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loveswrites · 2 months ago

Text

Living Hell Poly Cullens X Reader

Time it took me: 2 hours

Word count: 1240

To My Love's~ I hope you guys liked it!

Love <3

“Your love has truly made my life a living hell.”

“Wait what?” Edward said, confused by your words. The two of you had been walking in the woods in silence because you just needed a break from.. Everything.

“Not just you, Alice, Emmett, and the rest.” You sighed as you stepped on an orange leaf that looked like the perfect crunchy fall leaf. Just for it to not crunch. If you weren’t already irritated you were now.

“A living hell huh?” Edward questioned back to himself but you knew he expected an answer from you.

“I want things I didn’t before. Like the other week, Alice took Rose, Esme and I to France to go shopping and just like that every Tuesday that’s all I want to do.” You spoke with the sound of tears in the back of your throat.

The moment those words came out of your mouth the walking next to you paused. Confused, you turned around to see Edward standing a few steps behind you with a dumbfounded look on his face that only turned into a sly smirk when you tilted your head to question why he stopped.

“Any other reason you feel like we’ve made your life a living hell?” He questioned. Blinking at him you nodded.

“Go ahead. Tell me.” He smiled.

“Fine. You and Jasper for example you guys took me out at night a few weeks ago to see this beautiful waterfall out of state and now everynight before I go to sleep I yearn to fall asleep to the sounds of that very waterfall.” You finished with a pout.

Edwarded hummed in response as he walked closer to you. You turned around thinking you both were about to resume your walk but Edward had different plans. Grabbing you from behind Edward sweeps you off your feet making you squeal in shock. Squeezing your eyes shut and before you knew it you were back on your feet. Wobbling you put both hands on your head in attempts to stop the spinning and dropped to a fetal position.

And softly you whispered.

“I am sick of you cold brick hoes throwing my equilibrium off.”

“Heyy I thought you liked the cold.” You heard no one but the one and only Emmett say.

“Why are we back here?” You whispered trying to keep yourself from throwing up. You had already been mentally trying to deal with the fact that you feel like you're peeing on yourself with no control. And the cramps that came every five minutes like contractions. Now this.

“I want you to tell everyone else what you just told me outside.” Edward said and soon after you heard more footsteps come into the room.

“That I want to sleep by a waterfall?” You questioned wincing as a cramp came through like a lightning strike.

“I booked the flights already.” Alice spoke to which you could only hear still having your eyes closed.

“That’s not the first part baby.” Edward spoke softly with a smile in his voice.

“That y’all make my life a living hell?” You answered.

“Yeah that one.”

“Us?!” You could only assume Rose shouted.

“Yes y'all! And can you lower your voice? It's loud in here.” You requested.

“Are we the vampires or is she?” Jasper snickered.

“The heightened senses are for another reason Jasper.” The supernatural doctor voiced.

“Smell her.”

“Ew.” You frowned.

“She smells the sa-. Ohh..”

“Oh my god.” You rolled over to just lay face first on the floor. This was the most embarrassing thing ever. You can just smell me and be like oh yeah she’s bleeding that’s cool. You thought to yourself.

“That’s why she’s been moody all day. I thought she was still mad at me from yesterday.” Emmett laughed out.

“Oh I didn’t forget! I’m still mad!” You yelled out sitting up forgetting about any dizziness to defend yourself.

“It's been more than 24 hours!” He yelled back.

“You're not even human and yet you ate all my snacks?! How does that even make sense to you?! Someone explain it to me please!” You yelled still mad Emmett ate your favorite snack. After a long day of well.. Living all you wanted to do was lay in bed with your love’s and eat the snack you had been craving since you woke up but had saved for later. If you knew big back here was going to devour them you would’ve eaten all of them at 5 am that morning.

“I was hungry!” He yelled back making the rest of the room snicker.

“You were just eating to eat fatty!” You yelled throwing the closest thing to you which was an empty candy wrapper at him.

“Hey! No need to body shame, this is all muscle baby.” Emmett smirked. Making you roll your eyes.

“See. Hell.” You stated to Edward pointing to Emmett making him laugh.

“What do you mean by hell though?” Rose questioned brushing a piece of her hair behind her ear. You knew she genuinely wanted an answer.

“By hell I mean you do so many nice things for me it.. It makes me expect them. Sometimes I find myself expecting these things from you guys and when it doesn’t happen I can sometimes get disappointed that you can’t read my mind.” You finished snickering at the same time as Edward.

“So we make your life a living hell because we treat you the way you deserve to be?” Carlisle asked.

“Yes A living hell because I want it all the time.” You nodded.

“By living hell do you mean you want a little extra more love today?” Esme asked.

“I mean.. Hell doesn’t always have to be hot you know?”

With those words you were set for the night.

Laying in the big california king sized bed your loves had bought so you all could lay in bed together and it not be.. So difficult. It’s still difficult, you can’t even lie. But that’s what always brings a smile to your face. Hearing Emmett and Alice fuss over whose foot is on whose and Rose just straight up kicking Edwards leg off of her to which he says..

“Rose, I wasn't even touching you.”

“It was close enough.” Rose bites rolling her eyes.

“I can’t find that one show we’ve been watching.” Jasper whispers to himself as he clicked through the Hulu acc to find the show you all have been watching together.

“It’s on Netflix Jasper.” Esme says to which Jasper nodded in response.

You let out a soft hum as Carlisle laid your head on his chest gently stroking your hair. Your eyes slowly fluttered close.

“You deserve all the love in the world beautiful. You deserve even more than what we give you, understand?” He spoke softly, making you nod in response.

“We love you so much and even if you feel like it’s too much to ask just know we feel it’s not enough. We wish to give a thousand times more than what we do now.” Carlisle continued Softly kissing your forehead.

“Is that even possible?” You questioned.

“We attend to show you that it is for the rest of our lives pretty.” Jasper answered kissing your hand that he only held previously.

The night was full of soft touches, belly rubs, snacks and movies.

These were the times you found priceless. And these are the times you yearn for.

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yutarot · 2 months ago

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the forbidden fruit. — req by anon

genre: vampire!jaehyun x reader

warnings: mentions of death

wc: 2.7k

notes; i enjoyed writing this so much, thank u for the request!!

synopsis: your quiet life shatters the night you meet jaehyun—a dark, mysterious stranger who emerges only at dusk. you’re drawn to the intrigue of his haunted character, unaware he’s a centuries-old vampire, burdened by a past he longs to escape. though he tries to keep his distance, jaehyun can’t resist the warmth he finds in you. just as your connection deepens, a even darker rival appears, threatening to reveal jaehyun’s secret and tear you apart. now, you must decide: confront the darkness surrounding you both or risk losing a love that transcends life and death.

you never knew why, but he has always intrigued you. having recently moved back to your hometown to look after your late grandmother’s bookshop, you spend each day stacking books and listening to the crackling wire of her old radio. the weather always seemed to be an abundance of mist, the town nestled between dark forests and ancient mountains. but you never thought you would find love here, especially not with the mysterious, reserved, and almost cold man who lurked between the bookshelves every day before you closed.

at first, it didn’t bother you; you get regulars all the time. but there was something about his quiet intensity, always finding him lurking in the shadows, emerging only when the sun dipped below the horizon. it was strangely magnetic.

so that leads you to now, having to close the store early in order to accommodate some of your grandmother’s old friends. somehow lacking any kind of fear, you walk through the shelves in search of any lingering customers.

that’s where you find him, brooding yet strikingly handsome, holding a copy of twilight in his left hand, gently flicking through the pages with his right. almost immediately, he senses your presence. but he doesn’t look up, instead keeping his eyes trained on the page as he speaks to you.

“you know, i’ve always wondered what the apple on the cover represents,” he says, his voice shockingly gentle. “some say it shows their forbidden love, like the apple from genesis, morally wrong yet intriguingly good.” he puts down the book, slowly lifting his eyes to you. “but i think it’s more than that. i think it shows edward’s desire, his temptation,” he walks towards you, slowly, “his want.”

he stops in front of you, looking down at your expression of confusion.

“what about you? what do you think it shows?”

you’re quiet for a moment. “i think that edward is the forbidden fruit. he’s the bad decision she makes, he’s the sin.”

he smiles at your answer. “i’ve never looked at it that way before.”

gaining confidence, you reply. “meyer quoted genesis in the beginning of the book, but i don’t think it’s the romance that was forbidden. it was him.”

“you really know your stuff,” he replies.

“you’ve read all the books in here?” you say jokingly, but his answer catches you by surprise.

“just about.”

“what?” you laugh, “that would take, like, centuries.”

his eyes darken, jaw clenching. “something like that.”

you didn’t see him for a few weeks after that. he had vanished, completely and utterly removed from your life but, never, from your mind.

he was all you could think about. every passing day you searched for him between the darkness of the bookshelves, his dark hair, his tall frame, but you never found him.

that was until the day you decided to leave the bookshop. you don’t usually leave to go on walks, but amidst the autumn breeze, you needed a break from the essence of old paper and ink.

the leaves crunching beneath your feet and the frost nibbling at your cheeks, you find comfort in the environment around you. it was dusk, your favorite grey color of the sky setting a backdrop for the orange hue of the trees. walking past a frozen lake, you take in the sights, scanning your eyes around to take it all in.

suddenly, you feel a chill arise along your skin.

you aren’t alone.

you turn frantically, feeling the presence of someone moving around you, but your movements quickly betray you as you stumble on your feet, falling backward.

processing what just happened, you stay seated, the urge to get up and leave mysteriously absent.

something—someone—is making you stay.

and that becomes immediately clear the moment you hear his voice.

“yn ln.” it’s the man from the bookshop.

you’re taken aback. “how do you know my name?”

“i’m not stupid.”

“what?”

“you were watching me in that bookstore, ever since the first day i visited, and now your heart aches at my absence. do you wish to explain?”

your heart races as you watch his jaw clench. explain? your mind whirs in circles. in all honesty, you have no idea.

but he’s right. your heart does ache.

he continues, “i was away.” he offers his hand to help you up. “on a trip.” you take his hand.

immediately, the chill you felt before returns. his hand is cold, lacking all and any warmth. it was as if he were sucked dry of life, completely and utterly soulless.

you gain balance on your feet before you speak up.

“who are you?”

that singular question seems to dull his senses, the smile on his face wiped clean.

“who am i?” he repeats, eyes darkening like they did in the bookshop. he thinks for a moment before continuing, “walk with me.”

and so you do. you walk with him. stride after stride, he tells you about his life, about growing up in the neighboring town, about his mother who passed giving birth to him, and about his friends back in his hometown. you listen, not only to his stories but to his voice. it’s soothing, gentle, and something tells you that you’ll wish to hear more of it. but you notice there are important details missing; there’s something he’s not telling you.

when you both reach your bookstore again, he halts, signaling he’s dropping you off.

you walk to the door, but remembering your heartache at his former absence, you call out to him.

“when will i see you again… uh…” you pause, his name unknown to you.

“jaehyun.” he smiles, “and you will see me when you need me. it only takes patience, love.”

with that, you smile back, turning to put the key in the lock. but when you turn back to wave him goodbye, he’s gone, the place where he stood now only a puddle of brown leaves, encased in frost and the scent of the tall, dark stranger you now know as jaehyun.

in the weeks that followed, you saw him more frequently. each time he came into the bookshop, you would pass him a smile, and he would sit, engrossed in the worlds of the books he’s reading. each day you would talk about your shared interests, and each day your curiosity grew. you wanted to know everything about this man. it wasn’t just his looks that intrigued you; there was something aurally magnetic about him. the way he looked at you, like you were something he couldn’t have but desperately wanted. you wished to uncover why.

he had just picked up an edition of crime and punishment by dostoevsky when you come over to him, a warm mug of tea in your hands.

“i brought you this; you must be cold.”

he looks between the tea and you, a polite refusal in his eyes.

“…or not.”

he chuckles at your ability to read him. no one else has ever been able to do that to him. no one, until he met you.

jaehyun doesn’t come back for the books; he’s read every book in this little town bookstore. yet, each night, he finds himself at the front door, hoping for a chance to see you.

he doesn’t want to see you, he doesn’t want to talk to you.

but he needs it.

he folds the book over in one hand, leaning back in the soft, green velvet armchair you’ve placed in the corner of the bookshop.

he speaks, surprising you again with the softness of his voice. “i think it’s interesting.”

your brow twists in confusion before he continues.

“raskolnikov seems alienated from society, no matter what he does or how he does it.”

you listen intently.

“yes, he’s a murderer. but even before then, it was always his pride that separated him. it’s fascinating.”

“you enjoy literature a lot, don’t you?” you say.

he laughs. “a little. why else do you think i’m in here so often?”

a secret part of you was hoping for another reason for him to be here. but your mind was its own fantasy, unrealistic and yet completely tempting.

“you’re different from all the rest of my customers,” you reply.

this makes jaehyun’s face contort into an expression you’ve never seen him wear before: hope.

“how so?”

“i’m not entirely sure.”

your breath catches, caged by the fear of him suspecting the feelings that linger. but it’s almost as if he can hear your heart, beating in your chest. because you’re sure that he knows.

your conversation is abruptly interrupted when you hear the bell to the bookstore door ring, signaling that you’ve got a new customer.

“i should probably go and… yeah… enjoy the book!” you say to jaehyun, who laughs at the way you so easily panic over the tiniest situations. from an outsider, it would seem that someone had walked in with the intention of blowing the place up with the way that you reacted.

as you turn the corner to approach the customer, the chilling feeling you felt at the lake begins to fade into you. it makes you wonder if you were wrong about it, presuming it was just something you felt around jaehyun, but it made no sense. you’re walking away from him.

interrupted again from your thoughts, you arrive at the door, the customers back to you.

you reach up to tap him on the shoulder.

“hello, how can i hel-“

his hand covers your mouth.

“save the talking for when you need it.” the stranger whispers, as you push his hand away.

that was rude, you think to yourself.

the stranger continues. “im looking for… something.”

“what is it? maybe i can help you? it is my store..”

“hmmm. it’s about 300 years old, pretty.. local..”

you furrow your brows. 300 years?

“well, sir that could be anything. gullivers travels, candide, paradise lost?”

his eyes glimmer with amusement. “no, no, none of those. i’ll just have a look around myself.”

confused but albeit very annoyed by the man’s lack of respect, you allow him to look for himself. and you find yourself on your way back to where jaehyun is sitting.

only when you get there.

jaehyun is gone.

but the book remains on the green velvet armchair, open on its final page. you read the words in which had been underlined.

‘They wanted to speak, but could not; tears stood in their eyes. They were both pale and thin; but those sick pale faces were bright with the dawn of a new future, of a full resurrection into a new life. They were renewed by love; the heart of each held infinite sources of life for the heart of the other.’

you threw the book back down, the final sentence echoing over and over in your mind.

your heartache, his cold demeanour. it was as if you both needed each-other for the simple aspect of life.

startling you, you hear a bang across the other side of the bookshop.

you turn on your heel, pushing the thought of jaehyun to the back of your mind as you waver your way through the shelves. but your attempt to disregard your thoughts of him is soon in vain as you find him, holding the stranger by his collar against the shelf. jaehyuns eyes are the darkest you’ve ever seen them, his skin the palest it’s ever been. and his teeth.

you gasp to yourself, clutching your chest and trying to hold yourself up against the bookshelf.

you don’t recognise him, but he looks more like himself than he ever has.

his head turns in your direction and immediately his visage returns to normal, the stranger he’s holding removing jaehyuns grasp on him, chuckling to himself with a smirk.

your mind is spinning.

“so this is why you haven’t come home.” the stranger says to jaehyun.

his words from before come back to you. ‘hmmm. it’s about 300 years old, pretty.. local..’

he wasn’t talking about a book. he was talking about jaehyun.

you have nothing to say, nothing to feel or even think.

but the unease you felt about him before, seemingly has vanished.

everything you had been questioning. everything you were unsure of, has been answered.

the stranger continues, “i knew there was a reason. but i never would have suspected this.”

jaehyuns fists clench, knowing he can’t do anything with you here.

“your choice.” the stranger says to jaehyun before turning to you. “and by the way, pretty, im jungwoo.” he winks, before walking out the door and vanishing soon after.

you stay completely, and utterly still. jaehyuns eyes are only on you. he can’t tell what your thinking and it drives him utterly insane.

“are you okay?” he asks, stepping closer to you.

you should flinch, you should tell him to get out.

but you can’t.

you nod, slowly and indefinitely.

“i didn’t want this to happen,” he says, walking closer, slowly as to not scare you, “but you..”

you look up at him.

jaehyun holds a hand out to push a strand of hair from your face, gently. “you’ve done something to me.”

your eyes widen. but you can’t help but nod, a silent yet powerful indication of the way your feeling. but you know now that he can hear your heart, he can hear the reaction he has on you. he knows it’s not fear. it’s love.

he looks between both of your eyes, soaking in the feeling of being able to breathe in the same air as you. his hand finds your cheek and he leans down, everything is so slow, so gentle.

but before his lips could find yours. he stops himself, his brows crunching as if he’s in pain, hurt by having to let you go like this.

your eyes are full of questions. “why did you-“

“i can’t.” he says, sternly. “i can’t kiss you.”

“why not?”

his jaw clenches, his hand remaining softly on your face.

“i have a choice to make. this only makes that so much harder.”

“what choice?”

he gulps. you’ve never seen him nervous.

“either, i return to my family.” his hand brushes through your hair, reluctantly, and he pulls it away just as he states his next words. “or he tells my father.”

“what will happen if he told your father?”

he looks down, pain on his features.

“he’ll kill you.”

that’s when you realise. the forbidden fruit. it’s what he feels for you, what you feel for him, thats the sin.

‘but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shall surely die.’

he disappears, vanishes into nothing, as you stand, warmth returning to the air around you.

you let him go.

the next few weeks are tiresome. he hasn’t left your mind, and you haven’t left his. pain envelopes you everytime you think of him, soaring through your memories like dust in a cloud of wind.

in attempts to clear your head, you decide to take a walk again. the fog is heavier this evening, weaving through the trees and laying around the lake as if it were a blanket, soft and comforting.

you listen to the birds, melancholically singing away at eachother. but it only reminds you of your loneliness.

you long for him, mind and soul.

riddled by the effects of the winter air, the breeze makes you shiver. but when the cold doesn’t let up, the feeling oddly familiar, you turn.

there he is. standing before you, a tormented expression of a tortured soul, resting on his features.

this time, you walk to him. this time, you’re completely certain.

you stand before him.

“id rather die in the arms of certainty than to live without a chance.” you breathe, watching him intently.

but he only smiles, searching in your eyes. and at last, he presses his lips to yours.

he’s soft, yet firm.

he shouldn’t want you, he shouldn’t need you. but he does.

for if you died, it would be for this moment.

‘even more, i had never meant to love him. one thing i truly knew–knew it in the pit of my stomach, in the center of my bones, knew it from the crown of my head to the soles of my feet, knew it deep in my empty chest–was how love gave someone the power to break you.’ — stephenie meyer, twilight.

#nct #nct 127 #nct fanfic #jaehyun #jaehyun x reader #jeong jaehyun #jaehyun fanfic #angst #jaehyun angst #nct angst #vampire au

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flippinpancakes64 · 6 months ago

Note

hey can i request romantic moments between cullens and reader? btw i love your works🫶🏻

Romantic moments with the Cullens

Thank you so much! I think I’ll always be shocked whenever anyone says they like what I do so thank you.

And this one was a lot of fun to make! I did get a bit carried away at some points tho… I tried a new form of writing for me so hopefully it's good

Thank you for requesting and I hope you enjoy!

Edward:

You and Edward had been dating for almost two years now

You were about to graduate high school, your first time and his 100th

You had talked about doing so many things to memorialize your senior year

A scrapbook, a picture every day, a custom t-shirt

Literally everything

But you just kept forgetting

Between all of the stress of moving into your final year, saving up for college, working your part-time job, and all of your extracurriculars, fun stuff just slipped your mind

And now you were helping Alice set up for your graduation party and you’re realizing just how empty the place is

Not that there aren’t decorations, which there definitely are, it’s just nothing you wanted

The place was covered in black and gold and your favorite color

There were piles of your favorite foods

But then you looked at the empty table where all of your mementos are supposed to go

You have everything you technically need

Your baby pictures, all of your awards, your school picture from every year, and your acceptance letter to your future college

But it was still missing something, all of those little projects you had been wanting to do so badly but simply didn't

You turned away from your sad little table tucked away in a corner of the Cullen house when you see Edward standing in the doorway

He's carrying a huge box in his hands, stuff overflowing from the top

"Edward, what is all of that? Don't tell me it's more streamers, we don't have room. Unless you want to cover the entire house in them-"

"Shh. It's not streamers I promise. It's for you. I promise you'll love it."

He sets the box down on your memento table and instantly you recognize it all

The wooden box with your name on the side carved in fancy cursive lettering holds everything you wanted

You pull out a leather-bound journal, opening it reveals picture upon picture of you from every single day that year

Next is a basic white shirt, but scribbled all over it are signatures and notes from all of your friends and your favorite teachers

Underneath that is a framed picture of your senior parking spot, though it looks like Edward redrew it because you don't remember yours looking this good

In the bottom of the box lies a Build-a-Bear of your favorite animal dressed in a little cap and gown

You were speechless. He remembered every single thing that you wanted, all of your dreams that you forgot to fulfill, and he did them for you

"I have so many questions, but for right now just come here and give me a kiss"

"Gladly!"

Alice:

Today was your one-year anniversary of being turned into a vampire

And for your surprise, Alice decided she would take you to do something that you had always told her you wanted to do

Sit on the bottom of the deep end of the pool

And naturally, Alice went all out

You were out at the store with Esme when you got a call from Alice telling you to put on the clothes she laid out on your bed and to go into the backyard when you got home

To say you were confused would be an understatement

But you did it anyway

After you and Esme got home and you helped her bring in the new couch she bought, you trekked up to yours and Alice's shared room

Laying on your bed was a swimsuit that you had never seen before

It was your favorite color and it was adorned with jewels

Queasily, you wondered if they were real diamonds

Fake or not, you were still careful pulling it on

Of course it fit like a glove did you expect anything else

You walk out the back door and you see Alice sitting next to the pool, the sun reflecting off of her shiny skin with a big smile on her face

In her lap there was a small bag that was zipped tightly shut

"Okay, what's all this?"

"Well, remember when you were still human and you used to tell me all the time how all you wanted was to just go to the bottom of the pool and take a nap down there?"

"So that's what all this is? I can't even sleep anymore"

"Oh shush I know that, of course I have something else planned"

With that, she grabs the bag and dives headfirst into the pool

You can see her bright purple bikini as she makes her way to the bottom of the pool only stopping once she's 12 feet deep

You hesitate as you're about to follow her

You know that logically you'll be fine, but a human part still exists somewhere inside of you

Swallowing back your fear, you jump in, swimming down to the bottom to join Alice

"You don't need to hold your breath, silly. Go ahead, let it out"

You didn't even realize you were holding your breath

"Now, for the main event. Since it's your anniversary, I figured we could have a nice romantic dinner down here."

With that, she pulls out a small battery operated candle and flicks it on, the water above making it just barely dark enough for the candle to be visible

Next, she pulls out two pouches that have screw-on lids

"What is that?"

"Blood, of course. Fresh from the moose I caught this morning."

She hands you one, and underneath the pressure of the warm water, huddled around your little candle, you have the most romantic dinner of your life

Jasper:

To be honest, you were having a terrible week

You completely forgot about a really important essay that you needed for one of your AP classes, your favorite shirt got eaten by the washing machine, and now, your friends cancelled on you last minute when you were all supposed to go to the fair

You were sitting on your bed, still dressed in the outfit you were going to wear for the day, staring down at the text message from your friends

And you just started sobbing

It was too much

Jasper was downstairs at the time, he could feel your creeping sadness, but when your tears erupted, he knew he had to step in

He flew up the steps and stopped just outside of your door

He knocked and waited until you permitted him to come in

"What happened?"

"My friends... what are the chances that all four of them had something come up so suddenly? Do they hate me? I bet they do..."

He just took your hand and crept his ability into your mind, easing your sadness at least a little

When your sniffling finally came to an end, he grabbed your face to look at him

"Do you still want to go? To the fair, I mean"

You just looked at him shocked

"But, Jasper, you hate being out in public. I would never ask that of you"

"That's why you're not asking, I'm offering. Come on, let's go"

With that he pulls you out to the car and drives you to the fair

You drag him everywhere

From all of the food stands to every single ride, he goes willingly

If he is uncomfortable being around all of the sweet-smelling humans, he makes no indication of it

As the night is coming to an end and the blinking lights on the tents illuminate your face, you stand in front of a Pop-The-Balloon game

Just within your reach, so close you can taste it, a giant orange monkey stuffed animal hangs on the edge of the stall

The only thing between you and the monkey is your terrible darts skills

You've easily gone through 50 bucks, Jasper next to you always ready to hand the Carnie another couple of bills

"Are you sure you don't want me to try at least once?"

"I got this, Jasper. One more try, this next one is the one I can feel it."

He just sighs and fishes another couple of dollars out of his wallet

Of course, this round goes just as well as all of the other ones, leaving you even more frustrated

"Now can I try?"

"Ugh, go for it"

He pops every single balloon so fast you wonder if he used his super speed to race behind the counter to pop them all

The Carnie reluctantly handed over the monkey, and you were all too eager to take it

You didn't even care that you were still in a very public spot, you pulled Jasper in for one of the biggest kisses you've ever given

Rosalie:

You had been talking for weeks about buying a one-of-a-kind action figure from a seller online

There was someone on ebay who repainted various dolls and sold them

There was one that you had been eyeing specifically because it reminded you of Rosalie

Personally, she didn't think it looked like her at all but whatever

The two of you were laying in bed one afternoon peacefully when all of a sudden you shot up and screamed

She is on her feet instantly, looking around for the threat

But then you turn your phone screen to her, screaming about how someone outbid you at the very last moment and that now the doll is gone

"You can't just scream like that! You scared me"

"But Rose! It's gone! I can't believe it this is so unfair"

Cue the waterworks

She feels bad, she tries to console you, but you can't be reasoned with

Over the next couple of days, she tracks down every single detail that she can find about the person who "stole" the doll from you

She hacks into ebay's security system to find their address

And then she tells you that her and Alice are randomly taking a road trip

When she comes back, she invites you out to a nice dinner

She books out the entire dining room of a fancy restaurant and brings you there

As your appetizer and entree come out, you two talk

She makes up some made-up story about her "road trip" with Alice

Just as the waiter leaves with your dessert order, you see Rosalie pull out a wrapped box with a silver bow around it

"What's that?"

"A gift for you"

She hands you the package and on the inside is the little Rosalie look-alike and one more doll that strangely bears a striking resemblance to you

"Is this... is that... oh my god"

"I didn't go on a trip with Alice. Well, technically I did. But we drove to that guy's house and stole the doll back. Since he stole it from you in the first place, it's only fair you got it back."

"And this one? Where did this one come from?"

"He had a couple more in his house, I thought you might like that one too."

So now there are two dolls standing on one of the shelves in your room <3

Emmett:

You had no clue why Emmett was being so weird today

He seemed fidgety all day

That morning he woke you up with a plate of pancakes in bed, drizzled with syrup that he made himself

Then he took you out to the mall

He took you to a really fancy clothing store and had you pick out the most dazzling outfit you could find

He even got it custom tailored to you

After that he took you to the spa where you both got a deep tissue massage

You had tried to ask him multiple times what all this was for, but he never answered

He would just usher you on to the next thing

Now you were in one of Edward's nice foreign cars and he was driving you to somewhere else

"So... as much as I appreciate everything you've been doing today, really, what is this all for?"

"Oh come on, don't act dumb. And before you even ask, no, I don't need anything in return"

"You're literally not even making sense. What is today?"

"You know what day it is :) "

After that he doesn't answer any more of your questions

You just hold your complaints in the passenger seat as he finally parks the car in a spot along the pier

Out on the water, you see multiple couples floating in those pedal-powered swan boats

And then you see the grin on your idiot boyfriend's face

"Ugh, Emmett. Are we really getting on the swans?"

"Yes we are now come on and stop complaining"

You sit across from him floating atop the water, the fairy lights twinkling across your face

Emmett is smushed into his seat, it clearly wasn't made for someone as beefy as him

"So. Now are you gonna tell me what all of this was for?"

"Do... you really not know?"

He sounds hurt

"No I don't. I've been racking my brain all day. It's not my birthday and it's not yours. I haven't won anything recently or been promoted, and it's not an anniversary. Just help me out here"

"It IS our anniversary, though. Our three year anniversary!"

"..."

"What?"

"Our anniversary is SEPTEMBER 28th... not August 28th"

"Oh..."

You start cracking up laughing, doubling over in your little swan seat, the boat rocking with how hard you're laughing

He apologizes over and over again for getting the date wrong

You reassure him that it's fine

You spend the rest of your 2 years and 11 months anniversary seeing how fast you can make the swan boat go

You both get kicked out and blacklisted

Esme:

A while back, you watched Bridgerton

The plotlines and characters didn't really stand out to you too much

What really stood out was the clothing

You made Esme sit down and watch it with you

The whole time you were just raving about the costume design and how much you wish you could wear what they were wearing

Time passed and you eventually forgot about it

Working, going to school, watching different shows, you know, life

You were sitting in the living room, lounging on the couch while some random cooking show played

Edward and Bella were sitting on the couch too, not really watching either

All three of you were just sort of zoned out until you heard Esme yell your name as loud as she could

You and Bella jumped, Edward probably heard it before it happened

Instantly, you shot up and ran down the hall to Esme's workroom

You flung the door open and looked inside

"Esme! What's wrong, what happened?"

"Wrong? Nothing's wrong! In fact, it's all perfect! Come here, come here"

You stepped inside of her studio and instantly spotted it

In the corner was a mannequin that seemed too specific to your height and weight measurements to be a coincidence

Hanging off the mannequin was a beautiful outfit

It looked straight out of the 1600s, made out of fine silks, golden fabrics, and fine linen

There were various imperfections on it, the wrong color of thread used here, a hole in the fabric there, but it was beautiful regardless

"A while back you mentioned that you wanted to look like someone from that show, so I made you this! I hope you like it, if not I can change anything you want me to"

"You made this, all by yourself?"

"Yes! I watched so many tutorials and I even went to the tailor shop in town to ask them for some tips. It's obvious that I'm no seamstress, but I'm still pretty proud of myself"

"Proud? You should be overjoyed! This deserves to be in a competition, on TV, at craft shows, anywhere!"

When you tried it on after a couple of minutes of insisting that she did a wonderful job, you were blown away once more

It fit perfectly, you looked like you just walked out of a fairytale book

Her next project is making one for herself

Carlisle:

You had a little habit of leaving notes in Carlisle's packed lunch for when he goes to the clinic

He didn't need the food, but he did need to keep up appearances

It's already not a very human look when the best doctor in town willingly works almost every shift and is always on call and ready to work

So he needs something to bring him back down

You found out not too long into dating the little routine

Esme packs him a sandwich and a bottle of water, she takes it to him at work, eats it in the very public break room for everyone to see, pukes it up cause his body can't digest it, and then comes home

So the cycle continues after that

The first time you saw Esme making a little ham and cheese sandwich, you were confused

After she explained, you asked if you could put something in there too

So you started your own routine of writing Carlisle a cute little note

Usually just about how much you loved him, sometimes accompanied by a little doodle

A couple of times when he would come home, he would thank you for your note

But other than that, you thought that was it

Until one day you were admittedly snooping in his office

You were just bored and wanted to see what fun stuff there was to read in his office

You were pulling book after book off of his shelves, flipping through them, and then putting them back

But then you stumbled across a small book with only the word "Love" written on the front in the handwriting you recognized to be Carlisle's

Inside was every single note you had ever given him

Each one was lovingly placed on the page, making a collage

Some pieces of paper were lined, some plain

Some notes were written with black ink, some with whatever other pen was lying around at the time

The only similarity was that underneath all of them, Carlisle had dated them

You flipped through every page, until you got to the second half of the book that was still blank

Your heart surged, this man

"You caught me"

You whipped around to see Carlisle standing in the doorway, his white lab coat still hung across his shoulders, and a slight smile on his face

He walked over to you, grabbing the book gently from your hands

He set it on his desk and sat down in the chair, you peered over his shoulder

From his breast pocket, he pulled out the note that you wrote that morning

He opened the book to the next page, and glued the slip in

He dated it with a flawless ease and swiveled to look up at you

You just tackled him with a kiss

Vampire! Bella:

You were really worried

You'd been dating Bella for a whole year now, but she still hasn't seen your bedroom

That wouldn't be an issue if she wasn't coming over today

And if your room wasn't a fucking mess

You knew that Bella would be coming over for like a week

You told yourself days ago that you had to clean your room for her

But now the day is here, Bella is on her way

You were frantically running around your room, trying your best to round up all of the dirty clothes on the floor, get all the trash picked up, and light a couple candles

But it was too late

From downstairs you could hear the front door open and your mom called up the steps that Bella was here

When she opened the door, you had a bundle of dirty clothes in your hands as you attempted to at least get one more thing done

"I'm so sorry, Bella. Really, it's not usually this bad, I promise. I just forgot to clean my room yesterday and the day before and this morning and-"

"Woah! Calm down!"

She walks over to you and takes the dirty clothes from your hands, throwing them effortlessly into the hamper across the room

"I promise, I don't mind. You should have seen my room when Edward left me a couple years ago... ugh, terrible"

"No, I'm- I'm so sorry. It's so bad in here. I promise it's not usually this bad. This is not the first impression I wanted to give you"

After some more back and forth, but really more of her being stubborn, you finally agree to let her help you clean your room

It only takes about 5 minutes

The place was covered in dirty clothes before, dishes piling up, trash on every surface

And now it looked brand new

You were cuddling on your freshly cleaned bed and watching a movie

"You know, that was pretty fun. You should call me the next time your room gets really dirty"

"... are you a psychopath?"

201 notes · View notes

fashionteahouse · 1 month ago

Text

out of your league - paul x reader

AN: thank you sm for the love and support for the last eighteen parts ! 💜

<<prev >>next

You downed the cups of coffee as your paintbrush swiped across material you were painting on. Your phone glowed with pictures of the selected model as you accurately got the pigment of her skin with the mixed colors.

You haven’t slept in two whole days but you loved it. It was currently dead in the middle of night, the honks and business of the city life pushed you to keep going. It reminded you that you did art to lead up to moments like this.

A sharp knock on your hotel door took your attention off of your art work and you didn’t want to, but you set down the wet brush.

Looking through the peephole, you sighed when you saw Edward. You crack the door, sticking your head out.

“What do you want?” Not caring how the tone sounded.

He holds up two small white pieces of papers between her fingers.

Your eyebrows furrow in confusion.

“What is it that?” you ask.

“Symphony Orchestra concert.”

“I have a lot of work to do.” you say shaking your head.

He grins a little, “Alice saw you will get finished…Before the due date actually. You should sleep.” he says.

Your eyes sagged heavily and it looked like you were going to fall over and crash at any minute.

“Why? So you can take a peek?” you say. The way his eyes tried his best to look beyond you, you knew what he was trying to see.

He softly chuckles and he haven’t felt this caught in a long time.

“I have to wait like everybody else?”

“Yes. Now shoo, I need to finish.” you say.

“You won’t finish if you spread yourself too thin. You have to sleep.” he says.

“Fine, I will.” You say after a long yawn.

You close your door. You looked at your work and you were already halfway done.

You washed your discolored hands. You didn’t close the cracked window, the room still needing to ventilate from the paint fumes.

You slept and woke up to it being past the afternoon. You call Paul back after seeing that he had called earlier.

“Sorry, I was asleep. I haven’t gotten any sleep.” you tell him.

“Why aren’t you sleeping?”

“I’m really trying to get this project done.”

“You will get it done. Sleep is more important.” he says and you let him know you agree.

You both stayed on the phone with no rush of getting off until it was you who broke the silence.

“You want to see what I have so far?” you ask him. He says yes.

“Okay. I will send you pictures.”

“Okay.” he says.

You do just that after you hung up with him. Before you hung up with him he says, “Just have fun. Enjoy yourself.”

You bite into the warm toasted sandwich as the wind blew in your direction. Even though it was cold, it was nice to be out of being cooped in the hotel room.

Suddenly, two cold hands cover your eyes from behind.

“Guess who?” the high octave voice says.

“Alice.” you say.

She laughs before moving around you to face you.

“You’re not wearing that to the symphony, are you?” she says as she looks at your lax outfit.

“Who said I was going?” you ask.

“Come on, what’s the point of being here if you’re not going to enjoy yourself?” she asks with a grin.

You sigh but she hurries with, “Please?” she says with her gold eyes smothering yours.

“Fine.” you say as you look down. She squeals and claps, “Good! We have to go shopping.” she says and tugs on your hand.

“Shopping?! I brought clothes.” you say but she shakes her head, “This is a shopping emergency. You can’t come to New York and not shop.”

Dragging you into a boutique, your eyes look to the racks of clothing.

Alice made you change into different articles of clothing. She watched as you stared at the outfit that you had tried on, you kept tilting your head to the side and she knew that it was something that you liked.

“It’s nice. But, there’s no way I can afford this.” you say. Your fingers ran over the fabric that was snug to your body.

“Y/N, would you quit with that? It’s on me.” she says.

“I can’t accept this.” you say.

“You can. And you will.” she says but it wasn’t harsh.

As you walk the busy streets with your bag, you call to her, “Alice.”

“Yes?” she answers.

“Why are you and Edward so involved with me?” you ask.

She smiles and says, “I can’t speak for Edward but, I guess you can say I have some sort of emotional attraction towards you.”

“Edward says that I was like morphine.”

She nods a little as she looks about, “I can see why he said that.”

“What does it mean? Did he say that because he can’t read my mind?”

“I mean..” she starts but lowers her voice and walks close to you, “I can be around you and not be thirsty. Maybe, it’s like that for Edward as well.”

Your mind drifts off, “I’m surprised you both want anything to do with me. I’m dating your enemy.”

She tinkles out a laugh, “How did you two meet anyway?”

“School. I’m glad I knew him before he turned into a wolf.”

“I guess he’s the reason why I can’t see your future. Everytime I try to focus in on it when you’re in La Push, it’s black.”

“My future. What do you typically see?”

“Hm.. Earlier I saw that a formidable art dealer will be sitting close to you at the symphony. You should talk to him.” She says as you both enter the hotel.

“Why?” you ask.

“If you show him your work, you’re set for life, that’s why.”

You press the elevator button to go up and turn to her, “I don’t know how to talk to people like that.”

“Just have Edward talk to him with you.”

“Why can’t you do it?” you ask.

“Because, just trust me. It will go smooth.” she says and enters the small box with you.

You add some extra work onto your piece until it was time for you to leave. You felt confident in what you were wearing but nerves were fluttering in your stomach.

“You look really nice.” Edward says to you and his eyes never leave your face.

“Thanks.” you mumble and look away, and decide to focus your eyes out of the car window, “Have you talked to Bella since you’ve been here?”

“No.” he answers.

“Why not? She’s your girlfriend.” you say as the driver maneuvers through the busy street.

“Not anymore. I told you she knew I was leaving.” he says.

“Does she know you’re in the same city as me?”

“Why would she know that? The last time I spoke to her was the night before I left. I’ve always stressed to her how menacing I am for her.”

You snort and shake your head a bit, “But not for me?” you ask in a mumble.

“Exactly.” he says and you take a look at him but he only stared straight ahead.

As you both sat in your seats in the concert hall, you turn to him, “I don’t understand your logic. I’m dating Paul. That alone should shoo you away along with your…thirst.”

As he held your gaze he told you carefully but low enough for you to hear him, “When you’re around, I have no bloodlust toward you. I’ve never experienced anything like it before. I’m used to the burning sensation in my throat I get when I’m thirsty but, it’s almost as if you took that away. If something’s hard to resist, it would be your presence. Your presence is powerful alone. I just care about being around you.”

The lights start to dim at that. The combination of the musical instruments moved you. As much as you didn’t want to admit it, you were glad that you came to see the act at least. Goosebumps rose on your skin as your eyes were glued to the stage. The conductor waving its magic wand to orchestrate bringing music to life, ignited your creative energy that surged through your body. You couldn’t look away from the first part of the show, even if you wanted to.

The intermission rolled in and you used the bathroom.

You decide to check in someone.

“Hey you were on my mind and I just wanted to check with you”

You send the text to Bella and made your way back to your seat. Edward taps you. You look.

“See him?” he asks.

A tall man with white hair on his head was talking in a near distance while wearing a pressed suit. You nod as you continue to watch him, he’s sitting several seats away just like Alice said he would be.

“That’s Larry Gagosian.” he says.

“The art dealer?”

“Yes.”

“I can’t talk to him.” you say, sitting back comfortably in your seat as you watch people kiss his ass and fight for his attention. You didn’t want to categorize yourself with them.

“Just be yourself.” he says. You continue to not say anything as you watch the older man.

“Do you want me to come with you?” he asks.

“You won’t listen if I say no. Alice said the outcome would be good if you did so, sure.”

He chuckles lightheartedly as he follows you. People haven’t came back yet and seats were empty. A window of opportunity was rearing its head your way.

Larry matched your gaze and you say something, “I like your tie.”

He chuckles as he straightens it out, “Thank you.”

Edward says your name to him and says, “She’s a fan of your galleries.” His hand rest on your shoulder.

“That name... Would I know it from somewhere?” he asks as he calculates you and this makes you feel nervous.

You let Edward take the lead, explaining the illustration that you did for a magazine while you were back home, the contest you had won, and how you’re in the city currently working on a project for the magazine cover that everyone knows by name.

You watch Edward with surprise as he explains it all with great passion and detail. Larry was entrapped with every word. Nodding and stealing glances at you before paying attention to what Edward was saying. The people who were around him, started to scatter away as they couldn’t get his attention anymore.

“Yeah, a friend of mine was just telling me all about this artist who was going to be the next big thing and it’s just my luck I end up running into you.” Larry says with a laugh.

You felt more relaxed and you did be yourself. The conversation flowed like a stream of water and he ends up giving you his personal number saying, “I want to see more of what you got. Keep in touch.”

As you and Edward go back to your seats he turns to you to say, “Wasn’t so bad, was it?”

“Not at all.” you say in a bit of a daze.

With more motivation, you stayed up through the night as you were back in your hotel room, finishing your piece.

You took a picture and sent it to Mark as the afternoon rolled around. The painting was drying off. Your sore back and your sore fingers let you know that the hard work was well worth it.

“It’s all done :’D yay!”

Not even a moment later your phone buzzes off.

“Gorgeous! Would really like it if you could come to the cover reveal meeting with the rest of the staff ?”

You tell him that you’re going to be there and fall into the bed to sleep without the bubble of stress hovering over you.

“You look like you’re about to fall over.”

Paul stared back at you.

You waved him off.

“You’re not getting any sleep I bet either.” you say back.

“You should take it easy.” he just says.

“I have to do this. You know this.” you say. You finish with the buttons on your top at this statement.

You hear a sigh as you hold up a pair of pants. You don’t hear anything else which makes you turn around and peer at the open laptop.

Looking back at his face, you set the pants aside and push the laptop further up on the bed as you lay on your stomach.

“What’s wrong?” you ask.

He groans a bit dramatically and say, “I can’t touch you. Or hold you. Or kiss you.”

“You’re making me even more depressed.” you say as two hands rest beside your head as you stare at his digital entity.

“Is that all you’re doing? The meeting I mean?” he asks.

“Yeah. That’s all I agreed to.” you said.

Paul stared back with a hidden wave of relief. Earlier, he listened as you went on about your now finished project, the meeting, the show that you saw, and who you met.

The emotions were shared between you two as you explained to him how you felt. To him, it felt intimate but, you were just really excited.

“Call me when you get back. I want to show you something.” he says as he grins at your face. You know that tone. You nod as you couldn’t help but grin back. It turns into a soon shared laugh as you both gazed at each other. It’s interrupted by a sharp knock.

You look to the door and put your head down and sigh, “I gotta go. But, I promise I will call you.” You say.

“Who is that?” he asks.

You shrug and call over, “Just a minute!”

“Open the door.” he says.

“I don’t have any pants on. I’m running late anyway.” you say with a slight frown.

He sits up straighter as he peered at you, “No pants on?” he purrs and you laugh.

“I’ll call you later.” you say and press two fingers from your lips to the camera and you hang up.

Hurrying your pants on, you then swing open the door.

“What?” you say.

“Come on, your ride is downstairs.” Edward says.

“I was coming, I didn’t need you to remind me.” you say.

You turn around and grab the chosen pair of shoes that you were going to wear.

As you slide them on, you look up for moment to see Edward stood in front of your painting.

“I didn’t say you could see it.”

“Y/N, it looks like a live picture.” he says.

You roll your eyes and grab your coat and slide it on.

You search and find a scarf that you brought and wrapped it around you.

You walk over to his still form as he was still looking at what you made and you stand beside him as you waved your hand up and down a little.

He grins with amusement. You look at the big picture, you turn to him, “Can you help me carry this?”

He walks over to it and carries it as if it weighed a feather and really takes a look at it. He’s still looking at it as if you had nowhere to be and it’s annoying to you. You roll your eyes and almost stamp your foot, “Edward, I thought our ride was downstairs?”

He slowly looks up with a quick look of great smitten. It caught you off guard. You turn and walk out of the door and you hear him close the door as you walk to the elevator.

You kept your eyes to the floor as the elevator rode down with each soft ding of the numbers counting backwards.

You fold your arms as your car door was closed by him. You didn’t look at his face.

You looked up as Mark sat with a smug smile. The long table had people who seemed to not be happy with any ideas. Mark got up while you sat in the rolling chairs, and presented the painting and said, “This is the direction I feel we should be going with.”

People tuned in as they took in and couldn’t believe that the model that they seem to all know was displayed in a painted medium.

People were in your face as the meeting was over and you were tired of saying your name. Your mind was focused on getting back to your room to talk to Paul.

You turned down the invitations to go out afterwards. You left out of the building and took in a breath of air. Before you could walk further, a car swings and pulls over. Edward steps out of the driver side and opens the passenger door.

“How was it?” he asks. You shrug and say, “It was alright.”

As you drove, your eyebrows furrow as the car pulls beside a restaurant.

“I figured you would be hungry. You were in there for two hours.” he says.

You both sat across from each other and you stare at him.

He stared back.

You couldn’t figure him out.

“What’s your motive?” you ask him. He takes his eyes at the glass of water that was in front of him, “Could you be more specific?” he asks.

“I asked a question first.”

“I don’t know what you’re implying.”

“Yeah, you do.”

He looks back at your face with a poker face, “What makes you think so?”

“I don’t believe that you just simply like being around me for whatever reason.”

“If you wouldn’t push me away so much, you would know.”

“I have a boyfriend.”

“I didn’t ask to marry you.” he says with a grin.

“But…” you say and shake your head.

“This isn’t a date. I’m not asking you to leave..Paul. We’re enjoying ourselves.” he says as if he’s piecing everything together.

“Are we? Or is it just you?” you ask in thought as your fingers brush across your forehead.

"I hope its not just me." he says and leans back in his chair. The waiter drops your plate in front of you and you thank him.

The waiter turns to Edward, "Are you sure you don't want anything?"

Edward shakes his head and politely says, "I'm alright."

The waiter walks off and you start chewing.

"How is your food?" Edward asks.

It was the best steak you ever had. But, you didn't tell him that.

You shrug, "It's alright."

He nods and you take a look at him.

"Is being in your life lonely?" you ask in a quiet tone knowing his ears would be able to pick it up easily.

"It can be." he answers with boredom as if the same question had been asked before time and time again.

"How did it happen? Was it by accident?" you ask.

That's how you knew how Edward and Carlisle's father son relationship had transpired. How the Spanish flu that was promised to take his life was halted. He was hesitant to let the next piece of information out. But, he pushed through. With a somewhat empty plate, your mind reeled as he talked about his struggle of adapting to the diet and justifying it by only killing 'the bad humans'.

You questioned Edward's philosophy and wondered if there was something to be gained for him.

"How did you stop?" you ask.

"I had enough of the lamentable after effect."

In the car, you can hear the soft purr of the engine along with outside life, you stare ahead.

"Say something." he whispers.

"I didn't know your kind could have a rebellious teenager phase." you say. He found this to be funny.

"Only because I didn't like how Carlisle restricted my diet at first.”

"Father knows best."

Edward nods with a smile as he watches the red light.

"You left Forks for good?" you ask.

He slowly nods.

"Do you miss it?" you ask.

"No. I don't have to pretend that I am a seventeen year old high school student anymore."

"Why did you and your family do that anyway?" you ask.

"The younger we start out somewhere, the longer we can stay."

You shake your head and let out a chuckle.

"What?" he asks.

"Why not just isolate? I could see you and your family doing that if you were feeding on humans to integrate better with society but, how you guys are doing it is just putting you all at greater risk of discovery."

"You're giving me lessons now? You think you can be a better vampire than me?"

"The double life charade makes you guys have to move all of the time. You have forever so, you all don't have to spend it with high school kids. You had to have done something way more interesting than that." you pointed out.

"I have two doctorates in medicine." he states invitingly.

"And a music prodigy." you add on.

"You liked the cover that I did?"

"You did..Alright." you say and he takes a glance at your face and he emits a deep chuckle.

"How did you even find out what I was talking about anyway?" you ask to stop his laughing.

"You're the one who called me the prodigy. What did you expect?" he replies in amusement.

"It's gone to your head I see." you say as you playfully roll your eyes.

"If you could live forever, what would you do?" he asks.

"It's pretty obvious." you say.

"I really would like something made by you." he says.

"We all would like things, wouldn't we?" you throw out.

"I fed you information. What do I get in return?" he asks.

"Your hopes up." you say and he pulls up to your hotel to drop you off.

"Make me something. Please?" he asks in a mellifluous voice.

Before opening the door, you say softly, "I'll think about it."

You video call Paul once you're comfortable in your room. He picks up after two rings.

You smile at his face but he says, "What took you so long?"

"I grabbed something to eat afterwards." you say.

After he knew what you ate in detail, you showed a bit of impatience, "I thought you had something to show me."

"I do." he answers.

"Okay..." you say and wait for him to spit it out but he just looks back with a neutral expression.

You lay back on your pillows with a soft sigh as he then made your heart stop with one statement, "Take your top off."

Your fingers undo the buttons and he watched. With your shirt open, you were on display.

He makes content noise, "I miss you so much."

"I miss you too." you say, focusing in on him.

"You do?" he asks.

"Yes."

"Take your pants off."

You do as you were told and you groan as the window blows its own cold air into the room. You forgot you had it open. You shuddered and your chest poked out from the draft.

"If you were here you could've kept me warm." you say.

"If I was there, how would I touch you?" he asks you.

Your fingers smooth over your skin as you watch him follow your every move.

Paul felt frustrated but he couldn't look away. He had his back against the headboard as he palmed himself. He was throbbing and aching and his grunt though your laptop let you know just that.

As your hand cupped the front of your panty covered mound, he adjusts his own device and you now see his erection as his large hand wrapped around himself.

Your movements became more frantic as you slide your underwear down. You rise on your knees as you sigh out and show him how needy you were as you buck on your hand. You were very close to the camera and Paul grunts as he stared while pumping himself.

The fact of him watching you pleasure yourself alone was driving you crazy. You craved some sort of pressure and you let him know in a soft but frustrated whisper, "I need you so bad."

"I need you to come home." he says through a grunt.

He then slows down his movements and tells you, "Grab that pillow behind you."

You sit back and grab it.

Staring at you as he wet his lips he says, "Ride it."

It only made you crave Paul more. You whine out his name as you were very close to reaching a climax but your grinding couldn't bring it out.

He tells you to slow down and to focus. Your hips shift as you maintain to hit the deep tingle that was aching with the friction of the pillow. Through your deep sighs outs, you hear him say, "Just like that."

Not too long after you shuddered out a built up orgasm, he comes as well with a moan.

You both didn't hang up with each other as you clean yourself up. You hop back in bed, not bothering to put clothes back on and he talks to you until you're fast asleep.

Waking up, a black screen stares back at you. You groan softly as you realized the laptop had died. After you plug it in, you hurry up and put clothes on because of the cold autumn air that blew in. You slide the window shut.

You call Paul with your cellphone but there's no answer and you assume he has to patrol. You text him.

"So sorry. My laptop died :x "

You seen a text from Jared.

"This week needs to hurry up and end so you can take Paul back he's driving me crazy >_<"

You chuckle at this as you miss them all.

It felt nice to walk the streets without having to go somewhere important. You thought about just heading back home, but it seemed to be promising here. You were a bit conflicted. At a bookstore, you were in the middle of reading the back of a book, you felt wave of overwhelm.

You look up. People around you seem to walk and chatter about. Minding their business. You just didn't understand why you felt a cloud of impending doom.

You walk further in the cozy store as you try to shake off the feeling. It just felt like something or someone was watching your every move. You started to feel like maybe your brain was playing tricks on you.

You give up and move your legs fast toward the exit, only ending up bumping into something super hard.

You couldn't even say sorry because you were a bit stunned by the impact. A pair of eyes stared back at you as they held your body up. You felt uneasy under this gaze. He looked unsettling.

"There you are. I've been trying to find you." you hear a voice.

You felt your arm being tugged away and you realized the voice came from Edward. He glared at the man who stared at both of you. It was as if Edward was telling him a lot with only one look.

He tugs you out of the store and you wait for a moment to ask, "What happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it." he growled out lowly.

This was the first time you've seen Edward look so dangerous. Your legs struggle to keep up with him but you do. You look down and realized both of your hands have been intertwined. You retract it and put your hands in your pocket.

This slows his steps, he calls your name.

"Just tell me what happened. Why did that guy make you so upset?" you ask.

"I need something to keep my mind occupied." he says as he shakes his head.

You enter a record store, music plays overhead. You both search pretend to search through a row of vinyls.

"He was thinking of ways to lure you with him so he could drain you dry." Edward says with hardness but it was low so no wandering ears would have questions.

Your hands stopped at one record as you felt confused, "But, his eyes were brown. Not like yours or red."

"Contacts. It's nothing new to him." Edward confirms.

"Hm.." you mused as you looked at the colorful art of the vinyl cover.

You look up to him smothering his own intense gaze over you and you ask, "Why didn’t you wear them? Especially if you were going to school?"

"The venom dissolves them just way too fast. He was dangerous. He had a plan that he was willing to carry out swiftly.”

"I thought I didn't make you guys thirsty." you say in a hushed tone.

"I can only speak for myself. Alice as well." he says.

“So confusing…” you whisper out in frustration.

It’s quiet for a moment until you ask again, “How did you find me?”

“Alice seen where you were. You decided to go into that bookstore.”

You nod in understanding.

You did buy a CD and Edward advised you to not go to your hotel room just yet.

“I need to make sure he doesn’t try to follow you.”

“But, there’s nothing else for me to do.” you say. You wanted to call Paul again.

He takes a look at you and ask, “Have you been to the Gagosian gallery?”

You shake your head.

“Let’s go.”

You look about because you’re hesitant.

“What’s the problem?” he asks.

“It..It feels too intimate.” you voice out.

“How?”

You shrug. But, you knew. You would rather go with Paul. You missed Paul so much.

“Why not tell Larry you will be there? I’m sure he would like that.” he says to you as you both start walking again.

“He’s a busy man. He couldn’t care less.” you say.

“You never know until you try.” he says back.

You check your phone as you felt it buzz.

“Charge it smh can you call me ?”

You type back with a response.

“I put it on the charger before I left. I’m going to a gallery now I will call you after”

“Aren’t you worried someone will point out..” you say and point toward your eyes.

He smirks, “In a big city they will just think I’m expressing myself.”

You chuckle at the accuracy.

You greet Larry with a text, tell him how you were enjoying his gallery so far. You compliment him to add a cherry on top.

It was true. There was so much to see as your eyes take it all in. You forgot that you even came with someone as you went off into your own world. All you kept thinking about one of your pieces being hung here.

The talent in the room swallowed you whole. You heard some gasps. You look and Edward was standing near you with a small grin. He tells you to look, your eyes follow where he’s looking and you look.

Larry looks around and smiles a bit as he sees that you’re still there. He comes over and says hello to you.

An arm is wrapped around your shoulders as he asks someone to take a picture.

You look to him in surprise as he whispers while smiling, “How would you like to be represented by me?”

A small smile is brought on your face at the promise as the camera that Edward holds up is flashed, blinding you by the white light.

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short-honey-badger · 1 month ago

Text

Doll 5

Pairings: Shanks x Female Reader

Summary: You find a new friend and take your relationship with Shanks to the next step

* Kissing happens finally!*

Doll Masterlist

A couple of days pass, and you and Shanks grow closer. One could hardly be seen without the other following behind like a lost puppy. He had taken you back to the bakery each morning and ordered something new for you to try, but the blueberry pancakes were still your favorite since they'd been the first thing that Shanks had ordered for you.

The waitress, whose name was Mel, had found you after her shift and demanded that you go clothes shopping with her. You'd been confused, and asked what was wrong with the plain shirt and black pants you were wearing, and she pointed out that, while you had cleaned them, there wasn't anything wrong with having more than two sets of clothing. You realized that Mel was right after that, and the two of you had gone to find Shanks.

He had smiled upon seeing you with the other woman, glad to see that you had made a friend, and had given you more than enough cash to get whatever you wanted. Mel grabbed you by the hand and away the two of you went. She led you to a boutique run by a wrinkled old lady who had an eye for fabrics, and stood you in the middle of the room while they went on a hunt for fabrics and colors that would suit you the best.

“If you want to move things along with your, - wait. What is Shanks to you? Boyfriend, husband?” Mel asked from behind a pile of clothes that she'd discarded after you tried them on. The no pile was far bigger than the yes pile, and you didn't know what to think about that.

You blushed at her wording. It's a couple of days knowing the redhead, and he'd take you out on breakfast dates and hold your hand whenever the two of you went anywhere. The pirate would toss his arm over the back of your seat, always sitting next to you and making his crew move if there wasn't a seat available. You didn't mind the attention, and you certainly didn't mind all the touching, but putting a label on what the two of you were made you nervous, so you settled for the easy way out.

“Uhm. Just friends, I think,” you told her and pouted at the really look that Mel gives you. Ethel doesn't help when she chines in.

“That pirate of yours acts like my dear Edward, rest his soul, did when we first got together. Don't pretend like there isn't anything there, dear. It'll only hurt you in the end if you do.”

You gnaw on your bottom lip, eyes lost in thought even as Mel hands you a new shirt to try on. You'd seen how couples acted before whenever you were allowed to go down to Sabaody, and it was definitely similar to the way you and Shanks acted. But you just met him, wasn't everything going too fast?

“I don't want to ruin anything,” you whispered after a moment, and in seconds, you had an old lady in your space, wrinkled hands taking her own.

“Can't ruin something if you don't let yourself have it to begin with, dear,” Ethel says kindly, and then squints at the shirt you have on, “Take that off. It doesn't flatter your chest at all.”

You blush and drop her hands to grab the hem to tug the blouse over your head and toss it in the no pile. You are lost in thought for the rest of the evening, wondering if it would be a good idea to talk to Shanks about all of this.

By the end of the trip, Mel and Ethel agreed upon ten different outfits that could be mixed and matched easily. You'd explained to them that you planned to leave with Shanks and would need some sturdier clothing to last out on the sea. Ethel had assured you that the fabrics she used would be perfectly fine and still make you look like a woman, and you couldn't thank the older lady enough. Mel dragged you out of the shop after saying goodbye, her chattering your ear off you, listening to her ramble on about everything and nothing.

Shanks stalked around the town, a frown on his face as he looked for you. He had wanted you to go out and have a good time with Mel, but he hadn’t thought that she would have you all day long. He had missed your presence and may have pouted so much that it had annoyed his ever patient first mate. Benn had sighed and told him to either stop sulking or go out and you, so Shanks had huffed and strutted out of the bar.

He hadn’t found you at the bakery, nor near the beach by the docks. He’d taken you there yesterday and had watched you find shells in the sand. He found it adorable that you seemed so fascinated by something so small and promised you that he’d get you a jar to put our collection in. Getting worried and just the smallest bit annoyed, Shanks made another loop around the town.

Shanks knew that he’d found you when he heard the sound of your laughter. He followed the sound down an alley to see you and Mel sat on the front steps of the bakery, steaming scones in hand. He slowed to a stop and just watched you for a moment, taking in the way you tossed your head back to laugh when your friend told a joke or made a smarmy quip. It was good seeing you like this, relaxed and open with someone that wasn’t him, though that didn’t stop the envy that curled up in his chest. He couldn’t help it, Shanks wanted you to look at him that way.

Which, well, you did, but after that first breakfast, there had been an underlining tenseness that you didn’t seem to notice whenever Shanks got close or whenever he said something flirty. It was almost like you were waiting for the other shoe to drop, as if Shanks acting like this was just a big joke and you were the punchline. But he wasn’t joking or stringing you along. What he felt for you was more than just friendship, and he wished that you could see that.

“I just… I don’t want him to feel forced into this, Mel. I’m not used to having that kind of attention, not where I’m from. It’s hard for me to trust people, and this is all going so fast. How can I ask him to take a chance on me when I’ve already asked so much of him?”

Is that what you thought? That just because he had allowed you on his crew that wanting anything else from him would turn him away from you? The pirate can’t help but snort at such a silly thought. Shanks liked it when you asked for things, liked it when you seeked him out on your own volition.

“Hon, you shouldn’t be so hard on yourself. You’re a wonderful person, and your Red would be dumb to not want you. Which he does, by the way, a blind man could see that. But still, everyone has some kind of past. You just have to be brave enough to face it.”

Shanks watches as you nod and recognizes that determined set of your shoulders and the fire that suddenly blazes to life in your eyes. You look like the night he first met you, eyes resolute and a please for help on your lips. There is a pale pink aura surrounding you, and the emperor has a moment of clarification. You have Haki.

A grin spreads his face. Of course someone as special as you would have haki. You were so brave and beautiful that it’s a slap in his face that he hadn’t noticed it before now. It was no wonder why he was so drawn to you and you to him. Shanks was meant to find you.

The redhead stalks forward without thinking. He needs you to know that he wants you, that with his newfound knowledge, you become all the more irresistible to him. You glance up in surprise, eyes wide and cheeks flushing as he comes to a stop in front of you. He reaches out and snags your hand, an almost desperate look in his dark gaze.

“You’re not forcing me into anything, Doll. I want you for you. For how you make me feel. I’ve not said anything because I don’t want you to feel obligated to me.”

You stare up at your captain, not having expected him to come out of the alleyway, and it makes you wonder how much he overheard. Clearly enough that he feels the need to out his feelings for you in the middle of town. You bite your lip, hand clutching his own as you meet his gaze, “Shanks..”

“I swear to you that I’m not doing anything that I don’t want to do, Doll. Trust me, please?” He says quietly and drops your hand to reach up and cup your face, thumb grazing your lips. Shanks needs you to believe him, “Can I kiss you?”

The question makes sparks rain from the top of your spine to the tip of your toes. You’ve never kissed anyone before, but the thought of feeling his lips on yours makes the decision for you.

The redhead makes a sound of surprise when you suddenly surge up, your mouth smashing into his in an unruly kiss. Shanks takes it in stride, though, kissing back just as roughly, uncaring about your lack of experience. His hand slides from your cheek and up into your hair to hold you still, and eventually, you slow down, allowing him to carefully lead you into a soft press of lips.

Reluctantly, Shanks pulls away but doesn’t go very far. He keeps you close with the hand wrapped in your hair, back bowed so that he can press his brow against yours. You stare at him, eyes watery as you swallow harshly. There is an apology on your lips, but Shanks steals it away with another kiss.

“Don’t you dare take that back, Doll,” He rumbles against your mouth and presses a lingering kiss to the corner of your lips. You nod shakily, and then Shanks is releasing you, hand sliding from your hair to take your hand in his. He smirks down at Mel, who looks smug as a cat who got the cream.

“Care if I steal her away now?” He quips, and Mel shoos him with a laugh.

“Go on, lovebirds,” She says and then aims a smile at you, “Told you so.”

You roll your eyes and reach out to squeeze her hand, “Thank you, Mel. I’ll find you tomorrow, okay?”

This would be your last night on this island, and the thought of leaving your new friend behind makes you sad, but you know that it’s for the best. The longer you stayed in one spot, the more you had a chance of being found and taken back to Marie Geois. The other woman waved you both off with a happy smile, and Shanks eagerly pulled you back to the docks and to the beach.

He shrugged off his black cloak and splayed it on the ground, gesturing for you to sit with a sweeping bow. You couldn't help but giggle at the redhead and sat, making sure not to touch the sand too much. You expected Shanks to settle beside you, but instead the pirate sat behind you, long legs splayed on either side of your hips as he wrapped his arm around your waist and tugged you back to rest against his chest. He sat his chin on top of your head, and you felt yourself completely relaxed, shoulders dropping as you slumped back against your captain.

“You okay with this, doll?” He murmured, and you shivered at the feeling of his breath tickling your ear. His hand was rubbing very distracting circles against your hip, fingers smoothing under your shirt to drag against your flesh. Shanks smiles against your hair when you nod. You didn't trust your voice not to squeak in embarrassment right now.

“Good. I've been wanting to hold you like this for a while, since that night you came and thanked me for letting you join the crew,” He blew a slow breath out, eyes shuttering as he tugged you closer, “You have no idea how special you are to me, sweetheart.”

Shanks considers telling you about the faint aura he'd seen earlier but decided against it. He doesn't want to ruin the peaceful moment the two of you are having, but he will tell you soon. Each of his crew could use haki, and would be essential in teaching you how to harness it yourself. He had promised to teach you everything that he knew, and that would be one of the firsts.

Speaking of teaching you things, Shanks shifted so that he could face you better, a playful grin on his lips as he leaned down into your space, “Was that your first kiss?”

You nodded slowly, lip trapped between your teeth, and Shanks moved his hand up to your face, thumb gently tugging The abused flesh free and stroking your bottom lip. He shivers when you slide your tongue out to wet your lips, the muscle accidentally flicking against his thumb.

“Yeah. Intimacy was forbidden in the household that owned me,” you whisper, and Shanks hums, a frown tugging at his mouth.

“Well you aren't theirs anymore, Darling. So how about we start your first lesson?” He rumbles and smirks when he watches your eyes hood and darken with interest. When you move forward, Shanks meets you halfway, lips pressing into yours as he holds you close in the setting sun.

#reader insert #one piece #shanks x reader #red haired shanks #shanks #opla shanks #one piece x reader

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fanfictiongirlie · 2 months ago

Text

Twilight: Some Soulmate - Chapter Six

Click here for masterlist

Parings: Paul Lahote x Reader

Description: Y/N a member of the Cullen family is imprinted on by one of the wolves, she is shocked, he is shocked. She is struggling with drinking animal blood over human, and he is disgusted by a vampire for a soulmate… But maybe it could work..?

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: None

Words: 1,374

I didn't come back.

I stayed away from home.

My family went back to Forks. After Edward nearly killed himself because he thought Bella had killed herself, they all went home. I just couldn't, I felt sick being away from Forks. But Paul made it clear to me, he didn't want me. Why would I stay somewhere, knowing that.

So I've been exploring, and by exploring I mean, I had a little cottage in England. And I've been reading, I even got a job. As a book keeper, it was actually a nice little life I built in a short amount of time.

But there was something missing.

Imprinting was a stupid thing. It sucked, knowing there was someone out there who was your perfect half. And they wanted nothing to do with you. Why did my soulmate have to be a werewolf. It didn't even make sense that he was my soulmate, what if I never became a vampire. Then again, Alice said it must of been destiny that I became a vampire. Rosalie says I should be happy it happened when I was still young and not when I was old.

Paul hadn't tried to message me, or call me. Which hurt, I knew it was hurting him too. I could tell, I could almost feel it. Which Carlisle said was silly.

They had visited me a few times; my family, before the whole Edward walking into the sun event. Since moving back to Forks I hadn't seen them.

Esme was begging for me to come back, but I just couldn't. I had a little life here.

----------

I left my house at 5am, before sunlight, and made my way to my little book shop. Which luckily was located inside a big shopping centre, so no sunlight would hit me throughout the day. I entered the shop, and picked a book at random to start reading. The shop wouldn't be opening until 8am but until then I can read.

I checked my phone a few times, No new texts from Paul. A few from my family.

Alice: It's going to be very sunny today, be safe.

Jasper: Sending calm vibes.

That one made me laugh.

We may need you home soon, unfortunately there may be a fight

That one was from Carlisle. I felt panic, I called him.

"Carlisle what's wrong?" I say, putting my book down.

"Alice has seen a group of newborns heading our way" He spoke in his quiet soft voice. I had missed it.

"I can come back and help if you need me Carlisle" I spoke, I didn't really want to come back, it had been ages since I had been there. But if it meant keeping my family safe.

"I'd feel a little bit more confidant if you did, but there's one problem" Carlisle said.

I waited for him to speak again.

"The wolves will be helping us, we met with them a few days ago" Carlisle explained. "Edward said he could hear Paul thinking about you, looking for you in our group"

"Oh, really?" I asked, surprised.

"Edward says he still hasn't forgiven you, he could hear the anger towards you. But I believe he wants to see you" Carlisle finished.

I nodded, as if he could see me.

"When will the new borns be there?" I asked.

"In one week" Carlisle answered.

"Okay, I'll leave now, hopefully it shouldn't take long. But I'll see you soon" I say, I put my phone down and frown. I guess I couldn't be opening the shop today.

I headed outside, luckily the sun hadn't quite left the clouds, but I drove home. Packed all the important bits, and then put a headscarf on.

And headed towards the airport.

-----------

The flight was quick, and the drive to Forks was uncomfortable. I didn't want to see him. Or maybe I did.

I drove quickly, not looking away from the road. I could faintly smell the wolves, and it hurt.

I pulled up into my house, parked the car and ran quick into the house. But it was empty. Now I was confused.

I pulled out my phone and dialled Carlisle's number. He answered after one ring.

"Y/N, are you home?" He asked

"Yes, where are you?" I asked.

"In the woods, follow my scent, it should be fairly easy to follow" He said, and the call ended.

Carlisle wasn't wrong, I followed his scent and I saw them soon enough. I also saw the wolves. I knew where Paul was, our eyes met. I could feel the anger.

I missed him. So much.

"Y/N" Esme smiled widely, as she came over to me to hug me tightly.

"I missed you" She whispered into my ear. "I missed you too"

Carlisle started what ever this was, and then Jasper proceeded to start showing off his fighting skills.

"Y/N, your turn" He said smirking at me.

I stepped forward, finally taking my eyes off Paul.

I watched Jasper, waiting for his first move, he went to punch and I dodged, grabbing his arm and spinning him. He jumped and tried to land on me, but I dodged that by jumping up and wrapping my arms around his chest and pulled him down.

"That was a good example of what the newborns do" Jasper explained "They will wrap their arms around you and squeeze, do not let them do that"

We all fought a little bit more, except for the wolves, they watched. Carlisle called it to an end as we had been doing this for hours. I stepped forward towards Paul but he growled and ran off. I frowned, I had hoped if he saw me again but with my amber eyes back maybe he would forgive me. Obviously not.

I joined my family in our walk back to the house.

"Will you stay after the fight?" Emmett asked me.

"I'm not sure" I answer.

"You should to see me become a vampire" Bella smirked, I nodded.

"That's definitely something I wouldn't want to miss, the worlds first clumsy vampire" I joke. Everyone laughed at this.

I walked closer to Edward so I was next to him.

"Hey, Ed, was he thinking about me?" I asked.

Edward nodded

"He only thought of you, when you were fighting Jasper, he kept thinking 'If that vamp actually hurts her Ill kill her'"

I smiled, it was something. Better than him wanting to kill me.

"It'll be okay Y/N" Bella smiled at me.

Hopefully it will be okay.

Previous Part - Next Part

#paul lahote x reader #twilight imagine #fluff #twilight x reader #light angst #paul lahote #twilight fanfiction #twilight saga

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cl3fairyyy · 11 months ago

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˗ˏˋ routine // edward nashton x GN! reader ˎˊ˗

summary // edward has always gone through life in solitude. he has the same routine, day in and day out, and he doesn't change that for anyone. he doesn't have time for friendship and looks down on his coworkers; their shallow gossip and strained smalltalk isn't worth his time. his way of thinking is soon flipped on its head when KTMJ hires a pretty receptionist to greet him every morning before work. what starts as innocent pining (as innocent as it gets for edward, anyway), soon spirals into something more, faster than he can control. alternatively, you score a cushy receptionist gig and start crushing on your cute coworker lol.

warnings // very brief mention of healed sh scars. edward and the reader smoke- reader is GN but is described as "pretty" multiple times. eddie is a little strange in this but that is just customary for him atp lol. a little angsty but mostly fluffy coworkers to more bc eddie deserves more soft fics :c no use of y/n!!

word count // 4.5k

notes // I haven't written a fic since my wattpad days so my apologies if this isn't great </3 I have been pining after the green man for far too long and have so many ideas in my system that need to come out !! I hope Edward isn't too OOC and would love any feedback on how to write him better :)) I might do a pt 2 if anyone is interested hehe

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.

Edward has never found any substance in socialising at work. He has never found the tedious break room small talk and uninteresting (probably fabricated) gossip that floats around the office to be very meaningful, and for the five years that he has worked at KTMJ, he has never had so much as a conversation, let alone friendship, with any of his colleagues.

His daily routine is fairly simple: wake up, go to work, come home, eat (if he remembers), and sleep. All without interacting with anyone. Edward lies to himself, convinces himself that he prefers, even enjoys, living like this. He has crawled through this city, through this life, in solitude, and he has always been fine.

But the ache in his heart and the lump in his throat when he lies awake at night, running calloused fingers over faded scars, say otherwise.

Edward is lonely.

His mind tends to wander when he turns in bed to look out the window. He watches groups of friends, drunk and stumbling down the old, cracked streets of Gotham, their rapturous (and rather obnoxious, he thinks) laughter echoing through his open apartment window. He imagines himself drunkenly walking alongside them, sharing inside jokes and funny anecdotes that make their cheeks red with laughter, and when he drifts off to sleep, he dreams of waking up in another body, another life, where he simply belongs.

He wakes up on a day like any other, in his cold, empty apartment, alone. He begins his routine, shoving a piece of expired bread in the toaster as he neatens his tie and pulls on his loafers. He is happy with this routine. He eats alone at the table, checking his watch, mindful of the 8:15 bus. He leaves his apartment and catches the bus just as it arrives at his stop. The driver, an older lady, offers him a smile. He keeps his head down. He is happy with this routine. He enters the office earlier than usual, hoping to get in some extra work to avoid staying any later than he must. He is happy with-

He pauses.

The receptionist, a woman far too old to not be retired, does not greet him with the flick of her pen as she completes the morning crossword.

The routine is disrupted.

His coworkers are crowded around his boss' door, straining to see through the tiny window separating "us" from "them." Edward's mind is clouded with confusion as he catches the eye of one of his colleagues, a man named Will, a man he can't stand, a man who acquired his position (as Edward's supervisor) straight out of college, through daddy's money and connections.

The routine is disrupted.

"Word is that we have a new receptionist." He fills Edward in. Edward wonders if he only tells him this through some feeling of obligation, rather than wanting to share the latest office gossip with him. He simply nods, making his way to his desk.

Back to the routine.

After possibly the most intimidating introduction to a boss you have ever experienced, you are given a brief tour of your new office and shown to your new desk. You are given your new tasks and set to work on your new job.

To be honest, it isn't entirely difficult. You are certainly overqualified, but you can't complain about being paid above minimum wage, in Gotham, in your twenties, for such a simple job. You remember reading that the best way to make a good first impression at a new job is to introduce yourself to your new colleagues, and, despite the anxiety welling in your throat, you put on a bright smile and set off to do just that.

For the most part, your colleagues are nice, a bit bored, but they seem interested in you and that surely must be a start, right?

The girl whose desk you're currently standing in front of (her name is Kate, you think?) perks up suddenly, seemingly remembering something. She gestures for you to sit next to her, and you do just that.

"You seem nice. Like, really nice. But you seem like the kind of person who is so nice that it borders on naiveté." You tilt your head in confusion but nod for her to continue. "I want you to, y'know, actually have a chance of fitting in here. So let me give you some advice."

She glances around inconspicuously before lowering her voice and tilting her head back ever so subtly. "That guy over there. Glasses. Yeah- okay, try not to make it so obvious that I'm talking about him. Don't bother trying to get a word out of him. The guy doesn't talk to anyone, and believe me, we have tried getting him to. I don't know if he's shy or thinks he's better than us or what, but he seriously is, like, mute. All he does is come to work and go home. He even eats his lunch at his desk."

You try and mimic her subtlety, glancing up to catch a glimpse at the desk tucked neatly in the corner, and you're met with eyes behind glasses staring right back at you. You quickly look away, your cheeks burning at the embarrassment of being caught talking about someone.

She smiles sympathetically at you.

"I know this schtick you've got going on. Introducing yourself to the office so that we all like you."

She snorts at your expression and continues.

"Hey, chill out. It's seriously endearing. I was the exact same when I started and, to be fair, it seems to be working for you. I just don't want you to get offended or anything trying to talk to Edward over there, and getting nothing out of him, y'know?"

You offer Kate a grateful smile and rise from your seat.

"Thanks for the warning. I think I'd like to at least say hi to him anyway."

All she offers you is a shrug, as if saying, "don't say I didn't warn you," as you wander over to Edward's desk.

You smile at him, introducing yourself and holding out your hand to shake. Okay, he's actually pretty cute up close, you think, with big green eyes concealed by glasses that have slipped slightly down his faintly freckled nose. He meets your enthusiasm with a blank stare and a readjustment of his glasses, and your shoulders deflate a little.

"You're, uh, you're Edward, right? That's what it says on your name tag, anyway."

Silence.

You giggle nervously.

"Well, I- anyway, I'm the new receptionist. I'm really happy to be working with you."

You're surprised at the sincerity in your tone, and Edward must be too, because you swear you notice his stoic expression falter for a second.

Your hand begins to shake as it remains in front of his face, and the air grows thick with awkwardness. It feels like every single pair of eyes in the office is on the both of you. You begin to retract your hand when Edward gingerly reaches forward and shakes it limply. His bored expression doesn't change as he does so.

"Likewise."

With that single word uttered, he carries on typing away at his computer, completely ignoring you. Your legs seem to work at their own volition as they carry you back to your desk, your cheeks pink.

Unbeknownst to you, Edward has been observing your every move since you stepped out of the boss' office. His desk is at the perfect angle, giving him a direct view of your own, and he had watched you approach all of your colleagues to give your little introduction speech. He had seen you chatting discreetly with Kate, and he had caught you peeking up to look at him. He had figured Kate had warned you to steer clear of him, and the thought had made his stomach sink.

He thought you were very pretty, and since he had first caught a passing glimpse of you, his mind instantly had began to wander to thoughts of him approaching your desk, introducing himself confidently and charming you all within your first interaction.

He had shaken his head at that, embarrassed by his little fantasy. He has never known the feeling of confidence in his life, and he had quickly resigned himself to thinking that you would be yet another coworker he would never interact with, besides a quick "good morning," and "good night," at the beginning and end of each day.

The routine continues, and he is happy with that.

The routine continues until it doesn't, until you meekly approach his desk and smile at him, and oh God up close you are so much prettier, he thinks, and then you're extending your hand for him to shake, that same dimpled smile on your face fading when he doesn't even acknowledge the action.

Of course he manages to make you uncomfortable within the first five seconds of interacting with him. Before his mind can catch up with his body, he is shaking your hand and uttering the first word he has spoken in this office in a long time.

He instantly has to break the intense eye contact he has held with you, pretending to type numbers into his computer, praying the colour of his cheeks doesn't betray him.

When you walk away he feels guilty, he wishes he could will you back to his desk so he could play off his awkwardness as a joke, so he could pretend he is someone much cooler and much more interesting than Edward Nashton.

But he can't.

He has to watch you walk away, back to your desk, your head down to hide your embarrassment.

When 5pm hits, you stand from your desk, stretching. God, that spinny chair does something awful for your back. You're packing up your things when Edward passes your desk. You offer him a smile as you wish him goodnight, fully expecting him to ignore you.

Instead, he pauses and turns to give you a small nod before exiting the building and all of a sudden it feels like your face is on fire and your heart is pounding like you've just ran a marathon.

Oh no.

Of course you get a crush on your first day, and of course it has to be on the one person in the building that has uttered one singular word to you.

You lie awake that night, tossing and turning in bed as thoughts of your colleague cloud your mind. Sure, you've always had a thing for nerdy guys, but nerdy guys who have a reputation around your office for being a complete recluse? Seriously?

But he had spoken to you, he had acknowledged your existence. So what the hell does that mean? You sigh, rubbing your eyes before popping a melatonin. Your mind is racing a thousand miles a minute and you know there is no way you're getting to sleep otherwise.

Edward's mind swarms with thoughts of you as he lies in bed, willing himself to fall asleep. He picks up his phone, reading the time, and sighs, opening up your social media page for seemingly the thousandth time that night.

He has already scrolled through your entire account, has already studied every single photo and video you have posted until he has them memorised. He swipes through pictures of you at bars with your friends, videos of you dancing on vacation with tan lines and pink cheeks, and the countless selfies you have with your dog on your page.

He imagines you introducing him to your friend group and him befriending them over drinks in your favourite bar. He imagines taking you away on lavish trips to Europe, Asia, South America, all the places you have on the bucket list posted on your profile. He imagines a domestic life built together, sharing an apartment with you and your dog, and he falls asleep with an unfamiliar warmth in his chest, hope rushing through his veins for the first time in a long time.

Over the next few months, you grow closer with your colleagues- close to the point that you even see them outside of office hours. Close to the point that, when deadlines are met and the entire office throws a party to celebrate, Kate always manages to convince you to tag along. Close to the point that, after a long week, you and the small circle of friends you have made go out for drinks to unwind- and you have even found yourself inviting your other coworkers to join you.

All of your coworkers, except one.

The guilt consumes you every time you pack up to leave, smiling and laughing with your colleagues, when you catch a glimpse of Edward hunched over his monitor, ready to log even more hours of overtime. You have always considered inviting him along, but the only words he ever utters to you are quiet greetings every morning and the occasional "good night," when he leaves the office before you do. You don't even know if he likes you.

You certainly like him.

You're sure the blush on your face is undeniable every time you accidentally lock eyes with him when you swivel absentmindedly in your chair, or when you hand him his mail (which is rare for him to receive, you've noticed). You always try and find excuses to talk to him, and every time you do, you're left stumbling over your words and pink in the cheeks while he remains completely unfazed, unbothered and silent.

You're determined to at least invite him for drinks. At any rate, if he says no, you can comfort yourself with the knowledge that you tried to develop some kind of friendship with him (while secretly hoping for more).

It is such an easy task, one you have discussed frequently with your coworkers many a time, who have repeatedly encouraged you to offer an invitation to Edward- so you don't understand why it feels like lead weights have been tied to your feet and sandpaper has dried out your mouth when you mentally prepare yourself to go and speak to the infamous office recluse. 'It's no big deal! It's just drinks with colleagues!' you remind yourself, but the rapid beating of your heart does nothing to comfort you.

You finally internally berate yourself enough to stand up and, as casually as you can, wander over to Edward's desk, a friendly smile on your face. Your shadow over his desk forces him to acknowledge you.

You clear your throat somewhat awkwardly before saying with as much (casual) enthusiasm as you can muster, "me and some of the others are gonna head out for drinks pretty soon. We'd love for you to come!"

You notice his eyes subtly squint behind his glasses as he sizes you up, before shaking his head, his gaze flickering back down to his monitor.

"Can't. Got some messy paperwork here that needs correcting, and it can't wait until Monday."

Your smile falters slightly and you manage to nod in understanding. "That sucks. We would've really liked you there. I wouldn't want it to eat up too much of your evening, so I won't keep you from it. Have a nice weekend, Edward!"

His head lifts at your mention of his name, and when you smile at him, turning to leave, he clears his throat. quietly

"I'm, ah, I'm sorry about that. Maybe some other time..."

You nod in agreement, giving him one last smile before heading out with your colleagues. Oh well. At least you tried.

Edward screams at himself internally for being stupid enough to turn you down, for having so much work on his plate that he has to reject an offer to spend time with you. His logic tries to argue with him that you are just a distraction from his greater plans, but for the first time in his life, he finds himself listening to his heart rather than his head.

The routine is disrupted.

The following Monday, instead of clocking in at 8:30am, Edward finds himself in the office at 7:45 that morning to begin his work day. When you enter the building (earlier than usual, he notes), you manage to shake off the shock of seeing anyone else here at this time, and give Edward a little wave.

You sigh as you sink into your chair, lazily replying to the emails that have piled up over the weekend. While this cushy job has its benefits, God, the actual work is boring.

You catch yourself repeatedly turning subtly in your chair to watch Edward work. Even though he's so far away, you recognise that concentrated look he has on his face when a particularly messy set of fraudulent taxes have him stumped. Before you can register what you're doing, you're walking across the empty office right up to his desk and Jesus, your hands are sweaty as hell.

You manage to discreetly wipe them on your slacks before he looks up at you, his stressed expression all the greeting you need to begin talking. "I know we usually say good morning at my desk, but you were clocked in even earlier than me this morning." Your sentence ends with an anxious giggle, and when he narrows his eyes in confusion, you continue. "I, um, couldn't help but notice that you looked a little stressed... can I get you something to help? Water, coffee, anything? I'm all finished catching up on my emails so..."

You trail off a little awkwardly and you swear you see Edward's lip quirk up in a tiny smile before returning to his usual poker face. You mentally slap yourself for expecting to get anything out of him; it's not even 9am and you've already annoyed him. Great.

"If it's really no bother... I take my coffee black, one sugar. Thank you."

He says the last part quietly, looking down. You smile, and head for the break room to get his drink, your hands shaking giddily. You have somehow gotten more words out of him in five months than any of your colleagues have in five years. You see that as a win.

Edward sees it as the complete opposite. His brain is in chaos trying to focus on work but constantly wandering back to new daydreams of you. Daydreams of living together in your shared apartment, where you make him coffee every morning and bring it to him in bed. He can't help admiring you from afar, the way your well (tight) fitting slacks cling to you in the best way, and he has to physically rest his head on his desk to remind himself of where he is before his thoughts get too carried away.

You place the styrofoam cup down in front of Edward and he nods gratefully. You take a sip from your own cup, watching him work, before you realise you're being weird, still lingering around his desk like some creep. You cough awkwardly. "I'm, uh, going to go sit back down now, let you get back to it. I hope the coffee isn't too gross."

It's perfect, Edward thinks as he watches you wander back to your desk, and well after 5pm, when everyone has left, he fishes through the trash can uncer your desk and retrieves your styrofoam cup from that morning, placing it in a ziplock bag and taking it home with him.

This is Edward's new routine. He comes into work early every day and sits in the empty office, doing as much work as he can so that he can muster up the courage to one day, finally join you after work instead of being swamped with tasks. For weeks, every Friday, you invite him to come drink with your little group, and every Friday he finds some flimsy excuse to flake on you, anxiety tightening his throat and dampening his forehead.

You begin thinking you must be bothering him- he hasn't once accepted your invitation, and you tell yourself after each awkward encounter, 'this is the last time.' Yet, each week, you find yourself stood at his desk, legs trembling and mouth dry, anticipating rejection.

Until, one Friday in late February, he gives you an awkward smile, shuffling the mess of papers on his desk.

"I, ah, managed to wrap up these returns... I'll come along, if you want me to."

You can barely believe your ears, and your shock must be evident because Edward begins to flush under your gaze. You clear your throat, a bright smile on your face as you bounce on the balls of your feet. "Oh, that's great! We're ready to leave when you are."

Your small group bursts out of the office, your noses red from the February chill. You notice Edward lagging behind a little, and slow your pace to walk alongside him.

"I'm really glad you took us up on our offer finally. We found this sweet little hole in the wall bar only a little way from here, and happy hour lasts until 9 on Fridays." You grin at him. "I know I don't know much about you, but I really think you'll like it. The vibes are super chill, and they play some decent music. You like The Cure, right?"

Edward tilts his head curiously, and you flush as you scramble to explain yourself, so you don’t come off as an actual stalker.

"I, just, um... I could hear you listening to them last week when I came into work early."

He smiles, and the sincerity of it makes your knees go wobbly.

"Yeah, hah, I- um- listened to them a lot when I was young. I guess I never really grew out of it." He chuckles nervously, fiddling with the strap of his work bag.

You find a booth in the corner, and your group crams in, sharing the latest office gossip and complaining about how heavy the workload has been recently. You find yourself sat next to Edward and you smile at him as you settle back into the cracked vinyl of the booth, sipping your drink.

"I can't imagine coming into a bar and ordering water after how much you've worked this week. How are you not halfway through a bottle of whiskey right now?" You laugh lightly, beginning to feel pleasantly buzzed. Edward readjusts his glasses and thanks God that the red LED lights hide his pink cheeks. "I'm not really a big drinker... I prefer to be in control of my actions." He pauses, eyeing you clutching your drink in his peripheral vision, before clearing his throat. "N- not that there's anything wrong with drinking. I just, uh, have never really been a fan. I don't think it tastes very nice."

You giggle, slapping his arm lightly. "You don't need to explain yourself to me, Edward. I was only kidding."

After an hour or two, and a few more cocktails, the bar begins to liven up a little. Most of your friends have gotten up to dance, but you ignore them, deep in conversation with Edward about Gotham's current political climate.

"I thought I was the only one! Seriously, that shitbag of a mayor gets nowhere near enough criticism. They're corrupt, the lot of them, and I can only hope they get what's coming to-"

You pause, realising Edward is distracted. He fidgets with the sleeve of his jacket while rapidly bouncing his knee up and down, and you notice him cringing at the volume of the music.

You lean forward, resting a hand on his arm, your voice quiet as you whisper in his ear, "wanna go for a smoke?"

Your voice is a lovely contrast to the music blaring from the speaker, Edward thinks, and he can smell your perfume with you in such close proximity. It's sweet and flowery, and he wishes he could have you this close to him forever.

He nods, quickly standing and leading you out of the packed bar. The cold air hits you like a slap in the face as you make your exit, and you immediately regret leaving your jacket on your seat as you hug yourself, trying to stay warm under the broken heat lamps.

Edward fishes a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and holds it out to you. You smile gratefully, plucking one from the box and holding it between your teeth. Your freezing hands tremble, fumbling the lighter in your hands, and you groan in frustration as the wind keeps blowing the flame out. Edward watches you from the corner of his eye and chuckles lightly, a newfound wave of confidence surging through him.

"Want a hand?"

You sigh, shutting your eyes and nodding in defeat. Edward laughs again, and it is a lovely sound; his laugh has an almost falsetto quality to it, and you can't help but smile back at him, your cheeks warm.

Edward takes the lighter from you, his other hand reaching to cup over your own, protecting your lips from the biting wind as he lights your cigarette for you.

It is such a simple action. 'There's nothing behind it!' you think, but it holds such an undeniable sense of intimacy. His warm hand lingers on yours, warming your entire body, and he doesn't break your gaze when he finally pulls away to light his own cigarette.

The two of you stand in silence for several moments, watching the smoke you breathe out dance into the night sky, disappearing from view. You feel so relaxed around him, and you turn your head to watch him study the night sky, his eyes darting this way and that before landing on you. He smiles shyly.

"I had a nice time tonight. I... honestly wasn't expecting to."

He notices your face fall slightly before he quickly continues. "I wouldn't usually call this kind of place my thing, but... I found myself really enjoying myself. The company certainly didn't hurt."

You smile at that, and he eagerly returns it.

"Forgive me if I'm overstepping, but... I'd like to take you out sometime. Just me and you, away from all the noise."

Edward can hardly believe the words coming out of his mouth, and he's convinced he's dreaming. The smile on your face only grows.

"You mean, like a date?"

The redness of his cheeks deepens, and he nods, his knees feeling weak. You begin jotting something down in your notepad before pressing a folded-up piece of paper into his hand, blowing a plume of smoke just past his face. He can almost taste the nicotine and tequila on your lips as you lean towards him, your voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm looking forward to it."

With that, you flick your cigarette on the floor and turn on your heel, heading back into the bar. Edward unfolds the slip of paper to be met with the phone number he has had memorised since your first day working at KTMJ five months ago.

The routine is disrupted.

#dano riddler #dano riddler x reader #edward nashton #edward nashton x reader #paul dano #riddler 2022 #riddler x you #batman 2022 #edward nashton x you #riddler x reader #danonation #danocel #the batman 2022 #the riddler

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xetlynn · 5 months ago

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Twilight- Book Four-Mortality: Chapter One- Day Before

(Alice X reader X Jasper)

[One] [Two]

Bella and Edward are getting married, the invitation lying in my hand as I talk to Jasper and Alice.

Something Alice made herself. "Why are you giving this to me?" I tilt my head to the side in confusion. I only ask due to the fact that I have been shopping with my girlfriend for this wedding since we were told about it.

"It's just to say that you have it. Keepsake." She smiles, kissing my cheek before walking away. Leaving Jasper and I in the living room alone.

"You excited for the wedding?" He suddenly speaks up, lifting my thoughts away from the paper. "Mm, I don't like what comes after but what can I do about that?" I shrug my shoulders, the room goes back to being quiet and he lifts his arms. Inviting me into them.

Without a second thought I let him embrace me. He knows how I feel about Bella becoming a vampire. I'm not the biggest fan of it. I wish we could've grown old together, have our little families. Our kids be cousins.

But both of us succumbed to a fate we should've never experienced or had to endure. Even if she technically has the choice, she truly doesn't. The Volturi would stop at nothing to kill her if they had it their way.

"You have to break them in." Alice tells Bella who just stumbled a little in her heels."I've been breaking them in. For three days. Can I just go barefoot?" My sister questions, I smirk knowing what the response will be. "No, absolutely not."

"Just thinking it's a little much, you know? the dress and the shoes and all of this." She gestures ahead of us. Jasper and Carlisle carrying benches for the bride and grooms sides.

"No, it's exactly enough. Tomorrow will be perfect." Alice grins cheerfully. Emmett then comes into view. "Where do you want them, boss?" He asks, carrying a long tree trunk. "On either side of the aisle."

Rosalie then walks past with another tree stump. "What aisle?" She seems a little annoyed. "Does no one have vision?" My girlfriend exasperates loudly, throwing her arms in the air, heading over to them to explain where she wants everything.

I watch Bella take her heels off then put her converse on.

"Sorry you have to deal with her." I rub my sister's shoulder but I can't hide the very clear smirk on my face. For once I'm not getting dressed in ridiculous clothing. Due to this wedding it's only things about the decorations or stuff for other people. Not me.

I love Alice, I love every quirk she has. I love them more when they have nothing to do with me and they're focused on others. "It's only for a few more days then it's all back to you." She gives me a knowing look and I let out a short laugh.

"True."

Alice comes back over to us, putting my arm around her waist. "You, go home and get lots of beauty sleep. Your sister will take you home. That's an order." She points to both of us. "Okay."

The two hug and Bella walks away. Alice picks her heels up.

"Please make sure she gets good sleep tonight." She suddenly turns to me with the heels in her hands. "Yes ma'am." I nod my head, giving a tiny salute.

"I love you." She kisses my lips. "I love you too. I pull her in my arms, pressing her into another kiss. "You gotta go." She pushes me back with a smile.

"Ugh but I'll miss you so much." I whine, trying to kiss her again but she laughs, keeping a hand out, the other still holding the shoes. "I'll miss you too but you have to go." She tells me, I pout but listen to her.

"I'm gonna go say goodbye to the other love of my life." I walk off, hurrying over to Jasper.

Jasper's setting some of the flowers up, unaware I'm there. I quietly get ready to pounce on him. Squinting my eyes on how I'm going to do it. I glance around. The only person around is Rosalie. We make eye contact and I put a finger to my lips, motioning for her to stay quiet. At first she nods but then I see a glint in her eyes but it's too late I was already going forward.

"Jasper!" She shouts, earning his attention, he finally realizes I'm there. Ruining the element of surprise. I jump right into his arms and he catches me.

"Rosalie! I can't believe you." I act shocked. Once I saw her I knew she was going to do that. She's done it before.

"Anyway, I have to go before our girl yells at me once again. Just wanted to say I love you before I left." He was still holding onto me. My legs wrapped around his torso. "Well I love you too." He gives me a kiss.

"Yeah, yeah." I drop down, kissing him one last time then heading to Bella's truck.

I don't know why Alice said I was taking her home when Bella was going to be the one who drove us.

"Sleepover tonight?" Bella asks as we entered the house. "Um, hell yeah." I grin, "Let me get dressed and I'll bring snacks up." I tell her, both of us going separate ways to our rooms.

After getting dressed I go to leave my room but I hear noise outside and I immediately know who it is. Edward is seeing Bella before the wedding. Against Alice's repeated threats for him not to do that.

I look out of my window to see Emmett and Jasper. Emmett points to me, then points to Jasper and makes kissy faces. I roll my eyes with a smile.

I head out of my room and upstairs but I stop myself when I hear their conversation. I attempt to block it out of my head. Trying to focus on a different sound in the house. I lean against the wall and then I remember I have to get the snacks so I walk downstairs. Charlie seemed to already have gone to bed.

I get a bunch of snacks together, most of Bella's favorites then a few of my weird ones that I enjoy after turning into a Hybrid.

After putting them into a grocery bag I hear a whistle from outside. "What is that?" I hear Bella ask. "Come on! Let's go!" Emmett shouts from outside. "I'm late for my bachelor party." Edward responds. I hear a thud. "Send him out, Bella, or we're coming in after him." Emmett tells my sister.

I smile to myself, lifting the bag and walking back upstairs. Loudly crinkling the bag, entering her bedroom. "So, this party. Will there be strippers?" My sister asks, both of them acknowledging me but in the same not.

"No, just a couple of mountain lions. Maybe a few bears." Edward chuckles. A thump comes from the window and Jasper is there. "Don't worry, Bella, we'll give him back in plenty of time." He then winks over to me, jumping back down. Emmett and him playfully shoving one another.

"Okay, go before they break my house."

"Let's go! Let's go!" Emmett shouts. "I'll meet you at the altar." Edward says, heading to the window. "I'll be the one in white." My sister awkwardly tells him. "That was very convincing."

She laughs as he jumps out of the window. The both of us go over and watch the three guys mess with each other.

Once they're gone, I shake the bag. Getting her attention. "What movie we watching tonight?" I ask, both of us heading over to her bed and she gets her laptop out. I let her choose the movie and I try to focus on it.

Only hearing her heartbeat instead. Listening to the calmness. I glance over to her practically already asleep. Her breathing was slowed, heavy. I think about how this is one of her last moments as a human.

My chest tightens at the thought of her having to go through the pain I did when I turned into a Vampire.

I then feel her hand find its way to my arm. Mumbles exiting her mouth, obviously distressed. I look over to her clock and it's already been three hours.

I look at the laptop and the credits of the movie had already passed, its back to the loading screen. I didn't even notice the time go by.

She makes another noise and I play with her hair, trying to do what our mother used to do for us when we were little.

"What did I say about beauty sleep?" Alice questions Bella who grimaces. "Sorry, bad dream. It was wedding jitters." She apologizes, I think about last night and how many times she woke up.

Rosalie walks into the room, looking gorgeous. "Do you need some help? I could do her hair." She turns to my girlfriend who goes to speak but Bella interjects. "Really?"

"Please. I'm not offended by your choice of groom." She plays with Bella's hair. "Just my blatant lack of respect for mortality." Bella says.

"Essentially." Rosalie gently smiles. "Weddings. They bring everyone together." Alice dreamily sighs, leaning into my body. The three of us were dressed in purple dresses. Well I was in a dress suit. It was a similar color to Alice's.

We then hear Renee and Charlie speaking outside of the room. "[Name]? Bella?" Our mom calls out. "In here, mom." We yell together.

Renee enters first. "Oh, my gosh! You're so beautiful. Oh, honey." She begins to tear up. "Crap! My mascara." I let out a little laugh, going over to her and giving her a handkerchief. She leans into my side hug. "Thanks, sweetie. Charlie, get in here." She shouts over to the door.

"You sure? I don't wanna..." He walks into the room wearing a tux. All of us shocked by his clean get up. "I know. I look hot." We all laugh.

"We thought you needed something blue." Charlie then opens a gift box containing a hair comb that has blue jewels on it. "And something old. Besides your mother." He jokes, my mom shaking her head. "Nice."

"It was Grandma Swan's." Charlie informs her. Bella picks it up. "But we added the sapphires." Renee points to it. "It's beautiful, you guys. Wow. Thank you so much." Bella hands it over to Alice.

"It's your first family heirloom. Well it could be yours and [Name]s. Pass on to her then to your guy's daughters then onto their daughters." Renee begins to cry again. My body tenses up and I glance over to Alice who gives me a sympathetic smile.

"Mom, I love it." Bella goes to hug our parents but my girlfriend stops her.

"Nope, no smudging my masterpiece." She orders. I snort, Renee gently slapping me. "She's right."

"Okay. Time for the dress! Do you want to see it?" She asks Renee. "I want to see it!"

Masterlist

A&J M.L.

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cece693 · 1 year ago

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I've Moved On (Bella Swan x Male Reader)

This is how I envision New Moon to end cause I know for a fact I wouldn't have easily forgiven Edward for his stunt. Bella went easy on his ass, I swear.

Summary: After the whole Volterra incident, Edward believes everything can go back to normal, but what if Bella had moved on like he insisted? What if now it's her who breaks things off?

This conversation was long overdue, Bella thought, watching as Edward once again tried to hold her hand over the car's shift stick but retreated when she pulled her hand further onto her lap. His gold eyes stared worriedly at her, yet Bella only looked out the Volvo's window, not wanting to say anything until they arrived at the safety of her home.

Charlie was, thankfully, still at work, so the house was void of any additional ears. Edward had insisted they go to the Cullen's house, but in all honesty, Bella didn't want to reunite with the people who had so easily left her.

In Edward's absence, Bella understood that the Cullens only accepted her due to her relationship with Edward, not because they genuinely liked her. If they did, why didn't any of them try to reach out, even Alice, who called herself her best friend, had ignored the multitude of emails she'd sent.

"Edward, we need to talk." Bella finally voiced after what felt like an eternity spent in silence. They would reach her house shortly, so now would be a good time to begin this conversation.

"Of course," Edward replied, a reassuring smile on his face, yet it didn't alleviate any of Bella's anxiousness. Even if she was breaking up with Edward, she wanted to spare his feelings. From what she'd gathered, this was, like her, his first relationship.

"Would it make you more comfortable if we did this inside?" he sought, after the Volvo parked in the driveway. Nodding, Bella was about to open her own door, when Edward beat her to it.

"Thanks."

Opening the front door, the hinges creaked open, revealing the familiar yet transformed interior. In those few seconds, Edward couldn't help but notice the subtle changes. Where there once were only photos of a young Bella, now included photos of the Swan family standing beside a young male.

"Who's he?" Edward sought, gently taking hold of a picture frame when Bella came into view. At first glance, he could have been mistaken for a family friend, but something in the image suggested more. Edward's keen eyes caught the hand around Bella's waist and the broad smile she wore, a smile that was oh-so-familiar to him.

"That's m/n." Bella whispered, "my boyfriend."

Edward, taken aback by the revelation, involuntarily dropped the frame. It hit the floor with a crash, the sound of breaking glass punctuating the weighty silence. His eyes met Bella's, a mixture of surprise, confusion, and a hint of hurt evident in his expression. "Why didn't you tell me?" Edward asked, his voice tinged with a sense of betrayal.

"I didn't know how to." Bella admitted, "And with everything that happened in Volterra, I couldn't."

"Okay." Edward whispered, bending down to pick up the photograph. "So when are you breaking up with him? I know it won't be easy—"

"Who says I'm breaking up with m/n?" Bella voiced, her tone firm. "Edward, that's what I wanted to talk to you about. I don't want anything to do with you anymore."

Edward's eyes widened in a mixture of shock and disbelief. "Bella, you can't mean that. After everything that happened between us, you're telling me we're through? I know I left, and you don't know how much I regret that day, but we can work it out. I still love you." Desperate, Edward came closer to Bella and held her hand. "Please give me another chance."

"No." Bella whispered, retracting her arm, her expression unyielding. "Edward, you left. Don't you see the hypocrisy in that? I moved on like you told me to, but now that I'm moving on with life, ask me to give us another chance? No. I won't leave m/n for you."

"But—" Edward tried again, but Bella shook her head.

"Please...just leave and forget I ever existed."

#the twilight saga #twilight #new moon #bella swan #edward cullen #esme cullen #carlisle cullen #charlie swan #alice cullen #jasper whitlock #jasper hale #rosalie hale #rosalie cullen #emmett cullen #x male reader #male reader insert #male reader

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irrevocableloves · 8 months ago

Text

violent delights

twilight rewrite! edward cullen x fem!witch!reader

chapter eight: questions & theories

previous chapter ౨ৎ masterlist ౨ৎ chapter nine

summary: after edward had mysteriously rescues her, she finally gets some answers.

warnings: violence, harassment

words: 4.6k (unedited)

All that could be heard was the shudder of my quickened breaths, not even a word coming from Edward’s mouth or even the drunken men who just stared in what was perhaps confusion? Maybe fear? Just moments ago, I could read them almost instantly. Hunger was what I felt from them. The absolute need for control. It sickened me.

I wasn’t sure what Edward had done, but the boys backed up and Edward made his way back into the car. I hurried and put my seatbelt on before he revved the engine and pulled forward. I couldn’t help but gasp as the men fell over as they backed away. Then he backed up swiftly, making the sharpest turn around that swished my insides. Even then, I still felt the safest I’ve ever been.

He raced down past the building and pulled onto the street, not even stopping at the sign or even waiting for someone to let him in. Honks blared past him, but not one flinch. As he raced down the street, I took the time to study him. His jaw was clenched, his hands gripped the wheel, his expression was full of fury; it looked as if he wasn’t even breathing at all.

“Are you okay?” I asked, my voice squeaked. I winced hearing my voice coming out so frail.

“No.” He was fuming.

I was surprised when he’d made a complete stop at the side of the road. I didn’t realize I’d been looking at him the whole time when he finally stopped to look towards me, not even reaching my eye.

“Y/N?” he asked as softly as he could, although I could still hear the strains of anger.

“Yeah?”

“Are you all right?” His eyes met mine for a split second.

“I–I think so…” I don’t think I was. I was too shocked by it all.

“Do you think you can distract me?” he just about pleaded.

From just looking at him, I didn’t need to question his need for a diversion. But, what was there to say? The days without him had left me in a heap of depression and utter sense of boredom at school. I racked my brain of anything that seemed amusing, scratching out my search for vampires and the constant dreams I had of him that left me a sweating mess on my sheets.

“Tyler Crowley–he–um kept telling everyone he was taking me to prom? I think? I don’t really remember, I kinda tuned it out…” I admitted. I should’ve been more angry about it, but the absence of Edward had hit me a lot harder.

“I heard about that.” He seemed to be controlling his breaths.

“Really? Was I the last one to hear about this?” I tried to lighten the mood, it seemed to work when I was rewarded a slight chuckle. “If he thinks taking me to prom is making up for almost killing me, then I’ll just run him over with my car and make it even.”

I saw his mouth twitch a bit with my remark, almost forcing itself not to crack a smile. I decided to speak up again. “What’s wrong?”

“My temper. Sometimes it gets out of control.” He was whispering, ashamed of what he couldn’t control. “It’s taking everything in me not to turn around and hunt those animals. The vile, repulsive things they were thinking…”

I know. I didn’t dare speak that aloud. I felt like I was losing my mind. Could he too hear their thoughts or were they as clear as day?

“It wouldn’t help to turn around and do it… or even run them over… At least that’s what I’m trying to convince myself.”

A part of me wished that he would… hunt them down. The part of me that was completely exposed. The one that was forced to hear their thoughts. Unless I’d imagined it… but it wouldn’t have been too far off from reality.

“Jessica and Angela,” I broke the brief silence, realizing that it had been at least 20 minutes since I’d last contacted them. “I was supposed to meet them, they’re probably worried...”

Without another word, he started the engine. Yet again, racing through the streets in a blur. He parallel parked in a spot with ease, right in front of La Bella Italia. My eyebrows furrowed. From the time I’d told him about meeting the girls to our arrival at the restaurant, I never mentioned the location once.

In my swift time of thought, he’d already been opening my door.

“What’re you doing?” I asked him.

“I’m taking you to dinner,” he said as if it was so plainly obvious.

I fumbled with my seatbelt as my mind raced about as fast as Edward’s driving. Finally, I stepped out.

Just as we were entering, Jessica and Angela walked out, the both of them sighing with relief. Right as they were about to speak, they noticed the brooding, tall man beside me and their worried looks had faded, instead replaced with a red tint in their cheeks.

“Sorry I kept Y/N from dinner. We ran into each other and got talking.” Edward was the one to speak first. I was grateful. I couldn’t even bear to tell them what happened, at least not yet, I didn’t want to worry them.

“We understand, yeah!” Jessica was completely flustered along with Angela.

“Would it be all right if I joined you?” he asked. He had a way with people, one that left them absolutely breathless. The girls were left in stutters.

“Um! Y-yeah sure!” Jessica breathed. Edward smirked.

“Um, actually, Y/N, we already ate while we were waiting — sorry," Angela confessed.

“That’s okay! I’m not really that hungry anyways.” I shrugged. With all the nerves with Edward here, I wasn’t sure if I would even be able to stomach anything.

“I really think you should eat something,” Edward said in a low voice, leaning down to speak into my ear. I looked up at him, trying to cover up the fact that I was in complete awe. I simply nodded back at him as if I was in a trance.

“Sure, yeah.” I tried to say as composed as possible.

He looked back to the two girls, then spoke, “Do you mind if I drive Y/N home tonight? That way the two of you aren’t left waiting.”

Jessica and Angela looked to me for an answer. I gave them a nod with a smile. This was exactly what I needed. A night to finally ask all of my unanswered questions from my brooding savior.

“Yeah! Not a problem! See you tomorrow, Y/N/N,” Jessica chirped.

“Bye Y/N,” Angela leaned in for a hug. “And Edward, thanks for staying and taking her home.” She smiled at him. He responded back with a tight, but genuine smile.

Once they left, Edward guided me towards the entrance,holding the door open for me. My heart skipped a beat. I walked through the door, immediately being greeted by a host. Actually, only Edward was greeted by the host. Just from the look in her eyes, I knew she was instantly enamored by his presence, a feeling that was all too familiar with practically anyone that laid their eyes on him.

As she spoke, she never broke eye contact with him, not once looking towards me. I hated that it bothered me. The way she smiled at him, giggling at him once he spoke — it made me feel small.

“A table for two?” Her eye contact was still left unbroken, but when I looked towards Edward, his eyes were only on me. My breath trembled.

When she led us to a larger table, one that was meant for four, Edward spoke up, “Perhaps something more private?” He asked the host with a quick glance towards her before slyly pulling out a tip for her. Then his eyes were back on me.

“Sure,” she said alluringly, still trying to catch Edward’s undivided attention. She led us over to the quieter area of the restaurant, with a ring of small booths lined up. “How’s this?”

“Perfect.” He flashed a smile at her, one that had absolutely left her awed.

”Um-” she stuttered, “your server will be right out.” She walked away, still making glances back towards Edward.

“Wow.” That was all that I could possibly utter after that interaction.

“What?”

“You really shouldn’t do that to people.” I finally found my voice. “It’s hardly fair.”

“Do what?”

”Dazzle them like that.” I couldn’t possibly think of a word more fitting. “She’s probably hyperventilating in the kitchen right now.”

His eyebrows furrowed, which surprised me. Did he really not notice this effect he has on people?

“I dazzle people?” His head tilted to one side, his eyes full of curiosity.

“Oh, come on.” I giggled. “Do you really think everyone gets their way so easily?”

He ignored my question completely. “Do I dazzle you?”

I froze for a moment before asking, “What do you think?”

“Now that’s the real question…” He mumbled. He looked frustrated.

Thankfully, before I could even form a response, our server arrived, her eyes gleaming. Once again, another woman dazzled by just the mere presence of Edward Cullen.

“Hi. My name’s Amber and I’ll be your server tonight. What can I get you to drink?” She only looked at Edward and I noticed that his eyes, again, were on me.

“A Coke.” I said rather bland to the server.

“Two Cokes,” he said.

“I’ll be right back with that.” She shot him another smile, one that was completely unnecessary as his eyes still remained on me.

“How are you feeling?” he asked.

“Fine?” I’d completely forgotten about the reason why he was here with me in the first place. I hated that. The way that every thought bolted out of my mind when it came to him, it was quite frustrating.

“You’re not a little shaken up? Dizzy, sick, cold…?”

I couldn’t help but chuckle. “No, I’ve always been pretty good at repressing unpleasant things.” And he was far from that.

He nodded. “Well, I’ll feel better once you have something in your system.”

Just after that, the server came back with our drinks and a basket of breadsticks. To make him feel better, I grabbed one to nibble on.

“Are you ready to order?” she asked Edward, her back facing me.

“Y/N?” he asked. She looked back at me uninterested. I tried my hardest to swallow my tongue.

I glanced at the menu, picking the first thing that my eyes fell to. “I’ll have the Fettuccine Alfredo.”

“And you?” She turned back to him with a smile.

“Nothing for me.” I knew it.

The server gave him a coy smile. “Just let me know if you change your mind.”

He pushed my drink towards me, nodding at it for me to drink. The waiter left disappointed.

Once the glass was in front of me, I sipped on it, forgetting how dehydrated I actually was. In under a minute, the soda was gone and embarrassingly enough, I was still thirsty.

I saw him push the other coke towards me. I gave him a smile, deciding to take small sips from it.

“Cold?” He asked.

I felt a shiver down my spine and this time it wasn’t from Edward, but from the Coke that I’d chugged and the one that I was currently sipping on.

Before I could even nod, he shrugged off his gray coat, one that looked a little too nice for a teenage boy. Underneath, he wore a casual dark blue button down with the two buttons loose to reveal a dark gray undershirt.

Once he handed me his coat, I was broken from my trance. I slid my arm into his coat, oddly, it was cold, almost as if I’d left it in my car that was drowning in snow from the night before. But in just seconds, the coat had warmed to my touch. Once it was on, I pushed back the sleeves as they were far too long on me…

“You sure you're alright? Normally a person would’ve gone into shock.” He pushed the breadsticks in front of me and I gladly served myself another.

Why was that? I couldn’t really make out a sane answer as to why my reaction didn’t amount to one of a normal person. There was truly only one answer. Him.

“I feel safe with you,” I confessed.

His head went down, his eyes to the floor with a furrowed brow.

“I’m not… good for you.” He shook his head, his eyes still facing the ground.

“Your eyes are black again.” I saw his expression change, he looked back up at me, his eyebrows furrowed yet again, but this time in a state of confusion rather than disappointment. “I noticed your moods change according to your eye color, it’s quite interesting actually. One of my new theories.”

“So there’s more theories?” He had a faint smile and I could sense that he was a bit intrigued.

“Well I’m not gonna force it out of you. Just makes me feel a bit more sane.” He nodded at my response, his smile peeking a bit more in the corners of his mouth.

“And what are these new theories?”

When the waitress came over, we both realized how close we were sitting and immediately straightened out. She set the dish in front of me and then turned to Edward.

“Did you change your mind? Isn’t there anything I can get you?” she asked him.

“No, thank you.” Then gestured towards me.

I looked around at the table, realizing I’d already finished the second coke. “Maybe just some water.” I gave her a tight smile.

She nodded, only smiling at Edward, then took the empty glasses off the table and walked off.

“So, those theories?” He moved closer to me.

“I’ll tell you later in the car. Only if I can ask you a few questions.”

“Done,” he said immediately, I was a bit surprised.

“Why are you here?” I started.

“To have dinner with you,” he said as if it were obvious.

“No, I mean Port Angeles. It’s an hour drive – you knew I was here.”

“Next.”

“C’mon, I gotta have at least some answers if you won’t tell me the big one.”

“Next,” he repeated.

I tried hard to not look as frustrated as I actually was. I shouldn’t have. I should feel grateful and not poke my head in where it didn’t belong. But I couldn’t help the pull I felt towards him, the need to know him. Instead, I pulled my focus towards the steaming food in front of me, twisting the noodles on my fork and sticking them in my mouth. It was actually delicious.

The waitress came back with two waters without another word.

“Okay.” I took a sip of my water before speaking up again. “So… let’s say, hypothetically, someone could know what people are thinking. Read minds, you know?” I wasn’t even sure if this question was regarding me or him, but I was intrigued either way.

“Hypothetically?” He asked, amused.

“Mhm.” I nodded. “So, how does it work? How is it that someone could find another person at the right time and just know that they’re in trouble?”

“Well, hypothetically, it shouldn’t take that someone any mind reading at all to know just how much trouble you get into in a town with absolutely no trouble.” He chuckled.

I only just looked at him, waiting for him to tell me the truth or not. Just from my look, he seemed frustrated, as if he was battling a war in his mind of whether or not he should tell me the truth.

“You can trust me, you know?” Without a second thought I reached my hands towards his, but he pulled them away. My face was tinted red. I was glad his eyes were still to the floor.

“I was wrong about you.” He admitted. “You're much more observant than I gave you credit for.”

“Thought you were always right.”

“I used to be.” He finally looked at me. “But, you proved me wrong.”

He spoke up again before I could respond. “I was wrong about something else, too.”

“You’re not a magnet for accidents. No… that’s not a broad enough classification. You are a magnet for trouble. If there is anything dangerous within a ten-mile radius, it will inevitably find you.”

“And you think that’s you?” I guessed.

Just from his expression, I knew I was right. His face turned cold, in another effort to shut me out completely.

“Unequivocally,” he said.

My hands stretched across the table again as they had a mind of its own. Even as he pulled away, my hands persisted, shadowing over the back of his hand, feeling his skin with my fingertips. It was cold, like stone. Familiar. Like in my dream. Once the cold started to dissipate from my fingertips, I slowly inched my hand back…

I wasn’t the only one who noticed it. Edward looked down at where my fingertips once laid, a bewildered look on his face. To break his focus, I cleared my throat, muttering, “Thank you,” I started. He looked up at me, trying hard to not glance back down at his hand. I continued “For saving me… again…”

“Let’s hope there isn’t a third.” He said, his usual condescending self resurfacing. He placed both of his hands under the table, pulling himself back into our conversation.

“I followed you to Port Angeles,” he admitted. “I feel protective over you.” His expression seemed like he didn’t know why himself, but he continued on, “I've never tried to keep a specific person alive before, and it's much more troublesome than I would have believed. But that's probably just because it's you. Ordinary people seem to make it through the day without so many catastrophes.”

It should’ve bothered me, but it didn’t. Instead, I felt content over the fact that this connection wasn’t imaginary. He felt it to the point where he felt the need to protect me. Nothing about this was normal, but I seemed to not be fazed by it at all. So, why should I fight it? The only thing I was determined to fight was the smile that threatened to curve on my lips.

“Did you ever think that maybe my number was up the first time, with the van, and that you've been interfering with fate?" I speculated, distracting myself.

“That wasn't the first time," he murmured. “Your number was up the first time I met you."

My breath hitched. But somehow, the memory didn’t bother me anymore, not when I felt the safety I felt with him right now. Not when he’d gone beyond faith and saved me twice.

"You remember?" he asked.

"Yes." I was as calm as ever.

“And yet here you sit." There was a trace of disbelief in his voice; he raised one eyebrow.

"Yes, here I sit… because of you." I paused. “Because somehow you always manage to find me?”

He studied me, his expression guarded. His eyes flashed down to my plate, then returned to mine.

“You eat, I'll talk," he bargained.

I looked down at my now, lukewarm food, realizing how long it’s been since I’d taken a bite. I filled up my fork and ate in return for his explanation.

“It's harder than it should be — keeping track of you. Usually I can find someone very easily, once I've heard their mind before…" He glanced at me with anxiety, and I noticed I had tensed up. I forced myself to swallow, then piled up my fork again for another bite.

“I kept loose tabs on Jessica, knowing only you could find trouble in Port Angeles. At first I didn’t notice when you roamed off on your own – her thoughts were quite scrambled. Then, when I realized you’d left them, I went looking for you at the bookstore I saw in her head. I could tell you hadn’t gone in yet – you’d gone south. I searched through the thoughts of people on the street just to see if anyone saw you. I was strangely anxious…” He trailed off, lost in thought, his gaze distant.

“I drove in circles, still… listening. The sun was setting, and I was considering following you on foot. But then—" He paused, teeth clenched in sudden fury, making an effort to regain composure.

“Then what?" I whispered. He continued to stare towards the floor.

“I heard what they were thinking," he growled, his upper lip curling slightly back over his teeth. So could I, even if it was just for a moment. “I saw your face in their minds." He was struggling to compose his anger as his entire face twitched up.

His hands were now in his face to contain his fury. “It was very… hard — you can't imagine how hard it was for me to simply take you away, and leave them… alive." I was holding in a gasp. But, still… somehow… I wasn’t afraid of him.

“I could have let you go with Jessica and Angela, but I was afraid if you left me alone, I would go looking for them," he admitted in a whisper. I sat quietly, dazed, my thoughts incoherent. My hands were folded in my lap, and I was leaning weakly against the back of the seat. He still had his face in his hand, and he was as still as if he'd been carved from the stone his skin resembled.

Finally he looked up, his eyes seeking mine, full of his own questions.

“Are you ready to go home?" he asked. The waitress had come over almost immediately after Edward muttered the words.

I nodded, satisfied that I’d be the one spending an hour long drive with him, one that would further my answers to my long-awaited questions.

“How are we doing?" she asked Edward.

“We're ready for the check, thank you." He was a lot more reserved than earlier. His charming smirk had been replaced with a brooding expression, still reflecting the strain of our conversation. The waitress seemed to notice the change and looked a bit disoriented from it.

“S-sure," she stuttered. “Here you go." Before she even pulled out the check, a bill was already in his hand. He slipped it into the folder and handed it right back to her.

“No change." He gave her a tight smile, then stood up. Meanwhile, I scrambled awkwardly up to my feet.

She smiled invitingly at him again. “You have a nice evening." He didn't look away from me as he thanked her. I didn’t even bother to smile. Walking out, he was close beside me, but still careful not to touch me.

He opened the passenger door, holding it for me as I stepped in, shutting it softly behind me. I should’ve been used to this. But as I watched him circle around the car, so effortless and graceful, I couldn’t help but think of how I was so utterly astonished by him.

Once inside the car, he started the engine and turned the heater on high. I was grateful, because even in the warmth of his coat, the temporary chill of the car had left me in shivers and a cold breath. I didn’t even notice Edward weaving through traffic, as I usually did, but we were now on the freeway. That’s when he finally slowed down to a normal pace, for now…

“Now, about those theories…" he said, his usual smirk and smugness creeping its way back.

“I still have more questions,” I revealed. “Just one.”

He only nodded, staring me down, not even paying attention to the road.

“What am I thinking right now?”

He sighed. “Now that. That’s the most frustrating thing of all.”

My eyebrows furrowed as I waited for an answer.

“I can read every mind… apart from yours.”

My breath hitched. “Is there something wrong with me?”

“I hear voices in my mind and you think there’s something wrong with you?” So, I’m a double freak. I should’ve told him that I heard them too, even if it was only for a few moments… But if he could have secrets, so could I.

“How does it work?”

“Mostly, it’s like being in a huge hall filled with everyone speaking at once. It's just a hum — a buzzing of voices in the background. It’s not until I focus on one voice and that’s when their thoughts are clear.” He paused for a moment. “Most of the time I tune it all out — it can be very distracting. And then it's easier to seem normal.” It seemed agonizing.

“Why do you think you can’t hear me?” I asked

curiously.

“The only guess I have is that maybe your mind doesn't work the same way the rest of theirs do. Like your thoughts are on the AM frequency and I'm only getting FM." He grinned at

me, suddenly amused.

“So you’re telling me that my mind doesn’t work right?” I chuckled, but really, his words unsettled me. It hit a nerve, tapping into a fear I’d always dreaded might be true.

“Don’t worry, it’s just a theory… which brings us back to yours.”

I froze. Suddenly, saying it out loud made me feel foolish. Despite all my research and seemingly reliable conversations – I still felt like I was losing my mind.

He noticed my silence. “I won’t laugh,” he said, scrunching his grin into a line.

I took a deep breath before I started. “So, I ran into an old friend – Jacob Black, an old family friend of mine… His dad is one of the Quileute elders.” I noticed his expression change, his jaw clenching.

“At La Push, he told me a few old legends – I think he was trying to scare me. But, he told me one…” I was distracted by the Forks welcome sign as Edward slowed down – I should’ve known that the hour-long car ride would be cut short from Edward’s driving habits.

Right as I was about to continue onto my theory, my attention shifted to the flashing police lights and sirens as we were nearing the police station. Then, my dad’s cruiser parked right in front.

“My dad’s still here… Can you pull in?” I asked.

“That’s my father’s car in the end. What’s he doing here?”

Once he pulled in, we both exited the car, meeting Carisle as he walked down the steps of the police station.

“Carlisle. What happened?”

“Waylon Forge was found in a boat out near his place. I just examined the body.”

Flashes of images consumed me. The boat. Red. So much red. In a blur, the flash of crimson red was surrounded by pale bodies devouring the deceased Waylon Forge.

“Y/N?” A voice interrupted the images, a shake and then a cold hand on my face is what I felt before I opened my eyes.

I squinted from the flashes of the red and blue police lights. With each blink, my vision cleared and in front of me was Edward – wearing an expression I’d never quite seen from him before: fear.

And I felt it too, more than ever.

His once cold hand warmed on my face, almost tingling. But this time, he didn’t move it.

“Y/N?” Carlisle interrupted over Edward’s shoulder. “Are you feeling faint?”

“No.” I cleared my throat. Edward had finally let go, but that warmth of his touch lingered severely. “I’m fine, thank you. Just… just shock… H-he died?” I stuttered. “How?”

I knew exactly how. The images from just seconds ago flickered. My heart pounded and my breath picked up from just the memory of it. The blood. Waymond’s blood. His lifeless body being torn apart by those three figures… Vampires.

Carlisle sighed. “Animal attack.”

next chapter

a/n: i'm so sorry i haven't updated in forever ..........

tags: @measure-in-pain @brekkers-whore @rejectedbimbo @leilanileila @anothercoffeeblogx @cevans-winchester @trawberry-fire @nephilimsss @itszzmoon @astrovampie @cryingoverfictionalmen @boxofbadsenses @ttnaanj @iheartprettygurls @aoi-targaryen @disneyprincessbuffyannesummers @mystifiedgrace @ladybirdbeetle7 @celi-xxmoon @quinnieloves @valeriegraham @renesmeviolets @justicexjustice @bubs-world @eir964 @turnintoclown @tiniewife

(if ur username is here and u didn't get a notif just dm me and i'll dm u when there's an update <3)

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#violent delights #twilight #edward cullen x reader #edward cullen x you #edward cullen x y/n #edward cullen fanfiction #robert pattinson #twilight fanfiction #robert pattinson x reader #violent delights fanfic #violent delights fanfiction

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brf-rumortrackinganon · 8 months ago

Note

…the colossal screw up of Archie's birth announcement

I was not following the royals back then, so I am completely out of the loop with what was happening when Archie was born. There’s so much noise and theories littering this space, that it’s hard to delineate what is actually the screw up and where the theories start and how far plausible goes before it turns into crazy. Do you have a record or write-up you can point me to?

Totally okay if you want to just ignore this ask, though. I know this topic invites unhelpful inputs from people.

Hey, everyone, it's Wednesday! Guess what that means...yup, a super long research project to the dulcet sounds of Top Chef.

I think I'll just give you the whole timeline and then some since there's a lot of debate and discussion around both things.

The Pregnancy

October 12, 2018: Princess Eugenie marries Jack Brooksbanks. Meghan wears a dark navy dress and coat. Only the top buttons of her coat are done, causing immediate speculation that she's expecting.

October 15, 2018: Kensington Palace announces that Harry and Meghan are expecting and the baby is due in the springtime. The royal rota is informed by Jason Knauf over a cell phone in the airport, as they were already in Australia to begin coverage of the Sussexes' tour.

Now, usually when the palace makes these kind of announcements, there's a separate briefing for the royal rota with a few additional details for them to write about. In Rebecca English's article about the pregnancy announcement, she reveals that Meghan had had her 12-week scan, the baby is due in late April 2019, and that they were telling everyone at Eugenie's wedding. The article also reveals that Meghan will visit Tonga and Fiji despite the Zika risk (pregnant women are advised not to travel to areas with the Zika virus due to the risk Zika poses to their baby); it's a controversial decision.

October 15, 2018: Harry and Meghan are papped arriving in Sydney, leaving the airport. Meghan is holding two purple binders, leading to speculation that they are expecting boy-girl twins.

Pippa Middleton gives birth to her first child on October 15th (though it isn't announced for a bit), stealing some of the Sussexes' coverage.

October 15 - 31, 2018: Harry and Meghan are in Australia for the Sydney Invictus Games. They also tour New Zealand, Tonga, and Fiji. There is a ton of gossip and tea about the tour. Meghan is also photographed with a very inconsistent baby belly - sometimes it's there, sometimes it's not.

Also during this time (and into November) is the Sussex press tsunami when these stories were breaking:

"What Meghan wants, Meghan gets"

Meghan smells tastes eggs that aren't there

Meghan made Kate cry

Sussexes are moving out of Kensington Palace

The Sussexes' office is moving to Buckingham Palace; they'll be part of the resource pool that also represents Anne, Yorkies, Edward, Sophie, Kents, and Gloucesters.

Sussexes are leaving The Royal Foundation and setting up The SussexRoyal Foundation.

November 24, 2018: The palace announces that Harry and Meghan are moving to Frogmore Cottage. They will renovate the property from five staff apartments to ten bedrooms, a nursery, a gym, and a yoga studio.

December 18, 2018: Meghan makes a surprise appearance at the British Fashion Awards to recognize Clare Waight Keller (her wedding dress designer) as the British Womenswear Designer of the Year. Allegedly she crashed the event unexpectedly. She is photographed groping her belly the whole time while on stage presenting.

December 25, 2018: During the Christmas walkabout after church, Meghan tells fans that she is "nearly there". It causes confusion because the palace had briefed reporters two months earlier that it was an April baby.

**Anon, this Christmas walk where Meghan says "nearly there" re the baby's due date is where it starts veering off the rails.**

January 14, 2019: Meghan, with Harry, visits Birkenhead for an away day. At the end of the visit when they are leaving, Meghan is observed by some to have lost her belly while developing a new bulge around her mid/lower thighs. (YMMV.)

January 16, 2019: Meghan visits the Mayhew Animal House during the day, in which some people claim to observe her belly folding in and then popping out and others claim to hear a loud popping noise when she stands up. (YMMV.) Later, in the evening, she attends a Cirque du Soleil performance at Royal Albert Hall. This is the night that, as she tells Oprah in March 2021, she felt suicidal and had been crying all day up until just before arriving at the Hall.

February 15 - 20, 2019: Meghan is in New York City to attend a baby shower thrown in her honor by Serena Williams. She stays at the Mark Hotel. Abigail Spencer merches Away luggage. Jess Mulroney and Amal Clooney are some of the guests. Markus Anderson unexpectedly shows up and allegedly, Meghan is upset to see him. There's a ton of paparazzi, which Meghan loves, and the Mark Hotel ropes off the sidewalk for her, which she also loves.

There is a CDAN blind about the baby shower, alleging that Meghan had asked (maybe demanded) the BRF for one but they refused because it's not what they do.

The baby shower causes a lot of questions. There's one instance where Meghan returns from a night out holding a large purse over her stomach area, which is unusual because in every photo since October, Meghan is always showing off her belly.

Meghan leaves NYC by a private jet via Teterboro Airport, assumed to be Amal Clooney's private jet.

This is the end of the Meghan/Amal friendship, as on March 15, 2019, Clarence House announces a partnership between Prince Charles and Amal Clooney establishing the Amal Clooney Award from Prince's Trust International.

February 23 - 25, 2019: Harry and Meghan are in Morocco for an official visit by request of the Foreign Office.

There's speculation that Meghan was planning to attend the Oscars (which are held on February 24, 2019) and allegedly, the BRF caught wind of it and created the Morocco tour to keep her focused on royal work.

Edited to add: After checking my spreadsheet, I realized I missed one - related to speculation/gossip about Meghan attending the Oscars, there’s additional speculation that the BRF planned the Morocco trip to force Meghan to come home from NYC. (I kind of suspect this may be the origin of “they took my passport” claims as told to Oprah because supposedly the palace was upset she had the baby shower and upset she’d gone out of the country to do so.)

March 5, 2019: When Harry and Meghan crash Charles's celebration of the 50th anniversary of his Prince of Wales investiture, Meghan tells people she is "nearly there" still, according to Us Weekly. Us Weekly also reports that a Sussex source had briefed them that the baby was due in the late March/early April timeframe.

March 14, 2019: Commonwealth Day Service. Kensington Palace indirectly confirms that this is Meghan's last appearance before the baby arrives and she is beginning maternity leave.

March 19, 2019: Meghan suspends her maternity leave to visit the New Zealand embassy with Harry to lay flowers in a tribute to victims of a mosque shooting. Meghan, who is photographed cradling her belly, is also photographed squatting down with knees and feet together, causing questions as some observe that it looks like her belly has completely disappeared.

April 2, 2019: Meghan, with Harry, is papped visiting an apothecary shop.

April 4, 2019: Harry and Meghan are confirmed to have moved into Frogmore Cottage.

The Birth

Note: All items italicized and in red are timings we learned after the fact. Items in "regular" font (not italicized and black) is the timing that happened live on May 6.

May 5, 2019, late in the evening: Meghan and Doria are driven to the Portland Hospital.

May 6, 2019, 5:26am GMT: Meghan gives birth after two epidurals According to Harry in Spare, it was a traumatic birth, potentially complicated, but an emergency c-section was not discussed with Meghan as Harry declined to tell her what was going on. Also, Harry gets high on laughing gas and the nurse disapprove.

May 6, 2019, 7:26am GMT: Harry, Meghan, and Baby Boy Sussex are home from the hospital (from Spare).

May 6, 2019, 1:30pm GMT: Sky News is selected as the pool broadcaster for the birth announcement when a Sussex spokesperson (probably Sara Latham) reaches out to Sky News to coordinate coverage for a statement Harry will make soon.

May 6, 2019, 1:50pm GMT: The palace announces Meghan has gone into labor and is at the hospital. Sky News has the exclusive story owing to the earlier conversation with Sussex representatives.

May 6, 2019, 2:15pm GMT: Harry records his statement about the baby's birth from a stable in Windsor. He speaks about the baby being born early in the morning. Horses make an appearance.

May 6, 2019, 2:37pm GMT: Harry and Meghan announce the birth of Baby Boy Sussex. The palace follows up with more details, including that the baby was born at 5:26am.

The palace's announcement raises questions, as the language used to describe the birth is different from the language used on all the other royal birth announcements.

The traditional birth announcement: {Title} has been safely delivered of a {son or daughter} at {time} today. Her Royal Highness and her child are both doing well. {signatures of medical staff} {date}

This language has been used for the Cambridges (George, Charlotte, and Louis), the Waleses (William and Harry), the Yorks (Beatrice and Eugenie), the Phillipses (Peter and Zara), the Edinburghs (Charles, Anne, Andrew, and Edward), the Brooksbanks (August and Ernie), and the Wessexes (Louise and James).

The Sussexes' birth announcement: The Queen and the Royal Family are delighted at the news that Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Sussex was safely delivered of a son at 0526am today. Her Royal Highness and her child are both doing well. 06 May, 2019.

Immediately causing questions was the verb choice "was" (versus "has been"). From a grammar perspective, "was" is used to describe something that had already happened at a specific point in the past. "Has been" is a verb tense used to talk about an ongoing event - something that started in the past but is still happening. Looking at the language in the birth announcements, and examining it through the grammar only:

When George's birth was announced, Kate was still in the birthing process but it was a safe delivery. Which makes sense; birth doesn't end when the baby pops out - there's afterbirth, there's the hormone evacuation (for lack of a better word), there's the organs moving back into place, etc. She's still in the hospital receving care.

When Archie's birth was announced, Meghan had already completed giving birth. She was no longer in the hospital, already at home.

Causing even bigger questions was the missing medical staff.

Reporters immediately begin asking questions about the timing of the announcements, where the baby was born, who delivered the baby, and why everyone was told she was in labor when she had already given birth.

May 6, 2019, 2:40pm GMT: Harry's pre-recorded statement with Sky News is broadcast. When he begins speaking, the chyron says "Meghan is in labor." After he announces the baby's birth "early this morning," the chyron changes to "Meghan has given birth."

May 7, 2019, 12:28pm GMT: Palace officials apologize for the bungled birth announcement but there are no explanations or clarifications made.

May 8, 2019: Harry and Meghan announce the baby's name, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. They have a photocall with the baby in St. George's Hall, Windsor Castle, in which Harry says the infamous quote "babies change so much in two weeks." Later, they take photos with The Queen, Prince Philip, and Doria.

The photocall and the photos aren't without controversy. Royal-watchers and Windsor locals pinpoint two: May 8th is actually a very wet and overcast day in Windsor, so how did they get sunlight streaming in through the windows? And second (admittedly this one I don't understand), there's a question about either The Queen's clothes or the timing of the photo - she's supposed to be at the Royal Windsor Horse Show? Something to do with horses? - that people are confused by.

May 9, 2024: Harry goes to The Hague for Invictus Games 2020 kickoff events. (It has echoes of Charles leaving Diana just hours after Harry is born to go play polo.)

Afterwards

May 12, 2019: Mother's Day in the US. The Sussexes post a picture of Meghan holding Archie's feet in a field of forget-me-nots.

May 17, 2019: Archie's birth certificate is released. Harry doesn't have the right title.

June 6, 2019: Archie's birth certificate is updated to correct Harry's title and change Meghan's name from Rachel Meghan Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Sussex to Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Sussex.

June 8, 2019: Trooping the Colors. Meghan pauses her maternity leave to attend. She and Harry ride in a carriage with Kate and Camilla. Six things happen that everyone notices:

Meghan stares down Kate many times throughout the carriage procession.

When the royals are coming out onto the balcony for the flypast, Kate - carrying Louis (in his balcony debut) - walks out towards the right side of the balcony, by Andrew, while William veers to the left. William calls to Kate and she turns to join him, George, and Charlotte on the left side of the balcony. Harry and Meghan later come out on the right side, near to where the Cambridges would have been.

The Queen comes out onto the balcony and Meghan sees an opening to move in next to her, but then Andrew suddenly moves in, blocking Meghan. Anne moves in next to Andrew behind The Queen, effectively blocking the Sussexes from moving in.

When Meghan turns to speak to Harry, he sternly tells her to turn around. This happens twice. The second time, Meghan does an awkward shuffle to turn around and she starts rapidly blinking her eyes and clenching her jaw.

When The Queen is leaving the balcony after the flypast, Harry and Meghan bow/curtsy, suggesting that they were late arriving to Buckingham Palace before the parade to have properly greeted The Queen.

Meghan tries to speak to George as he passes by and he throws up a 'talk to the hand'-esque wave at her.

Allegedly, Harry and Meghan were set to have their own carriage at Trooping (as they did in 2019) but the BRF had concerns they would be booed and were thrown in with Kate and Camilla at the last minute. Allegedly, Harry didn't like this because he knew it was a demotion to go from their own carriage to riding backwards in someone else's carriage; when there's a group riding together, protocol requires the senior royals to face forward with junior royals facing backwards.

Also Meghan talks to herself.

I can't find a good video of the balcony so if anyone has one, please share!

June 17, 2019: Father's Day. The Sussexes post a new photo of Harry holding baby Archie. Harry is flipping everyone off and Archie's face is partially obscured.

June 27, 2019: SussexRoyal Instagram announces that the Sussexes will travel to South Africa in autumn. They indirectly announce that Archie will join them.

July 6, 2019: Archie's christening at Windsor Castle. Harry and Meghan decline to announce who his godparents are, citing privacy. The portraits are the first time we see Archie's face in full. They raise questions. Some people observe that the perspective/scale of William and Kate is off from the rest of the group. Others observe that Kate's chair is missing a leg. Others observe that the reflections behind the Spencer sisters and Doria are off.

Ahead of the christening service, William and Kate are papped driving into Windsor Castle. In the pap photo, both are wearing blue; Kate a blue dress or sweater and William a light blue casual shirt but in the released portraits, William is wearing a starched white shirt and Kate a pink outfit. There's some discussion that they changed at Windsor before the service but there's also something wonky going on with the metadata in the photos.

July 10, 2019: William and Harry play polo for charity. Kate, the kids, and Meghan attend. Meghan brings Archie. The lack of interaction between Kate and Meghan gets noticed quickly, as does Meghan seeming not to know what to do with Archie: she holds him for the whole outing, he seems poorly dressed (no hat or sun covering), and he doesn't move/Meghan doesn't change his position.

Allegedly, Meghan wasn't supposed to go to the polo match. Supposedly she had heard that Chelsy was there and hightailed it over with Archie to keep her man in line. (Yuck, I felt gross just writing that.)

July 14, 2019: Meghan breaks maternity leave again to attend the European premiere of The Lion King: Live-Action edition in London with Harry, who cancelled an event with the Royal Marines for this. Harry is caught on a hot mike pitching Bob Isner (Disney's CEO) about Meghan doing a voiceover.

July 26, 2019: According to The Sun, Harry and Meghan's neighbors in Windsor have been sent rules for interacting with the royals that include don't approaching the couple, speak only when spoken to, don't pet the dogs, and don't ask about the baby. Buckingham Palace denies that Harry and Meghan knew this was happening.

July 28, 2019: Meghan breaks her maternity leave again to guest-edit British Vogue's September 2019 edition, Forces for Change. There's controversy:

Allegedly Meghan was asked by the BRF if she was doing this and she kept telling them no.

Harry interviewed Jane Goodall for the edition, in which he made a comment that he and Meghan were only having two children for the environment. (The Sussexes eventually get some kind of award for this.)

Meghan interviews Michelle Obama over a lunch of fish tacos. It turns out that the interview was conducted over email.

Accusations of plagiarism, as an Australian magazine already did this something like this with a very similar front cover layout.

Also, just because: Inside Meghan Markle's disastrous attempt to edit Vogue magazine - new book 'Meghan, Harry and the war between the Windsors.'

And throughout July and August, Harry and Meghan are getting flack for racking up private air miles despite being environmentalists. They do four back-to-back private flights across Europe with Archie. On one of these trips, they meet David Sherborne, Elton John's lawyer and off to the lawsuit races we go.

The Queen invites them to Balmoral to join the family but the Sussexes decline, allegedly because Archie was too young to fly. (Mm-hmm, and then they take him on four flights to Europe.)

September 6, 2019: The Sussexes' itinerary for their Africa tour is released. As part of the tour, Harry will visit Angola and copy Diana's famous de-mining walk.

September 12, 2019: Meghan's maternity leave ends with an announcement introducing Smart Set, a capsule collection from her friends that benefit Smart Works. Meghan gives a speech that ends awkwardly when she says she needs to leave because it's "feed time."

September 23 - October 2, 2019: Harry, Meghan, and Archie travel to South Africa, Malawi, Angola, and Botswana. Meghan tries to merch Archie's clothes from H&M but it gets shut down pretty quickly. Archie's first official engagement is to meet Archbishop Desmond Tutu, which SussexRoyal cringely calls 'Arch, meet Arch.' Meghan gives her infamous "no one asked me if I'm okay" interview in which she discusses her post-partum challenges as a "young mom" and her mental health distress. Harry gets in a tiff with one of the royal reporters, snapping at her "you know what you did" when she tries to ask a clarifying question.

Princess Beatrice announces her engagement on September 26th and it steals some of the Sussexes' coverage.

And after the tour (or on the last day of the tour? I don't remember and it's late), Harry announces that he's suing the British press and it is chaos.

November 7, 2019: Harry and Meghan attend the opening of the Field of Remembrance ceremony at Westminster Abbey. Camilla was supposed to join, but backed out at the last minute citing a cold. When Meghan is pictured in overly glamorous hair and makeup for the event, speculation begins that they are recording the work for a documentary and that Camilla pulled out to avoid being in the footage.

November 9, 2019: The royal family attends the Festival of Remembrance at Royal Albert Hall. Harry and Meghan are shoved into the back row behind a pillar, barely visible on camera. (It's a demotion, because in 2018 they were seated behind Camilla.)

November 10, 2019: Remembrance Day/Sunday. The Queen, Camilla, and Kate watch from the center balcony. Meghan watches from a side balcony between Sophie and Tim. She holds her composure at being excluded from the 'main' balcony better this year than last year (in 2018, she kept stealing weepy or vengeful looks (YMMV) at the center balcony while she was sidelined with the wife of the President of Germany) but she still clenches her jaw.

This is Meghan's final entry in the Court Circular (ever).

December 20, 2019: The Sussexes announce they will spend the Christmas and New Year's holidays privately in Canada.

November 17, 2019: Harry's last entry in the Court Circular before Megxit, suggesting he and Meghan peaced out to Canada shortly after this (I'm too lazy to look up if there were any papwalks or other private engagements - another day, maybe). His final events are January 16, 2020 (a rugby thing); Philip's funeral; the service of thanksgiving for the Platinum Jubilee; and The Queen's Funeral.

And if you made it this far: congratulations! My asks are back open.

#sussexes #timeline #pregnancy #megxit

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forasecondtherewedwon · 6 months ago

Text

It's Enough, It's Enough - chapter three

Fandom: My Lady Jane Pairing: Jane x Guildford Rating: M (may change) Chapter: 3 / 6

Summary: Five times Jane and Guildford pretend to have sex, and one time it’s for real.

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Jane gets a new title: wife. Then another: queen. She doesn’t know how to do either, how to be either. There doesn’t seem to be room for herself anymore, just Jane.

She’s been wanting to go home. It’s a confusing and indistinct longing; none of the places she calls to mind give her comfort. Where is home? Bradgate House? Lord Dudley’s estate? The Dudley family seat, where she and Guildford spent their short time learning to distrust one another on top of their existing dislike? The palace, where she falls asleep in Edward’s bed and wakes in his robe? Actually, even being expected to be Jane and no one and nothing more feels impossible. All her thoughts are in conflict. All her moods contradict.

She doesn’t know how her cousin did this by himself. She and Guildford still seem far from understanding one another, and he’s only available to her while the sun is down, but she begins to rely on him without quite noting when it starts. They speak about matters of state while observed by the people who seem to be friends to the new queen, about fluff and petty gossip while observed by those she senses to be enemies, about an Ethian cure when it’s just the two of them, and all she really wants to say to him is, What are we?

Besides two people no longer permitted to live for themselves, she would mean by the question.

Besides the loneliest people in England, but lonely together.

Jane thinks of Guildford as an ally she wants to kiss all the time. As soon as they’re within ten feet of each other. As soon as they’re in the same room. When they give in, she always stops it, or he does, and that’s for the best; do either of them know the person they’re offering to the other? With all the travel and the small matter of her blindsiding ascension to the throne, they aren’t much better than strangers. (Except she knows what his engorged member feels like against her abdomen and that he’s secretly a horse.)

They haven’t again come as close to the thing they were supposed to have done that night since that night. Meaning they haven’t fucked. Which is probably wise given… throne, horse, attempted murder, etcetera. Jane believes she could ignore her marital duties entirely in order to attend to her even more vertigo-inducing queenly duties, if not for those two times she and Guildford pretended. The trouble is, she knows just enough (her legs against his, his hands on her hips) to want to know much more (her hands on his rear, his manhood inside her). But it’s not a thing you can rush, she thinks, bedding ceremony be damned.

She doesn’t need actual sex to feel loyal to him, protective of him, or scared for him. She realizes the new depth of her feelings for Guildford all at once upon overhearing Lord Seymour’s plan to go out to the stables at dusk. He doesn’t seem to suspect the truth—and, really, who could guess at it?—but hopes to corner Guildford when he returns from wherever he goes during the day. The thought of Seymour witnessing her husband’s transformation sends Jane into a panic, but she quells it. She has to.

Fortunately, she’s able to get away from the palace by early evening. She tells her ladies she’s tired of being in company. She lets her counsellors believe the political discussion is smothering her female brain and she must take the air. In the stables, Rupert keeps her company awhile, correctly judging her to be restless and upset, before gifting her her solitude until Guildford arrives. Her husband’s is the only company she wants.

The sun slips low, and Jane realizes Guildford might walk back into the stables as a man, after nightfall, rather than returning as a horse before dark. That outcome would be met with its own set of consequences. She begins devising ways of preventing Seymour from seeing Guildford strolling up out of nowhere, but they’re pointless when her husband comes trotting through the far side of the barn, undeniably equine.

“There you are!” she says.

Her horse-husband seems spooked by the anxiety in her voice, so she makes an effort to control it, quickly filling him in on the situation at hand. Too soon, Guildford’s ears prick up. Jane hears it too: whistling. Specifically, the chipper whistling of a repugnant, power-hungry man who’s giddy at the thought of getting someone he doesn’t like into very bad trouble.

“What are we going to do?” Jane demands of her horse-husband.

Guildford flicks his head, tossing his mane. She interprets this as a shoulder shrug and scowls at him. Right away, she feels bad about it; he might be equally irritated with her on the inside, but on the outside, he has big, gentle eyes that guilt her into a muttered “Sorry.”

The answer that comes to her is outrageous, but these are outrageous circumstances—she’s merely adapting, as she has done every single day since her mother informed her she would be getting married.

The whistling is very near when Jane slams her back into the closed door of the stables and releases an exaggerated sound of pleasure. Sorry, she repeats to her horse-husband, just with her eyes this time. But it’s worked—Seymour’s steps have come to a stop. Because he isn’t leaving, she makes the noise again, then looks at her companion and shrugs. Guildford answers her with another head toss. She wishes one of them could go check to see the effect this is having on Seymour, but she’s afraid Seymour’s too near the door for her to risk a peek, and Guildford’s a little too conspicuous in his current form to go creeping out the back and around the side of the stables.

Guildford twitches his head forward, appearing to urge her on. Fine then. Once more.

Jane moans loudly, but when there’s still no indication that Seymour is retreating to the palace, she understands it isn’t enough. The problem is that he doesn’t know it’s them. Well, her, but an implied them. To amend this, Jane follows the noise with a well-enunciated, “Guildford!”

There’s an uncertain shuffle outside the door. More! She has to do more!

“Guildford, we’ve been making love for hours! What am I to say the next time I’m asked how you spend your days?!”

And she moans again—after a pause to suggest Guildford’s decidedly physical riposte to that question.

Finally, she hears Seymour walk away, muttering about their pathetically boring sex life, wondering what the point is without the threat of genuine agony. She thanks her Protestant God for Seymour’s dark tastes, because the last light of day is glowing dimly through the cracks in the door.

With a sigh, Jane sinks onto the edge of the bed Guildford keeps out here. It’s only a minute or two before he changes form, stumbling forward as the man she met at the tavern, the altar, the opposite side of a heavily watched bed. Like all those times before, she can’t tell what he’s thinking. She waits for him to speak—to reassure her sense that she handled that well or to tell her what she should have done instead (at which point they’ll argue, as they do)—but he’s quiet.

“He’s gone,” she says.

And he says, “Yes.”

“He believed we were in here,” Jane continues, going a step further, making an assumption, seeing whether Guildford will say it’s an incorrect one.

“So it seemed.”

She waits. Again. Finally, he must feel prompted by her eyes, though he’s kept his face turned away from her since transforming.

“You don’t have to protect me,” he says.

“Can you possibly be in earnest?!” she retorts, rising to her feet. “Had I done nothing, Seymour would have been in here waiting for you! He might have tied you up in your other form and seen you change!”

“Jane, Jane, you misunderstand.” Guildford makes a gentling motion and approaches her, but she’s too angry to be calmed. If her methods hadn’t worked, he would have been either taken from her for imprisonment and later execution or killed on the spot. Thereafter would she have been charged, tried, and executed for marrying an Ethian. Their families would have gone the same way. Also, the crown would have, in all probability, gone to Mary, much the worse for the whole kingdom. But it would not have been the whole kingdom she’d have been wishing she could have protected in her final moments at the execution block.

“No,” she says, “you—”

“I mean that you do anyway!” he cries out, cutting her off. “You don’t have to protect me, but you do! I am the reason you’re in enormous danger.”

Jane shakes her head.

“I’m in danger regardless.”

“But you care! You care, not just for yourself! I can see it as clear as… as clear as day.”

She doesn’t know what to say. He’s touched by what she’s done, and he’s let her see that. They stand there somewhat awkwardly.

“Do you think anyone would notice if I had Seymour murdered?” she jokes tentatively.

“Notice? Yes. Whether they would mind is another story,” Guildford muses, making Jane smile. “I’ve certainly indulged in fantasies of kicking him in the head.”

“As a horse?”

“Naturally.”

He smirks at her.

“Well,” she says, taking a step towards the door.

“Speaking of fantasies,” Guildford says quickly.

Jane freezes.

“Where did all that come from?”

“What?” she asks.

He gives her a flat, unimpressed look.

“The performance you just put on for Seymour. How did you think of it?”

“It’s nothing we haven’t done before,” she says defensively.

Guildford raises his eyebrows. Blushing, Jane realizes he won’t let the subject drop until she spells it out.

“Faking our marital obligations for our own protection!”

“No,” he says. “I get that part. What I don’t understand is why you… how you…”

Oh. He’s blushing now. This is interesting. She’s not sure she’s ever seen his face go red before, except with an excess of drink or the exertions of defending himself against assassins. Neither of those is the case now. Feeling ruthless after being put on the back foot, Jane crosses her arms and stares her husband down.

“Where did those sounds come from?” he blurts.

Alright, no, she should have fled before. Her palms go damp against her brocade sleeves.

“I know what sexual pleasure sounds like,” Jane says primly, chin lifted and cheeks redder than ever.

“What were you thinking of?” Guildford inquires lightly, though his eyes speak of a more intense curiosity. He’s still blushing, but where her blush springs from discomfort, she has a sudden hunch that his is all desire. There’s an answer he wants to hear. He’s hoping, she guesses, that her passionate cries arose from the memory of their rushed kissing, or even the night of their false consummations. He wants to hear that these sounds were inspired by him, though trapped in her then out of wrongness and self-denial. He’d just love to think that only he could be the source of such sounds, wouldn’t he? What a shame she’ll have to disappoint him.

“Nothing outside the present moment,” she swears. “I’ve drawn those sounds from myself dozens of times. They were as easy to recall as the words of a favourite song.”

“From yourself?”

“Yes.”

She backs away from him on shaky legs because doesn’t look disappointed by her answer at all. He looks… he looks…

Jane’s back is against the door, and Guildford is close, much closer than ten feet, and it’s gotten dark so quickly, but there’s a lantern with a burning candle, and the place feels safe and secluded and expectantly hushed. Beneath Guildford’s doublet, his shirt is unlaced at the throat. She’s staring. She forces her gaze up to his eyes.

He brushes a strand of hair off her cheek and breathes a single word: “When?”

Just kiss me, Jane thinks. It would be simpler, easier, than sifting her brain for the words to say back, and then pushing those words across her tongue and out of her mouth for him to hear. Kissing has served their purposes so far. It’s just the thing to stop, start, and avoid conversations they’re too stubborn or cowardly to have. The more they admit, the more they confide, the more pieces of themselves they’ll have to tidy neatly away when they get divorced and none of what happened between them matters. Desire is one thing, but they’re only using each other, right? To please their parents, for independence, for protection, for companionship, for… admittedly a growing list of needs. And the more they need each other for, the more they seem capable of fulfilling each other’s needs. Which is just so messy, she decides, and why it’s better to kiss than speak, to not give anything else away…

“Since you met me?” Guildford asks.

“Yes.”

His eyes are on her mouth, his lips nearly touching hers.

“Since we married?”

“Yes,” she sighs. She can feel the heat of his body through his black leather and velvet. He must have been running before he returned to the stables.

“Do you think about me?”

Heart pounding, Jane fumbles for the latch and swings the door open. Her escape hardly feels like one. Guildford can follow if he’d like to. He probably will. He’s more than welcome on the grounds, in the palace, in her chambers. She wants him there, in fact. She always does. All she needs right now is a head start, so she can cool her skin and her thoughts.

Although there was nothing he could teach her about handling a blade that she didn’t already know, she wishes she’d asked him for instruction on how to not answer his questions as well as he once refused to answer hers. She succeeded on his last question, but barely. Everything in her quivered with longing. Yes, Jane would’ve said in another second against that door. Yes, I make those sounds when I think of you.

#my writing #My Lady Jane #MLJ #My Lady Jane fic #Jane Grey #Guildford Dudley #Jane x Guildford

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