated you'd live a lifetime of numbness and pain on certain, scarred parts.

At least you weren't in pain right now.

You were currently passed out from Morphine after Arthur yelled at Swanson to help alleviate your pain, when he heard you whimper as the doctor worked.

He silently cried into his hands next to your bedside after he heard your shallow breaths.

He was scared. So fucking scared.

A 3 days passed, with Arthur watching your every movement like a hawk. He was around you 24/7. All other priorities just seemed to fade into the background.

You were fading in and out of consciousness. Going through fevers and hot flashes, scaring everybody at camp.

Whenever you were awake, you seemed to be in a trance. Muttering about things that weren't there, unable to recognize anybody. Not even your husband.

Arthur hadn't slept in that time either. Afraid that if he looked away for one second, the O'Driscolls would swoop up and take you away from him again.

He didn't even think of letting Kieran near you, your horse, or the tent you were in.

He got antsy when you got home, gaining an even shorter fuse to match. Doing everything to make the place more comfortable for you. Cleaning your bedsheets, changing your bandages. Gently talking to you about his day and asking about yours while you were asleep, that way if you woke up you wouldn't wake up alone.

Hosea insisted he needed rest. But every single time he went to bed, he couldn't sleep. Wracked with anxiety. Knowing you were just 15 feet away, safe and sound in your tent, yet still wondering where you were.

Wondering where his darling was.

He snuck into your tent later that night and sat down next to you. Coming down here just to make sure you were still breathing.

Watching your chest rise, your breaths were still as shallow as ever.

He had just gotten you back and he was already losing you again.

And with his coddling and touching, he had only made it worse.

He'd give anything to go back to the way things were.

Before you went on that shitty sniping job, god, what in fucking hell made Dutch think that was a good idea?

He'd give up all his things. He'd kill every O'Driscoll known to man. He'd break his own legs. He'd trade places with you. He'd kill himself.

Just for you to be okay.

He reached down, tracing his finger against scars that weren't there before.

He started talking softly to your sleeping body,

Saying how later he'll take you to the city and get you anything you want. He'll take you out dancing, or to the saloon, or to one of those new picture shows if you feel up to it.

How later he'll shoot Colm for what he did. Make his death slow, make him feel every ounce of pain you did. Doubled. He'll make Colm beg for mercy, then leave him to rot to death in some shithole.

How later, if that stupid Tahiti dream ever becomes realized, he'll settle down with you. Have a kid or two if you feel like it. As long as he can raise them with you.

Only you. Nobody but you.

How later, he'll build a mansion for you and you'd never have to be afraid of anyone hurting you ever again.

How he's so sorry that you had to come find him.

That you'd kill him if you died.

He heard the bed creak as he nervously chatted on and on.

Felt your fingers intertwining with his.

He turned to you, smiling.

You had awoken, and reached out to him.

He tucked your hair behind your ear.

There you were.

For the first time in a long time you were coherent. Aware. Unafraid.

And for the first time in a long time, you saw him clearly.

He took your hand and raised it to his lips, gently kissing your bruised knuckles. Asking how you felt as he did.

He looked... tired.

There were scrapes on his palms and hands, deep cutting scars. Going up and along his wrists and forearms.

Now that you think about it, when you first saw him again, his sleeves were rolled down.

He never rolled them down.

There were new gashes on his face. Along his lips and jaw. He was starting to look like John.

His cheeks were gaunt, and he had deep eyebags. As if they've been festering for months.

His hair was longer, a bit tangled too.

You're used to him being so broad, and while he still is, he looks almost underweight.

You took your other hand and reached up to his cheek, gently stroking it.

He leaned into your touch. He looked exhausted.

God, What had happened while you were gone?

He was resting his face on your hand as he held your other.

You gripped his jaw and pulled him close, softly placing a kiss on his lips.

And placing his free hand on yours, he returned it.

Bodies intertwining like a jigsaw puzzle.

He tried to pull away, wanting to give you air, but you pulled him even closer.

God, you were gonna be the death of him.

He pushed his hands under your shirt,

with you hastily undoing his belt.

Whispering to you,

"Darling, you're so pretty it hurts."

Pushing you to the bed,

placing kisses on your scars.

You pulled your hand away and placed them on his jeans, groping him through his pants.

His head whipped back, letting out a shaky moan.

Whimpering something unintelligible.

You were toying with his tits through his shirt.

Biting down, leaving hickeys along his neck.

Continuing to grope his dick, making him sport a tent in his pants.

And just looking into his eyes, and he had the look of a kicked puppy.

Just begging for you to properly touch him.

Unzipping his fly, his dick sprung out. Slapping against his stomach.

No wonder he had that look in his eyes. He'd follow you like a dog, and worship you like god. At least, it looked like he wanted to tonight.

You took his dick in your hand, pumping him up and down. Pressing your forehead against his, telling him to just relax, that you wanted to take care of him. Helping him take his shirt off as he whispered "Are you sure?" Asking you if you felt well enough to do this.

His breath hitching, he fumbled to untie his bandana before resorting to just rip the thing off entirely.

Peeling off his shirt just to feel you more. To touch you, as you pulled him close. Asking him to tell you just how much he missed you as pre-cum seeped out of his dick, slicking your palm.

You pulled forward and gently kissed his collarbone, licking your free hand and playing with his chest as you stroked him at a steady pace.

Biting down on his neck, his flesh soft between your teeth.

Only yours though. Only yours.

He slotted his head into your shoulder, and began to mumble, kissing your neck up and down.

Cradling your head in his palm.

Running his fingers across your bones, licking stripes against healed wounds.

To whimper and to whine, just like he did the day before.

Like a dog doing all the tricks it knew.

Fucking like two instruments playing in tune.

His eyes were glossed over, his hot breath puffing like smoke, and his words weren't making any sense anymore.

The sensual turning the sexual into the unintelligible, just repeating over and over,

I love you,

I love you,

I love you.

People in camp always talked shit about Arthur, how he was "Van Der Linde's Bitch." His dog, broken in like a wild horse. Obedient, pliable, perfect. But they're giving credit to the wrong man.

It was all you. Only you, Only you.

He arched back on the bed, crying your name as he came. His seed splattering across his stomach, into your hands.

Begging you not to leave him ever again.

Not even once,

Not even once,

Not even once.

Pleasure sparked behind his eyelids like a gunshot.

You hushing him with silent kisses, telling him to quiet down.

Letting him rut and sputter into your hands like putty until he finally came completely undone, and the only noise was his labored breathing, panting.

His hands trailed up your thighs, eager to return the favor. But you gingerly grabbed his palms and brought them up to your lips.

Oh so gently kissing his knuckles, just like he did for you.

His eyes were still red from crying. Months of grief released in a week.

You pulled his face close, kissing him on the cheek.

Pulling him down into bed, slotting your hips in between his.

Sleeping together,

with your hands intertwined.

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Should I keep this story going???

@yyiikes

[normal-thoughts-official]

karlach has to stop jokingly saying she wants something because wyll "hopeless romantic" "eager to please" ravengard always takes it way too seriously. they enter the mason's guild and she's like "maybe we'll find a nice big hammer for karlach" and wyll painstakingly collects every single hammer they find in there and presents it to her when they're resting catalogued by size and sturdiness and hand tested "although of course my technique can't hold a candle to yours, my love" and when she tries to tell him that was mostly a joke and those hammers aren't as good for fighting as the actual warhammer she already has he looks so dejected and disappointed she simply has to fight with some rusty lumphammer for a week. she's like "I'd like to dance a waltz" and at the end of the day wyll has somehow spontaneously learned how to summon an orchestra and decorated the whole camp. how did he do that? he was out fighting cultists the whole day! she has no clue but he did and by the gods is he going to waltz her until he physically cannot anymore. she almost regrets saying she wanted a hug so many times because now whenever they have free time he's all over her like a koala (she loves it). etc etc. it only gets worse in avernus too. "wyll i know i said i wished there was a banquet but we're in literal hell you didn't have to procure a chef" "id do it a thousand times over to see you smile". etc. all of this is canon btw the devs told me so in a dream

[enwoso]

BIG ADVENTURE! — alessia russo x child!reader

full of fluff and cutest☺️ probably much needed after that game x

navigation -> grumpy universe masterlist

the group of twenty-three english players were half way through their embark on their adventure down under to begin their preparations for the women's world cup however they had a twenty fourth player in the form of a four year old little girl - which was you.

the england girls had loved having your little infectious personality around camp so far and were looking forwards to watching you cheer them on throughout the tournament.

"lovie, c'mon!" alessia held out her hand for you to hold onto as you had been running around the lounge waiting to go down into the terminal to board the plane. alessia more than happy to let you run around hoping you would get rid of as much energy as possible before the flight.

keeping you entertained for the past few hours since landing in dubai for the short lay over— alessia had simply been silently dreading the second half of the long flight to sydney.

"mummy! is that the plane we go on?" you asked, holding tightly onto your mums hand as you backpack hung low on your back. you pointing out the window to the sight of the planes sat on the tarmac outside.

"that's right! we should be on that one" alessia bent down to match your height pointing to said plane that the team was waiting to be allowed to board.

"it's a big plane isn't it!" alessia smiled as your face was covered with a big grin as a small wow came from you.

a burst of energy coming from you as you dropped your mum's hand along with your backpack, running in the direction of where georgia and a few of the other girls were, excited to show them the planes which were outside.

"gee! look, look- the planes! over there!" you rushed out tapping the midfielder repeatedly on the leg interrupting the older girls' conversation with keira.

"woah- slow down tiny!" georgia laughed picking you up as you took a little breathe, "okay now what were you saying?" georgia asked, her eyebrows raising slightly.

"look! mummy says that we go on them planes!" you point over to the wide window, at the planes which were stood on the other side of the window. excitement flowing through you with a wide grin still on your face.

"i know! isn't that cool!" georgia smiled at your excitement as keira poured, "are you excited tiny?" keira asked as you nodded quickly.

"YES! mummy said we can see koalas and k-ka-kanroos!" you said focusing on trying to say the last word which you could say properly, your eyebrows knitting together with concentration.

"kangaroos?"

"yep them!"

a gasp then coming from keira, "are you not excited to see your mummy play football?" you smile dropping a little in confusion.

"duh, mummy packed my football tops and boots!" you smiled cheekily with a hint of sass in your tone making the two midfielders burst out laughing as your eyebrows furrowed a little wondering what was so funny.

"i'll hold you to that!"

"me too!"

the original plan for flying to australia was that you flew over with alessia's parents and brothers a few weeks later when the team had gotten settled — alessia originally thinking it would make it more smoother for the transition from one side of the world to the other.

however, as days went on alessia and the departure date loomed closer the blonde realised how much she didn't want to be away from her tiny terror for that length of time. instead changing the plan last minute, and getting your suitcase packed.

"lovie?" you heard your mum call out but where still in conversation with georgia and keira about the animals in australia and how you definitely didn't want to bump into any eight legged creatures.

"tiny, i think your mum wants you" keira tapped you on the shoulder pointing in the direction of where alessia was stood your backpack in one hand as her big pink bag hung from her shoulder.

sliding down georgia's side you yelled a quick bye as you ran off back towards your mum, "there you are! where you been!"

"talking with georgia and keira bout animals!" you beamed as alessia hummed in amusement as she crouched down to your height, zipping your little jacket back up as well as putting it back on your shoulders as it had slouched down.

"have you got esme?” alessia asked standing back up as you looked around, twirling around in a circle for your elephant teddy. your comfort teddy which you’d had since you were little however naming the teddy when you got a little older.

“um, oh she’s here!” you mumbled in a hurry to get the teddy from the table lifting the toy up in the air as if it were a trophy as alessia smiled, holding her hand out for you to grab as boarding had started.

walking along the tunnel to the plane, the chatter of the other lionesses filling up the small area. you looking around soaking in the whole thing it being a big adventure to you as a smile had not once left your little face.

“smile lovie!” your mummy nudged you out of your own little word as she pointed to the team of lionesses photographers holding there big cameras. you giving a small and shy smile as well as a wave before jumping the big small gap onto the plane.

“hello!” you waved to the flight attendants who were stood welcoming everyone onto the aircraft, the two flight attendants giving a big smile and wave matching your own little bubble of energy.

walking down the isle, saying a little hi to the lionesses who were already in their seats as alessia guided you both to your seats. “y/n, we are here” your mummy called out as you had walked a few seats ahead of her.

climbing into your seat, which was closest to the window as you watched the men on the ground load the bags and suitcases onto the bottom of the plane. alessia on the other hand began to sort through everything she would need in order to get through the twelve hour flight to sydney airport.

“boo!” you cheered as you jumped up at the back of your seat, scaring the person who was sitting behind you. millie jumping slightly as a bright smile appeared on her face as she looked up from her phone to see your head poking over the back of the seat with a cheeky look on your face.

“hello cheeky!” millie smiled sticking her tongue out as you returned the smile while also sticking your own tongue out back at the blonde. “who sitting there?” you asked pointing to the seat next to her — taking note of the face she wasn’t with her usual right hand, rachel daly.

“rach of course!” mille said as your face grew confused, “she’s down there with the important people asking boring questions!” millie pointed down towards the front of the plane hoping you now understood, exaggerating the word boring as she said it.

your confused look slowly rising, “oh!”

the long journey had begun and alessia was quite surprised as how well you were actually behaving, as she had definitely planned for worse. but the blonde had also been quickly reminded herself that there was still a lot of time to go — the flight only being 6 hours in, so there was most definitely time.

you were sat snuggled in your blanket with esme your elephant, watching a series of children programmes in the tv that was in the back of the seat. your pink princess head phones which sat proudly on top of your head, a small smile appearing on your face every so often when something funny happened on the screen.

most of the girls were asleep after being urged to sleep now by the team managers as it was in line with the time zone change that would happen. alessia had gotten around two hours of sleep, before you had woken her up tapping her in the arm as you’d dropped esme under the seat in front of you and your small arms were unable to reach it.

“mummy” you whispered, tapping your mum on the arm once again as she was half asleep, alessia mumbling for you to carry on.

“i go find someone to colour with?” you asked a small pout appearing on your face as you were sat with your colouring pens and books hugged up to your chest after you’d found them in your backpack.

“yes, but-“ you were quick to slide right off your seat at the response however your mum stopped you from running out into the isle with her foot. “but, lovie please don’t wake up any of the girls if they are asleep, okay?” alessia had a stern look on her face as you nodded.

“okay!” you beamed, alessia kissing your forehead before letting you walk off down the aircraft your colouring supplies bundled in your arms.

walking along the isle carefully not to drop anything, as you finally found one of the girls who wasn’t asleep — ella!

“auntie el” you tapped the midfielder who was watching a show on her ipad, headphones in totally unaware of her surroundings. a smile appearing on the brunettes face as she turning to see you poking her arm.

“hi tiny! what’s wrong?” ella whispered lifting you onto her lap while also being careful not to wake the sleeping georgia stanway beside her.

“need someone to colour with me” you smiled sweetly while holding up your colouring supplies proudly, hoping that ella would sit and colour with you as there was not many other girls who were awake.

ella’s heart melting at the sight, “well what are my options then” the midflieder asked pointing to the books in your hand. you setting out the three options on the little table.

“princess one, animal or random one!” you pointed to each book as ella sat deep in though assessing her options.

“oo tough choice — which are you going first?” ella asked, over exaggerating her thinking face as you pointed to the one you were doing — the book filled with random colouring pages.

once ella had chosen her colouring book, the two of you made small talk filling ella in on all the things you had done on the first flight and this flight. ella’s smile big as she listened to you as you sat concentrated hard trying not to colour over the lines.

“finished!”

you held up your picture in front of ella, the picture being of twenty-four people all frawn with there own little personalities and a small name scribbled underneath them.

“whose all them people?" ella asked, as you sighed beginning her explanation. talking through each drawing.

“there's mummy with number twenty-three, chloe, mary-“ you listed off each player of the england team having drawn them with an england kit on making sure to put the number at which they played

"and then there's you with a number ten and me with number twenty four!" you sat proudly with with ella as she looked at the picture closely a loud laugh coming from the brunette.

“tiny, don’t let your mum see you’ve given her brown hair!”

“my yellow pen ran out” you pouted.

“tooney shut up!” georgia groaned as she began to wake up from all the noise ella was making, you looking between ella and georgia hushed giggled coming from the two of you.

georgia rubbing her eyes before opening them, as you jumped into georgia’s chest, “hi gee!”

“oh hi tiny — what you doing here!”

“me and ella been drawin’ look!” you smiled holding up your picture in front of the girl who smiled sleepily, humming along as you gave the same explanation as you did to ella a few moments earlier.

“how’s my little artist!” you heard your mums voice as you turned around a smile on your face, the plane had began to liven a bit up as most of the girls were now awake.

“look!” you handed your drawing to your mum who looked over it with a smile.

“which ones me?” alessia asked as she looked up from the picture, as you pointed to which one was her. the blondes eyebrows furrowed slightly. “i don’t have brown hair!”

“my yellow pen ran out” you pouted hoping it wasn’t going to upset your mummy too much. “ohh that’s okay — it’s adorable!” she beamed as your pout turned to a big grin.

alessia stood with talking to both ella and georgia for some time as you sat on ella’s knee doodling away on a sheet of paper, the time ticking away before it was time for food.

“right come on little one, let’s get you something to eat!” alessia picked up the other two colouring books off the floor tapping you on the head.

“me eat here” you mumbled carrying on your doodles, alessia shaking her head as a frown began on your face.

“you can come back once you’ve eaten!” your mum compromised as you slowly nodded slipping down from ella’s lap, alessia picking up your colouring supplies as you said a quick bye to ella and georgia before being walked back up the aircraft to your seat.

the rest of the flight went quite smoothly for alessia, you sat eating for best part of half an hour, eating slowly as you watched the tv again.

then once by the time you got bored of that, you sat playing a little game with your mum which she had packed but you soon began to yawn it being a while since you’d had a sleep.

“which film?” alessia asked you as you were snuggled into her arms a blanket laid over you, as you pointed over to a disney film.

you watched majority of the film your finger twirling the end of your hair around it, before you fell asleep. you body going limp as you breathing slowed right down.

and that’s how you spent the last hour and half of the flight, not even waking when the plane hit the ground. however alessia then had the trouble of carrying you off the flight along with your backpack and her bag.

"tiny! we're here!" ella and georgia yelled together from behind alessia as you were being carried in alessia's arms unable to see that you were asleep.

alessia sending the pair a death stare, before swotting them on the shoulder as she shushed them. the pair making an oh sound as they quickly apologised moving up the line of lionesses as the group walked through the arrivals part of the airport.

it was both a blessing and a curse that you had fallen asleep when you did. a blessing because it meant that you would start on the australian time zone it being around eight at night when the plane had landed but a curse as it meant alessia had to carry you.

your big adventure down under was just beginning.

liked by keirawalsh and 738,246 others

alessia tiny on tour starts now! 🐨🌏🇦🇺🩵

comments —

ellatoone coolest one in the team!

1h         451 likes reply

-> stanwaygeorgia you said i was cool!

-> ellatoone yeh but tiny is coolER

lucybronze our little explorer🥹

1h         230 likes reply

maryearps can’t wait to see her face when she see the kangaroo

1h         107 likes reply

-> alessia betting on the chance of her crying and being scared of them icl

‘

[tartagliove]

7:30pm

bakugou katsuki x reader ✧ fluff ✧ 0.6k

These pajamas are extra soft against your skin. You fiddle with the hem of your shirt, delighted with rubbing the material between your fingers, as you follow the sound of running water to the kitchen.

Bakugou paints a pretty picture, standing in front of the sink and scrubbing at a dirty pan, muscles flexing under his black tank top. You walk up to him and slip your arms around his waist, leaning your head against the broad expanse of his back. His aggressive scrubbing decreases in intensity and you snuggle more comfortably against him.

“Thank you for dinner, Katsuki,” you say. “It was delicious.”

The food he makes is always delicious. When you returned home from work tonight, the air wrapped you with the comforting warmth and mild spiciness of curry. The bowl Bakugou set before you had been piping hot. The carrots, potatoes, and beef melted in your mouth, settling nicely in your stomach as his food refueled you after a long day.

“It’s nothing.” Your thanks warms him, but he shrugs it off because he doesn’t want you to make it a big deal. As he rinses off the pan, Bakugou asks, “You feeling better now?”

A soft smile grows on your face at his question. “Mhm, eating your food helped. I’m not as tired anymore.”

“Good.” 

You shuffle a few steps to the right as Bakugou moves to wipe the bottom of the pan and put it on the stove to dry. A giggle leaves your lips as you walk back to the sink with him, never letting go all the while. He starts on the dishes and you once again relax against his warmth.

If you were looking at Bakugou’s face, you would have seen the softest, calmest expression appear at the sound of your mirth filling the kitchen.

“Ah, wait!” You move to stand beside Bakugou. “It’s supposed to be my turn to do the dishes tonight. I can’t believe you started them while I went to change.”

He snickers as you pout at him. “You snooze, you lose, slowpoke.”

“You suck.” Sticking your tongue out at him, you try to push him to the side with your hip but he doesn’t budge. “Let me clean the rest of these, at least. You cooked tonight, so you should rest.”

“No. Go back to clinging to me like a damn leech.”

You laugh, but then complain, “A leech? At least choose something cuter, like a monkey. Ooh, or a koala!”

Still, you snuggle into Bakugou’s side as he rinses off the plate. He complains halfheartedly about you being in the way, but doesn’t nudge you off him. When he turns off the water and is about to move to dry the plate, you perk up and grab it from him before drying it off yourself. He frowns.

You smile at him sweetly. “Let me dry the dishes, Katsuki, so we can get them done faster. Then I can go back to being your human backpack for the rest of the night.” The last few words make you laugh.

He stares you down, red eyes piercing, before he gives in with a slight nod and turns back to the sink. With running water and the occasional clinking of cutlery forming the melody of the evening, you work in comfortable silence with Bakugou. Soon, the rest of the dishes are clean and tucked away. You get to spend the rest of the evening leaning into Bakugou’s warmth on the couch, dozing off as you watch a baking show together.

requested by @pikatsum for my camping event. reblogs/comments are much appreciated!

[star-girl69]

i think aphrodite kid reader x clarisse is simply just better??? like the trope is just superior??? like, we have clarisse who is tough, and mean and one of the strongest people at camp, then we have reader who is kind and compassionate and really doesn’t care all that much about fighting. so naturally, clarisse is super protective and treats reader like a princess?? how could people dislike it 😔😔

no exactly and i actually must write about this - basically this is just all about the little things clarisse does for her perfect princess angel daughter of aphrodite gf (me!!!!!!)

okay as payment for my absence please accept some shitty headcanons I LOVE YOU ALL BYEEEE

she’s just always DOING THINGS FOR YOU

she’s so perceptive and she always knows exactly what you want and need even if you don’t know it yourself

like if you like wearing high heels one) clarisse genuinely wonders what is wrong w you

she sees no practicality in them bc there isn’t lol

but also she’s like omg???? MY GF feels safe enough around me to wear shoes she can’t run in???? WHAT JOY!!!!!!!!!

and you’ll come back to your cabin being all ugh omg my feet hurt so bad laying on the bed and putting your feet UP

and clarisse is like “well i could have told you that”

excuse me????

“don’t get me wrong baby you look gorgeous and i love you wearing heels but it’s your funeral”

“DIE”

she just laughs and takes your shoes off

she’ll continue to bully you as she’s literally massaging your feet like ok girl yeah we see you

clarisse is also a MENACE about making sure you eat

“did you eat today?”

“babe you SAW me at lunch”

“just making sure….”

you’re just so kind and amazing and clarisse loves you so much but you are not the best at fighting!

she is constantly stressed when you’re not by her side

bc no one loves you like her who will protect you 💔💔💔💔

when someone takes advantage of you she gets so PISSED OFF

bc it’s not like someone is beating you up it’ll be like someone is using you as their personal therapist or smth and you’re just like “pls go speak to an actual professional wtf 😭😭😭”

and she’s so pissed off bc WHY IS THIS BITCH PSYCHOLOGICALLY AND EMOTIONALLY TORTURING HER GIRL??????

she’s not afraid to beat people up for you and actually enjoys it!

anyways, clarisse is also a koala bear

and an emotionally stunted caveman

she’s not good with her words so these actions are all she has to show you that she loves you

idk if y’all have noticed but clar rarely saying ily to y/n bc it’s my personal headcanon that she has such a hard time saying those words. she shows you she loves you but for some reason it’s just so hard to get the words out. (…BC SHE IS AN EMOTIONALLY STUNTED CAVEMAN)

so she quickly adapts to do all these little things

if you’re walking down a flight of stairs trust she is holding your hand

QUEEN of opening jars for you

if you’re not feeling well or you’re tired or just feeling lazy she’ll bully someone into doing your chores for you

also this bitch is NOT afraid to stand up for you and make sure you get what you deserve.

like that one meme

“UM… she said NO PICKLES… you fucking dumbasses…”

“CLARISSE 😭😭😭”

also like in “better than revenge” she loves to watch you do your makeup

finds it so fascinating that you can only get PRETTIER

like she’s okay at makeup but you can do that shit perfectly like standing on your head

you make it seem so effortless

she’s not a HUGE makeup girly but sometimes she’ll let you just go crazy

so you can sit on top of her….. that one sapphic meme yes…..

also she’s constantly bragging about you

“yeah… i have the prettiest gf in camp… y’all are just losers what can i say”

ofc if anyone were to agree w her she would go insane

“yeah y/n is so pretty”

“um ok yeah you don’t have to say it i say it enough….”

even if one of your siblings gives you a compliment she’s like HOLD THE FUCK ON- then she remembers THATS YOUR SIBLING ITS OK and she’s like oh this is so embarrassing.

will she stop? no ofc not

she’s constantly telling you how pretty you are. beautiful. gorgeous. exquisite. all the words

loves kissing you all over

KISSES YOUR HAND 🤭🤭

anyways going back to the clarisse koala bear agenda that got away from me

she’s just always touching you

hand on the small of your hand guiding you somewhere

hand around your waist

SITTING IN HER LAP AT CAMPFIRES

no matter what type of hair you have she’s obsessed w it. if you have pin straight hair she’s so obsessed w the fact that you don’t need a huge curl routine like her, finds it fascinating

if you do have curls she loves doing a curl routine together

whatever whatever type of hair you have she’s obsessed with it and will wash it for you if you want

so soft and lovingly like a more of a scalp massage than a hair washing

will brush your hair for you, braid it for you, anything you like just OBSESSED

she loves when you like sit on top of a picnic table and then she gets to sit in between your legs on the bench thinks it’s so so fun and so so silly

she LOVESSSSS sleeping w you OBVI.

on top of you, you on top of her, she’s a koala bear. like entirely wrapped around you

partially bc she is as aforementioned a koala bear and partly bc she is overprotective even in her sleep

if you move in the middle of the night even just a little bit

she’s a super light sleeper i feel like

always on the guard fr ✊

a little bit better when you’re there tho

so if you move in the middle of the night she’ll just like caress your hair and kiss your cheek and try to shush you back to sleep

like bitch you’re still asleep have you never heard of ADJUSTING? MOVING? SHIFTING?

hope you’re not one of those people who has to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night bc with clarisse that will stop

you can’t abandon her even for 2 minutes even for basic bodily functions like you just can’t it’s so inconsiderate to her… 💔

taglist:

@lvrue @t-wylia @laughingcheese037 @kroumi @urdeadpoet @colezb @rey26 @harmzilla @elliewilliamsbae @amberfreemansburntface @kyuupidwrites @neverwaakeme-up @shark1008 @liballer @heyimadison @nvirskies @pnsteblnme @mar2ss @restellsss @ravisinghs-wife @marsconer @evangelinexo @randomhoex @luvrrish @rebecca37 @saltair-and-palemoonlight @ace-spades-1

[lewiscarrolatemybrain]

I love the idea that Ace isn’t even like overbearing or upset about Zolu having sex he’s just surprised. Like, by the time he learns they’re an item they’ve very much already been an item for A While Now, and Ace isn’t blind, it’s very obvious that Zoro is truly in love with Luffy (and that Luffy is. Clearly the one calling the shots and setting the pace here.) so he’s not like, worried about Zoro taking advantage of his brother or anything, it’s just…

He didn’t think Luffy… was interested? In that kind of thing?? At all??? Like sure he’s growing up, he’s a man now, but it is still so very weird for Ace to think of his brother as a man now, y’know?

The brothers meet up for an adventure and Zolu sneak away from camp and Ace stumbles across them going at it, and Zoro is kneeling there praying to any god that’s listening that he is not about to be burned to death with his dick out and Ace is just like “Oh. Uh. Are you… being… safe? Does your doctor know you’re sexually active? Actually sit down Luffy we’re going over the talk again cause I know you weren’t paying attention lasts time—“

(Zoro takes it back, he would like to be burned to death. With or without his dick out he’s not picky please just put him out of his misery)

Sabo, though… Sabo absolutely still sees Luffy as a sweet, endlessly innocent little sunshine baby who needs to protected at all costs. Sabo finds out his baby brother is having sex and he needs to be physically restrained by Koala and Hack to keep him from murdering Roronoa Zoro in cold blood.

[mj0702]

The other Bronze – Part 9

For my manager @valewosomtb who has to deal with my mushy brain all day, for my @samkerrworshipper who is an absolute legend and for all my patiently waiting anons and followers❤️❤️

Lucy was woken up by an unnatural sound. She couldn’t really place it. So her first instinct was to hit her phone to snooze the alarm. Surprisingly the sound stopped and Luce rolled back over pulling you tighter into her arms as she started to drift off to sleep again. The sound started again. In her half – okay quarter awake brain she registered that it sounded like knocking. Aggressive knocking.

“What the hell??” your sister mumbled as she got more and more aware of her surroundings her brain finally catching on

It was still dark outside but yep – that was definitely knocking. On a door. On her door. Someone was knocking on her front door. Lucy groaned quietly but untangled herself from your grip carefully pushing you over so you would grab onto Ona instead.

When the couple entered their home yesterday you refused to let one of them go. You koala hugged your sister as she – once again – carried you into her apartment as you held on to Onas shirt tightly. Lucy made a straight beeline to lay you down in Onas and her bedroom before leaving you to rest so she could eat something. She should have known better. The second you reconized you were alone again you jolted up with panic calling out for your sister. Who immediately came back running of course knowing how much of a toll it took on you with what happened at Camp Nuo in the afternoon. So she sat down in bed with you holding you tightly as Ona quietly brought some dinner. You saw how the blonde tried to leave again but told her to stay. This definitely wasn't how Lucy imagined her evening to go. In bed by 6PM with you fighting off another nightmare as you clutched to Onas shirt your face on your sisters chest. Ona and her talked quietly for some time before deciding to get ready for bed as well. It was an absolute mission to go threw their nightly routine with you stirring every time one of them was out of your reach. But they managed – somehow.

You know cuddled into Ona who was also still fast asleep as Lucy carefully exit the bedroom to walk quietly down the hallway

“Que??” she grumbled as she opened the door to find a completely demolished Mapí outside her front door “Mapí?? What the hell are you doing here at...” Lucy glanced quickly at the clock “..6.15 in the morning?”

“I came to apologize to the Nena... I really didn't mean to upset her yesterday... I brought chocolate... I didn't know which one she'd like so I bought them all” the tattooed spaniard rambled a slight panic in her voice as she opened the plastic bag she was holding in her hands showing Lucy

“Oh Maps” Lucy sighed softly actually touched by the spaniards antics “It's okay Maps.. she's okay... you didn't have too”

“Yes I had too... I hurt her...” Mapí answered and Lucy saw tears in the spaniards eyes

“Come on in... I'll make you a coffee” your sister opened the door wider and stepped aside for the woman to enter not having the heart to yell at her for basically knocking her door down “in the middle of the night”

“Is the Nena awake?” Mapí asked hopefully and your sister snorted as she put a cup of coffee in front of the blonde woman

“No... it'd be a surprise if she moves her ass out of bed before 9... always slept like a corpse”

“Is chocolate okay... Ingrid said yesterday chocolate helps against all sorts hurtings” the spaniard said empting her shopping bag on the counter “I brought the english one.. Catsbury or something”

“Dear Jesus Mapí... this is like... a whole shop of chocolate” Lucy exclaimed as she looked at the amount Mapí brought along “Where did you get this? I never saw Cadbury anywhere”

“Airport... I had to buy a plane ticket to get to the duty free shops but I knew they had it there” the blonde spaniard answered

“You did what?” Lucy asked confused

“I had to buy a ticket... they wouldn't let me go through security without a plane ticket... Ingrid won't be happy” the spaniard mumbled

“Maps... are you actually mad?” your sister exclaimed

“I... I need to get her something... I know it's not enough but maybe it's a start so she can start to forgive me” Mapí started to fidget with her rings

“Mapí... there's nothing to forgive... don't get me wrong, she'll be over the moon about the chocolate but you did nothing wrong... you didn't kick that ball at her on purpose.. if Kei hasn't called out to her the ball would have hit her in the head and that would've been it... and you couldn't have known not to touch her afterwards.. you just wanted to help” Lucy spoke softly now being really touched by the younger spaniard actions and how she was adamant to fix it

“I... I.. I just need to see that she's really okay” Mapí mumbled

“I can understand that... she has the tendency to worm her way into peoples heart quite quickly... but Maps... you really didn't do anything wrong” your sister said insistently

“Babe? Who are you talk...” Ona suddenly appeared in the doorway of the kitchen looking still asleep “Mapí?” she looked at her fellow team mate confused

“Hola” the blonde waved

Ona just continued to look confused her eyes moving from Mapí to Lucy back to Mapí then to the chocolate

“It's too early... I'm not going to ask and I don't want to know” Ona waved off taking Lucys coffee mug out of her girlfriends hand

“Mapí came to apologize to y/n... she brought presents” your sister gestured to the amount of chocolate.

“Speaking off... she kicked me...” Ona mumbled as she breathed in the smell of the coffee

“Yeah... she does that... the amount of bruises she caused me is unreal” Lucy rolled her eyes as she got herself a new coffee mug out of the cabinet

“Where did you get all that chocolate Maps... shops are closed” Ona now asked looking through the bars

“Don't touch them you thieve!!” the tattooed woman exclaimed as she collected all the chocolate in front of her “I know you... you act like you're just looking and bam... all gone – I went all the way to the airport to buy them so you keep your dirty hands of nenas chocolate”

“Airport?” your sisters girlfriend asked getting more confused by the second

“Yeah... she even bought a plane ticket to get through security” Lucy explained

“Oh Mapí” Ona said softly walking around the counter to hug her friend “You are honestly one of a kind”

“Yeah well... I hurted her” the blonde looked down ashamed

“You didn't Maps...” your sister said again knowing the woman will need to hear it a few more times

“Wait... does Ingrid know?” Ona now asked alarmed

“What exactly should Ingrid know?” Mapí started to fidget again

“María Pilar León Cebrían” Ona scolded her friend “Do not tell me you just ran away from home and brought a plane ticket.. Ingrid will freak out!!!”

“Why would she... she doesn't need to know” the tattooed shrugged her shoulders

“You share a bank account!!! She'll wake up to you gone and a notification for a plane ticket to god knows where” the blonde got frustrated

“Seville... first flight out was to Seville” Mapí provided

“Call her... RIGHT NOW!” Ona shoved her phone into Mapís hands

“Why so aggressive?” the tattooed spaniard bewildered

“YOUR EX IS FROM SEVILLA!!!!!” Ona lost it already imagining Ingrid in tears in their home

“And?” Mapí didn't get it while Lucy bursted out laughing at the sheer chaos this woman contains in such a small body

“I want to hit you so bad right now... what would you think if you wake up to a cold bed and a notification that Ingrid booked a ticket to Oslo? Where her ex lives???” your sisters girlfriend pressed

“Hm...” the two women saw how the wheels in Mapís head started turning “... I would think that she flew there to see her... SHIT”

“NOW she has it” Lucy laughed as Mapí frantically tried to open Onas phone

“Open it” the tattooed spaniard said panicky and pushed the phone back in Onas hand

The young woman quickly typed in her code and handed it back to Mapí. The woman punched in Ingrids number waiting for her girlfriend to pick up

“Ona?” a very sleepy Ingrid answered the phone after the fourth ring

“No amor... it's me” Mapí said quietly turning away from Lucy and Ona

“Maps... are you okay... what happened? Why are you calling from Onas phone?” the norwegian was awake in seconds

“No no... everything is fine... nothing happened... I just couldn't sleep” the blonde talked lowly “... I went to get some chocolate for the Nena... but I'm with them now... I just wanted to let you know that I didn't fly to Seville”

“Seville??” now Ingrid got confused “Why would you fly to Seville?”

“I needed a ticket to get through security” the blonde answered shyly

“María” the norwegian said and her voice was one big warning

“I needed to get to the duty free section... I swear I didn't fly to Seville and I didn't see... her” Mapí started to ramble again

“Home... now” Ingrid growled “We need to talk”

“I... need to wait on the Nena to wake up... I want to apologize” the blonde said slowly

“Okay... then you better make sure Lucy still has coffee when I arrive” and with that the norwegian ended the call

“She's coming here” was all that Mapí said “She wants coffee”

Lucy just sighed – it wasn't even 7AM and her kitchen already transformed into a Starbucks. Suddenly a small whimper was heard from the Bedroom. Immediately Lucy pushed herself of the counter she was leaning against walking quickly down the hallway. Mapí tried to follow immediately getting guilty again just to be stopped by Ona with a reassuring smile

“It's okay Maps... Lucy got it covered” the younger one had her hand on Mapís arm squeezing lightly

“Hey Bubs” Lucy whispered kneeling next to bed carefully stroking some sweaty hair away from your forehead “It's okay... you're save”

“Luce” you whimpered and it broke your sisters heart a little more

“Ssh... it's okay...I'm here...” your sister said keeping her voice down “Calm down... go back to sleep”

“Stay” you whined out as you grabbed her arm tightly

“Scoot over wee one...” was the only thing Lucy said before sliding into bed next to you

20 minutes later you were fast asleep again and your sister carefully left the bed again. With one last glance she quietly closed the door behind her walking back into the kitchen where she found a rather fierce talking norwegian

“Morning Ings” Lucy greeted as she headed straight to the coffee machine

“Bon dia Luce” the norwegian stopped her rant for a second to smile at the englishwoman before returning to scold her girlfriend

“For how long is this going on?” Lucy asked her girlfriend as she leant next to the smiling blonde

“The second she stepped through the door” Ona grinned “Mapí really outdid herself this time”

“I know who will sleep on the couch for at least a month” Lucy laughed quietly

“I swear to god María.. I'm going to buy you a harness too” Ingrid now threatened and Mapí got white as a wall

“No... I don't need” she started but got interrupted by the black haired Scandinavian

“Oh but I think you do” Ingrid said and by the tone she used Mapí knew the topic was over

“Oh man” the blonde spaniard huffed out

Lucy just chuckled using her mug to cover up half her face while Ona wasn't as sneaky and just bursted out laughing. After a minute the atmosphere changed to a comfortable silence.

“Breakfast?” Ona offered smiling actually liking having the other couple over

“I'll help you” Ingrid immediately offered before glancing at her girlfriend “Set the table”

“Sí amor” Mapí mumbled shuffling towards the cabinets like a kicked puppy

“She meant well Ingrid” Lucy mumbled under her breath as she started cutting tomatoes and peppers

“Oh I know... but that doesn't mean I can't use it to my advantage for a few days” the norwegian winked smiling

Lucy just laughed before she heard you whining again

“Duty calls... should I put her back to sleep or bring her out for breakfast?” your sister looked at Ona

“You know her better – even if I would like her to eat something since she hasn't had dinner but you decide” the blonde shrugged

“I see what I can do” Lucy grinned leaning down pressing a soft kiss to her girlfriends lips before leaving towards the bedroom once again

“Hey Bubs...” Lucy said softly as she found you sitting in bed looking frantically around

“You were gone” you panted out

“Was just in the kitchen... breakfast is nearly done... Ingrid and Mapí are here too...” your sister spoke softly as she sat down on the bed next to you but not touching you

“Wanna come with me and join us?” Lucy asked lowly as she now carefully stroke over your cheek

“Need to shower first – feel disgusting” you mumbled closing your eyes enjoying the soft touch of your sisters cool hand

“Okay... I'll wait here okay? Kei texted already too.... you want to call her later?” Lucy asked softly

“Yes please” you sounded so small

“Off to the shower you hop” your sister smiled encouraging “I even let you use my one – door over there”

“Ah yes... the private bathroom” you mumbled before pushing yourself out of bed winching slightly because your wrist was still hurting

“I get you some painkillers” Lucy immediately noticed your discomfort

“They're in there right?” you asked pointing to the bathroom

“Actually no... I put them in the kitchen if you needed some in the night again” your sister grinned

“Ugh... why do you always have to move stuff?? Painkillers... trophies... yourself” you huffed out annoyed

Lucy just laughed immediately knowing what you were referring to. She once moved her FIFA trophy from a shelf to the sideboard for an interview for you to run into said sideboard nearly knocking the trophy of it. You were mortified and refused to pass the sideboard without Keira or herself.

“Go shower... I'll be back with your painkillers when you come out” your sister pressed a soft kiss to your head as you tumbled into the bathroom

“No breakfast?” Ona asked a little disappointed

“She's in the shower... 15 minutes” Lucy smiled slightly getting the pill

“Okay... I'll make her an omelette” the blonde smiled happily

“No need babe... she won't eat it anyway...” Lucy waved off “... she only eats small things after an... let's call it an episode”

“Oh... okay... fruit?” Ona asked immediately catching on – but so does Mapí

“I'm really sorry” the tattooed woman mumbled

“Not your fault Maps... she's okay... she just needs a little time to get back to her annoying self again” Lucy smiled at the blonde who now received a loving squeeze from her girlfriend too “The fact that she still wants breakfast after I told her we have company is a good thing... she's not mad at you Maps... never was and never will be”

“Okay” the spaniard mumbled still not really convinced

“I'll be back with her in about 10 minutes... just act normal... like nothing happens – that's normally the best way for her to cope with it” your sister said as she left again

“Bubs?” Lucy asked into the still dark room

“Are you fucking kidding me???” you came out of the bathroom holding up a strap on harness with Lucys toothbrush

“Oh.... sorry?” your sister looked embarrassed but couldn't hold back the smile tugging on her lips

“You're.... sorry???” you asked outraged “That's a fucking strap on!!! I did NOT need the visual thank you very much”

“Firstly it's just the harness and secondly you walked in on me having sex like... 20 times” your sister rolled her eyes but still smiling widely

“Ew!!” you heaved “I swear you will be sorry when I use your toothbrush to clean the toilets at Camp Nope”

“Come on now” Lucy laughed out loud now “Don't be such a baby about it”

“You let me die a VIRGIN and you use... this” you pulled a disgusted face shaking the leather garment a little

“It makes my ass look good” your sister just couldn't stop teasing you about your find

“Okay..... NO.. nope...not doing this with you... you... you... you... just EW” you shrieked before flicking the leather harness at her

Your sister caught the harness with ease still laughing as you pushed passed her into the hallway mumbling about how you again got scarred for life

“Bon dia Bebita” Ona smiled softly as you entered the kitchen

You just stared at her before a shudder shook your whole body and you chose to ignore her wedging yourself between Mapí and Ingrid. Ona didn't understood what was wrong but just as she was about to ask Lucy entered the kitchen still chuckling.

“What did I do?” Ona asked quietly as she prepared a plate for you

“Nothing... she found the harness and is a baby about it” Lucy still couldn't contain her chuckle at the memory of your face

“Which harness... oh... OH... oh god” Onas cheeks heat up embarrassed as she actually hit the plate with the knife she was using to cut up your fruit

“Not you too...” your sister laughed loudly

“What is happening?” Ingrid asked confused

“Lucy will need a new toothbrush” you grumbled stealing the Norwegians coffee

“You make no sense, lille venn” the black haired woman shook her head “And this looks awfully like my coffee cup”

“M gonna use it to clean the toilets at Camp Nope... after a game day” you grumbled into the mug taking a sip

“Nena” now Mapí spoke up lowly “I want to apologize for yesterday... I really didn't mean it”

“I know Mapí... you don't need to apologize... I want to apologize for scaring you... you didn't know – Lucy should have told you but yet she's hiding quite a lot in her cabinets” you said and smiled at the blonde spaniard as you tried to get one on your sister who just barked out a laugh

“You don't even know half of it, tiny” your sister choked out between laughs

You started to dry heave again as Ona swatted Lucys shoulder quiet hard

“Ah... now I understand” Ingrid smirked “You went through your sisters stuff and found something you shouldn't have”

“I didn't even went through her stuff... it was openly placed” you exclaimed as a VERY embarrassed Ona put a plate in front of you “God only know what she's hiding in her draws”

“You just need to ask, wee one...” your sister was still laughing

“AND god should be the only one knowing... aren't you ashamed talking about that when you have guests?” you looked at her like she lost it

“Who do you think recommended the shop I got the piece in questioning?” your sister couldn't stop laughing as your head automatically snapped towards Mapí thinking since she's the spaniard she would know all the places to purchase something like this

“You???” you asked outraged

“Huh??” Mapí just looked at you bewildered

“Nope Bubs... the other one” your sister smirked as your head now snapped to the other side looking like a deer at Ingrid

“What... I have a girlfriend and a life outside of football” the norwegian shrugged nonchalantly before she bit into a jam covered bread roll

“I expected a lot of you princess norwegian... but not that you're a sex driven vixen” you started to smirk “You're always so... nice... and quiet”

“No she's not” Mapí mumbled under her breath but you heard her anyway – so did Ingrid

“As if you don't love it” the norwegian shot back

“Bubs... breakfast” Lucy now interrupted your little banter with Ingrid noticing how you pushed your fruit around on your plate

“Not hungry” you mumbled

“Half the plate and I let you have some of the chocolate Mapí brought” your sister tried to negotiate with you

“Chocolate?” you asked looking up at her smiling

“Mapí brought it... as an apology” Lucy said “You get some if you eat half the plate”

“That's not fair... it's my chocolate... right Mapí it's mine” you looked at the blonde with big puppy eyes

“Sí... all for you...” the tattooed woman nodded her head quickly

“HA... give me my chocolate” you demanded looking at your sister expectantly

“Half the plate then you get some” Lucy stood her ground knowing she needs to be tough to you right now as you always were a bad eater even more so when you were mentally exhausted

“But I'm not hungry” you whined

“Do I have to call Keira?” Lucy raised an eyebrow

She knew threatening you with Keira was risky but she really just wanted the best for you. But as usual you didn't back down. Instead you had a stare off with your sister while the other three just stayed quiet not knowing how to react. Neither Lucy nor you even blinked just staring at each other. Then suddenly both of you sprung into action pulling out your phones frantically unlocking it to both dial the same contact. Lucy was the split second faster.

“Ha... already ringing... give up already” she smiled triumphal

“Never” you shot back hitting Mapís shoulder repeatedly “Give me your phone”

“I don't have it on me” the spaniard said trying to move away from your swatting hands

“Ona... need your phone... now” you sprung up quickly your chair falling backwards as you rounded the table.

“I... don't think” the young woman started

“You owe me... harness” you growled knowing every lost second was important

“Here” Ona sighed handing you her unlocked phone embarrassed

“You can't use that against her!” Lucy exclaimed still waiting for the other person to pick up

“I can and I will... over and over again” you shot back going through Onas contacts “Who is Obi-Wan... don't answer.. I don't have time...”

“Who are you looking for Bebita?” Ona said rather confused

“HA.. got it” you exclaimed excited hitting the call button

You were more successful than your sister as your chosen person answered her call nearly right away

“Sí?” you could hear the call connect just as Lucy got lucky as well

“I swear Lucy if this isn't important...” you heard Keiras voice

“My sister is mean and tries to force me to eat!” you exclaim whining into the phone

“Que?” the other person asked confused

“She won't eat...” Lucy said quickly to Keira

“My sister... she tries to force food down my throat” you whined again playing the innocent little girl card

“Bebita?” Alexia asked still half asleep “It's 7AM”

“Sí” you exclaimed still playing the innocent act

Your sister and you both quickly recap the morning to the people on your (Onas) phones before both starting to smirk pulling the phones of your ears.

“Keira wants to talk to you” Lucy smirked holding her phone out to you

“Alexia wants to talk to YOU” you smirked even wider as you held your (Onas) phone out to her

“What... what just happened?” Mapí asked her girlfriend and Ona.

Both of them just shrugging their shoulders as you started to whine all over now to Keira and Lucy animatedly spoke to Alexia. About five minutes later both of you hung up your phones looking at each other

“Laps?” you asked raising an eyebrow

“Push ups?” Lucy questioned back

“Three sets of 15... and no chocolate” you grumbled

“Five... after national break” your sister pulled a face

“Bitches” Lucy and you grumbled simultaneously before looking at each other laughing out loudly

“What was that?” Ona now asked the same question as Mapí before

“Sisterly love” your sister grinned and pushed the plate nearer to you “Come on... just a bit okay?”

“I'm really not hungry Luce... I promise I'll eat when I get hungry but not right now” you said chewing on your bottom lip which was a dead give away that you started to get stressed again

“Okay.... I'll just leave it out on the counter okay...” Lucy took your plate away while Ona just raised her eyebrow

“Can someone please explain what happened?” the youngest spaniard huffed out

“We just ratted each other out...” your sister explained shrugging her shoulders “... bit us in the ass as usual but that's how it always turns out”

“Love you Luce” you said before throwing yourself on the couch in a dramatic way just to bounce off it and land with a loud crash on the floor

“Why??” Lucy whined as she made her way over to you “You okay?”

“Yep... peachy” you coughed hard

“Up” your sister said as she pulled you into a standing position holding you up right so could breath better

“Thanks Luce” you said after a few minutes as your breathing returns to normal your head falling forward against the shoulder of your sister who just laid her arm around you holding you closely

“And you say I'm chaotic” Mapí mumbled to Ingrid

“You ARE chaotic... SHE's a walking disaster” the dark haired norwegian pointed out

“Hey Princess Norwegian... I'm just a tad clumsy” you exclaimed

“Princess Norwegian??” Ingrid asked you as she raised an eyebrow

“Pocahontas Norwegian sounded wrong in my head” you shrugged your shoulders

“Uh... does Caro get a nickyname too??” Mapí asked excited

“Guaranteed Goal Norwegian” you said after a minute of thinking which caused everyone to explode in laughter

“Pretty sure she'll love that, lille venn” Ingrid said wiping tears from her eyes.

“Bubs... I've got training this afternoon.. you want to come with me or stay at Alexias?” your sister asked quietly

“Why would I want to stay with the scary woman?” you asked confused

“Because I have training and I'm not going to leave you alone at my apartment... and Alexia has Media today so she won't be at Nuo” Lucy explained patiently

“I can stay here... I'm 16 not 3” you said baffled

“You just fell off the Couch... again” your sister deadpanned “And this time you can't blame it on Tooney...”

“It WAS Tooneys fault... she pushed me” you exclaimed annoyed

“She wasn't even in the room!!” Lucy rolled her eyes

“She WAS!” you huffed

“Okay... you know best who pushed you off the couch being dead to the world sleeping” your sister lifted her hands in surrender

“Can't the OG spaniard stay with me?” you asked looking hopefully at Ona

“I thought she was friendly spaniard?” Lucy looked confused

“Yeah... changed it to OG.. she's not friendly” you shrugged your shoulders again

“¿Disculpe?” Ona asked outraged

“What is it with you spaniards that you always want to dislocate??” you asked bewildered “The pretty spaniard said it too... you are so weird”

“It means “Excuse me” Bubs...” Lucy started laughing again at your cute innocence

“Oh... yeah... you're excused” you grinned at Ona

“What do you mean I'm not friendly??” the blonde asked still shocked

“Friendly spaniards don't scar their girlfriends little sister for live” you smirked

Ona blushed again furiously but kept quiet as Mapí started to chuckle until Ingrid threw her a murdering look

“Stop using the harness to get things out of my girlfriend” Lucy rolled her eyes as you gagged dramatically before looking at her incredulously

“Could you please rephrase that?” you said bewildered

“No... and still I haven't gotten an answer... Training or Alexia?” if Lucy rolled her eyes any more they'll probably get stuck soon

“Not going back to Camp Nope” you said sternly

“Alexia it is then” your sister huffed out happy she finally got an answer texting her capitana immediately

“But” you tried to interfere

“Nope... you're not staying here on your own” Lucy said distracted “I'll drop you off at 1 and pick you up at 5.30 okay... she has Media anyway so you'll be on your own the most time anyway”

“Ugh” you sighed annoyed rolling your eyes for getting back forced into Day care once again “Can't I stay with Keira?”

“She has training too, genius” your sister shook her head in disbelieve

“Okay...” you huffed grabbing a piece of Orange from the plate Ona prepared for you.

“Thank you.. and please... do behave – or at least pretend to behave”

“Bubs come on... we're going to be late...” your sister yelled down the hallway for you to just ignore it texting Georgia still laying on your (Lucys) bed

“BUBS!!!!” you heard again this time more adamant and yet again you ignored it.

While you grew quite close – at least for your circumstances – with the Team Capitan you had no desire to spend your afternoon with her... alone.

“Y/n Tough Pain in the ass Bronze!!!!!” Lucy tried again already on her way to her guest room

You quickly wrenched your Air Pods into your ears just as Lucy opened the door. You pretended to jump a little when she stood next to your bed kicking your ankle lightly.

“Huh?” you asked as you pulled your Air Pod out looking at her questioning

“I can't believe you... we need to GO” your sister ushered you off the bed and pushed you out the room

“I need some stuff....” you complained whining

“Ona packed your bag... MOVE” Lucy kept pushing you down the hallway “If I have to run laps because you made me late I'm gonna room with you at Camp”

Suddenly you basically ran down the hallway grabbing your sneakers on the way out sitting in the Car before Lucy was able to close the door behind her

“Here Bebita... your backpack” Ona smiled from the passenger seat holding out a bag for you as you tried to put your shoes on feeling like a gymnast at Circus de Soleil

“Knew that would work” your sister mumbled as she slipped into the drivers seat and started her car “You still won't room with G...”

“I want to room with Tooney anyway” you shrugged your shoulders

“That won't happen either... the last time you flooded your room because you wanted to wash your stuff in the shower and forgot a sock that clogged the drain and you kept the water on while falling asleep... NOT happening”

“How were we supposed to know that a sock would fit in the drain??” you exclaimed outraged

“Basic knowledge?” Lucy offered while finding your eyes in the rear mirrors

“Fuck you” you grumbled

“And that makes four sets of 15 of push ups.. you know not to swear” your sister grinned as she pulled into a drive way and killed the engine “Behave and don't cause trouble – if you piss my Capitan off you'll regret it...”

You rolled your eyes at her obviously harmless threat and looked into your backpack for the first time

“Orange slices and a Gatorade? What are you... a soccer mom?” you looked at Ona bewildered before leaving the car as you can see Alexia opening her front door

“Have fun Bubs... make good choices” your sister yelled after you laughing as you flipped her off with your left hand as you dragged your backpack behind you like a petulant child

“Hola Cariño...” Alexia greeted you smiling even as you spotted a dark look on your face

“Hi” you grumbled back “To be straight... okay... wrong wording... to be honest from the start... I don't want to be here so I just gonna sit on this couch waiting for the time to count down”

“Nice to see you too... thank you I had a good day... you too? That's wonderful” the blonde said sarcastically “What's with the attitude?”

“Lucy was mean” you grumbled

“What did she do Cariño?” Alexia asked sensing you just need to vent for a second

“I'm 16... I don't need a babysitter... and then she said I had to do another set of push ups because SHE was mean basically calling me stupid... as if the three sets of Keira aren't enough” you started your rant “And then I get Orange slices and Gatorade... again... I'm 16... not 5.. I'm still growing – I need food... not.. this”

“Done?” the blonde asked and you nodded “Okay... you won't believe it but I have food here too... and I even told Ona I would cook for you – so that front is covered... As for the push ups... I can make Lucia do them with you if you prefer but I don't think so since you're both highly competitive and probably do push ups until your arm break and I still need her for team purposes... and don't see this afternoon as being under my watch instead see it as a... how do you say... chill hangout... I have three Interviews all about 30 minutes long but you are welcome to either join or just stay out here” the catalan explained

“As if I could join in on spanish interviews” you rolled your eyes for good measure but in secret you were touched at her actions

“One is with CBS Sports... that one is english...” the blonde shrugged her shoulders as she lead you into a spacious living room pushing you gently down on the couch before moving on to the open kitchen

“Scotty?” you asked excited

“I think Alex Scott will be there, sí” Alexia answered from the kitchen where she prepared a light snack for you.

“Oh” you said sadly

“You don't like Alex Scott?” the catalan asked surprised

“Oh I absolutely love Alex... but I thought we're talking about Jill... I miss my Godaunt” you sighed realizing how long you haven't seen Jill

Mixed olives, fried baby squid, meatballs and chorizo were placed in front of you a minute later with some bread. You looked interested at the different dishes and then questioning at Alexia

“Tapas” she smiled “olives, meatballs – my mamás recipe, chorizo and baby squid”

At the words “baby squid” you made a little whiny sound and used a book that was laying around to push the plate with the offending meal as far away from you as possible. Alexia laughed out loudly at your pained facial expression

“Not a fan of sea food Cariño?” the blonde was still chuckling

“Bleh” you pulled a face

“It's okay... but I tell you know that choosing Barcelona as a get away was a bit of a wrong move – we live of Sea food” the catalan smiled

“You also live of fancy ham... Luce said something about jamming ibisco” you said nonchalantly

“Jamón Ibérico Cariño... very delicious” Alexia confirmed “I'll text Olga to pick some up on her way home”

“Olga was... girlfriend right?” you asked wrecking your brain if it was a real fact or if you made it up in your original high brain

“Sí.. she'll be home later” the blonde smiled glancing at the clock “I need to go – will you be alright alone?”

“Sí... I still have orange slices” you huffed out sarcastically

“Don't forget about the squid” the catalan laughed as she took the plate with the baby squid back to the kitchen as you gagged loudly “You're welcome to watch TV but not too loud please...”

“Okay...” you said as you already were looking for the remote and Alexia was about to leave “Oh and pretty spaniard?”

“Sí?” Alexia rolled her eyes at the nickname but smiled

“Thank you” you said and offered her a small smile

“You're very welcome Cariño” she smiled back and left you to your own.

About 5 minutes later you heard her taking quickly in spanish and you concluded (genius that you are) that the interview had begun. You tried to switch on the TV to get interrupted in your usual “press all buttons until TV turns on”-process as the doorbell rang. You weren't sure what to do since you were also just a guess so you decided to ignore it. The doorbell went off again... and again.. and again. You heard the door of Alexias (you presume) office open

“Cari... can you PLEASE get the door?” she shouted to you

“What if it's a lunatic???” you shouted back

“Punch him – we'll deal with the police later” the catalan answered shortly before disappearing again

“Okay” you said to yourself, shrugged your shoulders and pushed yourself off the couch to open the door

You already had your fist raised as you grabbed the handle turning it just slightly as the door got pushed open and some blonde hair passed past you in a flurry

“Excuse you???” you exclaimed as you follow the intruder

“Don't tell anyone I'm here” Mapí turned around looking around the living room “Ale already doing interviews?”

“Yeah....” you said kind of overwhelmed “What are you doing here?”

“I know you'd get bored so I'm here to offer my company” the blonde grinned widely

“Let me guess... no one knows?” you smirked

“Told Jonatan I'm not feeling good.... please don't tell on me” Mapí begged “Training without you isn't fun”

“We never trained together” you pointed out “But it really is boring... you can stay”

“Cariño?? Who was at the door?” Alexia now asked as she came out of her office while you pushed Mapí quickly behind the couch where she landed with a loud thud and a gritted spanish curse word left the blondes lips

“Neighbour... asked something in spanish... I said “no spaniard” and shrugged my shoulders.. I didn't punch him... he used the dislocate word and left” you said hopefully which kind of tipped Alexia off

“Older man or younger?” she asked suspicious

“Ehrm... around mid 40s?” you said but it came out as a question

“And now the truth, hm?” the catalan smiled fake

“A friend....” you answered vague

“And where is said friend?” the blonde just didn't let go

“I don't see her at the moment” you answered confident – which technically wasn't a lie... you didn't SEE Mapí at the moment.

“Cariño... I give you one and ONE warning only... I will make you sit with me in my office if you cause trouble” Alexia said lifting her index finger threatening “Same for you María León”

“HOW?” you whined throwing your arms in the air

“Please... as if María would let the opportunity pass to be unsupervised with you also she used a word that I banned her from using... I'm surprised that she didn't rope Patri and Pina in to join her.. what did you tell Jona?”

“Not feeling well” a small voice came from behind the couch “Patri and Pina send their regards but Jona wouldn't let them leave”

“Unbelievable” the blonde huffed “Only and LAST warning... no trouble... I still have two interviews”

“Yes ma'am” you saluted half heartily

“Sí Ale... gracias” Mapí said grinning as her head appeared from behind the couch looking like a meerkat

“I can't believe I'm doing this” Alexia mumbled to herself but left again for her next interview

“Okay... what do you want to do Nena?” Mapí asked the second the office door fell close

“Dunno... I don't know my way around here” you shrugged your shoulders

Mapí just rolled her eyes and hit you with a pillow. You looked dumb folded as the blonde spaniard started to laugh hysterically

“You... didn't” you said shocked

“Your face...” Mapí laughed just as she got hit by a pillow in the face

“Oh Nena... that was a mistake” the blonde said evilly as she grabbed your pillow hitting you over and over again as you just had time to pull your arms up to your face to keep it save. Nonetheless you started laughing trying to get away from Mapís assault. You kick the spaniard lightly against the tight which caused her to tumble and you used the moment to roll off the couch getting successfully away. You grabbed a new pillow now whacking the blonde over and over the head from behind the couch. Mapí recovered quickly launching herself at you just to miss you as you stepped aside still laughing. The blonde pushed herself up starting to chase you around the couch pillow ready to hit you again once she's close enough. You chased each other a while around the living room before deciding to basically use the whole apartment. Of course that wasn't such a great decision as you stumbled over a small step between the living room and the hallway and flew against a cabinet. Thankfully you turned yourself so you would just sacrifice your left shoulder instead of your face. Mapí immediately stopped behind you watching with big eyes as Alexias Ballon d'Or started to tumble and then went topple over the edge of the shelf. You looked up from your half sitting position at the bottom of the cabinet quickly shuffling backwards as you saw the trophy falling down. It missed you by mere centimetres as it crashed into the floor with a loud bang and split in two half as you watched the Ball part roll away slowly.

Immediately the office door got ripped open and Alexia looked down the hallway

“Everythings good” you yelled hoping to prevent the catalan to come over to explore what the crashing sound was

“I told you... keep it down” she scolded the two of you before going back to her interview

“We're fucked” Mapí whisper yelled “That trophy was holy to her”

“We're not fucked if we repair it... I didn't even knew it could brake... isn't that thing unholy heavy... why does it break so easily??” you said back just as much panic in your voice as Mapí had seconds before

“HOW do you want to repair a Ballon d'Or???” the blonde asked her voice still low

“Hot glue?” you shrugged your shoulders having no idea

“We don't have hot glue” Mapí looked at you like you lost it

“You have a brain too you know... now would be a good time to use it” you snapped

“I'm trying... but all I can think about is how Ale will rip my head off... then my brain is lost too” the blonde whined

“What if we just put it in between the books? Like using the books to hold the ball in place” you mused looking at Mapí expectantly

“Better than my idea of hiding in a tree and befriend a squirrel and train it to bring us food and water” she said already starting to grab all the books that were laying around

You quickly helped Mapí retrieve as many books as you could find and soon you had the shelf filled with books

“Okay... you grab the bottom part I get the bloody ball and we just stuff it in there and then never mention it again” you huffed

“Deal... if she EVER finds out... it was already broken as she got it” Mapí nodded as you grabbed the golden ball and placed it in its socket hoping it would stay there.

Thankfully it did and you two carefully walked backwards as if you feared that one to hard step would break the Trophy again.

“Jesús Mará y José!!!!” Alexia exclaimed as she entered the living room where you and Mapí chilled on the couch snacking on your orange slices

“WHAT happened here???” the blonde asked shocked turning around herself taking in her basically destroyed living room

There were pillows everywhere, the lamp from the side table on the floor (thankfully still intact), magazines scatter all over the floor, pictures were now hanging askew on the wall and her coffee table was now in the middle of the room when it was just in front of the couch about 45 Minutes ago.

“There... were robbers... we fought for our lives” Mapí said quickly – too quickly and you slapped your forehead

“I don't know if I should yell or just leave” Alexia said to herself taking in her living room once again

“I vote for the latter” you said smiling hopefully

“I second that” the tattooed spaniard nodded

“I... I... no... I can't do this right now... clean this up – when I come back here in 30 minutes I want a clean room and you María will leave immediately after you are done cleaning up... if not you both run laps until your legs fall off – and then some more” Alexia shook her head leaving the two of you to clean up your mess

“That went better than expected” you grinned as you heard Alexia mumble in the hallway

“I'm never going to have children – and if I do I raise them to be fully functional human beings” the catalan said to herself still shaking her head in disbelieve

It took Mapí and you a total of 18 minutes to tidy up the living room. After that the blonde spaniard left not without checking with you if it's really okay. You send the tattooed woman on her way telling her you're tired anyway and that she better think of a good excuse she could give her girlfriend for just fucking off from training. When you heard the door fall close you flopped down on the couch got comfortable and fell asleep in an instant.

“Alexia... you still with us?” Micah asked as he noticed that the blonde spaniard was kind of distracted

“Sí – I'm sorry” Alexia snapped back to her interview with CBS

“You look distracted... is everything alright?” Alex Scott now asked seeing the deep frown Alexia was showing

“Yeah.... a.. friend had some errands to run and asked me if I could watch her sister... and it's just TOO quiet now” the catalan explained quickly getting more and more suspicious of the quietness in her apartment

“If you want to check on her that's totally okay... “ Alex reassured the spaniard who looked at her thankfully standing up quickly

She made her way to the living room already ready to yell at you and Mapí for whatever shenanigans you were up to but the only thing she found was an (okay) cleaned up room with you fast asleep on the couch. Alexia quickly covered your sleeping form with a blanket and left to not disturb your sleep which she knew you desperately needed

“Everything okay?” Micah asked as Alexia sat back down in front of the camera

“Yes... she's asleep – that's why it's so quiet... but you know how it is with kids... the quieter it gets...” the blonde smiled

“... the more trouble they get into... don't tell me” Thierry rolled his eyes for good measure “How old?”

“16” Alexia laughed at the surprised face Thierry is showing “She's an absolute gold star but a walking disaster”

“Sounds like someone I know” Alex threw in

“Oh yes – you definitely know her” the catalan winked

“Oh my God... how did you end up on BB duty... my condolences to your nerves” the former Lioness laughed

“Condolences?” Alexia asked confused looking at Kate

“Condolencias” Kate Abdo translated

“Oh... yes... thank you – I can confirm my nerves are ready to retire...” the blonde catalan laughed

“Who's BB?” Micah asked confused looking at Alex for explanation

“A friends little sister” the brown haired woman grinned and winked at Alexia

“You not telling us?” Thierry sighed

“No... because it's a private matter – what isn't tho is my midfield” Alex circled back to the original topic

15 minutes later the interview got wrapped up and the live part was over. Alexia was about to end the call as Alex spoke up

“Alexia... give her a hug from me, yeah... she's greatly missed around here” the brown haired woman smiled warmly

“I will pass it on” the catalan smiled back and ended the call

She left her office to quickly throw a glance into the living room if you woke up but you still snored lightly on the couch turned on your side your head buried in a mountain of pillows so that Alexia was completing if you were in danger of suffocating. But after hearing you sigh happily in your sleep she decided to just leave you be. The catalan quickly texted Olga to let her know to be quiet when she entered the apartment and told her she would hit the gym – which was a former guest room that got converted into a home gym. Her girlfriend answered quickly with a thumbs up and Alexia walked down the hallway getting changed and starting to work out the door of her gym slightly open to hear you if you needed something. You slept like a Bronze. Keira once described it as “a dead corps which got run over with a truck five times to be sure it's dead... that's who Bronzes sleep”. Both you and Lucy disagreed loudly to just be shut down with one look by Keira. You didn't notice Alexia checking on you twice or that her girlfriend Olga came home starting to prepare dinner straight away. You DID wake up when your nose registered food tho – just like Lucy you could eat like a harvester. Just not every time while your sister would be happy to eat anytime and anywhere. Your brain still foggy from sleeping you shuffled over to the kitchen not realizing that it wasn't Alexia in the kitchen but Olga so you just flopped down on a chair at the island as you made yourself known

“Bon... whatever you say at this time of the day... what time is it anyway?” you mumbled looking confused

“Buena tardes” the brown haired woman answered as she turned around smiling “But Hola always works”

“Bon Buenos tartlets then...” you mumbled scratching your head still not noticing you weren't talking to Alexia

“No.. just Buenas tardes” the woman laughed and you thought her laugh was different.

That was the moment you looked up and was met with Olga Rios face. It took you a second to process the face before springing backwards knocking your chair over stepping backwards successfully falling over said chair flying backward screeching panicked

“STRANGER DANGER!!! STRANGER DANGER!!!” you yelled loudly getting tangled up with the chair as Olga couldn't do anything except for looking at you confused and shocked.

Your yelling brought Alexia on site as she came running down the hallway. She rounded the corner to the living room quickly to get rooted in her spot taking in the scene in front of her. Olga behind the kitchen island looking shocked and confused as you started to fight a chair on the ground. Olgas eyes made contact with Alexias and she looked at her blonde girlfriend helplessly.

“Cariño” Alexia said rather loudly to get your attention

“Stranger Alexia...” you panted out your leg stuck in the back rest of the chair

“Cari... calm down...” the catalan said softly as she carefully stepped towards you

“There's a stranger in your kitchen and I have to calm down???” you asked bewildered

“Not a stranger Cariño... that's Olga... say hi to my girlfriend Cariño” Alexia chuckled as she grabbed your ankle stilling it

“Olga the girlfriend?” you asked suspicious looking up from your spot on the floor

“Sí... mi amor” the spaniard smiled

“Not a clue what that meant...” you shrugged your shoulders as Alexia tried to free your foot from the chair

Finally the catalan got your foot freed and helped you standing up. You were still slightly wary of the other woman and pushed yourself partly behind Alexia

“It's okay Cariño... no stranger or danger... just Olga” the catalan said softly as she noticed you hiding behind her

“Buenas tardes” the woman in question smiled heart warming

“Hi” you said carefully trying to get a read on the new woman

“She needs a moment” Alexia explained to her girlfriend

“It's okay... maybe we can get to know each other over some Gambas al ajillo” the woman smiled

“No Gambas” you screeched shocked “Ew”

Alexia couldn't help herself but burst out laughing at your face and the offended look her girlfriend threw your way

“She doesn't like sea food, mi amor... I'll just whip up some Albondigas... I'll share the Gambas with you” the blonde chuckled as she leaned over the counter pressing a soft kiss to her girlfriend lips which made you gag loudly

“¿Disculpe?” Alexia raised her eyebrow as she turned towards you

“Stop dislocating shit...” you exclaimed knowing how to annoy the spaniard “... and stop doing... that.. got that at home enough”

“I'm kissing my girlfriend excuse me for showing affection to the woman I love” the catalan answered sarcastically

“You have children in the room” you shot back

“Really?? I didn't noticed before when you were eating orange slices” Alexia smirked

“Olga... Alexia is mean” you whined to the woman

“Excuse me?!” the catalan said bewildered and annoyed at the same time

“Alexia... Deja al pequeño” the darker haired woman smirked at the footballer

“¿Disculpe?!!!” the catalan questioned outraged

You didn't understand one word BUT at the tone Alexia used you knew Olga just defended you.

“She just yelled Stranger Danger at you!” Alexia exclaimed

“You could have told her that I would be home later so she wouldn't be as surprised” Olga waved her girlfriend off and you smirked

To you sadness it was the exact moment the door bell rang. Alexia huffed annoyed as she turned to open the door. On the other side was your smiling sister. The catalan stepped to the side to let Lucy in.

“Hey Bubs... Olga” your sister greeted still smiling

“Hola Lucia” the brown haired woman smiled “¿Te quedas a cenar?”

“No gracias. Todavía tengo que empacar para el campamento y este de aquí también necesita empacar” Lucy answered and pulled you into her side

“Shit... you really do speak spanish” you said in awe

“Told you” she grinned kissing the crown of your head “Were you good for Lex?”

“So good” you smiled pressing yourself against her body

“Really... so why is there a clip that went viral of Alexia in the middle of an interview with a loud crash in the background and her cussing you and Mapí out under her breath?” your sister asked grinning widely

“Ay dios mio” the catalan exclaimed throwing her hands up

“Sorry Ale” you said putting on an innocent look

“No you're not” the catalan smiled “... it's just who you are... and now off you go and pack for camp”

“Ugh... don't remind me... travel day with Lucy is exhausting” you rolled your eyes and carefully hugged the spaniard “Bon arrivederci” you winked before running out to the car where Ona is waiting

“Look after her Lucy” Alexia said quietly “She is precious – but she's hurting so much... I can see it in her eyes... there will be a time when she needs you and you better be there for her”

“I know... I know Lex... and I hope that it helped her to come here...” Lucy smiled sadly

“I think it did – I think she sees that family is more than blood... even Mapí” the blonde chuckled

“Mapí would give her life for y/n” your sister smiled as she watched you jumping on Onas back

“We all would...” Alexia smiled watching you too as you wrecking balled into her spanish national teammate

“See you in two weeks Capi” Lucy smiled as she grabbed your back pack ready to leave

“Adiós Lucy... keep an eye on her” Alexia smiled as she quickly hugged the englishwoman before she saw Ona trying to stuff you into the backseat of the car with you pushing your feet into the door laughing loudly

“Take care Cariño” the blonde spaniard mumbled as she closed the door and turned to her girlfriend who was smiling

“You like her” Olga smiled

“I do... she's special” the catalan said “She went through so much and still she has a heart of gold”

[genshingorlsrevengeance]

OH LAWD I WOULD DIE FOR SHENHE AND SARA

Could you do some headcannons about their S/O being overly sweet towards them? Imagine them getting Shenhe tons of gifts and hugging her like a Koala holding onto a tree. Or Sara’s S/O straight up pulling out their archery skills just to get her attention and try their hardest to break her “professional” behaviour just to see her blush. GAAAA JUST IMAGINING THEM SOUNDS SO CUTE!

(Genshin Impact) Shenhe and Sara's S/O being overly affectionate

THE GAP MOE IS REAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL

Shenhe had not received any kind of physical affection in a very long time.

It's not as if she did not have anyone caring for her, Cloud Retainer and the Traveler certainly did.

But the love S/O gave to her could not be compared to anything in her life.

At first, S/O wanted to gift her many things, but since she didn't really have a house, she had to decline many of their bigger gifts.

Instead, she kept smaller items like a necklace adorned with a beautiful light blue gem in the middle, resembling her vision.

And her body did not budge whenever S/O hugged her with full force, though that was due to her being extremely strong.

(Shenhe) "I wish to return your affection wholeheartedly, S/O, but I cannot."

S/O looked at Shenhe curiously, their smile still wide.

(S/O) "Why?"

(Shenhe) "I don't think your body could withstand it."

(S/O) "Oh come on, we can try!"

Shenhe then complied.

S/O was out of breath for nearly half an hour.

Regardless, it was something they did not regret.

Whether it was hugging, kissing, giving gifts, S/O loved to figuratively (And sometimes literally) smother her in any type of love.

Shenhe's face mostly remained unchanged, but her heart seemed to race everytime she felt them in her arms.

There were many times when they shared a bed, S/O would just hold onto her, arms and legs trapping her in place.

It felt strange, but Shenhe did not mind.

If S/O was safe and happy, then she was as well.

===

S/O and Shenhe had gotten a fair distance away from Liyue Harbor. Not too far in case if trouble followed them and civilization was too far, but they could be left alone in the confines of nature comfortably.

Something Shenhe appreciated. She could simply enjoy S/O all to herself. They were planning to camp out together, if only just for a little bit.

She felt their hands wrap around hers, eagerly standing closer as they moved closer to put their head on her chest.

Shenhe made no sound, but S/O could tell that she was at ease. The way her shoulders slumped, eyebrows raised, and the faintest dusting of pink rose to her cheeks.

(S/O) "I'm really happy I get to spend the next few days with you, Shenhe!"

(Shenhe) "I am as well. But-"

Shenhe slowly stepped back, making sure her hands were still holding S/O. She tilted her head and asked S/O with her tone of voice lightly hinted with concern.

S/O took a moment to think about their answer while Shenhe continued.

(Shenhe) "The mountains can get quite cold at night as well."

(S/O) "That's what you're here for!"

S/O lovingly stood closer, and nuzzled their head onto her shoulders.

(S/O) "I'll be fine to sleep anywhere as long as you're with me, Shenhe. Besides, I packed a tent and everything we need!...Well, that I need."

Shenhe nodded and sat down, her hand still tightly gripping S/O as they sat with her on the grass. S/O began cuddling onto her, both of them silently watching the clouds above slowly drift away.

Her heart throbbed when she felt their hand wrap around her waist, though it was not out of pain as she quickly learned in the beginning of their relationship.

In truth, Sara is quite easy to fluster, whether it be from teasing or affection.

Unfortunately for her, S/O provided much of both.

Sara did prefer to keep their relationship private for both the sake of her pride and for their personal safety, which S/O thankfully mostly complied with.

But whenever it was just the two of them, S/O would hold nothing back.

(S/O) "Sara!"

S/O almost tackled her in a hug, if she weren't prepared then they would have both fallen over.

But, it was something Sara secretly found endearing. S/O would not get to hear that however, lest they somehow get even more lovey-dovey.

(Sara) "It's nice to see you too, S/O."

She gave them a firm hug back before gently pushing them back.

(S/O) "I can make you some Onigiri, go ahead and sit down!"

Never once in her life did Sara think she would walk into such a loving home after days of work.

But Sara was happy to have S/O provide her the love she never knew she wanted.

===

Sara sighed as S/O happily held her hand to a nearby food stand.

The vendor in question seemed shocked at S/O holding the hands of the General of the Tenryou Commission so casually, while Sara had to avert meeting their gaze. of confusion.

(S/O) "One stick of dango, please!"

As the vendor nodded, the memories of how this even happened came rushing back to her head.

...

(S/O) "Sara, if I can hit this bullseye, you have to go on a date with me in the city!" Sara raised her eyebrow at S/O's sudden challenge. They had a bow and a single arrow in their hands, pointing a crudely made training dummy with layers of circles on its chest. (Sara) "Where is this coming from, S/O?" (S/O) "Kind of a mix of things, honestly. One: I just want to impress you. And two: I want to treat you to something nice, but you won't let me!" Sara chuckled, rather too confidently if S/O were to add. (Sara) "While I do appreciate the thought, you have no need to do so-." (S/O) "I have every need to do so if I get to see you blush and have that cute frown!" Well, they were already doing that. Rather effectively too. (Sara) "Alright, I accept your challenge." Sara crossed her arms as she stood behind S/O. Their arms were wobbling at the strength, but she could tell they were trying to mimic the way she drew her bow. (Sara) "Hm, I doubt they're going to-" Before she could even finish, S/O let the arrow go and she watched, much to her horror, the arrow pierce the center circle. (S/O) "HAHA! I DID IT!" They turned towards her, a star gleaming in their eye. (S/O) "Let's get some dango together!" (Sara) "I-In the city?" (S/O) "Where else, silly?" Sara opened her mouth to protest, but she did make a promise after all. That was on her for underestimating the lengths S/O would go to spoil her. And there was also that smile of theirs that made her mind haze...

...

Sara sighed as she walked away from the vendor, noting that people were beginning to stare.

Before moving to walk away from the open sight of the streets, she turned to S/O, scratching the side of her head in a nervous tick.

(S/O) "I know I am!"

S/O punctuated with a big grin, before thankfully, leading Sara away from prying eyes.

[wosoamazing]

World Cup Memories

Blurb | Diabetes & Love Series

Sunset On one of your first Nights in Australia you went to watch the sunset with the team. Your Mum was sitting next to Lucy on one side and Mary on the other, you were curled up in her lap sideways, facing Mary, as you played chopsticks with the Goal Keeper, yours and Mary’s favourite pastime in meetings, much to Sarina’s dismay. After a while you and Mary stopped playing, and you busied yourself playing with your Mum’s rings on her fingers, before you got tired. Your Mum noticed the rather cute yawn you let out and placed your puffer jacket over you as a blanket, it was the one item that they could not get in kid size, not that it mattered as you liked the big one and it was functional for many different things.

Training You always wore your training kit to training, with your mini nike airs and your white England cap. During training you were always with Sarina, she was adamant you would be with her through training, she had an England bum bag specially made, so she could have your supplies on her at all times. You held her hand as she walked around, sat down next to her legs when she was speaking to the girls or when she stood still for extended periods of time, and sometimes you would be seen in her arms, especially if you were low and you were drinking a juice. 

Games You had the same routine for game days, you walked around the pitches with your Mum for pitch inspections, sat in the med room whilst everyone was getting ready and there was chaos in the lockers, you always had one of two oversized puffers on. Both belonged to you and your Mum, however you enjoyed the comfort of her scent, so you always opted to wear the one she had been wearing in the days leading up to the match. It smelt like her and that made you happy. The night after games the team had a free night and you spent the night just you and your Mum watching a movie after dinner before falling asleep in her bed with her.

Zoo While some of the girls went whale watching you went to the Zoo, your Mum was slightly worried about you getting sea sick, and not liking the noise, so she decided against taking you whale watching. You got to pet and feed the kangaroos and even pat a koala, at the end of your Zoo trip Esme bought you a fluffy toy koala, and Lotte snuck you an ice cream (your Mum found out and it was safe to say your Mum was not happy, but as Lotte did everything right in terms of the carbs and giving you your insulin units she couldn’t be too mad). When you returned back you saw Mary who told you lots of stories about the whales and she had lots of pictures, she also brought you a stuffed whale as a gift because she felt sad you didn’t get to go.

Panini Stickers You had somehow managed to fill your Panini Sticker Book in the first three days at camp, but that might’ve been because the staff let you open all the sticker packets first. Before handing them to the girls participating, meaning you always got the first look. However you ever so kindly gifted your book to Steph as you knew she was collecting stickers, but apparently Macca and some of the city girls were doing it first before she did so she couldn’t finish her collection.

[orangechickenpillow]

I need more content of the bg3 companions cuddling, okay here's my pitch:

Everyone piling on top of Karlach and falling asleep (a classic)

a group hug with Wyll smushed in the center

Gale hooking his arms Shadowheart and Lae'zel's shoulders because he lacks a healthy fear of death and/or bodily harm

Karlach holding Astarion like a teddy bear while Shadowheart is asleep in her lap like a cat

Gale, once again with no regard for his own personal safety, somehow ending up with Astarion sitting in front of him like they're sledding so he can lecture him show him the best parts of his book

Wyll gets curious about what they're reading and joins in, then Karlach notices, then suddenly the whole camp including Withers is piled around them for Bedtime Stories With Gale

Karlach seeing if she can pick up and carry everyone all at once, which requires all of them to hang onto someone and help each other out (which they do once they've determined they're actually going to attempt this, no bullshit)

This ends in lots of yelling and, shockingly, no one losing an eye. Lae'zel threatens to murder Gale for picking her up, Astarion claims he wouldn't touch her with a six-foot pole while hanging off of Karlach's bicep, his legs wrapped around Shadowheart, who is holding onto Karlach like a baby koala. Meanwhile Wyll is trying to climb past Gale without getting in the Lae'zel Line of Fire or snapping Karlach's neck, who is unbothered and yelling for Withers to come join them or it won't count (he Does Not)

Shadowheart, Lae'zel, and Astarion huddling in their Gossip Corner to talk shit. Shadowheart ends up draped over Astarion's lap while he re-braids her hair and Lae'zel is sitting behind them on a log or something with her elbow propped on Astarion's shoulder, making occasional comments about how poor of a job he's doing

Wyll and Karlach using each other as weighted blankets. Gale wants in the moment he finds out about it. Then Astarion discovers what they've been up to. Then Shadowheart. Are you seeing the trend. They literally cant function as individuals anymore. They have to rotate around like gas station hot dogs

Speaking of dogs, Scratch joins the Karlach Cuddle Pile some nights to keep warm. And the owlbear, who always singles a certain vampire out. Astarion likes it complains very loudly about it

Scratch is Karlach’s bestie and usually ends up sleeping directly on her face. They're all sure they're going to find her dead like that one morning