#four catfish I was not expecting that

[victorluvsalice]

We've hit Winter Monday in the Chill Valicer Save with this update, still racing to try and fill up the last shelves in the store so we can actually OPEN Van Liddelton Groceries at some point! Let's start right where we left off, with the gang working on making product and getting through their morning chores on the farm --

-->In fact, we are starting almost exactly where we left off, as right after Alice decided to curl up for a wolf nap on the floor of the barn, Kelly wandered in and started meowing in her ear, waking her up. XD A very annoyed Alice lectured the cat on not doing that, and to my surprise, Kelly not only listened, but actually learned Not To Wake Sims Up! So that was nice, at least. However, as she was already awake, Alice dragged herself over to the bulk processing machine to make some boxes of strawberry and raspberry jam, then used her werewolf super-speed to go have a REAL sleep in her and Victor's bed. A lot more comfortable than the barn floor, that's for sure!

-->While this was going on, Smiler finished off another chatterbot, then got sent out on a different mission -- mainly, they got exiled to the nearby pond to fish on the pier! No, I did not care that it was snowing at the time, Smiler's a vampire and thus immune to temperature. XD My goal there was to load up on fishies because I'd abruptly remembered that there was a product on the bulk processor that I hadn't even TRIED to make before -- namely, cans of processed fishcakes! And of course, for fishcakes, you need fish, and Smiler is the Sim who has the most experiencing fishing, so. . .they basically spent the rest of the morning on that dock, doing their best to stock their inventory with as much fish as possible. And as you can see, they made some impressive catches -- in the end, they ended up with a beautiful tuna, a couple of sturgeons, a couple of common upgrade parts, some perches, a minnow, and no less than FOUR catfish, who apparently REALLY like the chamomile Smiler was using as bait. Not bad at all, huh?

-->Victor, meanwhile, spent a good portion of his morning molding candles in canary yellow and shale gray shades -- which, as you can see, involves a lot of boring standing around. Like, seriously, can we speed this process up a little? *sigh* He did eventually complete both candles and headed over to the greenhouse to tend the plants -- I do have to admit, it is always kind of amusing to see him using that giant weed vacuum to suck the dandelions right out of the garden patches. XD His needs were looking like garbage after the initial tending, though, so -- after realizing he didn't have any Potions of Plentiful Needs in his inventory -- I grabbed him some Moodlet Solver so he could get himself back in tip-top shape and get on that harvest! Can't let the plants remain unpicked, after all!

-->Alice woke up in good time thanks to how great her and Victor's bed is, and quickly rejoined the productivity train -- after cleaning the litter boxes, cleaning herself (with the power of werewolf licking), and feeding Toothy, she was back on the bulk processor making boxes of cheese with the milk I'd preloaded in there! She also made some more bulk bags of sugar for canning purposes, which, hilariously, unlocked the Simple Living Cookbook as a book she could write. I -- I don't think making an industrial-sized sack of fruit-based sugar on a giant yellow bulk food processing machine is QUITE in keeping with the spirit of the Simple Living lot trait, game! Even if it DOES require Alice to have all the necessary ingredients. XD

-->With the crops harvested and the cookbook unlocked (and Smiler still very much on fishing duty), it was time to tend to the animals. Alice cleaned the chicken coop, made sure everyone was fed, and gathered the eggs (four normal nonhatchable ones, yay), while Victor checked up on Moory and gave her a good milking. Alice then hopped back on the bulk processor to make the first box of canned fishcakes from the fish Smiler had caught so far while I dumped a bunch of the wrapped white meat from the chickens she'd "sold," some custard, and some blueberries in her inventory for transport to the store. And got HER a Moodlet Solver as well as her own needs were starting to flag. She then made a bit more cheese and did a quick Somber Howl while Victor cleaned up all the various plates around the place (surprising me when he did so in the greenhouse -- I'd forgotten the sink that's on the decorative "potting bench" I put in there is actually, you know, a legit sink)...

And then, after a brief dance break in the living room, it was time to get Smiler back and send everybody off to the store! Because, as previously stated, we have SHELVES TO FILL, DAMN IT. No fun allowed until that happens!

[frudoo]

Just an itty bitty teeny tiny thought about biker 141 finding themselves the sweetest little pretty thing.... Most people are terrified of them for good reason, Price as the club president, Ghost as his VP, Gaz and Soap are two of their top guys. It's a sight to see them on or off their motorcycles but then there's you. The sweet little thing who runs across the boys somehow and instead of showing an ounce of fear, you give them a brilliant smile and talk sweetly to them. The boys decide then that you'll be their shared old lady.

Idk something about Biker!141 traveling through the states and meeting a pretty lil southern waitress with a heart of gold <3

Warnings: Reader's coworkers + most townfolk are prejudiced assholes. Mentions of food, and getting way too friendly with strangers (this is fiction, stay safe irl please)

The diner falls silent the second everyone hears the roar of the motorcycles’ engines coming to a halt in the front parking lot. The cooks start cussing, the parents start pulling their children closer, the busboys go to hide in the back. But you, a sweet, naive waitress on your first week, are completely unbothered. You greet the four huge, rugged men clad in leather jackets and dirt-covered jeans as they walk through the door, telling them to sit wherever they’d like.

     Your boss, wide-eyed and baffled, grabs the back of your apron and drags you into the kitchen. You brush her off with an exasperated huff, eyebrows furrowed at the middle-aged woman.

     “Steer clear of those men. I’m gonna tell ‘em to beat it,” she tells you matter-of-factly, wrinkled arms crossed over her chest.

     “Don’t be ridiculous,” you roll your eyes, retying your apron and shoving past her, out of the kitchen.

     You’re surprised to see that most of the patrons have left the diner, wads of cash left on their half-empty tables to cover their bills. All of this just because of some men that look a little different than them? It doesn’t sit right with you. You pull out your little notepad as you approach the table they chose, putting on your kindest smile. They all smile back—even the one with the weird mask has crinkles around his eyes, giving him away.

     “I’m so sorry about that wait. What can I start y’all off with to drink?” 

     “Waters all around, sweetheart,” the one with the mutton chops hums, closing his menu. 

     “Alright… and have y'all decided on food?” You begin scribbling on your little tablet of paper, nodding between each of their orders.

     The meatloaf special for mutton chops, extra potatoes, no green beans. A cheeseburger for the one with the mohawk, onion rings instead of fries. Fried catfish for the last two, with fries (because they have taste, according to the pretty one with the scar on his cheek).

     “I’ll have that right out for y’all,” you smile, giving them all a little wink before returning to the kitchen and putting their ticket on the line. 

     The cooks all give you glares, and your boss even gives you the cold shoulder, but you pay it no mind as you fill up four glasses with water and arrange them on a tray. As you balance the platter on your fingertips and make your way back to your table, one of the busboys sticks his foot out and trips you, sending both you and the waters sliding across the floor. You’re absolutely humiliated, pushing yourself up on your sore knees and dusting off your uniform as tears stream down your face.

     The one with the mask hurries over, offering his hand to help you back onto your feet. Your bottom lip trembles as you look up at him, a pitiful little whimper escaping your throat.

     “I-I’m so sorry about that, I’ll go get you new ones right now,” you sniffle, expecting him to chew you out.

     Instead, he cups your round cheeks in his gloved palms and thumbs away your tears, shushing you softly. Despite not even knowing him, you allow yourself to melt into his touch.

     “No apologizin’, lovie,” he grunts, “No’ your fault. Tha’ fucker always givin’ you trouble?” 

     “Hm? Oh, n-no, not usually,” you explain, carefully pulling away to clean up the mess on the floor. “Thank you- um…”

     “Simon,” he introduces himself, giving you a nod before going to sit back down with his mates.

     You mutter his name under your breath to remember it as you drop the broken glass in the garbage, drying off the tray and placing four new fresh glasses of water onto it. This time, the journey to the table is successful, and you hand each man their drink with a polite smile, still slightly embarrassed. They all make it a point to thank you with more enthusiasm than is needed, and the ones you don’t know introduce themselves as John, Kyle, and Johnny. 

     When the bell dings, signaling that their food is ready, you suck in a deep breath and place their dishes onto your tray, praying that this one won’t get dropped. Thankfully, you make it back with fully-intact plates, thanking the heavens that the cooks had sense enough not to burn the guys’ meals. You’re about to turn and allow them to enjoy their food, but John spreads his legs and taps one wide thigh, signaling for you to take a seat. You’re not entirely sure why you do it, but you comply, and he wraps an arm around your waist as he eats and converses with the group. 

     They’re all good company, constantly telling jokes that get you giggling, or pushing flirty little remarks your way. You’d be lying if you said you didn’t enjoy the attention, but eventually your boss comes over to snatch you off of John’s lap. You can practically see the steam coming out of her ears as she drags you into the kitchen once again, face red and eyes wild with rage.

     “You’re fired,” she grits her teeth, forcefully undoing your apron and pulling it off of your body.

     “Go to hell,” you retort. "You'll fit right in."

     You don’t let her see, but your eyes are blurry with tears as you grab your purse from your locker and shove your way out the front door. You’d forgotten how chilly it was outside and now you’re shivering as you pull out your phone to order an Uber. When you hear the little bell on the door jingle, you flinch, half-expecting it to be your old boss coming out to hit you with a broom. Instead, a warm leather jacket is placed over your shoulders and a strong arm pulls you against a firm body.

     “Jus’ me, dove,” Kyle grins, rubbing your arm with his hand in an attempt to warm you up quicker. “The lads’re takin’ care o’the bill. Be out any second.”

     You nod and rest your head on his shoulder, protesting only half-heartedly when he takes your phone from your hands and cancels your Uber. 

     After a few moments, the other three men pile out of the diner, adjusting their gloves and wiping sweat off their brow. John sniffs and smiles at you warmly, pointing towards where their bikes are parked. Kyle helps you put his jacket on properly as he walks you over, and all four of them line up next to their respective rides. You shyly sway in place as they look at you expectantly.

     “Well, hen? Take yer pick.”

[megalony]

Did I Stutter?

This is an Evan Buckley (Buck) imagine, requested by Anon, I hope this is what you were hoping for.

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Masterlist

Summary: (Y/n) is finally at a place where she is happy with her life and expecting a baby with Evan. But when her parents find her, Evan rushes home to protect her.

Warning: Mentions/ descriptions of past abuse.

Enjoy.

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Evan snapped the elastic hem of his boxers against his hips as he slowly padded through into the bedroom. His bare feet sank into the carpet and made him more tired than he felt when he woke up. He could just sink back into bed and sleep for a week straight, but he had only just gotten up and he had to be on shift in an hour.

When he rounded the bedroom door, a smile curved at his lips and his tongue darted out to run along his lower lip when his eyes set on his wife.

Sometimes it still stunned Evan to think that they were married, that he had got the girl of his dreams, the girl that raced across his mind twenty four seven.

It didn't matter that they had been joined at the hip since they were eighteen, Evan was still amazed she had stuck by him and wanted to be with him this long. He could still hear the surprise in Maddie's voice when he rang her up and told her he got engaged and he'd never seen his sister so proud as she was when he got married. Even if he had banned Doug from the wedding, his sister had smiled at him in a way he had never seen before and it empowered him.

"You're staring," (Y/n) whispered quietly as if speaking any louder would break the atmosphere around them. But when she locked eyes with him in the mirror, he continued to smile that catfish smile and slowly advanced towards her.

"So are you," He mumbled back as he approached her from behind and gently wrapped his arms around her waist.

He perched his chin on her shoulder and tugged her back up against his chest, squeezing her gently like he wanted to tuck her into his chest to keep her safe and close to his heart. Their eyes stayed interlocked for a few more seconds before Evan tilted his head so he could press a gentle kiss to her neck, feeling her shiver beneath him.

"What're you thinking?" He kept his voice barely above a whisper to keep the slow atmosphere and tempo around them. He didn't seem to realise his fingertips were gliding up and down (Y/n)'s hips and waist, it was an automatic action he didn't seem to think about.

"It's silly…" (Y/n) looked down at her feet for a second until she felt Evan's fingers pressing under her chin and he tilted her head back up so their eyes locked in the mirror again.

"Nothing you say to me is ever silly. Tell me,"

There was nothing she could say to him that he would laugh at or call silly or stupid. Anything (Y/n) thought was automatically important to Evan and vice versa. They promised to tell each other everything and talk through anything that bothered them or interested them and that was what they were doing.

"Just that, these are the first marks on my body that I actually like, you know?" (Y/n) carefully moved Evan's hand until his fingers were touching the stretch marks on each of her hips and across her stomach.

She hadn't really thought about it much but when she was starting to get dressed this morning, her eyes were transfixed on the mirror.

(Y/n) had a lot of marks on her body.

She'd had them all since before she met Evan and when she first showed herself to him, he'd kissed each and every mark and showed her how beautiful he thought she was. And other than the few lovebites and bruises Evan had left on her body over the years, her stretch marks were the first ones she looked at which made her smile.

She looked at those little creases and discoloured lines that looked like childish squiggles and she found herself smiling. They were a sign, a proud telltale to show people that she was doing something beautiful, something amazing that gave her purpose. She was having a baby and there was nothing better that (Y/n) would want marks to show for it.

"I love all your marks."

"Evan…" (Y/n) raised a brow, whining his name as if asking him to be serious.

"I'm serious," He took a step back and turned (Y/n) round in his arms while his hands found their place back on her hips so he could slowly drag her along with him. He walked backwards until the edge of the bed hit his knees and he sank down onto the bed next to his uniform that she had lovingly laid out ready for him.

When he was sat down, he pulled her closer until she got the hint and sat down on his lap, her legs resting over his thighs with her arms curved loosely around his neck.

"I love them all, they show how brave and loving and brilliant my wife is."

Evan turned his head to the left and pressed a gentle, butterfly kiss over the circular mark just below the crease of her elbow. His hands stayed fluttering over her hips while he leaned forward and kissed the burn mark on her left shoulder.

(Y/n) scratched her nails against the short hairs at the back of his head when he left wet, hot kisses down her curved stomach and over the stretch marks on her sides. And she felt his hands move to the small of her back and his other hand cup the back of her neck when he worked his way back up her skin until he could kiss her jaw where there was a slight discoloured line. He was the only person who knew where she got that mark or who knew that it was actually a scar, not a natural beauty line in her skin.

In turn, (Y/n) let her fingertips graze across the violet mark on his left brow, down to the jagged scar on the back of his left shoulder. And when he smiled, she curved her foot round the back of his leg and dragged her heel up and down the indented scar that went from the back of his knee all the way down to his ankle.

"But, I agree. These are the best ones you have." He nodded towards the stretch marks before he pulled her down by the back of her neck and connected their lips in a searing kiss.

"Mine aren't like yours… I didn't survive a blown up fire truck or a collapsing building or saving someone from a broken windshield."

(Y/n) tried to lean forward and hide her face in his shoulder but he knew her too well and knew what she was about to do. He caught her chin between his finger and thumb and kept her head level with his.

"I had a choice, I fought my battles willingly. You didn't. These are hazards of the job, those are survivor marks." His thumb brushed across her chin before he leaned forward to kiss the corner of her mouth. "What's that quote? Show me your darkness and let me love you anyway."

Evan knew each mark on her body, he had committed them to memory the very first time he had explored her body. (Y/n) was a map that he had memorised to the end and he knew the reasons behind her marks and scars and discolourations.

He knew the circular indents- the three on her left arm and the one on her right- were stubbed out cigarettes that had forcefully been put out on her skin and she had been lucky not to get them infected. He knew the burn mark on her left shoulder was from the last remnants of water in the kettle that had been thrown at her by her mother during an argument that got way out of want far too quickly.

Evan knew the cut on her jaw was from a kitchen knife and that it had needed four stitches to patch it back up. He knew which bones she had broken- four ribs, two bones in her hand, two fingers, one toe and her elbow- he knew she had ruptured her spleen when she was twelve and had it removed and he knew her father had been the reason behind that 'accident'.

Evan knew she had been hospitalised for jaundice just after she managed to leave home and only a week after he had met her. They had their first date two weeks after she had been discharged when he insisted one date with him would change her life.

There wasn't a mark on her body or a hospital visit that Evan didn't know about or know the reason behind. And each mark that (Y/n) hated on her body was something Evan loved.

He loved the girl sitting on his lap and nothing, no backstory or scar or parentage was going to change that.

A smile curved at Evan's lips when he felt her hands move to cup his face and her forehead tipped down to rest against his. She brushed their noses together and let her hair fan out beside them like curtains forming a layer of privacy around them. And when she kissed his lips and he tasted her cheery lip balm mixing in with the mouthwash he just used a few minutes ago, he felt like he was falling for her all over again.

"You know I love you, Mr Buckley. Every inch of you."

"I love you too babe, both of you."

***

(Y/n) dragged her fingers through her hair as she waited for the kettle to boil. It felt strange to be home alone without Evan. For the past two weeks, their days off work had lined up together, especially when Evan did the late shifts and was home during the day. Being home on her own felt mundane and unusual.

On the bright side, the kitchen was clean, the living room had been hoovered and everything was prepped and ready for tea tonight and when it was cooked (Y/n) would dish it up on the side ready for when Evan got home. He didn't always get to eat properly when he was at work and it didn't matter if he came home at eight at night or one in the morning, he was always hungry.

A knock at the door broke (Y/n) out of her thoughts and when she turned, her eyes caught sight of the empty tupperware box on the counter.

It was probably Mrs Arden from next door.

She was pushing seventy but from the first day when (Y/n) and Evan moved in next to her, she had been like a grandparent to them. She invited them in for coffee, (Y/n) often went round to check on her and Evan brought her shopping when she couldn't get out. And she had a thing for gardening and over the passing weeks since they moved in, (Y/n) had noticed their front garden had been weeded a lot and a few flowers planted.

But more recently, she was into her baking and was forever bringing round boxes of cookies.

(Y/n) could eat all of Mrs Arden's cookies for breakfast, dinner and tea now she was pregnant and Evan thought she didn't know when he stole a few from the box like he had clearly done this morning. He had taken the last two cookies.

Grabbing the box, (Y/n) headed out of the kitchen and through the hall towards the door with a smile playing on her lips.

"Hi, I…"

The box fell to the floor and whatever she was about to say faded out on her tongue as her mouth hung open. It felt like her brain was short-circuiting and her muscles were tensing and cramping and tightening all over her body.

"Hi girlie, long time no see."

She didn't feel her body slump against the wall or the way her head collided and rebounded off the wall as her knees started to quiver.

That voice was back. It had been so long since she'd heard that voice that it had finally faded from her mind. Even in her dreams, she couldn't remember that shrill sugary tone of voice that always darkened like caramel and turned into burned sugar when he was angry with her. That voice mixed with that smirk made bile rise in the back of (Y/n)'s throat and churned her stomach that always ignited with panicked adrenaline whenever she used to look at him.

How had they found her? How did they know she had moved here? Her name wasn't (Y/l/n) anymore, it was Buckley, it had been for over five years and she and Evan had moved around a lot since they were eighteen. Why had they come to find her now? Why show up when her life was on the track it should have been on all along?

Why show up when her trauma was behind her and her life with a new loving family was just ahead of her?

"(Y/n)…" She sang her name like a childhood song and when his hand planted down on the door to try and push it open all the way, something clicked in her mind.

Her palms planted down on the door and with a violent shove and all of her body weight forced onto it, she slammed the door shut to keep them out. Even after the door clicked in place, (Y/n) pressed her left side, her hands, her head and even her knees into the door as if they were going to barge the door down and make a comotion. But she was never sure what they would do or what lengths they would go to. She could never understand the way their minds worked and that was the only way to survive living with them.

Expect anything, have no predictions, fight at any cost.

"Oh come on now, don't be like this. We've come all this way to see you,"

Her trembling fingers twisted the key in the lock until it would turn no further but when a hand bashed down on the other side of the door, a scream left her lips. She threw the key across the hall, unsure if she meant to do that or not and she slid down to the floor.

"(Y/n) open th-"

"No!" She screamed at the top of her lungs until she couldn't make any more noise or raise her voice any louder. Her hands curled into fists and pummelled into the door until her fist indented into the strong plastic and cuts and tears appeared in her knuckles.

Every ounce of air (Y/n) inhaled was used to scream to block out the sound of their shrill voices and gain whatever attention she could from outside to get them to leave. They never liked a scene, they couldn't risk being caught here, could they? They knew they were violating their restraining order by being here. If she screamed and frightened them enough, they had to go.

Her burning hands scraped against the floor and she shuffled away from the door on her knees when she heard him slam his fist into the door in retaliation.

She needed Evan.

Evan hooked his florescent jacket over his arm and kept tight grip on his helmet as he headed towards the truck. The siren had blared out a few seconds ago and the speakers were on, they had a break in to attend to.

His eyes locked with Eddie and he nodded his head but stopped a foot away from the truck when his phone vibrated in his back pocket.

Putting his helmet and jacket on the floor by his feet, Evan pressed his finger to his ear and answered the call when he saw (Y/n)'s cheesy smile light up his phone screen. That was good timing, the siren was just starting to wear off and if he had gotten in the truck and set off, he wouldn't have been able to answer the call.

"Hey babe, everything okay? You'll have to speak up, we're about to head out on a call."

"Evan! Evan please, O-oh God…"

"Baby what's wrong? Breathe, take a deep breath and try talk to me. Are you hurt, is it the baby?"

His hand moved from his ear to the back of his neck and he felt himself digging his nails into his skin like talons spiking through his neck. What had happened? He'd been gone what, seven hours at most. Had she had some kind of fall while he was out? Had something happened with the baby?

He didn't even realise Eddie had walked over to him until he felt Eddie's grip on his shoulder and Evan unleashed his grip on his neck and grabbed Eddie's arm instead for support. He felt like his knees were about to give way beneath him.

"No, Evan c-come home. You h-have to help me!"

"Okay, baby I'm coming home but I have to know what's wrong you have to talk to me. I swear I'm coming home."

"They're here!"

Evan had never heard her shout so loud in his life. She practically screamed through the words that ended in a coughed sob and he could hear her sniffing and trying to take a deep breath but all she could do was spit and whimper.

He felt Eddie's grip on his shoulder tightening and he was mouthing something, most likely trying to ask what the problem was. The team were already sat in the truck waiting for them and Bobby was stood next to the truck, holding onto the door. He wanted to get in and get going but he couldn't get in when he could see the two of them stood panicked in the middle of the station.

"Who's there? Who's at the house?"

Who on Earth had turned up to their house? Who would be there that had gotten (Y/n) so panicked like this?

"Mum and dad. T-they're g…gonna hurt me Evan,"

All the blood drained down to Evan's toes and made his knees shake and give way if it weren't for Eddie holding his arm and gently nudging him to try and find out what was happening. He could feel his chest tightening and his lungs shrivelling up in his chest like burst balloons.

They had never found her before.

In all the years Evan had been with (Y/n) he had never once been afraid of her parents turning up. He didn't even know what they looked like, that was how good things had been for them. She had never called him up before worrying her parents might be here or thinking she had seen them round a street corner. Why turn up now when things were going so good?

"No. No, baby I'm coming home right now. They don't get to do this, you hear me? They won't come in the house, they won't dare fucking speak to you when I get there, you just wait for me and lock that shitting door. I'll be ten minutes I swear."

He heard her mumble something incoherent before he shoved his phone into his pocket and set off in an unsteady dash towards Bobby.

"Cap, I- I gotta go home! It's an emergency, someone's breaking into the house." His words were partially true, by the sound of (Y/n)'s hysterics her parents might well be trying to break in. But Evan had never told Bobby about the twisted relationship between (Y/n) and her parents, the only person he had told was Maddie because she had bonded so well with (Y/n) and helped her cope so much.

"Eddie go with him, call me when you know what's happening, let me know everything's okay." Bobby patted him on the shoulder and gave him a nudge to tell him it was okay to set off into a sprint. They could cope on this callout without the pair of them but he had to know everything was okay once Evan had got things sorted. He couldn't be worrying about him.

Eddie barely had any time to climb into Evan's keep before the tyres were screeching and he was speeding out the parking lot.

"Jesus Buck! Tell me what's going on, who's trying to break in?" He braced his hand on the door and twisted in his seat to try and look at Evan properly. He had never seen such rage in Evan's eyes before and his face was turning a very dark shade of red.

"Her parents are at my fucking house. They found her." His hands slammed down on the steering wheel so harshly the jeep veered to the left slightly.

"I don't understand… why would they try and break in?"

"We have a restraining order, t-they abused her, Eddie they were horrible, some of the shit they did… they'd stub out cigarettes on her and all sorts." A shiver bolted down Evan's spine as he forced his knuckles up and down his jaw to control himself. Even the thought of what they had done made him want to be sick. "I met her when we were eighteen just after she managed to get away and when we moved in together… dude I found her leaving the house with tins of food in her bag."

"Why?"

"They starved her, she got so used to hiding and hoarding any food she could and making it last, she'd just panic. She hid food under the bed, in her bag, in my fucking car, everywhere. Just in case she got starved at some point."

At first, Evan didn't understand. When he saw (Y/n)'s bag and noticed a tin of beans in there, he thought she'd just popped by the shop and forgot to take it out her bag. When he scoured the floor one afternoon looking for his other shoe, he found a bag of crisps, a bottle of water and a cereal bar tucked under her clothes under the bed.

But when he found the small bag of food tucked under the passenger seat in his truck, he had to ask what the deal was.

(Y/n) had lived her whole life saving what bits of food she could for when her parents didn't feed her and she couldn't find any food for herself. She was used to going days without food or just living on whatever scraps she could find. Moving in with Evan and realising she had control over what food was brought into the house and what she could freely consume was something (Y/n) couldn't grasp.

It was a coping mechanism to have food on her at all times and hide it to prepare for an emergency situation where she might be starving and need some sort of substenance.

Evan's relationship with his own parents was much different, he had a turbulent dynamic but he'd never suffered like (Y/n). He'd seen Maddie suffer with Doug, but that was a relationship not a parental dynamic. He had never been starved or hit or burned or scolded with hot water or been pushed down the stairs and hospitalised.

What she had gone through was something Evan could never imagine or conceive and he would die before he let (Y/n)'s parents see her again or see their child.

They had a pact, their child would never suffer the way they had. Their baby would feel loved and valued and have enough food to eat and enough love to be the happiest child in the world. They weren't going to suffer.

"Buck, I'm sorry… how are we gonna play this?"

Eddie knew they needed some kind of plan when they got there. Jumping out the car and running straight into a fight wasn't going to do Evan any favours and Eddie didn't want to be in between them trying to pull Evan away before he went to far.

"I need to find (Y/n), can you keep them out the house and call the police?"

"Sure,"

As much as Evan was desperate to punch the living daylights out of (Y/n)'s parents, he knew he couldn't do that. His primary focus was (Y/n), he had to get in the house and find her and make sure she was alright because he didn't like what he heard on the phone. And he needed the police to be here as soon as possible.

Her parents were violating their restraining order by being this close to (Y/n) and Evan was going to make sure they got arrested for this. The pair of them scrambled out the jeep when Evan parked hazardly, half on the pavement, partly obscuring the road but he didn't care. He stumbled towards the house, taking in the sight of two people he never thought he would have to meet in his lifetime. They were stood right in front of the door as if they were blocking (Y/n) from coming out her own home and her dad was bashing his fist on the door which sent Evan reeling.

They were going to put (Y/n) into shock.

His eyes darted to the left and his chest tightened when he saw Mrs Arden stood in her doorway, clinging to the doorframe with her phone in her hand.

"Evan, who are they? I- I've called the police, they're frightening the poor girl."

Oh, she was a good woman. She had done Evan a big favour and took one thing off his list. The police would be here sooner than he anticipated.

"Go inside and lock the door until the police get here," Evan waved his hand towards her to usher her back inside and he nodded his head to let her know it was okay. He didn't want anyone else getting involved in this, he had no idea if (Y/n)'s parents would become violent with anyone who tried to interfere. They had never hurt (Y/n) out in public which was probably why they were angry to be shut outside in the open where anyone could see and hear them.

He could feel Eddie close behind him when he approached them and forcefully shoved himself between them to push them away from the door.

"Get the fuck away from my house!"

"Who are you?"

"Did I stutter? I said, get the fuck away from my house, or do I have to get violent for you to listen to me?" He clenched his keys into his fist until he could feel the house key beginning to draw blood from the palm of his hand. And when he turned his head towards (Y/n)'s mother, something glimmered in his eyes. "Maybe I should go get a knife from the kitchen and mark that pretty face?"

A rush of adrenaline mixed with something dark flooded Evan's stomach and satisfaction burned in his eyes when he watched her face fall. Her lips curved down and parted and she took a step back. She hadn't anticipated (Y/n) to remember all the cruelty she spouted to her or for Evan to know exactly what she had said to (Y/n) when she cut her with that knife.

"Go in and lock the door behind you," Eddie patted Evan on the shoulder and gave him a nudge inside when he opened the door. Eddie would stay out here to be safe and stop them from trying to get in or trying to leave when the police arrived.

"Baby…"

Evan's heart dropped down to his stomach when he turned round after locking the door behind him.

What had they done?

(Y/n) was sat on the stairs, her hands clapsed over her ears, blood welling up on her knuckles and she was tipping her head back and forth against the wall with such a thud Evan was surprised she hadn't knocked herself out already.

"Babe… baby please don't do that," He knelt down on the floor in front of her and reached up to cup her face in his hands and he had to tense his arms to stop her from hitting her head again. She had already bruised the left side of her temple. "We don't wanna do that, babe please don't you'll hurt yourself and the baby. I'm here, they're not going to get to you I promise. Come here,"

When he was sure she wasn't going to hit her head again, his hands left her face and moved down to slide around her waist. He coiled her into his chest and carefully lifted her up and took a few steps back. He knelt down on the floor and sat down, tugging (Y/n) with him until she was sat between his legs. He was surprised how quickly she suddenly moved despite her state of shock, she burrowed into his arms like she hadn't seen him in years.

Her hands stayed pressed over her ears but she brought her knees up against her bump and smothered her face into his chest.

Evan curved his arms around her, keeping his right arm tight around her waist to hold her against him and his left hand cupped the back of her head. He tipped his head down and kissed the top of her head repeatedly, quietly shushing her as he began to rock them back and forth.

They had done so well. She hadn't had nightmares in over a year, she was back to how she should have been. Eating properly and whenever she wanted or needed to, not hoarding food for safety. She was beginning to love her body the way Evan loved and worshipped her and she hadn't been in therapy for a few years either.

They were having a baby.

They didn't need this stress and set back, not when they were in the best place they could possibly be.

"Evan,"

When her hands moved from her ears to tightly dig her nails into his bicep, a sigh of relief left his lips and he breathed into her hair despite the tears falling down his face. He carded his fingers through her hair and tensed his arm beneath her hands when she held him tighter.

"I'm here, I've got you. I swear they can't hurt you. Babe, I will never let anyone hurt you or our baby."

[claraswritings]

Conversation

Pairing: Jamie Tartt x Reader

Warnings: spoilers for S1 and S2, miscommunication, (kind of) enemies to lovers, language, a few plot changes, mutual pining and one or two mentions of Jamie’s dad being a prick. Also I accidentally wrote something in this that is minorly similar to a scene in S3…but I wrote that bit AGES ago. Just signposting it as last time I didn’t someone got shitty with me

Notes: this is so much longer than I planned lmao so that explains why it took so long to post. Also not betad or spellchecked yet as it’s late here!

I don’t even know if I like this… I might delete this…

Title inspired by Conversation by Catfish and the Bottlemen

**

You’d been the player liaison officer at AFC Richmond for two years and for the most part, you loved your job. A lot of it involved what was referred to as “general life admin” for the players, as you sorted out everything from banks to home viewings to car collections to visas to schools for players with kids.

Most people would think looking out for a bunch of millionaire footballers would be a stressful job but you didn’t mind. The players had, for the most part, always been nice and you’d even started helping to show the new signings around, offering to recommend them restaurants or bars and you’d even become friendly with a few of them over the course of your time at the club.

Or at least until you encountered the clubs new loan signing. It had taken four weeks of his season long loan before you’d first spoken to him, and from the ten minutes he’d spent in your office, you’d gotten the same impression everyone did of him.

Jamie Tartt was undoubtedly the one of the biggest pricks you’d ever met .

Twenty minutes later than agreed, he’d sauntered in to your office, moaning about his teammates, discard the print offs of flats and houses you’d spent ages looking into for him, grabbed a card with the requested time and date of a collection of an Aston Martin you’d arranged for him without so much as a thank you, before asking if you could fix a modelling gig for him. With your arms folded across your chest, you’d firmly told him that was you were player liaison and not PR and that there was no way you’d be arranging his shirtless photoshoots or his latest perfume ad and he’d left with a comment about your job being “pointless” leaving your door wide open.

***

The next time you spoke to him was when he’d let a door swing in your face, as he stormed through the car park still furious after the loss to Crystal Palace. You held back from walking out as you could over hear him rant to the reporter from the Independent about…everything. An exclusive straight from the car park, Jamie Tartt was a journalists dream.

“Hey.” You caught up to him in the car park, “Talking to the press? Really?”

“Do I know you?” Jamie stared at you with a blank expression “Are you a fan? How did you get in here? You want a picture or something?”

“A fan? Of you? No. I work for the club. I’m the one that arranged your car, your flat, your VIP booth at the bar you’re off to. Most people say you’re welcome by the way.” You waved an arm in the direction of his sports car.

“Right.” Jamie continued to stare at you like you’d grown a second head before shrugging “Did you need something?”

Un-fucking-believable. In that moment, you’d never disliked him more.

You considered telling him how stupid it was to run his mouth off to the press, how much it would hurt his teammates, his manager, the fans to hear their star player dragging the club down but as you watched him chew his gum so casually, you realised he didn’t care and it was too late, and it was probably too late. Trent Crimm was already heading back to his car, statement no doubt being composed and ready for the morning papers but it was doubtful Jamie even registered anything other than himself and his massive ego. How could you possibly expect him to care about anyone else.

“Nothing. Doesn’t matter. Don’t think you’d understand it. Have a nice night.” You turned on your heel and were safe inside your own car before you finished the sentence “Prick.”

***

Ever since your little argument in the car park, you’d made it your absolute resolution to keep your contact with him to the bare minimum until the end of his loan when he’d become whatever poor player liaison officer Man City had.

You managed this pretty effectively being that he’d decided not to train until you’d received a call from your boss late into the evening one night asking you to come by the training ground. Usually a call in the evening was one of the new players wants a dinner reservation and didn’t know where to book or occasionally ordering a cab when one of the players had forgotten what hotel they were staying in the night before a game.

You absolutely not been expecting it to be ‘please can you swing by Colins and get his spare car keys…’ Nonetheless you’d agreed.

The scene unfolding before you when arrived the training ground was like something out of a fever dream. The players celebrating on the training pitch, a burning bin obviously a major part of whatever bonding exercise Coach Lasso had come up with. A scan of the field resulted no sign of Colin. You could see Dani Rojas, running around with Bumbercatch and Richard as if he hadn’t just been in the treatment room a mere 24 hours ago and Issac downing the last of a bottle of Mezcal back and forth with Richard whilst Ted and Beard watched on, laughing as Zoreaux choked on a swig of the liquor.

Nearest you and staring into the fire, beer bottle in hand, was the last person you wanted to see. Jamie Tartt. Of course it was. It would be so typical of your luck that it would be.

“Colin about?” You resolved yourself to asking him, wiggling your hand as the spare key jangled between your fingers. “Got to give him these.”

“Inside.” Jamie nodded “He’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Humming in acknowledgment, your eyes fell to the flaming bin and curiosity got the better of you and you had to ask “Do I want to ask how he lost his keys?”

“Burnt them in that.” Jamie gestured at the flames he was staring at. When you didn’t reply, his eyes found their way to yours and he explained the whole process.

“Oh.” You were surprised. “I didn’t think team bonding would have been your thing.”

Jamie hesitated. He couldn’t argue. You were right, he hadn’t been much of a team player

“I wasn’t gonna but…thought maybe I should show my face” he shrugged, hoping you wouldn’t question his bravado. He pointed at the fire. “Do you wanna throw something in? Everyone else has.”

“I think it’s already worked…” you gestured with your arm at the field. “but yeah why not?”

You thought for a moment… you hadn’t brought anything except your phone and your own keys which… you didn’t fancy throwing in. Unlike Colin you’d have to walk home and get your spare set and walk back to the car park, which wasn’t particularly appealing in the dark.

Suddenly an idea struck you, you unclipped your necklace and extended out your hand, letting it slip, dangling in your fingertips for a few seconds before dropping it. “Hopefully this helps with the luck.”

“You don’t need luck if I’m playing.” Jame replied, a smirk on his lips. You held off rolling your eyes at his cockiness. Sometimes you really didn’t get him. Mere seconds before you’d been having a semblance of a civil conversation and then he was right back to arrogant arsehole.

“What is it?” He questioned. It had to be the first time he’d asked you anything about yourself.

“Necklace. It was my nan’s… she…died when I was 15.”

“Oh shit sorry.” It was probably the most sincere you’d ever heard him. If it had came out of anyone else’s mouth, you might have bought it as genuine. “Wasnt like anything bad, was it?”

“It was a long time ago, she was sick for a long time and…” you stopped yourself suddenly aware that this was Jamie Tartt you were talking to and any minute now, he’d probably resume his usual self centred personality. “Sorry, long story short, she passed away a while ago but… I don’t think she’d mind. Grandad was a Richmond fan.”

“What did you…put in?” you asked, swiftly changing the subject. You were half expecting the answer to be his little black book of desperate instagram girls or some signed picture of himself from one of his many magazine photoshoots. It would after all be completely on-brand for him.

“Erm…football boots, ones my mum got me. She got me into playing…” he said it trying to be casual and keep his cool. “She just wants me to enjoy playing yeah? So good motivation and that”

“I’m sure she’d be really happy for you, Jamie.” You looked over to where Colin was remerging back from the building looking extremely relived to see you. “I have to go give these to Colin. It’s why I was called out here in the first place. Have a good night.”

Truth be told, you were a little skeptical. Of both the ritual and of Jamie showing an interest in anyone else other than himself but you figured if the whole team had given the ritual a chance, maybe just maybe, Jamie Tartt had developed the capacity to care about other people.

You found out the next morning that he was on his way back to Man City when you’d received an email from his agent asking you to arrange termination of his house rental agreement

***short time skip***

When your doorbell had gone off late into Saturday afternoon a few weeks later, Jamie Tartt had been the last person you expected to see.

“Richmond said you had the stuff from my locker.” He said, leaning instantly on the door frame as soon as you answered without so much as a hello. “Said you was going to send it to the guy who does whatever it is you do at City but I called Issac, Jeff and Keeley and they’re all busy so thought come get it. Nothing better to do.”

A house visit hadn’t been on the agenda but you figured it was marginally less awkward than him swinging by the training ground so you’d taken it and had been talking to the player liaison officer at City making arrangements to send it up.

“Well I’m flattered to be your fourth choice. Coincidentally probably your first words to Pep.” You couldn’t resist the dig. Ever since he’d left, Richmond had struggled but being that he was now Man City’s problem you didn’t have to mince your words.

“Yeah well, I’ll be first choice soon. Scored today didn’t I…,” he clicked his tongue and gestured at himself. “Best goal of the match as well.”

“Wouldn’t know. I was watching Richmond.” You folded one arm over the other. A part of you enjoyed the flicker of surprise that crossed his face, but you gave him a tight smile as a somewhat attempt to be civil.

“Heard old man Roy scored yesterday. Must have taken it out of him.” Jamie rested back on the heels of his expensive trainers “Bet he’s gonna be in that ice bath for hours.”

You ignored the dig at the Richmond captain “Had the game of his life actually…like someone turned back the clock. Heard from Sam that Nate had some real words of wisdom.”

“Nate? Nathan? The kitman?” Jamie’s eyebrows furrowed as he stared at you in shock. “We thinking of the same guy? Him!?”

You laughed, knowing that the idea of Nate who always seemed so unassuming and quiet giving Roy Kent, footballing legend, a piece of his mind was crazy. If you’d heard it from anyone other than Sam, you’d probably have thought it was an elaborate joke.

“Apparently so.”

“Fucking hell.” His eyebrows shot up “Kinda wish I’d seen the old man’s reaction.”

“Yeah well…you weren’t…I’ll get your stuff. Probably a bit weird for you…being at a woman’s door when you haven’t slept with her.” You tapped on the door and grimaced. You knew the team would miss Jamie for his ability on the pitch.

Jamie shrugged, before he was distracted by his reflection in the window. He adjusted a stray hair then slowly turned back as of pulling his gaze away from himself was particularly tough “You would though wouldn’t you?”

A singular laugh left your throat coming out harshly. “No. Nothing personal…Zoolander” you paused as you realised that wasn’t completely honest. “Well its a little personal…but…I don’t date footballers. Went out with one once. Played for another club. Was at my friends for a weekend. He slept with six other women in two days.”

Jamie pursed his lips and let out a low whistle almost like he was impressed.

“What’s that…Rookie numbers for you?” You called over your shoulder as you stepped to the side of the door to pick up the box that had been sitting in your hallway for the past week and a half.

“Nah…even I’m not that bad” He clicked his tongue and winked “Most of the time.”

“How lovely.” You deadpanned turning back to him. “Suppose you slow down once you run out of every woman in SW16?”

Jamie looked you up and down “You always like this? All Cruella DeVille and that”

Ignoring his playground like insult, you moved one hand back to the door handle, the box balanced on your hip with the other. You were hoping you’d be able to close the door quickly and force him to go off elsewhere. “You left my club, I’m allowed to be a little mean to you.”

“Lasso sent me back. Said he didn’t need me but obviously he does though cause you were losing until today” A cocky smirk on his face, he pointed at himself “Could have used me in those other games.”

“What?” You frowned, eyebrows knotting in the centre. “What are you on about?… of course we needed you. You’re a fucking twat but you’re good. Why wouldn’t he want you in the team” You didn’t like paying him a compliment but you felt it was the only way to get a reasonable conversation out of him

Jamie almost rolled his eyes and you were unsure if it was because he thought you were stating the obvious or saying something stupid.

Noticing Jamie’s childish reaction, you called him out.

“Ted’s a really nice guy, you know. Maybe cut him a little slack?”

Ted had always been friendly to you. Giving you a good morning when he arrived and a good evening with a bright smile when he left and even talking to you about favourite books when he’d brought ones in for the team. If you offered help with setting things up, he would always tell you not to worry and he’d sort anything out himself… More often than not he was back at your office with 15minutes talking a lot about how different things were to Kansas and asking for help.

Despite being new to the sport, never mind the Premier League, Ted was at least trying. It somewhat bothered you that Jamie seemed so intent on being disrespectful.

“Knows fuck all about football though.”

“And you know fuck all about how to talk to people. Maybe you could have learnt from each other.” You snapped back before you could stop yourself. “Just an idea. It’s how adults talk.”

Feeling the exasperation levels rise and wondering how you’d even gotten this far into a conversation with him, you tossed the box of his stuff in to his arms and he managed to steady it despite being caught slightly off guard.

“Goodbye Jamie. See you next season”

And with that you slammed the door shut forcibly before he could reply.

*** time skip***

“I’m just going to get a drink, you want one?”

You offered to your friend and her boyfriend, as you slid out of your booth. Truth be told, you didn’t need another drink, you just wanted to escape for a few moments and work out if it had been this loud when you were a Uni student or if you’d just become accustomed to pubs over clubs in the years since you’d left.

With the team settled into the season, and the new signings all set up, you decided to take a week off to go visit some old friends in Manchester and against your better judgement you’d been dragged to a bar by your friend and her boyfriend.

In response your friend waved her half full, bright blue cocktail, letting you know she was good for now and you made your way across the dance floor and up to the bar, ordering the strongest cocktail on the menu not paying much attention to what was in it.

You’d only just picked up your drink when you heard it. The familiar voice causing you to whip around so quickly that you were impressed you didn’t spill anything.

“[Name]? That you?”

“Jamie Tartt.” You replied, as you took a long drink of the freshly replenished cocktail “Nice to see you.”

You were, of course, being sarcastic. You didn’t try to hide it this time. You didn’t have to. The last time you’d seen him, he’d been assisting in the game that sent Richmond down. Well… that and when your friends had sent you numerous clips of him making an arse out himself on Lust Conquers All and asking you if he really was that much of a twat in real life, to which you’d reply no, he was actually a bigger twat.

“How come you’re in Manchester?” He asked, catching you off guard. Jamie had never cared about seeing you, let alone it being ‘good to’ and now here he was making small talk like you were old friends.

“I’m visiting friends from when I lived here.” You told him keeping your answer short “Look if you want someone to sort out some private booth for you, firstly I’m on holiday and secondly I work for Richmond…you don’t…so…” you paused and gazed around the busy bar, looking for someone to pass Jamie on to “ask the barman.”

“You lived in Manchester?” Jamie tilted his head, genuine surprise crossed his features, as if you’d been withholding some crucial information. “I’m from here.”

“I know you are…“ you took another long drink, feeling like you’d need it if you were about to have another frustrating conversation as your patience was slowly slipping away. He’d completely ignored your previous statement and carried on with the small talk he’d never shown any need for before “What do you need Jamie?”

Jamie looked stunned. “I didn’t know you lived in Manchester. How come you never said?” He replied with a question in response.

“It’s a big city Jamie. You never asked me about myself, surprised you even remembered my name. You don’t need to feign interest in me. Just tell me what you want.” Patience now completely gone and just keen for him to get to the point, you downed the last of your drink and turned to place it back on the bar, only just missing the slight look of guilt he gave you.

“I just, um,” Jamie hesitated, unsure as to how to start, he bit his lip. There was no way he could just come out with it.

He’d tried Keeley but she’d told him to talk to Ted which… he really didn’t want to do. He knew he’d have to eventually but he didn’t want to have to ask especially after how they’d left things in person. Jamie knew from the tiny army man and note that Ted held no resentment but approaching him was a completely different ask so he’d headed back to his mums in Manchester first to weigh up his options.

He considered messaging one of the team but knew after his assist to send Richmond down, they likely would not want to speak to him…so he went through the staff- Kitman Will was a no go, Nate an even bigger no, he didn’t even think he had his number. Jamie went through a few of the back room staff before the thought of you crossed his mind and he felt like an idiot for not thinking of it sooner.

You fixed everything. Player needed a mechanic, you had one around within an hour, one of the coaches needed a caterer, you could arrange it, any player needed schools for their kids, you had uniforms by the end of the day. It was, at least to Jamie, like you could fix any problem…so hoping you could fix his big one, he looked you up on instagram and seeing that you’d posted only two hours ago, he clicked to view.

You were laughing and clinking glasses with another girl and a guy and had placed a tag in the corner indicating what bar you were in. Jamie could barely believe his luck when he clicked on it; as if by chance, as if this was confirmation that he had to talk to you, the tag showed as a bar only fifteen minutes away. He’d left within five. He didn’t know why you were here in his home city but to Jamie it felt like a sign so he’d threw on a coat and headed out to find you.

“It’s nice to see you Jamie but if you’ve got nothing to say, I really need to get back to my friend.” It was a small lie, you could not have cared less about running into him.

“Wait.” He protested, reaching for your arm before pulling back, barely grazing you. “Can we have a drink or something?”

“I’m not a waitress Jamie. If you want a drink, you’ll have to get one yourself like a big boy.”

From the vacant expression that had taken over, he clearly no idea what you were talking about and was waiting for you to fill in the blanks.

“It was a joke. At the charity event, you gave me twenty quid and told me to get you a drink. I told you I wasn’t a waitress and you said ‘same thing’… then I took the £20 and used it for my taxi home… you obviously don’t remember.”

Jamie felt discomfort twist in his chest as he averted his eyes to the ground for a few seconds. Had he really said that? You said it so casually like it was normal.

“Look…please can I just talk you? I’ll…pay for your drinks.” He attempted a peace offering, only for you to wince.

“I can get my own drinks.” You stated bluntly, with a half hearted smile. “I’ll see you later, I’d say good luck for this season but Caths a United fan”

“I’m sorry…uh, I fucked it alright? I don’t…City don’t want me back.” Jamie slid in front of you quickly to try slow your move to the table down. “And I didn’t win Lust Conquers All…”

“I’m sorry to hear you didn’t win your show. Maybe there’s another you can rate strippers on or something.”

“It’s all I’m actually any good at.” His voice was far more subdued, far more quiet than you’d heard him before so much so you would have missed it if it wasn’t said in a seconds pause between songs.

“Rating strippers?” You made a joke, lips twisting up as you raised an eyebrow. However Jamie in response still looked deadly serious, so much so that something inside made your resolve falter. It was not like Jamie Tartt to be remotely serious.

You sighed, eyes skimming over the room to your friend, who was trying to wave you over with a questioning look on her face. Holding up a few fingers, you indicated to her you’d only be two minutes. She shrugged and went back to whatever conversation she was having with her boyfriend.

“Please.” He asked once more and you knew would kick yourself if this turned out to be an act. “I swear down I’m being serious”

You glanced back at Jamie who looked so utterly defeated, in a way you’d never seen him. He looked a million miles away from that cocky, arrogant guy you’d seen last time.

“Fine. We can talk but… outside…” you threw your hand up and jerked your thumb at the door. “I’ll meet you out there. I need to let my friend know I’m leaving.”

**

The cold air hit you suddenly as you stepped out of the busy bar, squeezing by a hen do and heading down the stairs. Jamie was already waiting outside, shifting from one foot to the other, looking even more on edge that he had done inside. Having seen his adverts, you knew he was not that good of an actor, whatever was going on it had to be at least a little bit real.

“Alright. I’m all ears.” You stated as you reached the bottom.

Jamie found himself talking and talking to you as you walked through the city without any real direction. You asked the occasional question but besides that you were mostly just listening. He was stalling, putting off asking you for help by just relaying the drama between leaving City and being voted off the show. You could tell there was something else. There was no way he’d drag you, someone he barely knew, barely liked, out into the city streets to question the voting public for picking some guy called Danthony over him.

“They offered me a reality show…when I got kicked off but I’d have to do ecstasy and shit and…” Jamie trailed off, stuffing his hands into the pocket of his designer puffer jacket. “Didn’t want that.”

“Drugs too far?” You joked, not wanting to show that you were actually pleasantly surprised that he had a limit as to what he’d do for fame. His eyes caught yours and he shook his head.

There was a beat, a few seconds of only the city sounds, you spoke again, your voice and your eyes more sympathetic this time. “I’m glad you didn’t take it. It would be a waste of your actual talent if you did. You’re way too good at football to piss it all away for some shit show…Why did you leave City anyway? Thought you had it all worked out? And be honest with me, I’m not thick, I’ll know.”

Jamie caught your eye, your gaze on him was questioning, but not in the demanding, scrutinising way he was so used to. You were looking at him in such a way, If you didn’t hate him, Jamie could almost convince himself you were asking because you cared. The slight softening of your look on him made him drop what was remaining of his facade and tell you the truth. “I thought it’d piss off my dad.”

“Ah,” the sound was small, “Is your dad…?”

“A prick?” Jamie stated bluntly before you could finish “Yeah. On me all the time, over everything. Always has been. Always got something to fucking say. Got sick of it. I know it’s stupid but…”

“It’s not stupid…well it was a stupid thing to do…” you pulled your coat tighter against the wind. “but you’re not stupid. I understand. I think most people would. I’m sorry your dads an arsehole.”

“Thanks” He commented with a tight face as you rounded the corner. “But I’m used to it”

“You shouldn’t have to be.”

You stopped as he could see your hotel lit up ahead on the street you were now walking down and somehow you’d ended up back where you were staying and you felt a little bit sorry to leave him. A small, tiny part of you thought about inviting him up and offering to continue the conversation but this was Jamie and you had a feeling he would definitely get the wrong idea.

“Erm… this… this is me.” You tilted your head up ahead at the hotel door “Thank you for walking me back Jamie. Even if you didn’t mean to.”

“Do you think Richmond would have me back?” Jamie asked quickly, fearing he’d lose his chance at getting out what had been lingering on his mind since he’d walked out of the meeting with his agent. “I could really really use Richmond now. And I think Richmond need me?” He gave you a tweak of a smile, more hopeful than arrogant.

Ah of course. That was it. He did need something after all. Despite this, you didn’t feel any resentment, you actually felt a little bit bad for him. Jamie had been a first class twat but he also seemed to be genuinely trying to reach out.

You gave him an apologetic smile. “Look, I wish I could help but…you’ll have to talk to Ted. I don’t have any say it in. I can give him a heads up but at the end of the day, he’s the manager, Jamie.”

“Yeah. Keeley said the same thing.” He looked dejected, reluctant even. “Don’t know why I thought you’d say anything else.” He dragged one of his expensive trainers against the concrete pavement and you winced at thinking how they probably cost a substantial chunk of your wages.

“I’m not surprised. She’s smart, makes me wonder why she went out with you.” You took the opportunity to lightly tease him although kept your tone completely deadpan.

“Oi come on! I’m being nice!” Jamie’s head shot up, ready to protest until he could see you were smiling and his shoulders loosened.

“I know I’m messing with you.” You replied “but seriously Talk to Ted. He’s usually at The Crown and Anchor. He’s a nice guy, Jamie. Give him a chance.”

“Fine. Thanks.” Jamie shrugged, looking like he’d rather do anything else. “If it works, can I have my old house back?”

“I’ll sort something…Goodnight Jamie.”You reached over and squeezed his arm “and good luck.”

***

Jamie’s reintegration was not going as smoothly as he’d hoped. With the rest of the team being somewhat reluctant to forgive his attitude from his last spell in at the club, Jamie was now getting the cold shoulder.

“Shit!” You jumped when you walked into you office. “How long have you been here? How did you get in?”

“No one likes me.” Jamie muttered from the spare chair opposite your desk. He didn’t answer your question but from the lost look on his face you didn’t feel like pushing it. He was slouched so far over your desk, he was practically lying on it, training jacket pulled up over his face and his chin in his hand

“Can’t say I blame them. You were kind of an arsehole last time you were here.” You placed your bag on the spot on the desk not occupied by Jamie.

“But like I’m actually trying and they’re… are all being dickheads about it.” He sat up suddenly, throwing his arms back as he slumped back into the chair.

“Again I don’t blame them.”

“Colin said I was the worm now.”

You cocked your head confused “I’m not going to ask…but I probably don’t blame him”

“Even the new lads giving me stick”

“Yeah, word travels, you’re… kinda infamous here now”

“Yeah I know…” Jamie clicked his tongue as if you were stating the obvious “but why do they hate me… when I’m trying?” He held out his hands and looked over at you, waiting for your clarification.

“Jamie. You got us relegated, you were a bad team mate and a bit of a shit…”

“Alright, alright.” Jamie shrugged “just you’re the only one whose nice to me…except maybe Ted but he don’t count he’s nice to everyone and Keeley but she’s my ex ain’t she? How can I make them like me? Get them all something?”

“It’ll take time Jamie… you can’t just make it up to them with gifts…”

Deciding you had to do to something to distract him, you lifted your bag up from the desk again and gestured for him to stand up which he did so reluctantly.

“Right okay, get your keys…I’m not having you moping around my office…let’s go for a walk or a drive or whatever and talk. It’ll help. I promise”

**

It quickly became a regular, daily thing. Jamie would come to your office as soon as the on field training was done. The rest of the team would head into the gym and he’d come wait in your office or out for coffee until most of the others had left and then he’d slip down to the gym to train alone.

You’d were slowly softening to him. He’d even started opening up a bit more, slowly elaborating day by day until he was talking more openly to you than you’d ever thought. Underneath all the cocky bravado, Jamie was a sweet, funny, guy who’d just fallen into the trap of thinking arrogance was a shield against anything the world could throw at him. You liked this side of him far far more and you couldn’t help yourself but think if he’d always been like this, like he was now, you’d have been friends a long time ago.

You couldn’t stop yourself from laughing when Jamie told you about Ted’s alter ego act. Even more so that he was completely straight faced when relaying how weird it was. You could guess what Ted was doing, but Jamie seemed so serious he had you in stitches.

“Oh and I, erm, I spoke to the, the therapist lady…Doctor Sharon.” Jamie slipped in quickly, before he could change his mind over telling you. His eyes quickly shot over your shoulder to the aerial photograph of Nelson Road that decorated the wall behind your desk and focused hard on it as he waited for your response.

Jamie had no reason to doubt you’d be supportive but still he could have sworn the few seconds it took for you to reply was actually an hour. He worried in those few seconds that he’d overstepped the mark and made you uncomfortable with an over share or that you’d kick him out.

You couldn’t believed Jamie had just spent fifteen minutes ranting about ‘Led Tasso’ and completely neglected to mention that he’d spoken to the new therapist.

“Jamie…why didn’t you tell me!” You exclaimed, nearly knocking over the Richmond mug on your desk over your laptop. “That’s great!”

“Dunno” Jamie managed to drop his stare from the wall to you and shrugged “I erm, didn’t think it was worth mentioning. Keeley dragged me up there and I thought might aswell. Nothing better do to.”

“Course its worth mentioning. Getting help is the best thing you can do… it’s hard to take that first step and reach out. I’m proud of you.”

“Really?” For a second Jamie wondered if he’d hallucinated. He hadn’t heard that. Not those words in that order from anyone in a long time and Jamie liked the thought of you, of all people, being proud of him.

“Yeah! Going…and actually talking to a professional? That’s amazing! Did it help?”

Jamie let your response sink in before he nodded “Uh yeah I think so, spoke to her about like my dad and stuff. She’s really good.” He scratched his cheek quickly before dropping his hands to the table.

“It’s great, everything you’re doing. It’ll take time… but I’m just so happy you’re reaching out.” You leant over the desk and placed your hand over his and gave it a squeeze “you know you’ve always got me but talking to a professional is the best thing for you.” The second you’d retracted Jamie missed the reassurance provided by the warm contact.

“Knock knock” a voice called from the doorframe interrupting and Jamie felt his heart drop as one of his teammates stuck his head around “Hello!”

“Jan! Hi!” You beamed at him, getting up from your desk as Jamie tried not to let his disappointment show at the interruption. “Come in!”

“You ready? You’re always packed up early and ready to go so I thought I would come see” Jan slipped around the door and raised his eyebrows staring at your desk which, as he’d guessed, was already pretty much clear for the day. “Usually in the last hour you don’t do any work.”

You rolled your eyes at his assessment but didn’t protest. You very rarely got anything done in the last hour so tended to scroll on your phone, clear up and wait until you could leave.

“Alright?” Jamie attempted to greet the other man “Is anyone down in the gym, mate?”

Jan shook his head no, not conversing with the other man any more than needed and waited for Jamie to stand up and make his way to the door, stepping aside to let him leave.

“Um, thanks [Name], I’ll see you later yeah?”

“Yeah, I’ll come see you later.” You offered “We can go to that restaurant for dinner. The Indian one I was telling you about the other day?”

Jamie nodded and shut the door quickly suddenly all too aware of his teammate watching him.

***

“Why are you friends with him?” Jan asked pointedly as you left the room a few minutes later and made your way to the car park.

“Jamie’s really trying. Trust me last season he would not have even acknowledged me” you laughed and pointed at yourself.

“I don’t like him.” Jan said, looking like you’d posed some sort of serious question before he offered you a sweet from the bag he was holding out “Left you the red ones.” He glanced back into the bag “Well most of them!”

“Be nice!” You jokingly punched his arm before thanking him for leaving your favourites “Jamie’s trying not be a twat…but It’s hard for him. He’s had years of practice.”

Jamie watched you’d leave with the centre back from the open gym door. From your hushed voice, you were doing your best to keep quiet so he wouldn’t overhear but the ‘he wouldn’t have acknowledged me’ stung. Deep down he knew it was true, he hadn’t been nice to you, and you were understandably cold to him.

He’d find himself worried, wondering if you were with Jan, what if you no longer had time for him, what if he lost the one real friend he had. Although if Jamie was honest with himself, he’d liked you as more than a friend for a while.

A few days into his return to Richmond, he’d been unable to sleep. Worrying that the team hated him, would always hate him, was he this pathetic failure his dad said he was, would he ever be considered a talented footballer again or would he always just be a joke who put his ‘brand’ first.

He realised he’d didn’t want to call his anyone except you. He wanted to talk to you. You’d answered on the fourth ring and if you were annoyed at being woken at 1am, you didn’t sound it. You’d been concerned, asking if he was in trouble.

“No…I can’t sleep.” Jamie had said, almost ashamed to say anything more. He worried you’d think it was pathetic, a weak reasoning for calling, but at the same time hoped you’d pick up on the something left unsaid.

You did. “I know what you mean” you’d spoken, sleepily “you want a distraction? I can read to you if you like. My books so boring, you’ll fall asleep.”

Jamie had laughed and accepted your offer and settled in as you’d started to read some story.

When he woke the next morning, you were still on the other end of the phone. You were already awake but you must have stayed on the call with him.

‘Just in case’ you’d told him, the corner of your cheek twitching on one side.

It was the single most simple, caring gesture but it cemented it. In that moment he knew he was gone. You just knew him. When he needed to laugh, when he needed to talk and when he just wanted a distraction. (You’d never tell him how easy it was for you to tell).

The next time, hed offered to return the favour he’d read you the book Coach Lasso had bought him. He’d been reluctant at first but you’d persuaded him, encouraging him a little bit at a time and before you knew it, he’d read it cover to cover.

You were just a kind person, he told himself. You were like that with everyone. He’d see you excitedly trying some Nigerian food Sam brought in or attempt to speak Spanish to Dani, who would be thrilled and offer to teach you, he’d see you talk to Keeley, usually showing each other something on your phones and giggling.

Jamie would find himself analysing every conversation you’d had with him, where you like that with other people and for signs that maybe your feelings were mutual. He would run over everything in his head as he ran on the treadmill or worked on presses so much so that by the time he’d decided to just keep quiet, as he did every day, he’d have done several miles or lost count of the amount of presses he’d done.

Fuck it there was no way he could tell you. You were happy and you were his friend and he’d rather have you in his life as his friend than not at all.

***short time skip***

When Jamie had came into your office in a panic on Christmas Eve, asking you if you’d ever cooked a Christmas dinner and begging for you to help him cook one for his mum who would be visiting, you’d agreed against your better judgement. You’d cooked Christmas dinner twice. Once at University and once when your mum had a migraine and you had to finish off and now you were in Jamie’s house on Christmas Day making what he’d bought from M&S two days before into a Christmas dinner.

“I’m surprised you asked me. I thought you’d be inundated with offers.” You said, only half joking as you turned the parsnips in their tray. Jamie who was mulching the cranberries for the sauce like his life depended on it, just shrugged and muttered a ‘not really’. He wished he’d asked you to actually spend Christmas with him properly and not to do him a favour but doing so now would seem last minute and you’d already told him you were dropping in to the Higgins later.

As if on cue, your phone beeped from across the room and you swung the dish towel over your shoulder, not noticing Jamie staring as you flicked up to read Jan’s Whatsapp, watching your face for any signs. Trying to see if you’d added any little hearts next to his name or if you replied to him with twice as many X’s as you gave anyone else.

Ever since Jamie had realised he’d fallen for you, he’d became somewhat obsessed with trying to work out what was going on between you and his teammate. He’d never ask Jan directly. Having been on the receiving end of one of Jan’s blunt comments, Jamie didn’t want to risk hearing something he didn’t want to. With the team still giving him the cold shoulder more often than not, he considered asking Keeley. He’d seen you and her talking sometimes and wondered if it would be weird to ask his ex before realising if he did ask Keeley anything, there was the risk that Roy Kent would overhear and Jamie couldn’t imagine anything more embarrassing.

“Richard brought a girl to the Higgins’ party.“ you laughed, letting Jamie know what was happening “Jan just told me.”

“Of course he did” Jamie laughed “Not surprised. He’d bring a girl to training if thought he’d get away with it.”

“Thought that would have been you?” You teased back only to get an eye roll and elbow nudge in response.

After a few minutes, you walked around his kitchen to check the table was set and were surprised to see he’d done a decent job of it.

“I think you’re all set. I promise you can take all the credit. You just need to take the turkey out when she gets here and put the Yorkshires in. They’ll be done quickly so don’t burn them. Desserts are in the fridge.”

Jamie looked a little reluctant and you had to admit the idea of a footballer who regularly played in front of thousands of people being nervous about presenting a Christmas dinner to his mum was a little funny.

“It’ll be good. Trust me…oh wait!” Your face lit up as you suddenly remembered “I have a present for you!” Before he had the chance to respond you’d dashed out into the hall, retrieved the gift from beside where you left your coat and returned back and pushed it into his hands.

After making a show of rattling it to try sense what was inside, Jamie unwrapped it carefully. Your eyes focused in on his face looking for any sign, hoping he liked the gift and you’d hadn’t made things weird.

In the box was a pair of his boots, the same brand his mum had got him, like his first pair. Jamie lifted them out carefully, and turned them over in his hand to see them.

“They’re obviously not the exact pair but they’re customs, I asked Sam what brand they were and they don’t do the exact ones anymore but I found some guy online and…they’re pretty much the same…If you can’t wear them for games because of sponsorships or whatever, you can maybe use them for training or you can return them, i won’t be offended, I just…”

“Thank you.” Jamie was quiet, staring down at the boots before his eyes turned on you “this is the nicest present anyone has ever given me. I, um… thank you.” He repeated finding himself rendered somewhat speechless at what thought you’d put in and how you were clearly worried he wouldn’t like it.

“It’s nothing. I just wanted to do something for you…”

“It’s not nothing, I actually do really like them and I’m definitely wearing them. Next game. Thank you.” Jamie paused, his head was only filled with thoughts of how much he wanted to kiss you here in his kitchen, how much he wanted to ask you to stay with him, to spend the rest of the day with him, eating Christmas dinner with his mum and sharing the big box of Roses chocolates and watching any Christmas special just because and then dancing to whatever Christmas song came on, late into the evening.

“Actually I… I got you something too.”

“You got me a present?” Your eyebrows raised in a playful manner “It’s not like a signed picture of you or anything is it? Because if it is, it’s going on eBay.”

“No. Uh…two minutes alright?” Jamie left the room and returned a few minutes later, a poorly wrapped present in his hands. “Sorry about the shit wrapping.”

You laughed and unwrapped it, your face breaking out into a big smile as you found the present “no way!”“This is the coolest thing ever!”

A quiet, comfortable silence had fallen between the two of you over your FaceTime call, you’d just finished laughing about Jamie telling you how he broke into his schools tuck shop as a kid and stole six packets of malteasers. It should have been just a funny childhood anecdote shared with a friend and yet the comments you’d made a while ago itched at the back of Jamie’s mind. “You never asked me about myself, surprised you even remembered my name.” He’d gotten to know you since of course but he wanted to know more, he wanted you to tell him everything, like he was making up for looking through you before.

“Tell me something funny you did when you was kid” He asked before he could stop himself.

“Oh.” You shifted putting your phone down, thinking for a moment. “Ah okay I’ve got it!” You grinned “don’t laugh!” You made him promise.

“When I was a little kid, like I’m talking pre-primary school age, I had this cream cardigan, big daisies and red roses stitched all over it and I would wear it everywhere. I’d put it on to walk to school and cry when Miss Neil made me take it off, when I came home and my mum had to wash it, I’d sit by the washing machine and then in the garden waiting for it to dry. I’d even wear it when it was summer and it was probably too warm, I wore it even when it didn’t go with my outfit. I was not a fashion forward kid”

Jamie started laughing and couldn’t suppress it even over your protests that he promised he wouldn’t.

“What happened to it? The cardigan? You still have it?”

You pouted half jokingly “It got left on a plane on the way back from Tenerife. I cried so much, my dad rang Gatwick and the airport in Tenerife but no one ever turned it in. I’d have outgrown it but I loved that cardigan so much” you said wistfully “I was so annoyed thinking of some random person with my cardigan… I’ve searched online but there’s nothing like it.”

“Understandable. It sounds peak nineties” Jamie remarked with a raised eyebrow

“Oi. It would be considered vintage now” you laughed “Teenagers on depop would pay mega money for that.”

You picked it up and held it against you before putting it straight on without checking for tags.

“Jamie…” You wrapped it tight and folded your arms around you “You remembered! I feel a bit bad for joking now”

“Don’t…don’t…you don’t need to say anything.” Seeing you happy hit him like a brick wall. All he wanted was you smiling at him like you were doing now. His voice was quiet and he could feel the tension, he needed to do something, anything to dissipate it, if he didn’t…Jamie feared he’d just come out with it. “You have the real deal anyway, you don’t need a photo” He settled for a joke.

“Thank you!” You beamed at him and got up to kiss his cheek. “This is the coolest present ever!”

How was it that he’d never been short on attention from women but a kiss on the cheek from you had the biggest effect on him like he was a teenage boy again the first time he fancied a girl.

“Thank you for mine. And for all this…You really sure you can’t stay? It’ll just be me and mum and she’ll fall asleep after Eastenders.”

“Call me when she does. If I’m up, we can FaceTime” you still had your cardigan on and slipped your coat on over the top. “Maybe we can watch one of the Home Alones or Elf together.”

“I love Elf. It’s like my favourite film after Ratatouille.” He grinned at you and you laughed as you reached up and hugged him.

“I know. Merry Christmas Jamie.” You kissed him on the cheek once more

“Merry Christmas, [Name],”

***short time skip***

The addition of Roy to the coaching staff had gone perfectly…except for the one pretty major hiccup of Jamie clashing with him daily and on one occasion, making his way to your place after training to ask if you thought he had bad hair prompting you to wonder what exactly was going on.

A few days later and you were anxiously waiting on the final whistle in the quarter final against Tottenham, Jamie had played incredibly. A goal from right outside the box and only a minute ago he’d scored what looked like it would be the winner. At the sound of the whistle, you were up on your feet and running down to the tunnel. The moment you saw Jamie you ran to him and pulled him into a hug, him lifting you up and holding you flush against him for a few moments.

“You were amazing!” You enthused, looking up at him as you separated. “That free kick in the first half was one of the best ever seen! And a last minute goal… that’s the best game I’ve ever seen you play.”

Jamie grinned on a high from the result, his performance and now you gushing about him, telling him so earnestly how good he was felt amazing. For a moment he could forget you were in the Nelson Road tunnel with a little over 25,000 people just outside and other players and staff milling around you.

“Thanks. My first goal was good wasn’t it?” He was standing so confidently. It had turned out being a prick worked for him…so long as he kept it to the pitch. You liked seeing him back to the player you knew he could be.

“That’s goal of month, maybe even the season!”You reached up and fixed his hair without even thinking “Go celebrate. you deserve this.”

“Come out with me… I mean come out with us, we’re going out, all of us, you should come” Jamie said all at once.

“Sure I’ll come for one!” You nodded.

*

Across the bar, you could see a girl who looked like she could have walked off the set of Keeping Up with the Kardashians lean over and talk to Richard who was responding by pouring her a glass of wine, no doubt feeding her some sort of cheesy chat up line.

Jamie slid into the booth beside you, and, with the slight contact your knee made against his, he felt himself relax.

“That’s probably the third girl I’ve seen him give his number to tonight” he commented and you laughed, pleased to see him join you in your people watching.

“Welcome to being on this side of the fence.” You leant in close to him so you could talk.

“She not your type?” You asked curiously. “She’s alive isn’t she?” You teased. Jamie hadnt dated since Keeley, or rather, since his stint on the show if you could call that dating. It did seem a little odd to you that he’d never once mentioned anyone despite your fast formed friendship and everything else he’d willingly shared with you.

Jamie shook his head. “Nah i’m…”. How could he tell you he didn’t want anyone else other than you. “I’m not…nah not really doing that kinda thing anymore.”

Even if he tried, Jamie doubted he could bring himself to show any enthusiasm for chatting up anyone else anymore. How could he consider anyone else when it felt like you were the only person in the room who saw him. You actually saw him for him in his worst moments and still wanted to be around him. How could he not want you?

Your heart was beating as you took in Jamie’s response. It was only a short response but it set the smallest of sparks in your stomach and you took a swig from the bottle of cider in your hand to distract yourself from running over what that meant. Was he not interested in anyone? Was there something he wasn’t saying?

Looking for something to change the subject before it became awkward, your eyes fell to your phone, flat against the table, and you started at the clock telling you it was 00:10. Somewhat grateful for the easy out, you picked it up and slipped it into your back.

“I’m going to head home, I have an early start tomorrow.”

“Can i walk you home?” Jamie felt a little dejected but wouldn’t pass up the chance to spend time with you just one on one. “I don’t mind leaving now?”

You were grateful and almost wished you could take him up on it. Maybe when you were alone you could ask him more about what he meant.

How badly you wanted to say yes. Yes to him walking you home and how you’d hope on the walk home you’d maybe have enough courage to invite him in and up to your bedroom. The experience with your ex still lingered and you never ever thought it would be Jamie Tartt of all people to make you want to throw your one rule out of the window.

But he wasn’t the Jamie of old. This Jamie was funny and caring, he’d bring you a tea every morning before training, he’d call you and he’d ask you to go do “intellectual stuff” with him when he was too self conscious to go himself. He’d run through ideas or tactics he had with you and even ask you to watch his highlight reels, not for vanity but because he wanted a fans opinion, he’d get you to come out to dinners with him when he was offered free food at restaurants and throughout all of this, you were just his friend, his loyal best friend, when you were internally screaming that you wanted him.

Realising you hadn’t said anything in a few seconds, you quickly found a response “you’re the best for offering but… Jan’s offered to drive me. He’s not been drinking so it’s fine. He’s dropping off Colin too if you need a lift, I can ask him? I’m sure he won’t mind?” You asked, hoping Jamie would accept and you’d just both get out at his or yours.

Jamie felt an uncomfortable twist in his stomach.

Of course. Jan. Were you going back to his? Did you talk to Jan the way you talked to him? What had happened to “I don’t date footballers” or was that just your way of telling him you’d never want him like he wanted you? There was a part of him screaming to retreat, make an excuse, go home, move on but Jamie didn’t want to do that. He wanted to ask you outright but he couldn’t push the words out. So he did neither and just sat there.

“It’s okay.” He said forcing a smile. “Someone has to look after Isaac. I’ll get a taxi”

“Are you sure? If you want we can-…”

“Hey. Are you ready?” the Dutch centre-back interrupted from the aisle between tables before Jamie could reply “Some of us need sleep.” He teased, pointing at Colin who was leaning to one side, almost asleep on Moe’s shoulder “and I don’t want him to sleep in my car. Last time I had to let him sleep on my sofa.”

You laughed and almost as if he heard his teammate Colin jolted awake muttering he was ready and reaching for his coat.

“Sure I’m ready.” You gave Jamie a hug as you stood up and he watched you go, wishing he’d gone with you the second you were gone.

**

Jamie had been on edge since it was confirmed that the semi final at Wembley would be against Man City. You knew it had to be related to his dad, to his old club, to how everything was building to such a point that he was wound so tight, you were surprised he hadn’t snapped like an elastic band.

In the fall out from the result to Man City and the altercation with his dad, Jamie had come to you before he’d boarded the bus. He hadn’t needed to say anything, it was all over his face. You could see it. Without even needing to ask, Ted had waved for you to get on the bus with the team. Usually the staff would travel separately if they went to games but in this moment, the coach didn’t question it.

You settled in beside Jamie and shifted so he could rest his head on your shoulder and carefully you reached around so you could put an arm around him too and used your other to take his hand and you would stay that way for the journey back to the training ground where the players had left their cars.

Even as you exited the coach, you could tell he was tense, and as you walked him to his car, you could barely hear him when he came out with it.

“Are you okay?” You asked him once he’d done explaining “I’m so sorry Jamie. Your dad really is a prick”

Before Jamie replied, he looked up and over you across the car park, his eyes caught those of his teammate.

“I, uh, I will be. Fresh air is doing me good. I think I need to go home and sleep.” It wasn’t a lie.

“Jamie. I’m not an idiot. You need to talk?”

He pushed a hand back through his hair and with one look in your eyes conceded with a nod

*

After driving back to his and getting into his house, Jamie dropped onto the sofa, not bothering to change out of the training kit he’d travelled in. You made him a decaf tea and took a spot next to him on his sofa and let him lean back on you as listened to him tell you everything

“Was that the first time you’d…”

“Hit him back?” Jamie’s eyes didn’t lift from the spot in the middle distance. “Yeah. Couldn’t really fight back as a kid.”

“I was going to say ‘seen him since you left…” you kept your arm around him, loosely tracing in a manner you hoped was soothing. “But I’d guess same answer.”

Jamie lifted his head off your shoulder for a second. “Erm…” His dad had contacted him a few times whilst he’d played for City. Mostly asking for free tickets, to meet the rest of the team and to get tours of the ground. Jamie had given in reluctantly on the first one and skirted around the final two. “Yeah… I guess he wasn’t arsed about me playing for Richmond. Cant brag about me if I’m in the Championship and he can’t be fucked getting the train down to London”

“Jamie.” You tried “you deserve so much better…He doesn’t know what he’s missing out on.” You reassured him “you’ve been amazing these past few months Jamie. The best you’ve played. I know you probably wouldn’t want him at Richmond but still…his loss”

“Only got him the tickets to get him off my back and he didn’t even fucking support me. Went in the City end. Don’t know what I was expecting”

You imagined that must have stung for him. His dad feigning an interest just to turn around and support the team playing against his son. His old club, to add insult to injury.

“How do you feel now?” You asked cautiously. “Must have been hard for you to stand up to him…given how long he’s been…like that for?”

“I mean… shit because he’s my dad but he doesn’t act like he is, but like…I don’t regret it or anything…I just got fucking shit of it yknow…slagging me off, the club off…putting me down in front of everyone…and he’ll show up next time, if we get promoted he’ll be after tickets again…”

“We’ll make sure he doesn’t get near. You never have to deal with that again Jamie. You shouldn’t have had to take it back then and you don’t now”

“Thanks.” He added on “For… not just staying here but…for like always having time for me and that.”

“I’ll always have time for you Jamie.”

***a few weeks later***

The yearly charity gala had come around fast and unlike last year, you had actually looked forward to it this year. In the weeks leading up to it, you’d picked out a new outfit including new shoes.

Jamie had agreed to pick you up, asking you the second you’d said you were going and you’d agreed. Since you’d spent the night at his, completely platonically, Jamie’s already overwhelming feelings towards you had grown even more and you showing up to a charity gala with his teammate was the last thing he wanted and even though he’d spent the entire day telling himself this wasn’t a date, he still felt nervous as he rang your doorbell.

The second you opened it, he couldn’t help but break out into a big smile “You look… really good.” He nodded “this new?”

“Thank you” you accepted his compliment, nodding as you stepped aside to let him in “So do you. Not auctioning yourself off tonight?”

“Nah I’m not feeling up for it this year.”

Your eyes scanned his suit before realising his tie was slightly off “Can I?” You pointed at it.

You waited for him to nod before stepping in to fix his tie, before realising it needed a re-do.

“You know I’ve not had to wear a tie since school, but I reckon I could do a better job of it than this.” You joked, pulling the knot by his neck and re opening the fabric.

“You wore your tie? Don’t think I went a week without forgetting mine.” Jamie laughed.

“I was Deputy Head Girl.” You felt a little bit red, like suddenly you were back at school being paired with the popular boy for a project. “Kinda had to.” You looped it around before sliding it into place.

You shook the thought from your head. This was Jamie. Your friend. He could date anyone he wanted, why would he go out with someone normal and ordinary.

Jamie watched you in concentration for a few seconds before he couldn’t help himself.

“He’s punching going out with you, you know” the words came out of his mouth before he could stop them.

He couldn’t help himself. Jamie didn’t mean it, at least, he didn’t mean it as it sounded. Jan was fine and of course he would be your exception to your rule. He seemed like he’d be your type. Still it stung. He wasn’t used to not getting the girls he liked…but maybe he should have expected it. You weren’t interested in the fame that attracted girls to athletes normally so of course you wouldn’t want him. You probably liked Jan because he was honest, funny and spoke three languages rather than the money and fame.

You stopped what you were doing, hands still on his tie, confused.

“What are you on about?”

“Yknow…Jan. You’re way too fit for him.”

“I’m not going out with Jan.”

You made sure it was centred before letting go of the fabric and suddenly aware of your close proximity, you stepped back.

“He takes you home and stuff…I figured you two were.”

“Shagging?” You came straight out with it, eyebrows raised

“Well…yeah?” He shrugged. “Ain’t you with him?”

Who’d have thought it. Jamie Tartt, who you’d considered the biggest arsehole you’d ever met a few months back, now being protective over you. It was weirdly quite sweet. Truth be told, you’d warmed to Jamie. A lot. If anyone had told you that last season you’d have thought they’d gone mad. When he’d left Richmond, you’d never even expected to see him in person again, let alone be friends with him.

“Jan’s just a friend…Didn’t realise anyone had noticed…also… surprised you remembered my…thing about footballers”

“I’m glad you’re not with him cause, yknow he’s…”

“Are you going to call someone else a prick?” Your head tilted to the side, hair falling with it. “Because if you are, that’s pretty fucking ironic.”

Jamie opened and closed his mouth, ready to reply when he saw you were half smiling.

“I’m messing with you...again” you teased and Jamie remembered the conversation he’d had with you outside the hotel in Manchester. Only this time you were looking at him differently. Back then you were looking at him like he was lost, now he’d swear you were… almost looking at him with affection.

“Nah, hes… he’s alright yknow just he’s not…” Jamie paused. He couldn’t say ‘not good enough’ because if Jan wasn’t the type of footballer you’d date, Jamie knew he definitely wouldn’t be. “Not who i picture you with.”

“Who do you picture me with?”

You were looking up at him, genuine interest on your face like you were waiting on a serious answer.

“I, uh, I don’t know.” The twisting in his stomach had been replaced and now the weight of relief, finding out you weren’t actually with Jan had lifted he didn’t know exactly what to say. With other girls he’d never had a problem asking them out but you? It was always different with you. “Just someone else.”

“Jamie…what’s going on?” you reached up and gently tilted his face so you could look at him. In spite of your confident action, your heart was hammering against your chest.

He let out a deep breath, eyes flickering over you for a moment, before he came out with it

“When I thought you were going out with Jan Maas. It was driving me mad.”

“Why?”

“I…I guess maybe I was jealous or something?”

“Thought you didn’t get jealous.” You’d heard all about his escapades with other women via the press and via various clips people had sent you of him on his TV show.

“I don’t not normally …” Jamie played with the cuff links absentmindedly. He sighed and looked down and then back up at you “I don’t wanna be like that anymore…I just,” he paused.

“Look” you said again “whatever you want to say… you can tell me…”

Jamie didn’t know what was holding him back. “I want to be the kind of guy you’d go out with, i don’t wanna disrespect you, and like I don’t want to ruin us being mates but…I really, really like you.”

“Jamie.” You laced your hand with his, feeling a swelling in your chest “I wish you’d told me sooner…You already are…you are the kind of guy I’d go out with.”

“What?”

“You are…the type of guy that I’d go out with.” You repeated with a reassurance in your voice “How could you not be? You’re sweet, you’re funny, you make me laugh…you listen…”

Jamie felt his heart hard against his chest, barely able to let your words sink in. “So if I asked you out? you’d go out with me?”

“Of course I will.” You squeezed his hand gently and as his shoulders relaxed and you couldn’t help but let out a small laugh as he dropped his forehead to yours.

“I can’t believe Jamie Tartt was worried about asking me out. You’ve been out with like models and stuff…and it’s me that you were worried about.”

He sighed “Yeah but that’s why I like you…cause you’re you.”

Come on. Let’s go to this auction.”

“Together yeah?”

“Of course. Good job your shirt matches my outfit…or you’d have to change” you teased.

Cue when you walked in hand in hand, Jamie was greeted by about half the team congratulating him on you two finally getting it together, including Jan who’d found it hilarious that Jamie had thought something was going on between you too.

***

Jamie had, with the best intentions, planned a perfect evening. A few days after you’d accepted him asking you out, he’d booked a reservation at restaurant he knew you’d like as a surprise knowing that it was one you’d always walked by and remarked it looked nice but never got around to trying it .

Things had not gone as planned.

After you’d arrived at the restaurant, you’d found out they’d closed due to a leak in the kitchen, you’d suggested going to a local bar and had lasted all of fifteen minutes before a drunk man in a too tight t shirt had knocked his pint over you and staggered off without apologising much to your ire. Jamie had wanted to go after the man and tell him to apologise but you’d just wanted to leave. Only ten minutes after leaving, Jamie had been approached by a group of kids looking for pictures and autographs and only a few seconds later, the skies opened and despite trying to huddle under a canopy of a nearby, closed cafe, you got soaked. Jamie, whilst taking photos with the young kids gave you a mouthed sorry but you told him to carry on knowing it would make the kids day.

Once he was done, he jogged back over to you, now shivering slightly and offered you his coat as you ran back to his

*

“You look really fit in my stuff. You should keep them.” Jamie remarked as you flopped down next to him on the sofa, now wearing a oversized tee and joggers that he’d pulled out for you to wear whilst your actual outfit was in his washing machine.

“Sorry the date was shit.” He added on as he ran a towel over his damp hair.

“Could have been worse” you shrugged with a smile as you dried off your own hair. “I’ve had worse dates.”

He let out a sigh and laid back on the sofa “I just wanted to take you out some place dead nice.”

“Jamie...that’s so sweet but you don’t have to. I just like being with you.” You shifted closer to him and scooted under his arm to rest on his chest. “I don’t care if it’s at a restaurant or like this…”

“I promise we’ll go out somewhere proper next time.” He leant down and kissed you softly. Dating you made Jamie felt like he’d finally got everything he’d ever wanted, and he was kicking himself for not asking you out the second he realised he had feelings for you.

“I could do that all day” You muttered against his lips as you separated briefly.

He placed a hand on your cheek and brushed your hair back before kissing you again. “Don’t think we could do this in the restaurant.”

You smiled against his mouth “well we could but probably wouldn’t be allowed back…”

“Maybe we can go back when they’ve fixed the leak and try?” Jamie made a joke and you playfully swatted him before kissing him again.

“Oh, Im holding you to that…”

***

Dating Jamie was so easy. Much easier than you’d thought. It was just like it was when you were friends but he’d always be taking your hand or wrapping an arm around you or kissing you…and of course you’d spend the night together rather than driving home after meeting up. When people had said date your best friend you’d never actually thought it could be possible.

Any fears or ghosts of your past that lingered over the bad experience with your ex were soon quashed by Jamie. Before you’d got together, you’d found it somewhat bittersweet that it was the former ladies man that you’d fallen for after swearing off dating footballers but now that you woke up to him every other morning and got to see him being the absolute perfect boyfriend to you, it just made sense.

So much so that eventually you’d caved and told him the name of the player you’d went out with before and Jamie had been thrilled to learn your ex was a goalkeeper and had made a promise to you he’d score against him.

You’d found it adorably sweet in the moment and incredibly hot when he followed through with his promise not once but twice, securing a brace and a win in the same game and making a big show of pointing at you and blowing a kiss into the stands. He’d almost been late in the next morning.

Jamie knew he loved you. Maybe it had started when you’d given him that chance in Manchester. You didn’t have to. If you’d told him to piss off, Jamie wouldn’t have blamed you but you hadn’t. You’d seen something in him, maybe believed in him deep down and now he was a better man, in part due to you.

The final game of the season was a whirlwind of emotions and knowing he’d be nervous for the game that could earn Richmond promotion back into the Premier League you’d snuck into the tunnel to see him just before he went out

“Good luck today babe.” You leant up and kissed him gently. “No matter what happens. I’m so proud of you, the player you are and the man you are.”

“Thanks” his eyes met yours “I, uh could have never done it without you.”

“Course you could. The talents all yours”

“I mean the…” Jamie paused, before looking at your shirt. He turned you around. “You’re wearing my shirt” he grinned at you and held up your arm so he could twirl you and see his name on your Richmond shirt. “Looks good on you”

“Course I am. Who else’s shirt would I wear.” You leant in and kissed him once more before the sound of the rest of the team approaching signalled it was time for you to go join the rest of the fans in the stands. “Smash it for me babe.”

**

Upon the final whistle, the coaching staff and bench descended on to the pitch to celebrate and you couldn’t help yourself.

You ran down to the barrier, dug into your bag to flash your work lanyard at a steward and ran on yourself, calling out to Jamie as you approached.

He caught you as you jumped into an embrace, quickly asking if he was okay after he was fouled in the lead up to Richmonds penalty. Jamie nodded.

“Yea yeah I’m fine babe. I’ve never been happier.” He looked breathless, a mixture of excitement, energy and adrenaline from the game.

“I love you Jamie.”

He kissed you deeply, passionately, caught up in the moment and not caring about the thousands of surrounding people, happy to be celebrating with you and the team.

“I love you. Next year I’m going to win you the whole thing”

[ducktoo]

Syncing Dream [Aespa x M!Reader]

12. Jelly does come in both ways

Note: pretty long chap soo….enjoy the fluff!

Masterlist here

Ever since the topic of dating came up, Ningning, ever the instigator, had been joking around during one of their late-night practice sessions. They were cooling down, lying on the floor of the practice room, and Y/n had just stepped out to grab some water.

And a little birdie has chirped that Y/n got set up to a blind date.

“You know,” Ningning had said, shooting a glance at Winter, “if Y/n’s going on a date, maybe you should’ve set him up with someone, unnie. I mean, you are the same in age.”

Winter, sitting cross-legged, froze mid-stretch. “W-What? Why me?”

Karina, sensing an opportunity to join in the fun, smirked. “Well, you are always bickering with him. Opposites attract, don’t they?”

“Yeah,” Giselle added with a sly grin, “and you two spend so much time together. You must know his type by now.”

Winter’s face flushed. “That’s ridiculous! We just childhood friends. That’s it.”

Ningning snickered. “Sure, unnie. Whatever you say.”

The teasing didn’t stop there. The other girls kept dropping little comments and giggles every time Y/n and Winter interacted. Winter, despite trying her best to ignore it, couldn’t help but feel a twinge of something every time they mentioned the date.

It wasn’t jealousy—definitely not—but she was... annoyed. That’s all it was. She didn’t even know the girl Y/n was meeting, yet something about the situation irked her.

And that’s how Winter found herself leading the charge to spy on Y/n’s date.

-

When Y/n agreed to go on a blind date, he had no idea he’d also be starring in a spy movie—except, instead of highly trained professionals following him, it was four idiots wearing oversized sunglasses and ridiculous disguises.

Winter, Giselle, Ningning, and Karina sat huddled in the corner of a small café, pretending to read menus they had no intention of ordering from. It was Winter’s idea, of course, to “just check in” on Y/n’s date. She swore it was for his own good, not because of any weird feelings she might or might not be experiencing.

She watched from behind her menu as Y/n walked into the café, looking more put together than usual—buttoned-up shirt, hair neatly styled, even a bit of cologne. Winter’s stomach did a weird little flip, and she cursed herself for noticing.

“There he is,” Ningning whispered, her voice barely containing her amusement. “Our boy’s looking sharp.”

“Do you think she’s pretty?” Giselle asked, eyes darting to the entrance.

Winter didn’t respond, but her grip tightened on the menu. This was stupid. Why was she even here? She had better things to do with her day off than spy on Y/n’s date.

But then again, if she wasn’t here, who knew what kind of person Y/n might be meeting? What if she wasn’t nice? What if Y/n got catfished?

“Oh! There she is,” Karina whispered, nudging Winter.

The girl who entered was undeniably pretty—stylish, confident, and exactly the kind of person you’d expect Y/n to go on a date with. Winter’s stomach twisted again. She wasn’t sure why.

As the girl approached Y/n and they started talking, Winter kept stealing glances, trying not to look too obvious. The conversation seemed to be going well, and Y/n even laughed at something the girl said.

Winter’s frown deepened. “He laughs like that with everyone,” she muttered under her breath.

“What was that?” Ningning asked, peeking over her sunglasses.

“Nothing,” Winter snapped, sinking lower into her seat.

Karina, sensing Winter’s mood, leaned in. “You know, you’re the one who insisted we do this.”

“I know,” Winter grumbled. “I just didn’t think he’d... I don’t know.”

“Look at him,” Giselle whispered, nodding toward Y/n. “He’s practically glowing.”

Winter glared at her. “I’m not jealous.”

“Sure,” Ningning said with a wink. “Whatever you say, unnie.”

-

As the date went on, the girls’ presence became harder to ignore. At first, they tried to be subtle—occasionally walking by the table, pretending to stretch, or “accidentally” dropping things nearby. But when Ningning knocked over a stack of napkins for the third time, Y/n shot them a look that screamed “I know you’re watching.”

“Okay, this is getting ridiculous,” Winter whispered, clutching her iced coffee. “He’s going to catch on.”

“He already has,” Karina said, barely containing her laughter. “Look, he’s staring right at us.”

Y/n’s eyes were practically drilling holes into their table, but Winter refused to meet his gaze.

“Abort mission?” Giselle suggested, trying to stifle a giggle.

“No way,” Ningning whispered. “We’ve come too far.”

Winter, against her better judgment, found herself agreeing. She couldn’t back out now. Not when she’d already gotten this far.

-

Eventually, Y/n’s date couldn’t help but notice the commotion. The girl looked over at the corner where aespa was failing miserably at being inconspicuous and raised an eyebrow.

“Uh... Y/n?” she asked, pointing. “Are those... your friends?”

Y/n sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Yeah... unfortunately.”

Winter, realising they’d been caught, stood up from the table, dragging the others with her. She marched over to Y/n’s table, her face burning with embarrassment.

“I’m so sorry,” she blurted, avoiding Y/n’s gaze. “We didn’t mean to... interrupt.”

Y/n leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. “Really? Because it looks like you’ve been spying on me for the past hour.”

Winter winced. “Okay, maybe we were. But it was Ningning’s idea!” she quickly deflected, throwing the youngest under the bus.

“Hey!” Ningning protested, though she didn’t seem too offended. “I was just curious! You know, making sure everything was going smoothly.”

Y/n’s date laughed, clearly more amused than upset. “It’s fine. Honestly, I think it’s cute that you guys are so close.”

Winter’s cheeks flushed. Cute? Was that how it looked? She wasn’t trying to be cute. She was just... concerned. That was it. Just concerned.

Y/n sighed, looking between his date and the girls. “I can’t believe this,” he muttered. “I should’ve known you guys wouldn’t leave me alone.”

“We just wanted to make sure you weren’t getting catfished!” Ningning defended with a grin. “Plus, you’re our manager. We have to look out for you.”

Y/n shot her an exasperated look. “Right. Sure.”

As the date came to an end, Winter couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of relief. Y/n’s date had been nice, sure, but she hadn’t been that nice. Not like Winter had been worried or anything... but still.

-

The girls continued to tease Y/n as they left the café, all of them walking back together. Ningning kept making little comments about how Y/n was “glowing,” while Karina and Giselle chuckled at his flustered expression.

Winter, on the other hand, stayed quiet, her thoughts swirling. She wasn’t sure why she felt the way she did, but she couldn’t shake the strange feeling that had settled in her chest.

“Well,” Y/n finally said, sighing as they reached the dorm, “I guess that’s the last time I agree to a blind date…and also see her.”

“Aw, come on,” Ningning teased. “Don’t give up yet. There’s still hope!”

Y/n rolled his eyes but couldn’t suppress a small smile. “Sure, if you guys don’t tag along next time.”

Winter smirked slightly, shoving her hands in her pockets. “No promises.”

-

It all started innocently enough, just a casual conversation about plans for the weekend. The girls had a break coming up, and for once, it seemed like everyone had something to do. Except for Y/n.

"So, what’s everyone doing this weekend?" Ningning asked as they sat around the practice room, cooling down from their dance session.

Karina stretched, glancing over at the others. "I’m thinking of going back to visit my family."

Giselle yawned. "I’m planning to catch up on sleep. A lot of sleep."

Winter, who had been unusually quiet, glanced at her phone before looking up with a slightly nervous smile. "Uh, I... actually have a date."

The room went silent.

Y/n, who had been casually sipping his water, almost choked. “Wait, what?”

Karina and Giselle exchanged quick looks, trying not to grin too widely, while Ningning's eyes sparkled with mischief. "Ohhhh, a date, huh?" she teased, leaning toward Winter. "And you didn’t think to tell us earlier?"

Winter’s cheeks flushed. "It’s not a big deal. Just someone I met through a friend."

Y/n could feel the odd, unfamiliar sensation bubbling in his chest. His grip on the water bottle tightened. “A date,” he repeated, as if confirming it to himself.

Minjeong was going on a date.

For some reason, that didn’t sit right with him. Not that he had any say in what Winter did with her free time, of course, but something about it made him... uneasy.

“Who is he?” Y/n blurted out, trying to keep his voice casual but failing miserably.

Winter raised an eyebrow at his tone. “Just a guy. Why, are you jealous or something?”

The question hung in the air, half a joke but with a hint of challenge in Winter’s eyes.

Giselle, sensing the shift, smirked. “Oh, this is getting interesting.”

“I’m not jealous,” Y/n said a little too quickly, his heart racing. “I just... you know, I want to make sure he’s not some random guy. You have to be careful.”

“Dejavu….” Karina muttered while glancing at the other 2 girls, who had the same idea.

Winter crossed her arms, a teasing glint in her eyes. “Uh-huh. Sure. I’ll be fine, Y/n. You don’t have to worry.”

Ningning, loving every second of the exchange, leaned over to Karina and whispered loudly, “I think we’ve found our next couple to tease.”

Karina chuckled, nodding. “Definitely.”

Y/n, now flustered, tried to shake off the growing irritation gnawing at him. He knew the girls were teasing, but the thought of Winter going on a date was seriously messing with his head. Why did he care so much?

But then, there was that look Winter had when she teased him. That sparkle in her eyes, the small smile playing on her lips. It made his chest tighten in a way that was completely unfamiliar.

-

Y/n paced nervously in front of the large windows overlooking the city from the café’s second floor. He told himself, “This is purely for safety reasons. Nothing more.” His hands were shoved into his pockets, but his mind was racing a mile a minute. Winter was on a date. With some guy. And he couldn’t shake the unsettling feeling that gnawed at him.

"Why do I care so much?" he muttered to himself, watching the small table near the window where Winter sat with her date. She seemed relaxed, laughing at something the guy said.

He tried to play it cool when Winter first mentioned the date, but now that it was happening, he couldn’t help but worry. The fact that the guy recognised Winter as a member of aespa only added to his anxiety.

He glanced over again, eyes narrowing slightly. The guy didn’t look suspicious, but then again, Y/n had seen this type of situation play out before. A fan pretending to be a casual date, using it as an opportunity to get closer to idols—Winter in this case.

Y/n's phone buzzed, pulling him out of his thoughts. It was Ningning.

Ningning:

You better not be doing what I think you’re doing.

Y/n sighed. He was caught. Of course, she would know. She always knew. He typed back quickly.

Y/n:

I’m just making sure she’s safe.

Ningning:

Sure you are. 🙄 You do realise Mindoogie can take care of herself, right? Stop being jealous and come back before she notices..

Y/n groaned. Jealous? He wasn’t jealous. He was… concerned. And besides, Ningning wasn’t helping by pointing out what he already refused to admit. He shoved his phone back in his pocket and continued to observe from his spot, only for Giselle to join in with another text.

Giselle:

I heard you’re spying on Winter’s date. Get a grip, dude. 😂

Y/n:

You guys spied me last time, anyway. Why can’t I TT

Ningning:

Just because

Clearly, Ningning had told the others. Y/n clenched his jaw, resisting the urge to reply. Giselle’s playful jab wasn’t going to change his mind. He was here for a good reason. At least, that’s what he kept telling himself.

-

Downstairs, Winter took a sip of her coffee, her eyes flickering toward the window. She was having a decent time, but there was something off. Her date had been nice enough, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that he was more interested in her career than in her as a person. He kept bringing up aespa, talking about their music, their recent performances, and fan events.

At first, she appreciated that he knew her work, but after the fourth mention of the group, it was getting a little weird. She shifted in her seat, wondering if she should just call it a night.

"You must get so many fan gifts, huh?" her date asked with an awkward chuckle. "It must be wild."

Winter forced a smile. "Yeah, it’s part of the job."

She didn’t want to seem rude, but she couldn’t help but wish she were somewhere else. The conversation felt more like an interview than a date. “This was a bad idea,” she thought.

Suddenly, she glanced out the window again and spotted something—or rather, someone—familiar. Her eyes widened as she realised…

Y/n was standing a few feet away, trying (and failing) to blend in with the people passing by.

"Wait a second..." she muttered under her breath.

Her date noticed her distracted expression and turned to follow her gaze. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, it’s just—" Winter’s mind raced. Why on earth was Y/n spying on her date? Was he seriously that worried about her? She could handle herself just fine.

-

Y/n had just stepped back from the window, deciding it was time to leave, when he heard a voice behind him.

"Idiot?"

He froze. Slowly, he turned around to see Winter standing there, arms crossed, a mixture of amusement and frustration on her face.

"Uh... Hey," he said, scratching the back of his neck. "Fancy seeing you here."

Winter raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "What are you doing here?"

Y/n tried to come up with a believable excuse but knew there was no way out of this one. "Hahhh…. I was just... making sure everything was okay. You know, safety first and all that."

"Safety?" Winter echoed, her voice laced with disbelief. "You’re spying on my date, aren’t you?"

"Spying is a strong word," Y/n mumbled, clearly caught. “And you did it last time with the others…”

Winter couldn’t help but laugh. The situation was ridiculous, and as much as she wanted to be annoyed, seeing Y/n flustered like this was amusing. "You know I can take care of myself, right?"

"Yeah, I know," Y/n said quickly, but his eyes flickered with something else—something Winter hadn’t noticed before. "I just... I didn’t want anything bad to happen."

Winter softened at his words. She knew Y/n was protective, but this was a new level of concern. "You don’t have to worry about me all the time, Y/n," she said gently. "I can handle it."

"I know," he sighed, finally admitting defeat. "I just couldn’t help it. The guy knew you were in aespa, and I thought maybe he was... I don’t know, taking advantage of that."

Winter smiled, a genuine one this time. "He’s just a fan, but I could tell it wasn’t going anywhere. You didn’t have to follow me."

Y/n nodded, feeling a bit silly now. "Yeah, sorry. I’ll back off next time."

Winter chuckled softly. "No need. It’s kind of... sweet. In a really weird way.

Before Y/n could respond, Winter’s phone buzzed. She glanced down and rolled her eyes. "It’s Ningning. They’re all laughing at us, aren’t they?"

"Damn right they are," Y/n muttered.

Winter shook her head and sighed. "Come on, let’s get out of here. This date wasn’t exactly what I thought it’d be anyway."

"Really?" Y/n asked, surprised. "You’re cutting it short?"

"Yeah," Winter shrugged. "He was more into aespa than into me."

“I bet his bias wasn’t you.”

“Oh shush, idiot”

Y/n smiled, feeling a sense of relief wash over him. "So... what now?"

"How about we grab some real food?" Winter suggested. "I’m starving."

"Sounds good," Y/n grinned, already feeling better as they left the café together. Winter had handled everything just fine, but maybe, just maybe, Y/n didn’t mind being there for her—even if it meant being caught in the act.

[greenwitchfromthewoods]

redemption : triangle. l Frankie “Catfish” Morales

❤️‍ broken hearts seek redemption ❤️‍

Summary:  three is already a crowd

Warnings:  angst, a few bad words, fluff

A/N: I don't like leaving them like this. something like a mini series, not necessarily good and nice stories. scribbles. I hope that despite everything you will stay with me.

your feedback is very important to me and I thank you for all the reblogs, comments and likes. 🖤 sorry for all the mistakes

first part is here >> triangle <<

a few ways to break a heart [masterlist]

broken hearts seek redemption [masterlist]

Will was right, if he spent a few more days in his own four walls he would surely go crazy. And even though he felt terrible and had absolutely no desire to go to that bar with him, he finally found himself there with a bottle of beer in his hand and thinking "What the hell am I doing here?". 

The last few months had been a total disaster. Maybe that's how it is? When things start going well at work, everything else falls apart.

Frankie's gaze swept over the crowd of people having fun, he felt like an alien. Will went to greet some friends and disappeared for a moment, and Frankie wondered if his friend would notice when he evacuated home.

Then he saw it. A familiar figure flashed right past the bar, and a heavy stone fell into his stomach. 

He would recognize you anywhere, even at the end of the world and after thirty years. His whole body tensed, and his sharp eyes quickly found you again. It had been a little over two months since you last spoke, and here you were in the same place as him.

He took a sip of beer and headed towards you. He didn't know what to expect, he didn't know if you would even want to talk to him, but... Fuck! He needed you more than ever.

"Hi."

You recognized that voice immediately. Your heart stopped beating for a moment.

"Hi, Frankie." You replied quietly, looking at him, "Good to see you."

For a second you both wondered if that was true. Frankie looked good. His unruly curls were sticking out from under his cap, his eyes, although a little sad, looked at you with hope. 

Damn, you loved those eyes of his...

"I came with Will." he said, even though you didn't ask him, he wanted to say anything, "You look good."

"Thank you. You too."

"Maybe I can buy you a beer or a drink? Can we talk?"

"I was actually about to go home, I wasn't planning on coming here today. My friend talked me into it..."

"I can drop you off."

You opened your mouth to say something, but you gave in and nodded. You saw a small, but so familiar smile on his lips. 

You missed him so much.

It was strange to be so close to him again. At the same time, it felt so natural. For a few minutes you rode in silence, until Frankie broke it.

"Gloria and I... We broke up." he said without even looking at you.

You squeezed your hands tighter in your lap. "I'm sorry. She was a really nice girl."

"She was." he nodded. "And you? Are you seeing anyone?"

"No, it's fine as it is." you replied quietly. "You and Gloria, is it fresh? Do you want to talk about it?"

"Naaah, there's no need. We broke up on good terms, no drama. You know what's funny?"

You looked at his profile attentively. You didn't know what could be funny about a breakup.

"You left, and two weeks later everything fell apart. Isn't that funny?"

He looked at you, but you just looked down. What were you supposed to say? No feeling was right.

The car stopped in front of your house and you quickly unbuckled your seatbelt. You wanted to get to a safer space as soon as possible, your head was spinning from the excess of thoughts.

"Thanks." You mumbled and jumped out of the car before Frankie could say anything.

However, you hadn't even taken five steps when you heard the door slam shut.

"Will you finally tell me why you left?" he called, and you bit your lip. "You must have had a reason. If I didn't do anything wrong, then... It must have been because of her, right?"

You turned to him. He thought you looked as sad as he had ever seen you. Your gaze almost begged him for mercy.

"Does it matter now?" you asked.

Frankie took a few steps towards you and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

"We were friends, I guess I deserve at least a little honesty, huh?" he mumbled. "You know what Gloria told me?" you shook your head. "She sat down next to me one night and told me that since you left, I've become like an empty shell. She said that she always knew there was something more between you and me, and at first she was jealous of it. But I never gave her a reason to feel inferior, and you were always fair to her. She understood that when you disappeared from my life."

Your throat tightened painfully, and tears welled up in your eyes. "Frankie, please... This doesn't make sense."

"Did you really feel something for me?" he watched you carefully as if he wanted to catch every little gesture, and maybe even a lie. "Is that why you decided to pull away from me, because you didn't want to..."

"It doesn't matter now!" you interrupted him "I'm sorry you and Gloria broke up, but I had nothing to do with it."

Frankie took a few more steps, but you didn't even move, your body refusing to obey. "You have a lot to do with this. Because I think she was right. And you know what? I can't stop thinking about it. Fuck! It's driving me crazy! Did you ever have feelings for me, baby?"

Tears rolled down your cheeks, a sob escaped your throat. "I still feel it and it's killing me..." you groaned. "I thought that when we didn't see each other, you'd be safe, and happy... I didn't want you to suffer, but I fucked everything up!"

Frankie's shoulders slumped as if a huge weight had been lifted from them. But you continued to sob.

"You were happy with her, and I felt worse and worse! I loved you, but I didn't want it to make you suffer..."

"So not having you in my life was supposed to help me? That's a fucking stupid idea!"

"I wonder what you would do in my place?" you replied "We were friends!"

"You broke my heart and I was wondering what I had screwed up!" Frankie raised his voice "Where was the happiness you had planned for me in all of this, huh? Because without you I couldn't see anything that would give me that."

"Frankie..."

"You silly girl!" he growled.

In a few quick steps he covered the distance between you. You only had time to catch your breath when his strong hands grabbed your face and pulled you to him. 

Your lips crushed together in a hard kiss. His tongue licked your lower lip and when you parted your lips shamelessly he slipped inside taking your breath away. It wasn't gentle and tender, but passionate and strong, as if Frankie wanted to show you everything he felt. And you kissed back completely dazed by the experience.

You both needed to catch your breath so he pulled away from you and looked into your eyes with a slightly misty gaze "Don't ever come up with such stupid ideas again, do you understand me?"

"But..."

"Do you understand me?"

"But Frankie..."

"Shit! Woman, I love you."

That took your breath away.

"Don't ever come up with such shitty ideas again." Frankie continued, his thumbs tenderly stroking your wet cheeks "I want you to tell me everything, even if it hurts us. But we're supposed to be in this together, do you understand that?"

"I love you, Frankie..." you whispered, placing your hands on his, and he smiled.

"I hope so, because now you'll never get rid of me."

He kissed you again, this time more gently and tenderly, and you felt like your heart was finally complete. It felt good.

☆☆☆☆☆

Thank you for your time.

[tokki-tteokbokki]

One by One

Chapter Five: Catfish

Seungmin x Fem Reader

MDNI

18+

Synopsis:

After constantly fighting with your boyfriend, Jisung, your relationship abruptly ends.

Unaware of the secret hope of your relationship's demise by your friends.

One by one, the boys can't help themselves.

Chapter Four:

Chapter Six:

Warnings:

dirty dirty smut like usual :), breakup, angry mean jisung, mild physical altercation, unprotected sex, passion💃🏻,

“You guys did… what?” Seungmin scooted closer to Jeongin on the couch. “Uh.” Jeongin turned pink he wasn’t expecting a text from Minho starting a group chat with Chan. Minho’s texts read carefully.

Minho Hyung: Looks like (y/n) is making the rounds. Jisung just saw Changbin and (y/n) down in the gym mounting each other. I haven’t told him anything about me or you guys. Keep it quiet or we’re all fucked.

Jeongin had heard his phone ping from the kitchen, Seungmin was getting them both some snacks to watch their movie. He asked Seungmin to bring it over. As Apple products would have it, as soon as Seungmin picked it up the screen illuminated and his eyes read the secret his three members were keeping.

“All of you fucked (y/n)?” Seungmin’s voice was quiet and curious, he wanted to know everything. “Yeah…” Jeongin inhaled slowly, his mind began to play back the memory of hearing you and Minho to fucking you in the plane. Seungmin perked up like an eager puppy “When? How?” he pressed. Jeongin stayed silent in embarrassment “Tell me!” He pleaded. Jeongin didn’t know how to answer him, does he tell him about the way he lurked when you were getting fucked? Does he explain how he railed you 30,000ft in the air. “I wanna fuck her too.” Seungmin’s statement broke Jeongin’s scattered thoughts with pure shock. “What?” He coughed “I wanna fuck her.” Seungmin asserted. “I- I don’t- Dude!” Jeongin stuttered. Realizing Jeongin wouldn’t be much help he picked up Jeongin’s phone.

“What are you doing?” Jeongin peered over his shoulder as he watched him open your contact information. “I’m going to fuck her.” He smirked. He opened messaged and began typing. Jeongin freaked at the sight of the message “No! No way!” He tried to reach for his phone “Give it back!” Seungmin kept him at bay as he finished his message and sent it off. “Don’t be selfish.” Seungmin stopped fighting and gave his phone back. Jeongin worriedly looked at the message “This isn’t going to work. She gonna think you’re me!” “Exactly! She’s not going to come over here if i propositioned her. Better someone she’s already done says something.” He chuckled “Don’t worry, I’ll do all the work. Just let me keep texting her on your phone.” He patted Jeongin on the back. “We’re so fucked.” He sighed, sinking back into the couch.

After a nice shower with Changbin you said your goodbye and made your way back to your apartment down the hall. Your abdomen achy from all the clenching you did around Changbin’s cock. You chuckled to yourself smirking, that leaves three left. You shook you head, what were you thinking? Were you really expecting to fuck the last three members?

You sighed, your head dropping and your eyes following to the floor. Stuck in your own head, you felt your phone vibrate. It was Jeongin. He… Oh my.

Jeongin: Noona, I can’t stop thinking about you… I keep thinking about when we fucked. I need more. Come over, let me fuck you again.

Your mouth dropped open and your chest quickened. Before you could register anything you heard a door open. It was Minho’s and Jisung’s apartment just ahead of you. Jisung came into view. He looked at you, his eyes ignited like the flames of hell. You slightly cowered but then found some confidence to try to walk past him. He stood still in front of his door when suddenly you felt his hand grab your arm. “What the hell?” You jerked against his grip. “Changbin? Seriously?” He spat out, you felt your stomach sink. “What?” “I saw you.” He interrogated “Jisung let go.” You wiggled against him again “Once a slut always a slut.” He aggressively released your arm. Your body began to burn at his words. How dare he bring up your past like that.

You had a phase before you and him started dating. Stricken by numbness and craving control, you hooked up with a number of people. Most you don’t even remember. When you two started dating, Jisung never held it against you and told you that your worth didn’t come from your body count. He loved you no matter what.

You never expected him to insult you like this, taking such a low and brutal blow at you. “You did not just-“ “Even more, one of my best friends?” Your blood ran cold “It’s not-“ “It’s not what I think?” He interrupted you. “Why don’t you fuck all my friends?” He let out a angry chuckle “Even then, probably wouldn’t be enough for a whore like you.” Your eyes widened and you could feel the sting of tears coming forward. Instead of crying you felt this indescribable rage, your tears suddenly dissolved back into your eyes. You lunged forward, you shoved Jisung hard “Go fuck yourself.” You growled. He looked at you stunned, he had never seen you like this. You turned around and walked down the hall to your apartment, not bothering to look back.

Slamming the door behind you, you held your phone up. Opening the conversation with Jeongin. He wants to call me a slut? Fine, I’ll give them a slut then.

(y/n): Let me get changed, be there in 10.

“Oh shit.” Jeongin gasped, holding his phone with two hands “What?” Seungmin perked up from his laying position on the couch “Ya!” He messily crawled over the pillows and throw blanket to reach Jeongin. Still speechless, he snatched the phone out of his hands. “Oh shit.” Seungmin repeated. He immediately stood up “Go to your room.” He ordered Jeongin “Huh?!” He looked at his roommate confused “Screw you, you go to your room.” Jeongin retorted, trying to grab his phone back. “I’ll make dinner for the next week.” Seungmin offered, anything to get his chance to be buried inside you. Jeongin sighed “Call.” He shook Seungmin’s hand, yanked his phone back and made his way to his bedroom.

With Jeongin out of the way, Seungmin paced around the living room before taking a seat. This was the longest ten minutes of his life. Anxious he stared at the door thinking about what he was going to do when he opened the door, how he was going to kiss you, how he was going to touch you, how he was going to fu-

Knock knock.

He froze for a second, exe.Seungmin stopped working. He almost robotically stood up and then dashed to the door. He took a deep breath and turned the handle, opening the door. You looked up as the door opened and met Seungmin’s eyes. “Oh hey.” You greeted him, completely unaware of the plan at hand. “Hey, come in.” He opened the door wider, allowing you to enter. “Jeongin texted me..” You began “He’s not here.” You furrowed your brows in confusion “Huh, he asked me to-“ Something took over him he backed you up until your back hit the door. “I couldn’t let him have all the fun.” Your eyes widened “You know-“ “About him, Minho Hyung, Channie Hyung, and Changbin Hyung.. Yeah I know everything.” There was nowhere to run, his eyes locked you in place.

“Just getting us all, huh?” He cocked his head to the side, slightly leaning down to really put the spotlight on you. He cheekily smirked “It’s my turn to have my way with you.” His fingers came up and brushed the side of your cheek before trailing to lightly trace your lips and move down your neck to your collarbones. Finding your voice “What are you going to do?” you asked, tilting your head up in confidence.

A smirk splayed across his face, he leaned in leaving a trail of soft kisses up your neck to your ear. “I’m going to use this cock” he pressed himself into you, making you feel how hard he was “to stretch you out, make you scream, make you shake… I’m going to make you scream my name” His voice gave you goosebumps, his large hands cupped your tits over your shirt “I’m going to play with these perky tits.” His fingers trailed down your sides to your waist. He deepened the pressure of his crotch on you. His hands travelled to your front, sliding swiftly to cup your aching cunt. “I’m going to fuck this little hole of yours until you’re completely spent.” You squirmed against his hand.

Seungmin’s eyes became dark with lust. He slowly inched his lips to yours. Slowly, then all at once pulling you into a passionate kiss. His lips were soft and warm, he tasted so good. Your mouths moved deeply, you swung your arms around his neck, adding to the heat. His tongue glided against your bottom lip, you opened up allowing him entry. Your mouths were full of each other, the wet sounds were all you could hear until Seungmin let out low groans. You tasted so good, better than he ever imagined.

You lifted your leg up to which Seungmin picked you up with ease. You wrapped your legs around him, your fingers tangled in his hair, his hands supporting your ass. Never breaking the kiss, Seungmin carefully stepped towards the kitchen counter, sitting you on top of it. Your legs never letting him go, he pulled out from the kiss. Admiring your swollen lips and flush cheeks he sunk himself into your neck, kissing and licking his way around. You let out a soft moan, you sounded too good. “Louder” He grunted as his hand wandered to your breast. “Seungmin” You moaned as he squeezed you “More” Without a second thought he pulled your shirt over your head.

The thin fabric of your bralette was the only barrier left. He hungrily kissed your chest, moving from each side to give each one his full attention. You moaned louder “Seungmin… Don’t tease.” He smiled against your skin, his fingers pulling down the lace to expose your nipple. You looked down and watched as he stuck his tongue out and lightly swirled around your areola. “Ah!” You whimpered “Seungmin” You continued chanting his name as he moved his tongue around before sealing his lips around your desperate nipple. Your moans were angelic to him, he could listen to them on a continuous loop.

Your fingers found their way into his hair, you pulled each time he sucked harder. He groaned into your breast which just made you pull harder. “Enough.” You pushed him away and grabbed his shirt, taking it off him. You repeated his neck kissing, he let out whines and moans. You reached down and felt his bulging erection through his sweatpants. Seungmin rocked himself into your hand, you didn’t think it was possible to be that hard. Worried his dick would explode you looked up at him with your gorgeous glazed eyes. “Fuck me.” You ordered. His smile coming back, he wrapped your legs around and carried you down the hall to his room, kissing and grabbing at each other.

He laid you down softly, hovering over you before dropping his hips to meet with your centre. You cried out in pleasure as his hardened cock was grinding into your clit. The feeling was too hot, he needed more. He stripped you of your bottoms before taking his off. He lined himself up with your entrance. You both panted in anticipation, he slowly eased himself inside you. “Oh my God.” He moaned, feeling your warm tight hole swallow him up. “So tight, even after Hyung stretched you out.” He smirked. You moaned back in agreement, his long dick sliding in deeper, pressing against your cervix. The deep penetration made you gasp “Seungmin!” His eyes met yours “That’s right baby, say my name.” He pulled back and pushed back in, hitting the same spot “Seungmin!” You yelped “Fuck, don’t stop.” He grunted, picking up the pace.

He rocked into you harder making your eyes roll back and obscenities fall from your lips. His face scrunched as he watched you lose yourself on his dick. The sounds of slapping skin and moans echoed off the walls. He knew Jeongin could definitely hear. What he didn’t know was that Jeongin was outside his bedroom door, furiously tugging his own dick to the sounds coming from the other side. Old habits die hard, Jeongin thought.

“Seungmin, I’m going to-“ “I know baby, me too” He cut you off “Go on, cum on me.” He breathed hard, his thrusts became stronger “Ah!” You squealed. Your eyes squeezed shut and your pussy contracted hard around him. “Seungmin!!” You screamed out in sinful pleasure as you came around him “(y/n)… Fuck!” His face contorted and he held his breath, coating your walls with his cum. You felt Seungmin’s staggered breaths against your neck, your chest heaving from the experience.

Catching his breath he stood up “I’m gonna get a towel.” He made his way to the door, in that moment you both heard a stumbling and a door slam. You perched up on your elbows “hE’s NoT hERe.” you mocked with a laugh, Seungmin rolled his eyes and chuckled.

He returned with a towel and cleaned you up. The atmosphere was calm and peaceful, something you hadn’t had in a long time. Seungmin laid back beside you, pulling the covers over. “So” He began “So?” You repeated back, looking into his puppy eyes “Who’s next?”

Minho retreated into his room, plopping himself down on his stomach. He opened his phone and went to messages. Just when I thought things couldn’t get more interesting, he thought, tapping on Changbin’s name.

Minho: Seo Changbin~ssi

Bin almost immediately replied.

Changbin: Why?

Minho: Jisung saw you and (y/n)

The silence was telling, Changbin knew he was fucked but he didn’t know how he was going to get out of this one.

Minho: ????

Minho: ?????

Changbin: Shit.

Minho chuckled to himself.

Minho: You’re not the only one.

Changbin froze and began frantically typing.

Changbin: …what do you mean???

Minho let him sit with the vague text for a moment

Changbin: YA

Changbin: WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!?!?

It was almost as if Minho could hear Changbin’s loud voice through the text. He tapped the groupchat and added Changbin in.

Changbin was shocked to see the names in the group.

Minho: Welcome brother.

Changbin: THE FUCK IS THIS????

Chan: Exactly what you think it is.

Minho: See? You’re not the only one😄

Suddenly another name appeared in the group.

Jeongin: Man down🫡

Seungmin: 😇

Minho pricelessly laughed at his phone

Chan: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Minho: That was quick

Jeongin: Don’t even get me started on how he did it🙃

Seungmin: 🐱🐟

Changbin: …..

Changbin: All of you?

Chan: I was first

Minho: I was second

Jeongin: …third

Minho: As hilarious as this is, we have a problem. Jisung’s on the warpath. On the bright side, he only knows about Changbin. The rest of us are safe.

Changbin: FUCK YOU GUYSㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

Chan: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Jeongin: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Seungmin: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Minho: Changbin, it was nice knowing you🥰

Changbin: …..

Minho: Don’t worry I have an idea

Minho smiled to himself because he knew exactly how to fix this. After all, he knew Jisung the best.

[legendary-pink-dot]

Hideaway

Pairing: Santiago "Pope" Garcia x Francisco "Catfish" Morales x female reader

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Threesome, unprotected PiV, anal fingering, oral (m receiving), a happy ending handjob (m/m)

Word Count: 1.1K

Summary: This luxury beach cabin had cost a lot. A lot. Santi had quietly gritted his teeth when told the price and had to pull a heftier-than-expected stack of stolen cash out of his bag. But it was worth it for a single night of hedonism before heading back home in the morning.

Notes: Santi's POV. Blatant PWP because right now, do I care why these three people are fucking? Nope! No use of "Y/N". Slighty canon divergent from the plot and ending of Triple Frontier. Not beta'ed so please excuse any tense shifts or other weirdness. Thank you to the magic slut coven for cheerleading @exquisiteserotonin @arcanefox207 @magpiepills 💜

This luxury beach cabin had cost a lot. A lot. Santi had quietly gritted his teeth when told the price and had to pull a heftier-than-expected stack of stolen cash out of his bag. But it was worth it for a single night of hedonism before heading back home in the morning. The cost guaranteed anonymity and discretion in this slice of tropical paradise, and nobody on staff had batted an eye when the three of you rolled up with a rack full of well-worn, heavy duffle bags and asked for their most secluded cabin with a private beach. You wouldn't be disturbed here.

After dinner and showers, the setting sun finds Santi relaxed in a chair as you hungrily feast on his cock while on all fours, your head rocking forward and back over his length in a sweet, unhurried rhythm as Frankie slowly fucks you from behind.

Santi watches the natural pink blush of your lips gradually turn red, swelling from the pressure as your mouth starts to work harder on his thick length, trying to take more of it in than you think you can. You're always so good to him. His good, perfect girl. He knows your limits and how to gently push you past them, but tonight he's letting you have whatever you want.

He feels your tongue map his cock: tongue tip gently tasting and probing the ridges, the middle stripe of your tongue travelling along every vein, your tastebuds taking in all the tiny ripples of his skin. Exploring as if it were both the first and last time you're doing this. Like this was a dream that you were convinced would evaporate in the morning.

Your long hair, still damp from the shower, splays softly over his thighs. The strands begin to tickle his over-sensitized skin so much with your rocking movement that he wraps the length of your hair around his hand, holding it against your head without pressing too hard, for once letting you set your own pace. If a skull was capable of melting, yours just did into his hand.

His fingertips lightly scratch your scalp as you take more of him into your talented mouth. He always loves how eager you are to taste him and that you do it because you genuinely love it, not just because he does.

A faint scent of coconut fills the room; Frankie has flipped the cap on a bottle of lube and is holding it high above your raised ass. Santi watches a single droplet form, a silvery sphere that clings to the mouth of the bottle. It finally falls, like a teardrop hitting your skin, and you cry out from a mixture of cool sensation and anticipation relieved.

A few more drops follow before Frankie rubs the viscous liquid around your ass, slowly pressing a finger inside and sliding back out, matching the rhythm with the thrusts of his cock in your cunt, and a feral moan rips from your throat as you come hard.

It vibrates and echoes around Santi's cock, and his head snaps back over the chair, his vision blurring, a loud groan bubbling up his own throat. It's too much. He's close.

He shifts his gaze down, wanting to catch Frankie's eyes. Needing them. Frankie's gaze is already fixed on him, maybe has been the whole time, maybe more interested in watching Santi respond and react than the lazy-but-still-quality fuck he's been giving you. This is uncharted territory; he's been feeling an unspoken, primal undercurrent of tension with Frankie for awhile. He felt it even before they left for this op, the last time you three fucked together, but it never had a name or a shape.

He thinks maybe now is the time to give it form. He lifts his free hand and beckons Frankie over.

You had needed a minute to come down from your high but your wet, hot mouth is finally back on Santi's cock, able to focus better on the task as Frankie gently pulls out of you and takes a few steps forward on his knees. Frankie's hard, thick length is begging to be touched and Santi curls his fist around it, giving it indelicate and rough strokes but Frankie doesn't care or maybe it's exactly what he needs, bracing himself with one hand around Santi's hip and the other on the back of your neck, guiding your head forward before running his fingers up to where Santi's are clutched in your hair, pressing and resting his there too.

Perfect, Santi whispers to himself. Or maybe he whined it out loud and the surf carried it away with his breath, panting heavily now and interspersed with his moans and Frankie's rumbling grunts.

With one hand twisted through your hair and Frankie's fingers, and the other wrapped around Frankie's length, Santi comes as hard as you did, thrusting with abandon into your eager mouth and filling your throat with his come, salty as the ocean just steps away from where he sits. He watches you wantonly slurp and swallow every drop, thinking this is exactly what and how he needs both of you from now on.

It's as if that thought teleports and spurs Frankie on. Frankie groans harsh and loud as he wraps his hand around Santi's for a joint final few strokes of his cock. He presses his forehead against Santi's and comes within seconds, the pressure and tension too much, spurting hot across Santi's stomach and chest and splashing their twined fingers in your hair.

Usually Santi would order you to lick him clean, but not tonight. He doesn't feel like giving orders. Or moving. The only thing he wants to do is stay forever in this comfortable chair, with your head in his lap as his fingers card through your hair and his forehead gently resting against Frankie's, all three of you sharing breaths as you come down from your highs.

A gentle knock on the door interrupts the atmosphere.

"Room service. No need to answer or open the door right now, I'll leave it here. The plates are heated and your food will stay hot for awhile. Your personal concierge is a phone call away if you need anything else. Have a lovely evening."

"How much did this place cost?" Frankie asks in a completely fucked-out voice, slowly getting up to grab towels and water. "This carpet is really soft."

"Too much. But I've decided we're staying for one more night," says Santi, fixing you and then Frankie with a heavy stare. "At least. Any complaints?"

None. There's a whole ocean for the three of you to explore from this hideaway.

[pedroscurls]

Third Time’s A Charm (Part 1).

Character(s): Frankie “Catfish” Morales , Reader (female, second person POV) Summary: There is history between you and Frankie. In fact, you have both broken up twice and yet, you still seem to find your way back to each other. Could this third chance be the last and final one? Word Count: 2,339 Author's Note: And we’re here! Frankie Morales officially has my heart. I’m so excited for you all to read what I have in store for this story. We’re in for a ride. Please note that this story will have mentions of drug use / addiction and PTSD, but I will give a warning for each chapter. Happy reading!  Warning: None.

Right person, wrong time. You and Frankie knew that concept all too well. You both could never get the timing right, but the amount of love you two shared never faded. It always lingered, always gave you both a feeling that maybe one day, it would work out. You left it in the universe’s hands at that point, a firm believer that if it was meant to be, you will find your way back to each other. 

But after he got married, you started to keep your distance. It hurt too much to be around him. You shared so much history with Frankie and being around him, seeing him with another woman that wasn’t you, just didn’t feel right. 

Yes, you both still talked, still checked in with each other, but the conversations became less and less frequent. 

You never did get along with his wife, part of the reason being that she didn’t like that Frankie was still friends with a woman he had been in a relationship with… Twice. 

So, when Santiago showed up on your doorstep one afternoon, you were surprised to say the least. It had been a little over a year since you spoke to the other man, having heard from Will that he had been in Colombia. 

But here he was. A smile on his face paired with warm and kind eyes. Santiago was Frankie’s best friend. In fact, he was the reason why you and Frankie had been in a relationship to begin with. He had set you both up on a blind date after believing that you and Frankie would make a great pair, and Santiago wasn’t wrong. 

You and Frankie were both shy at the beginning of the date, teetering on being polite and also not knowing what to expect, but after a couple of drinks and a shared interest over planes, you both started to relax. 

It was truly one of the best dates you had ever been on and it only kickstarted the beautiful, yet painful relationship with Frankie. 

The first breakup was mutual, both too afraid to admit that this relationship could be something beautiful. The breakup only lasted four months before Frankie reached out to you, asking you out for a cup of coffee to see how you were doing. It didn’t take long before you both admitted that you still loved each other, that the feelings you shared hadn’t left. 

And so, you both tried to give it another shot. 

But the second breakup was painful. You and Frankie had been together for three years before the breakup. You had been accepted into a very competitive master’s program at a college in California, which was a dream you always had even before Frankie. The program would last for two years and you and Frankie had made the decision to end the relationship. 

You both agreed that you didn’t want to try a long distance relationship, afraid that it might just ruin the relationship you both built. 

“I love you,” he whispered. You both decided to end the relationship a month before you had to leave, not wanting to prolong the inevitable even further. 

“Will we ever get the timing right?” you asked.

Frankie didn’t know the answer to that. He hadn’t ever felt this way about someone and while this seemed so painful, to end a relationship without even trying to make it work, it made sense. He knew how important this program was to you, how passionate you were about teaching, about literature, that he couldn’t ask you to stay. It would be selfish of him to ask that of you. 

Frankie didn’t want to let you go, but he knew that he had to. 

“I guess we’ll find out,” he finally replied. 

“Two years…” you said quietly. “It’s only gonna be two years and I’ll visit for the holidays and–” 

Frankie shushed you, his hand gently cupping your cheek. He looked into your eyes for a brief moment before he scanned the rest of your features, memorizing every inch of your face, every freckle and mole… This seemed like goodbye. 

“Don’t,” he interrupted. “I mean, I want you to go to California without having to worry about me, about us.”

“I love you, Frankie…” 

“I love you too, baby.” Frankie was never someone who allowed himself to show emotions, to cry, but being with you had shown him that all he needed was a safe space, someone to show him that it was okay to feel things, to express how you were feeling. But right now, he didn’t want to show his pain, afraid that if you noticed it, you would put your dream on hold to stay here, in Florida, with him. “You’re going to be great.” 

“I’m gonna miss you.”

Frankie gently pecked your lips. “I’ll be right here when you get back, baby.”

But six months into your program, you had become so busy, so engrossed in your studies that Frankie had taken a backseat. You knew that he would be okay; he had Santiago, Will, Benny, and Tom. While he didn’t promise that he would wait for you, it still surprised you when you found out he was engaged and eventually married. 

Santiago and the rest of the guys always believed that you would come back from California and pick up right where you and Frankie left off. You had spent plenty of time with Frankie’s friends, hearing plenty of stories from their time in the military. You even felt like you were part of their group, teasing Santiago and Benny about the women they tried to pick up, confiding in Will when Frankie was in a slump, and even finding comfort in Tom’s presence. 

“Santi,” you finally said. “This is a surprise.”

He chuckled, running a hand through his hair. “Had to come visit you,” Santiago smiled, pulling you into a hug. “How are you?” 

You took comfort in his embrace. It felt like forever since you felt this safe. Frankie and his group of friends always gave you that feeling, that sense of security. 

“I’m good,” you replied, pulling back and looking into his eyes. “I heard you’ve been in Colombia.”

“From Frankie?”

You shook your head. “From Will actually.”

Santiago nodded. You let him inside your apartment and shut the door behind you. You walked towards the kitchen, hearing his boots against your wooden floors as he followed you. 

“Have you talked to Frankie?”

You shook your head, grabbing two glasses to fill with water. “I haven’t talked to him in over a year. I talk to Will and Benny, though. I get my updates from them. Tom’s– He’s been dealing with the separation, so I haven’t spoken to him either.”

“You haven’t talked to Frankie in that long?” Santiago asked, surprised. 

“He’s married and his wife made it very clear that she isn’t comfortable with us talking, so out of respect, I decided that it would be best to keep my communication with Frankie limited.” You handed him the glass. “I hear he’s doing okay, though.”

“You know, us guys always thought it would be you two,” Santiago admitted, taking the glass of water from you and nodding his thanks. “You kept him grounded. Hell, you kept all of us grounded.” 

You smiled, shaking your head. “Yeah right. Keep you five men grounded? Sure, Santi.”

“I’m serious,” he smiled. “Having you around… It was nice. Frankie always told us–”

“Santiago,” you interrupted. “He has moved on. I still love him, still care about him, but he’s married.”

Santiago nodded. “Right, yeah. I’m sorry.” 

“So, what brings you by? Unannounced, by the way. You could have called.” 

He chuckled. “Beats the element of surprise.” 

You arched a brow, sitting across from him. “What’s going on?” 

And from there, Santiago told you about his plan about asking the guys to come back to Colombia with him. You had spent so much time with Frankie and the rest of the guys that their stories about their time in the military didn’t scare you. Instead, it made you sad, frustrated, angry for Frankie, Santiago, Will, Tom, and Benny that they had to endure what they went through only to be cast aside once they were retired veterans. 

Santiago’s plan sounded dangerous, but if they could pull it off, the reward would be worth it. But for the plan to work successfully, he needed Frankie, Tom, Benny, and Will to be on board. He needed all of them. 

You didn’t know what to say, didn’t know how to react. You noticed that Santiago always had the ideas, never small, always big. He believed that he could get Lorea, while simultaneously seizing worth seventy-five million dollars. 

“What do you think? You think I can get all of them on board?” Santiago asked.

“I think that’s a big ask, Santi.” You sighed. You were sure that each man had something going on, but at the same time, you knew how tight knit this group was. You knew that if Santiago showed this much passion to the guys, then you knew that they would back him up. No matter what. “But you know them more than I do, so you tell me.”

Santiago nodded, looking around your apartment. “I bet with your help, I can convince them no problem.” 

“No,” you shook your head. “Santiago, I can’t.”

“Why not? You know all of us. We all love you, trust you, and–”

“Santiago,” you interrupted. “I believe in you… I believe in all of you, but–”

“This can be good for us,” he replied. “This money and getting Lorea? Not only will Colombia be safer, but the money can do a lot of good for us.”

“I don’t want the money. I’m not even going to Colombia, so I don’t think I should get any part of it.” You said quietly. “Besides, I can’t– I don’t want to be part of something this dangerous. You can all get hurt, or worse.”

“We won’t. We know what we’re doing. This will be easy compared to what we’ve done.” Santiago reached out for you, his eyes softening, pleading. “Listen, how about you just come by tonight? Benny’s fighting and I’m sure the guys will love to see you. It’ll be like old times.”

“Is Frankie going to be there?” 

“I don’t know,” Santiago lied. “Besides, if he is, I know he’d be happy to see you.” 

“Santi…”

“Please,” he said quietly. You could tell this meant a lot to him. This mission, giving back to the people of Colombia, to the guys who struggled after getting out of the military… You knew he needed this. 

“Fine,” you replied. “But only because I miss Benny’s fights.” 

He grinned in triumph, standing and pulling you into a hug. “I’ll pick you up tonight. We can go together.” 

“Okay, but the first round is on you.” 

—

You were sitting at the front, waiting for Santiago while he and Will went to the men’s locker room. You were drinking a beer, albeit very warm but alcohol nonetheless, as you watched the fights with little interest. The crowd was merely waiting for Benny, and so were you. In fact, you were waiting for Santiago and Will to come back out so that you wouldn’t have to be alone. 

There were a couple of men who had come up to you, trying to make small talk, but you had told them you weren’t interested. In fact, you haven't been in a serious relationship since Frankie. The man had set the bar so high that no other man could ever reach. Sure, there were a few that have tried, but you always ended it before it could get too serious. 

You were standing now, though, the crowd piquing your interest as you looked towards the cage to see two men, all bloodied and exchanging punches. While this would have deterred plenty of women, this was actually very exhilarating for you. You had always been a fan of mixed martial arts, so you had seen Benny’s fights whenever you got the chance. Luckily, every time you went, Frankie wasn’t there. 

The referee stepped in to stop the fight, the man on the ground visibly not defending himself. The crowd roared in excitement, chanting the name of the winner. A couple of minutes passed before the announcer began to announce the next fight. You heard Benny’s name and you cheered loudly, raising your arms in the air (with your beer in one hand). 

You glanced over at the end of the hall to see the door open. Benny walked out, wearing bright red trunks. His face was serious, focused, but you felt your heart skip a beat when you saw Frankie. He was walking alongside Santiago and Will, trailing behind Benny. 

Frankie was wearing a tan colored and brown collared jacket with a gray v-neck underneath. His jeans sat perfectly on his hips, paired with a brown belt, and boots. Your eyes skimmed him, finally noticing how his curls were tucked underneath his usual Standard Heating Oil hat. 

Benny looked over at you, chuckling to himself when he noticed who you were staring at. 

They stopped walking and you saw Tom join Santiago, Frankie, and Will, handing them each a cup of beer. Then, Santiago pointed in your direction. You made eye contact with him for a moment before watching Frankie turn around, his eyes finally meeting yours. 

His eyes instantly softened. 

Yours did too. 

And you both stood there, the crowd cheering Benny’s name beginning to fade out. 

You saw him and the rest of the guys walk over to you. When he was standing mere inches from you, he let out a small smile. You yearned to reach out for him, to hug him and have his arms wrap around you like before, but in the back of your mind, you remembered that the man standing before you was now married. 

He was off limits. 

“Hey,” Frankie said. “Long time no see, hermosa.”

--- 

Part 2.

[hippolotamus]

(Way more than) Seven Sentence Sunday

Thanks for the tags @jesuisici33 @daffi-990 @diazsdimples @tizniz @spotsandsocks @wikiangela @fortheloveofbuddie @wildlife4life @indestructibleheart @steadfastsaturnsrings @elvensorceress @honestlydarkprincess @spaceprincessem I haven’t gotten to all of your snippets but I will and already know they’re amazing and everyone should check them out 💖

Mirrorball (aka pole dancer Buck) won the poll yesterday so here are some sentences from that (prev snippet here) Unsurprisingly, he is producing as many feels (if not more) as I expected. So, uh, sorry about that (but also not sorry at all).

The pole – warmed by the house lights, previous performers, and heat from the three hundred something bodies legally allowed by the fire marshal – presses through his black mesh shirt, around the vegan leather chest harness, finally grazing his spine. He applies more pressure, allowing it to bear more of his weight, raising his arms and caressing the brushed stainless steel like a lover. A gentle touch he’s never experienced but aches with longing for anyway.

Just after the first musical bridge, a series of twangy guitar riffs and soulful keyboard notes, a member of the bachelorette party – maid of honor according to her hot pink sash – approaches the stage. There’s a bit of a wobble to her gait, but she’s still holding her own as she confidently struts forward to offer some bills she not so subtly clenches in her teeth.

If Buck was interested in her, he would make a show of crawling on all fours and take the proffered cash between his lips. But he’s not, so he holds onto the pole as he swings around, dipping low to pluck it from her with his fingers, giving her a wink as he does.

It’s possible she’s familiar with his act because she pouts a bit at that, even as the rest of her group cheers and wolf whistles, tugging up her cutoff short shorts to further reveal the swell of her ass as she flounces back to her seat. As if she’s daring him to reconsider lest he miss out. And maybe he will, if the offer’s still there at the end of his shift and he’s feeling lonely enough.

Buck tucks the money into a hidden pocket between the waistband of his royal blue hotpants and his dance belt. The stuff is loaded with enough germs, he’s not particularly interested in having it touch his sweat beaded skin before redistributing it out in the world.

When he resumes his routine, letting his gaze drift to the back of the room, he works to quickly recover as his breath catches in his throat. Dark eyes suddenly look impossibly darker – hungry and possessive – as lips wrap around the mouth of a beer. It’s tilted back in such a way that they never break eye contact. Maybe it should scare Buck, make him consider asking Bosko or Williams from security to see him to his jeep. But, strangely, it doesn’t.

The opportunity to let that process or sink in passes when his music ends and he begins collecting stray cash that’s been tossed on stage. In the time it takes him to stand back up, and throw a flirty kiss to the audience, he realizes the back table is empty save for a bottle and a chair sitting askew as if the occupant left in a hurry.

No pressure tagging @lizzie-bennetdarcy @disasterbuckdiaz @eddiebabygirldiaz @shortsighted-owl @stereopticons @911onabc @apothecarose @barbiediaz @buddierights @chaosandwolves @eowon @fionaswhvre @gayedmundodiaz @giddyupbuck @heartshapedvows @hoodie-buck @ladydorian05 @lemonzestywrites @loserdiaz @messyhairdiaz @monsterrae1 @rmd-writes @statueinthestone @singlethread @the-likesofus @thekristen999 @theplaceyoustillrememberdreaming @thewolvesof1998 @underwater-ninja-13 @vanillahigh00 @watchyourbuck @welcometololaland @weewootruck @your-catfish-friend and anyone else who wants to share 😘

[anitalenia]

━━━ 𝒆𝒓𝒈𝒐 𝒅𝒖𝒎 𝒎𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒊𝒔 ₓ˚. ୭ pt. 3

━━ 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒓 𝒃𝒐𝒚𝒔 / 𝒎𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒊𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔. the frontier boys as random tropes. ୨୧ ‧₊˚ ⋅ part one | part two | part four

˖ ࣪⭑ pairing: Pope, Ironhead, Ben, Catfish x fem!Reader

˖ ࣪⭑ content includes: dark content, sexual content, dark!teacher, serial killer, stepcest, male masturbation, female masturbation, dildos, mentions of blood and death, power imbalance, spanking, dom + sub allusions, unhealthy obsession, mentions of riding + sexual acts, taboo subjects, pillow riding, size kinks, age gap, sexy videos, blowjobs

˖ ࣪⭑ authors note: I always see Frank as being an age gap kinda guy 😭 I just see him being a funny fatherly figure that you want to do dirty things to 😜

LINKS ੈ♡˳·˖✶ 𝒎𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕 | 𝒉𝒐𝒎𝒆 | 𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕 | 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒔

━━ SANTIAGO ‘POPE’ GARCIA ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆ 𝐝𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫, short skirts and tempting skin

You were so young and bright, so full of potential, just glittering with opportunity. You were a rising star that he needed to snatch down from the sky before you rose too far.

He was your mentor, your guide, taught you right from wrong while disobeying the very teachings he taught when he’d stare at your legs in those short skirts he swore you wore for him. He’d have to adjust his slacks at his desk every time he’d catch a glimpse of your puffy lips in those pink panties of yours.

He pictured throwing all of his papers off his desk and fucking you into the mahogany, telling you how bad of a girl you’ve been as he’d spank your ass and teach you some discipline.

He’d fail you on the tests you aced, the tests you studied weeks on end for and meticulously memorized every answer. You’d go to him just as he expected you would, confused and troubled and feeling dumb. You’d hold up the test with a big red D scribbled on the corner, almost in tears as you’d believed you’d done so well.

He’d console you, schedule a time after class where you two could meet privately and he could stare at you without the suspicion of his other students. He hated having to hide it, but he loved scooting so close to you as he pretended to be interested in whatever you said, staring at your breasts and imagining ripping your top off and having you ride him in his chair, those perky tits bouncing in his face as he taught you how to ride cock properly.

You always smelt of honey and sugar, your hair always in ringlets and your shirts always a little too tight. You were the golden rays of sunshine that warmed his brown skin, the dash of aurous flakes in his hazel eyes as he’d look at you. You were his favorite student, so eager to learn and equally as eager to please.

He was sure you’d be dumb enough to do whatever he said eventually, fall for his stupid jokes and his soft smiles, swoon at his encouragement and intelligence. He just had to play his cards right, toy with you until you believed any word he said like it was gospel, be stupid enough to believe that the only way he could think straight was when he’s had his cock sucked.

You were his favorite student, the muse to his writings, the subject of his teachings and the tempting golden apple hanging from the tree. Soon enough he was going to pluck you from those branches, but first, he needed you to believe he was the beguiled Adam to your tempting Eve, not the ever-deceiving serpent hanging from the tree.

Your favorite teacher was going to ensure that you become the catalyst of his own destruction, for his morality had already fallen long ago…

━━ WILLIAM ‘IRONHEAD’ MILLER ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆ 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐤𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫, killer cravings and deadly passions

He killed women who looked like you because he couldn’t help it. Destruction was in his marrow, gasoline flowing through his blood, fire spurting from his fingertips and burning anything he touched.

He had seen you one late night, cold and shivering, alone and vulnerable. He was covered in blood and smelt of iron and copper, dirt and earth. He would’ve scared you if you’d had seen him, run away and called the cops like any girl in your position would have.

He thought you were pretty, easily submissive and docile like a tiny doe in the meadow. He was the wolf hiding in the tall grass, hungry and bloody and hunting. He didn’t want to hurt you though, loved to look at you too much, knew no other girl would get his cock as hard as you did. He always pictured fucking you in the alleyway when you’d take the trash out, ripping off your work clothes and slicing your panties off with the edge of his knife. He knew you were too weak to deny him, too scared to fight, too beautiful to resist.

He’d follow you to work, watched you when you slept, fucked his fist outside your home in the cloak of shadow. He killed anyone who tried to pluck his precious flower, took their life as his own and left them in the dirt where the trash belonged. You were entrancing, a blood red rose growing on a grave, and he was the thorn on the stem. You were beautiful to anyone who might’ve looked, but dangerous to anyone who dare touched.

You didn’t know why death had seemed to surround you closer than community; didn’t know why every person you touched crumbled to dirt. Your hands were stained with blood whether you wanted to admit it or not, countless lives lost like you’d been collecting them as stones.

You were alone once more, just as he saw you that first night. You didn’t need family or friends when you had him, he was the soil that was going to help you grow, the sun that fed your leaves. He just had to be patient until you were ready to be plucked, ready to live in the vase he’d put you in and care for your every whim.

He couldn’t wait to finally have you with him, strapped to his bed as he fucked the handle of his knife into your wet pussy, heard your cries and moans as you’d beg and beg and he’d get harder and harder. He’d take good care of you or else he’d make you regret it.

He killed women that looked like you because he couldn’t wait to have you, finding temporary joys in their blood then incredible lows when he was done. He was getting antsy, wondering how much longer it was going to take until you were fully blossomed. He was missing you and craving you, hands buzzing to burn you.

You didn’t know it, but you had been dancing along the sharp edge of his blade, bound to get cut eventually. A meandering Bambi in the forest, bound to be caught, and a beautiful flower, bound to wither… until there was nothing left but ash.

━━ BENJAMIN MILLER ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆ 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫, taboo fantasies, mutual pining

He wasn’t new in your life; you had been with him since high school and always hung off his arm and shoved him like brothers and sisters would do. He was funny and tall, was even on the wrestling team before graduation, the son of a rugged man who married your wilting mother.

He was the butt of your jokes, the annoyed prickle under your skin, the headache in your skull. But even you couldn’t deny his attractiveness; his tan skin, his toothy grin and his muscled sculpture. He was chiseled from marble, strong as stone and as beautiful as diamond.

You knew it was such a taboo subject, to fuck yourself with your pink dildo late at night, even early in the morning, cumming at the idea that it was your big, strong, stepbrother’s cock that was making you cum instead. You’d whine and moan, trying to keep quiet when you’d writhe in your bed with your pussy squelching on your fingers as you heard Benny’s laughter just outside your door.

You’d wear his shirts when he wasn’t home, act helpless so he’d reach on the shelf and get it for you when you couldn’t reach. You’d make videos of yourself cumming on your pillow as you moaned his name, your clit rubbing back and forth like it was his thigh, then watch it later. You couldn’t even stop yourself from lingering by his door when he’d bring girls home, jealous and horny at the sound of his grunts and her muffled cries coming from the other side.

Your parents were oblivious when you’d hug him for too long, he was too nice to pull away. They were oblivious when you’d wear your short shorts and tank tops and make him spend the day with you, the way you’d pretend to fall asleep in his bed when you’d watch a movie with him, wake up with his arm around you then continue on with your day like it never happened.

You weren’t sure when your obsession had started only that it had grown on you like a vine, festered inside you for years like a boil. You couldn’t even talk to him for too long without that familiar slickness forming between your legs, your skin itching for his rough hands to bend your thighs to your head and fuck you hard for being so naughty.

He’d hug you, push you, make fun of you, console you, laugh with you. You were almost deluded enough to believe it was for reasons more than two step siblings comfortable with each others differences. That he was falling for you just as much as you did him, that he sat next to you at family dinners because he liked you close to him.

But at night, when Benny would bid you farewell and retire to his own room as you did yours, as you’d pull your phone out and fuck yourself at the picture of you and him at the beach, as you’d cum on your sheets with a muffled cry, you were completely oblivious to what Benny was doing just across the hall…

His fist twisting around his hard cock, picturing it was your plushy tits he was fucking instead…

━━ FRANCISCO ‘CATFISH’ MORALES ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆ 𝐞𝐱-𝐛𝐨𝐲𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐝𝐚𝐝, shameless desire, experienced hands

He was a single man, abandoned by his wife years ago and left to raise his son by himself. He was hardworking and bullheaded, but still found time to smile between work and bed in the gossip of his son.

Your breakup with him was still fresh in the air, too tender to poke at unless you’d want an argument. Even Frank had believed you two would last long; all giddy smiles and fluttering hearts. But then you found him in bed with another woman, and your smile fell and your heart broke and Frank felt an opportunity arise.

He was a shitty father, always looked at the tight young ass of his sons girlfriend when she’d come over, bring her towels when she was in the shower, do her laundry so she had no choice but to masquerade in his flannels. He loved his son but he didn’t raise a cheater, so he didn’t feel bad when he would fuck his hand in his bedroom with one of your sparkly pink bras in his hand, one he found when he was doing an old load of laundry he’d forgotten about.

He would imagine you drooling on his balls as he tied your hair up for you, teach you how to touch him in the way he liked. He wanted to give you a man with experienced hands, a man who didn’t cheat with random bitches when there was perfectly good pussy right there by his side. He’d never discourage you, hurt you, he’d cradle your heart like a baby bird in the palms of his hands.

You came over to pick up your stuff shortly after and Frank was the only one home. He welcomed you in with a sentimental smile, giving you a hug and kiss on your forehead, savoring the feeling of your smooth skin under his work-torn palms, wondering what your lips would feel like under his.

He stared at your ass as you’d walk ahead of him when he shut the door, imagined fucking you against the dining table and licking you up clean when his son would walk in. If you saw it as revenge Frank wouldn’t have minded, just grateful to have that pussy wrapped around him and hear those moans in his ear other than down the hall from his room.

You had a sad smile on your face as you chatted politely with him, and he knew he could fuck a smile back on your face if you’d let him. He nodded his head in understanding like he didn’t want you crying around his cock instead, like he wasn’t debating whether or not to pick you up and throw you on the couch, his sons feelings be damned.

You always thought Frank was nice, kind and courteous and always had a dad joke at hand for when you’d ask. He’d sit on the recliner with a beer in his hand, slowly rocking back and forth as he’d watch a football game. You always loved the messiness of it, so unused to a man who didn’t give a damn what anybody thought about him.

You had come to the house in a final attempt to own up to your own feelings, tell Frank you wanted his hands in your hair and his tongue in your pussy just as much as you needed oxygen. But you were shy and intimidated by the maturity in him, worried he’d look at you as a pathetic little girl trying to bite more than she could chew.

Frank watched as you lingered in the hallway and gave him those pretty little eyes, your bag of clothes fiddling in your hand as he ran his eyes up and down your body like a hungry man staring at his dinner.

He could almost crack a smile at that, something in his stomach making his cock stir in his jeans as he realized you weren’t wearing a bra, your nipples poking through the fabric of your top as you stared at him with nervous lusting eyes.

He looked back at you, knowing exactly what you wanted.. and he planned on giving it to you.

thanks for reading! likes and reblogs are greatly appreciated. also, the title is a latin phrase that means, ‘so long as you love me’, for anyone who was curious. and always remember that you’re loved and important <;3

[kaurwreck]

OMG you also like TGCF???? I didn't know that!! Who are your favorites? What are your thoughts on my loves Hualian? Have you read any of MXTX's other books? Kisses!!

oh I love love love tgcf, loving tgcf literally changed the trajectory of my career. I love tgcf so much I co-wrote a series comprising almost 100k words of post-canon continuation. I love tgcf so much I have four tgcf-related tattoos.

hualian is love and light and healing. san lang is my smarmy baby boy, and xie lian is my sage king ferret rat prince. i wrote a fic about the degree to which they are baby boy/ferret rat prince here.

(unsolicited tidbits below)

Xie Lian woke slowly, leisurely, in the loving arms of his husband. His heart stirred with affection. His heart stirred with mischievous intent.

...

“Good,” Hua Cheng nodded, his shape rippling as he returned to the more mature form that he’d forged in the kiln of Mt. Tong’lu. “Then come to bed; you’re too far away and I want to be coddled. Didn’t you say you’d coddle me? I want it now. We can talk about my rewards too.”

my absolute favorite is he xuan, though, which is why my tattoo of him is my entire inner bicep. i tried to write a fraction of my affection for him into a post-canon character study in which hua cheng tattoos him (badly).

but I'm particularly fond of and will eventually finish my post canon wip in which he teaches mu qing sex ed (badly):

The Supreme Ghost King, Lord Black Water Sinks Ships, hissed at Mu Qing like a particularly curmudgeonly catfish.

...

"What do you know about matters of the flesh?" Mu Qing asked when He Xuan looked away to guzzle the complimentary tea the server placed before him. He Xuan proceeded to choke, but Mu Qing merely rolled his eyes. It was He Xuan's fault for drinking the tea as if he'd never been forced to behave in public. Then again, Mu Qing thought back to what little he remembered of Ming Yi and considered that perhaps he hadn't ever been taught how to behave after all. Mu Qing took a delicate sip of his tea and pitied Ming Yi and his terrible table manners.

...

The reality of what Mu Qing had done set in. He'd invited a god-slaughtering, divinity-snatching calamity to a meal solely to pry from him the secrets of the bedroom that Mu Qing had assumed others were graced with while he was dutifully cultivating on Taicang Mountain. His horror was matched only by his frustrated libido.

...

"And," Black Water Sinking Ships said at the crest of a great sigh, "I'm not teaching you how to have sex." "I should have known better than to ask you," Mu Qing huffed, adaptable as ever. "How could I expect someone like you to know anything of clouds and rain?" "Do you think I spent centuries in the Heavenly Realm yet can't recognize negging?" He Xuan retorted.

(if you haven't noticed, I only write post canon tgcf. except for when I wrote my 1943 san francisco diaspora tgcf noir murder mystery dinner party)

other tgcf beloveds: ling wen, yushi huang, pei ming, shi wudu, and jun wu.

and then yes! I have also read svsss and mdzs. I have also written fic for those two but not in any way that's reasonable enough to snippet.

kisses kisses, ty for such a lovely ask, it makes me so warm to think about tgcf!!!

[kaonarvna]

About a week ago I had the desperate urge to go to an aquarium, after well over a decade of zero interest whatsoever. So today my partner and I took a little day trip to one not too far away!

Got there AT OPENING, and the car park was packed, school holidays and all. We appeared to be the only pair of childless grown men there, but that's perfectly fine! They had little foot stools at the entrance for parents to bring with them, to help their little ones see better. Very sweet. Love to see it.

Naturally I took a sketchbook with me! I don't draw from life enough, let alone creatures that are actively in motion. I expected to have a lot more difficulty with the fish, but, strangely enough, they seem to want to watch you just as much as you want to watch them.

The Pacu (tambaqui!) were in a massive tank probably four or five meters in diameter, with a handful of massive, meter-long catfish and some rays in there with them. They swam around the perimeter in a long train, so we had continuous moving reference.

The rays seemed just as interested in me as I was in them. Little guys would go right up to the edge of th glass to check you out. While I imagine they're accustomed to seeing loads of children, I'd imagine sustained attention from someone sat there for a few minutes isn't too common.

There were LOADS of turtles, all rescues from the exotic pet trade. The rays, pacus, and catfish were also rescues. People not realising just how big they'll become and all. Took all my self restraint not to reach out and touch the turtles. ALL my restraint. So so tempting.

I didn't expect monkeys, but there were absolutely butt loads of marmosets in a big enclosure full of enrichment. Plants, ropes, bridges, trees, rocks, the whole nine yards. I think we were the first ones to get to them today, as we were alone with them, and got a fair bit of prolonged eye contact by the glass. Little guy I ended up sketching paused feasting to stare at me, and I stared back, of course.

Two big ol reef sharks were doing laps in a tank with a tunnel going through, along with the moray, the mullet, and oodles more. Huge, huge tanks.

Most importantly there were SEALS! And a wee seal hospital. They had three little ones there, all named for fruit. They were all resting, big squishy potatoes. "Raspberry" sat up and stared at us with those big black eyes for a hot minute, and flopped over to the glass to check us out. Big amorphous mammal blobs. I love em, I do.

All in all, 10/10 good day trip. Good aquarium. Seems to be (for the most part) doing rescue, restoration, and education work. I always worry a little, with zoos/aquariums/anything with animals on display whether it's,,, slimy. But this place felt good, couldn't taste any chlorine or nastiness in the air, always a good sign! Good day out.

[startrekfangirl2233-writes]

Catfish and Dog Cemeteries

Chapter Nine of Sweet Home Alabama

Jake ‘Hangman’ Seresin x OC (Linley Mitchell/Floyd), Bradley ‘Rooster’ Bradshaw x OC (Linley Mitchell/Floyd)

Description: The Annual Pigeon Creek Catfish Festival is always your favorite event of the summer. Being back here after seven years feels different. It should be a consolation that you're only going to be in Pigeon Creek for a few days more. But instead, another encounter with an old friend makes you question everything you thought you knew about your soon-to-be ex-husband. A chance encounter with the man himself makes you question everything else in your life, too.

Themes: love, attraction, angst, sex, cheating, lying

Warnings: discussions of grief, discussions of miscarriage, discussions of animal death

Word Count: 2665

A/N: This chapter is one of the saddest in this entire fic. I know, I know. It's awfully hypocritical of me to say that when most of Sweet Home Alabama (the movie) is really really sad. This is the chapter I sobbed while writing. It's also the first time Jake and Linley address the pain they have put each other through. I hope you love it!

Thanks to the gorgeous @desert-fern for reading over this chapter and smacking my imposter syndrome demon when it refused to give up.

AO3: Cross-posted here!

Wattpad: Cross-posted here!

My Masterlist

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Pigeon Creek's Catfish Festival is busier than you've ever seen it when you pull up and park your rental car on Main Street the next day. The festival used to be your favorite day of the summer, the one day during summer vacation when you could run free and eat as much candy and fried things as you wanted. You walk through the crowd on autopilot, walking down the line at the buffet until your plate is filled with all of the things you never actually let yourself eat anymore, and slip a twenty into the donation jar at the end of the table. The fried fish and steaming french fries had looked so good that you couldn’t stop yourself. 

But as you stand in the grass with your plate in your hand, it reminds you of something else. Nobody in Pigeon Creek likes you very much. Everyone you know is chatting and laughing and enjoying the good food. Yet you’re still the outsider. Like you were before Jake became your best friend like you have been every minute of every day since you left town. Not a single person wants to meet your eyes. A part of you understands why. Jake was the golden boy of the town. Jake is still the town hero. You’re just the girl who threw him away.

Of course, what you don’t expect to see is Dorothy sitting at one of the tables with a baby in her lap. She’s the only person who doesn’t glare at you as you walk up.

“D’you mind if I sit here?” Gone is the confident Linley who took New York by storm. In her place is the four-year-old with a lisp who used to get pushed off of picnic tables because she was too different.

“Sure.” You sit silently, gratefully, smiling at the chubby-cheeked baby in Dorothy’s lap.

“I, um..” You’re captivated by the shocks of tiny dark hair and big eyes and the way the little sweetheart is waving their fists around. “I didn’t know you and Mickey had a baby.”

“Aww, yeah. When you came around the bank the other day, there wasn’t much time for us to catch up now, was there?” She hums to the baby for several long moments before turning all of her attention to you.

It occurs to you at that moment that maybe you were more than a little prejudiced yourself as a kid. You have more fun with Dorothy than you’ve had in years. Getting to eat good food and just be yourself probably helps, too. Every time you see her snuggle her daughter, it feels like your heart breaks a little more. You can’t turn back time or change history. Seeing the baby squeal as a calf licks her hand makes you smile.

“Y’know he went up there?” There’s a secretive smile on Dot’s face as she rescues the baby from having her frock eaten by a goat.

“Who?” You drag your eyes away from the kids playing in front of you and focus back on Dorothy. “Dot, who went up where?” When she just looks at you, the lightbulb goes off in your head. “Jake? When?”

“About a year after you left.” That little tidbit of knowledge hits like a dart hitting a bullseye on a dart board. “He doesn’t know that I know, but Mickey let it slip once.”

“Jake was in New York?” You sound like a stuck record, but you can’t believe that Jake ever went to New York. Jake has always hated the idea of the big city, much preferring the country to the city. 

“He told Mickey he'd never seen anything like it.” Your heart is six feet under the earth.

“He realized straight off…” You’re leaning in despite yourself, some sick sense of curiosity expecting you to know, “That he'd need more than an apology to win you back. He needed to conquer the world first. He's been tryin' ever since.”

You didn’t think that you were so cruel a few days ago, standing in the middle of that fashion show back in New York. But now? Now, you feel like the worst person on the planet. 

“That's why he kept sending the papers back.” Is the world spinning off of its axis, or is that just you? How is it that you can know someone for most of your life and that they still surprise you every time?

“Yeah, it's funny how things don't work out.” The baby starts fussing in Dot’s arms, and the sweet burble of sound puts a smile on your face.

“It’s funny how they do.” 

You spend the rest of the day hanging out with Dorothy, smiling and laughing like a fool while playing with the baby. But it’s as night falls and the kids all go home to bed that excitement starts to course through your veins. The first twang of the guitar sets your feet tapping. For the first time since you came back to Pigeon Creek, you feel like you’re at home. With good music and even better alcohol in your hands, you finally feel free. 

Of course, what you’re not expecting, even though you totally should be, is Jake and Bob walking up to the small gathering you’ve found yourself in. It’s almost like once Dot approved of you, everyone else did, too. He looks like sin, his worn jeans clinging to his thighs and a soft red flannel clinging to his broad shoulders. His eyes and hair glisten in the soft light, and if you were a younger, less encumbered woman, you would have climbed him like a tree. But as it is, your soul feels heavy, and your left-hand feels even heavier. The worst part isn’t just how you lost the love of your life. It’s in how you’ve lost your best friend, too.

You can’t look at his smiling face, not when it hurts to see him happy when you’ve never been sadder. So, instead, you fixate on the glass your beer is in. It’s crystal clear and gorgeous, and well, it’s glass like you’ve never seen in New York. Is it any wonder that you lift the glass to see if you can see the manufacturer? Of course, just as you lift up the glass, it’s Dot who notices what you’re doing.

“Oh, honey, you…” She giggles, looking at you, “You drink that from the top.”

“I know that, Dot. I’m just lookin’ to see who makes this Deep South Glass. I wonder if you can get it in New York?" You take a sip of your beer and sigh. "It's beautiful."

"D'you hear that, Jake?" There is mischief in Dot's voice. "Lin wants to know where she can find that snooty-faluty glass." Why's she asking Jake, of all people?

"Why ask me?" See that? That's why Jake Seresin was your best friend. He always knew exactly what you were thinking and had the courage to express the thought, too.

"Oh, I dunno. Maybe it's because…" You've only had a few sips of your beer, so you don't miss the glare Jake shoots at Dot. You don't know why he's keeping secrets, but you have a feeling it isn't for a good reason. "You're all spiffed up and all."

"Wait, y'all." You probably look as confused as you feel. "Am I missing something?"

But all of a sudden, the familiar tones of Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd echo across the dance floor. You can count on one hand the number of times you've passed on dancing to this song - and all of them have been when you were in New York. It's a right of passage, a way of life. A part of you is sure every 'Bama baby has been put to bed at night with a crooned-out rendition of this song since it came out. Already, you can feel the beat tapping your toes, but a part of you isn't sure if anyone will ask you to dance. You smile vaguely as Dot marches off to the dance floor, Jake in tow, leaving you standing at the edge of the dance floor yearning.

"Y'know, she says that I've got two left feet, but the truth is she's got no rhythm." You startle just a bit at Mickey's voice, though you smile when you hear the pure love in it for Dot.

"Why don't we show her just how well I can dance, then, Miss Linley?" 

"It would be my pleasure, Mr. Garcia." 

You're smiling from ear to ear as Mickey twirls you around on the dance floor. Your eyes flutter closed as you feel the beat in every hummingbird thud of your heart. But when you open them again, it feels like the world's standing still. The music is gone. There isn't another person on the dance floor other than Jake and you. He's got his hand on your waist, and your heart's not beating in time anymore. Your palms grow clammy, and your tongue feels like it's swollen in your mouth.

There is something unreadable in Jake's gaze as he twirls you once, twice, and then one final time before applauding for the band and walking away. You spend the rest of the night as far away from Jake as you possibly can. You know where he is; you always have. But it's different going out of your way to avoid him. Everyone's cleared out for the night when you finally see the sign for the dog cemetery.

Bear used to love clear nights like this, and something about it makes you remember him. His little plot is the newest, and it hurts to think of the puppy you bottle-fed lying six feet under the ground when you never even got the chance to tell him you loved him one final time.

"Hi there, boy." Your hands shake as you clear away a couple of twigs ensnared in his grave marker. "Sorry, it took me so long. I would have come sooner if I'd known you were sick."

Sitting here tonight, you don't think you can lie. Not to Bear. "Actually, that's probably not true. I've been pretty selfish lately."

Tears track hot down your cheeks as you remember the dog you loved with all of your heart. "Dogs don't know anything about that, do they, though? You were always like a big old pillow. Like when everything went pear-shaped…" Your voice cracks on the words because pear-shaped is an understatement for how your life splintered. "You never left my side. And then I just left you. I bet you sat there wondering what you'd done wrong."

"I told him it was my fault." You stand up so quickly that you nearly fall over. It's Jake because who else would it be when he's so close that you can smell his cologne and feel the heat radiating off of his skin?

"Quit bein' so nice." 

"It's the truth." It's not. Not in the slightest. It was your fault. Your body, your mouth. Your fault. But you can't verbalize your words or how sorry you were for everything that you did.

"How come it has to be so complicated?" You sigh the words even as you wipe your tears away.

"What?" Despite his hatred for you, his voice is gentle, a melodic hum over the buzz of a summer night out in the country.

"The truth, life…" Finally, you trace your fingers over Bear's name. "This."

"He was one hell of a good dog, wasn't he?" You can only nod, moving to sit on a stone bench nearby. It's quiet for several moments, just you and Jake staring at the graves.

"You looked like you were having fun out there tonight." It's true, you did have fun. But it wasn't quite as easy as he thought it was to let loose.

"I'm happy in New York, Jake. But then I come down here and…” You gesture around you to all of Pigeon Creek. “This fits, too." Who are you trying to convince? Him? Or yourself?

"Since when does it have to be one or the other? You can have roots and wings, Lin." Not possible, not with your all-or-nothing life.

"Maybe I could just fly south for the winter." As if the Honorable Carole Bradshaw would ever let you do that.

He sits down next to you suddenly, warming the left side of your body as he gets close.

"Look." It takes you a bit to figure out what you're looking for, but when you see it, it makes you feel like a kid again. "There. Do you see 'em?"

"Only you. Lightnin' bugs." There's a childlike wonder on his face. This close, you can feel each exhale and can see the specks of amber floating in the green of his eyes

"You know, I still go out there sometimes. I see those big thunderheads rollin' in. It's like a religion." Of course, he still goes out on the beach in the middle of lightning storms.

But his confession has you spilling one of your own. "I had a dream about it the other night." You watch the lightning bugs track pinpricks of light through the dark night.

"It had me thinking, Lin. You ever wonder what would have happened if we hadn't have gotten pregnant?"

Your heart falls to your feet at his words. Please let him regret you, but not that sweet baby. Please, not your sweet baby. Your throat barely pushes out the sound as you whisper, "Jake."

"Just," His eyes are pleading, and the sight of the pain in his eyes blanks all the thoughts out of your mind. "Let me get this out before I can't. I thought that baby would be an adventure."

"And it took me a while to realize that it would have been your only adventure." Yup. The sound you hear despite the blood pounding in your temples is your heart shattering into infinitesimal pieces. "I just guess Mother Nature knew better, huh?"

Your hands make abortive movements in your lap. But you can't reach for him, not with the ring weighing your left hand down. "I was so ashamed, Jake. 'Cause I felt relieved. How selfish am I, huh? I lost our baby, and I felt relieved. I felt relieved. And I couldn't handle that. All of a sudden, I just needed a different life. So I left."   

Your voice is so quiet you're not sure Jake can actually hear you.

"You’ve done really well for yourself. I'm proud of you, Lin." He's so close all you want to do is fall into him. But you can't. You can't.

"I'm just sorry I never danced with you at our weddin'." How does he make your heart feel so full that you're sure it's going to overflow?

"I'm sure this next one's gonna go better for ya." His hands are strong and warm and perfect as they cradle yours. But every press of his hands rubs the ring, Bradley's ring, into your hands. It feels like a brand, the guilt turning into a five-ton weight sitting there. And it's that itchy, heavy feeling that has you yanking your hands from his own. 

"Jake, I can't do this." Who are you trying to convince as you walk away? Like so much of this conversation tonight, you're not really sure.

"I know."

Something about those words has you turning around. It's not a feeling or an expressed desire, but you still stand on your tiptoes and kiss Jake. Just once, you promise your traitorous heart. Just once. But he feels like home and tastes like it and smells like it. The electricity ricocheting through your veins makes you feel so good that you don't break the kiss until Jake does. Your lips are swollen, and you can barely breathe. But Jake? Jake just looks angry.

"Go home." Is it any wonder that you do so with your tail between your legs?

I DO NOT CONSENT TO HAVE MY WORK POSTED, TRANSLATED, OR PUBLISHED ON ANY SITES OTHER THAN HERE, ON WATTPAD, OR ON AO3 BY ME. IF YOU SEE MY WORKS ANYWHERE OTHER THAN HERE, ON WATTPAD, OR AO3, THEN THEY HAVE BEEN POSTED WITHOUT MY PERMISSION AND I WILL BE WORKING TO TAKE THEM DOWN.

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[total-drama-shark]

So I watched the first episode of TDI on four different dubs:

With the grand power of "easily changing audio and subtitles on Netflix" I spent an unholy amount of time watching the first episode of TDI in both European and LatAm version of Spanish and Portuguese, these are my notes.

Latin Spanish

Names:

TDI is called “Isla Del Drama” which directly translates to “Island of Drama”

The screaming gophers are called “Los Topos Gritones” which translates to “The Screaming Moles”

The Killer Bass are called “Los Bagres Asesinos” which translates to “The Killer Catfish”

Intro:

I didn’t like it at first, simply because it didn’t have the same raspy vibe as the English one, but I grew fond of it! They still can’t reach those high note tho.

Voices:

Chris’ voice is iconic, I may be biased but damn.

My favorite voice deliveries are Beth’s, Leshawna’s, Duncan’s and Owen’s, for some the acting approximates the English ones while other give them a bit of a twist but still fit the characters!

Noah and Cody’s voices are spot on characterization wise, in a different approach than the English version. It’s neat but also I kinda want to punt them in the face, y’know?

Dear god what did they do to Geoff’s and Lindsays voices. Harold’s voice is also certainly interesting, can’t even describe it.

Localizations:

Latin Spanish dubs tend to not have a lot of country specificlocalizations because they’re meant for nearly an entire continent and the slang in Latin American countries can vary so much and have wildly different meaning, so not much to write here.

That said, Leshawna tends to call guys “muñeco” as in “doll”

And guys call each other “viejo”, which while it is our version of “dude” it directly translates to “old man”

Castilian Spanish

Names:

TDI is just called Total Drama Island, they just say the English name with a Spanish accent.

The Screaming Gophers are called “Las Ardillas Chillonas” which translates to “The Whiny Squirrels”

The Killer Bass are called “Las Truchas Asesinas” which translates to “The Killer Trouts”

Intro:

They straight up didn’t translate the intro, it’s literally the English intro, I can’t believe it.

Voices:

Chris doesn’t have that surfer dude voice in this dub but he so very much sounds like an enthusiastic host.

Listen I’m trying so hard to be unbiased but... I just find the Castilian accent inherently funny, they all sound goofy to me, that said all the voices are super solid, they all get the vibe and acting right.

Favorite voice deliveries are Duncan (by far), Beth, Bridgette, Leshawna, Eva, Owen… shit do I have favorites?

Cody’s voice is extra puntuable here

Harold’s voice sounds like he’s constantly running out of air, breathe my dude.

Localizations:

They use a lot of Spaniard lingo, as expected.

DO SPANIARDS CALL MARSHMALLOWS CLOUDS???

As always, Spaniards localized “dude” as “tío” which directly translated to “uncle”

Leshawna calls guys handsome often but it’s not in a flirty way, I was unfamiliar with this.

The pronounciation of some of the character names irks me, Leshawna included but specifically Courtney.

Brazilian Portuguese

Names:

TDI is called “Ilha Dos Desafios” which directly translates to “Island of Challenges”

The Screaming Gophers are called “Esquilos Berrantes” which translates to “The Berrating Squirrels”

The Killer Bass are called “Robalos Assassinos” which translates to “The Killer Bass”

Intro:

Now THESE vocals are raspy! The na na nas are at a lower pitch compared to the English version which is certainly interesting, I liked it!

Voices:

I very quickly grew to like Chris’ voice here, idk just something about it

FINALLY a dub that gives Beth a lisp!! Also Owen sounds like his VA had a fun time voicing him :)

Other favorite voice deliveries are Lindsay, Heather, and Courtney.

I’ll say the voices are pretty good, they all fit them very well!

This is the only dub of the three that doesn’t give Harold a really weird voice

Localizations:

“Dude” is localized as “cara” which again, equivalent but also directly translates to “face” and I feel like they say cara a lot.

They weren’t lying Duncan does really call the chicks “gatihnas” which is a way of calling woman sexy but directly translates to “kitty”

The Communal bathrooms joke change to go a bit like “Communal? But I don’t know anything about politics!” “Not Communist, Communal.”

European Portuguese

Names:

TDI is called “Ilha Dos Desafios” which directly translates to “Island of Challenges”

The Screaming Gophers are called “Os Toupeiras Gritantes” which translates to “The Screaming Moles”

The Killer Bass are called “Os Robalos Asesinos” which translates to “The Killer Bass”

Intro:

There’s no backup singers in the intro except for the na na nas that where taken directly from the English version, also the audio editing made the singer no favors, you can even hear when he inhales, poor guy.

Voices:

Chris’ voice is probably at his highest pitch here, and he again has that enthusiastic host tone to him.

Beth and Owen’s VA put so much effort into them I love it!!

Can’t pick favorites because the voice direction just leave me flabbergasted in so many characters.

Harold’s voice is so full of voice cracks and is so goofy (/pos) my man can’t catch a break in these dubs

Ezekiel’s voice, I can’t even describe it, he sounds like smokes 20 packs a day and is dying of lung cancer as we speak.

CODY’S VOICE IS SO LOW

Courtney what did they do to you 😭😭😭

Localizations:

“Dude” is localized as “meu” which directly translate to “my” or “mine”

Scheduled programing interrupted to show just some of the many changes the made to all the character names:

Chris is now “Christiano”, Beth is “Betâ” (probably short for “Betânia”), DJ is “Denis”, Gwen is “Graça”, Lindsay is “Linda” and they did something fun with that, Linda is also the word for pretty, so when she got introduced Chris said “Linda (pretty) isn’t just her name”, Harold is “Alvaro”, Cody is “Cesar” and like Lindsay they make a pun, Owen is “Olavo”, Courtney is “Carmo”, Justin is “Justino”, and Izzy is “Isa”

This took so long I had to watch episode 1 so many times in four different dubs and double check for the names and words I was unfamiliar with

[hananosami]

Our Last Spring | Gojo x Reader

Chapter I: Business Card

It was April 4, 2004 in Fukuchiyama, a small city in the northern part of Kyoto Prefecture. You remember the cherry blossoms slowly blooming by the streets, as you walked home from school. Your friend was talking to you about some anime she had watched on TV yesterday, you'd quietly listen as she rambled on about a show you weren't familiar with. A gentle smile on your face, as you nodded, watching her make these hand gestures- letting her know she had your full attention. It was a beautiful afternoon, that's how you remembered that day.

As you approached your house, you noticed black cars parked in front of your house that you weren't familiar with. None of your relatives had cars like those, sleek, luxurious looking ones. Perhaps they had just parked in front of your house, because there were no other parking spaces in the neighborhood- it was a small and humble neighborhood after all. You waved goodbye to your friend, as you opened the gate to your house. She lived a couple of blocks away from you, which was why it was only natural that the two of you had walked home together almost everyday. She grinned, waving her hand goodbye as high as possible; you chuckled, before heading into your house.

"Okaa-san, Otou-san! Tadaima!" You'd yell from the front door, removing your shoes and placing them on the shoe cabinet, before stepping on the wooden floors and inserting your house slippers on. You'd gleefully walk through the hallway, before turning right and reaching the receiving area, the tatami room with the kotatsu and zabuton. You'd figured your mother would be having her afternoon tea by now, what you wouldn't expect would be the unexpected and unfamiliar visitors that would be sitting across from her; people that had an odd aura around them. 

"Sweetheart! I didn't even realize you were home already!" Your mother smiled at you, almost forcefully, you'd notice the way her fingers were fidgeting on her lap, fingers grasping at the fabric of the apron that was tied around her waist. "Hey honey!" Your father greets you from beside your mother, now that was a rare sight. Your father would often be too busy to have tea with your mother in the afternoon, being too busy grading papers from the university he works at. A tight smile was on his lips as well, he was uncomfortable, it wouldn't take a genius to figure that one out. 

You'd turn your attention to the older looking gentlemen that sat across from them, one of them wearing a traditional hakama, while the other wore a school uniform you weren't familiar with. "(Y/N), correct?" The older gentleman spoke, you'd stare at them, unresponsive to your own name- until your mother spoke. "Meet Gakuganji-san and Zen'in-San, they're from the Kyoto Metropolitan High School. Please show some respect, sweetheart." Her voice sounded restrained, uncomfortable. "It's nice to meet you." You'd speak, bowing your head slightly, to show some form of respect. 

Your mother would then wave her hand at you and pat the zabuton next to her, letting you know that she wants you to sit next to her. "As we've discussed, our school is a prestigious one- that only one would ever dream of being admitted to. We'd like to extend that offer to Ms. (Y/N) here. We're well aware that she's not in high school yet, but she's about to graduate middle school and I'm sure that the two of you are already looking for a high school for this young girl to attend.." Your mother chuckles nervously, "Yes.. But central Kyoto is so far away-.." The catfish looking man interrupted her before she even finished voicing her concerns, "We'd pay for the four years that she'll be spending at our school, she'd have a scholarship and an allowance from us to spend however she pleases. We'd even pay you both to let her attend our school.." He'd grin towards you, before reverting his attention back to your parents. "She's just such a talented student, we've seen her profile and she's a student we cannot miss out on."

This whole situation made you feel uneasy, why did they even want you to go to their school? You weren't all that special, you were just a regular fourteen year old girl. Sure, you were a good student, the top of your class in academics and you kept yourself busy with some extra-curriculars in the afternoon- but there were other contenders that most likely had a better academic profile than what you had. So, why you? And why were they so adamant on making you go? It didn't feel right, none of it did. Paying your parents just for you to go? It made your skin crawl, what were you? A prostitute that can be bought?

"We do need the money.. Honey.." Your dad would start, mumbling it quietly against your mother's ear. Your mother gave his thigh a hard pinch and glared at him quietly. "As much as we'd like to accept your offer, I don't think we're comfortable accepting your offer. I'm truly sorry the two of you have wasted your time extending this once in a lifetime offer." The catfish looking man frowned, clearly displeased with her choice. But the other man beside him remained neutral, respecting her wishes. "We appreciate the two of you for allowing us into your lovely home and offering us tea. And most of all, we appreciate the both of you for at least listening to our proposition. If your choice about her studies ever changes, you have our business cards." He stood up and stared at the other man to do the same, Naobito would heave a heavy sigh before getting up himself. Then that was that, the two men left your house and the three of you resumed your daily lives. 

That was the last spring with your parents. 

The cherry blossoms had now started falling, it was now May, nearing the end of the short life cycle of most sakura trees. You and your friend had approached your house, when you noticed the blaring police sirens outside your home. There were a couple of nosy neighbors that stood outside of the yellow line that now surrounded your home, whispering to each other- wondering what was going on. Furrowing your eyebrows, you were confused why there were so many cops outside of your childhood home. You'd notice two ambulances on the side, with its doors wide open. 

"(Y/N)!" You'd hear your friend yell for you, as you rushed towards your home, ducking under the yellow police tape. A couple of police officers would stop you right at the gate of your home, when a couple of coroners dressed in navy took a body out in a stretcher. Your mouth agape, as tears started slipping past your eyes. You'd remember screaming for your parents, as the coroners took another body out of your home- wheeling them into the ambulances. One of the police officers hugged your body tightly against his, as you fought him, screaming in bloody murder. Eventually all the fight you had left in you had died, and you could only hear the gentle voice of the police officer whispering to you that everything would be alright. You'd collapse unto the ground, along with the officer, as he cradled your head on his chest. 

The next couple of days were a blur. You ended up staying at your friend's house, while the police officers finished up their investigation at your house. They were never quite able to figure out what happened, they ruled out suicide- but they could never quite figure out who killed your parents, no one hated your family enough to kill them. There was no motive for anyone to kill your mother and father- and leave you an orphan. Everyone adored your parents, so the police officers deemed it as a stroke of bad luck. Wrong person at the wrong place, wrong time. 

Your parents' wishes were honored and they were cremated. 

There was a funeral and several of your friends, along with their parents and your parent's friends attended. There were even some of your father's students that attended, offering you support through this difficult time. You could only offer them a tight lipped smile, a smile that never quite reached your eyes. Once they've all left, you stood in front of the columbarium, just staring at their names. No more tears were left for you to shed, you just felt numb and empty.

Eventually, you built enough energy to visit your home- to at least pack some of your clothes; you've been borrowing your friend's clothes for the last couple of days after all. You arrived at the front of your house, heart heavy, as you pushed the gate open and entered your home. You avoided the tatami room, refused to look anywhere else, and headed straight to your room. And once you've finished packing your clothes, you head back downstairs. But before you left your home to head back to your friend's, you went to the fridge and opened it. 

You would see food that was on plates, that was wrapped with a plastic wrap. So your mother at least had a chance to cook.. Before they were.. You shook your head, trying your best to no longer think of what happened to them. You closed the fridge, where you were met with two business cards that were hung on there with a magnet. Grabbing the both of them, both read "Kyoto Metropolitan High School" and as you flipped it to the other side, that's where you're met with the names and phone numbers of the men that visited your home a month ago.

"Yoshinobu Gakuganji, Naobito Zen'in."

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Hello friends! I hope ya'll enjoyed the first chapter! I will, will, will  introduce Gojo soon. This IS a Gojo x reader fanfic.

I hope ya'll like it so far! 

Well, I shall see ya'll later friends! Hope you enjoyed this short, quick chapter! :)

Peace!