#does it count as waking up together if they just. go back to sleep afterward.

[kharonion]

11 from the otp prompts💜

[ soft otp prompts ]

11 | WRITE ABOUT YOUR SHIP WAKING UP TOGETHER.

It's absolutely precious how Vikt stirs awake. He grumbles deep in his chest, like a low rev of an engine—muted by the pillow he's shoving his face into—and tosses around as if trying to escape the sun.

Kerry chuckles, laid there resting his head in the palm of a propped arm. His fingers skirt along the dip of Vikt's spine, the definition of his shoulders, tracing every line of ink on terracotta skin. With every motion, there's a slight rustle, a gruff groan that's both content and endearingly agitated.

"Hey, sleepin' beauty," Kerry rasps with a smile that lifts his cheeks. He twirls the sparse curls of hair at Vikt's lumbar in gentle circles, continues to graze the skin with his nails.

All Vikt responds with is a light growl. His head shifts, eyes fluttering open—reluctantly. "Hrm...? What... time is it?"

"Fuck if I know." It's true; Kerry hasn't bothered to leave the bed. And, frankly, what does it even matter? "What, got somewhere to be?" he asks with a snicker, fingertips sneaking underneath the blanket set low at Vikt's hips.

That damn phone rumbles from the bedside table, and Kerry's about to sigh in defeat when Vikt's hand smacks down on it hard enough to shut it up. And he doesn't move otherwise. Kerry laughs as from the pillow, he hears a gruff, "No."

"They okay with that?"

Vikt shifts again, and finally, his eyes—well, one of them—crack open, eyelashes fluttering and optics gleaming in the sunlight. The wrinkles at their corners are always so prominent when Vikt wakes, and Kerry always traces them lightly with his thumb.

"Fuck 'em," Vikt drawls. He sighs deep, readjusts so he's laid on his side to properly face Kerry. He groans, yawns (and tries to hold it back, which is adorable). "Let 'em figure shit out themselves for once. I've... got better things to do..."

As he mumbles, Vikt scoots closer, until he's pressed close with his head tucked underneath Kerry's chin. Steady, hot breaths tickle his neck, the spot peppered by gentle kisses amidst the protesting moans seeping from Vikt's lips. Kerry runs his fingers up and down Vikt's ribs, absolutely relishing in the hums it elicits. He swears he can even catch the tail end of some light snores. "Do you now?" he eventually asks without much need for an answer; he can guess.

All Vikt does is nod, offers a low "mhmm" without any more elaboration—or any haste to change his position. He's quite content right where he is, seems like.

And Kerry's about to pipe up that maybe they should at least get up to eat something, but he can't commit to it. Not when the large man curled in his embrace has dozed back to sleep. Instead, he smiles, buries his face in Vikt's bed-tussled hair, and lets himself relax, too. After all, there's no rush. Not when they can just stay like this—content, warm, and lazy as fuck for once.

[livwritesstuff]

for @steddie-week day 3 | long (and a little bit of mutual pining but the kind when they're literally dating which i think is even more pathetic)

tags: modern day, famous au, actor!steve, rockstar!eddie

Eddie stayed longer than he should have. 

He was supposed to leave Chicago with the rest of the band yesterday after their show at Credit Union 1 – opening night for a year-long national tour.

Eddie didn’t leave yesterday though. Instead, he insisted on spending one last night with Steve, one last morning pretending like they would actually get up and go to that breakfast spot they like even though they both knew they’d be spending the time wrapped up together in their bed, in the home they share, refusing to disentangle themselves until they had no other choice.

No other choice meant Eddie waited so long to leave that he ended up on a flight which would get him into Ohio with barely enough time to make it to the venue in Cincinnati before showtime (and he was missing soundcheck completely – sorta shot himself in the foot with that one, in Steve's opinion, though he won’t be caught complaining).

He won’t be caught doing anything – not publicly, anyway.

Steve and Eddie’s relationship is kind of in the halfway-stage between secret and private, where Steve posts vague, faceless photos of the two of them every now and then but still deflects questions about his romantic life during interviews because – look. He and Eddie are both at weird high-points in their careers at the moment, and that means there’s a lot of eyes on them whether they like it or not. Steve had a public relationship turn sour years ago and there is no way in hell he’s letting it happen again.

Not with Eddie. Not when it counts.

There are speculations, obviously (and after Steve dropped Eddie off at O'Hare, he posted a photo of the Kiss n’ Fly sign to his IG story with the caption i hate this place :( – mostly for his own amusement at the specific way his notifications implode afterward), and they’ll probably get around to an official hard-launch someday, but for now Steve likes that they’re keeping things to themselves, especially when they don’t get to make that choice with much else.

Steve gets a just landed text from Eddie a few hours after he boarded his plane.

(Steve knew. He’d been tracking the flight).

Before he could respond, Eddie added, miss you so fn much

i miss you too, Steve texted back, and before either of them could wallow in it too much, he sent, gonna make it on time?

probably, Eddie answered. Then, getting ready in the car lol

He goes quiet after that (the getting ready, presumably), which is fine.

Steve gets it.

He’s busy too. It’s why he’s not following along on Eddie’s tour like some glorified groupie, and it’s not like the distance is anything new. On the contrary, it’s been an element of their relationship since they met at an awards show after-party four years ago. It’s more that this time around, they were supposed to only have four-and-a-half weeks together before Steve headed off on a press tour for the movie he filmed last year, but then that got pushed out a bit further, and so that four-and-a-half weeks together turned into a glorious nine, the longest Steve and Eddie’s calendars had ever been aligned without some serious planning beforehand.

He just got used to it, Steve supposes.

He got used to having Eddie around all the time, under his fingertips, under his skin. He got used to saying goodnight in person, in their bed together instead of over phone lines, got used to waking up in Eddie's arms and hearing sweet nothings whispered in his ear rather than reading the texts Eddie would leave for him to wake up to when they were apart.

He'll adjust just like he always does, and the worst part will be over tomorrow morning – that moment right between sleep and wake when Steve will realize Eddie isn’t in their bed with him.

Like it or not, the distance is their normal and they make it work (except it’s not even making it work, because it’s not like that. Any situation, any set of circumstances will work without question because it’s Eddie).

The start time for the Cincinnati show comes and goes. A few minutes into the opening act and while Steve is mindlessly flitting between Instagram and TikTok waiting for the algorithm to fill his feed with clips from the concert (ones of Eddie, preferably), his screen lights up with a call.

“Hey,” he says the second he slams his thumb on the green accept button.

“Hey,” Eddie replied, his tone nothing short of grim.

“You geared up for the show?” Steve asked.

“No,” Eddie answered, “I’m quitting.”

Steve rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, okay.”

“I need you to come tuck my pockets in,” Eddie said, and it’s a goddamn wonder Steve didn’t break down then and there, because Eddie always managed to tug his pants on in a way that made the front pockets stick out just a bit, and throughout their years together Steve had gotten into the habit of tucking them back in for him, squeezing Eddie’s hips a little when he was done and pulling him in for a kiss.

“Yeah,” Steve manages a wet laugh, “I – fuck, man, I wish I was there to tuck them in for you.”

“I want you here so bad, Steve," Eddie says, "I really, really miss you."

“I miss you too,” Steve nodded, even though miss isn't a big enough word for the homesick feeling in his chest, “Only a week until the Indy show though. And I’m coming with you for the Michigan one after.”

“Yeah,” Eddie replied, and if he sounded a little morose about it, Steve was right there with him. Sure, it’s a comfort knowing he’ll be seeing Eddie again so soon, but when those two days are over…yeah, it’s gonna be a long goddamn while until next time, because Eddie will be playing the Midwest while Steve’s press tour is mostly on the East Coast this time around, and after that he heads up into Vancouver to shoot a period drama mini-series while Eddie plays the southern half of the US, and then…well, Steve could keep going. They’re both taking a short break for the holidays, but that and the rare weekend one of them can fly out to the other is about it for the foreseeable future.

Which, yeah, Steve loves acting, loves that he gets to make a whole career out of it, and he knows that Eddie feels the same way about his music, but…the love he has for Eddie definitely edges out the rest of it – enough that he feels the distance between him like a dull, ever-present ache whenever they’re apart.

Eddie only ends their call when his manager practically has to yank the phone out of his hand and shove him onstage, and then Steve settles back into bed, back into scrolling mindlessly on his phone waiting for his finely-tuned algorithms to do their jobs.

Sure enough, it takes less than thirty minutes for Steve’s FYP to start showing him TikToks from Eddie’s show, and amidst all the hair and leather and silver chains and chunky rings and eyeliner and manic energy, Steve sees something else, something that has the hurt of missing Eddie increasing ten-fold, something that has him seriously considering taking an ax to all his contracts and his career and his livelihood and getting on the next plane to Cincinnati.

Eddie left his pockets untucked.

[xxcallmemaryxx]

Vessels x gn reader

Sleeping with the vessels headcannons.

Under the cut <3

Vessel can be a lot. If it were up to him he would consume you entirely and then go right to sleep after. This man will not settle until you are pulled so closely into him that you almost become one being. Big on skin to skin contact. Just absolutely adores being able to feel you and your warmth completely against him. Expect every inch of your skin to be touched and held by him at some point before he’s even tired. He is so serious about this. Needs you to know how adored you are by him every second of the day, but this amplifies as he gets sleepy or relaxed. Can never truely believe that you’re his and he gets to share such quiet and intimate moments with you. The routine you share when preparing to lay down together. The fact he gets to lay with you at all is nothing less of a privilege to him. He feels beyond blessed every single time. He will press his entire face into the softest parts of your body and stay there. He’s found himself falling asleep lightyears quicker when he’s with you compared to when he’s sleeping alone. But he fights it. Every single time. He would rather throw himself into fire than miss being able to admire you for as long as possible, but the second he gets his hands on you his eyes are drooping and his head is heavy buried in your chest. His favourite part of napping with you is waking up afterwards. When you are both impossibly tangled up, so close you can’t tell where he ends and you start. When you’re warm and soft and still half asleep. No words are shared. But you say your hellos to each other by snuggling deeper and basking in the presence of the other.

II is secretly a cuddle bug. Really only lets himself succumb to it when he knows the two of you will not be interrupted. The doors are locked and the curtains are drawn and there’s not a soul on the planet that he will ever allow to get close enough to either of you during this time. Enjoys you close, and really enjoys when you fall asleep curled into him. He’d never admit it out loud but you’ve picked up on it, how he settles into the pillows when his arms are secured around you. How he manoeuvres your half asleep form around so your head is tucked under his chin. How he sleeps closest to the door of the bedroom. He only settles, truely settles, when he feels as if he’s protecting you. Always up long after you’ve fallen asleep. When you’re safely tucked underneath him. He lays awake for ages counting your breaths, studying your features, committing to memory how beautiful you are sound asleep with him. He falls asleep looking at you. But ii is extra cuddly in the morning. Especially when it’s cold. If you’re lucky enough to wake up before him, his hair is always an absolute mess and his face has ended up buried in your skin somewhere. He might wake up for a few minutes, when he allows himself to snuggle deeper, chasing your warmth and inevitably falling right back to sleep again. The world outside doesn’t exist to him when he’s in bed with you. His only concern being that you’re still there and warm and safe and secure with him. He lets you soak it up for as long as you can when he’s all soft and sleepy.

III completely refuses to sleep without you. He won’t do it. He does not care. Whether it be taking mid day naps, or if you’re out and about for the night without him. He will not sleep until you are next to him again. He can be stubborn when he wants to be, and he’s damn good at it too. Poor guy could be falling asleep standing up and he’d still force his eyes back open. He is just as clingy as Vessel is when it comes to you. Possibly even more so. His entire body is draped over your shoulder the whole way to the bedroom, face pressed into your neck and arms wrapped around you the entire time. When you finally get to the bed, it’s almost as if he’s forgotten his own height. He waits for you to settle in and then, quite literally, flops his whole body on top of yours. His face is pressed into you and his arms are around you and he’s out like a light immediately. He will not move. At all. The whole night. He will stay right there, as close to you as humanly possible, where he knows you can’t get up and leave either. He sleeps so deeply he will not wake up for anything, especially if he’s been unable to sleep for a little while, it’s like his brain can finally rest because you’re back in his arms again and it just completely switches off. His hands, if not around you, are holding onto you somehow. He likes burying a hand into your hair and pulling you closer to him. He’s all about closeness. All about contact. He’s very big on you two spending your time together. Whether he’s conscious for it or not. So long as your body is pressed against his, he’s happy. He will only move in the morning, after he’s woken up long enough, to shift you around and pull you on top of him. The weight of you on top of him is the best feeling in the morning. Loves watching you slowly wake up.

IV considers bed time to be the best part of the day. Crawling into bed with you after a long day, is something he can tell you he has become addicted to. He is big obsessed with you. The moment you pull those covers over yourself his hands are on you and he’s not letting go for anything. If you fall asleep before him, he absolutely lays awake and watches you for a while. He takes great comfort in being able to feel and see you next to him. His hands are under your shirt so he can feel your warm skin against his, and he’s conscious of every breath in and out of your lungs. Don’t you even think about trying to move away from him, he will trap you between his body and the mattress so you have nowhere to go don’t even test him. You do somehow get out of bed in the middle of the night? IV is following you through the house like a lost puppy. He could be in the deepest of sleeps but the second you’re not next to him anymore he’s up and awake in seconds. There’s been many times when he’s tried to blindly follow you through the dark while half asleep, ending up with big bruises on his body from running into the walls. Hold his hand and guide him back to bed. Be gentle with sleepy IV, he’s delicate. IV has attempted to wear your sleep shirt, with you still in it. The top stretched over his head as he slept quite peacefully with his head on your bare chest. Best sleep he had in ages. Will do it again.

[daydreamingyuta]

Mornings | Jaehyun

summary: fluff, a collection of mornings with Jaehyun over the years as you spend your lives together. word count: 1,127

Saturday August 10, 2019 [7:18 am]

You woke up, having hardly gotten any sleep, but energized as ever. Today you were meeting up with your boyfriend, Jaehyun. You two had just made everything official and your heart was so happy.

You go into the bathroom to do your skincare, and when you walk back into your room, you notice a good morning text from him.

Jaehyun: "Good morning baby! Can't wait to see you today <3"

A single text shouldn't make you this filled with joy, but it's from Jaehyun, so of course it does.

Y/n: "I can't wait either! Do you think we could also get some ice cream afterwards?"

Jaehyun: "We'll do anything you want angel"

You flop back onto your unmade bed, your thoughts filled with how lucky you feel to be Jaehyun's girl. You start to get giggly because you know that, by the end of the date he's going to cup your face into his hands and tell you how pretty he thinks you are, like he always does.

⸻

Sunday November 10th, 2019 [1:17 am]

You were supposed to be at home, already asleep in bed by now, but you and Jaehyun didn't want to leave each other. Each of you making excuses to prolong your date. Now it's one in the morning and you're on a walk, the street lit up by the moonlight. Each step you take, now unconsciously synced with his. Jaehyun hasn't let go of your hand once, and you wish that he never would. While you were enjoying your stroll, his mind was racing, thinking of how to tell you. He knew in his heart that you felt the same way about him, so he decided it would be best to just tell you outright. "Y/n?" He says, with a hint of nervousness in his voice.

You both stop and turn to face each other, knowing from the tone in his voice that he needs to tell you something important. "I love you." Words cannot describe how your heart feels in this moment. The way he's looking at you, like you're the most precious person in the world to him, was making you melt. "You love me?" You say with a teasing smile, tilting your head slightly. "So much y/n. I can hardly take it." He says, breathlessly. You stand up on your tippy toes and give him the biggest kiss you've ever given him. "I love you too, Jaehyun."

⸻

Sunday December 15th, 2019 [9:12 am]

The slight movement of Jaehyun cuddling more into you was the reason you had woken up. You move to get into a more comfortable position, causing Jaehyun to wrap his arm tighter around you.  “I’m sorry baby, did I wake you up?” Jaehyun says with his morning voice that you couldn’t get enough of.  “Hm, it’s okay. I love cuddling with you in the mornings.” Jaehyun nuzzles his head into your neck, “Me too, baby.” You fall back asleep, thinking about how excited you were that it’s almost your six month anniversary together. You can’t believe that you’ve been together for that long, the time feeling like it was going by so fast. 

⸻

Friday April 16, 2021 [7:32 am]

You knew something was up. You weren't sure what, but Jaehyun and all your friends and family had been acting strange for the past month. Like they all knew something you didn't.

You had just gotten a promotion at work, so maybe they all came together to plan a surprise party for you. But that's not really something you would enjoy and they all know that, so you really had no clue what it could be.

Today, Jaehyun was taking you out on a fancy dinner date, so whatever was going on definitely wasn't happening today.

"Good morning, angel." Jaehyun says, once he sees that you're awake. He's carrying a suit that he must have just picked up from the dry cleaners.

"Did you buy a brand new suit for our dinner?" You ask, confused.

"Yeah." He shrugs, as if getting a new suit was no big deal. As if he didn't have to spend days finding the right one for the special occasion. As if he didn't get the suit tailored to fit him exactly the way he knows you like.

You had more questions, but Jaehyun distracted you from them all by climbing into bed with you and giving you a million little kisses. You were in heaven whenever he did this.

Little did you know, that in only a couple of hours he was going to be down on one knee, in the park that you two visited during your first date, asking you to make him the happiest man on earth.

⸻

Monday May 16, 2022 [10:35 am]

You woke up with the waves coming from right outside your hotel window. You feel around the bed and notice that Jaehyun must have already gotten up. You hear a sound in the bathroom and know that he just got finished with his morning shower.  He comes out of the bathroom with a white robe on, his hair wet and messy, but you don’t think you’ve ever seen anyone as handsome in your life.  “Can you believe we got married two days ago, Jae?” You ask, unapologetically staring him down.  “No, I can't." He says, jumping back under the covers with you. "Did my beautiful wife have a good night's sleep?” You rest your chin on his now bear chest. “Yes, I did.” He strokes your hair as he looks down at you. “Should we sleep in on the first day of our honeymoon?” You nod your head yes, adamantly. You come up to press a kiss onto his lips and he cups your face into his hands and kisses you back. He pulls away, but just for a moment to ask you a question. “Do you know how beautiful you are y/n?”

⸻

Monday May 8th, 2028 [7:23 am]

“Mommy!” You hear as your oldest hops onto your bed, waking you up. “Mommy, happy mothers day!” She presses kisses all over you, making sure that you're fully awake. “Thank you sweetheart.” You say, sitting up so you can give her a hug and another kiss. She giggles in your arms and gets close to your ear like she has a secret to tell you.

"We made you something." She whispers.

Soon after, Jaehyun walks through the door, balancing your youngest in one arm and a stack of pancakes in the other.

“Happy mothers day, angel.” Jaehyun tells you as he sits the pancakes down on the bed and leans over to give you a sweet kiss.

[bonthefuckjourx]

Lucifer x Sinner!reader (Hazbin Hotel)

   SUMMARY: You wake up in Hell and realize you didn't make the cut into Heaven. You never did anything evil, but never believed in God. You wanted to live life by your own morals. Little did you know a group of hazbins would take you in and show you more kindness than anyone on Earth ever did. Then you met someone you never thought you would, Lucifer, the King of Hell. Then you did something you never thought you would, make a deal with the devil.

Word Count: 3300k+

WARNINGS: smut

A/N: I am so excited to give you guys this chapter! I feel like we are actually moving now. I've been wanting to write this non-stop, so hoping another update will be out tomorrow. In the meantime, happy reading!!

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

CHAPTER THREE: I Did Something Bad

“I can’t believe he just kicked us out like that! I mean who the fuck does he think he is?”

Charlie was pacing back and forth in her office back at the hotel. The meeting went less than ideal as Heaven wasn’t forthcoming on her idea. Not only did they rudely kick us out and fling her papers everywhere, but they also increased the Extermination date. It put you on edge how much the angels enjoyed it. You spent the last extermination boarded up in a crate for the entire day. The screams of sinners and the laughter of the angels haunted you in your sleep.

            “I mean it makes sense that the first man alive was this egotistical asshole. “

You mentioned that quite a few men on Earth were like that as well. Of course, you were brushed off as Charlie wasn’t paying attention to anything but her own mumbling. After a few minutes Vaggie came into the office and you decided Charlie didn’t need you anymore for moral support. You closed the door behind you as you made your way up to your room. It had been a long day and all you wanted was to wrap up in your warm comforter. As you walked into your room you noticed a certain friend, Angel Dust, sitting on your bed waiting for you. His head perked up as you walked towards him.

            “Y/n you are not going to believe this. He sang to me, and of course I was upset, but he sang to me. No one has cared even to ever do that for me. Afterwards he was so understanding, and we took a walk together. I mean it’s like we’re practically dating.”

            Angel Dust wrung his hands has he watched you sit next to him on your bed.

            “Did you guys’ kiss at all?”

            “Well, no, but y/n I was so nervous, and for once this is something I want to work out. I can’t afford to mess it up.” He was nervous as he looked to you for support.

            “That’s a good thing. It means you really care. I’m glad you want to take things slow for once, it’ll be good for the both of you.” Your hand gripped his shoulder as you tried to comfort him.

            “Thanks y/n. I guess I just wanted confirmation that I’m doing the right thing. I really like him.”

            “I know you do. It’ll all work out I promise.” You laid back on your bed, closing your eyes briefly. It wasn’t long before he spoke up.

            “So how was your date with the King of Hell?” You opened your eyes, glaring daggers at him. In turn he was smirking at you expecting a response.

            “It wasn’t a date, and you know it. “

            “Well practically, right? You went over to his house, that’s close enough. Did ya do anything? Tell me how big the King’s cock-“

            “Angel Dust! Nothing even happened! We had some snacks and something to drink and we talked.”

            “You. Talked?” He looked at you as if he didn’t believe you. Perhaps he knew you too well by now. You caved in.

            “Well, we did talk, but he also touched my face again and when he looked into my eyes I just couldn’t look away and then next thing I know he’s leaning me over the couch and he’s kissing me and oh my god he just touched me, Angel. Something like that has never happened to me before. It left so different, so alive. It was like his magic was all around, intoxicating me.” You spoke with your hands as well trying to have him understand just how much everything was. You dropped your hands to your sides as you stared at the ceiling, waiting for a response.

            “That’s amazing y/n, but if you ever tell the story to someone else, I advise you to leave out the part where you mention his rival. I’m pretty sure he would be less than happy to hear God’s name coming off your lips rather than his.” A blush overcame your face as you thought of saying his name repeatedly in desperation. It’s horrible just how much he ended up in your thoughts. It’s even worse most of those thoughts are less than clean.

            “Angel, I don’t even know what to do. It’s like he’s a drug to me. Something about it feels so wrong, but so very right. I mean he’s Charlie’s dad, and Charlie also has a mom. Not to mention Lucifer is how many centuries old? I was only 21 when I died. I feel like we could never actually work out. We have so many differences, but there is the trouble between Heaven and Hell. Not to mention we are trying to rehabilitate into Heaven, right? I don’t know if I even want to at this point.” Tears welled up in your eyes at all the impossibilities.

            “Maybe you should take it slow then, like me and Husk. Just be friends.”

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

After Angel left you sat in your bed for a long while. Tears came and they went and eventually you even wrote a bit in your journal. Being friends made sense even though every part of you wanted more. It would be best to be friends until this whole thing with Heaven blew over. If you could convince yourself that you were just friends with him, then maybe you could convince Charlie this was a one-time thing. Speaking of which, you needed to stand up and actually go see her. Ten minutes later you found yourself in front of her bedroom door. You knocked waiting for her to open. Almost immediately it opened, making you wonder if the Morningstars had some more magic up their sleeves than you knew about.

            “Y/n. Hey come in.”

            “Sorry for not coming to you after we came back. I was emotionally tapped out.” You walked inside as she ushered you over to a sitting area she had. A small couch was on one side as a cushioned hair was on the other.

            “It’s okay I understand. However, you might want to explain what exactly is happening between you and my father.” She sat down on the chair leaving the small couch to you. As you set down you rubbed your sweaty hands on your thighs. Charlie looked at you expectantly.

            “Well as you know I really can’t go outside. It’s one of my fears after my death and I just go into panic mode. A couple of weeks ago when he visited the hotel, he found me near a balcony. I admitted to my fear, and he offered to help me overcome it. He brought me to his study. It has these huge windows that look over the city and in a way it helped. I asked him if he would help me with going outside in the future and he said he would. That’s how we ended up traveling together to the embassy today.”

            “That much I gathered but thank you for confiding in me. I understand it takes courage to bring up fears. You still didn’t explain to me, how do I put it, how my father became disheveled.” You looked away from her, baring an awkward smile, hugging your sides. She waited when you were ready.

            “Yes that… He teleported me to his mansion first. There was time so we talked, and one thing led to another. I don’t plan to continue these actions. I do want to become friends with him, but right now it’s too messy. Not to mention he’s your father and had a wife at some point I gather?...” You looked at her with a grimace hoping to not bring up hard feelings. Charlie didn’t seem to mind.

            “Oh that? They haven’t been together for most of my life. I do think it is a great idea you visit these feelings later. I’m all for following your heart, but for one we’re talking about rehabilitant you to Heaven! Not to mention he is my father and if anything does happen in the future, please encourage him to leave me out of it.”

You both ended up laughing together, satisfied with your talk. Your conversation turned to other things and before you knew it you two were chatting about anything and everything. Just like it used to be. There was a reason she chooses you to help her around the hotel. You shared very similar aspirations as her. The only difference was you were not hell born, although sometimes you wished you were. Sinners could not leave the ring of pride, not to mention hell born often thought less of sinners. They could be powerful yes, but sinners could only reproduce if they had a hell born. Many of them didn’t want to touch sinners. It was an afterlife, but it was apparently meant to be a punishment. Many things in the city weren’t there to make sinner’s lives easier.

Eventually you left to retire to your room as you both were becoming tired. You changed into your pajamas and plaited your hair for bed. Your cell phone rang then and as you glanced at it on your vanity you realized it was from Luci. You nearly fell out of your chair. The rings continued as you thought of what to say. You let out a breath you didn’t know you were holding and answered the call.

“Hi Luci.”

“Hey y/n. I know it’s late, but I just wanted to hear your voice. I’m sure you know; the nights are the longest.” He sounded tired and sadness tinged his words. You picked up your phone and ventured over to your bed. Laying down you set your phone on your chest as you stared at the ceiling listening to his voice.

“Yea I know about that all too well.”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Sure, Luci.”

“Do you ever feel like no matter how hard you try you make everything worse?”

“Sometimes.”

“Do I really make everything worse?”

“You helped make me feel better. Didn’t you?”

“I suppose.”

“Then no, you don’t make everything worse.” He let out a small sigh. There was silence for a long time. The only thing you could hear was his breathing trying to keep it together.

“It just feels like it. For centuries I’ve been stuck down here because I tried to give humanity free will. I tried to give them this gift to create and invent and live their lives in amazing, beautiful ways. But it backfired. They snatched what I gave them and threw it down the gutter.” He was speaking behind broken words at this point. The emotion in his voice threatening to break it.

“Luci that’s not your fault. You were doing something good. It’s not your fault the others didn’t agree.”

“Then there’s also Lilith. I thought we had something good. We had Charlie, a real family y/n, and then she left.” His voice wavered with every word. It was heartbreaking.

“I’m sorry she left, but you have Charlie and look at all the good she is doing. You made her for the better. “

“Yea I guess my daughter is pretty amazing.”

“I don’t know much about you and Lilith splitting, but anyone would be wrong to leave you. You deserve happiness even at your worst.”

“Thank you, y/n.”

“You’re welcome.”

You both sat there listening to each other’s breaths. Waiting for the other to break the silence once again. He spoke up first.

“Can I ask you something else?”

“Anything.”

“Can I give you a nickname? Like you gave me mine, Luci.” Your heart pounded in your chest. Friends can give each other nicknames, right?

“Seems only fair,” you spoke softly with a smile on your face.

“Duckling. Just like my best creation.”

“I love it.” Your heart was full, but ached at what you knew you needed to explain.

“Luci, can I ask you something?”

“Of course, my Duckling.” He sounded suave, confidence now in his voice.

“I need us to be just friends.” He sucked in a breath holding it across the line. There was silence for quite a while.

“I understand.” His voice was low now and cut off. The emotion gone. Had he become accustomed to shutting people out?

“Luci it’s not like that. I like you and I loved the time we spent together it’s just too fast. We barely know each other and there is turmoil between Hell and Heaven. I know it must be more than the extermination and I’m worried it’s going to be worse before it is better. Plus, the whole thing with Charlie, it’s a mess. But you’re my mess, together we’re this horrible pile of sin and lost hope. Just wait for me Luci, that’s all I ask of you.”

“Then I’ll be here waiting. Friends can still use nicknames, right?”

“Yes.”

“And talk over the phone late at night?”

“Sure.”

“Then tell me, what was Earth like?”

With that you and Luci talked for hours about anything and everything. From your music preferences to politics to even how high school was for you. He loved learning anything about humans. Thanks to him you all now could choose and oh how many choices did you have. You’re pretty sure any hobby you could think of you tried at least once. You told him about the instruments you played and art pieces you made. People you dated and people you hated. History was always so very interesting to you, and you relayed it to him in detail. Eventually it landed on the topic of religion and how Christianity seems more like a cult now then anything. He told you it had always been that way.

As the hours of the night ticked on, it became a good amount past midnight. You both were tired, but reeling on the energy you both gave each other. It was so nice to have someone to talk to again and bullshit with. He made you laugh, and he listened so very well. You would also ask him questions and you loved listening to his voice. This late at night it was a bit hoarse and husky as he spoke in a lower tone. He was tired that much was evident in his voice, but he also gave off other emotions. Those of adoration and love and home. Eventually his questions made an interesting turn towards your creative writing.

“So let me get this straight. People would write stories about fictional characters and then people like you would write completely different stories based on those characters?”

“Pretty much.”

“What did you write about?”

“Well of course it was mainly romance. I was such a sucker for fantasy romance. I wish I could get my hands on some here in Hell.”

“Romance. Interesting maybe I could give you some pointers here and there for another story. Totally platonic though.” You laughed out loud at the mischievous devil.

“That’s just like no homo.” You couldn’t stop laughing it was that bad.

“Just like what now.”

“I’ll tell you the story another time.”

“Alright Duckling. Let’s hear more about these stories. Come on I’m so interested!”

“Quite honestly these stories would be romance, and a good romance story needs to feel real. A.K.A most of them had sex. There’s something so carnal and intimate to it.”

“You know one of these days you’ll have to write me a story for me to read. I really want to see the genius at work.”

“Well, what do you want the story to be about?”

“I could just show you.”

“Now, now Luci. We’re friends, remember? You could just tell me.” He chuckled across the line and a blush crossed your face at your boldness. You are just friends! Friends can talk about these things, right? If you stay away from being physical with him it all should work out. You hoped.

“My story would start with a certain fallen angel and a beautiful sinner from his land.”

“That’s a good start. What else?”

“Well, he’d take her out to dinner, buy them an expensive bottle of wine to share, and chat about their daily happenings. As dinner would continue, he would stare into her beautiful eyes as he would knead her thigh under the table. She’d laugh and play it off with a blush crossing her face. At one point he would bring her hand up to his lips, kiss it, and tell her to slip off her panties. Hesitantly she would take them off, handing it to him under the table where he would hide them in his pocket.” His voice was laced with lust and made you tremble deep inside. Your deepest fantasies were coming to life with the sound of his words.

“And maybe on the way home this fallen angel would spread his wings and fly her across the city. She would hold onto him and whisper sweet nothings into his ears. When he would land, she would run her hands along his wings, daring him to keep them open.”

You could hear him struggling to keep it together on the other line. A small whimper left his mouth, and you wondered what he was doing. Wondered if you should do the same.

“He’d bring her inside, throwing her on his bed, taking in her beautiful form. His fingers would snap, burning off her clothing in angelic light. He’d use his tongue and lick over her neck and her breasts. Paying close attention to her nipples rolling them in his mouth. He’d kiss her deeply, running his tongue against her lips and nipping at her. His hands would run along her thighs, leaving little marks as his claws dug at her skin. She would be marked as his.”

Your breaths were matching his as you moved your own fingers to his imaginations. Soft moans rolled from both of your lips as you continued the story.

“She would wrap her arms around his neck, biting at the soft flesh there. She’d let him do whatever he wanted to her, and she left her legs open for his taking. She’d whimper and moan as he moved down towards her warmth gasping as he delved in. His tongue would roll between her folds, flicking up and down. Two of his fingers would explore and find the perfect spot and she would melt underneath his touch.”

“He’d take control then lifting her up from the bed. They’d find the nearest wall, pushing her up against it. He’d kiss her deeply as he lined up his shaft to her entrance. They would find a rhythm as she would wrap her legs around him. He would become undone. He would slow down and ease up, then increase speed and deepen the intimacy. At the end he would kiss her, mumbling intoxicating words as he wrapped his arms around her. She would hold onto him as if he was the air she needed to breathe. They would come together then, breathes slowing down as they listened to each other’s heart beating.”

In the end there was very little for you two to say. You were just friends but committed a dangerous sin. Neither of you cared but didn’t dare admit to it.

“Are we finished?” The man on the phone asked not wanting to face their consequences.

“I am, Luci.” You could swear you heard him let out a sigh of relief.

“Then that’s all that matters.” You rolled your eyes. This man never thought about himself.

“Are you as well?”

“When it comes to you, I don’t think I could ever have a different answer.”

Shortly after you two said your goodbyes, finally sated. An unspoken truth held in the air; you both knew nothing would ever be the same. You were spiraling down a fate you were afraid to face. You made a deal with the devil how could you think you would ever make it out alive.

For he was your Savior.

And you had a lot to repent.

[wolftoken]

Twilight, part 1 • iv x reader

a/n: i ordered the graphic novel!! just tier one because shipping was expensive, but im so excited!!!!

word count: 1828 • tags: gn reader, masturbation, fantasising, self doubt, reader is shorter than IV, awkward cuddling, falling asleep together, twilight movies

• masterlist •

Every single night for the past week he’s woken up at midnight rock hard and dripping for you. Dream after dream of pinning you down, touching your chest and biting at your neck, fucking you so good you scream his name only for him to wake up and groan in frustration at himself. Since you moved in he’s been attracted to you but it only got more intense for him as time went on. The clothes you wore that showed off your skin that made him want to reach out and grab you. The scent you sprayed on your neck every morning that seemed to linger after you’d gone, making him follow after your trail like a dog.

You’re so fucking pretty, it’s not fair for him. He just wanted a nice, quiet, clean roommate and he got one but at what cost? His sanity, it seems like. Sometimes he wished you would just bring home some fling and force him to get over his feelings. But that never happened. So he’s stuck with the swarm of butterflies that made a home in his stomach when you made a home with him.

It’s only natural that he’d touch himself to the thought of you. He can’t just walk into the kitchen with a hard-on in the morning, that would be inappropriate. But, then again, what if he did just that? What would you do? Maybe you’d get down on your knees and look up at him with those precious doe eyes like you do in his dreams. Maybe you’d throw water in his face. Either way, the thought drives his hand to sneak into his boxers and feel the pre gathering at his tip.

His hand moves quickly once he’s coated it in his spit, sliding up and down his thick cock and beginning to relieve the intense pressure he woke up with. It’s honestly embarrassing how little it takes for him to bring himself to the edge when he’s thinking about you. He’s always already so worked up from his dreams that he has to hold himself back at times so he doesn’t cum immediately. But tonight he just wants to get off and go get some leftover pasta.

He shoves his hoodie sleeve in his mouth to try and stifle his noises but he never realises how loud he actually is when he cums, or the fact that he’s moaned your name on more than one occasion.

Sometimes he feels bad afterwards, when he’s cleaning his cum off his tummy and trying to get back to sleep. When you were looking for a roommate you definitely weren’t looking for some guy to jack off to the thought of you then greet like everything’s fine the next morning. But really, what’s so bad about it if you don’t even know it’s happening? He’s not disturbing you, hopefully.

Once he’s tucked himself back into his sweatpants he gets up to wash his hands and raid the kitchen. His footsteps are light just in case you’re asleep, but he stops in the doorway when he sees you.

You’re right there, in the soft glow of the dim kitchen lamp, in nothing but a tank top and underwear. Is he dreaming again? Did he cum so hard he passed out and imagined walking into the kitchen to you half naked and reaching for the top shelf and stretching just so that your tank top lifts up and shows even more of your skin?

“Fuck, IV, you scared me,” you laugh. “Could you not sleep either?”

You could say that. Pasta be damned you look good enough to eat right now.

“Uh, no. I just wanted some pasta. Here- I’ll get you my hidden stash of gummy bears,” he says, and you know his annoyed tone is a fake one. He’d let you get away with anything and you’re starting to catch on.

The fact that you’re not addressing your state of undress is making him feel crazy. Maybe he is; maybe friends hang out at midnight in the kitchen in their underwear all the time. Trying to lift his gaze from you, he walks over to wear you’re trying to reach and effortlessly grabs the sweets. When he looks down you’re much closer to him that he thought you’d be and he freezes with his hand still in the air, but you seem to take it as a playful gesture and start jumping up to grab the bag out of his hand, all while giggling and making his heart stutter in his chest.

“Give me my candy!”

“It’s not really your candy until I give it to you.”

“Then give it to me, IV,” you pout, and it’s not meant to mean anything other than playful fake begging but dear god does it make his body heat up like a fire. His cock twitches in his sweatpants as his eyes widen at you, looking up at him with yours shining in the dim light like glass. He hands you the gummy bears, knowing if he tries to speak he’ll either come out with nothing or everything.

He watches you bend down to pull a tub of ice cream out of the freezer, and grab spoons. He’s not sure why you want all this sugar at this time of night but then again he’s not sure of a lot of things about you.

“I wanted these to eat while watching Twilight. Wanna watch with me?”

“Where-“

“Well your bed’s bigger - I’ll go get my laptop.”

His eyes widen and his jaw goes slack. You’re gonna sit in his bed? With him? Practically half naked? He’s just jerked off to the thought of you and now you’re about to climb into his bed with a tub of ice cream and a shitty film.

Maybe he’ll get to cuddle you - sneak an arm around your shoulders or subtly press his thigh to yours. Maybe you’ll lean on him and fall asleep and he’ll have no choice but to keep you there until you wake up. What if you think he’s weird because he’s looking at you too much? If he gets hard again he won’t be able to stop blushing, but at least it’ll be dark enough to hide it.

“You coming?” you call out. From his room. Fuck.

“Yeah, uh- yes,” he replies. His stomach is beginning to erupt with butterflies as he makes his way to his bed. God damn it, why do you have to look so good, so right, sitting in his bed? The top of your thighs peak out underneath his duvet and he knows his eyes linger on them too long but he can’t help himself.

Oh look, you brought an extra spoon for him to share the ice cream with you. How sweet. But then a thought occurs: he gets to watch you lick ice cream off a spoon all night. This is going to be either the worst or best night of his life.

Sliding into bed, he watched you with cautious eyes and tries to put enough space between your bodies without looking too strange. Obviously, by the look on your face, it’s not working.

“You’re gonna fall off the edge like that, just- come over here,” you giggle, although he can still tell you’re feeling a little awkward yourself. Are you regretting inviting him to your movie night? Climbing into his bed with no pants on? He hopes to every deity above and below you don’t. He’s been dreaming of waking up next to you after countless wet dreams that leave him desperate and aching for you and after tonight his wishes might come true. Even though there’s a chance you’ll wake up before him and sneak away to your own bed, or even leave after you finish your movies. He’ll just have to stay awake long enough to enjoy your presence beside him until you go.

But that’s going to be difficult. You’ve made him scoot over so that your shoulders are touching and the warmth radiating from you makes him realise how tired he is and he’s fighting to keep his eyelids open despite how bad he wants to look at you.

You’re pressing play on Twilight and he lets out a quiet laugh at the million ads on the piracy site you use. His eyes close involuntarily and he takes in the nostalgia the movie brings him. Bella’s “I never had much thought as to how I would die” speech makes him smile as he remembers watching this for the first time. It’s so bad that it’s good and it’s made better by the feeling of you pressed so close to him.

Honestly it’s ridiculous how much comfort you bring him. You haven’t even known each other that long but he’s undeniably attached to you and he hopes you at least think of him as a friend and not your weird roommate who stares at you in your underwear in the kitchen at midnight. If you did, you wouldn’t climb into his bed and pull him close, would you? You wouldn’t let him rest his head on your shoulder while his eyes droop shut and his breathing steadies.

When you lean over to put the second movie on, IV wakes up and realises you’re still here, so he couldn’t have been asleep for long. His hand has moved by its own volition to rest on your thigh, just above your knee, and his heart picks up its pace at the feeling of your soft skin against his palm. He recognises the intro to New Moon and feels you lean back against the pillows and relax, and your free hand comes to rest on his. Suddenly he’s a lot less worried of seeming creepy now that you don’t seem to mind his touch, and even reciprocate it, but he’s not sure if he should go any further than this.

It’s not that he doesn’t feel every single cell in his body urge him to squeeze your soft thighs and pull them apart and dive into you. He just doesn’t want to scare you. You’re precious to him and you have no idea. So, for now, his hand stays where it is and he doesn’t dig his fingers any deeper into your warmth skin, and he revels in the feeling of your hand atop his as your fingers absentmindedly graze over his knuckles.

You look sleepy, too. There’s ice cream still left in the container, half melted and you’ve dug out all the chocolate chunks while he’s been asleep. But he doesn’t mind, he’s just happy to be here with you. His eyes flutter with the strain of keeping them open to look at you for just a moment longer. He wants to see you fall asleep with him. But it’s 2am and you’re warm and soft and you smell so good. Maybe tomorrow he’ll tell you how much he appreciates you.

[ponder-the-orb]

Stay

Inspired by this fanart by the wonderful @abneyart

Pairing: Fem Tav/Gale, (unnamed tav)

Tags: 18+, smut and angst, post/during Act 2 romance scene

Word count: 3.3K

Read on AO3 or below

***

She isn’t a stranger to the feeling of new love. The fervent glances, the unschooled or unintentional touches, her stomach tightening to the pleasurable edge of an ache at the realisation that someone could want her just as much as she wants them. It may be a slightly different flutter each time but the joy always has that same sunny taste -something easy and new, a precious thing to be savoured. 

Not this time though. 

Because there was love. And then there was Gale. Feverishly erudite and a new kind of infuriating and who somehow slipped under her skin to tear up and remake her definition of want into something so strong it almost hurts. She should be satiated, excited even as she holds him in her arms, but she can’t. Every time she tries, the warmth is darkened by an encroaching bitterness, the same thought turning over and over in her mind until the words wear flat like a stone against the tide. 

How can she truly love a man so ready to let himself burn?

She almost doesn’t want to. She had a plan, or at least part of one. Earlier she’d murmured it to herself over and over again as that scarily accurate magical replica of him led her from camp to where he was sitting. She was going to push her feelings down, fold them away into the darkest part of her mind and let him down until she knew she could scrub Elminster’s message from both their minds. And then there he was, with an aurora painted in the sky and an almost painfully earnest confession, “I’m in love with you.���  There was never going to be any going back after that. 

The lightest scratch against under her collarbone pulls her from her thoughts. He’s shifted slightly, his chin nuzzling against her skin until a warm pink blooms in its wake. There must be a dozen pillows summoned around them and yet he seems perfectly content with his head on her chest, his hand curled under her shoulder. They’re both lying in the most comfortable bed she’s seen in what feels like months and she’s still not entirely sure where he summoned that from. The poster curtains are mostly drawn, but the light still creeps in a soft caress over both their bare forms, enough to forget the cursed land beyond even if just for one night. For once, the permanent pinch between his brows has softened, his mouth half open in what looks to be the most relaxed sleep he’s had since they began travelling together.

Sleep won’t come for her yet, perhaps not at all. Not if she’s expected to be content with the fact she can count the hours they have left tangled up like this on her fingers. 

She tightens her arms around him, breathing shakily.

She wants more time, the time stolen from them by this wretched journey. Time to discover each other properly- more than just their bodies, more than what she’d been able to glean from slightly flowery anecdotes whilst walking. She wants the mortal details most don’t know, the smallest threads of the tapestry that made him: when he started going grey, how dark he likes his toast and why one man can own so much damn purple. There’s purple bitten and sucked across his shoulders in a messy constellation now too. She presses each one gently, making a memory of how his face shifts as she does. She’d been deliberate with her mouth before, leaving bites of her passion that would shine and ache for days afterwards so he can still feel the intention whenever his fingers graze those same spots. You are wanted. Here. Now.

Even if he won’t believe it.

She presses slightly harder until his own grip tightens against her, a sigh warming her skin. She’s not sure if that’s what hurts the most right now- that it isn’t enough. For either of them. She could love him black and blue, take him to the crest of ecstasy over and over but it doesn’t take away the truth. 

They’d seen first hand the armies the Absolute commanded, the powers these tadpoles can give, how easily the most powerful minds can bend. Even if she knew what this heart of the Absolute was or had a plan to end it, what are her words against the command of a Goddess? A command that she was evidently too busy to deliver herself.

She knows it’s pointless to try and unpick divine reasoning but it’s still hard to swallow. She can’t understand how it could be so easy to sentence a person you once cared for to die with the same unfeeling cruelty as a child pulling the legs off of a spider. But Mystra’s wants and whims are just that… ineffable. Godly reasoning can never be boiled down to good or bad, selfish or wanting. Apologies and explanations won’t come. That’s something she’d been told multiple times when trying to wrap her head around the existence of the pantheon as a child. You might as well berate the sea for the vessels it swallows every day. 

She chuckles quietly to herself. A fool's errand perhaps, but she knows all too well that if it took the person she loved, then she’d try. Try and try and try until the salt dried her skin to shards and withered the magic from her soul. 

She’d never liked that metaphor anyway. The ocean can’t think about consequences or see the havoc it wreaks. Gods can. They can see and hear and touch anything they wish whenever their mood swings a certain way, somehow both omnipresent and ignorant.

It’s the reason she asked him to dismiss such a beautiful illusion of Waterdeep and bed her as far away from the cup of Mystra’s hand as possible. Her mind would have wandered, angrily. That if she turned away from Gale and bit down into the beating strands of the weave itself it might just be enough to make a Goddess bleed.

She has precious little other than the clothes on her back and equipment stained by corpses, yet when he kissed her for the first time she finally finally felt like she had something she could call her own. Would it really be such a selfish thing to fight to keep it? 

She laughs again. It’s colder this time.

She knows the answer is yes and she has no problem with that. There’s no fear of damnation- what punishment is it to be locked out of a paradise she’ll never want? She’ll wear the title of sinner like a crown if it’s cast on by a Goddess she’ll never have love for. 

The simple truth is she’ll damn the world itself if it means she can keep the man she loves whole. 

She traces the curve of his back and exhales softly towards the canopy, her words caught somewhere between a prayer and a plea.

“Please don’t do it.”

She doesn’t expect his half open eyes to meet hers as she looks back down. She stiffens slightly, unsure if he heard. He doesn’t say anything, just watches her in the dim light for a few seconds before resting his head back against her chest. She assumes he’s going back to sleep until she feels him kissing across her skin in a lazy pattern. The scratch from his beard is already strangely familiar and the tension wracking her body relaxes a little as he continues his unhurried exploration. 

Her fingers tighten in his hair as the swell of his bottom lip brushes her nipple. He smiles against her as he does it again, his tongue dipping out to lightly trace the same spot until her hips start to jerk underneath him of their own accord. She holds his head there, groaning as his hand joins in, brushing over her other nipple in a slow tease.

He stays there for a few more tortuous moments, a louder cry pulled from her as he gently nips at the skin. He lifts his head again, eyes bright and intention clear. 

“Yes?” 

She catches his jaw, dragging his face back to hers so she can press her answer into his mouth. “Please.”

She weaves one hand back into his hair, the other cupping the side of his face as he settles properly on top of her. She’s not quite sure exactly what she’s asking for, but she knows she needs him close. Close enough to keep safe, to push away all those bullshit expectations she can almost physically see weighing with crushing might on his shoulders.

Their kisses are messier than before. There’s still the lingering taste of herself on his tongue, a stark reminder of him burying his face for what felt like hours between her thighs. It hadn’t taken long to discover that he makes love with the same devastating precision as when he casts - pushing her to the heights of the heavens like it was the sole thing he’d been put on this plane to do.

She chases the heat of that feeling, grinding down against his knee in an urgent rhythm as he presses it between her legs. He swallows her harsher breath when she presses harder, letting her follow those blunt sparks of pleasure before pulling his leg away. Her frustrated cry dies as the hand brushing over her chest slips down to replace his knee.

She throws her head back, baring the column of her throat and his lips meander down to kiss that gentle curve. He caresses the length of her folds a few times, each pass becoming firmer. She bites his lip at the maddening touch, already keenly aware of how wet she is- desperate for him. Thankfully he doesn’t leave her in limbo for long as his fingers finally sweep against her clit, once, twice, three times.

For one of the first times since their journey began, there aren’t any words between them. All of them are lost somewhere between her heart and his lips on her neck. Any other time she’d be thrilled to explore the no doubt exhaustive list of other uses for his mouth, but not in this moment. Right now she needs to hear him say it, that he’s taking back his steadfast choice to die, or at least find her own way to convince him. If she can’t find her own voice then she’ll do it with her body: kissing, fucking, loving it into him until any thoughts of Mystra’s command are eclipsed by her own.

You deserve to live. 

She tugs his hair as he massages her clit more firmly, a familiar pressure he’d discovered with a smirk right before the first time he’d made her come. She rides that pleasure for a while, steady and hot as a candle’s flame. It sears right down to her toes as he slips one then two fingers inside her, curling and rubbing until she’s seeing messy stars behind her eyelids. Part of her wants to melt into the feeling and enjoy his fingers into her own end, but another part won’t let her. Not until he does.

She grabs his waist and rolls over, pressing him into the mattress. She leaves a deliberate kiss over the orb, then again like she can dive through that vile magic to his beating heart. She lingers there as she reaches down to stroke his cock, making another memory of the way his throat bobs and his eyes flutter- a sight just for her right now. 

His hand moves from between her legs to cup her hips and lightly brush the skin there. It’s a moment of sweetness in a haze of want, a reminder of exactly who she’s here with- someone who’s been looking at her for days like he’d pull the stars from the sky if she asked.

She holds his gaze as she eases herself down onto him, a rosier warmth spreading under each of his fingers as they grip her harder. 

She doesn’t need the stars. She needs to know he’ll still be there to watch them with her when this is finally all over.

She arches her back, crying out some strangled version of his name as he thrusts up under her. She follows that feeling, shifting up and down to find her rhythm. There’s no finesse here, just an almost primal need for him to find his own pleasure with her, in her. Whatever he needs, whatever she can give. 

He sits up, hands moving from her hips to lock round her back and pull them close. The orb pulses with an increasing brightness between them, bathing their skin in swathes of blue light. It had been quite the shock the first time that had happened, a sizable panic snatching away all her bliss until he’d reassured her it was the excitement and not an incoming explosion. 

She brushes those bright strands from his eye down over this neck until her thumb rests over his rabbiting pulse. It’s a small caress and her own reminder that he’s still here. That at least in this slick, desperate moment, he’s hers and hers alone.

She holds him harder and kisses any skin she can find, his neck, his forehead, the top of his head. She pauses there, inhaling deeply. Underneath the sweat and the sex there’s something else, earthy and rich like some freshly cracked tome. It almost makes her laugh because of course inbetween life, death and sleeping in the dirt he’d take the time to do that.

She leans back, taking in the sight of him even more. His hair is a mess in her hands and every inch of visible skin blooms with a deeper flush under the light. It breathes a strange sense of pride in her. To the world he’d been nothing but prim and proper since she’d first pulled him from that portal, but only she gets to see him like this: perfectly wrecked and wanting. 

He brushes her bottom lip with his thumb as she closes her eyes, pulling her focus back to his gaze. It’s more intense this time, like the look of a dying man finally seeing the oasis in the desert. It’s almost heartbreakingly beautiful but it pierces like an arrow through her chest. She pushes his face into her neck, her eyes burning.

Any other time she’d want to drown in that rum-dark want but for now she just can’t. She knows all too well what it means- how he’s clinging to this as some final comfort in his oblivion. She isn’t strong enough for that. Even the ghost of that feeling is almost enough to shatter her like delicate shells underfoot. She doesn’t want to be a bright spot in his final days, nor some happy face to think on when he finally unleashes it all. How is she supposed to hold herself together after that happens? To live with the fact that she gave herself so irrevocably to a man content to confess his love and his suicide in the same breath. 

Even with the wall she’d erected around her feelings, he has to know that she needs comfort too. Comfort from the parasite, from the pain of her own expectations, from the fact that the role of leader to a group of broken misfits was thrust upon her whether she’d wanted it or not. 

She blinks back her tears, a louder gasp leaving her as he moves faster. His fingers slip between them to find her clit and he rubs her in a circle until the hot spring coil of pleasure inside her feels ready to snap.

It isn’t fair, not even remotely and she isn’t even sure if she wants to curse or thank the winds of fate for giving her this. Or for making him so fucking easy to fall for.

He bites down on her shoulder as he comes, his movements messy and erratic while he rides out his orgasm. She roughly pulls his head back, muffling her own climax into his mouth as she finishes against his fingers.

He caresses the back of her neck as they catch their breath before gently pushing their foreheads together. It’s such a tender thing that it makes her want to cry all over again.

Don’t go.

“It’s been quite some time since I’ve been woken up that way,” he murmurs, his hands coming up to rub her shoulders. 

She brushes her nose against his as her voice finally finds its way back to her. “If you’re very lucky, it won’t be the last.”

Please. Don’t go.

He chuckles at the soft tease, dropping his face back against her neck. “Here’s hoping then.”

Please.

“Don’t go.” The words leave her mouth in a damp whisper before she can swallow them back.

His smile wavers against her skin. She winds a lock of his hair between her fingers, so tempted to hold his face there and stop him from seeing the cracks finally breaking across her expression. He shifts back, eyebrows knitting together as he softly touches the corner of her eye. She almost chokes when she sees the wetness shining on his thumb.

“What-”

“This isn’t your final night, you know. It’s… it’s not,” she blurts out, cutting him off. She sucks in a shaky breath, gripping onto his fingers like some desperate lifeline. He regards her carefully but keeps quiet, almost as if he can see the mess of words stuck in her throat like a shard of glass.

She sits for a second, grounding herself with the feel of his hands, his breaths. She hadn’t exactly planned on saying this with him inside her but she knows she can’t let it go now. She presses her forehead more firmly to his as if she could spill her intent right into him, no parasite needed. “There are going to be so many more. I’m going to make sure of that, I promise.” There’s more she wants to say, but it’s all she has right now. Something barely coherent, but as painful and honest as she can be- her heart split right open for him.

She tilts back and waits for the inevitable brush off. 

“Better to meet it on my own terms,” he’d said before. A heartbreak gift-wrapped as comfort as if that could possibly make it hurt any less.

It doesn’t come. Instead, a gentler smile settles on his face and he twists his head to kiss the palm of her hand. “Well, who am I to argue with that?”

It’s a warm touch, like magic itself spreading through her hand and into her belly. It’s not a confirmation nor a promise, but it’s something. It’s enough for the sourness resting at the edge of this night to melt away a little.

She lets him brush the tears from her face, his lips following the path of his thumb until they land back on hers. He eases her onto her back, squeezing her shoulder as he pulls out. She hears him murmur something against her skin and the stickiness between them is gone in an instant. 

Perks of a wizard lover she thinks, cupping his chin to kiss him again. 

“I mean it Gale,” she mumbles as they eventually pull apart, her words a feather’s caress against his mouth, “you’re not going anywhere.”

He settles back against her chest, lazily brushing his fingers over her stomach. “And so did I.”

His voice is soft and easy enough that it almost feels like reassurance. Just enough for her limbs to finally give into their exhaustion as he stills against her again. She knows come morning this calm will probably disappear back into the curse along with the bed, but for now she’ll take it. And perhaps in this brief moment somewhere between magic and martyrdom, she’ll even believe he isn’t a liar.

***

It only took 200+ hours of playing and three glasses of wine to finally write something BG3 related.

Again please give @abneyart a follow!

[strangespinapple]

RC ~ When It Hurts P2

rafe cameron x fem reader

blurb: you and rafe are together. and lately he's been acting differently so you confront him. but what happens when you find out he's been lying to you?

warnings: angst, cheating, cursing, physical hitting, SMUTTTT MDNIII 18+ (ill tell your parents 🫵🏽🤨), dark rafe, kidnapping???

word count: 1.6k

a/n: mb about the late posting I meant to post this like a week ago but i got busy and im still mourning. enjoy :)

P1 Here

Song Inspo: Hurts So Good by Astrid S

He pulled your face closer to his and captured your lips in a cultivating kiss. It started off slowly and passionately, filled with love and raw emotions. You moaned against Rafe’s lips. With his hand on your jaw, he squeezes your cheeks to force your lips apart and sticks his tongue in your mouth. He uses his other hand to push your shoulder flat down against the bed so he can get on top of you. With that same hand he props himself up and moves his hand from your face to underneath your shirt. With no bra in the way he easily gropes your boob. He moans against your mouth and grinds into you. 

“Rafe pleasee, I need you.” He pulls down your shorts along with your underwear. 

“I can’t wait any longer. I need to be inside of you. Feel how warm and tight you are.” He babbled against your lips. His mind turning into mush from you turning him on.

You grab his shorts and underwear pulling them down just enough to grab and stroke his length. He grinds against your soft hand and kisses your neck. Your hands make their way to his back while he guides his tip inside of you.

“Fuccckkk” he moans in your ear as he pushes his full length inside of you stretching you completely. 

“Rafe, oh my go-“ His hard quick thrust made you moan loudly. 

“Baby you feel so fucking good. Best pussy ever.” 

He grabs your leg and hooks it over his arm allowing him to slide even deeper inside of you. Both of your moans reach a new octave from the new found pleasure. 

“Right there, right fucking there Rafe.” 

Listening to you, he slides right in that spot drawing you super close to your climax. You have always loved when Rafe gets like this during sex. Something about him being so horny and turned on that he starts babbling, whining, or thrusting into you erratically, always pushes you over the edge. 

“You’re squeezing me. I’m not gonna last, I’m not-“ 

Rafe starts thrusting inside of you at a faster sloppier pace. Your back arches and your legs shake as your climax hits you. Rafe moans loudly as his hips stutter against you. His cum spreads within you, painting your walls white. Rafe gets up and grabs a rag from the bathroom inside of y’all shared room. He wipes in between your legs and afterwards does the same thing to himself. He throws the rag in a nearby bin and gets into the bed with you.

“I love you and I’ll always love you.” He grabs your face and kisses you.

“I love you too baby, and I trust you.” 

“Let’s get some sleep so I can make it up to you all day tomorrow.” You smile as you kiss his lips once last time. 

You roll on your side and Rafe cuddles you from behind spooning you. You close your eyes as sleepiness comes over you. Smiling at how content you feel, knowing that your boyfriend will never cheat on you.

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

4 Hours Later…

Your eyes open at this incessant buzzing. 

Buzz Buzz

Looking at the clock on your nightstand it’s almost 4am. You turn over to Rafe’s side of the bed to see he is no longer cuddling you and is facing his nightstand.

“Rafey” you whisper thinking he may be awake. You peek over at him and see that he is fast asleep, but his phone is lightening up and buzzing. 

Buzz Buzz Buzz

You think to yourself ‘it might be important with his family or something’ with the way his phone is going off. So you lean over Rafe grabbing his phone without trying not to wake him up. 

Sophia: “Rafe are you coming over or what????” “I'm not gonna stay waiting for you forever” “Come on I need you like real real bad and I know you need me too 😩🤭” *sends a past video of them fucking* “We had such fun times together. Remember yesterday we fucked ALLL day long and it was so much fun”

He told you he was backed up in meetings all day yesterday.

“Seriously Rafe don’t you want all this. Cuz I know you did yesterday.” “Rafeeeeeeeeyyyyyy come on” “I'm so much better than her, I don’t understand why you spend so much time with your loser of a girlfriend” “UGHHH you fell asleep didn’t you ☹️🥺” “Fine call me in the morning babe 😚”

Not only did your heart drop into your ass but it also shattered. How could he do this to you?! You have been nothing but an amazing supportive girlfriend and he has the nerve to cheat on you. Tears start to roll down your face from the hurt. But then it hits you. HE LIED TO YOU. Those tears turned into anger real quick. You turn the light on, grab your pillow from behind you and hit Rafe with all your might. Over and over and over again you beat the man who you thought loved you.

Rafe jumps up, snatching the pillow out of your hands. “WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!”

“YOU! YOU ARE WHAT’S WRONG WITH ME. HOW COULD YOU?!” You both get up standing on both sides of the bed.

“HOW COULD I WHAT? DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS? I DON’T WANT TO DEAL WITH THIS SHIT I’M TIRED!”

“YEAH I BET YOU ARE FROM ALL THE SECRETS YOUR HIDING. YOU LYING CHEATING PIECE OF SHIT.” You hold his phone up to his eye view with the messages his mistress sent him. He stares at you with wide eyes. 

“You went through my phone? What kind of girlfriend does that?”

“OH NO DON’T YOU DARE TRY TO TURN THIS AROUND ON ME. YOUR PHONE WAS GOING OFF AND I THOUGHT IT WAS AN EMERGENCY SO I PICKED IT UP.”

Rafe starts biting his nails, a habit you’ve been trying to break him out of since you guys first started dating. Oh but now you couldn’t give two shits. He could bite his nails until he hits bone for all you care. 

“IT WAS YOUR LITTLE SLUT BEGGING YOU TO COME OVER AND FUCK HER LIKE YOU ALWAYS DO.” 

You throw his phone at him and speed walk into your closet. You pull out a small suitcase and start throwing some of your essentials in it. Rafe is still standing at the foot of the bed biting his nails, waiting for your next move. You come back to the room and throw the suitcase on the bed. 

“Wha- What are you doing?” You continue packing your things not looking at him.

“What does it look like I’m doing, I’m leaving.” 

“What do you mean you’re leaving? You can’t leave. You can’t leave me.” He circles the bed towards you as you pack the last of your things. He begins to panic thinking you’re serious. 

“I am leaving Rafe. You cheated on me and lied to me multiple times.” You zip the suitcase up and walk out of the room, going down the stairs, making your way to the front door. 

“Wait, you can’t leave. I’m sorry. I’m sorry baby.” 

He rushes in front of you blocking you from reaching the door at the bottom of the staircase. He grabs your shoulders to keep you in front of him. 

“I fucked up okay cause I’m a fuck up. I’m sorry you’re the one good thing in my life and I need you. I promise I will never hurt you again I’m so fucking stupid.”

 He takes a deep breath to stop himself from rambling over his sobs. 

“Just please, please don’t leave me. I’m sorry.” His eyes red and hands shaking from the crying and fear of losing you. 

Looking down at the floor, you push his hands off of your shoulders.

“Look Rafe, I can't be with you. You cheated on me and you broke my heart. Even if I were to forgive you, I can never trust you again. And honestly I thought you loved me.” You say finally looking up at him through your wet lashes.

“I do! I promise I do.” The tears streaming nonstop on both of your faces. 

When it hurts but it hurts so good Do you take it? Do you break it off?

“If you did, then you wouldn’t have betrayed me. I can’t do this with you anymore. I’m done, we’re done.” 

Rafe could’ve sworn he felt his heart stop. You really weren’t playing around. He realized he really fucked up and there’s no coming back from this. You move towards the door and place your hand on the knob starting to twist it when you hear Rafe speak.

“I’m sorry-”

“Me too.” You slowly open the front door. 

When it hurts but it hurts so good Can you say it? Can you say it?

“but I can’t let you go.” 

Before you had a chance to react you felt one strong callous hand wrap around your mouth while the other wrapped around your body. You dropped your bag screaming and kicking as Rafe lifted you up. You hoped someone would hear you but your kicking closed the door shut. Rafe's hand starts to press harder and harder on your mouth putting pressure on your throat. 

“Shhh go to sleep. I promise when you wake up I will fix everything.”

Your eyes began to feel heavy as well as your body. Rafe always told you that he would never hurt you but he was terrified of losing you. 

Fear and love can turn the sweetest person into a monster.  

Your love is like (hey, na-na-na, na-na) It hurts so good

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

P1 Here

hey y'all! so how did y'all like the fic? constructive criticism is always accepted!

do you guys want a part 3? if so lmk which direction it should go :)

[berryhobii]

Down Bad Part 2 (pjm x reader)

Pairing: fuckboy!Park Jimin x black!female!fuckgirl!Reader

Word Count: 3.8K+

Warnings: none really. Mentions of previous sexual intercourse, mentions of foursomes, drinking(not explicit), all of this is from Jimin’s POV and his internal crisis, he’s really going through it

A/N: Hi loves! I’m back with Part 2 of Down Bad. Lots of people have been requesting it so here it is. Part 3 will be the final chapter where everything comes to it’s crest😈please look forward to it. Just to clarify, Jimin does have some thoughts that I don’t condone AT ALL. In order to progress the plot, he does continue to pursue reader so if you’re uncomfortable with that, please don’t continue reading. It will be the driving force of the story. Anyway, thank you so much for your patience and I hope you enjoy! Much love🩵🩵

~

“Hyung!”

Yoongi almost flung his cereal bowl across the room as his front door suddenly slammed open and Jimin burst inside.

“Jimin, what the hell?” Yoongi cursed, heart hammering like a stampede in his chest.

“Hyung, I need to ask you something.”

Yoongi sputtered. “W-what? How the hell did you get in my house?”

Jimin waved a hand. “I bribed Seokjin hyung with GrubHub but that’s not important. I need to talk to you.”

He was dreaming, he had to be. There was no way Jimin just let himself in without calling or texting first. And he was going to kill Seokjin!

“You just broke into my house. How is that not important?” Yoongi pointedly quipped.

Jimin groaned. “Focus, hyung. Look, I need to ask you about y/n.”

Breaking and entering aside, Yoongi acknowledged what Jimin was asking.

Yoongi walked over to his couch to sit down, motioning for Jimin to follow. “y/n? What about her?” He scooped some cereal into his mouth.

Jimin ran a hand through his hair. He’s been doing that more often than usual, your impact on him stressing him out.

“Why doesn’t she date?”

Ah. Yoongi realized where this was going. A smirk twitched at his lips and Jimin had a flashback to you. That god damn smirk.

“She put it on you, huh?” Yoongi chuckled with a shake of his head. He knew this was going to happen. Mainly because he went through the same thing about 2 years ago—the anxiety, the pacing, even the brief addiction to wondering what you were up to.

You were dangerous. Intoxicating. Almost unhealthy.

Yoongi considered himself a pretty good lover but you were on another fucking level. Your head game, pussy, aftercare; all top tier. He thought he was in love for a second and maybe he was but unfortunately, you weren’t the type of woman that wanted to be tied down.

“You’re sweet but I’m not looking for a relationship. Like ever. I’ll see you around though. Get home safe. Bye.”

Then you closed the door in his face and he went through the motions much like his good friend was right now.

It was hard not to get addicted to you.

Jimin groaned again, burying his face in his hands. “She was so good, hyung. I don’t even remember some of it because apparently, I passed out.”

Yoongi whistled. “Damn. I didn’t pass out but I did sleep for like 10 hours afterward. I even missed work. She definitely tires you out.” Yoongi sniggered, recalling the almost coma you put him in after that night. He was just lucky you didn’t put him out while he was practically dead on his feet. You made coffee, a light breakfast, and even let him take a shower to wake himself up more. You were a really nice and attentive person.

Jimin leaned back against the couch. “So why doesn’t she date?”

Yoongi shrugged his shoulder. “I don’t know.”

“Aren’t you two friends?” Jimin quizzed with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah. Her job is like a block from mine. We meet up for lunch sometimes and I help her fix things around her apartment.”

There’s some information he didn’t know he really wanted. So you two were pretty close?

“And you haven’t slept together again?”

Yoongi shook his head, finishing his milk and then placing the bowl down on the coffee table.

“Nope. After our first time, I just gave up. Didn’t want to overstep, you know? She said she doesn’t sleep with the same person twice or something.”

Oh god. You had the same rule he did?! Now that he was hearing it, he realized how fucking dumb that rule was!

Yoongi could see the internal conflict Jimin was going through. He had the same problem back then. Even now sometimes, he wondered what he could do to get you but he respected you too much. You were sexy and confident, yes but you were also a great friend and someone he didn’t want to lose.

“Look, man. It’s best if you just forget about her. Nothing good will come from forcing yourself into her life.”

Jimin slumped further into the couch. He knew that. He liked you but he wasn’t the type to overstep any boundaries like that.

“Yeah. I guess you’re right.”

They sat in a comfortable silence for a moment before Yoongi broke it.

“Did she do that two handed twist thing on your dick?”

“Oh my god! It was insane!”

~

After that talk with Yoongi, Jimin decided to forget about you.

He went to work. He went to his classes and did his homework. He hung out with his friends……

And that’s it.

“You’ve been acting weird.” Taehyung suddenly stated one night when the two were hanging out on his couch. Jimin had shown up with fried chicken and beer out of the blue. Taehyung was actually kind of shocked to see him since Jimin was normally at a bar or a party on Friday nights.

Now that he thought about it, Jimin’s been at his place every weekend for the past month.

Something was up.

Jimin chewed the food in his mouth before swallowing, hand that wasn’t holding his chopsticks currently working on stealing from someone else on Monopoly GO.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, you’ve been here every weekend for a month. Why aren’t you at a party or something?”

Jimin made a noise of offense. “You say that like you don’t like spending time with me. I thought we were soulmates.” He cried dramatically with a pout.

Taehyung rolled his eyes. “We are but we haven’t spent this much time together in a while. Are you okay?”

Jimin went back to his game. “I’m fine. I just haven’t been feeling like going out.”

Okay, was hell freezing over or something? Jimin doesn’t feel like going out? Taehyung’s known Jimin for many many years and out of all of that time, he’s never known for Jimin to be a homebody. Taehyung was the homebody, Jimin was the party crasher. That was their dynamic and he’d be damned if he let Jimin take over his title.

“Alright, spill it.”

Jimin cursed under his breath at not finding another key before asking, “spill what?”

Taehyung squinted his eyes. Was Jimin really about to play stupid with him? He was used to Jimin actually doing stupid things, fake stupidity wasn’t in his nature.

Then he remembered something.

“You never told me how it went with you and that y/n girl. You normally give me a play by play of all of your one night stands.”

He saw how Jimin’s shoulders stiffened.

Bingo.

“Tell me. What happened?”

Jimin tossed back the remainder of his beer and then went to shove another piece of chicken in his mouth.

Taehyung snatched the box away, taking his phone as well.

“Come on, man! Just tell me.”

Jimin swallowed before sighing. He knew he couldn’t keep it from his best friend any longer.

“Nothing much happened. It was fine.” He lied because something very much happened and it was way more than just fine.

His eyes burned holes into Jimin’s face. He didn’t understand why Jimin was withholding. Jimin was never tight lipped when it came to spilling his escapades. The detail he’d put into it would make Taehyung feel like he was actually there.

So why was he being so secretive now?

“Alright,, get up.” Taehyung ordered, standing to his feet.

Jimin’s eyebrows jumped up. “Why?”

“We’re going out.”

“Going out? Where?”

Taehyung hauled him up by his arm, pushing him down the hall to the bedroom to find them something suitable to wear. Jimin left some of his clothes here just in case, mainly pajamas or casual clothes but he had a few going out pieces for those crazy moments. Like that time a girl ripped Jimin’s shirt off of him and he had to walk back to Taehyung’s house with tattered clothes hanging off his body.

Taehyung ruffled through the space in his closet where Jimin’s clothes hung, pulling out a simple button up and jeans.

He shoved the clothes in Jimin’s arms. “Tae, wait. I don’t really feel like-“

Taehyung interjected, “no, I’m done watching you act like someone you’re not. You need to go out and have fun. Get laid.”

“You’re the one always telling me to stop having so much sex but now you want me to?” Jimin asked incredulously.

Taehyung huffed. “I’ve never told you to not get laid. I tell you to stop treating women that way. How would you like it if someone just used you and put you out?”

Oh the irony. If only he knew….

Luckily, Jungkook had responded to Taehyung’s text and gave them the address to a small party on his college campus. Jimin’s complaints and refusals fell on deaf ears as Taehyung all but shoved him into an Uber and then they were on their way to the party.

The space was pretty lowkey and the party wasn’t as crazy as Jimin was used to; just people gathered around talking and drinking and making out. He didn’t really know if that was a good or bad thing yet. It could be good since it meant he could probably just sink into himself and stay quiet but it could also be bad since there wasn’t enough distractions to give him an opportunity to sneak away. Either way, he didn’t really want to be here.

Jungkook approached them with a loud greeting, a cute girl under his arm. “What’s up guys? Glad you can make it.” He gave both of them one of those handshake/hugs before turning his attention to the girl. “This is Lila.”

She gave a small wave and smile. “Hi.” To which Taehyung and Jimin greeted her back.

“So make yourselves comfortable. We have plenty of drinks and food and I think Hoseok should be coming back with more people soon.”

“Cool.” Taehyung nodded while Jimin was scouting out the nearest exit. He needed to get the hell out of here.

Breaking him from his thoughts of escape, Taehyung grabbed his arm and dragged him over to the drink table to grab a beer from the cooler before taking him to sit down on a small collection of couches.

Jimin’s nerves were on 100. He didn’t know why he wanted to leave so badly. Parties were his stomping grounds, right? What exactly was he so afraid of? Had you really knocked him off his mojo that badly?

Taehyung could also see the way Jimin was reacting and he didn’t like it. While he didn’t always agree with Jimin’s lifestyle, that didn’t mean he wanted him to change. This new reclusive and jumpy Jimin was not the man he’s known since childhood. Something definitely happened with that girl he went with a while ago but what?

Scanning the small party, Taehyung spotted a group of girls all laughing and enjoying drinks. One of them glanced over, making eye contact with Taehyung, her lashes fluttering in a flirty way.

Taehyung nudged a slumped down Jimin with his elbow, motioning to the girls. “Look. She’s cute, huh? Why don’t you go talk to her?”

Jimin looked in that direction, finding all of the girls looking now, their giggles ringing out when he made contact. Judging by their intimate touches between each other, they were definitely down for some girl on girl action. Normally, he would have already made his way over to see if a foursome was in the cards but now, that didn’t seem plausible. Ugh, past him would be beating his ass for turning down a potential opportunity to sleep with 3 girls at once.

“Are you a fucking idiot?! Look! They’re practically in kissing distance of one another! You could get between all that!”

Jimin sighed, averting his eyes and sipping his beer. He just wasn’t in the mood tonight. He appreciated Taehyung for his attempts but he just doesn’t think he could-

OH SHIT!

Jimin’s beer clattered to the floor, his hands coming up to cover his face with his leather jacket. Taehyung startled at Jimin’s sudden movement, eyebrow raising at the sight of Jimin attempting to hide himself. What the hell was going on?

“What’s wrong?” Taehyung probed with a frown, looking around at what could be causing Jimin’s turtle act.

Jimin’s heart was going crazy in his chest, his mind racing as he tried to will himself to turn invisible.

This is not happening right now, his wild mind thought.

You were here. You were ACTUALLY here! Even through his panic, he couldn’t help but notice how beautiful you looked; a white shirt paired with a olive green overall skirt that hugged your curves in a delicious way, cute lace up heels on your feet. Your hair was still straight and black but this time was styled up into a simple ponytail.

He knew something was telling him not to leave the house! Just what were the chances that you’d appear at the exact same party he was at? He was relieved that this was a smaller party since he doubted you would even hang out at places like this but it was like the universe was conspiring against him. Had all of his bad deeds finally caught up to bite him on the ass? He thought stopping that lifestyle would bring him some good luck but he guessed he was wrong. So very very wrong.

It was bad enough that you were in the same vicinity as him but what was even worse was the piece of man candy you had on your arm. Who the hell was that?!

No time to think about that now! Jimin has to get the hell out of here. “Tae, we have to leave. Now.”

“Wha-why? Are you feeling okay?”

“No. Yes. I don’t know. We just need to leave.” He rushed out panicked, eyes working overtime trying to map out an escape route. That was becoming hard though since you and this guy had positioned yourself next to the alcohol area which was right by the door. And this space was very open which means he could see the entire room. Any chance of leaving unseen would be practically impossible.

Should he just wait it out and hope you don’t notice him and then he could sneak out? Or should he just risk you seeing him and race out now? Both posed a possibility of you noticing him and of him having a heart attack.

And of course, luck was not on his damn side because Jungkook and Lila made their way over to them with Hoseok in tow. The loud men crashed down onto the empty couches around the small coffee table and Jimin could have pulled all his hair out. Did they have to bring all of that over here?!

“Whoa Park Jimin? I wasn’t expecting you to come here. You’re normally at a club or a bar!” Hoseok loudly bellowed with a bright smile. Jimin winced at how loudly Hoseok announced his name.

Nervously chuckling, Jimin croaked out a, “yeah…..strange, isn’t it?”

“But hey, don’t worry. There’s some totally hot trim here. See those girls over there?” Hoseok motioned behind them over to 3 women Taehyung pointed out earlier. “They’re always down for a foursome.”

I fucking knew it! Go over there, you sad sack of shit!

“Ah yeah. Maybe.”

“Hey is that Namjoon?” Jungkook observed, squinting his eyes to confirm if it was really the person he thought it was. Raising his hand, he called out, “Yo, Namjoon!”

And you wouldn’t believe who Namjoon fucking was! YEAH! It was the guy you had arrived with! Had all of Jimin’s bad luck he’ll ever accumulate over his life gathered right now to royally fuck him over?

Namjoon looked up from your eyes, looking in the direction of where his name was being called from. A smile spreading across his face at the familiar sight of his friends. He said something to you before BOTH OF YOU began making your way to their small group.

Yup, the universe was definitely pointing their fingers and laughing at him right now.

You and Namjoon reached their group, Hoseok and Jungkook standing to give him a handshake/hug.

“Hobi this party is pretty tame, even for you. Did daddy’s credit card finally hit its limit?”

Hoseok cackled, not at all offended by Namjoon’s joke. “Nah but the campus police have. That last party caused someone to break their arm so I’m on a warning. Gotta keep it lowkey, you know?”

“True. Thanks for the invite anyway. I hope it’s okay that I brought a friend.”

Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no.

“This is y/n.”

You waved at the group, eyes flittering over Jimin who was still trying incredibly hard to make himself invisible. Grinning, you purred, “It’s a pleasure.”

Jimin shivered at the sound of your voice, that same voice that whispered in his ear as you rode him into oblivion just weeks ago. It’s been haunting his dreams(both wet ones and daydreams) ever since you put him out and now that it was filling his ears once again, it felt 10 times more impactful and nerve racking. As if your presence wasn’t already sending him into a manic spiral, now he had to hear that seductive voice? And he just knew you were staring him down with those piercing eyes.

Everything felt too out of control. Jimin needed to leave.

Taehyung glanced from Jimin to you a few times before he finally remembered who you were.

“Hey, aren’t you Yoongi’s friend?”

Jimin’s eyes widened so much that they could have bulged out of his head like a Looney Toons cartoon. Shut the hell up! Out of all the times for Taehyung’s loner ass to be confident enough to start conversation, it had to be now!?

Moving your gaze from Jimin to Taehyung, you answered, “I am. What a small world. I think I remember you from the bar.”

“I was there too!” Jungkook announced while excitedly waving his hand which made everyone laugh. Except Jimin who didn’t find anything funny.

Namjoon and you went to sit down on the couch next to Hoseok which was right across from Jimin and Taehyung.

Thankfully, Hoseok bounced the conversation somewhere else which meant they didn’t have to recount what happened in the bar. Jimin knew Taehyung and probably Jungkook knew that he went home with you but he was grateful neither of them mentioned it.

The redirected conversation gave Jimin an opportunity to not obsess over you and Namjoon getting cozy just across from him.

With your leg tossed over Namjoon’s, you leaned forward to whisper something in his ear, dimples indenting his cheeks at whatever you said. His hand stroked up and down your leg, sometimes playing with the hem of your skirt.

Jimin’s own leg bounced up and down, a strange feeling bubbling in his belly as he watched you two. It felt different than anything else he’s ever felt before.

Something hotter. Something intense. Something ugly.

The feeling rose with every caress, every giggle, every light kiss you shared with Namjoon. And when you locked eyes with Jimin as Namjoon whispered in your ear, that’s when he realized what it was.

Envy.

Staring directly at Jimin with that annoying ass smirk, you continued to exchange heavy pets with Namjoon. It was like you were taunting him, dangling a carrot right in front of his face and then swiping it away.

Your gaze said it all.

You can’t have me.

Suddenly standing to his feet, he stalked out away from the group and out the door.

The others were confused by his sudden departure.

“Is he okay?” Hoseok asked Taehyung who frowned.

“I don’t know. I’ll go see. I’ll catch you guys later.” After a chorus of goodbyes, Taehyung followed Jimin out. He looked around once he made it outside, finding Jimin’s receding figure walking down the street. “Jimin! Wait!”

But Jimin didn’t stop, hands stuffed in his pockets and mouth mumbling various curses about you and Namjoon. What the hell was wrong with him? He had finally managed to convince himself that he had forgotten about you and that you didn’t affect him anymore but just the sight of you with another man had crumbled any semblance of control he thought he had. You had barely done anything and you had him acting like this.

Taehyung eventually caught up with his friend, extending his stride to keep up with him.

“Hey what’s up?”

Jimin shook his head, eyebrows furrowed into a deep frown. “Just leave it, Taehyung. I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Somethings going on with you. I can’t just leave it when it has you acting so strange and it’s not good for you to repress whatever you’re feeling. You can talk to me.”

“I said drop it.” Jimin seethed.

“But-“

Jimin finally snapped, abruptly stopping and whipping around to face Taehyung. “God damn it, Taehyung! Fine, you want to know what’s happening? y/n and I had sex and it was so fucking amazing that I can stop thinking about her! But apparently she has that same only fuck once rule that I have and it’s driving me fucking crazy!” He tugged at his hair, breath speeding up as he finally ranted about what’s been bothering him. “I’ve been avoiding going out because she absolutely wrecked me and I can’t even think about sex with anyone else! I also wanted to avoid seeing her since I know she hangs around the college bars and clubs. Then she just had to show up tonight with a new guy. It was just too much, Tae.”

His tone softened towards the end, his anger dissipating into the soul crushing reality that you really had a hold over him.

Taehyung sighed. He honestly didn’t really know what to do or say. This was a situation he’s never been confronted with and he was sure he could say the same for Jimin. He’s never seen his friend be so torn up over a girl. Admittedly, it did seem a little shallow since Jimin was just acting like this over good sex but who was Taehyung to invalidate anyone’s feelings?

“Look, it was one time. I understand it was really good but you can’t act like this over one girl, especially one you don’t really like. It was just sex. It’s not like you’re dating or pursuing a relationship. I suggest you just forget about her.”

Jimin paused.

Wait a second. Taehyung was right, you two weren’t dating nor was Jimin pursuing you. Why didn’t you date? Yoongi didn’t know and you’ve been friends with him for a while so why? He knows Yoongi told him to just leave you alone but he just couldn’t.

Jimin was going to break you. He was going to figure out what made you tick, how to dismantle that cool facade you kept on, and he was going to make you break all of your own rules.

[daleyeahson]

Girl on Film | Perv!Eddie Munson x Best Friend Reader: Part 3

Summary: After days of not seeing or hearing anything from Eddie, you finally snap. When you confront him about your feelings, it’s not exactly what he had hoped to hear.

Warnings: angst, cursing, I’m just gonna go ahead and say 18+ minors dni mainly bc of what has happened before and that stuff gets briefly mentioned in here so… yeah lol

Word count: 2.9k

previous part | next part

A/n: I’m sorry this took a little longer than expected to get released! I’ve been a little busy and tbh at first I didn’t know where I wanted this story to go so that also slowed the whole process lol thank you guys for your continued love and support! You have no idea how much it truly means to me.. Enjoy! x

It’s Monday morning and Eddie slowly stirs awake. Stretching as much as he could, he turns his head over to look at the alarm clock. 6:45am. He then turns his head to the opposite side only to be met with the sight of your naked body. Your back facing him and the sheets covering just the lower half of you. Panic sets in before he has a chance to really take in the view. He starts to freak out as his questions from last night enter his mind once again.

He tries to convince himself that he’s just overreacting and that you must’ve genuinely felt the same way he did, right? If you didn’t, why would you do all of that with him? Why would you play along with the whole camcorder situation? He began to think that maybe it was just a spur of the moment thing for you. That maybe you just wanted to have fun with this and not get romantically involved. He also thought of how maybe you’d wake up and regret this whole weekend and then things would be forever changed between the two of you.

With every question of “what if?” or “why?” that crossed his mind, he knew one thing for sure. He did not want to stick around and find out. He couldn’t handle the possibility of rejection or the idea of losing you as his best friend. He needed to think things over before diving into that conversation with you. So, without a moments notice, Eddie does what he does best. He runs.

Or at least he tries too. He gently gets out of the bed, trying his best not to wake you and rushes to go take a quick shower. While he’s in the bathroom, you wake up to the sound of the water running. Still a little bit groggy, you slip on another oversized t-shirt since the one you had on yesterday was now torn in two thanks to a certain someone. You decided against wearing pants, not having the energy this morning to deal with putting them on. Plus, at this point, Eddie has seen you in a lot less, so you figured he wouldn’t have a problem with it.

You make your way to the kitchen in desperate need of something to drink. You pour yourself a glass of water and casually sip on it while having your back leaned against the counter. You hear the shower turn off and soon afterwards, the bathroom door opens. In such a hurry to leave, Eddie doesn’t even notice that you’re standing in the kitchen.

“Mornin’ Eddie, sleep well?”

“Jesus Christ!” He jumps at the sound of your voice. “I didn’t know you were awake,” he gives a nervous chuckle, “You scared the shit out of me.”

“I haven’t been up for long.. What’s got you up and ready to go out the door so early?”

“Uh…” Eddie pauses for a second, trying to find what to say. He doesn’t want to bring up the real reason he’s leaving, so he says the next thing that comes to mind. “School! Gotta head off the school, ya know, don’t wanna be late.”

You look at him and say with a raised eyebrow, “Since when did you, Eddie Munson, care about going to school, let alone getting there on time?”

He smiles softly at your comment, knowing that you had a good point.

“I figured dealing with the third go around of this shit, I might actually want to try for once before I end up graduating with Henderson’s class.”

You laugh. You know you���d never let that happen, but it was funny to picture him and Dustin posing for a photo together with their cap and gowns on holding their diplomas.

“Well before you go, do you want some breakfast? I can fix you something real quick. I know the stuff they serve in the cafeteria isn’t the best.”

Growing more anxious the longer he stands there, Eddie shakes his head, “N-no thanks. As much as I would love to, I don’t have the time. Still have to run home and change out of this,” he gestures to his sweats, “and you know how long it takes to get my whole get up on. At this rate, I’ll be lucky if I get there before the first bell rings.”

You try not to show a look of disappointment on your face. You wished he would stay a little longer, but you understood his reasons. If you were in his shoes, you’d want to do everything possible to make sure you didn’t have to repeat your senior year again too.

“Oh, well, I’ve got to start getting ready for work in a few anyway, so no biggie. Give me a call though afterwards, yeah? I’ll be back home this evening, probably around six.”

Eddie doesn’t say anything, just gives you a slight nod and walks out the door. Driving off in his van, he makes his way back home. Once there, he heads to his room and spots the camcorder still sitting in the same spot he left it. He really did plan on going to school, but after seeing that and being reminded once again how all of this got started, he decided to stay home. There was no way he could focus on any of his classes after that.

You started getting ready for work not long after Eddie left. Taking a quick shower yourself and changing into your uniform. You pulled your hair back to keep it out of your face and applied a light, natural makeup look. You weren’t one to really wear makeup to begin with, but being a waitress, it seemed to help get you better tips so you didn’t mind having to wear it while you were at work.

You worked at a small diner right on the edge of town, only a 15 minute drive from your place. It wasn’t the best job, but it paid the bills. It’s not like you didn’t enjoy it, you loved your coworkers and got along well with the regulars you had, but being on your feet for hours on end for most days of the week was exhausting.

Your work day was the same as always. A group of older gentlemen would always come in early for some breakfast which usually consisted of biscuits and gravy all while talking for hours, getting refill after refill of coffee. You gained a few more customers when lunch rush hit, but things never picked up until it came closer to dinner time. You’d always get busy around then, mainly having truckers stop by for a good hot meal after being on the road all day. You didn’t mind though, you loved hearing the stories they’d tell about the places they’ve been and things they’ve seen. It always helped make the work day go by a little faster.

When your shift came to an end, you made your way back home. Feet aching from the day, all you wanted was to get out of these clothes and go to bed. You didn’t even think about the fact that Eddie said he would call. All that was on your mind now was getting some much needed rest.

When Tuesday had came and gone and still no word from him, you started to wonder why Eddie hasn’t been back over or called. You didn’t really pay much mind to it, thinking he must’ve been exhausted like you were last night after playing his gig at the Hideout with the Corroded Coffin boys.

Wednesday was a different story though. That evening, you made your way over to Family Video to pick out movies for the sleepover this weekend. It was supposed to be at Eddie’s place this time, but after not hearing from him for days, you weren’t sure if he even wanted to have it. You walk in and was greeted by Robin who stood at the front counter.

“Hey, y/n! Picking out more movies for you and Eddie this weekend?”

“Yeah,” you say in an unsure tone, “I guess I am.”

“You guess? What’s that supposed to mean?”

You sigh and start to explain everything to her. Just the part of not hearing from Eddie in a while, she didn’t need to know the rest and you still hadn’t even talked about it with Eddie himself. It would feel wrong to discuss those things with another person before him, even if Robin was one of your closest friends.

“It’s just, I don’t know. I’m not sure if he wants to have the sleepover this weekend. After he left my place Monday morning for school, I haven’t heard from him since. I figured maybe he was tired from his gig last night, but I still haven’t heard anything from him today either. It’s just weird not seeing or hearing from him, ya know? He’s never done this before.”

“Wait, you said he left Monday morning for school?” She asks and you give her a nod. “Eddie wasn’t at school Monday. Like at all.”

“What?” You looked at her with confusion written all over your face.

Not at school? What does she mean not at school? Why would he say that’s why he had to leave your place so early and then not go? Maybe he was late getting there and she just didn’t see him.

Robin went on to explain, “Yeah. He borrowed my biology notes and was supposed to give them back to me at lunch, but he wasn’t there. I asked the guys at the Hellfire table if they’d seen him but they said he never showed up that morning.”

What the hell? Why didn’t he go? More importantly, why did he lie to you about going in the first place? Your blood started to boil at the thought of him lying to you. You had been friends forever, why would he feel the need to lie? You explained to Robin that you had to go, not getting the movies you had planned on picking up. You needed to get home to think about some things. What the fuck was Eddie’s problem?

Thursday evening rolled around and still no word. You finally decided to give him a call instead of waiting for him. You knew he should be home from school right now, if he even went this time, and he didn’t have band practice or anything like that. You reach for the phone and dial his number. After a few rings, a mans voice spoke on the line.

“Hello?” Wayne. You didn’t think he’d be home right now. He must’ve been getting ready to leave for work when you called.

“Hey, Uncle Wayne, is Eddie around?” You ask.

Wayne looks over at Eddie standing in the living room, signaling for him to say that he wasn’t there and couldn’t talk.

Wayne sighs before answering, “No, I’m sorry, sweetheart. He’s not here at the moment. I could take a message for him if you’d like though.”

There it was, another lie. Now he’s even getting other people to do it for him? Unbelievable.

“Just tell him to give me a call when he gets a chance, okay?” You tried to not sound frustrated, but Wayne could tell you were upset.

“Will do.” He hangs up the phone and looks up at Eddie once again.

“Boy, I don’t know what the hell is going on between you two, but whatever it is, not talking to her about it isn’t going to solve the problem.”

Eddie looks down at his feet, embarrassed that Wayne is lecturing him over something that he should’ve already taken care of.

“I know, Wayne, it’s just..” he tries to think of the best way to explain this to his uncle without having to go further into detail about it all, “things are just a bit..complicated right now, okay? I promise I’ll talk to her soon. I just need some time to think about things.”

Wayne takes the hint that Eddie doesn’t want to get into the subject of what’s going on and gives him a sympathetic look. Not really knowing what it was that was making things complicated between you both, but knew whatever it may be was causing his boy to be in misery.

Grabbing his jacket and getting ready to head out the door, he turns and with a sigh he says to Eddie, “Well, whatever it is, you guys have been friends all your lives. You’ll be able to get through it, okay? Don’t sweat it, kid.”

And with that he heads out the door, leaving Eddie to stew in his own thoughts about everything.

You on the other hand, were pissed. Outraged. Angry.

How could he lie to you like that? Why would he even do such a thing? And then ignore your call when you finally reach out to him?

No, you weren’t gonna have it. Eddie was going to talk to you face to face about this whether he liked it or not. It was something that needed to be done, and you knew exactly when to do it.

It was finally Friday, you had just finished your shift at work and was heading home to change and shower. Eddie was making his way over to the high school to start setting up for his Hellfire campaign. You knew if he wasn’t going to come to you and talk about things, you’d have to go to him. And that’s exactly what you planned on doing. You knew he wouldn’t miss a Hellfire meeting no matter what, so he would definitely be there. He wouldn’t be able to hide from you no longer.

You arrived at the high school and made your way to the room where the boys would be at. As you got closer to the door, you could hear them screaming at one another. Most likely over something that just happened during the campaign. You then heard a familiar sound. One that usually filled you with joy, but this time it just made you fill up with more rage than you already had.

Eddie’s laugh.

It pissed you off to no end hearing it. Hearing him having a good time, as if nothing was wrong. As if he hasn’t been avoiding you like the plague all week.

Without any hesitation, you burst through the door. The room falls silent as everyone looks over to see who interrupted them in the middle of their campaign. When Eddie’s eyes finally met yours, he could see how upset you were.

“Oh shit.”, He whispers to himself.

You march your way over where he was, sat on his throne, and you point your finger at his face.

“Where the hell have you been? Hm?”

Before Eddie has a chance to say anything, you continue on with your rant.

“All week! You haven’t called or stopped by to see me all fucking week! You never do that. Ever. We have been best friends forever and now suddenly, without warning you decide to just disappear? What the hell is your problem? Why have you been ignoring me?”

Eddie sat there, speechless and paralyzed from shock. He wasn’t expecting you to just show up randomly. He thought he would have more time to think over things before talking to you. He also didn’t expect to be having this conversation in front of the entire Hellfire Club, either.

“Say something!” You yell at him. Still, Eddie can’t find the words. Mouth moving as if he wants to say something but nothing comes out. You were mad before, but now standing here having him just stare at you not saying a word, it sends you over the edge.

“Fuck you, Eddie.” You spewed hatred towards him. “I can not believe after everything you did to me this weekend, you have the fucking audacity to not only ignore me and my calls, but blatantly lie to my face and have Wayne lie for you too. I already know you didn’t go to school Monday, Robin confirmed it for me. I seriously can’t believe you right now!”

You were fuming and after a few seconds of Eddie still not saying a word, you look at him and reach your hand out.

“Give me my key.”

“W-what?” Eddie finally is able to breathe out a word, and of course, it’s not what you wanted to hear.

“You heard me…Give. me. my. key.”

When he doesn’t move to give it, you yell again, still beyond frustrated with him.

“NOW!”

With trembling hands, Eddie reaches for it. He slowly takes the spare key to your apartment off the key ring and places it in your hand. You walk back over to the door, turning to him one last time before you leave.

“Don’t bother calling or coming over anymore. Not until you actually grow the fuck up for once. Until then, I’m done. I don’t need to put up with you and all of your bullshit, especially not after what happened.”

You slam the door shut, leaving the boys there in silence. Walking back out of the school, you feel hot tears running down your face. In this moment, you could care less. You just wanted to go home and forget about everything that has happened this past week.

Eddie is left sitting there, staring at the door trying to hold back the tears in his eyes that are fighting to spill over the edge. Gareth is the first one to break the silence.

“Dude, I don’t know what you did” he says looking away from the door and back over to Eddie, “but whatever it was, you really fucked up.”

Still not saying a word, Eddie thought to himself.

He really did fuck up this time.

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[applcrumbl]

Moonlit Man.

Pairings: Rafe Cameron X F!Reader Warnings: Sex allusions, Strong Language, Suggestive content, Word Count: 2.5K Author's Note: This took on an entirely different direction than it was supposed to, but that's life. Went very poetic with this one, take it or leave it.

Summary: A hookup-only relationship that becomes more.

The golden shine of his back in the soft glow of the balcony lighting outside. He came late and left early - though she never minded. They simply enjoyed their time together, every few nights, sometimes a week, never more than a month.

His breathing was shallow, his back defined. Comforter hanging low on his hips, it was a surprise he wasn’t freezing. The large bay window had all 3 glass panes wide open, the sound of the beach whistling through the breeze that blew gently into the room. The wind carried away the smell of sex from mere hours before.

She never slept afterwards, she couldn’t. Not when she knew he’d expect her gone in the morning. So she would wait until he snored soundly, before slipping into her shoes and sliding out the back door. Sleek. Silent.

He only slept when she was there. He couldn’t otherwise. Not when her soft heartbeat didn’t provide rhythm for him to focus on. So he would shut his eyes tight and knock himself out before she had the chance to be gone.

She never really wanted to leave. And he never really wanted her to go. How they’d found themselves in this familiar routine, neither knew. Like clockwork, and neither questioned. A fear of it ceasing altogether if it were mentioned.

There was no talking, other than the small introductory necessity beforehand, or the sexy profession of need during. Just sex. They knew each other’s names and mobile numbers. She knew he lived at Tannyhill, and he knew that she was a local. They were just sex, some light banter, and a guaranteed ride home at the end of a drunken night.

That was all.

Until it wasn’t. He’d looked her up. Breaking their unspoken arrangement. He searched instagram, he asked his friends, he’d almost near hired a private investigator when his seach turn up nothing. Her name like a needle in a haystack. Like an earring back in a freshly dug bed of soil. As if she never existed.

She did of course. It was so easy to block someone on social media. So easy to stay on a certain side of the island where one is reluctant to step foot. So easy to know where best to go on the odd occasion that one does. So easy to stay an elusive part of Rafe Cameron’s life, and carry no consequence for his action. How she liked it. No strings attached.

But despite a lack of strings, people can find other ways to be entwined. Feelings can be caught, and laughs shared. Snippets of memories, and drunken honesty. Over their short period of time together, they’d grown to enjoy the company. In ways that werent just late nights. Him sleeping first, and her slipping out.

This night were no different, and as his breath gently tickled her neck, she crept from his king sized bed as she’d done countless times before. Her underwear slid over her legs, dress over her head. She carried her shoes and jacket down the stairs of the large home. Quiet so as not to wake any of it’s other inhabitants.

The rest of her clothes were briskly added once she reached the front landing. The same path each time. Left step, right step, dodge the creaky floorboard, and out the old servants' quarter's door. It was in the house's original design to be the quietest area, so that the Plantation’s staff could once enter and exit without disruption to their masters. Perfect for her need.

She opens it, careful to dodge the miscellaneous boxes strewn about. Evidently where the family’s random items were collected. She knew that the baseball bat must’ve been Rafe's and that the dolls would have belonged to a pair of sisters she’d only heard traces of. But, as much as she’d happily let Rafe tell her all, she knew it was best to keep their paths clear and uncrossing.

“The front door is closer, you know.”

She jumps at the surprising voice, turning quickly to be met by her moonlit man. Hand clutching pearls, she steadys herself.

“Thought you were sleeping.” She states.

“I was” Rafe replies, rubbing the back of his neck, still shining with the lightest layer of sweat.

She pauses for a moment, unsure of what to say. “Oh, then I’m sorry to wake you.”

They look at eachother. Him directly at her eyes. Her at his shoulder, avoiding his direct gaze. They spoke sometimes, but not often, and never afterwards.

“You forgot your earrings.”

“Oh,” She breathes, “Thanks.”

She hold her hands out, expectant for the boy to place the studded pearls in her grasp. He doesn’t. “I left them upstairs.” He apologises, opening his fingers to show her his empty palms.

She just nods, “I’ll get them next time.”

There would be a next time, after all, there always was.

He clears his throat, “Sorry.”

A smile without teeth, and a curt nod. These were the most words they’d uttered to one another at a single time. At least not for those moaned, or whispered under bedsheets.

She turns to leave through the open doorway. Eager to be home before the cold took over too much. Laden in nothing but the thin jacket, shoe and satin dress she wore out the night before. 

“You never answered my question.”

He catches her on the doorstep.

“Servants' quarter's door is the quietest place in the house.” She explains, “Slave owners liked not to be disturbed early in the morning.”

“Are you calling me a slave owner?”

“No!” she apologised, “I just meant it’s the quietest way out of the house.”

Typically, an air of confidence surrounded her. Conviction in uncertainty. She could pretend to be someone she was not, especially to those who knew no different. Her insecurity slips out. The strong bravado once built, comes tumbling down. 

He enjoyed this side of her. Sweet, clumsy. He seldom saw it.

“Is that why I never hear you leave?”

“I wait until you’re sleeping.”

“Why don’t you just stay?”

The question throws her for a loop. Caught off guard, she can only stutter and answer. 

“I have things to do?”

It comes out as more of a question than an answer.

“At 3am?”

She just nods, jacket pulled even tighter around her shivering body. She wants nothing more than to leave as usual.

“Why don’t you exist outside of my bedroom?”

It’s bold. It’s new. It’s nothing she ever expected to hear him say. It’s unlike anything Rafe Cameron has ever asked. It scared her. Shocked her into silence.

Any normal person would find words at that moment. Even something as simple as ‘I don’t know’. Yet, she stood, mouth agape, no sound coming out.

“I’d like it if you did.” He follows.

An admittance. A moment of pluckiness. An opportunity to spark a new light in their relationship. Testing the waters of whether or not they could be more. Whether he could have her full address. Whether she could stay over for the night.

But, her confidence is out of the window, and he needs his ego bruised a bit.

She just turns and walks away instead. Silent, except for her feet crunching the gravel path. Leaving Rafe alone at the servant's quarter’s door, which he never even knew existed. She runs from Tannyhill Plantation, and away from the man who she simply saw for sex.

Regret fills them both but for different reasons. She wishes she spoke to him. She wishes she stayed, she wished her confidence did too. She wishes that he kept sleeping and that she hadn’t forgotten her earrings. He wishes he’d offered to take her home. He wishes he’d just let her leave so that he’d know she’d come back. He wishes he’d never asked her for more than that. 

He goes back to his bedroom, and she to hers. Pulling covers up tight around her shoulders, she nods off securely in her own bed. Rafe tossed and turns as the warmth leaves the spot next to him. His bed grew colder as hers grew warmer.

-

The next time they spoke was a mere week later. Both tired of their hand, and longing for the other. Rafe was the first to fold.

Wednesday, March 11th at 09:58pm.

RAFE Can we ignore what I said? I think I was still a bit high.

Wednesday, March 11th at 10:04pm.

Y/N That makes sense. Okay. RAFE I need you. Y/N Me too. RAFE I’ll pick you up? Y/N I’ll meet you at yours. RAFE Okay.

Message read at 10:12pm.

A round trip of Kildare Island will take you an hour and a half at most, and although he didn’t know much about her, he knew she drove. No matter where she stayed on this small island, she would have been with him after 45 minutes. And he’d known from past times that she always pulled into the driveway after 22. So when the clock struck 11pm, that is when Rafe began to worry.

He worried that she’d chosen to walk. He worried that she’d gotten into a car crash and died. But, most of all, he worried that she’d changed her mind. That she wasn’t coming. He text her again.

Wednesday, March 11th at 11:16pm.

RAFE You on your way?

The speech bubble that popped up soothed him. She was alive. The fact that it came and went a few times put him on edge. What was she going to say?

Y/N No. RAFE What do u mean?

He tries to call her. The number rings once before sounding the dial tone. She clicks the decline button, hands running over her thighs.

RAFE Answer your phone. RAFE Please RAFE Have I done something? Are you in trouble? Y/N I’m fine. Why would I be in trouble? RAFE Why aren’t you coming?

Wednesday, March 11th at 11:22pm.

Y/N We’re getting too attached. RAFE We’re not. RAFE I promise.

Wednesday, March 11th at 11:29pm.

Y/N We are. And that’s okay, It’s just not what I want. Y/N It’s not what either of us want, really RAFE We’re literally not geytung attached RAFE getting*

Wednesday, March 11th at 11:38pm.

Y/N Rafe, u searched me up. You asked around for me.

He draws his cigarette. A sharp breath in and a gentle one out. Contemplating his next message. Unable to deny his actions, but embarrassed by the reason behind them.

Y/N You’re literally still wake at 1AM waiting for me to come around.

Y/N

Waiting on your fucking porch for me Y/N And I know for fact that you have other numbers in your phone that you can call instead.

His eyes snap up. Scanning the darkness for a set of headlights. How else would she know he was here?

RAFE Where are you parked? Y/N Wdym? RAFE You know i’m on my porch, which means you’re here. Where are you? Y/N Lucky guess. RAFE Don’t believe you. Y/N You should. Y/N I’m at home.  Y/N I just know what you’re doing right now because we’re getting too close. RAFE Is it really such a bad thing RAFE That i want to see you RAFE That i like you?

Wednesday, March 11th at 11:45pm.

Y/N You like my pussy RAFE Well yes RAFE But I want to know you Y/N

The speech bubble appears again before it leaves. It doesn’t show up for the rest of the evening. Or the following day. Or the next week. Month. Three Months.

-

Her life goes back to normal. His does too, only emptier. Her friends see her more, his see him less. She tries to forget about Rafe Cameron, and what it felt like to be beneath his sheets. He is plagued with thoughts of the girl who didn’t want him back. The first of her kind.

Kildare’s annual bonfire was the one chance he had of seeing her again. It was how they’d met the year previous. The first night of many stolen kisses and rumpled bedsheets. 

Rafe had considered that the fact he’d never seen her, or that none of his friends had heard of her, might be because she was a pogue. He’d never thought to ask, and ultimately he’d started not to care. But it was underlying in his mind as he sipped a beer next to the bonfire. Using its flame to illuminate the face of every girl gone past. None of which her's.

He’d tried texting her. Called once or twice whilst drunk. But never got an answer. And he’d never admit it, but he missed her. Missed her almost as much as he did his own mother. A casual hook-up held the same weight in his heart as an absent parent. The one who got away.

Except, she never really got away. Because, she was never his in the first place. He can’t lose something he never had. He can’t have something that never wanted to be his. Rafe bullied himself into the ground for screwing up the opportunity. 

She did the same for a while. Thinking, and thinking about what might have been. She’d dream of white dresses, and bearing children. She’d wonder what he was doing, who he was seeing. If he’d gotten over her. She’d convinced herself he had. She’d convinced herself he didn’t care for her anymore. She’d convinced herself that he wouldn’t even be at this stupid bonfire this year, and that the fact that she was going was stupid in itself.

But she’d do anything to at least see him again. Even if it were just the back of his shoulders, glistening in the low light of outside his bedroom window.

Maybe if she got the chance again, she’d stay. Maybe if he got the chance again, he’d keep her with him.

She sat at the bonfire. Eyes hurting from the smoke that blew her way. Unbeknownst that the very man she’d come for was exactly adjacent. Hidden by the burning embers, and floating orange ribbons. The fire died slowly as she pulled her phone out. Biting the bullet and sending the text.

Thursday, June 25th at 11:57pm.

Y/N Are you here?

An answer comes quickly.

RAFE Yes. Are you? Y/N I wouldnt have said ‘here’ if I wasn’t 

He missed her quick wit. She missed his dumb questions.

RAFE Where? Y/N Meet me by the big rock? Y/N They’re away to put the fire out.

He rises quickly, avoidant of the poured water buckets that smother the once-roaring flames. It sizzles and hisses with the drastic change in temperature, but he can barely hear it over the thundering of his own heart. Rafe practically sprints to the rock, the phone still in hand.

She follows, catching a glimpse of him for the first time in so long. He has his back turned, it feels strangely poetic. The light of flame is replaced by that of the moon, and she watches Rafe in a familiar state. Broad shoulders outlined by blue shimmer.

The open horizon of the beach feels like Rafe’s bedroom window. He takes a seat, back still turned to her. His phone in hand as he begins to draft a text. No doubt asking where she is. She fights every urge to make as she normally would, and slip away. But, they both fight their vices.

Rafe's eyes stay firmly open, as he turns to the sound of her footsteps. Hers close tight as she sits next to him, head resting on his shoulder.

[celestial-dreamscapes]

Hello there👀 if it's not to much to ask, could you do a period comfort for Mammon and Satan as well?

A/N: Hello hello, of course! Tbh I shocked myself with how quickly I started and finished writing this 😅 Thank you for being my first request!! <3 Make sure you take care of yourself if you’re not feeling well, and don’t forget to eat, drink and get lots of rest! Hope this can comfort you a bit :D tbh I have a heavy bias towards Mammon and I think it shows here😭

part 1 

part 3

Taking care of you on your period part 2 - Obey Me

Word count: 1.2k

Characters: Satan, Mammon

Mammon:

-He definitely doesn’t know a lot about it, he has experience with people but he hasn’t actually had anything really long term or relationships with many humans so he’s a bit clueless, but in a somewhat endearing way

-You’re talking a lot less than usual with him and during classes you’re just resting your head on the desk the whole time, which is unusual because you usually at least try to listen and pay attention to what’s happening in the class

-Tries poking you with a pencil and asking you what’s up but you just groan and say you’re not feeling well and don’t explain much more because you can’t talk so he assumes you’re just sick

-Walking back home he notices how much you’re clutching onto your stomach and is very confused because he thought you had a regular cold or flu 

-When you both get back to the HoL, you both go to his room and you flop onto the couch and kinda curl up a bit (which does absolutely nothing to help relieve the pain but it feels like you’re doing something at least)

-His concern is growing very rapidly because you look like you’re about to pass out, so he gets behind you, chest pressed against your back and he wraps his arms around your stomach just tight enough for it to be comforting without it hurting you

-You want to explain things more in detail since you know he’s still confused and just following your lead since you don’t seem to be dying, but when you start talking/whispering about it because you don’t have the energy to speak above a whisper, your voice starts cracking and your eyes start watering for no reason and now it sounds like you’re about to start crying (which you do for a bit, even though in the moment the pain isn’t enough to make you cry, it’s just the effort of speaking + how unfair it feels that you have to suffer so much every month while others don’t) and he gets even more alarmed but just continues to cuddle you and reassure you that you’ll be fine and that you can tell him if you need anything

-His body is naturally very warm, so cuddling with him is extremely comforting

-He’ll want to turn on the tv in an attempt to distract you from the pain, but he ends up just quietly talking to you about random stuff instead since he doesn’t wanna overwhelm you with loud noise

-Eventually you fall asleep after around half an hour, and he absolutely refuses to move a single inch no matter how much he needs to go do other things because he doesn’t want to ruin your sleep after seeing how peaceful you look after everything

-After waking up and just sitting together cuddling under a big blanket for a bit, you both get hungry so he gets up and says he’ll go get you both something warm

-So you’re chilling waiting for him to come back, and this man shows up with spicy cup noodles

-On one hand, it is in fact something warm to eat. but on the other hand, the way it’ll go for your cramps is a big 50/50 since it’s spicy

-You decide not to say anything though because of how excited he seems to eat together and you don’t want to be hungry for any longer if you ask him to make something else

-Mammon would feel so so guilty if it did end up making your cramps come back though, even though you’re trying to tell him it’s not necessarily his fault and that cramps just go on and off throughout the whole time you’re on your period, he still feels super bad (and kind of useless) so you’ll have to comfort him afterwards and thank him for at least trying to help by doing something for you, but since you’re still in pain he just tries to push down the guilt so he can focus on helping you feel better again

-He’s already a big slacker when it comes to handling his responsibilities right away, and he’s also got really bad habits with spending money, and both of those habits get so much worse when you’re not feeling well, especially on your period. Mammon will literally buy you anything you want because of how badly he wants you to feel better 😭 you might have to tell him to tone it down a bit eventually if it bothers you, but for the most part it’s just really sweet, especially paired with how much time he spends with you. it almost seems like he thinks you’ll die if he leaves you alone for longer than 5 minutes, which seems very paranoid but when the one time he’s not there you do end up passing out, you decide you prefer the exaggerated worrying over having to be alone through that again

-Overall a 10/10 but he kinda struggles with what foods to get you during this time since you’re showing him how much more fragile humans are then he thought before 💀

Satan:

-Despite how much he loves reading about anything and everything, I don’t really think that Satan would know a ton of stuff about periods, since it’s a bit more specific than just learning human biology and sicknesses/diseases (and it’s pretty rare to see books discuss it in general unless they’re catered towards those who have specific issues while on their period)

-He’d definitely be the type to start carrying around pads, tampons, painkillers, a mini heating pad and any other stuff you might need around just in case you get your period without being prepared while you’re both out, and he’ll also have a bunch of supplies in his room somewhere so you won’t have to wait for anyone to go out to buy them for you

-If you’re both out and you start getting cramps, he’s gonna find a cat after you both find a place to sit down and set it down on your lap and then tell you about how he’s read that cats and their purring can help humans in pain (including cramps)

-Resting your head on his lap while he reads to you in front of the fireplace while he’s gently petting your head and you’re covered with a light blanket so you don’t get too cold 🥺

-I feel like he also has a lot of body heat, and he’ll offer to kind of lightly rub your stomach from under your shirt if you’re comfortable with it, since sometimes it feels like the heating pad works less effectively than natural body heat

-He’s really good at making food quickly, so he’ll make you something like soup (since sometimes when you feel bad on your period the chewing makes you feel kind of nauseous) real quick and bring it back to you so you can warm up and feel better quickly

-If any other demons comment on how weak you are or somehow make your pain worse, he’ll hold himself back in front of you obviously since you’re the most important and he doesn’t want to make you feel any worse than you already are, but what he does afterwards depends on what they did. regardless though, he will insult them and give them a few threats to make sure they know he won’t allow it to happen again

[bloodylullaby]

Give Me Something Beautiful

Summary: Morrigan's ordinary life takes an extraordinary turn when Noah Sebastian, the lead singer of Bad Omens, stumbles upon her quaint little shop adorned with her captivating photography. Intrigued by her talent and drawn to her genuine spirit, Noah invites Morrigan to capture the essence of his band's concert through her lens. Their initial friendship blossoms into a deep and meaningful connection as they spend time together, fueled by their shared love for art and music. Despite their challenges as their worlds collide, Morrigan and Noah navigate the complexities of fame and intimacy, ultimately finding solace and strength in each other's arms. Through their journey from strangers to lovers, they discover that amidst life's chaos, true beauty lies in the simple moments shared between two souls destined to be together.

Pairings: Noah Sebastian x OC

Content Warning: None

Word Count: 2255

MasterList

Tag List: @thescarlettvvitch @malerieee @lookwhatitcost @herbhuntress @thatgirlforever5 @xxkittenkissesxx

Chapter Five

The unwelcome arrival of 4 A.M jolted me from my sleep far sooner than I had hoped. With my eyes fixed on the ceiling, the shrill sound of my phone alarm pierced the room's stillness. As consciousness slowly enveloped me, excitement and apprehension began to stir within. It's hard to fathom that I'll soon embark on a tour with a band for the next few weeks. Frustrated with the persistent alarm, I finally silenced it and sat up, stretching out the lingering traces of sleepiness.

Reluctantly, I remain seated on my bed, my gaze fixed on the wall, attempting to muster the motivation to rise. Suddenly, the familiar sound of my phone disrupts the silence, prompting a resigned sigh to escape my lips. I glance at the screen and notice Noah's name flashing as an incoming call. Embracing my inner non-morning persona, I answer the phone with a groggy tone, murmuring, "Hello?"

A chuckle escapes him, his voice warm and soothing. "Good morning, Sleeping Beauty. I'm just checking in to make sure you're up. I figured that early mornings aren't your thing."

"I'm up," I confirm with a chuckle, grateful for the call. "Though I must admit, getting out of bed is a bit of a struggle at the moment." His laughter washes over me, bringing a sense of refreshment. It's a sound I could get used to waking up to.

“We will be there around 4:45. Does that work for you?” he asks in a gentle tone. A smile tugs at my lips as I glance over at the time, but it quickly fades when I see the clock read 4:20. I clear my throat to attempt to sound like I am already moving around. 

"Yeah, that's totally fine with me," I responded, my voice tinged with nervousness, punctuated by a chuckle. 

"You haven't gotten ready yet, have you?" Noah's voice carries a hint of smugness. I sigh, realizing my attempt to conceal my lack of readiness has already been uncovered.

"Maybe, slightly... possibly," I admit sheepishly, prompting a louder laugh from him. "But hey, since we packed everything yesterday, all I really have to do is shower and get dressed. Which, by the way, I could be doing right now if you weren't teasing me on this call," I point out, unable to suppress a giggle.

"Alright there, sassy pants, I'll let you go. See you soon," he says, and we exchange goodbyes. With that, I rush into the shower, taking the quickest one I've ever taken. Afterward, I swiftly brush my teeth and pack my oral hygiene items into a small travel bag. Racing back to my room, I hastily throw on an oversized band shirt and a pair of black skinny jeans that I usually sleep in. I quickly slip on my shoes and glance at my phone, granting myself a two-minute buffer. With a sense of accomplishment, I give myself a high-five and a pat on the back, proud that I managed to get ready without keeping anyone waiting.

I heard a knock on the door and opened it with a smile, finding Noah and Nicholas on the other side. "Noah! Nicholas! Welcome! I moved my bags closer to the door for you so it would be easier," I exclaimed excitedly. They gave me a weird look and then chuckled while looking at each other. “What’s so funny?” I asked.

They exchanged a curious glance before chuckling softly. "Oh, it's nothing," Noah replied, trying to suppress his amusement. "It's just... you're so eager and thoughtful. It's endearing." I couldn't help but feel perplexed by their reaction. "Well, I just wanted to make things easier," I said with a shrug, still puzzled by their laughter.

Nicholas chimed in, adding, "Also... We just found it funny and cute that you used my full name like that. You can just call me Nick." My cheeks started to flush slightly as I nodded in understanding. 

Noah and Nick smiled knowingly before Noah spoke again, "Anyway, are you all set to go?" I nodded eagerly, feeling excitement coursing through me despite my earlier confusion. "Absolutely, let's hit the road!" I exclaimed, watching them grab my bags. As I followed them out the door, we stopped in front of the van they drove to get me. I looked around, a little confused.

"What's up?" Noah asked with a hint of amusement in his tone.

 I couldn't help but feel a bit sheepish as I voiced my confusion. "Are we not going to be traveling in a tour bus?" 

"We thought it would be easier if we picked you up in the van and took you to the tour bus," Nick explained, his voice reassuring. I nodded my head with understanding and got into the back. The drive to the buses took a good 30 minutes, providing me with the perfect opportunity to catch up on some sleep. While I dozed off, Noah and Nick kept themselves awake.

Nick woke me up five minutes before we arrived, allowing me to wake up and regain my excitement. As we pulled into the parking lot, my eyes widened in amazement. These tour buses were massive! It dawned on me that this was the first time I'd been on a tour bus and the first time I'd even been close to one. The excitement of the adventure ahead intensified as I gazed at the imposing vehicles waiting to whisk us away on our journey.

I step out of the vehicle and find myself standing in awe, taking in the grandeur of the tour buses. Noah joins me, his slight smile reflecting the wonder of the moment. "Crazy, isn't it?" he remarks softly. I nod gently, meeting his gaze, feeling a flush creeping up my cheeks. Quickly, I averted my eyes and glanced over at the other tour bus, searching for a distraction. 

"There are two buses. What's the second one for?" I inquire, curious about the setup.

"That's the bus for the crew, but you'll be staying with us on our bus," Noah reassures me with a comforting smile. I blush a little but cover it up before he notices. I comment on how thoughtful that is as I follow Noah onto our designated bus, leaving my bags behind so they can be put into storage. As we entered the bus, I noticed a cozy living room area and a compact kitchenette. We walked past them, heading towards what appeared to be the bunk area. I observed the layout of the bunks, noticing two rows of three on each side. The front bunks were already claimed. Opting for some privacy, I selected the middle bunk closest to the back and settled in, eager to make this space my own for the duration of the tour.

"Found your bunk?" Noah asked, appearing behind me. I turned around, a big smile spreading across my face as I nodded in excitement. "Good, we made sure to try to give you some options without having to deal with us too much," he said with a smile.

“Thank you,” I said appreciatively. 

"No problem at all," Noah replied warmly, his expression reflecting genuine hospitality. You can decorate the bunk however you like. Do you want me to bring your suitcase so you can do so?" Noah asked kindly. I nodded eagerly, appreciating his offer, and watched him head out to retrieve the blanket and pillow. With a slight squeal of excitement, I opened the curtain to my bunk, eager to start making it feel like my own cozy space for the journey ahead.

Peering into the bunk, I noticed a cozy comforter blanket and a soft pillow, both in a soothing shade of light blue. My eyes widened with excitement as I spotted a miniature movie player hanging from the ceiling. To top it all off, there was enough room for two people to squeeze in, so I had enough space to starfish without fear of falling out. Soon after, Noah arrived with my smaller bag, containing my cherished items—a blanket handmade by my mother, an extra pillow, and the small stuffed platypus I had cherished since childhood.

The plush toy, once adorned with vibrant brown fur, now showed signs of age with its faded exterior. Despite this, its round, button-like eyes maintained a gentle gaze, while the meticulously stitched bill and webbed feet hinted at years of companionship. Despite the wear and tear, the plush retained its soft and comforting texture, serving as a poignant reminder of cherished memories from years past.

Once I settled everything in my bunk, I joined the boys in the sitting area. Noah patted the space next to him, and I eagerly took the opportunity to sit beside him. He smiled at me before returning to his conversation with Jolly and Bryan. Stifling a yawn, I looked at my phone; it was almost six in the morning. Rubbing my eyes, I caught Folio’s attention, and he leaned over to me.

“Why don’t you go lay down, Morrigan? We're about to leave anyway, and it will take most of the day before we reach our destination," Nick suggested. His words caught Noah's attention, and he leaned in, gently poking my shoulder to gain my attention. When I turned my head to give him my full attention, I caught my breath slightly due to how close we were. 

"Would you like me to show you where the restroom is?" Noah gently asked. I nodded in response, allowing him to lead the way. As we walked to the back of the bus, passing the rows of bunks, he guided me to the end, where a button was mounted on the wall. Noah activated the mechanism by pressing the button, causing the door to slide open, revealing a small bathroom.

"Well, that was extremely cool," I blurted out, my eyes wide with amazement. Noah chuckled at my reaction and gave me a playful pat on the head.

"I'm glad you're adjusting well to everything so far," he said, his expression sincere as he looked at me. I nervously cleared my throat before changing the subject.

"Thank you again, Noah. I appreciate not only this opportunity you're giving me to shadow Bryan but also the kindness and hospitality you have already shown me so far," I expressed gratefully. He gave me a warm smile, then suddenly became shy.

 "We're friends now; of course, I'll shower you with as much love and affection as I can," he joked, his tone light and playful. I gently nudged his arm and returned to the bunks, reopening my curtain. As Noah peers in, a smile spreads across his face, his eyes lighting up as they land on the old platypus stuffed animal nestled inside. His smile widens even more as he spots the toy. "Aw, that's cute," he remarks, his gaze lingering affectionately on the beloved childhood companion. I can't help but return his smile, feeling a comforting warmth as I witness his genuine reaction.

As Noah's smile widens at the sight of the stuffed platypus, I feel a rush of warmth. "Yeah, it's been with me for as long as I can remember," I share fondly. Noah nods, his eyes still fixed on the plush toy, before smiling at me. "It's nice to have a piece of home with you on the road," he says softly. I nod in agreement, grateful for his understanding.

"Would you like to hold him? His name is Phillip." I asked teasingly, offering the plush toy with a playful grin.

Noah chuckles at the playful gesture, shaking his head slightly. "I think I'll pass on holding Phillip for now, thanks," he responds with a smile.

I playful gasp and hold Phillip to my chest, covering his head where his ears would be if he had any. “Be careful what you say in front of him; he is compassionate.” 

Noah laughs at the playful exchange, raising his eyebrows in mock surprise. "Oh, my apologies, Phillip," he says, feigning sincerity. "I'll be sure to watch my words around you from now on."

"Thank you; he appreciates it," I reply in a playful tone. We both looked at each other briefly before we busted out laughing. Suddenly, the bus starts to move, causing me to lurch forward. Before I can react, Noah reaches out and catches me in his arms, steadying me with a grin. As Noah steadies me in his arms, our eyes meet, and time seems to stand still for a brief moment. Then, with a sheepish smile, he helps me regain my balance as the bus continues. We exchange a knowing glance, a silent acknowledgment of the unexpected moment.

Sheepishly, I clear my throat and glance at my bunk. "Do you think you can help me get in? I've never climbed into a middle bunk before," I say lightly, laughing. Noah smiles warmly and extends a hand, assisting me as I climb into the bunk, grateful for his support. I shift my gaze towards him, expressing my gratitude.

"No problem, Morrigan. Sleep well. We'll keep it down," Noah said gently. I bid him good night, and he closed my curtain for me. As I listened to his sounds fading away, I covered my face and took a deep breath. These next several weeks will be hard for me, especially with him being this adorable. As I replayed the event of him catching me in his arms, I snuggled up with my stuffed platypus and drifted into a peaceful slumber.

[witchwyfe]

illicit affair [rc]

I pairing: (non canon) rafe cameron x female reader

I précis: keep your friends close and your enemies in your bed.

I content/warnings: cursing, mentions of sex, mentions of food, mentions of alcohol/being drunk, enemies to lovers/enemies with benefits, reader and rafe hate each other but are in the same friend group, allusions to sex, some angst, fluff

I word count: 8,422

“We shouldn’t be doing this,” You breathe, stumbling over your words as Rafe’s lips move up your neck. 

“You say that every time baby.” He murmurs, his words vibrating on your neck. “But you know we’re not doing anything wrong.”

His lips catch on your jaw, lingering and leaving soft bites. His actions elicit a content sigh from your lips. 

“I lied about coming over here.” You gasp when he lightly drags his teeth across your neck. 

“Sweetheart.” He pulls his lips off your neck to look into your eyes, caressing your cheek with his knuckles. “It’s no one’s business what you do or who you spend time with.”

You don’t look convinced, gaze on your hands in your lap.

“If you don’t want to do this, we’ll stop.” He says sweetly.

“No, I, I don’t wanna stop.”

If anyone was to ask you how you feel about Rafe Cameron, your answer was easy and automatic: you hate him. 

Now, if someone asked you why you were sleeping with him—despite your claimed hatred for him—you would have a much harder time coming up with an answer. 

You don’t even know how it started really. You were pissed off at him at a kook party, bickering one minute, and pressed against the bathroom door the next—his lips on yours.

Afterwards, you told him it wouldn’t happen again, and you promised yourself it wouldn’t.

Now you’re rolling off his bed, slowly, so you don’t wake him up. Sleeping together, like actually sleeping, is off limits. When your arrangement started, you’d made it crystal clear that this wasn’t going to turn into anything else, and Rafe had agreed with you. 

But it’s easy to break rules with Rafe Cameron and it’s more often than not that you find yourself in his bed at early hours of the morning.

“Hey,” His drowsy tone fills your ears. “Where are you goin?” He wonders, half-asleep. 

“Home.” 

“Hmm,” He groans, rolling his face into the pillow you were using. “Gonna come back tonight?”

“I don’t know yet.” You murmur. “We’ll see.” 

He sits up to kiss you like he does if he’s awake when you leave. You panic and lean in to pat his chest before pulling away quickly.

“I’ll text you, Rafe. Bye.”

No pet names, terms of endearment, or nicknames. That’s another one of your rules. Yet here you are, letting Rafe run his hand through your hair, lips at your ear as he whispers sweet words to you. 

You curl deeper into his embrace, breaking another rule—no cuddling. Something about Rafe just intoxicates you, making you forget about everything and anything. 

You’re drifting further into sleep until your phone rings, the buzzing reverberating against the nightstand it rests on. 

“Your phone’s ringing, sweetheart.”

“Fuck,” You murmur, waving your hand around blindly. Rafe reaches his long arm over you, plucking your phone off the table and handing it to you. 

You answer the phone, doing your best to disguise your sleep-ridden voice.  It’s your mom and you sit up a bit.

“Hi honey,” she says softly. “Are you going to be home tonight?” 

Ever since you came home from college for the summer, you’ve been going out with your friends and having sleepovers, and obviously—staying with Rafe—so it’s an understandable question for your mom to ask. 

“Do you need me to be?”

“Your dad and I were hoping to go out for dinner, and Cooper’s babysitter isn’t available tonight.”

You sigh softly, letting your head lean back against Rafe’s headboard. His hand is still in your hair, and he whines, nuzzling his face against your shoulder. 

“I can come home and watch him.” You tell her, ignoring Rafe’s huff of protest.

“Are you sure? Because Dad and I can just go out another night?”

“No Mom, it’s fine seriously.” You assure her. “He’s my brother, I like spending time with him.”

“Thank you!” She gushes. “Can you be home in half an hour?”

“Yep.”

When you hang up, Rafe groans again. “Who was that?”

“My mom.” You tell him, sliding out from underneath him. “I have to go.”

“Why?” He pouts like a child. “Just stay here with me.”

“I can’t. I have to watch my brother.”

“Bring him over here.”

You laugh, sliding your feet into your flip-flops. “I’m not bringing him here Rafe.”

“You gonna come back later tonight?”

“I don’t know yet.” You reach for your phone and start to look for your keys until you realize—

“Is there any way you can drive me back home?” You wonder. Rafe had picked you up a few hours prior, and you really don’t feel like walking home right now. 

“Yeah, of course.” He lugs himself out of bed, shoving on sweats and pocketing his keys.

“Shirt.” You remind him, pointing at his bare chest.

“My bad babe, can’t have you distracted.” He rolls his eyes, but complies, giving you a cheeky smile. 

He checks to make sure no one’s around—at your request—before sneaking you out to his truck. If it were up to him, he’d have no problem letting everyone know that you’re with him, but this is the only way you’ll see him at all, if he complies to your rules. 

You settle into the passenger seat, eyes glued on your phone. 

Rafe rolls his windows down, plugging his aux cord into his phone.

“What are you doing?” You wonder, scowling at him.

“Playing music?”

“No, the windows dummy, put them up.”

“You like driving with the windows down. It’s nice out?” He’s still confused and the soft look on his face says it all. 

“I don’t want anyone to see me driving in the car with you, put them up.” You grit through your teeth, irritation coloring your tone.

Hurt flashes across his face, but it’s gone before you even notice. “Yes ma’am.” He says quietly. “God forbid anyone knows that we spend time together.”

“Don’t be like that.” You snap. “You honestly think our friends would react well to this? And I don’t want anyone to know. It’s embarrassing enough that we’re sleeping together.”

His stomach sinks, his heart right behind it. 

You sigh and turn to look at him again. “Look Rafe, if you don’t wanna do this we won’t. But it stays a secret, or I’m out.”

Rafe has always been able to get under your skin. Maybe it’s his cocky attitude, or how unfairly attractive he is.

The problem is the version of him you’d built up in your head was an untouchable asshole. You hadn’t even thought to consider his feelings—or that he had them at all—it was the easiest way to keep yourself from getting attached.

You lean closer to your friends, the heat from the distant bonfire not enough to keep you warm. Sienna slings her arm around you, pulling you closer. You’ve all been caught up on each other’s lives and island gossip—the first couple weeks of summer giving you the opportunity—but they obviously don’t know about your biggest secret, and you were going to keep it that way.

Or at least try your best.

You groan deep in your throat when you see Rafe, Topper, and Kelce approaching you and your friends.

“Uh oh,” You murmur, taking a long guzzle from your cup. “Here they come.” 

Sienna laughs, and finally, Casey looks up from her phone, where’d she’d been texting her long-distance girlfriend. 

“Christ,” Casey murmurs under her breath, sharing a knowing look with Sienna. The two of them had been witness to your long rivalry—if you could call it that—and knew that whatever was about to happen wouldn’t be good. Unfortunately, Topper, Kelce, and Rafe are part of your friend group, so you’re forced to be in Rafe’s company, way more than you’d like. 

“Case, Sie, how’ve you been?” Topper greets warmly, pulling them into a hug, after hugging you. Kelce follows suit and then you’re left with just Rafe while they catch up. 

“Cameron.” You snap in your version of a greeting, narrowing your eyes as they step closer to you. 

“Hey sweetheart.”

You roll your eyes, taking another sip of your drink. After a quick glance at your friends, Rafe steps closer to you, sending a shiver down your spine.

“Watch yourself Rafael.” You hiss, looking over at your friends again.

“Stop looking at them. You’re so bad at being subtle.” He sighs. His hand brushes over your shoulder and he grits his teeth.

“Your skin’s freezing.” He murmurs, frowning.

You don’t say anything when he rids himself of his gray Patagonia jacket, sliding it onto your shoulders, and helping your arms into the sleeves.

When you open your mouth to argue, and he presses a finger to your lips. “Just take my jacket,” He rolls his eyes. “Don’t even try to say you don’t need it because you do.”

“Fine.” You grumble, crossing your arms back over your chest. “Thanks.”

“No problem princess.” You roll your eyes and bite away the smile threatening to appear on your lips.

“Hey!” Kelce’s voice breaks the air, causing you to whip your head around. “I’m out of beer, anyone need more?”

You take a sip from your full cup, shaking your head. “I’m good Kelce but thank you.”

“I’m good too. Thanks man.” Rafe gives him a small smile. 

Topper and Casey claim to need more beer too, shaking the empty cups in their hands. Sienna pauses, studying you with a smirk on her face. 

“Is that Rafe’s jacket?” She wonders, tugging lightly at the collar. 

You frown, eyes boring into Rafe’s chest, refusing to meet his eyes. “I don’t know. I fuckin’…” You trail off, clearly not wanting to answer.

“Yeah, she wouldn’t stop complaining about being cold.” Rafe pipes up, saving you. “You’re more tolerable when you don’t have anything to whine about.” He smirks, directing his gaze onto you.

“Well, no one’s forcing you to be near me.” You smile, tone saccharine. “Feel free to leave.”

He puts his hands up defensively. “Whatever you want then,” He grins. “You can give it back to me tonight.”

Sienna shoots the two of you a strange look before heading off with the others to get refills.

“’Give it back tonight?’” You groan, quoting what Rafe said earlier. “Why the hell would you say that? Sienna knows something was up did you see how she was looking at—”

“Shut up,” He growls softly against your lips. “They’re not gonna think twice about it, so just stop bitching at me.”

“You shut up,” You groan, pushing him down so you can straddle his waist. “You’re so much hotter when you’re not speaking.”

“Hmm, so you admit that I’m hot.” He hums, leaning his head back as your lips travel down the side of his neck.

“I wouldn’t be in your bed right now if I didn’t.” You murmur against his clavicle, reveling in the way he shudders.

“So, you’re only with me for my body?” He jokes.

You pull away, snorting at him. “Well, it’s not for your personality, babe.” You giggle, patting his chest. 

Hurt flares in his eyes, but you don’t catch it, and when your lips back are on his, it’s shoved away to the back of his mind.

After spending far too much time with Rafe, you head home, hitching a ride in his truck with him—at his insistence—and end up sneaking in your back door around three am. 

You realize, once Rafe has already pulled out of your driveway—with the lights off until he gets on the road, at your insistence—that you’re wearing his shirt again. You’d given back his jacket, but once he realized your cropped tank was the only shirt you had, he sent you home in an old long sleeve of his.

You don’t bother changing when you get up to your room, instead burying yourself underneath the covers.

It feels like you’ve been asleep five minutes, when your bedroom door flings open, revealing your little brother.

He bounds up onto your bed, jumping onto your limp stature.

“Coop,” You groan. “Hey buddy, what’s up?”

“Mommy said you have to take me to swim lessons!” He informs you, bouncing off your bed, just as quickly as he got on. 

“Alright then.” You say, sitting up slowly. “I’ll be down in a few minutes.”

And true to your word, you’re meeting your brother in the kitchen, your mother meeting your gaze with an apologetic smile.

“Sweetheart, I’m sorry, I didn’t know that your dad needed me for his business on the mainland. I would’ve gotten his babysitter if I had more notice.”

You shake your head. “It’s fine Mom, I don’t mind.”

“Thank you.” She leans forward to press a kiss to your cheek, wrapping an arm around your shoulder for a half hug. 

She pulls away, an eyebrow raised. “Is this a new shirt?” She asks, feeling the material. 

Heat rushes to your cheeks, as you mentally scramble for an explanation. 

“Oh shoot, thanks for reminding me, I need to give this back to Sienna.” You lie easily. “I think it’s her brother’s or something.”

“Ah,” She nods, believing you. “Alright then, I’m off.”

“Have a nice lesson Coop,” She smiles. “Maybe your sister can take you for breakfast after?”

Cooper looks at you pleadingly and cheers when you nod. 

“Yup, I just gotta go change and I’ll be down. Will you be ready?”

“I’m ready!”

“Okay bud, I’m just gonna sit over there until you’re done and—”

“Look it’s Rafe!” He cuts you off, squealing excitedly.

You freeze, muscles tightening defensively. 

“Who?” You manage to croak out, trying to keep your tone level.

“Rafe, my swim teacher.” He grins, waving to someone across the pool. 

Maybe Rafe is a more common name than you thought, maybe it’s someone else—

“Hey Cooper! Hi ____.”

Rafe leans down to give Cooper a high-five, before stretching to his full height and smirking down at you. You take in his red lifeguard shorts and raise an eyebrow. How your mom forgot to mention that one of your closest friends and enemy was your brother’s swim teacher, you’ll never know.

“Your sister brought you today, huh buddy?”

“Yup.” He scrunches his eyebrows. “You haven’t come to our house in a while.”

“I know buddy, we’ve all been away at school.”

 “But you’re home now. Will you come over soon?”

“Sure.” Rafe answers while you shake your head. Your younger brother looks up at you in amusement, almost as if he knows something.

“I have to go to the bathroom.” He announces suddenly, handing you his towel and goggles before heading off in the direction of the men’s locker room.

“Since when are you in charge of keeping people—kids—alive?” ‘

Rafe scoffs, shaking his head slightly. “Maybe if you actually talked to me, you would know.”

You roll your eyes, crossing your arms defensively against your chest. 

“Okay, sorry, it was a joke.” You level him with a harsh glare.

“Not funny, I get it.” He puts his hands up in defense. “My dad wanted me to get a job while I’m home for the summer. I don’t know if you heard, but I got kicked out of Cameron Development.” He sighs heavily, raking a hand through his hair. 

You inhale sharply, although you had heard something like that from Casey and Sienna. These days all your knowledge of Rafe comes from them, the group hasn’t been able to get together much yet. 

“Oh shit, I’m sorry Rafe, that does suck.”

He nods, perking up when Cooper walks back over.

“Ready for your lesson bud?”

Before Rafe heads off with your brother he leans in close, his lips at your ear; “You got a little something there.” He says, thumbing at a spot on your neck. 

You flinch away, the skin underneath his touch, warming. Your hand covers a spot on your neck, just above your collarbone, while you find your way to the bathroom to check the mirror. 

A tiny bruise, essentially unnoticeable unless you lean in. He would only know because he left it there. 

Asshole.

“Alright, tell Rafe thank you, and we’ll—”

“Thank you, Rafe!” Your little brother gushes. “We’re getting breakfast, do you wanna come with us!?”

“Oh, no he—”

“I would love to.” Rafe beams, catching your gaze with a twinkle in his eye.

“Buddy, I’m sure Rafe has to work, maybe next time.”

“Actually, this was my last lesson. Shift’s over now.”

“Great.” You deadpan.

“I’ll change and meet y’all in the parking lot.” He tells you. 

“Yeah, you can follow us.” You say, tilting your nose up. If he must come, he can drive himself.

You grab Cooper’s hand, and dig for your keys your other hand, leading him out to the car. 

“That was very nice of you to invite Rafe to breakfast.” You tell him, assisting with his seatbelt. 

“Mommy says I should be nice to people who are nice to me.” He tells you proudly.

“She’s right.” You nod. “Good job buddy.”

While you’re sitting in your car, Rafe is rushing into his manager’s office, begging for him to cover the rest of his shift—even promising to work for free later in the day. 

When his manager Michael, agrees, Rafe trips over himself, trying to make sure he thanks him enough times, before heading to the locker room to change. 

“Look, there’s Rafe!” Cooper announces before asking you to roll his window down so he can wave. 

Rafe comes up to the side of the car, running a hand through his pool-wet hair, and sighing heavily. 

“We’re going to a diner on the cut.” You inform him. “They have Coop’s favorite pancakes, and we’re not really dressed for the Island Club anyway.”

“Sounds good. I’ll follow you.”

You roll your window up before he can get another word in and wait for him to get into his Truck, before you pull out of the parking lot. 

“____?”

“Yes?”

“You should be nicer to Rafe. He’s nice to you.”

Well then. 

Rafe had watched as you helped Cooper cut his pancakes, and poured syrup, with affection, barely hidden behind the mug of coffee he sipped from frequently. 

When your brother went off on another one of his suspiciously timed bathroom trips, Rafe’s hidden smile turned to a cheeky smirk. 

“I don’t wanna hear a word, Cameron.” You say, cutting him off before he can even speak. 

“I was just gonna say how cute it is that you brought your brother on our date.” He teases, watching in amusement as your expression turns from indifferent to annoyed. 

“Fuck off.” You hiss. “If you want someone to date, there’s a whole island of girls that would love to.”

“I’m not, fuck ____,” He sighs, running his hand down his face. “I was joking, okay? I don’t want any other girls; I just want you.”

You scoff, shaking your head in disbelief. “You know I don’t care what you do with other people, as long as you don’t tell anyone about us.”

His face falls but you don’t notice. 

“Noted. Any other rules you need to refresh this morning?”

“Shut up Rafe, you make me sound like a bitch.”

He shakes his head, ready to retort, when you cut him off again. 

“Besides, it’s not like you want anything more than this, either.”

Your words stuck with Rafe all day. After breakfast, during his afternoon shift that he traded (paid!), and when he’s getting ready for the party Kelce is throwing. 

He slides on his black polo, your favorite of his, in hopes that you’ll come home with him. He’s assuming you will also be in attendance, knowing that everyone else in the friend group will be there. 

And he’s right of course, although you’re dragging your feet, trying in a last-ditch effort, to convince them to stay in and have a girl’s night. 

But, as you expected, that doesn’t work, so now you’re packed in with people you went to high school with, tucking your finger into Casey’s belt loop so you don’t lose her. 

When Rafe finally finds you, you aren’t alone. He figured you would be after finding your friends with Topper and Kelce in the kitchen. 

You’re standing across from a guy, one he doesn’t recognize. He really needs to talk to Kelce about keeping tourons out of kook parties. You’re laughing, the way you never do with him, in a little purple dress he’s never seen before. 

Now, Rafe usually tries his best not to piss you off, though he has a way of doing it anyway. But his disappointment at seeing you with another guy, mixed with the shots he’d already taken, spurs his next actions, without even taking a second to think it through. 

Rafe has a few inches on the guy, so when he walks up to you, he stares down at the guy. He has a friendly smile on his lips, but his eyes are as cold as the White Claw he just pulled from a cooler for you.

“Hey man, can I have my girlfriend back?”

Your head whips around fast, eyes on fire that you want to light him in, and your mouth set in a solid frown.

The guy’s face drops, fear painted on his features. “Oh shit, you have a boyfriend?” He wonders, directing his fearful gaze onto you.

“No.”

Now, Rafe’s face drops, something twisting in his stomach. He fiddles with the cap on the drink, popping it open and taking a big swig for himself. 

His face blooms red and he walks away, humiliated as he heads back to the kitchen. Maybe if he wasn’t so drunk, it would’ve been easier to be cocky and intimidating, maybe he would’ve stood his ground more.

Less than a minute later he feels a tug on his shirt, and he whips around to see you standing there, not looking any happier than you did when he left you. 

“Rafael Cameron.” You bark, wrapping your fingers around his wrist, and tugging you with him. You lead him to the upstairs bathroom—which Kelce had deemed of limits for anyone not in your friend group—and drag him inside with you.

You immediately hop onto the counter, shoving Rafe away when he moves to stand in between your legs. Once he’s leaning against the door, you cross your arms. 

“Baby, what—”

“What the fuck?” You cut him off sharply. “You don’t get to sleep with me and claim to want nothing more, then pull that jealous tough guy shit.”

“I wasn’t!” He protests, the alcohol starting to make him whine. “And you really think I don’t want more!? I only agreed so I’d get to spend time with you.”

“Shut up.” You snap. “You’re drunk, you don’t mean that.”

“You’re so hot when you’re mad baby,” He smiles, eyes soft and sparkly. “And I meant every word.”

“Don’t call me that Rafe.” You sigh, exasperated. “Come on, I’m taking you home.”

“Ooh,” He giggles like a scolded child.

You grab his hand to lead him downstairs, finding your friends all still in the kitchen together.

“Guys I’m gonna take Rafe home.” You announce. “He’s drunk and he’s annoying me.”

“Shit no, don’t take him home while he’s like this, his dad will kill him.”

You throw your head back, frustrated, and sighing heavily. “Can he stay here?”

Behind you, Rafe whines, resting his chin on the top of your head. “Wanna go with you,” He pouts like a little kid. You nudge your elbow into his abdomen until he takes a step back. 

You sigh again. “I’ll just take him to my house. My parents won’t care if he sleeps in the guest room.” You lie. 

Your friends bid you goodnight, before sharing a knowing look with each other. While they don’t know exactly what’s going on, they know something is. Things haven’t been the same since a kook party last summer, and they aren’t clueless.

“I don’t even understand why we had to come.”

“Come on, our friends are here,” Sienna reminds you, nudging your arm gently.

“Rafe Cameron is not my friend.”

Sienna and Casey share a look, rolling their eyes at your statement. Ever since middle school, the six of you—Casey, Sienna, you, Rafe, Topper, and Kelce—have been a group. The closest of friends, despite two of you hating (or pretending to) each other.

“C’mon, let’s go find the boys.” Casey says, grabbing your arm. 

The boys are playing beer pong in another room, and excited chants of your names echo in the room.

“Fuck yeah!!” Topper calls, waving. “____ and Rafe are so fucking good at this game, let’s go!”

“I’m gonna need another drink if I have to stand that close to him.” You glare, tipping back the rest of the lukewarm beer in your cup.

“I’ll get you one, just go play.” Sienna says. 

You begrudgingly join Rafe at his side, standing as far away as you possibly can. 

Even now, you wish you could remember what the two of you were arguing about. It was something stupid, and insignificant, but you remember being pissed at him.

You didn’t even get to play; you’d grabbed Rafe by the collar of his shirt and tugged him off before you could even start the game. You’d dragged him off to an upstairs bathroom, where you knew no one would be. 

Maybe you had your intentions all along, maybe it was decided in the moment that you would kiss him. Either way, the cocky clench of his jaw, and the way he stuck his tongue in his cheek, drove you up the wall, and not in the way it usually did.

With all intent to talk to him, you had your arms crossed against your chest, a glare fixed onto him. 

“God, you’re so infuriating, Cameron.” Is all you could find yourself say.

“And you’re so hot when you’re mad, ____.” He’d retorted, a smirk dancing devilishly on his lips. 

With that, you’d yanked him down to your level, pressing your lips to his, and forgetting every single reason why you shouldn’t be doing it.

You’re tugging Rafe to your car, rolling your eyes every time he giggles or makes a comment.

When you pull into your driveway, you turn to Rafe, a serious look on your face. “You have to be really quiet when we go inside, okay?” You tell him. “You think you can do that for me?”

He nods solemnly, before leaning over the center console of your car. “You’re really pretty.” He tells you.

With a slight shake of your head and a smile, you undo his seatbelt. “Thanks, Rafe.” 

“No, m’serious,” He whines, leaning his weight into you, the second he gets out of the car. “You’re the prettiest girl in the world. Wish you were mine.”

You shake your head in disbelief, despite the small smile on your face, and heat on your cheeks. You’re caught between melting and reminding yourself that he’s drunk and surely doesn’t mean any of what he’s saying. 

You’re able to get Rafe up to your room, with almost no problems— “Is Cooper here now? Can we go say hi?”—and sitting him on your bed with your water bottle.

“If you wanted to get into my pants, all you had to do was ask.” He smiles, a bit of water dribbling down his chin. 

“Rafael,” You scold gently. “The only thing you’re doing is sleeping.”

“With you? Sure.” He giggles at his own joke.

After giving Rafe sweats that he’d left here after one of his overnights, you get him tucked underneath your duvet, turning in surprise when he whines and grabs the hem of your—his—t-shirt. 

“Where are you goin’?” He murmurs softly, a pout tracing his lips. 

You suppress a chuckle at his serious expression, ruffling his hair before answering him. “I just need to go brush my teeth, okay? I’ll be right back.”

“Promise?”

“Yup.”

Rafe raises his pinky, letting you lock it with yours, before he lets go and closes his eyes.

When you get back from the bathroom, teeth brushed and skincare completed, Rafe is struggling to keep his eyes open.

“Go to sleep dummy,” You tease, checking that your door is locked, before sliding in beside him.

“Was waitin’ for you.” He mumbles, sleep already beginning to coat his words. He immediately wraps an arm around your waist, tugging you flush against him, so close that you can feel his warmth through the thin cotton of your shirt.

“Goodnight sweetheart.” He murmurs, kissing the top of your head. You let him. He’s drunk and he’s tired, and you’re hoping he won’t remember any of this in the morning.

“Goodnight Rafe.”

You’re awake before Rafe is, and it’s still early. You try your best to work your way back into sleep, but no amount of tossing and turning will help, so you give up and pull out your phone, curling on your side as not to disturb Rafe’s arms around you.

You open your group chat with Sienna and Casey, finding two new messages:

case: how’s it going with rafe? how does he like the guest room?

si: i bet it was nice for your mom to see him again :/

You send them a middle finger emoji before clicking your phone off, and rolling back over, your nose brushing against Rafe’s chest. 

“Mornin’,” He rasps, eyes peeling open slowly. You look up, eyes hooking on his, a smile subconsciously spreading on your lips. 

“You’re up early,” You observe, running your thumb over his cheekbone. “With how much you drank last night, I would’ve thought you’d be asleep till at least noon.”

“How can I sleep knowing my favorite girl is right here next to me?” He says sweetly. “I couldn’t wait to wake up.” 

You sigh lightly, but don’t push him away when he tucks a piece of hair behind your ear. 

“How’re you feeling?” You wonder. 

“Good,” He grins, shutting his eyes peacefully. 

“Really? No headache? You’re not gonna get sick on my floor, are you?”

“No,” He chuckles, running a hand through his messy hair. “Just hungry.”

You hum in agreement. “If we wait it out a little longer, my family will be gone, and we can go make breakfast or something.”

“Mm, kay.” He nods, dropping his forehead to rest against yours, and shutting his eyes again. 

And you notice that having him close like this isn’t awful. It feels nice.

“No, don’t you remember that time that Topper took his mom’s wine?” You wonder. “The only reason he got in trouble is because it was a really fancy one, vintage or something.”

Rafe throws his head back in a laugh, eyes glittering with delight. 

“It was so fancy for a bunch of fifteen-year-olds getting hammered for the first time.” He comments. “God you were pissed at me that night.”

You look up from the smoothie you’re making, tilting your head. “Was I?”

He takes a sip of the coffee you brewed. “Yeah.”

“Oh my god, I don’t remember that.” You state, tapping your finger against your chin. 

“I think that’s the night I realized you hated me.” He chuckles awkwardly. 

You remember now. Your friend group had been born when you all were twelve, but when you all hit freshman year of high school, Rafe turned into a douchebag, and you turned into his biggest enemy.  All the boys had their fuck boy phases in high school, but Rafe always said shit to you specifically. 

Little did you know he’s been head over heels for you since you met. He didn’t think he had a chance until he got confident with other girls in high school and that’s when the douchebag era began.

And you would argue that it never ended. 

You end up taking Cooper to his next swimming lesson, but you’re disappointed when another employee walks up to you and Cooper. 

“Hi,” you say, looking around for Rafe. “Is Rafe not here today?”

The name tag on his blue polo reads Michael, and you wonder if Rafe’s ever mentioned him.

“No,” He pauses, awkwardly scratching the back of his neck. “Actually, Mr. Cameron called him in sick today.”

“Ward?” You wonder; incredulous. 

He nods. “It’s not too common that a parent does that, but Rafe hasn’t used any sick days yet.” 

You nod.

“Anyway,” He clears his throat. “One of our other lifeguards, Chelsea, was going to take over today’s lesson. Is that okay?”

You look down at Cooper who gives you a nod. “Yes, of course. Thank you.”

Once Cooper is in the pool, you try your best to pay attention, but your mind keeps shifting to Rafe. You know how shitty his relationship with his father is, so he must be sick if Ward called in for him.

As much as you didn’t want to, you ended up texting Sienna and Casey. You didn’t get into detail, just asked if he was sick, but it was still enough to raise suspicions with your friends. 

After finding out from Topper, that Rafe was not in fact sick, but rather obliged to some activity his father claimed importance. 

But after an entire afternoon goes by and Rafe hasn’t answered any of your texts, you decide to head over to Tanneyhill yourself, telling yourself it’s just because you want to hook up.

The sun is just starting to set when you pull up, parking your car down the street as usual. However, you didn’t account for the fact that when you usually come, it’s dark and the rest of the Cameron family is asleep. 

But now, Sarah and Wheezie are lounged on the porch swing together, flipping through a magazine.

“____?” Wheezie wonders, squinting as you get closer to her and her sister.

“Hi Wheezie, hey Sarah.” You wave awkwardly. You’ve been around Tanneyhill enough times to be friendly with Rafe’s sisters, after all his house is usually the preferred hang out spot when you and your friends get together.

“What are you doing here?” Sarah wonders curiously, sliding her sunglasses up to rest on the top of her head. 

You swallow nervously, quickly glancing around, as if Rafe will appear just because you’re thinking about him. 

“Oh, I uh, just wanted to see if Rafe was here.”

The Cameron sisters share a look that you don’t even notice, because you’re flicking your gaze to the front door again, just in case Rafe comes out.

“Yeah, he’s here.” Wheezie says. “Dad made him help with some yardwork or something earlier, but I think he’s inside now.”

You nod in understanding, pointing at the front door awkwardly. “So, is it okay if I go in then?”

“Yeah sure.” Sarah nods. 

You open the unlocked door, quickly heading up the grand staircase before you have any more run-ins with the Cameron family.

You knock on the door you know to be Rafe’s, and when you don’t get a response, you twist the knob and let yourself in. 

“Did I forget to do something, I—” Rafe cuts himself off when he sees you standing in his doorway, rather than his father, who he had assumed was there.

 “Hey,” he says nonchalantly, flopping onto his bed.

“Hey,” You smile, shutting his door. “I haven’t heard from you all day.”

“Yeah sorry, I had to do something for my dad.” He swallows thickly, adam’s apple bobbing. “We can go somewhere else if you want or—” 

“No, it’s fine.” You clear your throat awkwardly. “I just, um…your manager said you were sick, but Top said you weren’t, and I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” You voice goes quieter at the end of your explanation, heat rising on your cheeks. 

“Sweetheart, were you worried about me?” He wonders, a cheeky lilt to his words. 

“No.” 

“Oh, you were,” He chuckles deeply, a real smile on his face for the first time all day. “You so were.”

“Nope.”

“Yes,” He tugs you against him, pulling you onto his bed with him. “You were worried about me.”

You giggle as he nudges his nose against yours.

A moment later he pauses, pulling away with a sigh. “Shit sorry, this probably breaks at least two of the rules.”

You meet his eye before reaching for him. “Fuck the rules Rafe, I was worried about you, and now I want to lay with you.”

He doesn’t think he’s ever felt so euphoric.

“Wait my sisters know you’re here?” He laughs, pulling a pretzel from the bowl in your hands. “You must’ve been really worried.”

It’s late now. After wrapping yourself in Rafe’s arms, both of you had fallen asleep for a little while. Unbeknownst to you, Sarah and Wheezie had covered for Rafe, telling their father he was out with friends so that no one would bother the two of you.

“I was,” You playfully glare at him.

“Oh baby,” He croons, hugging you to his chest again. “You’ve got it bad.” 

You roll in his embrace, attempting to pull away, but he just hugs you tighter. “Fuck off,” You growl, touching your teeth to his arm, teasing.

“My girl,” He hums, lips at the back of your head.

“Rafe…”

He sighs, releasing his arm from you. “Come on ____, you’re literally in my bed right now.”

“Well yeah, but not like,” You huff, frustration seeping into your pleasant mood. “Rafe, it’s not like that, we’re not like that.”

“Like what?” He’s sitting up now, frown etching into his features. 

“You know,” You meet his eyes. 

When all you get in return is a blank stare, you sigh again. “We’re not dating Rafe. So, we should stop acting like we are.”

Rafe still stings from your words, even hours later as he’s lying-in bed by himself, clutching the pillow that’s tinged with the fragrance of your perfume. 

He’s more than aware of your arrangement. And if he wasn’t, your constant reminders would do the trick. 

Rafe and you have had tension for years, but he never hated you. He couldn’t possibly, but that seemed to be the best way to win your attention and he only agreed to this to get closer to you, verbally signing yes to whatever rules you threw at him. You’d assumed he just wanted sex and he never corrected you; he didn’t think you’d be interested in him like that.

He’s pretty sure he’s been in love with you since he was fifteen, and he’s more than sure he’d do anything if you asked. 

So that’s why he’s alone in his room, nursing his aching heart, rather than with you, trying to fight for whatever idea he has of a relationship. 

Little does he know, though, that you’re in your own room, in a similar situation. 

You knew you fucked up when you agreed to friends—enemies—with benefits situation, but you couldn’t help yourself. You couldn’t deny that you and Rafe had tension. Whether it was sexual, or pure hatred, it was hot. 

You never would have agreed to it if you knew you would catch feelings for someone you had sworn off a long time ago. 

You press the red button on your incoming call—again. This is the third time Rafe’s tried to get in contact with you, not including the texts he sent. As soon as you realized you were developing feelings for the man you claimed to hate, you stepped away—fast. As far as your concerned, Rafe doesn’t do feelings and he doesn’t do relationships. The easiest way for you to cope, and not accidentally blurt how you feel, is by avoiding the very root of the problem. 

Rafe Cameron is not ignored easily though, and in less than an hour, your doorbell is ringing. Before you can call down and tell your parents not to answer the door, you hear heavy footsteps on the stairs, and soon enough the one person you’re trying to avoid is in your room. 

“What are you doing here?”

Your icy tone strikes Rafe harder than he expected, he shuffles his feet, awkwardly jamming his hands into the pockets of his khaki shorts. 

“I haven’t heard from you. Thought we could talk.”

You cross your arms across your chest defensively, narrowing your eyes in a hard stare. “What’s there to talk about? I told you last week, we’re not—”

“I know.” He grits his teeth, the pressure almost painful. “But we can still—”

This time you cut him off; “No Rafe. We shouldn’t do anything. I told you it’s too close to a relationship. You called me last week because you ‘missed me’, we don’t do that shit.”

You’re lounging on a chair in the backyard, keeping a watchful eye on your brother on the trampoline, when your phone buzzes. 

Incoming call from: Rafael :/

With the slightest smile—that would you deny if caught—you answer, your smile growing the second you hear Rafe’s voice. 

“Hello Rafael,” You greet teasingly. “Something you need?”

“Yeah.” He ignores the way his cheeks flush, no doubt turning redder by the second. “I needed to ask you something.”

“Okay, ask me.” You encourage, swallowing a giggle. 

“I forgot the question.” He grins cheekily, imagining your face when hears you chuckle.

“Well then why’d you call?” You tease, fully aware of the heat on your face.

“Maybe I missed you.”

“You missed me huh?” Your smile grows even more when you hear him affirm your question.

“Okay well then, since you can’t remember what you needed to ask me, I guess I’ll go. Text me if you remember.”

“No!” He’s almost too quick to protest. “Don’t hang up! I like hearing your voice.”

Your cheeks hurt now.

“Would a relationship with me be so bad?” He wonders, a frown twisting on his lips. 

“You’re the one who wanted it like this!” You exclaim. “You don’t do relationships, remember?”

He shakes his head, mouth opening to protest, when you speak again.

“It would never work between us Rafe.” You whisper. “We hate each other.”

Right, because hatred is what makes your heart race when he’s near you, and hatred is what makes you smile every time you hear his voice. 

Hurt flashes in his eyes, and he reaches his hand up to cup your cheek, but you turn away quickly. 

 “Baby—” Rafe pauses to correct himself. “_____, you’re wearing my shirt right now.”

“Oh, shit, sorry,” You stumble over your words, grabbing for the hem of the t-shirt. 

“No, that’s not what I—” He cuts himself off to sigh deeply. “I don’t want my shirt back, I just want you. You—, I…forget it.”

You tense up, crossing your arms awkwardly. Wearing his t-shirt goes directly against the anti-relationship morals you’d been shoving down his throat. As much as you hate to admit it, you’ve been wearing his shirt whenever he’s not around. It smells like him, and it brings you such a comfort, you haven’t washed it yet either. 

A few awkward moments pass before  you clear your throat. “I don’t think we should see each other anymore. At all.” You say softly. “And I think you should leave Rafe.”

The second the words have your mouth you want to take them back. Rafe feels as if he’s been slapped, the words stinging him painfully. 

“Okay.” He croaks out. 

You miss him. 

You miss him when you lay in bed at night, when you normally would’ve been laying with him, talking about nothing and everything. You aren’t exactly sure when “just sex” had turned into asking him about his day, and receiving texts throughout yours, but you miss all of it. 

You finally had confessed everything to your friends, Sienna and Casey hadn’t been able to handle your moping for more than an hour before you spilled in a teary recounting of your relationship with Rafe. They hadn’t been as surprised as you expected.

“So, you’re in love with him.” Sienna remarks.

“No,” You shake your head, sniffing.

“It wasn’t a question. You are in love with Rafe.”

Casey’s piping up in agreement when your heart drops. “Oh my god,” You whisper. “What did I do?”

You wipe another set of tears away, straightening your posture. “It doesn’t matter anyway, it’s not like he would ever feel the same.”

Sienna snorts and you whip around to look at her.

“Honey come on,” She looks at Casey. “Rafe Cameron has been in love with you since the day he met you.”

“Stop it,” You glare. “Don’t say shit just to make me feel better.”

“I wouldn’t say it if it wasn’t true.”

“Then why did he want to do this?” You wipe your nose with the sleeve of your sweatshirt. “We agreed no feelings.”

“And who’s idea was that?”

Sweat clings to the back of your neck as you pull your phone out. After finally, coming to your senses, and getting over your fear, you decided to tell Rafe how you feel. 

You’ve been to his house and dock already, but he’s nowhere to be found. The windows are down in your car, and you don’t even bother turning it on until you think of the next place to try: the island club. 

Rafe, Topper, and Kelce golf all the time when they’re all home for the summer, so you think it’s a safe next guess. It doesn’t take you long to drive to the club, and you’re whipping your car into a spot, barely in park before you pull the keys out. 

You’re clad in Rafe’s t-shirt, sweat-stained, and long enough to cover your pajama shorts. Your flip-flops smack through café, earning you strange looks from the people dining. 

Rafe’s lining up for a shot when Topper and Kelce notice you running across the course. They don’t say anything to their friend, deciding to wait and see what happens. When you’re close enough that you don’t have to yell, but still have to raise your voice, you stop, panting and breathless.

“Rafael!” You call.

He looks over and sees you, clad in his t-shirt and wiping sweat from your forehead. The beat in his chest quickens and he clutches his golf club tight, squeezing out his nerves. 

You start making your way towards him, kicking off your flip-flops, and running through the course, not caring how you must look.

You launch yourself into Rafe’s arms, not a single speck of doubt that he’ll catch you.

And he does.      

He drops his golf club, and grabs you the second you’re close enough, lifting you into his arms and holding you tightly against his chest.

Your arms are slung around his neck as you nuzzle into the crook of it. “Rafe,” You murmur into his sweaty skin.

“What is it baby?” His lips are at your ear, his words for you, and you only. Your legs tighten around his waist, as you shyly bury your face in his neck. 

“I have to tell you something.”

He turns away from the curious looks of your friends, and holds you closer, which you didn’t think possible. The warmth radiating from his body makes your head spin, woozy with how close he is. 

“I didn’t mean what I said.” You speak up, pulling away just enough to cup his face with your hands. “I want to be with you. Only you.” You say, looking into his eyes, sparkling with anticipation. 

He opens his mouth to respond but you cut him off gently. 

“Sorry can I,” You sigh heavily, chest heaving. “Can I just get this out before I lose my nerve?” He nods, encouraging you to keep going.

“I was awful to you.” You say quietly, cheeks burning in shame. “I didn’t want anyone to know because I was embarrassed. But not of you…of me.”

He frowns, eyes softening as you continue.

“Rafe, I spent our practically our whole lives hating you—or pretending to. I felt stupid for falling for you. And I was afraid of getting hurt.”

His heart squeezes in his chest, aching at the thought of you feeling that way. 

“But Rafe, I know you won’t hurt me. I’ve seen what kind of person you are. You’re a good person and I’m sorry I never saw it before.” You’re looking down now, cheeks heating under his intense gaze. “Also, I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you.”

His smile is unbelievably large, the full teeth, cheeks hurt kind of smile that makes your heart race. 

“Can I talk now?” He wonders seriously, not mocking. You nod, gentle gaze fixed on his face.

“I love you, like an insane amount. Pretty sure I’ve been in love with you since I was fifteen, or maybe—probably—before that. And the last thing I would ever want is to hurt you. That’s why I agreed to it, and that’s why walked away. I did what I thought you wanted me to.”

“I know that now.” You frown. “I’m so sorry Rafe.”

“Don’t want you to be sorry sweet girl.” He smiles softly. “It’s okay. I get it. I fucked around a lot; I don’t blame you for being hesitant.”

You nod again. “I love you.” You say softly, shyly.

His grin breaks out again, chest swelling. “Can you tell me again?” He wonders sheepishly, pink sprinkling his cheeks. 

“I love you, Rafe.”

He giggles, preening under your gaze. 

“You love me!” He sing-songs lightly. He turns, your body still firmly grasped in his arms, spinning you around, before pressing his lips to yours in a quick peck.

“Rafe.” You groan, rolling your eyes playfully. 

“You wanna bang me baby.” He informs you quietly, a shit-eating grin on his face.

“No one says that anymore, loser.” You grin, eyes dancing with affection. 

“Oh, would you prefer to make love?” His laugh is contagious—you don’t think you’ve ever seen him look so happy.

“No!” You’re giggling uncontrollably now. 

When his laughter ceases, you nudge your nose against his, melting into his eyes. You press a quick peck to his lips before speaking again:

“God you’re annoying, I love you.”

 © witchwyfe 2022. absolutely no reposting, translating, or modifying, even with credit.

[lowlylux]

So You Love Me? (Yeah)

Chapter One This Party's Shit

Word Count: 2k

Status: In Progress

Rating: E

Description:

Both Heizou and Scara stay quiet for a bit before Scara seems to realize they were in the middle of a conversation. “But Ei didn’t tell you about the band?”

“The what?”

“Ei thought that it would be a good idea to combine some of her artists and just make a band. She announced it last night. Thought she told you.”

Heizou checks his phone, noticing the multiple missed calls from his manager. “She tried.” His attention snaps back to Scara, his brows furrowing in confusion. “Who’s going to be in the band?”

ao3 Link

Heizou quietly grabs his shoes, keeping them in his hands as he rushes out of the room, careful not to wake up the sleeping figure wrapped in the scratchy hotel room sheets.  He probably should not have been drinking, at least not the amount he ended up doing last night.  He probably should not have gone with the first warm body who came up to him afterwards, no that was moronic.

And the problem is, he is smart.  Like, really smart.  He should have known that it was a risk, that acting recklessly would lead him into a trap, but he frankly did not care.  Why would it affect him if his public identity is tainted?

He opens the front door of the hotel, shoes still on hand, immediately blinded by flashing lights.  It was so strange, the hotel was eerily quiet.  Not a sound to be heard the entire trek to the front door.  However, the moment he emerged from the building, it was like the world woke up again.  

Heizou instinctively covers his face with his hand as voices meld together, just giving him a headache.  Or is it because he is horribly hungover?  Nonetheless the paparazzi is probably not helping him one bit.  

He cannot even understand them.  Their questions fall to deaf ears as he just wants to escape.  He doesn’t remember how he got here, but he knows he was not the one driving.  Even drunk, he is not that much of an idiot.  No, his car is safely parked and locked at the bar.  

But what he does hear is a car screech.  He squints, trying to find the source of the sound, but with all the flashing lights he quickly realizes that is a stupid idea.  A door slams, and suddenly he is grabbed, being pulled around.  He jerks away, staring at the culprit in shock.

He looks familiar, but Heizou definitely does not recognize the man.  But the aggressive stranger just glares at him.  “Get in the fucking car, Ei needs you.”

Heizou just has to hear the name of his manager for him to accept the man, allowing the tugging to continue so that he can make his way to the car.  He is pushed into the car, his face impacting the seat before he can gain his balance.  

It smells like naku weed.

Suddenly he is far more trusting of this individual, especially since it is quite obvious that he is using a company vehicle to do things off the clock.  Truly his type of man.

The driver’s side door slams closed after the unknown man slips in, grumbling to himself as he honks the horn in an attempt to part the crowd.  “Get the fuck out of the way!” He screams after lowering the window, honking his horn at the same intensity.  The man grumbles, rolling up the window and slumping into the seat.

It is quiet in the car for a moment, and Heizou really does not know what he can do.  He covers his face, avoiding the flashing cameras to the best of his ability.  He gets so distracted by the annoying individuals who make it their entire life goal to get an incriminating photo that he does not even notice at first when the unknown man dials a number using the car dashboard.

“Scara…it’s the middle of the morning…what the hell?!”

Heizou’s attention snaps to the dashboard, recognizing the voice.  He glances at the man who he now knows is Scara and then back to the car.  “I need a favor.”

“At three in the morning?”

“You can kick Heizou’s ass next time you see him,” Scara grumbles, flipping off a person who takes a picture of him.  “Can you and Diluc go somewhere? Need a distraction so I can drive.”

“Diluc is asleep, like I should be.”

“Then wake him up,” Scara hisses out, honking his horn for good measure.  “Childe, I swear to fucking god, I will do whatever you want.”

“…anything?”

“Anything,” the man confirms, resting his forehead on the steering wheel.  He lets out a sigh, seemingly attempting to calm down.  “Dude, we need a way out of here.”

“Alright, can you give me ten minutes?”

“You have five,” Scara says, hanging up before Childe can respond.  He glances at Heizou, sending the man a glare before dialing another number, allowing it to ring before someone picks up.  “Lumine, are you still friends with Charlotte?”

“Yeah? Scara, this isn’t a great-“

“Call Charlotte, tell her that Childe and Diluc are going out.  I need her to get the word out.”

“Wha-“ she asks before the line goes silent for a moment.  Heizou swears he hears a sigh from her end.  “Fine.”

“Much appreciated, see you later,” Scara says, hanging up on her as well.  He slumps into the seat, holding the horn in a feeble attempt to disperse the group once more.  “You’re making my life much harder than it needs to be.”

“How was I supposed to know this would happen?”

“Who goes to a bar and fucks the first person who goes to you?  You’re famous, act like it.”

Heizou’s eye twitches uncontrollably as he starts to dislike this stranger who seems to have far too many opinions.  “I haven’t released new music in a while, how was I supposed to know they were gonna set me up?”

Scara stares at him for a moment, seemingly a spark of realization hitting him.  “Did Ei not tell you?”

“Tell me what?”

“Oh thank fuck,” Scara says suddenly when people begin to disperse.  He looks upwards almost comically.  “I’m going to owe Childe so much,” he says, closing his eyes for a moment before starting the car and pulling away.

Both Heizou and Scara stay quiet for a bit before Scara seems to realize they were in the middle of a conversation.  “But Ei didn’t tell you about the band?”

“The what?”

“Ei thought that it would be a good idea to combine some of her artists and just make a band.  She announced it last night.  Thought she told you.”

Heizou checks his phone, noticing the multiple missed calls from his manager.  “She tried.”  His attention snaps back to Scara, his brows furrowing in confusion.  “Who’s going to be in the band?”

••••••

“Who’s A?” 

Lumine’s head snaps toward her brother, causing the car to swerve to the side.  She does not even bother apologizing to Kazuha, who was sleeping without a seatbelt in the back and got to experience the pain of his head smacking on the glass.  “Why do you have my phone?”

“You asked me to answer it for you when Scaramouche called.”

“That was not an invitation to start snooping.”

“You should have specified that.”

“I swear to fucking-“ she cuts herself off, extending out her hand, expecting him to give back her phone.  He does not do that though, which annoys her to no end.  “I will give you the worst song on the planet next time Ei has me write you something.”

Aether gasps, placing the phone in her hand.  “You wouldn’t dare.”

“I wouldn’t?” She asks, deciding to keep her eyes on the road.  “Try me.  How do you want me to refer to the next unnamed lover?  Call them a clown? Might work, especially with the goo goo eyes you’ve been sending Lyney.”

“We’re just friends.”

“Right, and I’m into Tartaglia,” she says sarcastically, pulling into the studio.  “Do you think he would appreciate being sung about?  It could include things only you two know, making it a whole Taylor Swift scenario.”

Aether sends her a look before looking behind himself, reaching over and shaking Kazuha awake.  How the man stayed asleep after hitting the window, Lumine does not care to find out.  Kazuha grumbles awake, squinting his eyes.  “Is it still an ungodly hour?”

“Blame Ei, not me,” Lumine says, shutting off the car and slipping out.  “But, if you two don’t get your asses up there, she’s going to have mine so let’s get going.”

A few more grumbles from the car, but overall she decides this mission is an amazing success.  Both boys actually get out of the car, which shocks her.  She glances at her phone, frowning at the messages Aether was looking at.

There’s a new Furina movie out do you wanna go see it together ??? Seen

It probably is better she did not get a response, especially with Aether snooping, but it still upsets her.  If they’ve seen it, they should be able to respond.  But no, they are busy.  Maybe they have yet to see it and the phone is glitching, yes that must be it.

Lumine puts away her phone, going with that conclusion.  It truly is the best one for her sanity.  It is simply too early to have negative thoughts.  

The elevator ride is uneventful.  If it were later in the day, most likely conversations would have taken place, but it is far too early to converse amongst each other.  When the doors open, Lumine cannot help but smile at Scaramouche who is leaning on a wall, staring blankly at his phone.

She doesn't even know if he actually notices her.

She does not even take it to heart.  Yes, they knew each other years ago, but that was years ago.  They have both changed, and even if they have each other’s numbers, that does not mean they have truly stayed in contact.

Ei sits at her desk, being the only one who seems actually awake.  Her hair is pulled into a tight bun, a feat Lumine is jealous of, simply because of how much this woman has.  “I’m glad all of you made it,” Ei says, not keeping her gaze on anyone in particular.

“Actually, I’m going to have to refuse to join whatever you’re doing,” Heizou says, glancing at the group.  Lumine recognizes the remaining people, those being Venti and Xiao.  Venti is borderline sleeping on Xiao’s shoulder, and the aforementioned man does not seem to care.  “I’m a solo artist.”

“And you’re now a part of the band.”

“No-“

“It’s in your contract,” Scaramouche says calmly, not looking up from his phone.  “It’s in all of our contracts.”

“I’m sorry, you’re a musician?” Heizou questions, causing Scaramouche’s gaze to snap forward.

Scaramouche stares him down for a moment, thoughts circulating his mind before he looks away.  “I’m retired.”

“What are you doing here then?”

“Scaramouche,” Ei says carefully, her gaze trained on Heizou, “is going to be working behind the scenes.  Protection during concerts, keeping track of your reputations, things like that.”

“And he knows how to do that?”

“Heizou, just shut up,” Lumine mutters.

“It’s a valid concern!” Heizou says, crossing his arms.  “And if it’s in our contract, why don’t I know about it?”

“Because you didn’t read the contract,” Kazuha sighs out, leaning on the wall.  “You heard the perks and signed before hearing anything that would benefit the label.”

“I-“ Heizou cuts himself off, seemingly thinking.  For a small moment, Lumine internally celebrates, because the man is finally quiet.  Perhaps that is mean, but she cannot bring herself to care.

“I expect all of you to put everything into this group, am I clear?”

“What about our solo careers?” Xiao asks, accidentally jostling Venti awake.  “You can’t expect us to put everything on pause for an experiment.”

“Obviously we aren’t canceling your solo careers,” Ei assures, waving him off.  “But I want to see how far you all can take this.  Lumine has already been crafting a few songs that I think will elevate all of your individual talents.  We can always come together again and rethink if it does not go well.”

Heizou sends her a glare, letting out a small sigh.  “We don’t have a choice…do we?”

Ei just sends him a closed eyed smile, an expression that Lumine wonders is Ei attempting to stop herself from strangling the man.  She knows it is hard enough for herself to avoid doing so.  “You don’t.”

“Great,” Kazuha mutters, shaking his head.  “When do we start?”

>> 02

masterlist

[cinewhore]

The Take Over - chapter two

Pairing: Marcus Pike x fem!reader

Rating: mature

word count: 2.5k

read the first chapter

warnings: mentions of body horror - peeling skin, sticking fingers down someone’s mouth, general angst

Summary: You investigate the body in Danny’s house and pay a visit to an old friend. 

A/N: This is an Invasion of the Body Snatchers AU. You don’t need to watch the film to understand what’s going on. Credit to the gif maker(s). No beta.

You regard the body with immense disgust and a slight intrigue. You were one hundred percent sure that Danny had called to fuck you, yapping your ear off about a body in his house that happened to look like him. Didn’t seem at all possible. Until you dragged Marcus out of the house with you, all the way to Danny’s and Sydney’s place, just to start at this thing on his floor.

“So, can you tell me what it is?” Danny prompts, scratching at his face. You frown, cocking a head toward him.

“I’m a fucking doctor, not a forensic expert.”

Danny shrugs. “Same thing, isn’t it?”

“Is it going to kill us?” Sydney rambles on, body shaking nonstop.

You breathe out slowly through your nose, pinching the bridge of it with two fingers. Marcus reads your gesture clearly, grabbing Sydney lightly by the elbow.

“Let’s go make some tea, that should help us calm down. Give them some room to work.”

Sydney agrees and follows Marcus to the kitchen. You shed your coat, pushing the coffee table back to create something semblance of a workspace. The body looked like Danny but there was no indication of it having any sort of sentience.

“Was it always lying here?”

“As far as I know. Sydney got up to get some water and then I heard her scream. Came running with the fucking bat and she’s cowering in the corner, pointing at this.” Danny lowers himself down into a squat. “I can’t believe this. It’s like a wax figure.”

An idea sparks.

“Dan, get me a paper and some ink, please.”

It takes a moment to find loose ink but Danny returns with the items faithfully, catching onto your scheme. He’s careful as he lifts the arm of the body, observing as you wet the fingertips, pressing them down on the paper.

“Huh, no fingerprints.”

“Freaky.” Then, “what does that mean?”

“If you ever really wanted to leave no traces, you’d burn your fingertips. Old school but it’ll do the trick. Unless, there were no fingertips to burn.”

Sydney and Marcus return, Sydney more at peace. Marcus offers you a cup of tea but you deny it, too keyed up to get distracted. To be honest, your stomach had been doing flips since you had gotten the phone call and you didn’t plan on vomiting anytime soon.

“What do we know so far?” Marcus asks you.

“I don’t know.”

You didn’t like giving that answer but it was the truth. Quickly glancing at Sydney, you change your tone.

“I don’t think it’ll cause any harm, though. At most it seems that it's still growing.”

“Can you move it?” Danny pipes up, holding the cup near his mouth to take a sip.

“I wouldn’t want to, im not sure if this is an active crime scene I’m fucking with and i don’t think the cops will be appreciative of me tampering with evidence.”

“The cops?” Sydney tightens the robe around her body. “Why would you call the cops? They’ll take one look at this and send us straight to the mental institute, I'm sure of it.”

Your annoyance flairs. “Well what else am I supposed to do? Listen, here’s what’s going to happen: my husband and I are going to go back home. You two are gonna sit here and monitor it, see if anything changes. If it does, call the cops. If it doesn’t, call the morgue.”

“So I just call the hospital and tell them that I have a dead body in my living room that looks like me but isn’t? C’mon, there has to be another way we can handle this.”

You glance at Marcus then back at Danny.

“Fine. Move it someplace more isolated but where you can keep a good look at it. If it wakes up or moves, call me or Marcus. We’ll deal with it, all of us, together.”

Sleeping didn’t come easy afterwards. You popped a few melatonins against Marcus’s judgment, not caring about the time but just wanting a solid sleep. You slip into unconsciousness an hour later, Marcus curled up near your back. You awake a little later, absolutely still in the throws of the heavy weight of slumber. It takes you a minute but you drag yourself out of the bed, your bladder screaming for attention. Trudging to the bathroom, you stop when you notice a light on in the kitchen downstairs.

You hadn’t remembered leaving a light on and even though it was out of your eyesight, the thought of a light being on made your teeth rattle. Taking it step by step, you make your way down the stairs, rubbing your eyes with the hope that it would make you more alert. For all you know there could be a thief in the house and you’d have no willpower to stop them in this state.

You halt in your steps, eyebrows drawing tight together upon noticing Marcus’s figure on the couch. He was asleep, some book long forgotten in his lap. You open your mouth to wake him but no sound comes out. Out of the corner of your eye, you detect a slight hint of movement. A figure emerges from the darkness of the adjacent hallway, you.

It was you and it wasn’t you. You were you, half asleep and dressed in an old t-shirt. The other you was completely nude. You stare in horror as she slips gracefully into the light fully, grinning at your expression. You don’t dare move an inch as she saddles up to you, taking a hand and delicately ghosting it over your face.

“You’re not real.” you barely mutter, voice hoarse.

“And you are?” she retorts.

It even laughed like you.

“What do you want?”

She scrunches her face in faux thought, humming. “Better. For you.” She tilts her head back at Marcus. “For him.”

“Please,” you beg. “Don’t involve him in this.”

You swear you see her face morph into something damn near demonic as she slinks towards your husband. She places herself on his lap, shushing him as he fidgets.

“He deserves so much more than what you have to offer. After all, he did give up his life so that you could have your dream.”

You shake your head. “No, this – this was our dream.”

“A silly little thing you keep telling yourself to make it through the day. With me, with us,” she fans her hand out to you. “We can have unimaginable things. You just have to let me in.”

“No.”

“Is that so?”

Your heart rattles in your chest as she advances upon you again, your feet finally cooperating with the rest of your body, allowing you to take a small step back.

She studies your face - her face - with a softness you had never experienced before. Is this how you actually looked to other people?

“Don’t be scared, it won’t hurt. We’ll start slow, ok?”

She pecks your lips, admiring the string of silvia that hangs from both of your mouths. She comes back in for another kiss and this time, you let her in further, parting your lips. Her tongue dances across yours, eliciting a tiny moan from you. She smiles as she pulls back, satisfied.

Her thumb rubs your bottom lip, teasing you as it slips in and out of your mouth. She pushes it further down, what started out as genuine curiosity turning into panic as she sticks more fingers in, her hand other ripping at your skin and tugging pieces of it off, the slight slap sound vibrating off of the kitchen floor, body fluids squelching and-

“Baby?”

You lurch forward, eyes flying open and lungs working overtime to push out more oxygen as you dry heave. Marcus sits in the bed next to you, the dark sky now replaced with sunlight streaking through the blinds.

You claw at your chest, mouth and face before lowering your head into your hands, a sob escaping your lips.

Marcus pulls you into his arms, leaving kisses in your hair.

“It’s ok, it’s ok, you were just dreaming. You’re ok.”

You take a few more deep breaths, extracting yourself from Marcus. Glancing at the nightstand, you snatch your phone off the charger.

“Did Syd or Danny call?”

Marcus shakes his head, clearly troubled by your behavior. “Are you alright?”

You know you should tell him what you saw, what you felt but figured there was no use in scaring him as well. You were going to get down to the bottom of whatever the fuck was going on but first you had some business you needed to handle.

Hitting 3 on your speed dial, you bite at the skin around your index finger. Janie picks up on the second ring.

“Where the hell are you? You promised coffee and I purposely skipped making any this morning.”

“I’m not coming in today, feeling a little under the weather. Have Shannon and Peter pick up any extra patients.”

“Of course.” a pause. “What’s going on? Really?”

You sigh. “Did Linda call?”

Janie pulls the phone away from her ear, blowing out an aggravated huff. She hated when you left her in the dark, especially when it concerned your work. You agree that she has a right to know but only when you’re absolutely sure of everything yourself.

“Yeah, she did, actually. Said she was being dramatic and that Joe is just fine.”

“Anything else?”

“Nope, she just canceled her appointment after and hung up. Sounded pretty chipper about it.”

“Fuck.”

Janie grunts. “Will you just tell me what in the hell is going on? I will show up to your doorstep, so help me-”

“Janie! I need you to shut up and listen to me for a second, ok?”

She settles down. You continue.

“There’s something strange happening in this town and I’m trying to understand it. When I know more, you’ll know more. For now, I just need you to promise to keep your mouth shut and eyes open. Can you do that for me?”

Janie swallows harshly, poking her tongue out to lick her lips. Usually she had some sort of snarky comment on her lips but the waver in your voice let her know that this was serious business.

“Yeah, yeah I can do that for you.”

“Good. Call me if you notice anything.”

Click.

You avoid Marcus’s glare boring a hole in your back, moving from the bed and into your closet.

“Where are you going?”

You nearly chuckle at your own response. “To see a doctor.”

Dr. Narduzzi’s office was situated near the edge of town, partially hidden by the overgrown greenery. Despite his shy exterior, Jean was quite the socialite, known to frequent many of the bars and taverns. Upon meeting the scrawny gentleman, you were unsure of what to make of him. He rubbed you in all the wrong ways, his loud and boastful personality clashed with yours directly.  Over time you began to see beneath the surface and learned to appreciate his eccentric methods.

Honestly, he had become one of your closest confidants.

As you entered his office, you noticed his secretary, Margot, was not present. The entire place was empty, except for a repeating thud sound coming from Jean’s study near the back of the building.

The door was open and that’s where you find the psychiatrist, launching darts at a board.

He flicks his wrist and sends a dart flying, narrowly missing the bullseye.

“You’re a very busy man, I see.” you remark, sitting down in an armchair. You applauded him for the velvet material, you would purchase something like this for your own office but loathed the cleaning process that came with it.

“As always, my dear. As I remember, we have not scheduled our regular tête a tête, so this is a business meeting,” he throws another dart and misses, landing in the outer right corner. “What can I help you with today?”

“I think I’m losing my mind.”

Jean’s toothy gap smile almost covered his whole face. He haphazardly throws the remaining darts in his hand all at the same time, not caring where they end up as he sits at his desk. “Tell me more.”

“Last night, I had this dream where I was antagonized by..myself. I was looking at my reflection except it wasn’t in a mirror, she was standing right in front of me.”

Narduzzi squints his eyes as he nods, hanging onto every word you said. You don’t spend much longer describing the dream, the recounting of the story sending chills down your spine.

“That’s very interesting.” Jean thinks, rocking himself back and forth in his chair.

“I don’t need interesting, I need a solution.”

Jeans tsks. “A solution only comes when there’s something to be fixed.”

“Oh, don’t give me this metaphorical bullshit now, Jean. What does this mean? I haven’t mentioned it before, not even to Marcus but I’ve been having hallucinations and dreams like this prior to last night. I just assumed I was dehydrated, stressed or whatever but this is clearly something.”

“Mhm. Well, I know that the mirror and our reflection show us our true selves.” He rubs at his jaw.

“Are you saying that a part of me wants what she wants?”

“Potentially,” Jean gets up from his chair, coming to stoop in front of you. He grabs your hands, rubbing them in between his own. “While I do think there are some clear signs of stress and exhaustion, I think you should listen to your body. Give in. You may be surprised to see what you discover.”

The smile on your face fades as Jean squeeze’s your hands tighter, his grip pinching at your skin.

“Jean-”

You struggle in his hold, unsure of what to make of this.

“Jean, please, let go. You’re hurting me.” you breath out a panicked laugh, mustering up all of your body strength to throw him off of you.

“Don’t you get it? All the signs, practically handed to you on a silver platter. Let her in and all will be well. You can be one of us.”

Your fight or flight instincts kick in and you tackle Jean, the both of you tumbling around on the ground until you manage to escape him. You scoop up your keys and cellphone, dashing out of the door.

You don’t dare look behind you as you enter your car, skirting out of the parking lot and onto the main road. You barely let your feet up off the gas until you reach home, throwing your car in park and making a run for the front door.

You were in such a state that you didn’t notice the extra car in your driveway.

“Marcus? Marcus!” you yell, tearing through the kitchen and living room. Marcus emerges from his office, Sydney and Danny in tow.

“We have a problem.” you pant, short-winded.

Marcus looks grim. “Yeah, we do. That thing, it woke up.”