#especially because with the stuff that happened a few weeks ago

[hotcheetohatredwastaken]

🍬

I just have to know

🍬 ⇢ post an unpopular opinion about a popular fandom character

Okay, so this may not be an unpopular head canon, per se, but it’s one I’ve been seeing less and less over time. And I don't manage to read every fic that passes through this fandom, though I sure try, so feel free to let me know if my analysis is wrong.

I feel like, in the older days of Linked Universe, THoT was a lot more---stoic? just across the board in fic. He was the no-nonsense leader that was often a bit abrasive when it came to how he interacted with the others (as one might claim he is in canon). One thing I've noticed (broad generalization incoming) with Time is that there is a split, now, in how he is characterized. Often, when he is a background character, he remains that stoic leader. However, when he's more of a main focus in a fic (and often Warrior is involved), writers make him a lot more immature, for multiple reasons including that he was raised in a community of children, his internal age is off due to timeline crap, he's just only like 25 and the Chain are a bunch of teenagers that look up to him because he's an "adult", etc. Now, I LOVE both (in fact, I would suggest @breannasfluff Wing Bois AU for the characterization of Time being a main character and yet more of that stoic leader, nevertheless one that still has a carefree side and can still mess up, and I would suggest @wanderlustmagician 's Everything But Blood (Modern AU) of Time being more of an uncertain leader (dad XD) off the top of my head if anyone is looking for fic recs).

That being said, I just love writing stoic Time, especially when he's in the spotlight as opposed to the background. Because a lot of writers are right, he does have all of these influences that, despite the Horrors he's gone through, would make him more childlike---so what has happened to his psyche, that those factors have been so negated, and he's the serious leader that he is today?

So, to conclude, I don't really have an "unpopular" opinion about him, I don't think---there's just a split, and I lean one way rather than the other. That being said, I love both versions of THoT, serious and silly, and he deserves them both so much <3

[petrovna-zamo]

[danielnelsen]

it’s interesting seeing how the dogs react to the rain

georgie will only go out to wee when he really has to, he’ll go right at the edge of the grass then run back in. BUT he doesn’t mind being wet once he’s back inside. he’ll just sit on the sofa like normal

but billy will be having fun running around in the rain (he especially enjoys thunderstorms), but HATES being wet once he’s out of the rain. he wipes his feet on the doormat and will spend a few minutes throwing himself at the sofa to dry himself on the blankets

[writersrkive]

Don't shut up | Spencer Reid

summary: Spencer is used to people who constantly tell him to shut up, but somehow, he feels even more embarrassed and sad when he thinks you want him to stop talking after looking at the tired and confused expression you have when he's trying to help you. The thing is you hate when people do that to Spence and would spend years just listening to his voice.

genre: fluff

pairing: Early seasons!Spencer Reid x bau!reader

warnings: mentions of the team shutting Spencer down. Derek and JJ being a little mean to him when he's spreading information. Spencer being a cutie potato. Mention of a stomachache and its causes (mention of miscarriage as one of the causes, but nothing happens). Reader not being a native english speaker, but just a slight mention.

a/n: Dr. Spencer Reid is a genius.... I am not. I literally had to search for information and copy-paste here in some parts, so if there's misinformation, it's Google's fault, lmao. I wrote this yesterday when I was about to sleep, so I'm sorry if something is wrong with the writing (even though I already edited). English isn't my first language, please be kind <3.

Masterlist Spanish ver. On Wattpad (coming soon)

Spencer and you arrived early that morning. He hated being late for anything. He couldn't afford to be late if he wanted to stick as closely as possible to his assigned schedule, especially because he took public transport. On the other hand, you had no choice but to arrive early when you woke up at four in the morning thanks to a severe stomachache and couldn't go back to sleep.

That's how your conversation started. Your genius workmate was surprised to see you, first hour in the morning, when he walked in the office, even before Hotch arrived.

“Are you feeling better?” He asked, furrowing his eyebrows. You couldn't deny that the expression was too cute for your own good.

“Yeah… I think so. It's not even the stomach ache that bothers me, it's the fact that even if I was sleepy, I couldn't fall asleep again. You know? That happens to me a lot. Once I open my eyes, I can't go back to sleep. I've also been feeling mildly unwell for a week, but even though the medication is controlling it, it doesn't stop."

At this point, he already set up his desk, leaving his briefcase on his own chair to walk over to you and sit at your desk, next to the chair you were sitting in, to listen to you attentively and answer.

“The brain works with different phases of sleep: light sleep, deep sleep, and REM sleep. The cycle usually restarts every eighty to one hundred minutes, and we typically have four to six cycles each night.”

Hotch came out of the elevator and walked upstairs after both of you waved at him, and he let out a soft “good morning”. Emily arrived a few seconds later. You greeted her too, as she took place on her desk, but that didn't stop your conversation.

“So, it's completely normal that we wake up in the middle of the night because of that process, but if it is frequent, for three months or more, it may be a symptom of insomnia.”

Your view went to the floor, and your head nodded in a semi-unconscious movement, because although you knew that your sleep cycle was ruined by work, you had not come to that conclusion, maybe that was it.

“Now, the stomachache…” He said, taking one pen from your pencil case to concentrate. He usually never took other people's belongings or shared his own stuff because of the germs, but somehow, after a few years of working together, he had come to have a good amount of closeness with you to borrow some stuff from you. Months ago, it hadn't gone unnoticed by Penelope that Spencer had a box full of pens reserved for you, in case you needed one, nor the fact that he denied JJ one of them once, when the blonde girl needed something to write with quickly.

“The causes can be the most common, such as gas, indigestion, a muscle injury, or stress. Although there are also more serious causes: gastrointestinal infections, inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, ectopic pregnancy or miscarriage..."

“Wow, what are you trying to do? Scare her?” Derek's voice invaded the place and Emily smirked.

“What? No, I'm just saying the possibilities…” Spencer whispered, looking down, a little worried that he might actually scared the person he cared more, besides his mom.

“It's okay.” You answer loud enough so your friends and coworkers would hear. “Thanks, Spence. I already went to the doctor, so I have none of… those.” I gave him a little smile. “But about stress…” The sentence hung in the air, so Spencer looked up and continued speaking automatically.

“Stress can cause stomach pain because the autonomic nervous system of the gastrointestinal tract reacts to the same hormones and neurotransmitters as the brain. This is because the digestive system is connected to the nervous system, and the enteric nervous system, which is located in the digestive system, is able to send and receive impulses and assimilate emotions.” He started to talk faster.

Your focus on the genius boy and his explanation was sincere, but maybe it was the fact that you didn't rest well, plus the fact that he was speaking too fast and not vocalizing all the syllables, that for a moment your brain didn't process what he was saying.

It was weird. At some point you didn't even hear words, just sounds from his mouth. That didn't happen to you for a really long time because you already had experience with the native speakers, even if english wasn't your mother language. The exhausting feeling of not being able to sleep well was definitely to blame.

While your brain was coming to that conclusion, Spencer could only see your furrowed brow, tense jaw, tilted head, and dissociated look.

“You want me to shut up, right?” That whisper was enough for you to come back to reality. His cheeks were red and his eyes looked a little sad, not to mention the way his mouth formed a line like whenever he felt awkward.

“Yes, please!” Derek answered instead, leaning back in his seat and looking up with his arms outstretched as if he'd had to deal with seven unsubs in the five minutes he'd been there, listening from his place to the information Spencer was giving you.

“Little genius boy got excited… again.” JJ said, looking at some documents in front of her, opening her eyes wide in an expression of tiredness and disinterest.

The young profiler stood up from your desk thinking about returning to his chair, a little embarrassed, but you took his pinky with yours —that way you wouldn't make him feel uncomfortable in case he wasn't in the mood for physical touch, something he refused unless it was you. Again, another special treat—. “Wait. It wasn't like that.” Hazel eyes looked at you intently, still with a bit of doubt. “I'm sorry Spencer. Yes, you got excited, but that's not something bad.”

“It isn't?” He questioned.

“No, but you started to speak fast, and the fact that there are some words that I have a hard time processing in English and I couldn't quite catch what you were saying because I didn't sleep enough, well, that distracted me. Would you mind repeating it again, slower?” This time, you were the one with warm cheeks.

“Oh. Are you sure you don't want me to shut up?” The boy was actually intrigued and a little surprised.

“Why would I want that?” The fact that your teammates often shut Spencer up when he tried to share extra information, or information that he had been asked about, was something you had noticed from the moment you started working with the team. You thought that was rude. You understood that sometimes Spencer got excited, gave information that was perhaps better saved for another time since you were investigating a case, or people could be tired and want silence, but the team either silenced him or made fun of him most of the time. Plus, there weren't many other things you liked more than hearing his voice.

The sweet, soothing tone of his words helped you sleep on the jet after a long case, or made you want to hear more about whatever he was talking about. Feeling like he was sharing with you, a mere mortal, some of the vast knowledge he had was nice.

“I'm always happy to hear whatever you need to say, even if it's about something I don't understand. And, right now, you are helping me a lot, so, please, don't shut up.” The crimson color returned to the tall boy's face, this time not because he was uncomfortable. Your kind and somewhat complicit smile made his heart race, like almost every time he was with you. Spencer knew that no matter how tired he got, he would never shut up if you wanted him to keep talking.

[racinggirl]

that's my girl

Lando Norris fic - requested

My inbox for requests

a/n: it took me a bit longer as I have been quite busy this last week, but it's hereeee! I hope you like it, I have to say I love badass Y/N a lot, so thank you for the request! It's a bit shorter, but we need some variation in life, don't we? Let me know your thoughts! It's not proofread, so be aware for any minor mistakes, if there are some. Lots of loveeee. Don't forget to send in requests! I love all the requests I've gotten so far 🫶🏼

‘’What kind of snacks do you want?’’ You asked your boyfriend as you were preparing some somewhat healthy snacks before he would go live on Twitch. You were filling up a bowl with Maltesers because, let’s be honest, who doesn’t like those? You then decided to grab a knife and cut the cheese and cucumber to make the tray snacks somewhat healthier.

‘’Can you lay on the tray?’’ Lando wrapped his arms around your waist from behind, causing you to tilt your head when he planted soft kisses on your neck. ‘’You already had that snack not too long ago, mister Norris.’’ You teased, keeping your eyes closed as you felt his hands making its way under your shirt, close to your bra.

‘’Nah, ah.’’ You put down the knife and took both his hands in yours, moving them down and placing them on your hips before reaching back for the knife. Your action caused him to groan, and you simply smirked as you felt how much he needed you, because let’s be honest here, it was impossible to not feel him through his jeans.

‘’Grapes, mango?’’ You continued, focussing back on the tray of deliciousness in front of you. ‘’Chocolate covered strawberries.’’ He replied, walking to the fridge. ‘’Yeah, ehm, about those…’’ You bite your lip as you looked over at the – way too perfect – McLaren driver, who happened to be your boyfriend.

‘’No, you ate them?’’ He asked, turning 45 degrees to look at you with puppy eyes. ‘’Oh stop it! You ate my piece of cake the other day!’’ You laughed, feeling his hands on your body as he tickled you. ‘’Lando! Stop!’’ You managed to breathe out in between your laughter.

‘’You ate my strawberries!’’ He exclaimed; his arms wrapped tightly around you as you tried to somehow escape his grasp. But he was strong, of course he was, he was a Formula One driver.

Talking about his job, you were proud of him. The two of you had been dating for a few years now, the world only finding out in your 3rd year of dating each other. You had no idea how because you never purposely tried to be secret about it. You never went out in public, never really posted about one another on your socials, either. You only really started doing that when people noticed your relationship.

You were almost done with your degree now, though. Meaning you had more time to come to some of his races. You loved going there, not only to support your boyfriend, but also to learn about all the behind the scenes of the sport. It was something that fascinated you ever since you started dating Lando.

However, you tried to stay out of the camera’s as much as you could. You never held hands when you walked through the paddock with him; if you walked through the paddock with him. Most of the time you arrived after he did because you either had to finish some online work in the hotel room, or because you wanted to stay out of the spotlight.

You never really enjoyed being in front of the camera’s, hence why you were so invested in all the behind-the-scenes stuff. It wasn’t because you weren’t confident enough, not at all, because you were, and that’s something Lando always admired about you, especially when you started to receive hate. You just never thought being in front of the camera suited you, those cameras around you, people asking questions, it just annoyed you, and you decided you didn’t want to take a part of it.

It didn’t mean you never supported him, though. You were always there for him, and he knew. He never complained, he never told you you weren’t supportive, no. He loved how your relationship was different than the ones from all the other WAGS, he felt like he wasn’t sharing you with the entire world, that you were just his, and that’s exactly how you felt, too.

‘’Good evening chat! Long-time no see, ey?’’ You heard Lando’s smile through the words he just spoke, waving at the camera as he leaned back in his chair. He glanced over at you, his eyes gliding over you before quickly shooting you a wink. You laughed and rolled your eyes at his action, simply knowing the chat would comment on his wink.

‘’I’m good, enjoying the off season as much as I can.’’ He smirked. ‘’Aren’t we, babe?’’ He asked and you got up, looking at him with a raised eyebrow. ‘’I for sure am.’’ You winked before walking to the kitchen to get your snacks.

You always were seated outside of the camera’s view. As much as you loved staying out of the cameras at the track, you did the same whenever he streamed. You never did it purposely, though. You never hid away from the cameras; you simply never purposely were in front of them.

‘’Grabbing snacks!’’ You yelled from the kitchen when you heard Lando read the comments. ‘What’s Y/N doing?’ and ‘Where’s your girlfriend going?’

‘’She’s getting snacks, chat. You won’t believe it, but we actually prepared those for tonight.’’ He smirked, sipping his water as he read through the comments. ‘’We?’’ You asked, raising an eyebrow with a smile. ‘’Right, sorry chat, my lovely girlfriend Y/N prepared the snacks.’’ He said, watching you placing the tray of delicious food in front of him.

‘’I’m just missing one snack on here, but sadly there’s not enough room on the tray for that.’’

‘OMG HE DID NOT JUST SAY THAT’

‘HAHAHAHA Lando naughty naughty boy’

‘DUUUUUUDE LANDO WHAT LMAO’

You sat down next to him, your legs over his as you grabbed a Malteser from the tray. ‘’You’re very original with your jokes tonight, Norris.’’ You smirked, reaching for your phone before you opened TikTok, keeping yourself entertained when Lando continued his stream.

He loved this about you, he loved the fact that even though he was live, streaming and being in front of cameras, you never backed down. You never changed when the cameras were there, you always stayed yourself. That was probably the thing he admired most about you, and things he definitely learned from you.

As the hours went by, the tray of food was nearly empty. You got up a few times to go to the bathroom, get something to drink, get some more snacks and so on. Lando got up to go to the bathroom for the second time this evening, leaving you alone with chat.

You kissed his lips before he left the room, you simply deciding to pop up in front of the camera this time. You read some messages, smiling as they told you you looked beautiful. ‘’Aw, thanks guys, or girls, that’s sweet.’’ You replied, leaning your chin on your hand as you continued reading a few more comments.

The second you heard him coming back in the room, you commented on a question in the chat, Lando sitting next to you with a smile on his face. He loved it when you interacted with his fans, which you sometimes did. It’s not like you were completely offline when it came to the fame he carried with him, you just never really bothered to become an influencer like some others did.

‘’Nah, ah, Norris, they are asking me questions now.’’ You teased, holding your hand up when he started to talk again.

‘HAHA Y/N’s such a vibe’

‘Yeah Lando, we’re chatting with your girl now!’

He simply chuckled, pecking your lips when you looked at him and he then enjoyed the scenery he saw in front of him.

After a while, you got up from your chair, going to the kitchen to refill your glass of water for the fourth time that evening, and made your way back to the room when you heard your boyfriend reading some comments out aloud.

‘Y/N doesn’t love him, she never holds his hand in the paddock, what a supportive WAG.’

You furrowed your eyebrows at that comment, and just as Lando was about to say something to defend you, you put your glass of water on the table in front of you.

‘’Last time I checked, my job title wasn’t ‘WAG’. I’m an engineer, not a runway model.’’

Lando looked at you, amazed, proud, and smiling like an idiot. ‘’You heard her, chat.’’ He smirked. ‘’That’s my girl.’’ He whispered happily.

The end of the stream was nearing, and you got up to head to bed. ‘’Goodnight, babe, I’ll see you in a bit.’’ You whispered before placing a kiss on his lips, smiling against them as he returned the favour. You glanced over at chat one last time, feeling Lando’s hand on the back of your upper leg.

‘’Next time I’ll open the ‘WAGs Handbook’ to catch up on some of my duties.’’ You smirked at the chat. ‘’Goodnight chat, sleep tight.’’ You blew them a kiss before walking out of the room, heading straight to bed.

Not long after you positioned yourself in the king-size bed Lando had in his bedroom, you heard the door opening; your boyfriend making his way to you. ‘’You’re amazing, please never change.’’ He whispered and pressed his lips on yours, firmly.

Later that season

[the-kr8tor]

lavender + ❣️ with Jason todd where they are at the manor after being out ( prob shopping or smth) and he confesses his love bc a bunch of guys were asking for readers number but she turned them all down and he wanted to be hers and was tired of guys bothering his (soon to be) girl. Hopefully this makes sense lol but you totally don't have to do this. I love you and hope you have an amazing week!! 😘😘

Yay a Jason req! Thank you for being patient! I hope you like your potion 🩷

Pairing: Jason Todd x fem! Reader/ Red Hood x fem! Reader

Word count: 1.7k

Tags: No use of Y/N, no specific physical description of the reader, CW food mention, Best friends to lovers, Fluff

Katy's one year celebration 🎉

Jason has been uncharacteristically quiet the entire drive to the manor. He doesn't even tap his fingers to the rhythm of the radio playing a cheesy pop song that he keeps telling you that he doesn't like. With one hand he steers the wheel while his elbow rests on the window sill. It's a cool afternoon in Gotham, orange and pink hues shifting along the clouds, the road is still wet from the downpour a few hours ago. His drenched jacket that he used to shield you both from the rain hangs over the backseat.

You watch him with pensive eyes, wracking your brain as to why he's so quiet when he was such a chatterbox back when he was driving to the grocery store. You've almost forgotten what he was talking about, mind reeling from the conclusion that you might've done something to agitate your best friend. Maybe you shouldn't have volunteered to go on a grocery run when Alfred asked, especially that you and Jason planned to hang out at your place. Biting the inside of your cheek, you try to remember what happened at the store to warrant such a stifling silence from Jason— Well, he opened the door for you while he was talking about that new book he was so excited to read. Then he grabbed a cart, pushed it while you had your hand on the end, guiding him, and all the while you two kept chattering on the aisle, taking stuff that was on Alfred's list. And then that was it. Nothing special happened, well except for that one guy with a nice smile who asked you where the cereal was. And that one dude who helped you take the can of beans from the highest shelf while Jason was weighing the blueberries.

You must've looked quite agitated or even constipated because it's now Jason's turn to worry.

“Are you okay? You look like you need to take a shit.” He glances briefly to you, green eyes hiding an emotion you're still trying to ascertain.

“Am I okay? Jay, you're the one who's been silent the entire way.” He enters the manor's gates, shrugging at your words. “We can still hang out at my place after this. I'm sorry we wasted an afternoon buying Damian's sweets.”

There's a small smile on his lips, “that kid eats too much sugar.” Clicking his seatbelt off, he opens the door with a groan, you surmise that his healing knee is still bothering him.

You sigh, getting more anxious at his dodging. Before you could open the door for yourself, you find Jason outside of your door, opening it for you. “C’mon, Jay, talk to me.” Tugging at the hem of his shirt, you smile up at him. “Is it because I ate the donut you left in my fridge?”

Jason furrows his brows, lips pursed, trying not to laugh. “That was yours, babe, I left it for you.”

You blink, hand drifting away from his shirt. He already misses your hold on him. “Oh, thanks.”

“You and Dami share a sweet tooth, so I got it for you.” He leans down, arm placed atop the car, eyes soft and tender. “But thank you for confessing your sins.”

You can't help but ogle at how he looks from below. “...yeah, sure, Jay.” You say in a small tone. It's not the nickname that has you all giddy inside, you're used to his sweet nicknames that he has bestowed upon you. No, it's the thought that he left you a treat because he knows how much you love that triple chocolate donut that has you bouncing off the walls after eating it.

So it's not the donut, then why the hell does he have a stick up his finely toned ass?

Jason leaves your side, the cologne you bought him lingering around you. He opens the trunk, carrying every single plastic bag with both hands. You finally stand up after being weak in the knees after the simple look he gave you. Walking towards him to help, he's already halfway inside the mansion before you could grab a few bags from him. Knowing him, it's all effortless. Well, at least he left you one tiny bag that only contains two boxes of cereal— one regular wheat and one that has your tooth rotting just from looking at the bright colors. With a sigh, you grab it and follow him inside and towards the kitchen.

The plastic bags rustle as he takes out all the groceries. It's filled with fresh vegetables, fruits, sugar and all the food that a vigilante needs for patrol. You put your singular bag on the counter next to the others, helping him take out the rest while he still stands there all quiet and broody. In the low light of the kitchen you can clearly see that Bruce has definitely made a big influence on him.

You put your foot down, knees up on the stool to level with him, hands placed on the cold marble countertop as he raises a curious brow at you. “What's up, Jay?”

“What's up?” He mimics your tone. “Nothing, babe, just taking out the groceries.” You take the can of beans from his hand and then you place it loudly on the counter while you take a stance against the red hood who makes goons cower in fear just from his stare. “You really want to know?”

“Yes!” You exclaim, reaching over the counter to grab his hand. Wordlessly telling him that you're there for him whatever kind of problem has plagued him recently.

Jason watches as your fingers dance along his scarred palm, kneading his muscles just like you always do whenever he drops in your apartment after a tough patrol. He was so sure that he had gathered enough courage to tell you, but now that you have your hands around his own, all his bravery is down the drain.

He sucks in his teeth, leaning down, elbows atop the counter, green eyes staring anywhere near your eyes, and then he places a quick kiss along your knuckles. Warmth soothing you, almost making you forget what you were asking for.

Defeated, you cup his jaw, thumb running along his growing stubble, fingers reaching behind his ear to rub lovingly across his nape. “Okay, it's okay if you don't want to tell me. But I'll be here if you want to tell me.” You smile when he leans against your touch, eyes looking at you with such fondness that you almost melt on the spot.

Jason rationalizes his thoughts, the same thoughts that have plagued him for years, the same thoughts that he has dreamed of telling you. “It’s not the donut.”

“Of course it's not the donut.” You chuckle, fingers still tangled in his hair.

“And it's not because of the trip to the grocery store.” His eyes flick over to yours, smiling softly at how you look back at him with the same fondness. “I liked our trip, I kept imagining that we were buying stuff for our place.”

“Do you want more hangouts like that then? You can join me in going to my laundry place. We can watch the clothes tumble and dry like a couple of old people.” Your waist is cold against the counter, but you don't mind as long as he's there with you. “How's that sound?”

“Sounds great. I'll bring the spare change.” You chuckle, after a beat, you thought that was the end of it, but Jason looks like he still wants to say something else— so you stay rooted in place. “But that's not the reason.”

“Okay,” you nod, encouraging him to continue. He gives you his other hand to hold, fingers beckoning your touch. You indulge him, leaving his hair to hold his hand.

“It's that fucking guy.” He blurts out. “Guys.” He corrects himself.

“What guys?”

“The ones who were asking for your number.”

You blink, trying to recall. “I don't remember that.”

“Come on, Y/N.” He squeezes your hands as if that will help you remember them. “The tall blonde guy and the one with the uncanny smile. Just thinking about that grin gives me the creeps.”

“Oh,” you know Jason enough to actually know what he means. “Yeah, I actually remember now. What about them?”

He scoffs, acting like you caught his hand in the cookie jar. “They were bothering you is all. I was just worried for you.”

You nod, hands sliding from his own. For a moment, Jason thinks you're about to go off on him, telling him that you can handle yourself or that you can give your number to whoever the hell you want to. Because who is he to tell you who to date? It's not like you're together, right? But is it wrong that he wants to?

His thoughts get thrown out of the window when you hold his face, soft palms against his rough skin, thumb tracing along the scar on his cheek. It's all affectionate, loving, and it has Jason's heart pumping a thousand times per second.

You smile, head tilting, staring at how his eyes glow under the kitchen lights. It's mundane, but you love him like this, just like how you love him in any way shape or form. You love your best friend. “You're an idiot, Jason Todd.” Your smile gets bigger, he frowns, fearing the worst. “You know that I'm in love with you, right?”

Jason's worried eyes light up, not a trace of his worries, just you in his vision, bathed in the light of his home. “Now I do.” He chuckles, mirroring your position, holding your face in his hands, gentle, like how you'd hold a delicate feather. Placing his forehead atop yours, he says the three words back. “I love you. I'm sorry it took this long.”

Jason leans away, eyes staring at your lips before watching your heart shaped eyes look at him. “That's my girl.” Tilting his head back, you chase his lips, grabbing his collar to do what you've always wanted to do.

“I don't blame you, it took me a while too.” You sniff, refusing to let the tears escape you. “By the way, I never gave them my number.”

[showtoonzfan]

Ganna rant about Episode 4 of Hazbin again. For starters it has the same issue that Seeing Stars did for Helluva boss, that being Loona giving Octavia advice in comparison to Husk giving Angel advice. While the characters situations are different, both Loona and Husk were the wrong characters to pick to give advice, or simply just comfort the other character. I’ve already seen some people say that Charlie or Vaggie should have been the one to cheer Angel up, and that would have made more sense. They’ve known him longer and it’s in character for them to do that. For it to be Husk, not only does it feel forced as an excuse to just hook Angel up with a boyfriend and get the shipping fuel going, but it doesn’t make sense narratively.

In Loona’s case, her situation was flawed because she just MET Octavia, didn’t know a thing about her struggles and spouts to her about how she should be thankful just because her dad is “trying”, and the show tries comparing both girl’s situations when they’re not the same. This is practically the same situation with Angel and Husk. While Husk is aware of Angel, he barley knows him. He hasn’t been at the hotel that long considering the pilot took place only a week ago. On screen, all that Husk knew about Angel was that he was a porn star who constantly flirts with everyone, him especially, and we as the audience only see that and only that when the two interact. However episode 4 claims that Husk can see right through him and know that this is all part of his persona that he displays. If we had more time with these two characters outside of flirty banter scenes, this would make more sense, but instead it’s all tell and no show, being rushed with the little time we’re given. Husk even says that the hotel residents go to him to rant their sorrows while they’re drunk and even THAT happens off screen and that’s the problem, the audience has no reason to believe that Husk knows Angel deep down or even cares enough to want to help him, in our eyes, all Angel’s been doing is sexually harassing him.

There’s no reason why these two need to have an emotional scene together, it’s unearned and unwarranted because we haven’t had enough time with these characters, just like Loona and Octavia, there’s just no purpose or buildup. I also resort back to what I’ve said before: Husk selling his soul to Alastor is not the same as Angel selling his soul to Valentino. The show tries to compare Angel and Husk’s situations and it’s just not comparable because Alastor isn’t a rapist who’s trapping Husk to sell his body and be used like a rag doll constantly. Had it been something like “you’re a drug abuser and I’m an alcoholic”- THEN that would have worked, but that’s not what we get, and this leads me to talking about why “Loser Baby�� isn’t good.

Some people have already misinterpreted my opinion, so here’s a few things. Is the song in character for Husk? Yes. Is the song about Husk telling Angel not to act and just embrace himself? Yes. On its own, the song is fine outside of some distasteful lines. The CONTEXT, execution, and placement of the song is the issue. Episode 4’s whole purpose is to see just how much Angel suffers. He’s forced to work like a dog at the studio day in and day out, and he gets abused and SA’d by his boss and other demons constantly. He doesn’t have a say in anything and can never say no because he’s under contract. He can’t Fizz his way out of this one and just go “I quit”, he’s literally forced to work in the porn industry wether he likes it or not, and we see all of that on screen. We also explore just how much this affects him. They reveal some pretty dark stuff here, how Angel doesn’t even want his position as a famous porn star and is so desperate to be numb from the pain and suffering he endorses that he’ll get high constantly and let people drug him for nefarious reasons, it’s his escape. They dump ALL of that info onto us, only for this bullshit to come up:

So the writers slut shame him, call him a freak and an addict to laugh at because “haha he’s addicted to drugs and a slut”, even though we JUST got done with a scene that confirms HE DOES ALL OF THIS AS A TRUAMA RESPONSE. He said himself he does the drugs and is addicted to numb the pain, and his own flirting (while problematic) is shown to be an act of him hyper sexualizing himself due to what he goes through. It’s not excusable but it’s still a fact, and we’re supposed to LAUGH at him??? That’s what’s wrong with his character and what continues to be wrong, because Viv sees him as the butt of the joke. Every line of dialogue he has is always about sex and how we should laugh because he’s a slut, an it comes off as so distasteful and insensitive to not only people who have been abused/SA’d, but porn actors in general. We’re supposed to laugh when he talks about cock and sex, but the reason he’s doing it is so dark that we shouldn’t be laughing about it at all cause he’s a VICTIM, yet Viv thinks it’s funny. It’s so disgusting and makes my stomach twist. Angel is trapped being in a position he doesn’t even want to be in, yet his entire character revolves around comedic sex jokes, and once you figure out the reason behind said sex jokes, it feels so wrong.

And this is why Loser Baby doesn’t work. Aside from everything else I’ve already said, It doesn’t line up with what Angel is going through, it doesn’t line up with the rest of the episode. If you wanted Angel to have this arc about realizing he doesn’t need to stick to his persona, fine, but you should have done it in a different episode. This is why Husk comes off as telling him to just suck it up and stop whining rather than what he’s actually trying to say. It looks bad with how they executed it, it just looks like he’s telling an SA victim to get over it and stop whining and what’s worse is they compare their situations when it’s not the same. You literally have a scene of Angel telling Husk he lets people drug him, and not even a minute later Husk is calling him a loser. That’s the issue. The show doesn’t know how to read the room, build character relationships slower, is just so incredibly tone deaf and is hypocritical. We’re supposed to feel bad for Angel cause he’s sexualized to the maxes and is having trauma responses of that, but then we’re also supposed to laugh at him and his sex jokes while also finding him hot. Pick a fucking side Vivienne, the show wants to have its cake and eat it too and look where that’s gotten us. The writing is a fucking atrocious mess and yet it had so much potential if Viv actually cared enough to take Angel seriously, instead of just desperately wanting to give him a boyfriend, and a rushed arc where he magically feels better in the end.

[kaminocasey]

Hey! I'm gonna take advantage of your charity and incredible talent and ask me some Silco stuff, and I will make it very personal.

Im just a sucker for angsty fluff, so I was thinking something in the lines of reader works either in some restaurant where Silco goes or actually works in the last drop. And she's just having a rough couple of days and Silco finds out about it and just wants to help (maybe he gets frustrated because of it all, and goes all Silco, you know what I mean? Damn I'm gonna shut up now). But we all know Silco is not the most affectionate man, or at least shows it in weird (?) ways. I feel like it would be better (?) if they didn't have a relationship yet. But I'll leave it to your brilliance to do as you please, I have complete trust in your skills.

But remember, you don't have to do this if you don't feel like it of course.

Anyway, to much information already. So good luck, love your work, that brain of yours and you in general ❤️💙💛🤍

PS- do not allow me to make more requests, I will make them long, weird and I'll keep remembering more stuff to add and the next thing you know it's a full blown fic 🤣

Take All Your Sins

A/N: Thank you so much for your request, love!!! I was excited to do this one!!! This is going to be a two parter or MORE for SURE. <3 ilysm thank you again for your trust in me!!!

Summary: You work in the Last Drop and very close to Vander. What happens if Silco comes along and ruins that?

Pairing: Silco x Reader

WC: 1.4k

Warnings: Angst, sweet Silco, protective Vander, alcohol

Taglist Form | Arcane Masterlist

“If you have something else to do, I can finish those.” You come into the doorway of the kitchen, nodding toward the dishes that he’s doing. 

“I got ‘em. Almost done.” The older man smiles at you.

A few years ago, Vander gave you a place to stay when he found you out on the streets and ever since then, you were basically inseparable. His kids were like your own. 

“Rough night, huh?” Vander asks as you lean in the doorway, keeping an eye on the place in case more patrons came in. 

The Last Drop is usually busy this time of night, especially on this day of the week. But it’s like a ghost town right now and you can’t seem to figure out why.

“Rough week.” You sigh, crossing your arms. 

“Do you need a couple days off?” Vander asks, genuinely.

He always made sure you were taken care of, which you appreciate, but sometimes it feels like he does too much for others, and never lets anyone do anything for him. You’re bound to change that though. His birthday is coming up and you’ve been saving up for something special that will be from you and the kids. 

“Nah, I’m-” You start but hear the door open.

“You got it?” Vander asks and you nod with a grin and turn around to greet the customer, letting the kitchen door swing shut.

“What can I get ya?” You smile at the older man, who makes you do a subtle double take.

“Whiskey. Neat, please.” He smiles. 

He’s got dark hair, a partially scarred face, one blue eye and the other dark black with an orange iris that makes him look incredibly menacing. He’s wearing an open, fancy peacoat with a buttoned vest and tie. Who the hell is this guy?

His eyes rake over you as you approach the bar where he sits. 

“Haven’t seen you before.” You smile, politely. 

“I don’t get out much.” He takes his coat off and sits it down on the stool next to him. “I… work a lot.” 

His voice is silky and you can’t help but want to hear him say more. 

“What do you do?” You ask as you pour his drink. 

“I own my own business.” He tells you and takes the drink when you slide it to him. 

The way he says it, makes you think he doesn’t want to answer anymore questions about himself. 

“What’s your name?” He asks softly. 

You tell him and he takes a sip, keeping his blue eye on you. You smile softly, unsure of what to say.

“Pretty name.” He tells you, after he finishes off his drink. 

You go to pour him another but he puts his hand over his drink and shakes his head.

“Thanks.” You put the bottle back down and then take the empty glass from him, sitting it in the sink. “What’s yours?” 

“Silco. Do you like working here?” He asks, not missing a beat. 

You nod. “Yeah, I do.” 

“And you like Vander?” 

You nod. “Who doesn’t?” 

He chuckles, glancing around subtly. “Who doesn’t, indeed?”

“What are you doing after work?” He asks. 

Oh… of course. He thinks you’re going to put out- 

“I’m not trying to fuck you.” He tells you, as if he can read your mind while he stands up and puts his coat back on.

“You’re not?” You narrow your eyes at him.

“I mean, I wouldn’t say no if you wanted to, but that’s not why I asked.” He smirks.

You both stare at each other for a moment. His eyes fall to your lips before coming back up to your eyes.

“So… the real reason is?” You cross your arms.

“I think you’re beautiful and I’ve not been on a proper date in years.” Silco shrugs, placing a hand on the back of the barstool. 

You go warm in the face before looking down at his slender fingers and immediately can’t help but wonder what they’d feel like inside-

“I’ll be by at 11.” He tells you, snapping your thoughts back to the present as he places a few cogs onto the bar. 

“Um. Alright.” You nod, giving a kind smile. 

He stares at you for another short moment before giving you a smile back and then leaving. Just as the door closes, Vander walks out and sees you staring at the door, breaking you out of the trance that Silco seemed to have put you in.

“Everything okay?” He asks, placing a hand on your shoulder.

You look up at him, smiling a little dreamily. It’s not something you’re used to. Normally, when customers ask you out, you brush them off and pay them no mind. But Silco… he managed to get you to pay attention. 

“All good. Um… I have a date after work.” You go warm in the face at the word ‘date’. 

It’s not like you don’t date… you do… just not consistently. The last date you went on was a year ago. It didn’t go well so you decided to just focus on work.

“With the customer that just came in? Who is he?” Vander’s eyebrows raise in surprise, knowing that you haven’t gone out with someone in a long time.

“Just… some guy.” You shrug, starting to wipe down the bar. 

Vander chuckles. “Alright. Keep your secrets. I was young once, too.”

You laugh with him, your thoughts immediately going back to Silco’s unmatching eyes and the way they softened at the sight of you. 

“You can go get ready if you want. I can finish here.” Vander smirks. 

You roll your eyes. “Thanks. I owe you.” 

“Nah. Get outta here.” He nods toward the door that leads to the upstairs. 

You pat him on the shoulder as you walk past him, heading upstairs to go shower. You look at the clock and see that it reads 9:30. That should give you plenty of time to get ready. You don’t take particularly long showers. 

As you turn on the water, you climb into the shower, letting the water flow over your body as you stand there for a moment before starting to wash your body and hair. You still can’t stop thinking about the older man. He had to be about Vander’s age, right? You wonder if they know each other. Perhaps after you get to know Silco a little more, you’ll introduce them. 

After your shower, you dry your hair the best you can and then settle on a dress that you’d saved up forever to buy just because. What better excuse to wear it than on a date with an extremely attractive, slightly intimidating, man? 

At ten til 11, you make your way back down to the bar. Vander and Benzo both let out a whistle at the sight of you.

“Don’t you clean up nice?” Vander grins. 

You shrug, going warm in the face from the attention. “I guess.” 

You sit up on the bar stool next to Benzo. You glance over at the door and then back at Vander. 

“Do you want something to loosen your nerves?” Vander teases. 

“I’m alright, thanks.” You roll your eyes, amused.

“Who’s this hot date with?” Benzo nudges you with his elbow. 

You go warm in the face all over again, thinking about Silco. “Just some older guy… he’ll be here any minute.” 

They accept that answer and continue their conversation from before about business stuff that you don’t really mind yourself with. You pretty much just show up and do your job and do exactly what Vander tells you to do and then go back upstairs and sleep. And then repeat. 

The door opens moments later, and the three of you look up to find Silco walking in. You can’t help but give him a sweet smile. He smirks at you and pauses by the door.

“Are you ready-” He starts.

“Silco.” Vander growls. 

“Hello, Vander.” Silco’s eyes fall past you to the man behind you. “Lovely establishment you have here.”

You turn to Vander, confused. “You know each other?”

“Oh yes, we do.” Silco walks toward you, wrapping an arm around your lower back, looking you up and down. “You look beautiful, darling.” 

“She’s not going anywhere with you.” Vander comes around the bar and starts toward Silco but Benzo gets up quickly from the stool and stops him. 

You look between Silco and Vander, still confused.

“I think that’s for her to decide.” Silco smirks up at Vander who stands almost a foot above him.

You turn to Vander, with furrowed brows. This man is the one who gave you life again, the man who is like a father to you. The man you owe your life to. If he says you shouldn’t go… then shouldn’t you listen to him?

[mandalhoerian]

forced proximity | baking | wild west au ❅ Leon Secret Santa ( @leonsecretsanta ) ❅ gift for @bonesnplywood !!

summary: When a wagon mishap in the middle of a snowstorm leaves the new sheriff Leon Kennedy stranded at the local bakery, he’s reluctantly pulled into a lighthearted afternoon of decorating gingerbread cookies with the town’s spirited baker, you.

word count: close to 5K, read on ao3

note: AMBER ITS ME!! YOUR SECRET SANTA!!! THE WORST PERSON THESE TROPES COULD POSSIBLY FALL INTO THE LAP OF!!!! I've never in my life joined an event like this or written about christmas (jingle halal everyone), and i was doomed from the start because wild west is something i know absolutely nothing about 😞 so i had to make insane research on the topic for this, and i mean, "insane" research <2 me>, because i've had to look up things such as sugar, icing (did it exist? what about hot chocolate. plot twist, IT DOES), what they baked, how non-commercialized christmas was like back then, and overall about frontier towns, and i swear i was on the verge of tears about to drop out THIS 👌 CLOSE 😭😭😭 I hope I was at least able to catch the vibes and it's enjoyable, please excuse any mistakes or weird stuff overall that doesn't fit, i tried.... merry christmas!

Christmas around these parts was a quiet affair, mostly celebrated by children and the devout few who filled the pews of the old church on the hill. There were no garlands or ribbons strung up, no carolers wandering door to door. Folks didn’t have the time or money for all that fuss.

Instead, Christmas was something simpler. Something humbler. A rare pie cooling on a windowsill, the smell of woodsmoke mingling with fresh bread if a family could spare the flour and sugar, stockings, little more than patched-up socks, hung over fireplaces with faint hope... Sometimes, if the weather allowed, neighbors gathered for a pot of stew or shared biscuits, squeezing together at too-small tables and swapping stories to warm the room better than the fire ever could.

And yet, you, neither a dutiful churchgoer nor a small child any longer, cared more about this holiday than most. Actually, scratch that. “Cared” didn’t begin to cover it.

You lived for Christmas.

Always had. Ever since you were small, the holidays had lit something in you. All of them mattered, but Christmas? That was special. It wasn’t just the crisp air or the smell of pine needles in the bakery where you grew up. It was the whole season, the way December turned the world into something softer, kinder. Your father had seen to that.

Every year, he’d throw open the bakery doors to the orphanage down the lane, baking for the children who had no family to celebrate with. The evenings were loud with laughter, warm with the smell of bread and cakes, and rich with your father’s tall tales spun at the dinner table. He’d send those kids home with free loaves to last them through the winter, and no matter how much the townspeople complained about the expense, they’d show up to help--eventually. Even the grumps couldn’t resist the sight of those kids, faces bright with joy, or the way the bakery felt like the heart of the town in those fleeting weeks.

Of course, none of that magic happened on its own. The ingredients alone were a fortune, especially now, and it had taken some creative wheeling and dealing to keep things running smoothly. Mayor Irons had been easy enough to bribe, an extra haul of your famous sweets for his office, a special stash of sugar sticks just for him. The old sleazeball had learned long ago not to ask questions, especially when the end-of-month "bonus" arrived. It was a necessary evil, one you barely had to think about anymore.

This year, though, was different. The snowstorm had rolled in fast, blanketing the town in thick, sparkling drifts that clung to rooftops and piled high in the streets. It was beautiful in the way all fresh snow is, softening the edges of a hard world. But this wasn’t the gentle, picturesque snowfall from a child's drawing. This storm had teeth. Roads were already impassable, and while the bakery’s ovens burned bright and warm, you couldn’t help but worry about what would happen if the storm kept on. Business had slowed to a crawl, but you weren’t about to close the shop, not with so much left to do before the Christmas festival. The Mayor needed his payment. 

Your gaze drifted to the empty shelf behind the counter where sacks of flour and sugar were meant to sit. Supplies that should have arrived hours ago. Supplies you needed for the dozens of gingerbread cookies and other desserts.

Your father had thrown in the towel hours back, muttering that it was pointless to keep the place open when there was nothing left to sell. You, stubborn as always, refused to leave. The wagon train will come, you’d insisted. You weren’t about to trek home in this snowstorm, anyway, and someone needed to mind the fire. But as the wind howled against the windows and the blizzard thickened to a near whiteout, you were beginning to think your father might’ve had a point.

Then, the bell above the door jingled.

You jolted, spinning around.

"Finally," you muttered, brushing flour-dusted hands on your apron as you turned. "Come on in! You're lettin—"

The words caught in your throat.

It wasn’t the deliveryman standing there, but the sheriff—Leon Kennedy—silhouetted in the doorway like a figure out of legend. His wide-brimmed hat, damp and battered, was barely clinging to his head thanks to the string knotted beneath his chin. On his shoulders, six sacks of supplies were stacked so high it made him look almost absurd in the middle of your little bakery. Snow clung to his coat like he’d wrestled a blizzard and won, but that didn’t stop him from nudging the door shut with the heel of his boot and stepping further inside. The quiet thud of those sacks hitting the wooden floor sent a plume of cold air swirling around the room.

You blinked at him, dumbfounded.

“Sheriff?”

Leon straightened, dusting snow from his coat with broad, deliberate swipes. “Sorry I’m late.” He nodded to the sacks, as though hauling half a wagon’s worth of supplies on his back through a blizzard was the most normal thing in the world.

“Where’s the wagon?” you managed, trying to peer through the frosted window before turning back to him.

“Broke down a mile back,” he said, his voice roughened by the cold. “Axle snapped.”

Your stomach dropped. “A mile? In this weather?”

“Figured I’d at least bring what I could carry.” He kicked the snow from his boots, each thud matching the quickening of your heartbeat. “Rest will have to wait.”

You stared at him, then the sacks of flour and sugar piled on the floor. He’d walked through a goddamn blizzard. A mile, uphill, no less—you didn’t even need to ask to know that was the case. You opened your mouth to say something, but all that came out was a breath of air. Finally, you croaked, “I… Thank you.”

Leon just nodded, like gratitude was something he shrugged off the same way he shook snow from his coat. “What needs doin’?” he asked, glancing toward the empty shelves. “Looks like you’re behind.”

You’d just watched the man shoulder a blizzard and a mile of snowbanks, and now he wanted to help you restock?

Your gaze flickered to him—to his reddened cheeks and the tips of his nose, glowing like embers from the cold. The dark leather of his duster was soaked through, clinging to him like a second skin, and the snow gathered on the brim of his hat had begun to melt and drip onto the floorboards.

“Hold on a second,” you said, recovering your wits as you marched around the counter. “You’re half-frozen, Sheriff. Give me that coat before you catch your death.”

Leon’s brow quirked faintly, his lips twitching into something close to a smile. “I’m fine.”

“The hell you are.” You grabbed the hem of his coat, already tugging it off his shoulders before he could protest. The leather was heavier than it looked, soaked through and frigid to the touch. Jesus.

Leon let out a small, huffed laugh, raising his arms in surrender as you worked the coat free. Cedar, you thought absently, catching the scent that clung to him, warm and woodsy even beneath the chill.

“Sit down and warm up,” you ordered, pointing toward the small table near the fire. “You're not going anywhere in this weather.”

“And the shelves?” he asked, ever the dutiful sheriff.

“None of your damn business. You just carried half the territory’s worth of flour through a blizzard—I’d say you’ve earned five minutes.”

Leon’s smile turned genuine then, soft around the edges, and for the first time since he’d walked in, you saw the faintest hint of color return to his face. He nodded, boots thudding against the floor as he made his way to the chair.

As you turned back toward the sacks of supplies, already mentally calculating how much work lay ahead, you couldn’t help but glance over your shoulder. Leon was sitting by the fire now, elbows resting on his knees, hat in one hand and gloves dangling from the other, his gaze distant as he watched the flames. He looked tired. More tired than any man who’d just hauled a mile of flour and sugar should look, but there was something steady in the way he sat there, unshakable, like no storm could ever touch him.

You exhaled softly, shaking your head as you rolled up your sleeves. Christmas was comin’ whether the snow liked it or not.

You busied yourself at the counter, half-focused on the dough you were rolling out and half on the quiet presence of the man. After a while, the silence stretched like the dough underneath your hands, broken only by the occasional crackle of the fire and the soft thud of your movements against your work surface.

He wasn't very talkative in the first place, you knew as much, thinking that perhaps you could have accomodated him better instead of throwing yourself immediately into work the moment you'd gotten what you'd been waiting for the whole morning. The awkwardness that stifled the bakery was bothersome enough that you chanced another glance at Leon, and caught him watching you, eyes briefly darting to the counter before returning to the oven. 

“You decorating all those yourself?” he asked finally, nodding toward the trays of fresh-out-the-oven, undecorated gingerbread men to the side that were cooling off.

You blinked, pausing mid-roll. “I was planning to, yeah.”

He stood, rolling his shoulders as if testing how much energy he had left after the trek. “You’ve got a lot of work left. Might as well make myself useful.”

Your brows rose in mild surprise, but you quickly recovered. “You’ve already done more than enough.”

“Storm’s not letting up anytime soon,” he said simply, moving closer to the counter. “Might as well pass the time doing something.”

He put as much intensity into the staring match that followed as he would into a gunfight. It was inevitable that you'd lose. 

Finally, you reluctantly handed him an icing bag, unable to hide the smile tugging at your lips. “Alright, Sheriff. Let’s see what you’ve got.”

Leon took the bag, turning it over in his hands like it was a tool he needed to get a feel for. “Fair warning,” he said, “I’m better with a six-shooter than whatever this is.”

“It’s just icing. Start slow and gentle. No sharpshooting required.”

“Good,” he replied dryly. “Would hate to accidentally take out a gingerbread man.”

Was that... a joke? Did he just make a joke? 

You stepped closer to him, catching the way his hands dwarfed the small icing tube as he held it. His brow furrowed in concentration, the usual stoic expression on his face betraying just a smidge of uncertainty. There was something endearing about seeing him like this, someone so strong and sure reduced to puzzling over frosting.

“Here,” you said softly, placing your hands over his fingers, which twitched beneath yours, but he didn’t pull away. Instead, he stilled, letting you guide him. The warmth of his skin seeped into your palms, and you found yourself acutely aware of how close the two of you were.

“Hold it steady,” you murmured, your voice dipping low and deliberate, as if sharing a secret. “The trick is even pressure. Like this.”

You shifted your grip slightly, your thumbs brushing against his knuckles with a deliberate slowness. His hands, so large and steady, seemed to falter beneath your touch, the tiniest twitch betraying his awkwardness. You caught the faint hitch in his breath and felt the way his shoulders stiffened, as though unsure whether to lean into your guidance or escape it entirely, yet together with you, he squeezed the tube gently, a neat line of icing trailing onto the cookie below. He wasn’t focused on the cookie, though—not really. The way his hands followed your movements made it clear he was hyper-aware of the closeness, unsure but not resisting. Feeling the heat rise to your face, you quickly changed tack, pulling your hands away with a light laugh.

"You’ve got it from here," you said, stepping back slightly and gesturing to the cookie in front of him, your tone bright and easy.

Leon exhaled slowly, his breath brushing the side of your face. “Guess I was pressing too hard.”

“Most people do,” you replied, glancing up at him briefly. His focus was in front of him, but his jaw was tight. You could feel the tension in his shoulders despite him admitting what he'd been doing wrong. “Relax your grip a little.”

You adjusted his hold, guiding his hand through another clean line of icing, your bodies aligned as if the two of you had done this a hundred times before. When you finally released his hands, the absence of contact felt oddly stark... Thanks to the cold weather, no doubt. 

“Think you’ve got it now?” you asked, stepping back slightly, though your heartbeat had yet to slow.

“Think I’ll need a little more practice.”

That sounded suave at the time, but he was right, in the end. Leon’s first attempt at decorating was, to put it kindly, a disaster.

The icing tube seemed to have a mind of its own, spilling a shaky, jagged line across the gingerbread man’s torso. His frown was growing deeper by each passing minute, and he was constantly adjusting his grip, but it only got worse. By the time he set the tube down, the poor cookie looked more like a battlefield casualty than a festive treat.

You couldn’t hold back your laughter. It bubbled up, light and genuine, as you reached over to inspect his handiwork. “Well,” you said, biting back a grin, “it’s… unique.”

“It’s terrible,” Leon muttered, a touch of color rising in his cheeks as he glanced at your much neater designs. “Maybe I should stick to chasing outlaws.”

“Aw, come on,” you teased, nudging his arm. “You’re just gettin' started. Besides, this is supposed to be fun, not perfect.”

He gave a skeptical huff but picked up the tube again, determined to try. How earnest. You leaned closer, pointing out how to apply even pressure, your hands brushing his as you demonstrated even though you didn't really need to do all of that. Something about enjoying a skilled grown man being awkward about something you were good at and wanting to enjoy moments of making him fumble. 

“There you go,” you encouraged as his next attempt turned out… well, marginally better. “See? Not bad for a first-timer.”

"I feel bad for whoever this will be eaten by," he muttered, referring to the misshapen abomination in his hand that could hardly qualify as a 'person.'

"It's the Mayor," you blurted out without thinking, causing a choked laugh escape past his lips, surprise lighting up his handsome features.

"Really?"

"Yep," you grinned, winking conspiratorially at him. "You're helping me bribe the man to invest more on Christmas. Gotta throw in some of your... specialties in there for good luck."

"You're trying to get me fired," he deadpanned, as dry as the wood stacked by the hearth. "And blacklisted."

A loud laugh tore itself out of your throat, warm and melodious in nature. He looked oddly pleased at having brought it out of you, the corners of his lips twitching up minutely before returning to its neutral position. God, how cute! You wondered what other expressions you could draw out of him if you tried. It wasn't fair how handsome he was when he smiled like that, a real smile, with actual emotion. That tiny change softened the harsh line of his mouth and eased the shadow of exhaustion from his face, making him look like a completely different person, like another version of himself who existed behind closed doors. The image stayed burned into your mind's retina as you resumed decorating the cookies with your nimble fingers, sneaking glances every so often, studying him from beneath your lashes.

You wanted to know more about this man. In a way, this snowstorm had been a good thing. 

“So,” you started, reaching for another cookie to decorate, “what made you take the sheriff’s job? Don’t take this the wrong way, but you don’t strike me as the type who’d want to babysit a town like this.”

Leon glanced at you, his hand pausing mid-squeeze. “What makes you say that?”

“Oh, ya know.” You gestured vaguely at him, smirking. “That look. Like you’ve seen too much of the world already and don’t trust any of it.”

He let out a soft, humorless laugh. “You’re not wrong.” For a moment, he focused on his cookie again, the silence stretching between you both. Then, quietly, he added, “I figured it was time to slow down. Maybe try something simpler.”

You arched a brow. “Simpler? Sheriff in a town like this? You must not have heard about all the trouble this place sees.”

“I’ve heard,” he said, glancing your way with the faintest hint of amusement in his eyes. “Still beats the alternative.”

The weight in his voice gave you pause. You didn’t press, sensing there were things he wasn’t ready to share, and not your place to know in the first place. Instead, you held up one of your finished cookies. “Well, here’s to slowing down. Even if it means spending your days wrestling with icing.”

“I’ll take it over the wrestling I’m used to,” he said, his lips twitching into a soft smile as he picked up another cookie. "Already like this better. It's nice working with someone like this. Having a calm evening instead of the usual shit I'm doing. Christmas cookie decorating. Who'd've thought, right?"

"That sounds lonely, Sheriff."

A strange, distant look crossed over his face momentarily, something melancholic and longing flitting across his face before it vanished again under the cool mask you were familiar with.

He let out a small, sad sigh. "...Yeah. S'pose it is."

"You know... Christmas is all about coming together. Starting fresh. And sometimes taking a little break from reality to enjoy yourself," you added thoughtfully, trying not to be too on the nose about what you were trying to convey. "We all need a little grace. Especially around this time of year."

He snorted softly at that, amused.

Your hand moved quicker than your mind could react, bringing the piping tip dangerously close to his mouth. "Care to repeat that?"

Leon blinked, momentarily stunned. "Christmas suits you," he repeated, more brazenly this time, daring you to follow through with the implicit threat. "All warm and welcoming." He leaned forward, almost challenging in nature. "Like this bakery of yours."

"Oh, well—" your ears burned hotter at the implications. If anyone saw you like this now, you would've been done for.

You cleared your throat, attempting to keep yourself composed even as Leon's stare bore a hole through your skull. The damn man was just teasing you, looking smug as fuck for figuring out how to make you flustered for once.

"You better watch your pretty mouth, or else I'll decorate it shut instead."

Leon threw you his most innocent, butter-wouldn't-melt smile, and oh—was he laying it on thick just to rile you up. He seemed to have recovered from earlier, all broody and cold-shouldered as he usually was. This new, playful side of him was going to kill you before the day was over, you were absolutely certain of it.

"Maybe next time," he said simply with a nonchalant shrug. 

The man had some nerve. Just the mere implication made your head spin. Did he mean it? Was he flirting? What did that mean for him? For you? You thought back to the few times you'd seen him around town—the polite smiles and nods exchanged at a distance; the brief conversation when your order went missing; the sudden appearance this afternoon that saved your day—and wondered why things were so easy between you despite how limited the interactions. Maybe because you knew each other well enough in name only, without the addition of many personal details beyond those spoken on a passing basis. Or maybe there was something deeper and unspoken that existed between you two ever since that first interaction at the saloon several weeks ago. Maybe you weren't imagining the subtle, shy looks, the hidden smiles, the way he tended to linger by the doorway to watch you work long after he ran out of excuses to be there anymore.

You shook away such thoughts and returned to decorating, not sure what to say in response.

"...Do you ever get the temptation to have any while you do this?" He asked all of a sudden, changing the topic abruptly. "Or wait til the last batch gets done and then have them?"

"These are for Christmas!"

"They are for the Mayor."

You couldn't help but giggle, especially since he said that like someone else would talk about some slimy thing on the bottom of their shoe. "For Christmas's sake."

"Would you eat one? Any of these ones I did?" There was something almost like playful disappointment there, in his tone. "I think we need to do some... quality testing before deciding to send them off to my employer and risk my job while we're at it."

There were very few times Leon Kennedy was described as an optimist, even fewer times he could be considered amusing (the townsfolk seemed convinced he wasn't capable of joy), but hearing him make a joke regarding his 'employer' with you made something flip inside your tummy. It didn't take long for you to cave, popping the partially iced gingerbread man into your mouth.

And that's how both of you ended up sitting down and devouring the whole batch, with two cups of steaming hot chocolate courtesy of yours truly. In true Christmas spirit, Leon even suggested making a gingerbread house from scratch in the shape of the mayor's office (complete with a gingerbread dog) and helping you with the baking process.

At this point, neither of you cared about decorum—the sheriff's sleeves were rolled up high on his arms, and you'd shucked your apron ages ago. Between the pair of you, you had enough raw dough in your mouths to sink a ship, but it was delicious, and your stomach was full of warm gingerbread and sweet cream. All that was missing was eggnog and a roaring fire, and it really felt like Christmas. His company, too, was surprisingly pleasant. Though Leon was quiet—always quiet—he listened attentively to your chatter while you kneaded the dough and he mixed the sugar and eggs while occasionaly going in for the hot chocolate, which was quite endearing for a man you hadn't seen with any beverage other than some sort of alcohol at the saloon.

You leaned against the counter as Leon poured another mug of hot chocolate, his sleeves still rolled up and his hair slightly mussed from pushing it away too many times so it wouldn't get in his eyes while he worked. The snowstorm had calmed some, but the wind still howled outside, leaving little to do but bake another batch of cookies and fruitcakes to pass the time—and keep the shop warm.

“So, about that axle,” you started, reaching for the bowl of flour. “No one told you it was shot?”

Leon shook his head, his expression almost sheepish. “Guess I didn’t ask the right questions. Higgins just said it was ‘good enough.’”

You snorted, scooping flour into the mixing bowl. “‘Good enough’ by Higgins’ standards means it’s one bump away from falling apart. The man’s been patching that wagon together with spit and stubbornness for years.”

Leon’s lips twitched in a faint smile as he leaned against the counter across from you. “Noted for next time.”

“You’re lucky it lasted as long as it did. But you’ll get used to that around here. Everyone’s got their quirks, and most of them involve cutting corners where they shouldn’t.”

“Yeah?” Leon’s tone invited more, his eyes steady on yours as he sipped his hot chocolate.

“Oh, definitely,” you said, grabbing the sugar. “Take Mrs. Winslow, for example. Sweet old lady, bakes pies for half the town out of the goodness of her heart that it's bad for my business, but did you know she’s the reason the post office closes early every other Thursday?”

Leon blinked. “I… can’t say I did.”

You grinned, leaning in conspiratorially. “She’s been having a years-long feud with the postmaster’s wife over some quilting contest back in ‘64. The poor postmaster just shuts up shop early to keep the peace whenever she’s around.”

“Jesus…”

“And then there’s Old Man Miller. Nice fella, always has a good story to share, but he’s also the same guy who thinks it’s a bright idea to milk his cows at midnight to ‘beat the rush’ at the market in the morning.” You laughed, remembering the sight of Mr. Miller stumbling bleary-eyed into the bakery, smelling distinctly of barnyard. “And let me tell you, that man’s cheese tastes like the butt crack of dawn on a Monday morning itself.”

Leon chuckled, shaking his head. “Sounds charming.”

“It is. Charming and... a little crazy, to be honest. But that’s the kind of place this is. We’ve all got our stories, and we’re all a bit touched in the head. Except me, of course. I’m the picture of sanity. Why, just yesterday, I had a completely normal, rational conversation with my sourdough starter as I fed it. It agreed wholeheartedly.”

“I see the resemblance,” Leon joked, his posture relaxing as he took over the task of adding eggs to the bowl, his fingers moving deftly and confidently. “Did the sourdough give you any tips for dealing with the townsfolk, or is that a trade secret?”

"Ah, wouldn't you like to know," you teased, laughing along. "But honestly, the best advice I can offer is to roll with the punches. This place will drive you nuts if you try to understand it. Just let the weird wash over you, and eventually, you'll feel at home."

Leon paused, considering your words. "That might take a while."

“Here's some secrets to keep up... There’s old Tom over at the smithy. He’ll fix your horseshoes for half price, but only if you promise not to bring up the time he accidentally set fire to the mayor’s porch.”

You glanced up to find his eyes crinkling slightly at the edges.

“And let’s not forget about the Reverend,” you continued, emboldened by the sight. “Bless his heart, but he’s been known to sample a little too much of the communion wine. You’ll know it’s happened when he starts quoting Shakespeare in his sermons.”

Leon nodded wisely. “Duly noted. Blackmail Tom, steer clear of the reverend during happy hour. Got any other wisdom to impart, town sage?”

You tapped your chin thoughtfully, enjoying the playful back-and-forth. “Well, if you ever need a favor from the schoolmarm, remember that her favorite flowers are peonies. And whatever you do, do not play poker with the Doc. The man can cheat like no one's business, and no, he's not above using his medical degree to his advantage. Also, avoid the butcher on Tuesdays—he's extra cranky after haggling prices with the ranchers. Oh, and never, ever bet against the blacksmith in an arm-wrestling match. Trust me, I learned that the hard way. Poor Billy. That boy won't learn his lesson anytime soon."

"What about the town baker?" he asked, his tone light, a hint of curiosity in his question, his focus on the dough in front of him, his fingers kneading the mound of flour, butter, and sugar. "Any secrets worth knowing?"

You quirked a brow, a sly smile playing at the corners of your mouth at him taking the first step that he'd been circling for quite some time. What would he have done if you weren't good with signals? Nevermind, though, you liked this brand of shy men. "Well, now that you mention it, there is one thing..."

Leon paused, his hands buried in the dough, his muscles flexing beneath his shirt sleeves. He looked at you expectantly, a glint of intrigue in his otherwise impassive demeanor.

"The baker," you said in a hushed tone, leaning forward as if sharing a secret, "has a weakness for a handsome, helpful sheriff who knows his way around a bag of icing. Especially one who's willing to brave a snowstorm to deliver her supplies personally."

The blush that crept up Leon's neck was immediate, his cheeks turning a delightful shade of pink. You couldn't help but bite your lower lip, finding his flustered state absolutely adorable. His grip on the dough tightened momentarily, and he averted his eyes, his lashes fluttering as he tried to compose himself.

"Ah," he managed, his throat bobbing in a nervous gulp.

You nodded, the grin on your face growing wider. "Mhm. She would love it if on Christmas Eve, that certain sheriff stopped by the bakery to pick up her special order. Maybe even have a drink together. To thank him for all his help, of course. If he's not busy, that is."

Leon cleared his throat, his tongue darting out to wet his lips, his attention still fixed on the dough before him. "I... I'll be sure to check my schedule," he managed, a slight tremor in his deepened voice.

"Good," you replied, straightening up, satisfied with his response. "Now, enough chit-chat, Sheriff. Let's get these gingerbread men in the oven so they can rest and bake, and we can have more hot chocolate and relax in the meantime. How does that sound?"

"Sounds like a plan," Leon agreed, his shoulders relaxing somewhat, though his ears still burned a rosy red.

[lynnaredfield3383]

Not my characters. Aged up 21. Swearing. Established relationship. Angst.

Katsuki's voice came through the line.

“I won't be home the next couple nights.”

“OK. Be safe.”

Katsuki was suddenly alert. Your voice was normal, but your response was nothing he'd heard before or ever imagined you saying. Did you know? How could you know? As fear crept in and took hold of him, he lost control.

“Look you know what hero work takes, and I wish I could be there with you…”

“Kats, it's fine. Really.”

You chuckle genuinely, refusing to comfort or dispel his uneasiness.

“I can change shifts…”

Bakugo's palms were sweaty now, and his hands were beginning to spark with nervousness.

“I took a shift tonight, so it'd be pointless. Now go get the bad guys.”

There was a brief moment of silence before he spoke again.

“Shit. You mad?” Bakugo asked.

You laughed at this and it actually calmed him completely. He knew your genuine laughs, smiles, and tones. Knew them so well, but why until this very moment had he thought he was bored of those things, of you?

Mad had never crossed your mind. Hurt, disappointed, discouraged, and done. Sure. But you'd never been mad at him. Not for a second. Bakugo wasn't cheating on you, just flirting with some woman at his agency. Though you wish he'd tell you he was ready to move on, you weren't mad. Nor were you going to hold him back. You loved him too much for that.

“Never mad. Never.”

“O-okay. I'll see you tomorrow night then?”

“Not sure. Depends on the case tonight. You know how hero work is, Bakugo. Bye.”

Bakugo had been caught on the fact you used the same line he had regarding hero work, but then he swore loudly as he realized you'd used his last name.

“Fucking fuck! Shit!”

Bakugo called you back, but it went straight to voicemail. So he started running redialing every few seconds.

As soon as you'd said his last name you knew you'd fucked up. Which is why you already left the apt. You moved all your stuff from his place into your new place a week ago. As observant as he was, he hadn't noticed because he'd only been home once in the last 3 weeks. Just to shower and grab more stuff. As soon as you ended the call, you rushed to block him, knowing he would blow your phone up in moments. You'd left the letter a week ago when you cleaned the house top to bottom the way he liked it and hadn't been back since.

“You good?” Shinso, your current case partner asked.

“Yeah, let's go.”

Bakugo was on the floor of the kitchen hot tears flowing down his face as he held the letter tightly.

Bakugo, Sorry I couldn't keep you interested. Never thought we'd end up like this, but it's obvious you have feelings for that woman at your agency. I saw you & heard you two flirting the day I dropped your lunch off. It's okay. I'm glad you found someone that makes you smile and laugh like I used to. Move on, be free, and accept that there are no hard feelings. I didn't give you a heads up because I know you'll fight for us. I don't know why, especially since you've already moved on, but that's just who you are. You never fail. You didn't fail me or this relationship. You didn't. It was just time for us to move on, and that's OK. It happens. Wish you the best always, but you need to know I can't be friends with you right now. Maybe in a few months, but let's see how it goes. Be safe, be #1 & live your life with no regrets.

Y/N

[aklaustaleteller]

Hi sweetie! Hope you're doing well. Could you write a Klaus Mikaelson x reader (the reader is Hope's bio mom, so the whole Dahlia betrayal didn't happen and no one was turned into a wolf) where it's set in season 3, the reader and Klaus are married and happy until Aurora comes along, and with her jealousy she makes y/n believe she and Klaus slept together (they didn't) so they have a big fight where Klaus didn't deny he slept with her (cause he was hurt she didn't trust him and stuff) causing them to split out. They only saw each other because of Hope, and they were verbally hostile towards each other (not much, just petty arguments) and after a while he kills Aurora bcs she threatened yn (or something similar) and they go back together and it's all fluff.

Have a great day!

Said Yes To Heaven

Y/n and Klaus are in love, happy and overwhelmed, especially since having welcomed their newborn baby only weeks ago. But what happens when an unwanted guest appears on their doorstep out of the blue, and suddenly Y/n isn't sure if she's just going crazy or there truly has been some infidelity?

Warnings - Mentions of pregnancy, blood, thoughts + scenes of trying to unalive someone else, and some light after-birth changes/affects our reader is going through.

Word Count - 4.6k

Masterlist | please reblog the fic if you like it!

So, long time no see, everyone? Hahah, it's surreal to me how you have stuck around, but I'm very glad at the same time :) Thank you for sending in this request, anon, and I'm sorry for taking so long! This is part 1/2 and this mainly has fluff, as I wanted to show you the happiness and all about this family before I tore it down in the next part (just so it'd hurt a little better, yanno?) Anyways, I'm a little rusty but I hope you'll enjoy this one even a little and I'll let you go now! Have fun reading <3

UPDATE: You can now read part two here!

Klaus took a few steps back from his doorstep, looking rather unpleasant to see his guest for the day. Because of course, out of the very blue, his ex-lover had been reminded of him. On the very day he had woken up to a crying baby and a cranky wife who was high on hormones after just having given birth.

Some days, he just couldn't get it right. But today was going to be the hardest of it all and he was not ready to face the music.

"Aurora," Y/n spoke from somewhere behind Klaus, her voice carrying a threatening echo. "To what do we owe the pleasure?" She was approaching the door slowly, her eyes and tone an exact contrast to the welcoming words falling out of her mouth like sweet honey.

Klaus' shoulders relaxed when Y/n brushed against him while she moved past to stand in front of him, making him lean against the doorframe.

"It's a lovely day, isn't it?" Aurora spoke, her voice like a little girl’s – sweet and gentle. But Klaus saw straight through it as well as the tick in his wife's jaw. "Heard that you gave birth to a baby g --"

Before Aurora could've finished, Y/n had her pinned to the doorframe opposite to the one Klaus was leaning against.

"Don't you even dare speak of my family," Y/n snarled, her fingers digging into the woman's throat as everything in her told her to rip it out. But before she could've, Klaus' lulling voice began slipping into her ears.

"Now, love," He said softly, grabbing a hold of her shoulders and bringing her back into him, knowing fully well that this wasn't something she truly wanted to do. Then, tucking her lone hair strand back into her braid, he cupped her cheeks – "Why taint the porch with her blood, hm?"

"Because I'd rather see her dead than listen to that filth for another second," she smiled sweetly, her anger evident in the grit of her teeth.

And she'd just begun turning to take a look at an embarrassingly flushed Aurora, when a cry tore through the silent household. For a small second, both Klaus and Y/n shut their eyes, taking a deep breath simultaneously before Y/n was walking back into the house.

"Take a nap with her, why don't you?" Klaus proposed, his back facing the unwanted guest. "I'll take care of this and join you two in a bit," he nodded, passing the exhausted mother of his little girl a sweet smile, encouraging her.

Then he turned back around, almost shutting the door behind him to keep whatever noise was to come at bay.

"What do you think you're doing here, Aurora?"

"I just wanted to see you, Niklaus," she muttered softly, taking a step closer to him. "I miss you," she confessed, reaching to place her hands on his chest.

He backed away just in time, releasing a sharp breath. "I didn't suspect you to be so idiotic and careless with your life," he said sharply.

"Only for you, Klaus." She was looking up at him with a million emotions swirling in her eyes. But Klaus knew better than to not notice malice being one of them.

"Whatever you're planning to do, drop it," he gritted through his teeth. "And stay far, far away, from my family," he warned her as he walked her off their porch and out of their house’ perimeter, tempting the woman in front of him to backtrack.

"Don't test me against this Aurora,” he started, his hands placed behind his back but his frame remained all the more intimidating.

“I will kill you if you even bat an eye in the direction of this house," he was almost beginning to shake now, trying his best to keep his anger at bay and not cause any destruction out here while his little family rested inside the house not too far away.

Leaving her standing, Klaus turned to get back in the house when Aurora called out his name.

"You love me, though! You know you love me," she shouted at him, and Klaus' eyes glowed golden, knowing exactly what she was trying to do here.

And the moment she saw his eyes, she stumbled a little.

"I know you love me, do you not?" She managed to croak out just before Klaus had his hand wrapped around her throat, enhancing the bruising his wife had marked earlier.

"This is your final warning," he growled in her ear before slamming her against the wall behind her, walking away and trying to lose his temper at the same time as he entered the house and shut the door behind him, wincing when a baby's wails followed the noise.

—

As the next morning rolled around, so did the first official day of Summer.

With Hope's little frame already covered in fresh grass, Y/n couldn't foresee the day getting any better. A loud laugh escaped her when Klaus pretended for it to have been hard work getting a hold of the very frantic Hope, who was as happy to see the sun as Y/n was.

"Look who's gotten herself all dirty," Y/n pouted, dusting off as much dirt as she could off of Hope's onesie, while Klaus softly wiped her face.

"Just learned to crawl and of course she's abusing the skill," Klaus murmured, only making his wife laugh again.

Y/n kept Hope caged in her lap with one arm, leaning back on the other one to soak in the sun. She exhaled a deep breath, before turning to look at Klaus, who was already smiling at her.

"You've been such a good father, have I told you that?"

He laughed at that, looking down to hide the blush creeping up his neck, and nodding with his eyes still set on the little ducklings printed on the blanket they were sitting on.

"You have," he began softly. "Many times, actually," huffing out a laugh, he looked up again, now catching Hope's big wondrous eyes as well.

"Good."

With a light groan, Klaus moved to lay beside her. "Hope couldn't have a better mum, though."

"Wouldn't want her to have another mum anyways," she laughed, leaning in just a bit to press a chaste kiss to the corner of his mouth that was curled in a grin.

And as the beautiful day passed them by, with Hope's full cheeks turned red due to the amount of fun she'd had, and Y/n's heart swollen with all the love she couldn't muster up properly at all, no matter how hard she tried – and Klaus knew that he could give it his all and still be unable to put this keen feeling rushing under his skin upon a canvas.

They'd truly said yes to heaven, when they'd said yes to each other on that one day in particular.

So, once they had shuffled back inside their house due to the chilliness increasing, Klaus made his way straight to the kitchen to heat up the leftovers while Y/n changed Hope’s clothes upstairs, in their bedroom. It didn't take long for the tired little girl to slip into sleep's arms and for her head to lull to the side, while Y/n was rocking her back and forth. So she stacked pillows around Hope’s body and went back down to Klaus, reaching just in time when a there was a knock on the door.

Now, with whatever Y/n had been expecting to come across, Aurora Martel at her door once again, was not it.

As she stood still on her ground, looking into the very woman's eyes who was not even supposed to be here anymore, her eyes began to fade to black only for the golden rim of a Hybrid to come through -- to caution the vampire standing in front of her before she attacked.

Because while Y/n hadn’t mentioned it to Klaus, she had heard her fake little love confession to Klaus yesterday and thought about the multiple ways she could unalive Aurora. 

But she decided against putting in such effort and put her body through another wave of pain for the day. She was going to go about his normally, after all, she was the mother of the very man's child that this woman had clearly come after. And his wife, as well.

"Aurora De Martel, the hopeless-romantic human, who only grew more daring once turned into a vampire, at my doorstep all over again," Y/n began, walking to complete a circle around the woman.

"Not an ounce of stupidity was shred in the process-- you know, of your turning; I suppose, since you're clearly still in possession of it," Y/n continued. 

Once she was in front of Aurora again, she took a step closer, the gaze of a predator still present in her eyes.

"Cat got your tongue darling?" She spoke, tilting her head to the side. "Where's that feisty little Vampire that I remember, hm?"

"I'm not that person anymore," Aurora began, struggling once Y/n had her in a choke hold again.

"No need to be a stinking liar, Aurora." Y/n gritted, dropping the choking one on the ground. "I can smell your intentions from miles away."

Y/n didn't tend to be such a threatening and volatile person, that was the reason that she'd fit so well with Klaus. And yet, she wasn't quite sure as to why she'd brought up this side of hers. She knew she wasn’t afraid or insecure that Aurora might get to Klaus; not at all.

But what she did know was that Klaus’ lovers popping back up only made her heart thud because of the potential danger they put Hope in.

She scoffed when Aurora scrambled to her feet, hands around her neck as she swallowed thickly.

“How are you, Y/n?” She croaked out, looking ahead of her despite the fact that Y/n was right by her side, now making another round around her. 

“Hm, concerned, I’d say,” Y/n hummed. “For you, of course.”

Maybe the pregnancy had changed more about her than she’d originally thought. Or maybe, and hopefully, Y/n thought, it was just the hormones. 

“How’s Klaus?” Aurora asked, mustering up the courage to turn and look Y/n in the eyes. “I supposed he’d be here,” she shrugged, "with you." The venom in her voice could be well detected, especially when she mentioned Y/n. And while her guards were high up, prepared for the hybrid to rip her to shreds -- she still held the fake confidence that that won't happen. 

“Why don’t you ask him yourself? I’m sure he’d love to have a chat,” Y/n smiled at her before she walked into the house, towards the room she knew Klaus was putting away Hope’s stray toys in – but not before passing Aurora a cautioning glare, warning her against doing something stupid in her absence. 

“Klaus?” She asked softly, entering the dark room, her eyes already following his figure as he put away the box of toys.

“We have a guest, I hear?” Klaus asked, walking up to her with a lazy smile. One of his arms snuck around her waist to pull her into him to press a kiss on her mouth. 

“No actually – we have a doting lover on our door,” Y/n chuckled. “She’s eager to see you again,” she shrugged, quickly going back to press a kiss on Hope’s forehead before grabbing a very confused Klaus’ hand, leading him outside. 

“Aurora,” he realised in annoyance, a deep frown in between his brows as he caught her sight from the top of the stairs. His mind was racing through a million things, the loudest question in there was, what in the hell was she doing here again? Didn't he warn her just yesterday?

“Isn’t it a pleasant surprise?” Y/n smiled brightly, coming to a halt herself. “I’ll leave you two to it,” she said, ignoring Klaus’ pleading look with an inner laugh as she turned away, most likely to arrange the dishes for their awaiting and heated dinner.

"Just make sure she doesn't ever dare to lose her way and end up here, again," she said, looking straight into Aurora's eyes before crossing over to the kitchen. 

And from the corner of her eye, she saw Klaus shut the door behind him. So, trusting him against making a mess, she quickly cleaned up the kitchen before she was making her way upstairs to Hope’s room, to now feed her some formula and put her to sleep for the night. 

"Are you in there, little wolf?" Y/n spoke from just outside the door, a silly grin on her face as she waited for the same reply she got everyday.

A random babbling noise that showed that Hope was indeed hungry. 

Despite Hope's loud squeak and the sounds of her rolling around in her crib, Y/n walked into the room with the same look on her face – the pretended to have caught her daughter, awake, red handed.

"Hope! You don't wake up once I put you to sleep!" She gasped, swallowing a laugh and reaching with one hand to pick up the little girl, bringing her to sit on her lap while she backed to sit on the rocking chair.

With loud giggles, Hope hit her chest a couple times, grinning up at her while drool began pooling on the boundary of her mouth.

"Uh ah!" Y/n laughed, closing the baby's mouth and watching as she squealed again, this time her palm landing flat on Y/n’s cheek.

Risking a mess by placing the small bowl on her thigh, Y/n held Hope up with her back against her chest and lifted a spoonful.

"Yes!" She cheered when Hope took in the bite without closing her mouth halfway and spilling the rest down her chin.

Slowly and steadily, she let the girl swallow her meal before making her burp.

"Did I get you sleepy, little wolf?" Y/n giggled watching Hope's eyes droop.

"You're so sleepy all the time!" She pouted. "Never got the time on your hands to play with your mummy," chuckling and shaking her head, she got off the chair and walked over to the crib placed near Klaus’ side of the bed upon his insistence, putting the already asleep girl inside.

Lowering with her, Y/n pressed a chaste kiss on her full cheeks that now hung low. Silently, she walked over and peeked out of the door to see if the matter down the stairs had been sorted out.

But she didn't catch sight of either Klaus or Aurora. So, with a sharp frown between her brows and an anxious tick among her fingers, she hurried down the stairs -- only to confirm her first realisation, it seemed.

Knowing that Klaus couldn't have been hurt in any way, she headed back into the master bedroom to get herself into a nice bath and take some time off to relax. 

She lit the candle that Freya had gifted her some time ago, and stepped into the bathtub full of soap foams. Her head lulled back and her eyes shut off, and she began to think of all the time she had been spending building this new little family recently. 

It still felt so surreal, that Hope was finally here. It was all so new and overwhelming, but Y/n knew that neither her nor Klaus would trade this period of their life for anything. It was almost as if everything had fallen into pieces to fit a puzzle the moment they had welcomed their little daughter into this world. 

There was no other source of light in the bathroom apart from the flickering candle, Y/n didn't feel like turning on the bright white light. And, as she began to tune into Hope’s breathing, she felt her heart begin to beat in sync with hers. It would’ve only been silence to human ears, but Y/n could hear the little puffs and the little movements of her mouth that she made in her sleep. 

She could picture Hope’s head lulled to the side, her mouth slightly ajar and her small frame rising and lowering with each breath that she took. Then, Klaus faded into the photo and she could see Hope’s drool slipping onto his arm and drying up there, because of course Klaus had fallen asleep with her on the rocking chair. 

And finally, she entered the picture herself and took the two of them into the master bedroom, laying Hope between the two of them and pressing kisses on both of their foreheads. After turning off the lights, she was looking at the two pieces of her heart sleeping peacefully, because she felt like she couldn’t miss this sight, because she probably won’t feel the time pass before Hope had to be put to sleep in a crib in her own room. 

Just the idea of that brought tears to her eyes. Everything made her cry these days, and she does realise that it’s because of the hormones. But she doesn’t know how to explain the exhaustion of it all. The untrue and mean thoughts she got throughout the day, whether it was regarding her body or her new journey of being a mother and feeling scared that she’d go wrong somewhere and be hated by her own family for the rest of her life. 

Just the energy it took to shut all those thoughts down and to reassure herself, remind herself of what was true and what wasn’t – took so much out of her that when Klaus held her in his arms at the end of the day, she just wanted to let go and fall into pieces, so that he’d bunch her up and tell her or show her stupid brain that Y/n was indeed right and that the thoughts were just her mind playing games. 

Taking in a deep breath, Y/n rose and washed the soap off of her. She could think about this all day and all night, and she could drown in her sorrows for way too long than healthy. But right now, she needed to go and eat dinner if she wanted to sleep on time. 

Which reminded her – she hadn’t heard Klaus come home. Had she missed it, or had he genuinely not come home yet? She began to focus on her hearing, and only came across Hope’s breaths, nothing else. 

Maybe something had occupied him, she thought, wrapping a towel around her and exiting the bathroom. 

—

Klaus was walking in their backyard with Hope in his arms, asleep, as always. He couldn’t balme her though – she was a newborn, after all, and had a lot to register in her brain in the couple hours that she was awake during the day. 

She had been a calm baby so far. The midnight tantrums weren’t as frequent as others had warned him and Y/n about, maybe because they had way more stamina than an average human.

Y/n, right when she had woken up, had been dragged out by Rebekah and Freya. Trust me, Y/n, I’ve been through what you’re going through and it’s been two weeks since you’ve left the house with us! He had heard Rebekah say to Y/n in the kitchen, and he had agreed a hundred percent. 

They had gone out for brunch, and maybe it was because they had a lot to catch up on, that Y/n hadn’t yet come home and it was nearing lunch time. 

And Y/n, as much as she was enjoying her time out in as much sun as New Orleans got on an average, she was dying to go home. She was missing Hope and Klaus and before she could’ve said anything, Rebekah had herself proposed that they should have some dessert already because Klaus and Hope are probably seeing your sight on the doorstep, she’d laughed. 

“I think I’m gonna walk home, the weather’s really nice,” Y/n said when Rebekah began to try and convince her for a lift in her car. 

“Oh, okay!” Rebekah laughed. “You have come out after a long time, so sure!”

Y/n just passed the woman a narrow-eyed glare as she was hugging Freya. 

“Juut text us when you reach home,” Freys said, walking off towards her car. 

Y/n nodded, bidding goodbye and watching the two drive off before she dropped her smile and sighed. God, her cheeks hurt from how much she’d been smiling and laughing. 

She had only walked a couple paces away from their eating spot when she heard footsteps. It was a busy time, a nice day, so many people were out and about. The city was kind of bustling. But still, Y/n turned to look and immediately, she groaned, coming to a pause. 

“Seriously, Aurora?” She almost whined. “You take annoying someone to a whole another scale,” she said with a face that was genuinely twisted into annoyance and irritation. 

“C’mon Y/n,” Aurora said with a newfound confidence, drawing Y/n’s attention right away. “Can’t you have a chat with me, too? Just us girls?” She grinned, and then rolled her eyes when she saw that flash of Hybrid golden in Y/n’s eyes. 

“I’m not here to fight,” she said. “I’m here to make friends with you,” shrugging, she dared to take a step closer, testing the waters. 

“Don’t be so over confident, Aurora,” Y/n gritted, having pinned the woman on a wall. “It almost got you killed, right this moment,” she said, giving her a final flash of her eyes before getting up and walking away. She was not in the mood to kill today, especially not after the amazing brunch she’d had not too long ago. 

But of course, Aurora was too dumb to get that, Y/n noted as she heard feet jogging to catch up to her pace. 

“Just talk to me this once, and I swear I’ll never show you my face ever again,” Aurora rushed to speak, desperate to get Y/n to stop.

They were still a little far from her home, Y/n realised. She could very conveniently kill her right now, and not get blood anywhere near her family home. 

“What?” She asked instead, coming to a stop. 

“I get why you married Klaus now,” Aurora spoke, a smile creeping up on her mouth. Y/n didn���t want to admit that there was a blush as well. It was probably sunburn, she told herself. 

With a slight roll of her eyes, Y/n forced herself to focus. “What do you mean, Aurora?” She asked her, ready to snap her neck if she tried to beat around the bush once more. 

“I mean, you two got together, had a baby so early on in your marriage. I now realise that it’s because he is so good in bed, you had to lock him down somehow, didn’t you?” She laughed, not noticing the gold swarming Y/n’s eyes as she smiled at the ground, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. 

“I would too. Guess I got a bit late, huh?” She continued with a joke, and then stopped. 

Y/n didn’t even talk to her girlfriends like this. How dare this dumb little piece of work, dare to speak of her and Klaus in such a manner? So, she sped through her movements and sunk her fingers in Aurora’s throat, cleansing her insides.

“I rushed. Think I would’ve liked ripping out your dirty fucking tongue instead,” Y/n hissed, her mouth right next to Aurora’s ear and she was so close she could hear the loud thudding of her heart. It made her feel good, and she almost didn’t want to kill her becuase that noise was music to her ears right now. 

Aurora couldn’t say anything, the only noise she could muster up was the sound of choking, because she was. And she was pretty sure her blood was rushing to places inside her where it shouldn’t be. 

But then, something came over Y/n and she slipped her hand out of Aurora’s throat, leaving it intact as she wiped the blood on the very woman’s clothing. “Sleep good. Maybe some rest will knock some sense into you. After all, all this stalking and annoying someone must be exhausting,” Y/n spoke with an understanding shake in her head. 

And then, before Aurora could even realise much, Y/n had her hand placed near her throat and with that, she snapped her neck, quickly rushing to put her back in her house. She wasn’t cruel or angry enough to leave her asleep in the middle of nowhere. 

But she was riled up enough that she needed to rush home and ask Klaus some questions before her mind could get the better of her. 

She knew that this was the time Hope was usually asleep, and she was praying to the gods above that today wouldn’t be any different. And she opened the door to the house, quickly sensing that Hope was, indeed, asleep but she could hear that Klaus wasn’t.

The shower was running. 

Removing her shoes, she walked to the kitchen and washed her hands in the sink. Then, tiredly, walked over and sat on the sofa in the living room, knowing that Hope was in the master bedroom and they couldn’t talk, potentially argue, there. 

A lot was taken out of her today, and she needed Klaus to reassure her so that she wouldn’t have a breakdown somewhere in the house because it felt like she was going crazy. She knew that he hadn’t done it, knew that he couldn’t have done it. 

But just for the sake of her brain, she needed him to say it. Needed the words to come out of his mouth so that she would know for sure. For she trusted him more than she trusted herself. 

Because right now, her brain was telling her that she had heard Aurora’s love confession that day, but she hadn’t heard Klaus’ reply. Or that Klaus mostly shut the door when she left him with Aurora or how that one night he had come home late after she had left the two of them alone for Klaus to sort out the matters, and he’d told her not to worry about it – that it was nothing and he had taken care of it.

She knew that it truly was nothing. But once, just once, she wanted him to tell her that. 

Waiting and waiting for the shower to turn off, Y/n slipped into a slumber. So when she felt someone close to her, she caught Kalus leaning in to pick her up, probably to carry her to their bedroom. 

“Ah, you’re awake,” he smiled, his gaze so soft and his dimples evident as he instead pressed a kiss to her forehead and stood up straight. “The girls tired you out, hm?” He asked her, raising her head and placing it on his lap once he had sat himself. 

Y/n only mumbled something, before turning to hide her face in his hip area. She couldn’t bring herself to talk to him about this when he was caressing her hair so gingerly, but she knew she had to. 

“I wanted to talk to you about something,” she said then, looked up at him. 

“What is it, love?”

God, this was going to be hard. She sat up and fixed her bed head with her fingers before she looked at him again, this time with a wavering sigh. 

“Did you sleep with Aurora?” 

Klaus’ eyes hardened then – the exact response Y/n hadn’t been longing to receive. 

[lena-in-a-red-dress]

Musician Age Gap AU Pt 16

"AUNT KARA!"

Esme throws the front door open and sprints full tilt across the lawn to throw her arms around Kara.

"Hey there," Kara greets.

Pulling her face back to look at Kara with wide eyes, Esme gets straight down to business.

"Tell me *everything*."

----

Kara's exhausted on the couch by the time Esme runs out of questions. She softens the blow of having left Esme so long without updates by letting Esme watch her video recording of Lena's new song. Oh, Esme has already seen the bootlegs of the song spread online, but none of those were taken from backstage.

The hard conversation doesn't come until after dinner, when Esme goes upstairs to finish her homework and leaves Kara alone with Alex and Kelly. They both gaze at her with soft, but expectant eyes.

"I'm fine," Kara tells them.

"No one is saying you're not," Kelly assures her.

Alex is less gentle. "Doesn't mean we can't be worried."

Two days ago, Kara would have taken offense. Today, she recognizes the validity of Alex's concern.

She sighs. "I don't think it was the wrong decision."

"Neither do we," Kelly says. "I don't think choosing happiness ever could be."

"But going half the way across the world at the drop of a hat is bound to be jarring." Alex's voice isn't sharp at all. In fact, she's far more calm than Kara expected her to be.

Kara glances at her suspiciously. "You don't approve."

Alex shrugs. "It doesn't matter what I think. The fact you made the choice tells me it was the right decision in the moment." She lifts her glass of wine to her lips, eyeing Kara over the rim. "But is it sustainable?"

Biting her lip, Kara considers the question. She doesn't regret her choice, and the past few weeks have been a whirlwind of excitement and novelty on all fronts. But what happens when the shine wears off?

"I'm still happy," she says carefully. "And Lena has been amazing. I just... don't know what my role is."

Kelly offers a soft smile. "Growing pains is natural, especially in a situation like this where you've been thrust into an unfamiliar industry and an intense career like Lena's. And learning to navigate the personal stuff is requirement of any relationship. It's just going to be harder with Lena than with anyone else."

"Why?" Kara demands, defensive at the implication she would be daunted. "Because she's famous?"

"Yes, Kara!" Alex leans forward, features lined with concern. She sets her wine down, and scrubs her hands over her face. "I don't-- it's not that she's famous, it's the fact that she can't meet you halfway."

Kelly nods. "Successful partners find the common ground-- a spot where they can meet in the middle. What Alex is trying to say is that Lena can't do that."

"Look at what's happened so far," Alex elaborates, gesturing towards the door. "You uprooted everything and got dropped into her world. She hasn't-- she *can't* do the same for you."

Kara looks into her glass, pensive. Again, Alex isn't wrong. Lena's single foray into her life had been coffee in the park-- in disguise. Meanwhile Kara has been thrust into the deep end of Lena's own life. Her career, her family and friends...

Could Lena ever find the same kind of assimilation into Kara's life? Would she *want* to?

And does Kara care if she doesn't?

"I don't think it would be fair to either of us to end things before even trying."

Before anything else can be said, Esme's door slams open upstairs and teenaged feet pound down the stairs at a breakneck pace, only to screech to a halt at the threshold of the living room.

"Aunt Kara?"

Kara sits up from her slouch, concern leeching over her. "What's wrong?"

"Yeah, you okay sweetie?" Kelly asks.

Esme's features crease in apprehension, her anxious gaze flicking between Kara and her phone.

"Um... there's something you should see."

Kara reaches for Esme's phone when she offers it. She shoots her sister an uncertain glance, then turns her attention to the glowing screen.

She blinks at the list of breaking news results on the search screen, jaw tightening. She clicks on the first. A photo fills the screen-- and Kara's heart plummets.

[helloalycia]

𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐄𝐕𝐄 𝐌𝐄 [𝐎𝐍𝐄] — 𝐒𝐊𝐘𝐄 𝐑𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐘

two / masterlist / wattpad

summary: when a creepy fan gets too touchy with Skye in a meet and greet, she starts to see him everywhere and you're not too sure if it's true or if she's just stressed from work.

warning/s: mentions of substance abuse, mental illness and poor mental health, stalkers and just the general gist of everything bad that happens in the film.

author's note: okay so this was long overdue but it’s finally written and will be two parts, just something that came to me a few weeks ago. Hope you like it!! it’s set around the same time in the film, before Skye’s comeback tour, but there's no smile demon, and it’s loosely based around what happens in the film but not exactly that (it will make sense when you read it lol, enjoy!)

"Do I look okay?"

I hummed, half listening to Skye, unable to tear my eyes from my laptop.

"It's not too casual? I didn't feel like dressing up today," she continued. "Especially because I'll have to dress up after and it's just too much, y'know?"

"Uh huh," I agreed, admittedly still looking at my laptop screen.

"You're not even listening."

"If I wasn't listening, I wouldn't be replying," I answered, scrolling through a spreadsheet.

There was a pause and then I let out a yelp when a cushion hit me in the face. I moved my hair from my eyes as I looked up in the direction it came from, realising Skye had thrown it. She was stood in front of a mirror, arms crossed and looking at me with disapproval.

"What was that for?" I asked with raised brows.

"You're ignoring me," she said with a frown, before dragging her feet towards me and flopping on the couch.

I sighed, looking over at her apologetically. "I'm sorry, I've just gotta sort this damn spreadsheet. One of the interns got into and saved over the top of it and now March doesn't have any content planned."

"First world problems right there," she said sarcastically.

I gave her a knowing look. "That's your social media content calendar in case you forgot. Do you want fans to come to your tour or not?"

At this, she began to chuckle, sitting up straight. "Okay, sorry. Sounds annoying. But still. Do I look okay?"

I rolled my eyes playfully before setting my laptop down on the coffee table and taking an actual look at her. She was wearing a long sleeved jumper with a pair of jeans. Unlike her usual eccentric outfits, this was toned down, though her jewellery was still more than an average person would wear, as expected from her.

"You look beautiful, Skye," I reassured her with a smile, taking her hand and squeezing it gently. "Very comfortable."

She relaxed, a smile creeping on her lips. "Thanks. That's all I wanted to hear."

I chuckled before kissing her hand and letting go. "Shouldn't you be going now anyway? Your meet and greet starts in ten."

We were at a charity event where she was holding a meet and greet and then performing for free afterwards. I was with her to support her as her girlfriend but also for work as her social media specialist.

"Yeah, I'm going," she said with a wave of her hand before standing up. "You coming?"

I shook my head as I grabbed my laptop and got comfortable on the couch again. "I've gotta sort this and do some other bits, but Tara is with your mum and Joshua to get some content for your Instagram."

Tara was a member of my team who I managed, and the one who would handle the in-person content for behind the scenes stuff, like meet and greets.

"Okay, good luck with all this," she said, motioning to my laptop, before flashing me a hopeful smile. "See you after?"

I nodded in agreement, glancing up at her. "See you then."

And with that, she left for her meet and greet whilst I got back to work.

I wasn't expecting anything to go wrong – it was a simple meet and greet, one Skye had done many times – but then I got a call from Tara.

"Hey, Tara, what's up?" I asked, balancing my phone between my shoulder and cheek as I worked at the same time.

"Hey," she said quietly and distractedly. "Erm, there's been a little incident."

I paused. "Incident? What sort of incident?"

There was some chatting in the background, but she must have moved away from it as it faded. "It's Skye. There was a fan who got a little too touchy. He started saying some weird things and wouldn't let go of her and security had to escort him out."

I furrowed my brows, concerned for Skye's wellbeing. "What? Is she okay? Is she hurt?"

"I think she's okay, but she seems shaken," Tara explained sympathetically. "I thought I'd call you to let you know. Mrs. Riley said not to but– well– it seemed like you should know, Y/N."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at the mention of Elizabeth, Skye's mother and manager. I'd known Skye as a friend for a few years and we'd been dating for the past year which meant I'd experienced her mother's unconventional style of parenting firsthand. I'd never seen eye to eye with her, but acted civil as she was technically my employer. But now, as Skye's girlfriend, it only gave me more to clash with her about.

"Thanks, Tara, I appreciate you calling me," I said gratefully. "Is she still with you? Skye, I mean?"

"She finished a few minutes ago, left to go get ready for the show. She should be on her way to you now."

I exhaled deeply. "Alright. Thanks. I'll check in. Speak later."

She said her goodbyes and all I could do was wait for Skye to return. She'd been through a lot over the past year, with her recovery and recording a new album and now preparing for the tour... a lot. And she was heavily overworked and the last thing she needed was a creep making her feel uncomfortable.

Eventually I heard the door to the dressing room opening and stood up, seeing her return.

"Hey, darling," I said softly, approaching her. "Tara called and told me what happened."

She frowned, glancing at me, saying nothing. It broke my heart and I couldn't help but pull her in for a hug, wrapping my arms around her tightly. She returned the gesture, hiding her face in my shoulder.

"I'm sorry it happened," I said quietly, rubbing her back.

"He really creeped me the fuck out," she admitted, trembling.

"It's disgusting, people like that," I said with a scowl. "I'm sorry you had to experience it. But security dealt with it, right? He's gone?"

She nodded.

"Good." I pulled back to get a better read of her expression. "Are you sure you're gonna be okay to do the show? You don't have to. They'll understand."

She sighed, looking down and rubbing her forehead. "I'll be okay. I can't cancel just because of one little hiccup."

I shook my head, taking her hands and intertwining our fingers. "It wasn't a hiccup, Skye. You were assaulted. That's a lot. You can have a break if you need it."

"It's okay," she reassured, swallowing thickly and looking up to meet my gaze with her dark eyes. "I'm okay. I just needed a minute. But you're here and I'm here and everything's okay again."

"Skye–"

"Please," she cut me off abruptly, before breathing out slowly. "I don't wanna talk about it anymore."

I hesitated, not liking when she did this. She'd always push down her true feelings if it interfered with work, and it never sat right with me. But she also never listened when I pointed it out.

"Okay," I gave in reluctantly. "If you're sure you can do it."

She offered me a small smile that didn't reach her eyes. "I can."

I chewed my lip as she let go of my hands and walked further into the room, heading straight for the mini fridge. When she pulled out a bottle of water and began to chug it like it was the last drink on earth, I knew she was compartmentalising. One of her coping mechanisms after rehab was to drink water when she felt like having an actual drink, and this was no different.

But as usual, she got her way and the show went on without a hitch. Any mention of the creepy fan was no more and everybody moved on, including her.

At least, until a few days later.

We'd just gone out for some lunch together, making the most of one of the rare moments she had free, and were walking around to stretch our legs when she froze suddenly.

I stopped walking, noticing she had, and looked to her. "You good?"

She blinked, eyes fixed ahead with a sense of panic. "It's him."

I quirked a brow, looking ahead to see what she was looking at. "Him? Him who?"

Her hand on my arm tightened slightly. "From the meet and greet. The fan."

I rested my hand on hers as I looked again, eyes searching the pedestrians ahead. There was a group of people crossing the street, some others hanging by a hot dog stand and some more just idly walking by. But I couldn't see anyone who was acting suspicious or paying much attention to Skye, especially not someone who matched the description security had told me about.

"Skye, I can't see him," I said carefully, glancing back at her. "Are you sure–?"

"He's right there!" she exclaimed, stepping back shakily and tugging me with her. "He's right fucking there!"

I looked again, still not able to see him, but a few passers-by were certainly paying attention now. Worried someone may recognise her and that it could make everything worse, I grabbed her hand and began pulling her away.

"Okay, c'mon, let's go," I said quickly, leading her away from that side of the street and around the corner.

We took refuge under a flower shop's canopy and she started to glance over her shoulder, paranoid, hugging herself with discomfort. I frowned and placed a hand on her arm, rubbing it gently.

"I'll call the driver to pick us up," I said, already pulling out my phone to get her out of here.

She nodded, leaning into my side, and I hugged her with my free hand as I made the call. Once it was arranged, she exhaled shakily but didn't step back.

"You didn't see him, did you?" she asked quietly, half embarrassed and half upset.

I shook my head, glancing around once more. "No. But I believe you, Skye. If you say you saw him, you did."

She sighed, saying nothing else. I didn't let go of her until the driver arrived and took us back to her place. When I tried to speak to her about it, she didn't have much to say and it only worried me further.

—

It happened again, at the end of the week. I thought we'd heard the last of her crazed fan, but apparently not. I was working from home at my place when Skye called me in a frenzy.

"Hey, darling," I answered, smiling at the sight of her caller ID.

"I need you to come over," she said in a rushed tone, sounding distressed. "Please, Y/N."

My smile faded. "What? What's wrong, Skye?"

"I fucking saw him," she said with a broken voice.

I straightened up, pushing my laptop to the side. "What?"

"The fan, he was there, outside my building," she explained. "He's fucking following me, Y/N, I know he is! I saw him there when I came home and he's fucking there and I don't know what to do. Please, come here, I need you."

"Okay, I'm coming, don't worry," I said quickly, noticing she was getting worked up. "Did you tell reception? Security?"

"Yes, but they say they can't find him and I know what I fucking saw," she replied with a frustrated voice.

"Okay, stay in your apartment and lock the door, I'm on my way," I promised, worrying.

"Okay, please hurry," she muttered.

I quickly got ready before making a beeline straight for Skye's apartment. All I could think about was how stressed out this whole thing was making her. I believed her, I did, but why hadn't he been noticed by someone else by now?

Before I headed straight up, I spoke to the receptionist and security team downstairs in her building, but they claimed there was no sight of the fan, nor anyone who seemed suspicious. That certainly didn't help with my unease and I knew it would only worsen things with Skye.

When I headed up, I knocked first to let her know it was me before letting myself in with the spare key she gave me.

"Skye?" I called out, locking the door behind me.

"In my room!" she called back.

I took my shoes off before going to her bedroom, opening the door to see her sitting on her bed, duvet pulled around her like a safety blanket.

"Hey," I said softly, stepping in and closing the door behind me.

She opened her duvet slightly, hinting for me to get in, so I crawled in beside her and leaned back against the headboard. She attached herself to my side, holding me tight with a pout on her face, trembling ever so slightly. I held her close, kissing the top of her head.

"I spoke to security and reception on the way up," I started gently. "There's no immediate threat. You're safe here."

"I told you, I know what I saw," she muttered rigidly into my chest.

"I'm not doubting that," I spoke, choosing my words carefully. "But... are you sure it's the same guy? Not a lookalike? I know you've been stressed out and–"

Suddenly she pulled away from me, fixing me with a teary glare. "Fuck you."

Realising I'd definitely not said the right thing, I turned to face her and rested my hand on hers. "No, wait, I just wanna make sure, Skye, that's all." She sucked up a breath and wiped away a tear as she glared at the door. "Hey, I just want to make sure," I repeated, eyes flickering over her face with concern.

She swallowed hard, jaw tensed as she looked to me. "I know it's him. I couldn't forget. He's scaring me on purpose."

I nodded slowly, believing she thought she was seeing him. But I couldn't be certain he was actually there. Still, I couldn't say that without her pushing me away, so I said nothing.

"Stay tonight," she said quietly, looking down at my hand on hers and playing with it mindlessly. "Please. I don't wanna be alone."

"I will," I promised, noticing her fatigue. "Have you slept, Skye? You look tired."

She scoffed. "It's hard to sleep when I've got a fucking stalker."

"You're safe here," I reminded her, before squeezing her hand. "Have a nap, c'mon."

She sighed deeply before giving in with a nod, lying down, head in my lap, which was her signal for me to play with her hair. I pushed her blonde hair from her eyes, stroking it gently how she liked. She let out a relaxing breath as I did, eyes fluttering closed.

"I want my security increased," she spoke after a moment, half asleep. "Please."

I hummed, finding her hand under the duvet with my free one and holding it. "I'll talk to your mum about it."

She nodded and fell quiet once more, eventually dozing off. Meanwhile, I tried to think of what we could do because clearly the issue wasn't resolving itself.

—

As promised, I made it my priority to speak to her mother about her security. Elizabeth Riley wasn't my favourite person, but I had to remind myself that we still had the same thing in common: Skye's safety.

So, whilst Skye was stuck in rehearsals at her dance studio, I went on a search for her mother. Thankfully, Elizabeth never strayed too far from her daughter when it came to work, so it didn't take me long to find her chatting to her assistant, Joshua, in one of the hallways around the building.

Approaching them, I stopped between them and watched as their conversation came to a halt when they noticed me.

"Y/N, hey," Joshua greeted with a warm smile. "It's good to see you."

I returned his smile. "You too, Joshua. Sorry to interrupt. I was actually hoping I could have a quick chat with Elizabeth?"

My eyes fell to the older woman, who glanced at Joshua with a knowing nod before looking to me with a small smile.

"Sure thing, Y/N," she said nonchalantly, before adding to Joshua, "Get that merch order rectified, Joshua, thanks."

Joshua nodded obediently before flashing me another smile and leaving us be. I watched him leave and looked back to Elizabeth with a serious expression.

"What did you need?" she asked, a hint of curiosity in her voice. I didn't blame her, since we rarely went out of our way to interact unless necessary.

"It's about Skye," I spoke quietly, in an urgent tone. "You know the whole thing that happened with that crazy fan at her meet and greet last week? It really freaked her out."

"Yes, I know, I was there," she said dismissively. "It was a lot, but it was taken care of. Nobody's seen the guy since. Clearly security scared him off."

I ignored her dismissal and responded, "Skye thinks she's seen him this week."

She lifted a brow, skeptical. "Thinks?"

"She's seen him," I corrected myself, realising how it sounded. "When we were out for lunch. And again, yesterday, outside of her apartment building."

She hummed, crossing her arms thoughtfully. "And did he approach her?" I shook my head, and she continued, "Did you see him?"

"Well, no," I answered, a little sheepish, "but she's really upset. And understandably so." I straightened up, meeting Elizabeth's stern gaze. "She wants more security. She's being stalked."

Definitely not reacting how I expected to, she sighed deeply like this was a minor inconvenience at most. "Y/N, if she's the only one who's seen him, she might be seeing things."

"With all due respect–"

"Skye is stressed out right now," she cut me off, adamant. "There's lots to worry about with her comeback tour. I love her, but she's got a lot to balance and that unfortunate encounter at her meet and greet may have startled her. If nobody else has seen him, you included, how likely is it that he's there?"

I pressed my lips together firmly, unsure how else to respond. Admittedly, a small part of me could see where she was coming from and I hated it.

"Her security team is great as it is," she finished decisively. "I don't think she needs more."

I swallowed thickly, feeling a little helpless, especially as I imagined telling Skye her mother's response. "She's really scared, Elizabeth."

Elizabeth motioned to me casually. "Let her know she's okay then. That's what you're there for, isn't it?"

And just like that, I was reminded why I heavily disliked her.

"She's safe, Y/N," she told me with a knowing look. "There's no stalker. My daughter is just tired. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to work."

I clenched my jaw slightly as she walked away without a care in the world. Or, at least not for her daughter.

Dreading what was to come with Skye, I tried to distract myself with my own work, finding a spare table and chair to sit at with my laptop. I wasn't sure what I was going to tell her, but it definitely couldn't be that her mum didn't believe her.

After her rehearsals were over, she found me at my laptop, still sweaty as if she'd come straight to me before showering.

"Hey," she called out, making me look up.

She sat at the edge of the table and looked down to me.

"Hey, Skye," I greeted with a smile, trying my very best to hide my nerves. "How were rehearsals?"

"Alright," she answered with a shrug, wiping her face with her sweat towel.

"And your back?" I asked considerately. "You didn't overdo it, did you?"

She rolled her eyes playfully. "No, I didn't. You don't have to ask every time you know."

I gave her a knowing look, since she definitely knew that I did. After she pushed herself too hard at rehearsals a month ago and was stuck recovering for a few days after, ice pack glued to her back, I couldn't let her do it again.

"I took it easy," she promised, pushing herself off the table.

Believing her, I nodded and let it go.

"Did you talk to my mum about my security?" she asked after a moment, and I internally panicked.

Buying myself a few more seconds, I stood up to look at her properly, though the hesitation was still there. Enough for her to notice anyway.

"She doesn't believe me," she said instantly, expression hardening. "Of course she fucking doesn't."

"No, that's not it," I found myself saying without thinking. "She just... thinks you have enough security already, that's all."

She clenched her jaw and looked away, but her frustration was still present in the way she squeezed her sweat towel into a fist.

"Skye, you're safe," I tried to reassure her, taking her hand and feeling her grip on the towel loosen. "Everybody is looking out for you. And if anyone dares get too close, they'll know about it."

She didn't speak, her head clearly running a mile a minute. She had a faraway look in her eye that concerned me, so I lowered my head to meet her gaze.

"Hey, I'll stay with you at your place," I said softly. "Until you feel at ease. I don't mind."

Her eyes flickered between mine, unreadable, then she nodded. "Alright. I should shower. See you after."

I opened my mouth to respond, but she already let go of my hand and walked away, not in the best of moods. Sighing, I ran a hand through my hair, knowing I could have handled that better.

—

"...no, I want the one with chocolate in it."

I glanced at Skye with an amused smile. "Seriously? You told me you hate the one with chocolate in it. You said it always melts on your fingers when you're eating it."

She scoffed playfully, picking up the trail mix packet from the shelf. "Yeah, but the two minutes where it doesn't melt is my favourite."

I sighed as I grabbed the one without chocolate in it. "Yeah, and then you'll just take mine and I'll be left with the melted one."

"What's your point?"

I quirked a brow as she stared at me, waiting for an expiation. Letting out a quiet laugh, I rolled my eyes and nudged her slightly before taking the trail mix from her hand.

"Fine, idiot, let's pay," I said, realising some things just wouldn't change with Skye. And as much as I pretended to hate it, I didn't.

She grinned with satisfaction before the two of us went to the front of the convenience store, joining the short queue at the till.

"Wanna walk back to your place or call the driver?" I asked Skye as we stepped forward.

She glanced outside the shop window, probably looking at the weather. "It's not too bad out. Let's walk."

I hummed in agreement, patiently waiting until we reached the front of the queue. As I was paying for the few bits we picked up, including the trail mix I would definitely not get to eat, Skye was already walking outside to wait for me, lingering.

"Oh, can I get this gum too, sorry?" I said quickly, before the order went through, taking some gum off the display stand.

The cashier nodded and was putting it through the till when we both heard shouting from outside the shop. I furrowed my brows, looking out the window, only to widen my eyes when I realised it was Skye. She looked like she was yelling at someone in the distance, but I couldn't be sure.

"Shit," I muttered to myself, before tapping my card quickly, paying.

"Do you want your rec–"

"No, it's fine, thanks," I said quickly, grabbing the bag before almost tripping over my own feet as I left the store.

"...I'll call the police, you psycho!" Skye was shouting across the street, earning judgemental looks off several bystanders.

"Skye!" I exclaimed, standing in front of her and holding her shoulders to get her attention. "What are you doing?"

She was trembling as she glared ahead, and I tried to follow her stare to see who she was yelling at, but other than the confused pedestrians staring at us, there was nobody.

"Hey, what?" I asked worriedly, looking back to her and searching her watery gaze.

Her eyes met mine, terrified. "It's fucking him."

I swallowed thickly, realising she was still talking about this stalker who only she ever seemed to see.

"I fucking saw him," she repeated, looking across the street again.

I frowned, rubbing her arms gently before feeling eyes on us. People were starting to put two and two together, no doubt recognising Skye, so I quickly laced our fingers together and led her away.

"C'mon, let's get you home," I told her calmly, but inside I was extremely concerned for her wellbeing.

She didn't speak, though her eyes were darting around, paranoid. When we reached her apartment building, I gave a heads up to the security there before leading her up to her apartment and settling on the couch with her.

She was leaning on my shoulder for comfort, my arm wrapped around her as I tried to find the right words. But there was no way to say it without making her feel like I was ignoring her.

"Skye," I started gently, softly. "Do you think that, maybe, you might be imagining this fan?"

She tensed up before pulling back slightly, fixing me with a glare. "You think I'm crazy?"

I widened my eyes slightly. "No, no, not at all! But I just–" I paused, trying to express my thoughts better without upsetting her further. "I haven't seen him. Nobody has, except you. And it was a scary thing what happened at the meet and greet–"

"You weren't even fucking there," she cut me off with a scowl, hurt in her expression as she stood up.

"I know," I said with a sigh, before standing up too. "I just mean, you've been working very hard and not getting enough rest and maybe you're–"

"Fuck you," she interrupted, gaze running over me with irritation. "You don't believe me."

I frowned. "Skye–"

"No," she snapped. "You think I'm fucking hallucinating!"

I winced at her words. "That's not–"

"Get out," she decided, crossing her arms sternly.

I stepped forward in an attempt to make amends. "Skye–"

"Now!" she shouted.

Swallowing hard, I let out a disappointed sigh. This was the exact opposite of what I wanted to happen. Especially because she looked so hurt and betrayed and I'd never been on the receiving end of that before, not from her.

"I'm sorry," I muttered. "I'm just worried."

"About the wrong thing," she retorted, avoiding looking at me.

I closed my eyes, internally kicking myself, before reluctantly leaving her apartment.

[izvmimi]

cw: selfship content. married with named children. fluff.

Izuku has been pacing around the kitchen for the past five minutes, and you, devilish as you are, are pretending not to notice, content with your late night snack of hot chocolate and lightly buttered bread.

The kids are all asleep, or at the very least turned in for the night, and things have been overall peaceful in the Midoriya household for the past few days, so whatever has your husband in distress is unlikely to be that bad. Additionally, he has an expression he makes when the situation is more embarrassing than dire, and that's written all over his face at the moment.

You bite into a particularly crunchy part of the bread and the sound appears to echo - Izuku looks at you and you return his gaze with your mouth full, blinking innocently, then burst out laughing when he frowns.

"Fine, I'll bite. What's wrong, baby?" you ask.

Izuku stops pacing then stands still facing you, one arm crossed over his chest and his other hand balled into a fist under his chin.

"Did you know Izumi had a crush on..." his voice was already hushed, but now it falls into a barely audible whisper, "... Ami?"

You blink. That's all? you wonder.

"Well, yeah..." you reply. "He's uh... been like that since he was 8?"

"What?!"

Izuku looks betrayed for a moment, then moves over to you quickly, pulling out a chair to plop down on.

"Okay, but his sketchbook is literally filled with portraits of just her!"

You drink the last of your hot cocoa, then smile at him, resting your hand on his wrist posed on the table.

"Sounds like his dad."

Izuku turns pink at the ears, but then he shakes his head, trying to focus.

"It's not the same!"

You sigh. "Are they tasteful at least? They seemed fine when I saw them."

Izuku's mouth opens and closes quickly. "W-What do you mean tasteful?"

"I mean he is 15."

"___! They're okay, he's not a pervert!"

You tilt your head to the side. "Exactly, so what's the problem?"

Izuku looks at you with incredulity, shocked by your unbothered manner. "You know, perhaps the 10 year age difference??" Izuku starts. "What if he gets his heart broken? It's not like it can happen!"

You take another long look at him, then laugh again.

"Don't burst a blood vessel, it's just puppy love. He'll get over it."

"I didn't get over my first crush!"

"... Honey, how old do you think I am?" you ask. He sighs then sidesteps your statement, knowing he sounds ridiculous, then presses his head against the table. You push your plate and mug aside now, then take his fingers in yours, and he turns his head to the side to look up at you.

"You know, it's not weird for your teenage son to have a crush on a pretty girl, especially when she was his babysitter most of his life. It's harmless."

Izuku frowns.

"It's not weird I promise. Plus, it won't last." With that last part you lean just a bit closer to whisper, "I heard him on the phone with someone else, he has a crush on another person in his class right now, which I also know because he actually starts caring if I iron his shirts for school."

Izuku seems briefly relieved, then again bothered by this additional info.

"Why doesn't he tell me anything?" he asks.

"Teenagers don't tell anyone anything, don't worry about it." You say, squeezing his fingers. He gives you a half-smile, then you decide to change the subject.

"By the way, Atsuna needs to get stuff for cheerleading, so you can you take her tomorrow? I have some errands I need to run."

"Cheerleading? When did she start cheerleading?"

Izuku looks genuinely dumbfounded, following you as you get up to put your dish away.

"Two weeks ago." You snap your fingers. "I need you to keep up."

He pouts, and you actually feel a little bad.

"I'm kidding," you insist, but the damage is already done. You lead him back to a seat in the kitchen, and he frowns again, tapping his foot anxiously as he sits.

"I'm a shit father," he mumbles, and your heart aches for just a moment. You shake your head then cup his face in your hands. Izuku looks at you and you soften then kiss him.

"No way. You're just doing a ton at once right now. Let me take care of things for now, and then we'll catch up this weekend, okay?"

His hands circle around your wrists, and he's not completely convinced but he nods.

"You do such a great job, I wanna pull my weight," he murmurs and kisses you again. You let his kisses warm you more than the cocoa and press your forehead against his.

"You pull yours too, baby. We can't give 100% to everything all the time so I'll cover you and you cover me, okay?"

He nods.

"Thank you," he adds. You move out of your seat into his lap, and caress the side of his chin, feeling the roughness of his unshaven face, tired but still handsome.

"I'm taking more days off," he promises.

"You don't have to," you insist.

"I don't have to, but I want to."

You laugh but it's just a breath through your nose, and press yourself closer to him so that your face buries into his chest.

"#1 Pro Hero wants more days off so he can give his son the Talk? That will go over well with the Hero Commission."

Your sarcasm hits a little too close to home but he gently grips your fingers again and pulls them to his mouth, kissing the finger tips.

"Izuku, your husband and the father of your kids, wants to spend more time with the beautiful woman he married and the children he helped create," he states. You look into his eyes and he looks determined to make a change and you smile, accepting his resolve.

"Thank you."

---

Your phone rings in the late evening on Sunday, and you can't help but be amused as you pick up. The second you say hello, you can already hear screaming on the other end of the line.

"Is there a reason Deku is suddenly off the patrol schedule for an entire month?!"

You stifle a laugh.

"Why don't you ask him, Kacchan?" Calling his name like your husband does only serves to aggravate him more.

"Very funny. Tell him to pick up the fucking phone."

You glance over at your husband who is busy helping your youngest daughter, Ai, braid her hair down for bed in the living room. Ai holds a mirror and tells him where to part her curls, and Izuku's tongue sticks out as he tries the style on the video on the TV screen. Despite his slight confusion, he looks happy as Ai observes his work and gives him plentiful encouragement.

"When he's no longer busy. Bye! Hug the wife and kids for me!" you say cheerfully as you hang up.

[naughtyneganjdm]

Love's Second Chance: A Holiday Reunion - Chapter 16

Summary: Joel opens up to Tommy about what happened in New York City along with the feelings he is experiencing. Drunken emotions causes old confrontations to return to the surface and it is discovered what Joel did to Negan all those years ago.

Characters: Joel Miller, the reader (OC), Negan Smith, Elizabeth, Tommy Miller, etc.

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/60501985/chapters/157002151 Warnings: Swearing, Severe Angst, Fighting, etc.

Notes: I'm posting this today because yesterday was really busy. I promise to get this up three times a week though for those that read it. This chapter is quite angsty and very emotional. So, yeah. Enjoy to those that read! I edited this at like 4AM so I'm sorry for whatever errors might be here.

For many years, Joel had always thought that their small town went above and beyond for Christmas. But after visiting New York City for a few days? Everything felt so miniscule in comparison. Christmas was three days away and today was the annual Christmas Fest that their town threw every year. This year it was at the center of town square. It was from morning until night. Main street was lined with food trucks and small businesses. There was a small ice rink, a tent set up to meet Santa Claus, music was playing, games were set up for the children and the center of town was decorated with loads of lights. A very large Christmas tree was right at the center of everything. Earlier in the day they had an ice sculpture contest along with a small-town parade. Toward the end of the night there was caroling. Alcohol tents were set up along with a dance area for people to have some fun. This town took their Christmas events seriously, it just felt tiny in comparison to where they were previously.

Y/N and the children loved this day though. They always did. Often they were there from start to finish. They liked doing things, they liked being involved. And at first? Joel loved this stuff too. It was a way to be close to his family. To do things with them. But then life got dark for him and it just made him miserable. And right now? He was miserable.

More than anything he regretted the decision he made to push Y/N away in New York City. He could have everything he wanted in his life because she was offering it. Instead he was mean to push her toward Negan because he thought Negan was the better choice. And it took him singing at that fucking bar again to realize it.

Seated at one of the tables alone, Joel slouched back into his seat. This felt like one of the longest days ever for him. This morning, he had gotten up early to go with Tommy, Maria and Peter to the parade. Elizabeth had done something with her school and she was part of the parade so he knew he had to be there. But the hardest part was? Seeing Y/N and Negan again.

Since New York, Joel avoided them to the best of his ability. It was his way of being what he thought was nice. He gave up. He knew that she was better off with Negan, so he thought it was for the best to just avoid her all together. Especially after everything he said to her. Even though he didn’t mean it? It still broke her heart. All those pent-up feelings that he wanted to tell her ate away at him, but he knew that it would be useless. She was happy with Negan. And if she was happy with Negan? Well then there was no point of him being in her life. Especially since he hurt her so much.

After what he said to her at the Christmas tree at Rockefeller, she had a hard time looking at him. Knowing that just the sight of him broke her was devastating, but he didn’t blame her. He was miserable and he told her that he didn’t love her. She gave him the chance to prove to her that she was his everything. Instead? He told her how much he didn’t love her.

Watching his brother also be desperately in love with someone hurt. While his life was miserable, Tommy was thriving and happy. It was the complete opposite of his life. Maria and Tommy were desperately in love with one another, even if they didn’t straight out say it yet. They were together constantly, always touching each other, smiling and hooked on one another. It reminded Joel of a time when he was like that.

Most of the day, Joel put on a fake smile and pretended that everything was okay. At least he tried. It was hard pretending, but he did the best he could for his children. Right now, they were off somewhere playing some of the games that were set up. Tommy was dancing with Maria. And Joel was alone.

There was a cup of alcohol that he had bought in his hand. At this point? Joel forgot how many drinks he had today, but he’d been drinking all day. It helped numb the pain. Then again, maybe it didn’t because he felt his thoughts eating away at him.

Sighing loudly, Joel leaned further back in his chair when his eyes fell upon Y/N and Negan dancing together. It was pretty hard to miss Y/N. She was wearing a nice red sweater that would draw anyone’s eyes to her. Red was always a very beautiful color on her. Negan on the other hand was dressed in all black. They were pretty hard to miss with their energy. Negan had her laughing and smiling, something that Joel had a hard time doing over the last few years.

“Hey there stranger,” someone pulled a chair beside Joel only breaking his stare long enough to see that it was Tommy coming to be with him. Once Tommy got close enough the smell of alcohol lingered over Joel and it had Tommy huffing out. “Goddamn Joel. How much have you had to drink today?”

“What does it matter?” Joel’s dark stare lingered on his younger brother, the lines in his forehead growing.

“I mean, it matters. You smell like you drank an entire bar,” Tommy claimed, the smile that was over his face slowly fading. Holding his hand out had Joel’s eyes lowering to his hand. “Give me the keys. You’re not driving us home tonight after this.”

“Whatever,” Joel scoffed, digging the keys out of his jacket pocket. Any energy he would have had to fight with Tommy was gone. So he just handed the keys over to him. “Why aren’t you with Maria?”

“She had to go do something with her father,” Tommy waved off in an area she had gone, getting comfortable in the seat beside Joel once he put the keys away for later. “I guess it makes sense. She’s been spending most of her time with me, so she does have to spend time with them sometimes.”

With a nod, Joel looked back toward the dancefloor to see that Negan was spinning Y/N who was laughing before she fell in against the center of his chest. Jealousy ran through his veins when Negan playfully peppered kisses over her lips.

“That’s why you’ve been destroying your liver over the last few days, huh?” Tommy questioned having Joel’s stare narrowing turning to a glare when they met Tommy. “What happened in New York?”

“Who says something happened in New York?” Joel countered going to take a sip of his drink, but Tommy was quick to steal it from him. “Goddamn it Tommy.”

“For one single day, I had my brother back in New York,” Tommy recalled what it was like the day that they went to Central Park. “You were smiling, you were happy, you were outgoing. And then it was over. On the way home from New York, you nor Y/N would even talk to each other. Or look at each other.”

“You know there is such a thing as minding your own business,” Joel suggested, waving his hand about with Tommy pushing the drink toward the opposite end of the table for Joel to not be able to grab it. “I don’t try to get into your business with Maria.”

“We’re brothers Joel. It would be nice if the two of us got to share our lives together,” Tommy pointed out with a frown, leaning forward in his seat and hooking his fingers together. A long exhale fell from Tommy’s lips and he looked sad. “I wish I could talk to you about the things going on in my life because you’re my brother. I want to have you be part of things.”

“Then talk,” Joel grumbled, throwing his hand up in the air.

“I want you to talk to me about you,” Tommy swore, shrugging his shoulders when Joel rolled his eyes and dropped his head down. “Somethings wrong with you Joel and I can’t help if you don’t open up to me. As Ellie and Peter’s uncle, it’s my job to help take care of their father.”

“You can’t fix me Tommy, I’ve been broken for a very long time,” Joel said the first real, truthful thing he felt. Disappointment flooded Tommy’s face knowing that’s how Joel truly felt. “Even before New York.”

“But it got worse there,” Tommy insisted with his dark eyes full of worry. “Talk to me Joel. Please.”

“What do you want me to say?” Joel reasoned with his little brother knowing that no matter what he said, it wouldn’t fix things. “You want me to be honest with you?”

“I do,” Tommy declared, his jaw flexing with his brother shifting uneasily in the chair before him. “You took care of me when I was younger. Listening to you and hearing you out is the least that I can do.”

“I’m fucking devastated that she’s with him,” Joel threw his hand out toward Negan and Y/N together on the dance floor. Looking in the direction that Joel was pointing, Tommy sighed loudly at the sight of Negan and Y/N dancing. “I don’t know, I just always thought…I always thought once I got my shit together that the two of us would get back together.”

“Did you?” Tommy spoke quietly, his dark eyes narrowing. An offended breath fell from Joel with his face scrunching up in an angered expression. “Joel, you had four years. And she was pining for you the whole time.”

“Yeah, I did,” Joel assured Tommy with a grunt, bracing his hands out on the table before him. “And up until the last day in New York, I really thought that this whole thing with Negan was a fling. I still think for him it’s a fling.”

“I don’t think so,” Tommy refuted with a shake of his head gazing back between Joel and Negan. “I’ve talked to Negan a lot lately and he’s really sold on her. He’s really hooked on the children too. It doesn’t seem like a fling to me.”

“So now you’re best friends with him too?” Joel wondered, snorting as he spoke. There was worry in Tommy’s features hinting that he might not be comfortable being open with Joel about things. “Honesty hour here Tommy.”

“We were all really close when we were younger Joel,” Tommy reminded Joel of what things were like when they were the group that hung out with each other all the time. “Negan was like a brother to me. So I have enjoyed getting to see him again.”

“It’s like all of you forget that he abandoned us,” Joel hissed, his head dropping back learning that Tommy seemed to be hooked on Negan too. “He could have been here for the last twenty years Tommy and he wasn’t.”

“We’re changing the subject,” Tommy realized that Joel was backtracking with what the real discussion was about. “What happened in New York? You two seemed okay. And then on the way home everyone felt the tension between the two of you.”

“I uh…” Joel cleared his throat, leaning forward to brace his elbows on the edge of the table. Stealing a quick look around, Joel made sure that no one was around to hear them before letting out a long exhale. “I had a threesome with them.”

“Right,” Tommy immediately burst out in laughter thinking that Joel was making a joke about things. When Joel’s face grew pale with his response, Tommy’s laugh slowly subsided and it was replaced with an awkward stare. “You…you had a threesome with them?”

“Can you say it any louder for the whole town to hear?” Joel grunted seemingly embarrassed that Tommy was so floored by what he was telling him.

“Sorry,” Tommy didn’t know how to respond, he just dropped back in his chair and stared Joel over.

“I took it as a sign that there was still a chance for the two of us,” Joel explained to his little brother, a large amount of guilt eating away at him. “Then she told me when we were at Central Park that she was going to remain with Negan. And I don’t know, it just…hurt. There was one thing though…”

“I’m still stuck on the threesome part,” Tommy was floored to even hear something like that happened with his brother. It had Joel interrupting his thoughts about being able to be in a poly relationship with the three of them. “How did that go down?”

“You’re focusing on the wrong things here,” Joel stressed, irritated with his brother’s curiosity about the whole thing. There were things he obviously couldn’t tell Tommy. Especially with what had happened between him and Negan. Along with the whole bisexuality thing. That wasn’t something he felt comfortable talking about with his little brother. “Let’s just say they offered to let me be in their relationship. As a third. Where we could all be together. Instead of seeing it for what it really was, I took it as a sign that even though she was with Negan that she wanted to be with me still. That Negan was just a phase. When everyone went back to the apartment, we stayed outside to go by the tree to talk at Rockefeller. I said some shitty things because I’m just…stressed. She told me that with Negan, she doesn’t question if he loves her, but with me, she can’t tell if I love her or hate her. Said she would reconsider picking Negan if I could prove to her that I loved her. Told me basically she would drop Negan if it made me happy and it brought back the old Joel again.”

“That’s everything you’ve wanted,” Tommy reminded Joel who frowned, tapping his fingers against the top of the table. “If that’s the case, why is she up there with Negan and not you?”

“Because I realized that I wasn’t good enough for her Tommy. How I treated her? How he treats her? There is no comparison. I hurt her so fucking much and she’ll never forget it. I’m no good. I’m not good enough for her…I’m not good enough…” licking his lips, Joel stopped before he could say anything else. Thinking back on what he said, Joel felt miserable for the things he told Y/N that night. “I told her that I didn’t love her. That I never did. I said the only reason we got together was because she got pregnant with Ellie. I told her that if that never happened, we would have never ended up together.”

“Ouch much?” Tommy exhaled, his eyebrows bouncing up. With how heavily Joel was drinking and by the misery in his eyes, Tommy could recognize his brother was broken over what he had done. “You were obsessed with her when you were younger. Why would you even say that to her?”

“I thought I was doing the right thing by pushing her away,” Joel tried to make sense of it, throwing his hands up in the air. “But then I started to think about it and I realized how wrong it was. I just thought she’d be better with Negan. Because I know that I’m no good. I don’t know what to do now because I regret the whole thing.”

“Okay,” Tommy took time to consider the things that Joel was telling him.

“I went and I sang at that bar again after it happened. There was this girl that flirted with me the first time. Offered to do sexual favors for me. Negan interrupted her. And then on that night? She was there with two of her friends. She invited me back to their house where I could have something with all of them,” Joel started provoking a cough from Tommy, who looked like he was going to explode hearing it. “Nothing happened. The one got handsy with me, but when she went to go get her friends I ran off because I’m head over heels in love with Y/N Tommy. So I left, I ran back to the apartment and I was going to spill my heart out to her, but when I got back she was already asleep in bed with Negan. I stopped myself from waking her up because I realized that I was right. Negan is everything that I’m not. He gives her all the things that I can’t. He makes her happy. She laughs. She doesn’t question his love. Whereas with me, she thinks I hate her. So instead of telling her how I felt, I just left it be. It’s my way of letting her be happy.”

“This is a lot to process,” Tommy confessed with an overwhelmed expression. “A threesome, a foursome…”

“I didn’t have a foursome. It was offered to me, but I didn’t take it,” Joel considered what he was saying stressed that he even involved Tommy with this to begin with. “I told you that.”

“Yeah. I heard that,” Tommy stammered with a shake of his head. An uncomfortable laugh fell from him and he shrugged. “You should have apologized for what you said. Because you basically told her that you never loved her.”

“What’s it going to do Tommy?” Joel wondered, his whole body aching. Gloom had been eating away at him for days and he didn’t know how to handle it. “I’m the one thing that keeps her from being truly happy. I’m not capable of the things that Negan is.”

“Yes you are,” Tommy interrupted him with an angered breath. “It’s like you forget that the two of you raised me. We were happy. For a long time. I never saw anyone look at someone the way she looked at you. And you looked at her the same way long past Peter being born. You two were sickeningly in love. I know you’re capable of making her laugh and feel love because I witnessed it. I don’t know where you forgot the man that you were capable of being. But this hating yourself thing? It’s not worth it Joel.”

“You don’t understand,” Joel snapped at Tommy, doing his best to keep his voice down so it didn’t draw anyone to them. “Negan never broke her heart. I did. Multiple times. I had a breakdown and I did horrible things. Things that I can never make up for.”

Things went quiet. It looked like there was a lot going on in Tommy’s head like he was trying to come up with a resolution, but Joel knew there wasn’t any.

“There were talks of the three of us being in a relationship together, but I don’t know. I just don’t know if I’m comfortable letting that part of myself be public,” Joel confessed to his little brother with a sound that resembled Tommy being punched in the gut surrounding them. “What?”

“Together? The three of you?” Tommy repeated what he thought he heard. Joel wasn’t responding to the question, just glaring at him and Tommy wiggled his head about waiting for an answer. “Like all of you? Not just you and him sharing her?”

That’s where Joel realized he had fucked up. Swallowing down hard, Joel had to look away from his brother and he nodded. Suddenly Tommy was laughing and an angered expression flooded through Joel’s features, “Is that funny to you?”

“I laugh when I’m uncomfortable,” Tommy expressed, his face twisting with mixed emotions. “What is it you want Joel?”

“I don’t know,” Joel frowned, sliding down further in the chair, spreading his legs further apart. “I’m in so much physical pain from all of this. I’m depressed. I’m broken. I’m miserable. I regret not telling her how I felt. I hate myself for saying what I did.”

“You’re the only one that can know what you want Joel,” Tommy concluded doing his best to give his brother a pep-talk. “What is the thing that you want most? Her happiness? Your happiness? I could try to give you advice, but I don’t know what it is that you really want.”

“Maybe I should just talk to her,” Joel thought aloud when he saw Negan and Y/N getting off the dancefloor. “Tell her what I wanted to the other night but didn’t.”

“Now hold on,” Tommy hopped up when Joel stood up after seeing Negan walk away leaving her alone to herself. “I don’t think you should do that when you’re visibly drunk as a skunk. You can barely even hold yourself up.”

“She’s alone,” Joel pointed out in the direction of Y/N. Trying to stop his brother, Tommy was still surprised at how strong his brother was drunk. “Enough Tommy! This is what I want?”

Moving around Tommy, Joel stepped through the crowd of people. Once he was behind Y/N, Joel curled his fingers around her wrist and started pulling her backwards. Stumbling to catch her footing, Y/N stammered his name a few times with him leading her through the people toward the less populated area of town. There was a garden behind the local library that was still lit up since it was part of their Christmas light walk through.

“Joel!” she raised her voice in anger with him finally letting go of her wrist once they were alone. “You can’t just pull me around like you’re a damn caveman.”

“I just…we need to talk,” Joel explained, his hands settling in at his hips with his chocolate-colored eyes locking with hers.  

“Are you drunk?” she noticed the way his words slurred together causing him to mutter something under his breath. That wasn’t even a question that she had to have an answer to. She could smell it all over him and she knew that this would go nowhere with that fact alone.

“I shouldn’t have said what I said that night in front of the tree,” Joel threw his hands up in the air trying to focus on the one thing that he so desperately wanted to get off his chest. “I was confused and I was saying things that I shouldn’t have said. Really horrible shit.”

“Okay,” she looked uncomfortable, swallowing down hard. It was still hard for her to look at him and he hated that.

“What you have to know is that I only said those things because I didn’t think I was good enough for you. When you kissed me? I knew that you would have given Negan up for me right then and there. And I realized all I do is hurt you,” Joel recalled, his voice breaking when he spoke to her about how he felt. “I did the thing that I thought would push you away from me and to Negan. Because I know that Negan is better than me. I’m not good enough for either one of you.”

“Joel, I don’t know what to believe from you anymore,” she was honest with him, sadness flooding into her face now that she had Joel a mess in front of her. “You say one thing and then you say another. It’s like a ping pong of things. You’re drunk so this could be you doing what you did in New York. I can’t…I can’t trust you.”

“Yes. Yes, you can,” Joel declared, pointing down at the ground as if that would prove something to her. “I was upset. I walked around. I went to that bar. I sang and I realized that singing didn’t bring me the happiness. The limelight means nothing to me if you’re not there to share it with me. Because it’s you I look to when I’m singing. It’s you that I feel everything for. If you’re not in my life? I don’t think there is a point. I don’t want the things that I thought would make me happy if I don’t have you.”

Suddenly she went silent and he could see that he caused her to be emotional. Stillness followed and he knew he should have said something else, “Why couldn’t you have said that at the tree?”

“Because I know how much Negan loves you. How much you love him. How he makes you smile…” Joel continued on and he bit down on his bottom lip hating that he let things get so bad. “All I could think about was erupting on you because I was angry at myself for the things that I had done with Negan. How I wasn’t good enough to be your one and only. You don’t deserve someone like me. I’m no good.”

A broken breath tremored from her lips with her looking down toward the ground, “But I just need you to know that I always loved you. I don’t want you to doubt that. I can’t have you thinking I didn’t love you. I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you as soon as I kissed you. I felt that electric sensation where I knew then and there I met the love of my life. I knew the moment I kissed you that everything in the world was right. That I was a fool for not seeing it sooner.”

“I wish that were true,” she whimpered making Joel step closer to her, lifting his arms to cup her face in his hands. They were cold to the touch so it had her taking in a sharp breath of air. “I make you so unhappy. And I don’t want to do that to you anymore. I can’t keep hurting you.”

“Listen to me,” Joel hushed her, shaking his head and forcing her to look at him. With his thumbs he swept at her tears getting her to shudder beneath his touch. “I love you. I love you so fucking much. It hurts when I’m not near you. I ran back to the apartment that night to tell you what I said was a lie to push you away, but then I saw you with Negan. And I knew that Negan was everything that I’m not. I keep trying to ignore my feelings, my love for you, but I can’t. Because it’s there. And it’s going to be there until the day I die.”

“Joel, I love you,” she began, biting down hard on her bottom lip realizing that this is everything she wanted him to say to her the other day. “But I don’t know what you want me to say here. It’s getting hard to understand what you want these days.”

By her body language, Joel could tell that she was uneasy with this whole thing and he understood it. This was a lot to throw on her in the middle of a town party with him absolutely blasted ass drunk.

“I don’t know, I just thought you needed to hear how I felt. I fucked up. I fucked up bad. I have two beautiful children. And a woman that I love with everything that I am. I had everything in the world and I lost my way. I did. Any sense of happiness in my life, it came from you. I’m not good with words, I know that, but what I know is that you are the love of my life. Nothing will ever change that. You are everything pure and perfect in the world. Anything that’s good in my life, we shared together. Because you are the only positive thing I’ve ever had that I know without a doubt I’ve loved endlessly. Both you and the children.”

Everything that he was saying had her eyes tearing over and she lowered her head to hide that she was getting emotional over the things that he was saying, “I know that you love Negan and he’s great. Anyone with eyes can see that. But what you and I have? Negan can’t compare to that. We’re soulmates.”

“I can’t keep doing this Joel,” she whimpered, her arms folding out in front of her chest in almost a protective stance. “You keep playing with my feelings. One day you love me, the next you never loved me at all. What am I supposed to do here?”

“Pick me,” Joel emphasized his words having her smirk and shake her head. “Give me a second chance. I can prove to you that I’m capable of everything he is. I can make you happy. I can make you smile. I’m the one you truly, genuinely love.”

“What? Until you get mad at me and then tell me how much you hate me?” she responded with a frown, her eyes finally locking with his to show him that she was angry and upset at the same time. “I asked you the other night to prove to me that you loved me. And you told me in every way possible that we didn’t belong together. That our daughter was the only reason that we were together because she was a mistake. The last time you were this sweet, you were drunk and then the next day you broke my heart to pieces.”

“The best mistake of my life,” Joel reasoned with her, his eyebrows furrowing with upset. “You offered to give me that chance that day. Allow me to have it. I won’t forget this conversation and do what I did the other night. I swear. You are my everything. My happy place. The thing that completes me.”

Stepping forward, Joel closed the distance between them, “I tried so hard to stay away from you. So you could be happy with Negan, but I don’t really think you’d be happy with Negan. The right thing might be for me to let you go, but I can’t. I can’t let you go because I love you so much.”

Bringing them closer together, Joel’s rough fingertips traced in over the side of her face and nudged her chin to get her to look up at him, “Even if I was given the chance to be up on that stage alone, I don’t want it because it doesn’t bring me the feeling that I have when I’m with you.”

Taking a chance at the moment, Joel lowered down and faintly brushed his lips in over hers. A shuddering breath escaped her lips. When he pulled back, his nose nuzzled hers, “With everything that’s been placed in front of me, the only thing I wish I could go back and change is leaving you. Because the happiest I ever was with you. When it was the four of us together. That’s when everything felt right in the world.”

Lowering in to kiss her again, Joel felt her hand press in over the center of his chest to stop him from kissing her. Uneasily, she backed away from Joel and wiped at her eyes letting out a broken whimper, “This isn’t fair. You doing this to me.”

“Fair?” Joel repeated his chest aching. Trying to reach out to touch her, he was quickly rejected by her putting her hands up to keep him from doing it.

“You keep doing this to me. You give me hope for something more and then you rip it out underneath me,” she recalled everything leading up to this moment with them. “When you left me, it devastated me. I thought I would die with how much it hurt. But then you kept coming back and I thought maybe you realized your mistake. Then when someone comes into my life, someone that makes me happy, you are desperate to have me back. I give you that chance and you diminish everything good about our relationship.”

“I know I’ve done horrible things, but I’m not doing all of this just because of Negan,” Joel swore, placing his hands in over the center of his chest. “I know that Negan makes you happy. And I’m not even asking you to pick me now. I’m just asking you not to write me off. I’ll do whatever it takes to get help. To be the man that you need. Just don’t write me off.”

Sweeping his fingers in underneath her jawline, Joel knew that she was conflicted. Capturing her lips in a tender kiss Joel knew that this was part liquid courage that was helping him with this, he just only hoped that somehow she would realize by the way that he was kissing her truly how much he loved her.

----

“You look lost,” Negan commented moving back toward the dancefloor where Elizabeth seemed to be waiting at the edge of it.

“I’m just looking for my dad,” Elizabeth explained with a shrug of her shoulders. “It’s the daddy-daughter dance this town does. Dad has always done it with me since I was little. And I don’t see him.”

“I’ll dance with you,” Negan offered, his eyes lingering to the dance floor to see that multiple fathers were already out there with their daughters. “I’m not your dad but seeing as your mother is missing I don’t mind offering up my services.”

Taking another desperate look around the area surrounding them, Elizabeth’s brown eyes were saddened when she nodded her head. Giving her his hand, Negan led her toward the dance floor and gave her a weak smile, “He probably had to go to the restroom or something. The older we get, the worse our bladders get.”

“I don’t know,” Elizabeth stammered feeling a bit strange having it be Negan with her since he wasn’t her father. There were special moments that she always shared with Joel, so this wasn’t a moment that felt right in the least. “He’s been acting strange lately. I can’t help but think he’s upset with me.”

“Never,” Negan immediately shook his head, firmly squeezing her fingers in his. “I know for a fact that you are the thing that your father is the proudest of.”

“You don’t know that,” she frowned, gazing at the crowd around them. It seemed like people were watching Negan more closely with her than the previous years when she would do this with Joel.

“I do actually,” Negan corrected her, getting her to focus on him when they danced to the music together. “Your dad might be going through a lot, but there isn’t a doubt in my mind that both your parents love you very much. They are both incredibly proud of you. The first day I ran into your mama again, she couldn’t stop talking about you and your brother.”

“I feel like you have to say nice things because you are dating my mother,” she noted with a weak smile, enjoying what Negan was saying, but she didn’t know how much she could really believe him.

“I tell you what. I’ve never really been known to say nice things,” Negan admitted giving her a weak smile with a tip of his head. “I’ve actually been known most of my life to be brutally honest. I’m an asshole. With a terrible mouth. A mouth that has gotten me in trouble most of my life.”

“Yet you seem so nice,” she found it hard to believe considering how nice Negan had been to her whole family.

“Now I do,” Negan countered with a shrug of his shoulders, “I owe that to my wife. I had a big head for a long time. I said what I wanted. I had no filtering system. And I was mean. She put me in my place and made me realize life was much better when I actually didn’t make everything about me.”

“Do you miss her?” Elizabeth asked, her eyes falling to the rings that laid against the center of Negan’s chest from his necklace.

“Very much,” Negan answered with a long exhale. “She was a fireball, but she kept me on my toes. Losing her felt like losing myself.”

“It would have been nice to meet her,” Elizabeth suggested, laughing when Negan playfully spun her around to the music. It had Negan smiling with her amusement when he led her back into their original dance pose.

“She would have loved you,” Negan commented with a wink. The longer he thought about it, the more upset he seemed to be thinking about it. “I wish I would have been around to see you two grow up. That way you could have known her and she could have known you.”

“You’re around now,” Elizabeth was quick to point out, but still Negan knew that he shouldn’t have ran away like he did. “You can’t change the past, you can only focus on the present. That’s what they say at least, right?”

“They do say that,” Negan acknowledged with a firm nod of his head. “Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something. There has been something on my mind lately and I wanted to talk to you about it before I did anything.”

“Okay?” Elizabeth seemed surprised by that.

“You and your brother are the most important part of your mother’s life,” Negan realized, the muscles in his throat flexing and bringing attention to the prominent vein at the side of his neck. “And I’ve really enjoyed getting to spend time with your family. I missed out on so much that I really don’t want to miss out on life with people that I care about. When my wife passed away, it taught me to focus on being with the people you love because you don’t know when you’re going to lose them.”

“Makes sense,” she was quiet, unsure of where this conversation was headed.

“I want to ask your mom to marry me,” Negan blurt out, having Elizabeth stumble when he told her point blank what it was that he wanted. “I’m telling you because I want your permission first. I know that it’s been weird having me in your mother’s life and I don’t want to throw this on you blindly. I need to know that you would be okay with me asking her.”

“You’re asking my permission?” she realized that she was acting weird so she tried to recenter her focus on him and continued to dance with him. Nodding, Negan gave her a nervous smile and she exhaled loudly. “What if I told you no?”

“Then I wouldn’t ask her,” Negan offered, biting down on his bottom lip. His thick eyebrows bounced up hoping that wasn’t the case, but if she didn’t want him in their life, he’d understand. “The last thing I want to do is make you or your brother miserable. And if me asking your mother to marry me hurts either one of you, I don’t want that.”

“Wow,” she breathed out, impressed that he would even come to her in the first place. “Do you have the ring already?”

“I do,” Negan stated, his raspy voice being quiet with the discussion.

“Can I see it?” she was curious knowing that it wasn’t really her business to begin with.

“I will show you it when we’re not at the center of a crowd where your mom can see,” Negan responded, his face scrunching up. A laugh followed and he shook his head. “If someone heard this conversation only from bits and pieces they might think something horrible is going on between the two of us.”

“Get your mind out of the gutter,” she hit Negan in the shoulder and he made a dramatic expression. A ridiculous laugh fell from his throat and he shrugged his shoulders. “Although people are sick in the head, so you’re not wrong.”

“Right?” Negan agreed with her, sighing loudly. “I know this is kind of old fashioned and silly, but I know how much you love your dad and your life is just as important to me with me asking your mother this.”

“Well, there was always part of me that thought my parents would get back together, but with each year that passed I realized that was less and less likely,” Elizabeth informed Negan who was actually listening to her. “I was old enough to remember how sad my mom was toward the end of her being married to my dad. You make her smile. I haven’t seen her smile like this in a very long time.”

Negan didn’t say anything, he just listened. He wanted to give her the time to think things out, “You have my permission to ask her.”

“Are you sure?” Negan confirmed, not wanting to make things complicated for Elizabeth. But hearing her give him permission made him so incredibly happy. He just didn’t want to act out on it.

“I’d love to tell you it was too fast, but with how things have been?” Elizabeth began considering the options of everything. “I just want her happy. If you make her happy? Then I’m okay with it.”

Giving a nod, Negan continued to dance with her and she felt a warmth growing inside of her chest, “Thank you for asking me though. You didn’t really have to do that.”

“I did,” Negan refused the idea that he shouldn’t have made her part of this. “You mean everything to her. I don’t want to upset you Liz. With my life, I know that it will be crazy the first year or two, but eventually things will die down. I need to know that you are all okay with welcoming me into your family. If she says yes that is.”

“I understand,” she realized what he was going for, but she didn’t think it should have really been up to her. “I wouldn’t ask Peter though. He can’t keep his mouth shut.”

“I think you’re right,” Negan chuckled, dipping Elizabeth giving her a silly wrinkle of his nose. “That was pretty easy to pick up on with your brother immediately.”

“He means well, but he has no chill,” Elizabeth teased, resting her head against the center of Negan’s chest as the music slowed down. “You’ve been a nice addition to life Negan.”

“I’m happy to hear that,” Negan confessed knowing that coming into a family with teenagers would be hard on a lot of people, but he was lucky that they were so welcoming to him.

----

Drawing his lips from Y/N, something caught Joel’s eye between the buildings. A sense of rage started to fill his body when he saw Negan dancing with Elizabeth with the DJ talking about fathers with their daughters.

“Joel,” he felt the touch of Y/N’s fingers against the side of his face trying to draw him back to her. “What’s going on?”

There was no doubting that something was wrong. Joel looked furious. When his breathing grew loud, she tried to grab a hold of him, “Joel!”

“The son of a bitch thinks he can just step in on my life and steal it completely,” Joel stammered, his heart hammering inside of his chest watching Negan and Elizabeth laughing together. “It’s one thing for him to come into our lives and steal you, but trying to act like he’s Ellie’s dad now? He can’t just step into our lives and steal everything from me.”

“I don’t think that’s what is happening Joel,” she tried to reason with Joel, but his focus was completely off of her by now. Trying to move around her, Y/N attempted to stop him. There was that familiar look of rage and fury that she knew inside of Joel. “Stay here with me. Talk things out with me.”

“This is just too much,” Joel announced, side stepping around her. Heading back toward the crowd, Joel could hear her calling out to him. It didn’t stop him though. Every step had the rage and anger that he had felt growing inside of him. Once he got closer to the dancefloor, Negan caught sight of him. By the expression on Joel’s face, Negan must have known that he was furious because he instinctively moved himself in front of Elizabeth and moved her around him. “You son of a bitch.”

“Joel, don’t,” Negan warned noticing that Joel’s fists were clenched at his side. At the first hint of Joel’s fist lifting, Negan worked quickly placing his good leg swiftly behind Joel. Hooking his arms around Joel’s shoulders, Negan managed to knock Joel over and catch him before he hit the ground. People gasped, and Elizabeth looked worried about her father. “He’s okay. He’s alright. He just tripped.”

“Get off me,” Joel demanded with Y/N getting there just in time for Elizabeth to look to her for some kind of help.

“Whatever is going on, not in front of your daughter,” Negan whispered in Joel’s ear trying his best to keep Joel from attacking him. Thankfully Joel was obviously drunk and not at the top of his game because Negan was able to control him. “You’re scaring her.”

Nothing pissed Joel off more than someone telling him how to be a father, but when he lifted his stare to see the way that Elizabeth was looking at him, he knew that Negan was right. Calming down, Joel allowed Negan to get him to his feet. Fixing his jacket, Joel gave his daughter a reassuring nod and cleared his throat.

“I’m fine. I just slipped,” Joel lied with a half-smile realizing now that most eyes were on him. Stepping forward, Joel wrapped Elizabeth up in his arms and squeezed her tight burying his nose against the side of her neck. “I love you. So much.”

“Are you mad about the dance? You weren’t here and Negan saw me,” Elizabeth tipped her head back to look up into her father’s brown eyes. “I’m sorry. I just, I agreed to dance with him and if you’re angry with me…”

“I could never be angry with you,” Joel hushed her, thankful that people were now starting to mind their own business. “I just need to talk to your mother and Negan for a couple of minutes, okay?”

Truthfully? Elizabeth didn’t know how to respond. She just nodded her head and allowed Joel to release her. Heading over to Y/N and Negan who were standing behind him, Joel knew he needed to get them away from the public, “Follow me.”

“Maybe I should help you,” Negan commented attempting to step forward taking notice of how drunk Joel truly seemed to be. When he reached out to grab Joel, Joel pulled from him and refused to be touched. Following him through the crowds, together they went to the place that Joel was originally at to get away.

“How dare you,” Joel snarled, turning on his heel and pointing his finger at Negan when they were finally alone. “You come into my life and you steal everything from me. Now you’re trying to take my children too?”

“I would never do that,” Negan claimed, his eyes narrowing with him immediately shaking his head. “Your children love you very much. Especially Liz and I would never do that.”

“You’re trying to replace me!” Joel screamed at Negan, stepping forward to shove his hands firmly into the center of Negan’s chest getting him to stumble back. Refusing to hit him back, Negan just kept his head down. Joel was drunk and this wasn’t the time or place.

“Hey,” Y/N spoke up, placing herself between the two of them enough to hint to Joel that it wasn’t okay to do this.

“No one could replace you Joel,” Negan reasoned, his hands throwing up in the air in disbelief. “You are the most important person in your children’s lives. And I would never do that to you. Fuck Joel. If that’s what you think I’m doing…”

“You play this nice guy, but you’re not,” Joel scolded Negan who folded his arms out in front of his chest. Staring out at Joel, Negan listened, but it was obvious by the way that Negan’s jaw flexed that he was getting frustrated. “Truthfully? I just think you’re out to make me fucking miserable. You saw that things weren’t right and you took your opportunity to sink your teeth in.”

“Joel,” Y/N breathed out his name, trying to get him to focus on her. “You’re drunk.”

“I’m drunk, but I’m not stupid,” Joel declared with a broken breath. “You always saw the good parts of Negan, but you never knew the bad in him. The horrible shit that he did to people. I was with him when you weren’t. This whole nice guy attitude is fake as hell.”

“You’re right Joel, I was an asshole,” Negan agreed with Joel, his voice raspier and deeper than normal. “I did a lot of questionable things. My whole life. I don’t disagree with you and I’m not gonna fight you on it because that’s who I was. An asshole. An arrogant, piece of shit. But I changed.”

“Bullshit! No one changes that much!” Joel accused Negan, throwing his hand about. With how hard his heart was pounding, it made Joel feel like he was going to rupture. “What the hell did you change for? Because in my eyes, you have to be doing this because of what I did when we were younger. There is no reasonable explanation for it. No one falls in love with someone that fast. No one clings to someone that fast. You are even playing me like a fiddle because of what I did. To tear my life apart.”

“There is a perfectly reasonable explanation,” Negan assured Joel, reaching out to curl his fingers around Y/N to get her to back away from Joel so he could approach him. “I understand that you are upset, but I love Y/N. A lot. Anything you think is going on isn’t. There is no ill intention, no hatred, no anger. I think because you’re drunk, you’re letting these ideas eat away at you. And you really shouldn’t be drunk like this around your children with…”

A loud smacking sound echoed throughout the area and it happened so fast that Y/N wasn’t even able to register immediately what happened with the sound of Negan’s body hitting the ground hard. Joel’s chest was rising and falling repeatedly, his fist curled up at his side. And it was then she realized that Joel had hit Negan and he hit him hard.

“You have everything! Money, people who love and admire you. You are famous, you have the life that only people dream of having,” Joel roared, every muscle in his body tensing up with Y/N attempting to help Negan up. Pushing up onto his hands, Negan managed to get himself seated on the ground with his fingers clasping to his jaw where Joel’s hit had connected. “Yet you want the simple life? The life that an average man has? You’re even making me think that I’m gay because of something my father said when I was a teenager. You are taking everything I love and fucking my life up. For something that happened over twenty years ago.”

“Knock it off,” Y/N demanded of Joel with him stepping closer toward the two of them.

“Not until he admits it,” Joel scowled with a fire building up inside of him. There was an ache within his knuckles where he hit Negan. At this point Negan was staring up at him from the ground with his hazel eyes narrowed. “Who the hell comes back to their small town when they have everything? Because all it seems like is that you are attempting to steal everything important to me. Why does someone who has everything need to keep stealing everything from me?”

“I was fucking miserable!” Negan erupted for the first time, finally pulling himself up to his feet. It was the first time since he had been back that he actually raised his voice. “My whole life ended when I lost Lucille. None of the stardom or the fame matters to me! I would give it all up to bring Lucille back to life. Because having everything means nothing when you’re alone. And for the first time since she died, I don’t want to put a fucking gun in my mouth and blow my brains out!”

Everyone went quiet. Negan was worked up, his face turning red with tears burning at his eyes, “Do you know how many times I’ve tried to kill myself since she died?”

There was pain in Negan’s voice, his eyes locked on Joel’s who seemed to back down some with Negan exploding like he was, “I promised her that I would live life for her, but from the moment she died I’ve never wanted to leave this world more. I don’t care that I have money, I don’t care that I have fame. If I wasn’t such a pussy, I would have killed myself a long time ago, but I’m scared. I’m fucking scared.”

Misery was filling Negan’s face and he shook his head, “And for the first time in a long time, I don’t hurt. I don’t want to leave this planet anymore. I woke up every day wishing for death, but now, I wake up looking forward to something because I…” Negan looked back at Y/N, his voice growing weaker. “I love her so fucking much. She makes me happy. For the first time since I lost Lucille, I look forward to waking up.”

Seeing the expression over Y/N’s face was all Joel needed to know that in that moment, he lost. What Negan had just said was the thing that she had been looking for in New York from Joel. Proof of how much he loved her.

“So whatever it is you think I’m doing to you, I’m not. I just want to be part of your life. This isn’t some sick revenge that has been pent up inside of me for twenty years,” Negan reasoned with Joel, is hand placing in over the center of his chest.

Lowering his head, Joel didn’t know how to respond. It was a lot to process, especially with what Negan had admitted, “What is it that you did Joel?”

That very question had both Joel and Negan looking to her, “I’ve heard him say it several times. That you’re looking to get back at him for something he did. Are you talking about the two of us getting together?”

“Yes,” Negan answered for Joel, turning on his heel to face her. “That’s exactly what he means.”

“No,” she shook her head after observing Negan for a long moment. “I know when you’re lying. You’re lying to me right now. Which doesn’t make sense because you never lie to me. What did he do to you Negan?”

“You had to have told her,” Joel still put forward that doubt, holding his hand up toward Y/N. “There has never been a point in our life where I didn’t doubt that she loved me. Yet all I see is doubt…”

“Stop,” Negan warned, holding his hand up in the air. “It’s nothing Y/N. It’s just the idea that he was my best friend too and then he swept in knowing how I felt.”

“Don’t lie to me,” she pled with Negan, who dropped his hands down at his sides in defeat. “Please.”

“It doesn’t matter what happened,” Negan reasoned with her, shaking his head and looking back toward Joel. “Things happened the way they were meant to. You had your children with Joel and I met Lucille. I was happy with Lucille and I would have never given up that time with her. There is no reason for anyone to feel any sort of grudge or upset.”

“You’re standing here insisting that you love me,” Y/N looked to Joel, her face twisting with confusion. Even though Negan had gotten emotional, there was still that lingering thought that Joel was focusing so hard on something that he had done. “If you love me Joel, tell me.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Joel suggested, swallowing down hard and stealing a quick look from Negan who gave him a nod. “All that matters is that I know I love you. So very much.”

“It was big enough for you to focus on,” she stressed, standing between both Joel and Negan to get them both to look at her. “This whole time I thought the worst thing that happened was just us getting together. I thought that’s why we disconnected, why we all stopped talking to each other. Why Negan stopped talking to me. Was that really the reason?”

They were both silent and it had her getting infuriated, “Tell me!”

“It’s complicated,” Negan explained, his Adam’s apple bouncing in his throat realizing that she was just going to get more upset. “But I’m telling you, it doesn’t matter anymore.”

“If you care about me, you are going to start talking,” she put her focus back onto Joel causing a panicked expression to flood his features.

“That’s not fair,” Joel stammered, glancing to Negan and then back to her. “You know I care about you. I love you.”

“You don’t need to hear it Y/N. It’s not gonna help anyone or anything,” Negan appealed to her, but she held her hand up in the air to stop him from talking to her.

“I was a seventeen-year-old boy,” Joel began with a broken breath, throwing his hands up in the air while he spoke. “I don’t know what you want me to say Y/N. Things I did back then, I’m not that person anymore.”

“What did you do?” she annunciated each word with frustration. “I’m the only one that is left out of what happened. I think I deserve to know because I have no idea.”

“No one wants to tell you because neither one of us want to hurt you,” Negan spoke for the both of them, his head bobbing from side to side. “It’s a subject that doesn’t matter anymore. Because what was meant to happen, happened. There is no sense in going back on something that is only going to upset you.”

“No. No, he needs to tell me,” she demanded, pointing out at Joel who went extraordinarily pale. “I need to hear this from him because obviously it’s a big deal. And if he doesn’t, I will never look at him the way I used to.”  

“Fine,” Joel exhaled loudly, but it had Negan immediately shaking his head. “What other options do I have Negan?”

“It was over twenty years ago,” Negan repeated how he felt about everything. “We’ve grown up. Life happened to us.”

“When we were on the baseball team together, the boys used to talk,” Joel let out a tremoring breath, tears developing at his eyes. Sucking in a sharp breath of air, Joel shook his head and tried to gather himself. “Just fucking around, sharing stories in the locker room. Doing what boys do. We all had our stories, but the boys used to pick on Negan since he was a virgin. And he told people that he was. He was proud of it.”

By the expression on Negan’s face, Negan didn’t agree with what Joel was doing, but more than anything Joel wanted things to be right between them, “He didn’t care. He took everything with a grain of salt and just gave it back to them. And this one time he went off on some big rant about being in love with you. How you were the love of his life. That you were soulmates. That you two were going to get married after high school for you.”

Gazing between both men, she took notice of the way that Negan was looking down toward the ground and how Joel had a hard time even looking at her, “I was being a smartass. I was trying to show off to the boys. I told him he was an idiot because it was obvious you didn’t love him. But he swore up and down that the two of you were soulmates. That you two had been desperately in love since you were children.”

Pausing, Joel looked to Negan and shook his head again realizing that this was probably stupid to continue on with, “I told him that I could prove that you didn’t love him because you clearly were crushing on me. We got into a fight where he ended up shoving me and I tripped over the bench. At the same time there was a janitor cleaning the floor, I knocked into him and the bucket poured all over me. The boys got a kick out of it and I suddenly became the butt of the joke instead of Negan. Originally, I was just fucking with him talking shit to get a reaction out of the boys, but after he pushed me…”

Joel went to speak, but then stopped when he took time to consider what he would say next, “So at the party, when I saw Negan wasn’t with you I approached you. I started talking with you and then when I knew he was there to see it, I kissed you. And then I convinced you to go to my house with me. I had one of the boys tell Negan that you needed him. So that way he would see the two of us together.”

“So hooking up with me that night was revenge,” she put together what Joel was saying, but neither of them reacted. “So that story you fed me about falling in love with me at the planetarium was absolute bullshit,” her voice was broken having Joel’s face sink and he immediately shook his head. “I was just someone that you slept with because Negan embarrassed you?”

“No, my story about that was true. I started developing feelings for you long before I did that, but I just didn’t do anything about it because I thought the two of you were together. I swear,” Joel was tripping up over his words, fear flooding into his eyes. “What I said to you about kissing you for the first time, I meant it. Just because I fucked with Negan doesn’t mean that how I felt about you wasn’t true.”  

“Bullshit,” she blurt out finding herself absolutely floored with what Joel was telling her. “You didn’t even like me, did you? You just got with me because it hurt him.”

“No, no!” Joel stressed, throwing his hands up in the air defensively. “Yes, I made my move out of anger, but I know how I felt about you. And it shouldn’t matter how it started because as soon as that happened, I knew that I wanted to be with you. With the two of us talking that night, I knew that everything I felt was real. I liked you. I liked everything about you. The two of us connected. I could have just slept with you and left it at that, but I didn’t. I wanted to be with you and from that moment on I was a good boyfriend. I fucking loved you. I realized how pure you were, how…”

“Our whole relationship started because you wanted some kind of revenge on Negan for embarrassing you?” she snapped at Joel hearing his breathing broken and he tried to find the right way to say what needed to be said. “Jesus. And I fell for it too. I ended up hurting and losing the most important person in my life because…”

“Because you loved me,” Joel interrupted her, his words full of venom when he shook his head and his bottom lip trembled. “You loved me and I loved you. We were perfect together. Even looking back you see that. That town fucking loved us together. We were the it couple. The couple that everyone wanted to be like. You were everything that I wanted. And you were there for me when my parents passed. You helped me with Tommy, we had two beautiful babies…”

“Did you love me though?” she questioned, her chest aching from hearing what had happened between all of them. “Or was I just the prize that you won at the end of the day? It would make a whole lot of sense with everything that followed.”

“We had the perfect relationship for years,” Joel maintained, his hand placing in over the center of his chest. “I loved you. I still love you. I made a mistake four years ago asking for that divorce because I didn’t really want it. I was just confused with my emotions and my feelings. I’m not good with those things.”

“You couldn’t tell me about this?” Y/N looked to Negan for some kind of response. “I know that I broke your heart, but leaving and then never speaking to me again…”

“Don’t,” Joel stopped her before she could get any more upset with Negan. “As much as I’d like to say he did, he originally didn’t abandon you. I mean he avoided us that whole year, which was a dick move, but…”  

She was speechless. What the hell was she supposed to say?

“Negan came to say goodbye to you when he was leaving town,” Joel alerted her, his face twisting with remorse. “I had just lost my parents and I wouldn’t let him. Deep down, I knew how you felt about him. I knew that if he came and apologized, explained things to you that you would leave me and you wouldn’t be able to let him go. I guess this is the part where I’m supposed to admit to you that I made him feel bad and forced him to leave without a goodbye. But I don’t feel bad for that. I needed you. You were everything to me and you were the only one that was there for me when my parents passed away.”

“You just assumed that I would leave you? After everything we had been through?” she pushed seeing the way Joel’s dark eyes looked miserable after he was dropping everything on her lap. “Negan was in love with Lucille. I just wanted my best friend. I was lonely. And I missed him. You knew how much I missed him.”

“But I also knew how much you two loved each other,” Joel shouted pointing between the two of them and it had Negan’s jaw flexing. “Look at how fast the two of you found each other as soon as he came back.”

“That shouldn’t have been your decision to make,” she let out a tremoring breath looking between the both of them.

“I needed you,” Joel reasoned with her, shaking his head as he spoke. “It didn’t hurt him. He got to run away. Got picked up by a team immediately. He found the love of his so-called life. I shouldn’t have had to lose my parents and you at the same exact time.”

“I wouldn’t have left you!” she yelled at Joel, angry with him for even suggesting it.

“Bullshit! Lucille and I both knew that we had to keep you two from each other or we would have lost you,” Joel screamed back at her, this time getting Negan to look at him with shock along with her. “Don’t look at me like that! Neither one of you got over each other. You never did. I saw the way you looked at him when we watched his games on the television. And with him always calling his mom to ask for updates about you and your life.”

Clearly Negan was shocked to hear how Joel knew anything about his personal life since he wasn’t part of it, “You think you’d be happy with Negan, but you wouldn’t be. At first it’s all fun and happiness. But then when the going gets tough, he’ll just cheat on you. You think I was a bad husband? You should hear what he was like.”

At this point? Joel was just done and he found himself erupting. Especially since him telling Y/N the truth was making it look less and less like she wouldn’t want to be with him anymore. If she didn’t want Joel, she shouldn’t want Negan either, “He talks about how Lucille meant everything to him, but he cheated on her. All the fucking time. And you know what made him stop? You know what made him finally be the good husband that he sells himself as? Her telling him that she had cancer. The moment she did that, well he just became the husband that she always dreamt of him being. Doting on her. Perfect. Yet for most of their marriage, he made her absolutely miserable.”

Confusion spread through both of them with Joel’s rant, “Yeah, me and your wife were better friends than you thought Negan.”

Looking to Y/N, he pointed at Negan and shrugged his shoulders, “You know what made him cheat the first time? They were fighting a lot because they were trying to have children. You see, at first she thought Negan wasn’t a real man. Just assumed that he was impotent and his swimmers didn’t work. And because she blamed him, Negan couldn’t handle the stress.”

“Shut up,” Negan rumbled, his words quiet with him visibly upset.

“You want to act like you’re the perfect fucking lover and I was a bad husband, but I never had sex with another woman until after I got divorced,” Joel educated Negan on his relationship. “I’m suddenly supposed to believe that those final years of your marriage changed you completely Negan? That you won’t cheat on her when you’re away being a sports star?”

“You stayed in contact with Lucille, but I wasn’t allowed to talk to Negan?” she spoke up, drawing Joel’s attention away from Negan. “You got angry with me any time I contacted him. When I tried to talk to him about Elizabeth…”

“I didn’t stop you though. It was his choice to after that first time to still stay away from our family. Yeah, I was good friends with Lucille. Our significant others were head over heels in love with each other,” Joel snapped at her, his voice raising as he spoke. “She needed someone to talk to somehow because he sure as hell wasn’t there to listen to her when she was sad. Yet he thinks he can just step in on my family and be the man he couldn’t be with his dead wife?”

That was it. Negan’s breaking point. Tackling Joel to the ground, both men were fighting and they weren’t backing down. Hit after hit that landed echoed throughout the area surrounding them.

“Stop it,” she demanded of the both of them doing her best to try to split the fight up. Hooking her arm around Negan she realized that he would be the easier one to control. Once she had him, he immediately stopped trying to get at Joel. “He’s drunk and he’s angry so he’s saying whatever is coming to him because his filtering system is gone.”

“No, you know what his problem really is?” Negan growled, carefully getting Y/N off to the side so she wouldn’t be in harm’s way. “The problem is that you aren’t the only one that has feelings for me and it’s eating away at him. His fucking daddy was a homophobe that didn’t allow him to explore his feelings so he’s angry with himself for wanting both me and you. Because wanting me? Now that goes against everything that daddy wanted. Doesn’t it Joel?”

An agonizing sound filled the air with Joel sweeping his leg out from underneath Negan’s bad leg having him hit the ground hard. Immediately Negan’s arms wrapped around his leg, with a muted scream that had her instinctively going to Negan.

“I’m sorry,” Joel realized what he had done, trying to scramble forward to help Negan. Attempting to get Negan to roll onto his back, Negan shoved at Joel to try to get him away. “I didn’t mean to do that. I swear.”

“Get away from me,” Negan ordered rolling onto his back, his fist hitting the ground beneath him from the pain he was visibly having in his knee. “Fuck, fucking…fuck!”

Rolling onto his side, Negan tried to use his strength to push himself up onto his feet. With the help of Y/N, Negan managed to put all of his weight onto his good leg. Looking back at Joel, Negan shook his head and let out a frustrated breath, “You know what? I was wrong. You are a fucking asshole.”

Motioning Y/N to let him go, Negan gave her a saddened expression and started to limp in the other direction away from both her and Joel.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say the things that I did, but I am so depressed. I hurt so bad and to watch him get everything that was important to me…” Joel began with a broken sound, his head shaking in disbelief. “I hate me. I hate me so much and to not have you in my life hurts. I know how our relationship started and trust me, I regret it. I do. But I loved you. And I don’t regret that we got together because as soon as I had you, I knew from that moment on we were meant to be together.”

“Joel,” she hushed him, stepping forward to grab his hands in hers to give them a supportive squeeze. “I understand, okay? But you need to sober up and then the two of us can have a conversation. Just the two of us. But this version of you? I can’t deal with it right now. So sleep off the booze. Please.”

“I just…” Joel wanted to say more, but before he could she was walking away and he realized that tonight he probably screwed up his chances more than he ever thought possible.

----

Tags: @chainsawsangel @fancypeacepersona @violent-darkness @negansbestie @elegantfanficluv

@sanctuaryforthelost @dead-of-niight @dilfsandmartinis @jennydehavilland

[personasintro]

Mutual Help | #08

𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭: @kithtaehyung

↳ 𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬; in order for you to pretend to be his girlfriend, he helps you with your sexual desires ⏤ he calls it mutual help

⇢ 𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: jungkook x reader

⇢ 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: fake dating au, fluff, angst, smut, slow burn

⇢ 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: explicit language

⇢ 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 1.6k+

⇠ 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐯. | 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐱 | 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 ⇢ 

"Why are we here?" you ask with narrowed eyes, eyeing your best friend whose cheeks are puffed up with pork belly.

"We are on a date." he answers with an obvious tone.

"I got that from your single message." you roll your eyes, remembering the message you got when you barely got home.

It's Tuesday, it's not even the middle of the week, and you definitely weren't expecting him to want to hang out during the week. He's lucky you were hungry anyway, home with an almost empty fridge. He knows you can't say no to food, especially when it's a typical Korean barbecue.

'I'm taking you out in an hour, be ready'

That's what the message said and even when his black car parked in front of your apartment building, he barely explained the point of all of this.

"Well, this is Seokjin's restaurant," he starts, seeing your dumbfounded look before he sighs. "Seokjin, you've met him when we went bowling with Tae, Jimin and Kiko. Even Hoseok tagged along." he explains, unfolding a very hazy memory.

If you remember correctly, it was the day when Jungkook introduced Kiko to you.

Jungkook looks like you should know exactly who he is, and the way he stares at you like if you were an idiot makes you annoyed. "It happened like a year ago. Do you really expect me to remember that?" you snark, rolling your eyes in annoyance when you see Jungkook doing the same.

So much for acting like a couple who loves each other.

"Anyway, he's not here right now. But Hoseok works here as operations manager."

Hoseok, Kiko's close friend, is here right now and it all makes sense. He knows when Hoseok would see you, he'd probably tell Kiko. Nothing is sure, but it's worth a shot.

"Ah, right. Now I get it." you breathe out, reaching for a chopsticks before you make yourself a wrap.

Jungkook just nods along, eating quietly before he opens his mouth. "Oh, Seokjin is getting married and he invited me to his wedding. You're coming with me."

"What? Why do I need to be there?" you exclaim with a full mouth, causing him to glare at you in disgust before he sighs.

"Because I need a date and he knows we're dating. He kinda invited you as well," he explains, shooting you his pleading look which consists of his doe eyes and slightly pouted lips in hope. "Okay, I'm sorry for dropping this on you all of a sudden. He just called me yesterday to remind me of the wedding and I forgot. I was supposed to go with Kiko, but that changed..." he trails off, silencing himself for a few seconds before he continues. "And now he knows we're dating, so I told him you'll come."

"Yeah, okay. Is she going to be there?"

He nods, biting the inside of his cheek. "Yes, Seokjin is marrying her best friend. She is going to be there."

With that, you only nod and stuff your mouth again.

It's just another plan that might work perfectly. Jungkook told you about him and Kiko talking to each other at the club. He hasn't said much, but he clearly sees the hope in winning her back. Even you can see it, after hearing her questioning you and his relationship. If she didn't care, she wouldn't ever stop by to talk to him.

"When's the wedding?" you ask him, noting that you need to buy a proper dress for that.

Your wardrobe mainly consists of sweatpants, slacks and basic shirts. If you want to look good, you need to invest some money in a nice dress.

"Next week."

"Jungkook!" you exclaim, watching your best friend in horror.

Next week is too soon.

He sheepishly looks at you, offering you a piece of pork belly with his chopsticks as a sign of apology. You roll your eyes again, but still lean towards him to eat the meat, not forgetting to glare at him in the process.

"What are you doing?"

Eyeing Jungkook, who's scooting his way over to you as he unlocks his phone.

"We should take a photo," he answers, turning on his camera. "And make it Instagram official, baby." he wiggles his brows, causing you to snort in return before you try to adjust your hair.

"Wait, I'm not ready." you tell him, glaring at the phone that's shoved into your face before Jungkook snaps the picture of your face.

He snorts, looking at the picture of you glaring at the camera with hands in your hair and slightly opened mouth. He tries to do it again, but you slap his hands before you properly adjust your hair. You smile into the camera, before Jungkook does the same and snaps a picture.

He eyes it, brows furrowing as he exhales. "It looks like most of our photos."

You lean to him, looking at the photo that looks cute. Jungkook obviously looks hot, even with the soft smile that's settled on his lips. "I think it looks good." you shrug, reaching for your drink as you slowly sip from it.

"We're supposed to look like we're in love," he points out, shoulders dropping in disappointment.

Well, you came here on a date and yet you've spent all your time teasing and making jokes. None of that showed one piece of your fake love.

"Come on, let's take another one." he nudges you, causing you to groan but you still lean closer to him.

Jungkook puts his arm around your waist, pulling you even closer to him as you quickly smile into the camera. He does the same, your faces much closer before he starts to take more of them which turns to you goofing around, making different grimaces that makes you both laugh. The last shot is probably the best one and most believable. You're smiling widely with your eyes closer, while Jungkook presses his nose softly into your cheek, with a toothed grin.

You both check all the photos, none of you moving from each other as you silently comment on every one of them. You're both too focused from your creations to notice someone approaching, that's until he speaks catching both of yours attention.

"Hey, Hoseok." Jungkook greets him back, glancing at the man that's sporting a black slacks and a casual white button up.

"Hey guys, what a surprise," he beams, smiling at you when you wave at him in a brief greeting.

Although, you know Hoseok since the two of you hang out with the same people, you can't really consider him as your friend. He's a nice guy, very communicative, friendly and loud. You both have the same circle of friends, so there are times when you see each other from time to time. But that's it.

"What are you doing here?" he asks, looking back at Jungkook.

"We're on a date." he answers, a realization crossing on Hoseok's face as he takes his outstretched arm behind you and the proximity between you two.

"Oh," he opens his mouth in surprise. "So it's true." he comments, chuckling after that but something about his tone is off.

Of course. He's Kiko's friend.

"Yeah," Jungkook nods, not really sure what to say.

Just as you think he'll let it go, he opens his mouth again.

"I've never expected you guys to end up together,"

You shift in your seat awkwardly. "None of us did." you mutter, earning a very subtle kick to your shin from Jungkook underneath the table.

"We've decided to try it," Jungkook shrugs.

It's so damn fucking awkward, his short responses earning even more suspicious look from Hoseok, that he desperately tries to hide underneath his friendly smile. And the fact that you and Jungkook act so weird doesn't help.

"Ah, hyung," your best friend suddenly says, unlocking his phone before he hands it to Hoseok. "Can you take a photo of us?"

Hoseok eyes his phone before he slowly takes it from his hands, glancing at you before he smiles. "Sure."

It looks like Jungkook is one step ahead of you, knowing his friend and his rare fake smile. He must've thought the same thing like you did, proving that he got this. No matter how many times your conscience comes up to tell you that you're getting busted, Jungkook proves you wrong.

And when Hoseok finally aims the camera at the two of you, you're completely shocked when Jungkook grabs your face gently, hand spreading on your neck with his thumb on your cheek, before he connects your lips together. He kisses you, right in front of him, hiding your own shock by his mouth. When he pulls away, he does it slowly making sure when he opens his eyes, he's looking straight into yours with unrecognizable glint in them.

He traces your lips with his thumb, before he pulls away and looks at his friend. "Thanks." he says, grinning as he takes his phone from him.

"Yeah, no worries." Hoseok mutters, smiling at you as Jungkook takes a look at the photos.

Just when you thought he bought it, you glance from Jungkook's screen at Hoseok causing your breath to hitch. He's subtle, but still sporting an evident frown on his face as his eyes are glued to you. Your nerves get the best of you, a nervous smile spreading on your lips as Jungkook is completely obvious at your exchange with his friend.

Hoseok smiles at you, shaking off his previous frown as if he never stared at you like that.

But this time, you're smarter and see right through him.The smile he gave you was fake.