#finally catching up to the new series that only took me uh. 6 months..

[crowcryptid]

same thing

[nicoline1998enilocin]

Yours, Forever | Chapter 7

PAIRING | Bucky Barnes x Female!Reader

WORD COUNT | 3.1K

SUMMARY | After three months in Italy, Y/N was finally back home in New York, but things don't go according to plan. When Bucky comes back from a particularly bad mission, he is avoiding anything and everyone, until he gets pushed to his breaking point and Y/N has to pay the price for his mistake.

WARNING(S) | This is your official trigger warning. Do not proceed if any of these topics upset you. Swearing, violence (choking), mental health struggles.

A/N | Hi everyone, thank you so much for reading my first ever fic! I would like to start off by saying that English isn’t my first language (I’m Dutch after all 😉) so every mistake you find – spelling or otherwise – is completely my own. I would appreciate you spreading the love about this fic, and I ofcourse hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Likes and reblogs will be very much appreciated 💜

Main Masterlist | Bucky Barnes Masterlist | Series masterlist | Chapter 6 | Chapter 8

The last day of the Italy trip had arrived, and both Y/N and Eve were sad to see their 3 month vacation come to an end, seeing how much fun they had. Once they are at the airport, they have to say goodbye again and it is just as painful as the first time when Y/N left to move to New York. After they said their goodbyes they each went to their respective gates, and waited for their planes to leave. Eve had a short flight ahead, but Y/N knew she was in for a long one and couldn't wait to see Bucky again, to cuddle him for as long as they possibly could, to kiss his perfect lips again until they can't think straight anymore. The flight goes without problems and little turbulence, and she even manages to finish 2 books she had downloaded onto her Kindle, so she made a mental note to update her reading goal of this year.

She got off the plane and texted her dad she arrived safe and would come see him later when she had the chance, she had a lot to catch up on with him, and ofcourse a lot of photos to to show him as well. Once she found her suitcases she moved into the arrival hall with a huge smile on her face, in the hopes to see her boyfriend again, but it dropped as soon as she saw Steve, not Bucky. ''Well, I'm happy to see you too!'' Steve said joking as he came up to her with his arms spread so he could take her in his arms and give him one of the bear hugs she loved so much. ''Sorry, I was expecting Bucky, he said he would be here, that's all. But I'm happy to see you too, you know that right?!'' she said, and looked behind Steve expectingly, to see who we was talking to earlier.

''Didn't know you needed a babysitter to get out of the compound, Rogers!'' Y/N joked when she looked at the man behind him, walking up to him with her hand stretched out. ''Hi, I'm Y/N, I'll be Steve's colleague soon when I start working for S.I. and Tony.'' she introduced herself. ''Uh, hi! I'm Lucas, Steve is my-'' ''Friend! He's just my friend.'' Steve quickly said, he didn't want anyone to know he has a boyfriend yet, since they only started dating a few weeks ago. And after all, he only came with him because he had no other choice, since Bucky mentioned last minute he was supposed to pick her up at the airport and they were in the middle of a date. ''Well, it's nice to meet you, Lucas!'' but Y/N already put 2 and 2 together that they were together. The crimson color on Steve's cheeks didn't make it hard to guess.

''Steve, why is Bucky not here? He specifically told me he would be the one picking me up today...'' she asked, not really sure if she wanted to know the answer. ''The team got called out on a last minute mission for a few days, so he asked my to pick you up since I'm still not cleared for field work yet.'' he explained. Both Lucas and Steve took one of Y/N's suitcases after some protest, but they insisted so she just went with it. Once they were almost at the car, Y/N said ''it's okay if you sit in the front Lucas, my legs aren't as long as yours anyway so you could use the leg room.'' with a knowing wink to Steve, and he felt a little relieved when he saw that. They got in the front and he immediately put his hand on Lucas' thigh as he drove them home, and Y/N couldn't be happier for him, he deserves it. The ride was silent, but she didn't mind after such a long flight, she couldn't wait to see her bed again.

Steve drove them to the Avengers Compound like Tony had asked, so she could sleep at his place and be there with Pepper, that way she didn't have to be alone on the first few nights back. ''Hey Pepper, how is my favorite momma to be doing today?'' she said and smiled at her when she saw her round belly again. ''Actually, you're just on time, she just kicked again for the first time in a few days, and you'll be the first to feel it, even before Tony!'' she beamed at her, and put Y/N's hand on the place where she could feel the baby kick. It was such an amazing feeling, and Y/N honestly couldn't wait to experience a life growing inside of herself one day. It would never cease to amaze her what the human body was capable of.

''My god, this feels amazing. Does Tony know she kicked at all, or are you going to wait to tell him?'' ''He does know she kicked already, and told me specifically not to let anyone feel the kicks before he got the chance, but I just can't say no to you!'' Pepper laughed, making the baby kick again. The two ladies get comfortable on the couch, Pepper with a glass of water and Y/N with a glass of white wine, she felt like she deserved one after the trip she just had. ''I have to tell you something, but you can't tell anyone! Steve just picked me up from the airport and apparently he has a boyfriend! He came along, but the weird thing is that when he wanted to introduce himself as Steve's boyfriend, Steve quickly said he's his friend...'' It's a good thing she knows him by now and she knows Pepper won't tell anyone, but Y/N really had to tell someone.

A few days later, the entire team comes back from their mission, and Steve and Y/N decided to wait for them in the hangar where the Quinjet would land, so they could both welcome them home. They landed it safely and as soon as the ramp opened, everyone came running towards Y/N for the hugs they so desperately needed and she was so willing to give to them now. Everyone, except the person she wanted to see the most, Bucky. He didn't even look at them but instead just walked straight into the Compound without saying a word. ''Sam? What's going on with Bucky?'' she asked carefully, but she felt a stinging sensation in her chest because he didn't even care enough to look at her. ''I don't know, he was the same as always when you're not there. He was still this staring machine we all know and love.'' he said, but his brows were furrowed in worry now. This wasn't like Bucky, and all of them were wondering what was going on.

The next week doesn't change anything, Bucky just keeps himself locked in his room, this mission hit him harder than he thought it would, he should've just listened to Tony and stayed home. He knew this was gonna be a hard mission with his past with HYDRA, but he didn't want to admit it. And now he is locked in his own room, not willing to come out for anything or anyone, just alone with his own thoughts and nightmares. With the flashbacks that have taken him over completely. He doesn't notice when he gets texts or calls, he doesn't answer the door when someone is there. Not when Steve knocked, not when Y/N was there to talk to him. He didn't care about anything else, he just wanted all the thoughts and nightmares to stop. He wanted to stop crying but he couldn't, this mission had proven to be too much for Bucky.

After yet another week, Y/N comes up to his door and bangs on it, hard. She can't take it anymore and demands to be let into his room, this isn't healthy she says. ''Bucky, please. This isn't good for you, and we miss you man. Hell, I miss you the most. I just wanna see my boyfriend, I wanna be there for you. WHY DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND I JUST WANNA HELP? Why doesn't that get through your thick skull?!'' she said, and that was a step too far for Bucky. He stormed out of his room and grabbed Y/N at her throat with his vibranium hand, squeezing harder than he intended but he just wanted her to stop talking. Steve and Tony heard something and came running into the hallway and went for Bucky and Y/N when they saw what was happening.

''BUCKY, WHAT THE FUCK! YOU'RE FUCKING HURTING HER!'' Steve yelled when he pulled Bucky off of Y/N with a firm tug, and they both fell back into his room. She collapsed onto her knees and tried to crawl away from him when Tony picked her up. ''It's okay honey, you're okay now. I won't let him hurt you, don't you worry about that.'' he said softly, reassuring her while trying to sooth her when she's crying and struggling to breathe. ''I'll take her to the medbay, please make sure he doesn't go anywhere near her Rogers!'' Tony said while rushing her off to see Bruce. When he was looking over Y/N Tony was calling Pepper and telling her what happened, saying that Y/N would be staying with them for a while longer, because he doesn't trust her anywhere around the Compound by herself right now.

As soon as Bucky pushed her against the wall, he immediately regretted his action, but his brain short circuited and he couldn't let go of Y/N. He had a release for his pent up anger, and was glad when Steve pulled him off of her, because God knows he couldn't have done it himself. He cried for hours and hours afterwards, not being able to comprehend the fact that he took his anger out on his perfect girlfriend. Although, he wasn't sure that's what he could call her now. Not after what he just did, and he couldn't wrap his head around why. He fucked up the one good thing in his life he had going for him since escaping HYDRA, since being back from Wakanda and having the Winter Soldier erased from him. But deep down he knew he would always be there, and this proved just that. He knew he didn't deserve her, but this is something he never meant to do. When he opened his bedroom door to go to the gym to get his anger out, he saw something silver shining on the floor. Y/N's necklace, he accidentally ripped it off her neck.

Bruce decided it would be the best to keep Y/N sedated for a little bit, in order for the pain medication to do it's work and for her to be able to breathe a little bit without pain. There are deep purple marks around her neck, wrapping almost all the way around, and she had a nasty head wound from where Bucky pushed her hard into the wall. ''I just don't fucking get why he would hurt her like that. She doesn't deserve this.'' Tony said to her dad, who he called too. He knew that the only other person she would want to have there, is her dad. ''Hey sunshine, it's dad. I'm not sure you can hear me, but I want you to know that I love you, so incredibly much. Tony called and I dropped everything, I literally dropped the apple pie I was making,'' he said laughing through his tears. ''You're safe now sunshine, everything is going to be okay.'' he said before he couldn't hold himself together any longer and started sobbing with his head on her hand, which he was holding with both hands.

When Y/N woke up, her dad and Tony were there, and she was happy to see the both of them, but at the same time she was in a lot of pain as well. ''Hey sunshine, it's okay. You don't have to talk, I know it hurts.'' her dad said with a soothing voice as he looked up to her. ''I have talked it over with Tony and we decided it is smart if you live with him and Pepper for a little while, so you can get back in the rhythm of work again once you're ready.'' and all she could do was give a small nod. ''I already got some of your clothes there, and some of your personal belongings like your laptop, iPad, some of your favorite books and a few photos, so you can make it a bit more like home.'' he said. Her dad gave her a kiss on her forehead and with a last 'I love you sunshine' he walked out the door and went back to the bakery, his heart feeling heavy in his chest.

It took about a week for Y/N to fully be settled into Tony and Pepper's house, which she would call home for the foreseeable future. She slowly got back into work, for now just working a few hours a day from home with Tony. The two of them took great care of her, and her dad visited most nights of the week after work. ''Hey sunshine, I'm happy to see you again!'' he said, and he was earlier than expected so he could join them for dinner. ''Hi dad.'' she said in a soft voice and a little smile. It broke his heart to see his little girl like this, but he's eternally grateful she's still alive, he even brought her favorite treat for dessert, his chocolate and caramel brownies.

After two weeks at their house, Y/N got a little restless and wanted to go back to the office again, even if it was just as an excuse to get out of the house. She didn't really want to see anybody there, the only one she could stand to see was Tony, and maybe Steve, but not the rest of them. When they get called in for an emergency meeting by Fury, they don't have a choice but to go. Tony doesn't want to leave Y/N alone, so she comes too. They walk into the conference room and to Y/N's delight, it's only Fury there. ''Hi Nick, how are you?'' she asks softly, and he can't believe what he's seeing. ''What the fuck happened here Y/N? You know I don't like my favorite person hurt like that?!'' Fury said, and Y/N couldn't help but smile when he said that. She loves the fact that a tough guy like Fury has such a soft spot for her. ''It's nothing, Nick. I'm fine now. It's just the bruising that has to go down, but it doesn't hurt anymore.''

''Fine? That doesn't look 'fine' to me. Who did this to you? Because I will personally and the motherfucker responsible for hurting you.'' Fury growled. ''Please don't, it has been handled. I promise!'' Y/N exclaimed, even though Bucky hurt her, he doesn't want any of that to happen to him. She feels like she deserved it, she had pushed him past his limit anyway. He didn't want to see her, and she shouldn't have bothered him. ''How is everything going at S.H.I.E.L.D.?'' Y/N asked, trying to change the topic, because she was not really comfortable talking about it. ''As long as everything still goes to shit I still have a job, so can't complain.'' he said, and he touched her arm with a soft, reassuring squeeze, letting her know he was on her side.

Slowly the Avengers walked into the room, and they were relieved when they saw Y/N was there, but they were worried that she wasn't her normal, cheerful self. Even though everyone knew what happened, nobody mentioned it, most of them just said hi or waved at her, until Steve came in. He walked straight up to her, asking for a hug. ''Is it okay if I hug you, Y/N? I just need to make sure you're still okay.'' and she agreed reluctantly. She wasn't in a hugging mood, but she didn't want to say no to Steve. Even though she didn't really hug him back, he still said how happy he was to see she was okay, before letting her go. Bucky walked into the room last, still looking a lot worse for wear, and Y/N immediately flinched at the look of him and went to stand behind Steve. ''It's okay, he won't hurt you again,'' Steve reassured her, keeping both his hands on her behind has back.

The moment Bucky walks into the conference room, he notices all eyes were looking to the front of the room, where he saw Y/N. They made eye contact and she flinched and quickly hid behind Steve when she saw him. He couldn't believe that he did that to her, he saw the purple handprint around her neck and his eyes were filled with regret. He sat down at the far end of the table and the briefing started, but all he noticed was Y/N, and the tears streaming down her face while Tony held her close and rubbed her back soothingly. He should be the one soothing her, not Tony. But he fucked that up when he attacked her, when he almost choked the life out of his precious doll. When the briefing was over, everyone slowly left the conference room, but Bucky stayed behind. ''Doll, can I just talk to you for a minute? I want to tell you how sorry-'' he started, but quickly got cut off by Tony.

''You don't get to call her doll anymore. You lost any and all privilege of that when you decided to hurt the one person who cared more for you than you could even imagine. When you hurt the woman who loved, hell, still loves you more than anything, but you had to go and fuck that up, didn't you? Because for some fucking reason, you can't see a good thing when it's right in front of you!'' Tony said, and Bucky got mad at him. ''You don't get to talk to me like that Stark. I would choose your next words carefully, or you'll be next.'' Bucky threatened him, and in his anger he punched the wall with his vibranium arm. This made Y/N flinch again and made her cry even harder, letting out long, hard sobs when she was held by Steve, in the safety of his arms. Bucky's gut just got filled with more and more regret when he saw that.

[im-whatchamccallit]

Crushcrushcrush//Kim Hongjoong (ATEEZ)

Request:  Hi i was wondering if you could do a soulmate werewolf hongjoong x human female reader angst and fluff like she over hears hongjoong saying something and she gets sad and shy and worried and stuff.....

Pairing: Kim Hongjoong x Fem!Reader

Genre: Angst with fluff at the end, Werewolf!AU, Soulmate!AU, a bit of College!AU

Warnings: Hongjoong’s kind of a dick with irrational thinking, cussing I guess

Word Count: 7.2k

(A/N: Lets just pretend I didn’t disappear for 6 whole months, but i am back and my medication is no longer giving me the big sad so I’m a little more motivated to write.This isn’t the best work I’ve done, this is actually idea 10 for this prompt and idk if it’s executed properly but Imma keep trying and hopefully, to keep from falling back into a slump, I’ll start a new series so I have a regular scheduled fic for everyone. Also, I think I botched expressing the AUS here but just let me know what you think. Sorry for always disappearing, I can’t promise I won’t go off the grid again but I’ll try harder to be active in anyway)

Your mother always said crushes stayed crushes for a reason: they hurt. Bad. But you thought she was wrong, that your feelings for someone could one day be reciprocated later if not sooner, and that’s what led you to him. Kim Hongjoong. The day you met was a complete accident, your body slamming into his as you wandered aimlessly during your freshman year of high school. He was gorgeous with wide brown eyes, beautiful pink lips and cheeks, his hair styled differently from the other boys to reveal his forehead, showing his individuality. He was perfection.

“I’m so sorry. Are you alright?” Those were the first words he spoke to you, his voice so gentle, so sweet. And the way he reached out to help you with no hesitation, holding your hands as he pulled you up effortlessly.

It was love at first sight, all until he looked down to your hands, eyes catching a glimpse of your wrist, a row of zeros peeking through the sleeve of your uniform jacket. He slowly pushed the fabric up, both your eyes widening to see your soulmate clock had finally timed out, his hands releasing yours to check his own wrist, a quiver to his lips as his clock matched yours, his once soft eyes now hard as he stared you down.

“Stay far away from me.” He warned, not saying another word as he headed to his homeroom, your body frozen as you watched him disappear. He was so harsh, yet you liked him. Maybe suddenly finding his soulmate scared him, but it was no problem to you! You were bound to end up together so you played the waiting game with him, being the perfect soulmate you could possibly be whether he accepted it or not.

And that led you here, now seniors in college and still acting the way you were when you met. Hongjoong was still cold, treating you like some plague while you could only smile along. You weren’t sure how you missed the fact you lived in a predominantly werewolf area until a public service announcement came on your television one night to remind humans to stay indoors during the full moon, that night dedicated to werewolves being as free as they could be, but it made you even more hopeful when you were on your way home from work one night, taking a shortcut through the woods since it lead right to your backyard.

You were 16 at the time, so the sight of a shirtless person would obviously make you flustered, but a shirtless Hongjoong? Enough to cause a nosebleed. He was 16 as well, the exact age a werewolf develops a mate bond and, seeing as you’ve already been confirmed as soulmates in the human world, the sudden desire to latch onto you and never let you go once you locked eyes only made your lifelong attachment more real, and he was freaking out. He didn’t speak, opting to shift without removing the remainder of his clothes, your eyes wide as he moved deeper through the thick trees and towards the horizon where the orange sky was in full view and, the grin on your face just couldn’t stop growing. You knew werewolves had a stronger drive to their mates, so the idea that he could avoid you forever was laughable. Sure, you were both 23 and he has uped his disdain for you from staying silent to calling you any vile name he could think of, but it was only a matter of time before he came around. You just knew it.

“(Y/n), stop gawking.” Miyeon joked, poking your side to snap you from your daydreams, your eyes widening when you noticed a few of Hongjoong’s friend’s catching your gaze, a blush painting your face as you turned away.

“I wasn’t gawking, just making sure their table was okay. I am their waitress tonight.”

“And every other night because you said, and I quote, ‘I wanna work at any table my Joongie’s going to be at!’” She mocked, your eyes rolling as you looked back towards them.

You took a job at a diner just a few blocks from both your apartment and college campus, the pay great and the distance convenient. It was the only time you had to yourself instead of lingering to Hongjoong, figuring out his classes and breaks to give him snacks and lunches you’d personally make for him since you overheard him complain about the campus food before, only to be told they tasted like shit and he’d find his own food. It was a bit of a kick to the face to hear that, but you had one saving grace: his pack. The first time Hongjoong sent you away with a bitter remark, they were curious about you, tracking you down when they weren’t with their alpha to get more info on who you were and what you found so loveable about the man treating you like some demon. They were surprised by how sweet you were and how accepting you were to be the unwanted luna of an eight-wolf pack. They could never hate Hongjoong but they sure as hell loved you just a little more than him. Unbeknownst to both of you, Yunho and Mingi found out where you worked, making a plan with the others to take Hongjoong there as much as possible so he would have no choice but to interact with you, even if he stayed silent to not appear like an asshole in front of the various strangers dining as well. Hongjoong would honestly never return if he had the choice, but something about the restaurant’s signature burger kept bringing him back, which is why he was here, sipping his soda angrily as he waited on his meal that would be served by his worst nightmare, you.

“I don’t know why you don’t just find someone else. Isn’t it easy for humans to reject soulmates? You could move on with no problems.” She said, helping you grasp onto the steel tray covered in various meals, a huff leaving you as you put on a bright smile.

“Because I know it’s harder to move on for wolves. You guys don’t have a choice on who your mates are, and you just accept it once you meet them. I know Hongjoong will accept me eventually, it’s just gonna take some time.” You gave one more smile before wobbling towards the table in question.

Hongjoong tried not to follow the gaze of his pack as they watched you happily approach them, letting out a huff as you adjusted the tray onto your shoulder, grasping the plates and placing them in front of the respective person, Hongjoong’s nose twitching at the smell of his burgers and fries, not wasting anytime to dig in as the other’s thanked you, but you shyly looked at the male before you, the tray pressed to your chest as you tried to find a casual way to speak with him.

“I-uh- I-I remembered last time you asked for extra cheese, so I decided to put cheese in the burger too! I hope you like it better than the tofu stew I made you for lunch the other week.”

“I didn’t ask for extra cheese this time, so why put it inside my burger where I can’t take it off?” He said spitefully, mouth still full as he set the half-eaten burger down.

Your smile faltered but bounced back as you reached towards his plate.

“O-oh! Well, I can take it back and make you another! This time I ca-“

“’This time’? You should’ve just done it from the start. Your job is to listen and do what you’re told and you can’t even do that? What can you do right?”

You swallowed hard, your eyes wandering to the people now staring at you as the scene unfolded, your heartbeat ringing in your ears as you tried to hold it together. The worst he’s called you in an idiot and that was usually under his breath, so to practically say it out loud, in front of strangers while you were in the middle of a shift and forced to do nothing but smile like you usually would, felt like you were being stabbed and burned simultaneously. You couldn’t keep smiling, looking down as you tried to apologize, only for him to cut you off once again.

“Go bother someone else. Or hide in the back if you’re just gonna keep fucking up this much.”

The space was eerily silent, even with the soft music playing, your eyes not leaving your shoes as you shuffled away. It was a pitiful sight, Seonghwa releasing a breath he didn’t realize he was holding as you went to a neighboring table to retrieve plates and glasses left by a couple from before. He was ready to tear Hongjoong’s head off, not as a gamma to an alpha but as one friend to another, his jaw tight as he prepared to berate him the way he did you but, somehow, Wooyoung beat him by asking a question none of them thought to ask before.

“What did she ever do to you that you have to treat her like that?”

There was a strange but tense silence as they awaited his answer, watching him taking small bites of his fries as he stared ahead at nothing before turning to them with what could only be described as a sadistic smirk.

“Imagine being 13 and finding out the best years of your life, the years of dating, hooking up, just discovering who you are, are gone because your mate decides to show up and take that from you.”

“Are you fucking stupid? That’s the reason we have mates, so we can do those things with one person instead of random people!” Seonghwa nearly yelled, trying to keep his voice low as to not alarm anymore spectators again.

“For the past 7 years, I’ve been trying to get her to leave or just reject me, but it’s clear to me now that she’s just an idiot that doesn’t understand she’s not needed, by me or anyone. And, if you’re as dumb as her, I’ll simplify it for you: she’s unwanted.”

Whatever pain you felt before suddenly disappeared into a numbness you couldn’t explain. He knew you were there, that you could hear him, that you would hear him, and yet he still said it. You were conflicted and sad, your lips curling in a mixture of disgust and anger before settling on a bright smile. Never mind the fact your tears finally spilled over, that your heart ached with every beat and your body felt heavy with the weight of being rejected by someone you waited so long for, you just had to smile. Soulmates were supposed to be a sure thing, supposed to be your happily ever after, yet it just turned out to be a crush, one that you should’ve let die the day you met him.

“(Y/n/n)…” Miyeon spoke cautiously as you made your way towards the bar, your other coworkers watching from beside her as if you were some strange spectacle.

“We have to start cleaning, y’know? It’ll help us get out of here a lot faster tonight.” You said in your usual cheerful tone, tears still flowing and a faint crack to your voice.

“How about you just head home for the day, (Y/n)? We can handle everything from here.” Your manager said, her eyes scanning your face as you moved past them and to the kitchen, their bodies following instinctively.

“What? No! I’m fine! We still have 4 more hours to go and I think if I get a head start with the chefs for tomorrow lunch specials I ca-“

“(Y/n), please-“

“I’m fine, Miyeon! Really! It’s not like I got broken up with or anything, I never even had a boyfriend! Just a crush on someone that thinks I’m a waste of space! Isn’t that super ironic? Spending most of your life chasing after someone that wants nothing to do with you? That’s really funny, right?” You choked out, lips pursing into a thin line to keep in your sobs but your attempts were futile, everything slowly starting to hit you at once until your body collapsed, one of the other servers catching you before you hit the ground.

It was all a blur from there, the words of comfort everyone offered turning into muffled noise as your cries of agony came out freely, the way Miyeon dragged you from the emergency exit at the back of the building and to her car to take you home, and even when you crawled into bed and managed to sleep despite the pounding headache. 7 years came and went and there was nothing to show for it. No soulmate, no boyfriend, no romance, not even a friendship. You were empty and for some reason the only thing filling your heart and mind was the person who broke you.

It felt like time stood still yet hours had passed, Hongjoong back in his own bedroom pressing away at his keyboard, stopping occasionally to write a few notes down from his new composition, but he wasn’t distracted enough to hear his door open, various footsteps entering and even a few bodies settling in on his bed, his eyes not bothering to leave his notebook as he figured this moment would come.

“You don’t need to lecture me.” He grumbled, going back to play a few more notes only to find his keyboard unplugged, Mingi tossing the cord away as his alpha stared him down.

“It’s only a lecture if you listen and learn, which you won’t, so we’re gonna make you feel as bad as possible for driving away the only person that gave a shit about you.” San said with a bright smile, a scoff leaving Hongjoong as he finally turned in his chair to face them, eyes scanning the room to see this situation wasn’t playful but truly hostile, almost like an ambush.

“So, you guys don’t care about me?”

“Trying to get you to accept your soulmate so you don’t die shows we care a lot more than we should.” Yeosang spoke, making himself comfortable as he sat against the pillow and headboard.

“But we’re the real assholes for trying to force her with someone as shitty as you.” Seonghwa finally said, Hongjoong’s head snapping in his direction as he let out a dry chuckle, shifting in his seat so he was leaning backwards, arms crossed as he told himself to stay calm during his friend’s potential tantrum.

“I feel like you have the most to say since you’ve been in love with my mate the longest, so go ahead, tell me how I’m such a bad man, Seonghwa. I’m all ears.” His smugness made the tension worse, Seonghwa stepping closer with clenched fist.

“I’m not in love with you mate, but if I didn’t know someone was waiting for me because we were fated to be together, maybe I would have asked (Y/n) out, because she deserves better than a lowlife with the brain function of a dead goldfish. But I respect her too much as your mate and my luna to not push those boundaries so I tried to help her get closer to you because I know you, Hongjoong. You’re not an asshole or a jerk, but to her? You treat her like shit, when really you’d have no one without her. You’re a short, scrawny, nerdy moron that locks himself in a dark room for days on end just to complete a single project, then emerge to eat cold pizza and watch Despicable Me because your pea-sized brain can’t comprehend anything that isn’t brightly colored animation. If you take away your alpha status, no girl would even look in your direction but you have someone literally at your side, the only human not afraid of you, trying to figure out everything there is to know about you, yet you can’t give her the time of day. You probably don’t even know a damn thing about her.”

“Unfortunately, I know more than enough about her.” Hongjoong spoke, all amusement gone as he glared at the older male, their mindlink clogged with threatening growls and barks, trying to keep their fight from getting physical.

That first sentence alone made Hongjoong’s blood boil, his face contorted in a mixture of pain and disgust. How could Seonghwa even say that to him, plotting to steal his mate all because he was a bit uncertain? That all it was, uncertainty! He didn’t hate you, or wish you weren’t around, he actually grew to anticipate and enjoy your ramblings about your day or whatever new thing caught your attention, he actually even loved the lunches that you’d make for him. He couldn’t help that over the years he grew to crave you more, but the thought of fully accepting you and solidifying that the best years of his life were about to be gone, restricted to one person forever before he could even determine for himself his likes and dislikes, what he considered real love rather than what fate wanted him to feel, was terrifying. So he distanced himself from you, spending the years watching you from afar in hopes that if he didn’t get too close he wouldn’t lose his free will completely.

But it was a bad habit that seeped into your college years, everyone assuming he cared so little for you when he knew everything there was to know. He knew where you worked before any of the boys did, where your apartment was, the fact you were a business major planning to open a bakery once you graduated, he knew you didn’t have classes on Fridays but always came back on campus because you prepared meals for the men’s and women’s wrestling team which is where Jongho first met you, he knew you hated mint chocolate chip ice cream just like him but loved chocolate ice cream with mint chips, he knew you were always cold but overheat at night and wake up at exactly 3am to change into shorts and a tank top to be more comfortable, he knew about the birthmark on your lower back and a scar on your hip from a cat scra-

“Holy shit, you’re insane.” Wooyoung breathed out, Hongjoong’s eyes focusing on the room in front of him, a mixture of shocked expressions and amused ones filling his vision.

“I liked it better when we thought you hated her but, hyung, you’ve been stalking her since your freshman year of high school?” Jongho asked cautiously.

It was a weird feeling bubbling inside Hongjoong, the primary one being embarrassment. He knew he’d sometimes unintentionally rant in their mindlink whenever he was upset but to make an almost decade long secret public to his pack, revealing the intimate details of how you slowly but surely ingrained yourself into not only his brain but his life until he felt like he was going crazy? It made him tear up, his face burn with a blush as he was finally forced to face the truth. He pushed you away but wanted you more than anything. He wanted to spend his years free to explore before finally settling down only to reject every girl that came close to him simply because they weren’t you, and he took that anger out on you. What was he so mad about? The fact you stood by his side with a smile happily accepting him while he tried and failed to lust after other women? Was he that pathetic? He could admit now that he was and, if he could turn back time, he would’ve introduced himself and walked you to class. Just the first step of fully accepting you.

“You’re still ranting in the mindlink, you know?” Seonghwa said softly, regaining the once again lost focus of his alpha who was too consumed in his own pity to notice the tension died down, their gazes soft as they tried to sympathize with their leader.

“Sorry. I wish none of you heard that stuff.” He admitted, sniffling as he realized he’d been crying, hand hurriedly wiping away tears from his cheeks.

“Well, it’s a good thing we did. We still think you’re a moron, but at least we know you’re feeling guilty about all of this.”

“Don’t worry, Joong, if you know (Y/n) like we do, she always sees the best in people, so she’ll forgive you. But you still have to apologize.” San followed up Mingi’s words, wrapping an arm around Hongjoong shoulders while giving a bright smile in response to his weak one.

“She’s my TA in Calc 3 and I have that class around noon tomorrow. She always stays after in case anyone has questions, so I can stall until you get there.” Yunho offered, Hongjoong feeling a slight warmth in his chest thinking about it all. He’d let go of his insecurities, fix everything he’s done wrong, and finally have you as his. Tomorrow couldn’t come fast enough.

And tomorrow did come, but you were nowhere to be found. When Hongjoong arrived to Yunho’s class, he was met with a sympathetic apology on the account that you didn’t show up that day, you weren’t even at any of your other classes. The boys even tried to find you at work only to be met with a mob of your pissed coworkers led by Miyeon, threatening to rip their heads off if she saw their faces again. And that lasted for nearly 3 days, Hongjoong’s hope slowly dwindling away until he noticed two figures sneakily meeting halfway at the school’s entrance to exchange a large white cooler.

He recognized those bulky arms anywhere, and the thick Aussie accent was a dead giveaway as well, especially when it was followed by a distinct giggle. There was no mistaking it was Chan, but he could barely see the person with him, their voice low as they spoke to him and face hidden beneath a hood, but the scent emitting from them was strong, and beautiful, his eyes widening as he finally took it all in. You looked different, wearing a dark grey matching sweat suit which was a complete 180 from your usual attire, and you smelled faintly of passionfruit, possibly a change to your normal shampoo in an attempt to disguise yourself, but that thought only made his heart hurt more. Were you intentionally avoiding him? He could understand you hating him now but you were even ignoring the others in his pack, going from friends to complete strangers in a matter of hours and leaving them all devastated. He was going to fix this, here and now, if not for him and you than for his friends.

“Jongho’s been pretty upset about you not responding to his text. It’d really help if you stopped by to at least let him know you’re okay.” Chan pleaded, giving you a dimpled smile and hopeful gaze that made it impossible for you to hide your blushing face and grin.

“I just need a little more time, Chris. It’s like if you broke up with your mate and all the friends you made through her left you too. Except it’s me being broken up with by someone who was never my boyfriend and his friends came to me instead of me going to them. But, still, it hurts all the same.” You laughed slightly, trying to find some humor in the situation.

“You’re the only person that still calls me Chris.” He commented, trying to redirect the conversation as you clearly weren’t fine, neither of you noticing the burning glare just a few meters away.

“I just think it fits you best.” You admitted, neither of you breaking eye contact until you gasped, staring down to the box of food and drinks you bought.

“You should hurry to practice. You need to eat beforehand otherwise you’ll be weak after warmups alone. And I worked hard making those sandwiches and cutting that fruit, if it goes bad because you stayed here to cheer me up, I’ll really be mad.” You tried to put on your best scowl, your scolding undermined by his amused laughter.

“Alright, fine. Just stay safe, please?” You nodded, waving as you watched him turn to head to the school’s gymnasium, missing the way Chan glared at Hongjoong as he continued forward. Chan and Hongjoong’s packs were close, family almost, so the news of what Hongjoong did and why reached them in no time, and Chan was hoping today things would be fixed soon because, apart from you being the wrestling team’s beloved personal chef, you were like a sister to him.

You wasted no time leaving the campus behind, ready to go back into the darkness of your bedroom to forget you existed. You really wish you could disappear, that the ground would split beneath you and swallow you whole, but you couldn’t just leave when your phone was filled with calls and messages from friends and coworkers wondering where you were and if you were fine. So many people cared, what kind of person would you be to leave them all alone like this, especially when all they wanted was to help you? But being alone helped, trying to live life as normal as possible while adjusting to a Hongjoong-free lifestyle helped. It would take some time, but you’d find your normal someday. All you had to do was avoid-

“(Y/n)!” Your body froze.

He rarely called you by your name but his voice was distinct on its own, and it was the most sickly sweet thing you’ve ever heard. You wanted to run, to never have him see you like this. Dear god, how did you even look right now? You felt like shit, you probably looked the part. Dammit, Hongjoong was right all along, you were shit. You were worse than shit, you were just pathetic. A pathetic, lovestruck loser itching to just turn and say hi, to have the conversation you always dreamed of but you knew that wouldn’t happen. He’ll yell at you again. He’ll-

“(Y/n)? H-hi…” Hongjoong said shyly, standing right in front of you as you shrank into yourself.

His brows furrowed as you looked away, mentally arguing with yourself as you went over the days of self-reflecting you did, trying to find some lesson from your solitude to aid in this situation and it was starting to scare him. You were never quiet with him, you always had something to say even if it wasn’t important but, luckily, he had something important to say and hopefully you’d listen.

“I- T-the other day…. I w-was…. I-I’m sorry.” He stammered out, this confession a lot harder than he thought, especially now that you were facing him, eyes just as innocent as the day he met you, but he couldn’t run away this time.

“I don’t know what’s wrong with me, honestly. Everyone told me I was an idiot and I think they’re right. I treated you like you were garbage for years, all because I didn’t want to be mated so young. I just wanted to date around before I finally settled down with someone and, m-maybe I could’ve just said that, so you didn’t have to wait around for me all these years but, I never hated you, and I can’t hate you. I know you won’t forgive me right away but I think it’s only fair that I can be a good mate to you now.”

He swallowed hard, trying to suppress the desperate ‘please’ he wanted to add as your pupils began to shake, almost as if you were a machine malfunctioning, none of your self-reflecting preparing you for this moment, the only thing coming to mind being some sad blog article you found during your second day of isolation. ‘Forgiving and forgetting too soon is dangerous. Find yourself’. It wasn’t what you wanted but maybe what you need, what he needed. So, without hesitation, you smiled brightly at him although it never reached your eyes, clearing your throat as you tried to keep your voice steady.

“Hongjoong, I can’t forgive you easily. I waited for you, I tried to make you accept me and it always ended up with me getting hurt. Honestly, if I just treated you like a regular crush, maybe we could’ve forgotten we’re meant to be together until after graduation or something.” You laughed awkwardly, wanting to look away as his eyes softened in the saddest way, but you needed to do this, eyes locked on his as you exhaled through your nose.

“I couldn’t be by your side all the time, so whether you dated anyone is still a mystery to me but, I’ve been alone for seven years hoping you’d come around, and I think it’s time I take those years back. I’m not sure if what you said counted as a rejection or if we’re still mates but, if we are, we’ll come back to each other eventually. For now, I just need some time.”

You managed to walk past him without completely collapsing in tears, speed walking back to your apartment as you tried to swallow sobs, not even taking in the way Hongjoong stumbled to follow you, almost like a zombie as he attempted to plead for you to reconsider, to force himself to accept your decision but ask how long you needed, but he couldn’t do that. He tried to picture himself in your shoes, seven years of pining only to be publicly humiliated by the person you were meant to spend the rest of your life with. He couldn’t blame you for not forgiving him, and he sure as hell couldn’t force you, so he let you go, trudging in the opposite direction to his two story apartment just to hide in his bedroom until he didn’t feel like dying anymore.

But as more days passed and it only got harder for Hongjoong. He barely left his room but also never slept, every song he created was played in minor scales to fit his now melancholy life. The charisma he typically exuded was hidden with puffy red eyes from crying and a yellow knit sweater a few sizes too large for his body but it was the only thing that comforted him at this point, especially when knowing you had reconnected with everyone but him.

After exactly one week of distancing yourself from the world, you caved and meet with the boys individually (sans Hongjoong), apologizing for needing space although they completely understood, but the way each interaction ended made your guts churn with guilt. ‘Stay safe, luna’, that’s how all of them addressed you before they left, leaving you filled with the desire to return to how things were before. You missed your friends and, the fact your mate was finally ready to claim you, only made you want to forgive Hongjoong sooner. But you needed to be your own person for once. You had seven years worth of relationships to catch up on and you wouldn’t let them keep you from that.

Except when they did.

You should’ve known it was risky letting them know you had a date so soon, just some other human on campus that had yet found his soulmate. They sounded happy for you, Wooyoung going so far to ask where you met and where your date would be and what time, giving suggestions on what to say and wear since it was “your first”. It was a sweet gesture, and you thought nothing of it, but that information meant everything to him which led to now, the boys huddled together in their living room with a slightly paler and sickly looking Hongjoong curled into the corner of their loveseat.

“So they’re going bowling tonight at 8:30? We could ask her about it tomorrow in case she’s into him because hyung isn’t looking too great.” Yeosang commented, everyone looking to Hongjoong as he managed to drown his entire body within the sweater, only his head visible as he stared ahead like some lost puppy.

“He’s just weak from not being around her for so long, but their bond is still there so he’s fine. But we have nothing to worry about. She won’t fall in love with him so don’t get too involved, she’ll just stop talking to us again if we meddle too much.” Seonghwa warned, a chorus of ‘Okays’ confirming their dismissal as they all stood to retreat to their bedrooms.

“Wait, who is she going out with anyways? There’s only 10 other humans at that school.” Mingi’s question cause everyone to freeze, the silence in the room contrasting with the faint answer Woooyung gave in their mindlink, Hongjoong turning to look at him with hurt and pain.

“Why didn’t you say it was Yugyeom?!”

“I did! Just not to you, until now because I forgot to tune you out.” He said shyly, flinching as Hongjoong ran past him and right out their front door, none of them sure of what to do at that point.

It was such a minor yet major detail. Kim Yugyeom was admittedly the most wanted person any of them could think of. Human girls wanted him, werewolf girls wanted him, most guys couldn’t help but stare whenever he passed by. He was gorgeous with eyes that sparkled every time he smiled. He spoke about his soulmate with so much passion despite never meeting her, following his words with how he’d treat any girl before her with the same love and care. It was a pick up line meant to hook any hopelessly romantic girl in, the sweetest way to say their relationship wouldn’t last. But this was Kim Yugyeom, they knew it was only meant with good intentions, not wanting to string someone along with the false hope they’d be together forever. And that’s exactly what you needed. To explore while knowing you’d always come back to Hongjoong. But that’s not what Hongjoong wanted. He didn’t want you dating anyone else, finding temporary happiness when he was supposed to give you a lifetime of it. And humans were more flexible with their soulmates, they had the privilege to move one without the pain or withdrawals of losing their mate. Werewolves just died if they were rejected, heartbreak and loneliness consuming them, so there was no telling how your heart would react to someone exactly like you. Maybe you’ll fall in love with him. Maybe he’ll abandon his soulmate for you once he learns how amazing you are. Maybe Hongjoong would die from lack of food and sleep before he even reached your apartment, which he was still sprinting full speed towards. It was only 7:30pm, meaning he had an hour before you and Yugyeom went out, but he didn’t have a plan. He had no idea what he was doing, but he needed to stop you before you found yourself in love with someone else.

It was like some scene in a drama, Hongjoong’s chest heaving as he finally came to a stop just outside your apartment. His body felt like giving out as he climbed the two flights of stairs to your door, only to find you waving shyly to Yugyeom just as he turned away, trying not to lock eyes with Hongjoong but Hongjoong’s eyes were only trained on you, yours finding his as a panicked look crossed your face. Should you look away? Go back inside? What was he even doing there? You never told the boys your address… You gasped as he approached you, swallowing hard as you tried to remain calm, but how could you stay calm when you finally got a good look at him?

“Oh my god, are you okay?” You didn’t hesitate to ask, stepping further from your door to examine him, reaching for his face only to stumble back to your original position. You were making great progress, you can’t do that now.

“I’ve been better, but even then I wasn’t fine.” He said with a dry chuckle, your lips curling into a fake smile to not show how much his appearance affected you. He looked like he was on the brink of death. You knew wolves would get sick without their mates, but was it really killing him? Were you killing him?

“Joongi-Uhm, Hongjoong, how about you sit down? You look like you’re going to faint.” You offered, stepping back to allow him inside, watching him stumble past you and straight to your sofa as if he owned the place.

It was such an awkward moment for you, watching the poor boy curl into himself as his sweater practically became his body, a sigh leaving your lips as you shut your door. Instead of healing yourself, you had to heal him. It was oddly pitiful but your instincts screamed at you to do it.

Hongjoong shut his eyes as he eased into your sofa, feeling more comfortable than he was in his own home, even more so with your scent invading his senses, your body warmth radiating onto his as you carefully took a seat, trying to figure out what to do.

“Do you need food, or water? Or a doctor?” You asked, the giggle he let out this time weak but still enough to make your heart beat a bit faster.

“I just need you near me.” He admitted.

You let out a squeak as he shamelessly fell into your lap, head comfortably resting against your thighs as he laid face up. You couldn’t stop your hand from easing through his unnaturally colored locks, melting at how soft they were, bottom lip trapped under your teeth as you had to fight off the desire to cup his face. You’ve never gotten this close to him and he wasn’t telling you to go away, instead letting out content purrs as he nuzzled closer to you, your eyes burning with unshed tears. Why couldn’t he just want you from the start? You’d would’ve been able to hold him like this all the time, to see him happy and healthy rather than a shell of his former self. But he didn’t want you, and now he was at your apartment just to keep himself from dying. It was silly to think he cared about you as much as he did himself.

“Of course you do.” You whispered, laughing bitterly as your hand left his hair, moving to his arm to ease him back up into a sitting position.

You couldn’t get past him no matter how hard you tried, nor did you want to, but every word he said, everything he’s done, followed you like a ghost haunting some poor unsuspecting soul. Why did you have to love someone who didn’t love you the same? Why was this your life?

“Can you just hold me a little longer? P-please?” He asked with a cute whine to his voice.

You sighed and grabbed his arm, gently pulling him back into his previous position, fingers massaging his scalp as he finally opened his eyes to look at you. You were beautiful, even with the frown lines etched into your face. He wonder how long they’ve been there, especially when he’s only seen you smiling. Maybe you spent your alone time more upset than he thought. Where you upset before he came? You couldn’t be when Yugyeom was here, no one could be upset with him around. Except Hongjoong. He felt a grudge building inside him just from the mere thought of him with you. He felt like interrogating you on what he was doing here in the first place and why you gave your address out to just anyone, but it wasn’t his place to ask and probably wouldn’t be for a while, but jealousy and rage was all he felt so any reasonable thinking was thrown out the window.

“I don’t want you to see Yugyeom anymore.” He said definitely, your eyes widened as you stared at him incredulously, an amused giggle leaving your lips.

“That’s not for you to choose, Hongjoong. I told you I need time-“

“Those seven years you’ve been waiting I couldn’t be with anyone else. I always compared every girl I met to you and none of them came close to being as perfect, now I have to watch you date some dance major with pretty eyes because I was an insecure dumbass? He has a soulmate, and he’s always going to choose them no matter how much you like each other, so why not save your feelings? I’ll wait as long as you want me to, but just don’t fall in love with anyone else.”

You tried so hard to hide your smile. This wasn’t something you typically liked, possessive guys being on the list of things you found annoying, but considering it was Hongjoong, his soft eyes hard and sharp as their hue seemed to go pitch black as his words were both sweet and demanding, made you fall in love just a little more than you already were. You wanted to take this as his confession, as a truce in your previous one-sided enemyship, to tell him that you told Yugyeom you couldn’t go out with him because you could only see yourself with Hongjoong, but you needed time. Not time to date and explore the way you thought he had, but to watch him work as hard as you did to prove he was ready and willing to love you. It was a little malicious, sure, but it was all in good fun. He’d always be your mate after all.

“I don’t know, Hongjoong, you really hurt me…”

“It hurt knowing I wasn’t with you.” Your smile cracked through, causing his own to appear, your game already over.

“And how do you think I felt? You think you can make up seven years worth of waiting so easily?”

You squealed as he shot up, magically seeming more alive than when he arrived, eyes full of life and his lips and cheeks the same rosy color as when you met him, hands warm and soft as he cupped your face.

“Good thing I have forever to do it.”

The silence was comfortable but unbearable, especially as he hesitated to lean closer, your lips puckering to guide him but he didn’t seem to be catching on and, when he did, you shifted back, laughing awkwardly as you stared at one another, both of you taking a deep breath as you finally closed the gap between you, a weird electric sensation you could only dream of as your lips slowly grew accustom to one another, moving so slow yet feeling so urgent. It was all still new to the both of you, romance and dating only now becoming part of your lives, but it was exciting knowing that you had years ahead of you to perfect it, your entire lives dedicated to loving one another. And it only took a seven year crush to get you here.

[procrastinatorimagines]

I Want Us Part 5

Fandom: Chicago PD / SVU

Series: I Want Us

Part 1 //  Part 2 // Part 3 // Part 4 // Part 5 // Part 6 // Part 7 // Part 8 // Part 9 // Part 10 (Final)

Pairing/s: Sonny Carisi x Intelligence!Reader

Warning/s: tw rape, murder, assault

Word Count: 1,623

Summary: The Intelligence Unit’s last case with Manhattan SVU had them flying out to New York to track down an abducted boy, and had Dectective Y/L/N and Detective Carisi growing close in the process. Now, a string of rape-murders in Chicago has SVU boarding the next flight out, believing the suspect to be the same man responsible for a set of identical crimes 10 years prior. As the case unfolds, Y/N and Carisi are brought back together, reigniting the spark between them.

As it turned out, it wasn’t too long at all. About six months after you’d closed your New York case, putting a child abductor behind bars where he belonged and reuniting a boy with his family, you received an urgent message from Voight requesting you all come in to the district. 

It was early on a Saturday morning following a few drinks at Molly’s the previous night, but it was so rare for Voight to call you in like this on your day off that you knew it had to be important. 

You were just multi-tasking getting dressed and downing an inordinate amount of caffeine when you got a phone call, ‘Detective Carisi’ flashing up on the screen as you paused, one leg in your trousers.

“Hey you,” you answered, putting the phone between your shoulder and ear so you could continue to get ready, curious about why he was calling. 

“Morning, sorry to call so early, but I figured you’d be awake,” he greeted, sounding like he was walking somewhere, the familiar sounds of traffic filling the background.

“Yeah I am, I’m about to head into work though, Voight’s wants us in for some reason, what’s up?” You informed him, looking around for your keys as you finished the last drops of your coffee.

There was a pause on the other end of the line, “Your Sergeant didn’t tell you? It’s why I’m calling actually, we’re coming to Chicago.” Now that did take you by surprise, Voight’s message hadn’t said anything about SVU, but you weren’t that surprised, it was Voight.

“Oh yeah? Know anything about the case?” You asked, your slight smile at the thought of seeing Carisi somewhat quashed by the fact that it meant something seriously bad was going on in your backyard. 

“A serial rapist that went dormant a few years back seems to have resurfaced in Chicago-” he explained, getting cut off by the sound of someone calling his name in the background, “Sorry, I’ve got to get to my flight, see you soon?”

“Yeah, let me know when you touch down. Oh, and Carisi?” You heard him pause, “this time you get to see what real pizza is supposed to taste like.”

He laughed on the other end of the line, “uh huh, we’ll see; bye Y/N.”

“Bye,” you hung up, a bit of a smile still on your face as you went about finishing up to leave your apartment. 

You and Carisi had kept in contact since you’d gotten back from New York. Nothing serious or anything, but you’d had a good time together and really seemed to connect on your short visit. The conversation had always felt natural, just chatting into the night for no other reason than just enjoying each other’s company. It was nice, whatever it was, and you were looking forward to seeing him in person again.

Throwing on your shoes and coat you headed out the door, making your way to the 21st. As much as you were looking forward to seeing Carisi, you had a job to do. 

-

You arrived at the 21st at the same time as Antonio, catching up to him on the steps as you entered. “Know what we’re doing here on this glorious Saturday morning?” He asked, gesturing to the brilliant sunshine and cloudless sky. 

Antonio had been planning a weekend with his kids, he’d been talking about it all week, and you felt a pang of guilt for not remembering until now. You might not have had plans, or much of an actual life, but that didn’t mean the rest of the unit, your partner especially, hadn’t had to drop a lot to come in today.

“Only that it’s important, SVU’s on their way,” you filling him in on what Carisi had told you as you waved good morning to a desk Sergeant you didn’t recognise. At least Trudy still got the weekend, you thought to yourself, but then even Hank Voight wouldn’t risk her fury at being asked to come in on a Saturday morning. 

The pointed look Antonio gave you had you rolling your eyes, but he was the only one who knew that you still kept in touch with Carisi, though the rest of them had given you hell the second you’d boarded that plane home from New York.

You buzzed the both of you in upstairs, not the first to arrive but not the last either as Jay, Hailey and Kim milled about the bullpen, helping Voight set up the board with your new case. 

“Need a hand?” Antonio asked after morning greetings were made, examining what was up on the board so far. You joined him after throwing your jacket over the back of your desk chair, picking up with folder Voight had left on your desk. Everyone had one laid out for them, so you flicked through it as the others spoke.

“Nah we’ve pretty much got it all set up, this is a pretty thin case considering, well, everything about it,” Jay answered, following his eyes to where he glanced at the board, a row of 9 young women, nearly identical in their pale skin, blonde hair, and delicate features. 

“Christ,” you muttered, looking from their images on the board to the crime scene photos in the file in your hand. All the women looked like porcelain dolls, their hair and make up immaculate, and all of them were dressed in different ball gowns, their hands laid over their chests with a single rose inclosed. 

“Not the start to the weekend you expected huh?” Kim commented grimly as Voight emerged from his office, two photographs, the rest of the unit filling in up the stairs.

“I think Jessica Connors would agree,” Voight answered, drawing the attention of the room as you greeted the others, sticking up two more photographs next to the other 9, who must have been the New York victims. 

The next two women looked nearly identical to the others, flicking to the back of the file to find their reports as Voight spoke. “She was found late last night, same M.O as the rest,” he told you all, pointing to the second photograph he’d stuck up. “This is Lily Hamilton, found the same way a week ago. The connection between the victims was made last night and a further connection was made with these other 9 women, all matching the M.O to the letter, including aspects not released to the press, and all coming from New York 10 years ago.”

“Special Victims?” Kevin asked, earning a nod from Voight.

“Captain Benson, Detective Carisi and Officer Tamin are already on their way,” he replied, “this is going to be a big case, the press is already picking up on the story, and the Commissioner thought it would be best if we took it given our history of working successfully with New York’s Special Victims Unit.” 

Your mind went instantly to Carisi but you shut him out, now wasn’t the time to think about seeing him ago. This case would have been before he’d joined the unit, but you figured maybe Captain Benson would know more, they might have even working it back in the day. 

“All the women, practically identical, went missing within a 6 month window, with gaps ranging from a couple of days to a couple of months. The only connection NYPD found was their appearance, and he seems to have kept them alive for varying lengths of time before killing them and dressing them up like this. They never found out where, but they weren’t killed in the woods. Signs of sexual assault were obvious, but actual damage to their body was minimal. The cause of death was a concoction of lethal drugs injected into their system, the contents of which were not released to be public but match both our cases and New York’s,” Voight relayed the basics.

“So how are we working this?” Hailey asked, perched up on her desk with her head rest on her chin, staring thoughtfully at the board in front of you all.

“I want Burgess, Ruzek and Antonio on the old New York cases, see if anything was missed or if any potential suspects have surfaced in Chicago recently. Atwater and Rojas will re-examine the first crime scene, I want every stone unturned. Upton and Halstead will interview both of the families, see what they were doing when they went missing, but remember, we only found Jessica last night, so tread carefully.”

You couldn’t help but notice one name not mentioned. “Sergeant-” You began to ask, slightly raising your hand. He turned to you before you could finish.

“Y/L/N, Benson requested you work with her unit for this case, seems you made quite an impression in the way you handled our last case with them, you’ll be heading to the most recent crime scene after you’ve all reviewed the case notes, meet them there when they touch down,” he explained, Antonio suppressing a smirk and others glancing at you curiously. 

You didn’t know what to say, so you nodded to let him know you understood, Benson’s comment about a change of scenery resurfacing in your mind. You hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but maybe she’d actually been serious. 

“What are you all still doing standing around, let’s get moving,” Voight ordered, snapping all of you into gear as you quickly pushed that from your mind too, heading back to your desk and ignoring the raised brow Antonio gave you.

You had a case to work and a killer to catch, and with Special Victims touching down in a couple of hours, whoever this rapist was, their luck had just run out. 

[peeterparkr]

perfidy;tom holland|1

chapter 1: the script

enemies to lovers au

story summary: Tom and you have been sworn enemies since you were young. However, you happened to be best friends with the twins. When one of your friends challenged you to break Tom’s heart, you immediately accepted to get back at him for all the times he’s hurt you. Old feelings might come back, while both of you try to go past your pride and your lies.

chapter summary: the first time he broke your heart 

pairing: tom holland x y/n

warnings: swearing, flashback in italics, juuuuuust slightly angsty but not really      

word count: 3.9k

teaser next chapter series masterlist wanna be tagged?

As you know, Limits of Desire is coming to an end so I’m starting this new series. I’m very excited for this! Maybe it’ll flop but I like the idea, so I hope you like it too!

You were running late. Your alarm had not gone off and you were currently running around your apartment. Your wet hair was leaving droplets around the kitchen as you quickly devoured a cereal and tried to apply your makeup at the same time. You needed to look presentable, you’d have an interview to be an official writer on the series you currently interned at. 

Everything was going too quickly this morning for your own convenience, it seemed like you were running out of time and it seemed like nothing was real. It didn’t feel real, but it was. You were trying to catch your breath as the excitement and nerves were tickling your skin.

A writing assistant/intern/coffee-runner was all you were by now, but you didn’t want to give up. Everybody’s got dreams and maybe yours were closer each day. You knew you’d have your big breakout one day, maybe it was closer than you could think of. 

But everything had seemed to be stopped suddenly, as soon as good things were coming down your way, life would bring in more and more pebbles to your path. Just like the day before, everything was ready but your car, however, had decided to stop working, and of course you had been stuck under the rain in London. 

Cue to the next day, to this morning when you had overslept and your nose was slightly red, and you had no transportation. You believed life hated you, but you ended up not worrying, everything would turn out to be fine even if all the odds were constantly turning around for you.

You had called your best friend, and he had assured you he’d be there to give you a ride. Seemed like he was the guardian angel that you so much needed in your life at the moment. Besides, you were excited to see him, you’d barely seen him in the last few months, his new girlfriend was taking him away from you. And you weren’t jealous, you’d still have Sam, but Sam was too busy with his own things so whenever you went to visit Harry you’d end up stuck with his older brother, whom, thank you very much, you despised. 

You heard the usual claxon honking outside your building, you grabbed your coat and bag and rushed downstairs. 

Harry would be picking you up and he’d probably give you a very needed pep-talk to get you ready.

You ran to the car as you felt butterflies inside your stomach. It’s alright to be nervous, you guessed, it was the opportunity of a lifetime. 

But life was once more proving to you how much it could suck. 

“I thought Harry was picking me up,” you stated as soon as you saw who was behind the wheel. Tom looked up from his phone and dedicated a corny smirk, you could even see a wink under his sunglasses. 

“He got some stuff to do, you’re stuck with me,” Tom said. 

“Was Sam not available?” You groaned. 

“Work.” 

“Haz?” You asked with hope. 

“He had a shoot.” 

“Paddy?” You were desperate. 

“Oh, fuck’s sake y/n, be thankful I came. I was about to leave, took you long enough, you know makeup won’t do you miracles.” 

You rolled your eyes as you opened the door and hopped into the car. You pulled out your phone to avoid any further conversation. 

“You know, I’m no uber,” he sassed. 

“I know, uber drivers are usually nice,” you snapped. 

Tom started the car. 

“I brought you tea,” he said as he eyed the cup with a smirk. 

You frowned staring at it. 

“I didn’t poison it, y/n,” Tom said condescendingly. 

You slowly picked it up, “Thanks,” sceptically, you took a sip. 

“I did spit on it, though,” Tom grinned. 

You widened your eyes and glared at him. “Oh fuck off, Tom.” 

“Oh, you’re gonna be that way?” Tom frowned. “You know I could pull over right here and you’d have to walk to your precious interview,” he snapped. 

You sighed. “I’m sorry,” you rolled your eyes. “Did you really spit on it?” 

“No, I’m kidding, y/n, gee you don’t have to take everything that serious,” He chuckled as you flipped him off. 

“I don’t trust you,” you admitted. 

“I know you don’t,” he laughed. “Which is the reason as to why I didn’t even have to do anything with the tea, your sole mind is doing the trick.” 

You remained quiet. The ride was going to be very long.

“Are you nervous?” He turned slightly to look at you.

“A little,” you confessed. 

“Ya goin’ to pitch a screenplay?” He asked.

You shook your head. “I...uh, not really.” 

“Good, they wouldn’t like your writing anyway,” Tom cornily input. “Bit cheesy.” 

You clenched your jaw. “They liked your acting, didn’t they?” 

He scoffed. “Remind me who’s got a career.” 

You stayed quiet and looked out the window. He pursed his lips. 

“I’m sorry,” he broke the silence, and it seemed real. “I was joking, you’ll do amazing.” 

“You really don’t have to try to make conversation, you know?” You said, slightly hurt. 

There was no easy way to explain your relationship with the Holland’s. With each member of the family, you had your history. 

Your mum was best friends with Nikki since diapers, they had been to school together, roommates at college and even their respective maids of honour. Naturally, they had expected you to be friends with all her kids. You were sure your mother and Nikki had had the fantasy of their kids playing in the garden, while they enjoyed a mean cup of tea. You were also sure they both had had the stupid fantasy of one of their kids falling in love growing up and becoming best friends with the others.

And it kind of went like that, growing up with them in your house, birthday parties with them, some Christmas, New Years. Always together. You knew them perfectly. Too much for your own convenience. 

You were friends, at least with the twins and Paddy. There had been no trouble with the twins, the three of you got along perfectly. Sam, Harry and you had been inseparable since you were young, even if you were slightly older than them. You had hit it off right away. Even if they were fighting between them, you’d always be alright with them.  It was a very innocent friendship. 

Especially with Harry, both of you had shown your interest in films and cinema from a very young age. You’d be seen together always with a camera on your hands and directing Sam and Tom to act. You’d come up with the stories and Harry would help you bring them to life. Usually, your homemade movies came out fine, even if they usually involved hours of you and Tom fighting. 

Especially since you lacked crew, the four of you would end up playing roles you never really liked. 

But Harry would always bring out the camera your parents would borrow and film everything. Thanks to that, you’d have a lot of memories of your childhood on video. Even the ones you didn’t want to remember. 

Tom always wanted to be in front of the cameras, but since you were the only girl at the time, you’d often be paired up with him. That’s when you stopped coming up with romantic stories, you really didn’t want to even hold hands with Tom, 

Tom, Tom was complicated. Older than you, and extremely annoying. You had been “ friends” when you were kids, but he seemed to always have a reason to bother you. It was extremely annoying. When you were only toddlers, you got along fine, but of course what problems could toddlers possibly have. 

But you grew up, and Tom possibly, no, he definitely was the worst kid you could have ever possibly imagined. He never wanted to share anything, he would always whine and he’d throw tantrums. And he’d pull your hair and he wouldn’t let you play and he’d go running to his mum to cry to complain if you ever won while playing together. He, very maturely, would stick his tongue out whenever you spoke, and he’d push you, and he’d mimic you. Now, now, if you were completely honest you weren’t good friends, you’d both always end up on the floor fighting each other. You would always pride yourself on being able to take him down. More than once you had been on top of him, after an innocent and childish wrestle. 

However, you were getting tired of never being able to have 5 minutes without him insulting or bothering you. Because even with everything, you found the boy cute. Whenever he wasn’t bothering you, he was nice, he was remotely kind. It was cute. It wasn’t that you guys didn’t get along, well, you didn’t, but it seemed that Tom wasn’t able to be decent around you. 

He had his good moments, like whenever he would be a gentleman and give you the first cookie, or whenever he would cut a flower and give it to you, but of course, that was usually followed by dirt being thrown at your face, as if he was trying to make a point. 

And he’d constantly confuse you and your stupid little heart, which would make you blush whenever he decided to be remotely kind. 

And you cursed the day your mother and Nikki had said the following words; 

“He bothers you because he has a crush on you,” Nikki had said. 

“That’s true, boys want attention and the only way he’s getting your attention is by being annoying. He likes you.” 

And being the stupid 6 yeared old you were, you changed the way you viewed Tom, and finally became completely foolishly smitten with him. Very stupid decision. Because, really, whoever came up with that theory was very stupid. Why would you bother someone you like? And why would people go on around telling girls that guys treating them badly would mean they loved them. It was fucked up, wasn’t it? Of course, now you were older and you didn’t believe in any of that bullshit. Because at the end of the day, that’s all it was, pure horseshit. 

But of course, you didn’t know well back then, so after they told you Tom had a crush on you, you, it started, the stupid decision to crush on him more. And you started to act differently, and initially, he noticed. He would ask why you would wear more dresses rather than the tomboy look you loved to have when younger, and he’d ask why you had stopped being fun. Because of course, you’d take longer to brush your hair and now you wouldn’t be playing soccer with him as much. You’d still let yourself wrestle him every now and then because that meant you could, if you took him down, hold his hands. 

You were very stupid. 

And you took your shot, because not only were you stupid, you had the balls. Which, looking back at it, only made you more of an idiot. But one day, just as you’d taken him down, and as he was trying to push you off of him, you decided to try something different. 

“Calm down,” you had said just before you kissed his cheek, making the boy turn red and frozen to shock. 

You hadn’t said anything else and you had quietly left him. 

He had changed after that. It seemed like he had caught on to that, and he had stopped in a way, bothering you as much. Of course, he’d always bring in his childish games like burping in front of you, or proving how masculine and ‘better’ he was whenever you’d play anything. He’d still get angry at you whenever you beat him in a videogame or any game at all. 

But something had changed. He’d now be nicer, in his own particular way. He’d be smiling more often and he’d give you more hugs, like children do. He’d let you use his favorite car, or let you be spiderman if you played. 

Tom Holland had broken your heart several times throughout your life, that didn’t mean each time it hurt less, but you got used to it. You weren’t going to let him get near your heart ever again, or so you had promised yourself. 

The first time he’d ever hurt you, you had been young. He was 10, you were 8. And you had taken the guts to finally tell him how you felt, in your own particular way. You’d told the twins, 7 back then, to help you. 

And you had planned it perfectly, a new homemade movie. Your script consisted of you telling him you had a crush on him, and you had the guts to even write a kiss. And you were going to film it, and to this day you remembered it, and even if you didn’t want it, it was on camera. 

“Alright, so the princess is going to…save the prince!” You explained to Tom. “Because she is in love with him!” 

“Why does it have to be a princess?” Tom frowned. “Why not be a superhero! Besides, it should be me who saves the damsel!” Tom pushed. 

“This is my movie, Thomas,” you complained. 

“This is my movie, Thomas,” he mimicked. He groaned. “Why can’t I be the dragon? Why does Sam get to be the dragon?” 

“Because you’re the prince!” You pushed. 

He took the script off your hands. “What does it even say?” He asked as he read it. “This is stupid!” 

“No, it’s not!” 

Tom frowned. “Why would we kiss?” He wrinkled his nose as he stuck his tongue out. 

“Because we like each other,” you explained. 

“Why would anyone like you?” He sounded disgusted. “You’re ugly and stupid and you’re you!” 

“Tom, Tom,” Harry said behind the camera. “It’s a movie, it’s pretend!” 

“I don’t want to be in this movie anymore, less with her,” he frowned. “You’d have to be pretty stupid if you think I’d kiss you.” 

“Maybe I am.” 

“Everything you write is very stupid.” Because Tom and you had had boundaries, and he knew he was crossing the most important one. 

“Tom that’s very mean,” you said. 

“I’d rather eat a frog than kiss you.” 

“She did this because she likes you,” Sam admitted, with a giggle. An innocent stunt a child pulls. “Tom and y/n!” Sam sang. 

Tom walked past you. “Disgusting.” 

And he left, and Harry pointed the camera at you. Your face was conflicted, and confused and sad. 

Your first official heartbreak was on camera, and of course, you never watched it. You guessed your current feelings for Tom were derived form that one moment. You had been cold after that. And that was the first time you even truly cried because of him. But you were 8, it was stupid to cry over a boy. 

Your mum understood why you had distanced yourself from him, for a while, at least. Even Nikki understood, so for a while, you didn’t visit the Holland’s household, and you’d only invite the twins. 

And you were very petty and explicit if you ever were with the three brothers you’d use his words: “I’d rather eat a frog than have you come over.” 

And the movies were ceasing, at least for a bit. But Tom did apologize, and you had been sure Nikki had forced him.

 But he had come to your house with flowers on your 9th birthday and apologized, and you were sure he had written and learned the apology. But you were still very angry, and it wasn’t even because he had rejected you, it didn’t even have to do with the fact he had dared to reject you in the meanest way he could, but you were angry he had insulted your writing. From a very young age, your pride was even more 

“I’m very sorry, y/n, I didn’t mean it, I didn’t mean your writing was stupid and I am sorry for calling you all that, I was the one being stupid,” he had said. “And I really want to stay friends with you, because I really like you as a friend. And you look pretty in that dress.” 

You had looked at the flowers, gently took them in and said: “I like the flowers but I don’t like you and I don’t want to be friends but you can have cake, I guess.” 

And he was slightly upset, you could tell. And then you walked away and placed the flowers on the bin. You were dramatic. 

But he had had his revenge right there on your birthday, one stupid insignificant revenge, he had ‘accidentally’ tripped on your dress and dirtied your dress with cake. 

And it had started, the war. Tom and you were constantly fighting and you were sure you were now sworn enemies. It started innocent, from little pranks to insults, to very hurtful pranks that had had you crying. But you were hanging out together again, at least in the same room, and now the videos weren’t movies anymore, they were just you and Harry sillying with the camera, or sometimes Sam. Even Tom. Creating memories, you guessed. You filmed everything, birthday parties, the first time either of you got drunk, proms, studying sessions and successes. 

Tom and you were friends sometimes, sometimes you weren’t, sometimes he’d act like more than friends which would make you very untrusting.

There had been several more times when Tom had hurt you and he’d later apologize. It seemed like that’s the only thing he knew how to do, apologize without meaning it. Because an apology wears out when you keep on committing the same crimes. 

But you’d always end up believing in him again, and he would pull the exact thing he’d always done, give you flowers and then throw dirt at your face. 

But he was so complicated, so complicated. But you guessed your feelings were more complicated. You hated him, you couldn’t stand him. Whenever he was around you’d get annoyed. But there were sometimes, just like you were kids that you’d end up having nice times, like when he’d give you one of his favorite cookies, or when he let you play with his favorite controller. 

Because he’d done things that were nice, very significant things. Like the time your boyfriend had broken up with you hours before prom and Tom had shown up at your house, tux and everything, maybe it was slightly awkward at first, but he’d been there to cheer you up. He had been decent then, even nice. You had even believed, for a bit, that he could like you. Of course, he stopped talking to you the very next day and then proceeded to say that you had pathetically begged him to go to prom with you. Even if Harry had on camera how Tom had picked you up and given you flowers, he denied it, saying you had been the one to ask him. 

Yes, he was still an asshole. 

Yet you never seemed to learn your lesson, he always managed to warm your heart just slightly and make you forget, at least for five minutes that you hated him . You never learned that he’d always end up hurting you, just like right now, you were in the car with your stomach hurting from listening to yet more hurtful words, even if he knew he had crossed the line he shouldn’t cross. And you wished you were somewhere else instead, because he knew he had poked on what he shouldn’t have poked, and you knew he was sure you wanted to cry. But it seemed like he loved doing that, his favourite sport. He loved to play with your heart. 

Because Tom and you had an off and on relationship, the relationship being enemies. But sometimes, if you were true to yourself and to each other, you were nice. Just like right now, even in his own rude way, he was still driving you. 

“I really do mean it, y/n,” Tom pushed again. 

You ignored him. 

“Y/N.” 

“What? You meant I suck at writing?” 

“I meant you were amazing,” he whispered. “I’m sorry.” 

“You’re always sorry,” you sighed. 

Tom bit his lip. “You know, you could...uh, send me one in an I could help you get to producers, or we could write one together, or I could produce one-” 

“Thanks but I--” 

“I know you want to make a name by yourself,” he sighed. “But I could help you in.” 

“I know, I know, thanks, Tom,” you were merely saying this  because you wanted to avoid any further conversation. 

“And—uh, I’m really sorry for last week when—“

“Don’t bother, don’t worry,” you quickly silenced him before he could continue with the subject. You really didn’t want to get your head thinking on anything but the interview. Probably Tom was trying to sabotage you and that was the reason why he was bringing it up.

He played music. It seemed extremely awkward. But you didn’t want to give in to any kind of conversation, because if you did then you’d have to understand if today you were going to be decent or if you were going to be rude. 

You didn’t want to be anything, you didn’t have the energy to fight with him and you didn’t have the energy to pretend and be nice. It usually was his call, you just played along unless you were in the mood for something. It was either fight or flight with him. 

His phone rang, and he gulped as he saw it was Harry calling. He answered it with the free hands mode anyway. 

“Tom—Where’s the car? Fuck, I overslept, I didn’t set my alarm.” Harry seemed rushed. 

“I took it,” Tom explained. 

“No wait, I forgot I had to drive y/n—Shit I’m gonna call her.” 

“No need man,” Tom cleared his throat. 

You raised your brows. 

“Tom, fuck, I know you guys are very angry again but this is very important to her, like—“

“I know,” Tom seemed anxious listening to his brother. 

“I need the bloody car, don’t be an asshole,” Harry stated. 

“You don’t need it,” Tom pushed. 

“Tom—“

“Hi, Harry,” you chipped in. “He’s driving me.” 

“Wait—what?” Harry was shocked. 

“I was up early, tried to wake you up but since I saw you were definitely not waking up I grabbed the keys and I’m driving her,” Tom explained. 

You raised your brows, perplexed. So today, he had decided it, he was your friend. 

“What?” It seemed that Harry was as confused as you were. 

“Yeah, I’m here,” you said.  

“Y/N I’m so sorry I completely forgot last night to set it,” Harry apologized. 

“No worries,” you chuckled. “I overslept, too.” 

“Are you being held against your will? Is Tom not trying to kill you?” Harry asked. 

“No, I’ll do that later,” Tom laughed. 

“Well—uh, I’ll—“ 

“See you later, man,” Tom hung up quickly. 

You stared at him. “I don’t want to know what you’re up to. But now I’m even more scared of being in this car with you.” 

“Can’t I be nice?” Tom smirked. 

“No, you can’t,” you stated. “But—thank you.” 

And you would believe Tom was being nice, but you knew that he wasn’t doing this to be your friend, he was probably feeling guilty about last week. This was just another empty apology. 

But you could live with it today.

teaser next chapter series masterlist wanna be tagged?

I’ll be using the tag list I used for LOD, please DO TELL ME IF YOU DON’T WANT TO BE TAGGED NO HARD FEELINGS!!

tag list   @clairesrainbow @underoosmarvel @wronglanemendes  @itsvianny   @jake-and-amy-are-married @starlightfound   @kill-the-stereo @originalpinkpowerranger @spidxrparkxr @mukesnugget @anxiousdesignerdancerbandlover @organicpurplepants @happywolves81  @nedthegay @skylar-mendes  @sentimentalquackson  @savannah0111 @spidermansmj14 @soccerstud004 @marinaabernardii @applenter @silver-winter-wolf    @dark-infernal-instruments @claredolphinbear24 @bookgirlunicorn  @tomshufflepuff @avengersgirllorianna @nevertoofarfromivar @saintlavrents @herofiennestiffinashardinscott.  @tomzfrog @tohollandback @morganhoran1671 @awkwardfangirl2014 @spideysimpossiblegirl  @everythingbooknerd  @xapham @xapham @xxtomxo @tomhollandisagod @danicarosaline @laurfangirl424 @vintageroses1014516 @cinnamon-roll-peter   @the-lost-fairy-tale @lala-florez @fufaation15 @healthyassdonut    @ilcveyou3000 @xxtomxo @socorroann @muffinmari25   @cassindeansass  @rogers-obsessed-barnes-curious @southsidespidey @nathaliabakes @nathaliabakes @marvelstuck @embrace-themagic @bradfordbantams @sanniegirl1214 @gioandreolli  @peterpandco @fairytaleparker @underooling @griff1ndor @chubby-cheek-calum @thatweirdomimic @avengersgirllorianna @reginalaufeyson-holmes @better-daisy @yeahimcrying @allmonstersxarehuman @spider-manholland @clairesrainbow @georiaang @sebxstianbarnes @kissingtrutharchives  @snoopy3000 @prettymessygurl @spideyparkerstark @fanfic-4-you @lexshead @officiallyunofficialperson @mannien @whitewolfandthefox @melodiclovesong @bizzlepotter @localfangirlx  @xxpeachyxo @acceptance07 @witchything @witchything @swaggyspiderman @localfangirlx  @queengemsworld @liberty01 @stiles-banshees @itsjusttor @stretchkingblog97 @annathesillyfriend @dangerousluv1 @tomshufflepuff @thewayilookatbacon @petersdiaries @emjaywrites @swaggyspiderman @infamousmany @jungeunave @bullshitstars23 @ispiderdudei @calhtlland @literalfsngirltrash @quacksonhq @it-is-rebel-owl-ma-dudes @desir-ae @pxkajesus @unbelievableholland @peterporkpie @justanotherusername80 @smolpeachees @thenoddingbunny-blog @quackeroos @spideyyeet @astoldbydanid @hollandcreep @itscaminow @milly7110 @iriaaarb @laurieteddy @rubberducky-jrr @rebekkah4766 @farfromtom @fancyxholland @seaveyheartful @oh-whatabeautiful-parker @coveredinthemessimade​  @shameless-self-promo-of-a-shrub @dreaming-lia @thatdamjoke​ @annathesillyfriend​ @love-sick-blues @witchything​

[jasonsgrayson]

Jasonsgrayson’s Guide To All Things Spideytorch

Hi guys, I know I do rec lists sometimes, and I wanted to do one for Spideytorch since I just got into it and a lot of the fics on AO3 are really great. Theres a ton of fics here, of all shapes and sizes and ratings, and in no particular order as always, so take your pick.

Above the cut are my all time favorite spideytorch fics, below the cut are a mess of totally awesome fics that you guys should really take a look at. 

If you want to save some time just look at any of Traincat’s and lamujerarana’s spideytorch stuff. They’re amazing. 

Kind, Sober, and Fully Dressed by Traincat Rated M - 8,685 words Is this my favorite spideytorch fic of all time? Yes. Is it one of my favorite fanfics of all time in general? Also yes. Are the Johnny Storm sex tape related events of this fic cannon? Yes they absolutely fucking are. Read it, I beg of you.

"Pete, my man, my completely platonic best bro," he muttered to himself in the voice he reserved solely for mocking Johnny Storm. "Come over and watch my maybe sex tape! Fun times! Just two guys hanging out -" he slammed the bathroom door maybe a little harder than necessary "- watching the one guy's celebrity sex tape! Good clean fun!" Mrs. Moretti downstairs banged on her ceiling with a broom. Everything was coming up Parker tonight. -- Or, in which Peter proves himself tragically unable to take a hint. Post-Amazing Spider-Man Digital #17, aka the time Johnny asked Peter to watch his sex tape.

Lost and Found by Traincat Rated E - 8,154 words Is it another fake relationship fic? Yes. Is it my second favorite spideytorch fic? Also yes.

“A field trip?” Peter said. “Just a little family outing,” Sue said, passing him a knife. He took it and obediently started helping her cut the crusts off a small mountain of sandwiches. “We thought you might like to join us.” “I mean, it sounds great,” Peter said. “But work is a little swamped and somehow whenever I take off with you guys I always manage to go missing for two months. My landlady does not love it.” “We really could use the extra set of hands. Also,” Sue said, “someone needs to keep an eye on Johnny.” Peter groaned. -- Peter's spider-sense starts acting up on a Future Foundation field trip. He and Johnny, recently returned from the Negative Zone, have to pretend to be married. These two things are related.

Work Song by Traincat Rated E - 50,953 words I will never get tired of this one, I’ve read it so many times it’s one of my absolute favorites. Basically Peter is Johnny’s sugar daddy.

Peter Parker has his company, more money than he knows what to do with, and the echoes of a ghost in his head. Johnny Storm's lost his family, his home, and is clinging to the remnants of his old life. -- "I’m here with you. That’s not nothing, right?” “No,” Peter agreed. It definitely felt like something, all the way up here with Johnny so close they were almost touching. Peter looked at him, at the full lips set in a slight frown, the sharp curve of his jaw, the way his hair fell across his forehead. He fit all the dazzling lights around them, warm like sunshine even in the middle of the night. “Beautiful,” Peter said before he could stop himself.

River Eyes by perissologist Rated M - 22,749 words I love it because Noir is my shit, especially when it’s done this freaking well.

If Jonathan Storm was the movie star Betty said he was, he looked the part: Hair like spun gold in perfect curls atop slender features, with eyes bluer than the Hudson in midsummer. “Normally I’d ask what a dame like you is doing in a place like this, but”—Peter cast a glance up his guest—“you’re not exactly a dame, are you?” Storm flashed a weak smile. “I can be, if you want.” Peter raised an eyebrow. Storm turned beet-red. “I mean. I’m. I didn’t mean that.” Storm huffed and shoved out a hand. “Johnny Storm.” --- It's 1933, Peter Parker has just shut down a Nazi eugenist and lost one of his oldest friends, and life in the big city is as joyless and hardscrabble as ever. Then Johnny Storm, movie star with a soul made of sunshine, walks through Peter's door, asking for his help. The rest, as they say, is history.

Eight Arms to Hold You by metaphoracle Rated T - 15,071 words I love it because it has Namor the Sub Mariner and fake relationships and Atlantis, and a really lecherous octopus, and really what’s not to like?

When Spider-Man’s best friend Johnny Storm asks him for help in tactfully declining a marriage proposal from the King of Atlantis, Namor the Sub-Mariner, the only solution is for him to volunteer Daily Bugle photographer Peter Parker to pretend to be dating Johnny at the Engagement Banquet in Atlantis. Sure, it’s technically lying to his best friend about who Peter Parker is, but the important thing is that Johnny won’t have to marry Namor, and if Peter gets some photographs of Atlantis to sell, what’s the harm? Peter thought the most difficult thing about this scenario was going to be making sure Johnny didn’t figure out Peter is actually Spider-Man. Having to pretend he wasn’t actually falling in love with his best friend never crossed his mind. Featuring fake relationships, forced (almost) marriages, identity porn, traditional Atlantean clothing, and amorous cephalopods.

Keep Throwing Things and Slamming the Door by Traincat Rated T - 7,817 words I think I’ve read this one a half a dozen times already, it’s so good/funny. She-Hulk’s in it, and she is fabulous.

Waking up in a stranger's bed is not how superhero Johnny Storm planned on spending the morning after the night before. From now on… A) No more secret hookups with Peter Parker—he's the last man on earth Johnny'd want to share a room with, never mind a king-size bed. B) Maintain a professional persona at all times. After all, he's a photographer for New York's #1 Superhero Bashing Rag and Johnny's perfect tabloid fodder. C) Keep friends close but enemies closer. Easier said than done, with She-Hulk away on her honeymoon and Spider-Man avoiding him.

The Boy From New York City by Traincat Rated E - 84,499 words I really love this one. Of all the fics on this list I would say this is a spideytorch must read, a true classic.

Central City, California is beautiful, but it’s not where Johnny wants to be – and he’s not who he wants to be, either. Inspired by the recent return of Spider-Man, Johnny convinces the newly minted Fantastic Four to return to the Baxter Building, the site of the incident that gave them their powers. But not everything is what it seems, and worse yet, Spider-Man wants nothing to do with the Human Torch. In the wake of Gwen’s death, Peter has finally put the mask back on, but nothing’s the same as it once was, and the thrill has gone out of Spider-Man. The Fantastic Four’s arrival only makes everything worse. The Human Torch is good looking, he’ll give him that much, but Peter has no plans of making friends. A series of strange attacks and a fateful encounter on the docks may not leave him much choice.

‘cause I can’t compete with your boyfriend (he’s got 27 tattoos) by Traincat Rated T - 13,495 words Who doesn’t love a high school au? I know I do. 

The thing was, Peter was stuck with Johnny forever, basically. The super glue of unintentional friendship. It was cosmic, fated, and incredibly annoying. Johnny Storm might have been a handbasket of bad decisions and personality defects wrapped up with an incredible smile, but he was Peter’s handbasket of bad decisions -- of which Daken was still the worst one Johnny had ever made, and Johnny had made some truly bad decisions. -- Johnny dates Daken, Peter has a crisis, and everything works out okay in the end.

All That We Were by paramountie Rated G - 10,298 words Here’s a super cute stuck in an alternate universe kid fic, if that’s your thing (It sure as hell is mine).

“What do you think the deal is anyway?” Peter asks. “My money’s on dreamscape.” “Twenty bucks says it’s an alternate universe.” “Nuh-uh, pal. It’s a dream for sure. Or a nightmare.”

The Spider Prince and the Morning Star by Traincat Rated M - 24,337 words Every ship needs a great fairytale fic, and this is a phenomenal fairytale fic. It’s sort of a Beauty and the Beast/Eros and Psyche tale and I loved it so much.

“Folks like to say there’s a monster that lives in the forest,” Old Swenson said the next day when Johnny told him his story. Johnny worked in his shop, when Swenson could afford to pay him. He fixed things, clocks and broken carriages. Johnny wasn’t good for much, but he had a hand for repairs. “And that it’ll grant you wishes, for a price. Folks will say anything, after a drink or five. Don’t listen to that kind of foolish talk, Johnny.” When Johnny makes a deal with the monster that lives in the woods – himself for his sister’s happiness – he doesn’t expect the giant spider to take him to a beautiful castle, or to reveal himself a cursed prince. There’s only one catch: he’s only a man in the darkest night, and Johnny can never see his face.

Better in Picture by weekend_conspiracy_theorist Rated T - 12,218 words I love this one, it’s freaking hilarious. It really uses Matt, Foggy, and Peter to their full comedic potential.

In which Peter Parker has no interest in sleeping with Matt Murdock, no matter what anyone seems to think.

you keep me hanging on by lamujerarana Rated E - 19,031 words Here’s a great friends with benefits to lovers fic, because there must always be at least one.

Johnny, reeling from his breakup with Medusa and the loss of his entire family, turns to Peter for comfort...that eventually involves casual sex that isn't so casual for Johnny, since he just so happens to be in love with Peter. Everything becomes incredibly complicated. This story takes place between the events of Inhumans vs X-Men #6 and Uncanny Avengers v3 #20.

Always Glad You Came by aloneintherain Rated T - 13,290 words Mistaken Identity or boys being dumb, take your pick.

Spider-Man is a relatively new, controversial vigilante, and Johnny has a crush the size of the Empire Building. The Four - operating under the assumption that Spidey is an adult - do not approve. “I just happen to think Spider-Man's cool,” Johnny says, matter-of-factly. “A hero can think another hero is cool without making it weird. I admire his aloofness. And his badass-ness.” “His aloofness,” Ben repeats, chuckling into his mug of beer. It’s roughly the size of Johnny’s head. “Yeah, sure, I bet that’s all your admire, right?”

When Peter Met Johnny by Measured Rated T - 14,437 words A paparazzi fic!

Peter takes up additional paparazzi work to pay the bills, which inevitably leads to an angry flaming man, a broken camera, an accidental friendship and a whole lot more than he bargained for.

Tied to the Wait and Sees by Mizzy Rated T - 14,283 words This is hilarious, poor Johnny’s trying his best. 

Johnny Storm's in love. With Spider-man. Except no one seems to even believe Johnny when he tells them. Everyone thinks he's totally joking. What a buzzkill. Even his bff doesn't react supportively, which is rude, disrespectful, and completely awkward when Johnny walks into a time anomaly and wakes up in the future married not to his beloved Spider-man, but to Peter Parker. Huh, no wonder Parker reacted so badly to the news.

Say You Will, Say You Won’t by Traincat Rated T - 15,563 words Peter in this one is hilarious, it’s perfect characterization.

Johnny Storm found him on a Friday afternoon, wearing the kind of beseeching look that filled Peter with dread. “I need to ask you a favor,” he said. “No,” Peter said, swinging away. -- Peter and Johnny get married, really-not-really.

Tales From The Black Pages by Traincat Rated T - 19,019 words A soulmate words fic, because, again, there must always be at least one. And it’s a really great one, too. 

Peter Parker was born with his words. Johnny Storm's been sure his will be said sarcastically since he was a child. Everything else more or less happens according to plan. A first words soulmate AU.

Weaving Spiders Come Not Here by Mizzy Rated T - 13,809 words Mistaken identity or boys being dumb, I think I can guess which one it is. 

People are treating Peter oddly. Really oddly. It turns out they're being nice to him because they think his boyfriend cheated on him. …with Spider-Man. It's honestly quite tiring pretending to be jealous of yourself.

Peter Parker’s Guide to Secret Identities by coocoocachu Rated T - 93,789 words Johnny is a teen heartthrob, enough said. 

“Oh wow, it’s the Human Torch, Johnny Storm.” MJ whispered to Peter. Peter just hummed back. Maybe it was a little childish to be upset but he totally had that thing with the weird mutant moth under control last night. Peter leaned against the wall while MJ milled around talking to people trying to figure out what the big scoop was here. ‘There always has to be a reason for an exclusive, Peter!’ she had said. Yeah, Peter thought, and the reason is Johnny Storm loves the attention. Peter fiddled with his camera. Action shots were more his thing, particularly somehow managing to take action selfies of himself as Spider-Man or a few of his supercharged enemies. Pictures of egotistical superhero’s shirtless? Not really his area.

stranger danger by I_mNotYourEnemy Rated T - 10,600 words Mistaken identity or boys being dumb 3: Grindr Identity

pete is this a bad time to ask who this is?? Hothead Is this not Grindr Peter? pete nope Hothead Ahhh fuck Sorry for the unsolicited dick pic pete that’s alright, ive seen worse -- In which Johnny gets a username wrong, Peter gets a dick pic, and MJ gets a headache just thinking about the situation.

Turn Me On, Turn Me Off by blue_jack Rated E - 5,158 words Honestly the summary speaks for itself here.

“I have. A vibrator. Stuck. In my ass,” Johnny said, enunciating clearly and concisely while staring him straight in the eyes, and Peter didn’t know who was blushing harder, but he was sure they were in a race to see who could match the color of his mask first.

Flip a Coin - Choose Both Sides by the_overlord Rated T - 10,993 words Johnny is president of the Spider-Man fanclub. Just- that’s it. 

Wherein Johnny Storm gets given a wrong number and ends up the President of Spiderman's fanclub. Things get a little more complicated from there.

Tanglewood Tree by amaronith Rated E - 6,901 words Another fuckbuddies to lovers au.

but love is a light in the sky, and an unspoken lie, and a half whispered prayer Or: what happens when Johnny becomes fuck buddies with the guy he's been in love with for years.

let the choir bell sing by gottalovev Rated E - 16,457 words Another fake relationship, this one set abroad in Venice.

Johnny and Spider-Man are on assignment at the Carnival of Venice, and asked to be present at an influential politician's costumed party. When he becomes worried that said politician wants to match him up with his daughter, Johnny announces he's secretly married to Spider-Man. They can totally fake being secret husbands for a few days! Not a problem, not even when they have to share a bed. After all, they are good buddies; it's not as if Johnny would have to sleep with someone he has a crush on, like Peter Parker.

Stay With Me - by oneshinyapple Rated E - 2 works - 29,958 words total This is a great verse which is also part of the Like Gravity verse, which I haven’t read all the installments of. 

Movie nights, fighting alien dinosaurs, and falling in love with your best friend — one of these may be a worse idea than the others.

A Melody That’s Calling Your Name by gleesquid Rated T - 32,731 words Another great high school au.

When a boy gets trapped in the Baxter Building fire, Peter must make a quick choice: let the boy die terrified in the flames or gain his trust by showing him what's underneath his mask. In the end, it's no choice at all. But when that same boy shows up on the first day of senior year, Peter finds himself caught in a spiraling lie. The next thing he knows, he's got a boyfriend, he's starring in a musical, he's going to rich kids' costume parties, and he's realizing that maybe there are worse things than having someone know your biggest secret. You'd think high school couldn't get any weirder than a radioactive spider bite, but that's just the Parker Luck.

hang a shining star upon the highest bough by lamujerarana Rated E - 15,386 words A lovely little Christmas fic for that time of year

The first time Johnny and Peter meet up at the Statue of Liberty on Christmas morning, Johnny's kind, thoughtful, and supportive to Peter at a time when Peter, still mourning the loss of Gwen Stacy, really needs it. Peter doesn't know how he'll ever pay him back for that, but he's sure going to try. Or, Peter tries his best, throughout various Christmases, to be there for Johnny when he needs it.

take my medicine, treat you like adrenaline by gleesquid Rated E - 2,763 words The one and only Spiderverse fic on this list, for when you’re in that Peter B. Parker mood.

“Every time I even think about dating again, it’s like, ‘oh, there’s MJ’s nose,’ or ‘hey, she has MJ’s eyes.’ I don’t know how to not see her in everyone. I don’t know if I want to.” “You ever figured you’re maybe barking up the wrong tree?” Peter furrowed his brow. “Explain.” “Well, ya know.” Harry sipped his martini. “There’s a larger dating pool out there than you’d think. With people who will not remind you of MJ.” Or: After the divorce, Peter tries for a rebound.

Save a Horse-Adjacent Alien by Traincat Rated E - 3,915 words Poor Johnny made a terrible actor. 

He was minding his own business, sitting in a movie theater in Queens, snacking on popcorn and wondering how many times he could make fun of Johnny Storm’s hair before Aunt May asked why he was so fixated, when the trailers ended, the lights went out, and Johnny appeared on the screen. Peter’s mouth went dry, and it wasn't because of the popcorn. Maybe it was the distance the movie gave him, Johnny up on a screen instead of right in front of him, warm and bright and frighteningly human. Maybe it was how endearingly terrible of an actor he was. Maybe it was the lighting. It was, Peter thought, probably the cowboy boots.

Bring That Summer��by pommenade Rated T - 15,070 words Ahh social media, get’s you every time.

Juggling the duties of Spider-Man as well as his life as CEO of Parker Industries was easy. Peter Parker had years of practice. Add in a clandestine relationship with Johnny Storm and things got a bit more complicated. Add in Johnny's Instagram account, and suddenly Peter's life is impossible.

Educational Purposes by Traincat Rated E - 5,510 words A sexy little married fic

“I just,” Johnny said, flicking his gaze up at Peter through his eyelashes. He pressed the pen to his bottom lip and lowered his voice, pornographic. “I really need to pass your class, Professor Parker.” Peter snorted. “Cute, Johnny.” “Please, Professor Parker?” Johnny continued, and suddenly Peter realized that he wasn’t just joking around. “Isn’t there anything I could do to improve my grade? Anything at all?”

[thebiasrekkers]

Make It Right [BTS Mafia!AU]

Plot: “It’s always darkest before the dawn…” It’s a dog-eat-dog world in Seoul, South Korea. One has to dwell in the shadows in order to reach for the light. What are you willing to sacrifice in order to feel the sunlight on your face? What will it take to drag you back into darkness? How long will the journey be to make it right?

Rating: NC-17 // NSFW

Genre: Series | Mafia!AU | Crime!AU | Angst | Romance/Fluff | Smut

Pairings: Jin x OC | Taehyung/Hoseok x OC | Yoongi/Jungkook x OC

Warnings: Graphic Violence (bloody violence), Heavy Language, Angst, Slow Burn, Smut

Additional Warnings: Actual smut (strip tease, heavy foreplay, fingering, hand job, body worship, pre-cum), allusion to kidnapping

Previous Chapters: Prologue 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48

Links: FAQ || BTS Masterlist || Admin E’s AO3 || Admin E’s WP || [ REQUESTS ARE OPEN ]

Word Count: 4,315

Tag List: @prisczero​, @pinkpjmin​, @btsaudge​, @flowerwrites06​, @unoriginal-username15432, @halussali​, @shrimpmsg​​,

AN: So...this is the beginning of the end. To everyone who has faithfully followed this series from the start, I thank you. I appreciate you. It’s about to be a very bumpy ride. I’m going to go ahead and apologize in advance. I’m sorry for the hurt and pain that is coming. Please stay with me  until the end.

Chapter 48: Home

“We won’t talk but we’ll be comfortable. If only I have you, it’ll be my home.“

© thebiasrekkers (Admin E). All rights reserved. Reposting/modifying our work is prohibited. Translations are not allowed. Plagiarism/stealing is not tolerated by any means. Legal action will be taken in instances of theft.

Hwaseong – Gyeonggi Province South Korea

Eden smiled as she felt Jungkook wrap his heavier coat around her shoulders. Children raced past them, squealing in delight as they chased each other. One child barreled into her back, causing her to stumble forward a little. Jungkook cuffed the little boy on his head and Eden tugged at Jungkook’s ear to get him to stop. The little boy sniffled, apologizing, and Eden gave him a few bills so he could buy some snacks with his friends. Jungkook smirked, watching the little boy blush as he looked at her, bowed, and then scrambled off to be with his friends.

“You’re too easy on them,” he teased.

She rolled her eyes. “They’re just kids. Let them be kids.” Eden paused as they reached the corner of the street. “They should have that luxury, don’t you think?”

When she looked up at Jungkook, something flickered across his gaze. His brows furrowed and she immediately regretted saying what she had. Her intention hadn’t been to make him feel guilty, but he still did. Old memories were dredged up, something that they talked about in length once when they were up late watching Korean gangster movies while sharing a bottle of whiskey. They both never really got to be kids; the world forced them to grow up and deal with the adult world before they physically became adults.

It wasn’t a life either of them chose for themselves, but it wasn’t a life they regretted either. It made them who they were now. It was the life that led them to each other.

“I’m sorry, Jungkook-ah,” she said softly, “I shouldn’t have said that…”

He shook his head roughly from side to side, taking her arm and looping it through his. “No, you’re right. They should be able to run and play and rough around like they want while they can.”

She smiled, relieved to know that he felt the same way she did.

They continued down the path, passing various street stalls that sold food, clothes, and other trinkets. It was Spring and Summer would soon be approaching. Flowers were blooming and green returned to the once barren trees that lined the streets. The air was starting to warm up, but there was still that little bit of chill in the air that swept through and touched the marrow of bones.

Most women would have found coming to a back end province like Hwaseong deplorable – especially for a honeymoon getaway. But Eden insisted that this was the place she wanted to spend time with her husband – the place where he sealed away all his childhood memories; where his dreams first began.

The place where he called home.

Hwaseong was rural in most aspects, but there were industrial districts. She preferred the softer sides of his hometown, the places where all the rolling hills and lush forests flourished. It was peaceful, quiet, and a place where she could gather her thoughts. Jungkook pointed out the places that meant the most to him and she made mental notes of them; filing them away to be explored in depth later.

One by one, he went by all the places that his brothers called home. Some of their family members came out to greet them and Jungkook simply introduced Eden as his girlfriend. She didn’t mind, seeing as how they were both wearing their wedding bands as necklaces. But just for now. Eden agreed that it was better if they kept their marriage a secret, especially since tensions between the Jade Fangs and the former Golden Jackals had the potential to escalate. It was the safer and smarter way to go about things. Jimin was the only one who knew and they would keep it that way until everything finally settled down.

As each day passed, she was able to see the lake where he first met the others – the ones he called his brothers. They were all children back then, playing around the Han River in their underwear and throwing rocks at the lake while fishing. He took her to the orphanage that cared for him until he was old enough to get a job and go to school. As painful as it must have been, Jungkook even showed her the home he used to live in with his parents before they threw him away. A different family lived there now.

Everything was a precious memory, good and bad, and Eden tucked them away without judgment.

They returned to the hotel, deciding to order takeout and have it brought to their room. Lavish as their lodgings were, it seemed a bit silly, seeing as how Hwaseong became a bit of a tourist trap in recent years. It gave the community a chance to build something expansive and eye-catching, grabbing at the ankles of wealthy tourists to come and spend their money on pricey hotel suites and cheap souvenirs boasting ancient history in the inner square’s markets.

But it was the little things that counted.

After they finished eating, Eden began washing dishes in the sink of the suite’s kitchen. As she placed a few on the drying rack, she felt Jungkook approach her from behind. He slid his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder as she continued to work. She smiled when he pressed a kiss to the side of her neck and she wiggled a little, his fringe tickling her cheek.

“Let’s go back to Seoul tomorrow,” he said suddenly, lacing his fingers together across her stomach.

She rinsed off a plate, intent on focusing on the task at hand. “Why? I thought we were staying here for a few more days?” Eden pouted, casting a sidelong glance at him. “Are we cutting the honeymoon short?”

She understood if it needed to be done. Sometimes work couldn’t be avoided. But that didn’t mean she had to like it.

Jungkook laughed, pressing his mouth to her temple. “No, we’re not.” He reached up to brush some of her hair behind her ear. “I actually have another surprise for you.”

“You and your surprises,” Eden muttered, unable to hide the tiny smirk that appeared.

“Trust me,” he whispered, “you’ll love it.”

Seoul – Itaewon; Yongsan District South Korea

“Uh, Jungkook?”

“Hm?”

“What is this?”

“What is what?”

Eden turned to look at Jungkook, seeing the look of pride all but explode over his face. He was practically beaming and he took a moment to meet her gaze. Eden blinked up at him, then craned her neck to look back at the large house surrounded by a thicket of private trees. There was a small stairwell that led up to the front door, a small awning perched from the siding of the slate walls. A large front deck wrapped around the house, a two-story home that boasted modern features with a hint of traditional landscaping.

She pointed to the house – her finger aimed at the large window on the second floor.

“This,” she said again, “what is this?”

“A house,” he said, amusement laced through his words, “our house.”

Whipping her head to look at him. She could see no trace of a lie or even a tease. “Excuse me, what?”

Laughing, Jungkook grabbed her by the hand and tugged her along – pulling her up the short set of steps while rustling around for a set of keys. Slipping it into the door, he twisted the key and ushered her inside. Eden was only barely able to get her shoes off as he helped her into a pair of house slippers.

“I’ll get an electronic lock installed later. I just couldn’t wait to show this to you.”

She had no words. Even if she had, Eden was positive they would have tumbled to the floor in a meaningless collection of jargon she wouldn’t have been able to understand. Everything was brand new. The floor was made of polished hardwood, the furniture sleek and modern. Only the throw pillows were unfashionable as they sported various characters from anime that Eden liked – a large Princess Mononoke throw blanket draped across the back of the large couch in the living room.

Eden took a few steps forward, her eyes darting in every direction to take everything in. The kitchen was large, sporting a marble island with stools around it. Large windows allowed for natural light to flood the rooms, showing off the view of the front and side gardens. A huge flat screen television decorated the wall near an ornate entertainment center – a fireplace nestled in the corner with freshly cut logs near the hearth to be used during the colder months.

Turning to look at Jungkook, she didn’t have time to speak before he was already scooping her into his arms and carrying her up the stairs.

“We can explore the rest of the house tonight,” he said, leaning in to press his lips along the shell of her ear, “but there’s one place I want us to go.”

Eden felt her cheeks getting warmer. She knew the look in his eyes and understood what his intentions were. So it didn’t come as a surprise to her when he pushed open a door with his shoulder to reveal a large master bedroom. Without wasting a moment more, Jungkook set her down so her feet hit the floor, his lips moving to capture hers in a heated kiss. She moaned unconsciously into his mouth, her hands moving to rest on his shoulders as he hurriedly popped the buttons of her jeans loose.

His large hands moved to all but tear the hoodie from her, pulling it up and over her head so that it landed on the floor without a second glance. She tried to say something – anything – but the words were lost as he kissed her; his tongue slipping in between her lips to brush along her canines. Eden took a step back, her calf hitting the edge of the bed and she nearly stumbled backwards. Jungkook caught her by the waist, his hands warm against her skin. His fingers pressed into her waist, curling into the waistband of her jeans and she felt her breath hitch when he knocked his hips against hers. She could feel his erection through his pants, and she squeezed her thighs together a little bit tighter – attempting to get friction where she needed it most.

Jungkook’s kiss grew a bit more feverish, a hand moving from her waist to trail up her exposed back. Eden felt her skin pepper out in goosebumps – chasing the path that his hand made along her skin. Pausing to rest at the nape of her neck, Eden can’t help the sigh that managed to escape – lost in the cavern of his mouth. She tilted her head slightly, trying to get at his mouth at a better angle. But he chose that moment to break the kiss, trailing his mouth along the column of her neck. She felt his body almost vibrate as she reached out to pull at his shirt, yanking it free from his pants.

She felt his hand moving from the back of her neck, his fingers slowly clambering up to thread through her hair. His other hand was still at her hip and she could feel him tracing small circles around her skin before dipping below the waistband of her panties. Eden gasped softly as the sound of her zipper sliding down seemed to ricochet off the walls.

Jungkook broke the kiss again, moving a step back so he could slowly sink to the floor to his knees while taking her pants with him. He urged her to step out of them completely when they were bunched around her ankles and she complied, her legs trembling when he pressed his lips along her inner thigh. A hand slid down to the crown of his head, carding through his hair. Delicate hands moved to caress along her skin, finally smoothing over the curves of her thighs and then gripping onto her panties. He dragged them down, his lips giving chase to the material as he let it fall to her ankles.

Without having to be told, Eden stepped out of them as well.

Clad in just her bra, she felt overly exposed in a way that felt a little embarrassing. It was still broad daylight and Jungkook was being shamelessly intimate. The curtains weren’t drawn over the windows and while she knew the home was nestled in their own private sanctuary, Eden felt like someone was watching her; like they were being watched. It was a weird kink that she never believed she could properly give a voice to, but Jungkook indulged her whenever he could.

Licking a trail up her body, he paused just long enough to press his lips atop the swell of her breasts. He reached behind her, unhooking her bra and she let it fall to the ground. It, too, would be forgotten until it was deemed fit to be remembered.

Eden pouted as he smiled down at her, his eyes full of dark arousal. She could tell he was holding himself back a measure and she lightly smacked him on the chest with the back of her hand. His eyes crinkled in the corners, his gaze softening as he looked back at her.

“I’m the only one naked,” she murmured, “no fair.”

Reaching out to grasp one of her hands, he moved so that it now rested along the center of his chest. She could feel the heavy thrum of his heartbeat beneath her palm and he quirked a brow at her. She wasn’t sure what he was trying to ask her.

“Then make it fair,” he replied, his voice low and raspy.

Eden couldn’t keep the look of surprise and amusement from dancing over her face. She bit her lower lip, her hands moving to undo each button before shoving the material back and off his shoulders. He shrugged out of the shirt, shaking his hands so he was free of the material. Eden immediately went to his belt, pulling the leather through the loops of his jeans and then dropping it to the floor.

She could admit she wasn’t nearly as patient as her husband and he laughed, watching her popping the button of his jeans loose while frantically pulling at the zipper. His hands moved to still over hers and he lifted her easily off the floor. Eden wriggled when she felt him kissing her stomach, laughing as he tossed her onto the bed.

She cooed softly as he slid out of his jeans and boxers in one swift motion. His shaft twitched in response to him drinking her in. She could see his pupils dilating as he climbed over her like a predator about to devour his prey. His hands slid between her thighs to press along her folds, feeling the slickness that escaped from how heavy her own arousal was. Moaning at his touch, Eden tried to move away from him, but he wouldn’t give her any quarter. Instead, he lowered his head to capture an exposed nipple between his lips.

Pleasure exploded over her skin and she nearly bucked from his finger pressing against the sensitive nub between her legs. He rubbed agonizingly slow circles around it before dipping into her slit to caress at her inner walls. In the haze of her lust, she could see the milky white fluid beading at the slit of his tip. She wanted to taste it but her selfish desire was knocked clean from her mind when he slid another finger into her.

Her hips lifted, pushing his digits further inside of her. Jungkook moved his face to lavish affection to the other nipple. He pumped his fingers in and out of her, his thumb continuing to rub circles over her clit. Electric shocks exploded behind her eyes and he lifted his face to catch her mouth in an open-mouthed kiss. Sucking on her tongue, Eden closed her eyes and moaned – unsure how much longer she was going to be able to handle this assault against her entire person.

As if he’d read her mind, Jungkook removed his fingers from her folds. Eden whined, shocked at her internal outrage to being deprived of her own pleasure. She watched Jungkook using her juices to coat his erection, his hand slowly stroking over himself. He gripped the base of the shaft and she felt herself getting wetter just watching him. After a moment of this, he straddled her hips – positioning himself as he pressed the tip of his erection against her clit. Again, she hissed in pleasure, feeling her walls growing more and more slick as he teased her folds.

“My god,” Jungkook whispered, “you’re beautiful.”

“Jungkook-ah…”

“You’re my wife.” He smiled down at her. “How did I get so lucky?”

Eden felt tears forming in the corners of her eyes. She laughed softly, not caring that they leaked out and into her ears. Jungkook leaned down to press a kiss to her mouth, his lips moving along the curve of her jaw until he caressed the lobe of her ear.

“I love you,” he said softly, pressing the head of his erection into her entrance. She sucked in air between her teeth as he inched forward a little bit more. “I love you so much, Eden.”

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled him closer. “I love you too, Jungkook.”

As if those were the words he’d been waiting for, he pushed himself forward completely – filling her insides. Her walls clamped down around him instinctively, holding him in place. As he pushed and pulled against her, the friction created was almost jarring. The pace was slow at first, but it didn’t take Jungkook long to speed things up. Eden rocked her hips against his, rising to meet his as he came down along her. There were wet, sloppy sounds of skin slapping against skin and it didn’t take long for their sweat-soaked skin to glide over each other with each hurried pulse of their movements.

And then he hit that spot; the spot that drove her half-mad. The spot that almost always left her fucked out of her head. Eden dug her nails into his skin, leaving half-moon marks along his muscles. She dragged her fingers down, red angry trails chasing after her fingernails before she clamped onto his forearms. He was practically jack-hammering into her, reaching his own favored spot, until she was seeing stars from the orgasm that began to overtake her. Her voice started off low until it soon escalated to a scream; one that she was almost positive rattled the windows. Jungkook wasn’t far behind her, her name bellowing from his lungs.

Heat filled her core, spreading over her entire body. She felt Jungkook shift his body slightly, collapsing beside her. He wrapped his arms around her waist, still buried inside of her, and pulled her close so that she was nestled perfectly against his form. He whispered words of love into her ear and Eden was barely conscious enough to hear them. But not before she was able to tell him that she loved him back.

They’d made a mess over their brand-new bed; their new bedding.

Neither of them cared.

Five Months Later

“I’m proud of you, y’know that?”

Eden smiled while rolling her eyes at the phone situated on the nightstand. Raelyn smirked back at her on the screen. They’d been Face Timing each other since Jungkook left for work in the morning. He had a few errands to run and she was leaving the shop in Minki’s hands. Eden folded a few more items on the bed, organizing them, and then placed the clothes into the small suitcase.

“I’m serious. This is pretty gutsy of you and I’m glad you’re doin��� it.”

After she threw the small plastic bag of toiletries on top of the clothes, she moved to sit on the bed. She picked up the phone and flopped back onto the bed.

“I know,” she said with a sigh, “I’m just a little nervous, I guess.”

“Don’t be. I mean, do be, but don’t let that shake you up.” She watched Raelyn’s brows furrow. “They know you’re comin’, right? You’re not just showing up unannounced?”

Again, Eden rolled her eyes. “Yes, they know I’m coming.”

Raelyn held a hand up. “Look, I’m just makin’ sure, alright?” She paused and Eden lofted a brow. “I’m a little surprised they agreed to this.”

She scoffed, clambering off the bed. “Like they have a choice. From what I was able to find out, I’m the only child my mother ever had before she died. I’m sure they’re just as curious about me as I am about them.”

She still didn’t know why she was doing this. Part of her wanted to call the whole thing off. It wasn’t like things were going to change by doing this. Seeing her mother’s family, the people who treated her like the black sheep of their bloodline, only angered Eden. But she also knew that she couldn’t abandon them. Not until she really got to see them for who they truly were. After that, she would make her decision on whether to continue having them circulating around her life.

“Well, when you get there, you show them exactly who the hell you are and that you ain’t playin’ any games.”

Eden couldn’t stop herself from laughing. “I think you should be more worried about that little troublemaker growing inside of you, don’t you?”

“Girl, don’t get me started,” Raelyn said, the bitter tone evident in her voice, “between Anastasia’s mood swings and Taehyung being my damn shadow, I don’t have time to get into anything stupid.”

She closed the suitcase and secured the locks, picking it up and unlatching the extended handle. Eden made her way out of the bedroom and headed downstairs, the suitcase rolling behind her as she continued to hold the phone up in front of her.

“Good,” she said once she made it to the ground floor, “because I don’t need to be working my nerves while I’m on this trip. They’re frayed as it is.”

This time Raelyn scoffed. “You’ll be fine. Is Jungkook takin’ you to the train station?”

“No. He’s busy with work and I told him not to worry about it.”

“Three days, right?”

She nodded. “Yeah. Though depending on how the trip goes, I may come back early.”

“I heard Daegu is beautiful this time of year. Make sure you take a lot of pictures.”

“I will, I will,” Eden reassured. She opened the front door and closed it behind her, the electronic lock beeping to let her know it was secured. “I’ll call you when I get there.”

“Alright. Love you.”

“Love you too.”

Hanging up the call, she pulled up her messages. She shot Jungkook a quick text to let him know she was heading to the train station. Eden knew he was busy at the recording studio and didn’t want to interrupt him while he worked.

Jungkook: Be safe. Call me as soon as you’ve arrived. I love you.

Smiling, she sent him a heart emoji. She was never a big fan of texting and he knew that about her. He never nagged her about it. Eden was a woman who believed that actions spoke louder than words. She’d always been this way. She was thankful that Jungkook understood and accepted this – always willing to meet her halfway.

He sent her two heart emojis back.

Making her way toward the front gate, Eden pushed it open and pulled her suitcase behind her. She turned to close the gate, tugging at the bars to make sure the latch caught properly. Checking her watch, she saw she had plenty of time to get to the train station.

Maybe I should call him anyway, she thought, moving to head down the long walkway leading from the house.

Eden managed to take a few steps forward before someone stepped in front of her. The heels of her sneakers scuffed along the ground as she stopped, lifting her head to see who was blocking her path. He looked a little familiar, but she wasn’t quite sure from where. Blinking a few times, she watched the other man’s small smile growing little by little.

She didn’t have time for this. Maybe she was mistaken.

“Excuse me,” she said through clenched teeth, moving so she could side-step him. He shifted to resume blocking her path. Eden shot him a glare. “Move.”

“You’re still as feisty as ever, I see,” he said. She said nothing, narrowing her eyes. “I know it’s been awhile, but I’m a little hurt you don’t remember me.”

“Should I?”

The man lifted his hand in the air, miming holding a shot glass. He made a motion to show he was tipping the glass back into his mouth. Eden scrutinized him a moment longer and he merely continued to smile.

And then it hit her.

“You,” she growled, her eyes narrowing to slits. “Yoo Kihyun.”

He snapped his fingers. “Bingo.”

Eden reached into her pocket. “What do you want?”

He shrugged. “Isn’t it obvious?” When his eyes met hers, they were dark and cold. It caused Eden to hesitate for just a moment. “It’s you.”

That moment of hesitation was her undoing. She failed to notice the look of triumph painted over his face. She’d missed the sound of movement behind her. And before she could register that she was being ambushed, Eden felt a sharp prick to the back of her neck. 

It didn’t take long. If given the chance, she would have only been able to count to five.

Five seconds before the world went dark.

[captcas]

Worth Fighting For

WORTH FIGHTING FOR by capthamm

Killian “Hook” Jones is a dominate up and comer in the UFC while Emma “The Savior” Swan’s career was cut short. When Hook’s manager moves up and the office brings in UFC’s youngest legend to keep him in check, will either of them be able to handle it?

read on ao3 // tumblr: ch 1/ ch 2

[CHAPTER 3/?]

Saturday night brings their monthly movie/game night and Emma has never been more grateful for a distraction. Ruby and the Nolans will come over around 6 o’clock and Henry is practically bouncing off the walls with excitement. Tonight’s theme is Star Wars and this will be Henry’s official introduction to the series; at David’s insistence they’re starting with A New Hope and going release order from there. They’re also going to play Star Wars trivia which Henry will undoubtedly suck at.

Should be a fun night all around.

And it was, until Henry went to bed and the “adults” got to talking.

Ruby cracks another beer and turns to Emma, “So, Emma, you’ve got probably the coolest new job in the world and you haven’t said jack shit.”

She shoots Ruby an icy glare as David and MM stop bickering over whether or not Kylo Ren deserved a redemption arc to hear what Emma has to say.

Emma sighs, “It’s going alright. All the onboarding is underway and between the perks, benefits, and pay, Henry should be set for life.” She’s been fortunate to live off her winnings for the past nine years, being mindful of money and not giving into the lifestyle of frivolous spending many fighters take on, but -even her friends know- she doesn’t have a money tree.

The looks on their faces when she mentions Henry being set for life could melt 1000 Olafs. When she arrived at Ruth Nolan’s home at the age of 16, she never expected to find a family. Hardened by a life too lived for anyone her age, Emma assumed they’d be like every other foster home and use her for the money. To this day, she’s never been so happy to be wrong.

Emma’s not sure what twist of fate landed an orphan with such a great support system, but she’ll be forever grateful. David took to the “protective brother” role immediately. Soon after Emma moved in, he met Mary Margaret (fireworks and butterflies and all that mumbo jumbo) who introduced them to Ruby. They’re small, and maybe a bit scrappy, but they’re family.

She breaks out of her thoughts and returns to the present, “I will need some babysitting though; I’m required to attend each of my client’s Fight Nights. But overall it’s great, really!”

She hopes she squeaked away without having to mention Jones at all but the glint in Ruby’s eye tells her otherwise. “Ok that’s all fine and dandy,” Mary Margaret shoots Ruby an incredulous look, warning her to tread carefully, but Ruby ignores her and continues, “but who’s the client?”

David is giving her a protective father vibe, Ms is practically vibrating, and she's pretty sure Ruby is salivating. Emma sighs realizing she shouldn’t postpone the inevitable, “Killian Jones.”

Ruby practically drops her drink and Mary Margaret squeals, David rolls his eyes and turns back to the TV where SportsCenter has been playing in the background. Mary Margaret beats Ruby to the punch, “THE Killian Jones?! As in Killian “Hook” Jones?!”

Emma nods, standing up to refill the only slightly empty chip bowl in front of her. She knew this was going to happen and she wasn’t exactly looking forward to her friends thirsting over her client– client… right.

Ruby speaks next, “Well that is probably the best case scenario. Do you think he can get us tickets? Have you met him? Is he as gorgeous in person as he is on TV? Can we meet him?”

Emma, now glad she’s in the kitchen with space to breathe, is starting to feel a bit overwhelmed. She knows Ms can sense it and is unsurprised when she speaks next,“For Christ’s sake Ruby let her breathe. She’s probably only had her initial meeting with him.”

Ruby seems to get the hint and it doesn’t take long before Ms is in the kitchen helping Emma pick up the leftover pizza, “We’re happy for you, Emma. He’s a huge client for them, they obviously trust you to do a good job.” Emma nods in thanks and they both head back into the living room. Her sister-in-law’s warmth always calms her (and Ruby) down which allows David to jump in and change the subject to the coverage of some football player’s arrest on SportsCenter. Emma finally catches a breath and realizes just how lucky she is for the friend dynamic they have before settling in to debate if this James Spencer kid should still be eligible for the draft.

As she lays in bed that night, Ms’ words ring through her head. Despite the rollercoaster of emotions she’s been feeling, Killian is a huge client, one that was formerly represented by a namesake for the company. This re energizes her a bit and helps her fall asleep, actually excited for what's to come.

She wakes up Sunday morning and makes Henry some pancakes and declares it a lazy Sunday. Henry happily obliged, cuddling up on the couch with The Deathly Hallows while Emma threw on some shitty reality TV.

. . .

When her alarm rings Monday morning, Emma pulls her pillow over her head like some teenager from one of those Disney Channel movies.

It takes her a second to remember what day it is and why she’s up at this godforsaken hour.

Killian Jones. Right.

She audibly groans before rolling out of bed and getting ready for the day. Between her shower and breakfast she gets Henry up. School starts at 8 so he’s technically running a bit behind but he’ll make it on the bus in time… hopefully.

She’s pouring him a bowl of cereal when he comes out of his room zipping up his sweater and rubbing his eyes.

“Hey, kid. Coco Puffs or Fruit Loops?” He mumbles some semblance of what she thinks is Fruit Loops so she pours the bowl and slides it across the kitchen island. He smiles in thanks as she pours her own bowl and sits beside him.

“So today’s the big day?”

She didn’t tell Henry about her new client and when she spoke to the Nolan’s and Ruby, he was definitely supposed to be sleeping. “How could you possibly know that?”

“You’re not as quiet as you think you are and I’m not as tired as you think I am.” He yawns as if to punctuate his point.

“Uh huh, sure, kid.” He gives her a knowing glance and she realizes she’s not getting out of this. She runs her hands over her face and sighs, “Yes, today is the first meeting and I’m only slightly nervous to fu— screw this whole thing up.”

Henry chuckles at her attempted censorship (she never said she was a perfect parent), “You’ll be great, Mom, and Hook seems like a decent enough guy. I’m sure he won’t give you too much trouble.”

She stares at Henry a bit dumbfounded. It shocks her everyday how old he’s getting– nine going on nineteen for sure.  “Are you hiding some Weasley’s Extendable Ears in your room or something? Are you a wizard? Should you be at Hogwarts?” Emma is very obviously trying to derail this conversation but it works, setting Henry off about how he’s finally on the sixth book and explaining the concept of a horcrux.

Oh, her sweet summer child.

God, maybe he is old enough for UFC.

When did that happen?

She ushers Henry to the bus, promising him they’ll watch the sixth movie tonight if he finishes the book today and is to school on time. It’s only September and he can’t be late three times in the first month of school. She kisses his forehead and he wishes her good luck.

Sometimes she wonders how such a screw up ended up with the perfect kid.

After cleaning up the kitchen, Emma finishes getting ready. She jumps on the subway and finds herself at the office with a half hour to spare. She’s never early so she chalks it up to nerves and uses the time to prep for this meeting.

Over the weekend she received multiple emails from Gold’s team surrounding a possible spot for Killian on the card for the pay-per-view Fight Night in November.

A pay-per-view card. She did enough research about Killian this weekend to know that would be his first.

Emma feels like she’s been thrown into the deep end before being taught how to swim.

Go big or go home.

She did a lot of research about Killian and learned practically nothing. She knows he came here from London almost ten years ago and that his team includes his head trainer Robin (husband of now former manager Regina Mills), and three other men named Will Scarlett, August Booth, and William Smee (he’s really selling it with that whole Hook theme). Other than that all she found was his record and highlights. He’s 6-0 which is insane for only being in the circuit for a year and a half– fighters are usually limited to three, maybe four fights a year.

4 of his 6 are knockouts.

He’s good… really good.

Her thoughts are interrupted by a light tapping on the edge of her cubicle. She glances up to find none other than the man himself. She can’t help but double take.

Real professional, Emma.

She's only ever seen him in the ring, at the gym, or dressed up for a business meeting. She’s not sure what she expected, but a leather jacket and pants that fit him like his own skin definitely weren’t it.

He looks good… really good.

Emma snaps herself out of it, “Hi, Mr. Jones, just give me a moment and we can head to the conference room.”

“It’s Killian, love, please.” She notices he winces at the seemingly habitual pet name. Emma ignores the ring of disappointment that runs through her gut at the realization that it may not be reserved for her. “A conference room’s a bit formal, don’t you think? Let’s get out of here, Swan.”

He grabs her hand before she can answer. “Mr.— Killian. Is this allowed?”

He chuckles. “We can plan the meetings at our leisure,” he says the last bit in an almost scary imitation of Regina, “but even still, Regina and I never met in office. A bit silly for two people to take up an entire conference room, yeah? Come on, lass, try something new. It’s called trust.”

Emma rolls her eyes but follows along anyway. The elevator ride should’ve been awkward but Killian kept the conversation flowing by asking her preferred drink. “Coffee, tea, or smoothies?”

Despite the risk of sounding like a child, Emma finds herself being honest with him, “Uhh, I actually prefer hot chocolate… with cinnamon.”

He smiles brightly at her, as though her drink order was the most brilliant discovery this century, “Perfect, Swan. I know just the place.”

She was so swept up in his ambush, she doesn’t realize that this isn’t the cocky, asshat Killian Jones she sees on tv or at the gym until he’s practically dragging her across the street to a small cafe. This Killian seems genuine and carries this almost childlike excitement.

Emma tells herself she has no interest in learning more about this Killian.

(Emma doesn’t have to tell herself that that is complete bullshit.)

. . .

He can’t stop himself from beaming when she offers up her drink order without hesitation. Killian feels like a bloody teenager around her. He promised himself he wouldn’t feel this way again, but something about Emma Swan has completely entranced him.

He finds himself fascinated with every part of her, including the small things, like the fact she takes cinnamon on her hot chocolate.

Once they get to the cafe across the street, Killian forces himself to dial it back. He can tell she’s guarded and as much as he’d like to be friends (more than friends) with the lass, he knows business has to come first.

It wouldn’t exactly be a good look for him if he ran “The Savior” out of the office on her second day.

Somehow he thinks he doesn’t have that power.

He’d like to. (Obviously not to run her out of the office, but he’d like his existence to mean that much to her.)

Bloody hell, he's being ridiculous.

They sit down across from each other at a small table by the window. He expects to start the conversation but before he can form a coherent thought she’s speaking.

“So, Killian. I’ve already received some correspondence from Gold’s team. I’m not sure how much time you usually take between fights and I know it’s already the end of September but…”

She’s rambling and he doesn’t think he’s ever seen anybody so adorable when they’re nervous.

Adorable is not a professional descriptor.

Killian Jones doesn’t want “professional” with Emma Swan.

Fuck.

“...Gold is hoping to get you on the main card for November 14th.”

Did she just say main card?

He chokes on his coffee.

“Main card, Swan? I’ve never been on the main card. Strictly early prelims…”

She eyes him suspiciously, “Usually that’s a good thing. Upward momentum and all that. His team is clearly impressed by your dominant record.”

“Is his team the only one impressed?” The flirt escapes him before he can stop it.  

Bloody idiot.

She doesn’t even bat an eye, “The entire league seems to be impressed, Jones.” Her tone tells him she knows what just happened but she shut it down immediately.

He likes a challenge.

Emma Swan may be his favorite challenge yet.

Emma Swan is off limits, but Killian will be damned if he cares.

. . .

Emma is surprised when Killian pays for their drinks despite her insistence that she can charge it to Mills Management. She’s also surprised by how nice he is.

She keeps waiting for the other shoe to drop.

She’s still waiting.

He’s definitely flirtatious, every other sentence being easily twisted into some sort of innuendo, but she can tell it’s a front. The little things he does like tipping the barista an extra fifty cents or holding the door for her, let on to the man behind the persona.

Well, and the fact he practically chokes when she tells him they want him for the main card.

He seems genuinely shocked that anyone would be impressed by him. His mask comes out almost immediately, another innuendo laced into his question. She doesn’t let him go there, shutting it down as quickly as it started. For this to work, she needs him the real him. Not the cocky MMA fighter who he used to catch the eye of UFC execs. She compliments him, and it’s beyond genuine. That seems to calm his nerves a bit as they move into social media management and he shifts into a professionalism she’s not entirely prepared for.

She’s not sure she wants professional Killian Jones.

Whoa, Emma, pump the breaks.

She shakes it off as she watches him take notes on what she’s saying about the importance of a lead up on Twitter and how it can set the tone for the entire fight. His tongue runs along the inside of his lower lip as he concentrates and she can’t help the overwhelming wave of attraction that hits her.

Like lightning.

It’s not just the tongue, (but that’s not helping) it’s his dedication to this sport and how he actually gives a fuck about what she’s saying. Killian never displayed even a hint of the deeply rooted misogyny that runs rampant throughout the industry. He actually seems almost humbled by her presence. The words escape her mouth before she can’t stop them, “Why are you actually taking anything I say seriously?”

Very professional, Emma. Way to instill confidence in your client. Smooth.

His head snaps up at her abrupt question and he looks confused. “I know you don’t like being called a legend, Swan, but you were a damn good fighter. If I walk out of this partnership with half the following and success you had, I’d call that a win.”

She’s stunned by his sincerity.

Brick. Wall. (She thinks she hears Pink Floyd somewhere in the distance.)

“And I suppose you think you know all about me from our, what, three conversations now?” She knows it’s snippy, that’s the point.

He stops typing and puts his phone down. “Pardon me, love, but you’re a bit of an open book.”

Emma scoffs, “Anyone with the internet knows I prefer people don’t call me a legend.”

“Aye, but do they know it’s because you feel too young with a career too short to have made an impact? That you feel choosing yourself, a life, over MMA removes all glory from your name?”

Emma is entirely shaken by his apparent ability to read her like a fucking picture book. (Does that even make sense? Do you read picture books?) Emma never had a formal retirement ceremony; gloves in the middle of the ring and all that. She had asked Gold to be taken off the roster and for a quiet exit and that’s what he’d given her. The public doesn’t know the real reason she left MMA, her attempt at keeping Henry’s life as normal as possible, but somehow Killian–

Brick. Brick. Brick.

“Let’s talk about Instagram.” She sees the disappointment sweep across his face, realizing she can read him pretty well too. That’s terrifying.

Way more terrifying than social media plans.

They keep it strictly business for the rest of the meeting. She’s startled when her stomach rumbles and she checks the time.

12:00. They’ve been strategizing for three hours.

She’s not sure where the time went, and when Killian asks her if she wants to grab a bite to eat together, she’s startled again by her initial gut reaction to say yes.

Obviously, she says no and makes up some lie about needing to get back to the office. He knows it’s a lie, she can see it all over his face. He doesn’t push her though, and she’s grateful. They set their next meeting and Emma’s heart speeds up, seemingly unaware that this is a business meeting and not a date. She shakes his hand and promises to have a full plan ready for Thursday before practically sprinting out of the cafe.

In three conversations Killian Jones has gone from asshat to… who knows. One thing Emma does know is that Killian Jones is off limits to the highest of ethical degrees. But what scares her most, is that she’s not entirely sure she cares.

. . .

As soon as he asks her to lunch he knows he’s pushed too far.

Actually, he perhaps pushed too far by letting on just how easy it was for him to read her, but lunch, well that was just asking for a brick wall. He runs his hands across his face, completely taken with someone he has no right to. She’s witty, smart, and could probably kick his ass— scratch that, could definitely kick his ass— but she also has demons, he can see them swimming behind her eyes. Demons that seem scarily similar to his, maybe not on the surface but definitely in their damage. Emma is raw and unapologetic; a real human being who is, for all intents and purposes, unimpressed by the suave persona of Killian “Hook” Jones.

She’s bloody perfect.

He’s fucking fucked.

Eloquent.

Killian decides to grab a quick lunch from the cafe and head to the gym. He has a lot of pent up frustration and really feels the need to punch something. Thank god that’s his job. He scarfs down his sandwich, not realizing how hungry he was and jumps on the subway to the training center. He miraculously finds a seat and is able to scroll through his phone a bit. As he pokes around Twitter he finds an article announcing Emma “The Savior” Swan’s comeback to the UFC. He clicks on it, curiosity getting the better of him despite probably knowing the gist of the article.

He didn’t expect a timeline of her very impressive career:

2008: Swan joins the UFC with her Boston gym. Her debut match against Aurora Rose ended in a TKO. She’s back in action six months later fighting Ella Tremaine. She wins again, this time after three rounds by split decision.

2009: A dominant start to the year for The Savior with a first round submission against Tiana Dampier in January. She rounded out her year with another first round submission against El Oldenburg in May, and a third round knockout against Esmerelda Gringoire in October.

2010: Swan goes three rounds with Merida Baer and wins by unanimous decision. Swan wins again after three rounds by split decision against Megara Alcmene. The Savior’s final match is a KO against Mulan Fa rounding out her record to 8-0. Her next match, meant to be for the women’s title, was declined with no comment from The Savior.

2020: Swan joins Mills Management as a talent manager assigned to Killian “Hook” Jones.

Killian knew Swan was good, an early legend in her own right, but he had no idea she was this dominant. He also had no idea she left without so much as a wave goodbye. He figured he’d just missed the announcement seeing as it came well before his introduction into the sport. Against his typical moral code, he tries to google why she left but finds nothing. She knocks out Mulan Fa and then just stops being added to cards and fades away as new fighters take her place.

He knows there’s a reason for her secrecy and he’d be lying if he said curiosity was the only driving force behind his attempt to learn more. He finds himself wanting to know everything there is to know about Emma Swan; a deeper part of him aches for her to be the one who tells him.

He’s positive he can only dream of gaining that level of trust from her, but he has to try. Liam's words ring heavy in his ears, "A man unwilling to fight for what he wants, deserves what he gets."

He gets off at the stop closest to the training center and walks through the front doors, waving to Belle at the front desk before heading into the locker room. He’s fortunate to be on the UFC roster, allowing him to keep his training gear at the center and not have to worry about lugging it around with him. It also gives him the freedom to come here whenever he needs to let off some steam. He changes quickly and finds a treadmill to warm up. He jogs a mile and a half before picking up the pace. Killian’s in the midst of his runner’s high when someone steps into the machine next to him. He turns his head to offer them a small smile in hello, it’s not that big of a gym, exclusive to the UFC industry and a few friends of friends, so chances are he knows the person at least in passing.

Oh, Killian knows them alright, and he practically falls off the treadmill when he sees her green eyes blown wide.

[mycupoffanfiction]

A Real Sweet Guy Part 6

A biker!Bucky x shy!Reader Series

Part 1  Part 2  Part 3  Part 4  Part 5  Part 6

The reader lives on the same street as Bucky, the leader of a biker gang, which everyone in her building is afraid of, except for her. When Bucky makes a simple act of kidness to the reader, she realises she was right to not be afraid of him.

Warnings: Fluff, language, sadness. 

Word count: Approx 4000

Masterlist

Tag lists are open.

Ooof okay, this one took a while! I won’t lie, I’m not 100% happy with it and writing His Favourite Gal burnt me out a little since this series and HFG both usually have long chapters. I’m sorry I took some time to focus on oneshots and smaller things for a while, it was just my way of getting back into the swing of a larger series!

I really hope you enjoy this part, it’s fairly tame this time around, the next one will be very cute and fluffy!

Enjoy your week 💕💕💕💕

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“Y’know, Stevie’s gonna be jealous.” Bucky chuckled, looking down at you as you cut a slice of your homemade apple pie. “We’ll save him a slice.” You shrugged, grinning as you plopped a piece onto a small plate and slid it across the table, the older woman beaming at you. “Thank you, dear.” She looked delighted, taking in the cinnamony apple smell. “You’re welcome, Mrs Barnes.” You mirror her smile. “Please, Winnifred is fine, dear.” She insisted on you using her first name, but you were just so nervous at meeting Bucky’s mum that you’d been defaulting to her last name.

 “You said you didn’t talk much to your family.” Winnifred struck conversation as Bucky took over for you, slicing you a piece that was way too big for you. “Yeah, we uh- we don’t get along.” You nodded; eyes trained on your apple pie. You glanced across to Bucky, the contrast of him in his red flannel shirt, ripped jeans and heavy combat boots, hair down and messy against Mrs Barnes’ tidy, florally decorated home was quite amusing. “I don’t have any close family.” You added, Bucky’s hand coming down to rest on your knee. “But you have the Commandos, sweetheart.” Bucky grinned. That you did. They were the best family you could have asked for and in truth, they were better than your real family ever were. No one ever judged you, no one was mean to you, you were never singled out or bullied. Everyone treated you fairly and with so much love and compassion.

 Just the other day Steve had a call from Peter, the kid had gotten picked on at school and you and Steve spent about an hour on the phone to him to try and calm him down until his adoptive parents, Pepper and Tony got home from the diner. You were all as close knit as it came, even friends or family of members were always welcome, like Pietro was. He’d often join outings to Pepper’s diner or take walks with you and Wanda and sometimes even hang out with some of the guys too.

 “James tells me you work at the local bookshop; I was hoping I might have recognised you.” Mrs Barnes smiled as she dug her spoon into the apple pie, taking a bite and nodding in approval. “I do, I love it there, although the shop can be a little trying.” You smiled, it was true, you did love the shop and while you had a tendency to complain about rude customers and how much the day drags or how exhausting it is sometimes, you still loved it. It was like a second home to you and your manager George had been so good to you while you had worked there. “Delicious pie, dear. I’m not sure Steve will get any.” She joked, causing you to giggle in response. “You’ll have to give me the recipe, perhaps we can bake together.” Mrs Barnes suggested and you grinned at the idea. “I’d love to.” You smiled, glancing across at your boyfriend.

 “Now, let me show you some photos of James when he was little.” Mrs Barnes laughed as she reached behind her for the bookcase. “Maaaa.” Bucky groaned, his cheeks lighting up with a bright red as he dropped his face into his hand.

 “So does Mrs Barnes like you?” Wanda asked down the phone as you walked down the sidewalk, rain pattering down onto your coat hood. “I think so, she seemed happy when I met her, even hugged me when I left.” You smiled to yourself, thinking back to your meeting with Bucky’s mum. “Can’t believe he never told me his first name was James.” You laughed, having taken it light heartedly. You had been seriously confused when Mrs Barnes had referred to your biker boyfriend as James instead of Bucky, but you were so used to his nickname now that you weren’t sure that you could see yourself using his real first name much.

“Barnes said you made her apple pie. Why didn’t you give us apple pie when you met us for the first time?” Wanda teased. “Hey, I gave you cookies.” You argued, a smile on your lips. Your smile quickly dropped when you stepped right into a puddle, soaking through your shoe. “Fuck me.” You hissed under your breath, shaking the water off, but it was no use, your sneaker was totally soaked. You turned the corner, Wanda giggling down the line as you explained what had just happened. “I gotta go, Wanda. Maybe I’ll have customers today.” You scoffed as you approached the bookshop, ready to start your shift. “Alright, text me when you get home.” Wanda said her goodbyes to you before hanging up and you heaved a sigh as you approached.

 The rain came down heavier, the wind picking up. The storm was coming. Your hood flew back, exposing your freshly washed and dried hair to the angry elements. You barely paid attention when you reached the shop front, reaching out for the door and smacking right into it as you had expected it to open, but it was locked up tight. You let out a frustrated humph as another strong gust of wind almost pushed you off balance as you rummaged around in your pocket for your keys. A deep rumble of thunder rolled across the heavy storm clouds above, rain getting heavier. You didn’t bother putting your hood back up since you’d be indoors in a second. Or so you thought. “Fuck.” You whispered to yourself. The keyhole was covered by a piece of wood nailed to the door. It was at that moment that you stepped back and noticed it. Oh. Oh shit.

 Big, bold letters. In a chunky red marker. Your heart sank as your backpack dug into your shoulders, your hand clutching at the wet strap, rain lashing down onto your shoulders and head as you stand completely still in the middle of the pavement. Your hair glued itself to your face, your hood having fallen down a few minutes ago. The cold wind whipped down the street, giving you a shivering chill, arms breaking out into goose bumps, ears hurting with the cold.

OUT OF BUSINESS.

Why didn’t your boss tell you? To be honest, you’d sort of seen it coming, with the tiny amount of custom your shop had received in the last few months. Still, it made your heart sink, down, down into the pit of your stomach. You had loved working at the bookstore, it was a safe haven. How could you not love it? But it was gone now. How would you pay your bills? Would you even be able to stay in town to find a new job? How would that affect things?

 “George?” You squeaked out; phone pressed against your ear as the line crackled on the other end. “(Y/n), I am so sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.” Your manager sighed. “Is it really closed forever?” You asked, voice sad as you stared at the front door, letting the rain drench you as you shivered uncontrollably from the cold. “Sadly, yes. I’m sorry, I should’ve warned you.” He responded. “It’s alright.” You huffed. “I’ve got to go, make sure you drop off your keys to the shop over the next couple of days.” George reminded you before hanging up and you were left in silence again. The traffic behind you seemed to just drown out into a low hum. The only sounds you could really hear were the rain and a couple of pairs of heavy footsteps walking around behind you, splashing against the wet pavement.

 “(Y/n)?” A well-spoken voice came from behind you and you quickly whipped around to see Loki and Thor paused in their step on the sidewalk. “What are you doing out here in the pouring rain? You’ll catch a cold dear.” Loki fussed, rushing to your side and covering you with his umbrella. When you didn’t answer, heart caught in your throat as the realisation hit you, Loki noticed. He noticed how your shoulders dropped, your head hanging a little, the odd sniffle here and there as you kept your emotions at bay. “Whatever is the matter, darling?” Loki asked, glancing over his shoulder at Thor to motion him over, heavy hands coming to rest on your shoulders, the towering man stepping up behind you, chest brushing against your back. You didn’t say anything, but Loki noticed before you could even have a chance to force yourself to speak. He saw where your eyes were glued to. “Oh.” Loki said just above a whisper. “Oh (Y/n), I am so sorry.” He murmured, pulling you into a gentle hug, Thor moving around the side to inspect the sign on the door.

 “Why would they not tell you?” Thor pondered, finger pressed up against the window at the sign, head turning to look at you, although his hood blocked his face a little, wisps of blonde hair shifting slightly in the wind, the tips of his long hair getting damp from the rain as they stuck out of the edges of his hood. “Never mind that now, let’s get her somewhere warm, brother.” Loki coaxed you along with him, arm wrapped around you as Thor fell into step with you both, leaving you sandwiched between the two brothers.

 “Let’s walk you to the café across the road, you need to warm up before you catch a cold small one.” Thor’s large hand rested in the middle of your bad as you pressed yourself against his side, the warmth radiating off his figure already starting to warm you up. “Didn’t you see Bucky this morning? Does he know?” Loki questioned as you walked down the street together. “I saw him before he went to work, we went to meet his mum. And no, he doesn’t know.” You shook your head. This was bad. It took you so long just to find this job, you were finally at a point where you were comfortable in your life and now this. The constant worry of having to move to find a job was looming over your head. You could hear the two brothers talking, but it was as if their voices were muffled.

 “There you go, small one.” You were suddenly sat down in the coffee shop, you didn’t even recall walking in and sitting down, but you were here. Thor slid a large cup of hot coffee across the table to you, dropping a few sachets of sugar onto the table next to your cup. Loki settled down opposite you with a cup of tea, Thor clutching a cup of coffee in his hand as he pulled out his chair roughly. “Thank you.” You said quietly, peeling your soaked coat off your cold form. “Darling, take my jumper.” Loki spoke softly, getting up from his seat to take off and give you his woollen jumper. You gladly took it, thanking him as you did and pulled it over your head, the length of the sleeves and the body on you making you smile. You began pouring sugar into your drink and stirring as the two brothers quietly watched you.

 “I called Barnes on our way over, I tried telling you but you zoned out a bit.” Loki tried to catch your eye contact. “What did he say?” You asked. “He said we should take you to your apartment and he’d come over during his lunch break.” Loki explained. “Okay.” You mumbled into your mug, bringing the rim close to your lips to take a sip of the warm, comforting liquid. “Will you stay with me? I get it if you’re both busy.” You murmured. “We’ll stay with you, small one.” Thor gripped your shoulders, gently squeezing.

 “I don’t know what to do.” You huffed; eyes trained on your coffee. “The bookshop was my livelihood.” You sniffled, eyes feeling watery as you let your emotions bubble up to the surface. You took another sip of your coffee, emotions breaking the dam as hot tears rolled down your cheeks. “Oh, (Y/n).” Thor whispered, pulling his chair around to your side “It’ll be alright, darling. I don’t think you’ll be jobless for long, especially since the head of a biker gang is your boyfriend, I’m sure he could pull a few strings, maybe a favour or two.” Loki spoke softly to you as Thor’s arm draped around your shoulder as you leaned into his side.

 After you finished your coffee, warmed up a bit and waited for the rain to die down, the three of your made your way back to your apartment. You kicked off your wet shoes, Loki helping by going to get you some towels from the cupboard while Thor fiddled with your TV, getting something on for the three of you to watch and preparing blankets on the sofa. Whatever the two of them had been doing before they came across you was obviously considered less important than looking after you, and while you felt a little guilty for consuming their morning with your issues, neither of them seemed to mind at all.

 You sat on the sofa, squished between the two brothers, who at this point were like your own two siblings while Tangled played on the TV. Thor seemed absolutely taken by the movie and you quickly realised this was absolutely not the first time he’d seen it when you caught a glimpse of him mouthing the words, not to a song, but to an entire scene of the movie.

 You didn’t even notice when Loki got up to open the door for the two men, you and Thor completely captivated by the movie. It was only when Bucky came to sit beside you, the smell of leather, car oil and his woody, spiced cologne catching your attention. “Hey darlin’.” Bucky’s voice was low and husky, the kind tone he used melted you as you turned to see your boyfriend. Although you’d seen him that morning, it felt like it had been too long with the sadness that came with your bookshop shutting down. Your heart leapt into your throat as you looked up into his deep blue eyes, his arm resting on the sofa behind you, his metal hand on his thigh as he sat facing you. His leather jacket was still on, hair thrown back in a messy low bun, stubble thick and soon to be shaven again. Grease marks around his forehead and some in his hair, you knew he’d have trouble getting that out later when he showered.

 “Did Loki tell you what happened?” You asked softly, not wanting to disturb Thor as he enthusiastically mouthed a song that was playing on screen. “Not in detail, but I know the bookshop got shut down, your manager didn’t tell you and you found out from a sign on the shop front and Loki and Thor found you absolutely soaked.” Bucky gave you a brief rundown of what Loki had told him and you nodded. “I’m so screwed.” You whispered to yourself, not really intending to say that out loud. “No, you’re not.” Bucky shook his head. “Absolutely not, sweetie.” Steve cut in, standing behind the sofa, his hand coming down onto your shoulder.

 “You can come and work at the repair shop for the time being so you can pay your rent until you get back on your feet if you like.” Steve said as he brushed a lock of your hair behind your ear, Bucky swiping his hand away to do it properly. “Really?” You sounded surprised, tears still in your eyes. You’d been on the edge of tears for a few minutes, but the dam broke and hot tears spilled over your cheeks. “You’d do that?” You squeaked out. Of course you could refuse, but why would you? “Or Pep said she might be able to open up a position for you down at the diner. Her and Tony don’t have enough staff with it being on the entry road to the town and all.” Bucky interrupted. “But in the meantime, while they open up something for you, you could help down at the shop for a few weeks if you like. We got an overload of paperwork and marketing needing doing and we need someone, doll.” Bucky cupped your cheek gently, wiping your outburst of tears away with the pads of his thumbs as his hands cradled your face.

It wasn’t long after that, that Bucky and Steve left to have lunch and go back to work, promising to take you out to the diner later for milkshakes and dinner with anyone who would come.

“Small one, Barnes loves you more than anyone I’ve ever seen him around.” Thor smiled widely; eyes trained on the TV screen. You’d spent the rest of the afternoon with Thor watching movies after Bucky and Steve had to return to work and Loki left to run errands, leaving you alone with the big softie. “His last girlfriend was uh-.” He cut himself off, shifting awkwardly on the sofa, glancing across at you. “He told me about her, she sounded like she was more in it for the sex than the relationship.” You finished for him. Thor hummed, nodding. “She wasn’t the best for him, we all tried to tell him. Poor guy was so in love he didn’t see it at first.” Thor spoke low, so not to interrupt Star Wars episode five too much. “I think he knows he’s in love this time, because he sees that you’re good for him.” Thor thinks out loud, fiddling with the blanket that was half heartedly draped over him. “You think I’m good for him?” You ask, looking over at him, your attention now on the conversation rather than the movie. “We all do.” He nodded, tucking his blonde hair behind his ear, glancing between you and the TV.

 “I think you ground him, he’s so caught up in the biker life, everything revolving around his group and bikes. You’re a different perspective.” Thor went on, eyes glued to the AT-AT fight on Hoth. He paused as he watched the scene, waiting for the cool bit to be over before he started talking again. “I think he’s good for you too.” Thor mumbled; a bit too distracted by the movie to really talk in depth again.

 “I can’t believe that!” Wanda raged, arms flailing, almost knocking over her milkshake. “How could they just not tell you?” She frowned, Sam nodding furiously next to her as you leant on the diner table. “Why’d he have to leave it to the day of the shop closing to say something?” Wanda was far more enraged by your sudden loss of employment than you imagined her to be. Steve, who was sat on the other side of her, gestured for her to lower her voice, the other patrons in Pepper’s diner turning to see what all the commotion was about. “That does sound unreasonable.” Peter agreed from beside you, Bucky’s metal arm draped over your shoulders as you glanced at Peter. “I know.” You sighed, shoulders dropping a little. “Hey, on the bright side, you get to work closer with us now!” Peter beamed up at you. “Pepper is trying to convince Tony to make a spot for you.” He repeated the news the boys had told you earlier. “I really appreciate everything you guys are doing for me; you really don’t have to do it though.” You smiled gratefully around the table, catching all of their eyes. Everyone had made sure you were okay. As soon as the word got out about your situation, the entire group was at your beck and call, running to your aid to try and cheer you up. “We absolutely do.” Wanda answered before anyone else could, voice stern as her finger pointed at you. She was really mad about it, but you appreciated the passion she showed for your wellbeing.

 “Honestly, as I see it, it was the only right thing to do.” Steve continued the conversation after a short pause. “We’re a family, you’re part of that (Y/n). I’d feel terrible if I didn’t offer up a spot for you, even if I didn’t really need someone to do paperwork for me.” Steve admitted, a lopsided smile on his face as your gaze met his. “Since you two met, I feel like we’ve become fast friends, I see you more like a sibling than just my best friend’s girlfriend.” Steve grinned widely, a little pink blush on his cheeks. Holy shit that’s cute. “You do?” You squeaked out, cheeks burning bright red, a huge grin on your lips. “I love you Stevie- I mean love as in like not love, love, but love as in kinda love.” You stuttered out, a few chuckles from around the table. Steve shook his head as he chuckled, Bucky squeezing your side tightly as a laugh rumbled through his chest. If you weren’t already blushing madly, you were now as red as a tomato as you nervously giggled to yourself. Such a way with words. “I kinda love you too, (Y/n).” Steve chuckled, hand landing gently on yours and squeezing a little before he went back to cupping his milkshake glass.

 “We all kinda love you, (Y/n), except for Bucky, he really loves you.” Sam teased, winking a few times at you both, causing Bucky to scoff in response. “I more than really love you, doll.” Bucky whispered in your ear, only for you to hear, causing you to blush and giggle shyly. “Ooh sharing sweet nothings there, Barnes?” Sam teased. “Shut it Wilson.” Bucky glowered at him, Steve chuckling at the exchange. “What did he say to ya?” Sam asked. Perfect opportunity for the unsuspecting jokester. “He told me how he’s going to kick you out.” You deadpanned, face void of expression. Steve almost choked on his milkshake, Peter pausing mid sip, Wanda had a knowing grin on her face as she exchanged looks with Bucky. The table fell silent, Sam wasn’t too sure that you were even joking by your incredible ability to keep a straight face. He was only thrown off when Bucky finally cracked next to you, letting out a hearty chuckle, the others soon following. “That was cold.” Sam pointed at you, a large smile on his face. “It’s always the quiet ones.” He shook his head, making the remark more to himself than anyone else.

 You sat and talked with your friends, chatting with Wanda, making stupid remarks with Steve, groaning and laughing at Sam’s jokes, giggling to Peter’s awkward stories and enjoying the sweet words Bucky would whisper into your ear. You were with your real family. The real family that loved you and supported you the way you needed them to.

You were home.

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[lemonsandstrawberries]

The Pitted Olive, part 10 - final

fandom: Stony (Steve x Tony)

universe: Drag Queen!AU (Tony Stark as a drag queen)

summary: Steve gets the courage to ask Tony a very important question, all in a style worthy of his drag queen! Sam takes a new step in his life, friends gather and someone special makes an appearance.

length: 6 845 words

disclaimer: this fic is written strictly for entertainment. I am not a specialist on drag and my whole knowledge comes from mainstream media. if there is something you will find incorrect or offensive in any way, there is always an option to contact me and politely voice your thoughts instead of flaming. thanks!

a/n: that’s is it, the big finale! thank you, Ru Paul’s Drag Race for inspiration and introducing some wonderful drag queens into our lives! (some drag queens will make a guest appearance in this chapter, so be on a lookout - also, more a/n notes at the end of the chapter). thank you for reading, your support and love for this fic! if you enjoyed the series and last chapter, asks, reblogs and likes are appreciated and needed!

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The Pitted Olive, part 10 - final

(part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8, part 9)

It felt nice. Warm and soothing. Smelled like lemons and sugar. Really, really nice.

It was all a trap.

"I can't believe you talked me into this," Steve grunted, curling on the stool in the bathroom, only in his boxers. There was more warmth on his back and he felt the scrape of a wooden spatula on his skin, smearing the sticky substance.

"Hmmm. I am very convincing," Tony hummed from behind Steve, clad in his obscenely short bathrobe and only that. Oh, how Steve loved that bathrobe.

"I am gonna cry. I know I will," Steve grew more and more nervous, pressed his palm over his eyes, and curled more in himself. "And stop that."

"Stop what?" Tony asked innocently, pressing the long stripe of material to Steve's back and smoothing over the sticky substance. Oh God, it almost started.

"Snickering at me," Steve complained, trying not to sound too pathetic. Judging by the giggle behind him, he obviously failed.

"You will be fine. If I can survive this, so can you."

Steve had serious doubts if he could survive back waxing. Or back sugaring, as Tony used his homemade sugar paste on him, claiming that it was more delicate than traditional wax and there was minimal risk of ripping off the outer skin layer. That didn't alarm Steve at all.

"You're gonna be so smooth after this," Tony hummed enticingly, still rubbing the stripe making sure it would catch as much hair as possible. "I won't be able to get my hands off of you," he said, leaning his warm weight over Steve's, the cool satin feeling pleasantly slippery and soothing on his skin.

Somehow from being too shy to pee in front of the other, their relationship developed to this. That was some progress.

"Okay, ready?"

That was a good question and meant so much more than Tony initially intended to. Steve felt more and more ready. There was no other person for him than Tony. No other tiny bathrobe he would be seeing for the rest of his life.

"I am gonna count to three. One, two, three!"

There was a ripping sound and Steve felt every hair pulled out from his skin. His mouth opened in a scream, eyes watered from the pain.

"SON OF A -!"

Tony whistled, examining the strap. "Woah, that came off nicely."

"Nicely?!" Steve squeaked out, the pain still prickling his nerve endings. It wasn't an experience he wanted to repeat. How Tony could do it to himself every month?

"Now we need to repeat it a few more times -"

"Nu-uh! I am out!" Steve protested, one time being enough. He darted off the stool, just to be firmly pushed down again.

"If you let me do it, you and Red Velvet will -" Tony leaned to him, whispering something into his ear, words that made Steve's blood immediately flow south of his body and culminate at one point. That was unfair.

"I hate you," Steve groaned, but obediently stayed on the stool. Call him weak.

"You know you love me," Tony said sounding too cheerful and spreading more of the sugar paste on Steve's broad back.

Steve knew. He really knew. And he wanted everyone else to know it too.

***

If Steve was still debating being ready to take that step with Tony, the ultimate reassurance came days later from a very unexpected place.

"You are the worst best friend, you know that?"

Steve blinked, seeing Tootsie, standing in front of his usual table in the Olive, full lips turned down in an upside-down u shape, eyes, framed with thick eyelashes and black eyeliner, shooting daggers at him. She wore her usual grungy style of clothing, torn flannel and tights, chunky earrings that were painful to even look at, and shorts so tiny and revealing as if Bucky wanted to make a statement that he was able to tuck perfectly, despite the origin of his drag name.

"What do you mean?" Steve asked, not understanding what happened. He came into the bar just minutes ago and didn't have time to do anything yet, except maybe chatting to Thor at the front and sitting at his table.

"Why, why the hell you gave Red our childhood photos?!" Tootsie hissed, eyes narrowing even more.

Oooh. So that was the offense.

"I didn't, my mom did," Steve explained with a shrug, but Tootsie didn't even listen to him, just ranted away.

"Do you know what she is doing now? Do you? She kept showing those photos to everyone and going on and on how cute her drag daughter is. Do you have any idea what it does to my reputation?"

Steve just smiled, not seeing a connection why photos of a pair of kids in dungarees and with bruised faces could be so harmful.

"Red is just very proud of you," Steve kept smiling, easily picturing Tony going from one person to the other one, showing the photos to everyone who didn't manage to escape on time.

Tootsie waved him off. "I tried to steal them, but she made copies. She even stuck some on the mirror in her dressing room!"

"That's sweet," Steve said, laughing when Bucky cursed, which was a lot less sweet, but a whole lot more amusing. "I don't know why you are so upset about this."

"It's embarrassing, okay?" Tootsie hissed. Steve didn't know if she meant Red's overly motherly behavior or the fact that his friends and coworkers knew that kid Tootsie used to have a bowl cut, just like half of the kids back in those times.

Clearly, Tootsie waited for something, but Steve just shrugged again, really not seeing any problem.

"I will pour laxatives in your drink," Tootsie seethed.

Oh, low blow.

"You wouldn't," Steve narrowed his eyes back at his best friend.

"I would. You are just lucky I am not the one making drinks today."

Just to be sure, Steve glanced over at the bar, and saw Arrow behind it, skillfully mixing some cocktails. Next to her, was a new person, Steve had never seen before.

"I already put an order for your drink, because opposite to you, I am a good, loyal friend," Tootsie summed up their conversation.

Steve huffed in laughter. "Thanks, Buck," Steve said, the name coming out almost inaudible and more like a sigh to a nonskilled ear, but the lip movement was enough for Tootsie to decode the word. A little placated, she walked away, having to prepare for tonight's show.

"Here's your drink."

"Thank you," Steve smiled at the new girl as she put his drink on the table, and she smiled back at him, and Steve almost slid down from his seat in shock. He would recognize that teeth gap anywhere. "Oh my God, Sam?!" he shrilled out, trying to keep his voice low.

The girl jutted her left hip forward and shook her head full of curly hair. Sharp eyebrows, long eyelashes, big lips colored with an electric blue lipstick giving that special pop to the look and tight black dress made from lace. Not the most extravagant look Steve had seen on a drag queen, but there was something hypnotic about it.

"That's Parfait," the girl said, winking at Steve and walking away on black pumps with a sturdy heel, a model that was favored by people learning how to walk on high heels. Steve looked after Parfait, smiling to himself gleefully. It seemed that some changes were coming to the Mama's Little Bakery.

Sipping his drink, Steve listened to Tootsie, singing her rock songs and planning even more changes.

***

"Hey, Thor!"

"Hey, Steve," the blond bodyguard of the Pitted Olive smiled friendly at him. "Coming from the front today?"

"Um, not really, I just have some favor to ask," Steve smiled shyly, scratching the back of his head. "I will have some guests coming today, could you make sure they get to my usual table?"

Thor sent Steve a calculating look, not really keen on fulfilling the unusual request. After all, he was a bouncer and a bodyguard and it seemed more of a task for Arrow who had waitress duty today. Thor was ready to refuse, politely, of course, when Steve smiled broader, that bright, sunny smile that made him resemble a labrador puppy. And Thor liked labradors.

"Fine," reluctantly, Thor agreed. The things he did for regulars.

"Thanks!" Steve beamed more, "I have to set up some details now, I will send photos to your phone of who to expect."

Thor nodded. "Nice jacket, by the way."

Steve laughed nervously, feeling his cheeks heat up, unsure if it was a genuine compliment. "Thanks. I will see you later!" he waved goodbye to Thor and took his usual route to enter the club from the back.

Everything seemed to go well and Steve's heart was beating a cheerful melody. Even the expected, sour look Loki had sent him after he had entered the club, didn't bring him down. He stopped in front of Red's changing room, combing a hand through his hair, rehearsing in his mind what he wanted to say.

"Hey, nice jacket!" Arrow passed him and praised with an approving smile, on the way to her changing room. Steve smiled gratefully, feeling a lot more confident with having a drag queen's approval, especially one as much fashion-oriented as Arrow. He reached his hand to knock on the door to Red's changing room, feeling his heart in his throat.

He didn't let anyone on his plan and so far, everything was going good. The only person who knew what was about to happen was the owner of the Pitted Olive, an exceptionally somber-looking guy named Nick Fury, who, as Tony had told him, was once a very famous drag queen back in the day called Madam Wrath. A very fitting name.

Steve knocked on the door and entered after hearing Red inviting him in.

"Oh good, you're here!" Red called, turning around for a second, just to see who it was. Steve had walked on Tony in the middle of his transformation, he already had a face full of makeup, except the lipstick, hair hidden under the cap and was changing his clothes, already tucked in and in pantyhose and clearly struggling with a bra. It wasn't the most glamorous part of being a drag queen, but the view of Tony's shapely legs in sheen pantyhose caused Steve's heart to do a little flip. "Can you clasp my bra?" Tony asked, turning his back to Steve, holding the strap in each hand.

"Sure," Steve replied immediately, coming to the rescue. A moment later, the bra was on.

"Thanks," Red smiled, fixing the front of a lovely auburn color bra with lace on top. "It is a new bra, it doesn't want to listen to me - oh," she stopped talking when turned around and finally took a good look at Steve and his new style.

Maybe it wasn't the intention, but the first thing that came to Red's mind was that Prince Charming from "Cinderella" stood in front of her. Steve was wearing a shawl collar jacket, white shirt underneath and black slacks, and a black bowtie to match the whole look. It would be a very calm, classic set if it wasn't for the material the jacket was made of. Blue velvet. Shining and shimmering with a light blue undertone.

Red's blinked in shock, her big blue eyes framed in thick fake lashes and black eyeliner appearing even bigger before she smiled warmly at her boyfriend. "You look very handsome today," she said, approving the look, "is there some special occasion?" came a question and there was some flirting hint underneath.

A very special.

"Well, since you asked."

And then Steve got on one knee in front of her and took a black velvet jewelry box out of his pocket.

"Woah!" Red gasped, and her hands jumped up to her face in shock, a very Tony like gesture, before she toned it down and pressed one hand to her lips. "Steve, what's happening?" she asked, her hand sliding down, just a little to not obscure the words.

Steve just smiled gently, knowing all the words he wanted to say and guided by all the feelings he had felt since he saw Red Velvet for the first time and since his first non-date with Tony. Tony was someone truly special, changing his life and making it better, just by his presence. He helped find Steve the courage in places he didn't expect to ever be courageous, was understanding and kind, and just seemed to make Steve's world a brighter place. And when someone finds something so special, they should never let go of it.

So, he opened the box.

"From the moment I saw you, I felt like I was living in a dream. I was smitten by Red Velvet, some may call it an obsession," Steve said, laughing a bit and having Sam's face in his mind, "but it wasn't until I saw you, the real you, when I realized that reality can be better than dreams. I love and want all of you, and I hope you will take all of me too. So, Tony Stark and Red Velvet, will you marry me?"

Red's breath stopped when she saw the ring on the black insert. She looked back at Steve, eyes glistening with emotions, and said something Steve certainly didn't expect but found very fitting.

"I am glad I didn't get dressed yet, because, shit, I would have to change."

Then he heard a 'yes' and it was a good thing Red never did her lips makeup because it would get ruined anyway.

***

Sarah arrived about ten minutes earlier than Steve asked her to, firm in her belief that it was better to be a bit earlier and wait instead of being late and making someone wait for her, a view she successfully passed to her only son. That's why she expected Steve to already wait for her and she really wished he did, not understanding why her son asked her to come. Sarah looked from her phone to the brightly shining neon, unsure if Steve gave her the correct address. The name was the same, but the reality didn't match her expectations. The Pitted Olive in her head was a name suitable for an Italian restaurant and not for something that looked like a night cocktail bar. Besides, her son didn't drink a lot of alcohol and was more of a beer guy than a cocktail person, so why he invited her to a bar and sounded so urgent about it?

"Mrs. Rogers?"

"Yes?" Sarah turned in the direction of the voice, getting startled when met eye to eye with the muscled, grim looking bouncer. She had to raise some suspicion by lurking around the entrance to the bar, but then she realized that the bouncer knew her name. When the bouncer smiled, his face changed from intimidating to kinder one, showing that he had a gentle heart.

"I was asked to escort you to your table. Please come with me," the bouncer said, swiftly navigating through the crowd of customers gathering outside the Olive and Sarah followed.

Sarah followed the bouncer, feeling a little overwhelmed. The interior of the night bar was cozy, with nice, wooden furniture and subtly lit, giving a private, comfortable feeling.

"Please take a seat," the bouncer asked, moving the chair for her at the table in the front, near the stage Sarah just noticed. "If you allow me, I will take your coat."

"Uh, thank you, mister…?" Sarah asked, handing the bouncer her light coat and sitting down.

"Just Thor will be enough. I wish you a nice evening, ma'am," Thor smiled gallantly and went to resume his position in front of the club.

The temporary comfortable feeling was gone again and Sarah felt out of place once more. She had an open mind and was willing to accept many things, but didn't like to be lead astray. She was a patient woman, but enough was enough. Sarah opened her bag and reached for the phone when she noticed a familiar face near the bar and a smile immediately jumped on her lips. "Sam!" she called, waving to Steve's friend.

Sam, engrossed in a conversation with a pretty young girl behind the bar, turned around, blinking surprised when he saw Steve's mom. "Mrs. Rogers!" Sam called and waved back, turning to Tootsie to tell her a few words, before he took his beer and came closer. "Hello, Mrs. Rogers," he greeted her properly, leaning down so Sarah could smooch his cheek.

"It is good to see you, Sam," Sarah smiled, feeling at ease after meeting someone familiar. "How is your bakery doing?"

"Good, good," Sam smiled, taking a seat next to her and Sarah kept smiling, hearing that that deeply hidden tensed note that had always been in Sam's voice whenever he talked about his work was gone. Just like if something got unblocked in him. "Mrs. Rogers, what are you doing here?" Sam asked, not understanding.

"Steve asked me to come. He said he has something important to tell me - oh," she gasped, suddenly realizing where she was. "Oh, is this where Tony works?"

"Hello."

An unknown man and a woman approached the table, their arms hooked together.

"We are Red's friends, she told us to be here today," the woman said with a nice smile, waving to Tootsie behind the bar, the girl waving back at her. "I am Lady Mint," the woman said, gesturing to herself. She looked quite colorful, in a multicolored tie-dye kaftan, beautiful makeup and with a head full of platinum blond hair reaching her chin, teased and puffed out to perfection. "And this handsome man is James Rhodes," she introduced and the man smiled friendly.

"You can call me Rhodey," he said, nodding first to Sarah and reaching her hand to her, before shaking Sam's hand and Sam introduced himself, while Lady Mint sat next to Sarah on a chair that had been pulled out for her by Rhodey.

"And let me guess, you must be Steve's mom! I can tell because you both have that lovely face structure," Lady Mint said friendly and Sarah just couldn't take eyes off of the colorful and beautiful person next to her.

"Wow, you're so gorgeous," Sarah said, instead of the usual hello, and Mint smiled gratefully. "I am sorry I am staring, it is just the first time I am seeing a drag queen up close. Sorry! Is that something I shouldn't say?" she grimaced in panic and looked over at Sam, silently asking for help. Sam just smiled good-naturedly, because this was so like Steve's mom to be so honest and mindful at the same time.

"Don't worry, dear, if I didn't want people to look at me, I wouldn't dress the way I do," Mint said, fixing her hair and making it even puffier. It brought attention to her nails, long and painted with mint color nail polish with some crystals at the tips. "I met your son once at Red's apartment. You have a very charming son, Mrs. Rogers."

"Oh, thank you. You can call me Sarah by the way," Sarah said, smiling and addressing both Rhodey and Mint. "So, from where do you know Tony?" she asked, genuinely curious.

"Tony and I started drag at the same time. The drag community was much smaller back then, all performers knew each other," Mint answered with a polite smile.

"I work with Tony, we have a business together," Rhodey said his story.

"Oh, you are a drag queen too?" Sarah beamed, more and more intrigued.

Rhodey laughed and shook his head. "No, ma'am. I meant Tony's day job, we own a few car workshops."

"But that's a pity, right?" Mint jumped in, grabbing Rhodey by the arm. "He would make such a pretty girl!"

The conversation continued, drinks were served (Grasshopper for Lady Mint, Whisky Sour for Rhodey, and Sarah got talked into ordering Barbara, which was a mix of vodka, cacao liquor, cream and milk, the sweet flavor overpowering vodka and making the whole drink smoother and subtle on the tongue, and a refill of beer for Sam) as the club was slowly filling up with steady customers and newcomers. Sam and Rhodey found a common language, discussing the details of Rhodey's work and all the prime brands he got to tinker with, while Sarah and Lady Mint were chatting it up, just discussing everything, when it was interrupted by dimming lights and limelight pointed at the small stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Loki's mellow voice announced through the speaker, "please welcome our first performer of the night, the sweetest cake in town, Miss Red Velvet."

The silver curtain was pushed open and Red Velvet walked on the stage in a round of applause and almost a collective gasp echoed through the audience. There was no doubt, that the woman on stage was Red Velvet, even if at first glance she didn't look like it. The dress she chose was simple in cut, long and draping over the floor, with subtly widening sleeves covering wrists and a jewel neckline, hiding collarbones, almost not showing any skin. It was tight, accentuating the perky butt and round hips and a lovely hourglass figure. The most surprising was the choice of the material - it wasn't red, but all gold and shimmering, a little bit crinkling and catching light from every angle. Red Velvet looked as if someone poured gold over her body and let the precious metal set, shaping a dress over her. Such rich dress didn't require any fancy hairstyle and her black hair was combed neatly to the back and forming a low bun. Red smiled, light falling on her radiant face and glossy, red lips.

"Is that Tony?" Sarah asked in a surprised whisper, leaning closer to Sam and clapping enthusiastically with everyone else. Impressed was not a big enough word. She saw some of Tony's drag looks earlier, but only in photos and seeing this beautiful woman live was a different experience.

Sam nodded, not understanding the change and glancing over at other drag queens in the bar, but everyone seemed puzzled as he was.

"Good evening," Red Velvet kept smiling and the applause dimmed. Red took the microphone in her hand and started walking on the stage, her dress swiping over the floor. "I know you all noticed something different about me today," she said in a playful tone, getting a small laugh from the audience. "But this is not the end of surprises. First, I want to tell you a story. Some time ago, I met this guy," some suggestive whistling from the audience and Red winked, "this very special guy. One of a kind, but I am sure you already know this story, a guy meets a guy, they fall in love, yada yada yada," she rushed her own monologue, wanting to get to the gist faster. "And everything is great. Wonderful. And then… it happens. Just like that," she snapped her fingers, building the tension. "So I sadly inform you all, that this is one of my last performances as Miss Red Velvet," she said in a sorry tone, nodding her head sympathetically and rising a disappointed whine from the audience. Before the sad mood could start for good, she shook the sleeve on her left arm, letting it slide down and putting it out for everyone to see. "Because very soon I am gonna be Mrs. Red Velvet, I am engaged, bitches!" she shouted with a big smile, a gold ring with a row of diamonds shining on her finger.

The outburst of happiness was overwhelming and certainly drawing out the harsh sound as if someone dropped a microphone down. Sarah pressed both hands to her face, hoping that it was all going in a direction she thought it was going, Sam stared and clapped almost mindlessly, while Rhodey blinked surprised, and Mint tried to get Tootsie's attention to ask what was going on, but Tootsie, together with Arrow, were absolutely going wild behind the bar, probably cheering the loudest.

"And now, I would like you all to meet him," Red said into the mike, trying to be louder than everybody, "you probably already seen him," she added in a playful jab, meaning Steve's almost stalking her, "but it is the first time you will really meet him, my personal Prince Charming, my future husband, Mr. Blue Velvet! Come on, hun!" she called, gesturing at the silver curtain.

Steve's appearance was met with more applause as he entered the stage in his blue velvet jacket, smiling insecurely, but clearly happy. After having a final confirmation, Sarah sobbed into her hands from happiness, and Rhodey, Mint, and Sam stood up, joining the cheering for the just engaged couple. Steve walked to Red and put an arm around his lady, and they kissed briefly, Red cupping Steve's face tenderly. Usually, Tony had to stand on his tiptoes or pull Steve down into a kiss, but thanks to high heels, Steve had to tilt his head up just a bit, Red slightly higher than him.

"Drinks are on me tonight!" Red called, raising her hand, adding to the applause and cheering. "Tootsie, hide the most expensive liquor," she added after a while to her drag daughter, of course speaking into the microphone in an exaggerated whisper for everyone to hear and laugh at, and Tootsie saluted at her drag mom.

It was as happy as it could be, and Steve and Red were getting lost in each other when the final person and a very late guest showed up.

"Excuse me, coming through, EXCUSE ME!"

A harsh voice cut through the cheer and Red almost fell off the stage in shock when another limelight fell on the newcomer. The club exploded with a new level of cheer when people realized who just entered the club. A black sequin dress, a big updo of red, curly hair with straight bangs and black hairband. Big eyelashes, big red lips, and dimples on each cheek.

"Is this the joint my daughter performs at?!" Bianca del Rio shouted in her microphone in her characteristic loud voice, everyone clapping at her and confirming. "Good, because all those bars smell the same to me," more laughter when Bianca displayed some of her typical sarcastic humor, "and where is my lovely - DEAR GOD, Red, is that you?!" she bellowed out, looking at the stage and at still shocked Red Velvet, "what happened to you?! You look TERRIBLE!" she added, meaning the lack of her trademark color.

Red Velvet seemed speechless, while the crowd laughed at the playful remark. Steve had to bump his shoulder with Red's, trying to break her out of the trance, and put the mic to her lips, urging her to speak.

"Em, uhm-" was all that came out of Red Velvet's mouth and Bianca put one hand on her hip and glowered in a very motherly fashion.

"Just like mom taught you. Is that a way to speak to your mother?!" Bianca yelled and the crowd laughed, enjoying this mother-daughter encounter.

"Uh, what are you doing here, man?" Red finally asked, sounding a lot more like Tony, than Red Velvet. Bianca del Rio was a busy woman, traveling and performing all around the globe since she won that show which name slipped Tony's mind.

Bianca shook her head in reprimand, but smiled in the end, her cheek dimples showing again. "Your lovely boyfriend invited me here! He can be a persistent one," she said, gesturing at Steve. Red whipped her head and stared at Steve in shock and he smiled sheepishly. Reaching Bianca wasn't easy, but he wanted all of Tony's friends to share this moment with him. "I guess he is not your boyfriend any longer though! So, just let me congratulate you both and I am just gonna sit quietly here and enjoy the show," she added, turning her voice down, pointing at the table where Sarah, Sam, Rhodey and Lady Mint were sitting at, Thor already putting another chair for her, between Sarah and Lady Mint. "Thank you, darling!" she smiled at Thor and turned to the people at the table. "Hi, I am Bianca del Rio," she reached her hand to greet everyone, "you must be Steve's mom?" she said looking at Sarah, who seemed stunned but pleased, not really understanding everything that was going around her, but delighted to be a part of it, "kids grow up so fast, right?" she sniffled exaggeratedly and sat down.

From there it went smoothly and Red Velvet performed a spontaneous singing duet with her fiancé before singing her usual repertoire, Arrow did a magic act out of her routine, Tootsie sang some heavy songs, and even Lady Mint and Bianca got talked into performing. Halfway the night, Sam had sneaked out to his bakery, and with Rhodey's help, rolled in trays of white sheet cakes, covered in vanilla buttercream and decorated with piped out roses and written congratulations to Red and Steve and everyone got a slice, wishing the newly engaged couple all the best.

It was a long, cheerful evening and one of a kind engagement party.

***

"Morning, Sam!"

"Hey," Sam smiled a toothy smile when Steve walked into Momma's Little Bakery. It was as pink and frilly as always, but Sam seemed much more relaxed, busing at the counter and stacking freshly made buns and cookies for the early customers, already in his white and pristine work clothes. "How are you feeling?"

"Good, thanks," Steve smiled back, breathing in the scent of fresh pastries. Yesterday was a great night. It still felt a little unreal to him, having a fiancé, but seeing the engagement ring on Tony's finger while he had leaned down to kiss his sleeping queen and went out to get some fresh bread for breakfast was a very real reminder. "Do you have any brioches today? I want to make French toasts for Tony's breakfast."

"Yeah, I had a feeling you might want one," Sam nodded, turning to the shelves and taking off a perfectly baked brioche, light and fluffy, gold and shiny, and put it in a paper bag. "I have fresh baguettes too, will pack you a one. Anything else?"

"Yeah," Steve smiled, leaning on the counter, with a bright grin. "Soooo... Blue lips, huh?"

Sam waved the baguette in warning at this friend but smiled back. It wasn't something he ever imagined himself doing, but overall it was a fun experience. Maybe Parfait would appear in the Pitted Olive from time to time. Steve enjoyed seeing Sam like that, more opened and relaxed, the previous tension gone. Getting in touch with his female side did a great thing for Sam.

"You should try it too by the way," Sam said, handing Steve a bag with bread, and not knowing when Sam had sneaked a small round loaf of sourdough inside. "Being in drag," Sam hinted when Steve didn't catch on.

"Aaah, I don't know," Steve said, awkwardly. He was happy for Sam, and anyone who found their calling in drag but wasn't sure if it was for him, even if Tony subtly tried to convince him to wear drag, even once. And well, he already wore high heels. And used facial masks. And waxed. Was that the next step? Just to see how it is to be 'on the other side'? "Maybe? But I am not getting married in a dress," Steve said quickly before anything could pop into his friend's mind.

Sam whistled. "Believe me, no one wants to see that, pal."

Steve laughed. "Hey, what's that-"

"Man, why it is so loud in here?!"

Steve heard a voice and stared when he saw Bucky, standing in the doorway leading to the backspace. Hair ruffled from sleep, some smudged makeup under his eyes, and a spare set of white clothes, shirt, and pants, Sam used while baking, all crumpled. Comparing to Sam's work look, Bucky looked like a total mess.

"Buck, what are you doing here?" Steve asked, watching Bucky yawning and snatching a fluffy bun from the display, hearing Sam's hiss to not touch the bread.

"Uh, your engagement party went on and on, and by the time it finished, I was too tired to get to my own place, so Sam allowed me to crash on the couch in his bakery," Bucky explained in a bread obscured hum.

"Wait, you didn't go home?" Steve turned to Sam, not understanding.

Sam shrugged, "I start baking at 5 am. There was no point."

"Oh man," Steve's voice dropped and he rubbed the back of his neck, feeling bad. Seemed that because of him, none of his friends got any decent rest, while he and Tony cuddled for the whole night, feeling blissful and in love. "Sorry."

"What are you sorry for?" Sam snorted, and Bucky would do the same if he wasn't devouring the bun in greedy bites. "It is not every day when your best friend gets engaged, it is all good."

"Hm," Steve smiled softly, grateful for that point of view. Sam always supported him. Bucky was back in the city. And he had Tony. Everything was turning out so good.

"Also, not gonna lie, I am letting this one slide, because I want to be the one to bake your wedding cake," Sam added.

Steve laughed and nodded, agreeing, not imagining anyone else in that role. Sam could do some amazing things and uniquely combine flavors. There was no one better for the job.

"Besides," Bucky swallowed the bun down, "someone had to help Sam get out of the dress anyway."

"Please, no details," Sam sighed, warning Bucky who grinned mischievously.

"Oh, I want to hear all the details," Steve leaned in with a cheerful smile. "But maybe later, I have to get back to Tony, but first I want to know - why Parfait?"

"Par-fè," Sam corrected, using French pronunciation, ignoring the way Bucky ostentatiously rolled his eyes, "because it has layers."

That was a reasonable explanation. Steve nodded, knowing that there was more to his friend than just the outer layer, of a seemingly tough guy who grew up in a problematic neighborhood. Sam loved to bake good, honest bread but also had a knack for decorating cupcakes and cookies making them look like something from a fairy tale land. It was a good name for him.

"Hah!" Bucky laughed, bringing attention to him. "You know what also has layers? Onions."

"At least I tucked in properly at my first attempt!" Sam defended his name choice while ridiculing the origin of Bucky's drag name. Tootsie Roll was a good name too.

"Yeah, because I showed you how!"

"Okay, you are in my bakery now, so you either stop being a smartass and I will let you have another roll, or you can get your stuff and go home, you have an evening show," Sam gave Bucky a choice.

Bucky opened his mouth to snark back, but zipped it, looking at all the freshly baked bread and rolls. Well, he would be a fool to get himself kicked out from bread heaven...

Steve laughed to himself, watching pleased looking Sam handing a hungry Bucky another roll, his friend biting right into the soft, baked goodness. Bucky wouldn't be Bucky if he didn't add something, and he kept muttering more things that had layers between the bites, including ogres and, for some unknown reason, witchers. They chatted for a bit longer and when first customers started to line up, Steve took his bag with bread and headed home, back to his fiancé, his steps as light as air.

***

When Steve walked back into the apartment, it was barely after 9 am. He knew that Tony liked to sleep in after his shows, and Steve was really surprised when he heard Tony's voice, high and excited, coming from the bedroom.

"Babe? You awake?" Steve asked, peeking into the bedroom, still holding the bag with bread in his hands.

"Oh, hi!" Tony, flat on his stomach and on the top of the covers, wearing nothing except his short, silk robe, lay in the middle of the bed, swinging feet in the air, his phone pressed to his ear. He turned to Steve briefly, smiling sweetly. "Yeah, my fiancé just walked in," he said, addressing the person on the other side of the line, "yhm. Latrice says hi!"

"Um, hi," Steve blinked, not knowing who Latrice was and why was calling Tony so early. Then he realized, that it probably was a stage name and Latrice was one of Red Velvet's sisters. Mr. Blue Velvet and Miss Red Velvet's, as they were dubbed in the Olive yesterday, engagement was no secret, photos from the event already going around on social media.

"It's been calling since you left," Tony laughed, pointing at his phone, confirming Steve's theory. Ah, phone calls with congratulations. The word spread quickly in the drag queen's world. That just gave Steve some time to make breakfast. He leaned down and quickly smooched Tony's, already puckered up lips, and walked out of the bedroom, still hearing Tony's voice.

"No, I didn't expect it! Yeah, a total surprise. What do you mean by about time?! Girl, you are older than I am and got married two years ago! By the way, my invitation still didn't arrive. I know, right? Damn post, always losing things..."

Steve took off his shoes and washed his hands, before preparing breakfast. Something simple and tasty, so he sliced some fruit and put on the platter, preparing the eggs and milk mixture for the French toasts. He sliced some thick pieces of the soft brioche, wanting it to soak nicely, but before that, he would have to call Tony over, so the brioche won't fall apart. Steve entered the bedroom, seeing Tony in the exact same position, still going on and on on the phone, not even noticing him.

"Yeah - eep," Tony made a high pitched sound, feeling fingers walking down his heel. Across the sole, and Tony had to bite a laugh down, and then fingers hooked around his ankle, dragging him on the bed. "Ah, Latrice, sorry, I gotta go, fiancé fever, you know how it is, stay fabulous, love you girl, byeeee!" Tony squeezed many words into the short moment, in which Steve pulled him close, surprising Tony with a long kiss.

"Mhm," Tony hummed contentedly, turning to better face Steve and wrapped hands around his, officially, fiancé's neck, pressing their bodies together. That short bathrobe and a ring on Tony's finger - it was everything Steve wanted to see for the rest of his life.

"Are you done talking?" Steve asked into the kiss.

"Only if you have some better proposition for me," Tony fluttered his eyelashes in a flirty move. As an encouragement, Steve kissed him again, long and sweet, letting the feeling linger.

"French toasts for breakfast?" Steve asked after the kiss ended, leaving Tony a bit breathless and starry-eyed.

"You read my mind," Tony giggled happily, letting Steve pull him up from the bed. It was high time for them both to spend some time together and a shared breakfast was a good start.

Until Tony's phone started to ring again.

"Oh," Tony looked at the screen and Steve did too, seeing a face in full makeup, the photo signed Manilla. "Can I...?" Tony asked, smiling shyly and gesturing at his phone, abandoned in the covers.

Steve sighed dramatically. He liked to think that Tony belonged only to him, but Red Velvet had many sisters that clearly wanted to congratulate her and be a part of the big day. What kind of fiancé Steve would be if he denied Tony that?

"The last one," Steve negotiated, pulling Tony closer and wrapping hands possessively around his lover, "and then I want you all to myself," he said, obscenely groping Tony's round butt, just to make a point.

Tony giggled again, clearly delighted with Steve being so handsy. "Okay," he agreed, plopping down on the covers again, "the last one before breakfast! Aaah!" Tony squeaked, when Steve sunk down right after him, trying to unwrap his fiancé from the tiny bathrobe, just like one unwraps a present, all accompanied by Tony's excited laughter, Steve's hungry growling, and the melody of 'I want to break free' by Queen, Tony had set as a ringtone.

Breakfast could wait. Tony could call back. But their life as an engaged couple started right now and it was a moment Steve didn't want to share with anyone. Only him, Tony and Red Velvet.

'I've fallen in love for the first time. And this time I know it's for real. I've fallen in love, yeah. God knows, God knows I've fallen in love.'

————-

<– previous part

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ta-dam, the big reveal of Tony's drag mom! also, some more of my fav drag queens got a shout-out. Sam's drag name was created by @roshytsunami, thank you for following this story! Steve's outfit is the outfit Chris Evans had on during Oscar Gala in 2019, if you are wondering.

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tag list

@destiel-is-classic, @prithvik , @azurixx ,  @mangakats, @mystey-writes,@w1nters-stark, gloriousmarvellokiturtle, @the-pop-culture-geek

[neptunesnxpple]

Shigaraki x male reader Part 6

****Minors Do Not Interact****

Summary of the Series: You move to a new country- only to find out the apartment you moved into is the home base of a league you don’t even know about! This is sort of a found family situation where reader takes care the league.

Warnings/Tags for this Part: reader is a man or masc identifying, working over the holidays, spa day with the league, shigaraki finally gets to moisturize, reader is learning japanese, not a primary language

Part 1 ;; Part 2 ;; Part 3 ;; Part 4 ;; Part 5 ;; Part 6 ;; Part 7

Preview: “I was practicing reading a newspaper earlier this week, and I found something about a league. I couldn’t really make out much of it, but apparently there was this guy named Stain that caused quite a stir. A real mix of reactions. I was wondering if you knew anything about that? Or if he was also in the same league? I don’t want to assume that everyone that’s in the league lives with us, but, I don’t know…” you trailed off, smiling and looking at him. He tensed visibly, squeezing the cup tighter and jaw clenching. Your smile faltered, worry starting to replace it. You weren’t sure if you said something wrong, but this was not a reaction you expected,

~~~~~~~

Winter was in full force, cold biting wind and frequent flurries greeted you when you left for work whether it was early morning or late at night. The store that you worked at opened a café department and had given you first pick of whether you wanted to transfer departments or not due to your flexibility. Not having much else to do you were signed up for the night shifts. Seldom did you come across another human being at these odd hours of the night, but when you did it was always quiet souls. Other people getting ready for their midnight shifts, or perhaps people stopping on their way home. You went in at around dinner time and got home before the sun rose. They had given you a set of keys and trained you on how to close for the night, the checklist of what had to be completed before the morning shift arrived hours later. You didn’t have any qualms about this change in shifts, yet Shigaraki seemed to feel otherwise.

 Neither of you had spoken about the time in the shower, although that didn’t stop things from changing. You were released back into the custody of your bed, the actual one, while the makeshift assortment of pillows and blankets remained pressed up at the mattresses edge, a shoddy continuation of such. The two of you would play videogames when you could, go to bed and wake up with the other sleeping or just settling down for the night, and occasionally you would wake up with both of your backs pressed together in some noncommittal version of cuddling. You weren’t sure what to make of the whole situation, really. Maybe that was just something he did for the league, and who were you to judge? You enjoyed it, even if it left a nervous pit in your stomach. But, that was only if you thought about it too long.

No, once you had informed the group of your change in hours, Shigaraki got very protective and seemed to stand a little closer, move seats to be nearer when you sat in the living room, and you might have been imagining things but you swore you noticed the way he watched your movements- more attentive than in the beginning months of your arrangement. It came with great surprise, you bundled up before your first shift as Shigaraki followed you out of the door. You asked him where he was going and he scoffed, rolling his eyes and picking at the scarf saddled around his neck.

 “Don’t you know it’s dangerous around here at night?”

 He offered without explanation. You walked in comfortable silence the rest of the way, the glow of warm lights from neighboring apartment buildings, people sitting down with their families to eat a meal, lighting up the narrow sidewalk. He stopped outside of the building you worked, clearing his throat,

“I’ll walk you back once you get out of work. Just don’t make me wait,” he said gruffly, cheeks pink although surely that was from the cold. You nodded and waved him off, ducking inside and picking up where the last person left off. As expected, the later the hour got the less foot traffic you had, until it was just you for the past three hours. You kept busy with the chore list, but your mind continued to wander, thinking over how much you really knew about Shigaraki. You knew his nervous habits, the way he’d pick at his skin until you’d smack his hand away- it got to the point where if you looked at him sharply, he’d get the idea. You knew that he didn’t necessarily have parents, or a traditional family, at least from the way he spoke bitterly of his childhood. You knew that he liked your cooking, more than ordering take out- he got grumpy if he had to result to that, unless you agreed to eat with him. Then he’d simmer down. You also knew he slept more in the recent times than in the beginning, the tired lines under his eyes less severe but still present. A reminder of the heavy plate he had. You knew he was fiercely loyal, determined, and at times extremely charming although not in a way you would have expected from looking at him. He always made sure the league was well fed, worried if someone showed signs of getting sick, and took himself and their goals very seriously. To fill the time, you decided to pick up a newspaper and see how far along your kanji recognition was going. You flipped through, scanning for words that jumped out- eyes catching on a headline you could mostly understand. It took a couple of run throughs, but they were mentioning a league of some sort. One that had big ideas that were controversial to the public- and a figure named Stain that had really incited the public. This article seemed to be focusing mostly on peoples reactions to this Stain figure. You made out bits and pieces- some people calling it scary while others thought Stain and his ideals were cool. You wondered if Stain was part of the same league that the rest of the gang was a part of. You couldn’t understand a lot of what was being said, and you weren’t sure how much bias was in this paper, so you weren’t going to make your mind up quite yet. You’d do a little more investigating once you felt more up for it. You tucked it away under the counter and began searching for a broom.

 A week into your new schedule, on a particularly chilly night, you handed Shigaraki a cup of hot chocolate for the walk home, turning the key and holding your own. Maybe it was the lack of adequate sleep or the comfort of the quiet evening- streets empty except for the two of you and the steam sneaking out of your travel mugs, that lead you to asking the following-

 “So, are you, uh, into guys?” you forced yourself to remain calm and casual, wanting this to seem like it wasn’t out of the ordinary. Perhaps if you put out an aura of ease, the conversation wouldn’t feel as awkward. You kept your eyes forward. Shigaraki was silent for much too long in your opinion,

 “Perhaps,” he answered, doing much the same. Your throat tightened- this guy tended to your every need when you were sick and after the incident in the shower, he had to be at least some level of into guys. You gripped the cup tighter, swallowing.

 “I am,” you announced. He made a noise of amusement at that, nodding and instead of scratching his neck, picking at the side of his cup instead.

 “Yeah. I mean, I am, too. Also into… guys.”

 You couldn’t make out his tone of voice, although it was unusual in comparison to what you were used to. Too tired to try and analyzed it, you nodded in agreement.

 “Cool.” Needing the conversation to change topics desperately, you offered one that you had hardly spent much time looking into, “I was practicing reading a newspaper earlier this week, and I found something about a league. I couldn’t really make out much of it, but apparently there was this guy named Stain that caused quite a stir. A real mix of reactions. I was wondering if you knew anything about that? Or if he was also in the same league? I don’t want to assume that everyone that’s in the league lives with us, but, I don’t know…” you trailed off, smiling and looking at him. He tensed visibly, squeezing the cup tighter and jaw clenching. Your smile faltered, worry starting to replace it. You weren’t sure if you said something wrong, but this was not a reaction you expected,

 “How much did you read?”

 “Not a lot, I’m still practicing my kanji, but I do know that some people were kind of afraid of him and the league while others thought it was kind of cool. I think, whenever there’s something new people have a tendency to be a little scared,” you shrugged, “I didn’t really get much about what the situation was or any details.” You watched his shoulders fall while his knuckles remained white. You didn’t expect much of a response.

 “Stain is… was part of the league, but not a big part,” there it was, that bitterness again, “he’s not much of an active participant right now. The real league members are the ones in the apartment. He was good for publicity, that’s all.”

 You nodded. This made you all the more determined to add more kanji to your repertoire, so you could get more of a gist about what the league was.  

 With the holiday season approaching, your hours got longer. The numbers of days you worked in a week teetering between five and six. You felt the effects on your joints, your back, neck, feet, everything was sore and tight. All too tight. You made an effort to stretch but that could only do so much. Your physical form NEEDED to sleep. Your body may feel broken, but your bank account wasn’t. That’s what got you through the upcoming holiday horror, what made you move your heavy limbs out of bed and grab some leftovers from the fridge to eat with haste before bolting out the door. With Christmas coming up, your work introduced reservations as apparently cafes were popular dates for the season. You never paid much attention to the holiday before moving, but apparently in Japan it was more so known as a couples holiday. The thought sat with you oddly. A couples holiday… Or at least one for confessions. Your mind wandered to Shigaraki, considering the idea of a grand gesture. Then again, maybe this was all completely one sided. It wasn’t like you could do much either, you were scheduled in a ridiculous manner. Despite all that he continued to walk you to and from, a hot chocolate was all you had to pay and even on nights when you forgot he seemed to let it slide.

 By the end of the holiday weekend you were ragged. Far too little sleep had left you feeling loopy, the smallest things bursting you into fits of laughter and making tiny little mistakes more often than not. You brushed it off, knowing that the following week you had off. On the last night of your hell month, you locked up and were met with a particularly jittery Shigaraki.

 “You alright?” you asked.

 “Never better,” he responded shortly. Moments passed before he acknowledged you directly again, “you’ll be hanging around at home more often now, right?” his uncertainty clung to every word. You nodded,

 “Yeah. I don’t want to do anything but lounge out for the next week,” you sighed happily, stretching your arms to the sky with a smile on your face, “I bet you’ll still be working hard though, right?”

 He hummed in acknowledgement. You approached the apartment door and heard hushed voices and movement from the other side. You slowly opened the door, peeking in.

 “Welcome home!” they cheered, a mismatch of decorations hung from the wall and ceiling.

 “We got face masks! None as cool as mine, though I’m flattered you’d want to imitate my style,” Twice struck a pose, holding out the individual packets of different face masks,

 “And candles! Also, bath salts!” Toga proudly showed her contribution to it, one by one different members of the league offered a variety of products, Magne proudly displaying her collection of nail care and colors, offering to provide manicures. It was therapeutic for her as well. And with that, the league had their own spa night, Shigaraki struggling as Toga applied a moisturizing mask to his face while Twice both cheered her on and feebly attempted to get her to stop. You melted into the couch, enjoying the company. It was nice to be around friends and family again.

 The night wrapped up with everyone crowded in the bathroom after washing or peeling off the masks, a variety of different bath salts combined in the tub while everyone rolled their pants up to their knee and either sat on the side or waded in the tiny tub, crammed together holding a hodgepodge of glasses, mugs, filled with either wine or juice depending on the crewmember.  You all laughed and relaxed, catching up for the first time in a month despite all living in the same small apartment.

[dayasbun]

Fame - Angus Cloud (6)

Summary- a luckily timed audition leads to you falling for your new and unexpected co-star.

Warnings- okay HI welcome to my first multi chapter series woah?! this is actually so exciting for me like wow especially since angus doesn’t have any fics yet im just really really excited- so warnings! smut for sure, bad words, lotsa fluff, angst- everything in one basically. here comes a ride and I hope you enjoy :)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 {reading now}

-

“Okay! So all we’re doing today is the makeout scene, sound good?”

You and Angus nodded, both sitting on the poster bed with cameras surrounding you.

“What did I do?” He muttered to you for the tenth time that afternoon, and just like the other nine times, you didn't respond. Just hours before, Z had properly informed you of Angus’s secret girlfriend, someone he clearly had a thing with-but made sure to tell you nothing of.

THAT MORNING...

“Z!” You rushed over to her, your eyes wide as Storm came up beside you two.

“You have to film in an hour don’t you?” Zendaya questioned, quickly pulling out her phone. You nodded giving Storm a quick smile.

“Yeah, and you already know what I have to film-”

“Mmmmm right, you gotta make out with Angus, trust me we know. Everybodys talking about it, they won’t let us on set to watch y’all though, we tried.”

“I can’t stand you two,” You laughed shaking your head “Anyway, you know why I’m here. What you find out about Angus? That you texted me about last night? And make it quick, I gotta go to hair and makeup in a bit.”

“I’m debating if we should tell you before or after you film your scenes…”

“You basically already told her Ms. Blabbermouth, so just tell her the full thing.” Storm said to Z with a shrug.

“I am not a blabbermouth! I think its just right that she knows!”

“Then tell me Daya, come on!”

“Okay, okay. So my social media is set up so that when someone is following me I can see who follows them that I also follow without even clicking on- this doesn’t make sense, anyway! This girl followed me and the only person following her that I also follow was Angus. I didn’t think much of it, shes public so I wanted to check out her pictures cuz I was bored. She doesn’t have that many followers, but this girl is hot. Like I’m not even gay and she’s fine as hell, that’s why I was going through her pictures because she was just so gorg-”

“She’s pretty, I get it, can we move on?”

“Oh- Sorry. So yeah, I’m scrolling and I get to this picture of her on some man’s lap right? You cant see his face or anything, and there’s no tag. This was posted last month by the way. So there’s no tag or caption, but guess who commented?!”

“Wild guess, Angus?”

“Exactly! And guess what he said?”

“I don’t have time or patience for guessing right now-”

“He commented- and I quote, ‘Baby I miss you, sit on my lap again’ with those nasty thirst trap emojis! So I’m like wait a minute! And I’m going through her pictures now for a whole other reason. I find out they been dating since 2017 and she has a million pictures with him on her page all booed up but get a load of this- she literally never tags him. She always tags this other guy named Steve.”

You let out a huff and crossed your arms. “That’s fucked up. Real fucked up.”

“Yeah, I kn-”

“But I am not going to let it affect me today. I have to make out with him either way for our scene, so being petty isn’t necessary. I’m going to go on that damn set, and I won’t say a single word to him unless it’s on the fucking script!”

NOW...

“And...action!”

Angus let out a long sigh before jumping into the scene for the seventh time. You could tell it was bothering him why you were suddenly giving him the cold shoulder due to it affecting his performance as being Fez. You wanted to feel bad, but who just decides it’s cute to lead practical double lives? You tried to move the topic out of your mind so you wouldn't feel completely livid again and focused on the scene in front of you.

“Don’t do that girl, you got me fucked up.”

“Don’t do what? This?” You bit your lip and moved closer to him.

“You just tryna get some today ain't you?”

“I've been trying to get some since when I came back last week, Fez. But I’m glad you finally decided to notice.”

“Lemme gives you some then, come ‘ere.”

You got onto his lap wrapping your legs around his waist, just like you had the night before. You looked into his eyes and you felt your heart melt, and at this point, you didn't know if you were in character or if this was just you.

But then you remembered you were most likely the side chick.

Your facial expression hardened a bit, not enough for the cameras to pick it up, but you knew Angus noticed. Before he could ask you what was wrong or what he did for the eleventh time and ruin the scene, you pressed your lips to his and kissed him deep.

“Fuck baby...” he groaned into your mouth, his hands working their way up and under your shirt to cup your breasts. Once his large hands reached them, he gave them a nice squeeze causing your breath to hitch as you bounced a little.

Yeah, sure you were mad at him right now...but you loved that shit.

You grinned a bit wrapping your arms around his neck and pushing him down onto the bed. “You want me Fez?” You moaned out in a breathy tone, pulling your shirt over your head.

“Fuck yeah I want you girl, take this shit off for me.”

As you slowly unclipped your bra, you specifically remembered that at this point in the script he was to say ‘Jess’, not girl. But of course, the one-time {yesterday} you wanted him to say girl he had to say Jes-

Your thoughts were quickly interrupted by a sudden “Cut!” from the crew. Letting out a breath you got off of Angus’s lap and clipped your bra. “Good stuff guys, we need Daya and Hunter next so if you see ‘em remind them its time for their scenes in about thirty minutes.”

You nodded putting your shirt back on, and trying to rush off of the set before Angus could catch up to you- but you failed.

“Aye,” he said walking by you “What's good?”

You shrugged. “I don’t really know what's good.”

“Why you acting like this, all different and shit. It’s on god starting to weird me out, what's the dealio wit’ you?”

“Just fuck off.”

Angus raised a brow and stopped walking. Thinking you finally had gotten him to leave you alone, you slowly walked to your trailer but ran into Jacob on the way.

“Hey!” You said softly. You hadn't exchanged many words with him over the time you'd been filming, but every time you had, he had been sweet and polite. The run down with Jacob was that he was talented and cute...that's about all you knew.

The conversation between you and Jacob was brief but pure. He asked you some questions about filming and you told him about how much you loved his performance in the show. Soon enough he reached his trailer and you two parted ways, leaving you alone as you walked to yours.

You stayed more focused on your phone that your surroundings, leading to you not realizing that Angus wasn't far behind you. As soon as you stopped walking and leaned against the side of your trailer, you felt someone in front of you. Looking up from your phone your eyes widened, why the fuck was he still here?

“Angus what the fu-”

“So you think you can talk to me like that?”

Suddenly feeling shy, your voice and confidence lowered. “I was playing...”

“And you think you can just flirt with anybody and everybody?”

“What are you-”

“Imma tells you something, so imma need you to listen to me real clear.”

You swallowed and nodded, looking up at him.

“Ion think you know this yet so imma let you know.” He placed his thumb on your cheek. “You mine, got it? Not Jacobs, not anybody fucking elses, mine.”

You almost couldn't believe the words you were hearin-

“Uh, Y/N, you good?” Jacob asked you. Quickly snapping out of it you nodded. “Yeah, I’m fine thanks.” What a hell of an imagination you had. You took a quick glance behind you and saw no one at all. Letting out a sigh you said goodbye to Jacob and walked into your trailer. As soon as you closed the door you heard a ding that was specially set for your male costar.

Angus☁️: come to my trailer. now.

and why should i do that?

Angus☁️: now Y/N im not fuckin around

im busy

Angus☁️: busy my fucking ass im fr

alr but don't expect me to stay.

Angus☁️ read at 1:34 PM

And even though you didn't quite know what was up yet, just from the texts you could tell that Angus was not happy.

-

taglist:

@nikkixostan @melaninmarvel @celiajrs @siriuslycollins @patientplum @babygurlbarnes

[nazariolahela]

Best Beloved: Chapter 5

A/N: Hey y'all! This is a PM AU I’ve been working on. It’s a bit different than my previous fic series and I’m really excited to try something new. I hope y’all enjoy it. This story is told in dual first-person narrative, from Kaia (F!MC) and Damien’s POV. The first half of this story takes place during Kaia’s freshman year and Damien’s senior year of college. The second half is two years after Kaia graduates. There will be sprinklings of canon in this fic, but we’ll try to step out of the box for the most part. Thanks for reading, and please leave feedback, and/or if you would like to be tagged.

Catch up here

Series Tags: @burnsoslow @lady-calypso @irishwhiskys-blog @loveellamae​

Synopsis: What happens when you find yourself crushing on your best friend? For years, Damien and Kaia have been friends, while secretly harboring feelings for one another. Everything changes one night after a little too much alcohol and years of pent up feelings. Can they control their emotions and salvage their friendship, or will the feelings they hold for one another destroy everything they have?

All characters are the property of Pixelberry Studios. Thanks for allowing me to borrow them.

Chapter Summary: Damien and Kaia meet for a study group, but the assignment isn’t the only thing they’re struggling with.

Kaia

“You’re late,” I said, my feet propped up on the table, as Damien shuffled across the library to where I was sitting. It was our weekly study session and we were supposed to start 20 minutes ago, but I was the only one in our group who had grasped the concept of time management.

“Yeah, sorry. This internship is kicking my ass. I had to stay late because we were setting up some new security clearance protocols. Don’t tell anyone though. That information is classified,” he replied as he slid the backpack off his shoulder. He took a seat at the table and shot me a panty-dropping grin. My body instantly reacted. Bastard. How did he keep doing that?

“Yeah, well Brad and Allison aren’t here yet either, so I guess I can’t be too mad at you.”

“You couldn’t be mad at me if you wanted to. You love me.”

I paused. Did he really just say that?  He always knew how to push my buttons. Even when we were kids. It’s like he lived to get a reaction out of me. I cleared my throat awkwardly. “Anyway. We need to get the rest of this project done. It’s due on Monday. Did you finish your part?” 

“Of course I did. What do you take me for?” he grinned, pulling his laptop from his backpack. I watched him from the corner of my eye as he set it on the table and opened it up, powering up the device. “I’m emailing it to you right now so you can add it to the final document.”

I had the unfortunate task of presenting the project to the class, so everyone sent their parts to me. It was my job to outline the project, then organize each part into our PowerPoint.  

“Not gonna lie, this is not how I wanted to spend my Saturday afternoon. I have a very pissed off girlfriend right now,” he said.

I hid my smirk behind my laptop. I know, I know. It wasn’t very nice of me, but I got a little thrill hearing that Damien and Alana were having problems. It wasn’t that I wanted my friend to be miserable, but if he suddenly became single, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. I had nothing against Alana personally, but the few times we interacted, she was very cold towards me.

“Hmm...that sucks. So, I have Allison’s part. She emailed it to me last night, but I’m still waiting on Brad’s part. I put your part on slides 5 and 6 to transition from Allison’s slide, then we’ll put Brad’s part on slides 9 and 10 after my part. Then, we should be good to go.” I checked the time on my phone. Brad and Allison were over half an hour late. I sent both of them a text asking when they planned on showing up, then went back to laying out the presentation.

Damien and I worked in silence for several minutes. Occasionally, I would look up from my computer and sneak peeks of him. I couldn’t help but stare at his features. Even after all these years, my attraction for him never waned. He looked up and caught me staring; his lips turned up in a wide grin.

“Do I have something on my face?”

“Um...uh...nope. Y-you’re all good!” I replied a little too enthusiastically.

“Then why are you staring at me like that?” he smirked.

I felt my cheeks turn beet red. I quickly looked away and tried to focus on what I was working on, but I could still feel his eyes on me. My phone pinged, breaking the silence — and thank the gods — the tension. I grabbed it and saw a message from Allison. She mentioned that she wasn’t feeling well and would not be able to make our study group tonight, but that she would see us next week. There was still no word from Brad, which I was not surprised by.

I rolled my eyes and placed my phone on the table. “Well, Allison’s not coming. I don’t know about Brad, but I’m guessing if he was going to show up, he’d be here by now.”

Damien shrugged. “No biggie. That kid is a major tool anyway. Not having him here is a blessing.”

I giggled. “True, but we can’t finish without his contribution, so we’re stuck with him until we turn this stupid ass project in.”

“Yippie,” he said in a monotone voice. I rolled my eyes and went back to finishing up our presentation.

We worked for about ten more minutes until my eyes started to blur from staring at the screen. “Well, I guess this is a good stopping point for now. Until we get Brad’s part, this is as far as we can work,”

I stuffed my things in my backpack and slung it over my shoulder when Damien stopped me.

“Hey, you busy right now? Wanna go get a bite to eat?”

I cocked my head in confusion. Was he really asking me to hang out? I had offered to meet him for lunch or coffee outside of our study group several times, but he always had plans with Alana. “Uh…I guess. If that’s okay with you.”

“Obviously it is because I just asked you,” he smirked.

“Yeah, sure. You wanna go now?”

“Nah, I was thinking sometime next month. Of course, I want to go now. When else would we go?” His voice dripped with sarcasm.

I looked down at the yoga pants and hoodie I was wearing. “Well, I was hoping to shower and change before I go out in public.”

“You look fine. No one’s going to give a shit what you’re wearing. Besides, you’re technically already out in public, so it’s a little late for that,” he laughed.

I huffed. “Fine. Where are we going?” 

“There’s a little bistro off-campus that has really good burgers.” He slung an arm around my shoulder, pulling me to his body. The feeling of him pressed up against me sent chills down my spine. I shuddered as he grabbed my backpack and handed it to me, then led me out of the library.  

When we reached his car in the campus parking lot, he unlocked the doors and tossed his backpack in the back seat. I stopped in my tracks. He still had the same car from high school. All the memories of us riding around in this thing on Friday nights came flooding back. He moved to the driver’s side door, stopping to wait for me. “Are you going to get in the car, or are you just going to stand there all day staring into space?” He extended his arm and tapped his index finger to his wrist. “Time’s a-wastin', Park.”

Snap out of it, Kaia. It’s just Damien. But it wasn’t ‘just Damien.’ It was the boy I had been in love with for as long as I could remember. I moved slowly to the car and opened the passenger’s side door, sliding in. He smirked and started the ignition. We drove in silence, the only sounds coming from the radio. A song from our childhood started playing and we looked at each other with goofy grins on our faces.

“Remember the first time we heard this song? You wouldn’t stop singing it for weeks,” he said with a laugh.

“What? It’s a good song,” I replied, singing along and dancing in my seat.

I smiled at the memory that song brought back. It was the summer of 2009. Damien and I were in his backyard, hanging out in the treehouse he and his dad built a few summers before. Two of his younger sisters, Isabela and Carina, were having a sleepover, so he was hiding out. His sister Carina was my age and we were in a couple of classes together, so I was friendly with her, but I spent more time with Damien. The sun had finally set over the horizon so we decided to start up a fire in the fire pit and make S’mores. We climbed down the ladder and he pulled a lighter from his pocket.

“Why do you have that?” I gasped.

His eyes met mine and a smirk spread across his face. “I was smoking a J behind the school gym this morning, so I needed it.” He stared at me for a few seconds, watching my reaction, then burst out laughing. “I found it in the junk drawer in the kitchen, you dork. You know I don’t smoke.”

I leaned over and smacked his arm. “Not funny, Dames.”

“I disagree. I thought it was hilarious.”

“Whatever. Just light the stupid fire. I’ll run inside and grab the stuff to make S’mores.”

“Watch out for the slumber party,” he called back as I walked into the house. I made it to the kitchen and started rummaging through the cabinets, looking for the ingredients we needed. I found the graham crackers and chocolate bars but had no luck locating the marshmallows. I was about to go back outside and asked Damien when I turned and bumped into Isabela.

“Hey, Kaia. Whatcha doing?” she asked, holding several bags of chips in her arms.

“Dames and I are making S’mores. Where are your marshmallows?”

She set the bags of chips down and rummaged around the pantry before locating and tossing me the bag. “So, what’s going on with you and my brother?”

My cheeks instantly flushed. “Wh-what do you mean?”

She smirked. “You know what I mean. You two spend an awful lot of time together. Are you two a thing?”

“No. It’s not like that. We’re just friends,” I lied. Her cocked eyebrow said she didn’t buy my bullshit, but she nodded her head. I grabbed the bag of marshmallows from her hand and hightailed it back outside. "I Gotta Feeling" by Black Eyed Peas blasted through the portable speakers in the yard. I approached Damien sitting in front of the firepit, poking one of the logs with a stick. He was shirtless and the moonlight bounced off the muscles of his toned back. The sight made my mouth water. That was the first time I realized I was in love with him.

I was thrust back into the present by the sound of Damien killing the engine. I looked up and noticed we had arrived at the bistro. We exited the car and made our way inside, snagging a table toward the back of the restaurant. The waitress dropped off the menus and took our drink orders, before leaving us to decide what to eat. I pretended to peruse the menu, but my mind was on the guy sitting in the booth across from me.

“Order whatever you want. My treat,” he said.

“Huh?”

I looked up and he was watching me. He nodded toward the menu in my hand. “Don’t worry about paying. I’ve got it this time.”

“You don’t have to do that, you know.”

“I know,” he said softly, riling up the butterflies in my stomach. Our waitress returned a few minutes later and took our orders. Damien ordered the Maple Bacon Burger while I ordered the Mac ‘N Cheese Burger. The waitress left to put our orders in, leaving us alone again.

“So, now that we’re a month into the school year, how are your classes going?” he asked.

I shrugged, swirling my straw in my glass. “Classes are going well. I’m not ready to drop any of them, so that’s a plus. Dorm life is pretty fun, too. I got really lucky with my roomie. Her schedule is different from mine, so we don’t see much of each other, but one night a week, we hang out.” I tapped my finger against my chin. “It’s crazy to think that we’re already a quarter of the way through the semester, so that means I’m 1/32nd of the way through my college career.”

He laughed. “I guess that’s one way of looking at it. What else is going on? Any interesting guys catch your attention lately?”

My eyes shot up to meet his. Why was he asking me that? I went back to staring at my drink. “Uh...not really. There is this guy in my algebra class who asked me out, but I turned him down.” I peeked at him from under my lashes, unable to make out his expression.

***

Damien

I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. On one hand, I wanted her to find someone who would make her happy if I couldn’t. On the other hand, knowing that she wasn’t involved with anyone gave me a tiny sliver of hope. I know she wouldn’t wait for me forever, but I still liked that there wasn’t another guy capturing her attention. Jesus, I was such an asshole.

“So, what happened?” the words left my mouth before I could stop them.

She shrugged. “I don’t know. He’s super nice and really cute, but I just couldn’t bring myself to say yes. Which is weird, because there’s definitely an attraction between us. My whole goal for this semester was to step out of my comfort zone.”

She looked up at me, those big, beautiful brown eyes staring into my soul. No matter how hard I tried to fight it, everything about this girl did things to me. Her laugh was like the most beautiful music to my ears. Her sense of humor was aligned with mine. Even her looks were enough to make other girls jealous. When she complained earlier about how she was dressed, I internally rolled my eyes. Even when she didn’t try, she still looked mouth-watering. She was wearing a pair of black yoga pants and a light pink hooded sweatshirt with the words “Rosé and Shine” written in gold cursive letters across the chest. Yes, I looked at her chest. If she busted me, I would’ve just said I was trying to read her shirt.

I awkwardly cleared my throat. “You should give him a chance. Who knows? He might turn out to be a great guy. We all know those are in short supply lately.” Gods, what was I doing? I knew it was the right thing to do, but saying those words hurt.

She nodded. “Yeah, I guess. Maybe he is great and we’ll be really happy together. I just don’t know if I’m ready to start dating yet. I think… I just...I’m not over...” she trailed off.

“You’re not over what?”

“Nevermind,” she shook her head and took a long sip of her drink.

The wheels started turning. Was she talking about me? I know she dated in high school, but Nadia told me those relationships never lasted longer than a few months. She suspected I was the reason for that. Yeah, I know it sounded a tad creepy, but I was able to keep tabs on her, thanks to her cousin’s need to gossip.

One particular moment was that first Christmas after I left for college. I received a text from Nadia asking if I was coming home. She then asked that I keep my distance from Kaia. When I asked her “why,” she told me that she was still upset about what happened after graduation. 

But I didn’t care. I wanted to see my best friend. I dropped by her house to say hi to her parents. They always treated me like the son they never had. Her dad asked how college was going. I told them about my classes and the friends I had made so far. Her mom was filling me in about the neighborhood gossip when I caught a glimpse of Kaia hovering in the hallway. She looked like she wanted to talk to me, but I could tell she was embarrassed to see me.

We locked eyes briefly before she turned around and retreated to her bedroom. I waited a few moments then excused myself to use the bathroom. I stood outside her door, listening for any signs of movement, before lightly tapping on the door. I heard the springs of her mattress squeak under her weight, then the door swung open. She looked adorable in her red and white Reindeer pajama pants and white thermal top. My eyes briefly traveled down and I noticed she wasn’t wearing a bra.

“So, you weren’t even going to come to say hi to me?” I asked.

She shifted on her feet. “I don’t know. I figured you didn’t want to talk to me after what happened last time.” I watched as her eyes traveled up and down my body. It took everything in me to keep from pushing her into her room and kissing her. As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t. Not only were her parents in the other room, I knew the whole age difference was frowned upon. And what if we did get together and it didn’t work out? I’d lose my best friend forever.

“You’re my best friend, Kaia. No matter what happened in the past, that will never change,” I replied.

“Even when I get drunk and act like a lovesick idiot?” She played with the drawstring of her pants, avoiding my eyes.

I gripped her chin with my thumb and forefinger, tilting her face up towards mine. “There’s nothing you could do that would ever make me want to stop being your best friend. And hey, I don’t hold what happened back then against you. Sometimes we do dumb things when we’re drunk.”

Her face dropped and it told me I had said the wrong thing. I brought my hand up and cupped her cheek and she leaned into my touch. The moment was interrupted when her mom called from the kitchen to ask me if I wanted some hot cocoa. I dropped my hand and gave her a weak smile, then backed away slowly as I made my way down the hall back to the living room. I looked over at my shoulder to see her still standing in her bedroom doorway, watching me go.

I was pulled back into the present when the waitress arrived at our table and delivered our food. The two of us ate in awkward silence, occasionally looking up at each other. After our plates were cleared, the waitress reappeared and I ordered a slice of cherry pie for us to share. When the pie arrived, we each took a fork and dug in.

“So, tell me more about this mystery guy?” I asked, trying to lighten the mood.

She chewed for a few moments, hesitant to talk about it, then finally spoke. “Well, his name is Hayden. He’s a freshman and a photography major. He’s from Upstate New York and has a Border Collie named Dipper. He also has a twin brother named Harley, but I guess they don’t get along. Nadia loves him and she’s been bugging me to go out with him for the last few days.”

I didn’t know this kid from Adam, but I instantly didn’t like him. Was it jealousy? Probably. Was I going to do anything about it? Nope. “It’s obvious that you like him, so why not go out with him. You’re overthinking this, Kaia.”

“Yeah, maybe,” she sighed and took another bite of pie. At that moment, Alana’s friends Rowan and Cecile walked by. They waved, then stopped short when they noticed it wasn’t my girlfriend sitting in the booth across from me. Cecile gave me a skeptical glance while Rowan looked on in shock. 

“Hey, Damien. What are you up to?” He asked, looking between Kaia and me. 

“Hey, guys! Just capping off a little study session. This is Kaia. She’s an old friend.”

He nodded. “Cool, cool. You guys going to Homecoming next week? Cecile is a candidate for court, so we were going to have a little get-together after the crowning ceremony. You and Alana should come. It’s gonna be fun.”

“Yeah, that sounds good, man. I’ll talk to her about it this weekend.”

Cecile cocked an eyebrow as if to call me out on my bullshit, but didn’t say anything. She narrowed her eyes at Kaia, then turned back to me. “Well, we gotta go. Tell your girlfriend, Alana, hi for us.” She grabbed Rowan’s hand and they walked out. I sighed. I was sure I was going to get a phone call about that by the end of the night.

“Well, that was weird,” she said. “Speaking of, what’s going on with you and Alana?”

Shit, where do I start? “It’s complicated right now. We’re taking a break.”

Her eyes widened. “You guys broke up?”

“Eh...Not exactly. We’ve been fighting a lot, so we’re taking a few days to calm down and re-evaluate the relationship. It’s not how I would have handled things, but she thinks it will give us time to,” I held up my index and middle fingers, making air quotes, “figure things out. She thinks I’ve been neglecting her, which I kind of have been. But she also thinks I’m cheating on her.”

“Wow...I genuinely don’t know how to respond to that,” she replied.

“Yeah, me neither.”

Kaia nodded silently, setting her fork down on the plate. She rested her elbows on the table and folded her hands in front of her face. “Can I be honest with you? This whole relationship seems really unhealthy. There’s a huge lack of trust on both sides. That’s something a break isn’t going to fix. If she doesn’t trust you to be faithful, your relationship is doomed to fail. So, it’s up to you to figure out how you want to proceed. If you think the relationship is worth saving, you need to prove that you’re a reliable partner, and she needs to work through her insecurities. If not, you’re better off ending it now. Especially before you two decide to get engaged or something.”

“I kind of already proposed to her though,” I said, rubbing the back of my neck.

“Oh,” she replied. “Well, you should think about doing some sort of premarital counseling before you get married.”

“Yeah, I don’t think that’s going to happen anytime soon.”

“And why’s that?”

“Because she said no,” I deadpanned.

Kaia went quiet. I waited for her to say something else, but before she could speak, the waitress reappeared to drop our check off and ask if we needed anything else. Neither of us spoke as I paid the bill and we made our way out to the car. I debated asking her what she was thinking but decided against it. We rode in silence back to the dorms. When I pulled up in the parking lot, she grabbed the handle to exit the car, then stopped.

“For what it’s worth, Dames, I am sorry about you and Alana. I might not like her, but you’re my best friend. And if she makes you happy, then I’m happy for you. If you ever want to talk about it, you know where to find me. I’ve been told I’m a good listener.”

I nodded. “Thanks. I appreciate that. And hey, let me know how things go with Hayden.”

She frowned slightly, then quickly covered it up with a smile. “Will do. I’ll see you in class on Monday. Have a good weekend.” She got out of the car and took off running towards her dorm.

I dragged my hand down my face. Get it together, Dames. She was my best friend. And I had a girlfriend. I got out of the car and headed toward my dorm. When I reached my floor, I swung open the door to my room and was met by the cold stare of my girlfriend, sitting on my bed, her hands folded in her lap.

“Alana? What are you doing here?” I asked as I moved into the room. She rose from the bed and made her way towards me.

“Cecile texted me.”

Shit. I knew this was coming. “Babe, it’s not what you think.”

Her eyes gave away nothing as she took a deep breath. “It’s not important. What matters is you and me.”

Confused, I grabbed her hand and sat down on the bed. “You know I love you, babe. And I know I’ve been a shitty boyfriend these last few weeks, but I want to make this work and I’m willing to do whatever it takes.”

She nodded, but her face told me she didn’t believe me. I sighed and pressed a kiss to her temple. It was going to be a long night.

[canvaswolfdoll]

CanvasWatches: Id: Invaded

Okay, what if we could catch serial killers by entering their subconscious minds (referred to as an Id-Well), where the amnesiac avatar of a investigator must search for clues while also solving a murder mystery created within the bounds of a fantastic, mind bending world? Isn’t that an amazing premise for a combination platformer/puzzle video game?

Anyways, Id: Invaded is an anime. The only major complaint I have is how I would much rather be playing it than watching the proceedings, which probably just means it’s got a good concept.

Uh… it’s a mystery show with a season long arc and character progression so… spoilers? It’s a good show if you’re into that stuff. Handles grit and mature themes well, but… well, mature themes and violent images abound. So be careful of that.

So that’s the spoiler warning.

After watching the first episode and learning the basic concept, two truths were immediately evident: the young-looking police girl (Koharu Hondomachi) hearing the exposition is going to kill someone so she’ll be a candidate to dive into the id-well, and the elderly director guy overseeing the project is 100% the big bad.

Still, just because a couple things are easily solved by knowledge of narratives doesn’t mean there aren’t surprises. Like trepanning is a plot-important element in this for… some reason… it gives a secondary character superpowers!

Don’t… don’t blindly emulate your media, kids.[1]

The first couple of episodes telegraph what elements to pay attention to pretty clearly. Hondomachi is wide-eyed and overly interested in the Id Well machinations, and asks about how one becomes a candidate for entering the machine, and doesn’t look put out by the need to be a killer.[2] She also headbutts a drill to assist in the capture of the first serial killer of the show, so she’s not hesitant to take extreme measures. Which leaves the question: will she kill with the intention of joining the Id Well delving team?

Meanwhile, Takuhiko Hayaseura appears only long enough to be marked as important, but he doesn’t take an active part in the plot. Then the mysterious John Walker Phantom appears with similar old man body language, those dots are connected and you just have to wait for the plot to catch up.

Finally, our protagonist, Narihisago, dwells on wanting to save the perpetual victim of these murder dinner parties he’s investigating, signalling that Kaeru is more than a prop of the gimmick. I didn’t have enough details to take a guess at what her larger role would be, so the reveal in the later episodes was a successful twist.

There is a small tragedy with the structure of the anime course. While I typically prefer the 12 to 24 episode style, as it allows for limits for the artists to work with (like a trellis), and means that the series maintains a consistent narrative without flailing about to maintain momentum until given permission to die, we occasionally get a show like Id: Invaded where the central gimmick lends itself so well to an episodic, killer of the week style stories that I just want to watch the variations and not care too much about the myth arc. Because it’s set to conclude with episode 13, the show can only play with the gimmick for about half the course before having to buckle down and start telling the larger narrative, leaving me yearning for more new id wells and mysteries.

If the show were twice as long, it would’ve been able to play with the gimmick more, and have space to flesh out the investigative team to have actually interesting characters.

The first episodes introduce six characters watching Narhisago and analyzing the world around him to deduce the actual identity of the serial killer, but they have very little dialogue outside of exposition, and their mystery is opaque to the viewer until they solve it. The team could’ve been cut in half without losing anything.

But if Id:Invaded had two cours to stretch out and tell stories, the investigation team could have subplots and character revealing dialogue. But there’s no space for them, so… lost potential.

In fact, if this story was told as a video game,[3] there’d be plenty of space for the Wellside team to have incidental dialogue to develop them. The audience/player can also get more direct satisfaction out of solving the gimmick of each Id-Well, as they get to directly utilize the solution to complete the level. If the hypothetical game takes a page from Pheonix Wright, which is the game I most mentally aligned with the show, there can also be a section after the level where the clues found within the level can be analyzed and the player gets to piece together who the killed is.

It’d be fun.

But… er… the actual story.

It’s fine. The characters make a lot about learning who this John Walker fellow is, but the obvious culprit is sitting right there, so the viewer is just patiently waiting for the characters to catch up, amusing themselves with the episodic portion of the story.

Then, a twist: they find the device used to enter Id-Wells within an Id-Well. So, what would happen if someone used it?

So our protagonist does, and finds himself seemingly back in the real world, though before the death of his wife and daughter. He can set right what once went wrong!

Although… he knows this can’t be real. He remembers everything that led him here, so surely this is permanent.

But what if it is?

First order of business: Narihisago sequence breaks and puts a stop to the serial killer who murdered his daughter early, the fight placing him in the hospital, where he finds… Kaeru? Except her name’s Kiki, and when she sleeps, those around her experience her dreams.

Dreams where she’s constantly getting murdered, often in very brutal fashion. Huh.

Despite the characters attempting to lean into the mysterious nature of the machine allowing them to place people into Id-Wells, I took it for granted and assumed it wouldn’t need explanation.

Instead, we learn Kiki’s power is being exploited to enable the gimmick, which I should have seen coming considering how much the anime is built on women suffering.[4]

Eventually, Narihisago and Hondomachi (the girl who becomes a second Id-Well diver partway through) are able to use the time and space given in this recreated past to find a solid lead on who John Walker is. Just in time for the system to kick them out and for them to climb back out to actual reality.

Hayaseura, learning the jig is up, releases Kiki from the hidden chamber she’s been in, and lets her loose, where her powers rage out of control and pull everyone in the building into various Id-Wells.

He then goes to the chamber with the machines allowing the well-dives, and upon being confronted, he activates a machine to take him in as he shoots himself, intending to wreak havoc in the collective unconscious or whatever.

In hindsight, they probably could’ve just unplugged him and moved on to resolve the Kiki problem. Instead, our nominal[5] heroes follow him in for the final confrontation!

Then Covid-19 struck, and I had to wait three months for the final episode to get dubbed!

All my dubs are delayed. Which is fine. It’s fine and fair. I don’t want anyone to risk themselves just for my entertainment, but I’m allowed to be a little disappointed by fate.

So after a three month delay, I sit down to watch the final episode, not bothering to rewatch anything because I’ve waited three months and a not insignificant portion of my motivation was to just finish the dang thing.

The final episode was okay. The two detective characters work together to outwit John Walker, sending him to the time displaced universe via a machine in the Id-Well of someone who’s now dead.

Which… upon reflection, isn’t a permanent solution. Both Narihisago and Hondomachi went through that experience, and eventually got ejected to their original Id-Wells, and the death of an Id-Well’s owner doesn’t collapse the place (as proved by Hayaseura/John Walker using his own Id-Well to jump about despite being dead himself.

Outside the Id-Wells, the leader of the Wellside Team puts on a prototype suit version of the machine to attempt to get Kiki to stop making a mess of the building. He meets up with her, refuses to shoot her, and they all agree to put her back and maybe try and solve her problem.

So, at the end of the series, we’re mostly back where we started: using an applied phlebotinum girl to chase serial killers. Which keeps the premise open for a sequel,[6] but they’ll need to write a new overarching plot, as I don’t thinking curing Kiki’s dream projections lines up as a murder mystery. It’s possible, but I find it unlikely.

In the end, I enjoyed the show, and I’m glad I watched it. I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a more obscure anime after getting through the Canon of the artform. Still, the amount of female characters suffering, to the point that the plot itself operates off a woman’s suffering is uncomfortable. If there is more, hopefully they can lean off that element.

Also, let me reiterate one last time how Id:Invaded would make a great video game. I buy that Visual Novel in a snap.

Kataal kataal.

-

[1] Not that kids should watch this one. [2] The reason for this limitation is not explained, and is likely unimportant. [3] A desire I wasn’t being facetious about. [4] Most of the murder victims are woman, and there’s a worrying tendency for the killer’s methods to be based on maiming. [5] All three are killers: one a serial killer killer, a second a killer due to self-defense, and the last just a straight serial killer who happened to be useful. [6] And, indeed, a manga continuation started at the same time as the show, so the premise lives.

[aelaer]

Whumptober 31: Embrace

And somehow I've completed every prompt for @whumptober2019 with this final one here. Even more crazy, I basically completed NaNoWriMo with this series, only, you know, in October. The Google Doc all my fics live in for this series is at 51,299 words with the following fic's completion. Considering I was absolutely not attempting the challenge when I started this, I'm counting that as a complete NaNoWriMo, even if it does include a lot of the author's notes in that word count. Doesn't matter, it's still my writing!

So thank you very much to the mods for putting this together, because I would have never come up with all of these stories (which includes three series) otherwise.

I'll have the full list linked on my "bingo list" post, and the works have been slowly going up on AO3 for easier reading (and AO3 is only about a week behind at this point) - all the links will come probably in the next week or so. I'll reblog it when it's ready.

This one is the last one in the "demon" series within these prompt fills. If someone told me on the 2nd that my experimentation in first person would lead to this I wouldn't have believed them because I wouldn't have thought I was crazy enough to do every prompt while working a full time job on the freaking fly. *shakes head*

The series: Part One: 20 - Trembling Part Two: 22 - Alt 6 - Lost Part Three: 25 - Humiliation Part Four: 29 - Numb (and fanart(!!!!!) from dragonnan here, tw blood/wounds)

31. Embrace

Christine looked up at the Sanctum doors with a soft frown. Out of all the times she had been to Stephen's weird new home, this was the first time she could remember that she was coming without an advance notice of any sort.

The thing was, though, that after that… that thing (she really didn't like to think about it too much) over three months ago, Stephen had been acting odd. And even if they didn't tend to see each other more than once a month (and sometimes not even that), they kept in touch fairly consistently through texts. She knew he used her as a bit of a remaining connection to the so-called real world and she was happy to provide it. Besides, it was fun to share hospital gossip with him.

But for a while he had been very limited in his conversation until he stopped replying entirely two weeks ago. She texted Wong to see if he was especially busy "being a superhero" but he assured her that it's been relatively quiet since "the demon issue" (ugh, she really didn't want to think about it).

So here she was, come to figure out why the hell he was suddenly ghosting her.

After a moment of hesitation, Christine ascended the two steps up to the doors and firmly knocked upon them. After waiting for thirty seconds with no response, she bit her bottom lip and looked at her purse; maybe she should text someone, see if anyone was available—

Suddenly, the door opened… but she couldn't see anyone on the other side of it.

Magic house, right, she thought dryly as she stepped in. She knew a little bit of the weirdness that encompassed Stephen's new home, but generally speaking the building had acted like a proper, regular building every time she visited (and, to her own credit, she never went into any of the rooms that Stephen told her to leave alone. That made perfect sense to her, but apparently not everyone had her common sense, at least according to Wong).

Long story short, this was different.

"Uh, hello?" she called out into the empty foyer. "Stephen? Wong? … anyone?"

Yeah, it was completely empty. This was… this was definitely unusual.

Still, she had been at his house— the so-called Sanctum— enough times to remember where Stephen's study and the library were, so she decided to search those two rooms. Since the house had let her in, she figured she was more than welcome to.

If she wasn't, well, she'd blame the magic house.

She ventured first towards the library, careful not to touch anything sitting on the shelves or hanging on the walls. Even with her familiarity with the Sanctum, many of the items in the building's collection continued to look rather otherworldly or just felt outright wrong to her.

(Christine had learned early on, maybe her second or third time within the Sanctum, that they had a surprising amount of dangerous things on display for aesthetic purposes. At her remark about that, Stephen had pointed out that they didn't exactly have any children within the Sanctum to worry about. Wong later said that having magical items on display was a fantastic litmus test to weed out any really idiotic and self-destructive novices and apprentices, though that the test had somehow failed with Stephen. Stephen had flipped the bird at that remark, but she had seen it was in good nature, and it definitely made her happy to see the somewhat reclusive man making friends with his new cult.)

The library doors were closed. She knocked, then tried the handle; it opened and she peeked into a library that still looked like it was stuck somewhere in the nineteenth century. It was completely empty.

Now that she thought about it, it was a little weird she had yet to run into anyone. While Stephen's new home was rather empty the first few months he was there, it did not become uncommon to see the occasional passerby, though only a few people stopped to talk with her when she was with Stephen. When she really thought about it, she couldn't actually remember the last time she hadn't seen other people in the Sanctum.

Weird.

Christine shut the library doors again and started towards Stephen's study. It was closer to his bedroom (which she only knew because she came over to bring him soup when he had to cancel a meetup because he was sick, thank you very much), so she went up a level and headed there.

Stephen's study door was closed, too. She knocked and heard some sort of noise just beyond the door. Christine waited, but when nothing happened, she knocked again. "Stephen? It's me. Can I come in?"

Silence. She frowned and tried the door, but it didn't budge. "C'mon, Stephen. Even if you don't want to see me, at least reply to me." Even though she tried to pretend to be genuinely unbothered, the silent treatment did sting. He was meant to be a friend, after all.

The knob on the door jiggled and it opened, but all she saw in the small gap was shades of red. Why was the Cloak opening the door? Was Stephen hurt? At that alarming thought, Christine pushed the door fully open, the Cloak sweeping aside to give her full access of the room.

Stephen was… Stephen was sitting in the air, meditating, it looked like. Her shoulders relaxed when she saw he was okay, but her lips began to downturn as she stepped a bit closer. There were dark shadows under his eyes and it appeared like he had lost a bit of weight. Didn't Wong say that things were currently calm and uneventful? At the moment, Stephen looked something like he did after the alien invasion in 2012, only somehow worse. (She had, of course, seen even worse than this, but she refused to think back on the months after the accident. He was a different man, a much different man now.)

Christine took a couple steps back so she didn't startle him when he came back from wherever he went to when he was meditating. "Is he okay?" she whispered to the Cloak. It still astounded her how communicative the fabric could be.

And she really didn't like how it down-turned to bow its collar, only to end up shrugging its shoulders in a gesture that spoke of uncertainty. Her frown deepened and she went back to watching him and, finally accepting that he might take a while, asked the Cloak, "Are there any books here in English that are safe for me to read?" The Cloak tapped at several options, and she picked one at random to read.

It turned out it was about souls, of all things. She had keyed in that they were very much real things after… after everything that happened with the world in the last few years, but beyond that she only had a vague grasp of what it was, or what she thought it was, from the occasional visit to church as a kid.

The first five pages of the book were both incredibly dry and fascinating at the same time. It reminded her of many medical textbooks; no wonder Stephen was so good at this magic stuff, if this was the tone of the material in all his books. Christine settled down into a rather plush loveseat and got comfortable; her record for waiting on Stephen to "come back" was forty-five minutes, and during that wait Wong had proved to be surprisingly entertaining, funny, and kind. If anything, getting to know him better had made Christine feel a lot better about Stephen's very strange (hah) new role in life.

This time it was just after twenty minutes when she heard Stephen say in clear confusion, "Christine?"

She looked up from the book; he was now standing and his expression matched his tone. She offered a smile. "Oh, there you are."

"What are you doing here?"

If she didn't know him better, she might have been a bit miffed by that greeting. However, she did know him, knew him very well, and he sounded honestly puzzled. Still, she was more than happy to respond to bluntness with bluntness. "I came here to see why you're ghosting me."

Stephen looked startled by the accusation. "I'm not ghosting you— or certainly not intentionally. I've been too busy to check on my phone in a couple weeks."

"No, you haven't," Christine countered, and her comment surprised him so much that she was able to continue without interruption. "I asked Wong if things were busy and if you all were overworked with your jobs. He told me it's been so quiet that he finally got to catch up on the last two seasons of 90 Day Fiance and the newest season of Botched, and I still can't believe he enjoys trash TV so much."

He blinked and shook his head. "I knew you two talked sometimes, but— but that's not the point." He walked over to his desk; the Cloak followed him halfway before stopping in the middle of the room, and turned from him to her, and then back to him. He rounded the desk and flipped through several pieces of paper, looking them over as he said, "It's been quiet, yes, but that doesn't mean that I haven't been busy. There is always work to be done and I just don't have time for other things."

She narrowed her eyes at him and placed the book down before standing. The Cloak was again facing her as she took a couple steps forward. "Other things like the occasional break? Talking with friends? Sleeping?"

Stephen narrowed his eyes at her. "I've been sleeping just fine, thank you."

"Stephen, I can see the dark circles around your eyes from here. You're not hiding it from anyone."

He blinked and quickly strode over to a small mirror on the wall, back to her. "Fuck," he muttered under his breath, but it was quiet enough in the room to hear. When he turned back around, the bags were completely gone and he looked fully refreshed.

Christine gaped. "You're using magic to hide your exhaustion? I can't believe you!" Actually, on second thought, she could very, very much believe he would do something like this. As one of his friends, he drove her absolutely insane sometimes.

"I do what I must," he retorted. "I am still relatively new to my position and there is entirely too much to do and learn, and I cannot show any faltering to the students of Kamar-Taj."

"What about your peers?" she retorted right back. "What about Wong or, or any of the others, these Masters? Does anyone know what you actually look like or what you're putting yourself through?"

"There is no need for them to," Stephen answered, lips pressed into a thin line. "Now if you'll excuse me, I do have work I need to do, as enjoyable as this little conversation has been."

Christine recognized that biting sarcasm a mile away. She pulled out her phone and looked for Wong in her contacts.

"What are you doing?" Now he sounded alarmed.

"Telling Wong that you need a damn babysitter," she snapped.

She managed to type a couple words of her text before she heard sparks and then a golden rope wrapped around her right wrist. It didn't hurt, but its sudden appearance caused Christine to drop her phone in surprise. Her eyes shot up at Stephen, who looked just as shocked as her by its presence in his hand. A beat later and the magic rope was gone and Stephen was stumbling backwards, clear horror in his eyes.

Okay, that was… not good he did it in the first place, but clearly he realized that and looked on the verge of panic. She pushed the issue to the side to talk about later and instead addressed what was in front of her right at this moment. "Hey, hey," she said slowly, calmly. She left her phone on the floor and took two slow steps forward. "It's okay, Stephen. You didn't hurt me. Not even a mark, see?" She lifted her wrist to show him. "It's alright."

"That was not alright," he said. He made it to the back wall and leaned heavily against it. "That was not alright at all."

"I am not angry at you," she answered slowly in a slow, calm voice. "Everything is okay."

"No it's not," he gasped, as if struggling for air. He slid down the wall until he was sitting, and Christine finished crossing the distance between them to sit a few feet away. He stared off for a moment, then met her eyes. "I could've hurt you."

"You didn't," she reminded him.

He shook his head. "But I— Christine, this is why we can't— I can't see you anymore. I only bring danger whether it's through my own actions or due to who I am."

"You are not completely yourself right now," she reminded him gently. "You're clearly exhausted, and even then you caught your temper immediately. That's a vast improvement from a few years ago." He snorted in self-derision, and she pressed on. "As for who you are, I've known for years that there might be risks. I'm okay with that."

"I'm not," he whispered.

She offered him a small smile. "You don't get to decide who wants to be your friend, Stephen. And I know you and your level of stubbornness, but you know I can be just as stubborn if I want to be. And you're worth the effort."

He closed his eyes and shuddered. "I'm not so sure I am."

"You are," she retorted a bit more strongly. Lips downturned in thought, she considered his words. "Is this about that… that demon thing that happened three months ago?" Come to think of it, that did about match the timing when he started seeming a bit off, at least in texting habits.

Stephen pressed his lips together. "That should have never happened. I failed to place basic protection about you and it was a gross oversight on my part."

"Congratulations, you're human," Christine deadpanned, then softened it with a small smile and added, "no matter how much you'd like to think otherwise." He took another shuddering breath and leaned his head back against the wall. In the corner of her eye she saw the Cloak hovering, as if anxious. And she definitely understood that feeling.

But this, this was a start. "Stephen," she said softly, "I think it's time you told us what exactly happened after you got me back home." He stilled, and she couldn't quite read him, but she said, "Please, Stephen. Let your friends back in." She reached out and laid a hand on his calf.

Again he shuddered and, after a moment, he slowly nodded. She gave him a small, encouraging smile before offering her hand. He took it and together they got back up on their feet.

She led him to the loveseat and had him sit down. She sat beside him and asked, "Is it okay if I have Wong join us? Or will that be too hard?"

Stephen closed his eyes and again pressed his lips together, but a moment later responded, "You can call him. He probably deserves an explanation as well."

Christine gently squeezed his forearm, then stood up and went for her dropped phone. She abandoned the text and tried calling Wong instead.

He picked up on the third ring. "Christine," he said in greeting. He didn't sound surprised (she wasn't sure if he ever allowed himself to sound surprised), but she'd like to think that he at least knew she wasn't calling for no good reason. They texted, not called. That was what they did.

"Hey Wong, are you busy?"

"Not with anything I cannot finish later," he replied. "Do you need something?"

"Not me," she answered, walking back to Stephen. He had his head bowed. She placed a supportive hand on his shoulder. "It's Stephen. He could use another friend here, if you don't mind."

A pause that, again, she couldn't read. "Certainly," he answered. "Where are you?"

"In his study. And um, if it wouldn't be too much to ask, could you make that tea of yours?" He made really good tea.

"I can," he answered, and with that he hung up. Succinct, as always.

"He'll probably be here as soon as the tea's ready," she said as she sat back down beside him. "I like his tea."

Stephen slowly nodded. "It's very good tea," he muttered.

Christine peered at his face. "Are you going to wear the mask around him?" she asked.

He exhaled, long and slow. "Not much point if we're having this conversation, is there?"

"It's okay to be human, Stephen."

He shot her a grim smile, and slowly the mask that covered his exhausted face dissipated. The Cloak closed the distance it had to the couch and hovered at Stephen's side.

A couple minutes later, a portal opened straight from the kitchen and Wong floated a tea tray into the study before following it in. The golden sparks disappeared behind him and he turned to look at the two of them on the couch. He stared at Stephen for a moment, then exhaled. "I suspected something," he muttered, almost as if to himself. He let the tray settle on the table in front of the loveseat and summoned the chair from the corner of the room to sit across from it, and from them. Wong settled in the seat and poured out three mugs of tea, keeping Stephen's only partially full. He gave them both their cups wordlessly, then sat back and looked at Stephen with silent, but unjudging expectation.

The man in question huffed as he grabbed the mug and took a short sip. "Now all I need is a blanket to get real cozy," he muttered.

The Cloak, in turn, twisted its way between Stephen's arms and legs and settled across both his and Christine's laps.

She laughed softly at his slight frown at the garment and patted the red fabric on her lap. "Good Cloak."

They fell into a patient silence after that, both Christine and Wong quietly drinking their tea as Stephen gathered his words. She could see his struggle in his small microexpressions that she had only learned after knowing him so well after so many years. Wong, she suspected, could read him nearly as well, if not equally.

Eventually he cleared his throat and began to speak. "In return for Christine to get back safely to Earth, I agreed with the demon Mephisto to play games of his choosing for the next twenty-four hours…"

Christine listened in growing horror as he described each game, seeing how this creature had somehow known about Stephen's innate need to protect and rescue innocents and how he dangled souls that, no matter their decisions, he would certainly see as people taken advantage of in desperate, awful times. Throughout his recollection she occasionally looked at Wong; the man's expression was completely frozen in a soft frown. She had a feeling that it was a mechanism to keep the absolute horror off his face. Goodness knew that she was doing her best to appear supportive and sympathetic as opposed to absolutely horrified.

It only got more difficult as Stephen's account went on. By the time he finally got to where he was let go back to Earth with the six souls he managed to save, her free hand was gripping the Cloak so tightly that she felt that she might rip through it, were it not the Cloak.

"I've replayed those hours time and again in my head," he muttered as he stared down at his shaking hands; the quivering had incrementally increased throughout the tale. "All I can think about is all the ways I could have done more, done better, saved more innocents. It was only due to his whims that I was able to save any." 

"Oh, Stephen." She leaned towards him and, without asking for permission, engulfed him in a large hug. She felt the Cloak wrap around her side and she was sure it was pressing against Stephen on the other side.

She felt him let go for a moment and indulge in the embrace before pulling away, and she let go and gave him his space again. She watched him as he looked up to Wong, who had managed to keep his amazing poker face with only the slight frown throughout the conversation. "Wong," Stephen started, "I couldn't— I couldn't bear telling the other Masters about my failures in my first real test as Sorcerer Supreme. And I promise you, I've been doing everything in my power to bridge the gaps that remain in my knowledge and power so that I may be more capable in meeting such threats, whether I have the aid of the Vishanti or not."

Wong exhaled and clasped his hands together. "The experience you call a failure, Stephen, is what all of us consider a success," he started. Stephen immediately opened his mouth to argue, but Wong quickly said, "Let me finish, and try to listen to my words and not the doubt that plagues your mind as I speak." He leaned forward. "When you first left with the demon that refused to name itself, we thought it a lesser one that a sorcerer of your caliber could deal with, even on its own plane of existence. Any one of us present would have been able to, though it would not necessarily be easy. It was with that thought in mind that we left you with advice rather than protests, though Master Hamir was correct in his suspicions that the demon was unusually more powerful than those we've encountered in recent memory.

"I know you have been doing a lot of research on demonology, Stephen, and what information we have upon the greater demons known as the Hell-Lords. There is a reason that, despite thousands of years of collecting knowledge, what we know of them is so little. Hell-Lords are very powerful due to the number of souls they have attained over the uncounted millennia in which sentient, reasoning lifeforms have existed. They gather more souls to be ever the strongest, but they are not desperate for every sentient being they come across. Hell-Lords are unlike lesser demons in that they will kill if they don't think the person's soul is worth the effort."

Christine grabbed at the Cloak again and looked again to Stephen; he, in turn, was looking at her with a tight expression.

They both turned to Wong as the man continued, "Had we known this was one of the Hell-Lords, we would have done as much as we could to stop you, perhaps even by force— though I doubt that would have worked in our favour. So we would have seen you off and declared you dead, more than likely."

Stephen's brow furrowed. "Dead? Immediately? Why?"

"The last time a Sorcerer Supreme fought a Hell-Lord within their own domain and lived was the first one in Agamotto. The last time anyone encountered one was the Ancient One in Germany at the end of WWII. From what I understand there were three Hell-Lords present in the spring of 1945 in that country, but as they were upon Earth's plane, they were manageable. Facing one in its own dimension is unprecedented in modern history. That you were able to play its games with enough wit to not only survive, but to also bring back six souls that would have otherwise been lost, is a great victory."

Christine watched as Stephen's gaze fell to his hands, still trembling. "It did not feel like a victory," he mumbled. "Each test, each game I failed in some manner."

Wong shook his head. "Each test was specifically designed to take advantage of what Mephisto would consider your weaknesses, though I assure you your passion for the soul of the individual is considered one of your greatest strengths by all of us." Stephen lifted his head in surprise, but Wong continued on. "Consider this: if it had been Hamir in your place, one of his tests would have involved something that would give a person with two hands a distinct advantage. If it had been Minoru, you know there would have been something with spiders." Stephen's lips twitched upward, and Wong raised his brow pointedly. "The point, Stephen, is that this demon is known as a deceptive trickster. He twisted his so-called games to place you in the worst possible position and keep you in a position of doubt."

"Out of all of this, what I do find concerning," Wong admitted, "is that he knew you so well. It is possible that he has been watching you for some time."

Stephen's brow furrowed. "Why would he do that?"

"It is hard to say," he answered. "Demons are soulless creatures with no concept of time beyond the souls which they trick and enslave. It is thought that some have some greater perception of the wider multiverse and their realities; it is possible that Mephisto has some small knowledge from that."

Christine did not like where this conversation was going, and there was still one rather important thing to address at that time. "I think what you should get out of this, Stephen," she started, "is that you are most certainly not a failure. You can't be so hard on yourself."

He gave her an imploring look, as if willing her to understand him. "I have a great responsibility to this world and I cannot—"

"No, she's completely right," Wong interrupted. "Kamar-Taj calls for devotion wholly to defending reality, but you can't do that if you're half-dead from exhaustion."

"I'm not—"

"You wouldn't be using glamour if it wasn't an issue," Wong pointed out, and Stephen had nothing to retort to that. "And," he added, "the occasional lunch or ice cream break is not only permitted, but encouraged to retain one's sanity and reminder as to why we do what we do."

Stephen gave him a long look. "Are you saying you do it for ice cream?"

"And so that reality TV may flourish unhindered," Wong replied, and Christine quickly covered a surprised laugh. "If there are indeed areas you believe you may be lacking in knowledge, all the Masters will be more than willing to assist you, though I feel that you are equal if not more knowledgeable in most fields. But we can talk about that tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? Why tomorrow?"

"Because you look absolutely awful and clearly need to sleep for the next twenty-four hours," he retorted.

Stephen frowned. "I'm awake and functioning."

Christine wrinkled her nose. "Barely. Get some sleep!" 

The Cloak lifted itself off their laps and waited expectantly beside the study door, causing its keeper to make a face at it.

Wong stood up and walked over to him, offering him a hand. "Listen to your friends. We can discuss more details about what happened and where we need to go tomorrow, but for now, you need to rest. No matter what you have been telling yourself, you do deserve it."

He hesitated, but for only a couple seconds before taking Wong's proffered hand and letting his friend hoist him up. "Don't let me sleep too long," Stephen muttered.

"You're sleeping for the next week if you have to," Wong retorted.

"I can get some drugs that would do that," Christine quipped as she got to her feet.

"No need; we have spells that can do the same, but thank you for the offer all the same."

"You're both terrible," Stephen moaned as he trudged to the door. The Cloak fit itself snugly across his shoulders.

"You're welcome," she said in return, and he glanced at her with a soft, but very warm smile that still made her heart do things that it shouldn't do, all these years later. Damn that man. "I'll text you."

"You'll hear from me," he promised, and then he turned and let Wong and the Cloak usher him towards his bedroom for some much-needed sleep and, for the first time in a long time, a peaceful time of rest.

—————

(Anndddd the series is done! Wooow. Whoda thought this was going to be a thing, because I certainly didn't.

You can take the headcanon that Wong is an enthusiastic fan of trashy reality TV shows from my cold dead hands. Definitely inspired by my two co-workers I work with the most, though I have had the occasional reality TV show binge watch.)

[junjosekaimangalover]

Jason Todd X Singer! Fiancee! Reader - Under The Red Hood Part 1

DC Comics Oneshots And Imagines ~Oneshots *Requests Open *

DC's Batman X Reader

Jason Todd X Singer! Fiancee! Reader - Under The Red Hood Part 1 - * Not A Request * * Slight Smut Warning *

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I don't own the DC Comic Book/TV Shows/Movie series Batman nor do I own any of the characters from the franchise. I just own my writing skills and my very active imagination. I really hope you all enjoy this oneshot I made.

This is a Jason Todd oneshot ( or Jason, 2nd Robin, Red Hood ) and this oneshot takes place during the film: Batman: Under The Red Hood. So if you don't know the story of Jason Todd after he became the 2nd Robin or you haven't seen the movie then SPOILER ALERT: BEWARE!!

If you don't want to be spoiled then don't read this oneshot until you've watched it.

Other than that lovely note, enjoy this oneshot~!

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Your POV:

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( Author's Note: The reader doesn't know that Jason Todd was Robin or Red Hood, nor does she know about Bruce Wayne being Batman. She'll find out though. )

It had been about year since my beloved Jason had passed away and it had taken me by surprise. I couldn't deal with it at first, I barely slept, I barely ate, I barely moved, I barely did anything at all and it badly affected my career and personal life so I had step down from my current job as singer.

Fortunately, I had my friends, family, fans and my deepest and closest friend; Bruce Wayne to help me in my time of need. After a few months had passed after Jason's death, I started to get better little by little and then my music career got back on schedule.

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" Okay, just like that (Y/N___ )! " My photographer, Harold, said to me with a pleasing smile on his face.

" You got it! " I replied back to him while smiling back as I striked another pose.

" Can we get some more smoke up in here, I need my prize singer to look like she's in a mystical place right now! " Harold yelled out in front of the entire crew to get at least one of them to get a smoke machine.

" Hahaha.... " I laughed out loud.

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* 30 minutes later *

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" Okay, that's a wrap people! We'll see all of you lovelies next week for the premiere of the promotion ad. " Harold yelled out while he whipped out his camera and began to scroll through the photos of me. I leaned over his shoulder and watched him scroll through them kinda fast.

" Uh, Harold? "

" Yes, my star model? " He replied without even turning his head towards me.

" I've um noticed that....you haven't deleted any of my photos. " I said.

" Yeah, and? " He replied while still not facing me.

" Well, I've observed you long enough to know that when you are done taking pictures of your models that you go through them and delete the photos you don't like or just doesn't work. However, you haven't deleted any of mine. " I pointed out to him.

" Yeah, because every photo of you is gorgeous so deletion is not necessary for you. " Harold said while approaching the last photo. I blushed a little bit.

" B-But what about this one, I look kind of silly in this don't I? " I pointed towards my face in the photo when I accidentally cracked a smile at the time.

" Oh please darling, silly is the new sexy to me. Besides, you need to be genuine in your photos otherwise the public won't like them. " Harold said reassuring me while turning the camera off.

" Silly is the new sexy? Why do I have a that will somehow catch on and become a thing? " I said while smiling slightly.

" That's because it will! I said it first and what I say and do instantly becomes popular! " Harold said while smiling brightly.

" Right. So Harold, should I have tried to be more sexy in some of those photos? " I asked.

" Tried!? Ha! Sweetheart, you're a natural at it and if you try to become even more sexy then our ovaries would have exploded and we would have passed out on the spot. " Harold places a hand on my shoulder, laughing.

" Awww that's sweet, I bet you say that about all of your models. " I said while looking down at my feet but then both my and Harold's head quickly turned to the left to see one of the staff members scoffing.

" Ha! No he doesn't. You are one of kind (Y/N___), In fact I can't even begin to tell you half of the stuff he says about the other models. " The staff member said while moving one of the lights across the room.

" What!? The clients I get stuck with are nothing but stuck up princess who think that they are all hot stuff because they have somewhat good looks and some little fame added to their resumes! " Harold yelled back and ran after the staff member.

I could only laugh at the sight of this wonderful moment and walk towards to my dressing room so I could change out of my modeling clothes and into my regular clothes.

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* 1 Hour Later *

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I walked through the streets of Gotham and towards my flat. I walked towards my flat door and scrambled through my purse for my keys. I finally found them and unlocked the door, I entered my flat while placing the keys in the key bowl next to the door.

As I close the door, I placed my handbag down onto the couch and my pet dog came running up to me while barking his head off.

( Author's Note: If you're allergic to dogs then switch to cats and if your allergic to both then pretend whatever animal you want as your pet. )

" Summer? What's the matter boy? " I asked him but he just kept barking like crazy.

( Another Author's Note: I chose Summer as the pet's name and if you don't like it then you can change it. )

Summer then ran off to my bedroom door and began to scratch and paw at it. I quickly got the knife that was in my handbag and cautiously began to approach the door. I was thinking that maybe someone had broken into my flat despite it being locked earlier.

As I approached the door, I took a hand on the doorknob and quickly opened it and swung the door open. When I looked into my bedroom, I saw nothing. I sighed in relief while thinking that maybe someone did come in but they left just before I got home. I walked over to my bed and sat down on the comfy mattress. I then flung the knife over to my dartboard on the wall.

" I see you still haven't lost your signature touch for the game. " I heard a deep voice and I quickly turned my head to see a masked figure in the corner of my room.

" Aah! Who are you!? What do you want!? And.... " I started and then he hushed me while walking over to me and kneeling down to my level.

" Hush now sweetheart, your love from the past has come back for you. " The man in the red hooded mask said gently and took my hand and brought it to his masked face.

" That's impossible, the only love I had in the past was Jason and he and my love are buried 6 feet underground! " I whipped my hand away and stood up angrily.

" Oh it's so sweet to hear that you haven't moved on from me (Y/N__). " The Red Masked man said.

" What did you just say? " I said in a tone mixed with anger and confusion.

" I said I think it's very sweet to see that you haven't moved on from me. " He replied.

" Moved on from you? What are you even talking about? Do I know you? " I asked now demanding answers.

" Oh well I don't suppose you would recognize me while I'm wearing this. " The masked man then pressed a button on the back of his red hood and I heard a hissing noise and then he dropped his mask onto the ground.

I saw the mask hit the ground and I looked up to see the strange man covered by another mask, it was covering his eyes.

" Well? How about now? " He asked me while getting closer to me, close enough to feel his breath on my face. When I heard his voice out of the mask, it sounded somewhat familiar and calming. I looked more closely at his facial features while trying to place where I might have seen him before.

" Do you mind if I? " I said while placing both of my hands on each side of his head and towards the mask.

" Go right ahead. " He said. I took off his black mask and I quickly dropped the mask and slightly gasped.

Jason, It was my Jason. My beloved fiancee whom I had lost for about a year and who I believed to be dead for the rest of my life.

" J-Jason? " I muttered out his name.

" That's right (Y/N___ ) I'm really happy you didn't move on from me. If you did then I would truly be lost right now. " Jason said while grabbing both of my hands and kneeling in front of me again.

I could only stare at Jason with wide eyes and my mouth hanging open a little while my mind races about 1000 miles per second. My mind filling with questions about Jason and questioning whether or not any of this was real.

About 25 minutes later had passed and Jason was sitting next to me and I was just keeping the silence from being broken. Jason was sitting next to me on the bed and turned his head slightly to me and he had a concerned look on his face.

" (Y/N__)? " Jason said my name to get my attention.

" I'm here! " I replied while looking at him with a blank expression on my face.

" How are you with processing the fact that I'm not dead? You've been quiet for the pass 30 minutes. " Jason then placed a hand on my shoulder as he asked me.

" Oh I'm fine, really. So.....how did you um.....get raised from the dead? " I asked while trying to calm my brain down so I wouldn't freak out.

" By being bathed in a rejuvenating pool of youth. " Jason answered me rather quickly.

" Uh-huh, when did that happen? " I nodded while asking him another question.

" About 3 months after my death. "

" I'm sorry what? "

" What? "

" You were alive 3 months after your death and you didn't bother coming to me or Bruce until now? " I started getting more confused and definitely mad.

" Well, I had to wait to come to you. Bruce on the other hand was a different story. " Jason replied.

" Wait a minute, wait one freaking minute. You went to Bruce first and then you waited all this time to come and see me? While I mourned your death for many months and I was all alone in my home waiting for death to come and get me so I could be with you again, you were alive the ENTIRE time and you didn't even bother coming here to let me know you were alive and okay!? " I yelled at him.

" (Y/N__ )! Please calm down! I couldn't let you see me in the current state I was in at the time! If I did then you would never want to be with me again! " Jason yelled back in defense.

" You're such an idiot Jason! We've been together for 6 years and I cannot believe you still don't know one single thing about me! I would've loved you and wanted to be with you no matter what you looked like. You're so stupid! " I yelled at him again as tears poured down my face.

" I'm....I'm sorry (Y/N___ )... " Jason hung his head in shame with a frown on his face.

" Yeah....well not as sorry as your about to be. " I whispered as I then attacked him with such force that it knocked him down onto the ground.

" What are you doing (Y/N___)!? " Jason asked me in major confusion as watched me pin his wrists with my hands.

" I'm getting my revenge you jerk. " I slapped him and sat on his waist so that he couldn't move.

" What kind of revenge are we talking about? " Jason asked nervously.

" That's for me to know and for you to eventually find out in time. " I said while gripping my hands tighter around his wrists.

" Agh! " Jason grimaced in pain.

" That's exactly how I felt with the months that passed by without you. " I said while my tears continued to fall down my face.

" I'm sorry (Y/N___ ), truly I am. However, It's nice to see you still have the fighting skills I taught you on hand but unfortunately right now is not the time to use them my love. " Jason said while frowning.

" I know but you deserve it. " I replied while trying to not look at him.

" I know and you deserve this. "

Jason then flipped his entire body over and on top of mine and I yelped as my body hit the ground. He then pinned my wrists with his hands and started to kiss my neck down to my collar bone. I moaned out accidentally while closing my eyes, not wanting to look at him.

" Honey, I'm sorry for not coming to you right away when you needed me the most but I'm here now and I'm not going anywhere ever again. I'm here to stay and for you only. " Jason said while placing his lips on top of mine and we kissed so sweetly that I wanted more of him so I dropped my act of revenge and resistance.

" Okay....I'm sorry for hitting you. " I said while kissing his sweet lips over and over again.

" It's alright, you're not the only one who's been hitting me. Bruce was pretty pissed too. " Jason said while unpinning my wrists from his strong hands.

" Has he? " I said in the midst of out kiss while wrapping my arms aroung Jason's neck.

" Oh yeah but I've handled worse to be honest. " Jason's hands then traveled down from breasts and down to my waist.

" Wow, I've missed you so much Jason. " I moaned out.

" You have no idea how much I've missed you as well, especially with all of those sexy ads of you plastered all over Gotham City. " Jason said and as I pulled away from our kiss to breathe, I blushed.

" You saw those? " I asked.

" Oh yeah, it was hard for me not to come here and make you mine while I was covered in scars. " Jason said rubbing himself against on me. I moaned louder this time.

" Well you should've. " I said while trying to compose myself.

" I know. " He says while rubbing harder.

" We got a lot of catching up to do. " I said while trying to keep my moans in.

" Oh yes we do. " Jason smirked at me.

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Well here is part 1 of my new DC Imagines And Oneshots Series. I hope you've enjoyed it so far.

P.S - Don’t copy/paste and then steal this. This is my work