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[partiallysame]

Soap hits on Ghost's girl part 2

Part 2 to THIS

Word count: 550

The next time Soap sees you is when you come to the base to drop something off for Simon. Soap saw the text pop up on Ghost’s phone while he was in the shower post training. You were waiting for him at the main entrance. You were waiting all alone and Ghost was busy, Soap simply could not leave you waiting for another second, plus he needed to apologize for the last time you met. (Did Soap steal Ghost’s phone so when he got out of the shower he wouldn't know his pretty girlfriend was waiting for him? maybe).

You watched the Scotsman jog towards you, apologies falling from his mouth the second he was within earshot. “M’sorry. Didn’t mean any disrespect. You were jus sittin there all alone. Woulda thought Riley was gonna bring you with em’.” You said his name a few times trying to get him to stop but he was so caught up in trying to “make it right” that he didn’t hear you until you used his last name. 

“MacTavish” the command of your voice almost had him standing at attention. The call of his name had him sucking in his lips, rightfully shutting him up. You reached out to tap his arm, as if to say ‘relax’.

“S’not a big deal Johnny.” you laughed a little, “It was fun playing with you. Just hope Si didn’t give you too much shit about it.” (He did. Soap has been dodging literal punches for weeks now). Your phrasing made Soap smile. 

“You can play wit me anytime you’d like lass.” if he had long hair he’d be twirling it in his fingers right now.

“I’ll keep that in mind MacTavish.” The way you were looking up at him reminded him of why approached you in the bar the first time. Just looking at you and he was smitten. 

The sound of big heavy footsteps made Soap flinch. The second Ghost appeared, Soap bolted behind you. Ghost wouldn’t beat the shit out of him in front of you right? 

“You forgot this hun.” You handed a bag of stuff to Simon who was trying to step around you to get to Soap who was moving in the opposite direction of Ghost. Soap trying his hardest not to grab you to better use you as a shield. You stood still watching the two soldiers behave like children running around you. Ghost finally got his hands on Soap who called out your name, a last ditch effort at protection. 

“Let him go Si.”  His grip might’ve loosened but there was no way he was going to let go. 

“Don’t go taking his side lovie.” He may or may not have a knife behind his back ready to use right now. 

“He’s harmless Riley” You stated, arms crossed but definitely enjoying whatever this situation was.

“Ya. Riley. M’harmless” The grin could be heard in Soap’s voice as Ghost let go of him. 

“Give him back his phone John.” Ghost’s head snapped to Soap who was wide eyed. How’d you know he stole it? When you gave Simon a smell peck signaling you were leaving, Soap began to run knowing once you were gone he was no longer safe from Simon Ghost Riley.

[glxzsyy-r0xie]

The older sister

modern!sevika x fem! reader

summery: in which you sleep with your best friends older sister

Men DNI

Warnings: fingering, praising, Sevika's in her early 30's, Reader is 22, squiring, eating out, caught at the end (sort of) overstimulation, skin-to-skin, mutual pinning (if you squint). let me know if more

word count: 6.1K

time: 1 hour, 40 minutes

It was stereotypical; your best friend, who was bubbly, full of life, and a social butterfly had an older sister who was the complete opposite. Sevika was kept to herself, composed, and a little intimidating. 

For a while, the interactions between you two had been kept to a minimum; one-sided stolen glances when the door to her bedroom creaked open enough to see her working on a mechanical project or to see the girls that either laid in her bed or snuck out her window. Or nodding to each other in acknowledgment when you pass by each other or her letting you go first when you run into each other going to the kitchen or bathroom. All of which left a confusing burning feeling in your stomach. A part of you wished you knew the enigmatic women better. More than the girls she had in her room and gone the next day.

Especially when she effortlessly loomed over you with her height, or her deep even voice, or the way her muscles flexed when she physically teased her sister or when you would catch her working out in her room. God, something truly was wrong with you, Or maybe you just found her really, really, handsome. Definitely nothing more.

The first time you would verbally interact with her was when your best friend suddenly disappeared from your sights. You looked everywhere like a lost puppy before you eventually had to go to the last option that you’ve been purposely avoiding. You approached Sevika, who was on the couch, clearing your throat before speaking. “Do you know where your sister went? I can’t find her anywhere.”

She peered at you over her shoulder before shrugging, feeling a weird chill going down your spine. “Went out to the store to get a couple things. I thought she told you.” you would’ve thought so too, but instead you had to be eventually subjected to embarrassing yourself in front of your friend’s hot sister. 

You give a small nod. “No, she didn’t. But thanks,” you murmur before turning on your heels and making your way back to your best friend’s room.You could feel Sevika’s gaze lingering on your back as you walked away. Normally, she would brush it off and return to whatever she was doing, forcing thoughts of you aside.

But this time, she didn’t. Instead, she stood up and followed you upstairs.

She didn’t announce herself, careful not to startle you into an anxiety attack, but the steady, muted thud of her footsteps on the stairs was enough to let you know she was coming.

You had just sat on your best friend’s bed when you heard her footsteps. Your heartbeat quickened. You had just embarrassed yourself in front of her downstairs—you didn’t want to do it again.

Right on cue, Sevika appeared in the doorway, her broad, muscular frame nearly filling the narrow space. Her gaze settled on you, curled up in a small spot on the bed, a flicker of interest flashing in her gray eyes as she slowly took you in.

“Do you want something to drink?” she asked, her deep voice breaking the silence. Her eyes briefly shifted to the half-empty water bottle resting on the nightstand beside you.

You give a small shake of your head, offering a faint smile as you look up at her.

“I’m okay, but thank you,” you say softly, your voice gentle yet appreciative. You don’t want to be a bother, and despite the dryness in your throat, you convince yourself that you don’t need anything else. Your hands fidget slightly in your lap as you glance toward the half-empty water bottle beside you, silently hoping she doesn’t push the offer further.

Sevika let out a low hum before giving a slight nod, shifting to lean her shoulder against the doorframe with her arms crossed over her chest.

For a moment, silence settled over the room. But it didn’t last long.

“You know…” she began, her voice dropping to a lower, almost unreadable tone. “I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”

There was something in the way she said it—the weight of her words, the deliberate slowness—that sent a wave of nervous energy through you, making your stomach flip.

A flutter of nervous energy stirred in your stomach the moment she spoke, the deep timbre of her voice sending a shiver down your spine. The anticipation settled in your chest, making it harder to ignore the way your pulse quickened.

You swallowed, your fingers gripping the fabric of your clothes as you shifted slightly in your spot.

“What is it?” you asked softly, your voice barely above a whisper, laced with curiosity and just a hint of apprehension.

She stepped into the room, the floorboards creaking under her weight, the sound cutting through the quiet. Sevika’s gaze remained locked onto you—steady, intense, almost predatory—as she slowly closed the distance. Your pulse pounded in your ears, each beat growing louder with every step she took.

“How old are you?”

The question caught you off guard. It wasn’t what you had been expecting, yet your heart continued its relentless rhythm against your ribs. Her sharp eyes drifted over you, tracing every detail, as if committing you to memory.

“Twenty-two years old,” only 10 years or so younger than her. you say softly, your voice barely above a whisper.

Your heart pounds violently against your ribcage, each beat echoing in your ears as Sevika’s piercing gaze roams over you. There’s an intensity in her expression, something unreadable yet deliberate, as if she’s committing every inch of you to memory.

You shift slightly under the weight of her stare, your fingers twitching at your sides. The air in the room suddenly feels heavier, charged with something you can’t quite place. You swallow hard, wondering what she’s thinking, what she’s searching for as her eyes slowly trace over you, taking in every little detail.

With a single nod, Sevika continued her slow approach, the floorboards creaking under her weight. 

She halted in front of you, her face looming above, staring down as if you were prey. Her large fingers gently grasped your chin.

“You’re so small..” she remarked, her fingers tracing along your jawline.

"I’m not”  you said softly, your voice barely above a whisper. Sevika’s voice was now low and calm, as if she wasn’t looming over you like an imposing wall of muscle, blocking the only way of escape.

Sevika’s gaze was now fixated on your face, her eyes drifting across every feature as if she was committing the sight to memory. You couldn’t help but squirm a little under her gaze, feeling exposed and vulnerable as she silently studied you.

“Do you have a boyfriend?”

The question took you off guard. It also made you nervous. Why was she suddenly asking about such personal things.

"I’m lesbian, so no," you said softly, your voice steady but gentle. You looked up at Sevika, meeting her gaze with a mix of resolve and vulnerability, hoping she would understand your truth.

At the revelation, Sevika tilted her head, her face completely neutral as she soaked in the new information. Though, you swore to have seen a flicker of interest in her grey eyes before she continued to scan you from above.

“Do you…have a girlfriend then?”

Gods, she’s relentless.

You shook your head slowly, feeling the weight of your response. "No, I don’t," you said softly, your voice carrying a hint of finality as you looked away, hoping she would understand.

“Why not?”

Sevika’s voice was soft yet firm, her eyes now drifting to your legs, silently examining the area. She’s getting more and more curious, finding out that you didn’t have a partner and, more importantly, you were also interested in women

"Just haven’t been asked out," you said, shrugging your shoulders casually. You tried to keep your tone light, but there was a subtle hint of longing in your voice, revealing more than you intended.

Sevika hummed, the corners of her lips tilting into a small smirk. But she didn’t respond, instead choosing to slowly scan your thighs, eyeing the spot in between your legs. 

“You know…”

She spoke once more, her tone was slightly different. Almost like it had an air of sultriness to it.

“I’ve noticed you around, from time to time…”

You nodded your head, a small smile playing on your lips. "Yeah, I come over a lot," you said, your voice warm and familiar. As you spoke, you could feel the comfort of the place and your best friend, a sense of belonging that made your visits frequent and enjoyable.

“More than a lot.”

Sevika chuckled softly, stepping forward just a little bit more until her knees were now lightly pressing against your legs. You’re practically caged in by now. Her body was so close to yours, you could now see every muscle in her forearms tense up as she spoke.

“You come here often enough for it to be considered a second home.”

"Sorry if it bothers you," you muttered softly, your eyes glancing down as you spoke. You could feel a slight unease creeping in, hoping your presence wasn't an inconvenience.

Sevika chuckled again. “I don’t mind.” 

She suddenly reached up, and with unexpected gentleness on her part, tucked a strand of hair behind your ear.  Her knuckles brushed against your cheek, a warm shiver running through you at her touch.

“You’re cute. Your little shyness around me is kinda endearing, honestly.”

You gulped slightly at her touch as you nodded, feeling a warmth spread from where her hand rested. The sensation made your heart pound loudly in your ears, each beat echoing the nervous excitement coursing through you.

“So small and fragile.”

Sevika mumbled as she ran a couple of fingers through your hair, her eyes now roaming across every detail on your face. 

“Compared to me, at least.”

Her voice was in a soft, almost teasing tone. It was strange to hear her speak this way. After a few moments of silent studying, Sevika spoke once more.

“You’re trembling.”

Your mouth was dry, and you could feel a flutter of anxiety in your stomach. You knew it was wrong for you to have a crush on your best friend's older sister, but God, you couldn’t help but feel drawn to her. 

Sevika leaned just the slightest bit forward until her face hovered a few mere inches from yours, just enough room for her to take in every bit of your expression. 

“You’re shaking like a leaf.” She teased, a smirk once again appearing on her face as she continued to gently brush her fingers through your hair. Her eyes scanned your features for a few moments before she spoke again.

“Your face is all red too…”

“Sorry,” you said softly, your voice barely above a whisper. You could feel a mix of embarrassment and uncertainty wash over you, wishing you could take back the words or somehow explain the feelings that had gotten tangled up in your heart.

“Shh.”

Sevika suddenly hushed you, her expression blank again as she brought her hand up to your face, the pads of her fingers gently stroking your burning hot cheek. Her touch was gentle, unexpected, and sent a shiver down your spine as she continued to caress your skin.

“No need to apologize. I like it, actually.”

You nodded your head softly, feeling the weight of the moment. The room seemed to close in around you, and you could almost hear the rapid beating of your heart. Your mind raced with thoughts, but all you could manage was that gentle nod, hoping it conveyed the emotions you couldn't put into words.

Sevika’s smirk widened a little before her hand slowly trailed down. Her touch was light, yet the strength and power beneath it was still evident as her fingers eventually came to a stop on the pulse point on your neck.

“Your heart is racing too.”

The room felt hot as the tension between you two rose, almost palpable in the air. Every glance seemed charged, and you could feel your cheeks flush. It was as if the world around you faded away, leaving just the two of you in this moment, where unspoken words hung heavy in the space between. You could sense the electricity, making it hard to breathe, and you wondered if she felt it too.

Sevika tilted her head, her smirk shifting into a sly smile as she felt your pulse thump rapidly against her fingers. Her eyes darkened with lust, a dangerous edge appearing in them.

“You’re pretty excited, huh?” She mumbled, her voice low and slightly deep, an almost huskiness to it. She slowly applied more pressure on your throat, gently squeezing it, her thumb applying friction on your delicate skin.

You tilted your head upwards when she applied pressure to your throat, feeling a mix of vulnerability and anticipation. The warmth of her touch sent shivers down your spine, and your breath caught in your chest. The intensity of the moment was overwhelming, every second stretching out as you locked eyes, the world outside disappearing entirely.

Sevika hummed, enjoying the way you tilted your head back at her touch, her smirk growing wider as her gaze flicked down to watch you.

“You’re such a pretty little thing, aren’t you?”

She praised, giving your throat another gentle squeeze, slowly moving a step closer so she’s now standing right in between your legs. Her thighs pressed against yours, her scent filling your nostrils and making your head spin.

it took everything in you to keep quiet as her thigh pressed up against yours since she was so much taller than you and the fact she squeezed your neck is turning you on more.

Sevika chuckled darkly from above, enjoying the way you looked from this angle. Your neck fully exposed to her, your eyes wide as she continued to tease you with her small squeezes.

“You like that, don’t you?”

She crooned softly, her voice deep and sultry. Her other hand, which was still on your thigh, slowly began rubbing the area just to tease you even further, her hand now roaming upwards and inwards.

You let out a closed mouthed whine as you tried to shut your legs around her thigh when you felt her hand but couldn't due to her thigh being in the way.

Sevika’s smirk turned into a small grin as you tried closing your legs, but her large frame was in the way. 

“Don’t do that~” She scolded in a light tone, the hand on your neck releasing to let you speak. 

“Keep them spread open for me.”

You slowly opened your legs for her as you laid down on the bed underneath you

A small approving hum left Sevika’s chest as you obeyed her command, laying down and spreading your legs. She leaned over you on the bed, her hands planted firmly on either side to keep herself up slightly. 

“Good girl.” She muttered, her eyes roamed all over your body again, a dark, hungry look flashing in them. “Gods, you’re beautiful.”

You saw the woman in Sevika’s room when her door cracked open. They will either lay down on her bed or sneak out the window. You didn’t want to be one of those stands

Sevika chuckled at your internal worries. She has noticed the look in your eyes for a while now, and she can already guess what you were thinking about. 

“You’re worried about being one of my ‘stands’, aren’t you?” She questioned, a small smile on her lips, amused by what she thought was your innocence.

You nodded your head. Of course you didn’t want to be used as a sex toy rather than something serious

Sevika chuckled again, shaking her head softly in amusement.

“You’re not like those other women to me, darling.” She assured you, slowly lowering herself so that she’s now laying on top of you in between your legs. Sevika’s much stronger physique enveloped you fully, her weight on top of you was firm, yet gentle.

“You’re…different.”

“My sweet little thing.”

Sevika whispered in your ear, letting her mouth slowly trail down to your neck, where she pressed a small, yet firm kiss against your skin. 

“You don’t know just how beautiful you are.” Another kiss.

“How sweet you are.” Another one, this time a bit lower.

“How good you are.” Another kiss, a bit lower this time, her tongue gently sweeping across the sensitive skin.

When you felt her tongue swipe against your sensitive skin you whined and arched your back off her bed

“We should move this to your room” you whined out since the idea of doing anything on your best friend’s bed is unsettling 

Sevika chuckled again, enjoying the way you writhed beneath her. She pulled away slightly to look at your face, an amused look in her eyes.

“Oh, you’re shy?” She teased, giving your hip a small squeeze. “You need me to carry you or are you okay?”

The idea of being carried by someone you had a crush on made you shy away slightly but it didn’t stop you from wanting to be carried. “Carry me”

She smiled, letting her hands slide under your body before she lifted you up effortlessly, your legs wrapping around her waist and your arms slung around her shoulders. Sevika’s arms looped under your behind, securing you against her as she began to carry you through the small apartment. 

“You’re so light…” She muttered, shaking her head in disbelief. “How do you weigh less than a damn pillow?”

You squeezed your legs around her waist. You weren't sure why her voice turns you on so much but it did. 

Sevika’s smirk returned at your reaction, feeling your thighs tighten against her hips. She chuckled huskily, feeling her own body begin to grow hot from your little action.

“You’re a little eager, huh?” She teased again. 

Soon enough, she brought you both into her room, kicking the door open with ease.

You looked around her room. It has some parts to whatever vehicle she was working on, speakers, and decorations of posters all over her room

Sevika turned around once in the room and closed the door behind her before walking towards the edge of the bed and slowly sat you down, your back against the headrest as you take in the room.

“Like it?” She questioned with a smirk, standing in between your legs as she looked down at you against her pillows.

You laid down on her bed and looked up at her with big doe eyes as you nodded 

“Good.” 

She hummed as she watched you lay back against the bed, taking a moment to appreciate your little form in her bed. For a second, Sevika thought she was dreaming, you looked so delicate and innocent. She’d look so gorgeous underneath her.

“You look good in my bed.”

Her compliment had you whining in need

Sevika chuckled as you whined, feeling her heart throb at the cute sound. You were just too adorable, too perfect.

“Gods..” She mumbled, her eyes roaming all over you again, “This is so wrong, and yet I can’t stop…”

“Who cares? I need you” you whined out as your shyness melted away and the lack of shame settled in

Sevika’s eyes darkened again at your whine, her control slowly slipping away at your need. She could feel the heat in her body growing hotter as she slowly loomed over you, her hands on either side of your head.

“You need me, huh?” She repeated, her voice deep again, a hint of huskiness and lust in them.

Sevika smirked, shaking her head as her face got closer to yours, stopping once her lips were only a couple of inches from your face.

“God, you’re too damn cute, you know that?” She mumbled, her eyes scanning over your features.

“I’m gonna mess you up so badly.”

“Then you better hurry before your sister comes home” you said trying to tempt her to move faster

Sevika chuckled again, her mind reeling at the thought of her sister interrupting. She was too used to having the place to her most of the time and didn’t really think of the possible scenario, until you reminded her.

“You’re right.” She agreed with a short huff. “Can’t have her ruin our fun.”

You rubbed your thighs together as you thought about the type of fun stuff she was going to do to you

Sevika’s eyes darkened as her gaze instantly shifted down to your thighs again as you rubbed them together. It was hard to contain herself at this point, seeing you like this, in her bed, looking so needy and desperate. 

“Impatient, aren’t you?” She teased slowly.

Sevika smirked again. 

“Don’t worry, darling, I’ll take good care of you.” She reassured you.

As she spoke, Sevika slowly moved one of her hands, her fingers roaming down your body and to your thighs. The same area you were just rubbing together.

Your legs twitched and you whined at the feel of her fingers lightly running over the softness of your skin. 

Sevika hummed in satisfaction as she felt you whine. 

“Such pretty sounds you make, just for me.” She mumbled, her fingers rubbing the skin of your thighs before slowly massaging the area between your legs.

As you whined your legs opened for her as your brain shut down with desire and let your body take control.  

Sevika chuckled. The reaction of your body was just too satisfying to her. 

“Such a good girl, you’re getting so needy for me, huh?” She teased, her fingers dancing around your heated core.

You clearly wanted your underwear and pants off so you shimmed your hips for her to get the hint. 

Sevika smirked again, feeling you wiggle your hips against her touch, your pants and underwear hindering her access.

“Want me to take them off for you, little one?” She muttered with darkened eyes.

Without further question, Sevika moved both her hands down to the waistband of your pants and began to slowly pull them down your legs, making sure to graze her fingers gently across your skin. 

She let out a small shaky exhale as she pulled your pants completely off, leaving you in your underwear in front of her, looking so beautiful.

You pulled your own underwear off yourself since sevika was going too slow for your liking. 

Sevika’s eyes widened slightly with surprise and pleasure as you impatiently threw your underwear away, you looked so desperate for her at that moment. 

“My, my, you really are needy, huh?” She teased again, letting her hands run up and down your bare legs.

“You’re driving me insane, you know that, sweetie?” Sevika muttered, using her hands to slowly spread your legs apart before settling in between them again.

“So pretty and desperate for me.” She whispered, her gaze roaming over your body from her new angle.

Sevika’s eyes darkened further at the view of you laying down beneath her, your legs spread open like that as she hovered on top of you. She could already feel her own body heating up from this alone.

“Gods, you look so good like this, baby.”

“Please touch me”  you said as you threw your shirt and bra off

Sevika’s eyes widened again, seeing you throw your last item of clothing away. 

“Impatient, aren’t you?” She repeated, her gaze slowly roaming over your naked body, taking in every dip and curve. 

“You want me to touch you, huh?” Sevika’s voice was low, almost like a growl as she began leaning over you.

You nodded your head. With your confirmation, Sevika’s hands slowly roamed over your body, starting from your hips before gently wandering up towards your chest and over your breast. 

“You’re just so beautiful, baby. So perfect for me.” She whispered, her thumb running over your sensitive bud.

She ran her finger over your nipple causing you to squirm under her.

Sevika chuckled huskily at your reaction, watching you writhe and moan beneath her as she touched you. 

“So sensitive…” She mumbled to herself, before using her other hand to give your other bud the same treatment.

You started to moan as she started play with both of your tits at the same time

Sevika smiled, the sound of your moans driving her crazy. She loved seeing you like this beneath her, she wanted to see more of it. 

“You like that?” She whispered, still using her hands to rub and gently pinch your sensitive buds.

You were at lost for words so all you did was nod your head and whine out

Sevika hummed in satisfaction, seeing you become more and more desperate from her touch. 

“Such a good girl, moaning for me like that, huh?” She teased. 

As she spoke, Sevika slowly moved one of her hands down, gently gliding over your skin and towards your core.

Sevika was watching your facial expression closely as her hand slowly wandered down your stomach. She could feel how warm your body was getting and she was eager to find out how wet you already were for her. 

“You’re so beautiful like this, all hot and needy, laying there, just for me.”

Feeling embarrassed that you were the only one undressed you reached behind her and quickly threw off her shirt and threw her sports bra over her head. 

Sevika chuckled at your impatience before, letting you throw her shirt off. Once her bra was removed, she settled back into her place on top of you, her body pressing against yours. 

“Are you aching for me, little one?” She mumbled, her mouth hovering just over your ear.

“really bad” you confessed as you ached down there 

Sevika smirked at your confession, hearing how desperate you were for her. 

“Good, I want you to ache for me, I want you to crave me.” She whispered, her mouth still against your ear. 

“Do you think you’re ready for me, baby?” Sevika’s hand was now ghosting over your sensitive core.

With a nod of your head Sevika hummed, slowly circling her finger around your core, teasing you. 

“Just a little more, yeah?” She teased, enjoying the way your face scrunched up at the anticipation. 

“And you’ll be all mine, won’t you?” Sevika’s voice was deep again, as her finger slowly parted your sensitive lips.

“Yes, i’ll be all yours” you choked out between the desperate moans that slipped past your pretty, glossy lips 

Sevika’s eyes darkened again at your words, her possessive side rearing, hearing you claim yourself as hers. 

“That’s right, you’re all mine. Say it again, baby.” She said huskily in your ear before she slid her finger into your core.

You gasp as she slid her fingers into you causing you to grab her broad shoulders and arch your back.

Sevika’’s eyes widened slightly at your reaction to her finger, watching you arch your back, all while your hands gripped onto her shoulders. 

“Fuuuck” She mumbled, feeling her own body getting hotter from the sight of you. 

“Say it for me, baby… say you’re mine…” Sevika repeated as her thumb began rubbing against your sensitive bud

“I’m yours” you spoke breathlessly 

Sevika’s breath hitched at your words again, hearing you confirm that you were hers, just like she had asked. It drove her crazy, making her need you more and more. 

“That’s right, baby, you’re mine. All mine.” She mumbled in your ear, adding another finger into your core, starting to slowly move them.

The stretch of her juicy big fingers were too much so you started to scratch at her back to keep stable

Sevika’s breath hitched again, feeling your nails against her back, scratching her skin. She loved to see and feel you mark her body like that, she found it incredibly hot. 

“That’s it, go on, scratch me up…” She encouraged, her fingers slowly moving faster inside you, curling against your sensitive spot.

“Shittt” you moaned out when her fingers started to slowly move faster and touching every sensitive spot you had.

Sevika smiled against your ear, loving the sounds coming out of you. 

“That’s it baby, moan for me…be noisy for me.” She encouraged, as her fingers continued to pump into you, the speed increasing more.

“Such pretty sounds, you’re being so good for me, baby.” Sevika mumbled in your ear, feeling and hearing just how much you were enjoying her. 

The sounds of your moans and the wetness of your core was driving her crazy. 

“You’re so wet for me, baby, I can tell you’re close…”

With a nod of your head you had let her know that you were about to cum 

With your affirmation, Sevika’s fingers began pumping faster inside you. 

“Go on, go ahead and go over the edge for me, baby…” She whispered slowly into your ear.

You had squirted all over her fingers with a high pitch moan of her name

Sevika chuckled into your ear, feeling you come undone, listening to you moan her name. 

“That’s it… such a good girl.” She praised as her fingers slowed, helping you ride out your orgasm.

you leaned back onto her bed as you were breathing heavily and slighting whining as she helped you ride out your orgasm

Sevika watched you closely, taking in the sight of you with your head thrown back and your chest heaving as you tried to catch your breath. 

“You did so good, baby.” She muttered, removing her fingers, letting her gaze roam over your body.

After taking a minute or two you finally caught your breath as you nodded at her praise

Sevika hummed in approval, seeing how breathless you looked, so worn out already after just coming undone. 

“You look good like this.” She said, running her hand over your chest and stomach, loving the feel of your hot skin against her palm.

“I’m tired” the aftermath of your fun activities weighed on you a tiny bit 

Sevika chuckled as you muttered that you were tired. 

“Of course you are, I’ve worn you out already.” She teased, leaning in slightly to press a light kiss to your neck.

At her words you nodded your head

Sevika smiled against your neck as she heard you confirm that you were tired. She could tell that you were already so worn out, she had only made you come once and she was already tired. 

“You poor thing, worn out already?” She teased once more.

Sevika leaned back slightly so she could see your face better and chuckled at your current state. 

“I haven’t even had my fun yet and you’re already worn out, baby.” She mumbled, enjoying seeing you like this.

Her words had made you wetter despite your groaned about being tired

Sevika chuckled again, watching you grow even more tired and whiny just from the thought of her getting her own pleasure now. 

“Don’t worry, baby. I’ll try not to tire you out even more.” She mumbled, giving your skin another quick kiss.

You had nodded at her reassurance 

Sevika smirked slightly, watching your head nod so lethargically.

“You’ll try to keep your eyes open for me, huh, baby?” She teased, knowing that you were still tired.

You promised to keep your eyes opened for her.

Sevika hummed, seeing you try your best to stay awake and give her some attention. 

“Good girl. Keep those pretty eyes open for me, yeah?” She instructed, as she began moving down your body.

Sevika made her way down your body until she was between your legs, her mouth hovering over your sensitive core. 

“You still feeling sensitive, baby?” She mumbled against your skin, gently rubbing your inner thigh.

Your legs jerked slightly as she gently rubbed the skin of your inner thigh 

Sevika hummed again, seeing how sensitive you were from your answer. 

“Let’s see if I can make you even more sensitive, huh?” She mumbled, before giving your sensitive mound a few tentative licks.

Your hands had gripped onto her hair unexpectedly as you let out a loud yelp 

Sevika hummed against your skin in response to your hand grabbing her hair. 

“Sensitive there, huh?” She teased, before moving her tongue, starting to focus on your sensitive bud.

Your grip tightened on her hair as you mewled as a response 

Sevika chuckled huskily at your reaction, loving the sound and feeling of you grabbing onto her hair, the slight tug at her scalp was driving her crazy. 

“That’s it, baby, go on, give me more.” She encouraged, as her tongue continued to flick over your bud.

the sounds coming from you are downright pornographic as she continued to suck on your clit

Sevika smiled against your skin, feeling that the sounds coming from you were getting louder. 

“That’s it baby, let me hear how much you’re enjoying this.” She mumbled, before taking your bud into her mouth, suckling softly at it.

Sevika continued to tease and suck at your little bud, loving the sounds coming from you. 

“You sound so beautiful, baby. Such pretty moans, do you know that?” She mumbled, her hot breath against your skin.

“ohmygod, ‘vika-“ you said with a high pitched whine

Sevika chuckled, loving the way you were trying to speak, but that she could hardly make out what you were saying, her mouth still busy with your bud. 

“That’s it, baby, I want to hear how good I make you feel, go on, say my name again for me, pretty girl.” She muttered.

Sevika continued teasing your sensitive bud, loving the way you babbled, feeling that you were already close to the edge. She looked up at you, watching the expression on your face. 

“You're going to cum for me again, baby?” She mumbled, her mouth still against you.

With you being overstimulated all you could do was nod your head

“Come on then, baby, be good for me, cum for me one more time.” Sevika encouraged, as her tongue started flicking faster against your bud, as well as her hands grabbing your hip to bring you in closer.

You gripped her hair so hard that your knuckles turned white, not like she cared anyways. You’re legs shook violently as your back wanted to arch but couldn't due to the fact that sevika was holding down your waist

Sevika felt you grip her hair and watched your thighs shake and your back arch as you came undone, her hands holding your hips to keep you in place. 

“That’s it, pretty girl, come for me just like that.” She mumbled against your skin, keeping her tongue moving against you.

Sevika groaned watching and feeling you shake, your loud, high-pitched moan causing the heat between her thighs to throb. 

She continued to lap at you, letting you ride out your orgasm until you started whining and began feeling oversensitive. 

“That’s it, baby, you did so well.” She mumbled against you.

Sevika’s hand went from your hip to caress your stomach, trying to soothe you slightly as you try to catch your breath from your second orgasm. 

She shifted up, so she was now eye-level with you and chuckled as she watched you whine and breathe heavily, tired out from your two orgasms. 

“You look so beautiful when you’re this worn-out for me.” She mumbled.

You pulled her closer to you and got her to lay on top of you 

“Im tired” you said as you repeated the phrase from a couple minutes ago 

Sevika chuckled as you pulled her up, so she was laying down on top of you, feeling how clingy you were in your tired state. 

She shifted slightly, so she was more comfortable while her head rested slightly against your chest, listening to your heartbeat. 

“I know, baby, I know you’re tired. Just rest, I’ve got you.” She mumbled, as her arms wrapped around you and began stroking your skin gently.

Sevika smiled as you grew quiet and still, and felt your body relax, signifying that you had finally drifted off. 

She stayed still for a moment, feeling the weight of you against her, as well as the sound of your steady breathing. Sevika closed her eyes, nuzzling into your chest slightly. 

“Sweet dreams, baby.” She muttered quietly.

After maybe an hour and a half later you were woken up to a knock on Sevika’s door. You turned your head to the door and watched as your best friend looked between you and Sevika. You, in her older sister's bed, naked, skin-to-skin contact. When she finally snapped out of her shocked state she yelled

“What the fuck

[skzhua]

episode 1.

MASTERLIST

pairing: XO, Kitty's Min Ho x Female reader

genre: Fluff, angst, exes-to-lovers, slow burn, coming-of-age.

word count: 5.5k (not proofread yet!)

warnings: Cursing, post-breakup feelings.

summary: the first day back, and you already find yourself into a whirlwind of emotions, mainly caused by one guy you had been dreading to see for weeks.

note: Bold - Korean, Italic - Over the phone

(let me know by filling the form in my bio if you want to be added to the taglist!)

The holiday season was, by far, the time of the year you were the happiest. The music, the activities, the food, the people you'd spend that time with... That was the problem this year.

Getting to know Min Ho's mother was a blessing in itself. She welcomed you in her home with open arms — although she wasn't home often — and was nothing but a sweetheart to you. While the first days you spent in L.A. were close to what some would call the dream, you didn't love it so much. The people, who were far too superficial to your liking, and the house — being seven times bigger than your place in Korea — were two factors that totally removed the holiday spirit.

The third one would be Min Ho.

"Are you here yet?" you heard from your phone.

Three weeks had gone by since the incident, which meant that school was starting again. In your opinion, the winter break should have lasted much longer than this. Not only because you were dreading the amount of schoolwork you would get, but also because you knew there would be faces you just weren't ready to see again.

"I just got in the taxi," you chuckled as an answer. "Did you save me a bed?"

"I did, but your room won't be with me and Juliana," Yuri informed you, a glint of guilt in her voice.

"Don't worry, as long as we have a dorm together."

You kept chatting for a bit until the car pulled in front of KISS. Your aunt turned around to face you from the driving seat, and you could see the worry on her face. While she had made sure to take care of you the best she could, you weren't doing any better. You knew she couldn't help but feel like it was her fault.

"Who was it?" she asked.

"Yuri."

"I'm glad she is around. At least, you'll have someone to lean on."

You scoffed. "I don't need a babysitter or a daily therapist."

"Just," she breathed out. "Try to enjoy yourself. Like before, don't hesitate to stop by my office if you need anything. Your uncle is also there if you-"

"Thanks," you said dryly, hurrying yourself to get out the car.

It felt both strange and familiar being back here. With a sigh, you gathered your luggage and began to head towards the entrance. It wasn't long until you were engulfed into a hug, one so warm that it wasn't hard to guess who it was.

"Get off," you whined jokingly.

"I didn't see you for a month, let me be clingy for a day, will you?" Q argued as he let go. "Did you get taller?"

You rolled your eyes. "A month isn't that long!"

"Can you just let me be sweet and tell you I missed you? Jeez, I forgot how grumpy you could be..."

You smacked his arm lightly, finally letting a laugh out. "Fine, I did miss you too."

"Knew it," he smiled satisfactorily. His eyes were quick to shift from you to something behind you — or rather someone. "Look who's back!"

Turning around, it took you a second to spot Kitty discuss with Professor Lee — now Principal Lee for obvious reasons — and Alex. Q didn't skip a beat in abandoning you to run towards Kitty. In his defence, he was most likely the one who was most excited to see Kitty when it was made known that Yuri brought her back to KISS. You wouldn't admit it out-loud but she truly was one of the few people you were looking forward to see again.

"Holy shit! There's my chaos queen!" Q almost screamed before hugging Kitty, definitely tighter than with you.

Kitty squealed as they reunited. "Dude, I'm so happy to see you!"

"Me too," he squealed back.

This was definitely a show for you to see as you slowly made your way to join the pair. Kitty finally saw you and hugged you just about the same, blabbering about how she couldn't believe she was back to see Q and you again. The excitement in her died down quickly, though, as she remembered she was next to Principal Lee.

"Also, so happy to share with you both how serious I'm going to take my classes this year at KISS."

You held back a giggle. "Right, yes!"

"That's literally what we've been saying this whole time," Q added, playing along.

A call interrupted Principal Lee's watch party which allowed both of your friends to squeal once more, much to your ears' demise.

"We have so much to talk-" Kitty began to say, only for Alex to cut the conversation short.

"Dad's been feeling a little bit stressed," he informed, something you found so odd to come out of his mouth. "I've been staying with him over the break. We're in, like, some hilarious buddy comedy."

As much as you appreciated Alex, you wanted nothing more but to be elsewhere at this exact moment. Not that you weren't glad he was getting to spend time with his father, but the way he was telling you about it was almost... cringe? (No, it definitely was.)

"Alex!" Principal Lee called out.

"Yeah, I'm coming! I'd better go," he said as he began to walk away. "Kitty, I'm really happy you're back."

Kitty responded with a warm smile. "Thanks. Me too."

Once Alex left, Q helped Kitty get her luggage while you tried to somehow make your two traveling bags work, stacking one on top of another.

"You okay there, Y/N?" Kitty laughed.

"Maybe I need a hand?" you smiled awkwardly, looking at Q specifically.

"Give me your bag already."

The three of you finally walked into the campus, as many other students did the same. The breath smelled like home, but the ambiance had a twinge of foreign energy. Maybe they changed the decoration. Maybe you had to get used to seeing younger new students everywhere. Maybe there was a little something you were still not ready to confront and being back didn't help...

"Crap, I wanted to ask Lee about that Simon guy from my mom's letter," Kitty said, disappointed a bit.

"You have all semester to find Simon," Q stated.

Kitty shook her head. "No, I am done wasting time. At home everyone was asking me questions. Lara Jean, Margot and even Peter because he practically lives at our house on school breaks."

And that was also what you did for an entire week of your school break. You won't do the same mistake again, that's for sure.

"They wanted to know what I learned about my mom," she continued. "How my Korean was... And I realized, I hadn't really learn anything about my mom. Like, not actually. And I almost flunked out. My Hangul sucks... So this semester, it's Kitty 2.0. I'm living in a single, I'm going to be single."

You really did forget how much of a yapper she was. It might be annoying at times but you were thankful she was there to fill in the lack of interaction on your part. For some reason, the ground was much more interesting, so were the trees. Since when were there that many trees on campus? Were they always there?

"I think it's kind of a shame to be swearing off love right after you discover you're bi," Q sighed.

"No, I didn't say I'd be a monk, okay?" Kitty defended. "I want to try dating girls."

Well, that was always an option for you to discover too, if some things were to happen. By things, you meant one, really.

"But maybe someone outside my direct friend group. Less potential for drama."

Sometimes, it is worth it to listen entirely to what Kitty had to say. Most of the time, her struggles didn't apply to you. On that case, however, this was a good plan: not date in your friend group. Easy, no? You won't do the mistake again.

"But," Q sighed again. "Can you really be over Yuri already? I mean, she got you back into KISS."

"Lara Jean convinced me to write a goodbye letter to Yuri," Kitty answered, as if she had been prepared for any scenario. You wished she could give you some of that energy. "Just like she did for all the boys she loved. And I brought that letter with me so I can reread it in case I find myself slipping into old habits. You know that you can write one for Florian, and you can write one for Min Ho."

You raised an eyebrow as to tell her you would never, but this was something to consider. At this point, if it wasn't obvious already, you were doing everything you could to forget about your ex-boyfriend.

Q, as for him, shook his head. "Actually, Florian made it really easy to get over him by being a lying, cheating dumbass that almost cost Dae his scholarship."

"You did the right thing, turning him in," Kitty said with an approving nod.

"I also didn't mean to trigger an investigation that caused a bunch of other students to be expelled too," Q said along with a chuckle to hide his discomfort. "I guess we're both chaos queens."

"Clearly, Y/N isn't."

You shot your head up at the mention of your name, looking at the two in confusion. "Sorry, what?"

"Are you alright? You've been awfully quiet," Kitty asked, concern in her voice.

"I-" you began only for Q to cut you off.

"Oh, look. There are the boys," he gestured right in front of you three. "Dae! Min Ho!"

The said-boys had just picked their coffee order as they spotted Q calling them out, spotting Kitty and you as well in the process. Suddenly, it felt like the entire world stopped, but not in a good way. For what felt like minutes, Min Ho and you held eye contact. You tried to decipher what his eyes were telling you; was he sad? Mad? Scared? You weren't sure. He had always been good at hiding how he was truly feeling. What you knew was that you certainly weren't feeling so good. Seeing him after things fell apart was like a knife stabbing you in an already opened wound. At the same time, your body was almost being pulled to his... You wondered if he was feeling the same.

You saw him gulp before he broke your staring session, pulling Dae away from your sight with him. It was a matter of seconds before you couldn't see either of them.

"That was weird, right?" Q said, confusion spread onto his face. "What was that about?"

"Oh, they probably just didn't see us," Kitty tried to shrug it off but Q didn't buy it.

"No, they definitely saw us."

"I'll go find my room," you muttered, wanting nothing but to leave.

"Yeah, I'll do the same! I'll see you at the assembly."

He gave you both a look but didn't insist on it. "All right," he sighed, giving you back your bag.

"Thank you," you smiled as you and Kitty change directions, now walking towards the girls dormitories.

"You saved me, there," Kitty thanked you.

"Saved us both, you mean," you corrected.

"Right, I keep forgetting. It's just, it was going so well between you two. It's still surreal to me that it didn't work out."

You scoffed. "Blame Min Ho for that."

"I just wish you didn't have to go through this alone."

"I'm fine, I promise," you lied, though she probably could tell you were hiding your pain.

"If you need anything, my door is always open! Speaking of..." she said as you arrived at her dorm.

As soon as she tapped her key card on the sensor, the door flew open, revealing Yuri in all of her glory. You quickly put two and two together, concluding this was also your dorm and that you would share it with Kitty, Yuri and Juliana. That's something you were comfortable with. As for Kitty, her face told you she didn't have the same thoughts as you.

"Kitty, I missed you so much!" Yuri exclaimed, hugging her tightly at the same time. "And Y/N!" she said, hugging you too. "You've been sobbing on your own for too long. I was starting to think you wouldn't show up."

You laughed slightly. "It's good to see you, Yuri."

She went for another hug with Kitty, who told her she missed her just the same while her face remained as shocked.

"I thought about you all break, and I was so excited you were coming back," Yuri said.

"Me too," Kitty answered. "And I only got to come back because of you."

"And now," she started, looking at the two of you. "We get to live together?" she said with amazement, earning a confused look frim Kitty.

"What? I signed up for a single. There must be a mistake."

"This is not a mistake. This is fate," Yuri affirmed with conviction.

"What's that about fate?" someone behind Yuri, who could only be Juliana, asked.

"Hey, Kitty. I'm Juliana. Oh, hey, Y/N'" she waved at you before focusing back on Kitty. "It's nice to finally met the girl that helped me and Yuri get back together."

Yuri agreed happily. "Can you believe this? The four of us are roomates? A dream come true. Especially with you," she nudged your arm. "It'll do you some good, I promise."

"Thanks, Yuri," you said gratefully. "Shall we come in?"

"Oh my, yes, of course!" Yuri exclaimed before making way for you and Kitty to come inside.

The dorm was slightly different than last year. While all the furniture looked rather similar, the arrangement of the rooms were different. There was a room with two beds, which was obviously taken by the couple given their clothes were already in the process of being transferred into the closets. The other room had a bunk bed and a single on on the other side of the room. With the number of students increasing each year, it made sense that the room had an additional resident.

As you settled slowly but surely, you all refrouped around the kitchen counter, taking the moment to, again, rejoice about your reunion.

"Wow! This... I didn't... Wow!" Kitty stammered and it took everything in you to not react to her clumsy behaviour

"I think Kitty's at a loss for words," Juliana chuckled and you allowed yourself to copy her.

"I had no idea you were staying on campus this semester," Kitty said to Yuri.

"Oh. Last-minute decision. I had to get out of my parents' place," she sighed, pouring herself some tea in the process. "Bad vibes there... They're getting divorced."

"What?" Kitty exclaimed.

You made your way around the kitchen counter, putting your hand on your friend's shoulder. "I'm so sorry! You should have told me, I would have been there for you."

She shrugged. "It's fine, you weren't exactly able to help be with it, anyway... Honestly, it should have happened years ago. Now, my mom's in Thailand, off the grid at some wellness center, rejuvenating."

There was a small knot forming in your guts as the guilt for not being as available as usual spread in you. Nonetheless, she did send a smirk your way as to show she wasn't that mad. A relief.

"But let's talk about how much fun we're gonna have living together! I can't wait for you three to get to know each other." she said enthusiastically before turning to her girlfriend.

Kitty's emotions were very clear in her face. Panic, discomfort, and hurt. To save her from making it even more obvious to the girls about her crush, you nudged her arm which seemed to bring her back from her headspace.

"Hello?" a voice called out at the entrance. Seconds later, a girl walked in, bringing with her a few suitcases. "Hi, I'm Stella. Stella Cho. Give me one second... This place is like twelve times bigger than my old school," she muttered as she caught her breath.

You exchanged looks with Kitty before focusing back on the girl.

"And, here is the last roomate," you greeted her kindly. "I'm Y/N. And this is Juliana, her girlfriend Yuri-"

"Wow," she breathed out, looking at the couple. "They let you guys live together?"

Yuri shook her head. "They don't know. If they did, they wouldn't let us live together."

"And there's a rumor going around that they're implementing room checks every single night, so we have to be extra careful," Juliana added.

"Well, my lips are sealed!"

"Oh, and I'm Kitty," your friend pitched in. "You can bunk with me and Y/N."

"Oh, cool! Um, can one of you show me how to get to the administration office? I still have to register‐"

"Yes, I can show you. Right now," Kitty offered, a bit too fast in your opinion. "If you don't sign up ASAP, you'll end up with the worst professors, so let's go."

"Wait, wait," Yuri stopped them."Before you go, we are planning a fun group barbecue dinner tonight, on me. Are you guys in? 7:00 p.m.?"

"Of course I'm in," you cheered.

Stella's eyes grew bigger, so did her smile. "Are you kidding? I would love that."

"Uh..." Kitty started and you knew it would be, yet, another poor attempt at excusing herself. "Dang. I wish I could, but I promised my sisters that I would FaceTime them and tell them about the first day back, so..."

Juliana's eyebrow went up. "Won't it be like 2:00 a.m. in Portland?"

Kitty smiled awkwardly. "Indeed, it will be. Yes. Good point. Well, I'm... I'm in. " She turned to Stella, pushing her towards the door. "Let's leave right now."

"They're in," Juliana repeated before walking up to the refrigerator.

Yuri gave you a look. "Is she okay?"

You shrugged. "Kitty? She's always like that."

"I guess I just forgot. She didn't exactly reach out to me during the break. Speaking of which, you also sort of disappeared after the break up."

Your shoulders dropped. "I don't want to get into it."

"You've been saying this for a month! I really think talking about what happened to a friend will help you deal with your emotions."

Something you noticed since the previous semester was that you struggled much more with opening up than you thought. With Min Ho, you started to think you could finally reveal yourself fully to people. However, he quickly made you move three steps back from the improvement you made. Especially in terms of your parents.

"He cheated?"

A small laugh left your lips. "He did not. He... He crashed out, basically."

"In English, please! I want to help too," Juliana joined in, already chewing her granola bar.

You took a deep breath before jumping into the story of how things unfolded. "The first two or three days were fine. I was mostly staying at the house, to be honest. Min Ho was out clubbing, that night. I didn't go, I was too tired. His mom had just left for some meeting and she still wasn't back. Anyway, when he got back, I don't know what took over him. He said some unclear stuff about me ruining everything." You stopped for a second to recollect your emotions as you felt the tears at the brim of your eyes. "He blamed me for his mom leaving him again. When I tried to resonate with him, he burst out by saying I couldn't understand him since I didn't have parents."

Yuri took your hand, rubbing the top of it with her thumb. "Y/N, I'm so sorry."

"I didn't even wait until morning to leave. I packed, booked a last-minute flight, and left." You paused. "What hurt the most is that he didn't even apologize. And he didn't try to stop me from leaving. It's like he had no remorse."

"It's Min Ho," Juliana said. "He has no consideration for people other than himself."

"I would argue with that," Yuri disagreed. "But yes, this was a dick move."

You could feel your breath get caught in your throat, which was a sign for you to stop talking about it. "Anyway, should we go to the assembly? We wouldn't want to be late."

And with that, you picked up your purse and headed straight out of the dorm, leaving the two girls with nothing but worry about you.

"Students, please take your seats so we can begin!" Principal Lim spoke up on stage, waiting a few seconds for students to quiet down. "Thank you. Students, faculty, and distinguished board of directors, welcome to spring semester at the Korean Independent School of Seoul..."

"How long is this going to last?" Juliana whined.

"Knowing him, hours probably," you answered only to be responded by a groan. "Complain all you want but I haven't seen the one person I'm avoiding, so I'm pretty glad we're in it for hours."

"You're unbelievable."

"I'd take this over facing Min Ho any day."

Yuri sent a look your way. "You do know you will have to face him one way or another, right?"

"And I'll do everything to push that moment as far as I can."

"Well..."

You knew that tone too well. "Yuri," you said in a warning voice.

"He'll be there tonight..."

"Yuri," you repeated, a bit louder this time.

"I didn't know he was that much of a jerk to you!"

You crossed your arms on your chest, not wanting to continue this conversation. It was evident that what happened would affect the friend group. You just didn't expect it to be so soon. And, of course, who were you to make your friends choose between Min Ho and you? After all, you hadn't reacted so well to Min Ho's outburst. As much as he insulted you, you had your fair share of names you called him: spoiled, entitled, narcissist, obnoxious, fake... You hadn't been much of an angel either.

"Moving on to point number four," Lee continued as you focused back on his announcement. "Nightly curfew checks for all dormitory students."

Your two friends grunted at the statement, rolling their eyes as well. Their annoyance did not last long as club music began to blast within the entire auditorium before the lights shut off. The doors suddenly flew open revealing Young Moon, also famously known as your ex-boyfriend's father. With back up dancers following him, he trotted all the way to the stage with a confidence that Min Ho definitely inherited. An entrance that was television worthy let's say.

"Are you ready, Korean Independent School of Seoul?"

Choreography, flashy smiles, interaction with the crowd... You were starting to wonder if you were at school or at a concert for a second. A few more dance moves, and the music finally died down, leaving a stressed Principal Lee on stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Mr. Moon spoke in the microphone. "It is time to shoot for the moon and..."

"Lang amongst the stars!" the majority of the students continued in shouts.

"You heard it here first," he kept talking. "Moon Management is launching a performing arts program that will make your school the envy of the entire world. And just maybe one of you will be my next superstar."

The crowd cheered once more. Meanwhile, to say you were thrilled would be a lie. Min Ho told you how his father really was. This, it was for show and show only. Looking around at the students who were screaming still, your heart stopped when you saw him again, leaning on a wall at the back of the room. His face had no expression, meaning he was deeply unimpressed with how his father was acting on the other side of the auditorium. He hadn't changed much, you noticed. His hair still fell perfectly on his face; his jawline was still sharper than a knife; his lips seemed even softer than you remembered it... You looked elsewhere before your body would do something out of your control, like walk up to him.

"I'm thinking this blazer," Kitty showed you.

"Cute," you smiled.

Stella, for her part, took a crocheted sweater out of her suitcase. "And I think this is cute, no?"

"With the dress, it's perfect," you approved but Stella could only frown.

"Are you not coming?"

You shrugged. "I don't know. It's been a pretty long day."

Your friend, stubborn like she is, shook her head in disapproval before pulling out a knitted cropped shirt with elongated black pants from the drawer you had previously filled that morning. "You're coming with us, and you're wearing this."

"I love you, and I like your enthusiasm, but no."

"Y/N, it's my second chance at studying here. If I can finally be with all my friends again on the first day, I want you there with me. It won't be the same otherwise."

Her little pouty face was enough for you to suck it up and agree to come along.

An hour later, and the five roommates were walking together to the barbecue restaurant that Yuri picked out. In the end, Kitty was right and taking some fresh air with your friends was probably what you needed. And so what if you met Min Ho? You could always ignore him.

"Kitty!"

All of your eyes turned to the voice and you found Dae. As sweet-looking as he is, he happily hugged Kitty before finally seeing you were there too, embracing you as well.

"It's so good to see you," Kitty exclaimed, all giddy and shit. "I'm so sorry we didn't get a chance to talk earlier."

"Right, speaking of which..." he started and then turned to you. "Can you do me a favor?"

"Me?" you asked, mostly surprised.

"I know I'm asking a lot of you, but can you talk to Min Ho?"

"Dae-"

"He's mad that his dad is here, but I feel like he's also upset about... you know. I think he wants to go over what happened with you, but he's not brave enough to do so. Besides, I feel like he is still upset because of me. I went a bit crazy accusing him and I hate thinking it might have ruined our, but also your relationship."

"You had nothing to do with it, I promise. And..." You stopped to glance at him for a moment. "I'll talk to him."

"Thank you," he said gratefully.

Him and Kitty didn't waste a second to leave you some space as they joined your other friends who were already chatting in front of the restaurant's door. You broke your focus on them to bring it to the back of Min Ho's head. Fiddling with your fingers, you hesitated. But then, you couldn't let Dae down. And maybe you couldn't let yourself get away from the opportunity to speak on the fact.

"Min Ho!"

As soon as he turned around, it was that same feeling you'd been having every time you saw his face today. As much as you wanted to hate him, you couldn't. Not only that, but his perfect features reminded of better days, something you were still secretly holding onto.

"Walk with me?"

As soon as the words left your mouth, a small smile appeared on his face. Silently, he left the others to join your side and you began to stroll around mindlessly. It reminded you a little too much of other nights like these. You hoped he could see how much energy you were putting into not accidentally grabbing his hand.

"I-" he tried to say but stopped himself. "When you left, there was this voice in my head telling me to go after you."

"But you didn't."

He let a breath out. "I didn't think you'd want to talk after-"

"I know," you exhaled. "But I wanted you to. And when you didn't even try to stop me, let alone apologize, it... It broke my heart ten times more."

"I don't want to hear it... How much I hurt you, I mean. I was an idiot, I was drunk, and I was mad at life."

"As you always are, just saying."

He rolled his eyes but you both found the humor in it as small smiles appeared on your faces. "I'm truly sorry about what I said. I did not mean any of it."

"And I'm sorry for accusing you of being things that you aren't. Clearly, I was mad at life too."

"You were mad at me," he corrected.

"That's what I'm saying, yeah."

A blush appeared on his cheeks. Oh, how much you missed having this much effect on him.

"I'm not saying I want this to-"

"Of course not-"

"I still think you're an ass."

"And I still think you're annoying."

"It was a way for the universe to tell us this was not worth it."

"Yeah, who were we to think it would work out in the first place?"

"We were idiots."

"Yeah."

A silence settled between the two of you. For a minute or so, neither looked at each other and you even thought he didn't allow himself to breathe so he wouldn't make a sound. Finally, you decided to speak up.

"But you did smile," you said in the smallest voice possible.

"I'm sorry?" he leaned down to hear you better.

"When I implied just now that you were my life, you smiled. So, why did you if you supposedly believe we were stupid to think we were a match?" you asked in a challenging voice.

You could see in his eyes that it awoke something in him, a playful side of him that you hadn't seen in what felt like years.

"That was a grimace, puppy."

You shut your eyes in annoyance. "Oh gosh, you're still as much of a dick as I remember."

He smirked. "You remember my dick, uh?"

"Moon Min Ho, I swear to God, I will-"

"Guys?" You fucking thanked Dae mentally. "Our table's ready." He looked between you two, unsure if your conversation had turned on the negative or positive side. "All good?"

"Yeah," Min Ho answered. "Just telling Y/N how happy I am I won't have to be her servant by making her coffee every morning again."

You shook your head in disapproval. "Hmm, and I was telling him how great it is to not be living with a control freak who protects his skin care products like it's his children."

Dae laughed, seeing it was pure harmless bickering. "I see."

He went in, and the two of you followed behind closely. Yuri made the reservation, meaning there was more than enough room to fit the entire group. You were about 10 people in total and, in all honesty, it felt great to not be alone for once. Sure, one of the people was your ex, but at least you cleared the air a bit. As you sat down, you introduced Stella to Min Ho, figuring she would appreciate not getting left out for being the new girl. The three of you chattered for a while and it was incredible to you how you were so at ease with Min Ho around compared to earlier that day.

Yuri then made a toast, stopping everyone from talking. "Thank you for coming, everyone. I hope you all had a great break. Mine was kind of a mixed bag, to be honest." All of your breaks were one hell of a ride, you thought. " But the thing that kept me going was knowing that, no matter how messed up my family is, and they can be very very messed up..." This earned a mutual chuckle. "They're not my only family. I made a little family of my own here last semester. So this dinner is really to say thank you to all of you here. Cheers!"

You collectively clang your glasses together, and it took you no time to dig in your plates. You hadn't had bibimbap in a while so you didn't stop yourself from stuffing your mouth.

"Want mine?" Min Ho offered, almost in a mocking way.

"You've seen me in worse states," you grumbled, food still in your mouth.

"No really," he insisted, putting the one he grabbed for himself in front of you. "Take it."

"Y/N?"

Your head shot from your phone to Stella. "Oh, hey Stella! What's up?"

"I noticed how you tried to make me feel included with introducing to people, like Min Ho. You two are friends, right?"

"More or less..." you answered carefully, unsure on where this was going.

She took a step closer, eyes on the floor. "Well, I think he's really cute, and we were talking a lot at dinner and... I think I'm gonna ask him out!"

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Copyright © 2025 skzhua. All rights reserved.

[hukelughes]

can we pls have some umich frat boy vibes luke pls anything

DRUNK IN LOVE! — LUKE HUGHES

SUMMARY: In which frat!Luke Hughes and his girlfriend play a constant game of cat and mouse at his parties.

WARNINGS: fem!reader, 18+ only, underage drinking (implied), suggestive themes, jealousy, established relationship.

WORD COUNT: 0.5k words (short, i know).

AUTHORS NOTE: my first piece of writing is officially posted! thank you for requesting nonnie <3 i know its short but i hope i fulfilled ur request!!

You dance around to the beat of a song you can’t quite remember, the warm fuzzy feeling in your mind caused by the alcohol you consumed preventing you from thinking straight.

Your white faux leather skirt is riding up your thighs, no doubt flashing your white lace thong to anyone who’s looking. Normally, you would’ve immediately pulled it back down, but you wanted his attention.

You feel a pair of hands grabbing your waist, his hot breath hitting your ear. You know exactly who it is by the smell of his cologne, which is why you aren’t brushing him off.

“Princess,” he whispers teasingly, “I thought I told you not to wear this tonight.”

You scoff, throwing your head back onto Luke’s shoulder while tilting your head in his direction. “When have I ever listened to you?”

Luke just chuckles, pulling your skirt down for you. “I wish you did, but I know you like being a brat. Everyone’s looking at you, you know? What if they saw what you wore for me?”

You hazily look around to see if his words are true, and you can faintly see that people, mostly men, are looking right in your direction. Frowning, you turn around in Luke’s arms, wanting to show them that you aren’t even going to entertain the idea of going home with them.

While you enjoyed the feeling of people looking at you, it never quite beat the feeling of Luke looking at you. The game the two of you played at his frat parties to see which one of you would inevitably get jealous normally only lasted about two hours before Luke came over and called a truce.

You’ve been dating ever since you both arrived at the University of Michigan, immediately connecting with each other. All of your freshmen classes were the same, which ultimately led to him coming up to you and introducing himself. You were cautious at first, he looked like the typical frat boy. Athletic, cocky, and he most likely had a bunch of other girls waiting to pounce on him if they ever got the chance. He didn’t let your guarded demeanor sway him, and soon enough you found yourself wanting to be around him all the time. It was hard for him to stay away from you, and he slowly started to insert himself into your life.

You didn’t mind though, because you felt the exact same way.

“It’s only for you, you know that.” You mutter, while looking up at him with glossy eyes. He looks right back at you with an eyebrow raised, silently saying “really?”.

To prove your point, you put both of your hands on each side of his face, bringing him down for a kiss. It’s definitely not family friendly, as you guys chase each other’s lips even though they’re already touching. The guys that were looking at you before definitely aren’t now.

You break apart from each other, reluctantly, but you both need to breathe. “That good enough?” You ask, moving your hands to grab onto his waist, clutching onto the tight black shirt he’s wearing.

“More than enough,” Luke immediately replies, pressing his forehead to yours, never quite getting enough of you. “Wanna go to my room?”

“Yeah,” you quickly answer, already grabbing his hand and turning around to leave.

This was just your kind of love, making each other wild and crazy for each other.

[lightseoul]

CHAPTER 8 | ALL OUT OF LUCK

w.c. 5.1k

tags. fem!reader, pro-hero!katsuki, aged-up (26), lots of cussing, mentions of food, so much violence. like so much y'all but it's Canon-typical violence, references to (quirk) supremacist views, a (somewhat) graphic depiction of mental health issues

a/n. the content of this chapter is one of the reasons why i almost didn't start this series in the first place. as it turns out, action scenes are deceptively difficult to write—i struggled at first, but i eventually got into the groove of things and found it so fun! so much shit will go down, and i hope you find yourselves at the edge of your seats while reading this <3 please, please let me know what you think and don't be a stranger! enjoy :')

links. masterlist, ao3

You shoot up at the blaring sound of the alarm clock.

You scramble to reach and turn it off where it stands on the nightstand—quickly, before it wakes Bakugou up—a sigh of relief wracking your body when you manage to do so, a sudden stillness instantly enveloping the room.

That relief doesn’t last very long, though, because you’re once again shot with panic when you look up toward the foot of the bed, only to see the man himself already standing in front of it��fully awake.

“Fuck,” you breathe out, clutching your chest, “You scared me.”

“It’s too early to be this scared, princess,” is his pointed retort, a small hint of teasing underlying his tone. You shoot him a pained smile but don’t say anything back, not finding the courage within you to admit that your hands may or may not be already shaking in anticipatory anxiety.

Instead, you watch him as he does mobility stretches in place, breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth as he warms up his joints and rotates his limbs. He invites you to join him a moment after, and you do, if not in an attempt to ground yourself then in preparation for any physical combat that may ensue later on.

Not much is said between the two of you as you go on to prepare for the day, maneuvering silently within his bedroom and taking turns in the bathroom. He lets you get changed first, and you shimmy yourself in your most comfortable office clothes, finding almost immediately that describing them as ‘comfortable’ might be a stretch. Least suffocating, maybe—but the instructions were clear that you had to look the part, at least so that you could get past the guards and enter the building.

Apparently, you need to infiltrate the place organically to buy you as much time to position yourselves without raising suspicion. Mystically showing up on the premises with a man who will vanish not a moment later wouldn’t exactly be a common sight for the employees manning the CCTVs.

Well, then. You guess your long-sleeved blouse, slacks, and regrettably heeled shoes will have to do.

Not even five minutes after you step out of the restroom so he can get dressed himself, Bakugou emerges in a similarly dark, wrist-length shirt and trousers, and you’re about to comment on this unfamiliar yet…welcome sight when your eyes catch his notoriously unruly head of hair—magically pushed back, revealing his forehead.

Now, of all the things that strangely popped into your mind upon seeing him—handsome definitely wasn’t one of them—what you end up blurting is: “How the hell did you style it that fast?”

“Huh?” he responds absentmindedly, fiddling with his sleeves as he seats himself on the edge of the bed opposite from you. “Style what?”

You gesture towards his head. “Your hair. Hasn’t it always been a little hard to control?”

Folding his sleeves right up to his forearm, he then turns to face you, a borderline sheepish expression etched on his features. “’s some extra strong gel. Best Jeanist gifted it to me for my birthday.”

Ah.

“Yeah, well, it suits you,” you offer honestly, averting your gaze just as you think he is about to flash you a smirk. And before he can say anything: “I’m guessing you’re ditching the gauntlets for today?”

He nods, although he’s suddenly looking far from pleased. “No choice,” he intones, “My firepower will take a hit, but I can still get by without them.”

“Enough to kick some ass?”

A grin. “Always.”

You let Bakugou’s well-earned confidence infect you as you finish getting ready together, stuffing your respective bags with things you can let go of in case they get caught up in the fight, before finally walking out of your little sanctuary and into the living room. The twins are on you in an instant, installing your trackers on your chests where they’ve since taken residence for the past two weeks, pulling away without a single word afterward. You mutter a quick thanks, before walking toward Bakugou on the couch and asking him what he wants for breakfast.

“Something light,” is his answer. “Don’t wanna be bogged down by a heavy stomach.”

You end up getting him french toast with a protein shake—whether or not that was light for a man his size, you have no idea—while ordering a croissant and iced tea for yourself. You don’t bother asking the twins if they want to get something as well—opting to just get them breakfast sandwiches and coffee instead. You heard a stomach grumble just a few minutes ago—and it definitely wasn’t yours or Bakugou’s.

The food arrives just as quickly as it did the night prior, and you waste no time digging in. To your pleasant surprise, the twins accept the offering, albeit too begrudgingly for your taste. Maybe letting them starve was the smarter move for today’s final mission, but as you watch them scarf everything down in a matter of minutes, you decide that that’s a trade-off you’re willing to overcompensate for.

By the time you’ve finished eating and cleaning up, it’s a few minutes before 6 AM, and you resolve that as far as D-Days are concerned, the start of this one is going swimmingly well.

Right up to the moment Kouki materializes and grabs Bakugou’s wrist but not yours.

“Change of plans.”

At that, you instantly freeze just as Bakugou barks: “The fuck do you mean change of plans?”

That doesn’t seem to faze the teleporter, who instead regards the pro-hero with a stern, almost chastising look. “You’re needed in one of the schools. You’re coming with me.”

Somehow, you snap out of it. “But you said—”

“It’s a direct order,” he spews, now looking at you with such intensity that has your blood turning cold. “One that you have to follow. Unless…”

“Unless, what?” growls Bakugou.

He smiles. “Unless you want us to call off the entire operation and teleport where you can’t find us.”

Fuck.

Beside you, Bakugou must be thinking the exact same thing, because he suddenly goes quiet.

Kouki harrumphs. “That’s what I thought.”

Neither Bakugou nor you say anything else in protest after that, acutely aware of the gamble that has to be made.

It’s clear as day: either you follow the order and divide and possibly conquer, or resist and lose them altogether.

Perhaps for good.

Armed with the explosives Bakugou made himself, no less.

You chance a glance at the pro-hero, and the impassive look on his face is enough to tell you what he’s decided on.

You’re running out of time and you also need to say something, you know that. Otherwise, he’s going to think there’s something more important to the two of you than seeing the operation you’ve been devotedly ‘working on’ to fruition.

Something beyond just two lovers ensuring each other’s safety.

Forcing yourself to meet Kouki’s steely gaze, you finally relent and nod. “How’s the rest of us gonna get to our post, then?”

“I’ll come back right after I teleport him,” comes his speedy answer, seemingly satisfied with your newfound enthusiasm. “I’ll take you three to where Masaki is waiting near the Prime Minister’s Office.”

“He’s already there?” you can’t help but ask, suddenly nervous at the mention of the kingpin.

You still don’t know his quirk.

“Yes, and he mustn’t be kept waiting,” Kouki says cuttingly, before turning to regard Bakugou, whose wrist he’s still holding. “We’ve to get going.”

“Alright,” the pro-hero grits out, shrugging off the man’s hold, “Just—give me a sec.”

For a second, you think he’s going to head to the restroom to pee before the ‘mission’ starts, but then he’s stepping towards you, and you barely manage to stop yourself from tilting away when he leans into your space, immediately followed by a firm grip on your shoulders. Despite yourself, you gulp.

Bakugou lets out a long exhale. He’s not looking at you—you note—gaze directed towards the floor. You decide then and there that you don’t like seeing him like this.

Like he’s actually…scared.

“Hey,” you whisper, and he looks up, finally meeting your eyes. You almost stumble at the sheer intensity of them.

Almost.

In spite of that—and you don’t know how you do it—you manage to smile at him, as genuinely as you can.

“What are you so worried about?” you tease, voice soft enough for just him to hear. “I’ll be okay.”

To your dismay, that doesn’t make Bakugou laugh—countenance still grim—but his features do soften. So minutely, the change is almost imperceptible—but it’s there.

“How can you be so sure?” he actually whispers back.

That makes you grin, the answer already at the tip of your tongue.

“Because you don’t date losers.”

Now, at your quip, you expected him to at least smile. Maybe chuckle, if that punchline came out funnier than you intended it to.

But what you absolutely didn’t expect was for him to grab you by the neck and pull you into a kiss.

It takes you a second to realize what’s happening, body rigid in utter surprise, but you eventually relax into his hold, wrapping your arms around his torso as he deepens the kiss. A few more seconds pass by with your lips interlocked before he finally pulls away, face flushed and a little out of breath.

“Be careful,” he eventually gets out a beat later, and you nod, suddenly hyperaware of the three pairs of eyes watching you.

Kouki’s especially.

“You, too,” you call out to Bakugou as he lets go and returns to the spot beside Kouki, who once again takes his gauntlet-less wrist.

“We’ll be off, then,” the old man announces, and just like that, they’re gone.

Kouki returns—alone—in record time, an inexplicable expression written on his face. You debate whether or not to ask him how things are at Bakugou’s location, ultimately deciding against it when the man impatiently beckons you to move. You promptly approach and hold onto him just as the twins adjust their portkeys without much complaint, all the while trying to ignore the churning sensation at the pit of your stomach.

The borderline nauseating feeling doesn’t get any better as you get whisked away from Bakugou’s apartment unit in a matter of seconds, suddenly finding yourself sat as you emerge in what you think is an SUV—judging by the size of its interior. You squirm in your seat—too caught up in the discomfort of being squished between Kouki and Omiru in the back—to notice it.

But then you look up, and when you do, the churning from earlier stops and your stomach drops entirely.

From where he’s conveniently plastered in the driver’s seat, Masaki turns to fully face you, smiling.

Or at least you think he is, based solely on the upturn of his lips.

Because hiding his gaze is what seems to be hardened, high-tech goggles.

Goggles that completely block your view of his eyes.

Fuck.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

You vaguely register Masaki thanking Kouki for bringing the three of you to him, and you think Kouki must’ve teleported away judging from the faint swell in wiggle room at your sides. But you couldn’t recall when that was exactly, and this very thought sends another shot of panic through you, the taste of bile now blooming in your throat.

You know what you have to do.

Clenching your eyes closed, you center your attention on the primary emotion you’re feeling—fear, unmistakable fear—and pull.

Instantly, you feel your facial muscles relax, cautious enough to let the change appear slowly—both in your face and in your frame.

The last thing you need is to inadvertently confirm any suspicion about your quirk.

Even if it means using a huge chunk of today’s reservoir on yourself.

Taking a deep breath, you let your eyes flutter open, and you’re once again met with the sight of Masaki, whose torso is now turned towards you.

Shit.

You scramble for something to say.

“I-isn’t it a bit too early?” you ask, averting your gaze toward the car window. “Is the Prime Minister even around at this hour?”

You don’t get to see Masaki’s reaction to your sudden question—you wouldn’t be able to study his eyes anyway—but you hear him shuffle in his seat, turning back to face forward. “Yes, he’s expecting a visitor.”

A million questions come up in your head—how he even knows that information is one of them—but what you end up asking is: “How about the rest?”

That must’ve been the right query to ask, because Masaki hums in what you think is approval. “People will be there, Y/N. When the Prime Minister’s around, most of the employees are expected to be present.”

You guess that makes sense.

You don’t say anything else after that, opting to peer at Masaki through the rearview mirror instead. To your surprise, he shifts his head towards the very same mirror, and you’re almost sure he’s looking straight back at you.

He smiles again. This time, a little too knowingly.

“Is there something—” he starts, before trailing off and pointing to his eyepiece. “Oh, this?”

You bristle. Still, you feign ignorance. “Huh?”

“You seem to have been staring at my glasses.”

You let your brows furrow, as if in confusion. “I…don’t think I was?”

“Cut the crap, Y/N,” Omiru suddenly spits at you from the side, and you startle.

“What the—”

“Now, now, Omiru,” scolds Masaki with that placating tone of his. “Y/N might’ve been lying to us but we still have a mission to finish.”

You blanch. “Lying?”

“Unfortunately, yes,” comes the leader’s quiet response, who’s watching the scene unfold behind him through the mirror. “It’s a pity our surveillance men took so long to notice, how you had us acting strangely, that day we met.”

Masaki cocks his head to the side, before: “Your quirk works via eye contact, doesn’t it?”

You stiffen.

“Thought so,” he concludes, and you bite back the urge to close your eyes in defeat. It’s too early to give up.

“Don’t worry, though,” he adds on after a beat, finally bringing the engine to life. “Nothing will happen as long as you cooperate and use luck when I tell you to.”

…Luck.

Did he just say luck?

Your eyes must’ve widened a bit at what he just said, because he continues. “Ah, Bakugou?” he asks, and suddenly you’re hit with the guilt of not thinking about the pro-hero.

Especially when he says the next thing.

“Like I said,” Masaki drawls, “As long as you cooperate, no one gets harmed.”

A pause.

“Even him.”

Your question gets answered as soon as you stop at the guard house.

Masaki’s quick to take off the goggles before rolling down his window, greeting the primary security guard with such innocence you definitely couldn’t have guessed he was on his way to an assassination if you based on just the encounter alone.

The guard flashes him an easy grin as he greets back, before bringing the walkie-talkie that’s velcroed on his shoulder closer to his mouth. “Masaki Kento of the Korean Consulate, heading towards Building C. I repeat, Masaki Kento to Building C.”

A bunch of static emanates from the device, immediately followed by a robotic voice. “Copy that. Let him in.”

At that, Masaki salutes him a thanks, which the guard returns fervently. You don’t even get to catch a glimpse of the former’s eyes before he’s got the window up and the eyepiece swiftly back on his face.

“Let me guess,” you pipe up as Masaki rounds a curb and drives more slowly as you enter the grounds, “You’re a consul and these two are your domestic bodyguards.”

“Yes,” Masaki readily confirms, “That is correct.”

That explains why he’s almost never present in the headquarters.

“Huh,” is the only thing you can muster, focus now trained on any human that you pass by.

The less they are in number, the better—is what Bakugou said. So far, most if not all of them are decked out in attire guards would normally wear, which you think isn’t much of an unfamiliar sight in this estate.

Eventually, you arrive at the front of what you believe is Building C, stepping out of the vehicle with your handbag in tow a moment later, smoothing the crinkled lines of your slacks. You pretend not to pay attention as an again bare-faced Masaki hands over the keys to the valet, who is off with the vehicle in seconds to what he said was the multi-story car park.

You don’t dare utter a word as you trail behind the man carrying a bulky briefcase you’re positive contains nothing but bombs, with the twins walking in step behind you. You keep your eyes fixed on the staircase as you do, painfully aware of how your nerves are coming back alive, and this time, somewhat more fiercely than before.

You know better than to waste another ounce of your quirk on yourself, though.

And so with ragged breath, you trudge on with anxiety creeping back up your spine, up until you’re met with another guard at the entrance, who makes a quick work of identifying the four of you. You’re introduced as Masaki’s new personal assistant, while the others just reiterate their established titles. The guard then grants you entry, but not before instructing you to register your name at the reception desk.

Masaki thanks the man on your behalf, and then finally—you enter.

The second that you do, though, you can tell something’s wrong.

For one, right behind the desk that you were ordered to approach, was nobody. Not one receptionist.

Nor are there janitors, guests, employees, or anyone that could possibly be in the Prime Minister’s Office at this hour.

Masaki, who just put on the goggles again, must have thought the same thing, because you catch him physically tensing, like this wasn’t part of the plan.

You’re about to ask him—genuinely—why the place seems to be deserted, when it happens.

Something fast lurches from the shadows in your peripheral vision, and you stumble back just in time to see Hiroto slammed to the ground by no other than Kirishima.

The male twin lets out a yelp in pain as the hardened hero wrestles him in his grip, all at the same time as a long string of tape suddenly fills your vision. You look up, and sure enough, there’s Sero swinging right into Omiru foot first, hitting the woman square in the jaw. She staggers violently backward, right into you—but the collision doesn’t happen, because a hand grabs your wrist out of nowhere and you’re pulled to the side.

A tidal wave of relief washes over you as you let yourself get forcefully dragged, but it’s instantly replaced with terror when you look up to see Masaki’s backside instead. From a distance, you hear Kirishima’s voice call out your name, and it snaps you out of your fear-driven trance. Renewed with unbridled strength, you put as much of your weight as you can on your soles and try to wrangle your hand out of his grip, but it’s too strong.

Masaki manages to haul you toward the end of the hallway, throwing you right into an elevator and punching the close button before you can pick yourself back up on your feet. You barely see him pressing the top-most floor before he turns around and grabs you by the shoulders, pinning you hard against the wall.

“You told them about us, didn’t you,” he seethes, manic, but you don’t dare say anything. At your silence, he lifts you a breadth’s hair away from the surface only to slam you back against it. You can’t help it—this time, you cry, a sharp pain sent straight to your back.

“Answer me,” he demands, and you’re just about to knee him in the balls when the elevator dings. You wait for Masaki to get distracted and look away so you can deliver the blow, but it doesn’t happen. His gaze seemingly remains fixed on yours even as he lugs the two of you out of the box, grip unrelenting as he approaches the nearest fire alarm device, smashing the glass before pulling down the lever.

Almost instantaneously, tens of alarms ring out not just on your floor but on the ones below you, and you can only watch in horror as the numbers on top of the elevators freeze.

“Kouki,” Masaki rasps into his earpiece, his two hands busy holding you at arm’s length. “Kouki, do you copy?”

You growl, a surge of indignation washing over your entire body at him blatantly ignoring you. You extend your leg from underneath in an attempt to trip and then pin him down, but he takes notice in the nick of time and staves off your attack.

“Kouki,” he tries again, even as you manage to ram a punch into his stomach, “Answer me!”

You grit your teeth, feeling your limbs quaking as you fight to fend off his grip. Still, your mind wanders as to why he’s calling Kouki now, of all times.

What, so he can teleport him and the twins out of here?

But then he speaks again, and you see crimson red.

“Kouki, kill him now!”

Your body moves before your brain can think—you throw yourself onto Masaki and grab him by the neck. He stumbles backward until he collapses and his back hits the floor, and you take that as an opportunity to immediately straddle him, increasing the pressure on your chokehold. He splutters for a bit, arms flailing and scratching at you, but before you can even think about trying to rip off his eyepiece and potentially taking the upper hand—at least until Kirishima and the rest arrive—he rolls over and has got you pinned under his weight in seconds. He pulls the same move and roughly wraps his hands around your neck, instantly cutting off the air to your lungs. You wheeze, and yet you still struggle even as you feel the last bits of oxygen die out.

He grins at you, and one look at the man’s face tells you he’s gone mad. “You’re on the wrong side of history, Y/N.”

Great, you think to yourself. Those can’t be the last fucking words you hear before you die.

You make one last attempt at seizing his wrist off of you, but—just like many other things in the past five minutes—that doesn’t get to happen, because something flashes in the corner of your eye—so quickly you think you must’ve imagined it. You squint, and in hindsight maybe you shouldn’t have, because, in the second that you do, Masaki is kicked off of your body and slammed straight into the far wall.

Shellshocked, you crawl backward with your forearms as fast as you can, not knowing what the fuck just happened.

But that’s when you see him.

You can only watch in disbelief as Bakugou propels himself across the room in a matter of a millisecond, towering over Masaki’s body instantaneously. “Get back!” Bakugou shouts, and it takes you a beat to realize that he’s talking to you.

You didn’t need to be told twice.

With the little, remaining strength you can muster, you manage to stand back up and hobble towards the corner of the room, farthest from where the two are currently engaging in a fistfight.

It doesn’t take long for you to realize that Masaki’s holding up better than you expected him to, and the very same realization must’ve dawned on Bakugou, because the pro-hero swiftly switches gears and starts detonating small explosions toward the man’s direction.

But then the weirdest thing happens.

Instead of being hit by Bakugou’s blasts, Masaki absorbs them—right where the combustions meet his body—

And then, in the blink of an eye, releases it—almost twice in size—straight into Bakugou.

You hear the pro-hero curse just as he barely manages to dodge the hit. The discharge reaches the wall, leaving scorched marks and massive craters on the surface.

This is bad.

And you don’t even have to look at Bakugou to know that.

Still, the pro-hero presses on, and you stand there—restless—as the fight resumes in front of you. Bakugou’s stopped using his quirk to attack altogether, only using it to expertly maneuver himself in the air. Masaki’s fending off the strikes well enough, even landing a few hits here and there. You try to hold eye contact with him—but it’s no use. He’s still wearing the goggles, and you’ve studied them long enough this morning to be fairly sure that it’ll take more than just a perfect kick to the head to have it taken off.

That’s when it dawns on you.

You can’t manipulate Masaki. That’s for sure.

But you can manipulate Bakugou, who—based on what you can see—is becoming more and more frantic by the minute.

No fucking time to hesitate.

“Bakugou!” you shout, and the man doesn’t even glance in your direction, only shouting back: “What?!”

“Look at me!” you yell, pupils darting in record speed as you follow Bakugou’s volatile line of vision. You weren’t about to miss him when he does.

He doesn’t question your request, but he doesn’t immediately look at you either, too wrapped up in hitting Masaki and not getting hit back.

But then Masaki’s suddenly got him pinned against the wall across you, and you find yourself immediately face to face with him. You scream, “Now!”

Exactly right on cue, Bakugou’s gaze drifts from Masaki’s face to yours, and when you lock eyes, you pull.

Manic adrenaline to laser-sharp acuity.

Acuity that he’s always had since you met him in high school.

As hard as you fucking can—and with all that you have left—you pull.

And just like that, Bakugou’s entire countenance changes. You can only watch as the metaphorical gears in his head seem to come alive and shift—just as he throws Masaki off of him with unmatched force.

But then he does the unimaginable.

He starts bombarding the man with explosions—one blast after another, not allowing him the chance to even sit up and shield himself—and you stare in outright shock as Masaki’s body glows redder and redder.

Just as you think Bakugou’s completely lost his mind with the series of attacks, he launches himself from the wall and dives into Masaki, grabbing the man’s arm, tugging him to the nearest door with one hand and yanking the slab of wood open with the other.

And only as Bakugou throws Masaki into what you think is a janitor’s closet and locks the door behind him does it hit you like a ton of bricks.

“Come on!” Bakugo shouts at you as he presses his entire weight against the door—the door that Masaki’s desperately trying to get through. “Help me lock him in!”

You look around the room for something you can use, your eyes immediately landing on a chair and a moderately-heavy-looking desk. You waste no time grabbing the two pieces of furniture and hauling them toward Bakugou as fast as you can. Taking the chair first, you tilt it by the backrest and lodge it underneath the doorknob until it’s secure enough. You then hurriedly drag the desk to the other side and slide it in front of the door, just as Bakugou propels himself upward and out of the way.

You don’t get to do anything else before Bakugou snatches you by your waist and boosts the two of you toward the floor-to-ceiling windows, smashing against them shoulder-first. You hold onto him for dear life, wincing at the impact even though Bakugou took most of it.

And you’re glad you did everything the way you just did—because not even a second later, the explosion finally goes off—an eruption so massive that you’re both thrown forward from the sheer magnitude alone, the sound of shattering windows and crumbling walls booming in the background. Bakugou loses his balance for a second and you shriek, but he manages to get back into thrusting you into the air with his detonations, carrying you securely in his arms until you reach the ground, gently letting go of you when you do.

The moment your toes touch the concrete floor, though, you’re quick to jump on your feet and hobble away from him.

“Hey—”

Quickly, you tell yourself as you feel the tell-tale pinpricks of tears at the corners of your eyes. Before it’s too late.

But you don’t get to go far enough because Bakugou grabs your wrist, spinning you to look at him. “The fuck do you think you’re go—”

He cuts himself off, the scowl that was just carved on his features instantly falling when he sees your face. “Are you—crying?”

“N-no,” you choke out, although you know it’s no use denying it. You’re already feeling the all-too-familiar closing-in sensation that comes with you overextending yourself.

“Yes, you are, dumbass,” Bakugou retorts, before bringing up his other hand to lightly touch your cheek. “Tell me, what’s wrong?”

At the contact, you clench your eyes closed, fighting down the urge to whimper at the steadily increasing pace at which your heart is irregularly racing.

There’s no doubt about it.

It’s now flooding you—the terror that you’ve secretly been tamping down with your own quirk this entire mission—but especially today.

“Fuck—” you warble, and now you’re sure.

You’re having an anxiety attack.

It all happens in a blur—your brain too muddled with palpable fear to keep track of everything around you—but you vaguely register Bakugou wrapping his arms around you and rubbing soothing circles on your back, as he tried to guide your erratic breathing with his.

You remember shaking violently in his hold, gasping for air and barely managing to will yourself to breathe normally as an undercurrent of dizziness coursed through your veins.

You recall sweating bullets but being cold to the touch, and Bakugou ripping out one of his sleeves to use to wipe away your perspiration. It didn’t really help.

And you don’t know how much time passes with you fighting the nausea on top of everything, even as you heard the distant sound of police sirens, but it does—it somehow does—eventually and strangely finding yourself carried away home.

Home to Bakugou’s.

˖⁺‧₊ as always, reblogs, replies, and tags are appreciated <3 feel free to drop an ask, too—i'd love to chat with you. have a nice day!

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[sotwk]

Not A Bad Thing (Bucky Barnes x Reader)

Inspired by the song lyric: "Don’t act like it’s a bad thing to fall in love with me." Not a Bad Thing by Justin Timberlake

Word count: 1.7 k Genre tags: romance, hurt/comfort, love confession, pining, idiots in love, friends to lovers Rating: Teen Content Warnings: Brief mentions of implied abuse. Tons of sap with a side of cheese. It's indulgent, okay? ;) To Read on AO3: LINK

Not A Bad Thing

Bucky Barnes x Reader

“May I come in?” he asked with gentility borne from manners of a bygone era. On top of that, he observed the etiquette of the digital age, and texted you that morning to ask first whether he could drop by for a visit. 

Maybe saying yes had been a mistake. Maybe you should have heeded logic instead of gut reaction. But after last night, your mind remained too cloudy to process logic.

The vibe between you was suffocating as you settled into the living room, even with the TV on in the background to drown out the silence. As though this was your first time alone in a room together. Never mind the many all-nighters spent hanging out over boxes of Thai takeout, you pounding out thesis edits on your laptop while he snorted and guffawed at his latest survival show binge--a ritual developed over the course of a year that finally helped you cross the finish line to your Master’s. If only you had discovered sooner that the solution to your crippling focus and anxiety issues lived just two floors above you. 

“I want to make sure you're okay,” Bucky finally said. Never one to hedge around a difficult conversation, one of the most refreshing things about his friendship. As he studied your face for answers his eyes were soft, not judging. Nonetheless, you couldn’t help but duck behind the rumpled curtains of your unbound hair.

“I’m fine.” You inhaled a bracing breath and tugged the cuff of your sweater past your wrist. “It’ll be fine.” You’ve been repeating that to yourself all day, and were just about convinced of it. 

“It will be,” Bucky agreed. “As long as that asshole doesn’t show his face around here.”

You straightened up abruptly. “Don’t say that--”

“I’m serious. If I run into him in this building again, or see him within a hundred feet of you, there will definitely be a problem.” You saw his gloved hand clench into a fist, and a conflicting mix of worry and satisfaction swirled in you. Preston had threatened to do the same to your oblivious neighbor multiple times, never realizing that it didn’t matter that he was a taller and bigger man and a self-crowned Alpha who always got his way. Bucky would have him eating carpet before he could take a swing. 

“He’s not worth getting yourself into trouble over.” 

“He’s not. But you are.” His calm tone was cracking, his demeanor darkening with each word. “He owes you an apology. He should be on his knees begging for forgiveness he doesn’t even deserve to get.”

“It was an argument.” You tugged on your sleeve again. “A bad one, the worst one. But the last one. He and I are done.”

Bucky said your name, sternly but gently, spoken in a way that seemed to pry off the shield you had flung up to keep him from the truth. Your pulse quickening, you dropped your gaze to the floor. “I don’t know how much you heard last night--”

“I heard all of it--and more,” he said. “I know last night was one of many. I know how he’s been treating you for weeks now. I hate myself for never saying a word about it.”

The admission should not have shocked you. Superhuman hearing would pick up regular conversations from the next building over, much less a couple of floors away, and Preston had taken to unloading his frustrations at increasingly high volume on his more recent visits.

“The way he spoke to you, the things he called you--” Bucky stopped short, his jaw tight with rage that he needed a moment to tamp back down.

Bitch. Whore. Despite the sting of Preston’s words, you felt a wash of relief that your now ex-boyfriend had taken off before Bucky appeared at your door last night to check on you. You wondered at the restraint it had taken your friend to hold off as long as he did, and to let you turn him away, if he truly had overheard everything. 

Because of the other half of the story. The other things that Preston and you were yelling at each other about; the primary cause of all those escalating fights. 

“It was my fault.” The statement jumped from your mouth, escaping you in your weakness.  “He--he was already drunk and upset, and I made him even angrier. He was SO angry…”

You sniffled and pressed the heels of your palms against your welling eyes. Suddenly Bucky was crouched right in front of you, clasping two hands around your forearm. His ungloved thumb brushed lightly, but purposefully, over the bruised muscle underneath your sweater. He knew. Of course he did.

“Don’t put this on yourself,” he said. “Nothing excuses his behavior. Not even…”  There was a pause, only for the second it took him to push through his hesitation.  “....not even if the things he said are true.”

Your whole body stiffened in flight response, and when you pulled your arm away, he released his grip, again proving he was the exact opposite of Preston. Again demonstrating exactly how he had stolen your heart away from the guy you’d been with since high school, with you barely noticing.

“You did nothing wrong,” Bucky continued. “Neither did I.  But I wanted to… I…” He laid his hand briefly over his mouth, a half-hearted attempt to stuff back in the cat already out of the bag. “I was tempted to. So, so badly. Even just to say something.” 

“You wanted to warn me about him,” you said miserably. 

Bucky shook his head. “I clocked his jealousy the day I met him, but I couldn’t blame him for that. Any guy with a brain should be scared of losing you. But after a while, I started to realize he did have a serious reason to worry.”

Realizing where this was heading, you felt a nauseating twist in your stomach. “I can explain. It--I didn’t mean to--” You bolted to your feet and stepped around him, propelled by the need to run from your own embarrassment. You moved as far away from him as possible before the wall stopped you.

Where should you start apologizing for this mess?  For calling on him regularly to spend late nights, sometimes overnight, at your apartment, appointing him your “study buddy” as though you were some middle-schooler? For declaring him your “good luck charm”, making him feel obligated to keep coming? For ignoring the fact that you’d been spending far more time with the handsome neighbor than your own boyfriend, maybe as a subconscious retaliation for said boyfriend always choosing the company of his Goldman-Sachs colleagues over yours, while simultaneously accusing your grad studies of eating into “his” time? Or perhaps, the cherry on top that sent Preston over the edge: inviting Bucky to join last night’s celebration for the completion of your thesis, “just for the pre-dinner drinks”.

“The only thing I want to know is whether any of the stuff that guy went on like a lunatic about is true. Was he right?” Bucky pointed to you, then himself, in a back and forth gesture. “You and me…do you… are we--”

“Wait, wait.” He threw up both hands. “Don’t answer. If I make one more dumb mistake, I’d be just as much of a pig as he is.”

He strode forward, and there was just something in his approach that not only kept you from skittering away, but drew you in. Even as you stared at the toes of your socks, you shuffled a few steps closer.

“If you hadn't kept asking me to come over and keep you company, I would have found some way, any excuse, to invite myself,” he said. “The nights I've spent with you have given me peace I haven't felt in a hundred years. I was never going to give that up.”

As soon as he was close enough, he reached for your hand. Slowly, making sure you showed no resistance. The touch of his bare hand against yours for the first time sent tears flooding from your eyes, now that you could accept the fact that you've been so hungry for it this whole time. 

“I should have said something the minute I saw things weren't right between you two. I knew you were too good for him, but I was a coward. I didn't know if I could handle not being able to convince you to choose me instead. I didn't want to risk losing you as a friend, even though I always wanted to be more. And have more of us, more of you.”

“Bucky.” Your voice was so small and tight in your throat you could barely hear yourself. “You're the one who's too good for me.”

He snorted. “No offense, but that's the biggest load of crock I've ever heard.”

“I handled everything wrong! I used you, I used Preston…”

“What else is a man supposed to do but make himself useful to the woman he loves?!” he exclaimed suddenly. “How else will you decide which one is worth your time?”

“But Preston--’”

“...he hurt you when he thought he might be losing you.” Bucky said. “While it killed me everyday to know you were with him. But if he’s what you wanted, I was willing to take what little piece of you I could have.”

“That's what drove him crazy,” you whispered. “He noticed you weren't holding just a little piece of me.”

His tense expression broke into a grin, and when you glanced up at the right time to see it, his gaze locked onto yours. You sniffed, swept your free hand over your splotchy cheeks, and smiled back.

“God…” he muttered, sliding his hand from your wrist up to your elbow, tugging you a bit closer. “You’re so beautiful.” For a second, he looked embarrassed. “Sorry. There’s a lot of things I’ve been holding back from telling you, and now the dam’s finally burst.”

“A lot of things?” Your hand ascended his shoulder to curl around the collar of his jacket. “Funny, I have only one thing to say.”

“I’m listening.” The arm he wrapped around your waist was impossibly gentle for something made of literal steel.

“I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you.”

“And that’s a good thing, right?” This close to yours, his eyes were strikingly blue with intensity. “That makes you happy?”

“You’ve always made me happy.”

What little space remained between you disappeared in the circle of his arms, and he paused long enough to chuckle against the corner of your mouth. “And to think I’m finally just getting started.”

[aidansloth]

Late Nights On Kitchen Floors Sometimes Lead To Confessions

Summary: You come home late one night to find your roommate Jason sobbing on the kitchen floor.

Warnings and A/N: some negative self-thoughts on Jason’s side. In this fic Jason is feeling a lot of feelings :) because we love our men crying and traumatized. Pre-relationship! This is my first time writing for Jason so I hope I did him justice. Written in the second person, gender neutral reader, I tried to make reader as inclusive as possible so if I missed something please let me know! JUSTKNOW that my heart broke while writing this. (final note, I wrote this at 4am so don’t judge me)

Words: 0.9k

I also posted this on ao3 if you want!!

Click

You secure the last of the locks on your door as you start to take your boots off along with your coat. Immediately as you stepped in your mind went into autopilot, following your routine so effortlessly that only after what was definitely too many seconds do you notice a heaving sound coming from your kitchen. 

“Jason?”

The words leave your mouth with a tinge of hope that it was just him and not a break-in you’d have to deal with at this ungodly hour in the morning. You check the time with a flick of your phone. 2:14am. 

You receive no response and reach for the bat Jason insisted you left hidden in the umbrella stand. You can never be too safe were his exact words and you’d honestly have to thank him if you made it out tonight. It’s only when you cross the door that you see him: Jason and all of his 6 feet of muscles are scrunched up into a wavering ball, his hands clutching his clothes and his head planted into his knees. All this time you’ve known him and yet he has never looked as vulnerable as he does now, on your dusty crumble-covered floor with tears in his eyes. 

At first no words come out of your mouth, how could they? You’ve talked to Jason just a couple of hours ago on your phone, he called saying he just wanted to hear your voice. He was fine earlier. He was. He asked how your day was. He listened, hanging off your every word. But now here he was in front of you, a broken shell of a man.

Trying to not startle him you get closer and call out his name again. This time he hears you.

He lifts his head and you can see smudged tear stains all over his face probably from an attempt to erase them. An hiccup escapes him and your heart breaks. 

“Oh baby,” you scooch in front of him and take his face in your hands. 

“What happened? What’s wrong?”

He can’t speak. The words are jabbed in his throat, threatening to suffocate him. He opens his mouth but nothing other than a strangled sound comes out. You start petting his hair.

“Hey, hey, it’s fine, you don’t have to say anything alright?” 

You settle on the floor and try to maneuver his body onto yours, his head on your shoulder. His body adapts to yours, his arms wrap around you and he feels like everything is going to be alright. One of your hands runs up and down his spine in a soothing manner while the other is nestled in his hair. 

A couple of minutes pass and you’re still holding him. Jason thinks he likes it. Being held, that is. 

After some more time his head lifts from your shoulder and your hands move to his forearms, caressing the skin there. He takes a deep, shuddering breath before speaking.

“I, ehm…” Jason’s gaze lays low and his hands start to play with yours. “I have to tell you something.” 

You nod and tell him to take his time. He bites his lip, still looking down. 

“I- Fuck, I messed this up. I really did. This was gonna be so much more romantic I swear. I was gonna- I was gonna invite you to that one bookstore we always go to, I was going buy you all the books you set your eyes on and- and I planned a walk through the park- the one- the one you like-” his voice keeps breaking and hiccuping, “-and walk through the flowerbeds and maybe if the day had gone well I would have had the courage to hold your hand.” he wipes a tear off his face with the palm of his hand. 

You try to speak but he speaks first.

“I like you. I really really like you. I wanted to do this well, tomorrow, but- I don’t know. I got too much in my own head and I’m-” Jason bites his lip and tears fill his eyes again, “I’m really sorry this is how I confess, you deserve so much better, so much better and I’m a mess and, and-” you grab his face and force him to look at you. 

“Jason Peter Todd, you listen to me carefully.” his big teary eyes look at your stern ones, “The only reason I’m not kissing you right now is because you deserve a beautifully romantic first kiss because you like beautifully romantic things. You deserve all the wonderful things this world has to offer.”

Jason thinks his heart has never felt so warm. 

“Wha-what?”

His words make you giggle and now he thinks his heart might actually implode. 

“I like you.”

“I like you too.”

Now your giggle turned into a proper laugh which made Jason smile. 

“Yeah, that was pretty obvious from the earlier declaration of love.” Now he’s giggling too. 

“Does that ehm- does that mean you want to be my girlfriend?” You giggle again at the innocence in his voice and Jason thinks he’d die all over again just for a chance to hear you laugh one more time.

“Yes, yes it does. Only if you take me to that date you were talking about though.”

He smiles. “We could go now.”

Your eyes widen. “Now? At 2am?”

He shrugs. “I’m Red Hood. Nothing bad is gonna happen.”

You scoff. “Yeah alright, but I think the bookstore might be closed.”

“Ah. Right. Tomorrow then.”

“Eager?”

His smile only gets bigger. “Duh, I have a girlfriend to take out.”

Thank you for reading!! Constructive criticism/advice is always welcome!

[bonnie-the-butcher]

Rip Tide | Chapter II

[ MDNI ] [ word count: 6.978 ] [ Masterlist ] 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬: Canonverse/Canon-Divergent; Dark! Content; NSFW; Strong Language; Cheating; Drug Use; OVERDOSE; Some shades of Munchausen syndrome from dear old Rafe; Manipulation; Toxic, obsessive behaviour; Stalking; Violence; DUBCON/NONCON; My writing is really pretentious and English is not my first language, so please feel free to call me out in whichever grammar mistakes you might find find.

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲 | You and JJ have always been in each other's orbit. He's your brother’s best friend, the guy you've known your entire life. He was kind, protective, familiar. You never meant for the two of you to start hooking up. And you never meant for it to last so long. But when this boy you thought you'd come to know like the back of your hand turns out to be no better than the men he'd warned you about, you find yourself in the sights of the guy he hates most, regardless of wether you want that or not.

Likes, asks reblogs and comments are greatly appreciated. This chapter is a little heavier than the previous one. Please read the warnings and proceed accordingly. You can skip this chapter or skip the story altogether if this is a trigger for you. PUT YOUR MENTAL HEALTH FIRST.

You press your hands against your ears and close your eyes, willing yourself to wake up from whatever nightmare dimension you’d just been thrown in. You do the whole routine: pinch your arm, think of math problems, look at the time, but to no avail. Every time you open your eyes, there you are, in Rafe Cameron’s Range Rover, heading God knows where to a party you were most definitely gonna regret going to.

Barry doesn't share in your dread. He holds you against his chest, bursting out in laughter every so often as he points out different ways the pogues had humiliated themselves thanks to you. And Rafe, king kook, the man who your brother had sworn to kill more than once, steers the car, all but crying in laughter. Every now and then you’d feel him glancing over at you, lips quirking in a strange smile.

You were fucked.

Completely and utterly fucked.

You gazed at the car door longingly, pondering what your odds would be if you just got it over with, and jumped out of the moving vehicle straight into the road. But your daydreams were interrupted as your best friend pushed you softly, turning to you with that shit-eating grin:

– Quit acting like you’re going to your execution, sweetheart. You know damn well you enjoyed every minute of that as much as we did. – You couldn’t tell if he was being serious or just trying to get you angry, and honestly, you didn’t know which was worse. – Damn. Just the look on his face when you jumped in. Shit was a kodak moment.

– I’m gonna be on my deathbed, still laughing at the thought of JJ falling face-first into the ground. – Rafe added, breathless with joy, the words stained by his ear-to-ear smile.

Barry did a double take: – He fell?!

– Bro, you didn’t see it?! – the blonde’s cackling resounded around the car. – It was fucking priceless!

– Sweetheart, please tell me you have security cameras!

– Why would she, man? Who’d wanna rob that dump? – You were taking a deep breath, planning not to be offended, but Barry laughed just then.

– I swear to God, Barry, if I hear your trailer trash ass laugh at my house one more time, I will choke you in this passenger seat.

– Oh, believe me, I don’t want no beef with your house. Someone might say beetlejuice three times while I’m near and God knows what will happen, then.

You’re disappointed more than anything to hear Rafe laugh so hard at that half-baked joke. – Haunted house, really? Is that what you’re going with? If you’re gonna humiliate me, at least make it funny.

– Sweetheart, I don’t know why you thought that was a joke. It’s a warning. Your house is haunted. You need to get out of there.

– I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you were living at the Four Seasons.

Rafe snorts, a mix between a laugh and a scoff:

– No offense, but Barry’s place actually looks like the Four Seasons when you compare it to your house.

– Rafe.

– I’m just saying! I’d be as miserable as your brother is if I had to spend a fucking second there, let alone my entire life. Like, I wouldn’t be surprised if I woke up and a gremlin was at the foot of my bed, telling me to leave.

Barry didn’t miss a beat: – What are you talking about man, what would JJ be doing at the foot of your bed?!

– Shining my shoe, probably.

You scoff, unamused:

– You guys are so funny, you know? I’m laughing sooo much.

– Lighten up, sweetheart. You’re acting like this shit is the end of the world.

– Oh, but it’s not. It’s not the end of the world, Barry, the world is fine. It’s just the end of my life. What time is it now? Quarter to seven? In eight hours I’m gonna be stepping out of this Range Rover, and when I walk into my house John’s gonna hit me over the head with a shovel and bury me out in the backyard!

– Not the backyard! – Rafe mocks.

– Yeah, sweetheart. Just cause you’re hause looks haunted, doesn’t mean that you have to do it.

You chuckle slightly, wiping your hand over your face. The absurdity of it all is starting to sink in. You don't want to laugh, you really don't, but you can't help it. Because maybe—just maybe—you’ve resigned yourself to this entire shitshow of a night. – Fuck you, Barry.

The chuckles come out in spurts, unexpected, but loud enough for them to catch it. Barry grins, leaning in closer. He pulls your hair away from your face with a grin, pointing at the smile on your lips as if he’d found a gold mine.

– There it is, sweetheart. I knew you had it in you.

Rafe catches your eye as he looks over, a gleam of amusement in his gaze. You can’t help but roll your eyes.

– Oh yeah, – You mumble – I’m definitely losing my mind. That’s gotta be it.

– No, no, no. Your little surfer rat friends were the ones driving you crazy. We’re helping you out, that’s what we’re doing.

Rafe’s voice is almost too smug for how proud he sounds.

You snort, both annoyed and entertained. – My savior! – You deadpan. – Whatever would I do if you weren’t there to rescue me from the claws of my evil older brother?

Rafe chuckles, leaning in a little closer, like he’s enjoying the way you’re playing along.

– I don’t know, get rat fever or some shit? Whatever it is that they’re passing around to each other all day. – he says, his voice almost too smooth, as you and Barry both recoil in disgust of the picture he’s painted. – But hey, at least you'd still have your looks. That’s gotta count for something.

You shoot him with a side-eye, laughing at the absurdity.

– Aren’t you a charmer? Tell me, Rafe, do you threaten every girl you talk to with the possibility of dying from disease or am I just that special?

His smirk widens, and he shakes his head. – Your guess, beautiful.

Barry cuts in:

– You better not flirt with her too much, Country Club. JJ might come after you.

Your smile couldn’t fade any quicker if you tried. – Let’s not talk about that.

– Oh we’re talking about it, alright. You’ve got a brand new guard dog, and you don’t even say shit to me? Y’know I could use someone to keep the merchandise safe.

– Chill out, Pablo Escobar. Nobody’s trying to steal your stash.

Barry shrugs, leaning back in the seat as he rolls his eyes. – You say that now, but I wouldn’t be surprised if your brother and his little rat pack are plotting some Mission Impossible shit to break into my place.

– Please. – You scoff, crossing your arms. – They’d probably trip over their own feet trying to climb your fence.

Rafe snickers, tapping the steering wheel. – That’s if they could even find your place, man. You practically need a treasure map just to figure out where the hell you live.

Barry flips him off lazily, but you can’t help but laugh.

Then the realization hits you. – Wait, where is this party, again? – you ask, glancing between the two.

– Don’t worry, you’ll like it there.

– Oh, I will. It’s my last day on earth. That’s not what I’m worried about.

– Country Club here’s the navigator tonight. I’m just the moral support.

Rafe smirks but for once doesn’t take his eyes off the road. – Moral support, my ass. You just didn’t want to waste gas getting your own car.

– You know gas ain’t cheap, man. Not all of us are rolling in daddy’s money.

– Right, – Rafe drawls. – But you’ve got no problem freeloading off me.

– Call it historical reparation. – Barry counters with a grin, and you roll your eyes.

– Seriously, where are we going?

– Figure Eight.

Your stomach drops. – You’re kidding.

– Didn’t I already tell you that? – Barry quips, and you glance down at your outfit: your dad’s old marina shirt, a pair of cut-out shorts, and sneakers that had definitely seen better days.

– I can’t go dressed like this. – You gesture at yourself, already imagining the judgmental stares you’d get.

– You look fine. – He pauses, sitting back so he can have a better look at you. – Shit, sweetheart, you look more than fine.

His compliment throws you, so you laugh it off. – Shut up, Barry.

Rafe smirks, his eyes flicking over you in a way that makes you immediately self-conscious. – Take off your shirt. It’ll look nicer like that.

Your mouth falls open, heat rushing to your face as Barry bursts out laughing. – Chill, Country Club!

– Jesus Christ! – you exclaim, glaring at him, but the cocky grin on his face doesn’t waver. Caught off guard, you blurt out the first thing that comes to mind, trying to diffuse the tension: – The party’s at a nudist beach? Is that it?

Barry’s laughter grows louder, though his eyes flicker down to your chest. His grin sharpens, and for a split second, you catch him licking his lips, the idea amusing him a little too much. – That’d be a damn good party.

– Now I kinda wish it was. – Rafe murmurs, barely under his breath.

The air in the car feels heavier suddenly, like all the joking had edged into something else. Barry’s laughter fades into the background as your heart skips a beat. You clear your throat, forcing out a chuckle. – Right. Well, hate to disappoint, but I think I’ll keep my shirt on, thanks. Turn around here, Rafe. – You point to a dirt path to the right.

– Why? – He hums, though he’s already turning, and his hand brushes your leg for a little too long as he reaches to shift the gears.

– It’s a shortcut to Barry’s. I’ve got some clothes there.

– When did you ever leave clothes at my place?

– Oh no, I didn’t leave them. Your hookups did. Half of my closet comes from your conquests.

Barry gives you a long hum, raising a brow, yet still grinning. – So that’s where my “lost and found” is going.

You steer Rafe in the right direction, looking straight ahead in an attempt to avoid his eyes. – You should really change it to just “lost”, y’know? I’m the only one who finds it, it’s not like they come back.

Barry flips you off, tsking under his breath as the car rolls to a stop before his trailer.

You step out, grateful for the fresh air despite the faint smell of salt and weed lingering around Barry’s place. The house isn’t much to look at, but it’s not a complete wreck either, and the little things you left around through the years to make it seem less like a shithole sure did the job.

– I’ll be quick, – you announce, already heading for the door. – Don’t get too comfortable.

– Take your time, sweetheart.

You nod, pushing your way inside. The air is stale but familiar, and you head straight for Barry’s room. The “lost and found” drawer is where you remember it, stuffed with random clothes that have no rhyme or reason. You sift through the mess, trying to avoid touching the more questionable items—like the endless pairs of mismatched underwear—until your fingers brush against something soft and smooth.

The skirt’s fabric is lightweight, almost slippery against your skin, and you can’t help but pause to run your thumb over it. It’s simple but pretty, and you decide it’ll do. Holding it up, you eye it over briefly before tucking it under your arm along with a cute top you find nearby, on his nightstand.

You can faintly hear Barry and Rafe talking outside. Their voices are muffled, and you can’t make out the words, but it's not hard to guess what they’re doing. Barry cuts up quickly, the sound of a random old credit card banging against the glass table outside echoing around the small place. You shake your head, making your way to the bathroom.

You set the clothes on the sink and catch your reflection in the mirror. The reflection staring back at you wasn't unfamiliar, bruises weren’t exactly a rarity in your life, but the one forming around your arm gave you pause. The faint black and blue watercolor stops you cold, a dark smudge against your skin.

You knew it would happen, of course. John’s grip earlier hadn’t exactly been gentle. But seeing it there stirs something inside you—guilt, anger, a mixture of both.

You touch it lightly, wincing at the tenderness. Great. You can bet that if you asked John what that stupid fight you just had was about, he'd be able to give you a play by play, but as soon as he saw this thing on arm —this thing that he'd done— he’d be asking who did it, why didn't you say anything and for how long it had been there.

The thought of your brother sends a sigh out of you. And your mind reels back the bad memories, the memories about how things used to be.

You wanted to believe that his sudden shift toward caring was a good thing, a sign that maybe your relationship could finally improve. But if this mark on your arm was proof of anything, it told you that this protectiveness he'd suddenly pivoted to wasn't going to end great, and leaving like you did tonight only added another crack to that already fragile foundation.

You dread the moment you have to return. Not because of the eventual screaming and fighting, or the possibility of new bruises to accompany his chorus of complaints, but because of the look he'll have on his face right before he realizes you’re back. —The worry, the anxiety of not knowing if you would return.— You know that look better than anyone, because you could feel it on your face every time you looked at the river bank where your father once docked his boat.

Your heart tugs painfully at the thought of his worry, despite knowing it would turn to rage as soon as he saw your face, and you reached for your back pocket, trying to think of something to text him, when the scene flashes in your mind again: His hands wrestling the phone out of your hand, the joyless smile on his face as he held it over your head, beckoning you to grab it.

Your ears aren't burning, but you can bet he's calling you all sorts of names right now.

You'd be surprised if he hasn't thrown your phone in the river. You wince at that thought, knowing you don't have the money for another one. There's barely enough cash for groceries as it is.

But you sigh, resigned, pushing the thought away as you reach for the borrowed clothes. The skirt’s fabric is cool and smooth under your fingers, the kind of material that whispered against the skin. You eye it for a moment, wondering what something so nice was doing buried in the back of Barry's drawer. It's rare you ever have anything nice for yourself.

You’re mid-thought, slipping on the skirt, when the door suddenly swings open. You freeze, your heart jumping to your throat as Rafe steps in. He stops in his tracks, his blown-out eyes widening for a split second before he smirks.

– Oh, – he drawls, standing in the doorway holding tight to the door frame as a crooked smile splits his face. – My bad. Didn’t know you were in here.

– Rafe, get out! – You snap, grabbing the top to cover yourself.

He doesn’t move right away, though. He chuckles, glancing down, and leans in. His hand brushes your bra strap, and you push him away. – You could just go like that, you know. Saves time.

– Out. Now.

– That tattoo is pretty. – He mumbles, you look down at the ink for a split second, and push him away again.

– OUT.

He finally turns, hands over his head in mock surrender. His movements sluggish as he steps away. You slam the door closed, wishing you could shut the door on this memory forever, and pressing your hands into your eyes, cheeks burning against the heel of your palms.

Maybe it was because you’d been humiliated so many times tonight that your body just can't process another hit, but you sit in that moment as if it had burned you. You stare at yourself in the mirror, running your hands under cold water, trying to shake off the shame that still burns under your skin.

You take a deep breath, then another, then push the door open, stepping back into the thick, hazy air of the house. Barry was right there, leaning against the wall with a cigarette tucked behind his ear. He meets you with a wolf-whistle, giving you a slow once-over before grinning – No idea who that skirt belonged to, but I know for damn sure it looks better on you than it did on her.

You scoff and roll your eyes, as the awkwardness that comes from flattery flutters up to your face, but before you can say anything, another voice cuts in.

– Looked better when you weren’t wearing it.

Rafe’s voice is thick, sluggish. You turn, meeting his gaze for a moment that seems to last a lifetime. His eyes are dilated, lidded, for a split second it seems like he’s struggling to keep them open, but you glimpse at that bright, almost radioactive blue while he smirks up at you, and a wave of feelings washes over. He runs a sweaty hand through his damp hair, blinking like the lights were too bright, like he was a second away from melting into the floor.

Barry’s expression shifts, amusement flattening into something sharper, something just shy of irritation. He doesn’t look mad, not really, but he isn’t entertained either.

– Alright, that was funny at first, man, but now you’re starting to piss me off.

Rafe only laughs, breathy and uneven. His shoulders curl inward slightly, his hand pressing flat against his chest.

The sound isn’t right. Every breath he takes feels off, like his body has forgotten how to regulate itself.

– Rafe?

Barry’s voice was firm. No answer.

You were closer, closer than Barry, and that meant you could see it first. The way his face twitched. The way his body swayed.

– Rafe.

Nothing. Your stomach turned.

You glanced at Barry, but he was already looking at you, his jaw tight.

– He isn't well. – You’re not pleased by the obviousness of your statement, but you double down. – Rafe, what’s going on?

The second the words left your mouth, Rafe faltered. His knees buckle, and before you could think, before you could process, he collapses into you, his weight knocking the breath from your lungs.

– Shit. Shit. Hey, hey—Rafe, look at me.

You gripped his face, shaking him slightly, trying to get his eyes to focus. He mumbled something, but it was nothing, just a string of syllables with no meaning, no coherence.

Then Barry was there, looming over the both of you. His eyes weren’t wide with shock or fear. They were narrow, jaw clenched tight. He stood there for a second, just watching, just breathing. And then suddenly, he lunged forward, grabbing Rafe by the collar and shaking him.

– What the fuck did you take? – Rafe didn’t answer, barely even reacted. Barry’s grip tightened. – Do you hear me, you fucking crackhead?! What the fuck did you take?!

You barely registered the pounding in your skull as you snapped:

– What’s happening?!

Barry didn’t look at you. His attention was locked on Rafe, his grip unrelenting.

– What’s happening is that Rafe’s a fucking moron, that’s what’s fucking happening!

Your pulse roared in your ears. Barry shook him again.

– What did you take, Cameron?!

Rafe inhaled sharply, he makes a couple sounds, just as incoherent as before. His hands fist the fabric of your skirt, eyes fluttering between you and Barry, lips moving soundlessly until he exhaled one word, slurred and barely audible:

– Xanax.

That didn’t calm Barry. If anything, it made him angrier. He shoved Rafe back, sending you both to the ground, dragging his hands through his hair in a frenzy.

– FUCK!

The word came like an explosion. Whatever was in his hand went flying, shattering against the wall. You flinched before you could stop yourself, clutching Rafe tighter, your nails digging into his clammy skin.

– Don’t die, don’t die, don’t die— You didn’t even realize you were saying it out loud until Barry’s pacing snapped you out of it. – We need to do something! W-what do we do? – Your voice was thin, cracked around the edges. Your head was spinning. You were scrambling through every piece of information you’d ever heard, anything, anything – Naloxone—should we try naloxone? Or—should we try to get him to puke?

Barry cut you off.

– That’s not gonna do shit! The pills are already in his system, the coke’s already snorted! We can’t get that shit out of him!

– Then what? What do we do?!

– I don’t fucking know!

He turned away again, pacing, cursing, shaking his head like he was trying to shake the whole night off of him.

And that’s when it happened. That moment. That split second where everything should’ve gone numb, where your brain should’ve shut down, checked out, but it didn’t.

You felt everything.

Rafe’s breath, uneven and wrong. His half-open eyes, staring through you. His body trembling, like every nerve ending in him was screaming in agony.

You couldn’t breathe.

Barry suddenly spun on his heel and rushed inside.

– Where are you going?! Barry. Barry! Talk to me! Where the fuck are you going?!

He didn’t answer.

You nearly got up to follow, but then—

– Mmh—

Rafe groaned, weak, so fragile it made something in you snap.

You couldn’t leave him. Not like this.

Barry came back seconds later, shoving something into your hands. A plastic bag filled with some kind of powder.

– W-what is this?!

He didn’t answer immediately, rushing back with a water bottle, pushing that into your hands, too.

– Activated charcoal. Dump half the bag in there and shake it.

Your hands trembled, eyes darting between the bag and Rafe, between Barry and the door.

– And then what?!

Barry wasn’t looking at you. He was searching for something, grabbing his helmet.

– Then you give it to him. Make sure he drinks it. Don’t let him puke it up. Not for a while, at least.

– What-what are you doing?! – Your voice was sharp, frantic. Barry avoided your gaze, snapping his helmet on. – Barry! You can’t do this to me right now! You can’t just leave me here again! I’m gonna end up killing him!

He exhaled sharply.

– I have to go.

– Go?! You can’t fucking go! I don’t know what to do, you can’t just leave me here!

He didn’t meet your eyes. He just shook his head, looking everywhere but at Rafe, the walls, his hands, the floor. His gaze shifted almost desperately, and when he spoke, you caught a sort of shakiness in his voice that he couldn’t mask as anger. – Just do what I said.

– Barry, please— Barry!

You reached for him, but before you could, Rafe curled into you, his fingers weakly gripping your wrist.

You were stuck.

Stuck between your best friend, who was abandoning you, and Rafe Cameron, who might actually fucking die in your arms.

Tears blurred your vision, but you forced them back. Your hands trembled as you tore the bag open, powder spilling onto your fingers, onto Rafe’s skin.

His breathing was getting worse.

Your own breath hitched, but you forced yourself to move. Shaking, you dumped the powder into the water, mixing it as best as you could.

– You’re gonna be okay.

Your voice wavered as you lifted the bottle to his lips.

– You’re gonna be fine, Rafe.

You tilted it gently, coaxing him to drink.

– Everything’s gonna be okay.

The words felt like a lie.

Rafe barely managed to swallow, his fingers weakly gripping your sleeve.

He's still clinging to you, breathless and half-conscious, his shoulders relaxing, the shaking slowly going away.

The hours got away from you.

Sat there on the floor with Rafe in your arms, you were frozen. Shell-shocked. At some point, your hand had drifted down to his chest, and you left it there, shaking over him, almost lulled by the erratic beating of his heart.

He didn’t move much either.

You shook him a couple times, feeling the panic spike inside you again, and only then he opened his eyes, gaze lingering on your crying face for what felt like centuries, until he curled up closer, and that radioactive blue you’d come to be so familiar with over the night disappearing behind his eyelids again.

You’re not sure how much time has passed when he suddenly shoots up, so suddenly that, for a second, you don’t even react. His body jerks away from you, retching.

Rafe scrambles to his feet, managing to take maybe two or three steps into the grass before he falls to his knees again. He heaves violently, and your stomach clenches at the sound of it, at the sharp gag that follows. He pitches forward, one arm barely catching him on the floor before he spews his guts onto the grass beneath him.

You should move. You should move.

But you can’t.

You’re just sitting there, watching him.

The vomit is grey, almost completely liquid. His whole body shudders, fingers twitching against the soil. For a moment, you swear he looks smaller, weaker.

Not Rafe Cameron. Not the boy that smirks like he owns the whole world. Just a person. Some kid that almost died in your arms.

Your instincts take over as you see him falter again, rushing forward, steadying him before he can fall face-first into his own sick. Your hands shake as they find his head, holding him upright, keeping him there.

But he doesn’t stay put for long. Rafe lets himself fall back into you as he gasps and groans, his hand wrapped around your wrist. – Thank you. – He whispers. You hate the words, hate being the object of gratitude, but you’re quiet for a moment as he catches his breath.

You’re still holding his head, brushing his hair off his face. – You’re fine. You’re gonna be okay. – Your sympathetic platitudes sound more sincere now that you’re more certain he won’t just drop dead, but the noises he makes, the groaning, the mumbling. Rafe splutters painfully, his eyes screwed shut.

You try not to breathe as he presses himself into your arms again, as firm as jelly. – Ugh. Shit.

– How are you feeling?

He breathes in deep. His hair brushes against your neck as he lays back into your chest, eyes still tightly closed despite the fact you two had been sitting on that dark porch for hours. – My head… – The suggestion of pain is all he can manage to verbalize, so you don’t push him any further.

– I’ll go get you some water. Just sit still, okay? – You shift, only moving slightly, but he stops you before you can even stand. – Rafe.

– Don’t. Don’t do that.

– I’ll be right back.

– Don’t lea—don’t leave me here. – It hurts to hear it. Hurts to see the hollowness in his face as he begs, hanging onto you like a lifeline.

You soften your voice. – I'll be right back, I promise.

– I don—I don't want water. I'm fine.

– You’re clearly not fine, just let me— The kook pulls you back, back into him, back onto the ground. A flash of his paper-white teeth meets your eye, and the chuckle he lets out rumbles against your skin, warm and breathy. – This isn't funny, Rafe.

– Wanna bet?

– Just stop it. Stop it, man! Look at you! You're a mess! You almost died!

– Didn't though.

You roll your eyes before you can help it. – Are you kidding? You better be kidding.

– I am alive, – He takes a hold of your hand, sitting idly on his shoulder, and pulls it to his chest, where it had been before. His heart thumps steadily under your touch, though it isn't exactly normal. – See? It's a miracle! It's aliiiive!

He giggles stupidly, his smile somewhat tainted by the pounding in his head.

– You're hilarious. Now can I please get up?

– Don’t want you to.

– No. You need me to. Is your ass gonna walk to the kitchen? You can't even stand up.

– Baby, I'm fine.

You disregard the random nickname, though the smile he gives you sends a shiver down your spine. – You don't know that, Rafe. – The smile on his face shifts from mocking to mischief as he raises a brow, and you can feel your own face fall when the realization finally dawns on you. – You… You do know. Are— Are you INSANE?! Why the fuck would you do that, Rafe?! You almost died!

He exhales, still smiling. – It’s not like that, okay? I just got the doses mixed up.

– Mi— You stop yourself short, facepalming. – Mixed up?! You should never mix those two things in the first place! A stimulant and a retardant, at the SAME TIME? No shit your body shut down, what else did you expect to happen?!

– It was just the dose, okay? It feels nice if you do it right.

– It feels nice? – You stagger. – “It feels nice”? You've done this before?

The words don’t register. Not at first. Your brain scrambles to process what he just said.

It feels nice if you do it right.

The way he says it, so casual, so indifferent, makes your stomach turn. Like he wasn’t completely limp in your arms a moment ago, like he wasn’t this close to crossing a line he could never come back from. Like this was just another Saturday night for him.

You blink. You swallow. You try to will down the rising irritation in your chest.

And Rafe? Rafe just leans back against you, impossibly lax, as if the weight of his own mortality hasn’t even touched him.

He laughs again, quieter this time, his breath warm against your skin.

The bastard doesn't even have the grace to answer you, he just chuckles softly, as if he’s talking to a child, as if he hadn't just brushed so close against death you could still smell it on him.

– You— Your voice catches. You shake your head, pressing your fingers to your temple, trying to force some kind of logic into the moment. – You almost died, Rafe!

– Didn’t though. – He murmurs.

The smugness in his voice is unbearable. You feel like shaking him, like splitting his head open to see if the memory was there at all, to see if the sudden hit at his nervous system hadn’t thrown him into some realm of delusion.

– Don’t. Don’t do this shit. It wasn’t funny the first you said it, and it sure as hell isn’t funny now.

– Baby, look. You’re overreacting, it’s okay. I’m okay.

Your brain does not register the words after “overreacting”. You feel like you’re short-circuiting, like this whole moment is some stupid comedy skit where the world has gone crazy and you’re the butt of the joke for not catching on.

– Jesus Christ. – You whisper. – I should’ve let you fall on your face. I should have. Maybe that would’ve knocked some fucking sense into you.

Rafe tilts his head back just enough to look at you, grinning, like this was some great joke you’re both in on. – Shit, maybe. – He chuckles. – You didn’t, though. You wouldn’t.

The worst part?

He’s right.

You wouldn’t. Of course you wouldn’t.

You sit there, staring at him, at the lazy smirk on his lips, at the complete and utter lack of concern in his eyes. It’s like watching someone sleepwalk through a minefield, completely unaware of how close they came to blowing themselves apart. Worse, completely unfazed by it.

Your hands flex against your thighs. A bitter thought creeps in—why does it always have to be you? Why do you always end up cleaning up the mess for people who don’t even care if they survive it?

First Barry. Now Rafe.

It’s not a new pattern. You’ve seen this play out before.

Barry did those kinds of stupid things exactly for the same reasons —To feel good, even if it’s just for a minute, even if this momentary pleasantness can only happen at the doom of everything else.— The sad thing is that both of them think people can’t see through that. That need to do crazy, wild, reckless things that they think are just fun and games, knowing things can —and most likely will— go wrong, just so that the people around them, those people that did nothing but ignore them, and neglect them, would look their way.

And though they usually never did, someone was always there to fix it for them.

Rafe’s someone was his father. Barry’s someone was you.

You think of the way Sarah speaks about Ward. Like he’s hung the moon up in the sky, and it sounds exactly like how John spoke of him. How he thought of him. How he still does. You've worked for the Camerons a couple times. You knew Ward. You know how he treated his son.

Still, every time Rafe got in enough of a fight with your brother’s friends that they ended up at the Station, there was Ward, to make it all go away.

You think of Barry when you were kids, the way he used to flinch whenever someone mentioned his father, the way he refused to go home until he absolutely had to. His mom was gone, his dad was an asshole, and the rest of his family was too busy pretending he didn’t exist to care what happened to him. You weren’t much different. The two of you were just a couple of kids that no one was really looking for, drifting through life, trying to figure out where the hell you were supposed to go. It made sense that you stuck together.

But Barry leaves you behind all the time.

And though you hate to give John the right to say “I told you so”, you know tonight isn’t an exception. It’s just another reminder.

He’d always been careless, reckless in a different way—never planning for tomorrow, always looking for the next easy out. And even as kids, whenever the two of you got into trouble, you were always the one who cleaned up the mess. You were the one who had to make sure he wasn’t living off the food he stole from house parties, who patched him up when he got in fights, who made sure he didn’t get himself killed.

When you met, you’d both been desperate for something, anything, to fill the void. For Barry, it was drugs and trouble. For you, it was Barry.

It wasn’t the first time, and you know it won’t be the last. He always leaves you holding the bag, trying to figure out how to cut the wire before the bomb goes out. Its painful, because you know he has it hard, harder than you. And maybe that’s why he does this to you all the time. He’s older than you, he’s been alone for longer. So when push comes to shove, he always makes sure he’s okay first.

And though you know he isn’t trying to screw you over, or at least so you hope, that doesn’t make it any easier. And maybe—maybe—this resentment you’re feeling has been there for longer than you realized.

The thought is ugly. But it’s there.

Rafe shifts against you, pulling you out of your spiraling thoughts. You blink, refocusing, and find his eyes on you, the exhaustion weighing heavy in them, but still glinting with that same unreadable amusement.

– What are you thinking about? – He’s looking at you now, head tilted slightly, still sprawled against the floor like he has all the time in the world.

You shake your head. – Nothing. I’m getting you some water.

You try to pull away, but Rafe holds on, his grip tightening just enough to keep you in place. His fingers latch onto your leg, curling around your ankle, and he tugs—not hard, but enough that you stumble slightly. – You’re thinking about something. C’mon, you can tell me.

– Yeah I can. You won't be conscious for long enough to remember it.

– Great. So tell me.

– You need the water, Cameron. Just let me go.

– What I need is for you to stop worrying so much. – His voice is slurred, thick with whatever is still running through his system, but there’s amusement there too. Like this is funny to him. – I can keep a secret, y’know? Promise your asshole brother and his little cult won’t find out.

– Let go of me, Rafe. – You glare down at him, but he just grins, pulling again, enough to make you step back.

– Nah, stay. You’re warm.

– I’m gonna be real fucking cold in a second if you don’t let go.

That makes him laugh. A deep, rough sound that rattles through his chest. – Just tell me what you’re thinking about.

– I’m thinking about how you’re an idiot. And how I’m apparently the only person in this conversation who cares if you live or die.

– You care about me? That’s cute.

– Don’t flatter yourself. – You shoot back. – Someone’s gotta make sure you don’t choke on your own vomit. Or dive straight into it. – You frown, pulling him away from the wretch. – Get on the couch. The ground is filthy.

Rafe’s happy to let you pull him around, as he does nothing to help but throw an arm over the cushions and lay back. – You’re good at it, though. Taking care of people. You’ve got, like, a vibe.

– A vibe? – You echo, lips twisting into a smile despite yourself. – What vibe is that?

He shrugs, smirk widening. – A hot vibe.

– You’re unbelievable.

– And yet, here you are. – He laughs. – Putting up with it. You know, if I didn’t know better, I’d think you liked me.

– Yeah, well, it’s a good thing you do then. – You scoff, shaking off his hands. But he’s still chuckling as you step inside the trailer, and his laughter follows you all the way in.

Barry’s trailer is a mess, as expected. Clothes draped over furniture, an ashtray overflowing on the coffee table, empty beer bottles scattered around.

When you pull the fridge open, a wave of cold air rushes out. Only then you realize how hot it is out, the damp, humid climate clinging to your skin even as you stand there. The shelves are mostly bare, save for a few instant ramen cups and a pack of American cheese that might not even be good anymore. The only thing that seems fully stocked is the beer.

Figures.

You grab a bottle of water and head back outside. Rafe hasn’t moved much. He’s managed to drag himself into a slightly more upright position, but he still looks like he could pass out.

– C’mon, – you sigh, reaching for him. – Let’s get you up.

He doesn’t argue, but he doesn’t exactly help either. He’s heavy, leaning against you like dead weight, and it takes everything in you to lift him onto the couch. You drop down beside him, handing him the bottle.

– Drink.

He takes it, twisting the cap off with shaky fingers before bringing it to his lips.

Rafe takes a long sip, then looks up at you, eyes glinting. – What do I get if I finish it?

– Hydration.

He chuckles slightly, that glint in his eye growing brighter as his smirk widens. – No gold star, no nothing? That’s not right. I’m being a very good boy right now. And what? I don’t even get a sticker?

– Tell you what, you finish this bottle and I won’t tell the teacher you misbehaved, how ‘bout that?

You watch as he drinks, throat bobbing with each swallow, before he finally lowers it, exhaling deeply. Rafe hums, his lips twitching up. – Where’s my gold star?

You scoff, leaning back. – I'll show you where it is.

He doesn’t respond right away. Just watches you. The silence stretches for a beat too long, and something in his expression shifts—something unreadable, something you don’t have the energy to try and decipher.

You clear your throat. – Can you stand?

He shifts, testing his weight as he pushes up from the couch. You stay close, hands hovering, ready to catch him if he goes down again. He wobbles, but he stays up.

– Keys, – you say, holding out your hand.

He raises a brow. – Already looking to split the assets? We’re not even married yet.

You roll your eyes, fingers curling impatiently. – Rafe. – With an exaggerated sigh, he digs into his pocket and hands you the keys. – I’m taking you home.

He doesn’t argue. Just takes your wrist, turning it slightly so he can glance at your watch.

– Almost ten, – he murmurs. – Everyone’ll be asleep by the time we get there. – He pauses, glancing up at you with a lazy smirk. – Won’t be the first time I’ve snuck a girl into the house.

You ignore him, looping an arm around his waist as you guide him toward the car. He leans into you more than he needs to, his body pressing into your side as you help him into the passenger seat. You’re careful with him, though there's a part of you that is confused at how he seems to be okay one minute, and completely helpless the next.

The drive isn’t long, but it feels longer.

Your fingers tap against the steering wheel as you approach his driveway, nerves prickling under your skin. You don’t need someone seeing you. You don’t need this getting back to John B.

You park, cutting the engine, already looking at the windows, searching for movement. Rafe lets out a small laugh. – Relax. – He grins. – No one's watching.

[emoisthenewemu]

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VIDEO GAMES

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TOGE INUMAKI X F! READER SMAU

A/N THERE IS LOTS OF VERY IMPORTANT TEXT AT THE BOTTOM PLS READ

pt1, pt2, pt3, pt4, pt5, pt6, pt7, pt8, pt9, pt10, pt11, pt12, pt12.5

Pt.13 “Mustard Leaf"

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꒰ ୨୧ ─ ・┈ ・ ─ ・┈ ─ ・┈ ─ ・┈ ꒱꒱

Your first week back at school Inumaki avoids you like the plague. You don't think he ever looked at you once. Not when you came back into the classroom to say hi to everyone, not during conditioning (where he just so happened to be on the other side of the room at all times), not when you were being dismissed for the day and walking back to your dorms. You stand there for a while with Maki, it feels strange because you have grown so accustomed to having Inumaki walk you back to your room. But things have changed whether you like it or not. So you ignore the dull ache in your heart, looking back at the boy who definitely noticed the way you seem to be searching for him.

Turning back around you walk off, looping arms with Maki who has been uncharacteristically happy since your arrival back. Before this Maki wouldn't even hug you. He watches the back of your head, your ponytail bouncing with every step you take, your cute pink converse that you drew little stars and hearts on when the two of you were chilling in his dorm room one day. He wrote his name on them, he wonders if it's still there.

You turn around again as the boys round the corner towards their dorms, looking at person you miss most in life. The hardest part of it all-is that he is right in front of you. You had no idea it was possible to miss someone you see every day.

Maki focuses your attention back to the path in front of you, pulling you away from the trash can you almost walked into. The two of you laugh, she calls you a fucking dumbass.

Toge looks back to find the two of you giggling, it's nice to see you laugh. You've looked so sad ever since your return. His heart is warmed at the sight of you. But he catches you turning your head to get one last glimpse of him, so he looks away, acting as if he had not been stealing glances allll week.

Later that night you decide you cannot take it anymore. Siege says he's online, it's almost twelve in the morning so he has to be in his dorm. You put on a hoodie and march out there, making your way all the way across campus to the boys' dorms. They put them far apart for a reason, but you don't care. Maybe you should have out some pants on, some socks as the holes in your crocs seem to invite the cold air to go seeping through. Your body is covered in goosebumps.

You're almost there but you pause-a moment of clarity hits you.

Are you being crazy? Is this too much?

Your question is answered when you spot him standing outside. You are unaware but he is in a much similar place you are in-he would be lying if he said he wasn't walking out of his dorm with every intention to see you. That was until he actually spotted you of course, he suddenly freezes up as your figure begins to move closer.

"Toge!"

Oh fuck no.

He books it back to the entrance, but it seems he forgot-yes you are kind of fucking crazy because you chase him. Making it just in time to catch the door before he tries to open it. When did you get so fast?

"Toge no!" You plead as he tries to move your arm out of the way. And then the two of you begin to almost wrestle for the door handle, pushing your bodies against each other, using both of your strengths to your advantage. "You can't...fuck!" You stop as the boy begins to overpower you, prying your cold hands off the door. "You can't ignore me forever!"

And then you almost fall, so of course he catches you. He would never want to hurt you, but quickly releases his hold on you, slapping your hand lightly with furrowed brows. God, you annoy him sometimes. He hates the way you are fucking pouting at him; he hates the way the both of you are panting after the struggle that was trying to keep him from going back inside-he hates the fact that you are wearing shorts and no socks-shivering right before his very eyes. It's cold out here, you're going to get sick.

And then he laughs at the ridiculous situation the two of you have found yourselves in. You are definitely determined; he'll give you credit where it's due.

You giggle but are afraid to laugh too much. There's nothing funny about this actually, you need your favorite person back. He drags you inside, pulling you by the wrist and scoffing when he feels how cold your skin is. The first thing he does is grab you a blanket, wrapping it around you. And he looks down only to realize that the two of you have the same pair of crocs on. His eye twitches, yes, you annoy him.

"Sorry! I ordered them for the both of us.... thought it would be cute. That was before.... well, you know"

He rolls his eyes and sits down on his gaming chair. You sit on his bed in the same spot you always used to. It feels different now.

"Okay, so I have a lot to say, like a lot and I know for like more than half of it you're gonna be like 'well what the fuck does that have to do with me?' and you're right but I just need you to understand where I'm coming from. Why I am the way I am" You begin, looking up at the ceiling as you nervously rock your leg up and down.

He nods, purple eyes taking in every inch of you. You look so afraid.

You take the biggest sigh of your life, it feels like you can finally breathe. "Okay! So basically, when I was young my parents were in a fucking cult-the star religious group, time vessel association, whatever the fuck. And like it was really weird and scary; they were super obsessed with me and my brother. Wanted to use our power for who knows what so they would do these like experiments on us and make us do really weird shit. Honestly, I can't even remember most of it. Pretty sure I blocked that all out but just know it was fucked up. So then when I'm a bit older this guy takes over and everything gets like a million times weirder, and he starts telling us that all non-curse users need to be wiped out-that they're not pure. So understandably my parents got really scared and they wanted to leave but my brother didn't! He got really close to the dude actually and started becoming a part of whatever they were doing so he refused to go"

You breathe again and he waits, you are sure he's sick and tired of listening to you speak. You wish you could hear him speak. "And long story short, they killed him. I don't know how, my parents won't tell me, but he was like their golden child so obviously they took it really hard and that's when they started hating curse users. They ended up joining another religion-another cult that is arguably just as bad.... they did actual fucking exorcisms on me to try and drain me of my power! But it never worked"

And you begin to choke up, bottom lip wobbling at how crazy this must sound. It's exactly why you never spoke about it to anyone-you're ashamed. "And I think the only reason they let me fucking come to this school is because my brother wanted to go.... but they always fucking told me if I did one thing wrong-anything they didn't like they would bring me back home. You have no idea how many times I would meet random guys, sometimes even grown ass men that they would tell me I might marry one day....c-cause' they don't want me to end up with another curse users" A tear falls from your eye, you wipe it away with your sweater.

"They just hate me and everything I am! It hurts so much all I ever wanted was to impress them! And I'm not trying to make you feel bad for me I just need you to understand that what I did was never because of you. That you weren't enough because Toge I have never met anyone like you before! You are so so amazing and I wish I would have told you that sooner I was just afraid....and I was always in fear of what direction my life would go. Always so uncertain of what my future was gonna be.... dating anyone was the last thing on my mind. If anything, it made me hate all guys and want nothing to do with them!"

You are basically full-on sobbing by this point, ugly crying-God you feel so embarrassed. "I just wanted them to be proud of me! It's the only reason I said yes when he asked. I thought if I did something that makes them happy while also being a sorcerer they would change their minds and let me stay....because Inumaki the only thing worse than living my life wanting you would be living it without you"

"And fuck! I am just so so sorry I hurt you! I can't believe I did that to you! You deserve so much better and I-"

"Stop!" He finally speaks; the blue light of his computer makes his marking more visible than ever. You think they look so beautiful on him.

You are frozen not because you wish to be but because you have no other choice. It is like you have no free will; it almost scares you.

But he stands up and hugs you. You feel so comforted and complete, it is a feeling that nobody, certainly not even your parents have made you feel. You feel safe. You keep crying but he doesn't mind, he pets your hair and just allows you to let it all out. You aren't sure how long the two of you stay like that, but he pulls away when you finally stop. And he wordlessly drags you to the bathroom, giving you tissues and letting you wash your face before grabbing you some water.

"T-thank you Toge" You hiccup as the two of you find your ways back to sitting on his bed.

He feels bad. He had no idea all of that would be at play. He was just so caught up in you that he forgot about everything else, that life happens and not everything will go the way it's supposed to. Or maybe it does because you sit here in his arms, and it feels like the biggest weight has finally been lifted off of your chest.

He is holding you, one arm wrapped across your back and the other rests on your hip. Your head is resting on his chest, listening to his abnormally fast heartbeat but you won't question it-yours is beating fast too.

"Mustard leaf" I forgive you.

You would cry if you did not weep all your tears already. Finally, things are okay. "You're very special to me Toge. I wish I could...indulge on how I feel about you but i just can't. Not right now"

"Shhh" He comforts you, he understands. Maybe you should find a place to live in between school seasons before you worry about him. He kisses the top of your head and the two of you stay that way for a while.

The two of you stay up until morning comes, playing scary Minecraft mods and genuinely laughing together for the first time in weeks.

It feels right.

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TAGLIST: @toge1numak1 @love-me-satoru @strxwberrycandi @slutlight2ndver @walllflowerrrsss @restrictionsapply @lloversss @biborian21 @geektastic84 @tenthmilo @entr4p3 @reblogwhoreowo @idexmids @uracutieraka @linaaeatsfamilies

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[nowheredreamer]

healing soul

Ridoc x reader

Warnings: mild spoilers of Iron Flame

A/N: Hey everyone this is my first fanfic in a loooooong time, like in probably ten years, so I am a little rusty, so be patience. Also english is not my first language so you may find some incohernet things, but I think I did the best to convey what I wanted. So if you find any error please feel free to tell me, and I would also apreciate any feedback because like I said it's been more than 10 years, so any critiscism, feedback, comments are welcome. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy xoxo

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Ridoc didn’t have  many rules regarding his loving life, the man likes to explore the small and big pleasures that life has to offer. But that was a certain primary standard on his life, especially his rider life, that wouldn't trespass his love life. 

One of them was that he didn’t sleep with cadets, not now that he was in his second year. 

The second one was not sleeping with his squad's flings, they were a family after all and Ridoc did NOT like family feuds. 

And his third and last one was he didn't sleep with infantry, scribes or healers. 

It isn't like Ridoc didn't find some of them attractive, he did. But as a rider he just found them  inferior or boring. It was a standard for him, even though in the last months getting with some of the riders wasn't too appealing for him, now that the first year was over most of the riders felt like his family, it was weird being attracted to someone of your family.

And that would have stayed true if it weren't for a certain girl. Ridoc hadn’t thought much of her, but his second year was a little bit rougher sending him a few times to the infirmary. That is where he met the  apprentice healer for the first time.

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Havoc. Wildness. Despair. Chaos. Those were the words that Y/N would refer to at this moment.  Cadets and riders were entering the infirmary left and right, the smell of smoke and burned meat infiltrared her nose. Madness. She had not figured out yet what had happened, and she couldn't definitely understand what would have happened to leave so many students burned, burned by flames of a dragon. 

But she couldn’t focus on that right now, not when another cadet, with his body so burned that she could see the bone of his cheek, was put in the infirmary bed before her. 

“Holy shit.” Her friend gulped. Gods, even though this was their second year, she and her classmates have not seen such damage like that before.They have dealt with burns before, I mean learning to deal with burning degrees from dragon flames were a basic thing on their learning, but they haven’t ever dealt with this kind of level.

Both girls pushed their emotions aside so they could start attending to the poor boy, who was now crying of pain.

“You're gonna be okay, we are going to treat you then your body can heal and take the pain away, and it will heal, you will be fine.” She reassured the poor boy.

“ I wanna go home, please.” His voice came with nothing but a small begging whisper, both learners looked at each other. She had a lot of respect for what the riders did once they graduated, but She could never understand or accept the brutal ways they did to get to graduation point. 

She took his hand on hers while attending a small burn on his elbow and promised that everything would be okay. She  didn’t want to lie to him, but the only things she could do right now was trying to offer a little comfort. 

“You shouldn’t lie to him.”  A graved tone came from her back, she turned around to see a man, standing on the bed beside the one was attending. - “He’s gonna learn that this place is not for the weak sooner or later.” - The brown hair man said, his tone was serious and he looked at you like riders normally looked at anyone who wasn’t a rider. She shrug at his ignorant words and kept working on the boy laid in front of her until one of  her professor came to continue since the boy's burns degree was way more grave than students could secure.

Then she turned to face the bed beside where the rider, from the fourth wing as his (emblema) showed , was still waiting. 

“Do you need help too or are you just here to supervise our work?”  She said with sarcasm and accusation. Before he could answer, Jonah, her friend and classmate, who was attending to the boy on the bed chimed in.

“His friend has some second degree burns but I’m already taking care of it, but I can see a slight burn on his back.”  Jonah said while putting some leaves on the boy's arm and pointing with his chin to the annoying man on my side indicating that he also had been injured. 

“I’m okay, I don’t need help.” The rider said before I could say anything. She gave him an annoyed look while appointing a chair nearby.

“If you’re here we can’t let you leave without doing a check up first. Let me do my job and this will be over so you can go back to mounting dragons.” He let out an annoyed sound but followed her  to the chair. “Can you please take your shirt?” Her question left as soon as he sat on the chair wanting to get rid of him as quickly as she could.

“Wow there, people usually go on a date first, although healers are not really my type.” His tone was full of mischief but also tardiness, like the joke came automatically to him.  

“Oh my poor heart, how am I going to live after this?”  Her voice was so flat at this point that the man just slightly flinched and took his shirt off. She went behind him, and he really had a burn on his back, but it was a first degree, probably just needing disinfection and then some medication to calm the skin. She grabbed the cloth putting one hand on his back to stabilize him and he instantly gave a slight flinch.

“Gods, your hands are freezing.”  He said rapidly between teeth.

“Good thing for someone who has a burn on his skin.”  She put my hand on his back again while gentlying using the cloth to clean his injury. A shiver ran down his spine, not even the largest, biggest rider was immune to pain.

His strong back tensed with each contact, pulling his muscles together on his beautiful tanned skin. Gods, riders and their fucking beautiful bodies. It was rather annoying actually, but they definitely made up with their personality, especially this one. So annoying.

“Are you trying to kill me or something, woman?” He hissed again, pushing his back away from me. 

“Crybaby” she whispered to herself while grabbing him by his shoulder and continuing to work on his back, but she Guessed her whisper wasn't as silent as she expected because he whipped his head around to look at her. She stared back with a pointing look, and he just smirked and turned around. And a small smile threatened to appear on the girl’s lips.

After finishing up on his back, she started checking for any more injuries on his backside, finding a small one on his neck right on the line where his thick brown wavy hair started. She asked for him to look down and gently touch his stiff nape, and he immediately reacted.

“Sorry.” She apologized knowing from experience that most people were very sensitive around their necks. 

“It 's okay.” He assured me gently, unlike his interaction with her before. He settled his body back to her again and started cleaning the burn with the most delicacy that she could. She still could see the shivers that went on his body, and for a minute it felt like there were just she and him on the infirmary, she was so focus on his responsive body and trying to be gentle with him that her brain fogged the cries, the whimpers, the pain shouts. It was just her and the nameless beautiful rider. She shook my head finishing up and turned around to see if there were any injuries on his front. And she thanked the gods that her cheeks had not heated.

“I'm just gonna do a final check up before we are done.”  His face lifted to the sound of her voice and when his eyes met hers, she could see something sad then, but quickly his facial features turned on the playful side again. She rolled her eyes and quickly moved to do her job, checking pupils. Checking for concussion, and lastly checking his abdomen to see if it had any injuries, and she swore she would try her hardest to not linger too much on his strong body. 

“Do you need more time to check up on me up?” He asked so smudged that she could hear the smirk on his lips. She rolled my eyes again. 

“You are done. I would recommend not wearing anything too tight and sleeping without a shirt and on the front side to avoid inflammation, giving access for your skin to heal and breathe.” She recited the recommendations almost automatically since it wasn't the first or last time she would be saying that tonight. Before he could answer, Noah stepped beside me.

“Sorry to interrupt but Leith it’s looking green again and I think he's going to… “ He hesitated looking at the rider seated in front of them paying close attention to them. But she didnt need for Jonah to complete, she knew, Leith was a really great student, if not one of the bests in class, but when came down to the practical part of it, especially on this case when wasn’t not a premeditated test, he would let his emotions ruled him, and she personally believe that he had an aversion for certain lacerations.

“ I’m finished here, I’m going to check on him, how severe is the situation?” And his face changed the minute the question left her lips, he also didn't need the words, she could see on his face. She gave him a small nod, and he left. She counted to ten to steady her breath, this was going to be a long night. When she turned to the man still seated, his eyes were already searching hers, eyes that once again show that tiredness that she saw before, his eyebrows were lower and slightly closer. And in that instant the man who had looked at her with disdain, sarcasm and playfulness, now had what she accessed as a worried look, and sincere one. She fidget her hands on her coat, not used to the kind of expression, not towards me at least.

“Remember to follow my instructions and unless if you have a family member or someone real close to you, please go to your courts, this place it's already too packed up tonight.” His expression changed to neutral and he lifted from the chair, with that done she turned to go find Leith, when his voice reached me in a low tone.

“Thanks, I am Ridoc, by the way.”

She was surprised and studied his face, his brown light eyes and the soft strands of his hair sticking on his sweaty forehead. 

“Y/N. And I hope I don't see you here again.” she turned before he could answer and went to take care of the poor young life they were about to lose.

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[sunsetsover]

i wish i wasn't so exhausted because i want nothing more than to sit here and properly pick apart the inherent but unconventional ways their dom/sub dynamic presents itself between kant and bison. bc it's definitely always been there esp in these last few episodes but in episode 10 it was in everything. everything.

the pool scene was obvious. i already pulled that apart. but it was also in the way kant's reaction to being told off for being distracting during the mission was so different from the way bison reacted when kant told him off - bison basically looks like he's indulging a pouting child, while kant's face drops and he gets all sad looking. and it's in how different their reactions were to the being distracted too, how kant whined about how bison had promised not to distracted while bison firmly tells kant off for even trying.

and it's in how pissed and hurt kant when he finally saw bison in that car park - imo not so much because bison had told him they needed to stay away from each other, but because bison had been sneaking around watching kant when kant had no way of seeing bison or knowing he was alright at all, and that was so unfair to him, because that's not how it was supposed to work between them. they had just found their equilibrium and here bison was knocking it off kilter by giving and receiving while simultaneously withholding kant's ability to give and receive back. and that's not how they were supposed to work.

and it's in how silly kant was. how rambly and cute when he talked about the titanic experiment he saw or when he tried to get bison to reenact the king of the world scene. but also the way kant was just a brat the entire episode - going kinda rogue while on mission and mentioning the narc thing when he knows it pisses bison off and constantly pushing and pushing and pushing bison to find where the line is where bison will stop indulging him and start reprimanding him.

and it's the way bison does reprimand him and how kant listens. and it's in the way kant's eyes got all big and pleading when bison got all pissy and asked him if he wanted another scratch - and dare i say that and the pool scene were the first real little glimpses we see of what kant's like in actual subspace. and it's in the way you see bison notice that and realise kant's reacting positively, and how he reacts to that reaction with clear desire, but also decides to store that info away as opposed to acting on it bc it's not the time or place.

and most of all it's in kant asking bison to teach him to be like him. in kant handing himself over to bison the assassin and going 'use me. please please make use of me. mould me into a weapon you can wield.' and bison refusing to do that. refusing to make a killer of the boy he loves. in bison knowing kant's limit when kant doesn't and not crossing it. of protecting him from himself. but also making use of him anyway. knowing kant well enough to know that that's what he needed. to be used. because being used is being useful, and being useful is what kant has learned will have him kept around. and bc right now they don't have the time or spare energy to start unpicking that knot, bison meets it where it is: he finds uses for kant while also doing everything he possibly can to give kant agency and control: you don't have to do this. i can take it from here. will you help me with one more thing?

i know i've missed so much that i will kick myself for later. i also know this is incoherent. i've got maybe 10 hours of sleep in the past week. but i can't stop thinking about this fucking dynamic. it's so unique and yet so well defined in what it is. and i know the people that don't get that dynamic won't get what i'm trying to point at with this post. and tbh i get it! as obvious as it is there's also something elusive about it! it reminds me of that kaveh akbar quote where he's says trying to describe god is like trying to imagine a bladeless knife with no handle. the more language you try to put to kant and bison's dynamic, the more it recedes from view.

[jmdbjk]

January

It's been every which way over here, not gonna lie, I'm ready for a month of nothing happening.

That being said, Hobi is about to unleash some music to get us lathered up prior to embarking on his world tour.

But that's a kind of chaos I welcome. More, please. (see what I did there?) Orchestra Mic Drop needs to be on the set list. Manifesting.

Anyway... Jimin. I can't wait to have fun conversations with you about your military service. I'm positive the stories will keep us enraptured for ages. I can't wait to have you back with us. I see the snow falling in Korea and I am thinking of you and your crew shoveling away, then knocking the snow off your boots and heading inside to the mess hall where Jungkook and his crew have cooked up some steaming bowls of hearty stew or soup to warm you all up.

Soon, the spring days will be here and then before we know it, it'll be June 11 and you and Jungkook will be back. As of today, 130 days left. We will already be on a high from welcoming Namjoon and Tae back.

What will that first day be like? Will you and Jungkook sit on that couch in the Hybe building in your military uniforms with balloons and flowers next to you, and turn on a Weverse live just like Jin and Hobi did?

No pressure, lol. BUT WE REALLY NEED TO SEE IF YOUR ASS IS OUT OF THIS WORLD. YOU PROMISED.

You mentioned that you and Jungkook talk about a lot of things before going to sleep. The things you talk about in those deep conversations are probably becoming more and more real to the both of you every day. Don't be scared. Don't be worried. We only want you to be safe, happy and out of there. Really LUYO 💜 too.

The day is coming when we can all say YOU DID IT! WE DID IT! WE ALL MADE IT! NOW ON WITH THE REAL SHOW!!

And last but definitely not least, the first group live with Yoongi... cue the tears. Will he get out early? Saved vacation days? Would he even show himself if he did? Or will he go by the book all the way to the end? We wait™️.

I heard Kim Jones is leaving Dior. I was not a fan of the last few seasons of his creations. I could not imagine Jimin wearing any of that mess. The new mens creative is supposedly JW Anderson. Not sure when we'll see first glimpses of his Dior menswear. He better be prepared to fit Jimin's sculpted butt perfectly.

And Pharrell has designed a new Tiffany line called Titan that has little spikey things and such...

I have finally realized I have entered a phase where all I'm concerned with is what is happening in real time to all the members. What are their thoughts, their state of mind now while fulfilling their duties? What are their concerns, what are the things that bring them joy and satisfaction? What are the forces and events that are impacting them?

We can glean these things from their brief moments they post on Instagram or Weverse, or when their fellow soldiers or colleagues post things that help us see more.

We know Namjoon is about to die from boredom. He knows what is planned and he knows its going to be big.

We know Tae is very proud that he's met his target goal to join the Bangtan buff-line. But we'll have to be the judge of that because Jimin says they're working out and he has "good things to show us" (see: out of this world butt above).

Jungkook needs a little confidence boosting but is ready to belt out karaoke at a moment's notice. Hand that man a mic please.

And Jimin is nervous because he's immersed himself in his soldier role for the past 1 year and 2 months and now must pivot and make the shift back to his real life.

Jin has worked 3 weeks straight and we don't know what that means.

Hobi is busy melding the LA hiphop scene into his DNA and prepping for a concert tour to blow us away. Can't wait.

And Yoongi... an autograph left somewhere but when? Recent? Not recent? Someone saying they MIGHT have spotted him. He's been a ghost. He said he would be. And that's what will make his re-emergence that much more emotional for all of us, to finally see him and his smile.

Ok, that was a good ramble. Until next time, everyone dress warmly if you live on the top half, dress for summer if you live on the bottom half but all of you stay safe and always look for the positive.

[sgiandubh]

Idk about anyone else but it’s interesting to me that a con for Outlander is doing the same thing that Creation Entertainment does with the two leads of Supernatural, Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles. Any other cast member that attends the con as a guest with them has more reasonable prices for photo ops and Q&As and such, but it’s half my mortgage for one (1) person to meet Jared or Jensen?? (Keyword OR, as you have to pay twice to see them both if they’re not together {called the J2 Panel} and my mortgage is ~$2300) yikes. I’ve always suspected these convention companies are just capitalizing on the respective actor’s name, no matter how niche said actor is. I love Jared and Jensen as much as I love Sam, I still keep up with them despite my torrential time in the SPN fandom, but once again I’m grateful I prefer to admire these wonderful talented men from afar because my bank account would be yelling at me otherwise 😅😅

Dear @samsheughan,

Unlike you, this is the first (and certainly last, thanks) fandom experience for me. Paying 25 francs (5 USD) circa 1996 for a laminated, fake FBI agent ID with my photo and name, on behalf of the French X-Files fan club does not count, ahem. Suffice to say this folly just made my entourage laugh like drains (I was a sophomore, back then, mind you) and call me Agent Sgian-dubh for about a year and a half, or so. Embarrassing doesn't even start to describe the reality of it. Especially when you are 18, you think you are Simone de Beauvoir - at a bare minimum-, as you smoke your cigarette and sip your allongé while desperately trying to look intelligent, outside Le Café de Flore.

How we were happy, back then, and in what uncomplicated world we used to live, though! Without any fan events and forced to go to the nearest Internet cafe for the slightest Altavista research, that naive fanzine I received every month by snail mail quickly grew old, as my patience for the 'Agent Sgian-dubh' gleeful quip. Interestingly enough, I still must have that fake ID, somewhere. Last time I saw it, in one of my old wallets, my mother looked mildly interested ('and what the fuck is this, excuse me? an X-Files fan club ID? oh...'), but that entire experience was definitely underwhelming. Even if I secretly did ship Mulder & Scully, without having any idea that was a thing. Too ashamed to admit to it, for all of the above mentioned reasons.

Alas, today is just another planet, where cheap thrills and a pat on the back do cost half a mortgage. As a Romanian saying would have it, 'the stupid one is not the one who's asking, the stupid is the one who's paying'. In S's case, I think the mommies were and will be his demise, if he doesn't quickly get the gist of it and branches out, somehow. I mean, come on, with all due respect and all that #silly interest, this is JAMMF we're talking about, not Lang Lang, tickets to whose concerts don't cost one kidney and a half!

I don't even find it funny, mind you. I find it sad, perhaps because I am thinking about the day this entire circus will be over and done with and completely forgotten. But until then, let's sing and be merry: with one more season to air, the #shitshow is still alive and kicking and the fat lady is nowhere near.

[writeriguess]

So this is like a semi emergency request. I’ve seen people ask other blogs for those, if it’s not ok on your blog just ignore me!

But do you think you could do a Hawks x reader where he’s like her husband and he constantly has to remind her to drink some water because she’s just the type that won’t if not begged to. So like one day she gets really sick when she gets home after patrolling all day and she faints due to dehydration from not drinking water for a while.

I’m going through a wicked case of dehydration rn because I’m just not the type to drink water often and I just need the comfort. I definitely regret my decisions and I’m going to try to be better about drinking water, I think I’m learning my lesson lolll

author's note: I want to be clear—this is a one-time exception. With a busy season ahead, there will be entire weeks when I won’t be able to check Tumblr or write. During those times, I won’t be available for “emergency requests.” My first busy period starts in just a week and a half, and right now, I’m scrambling to get through requests because I won’t be able to cover those two weeks I’ll be away. If I started receiving more of these last-minute requests, they would slow me down too much. That said, I do hope you feel better soon.

Also, just a quick heads-up: Tumblr’s gif library has been down for several days, so I won’t be able to include gifs in any fics requested less than a week ago. I’m really sorry about that! Hopefully, it’ll be fixed soon.

Flight Risk

The moment you step through the door, exhaustion weighs you down like a lead blanket. Your limbs feel heavier than usual, your vision swimming slightly as you toe off your boots. Patrolling had been brutal today—villains popping up left and right, citizens needing assistance, and of course, the unrelenting sun bearing down on you. Still, you push through, ignoring the sluggishness in your body, the dryness in your throat. It’s nothing you can’t handle.

Keigo, however, would strongly disagree.

“Babe, did you drink any water today?” His voice carries from the kitchen, where he’s leaning lazily against the counter, golden eyes flicking toward you. The way his wings shift—just the slightest ruffle of irritation—makes it clear that he already knows the answer.

You wave him off, too drained to deal with his nagging right now. “I’m fine, Hawks.”

He arches a brow. “That wasn’t the question, dove.”

You roll your eyes and mumble something incoherent, making your way toward the couch. You don’t even get the chance to sit before the dizziness swells into something much worse. The room tilts, your knees buckle, and then—nothing.

When you come to, the first thing you register is warmth. Something soft and feathery is draped over you, and it takes a few sluggish blinks to recognize the familiar red of Keigo’s wings wrapped around your body. His scent—fresh air, something musky and warm—grounds you, but there’s an underlying tightness in the way his arms are curled around you.

“Seriously?” His voice is quieter than usual, but the edge in it makes you wince. “How many times do I have to tell you to drink some damn water?”

You shift slightly, only to be met with a firm press of his hand against your forehead. “Uh-uh. Don’t even think about moving yet. You scared the hell outta me, you know that?”

Guilt settles heavy in your stomach. “I didn’t mean to—”

“Didn’t mean to?” His laugh is hollow, and he pulls back just enough for you to see the crease in his brows. “Sweetheart, you passed out. In our living room. After I specifically asked you if you drank any water today.”

You avert your eyes, feeling suddenly small under his gaze. “I was busy.”

Keigo lets out a sharp exhale, clearly biting back whatever smart remark is on the tip of his tongue. Instead, he shifts, grabbing a glass of water from the nearby table. “Drink.”

You hesitate for a second too long, and immediately, his expression darkens. “Drink, or I swear to God, I will hold your nose and pour it down your throat.”

A laugh bubbles up despite yourself, weak and hoarse. “That’s dramatic.”

“And you’re impossible,” he grumbles, but there’s no real bite to it. He lifts the glass to your lips, watching closely as you sip. The water is cool, soothing against your parched throat, and you hadn’t even realized how desperately you needed it.

Once you finish, he sets the glass aside with a sigh, running a hand through his messy blond hair. His wings twitch slightly before curling tighter around you, caging you in his warmth. “You can’t keep doing this,” he murmurs, voice softer now. “I don’t care how strong you are. You have to take care of yourself, or I will—personally. And trust me, baby bird, you won’t like my methods.”

You hum, nuzzling into his chest. “Wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.”

Keigo groans, pressing a lingering kiss to the crown of your head. “You’re gonna be the death of me.” But the way his arms tighten around you, the way he stays tucked against you for the rest of the night, says otherwise.

He just loves you too much to let you slip through his fingers—even over something as simple as forgetting to drink water.

The next morning, you wake up to the sound of rustling feathers and the warm press of a hand against your cheek. Blinking blearily, you see Keigo crouching beside the bed, his golden eyes scanning your face with clear concern.

“How do you feel?”

You stretch your arms slightly, feeling a little less drained than before. “Better,” you admit, voice still raspy. “Still a little tired.”

Keigo frowns but nods. “That’s expected. You were majorly dehydrated. I had to keep waking you up last night to get you to drink more.” He gestures to the nightstand, where an empty water bottle and another half-full one sit.

A pang of guilt washes over you, and you reach for his hand, giving it a small squeeze. “I’m sorry, Kei.”

He scoffs, but there’s no real irritation in his expression. “Yeah, yeah. I’ll accept your apology on one condition.”

You tilt your head, wary. “What is it?”

Keigo grins, but there’s a sharp glint in his eyes. “You’re not allowed to leave this bed until you finish another full bottle of water. No sneaky dumping it in a plant, no ‘accidentally’ knocking it over. I’m watching you.”

You groan but take the bottle anyway. “You’re a menace.”

“And you’re a flight risk when it comes to taking care of yourself,” he quips back, pressing a quick kiss to your temple. “But you’re my flight risk.”

With that, he settles in beside you, watching closely as you take slow sips from the bottle. You know he’s not going to let this go anytime soon, and honestly, with the way his arms wrap around you like a protective cocoon, you don’t mind one bit.

[velidewrites]

vanserra bros most to least likely to say “I love you” for the first time during sex 🎤

Oh the brothers who have never been told "I love you" ever in their life?

NSFW incoming SORRY I'M SORRY

Most, surprisingly (or not?) -- Sylas. DEFINITELY lets it slip while he's thrusting deep inside. You just felt so good, so perfect, it's almost as if you were made for him, to be his. No one has ever known him this way, no one else ever will. He never wanted this to happen, but he is yours as much as you are his. Too far gone to even think about going back. It started off rough, possessive, but now that those words are out, his touches hold a new tenderness to them. Sylas Vanserra has, somehow, become gentle with you. Only you.

Second likely? Bet you never expected this -- Marcel. He doesn't mean it, of, course, not really. What he loves is the way your eyes light up when he tells you he loves you -- oh, he will delight in turning that light to tears when he brings you to your knees later. He loves the way your mouth parts slightly; he knows it's going to take him so well when the time comes. He loves the way your voice shakes when you say you love him, too -- he's thinking about the rasp it will carry after he makes you beg screaming. He loves how good for him you're being, how easy to steer right where he wants you. So perfect that ruining you will be even sweeter.

Least likely to ever say he loves you -- Vermilion. How, you might ask? He was just in your bed last night, making you feel like nothing, no one, has ever been more important in this world. He made you feel so good, so complete. He begged you, wonder and adoration in his eyes, to take and take from him again until he had nothing left to give. And after all of that, he's just going to leave? You'll never see him again? The answer is yes. It's for the best. With the rising sun, he isn't Ver anymore, he's Vermilion Vanserra, and he must look and act the part. To love you would be to associate you with that name. To love you would be to put you in danger. No; he won't let himself even think about loving you. So long as it keeps you safe.

[smilingformoney]

Die With a Smile

Chapter IV. Turpin Victorious

Summary: Judge Turpin has a very, very good day - and Elliott's going to have to act fast if he wants to keep Mary around.

Read on Ao3 or below the cut:

As eager as Mary was to tell Lord Turpin what she’d found, she knew he wouldn’t appreciate her drenching his carpets with sewer water, so she went with Tommy into the staff entrance of the house, and stripped bare to use the wash basin there to clean herself up while the maid fetched her some clean clothes from Johanna’s room.

When the door to the staff washroom opened behind her, Mary thought it was the maid returning with her clothes, so she was surprised when she heard Elliott’s voice.

“Thank God you’re both alright. We’ve been worried sick.”

“Elliott!” Mary cried. She dropped the sponge in her hand, and promptly fell into his arms. “Oh, Elliott, I’m so glad you’re here. It was so frightening.”

Elliott held her in his arms, apparently unfazed by the fact that she was soaking wet. When she stepped back, she noticed first that she’d left a large wet patch on his shirt, and second that she was still stark naked.

“Oh!” she cried, her hands flying to cover her intimate parts, as if Elliott hadn’t already seen them up close. “I’m so sorry.”

“Nothing I haven’t seen,” Elliott smirked in a low voice. “But now’s not the time for that. I just wanted to make sure you were alright. Get yourself dry and dressed, then come and meet us in the parlour room, okay? His Lordship’s eager to know if you learned anything.”

Mary’s stomach twisted slightly as she remembered what she’d learned.

“Yes, of course. Thank you, Elliott.”

A few minutes later, Tommy showed Mary the passage that led from the staff rooms up into the house, emerging in the hallway. She knocked on the door to the parlour room and led Tommy inside when she heard Turpin’s voice call them in.

“Miss Taylor, at last,” Turpin said with relief. He’d been standing by the fire, but crossed the room now with a purposeful stride to approach her. He took her chin in his hand and raised her head to examine her, as if checking for any damage. “When Todd and Lovett left early, I feared they’d find you mid-search. Did you manage to evade them?”

“Yes, my Lord, we were in the cellar when they returned. We managed to escape through the sewer. I don’t think they saw or followed us.”

“Through the sewer?” Turpin repeated, wrinkling his nose with disgust at the thought. “Elliott told me you’d washed before coming to me. No wonder. Come, sit, tell me everything you learned.”

Mary let him lead her to the fireside and sat in one of the armchairs. Tommy stood at her side, ready to speak only when spoken to, and Turpin sat in the other chair. Elliott, who’d been watching out the window when Mary arrived, moved over to stand by the mantle.

Both men listened carefully as Mary explained what she’d discovered, and both men baulked visibly when she described her discovery in the meat bin.

“Did you see this too, boy?” Turpin asked Tommy.

“Yes, sir. They was definitely human bodies, sir.”

“As foul as such a thing is, the good news is we have plenty to arrest Todd on,” Turpin said with certainty. “Lovett too. Possibly the boy as well.”

“But, sir, won’t they hide the evidence now if they think someone’s been snooping around? We left the door to the cellar open, and the trap door in the barber shop.”

“They can dispose of the bodies and the clothing, yes. Cleaning up the blood stains you mentioned might be more difficult. But they can’t dispose of the most key evidence, Miss Taylor - your witness testimony. You will speak in court if necessary, yes?”

“You can’t ask that of her!” Elliott interjected. “To put herself at risk of Barker’s vengeance —”

Turpin waved a hand dismissively. “He won’t be able to exact much vengeance when he’s dead. And I intend on sending him to the gallows immediately. I’ll send the Beadle to arrest him now, in fact; then he’ll be safely behind bars.”

Turpin stood, took a step in the direction of the door, then paused. He put a hand on Mary’s shoulder, then said, “You’ve done very well tonight, Miss Taylor. Very well indeed.”

He granted her a small smile, then strode out of the room. Elliott stared after him with narrowed eyes; when he saw Mary looking up at him, his expression softened and he took the now-empty armchair.

“You’re sure you’re alright, Mary?” he asked.

“Yes, I’m fine. Shaken up, but… I’m okay, really. I’m more worried about Tommy.”

She turned to her brother and took his hand, but he just shrugged and smiled.

“I’m okay too. Just glad you’re safe.”

“Well, we’re all okay, and we’re all glad for it,” Elliott said with a nod. “Now, there’s food leftover from dinner and quite a bit of it, so let’s get you both into the dining room, you must be starving. You’ll eat at the table tonight, Tommy, and I’ll hear nothing less of it. If Lord Turpin disagrees, I’ll remind him that it was both of you that brought him the information he needed. The least he can do is afford to feed Tommy some leftovers.”

“Oh, thank you, sir!” Tommy said with wide eyes. “That’s most kind!”

If Turpin did have any issue with Tommy eating at the table, he didn’t voice them when he joined them sitting at the table as Mary and Tommy finished off some of the leftovers.

“You’ll be glad to know Barker has just been arrested,” Turpin said smugly. “As have Lovett and the boy. I watched from across the street as the Beadle arrested them, it was too sweet not to witness it myself. He’ll be brought before me first thing on Monday, and he’ll hang shortly after.”

“Happy news indeed,” Elliott said. He took a sip from the glass of whisky he’d been nursing while Mary and Tommy ate. “Looks like we’ll all be sleeping soundly come Monday night.”

Thinking of his plan to wed Mary, Turpin smiled as he looked at her. Yes, he’d be sleeping very soundly on Monday night. He’d sentence and hang Barker, then propose to Mary, all in the space of a day. Monday was shaping up to be a very fine day indeed - but first, tomorrow was Sunday, and he had church to attend.

- - -

Mary woke up on Monday in Elliott’s arms. It was fast becoming her favourite part of the day. As much as she enjoyed the ways they’d kiss and explore each other’s bodies at night, her favourite moment was still when she’d wake up in the morning, soft and comfortable in the bed with Elliott’s arms around her protectively. When he woke, he would kiss her sleepily, and the way he smiled when he’d see her in his arms was enough to make her heart burst.

“I love waking up like this,” Mary said, her voice still heavy with sleep.

Elliott hummed in agreement. “Yes… it makes me never want to leave.”

Mary’s heart dropped at the word leave. She’d forgotten Elliott was only visiting London.

“Are… are you leaving very soon?” she asked in a quiet voice.

“Wednesday.”

“Oh, that is very soon!” Mary sighed and held him a little tighter. “I hoped you’d stay longer. I don’t want this to end.”

“Perhaps it doesn’t have to… you could come with me.”

Mary gasped and looked up at him, eyes wide. “Really? Do you mean that?”

“I don’t say things I don’t mean. Come to Sussex with me, Mary. My uncle’ll be glad to have you, I’m sure. He has daughters and granddaughters you can make friends with. And his manor is out in the countryside — you can finally see the world outside of London.”

“The countryside! Oh, I’d love that! Will there be animals, do you think? I’d so love to see some animals.”

Elliott smiled at her endearing enthusiasm. “Yes, I’m sure you’ll be able to see some animals. They’ll have horses, for certain. I could teach you to ride, if you like. Is that a yes?”

“Oh, yes, Elliott, please!” Mary squealed, peppering his face with grateful kisses. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

Elliott chuckled and countered her kisses with kisses of his own. They ended up in fits of giggles, trying to shush each other lest their laughter carry down the hallway.

They managed to make themselves presentable just in time for breakfast, which was a more jovial affair than usual. Mary was happy because she was going on an exciting trip with Elliott, who was happy in turn because he was going to get out of London and bring Mary with him. Turpin, meanwhile, was in a good mood because that morning he’d be sentencing Sweeney Todd, who’d been in gaol since Saturday.

The sentencing itself went smoothly. Mary and Elliott sat in the gallery, Mary ready to speak and give evidence if necessary, and Elliott ready to support her. The news of the accusations against Todd and Lovett had spread quickly, so the gallery was packed full of Londoners hoping to see justice done against the man who’d murdered so many of their own and the woman who’d fed them back to them through the pie shop. The busy gallery meant that Mary and Elliott could sit close without raising any eyebrows, though just to be safe she placed her shawl between them to hide the fact they were holding hands.

When both Todd and Lovett pled not guilty, an angry roar came up from the gallery, and Turpin had to call for order. Elliott squeezed Mary’s hand comfortingly, and when she was called up to give evidence, he wished her good luck as she stood and an usher led her to the witness box.

She swore her oath on the Bible, then turned her attention to Turpin, who looked at her with the stern expression he’d been wearing all morning, giving no indication that they were familiar.

“State your name for the court, please.”

“Mary Taylor.”

“Miss Taylor, please describe the events that took place at number 62, Fleet Street on Saturday last, and spare no detail.”

The entire court sat in rapt attention as Mary described what had happened, and when she came to describe the human body parts she’d found in the bin of the meat grinder, audible gasps came from the gallery.

“…and so we escaped through the sewer, my Lord.”

Turpin nodded and made a note. “Thank you, Miss Taylor, that will be all. You may withdraw.”

Mary went back to the gallery, trying to avoid Todd’s glare as she passed, and was grateful to be by Elliott’s side again as she sat down.

“Well done, Mary,” Elliott whispered. He placed the shawl over their laps again and took her hand. “You were marvellous. Very brave.”

Mary smiled shyly, and she squeezed his hand in thanks.

“Benjamin Barker, Nellie Lovett, please stand up,” Turpin’s authoritative voice boomed across the courtroom. “You have both pled not guilty to the crimes accused, however, on the overwhelming evidence and the persuasive witness testimony, I am bound to find you both guilty. Due to the egregious nature of your crimes, I sentence you both to hang by the neck until you are dead. You may go down.”

The public in the gallery cheered, but Mary just felt relieved. Soon, Todd would be executed and she’d no longer be in any danger from him.

Todd and Lovett were escorted away, and Turpin called for the luncheon adjournment. The public began to file out of the courtroom, and Mary prepared to follow once their row emptied, but instead she was approached by the Beadle, who informed her Judge Turpin wanted to see her.

“I’ll wait for you outside,” Elliott said, squeezing her hand one last time before letting go and handing her back her shawl.

Mary followed the Beadle to Turpin’s chambers at the back of the court, wondering what he could want from her at a time such as this.

The Beadle closed the door behind her when she entered the room, leaving Mary alone with Turpin, who had taken off his wig and was now taking off his robe.

“Ah, Miss Taylor,” he smiled. “Just the lady I wanted to see. Come here.”

He beckoned her over as he sat at his desk, his chair pushed out slightly so he could face her as she obeyed his order and stood before him.

“You did marvellous today, dear,” Turpin said, his eyes raking her up and down as he spoke. “Just as you did on Saturday. Without you, Todd would still be out there, murdering people and poisoning others. You should be very proud.”

“Thank you, sir. I’m glad to have made a difference to London, sir. And… and I’m glad to have been of assistance to you. I understand you and Todd had a history.”

“History is one way of putting it,” Turpin snorted. “He was Johanna’s father. It was because of his crimes fifteen years ago that she ended up alone. Fortunately I had the fortitude to take her in. Committing any sort of crime is one thing, but what sort of man commits a crime knowing when he’s sentenced he’ll be leaving his child without her father?” He shook his head sadly.

“My Lord, might - might I ask a question?”

Turpin reached out to take her hand in his and smiled. “You may ask me anything, my dear.”

“What happened to Johanna?”

Turpin sighed. “It’s a very sad story, Miss Taylor. She betrayed my trust by trying to leave without my consent. I had no choice but to send her away to… think on her sins.”

Mary frowned, confused. “She tried to leave? Why would she do that, sir?”

Turpin looked at her curiously, as if her response had been entirely unexpected.

“She was led astray by a rogue sailor. I tried to protect her, but…” He sighed. “Some people, it seems, don’t appreciate the kindness they’re shown.”

“Well, I hope you know how grateful I am for your kindness, sir,” Mary said earnestly, taking a step towards him. “I may have spent the last few days in hiding from a madman, but I never once felt unsafe so long as I was under your roof.”

Turpin smiled and sat up slightly, leaning towards her in his seat. “Yes, I’m sure you’re very grateful, Miss Taylor. You appreciate what I do for you, don’t you? We’ll have to think of a way you can show your gratitude… Tell me, have you ever kissed a man?”

Mary’s cheeks blushed. “Y - yes…” she said trepidatiously, worried Turpin knew about her nights with Elliott.

“How many?”

“Just - just one, sir…”

“Just one. Hmm.” His eyes flashed dangerously, and he pulled her closer with hunger in his eyes, until she was standing between his thighs. “Why don’t you show me what he taught you?”

“…Sir?”

Turpin let go of her hand and cupped her cheeks with both hands, holding her face firmly in place.

“Kiss me, Miss Taylor. Show me your gratitude and kiss me.”

Tentatively, Mary leant forward to give him a peck on the lips - and he tightened his hold on her, keeping her from moving her lips away from his.

He kissed her fiercely, tongue demanding entrance at her lips, and she had no choice but to acquiesce. His tongue explored her mouth as if he simply had to cover every inch of her mouth with his spit.

Mary had no idea what to do with her hands, so she placed them on his shoulders. Turpin grabbed her right hand and brought it down between his legs, forcing her palm to sit over the very hard bulge that was threatening to escape from his trousers.

He unstuck his face from hers to say, “You know what this is?”

Mary nodded.

“Feel how hard it is? That’s all your doing. Ever since my cousin brought you to me last week, I’ve been plagued by this. Now, what do you propose we do about it, hm?”

He didn’t need to elaborate; Mary knew exactly what he meant.

She obeyed automatically, sinking to her knees between his legs to begin unbuckling his belt. Turpin groaned as the tension eased, and when she unbuttoned his trousers and pulled his cock out, her eyes widened instinctively. Elliott’s was large enough, but Turpin’s cock was definitely bigger.

Turpin chuckled when he saw her reaction.

“Don’t worry, darling. I know it might seem too big, but — ohhh.”

He cut himself off with a groan when Mary licked a line from the base of his shaft, then wrapped her lips around the tip. He gripped the arms of his chair tightly, trying to resist grabbing her head and guiding her. She seemed to be a natural born cocksucker, and he wanted to see just how skilled she was.

“Oh, yes… yes, that’s it, Miss Taylor… you’re a fucking natural.”

She wrapped her hand around the base of his cock, holding it at a comfortable angle as she slipped a little further down, her tongue lapping at his tip to taste the liquid that was beginning to drip from it. She began to panic about breathing, then remembered Elliott’s tip about breathing through her nose, and carefully took steady breaths through her nostrils as she eased Turpin’s cock further into her mouth.

When she’d taken him as far as she could go, she was hardly even halfway down his shaft. She’d have to use her hand for the rest of it.

“Oh, good girl,” Turpin growled when Mary’s hand began stroking his shaft. She kept moving her hand steadily while her breathing evened out and her jaw adjusted to his size. When she felt comfortable with her breathing, she began slowly bobbing her head, running her tongue up and down his shaft as her lips tugged on the skin of his cock.

“Fuck, Miss Taylor… who taught you to do this, hm? Or are you just a natural? I bet you are. Just made to suck cock. Mmm, that’s it, suck harder - faster —”

He couldn’t resist any longer. Turpin grabbed Mary’s head by the hair, holding her in place as he thrust his hips upwards, fucking up into her mouth. His tip teased at the entrance to her throat, and Mary began to panic. Elliott had promised to teach her slowly how to open her mouth, and she was nowhere near ready yet. So with Turpin’s cock getting dangerously close to her throat, Mary began to choke, her eyes watering as she struggled to breathe through her nose.

“That’s it, Miss Taylor, good girl… yes, take your Lord’s cock… take my cum too, take all of it… ugh… fu-uck!”

Turpin cried out incoherently as he came, his warm seed filling Mary’s mouth, and she had no choice but to swallow around his cock; she didn’t think he would appreciate it if she let it leak back onto him.

He stayed still for a few moments as he came down from his high, his hands still holding Mary’s head in place as his cock softened in her mouth, and she realised he was savouring the feeling of her swallowing the last of his seed.

Finally, he tugged on her hair and pulled her head back, letting his softened cock fall limp as Mary gasped for air. Turpin wiped her chin with his thumb to clean up his cum, then slipped his thumb between her lips to have her lick it clean.

“Fucking incredible,” he groaned with satisfaction. He closed his eyes for a moment, then sighed. “Unfortunately I can’t keep you here all day. I must get back to work. Get yourself home, darling. We’ll discuss your future tonight.”

“Y - yes, sir,” Mary mumbled, standing obediently. She wiped her lips, then smoothed down her hair, hoping she didn’t look a mess.

Turpin gestured for her to leave, but when she was halfway to the door, Turpin said, “Are you a virgin, Miss Taylor?”

Mary froze, but she turned back to Turpin to look at him with a blush. He was standing now, pulling his judge’s robe back over his shoulders.

“Yes, my Lord. You know I’ve never been married, sir.”

Turpin hummed with amusement. “Yes, of course I do. Saving yourself for marriage, yes? Well, I dare say you’ll make an excellent wife.”

“Th - thank you, sir,” Mary said shyly. She gave him a small curtsey, then left the room, her mind reeling at what had just happened, confused and bewildered at the feelings that were running amok inside her.

Turpin, however, had no such uncertainty. He knew how he felt, he knew what he wanted, and he knew what he was going to do to get it.

He knew what he was going to do to get her.

- - -

Judge Turpin was, for the first time, distracted in court. He was usually so focused, listening carefully to counsel in order to make the right decision. Yet, today, his mind was elsewhere.

How, though, could he be expected to concentrate on such dull matters as the afternoon presented, when he had more important things in mind?

More important things such as the image now seared into his mind of Mary with her lips around his cock, yet still she blushed afterwards when he asked about her innocence. What a natural she was. And what a natural she would be.

The afternoon stretched out for what felt like an eternity, but finally 4 o’clock came around, and he was able to adjourn court for the day.

He hummed to himself as he made his way down the steps of the Old Bailey, his purposeful strides telling any passing lawyer that might have had a question for him that he had business to attend to, and they’d be smart to stay out of his way.

The only person who dared to speak to him was Beadle Bamford, but as they could walk and talk, Turpin allowed his old friend to converse with him.

“You’re in a merry mood today, my Lord,” said the Beadle. “I suppose you’re glad to be rid of Todd, sir?”

“Yes, very much so. Make sure his execution is prompt, will you? Not least because the public will be eager to see my justice be done.”

“Very good, sir. If I might inquire, sir - what business did you have with the girl at lunch?”

Turpin smirked. “Gorgeous little thing, isn’t she? And so eager to please. I’ll be proposing to her tonight.”

“Ah, sir! Happy news indeed. I’m sure she’ll be more loyal than Johanna ever was, sir. Might I suggest —”

“No, you might not. Last time I asked your advice on proposing, you sent me to a barber who was hellbent on murdering me. Mary will give me her hand, of course. She made it quite clear to me today that she would be a willing wife. And why not? She’s nobody. She knows that only by marrying me does she have a chance of becoming somebody.”

The house was quiet when Turpin arrived; while taking his coat, the butler informed him that Elliott was at the Post Office, and Mary was in the parlour room.

Turpin had no reason to wait. He headed straight for the parlour room and entered to find Mary sitting by the fire, a cross-stitch in her hands. She looked the very image of perfection, like a dutiful wife waiting for her husband to come home.

“Oh, Lord Turpin! I hadn’t heard you return.” Mary put the cross-stitch aside and stood to greet him. “I found a half-finished cross-stitch of Johanna’s, I hope it’s okay I was working on it. Is there something I can do for you?”

“Why, yes, there is, Miss Taylor,” Turpin said as he stepped into the room, his hands behind his back as joined her at the fireside. “Did you enjoy our walk last Saturday?”

“Oh, yes, I did, sir. It was ever so lovely.”

Turpin smiled. “Good, good. I enjoyed your company greatly.”

“Why, thank you, sir. That’s very kind of you to say. I also found your company enriching. If I may say, sir, I find you ever so interesting to talk to. You always have a fascinating tale to tell.”

Turpin took a step closer to her and brushed her cheek with his knuckles, stroking her face gently. “I also enjoyed our little visit today.”

Mary blushed, her face immediately flushing red.

“I, erm… I also enjoyed it, sir,” she said quietly, glancing away.

“I’m sure you did. You’ll recall what I said to you on Saturday, that I might allow you to stay with me?”

“Yes, sir…”

“Well… it seems you’ve definitely proven you can give me something in return for my generosity.”

“Sir…”

Turpin’s gentle touch on her cheek turned suddenly fierce as he pulled her close to him and took her head in his hands. He leaned down, his lips close to hers, almost touching. Mary found herself wishing he’d close the gap, but she daren’t do it herself…

“Marry me.”

“…Sir?”

“You heard me. Marry me, Miss Taylor. What better show of gratitude than your very self, hm? Your heart, your soul… and in time, children. I’d certainly be agreeable to the four you desire.”

Mary stammered, flabbergasted. She hadn’t expected this at all. Lord Turpin, proposing to her? But why? She was nobody, she could offer him nothing that another woman couldn’t.

And - it was crazy, she knew, but part of her had harboured hope that Elliott might propose in time. She liked Lord Turpin well enough, although she was terrified of him, and she had to admit she found him attractive. But she had something with Elliott she had never had with anyone else.

Then again… Elliott would be leaving. He had a home and a business in Australia. Whatever they had between them would be nothing more than a passing fancy.

“Sir, what - what about my brother?” Mary managed to stammer once the shock had worn off, although the way Turpin was now kissing her neck suggested he’d already taken her stunned silence as a yes.

“Your brother is not your father. He has no say in these matters,” Turpin said between kisses.

“No, but I’m his only carer. What would happen to him if we marry?”

“I suppose his care falls to me. I’ll send him off to school.”

“Really?” Mary gasped. “Sir, do you mean it?”

“Yes, yes, why not? Don’t make me wait any longer, I implore you. Give me your answer.”

“Yes,” Mary breathed. “Yes, my Lord, I’ll marry you.”

Turpin grinned, then grabbed her by the waist and spun her in the air. She squealed in surprise, never having expected the stoic Lord Turpin to make such an expression of joy.

“Oh, darling, you’ve made me so happy. Now, you know by now I’m not a patient man. Arrangements have been made already; we’ll be wed next Monday at St Dunstan’s.”

“Next Monday!” Mary repeated in surprise. “But that’s so soon!”

“Yes, but I don’t wish to wait any longer. Now, there’s a wedding dress in the wardrobe you might have seen - it was meant for Johanna, but I wish for you to have it. You can take it in to fit you, yes?”

“Oh, um - yes, I think so.”

“Excellent,” Turpin grinned. “Oh, my darling, you’ll make such a wonderful wife…”

He kissed her, his lips consuming hers possessively, and though Mary was taken aback, she quickly melted into his touch, allowing his strong arms to wrap around her waist and hold her tightly against himself.

Mary wrapped her arms around his shoulders, clinging onto him desperately, and from the desperation and passion of the kiss, she wondered if he’d have the patience to wait for the wedding night to have her.

“Interrupting, am I?”

Mary gasped for breath as Turpin’s lips suddenly detached from hers. He put a little distance between them, but still kept one arm firmly around her waist as he turned to greet his cousin.

“Not at all, cousin. You’ll be the first to hear the happy news: Mary has agreed to be my wife. We’ll be wed next Monday.”

“Really?”

Mary could hear the annoyance in Elliott’s voice. She looked over at him, but had to look away quickly when she saw the way he was seething at the sight he’d walked into.

“I believe the word you’re looking for is congratulations,” Turpin said firmly, drawing Mary closer to him.

Elliott gave his cousin a smile that didn’t quite seem genuine. “Of course. Congratulations to you both. Monday, you say? Well, a shame I’ll miss it. I’m leaving for Sussex on Wednesday; I’ve just now written to my uncle telling him to expect me. I suppose you won’t want to come along now, Mary?”

“Oh, um… I would still like to come for a few days, if that’s alright.”

Turpin looked at her sternly. “Leaving me so soon, my darling?”

“Well, if it’s alright with you, sir… Elliott did invite me to visit Sussex with him, and I would so love to see the countryside.”

Turpin pondered for a moment. As much as he wanted her close by… perhaps spending the week apart would do them good. It would give him cause to resist taking her before their wedding day, at least.

“Very well, you may go.”

“Oh, thank you, sir! You’re most kind.”

“Yes, yes, I know I am. I want you back no later than Saturday evening, you understand me? I’ll be expected to bring you to church on Sunday morning.”

“Yes, of course, sir.”

“Good. Now, if you’re to be away most of the week, you should get a start on your dress now, shouldn’t you? Go on, I’ll see you at dinner.”

“Yes, sir.”

Mary gave him a small curtsey, then left the room, but not without passing Elliott first - who refused to look at her as she went.

She worked all evening on the dress, pausing only when dinner was called, and once she’d eaten she begged Turpin’s leave to return to working on the dress. Glad to see her eager to perfect the dress she’d marry him in, Turpin allowed it, and Mary spent the rest of her evening concentrating on taking the dress in, though her thoughts kept wandering back to the whirlwind of a day. Not only had Lord Turpin proposed to marry her, but he seemed positively enthused about it, eager even. What qualities could she possibly possess that would make him so giddy to marry her?

Whatever it was, Mary had only one priority in mind, the same she’d had since she was very small: Tommy. And if Lord Turpin would put Tommy into school, then her hand in marriage was the least Mary could offer him in return.

- - -

She was so tired by the time she finished the dress, she was acting on instinct more than anything when she got ready for bed and crossed the hallway to sleep in Elliott’s bed. It was only when she was woken by his opening the door that it crossed her mind that perhaps he wouldn’t want her there now she was engaged to his cousin.

“Now, this is bold of you,” Elliott murmured as he climbed into the bed beside her. He wrapped an arm around her torso and pulled her close against him. “Do you expect to marry my cousin and have me on the side?”

“I’m sorry, I - I didn’t even think,” Mary confessed. She tried to turn over to look at him, but he was holding her too tightly for her to move. “I’m so used to coming to this bed… I’ll leave if you want…”

“Absolutely fucking not,” Elliott growled against her ear. “If I only have five more nights with you, Mary, I’m going to make them count.”

He hitched her nightgown up around her waist, and she felt his erection pressing up against her thighs. It was then that she realised she couldn’t feel a nightshirt against her back - only his bare flesh. His arms were bare too.

“Elliott, are you… naked?”

He chuckled. “Oh, yes. Not much point putting any sleeping clothes on since I do very little sleeping when you’re in this bed.”

Mary could feel the tip of his cock prodding between her thighs. Elliott rocked his hips against her, and she felt it slip between the flesh of her thighs.

“Elliott —”

“Shh, don’t worry. I’m not going to put it in. I’m just going to show you a clever little trick… hold still for me, Mary.”

He pushed against her again, and she felt his cock slide past her thighs… she looked down and, sure enough, it was poking out the other side, his tip pressed against her sweet spot.

“Mhm… this won’t take long, sweetheart. I’ve been thinking about doing this all day.”

He began thrusting his hips against her, as if he were taking her from behind… but his cock simply slid over her entrance, close enough to pick up the slickness she made so easily for him, but instead of slipping inside, his tip rubbed up against her clit, causing her to let out a small moan.

“Shh, now… we don’t want your dear fiance hearing us, do we? God forbid he think - ugh - you’re not the sweet little virgin he’s been lusting after. Don’t want him calling it off, now, do we?”

“He - he wouldn’t call it off for that —”

“Oh, come now, sweetheart. Why do you think he proposed? He wants this. He wants you to give him your virginity, and he knows you won’t give it freely unless you’re married. Ohh, this feels so good, and I’m not even inside you…”

He began moving his hips faster, apparently unperturbed by the sounds of their flesh connecting. He was too lost in the feeling of Mary’s warmth pressed against him, the sound of the moans she muffled into the pillow. He squeezed her nipple, causing her to squeak, and it only spurred him on.

He found he suddenly didn’t care if Turpin heard them, or even caught them. Let him find them - let him see that Mary belonged in Elliott’s arms, that she was already so easily wet for him… maybe he should take her virginity anyway, claim her for his own as she should be. Turpin would never want her then, and she’d be Elliott’s for the taking… his to fuck, his to marry, his to love…

“You’re mine, Mary,” Elliott growled into her ear as he felt his cock ready to burst at any second. “He may marry you, but you’ll - always - be - mine.”

He bit down on her shoulder as he came, his seed spilling onto her stomach and onto the sheets, and if he hadn’t muffled himself against her skin he might have cried out her name loud enough that their host most certainly would have heard him.

Elliott relaxed as he came down from his high, and he withdrew his cock from between her legs, leaving a trail of sticky cum across her thighs as he did so. He sighed with relief, glad the tension had left his body, and was just about ready to fall asleep right there, Mary in his arms and his seed left across her skin.

He could feel her fidgeting in his arms though, and Elliott opened his eyes to see that she was squeezing her thighs together, her arse inadvertently rubbing back against him.

“Oh, darling, did I leave you wanting?” he cooed.

Mary whined, and Elliott knew exactly what she needed.

“Well, you’re going to have to learn to look after yourself soon enough. Lord knows my cousin won’t give you any relief. I doubt he even knows where the clitoris is.”

“Elliott, please…”

“No, no. You know where it is now. Use your fingers. Make yourself cum. I want to see you pleasure yourself.”

“I - I don’t —”

“Here.” Elliott took her hand in his and guided it between her legs. He took her index finger and placed the tip against her little nub, not so little now as it was swollen with arousal. “Go on.”

He pulled his hand away and watched as Mary tentatively ran her finger in a small circle. It was a glorious sight, watching her explore herself and learn how she liked to be touched… Elliott had to resist touching her, letting her figure it out for herself, and he grinned when of her own accord she fondled her breast with her spare hand.

“Yes, that’s it… good girl… you’ll think of me whenever you do this. Even with another man in your bed, you’ll think of me every time you touch yourself… think of the ways I gave you pleasure that he never could…”

“Elliott…”

He could feel his cock twitching back to life, but who could blame it when she was making such sweet sounds? Moaning his name quietly, because she didn’t want her fiance to know she was touching herself to another man. It would take all of Elliott’s strength not to just take her.

“Elliott, would - would you kiss me?”

As if she needed to ask. Elliott leaned down and kissed her just as she requested, and when she muffled a moan against his lips, Elliott knew his cock was ready to go again. He took it in his hand and tugged on it, inelegantly jerking off to the way her body began to tremble as she brought herself to her peak.

She muffled her orgasm by grabbing the back of Elliott’s neck and holding his face firmly against hers, trapping her moans in her throat; that was the final straw for Elliott, and he came a second time, his seed spilling into his hand as he kissed Mary through both their muffled orgasms.

Her lips were red and swollen when finally they parted from his, both of them hot and sticky with hands covered in themselves, and it was only when they’d each cleaned up and she’d climbed back into bed with him that either of them spoke.

“Elliott?”

“Hm?”

“I… I just want you to know… I’d have preferred you.”

He frowned. “What?”

“If - if I had a choice - I’d have preferred to marry you. I know you probably wouldn’t ask, but —”

“Mary. Are you daft?”

She looked up at him with confused eyes.

“What do you mean?”

“Are you saying you only said yes to my cousin because you thought I wasn’t going to ask?”

“Well… he promised to put Tommy in school. I couldn’t risk it… if I said no, I couldn’t change my mind. And, well, what are the chances you’d both ask?”

Elliott shook his head incredulously. “You silly girl, Mary. Of course I wanted to ask.”

“You… you did?”

“Yes! Why do you think I took you out to dinner? Why do you think I invited you to Sussex? I wanted you to get to know me, to show you I could be a good husband…”

“Oh, Elliott!” Mary sobbed, tucking her head against his shoulder to hide her face. “I didn’t think you’d want to marry someone like me… I thought I was just a passing fancy, that once you left you’d forget all about me…”

“Who could forget about you, Mary? I want you to come with me… I hoped to propose in Sussex and you’d move to Australia with me as my wife.”

“But don’t you see, I can’t!” Mary cried. She looked up at him, her big doe eyes wet with tears. “Tommy’s here, I can’t just leave him!”

“Well, obviously he’d come with us.”

“R - really?”

“Of course. Oh, Mary, you daft thing. Do you think I just wanted to stick my cock down your throat a few times and leave? I want you, in every way, and I’m not such a fool to think that doesn’t include Tommy. Hey - hey, come now, none of that.”

She was crying now, sobbing against his shoulder, and Elliott carefully wrapped his arms around her, rubbing her back soothingly.

“It’s alright, sweetheart. It’s alright. Shh.”

“I thought - I thought it was my only chance - he promised —”

“Shh, shh, I know. I know. He’ll say anything to get what he wants. Maybe he’d follow through on it, I don’t know… but I assure you I would give you and Tommy the best life I can. And I will, if you’ll let me.”

Mary sniffed and looked up at him. “You mean…?”

“Well, I’d hoped to ask you in a more romantic way, but yes. I want to marry you, Mary. If you want me… I’m yours.”

“Oh, Elliott, I do want you! But - but I already said yes to Lord Turpin. I can’t rescind that!”

“Why not? You’ve not married him yet.”

“No, but… he’d be so angry, and he’s so powerful. Who knows what he would do?”

“Then we don’t tell him. We marry in Sussex before the week is out. I’ll write back to him, tell him he’s too late, I’ve already claimed you as my own. He won’t be interested once you’re no longer a virgin, that’s all he wants you for.”

“No, that’s - that’s not true… he likes me, he told me so himself…”

“I’m sure he does, you’re very likeable. But he’s not interested in liking you, he just wants to fuck you.”

Mary opened her mouth to deny it, but she remembered the conversation she’d had with Turpin on Saturday. Insufferable, that’s what he’d called women. The thought of having to care for a wife didn’t appeal to him at all… not until today, apparently. Not until she’d sucked his cock and inadvertently shown him what he’d get out of her as a wife.

Elliott grunted with surprise when Mary suddenly climbed on top of him, her lips on his. He didn’t protest, happily kissing her back, anything to show her that she ought to be with him. Her nightgown was still hitched up around her waist, so he could feel her heat pressing against his cock, which was having the time of its life as it began to get hard again as she rubbed herself up against him, seemingly trying to wake it back up again.

“Mary, what are you doing?”

“Making my choice,” she whispered.

She reached between them and took his cock in her hand, trying to guide it to the right spot, and Elliott grabbed her shoulders to still her when he realised what she was trying to do.

“Mary, stop.”

“You said he won’t want me if I’m not a virgin,” she explained. “So take it. Take my virginity, Elliott, please. I want to give it to you.”

Elliott groaned in frustration. If there was a God, He was seriously testing his patience.

“Not like this, Mary. I don’t want it as some sort of… strategy.”

“But you want it, don’t you?”

“Yes, I want it. You don’t know how much I want it, Mary… but we’ll wait until we’re married. Alright? It’ll be just a few days. Please, Mary, I need you to get off me, I’m not sure my actions can match my words right now…”

Mary nodded, and she climbed off him, rolling back onto the bed.

“And I… I think you should sleep in your bed tonight. The temptation’s too strong for both of us.”

“…Alright,” Mary agreed reluctantly. She climbed out of the bed and pulled her nightdress back down past her knees. “Good night, Elliott.”

“Good night, Mary. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Quietly, Mary snuck out of Elliott’s room and crossed back to hers. She’d barely closed the door when, unbeknownst to her, Turpin’s bedroom door opened and he stepped out. By the time he’d taken down the painting and put his eye up against the hole in the wall, Mary was back in the bed.

When she pulled her nightdress up to reach between her legs again, Mary had no idea she was being watched. And as he saw her begin to pleasure herself, Turpin had no reason to believe she was thinking of anyone other than him. Elliott didn’t hear the sound of the other man rubbing his cock in the hallway; even if he had, he might have confused it for the sound of his own cock in his hand.

Mary had to muffle herself when she came, with no idea Elliott and Turpin were both touching themselves to her, Elliott to the fresh memory of her rubbing herself against him and Turpin to the sight of her touching herself, thinking she must have been having thoughts of him.

Turpin came into his hand as he watched Mary’s body trembling in her bed, and he was gone by the time Elliott came shortly after, spilling his seed for the third time that night, and all three of them went to sleep separate but satisfied, none of them any the wiser to the other’s actions.