#getting weirdly sentimental about smiling friends

[kindheart525]

This is such a small detail but I really like when Smiling Friends fanart depicts Charlie with a scar on his nose. Like idk as someone with surgical scars it's great to see those permanent marks represented and normalized. It's a detail that I think adds more to Charlie's character and a small touch of realism in this wonderfully wacky world

[pitchsidestories]

Everything I know about female friendship II Arsenal Women x Reader

romantic masterlist | platonic masterlist | word count: 2136

summary: Everyone in your flat share has moved on, except you. There used to be five of you, Alessia, Victoria, Laura, Laia and you, and now you think you're celebrating New Year's Eve alone in a flat that, if the pictures on the wall were anything to go by, was once full of friendship.

author's note: Dear readers, we hope you'll have a fantastic New Year’s Eve and a great start into 2025; however you choose to celebrate it.🫶🏻🫶🏻

This New Years’ Eve felt significantly different from all the others before. This year you weren’t out partying, dancing until the early morning hours and you also didn’t spend the night with your housemates and a bottle of champagne in your shared living room.

For the first time since you moved to London you were alone. Everyone that had shared the house with you at some point, had already moved out again. There was no Laura, no Victoria, no Laia and no Alessia anymore. Just you.

You really thought you had made peace with the idea that you would end the old year and start the new year alone. But sitting there, waiting for the hours to pass, the emptiness started to feel weirdly heavy. To counteract the silence, you put your favourite record on and opened a bottle of wine that you had saved for this night.

While you were pouring yourself a glass, a sudden ringing on your doorbell made you jump and almost spill some of your wine.

“I’m coming!”, you called out. Leaving your glass on the table, you slowly walked towards the door. As soon as you opened it, Victoria beamed at you: “Surprise!”

You didn’t know what to say. Victoria and Laura stood in front of you, their arms linked. Laia and Alessia appeared right behind them with multiple bags in hand.

“Wow, I thought…”, you stammered but Alessia didn’t let you finish.

“That we’re all celebrating somewhere without you?”

You nodded hesitantly: “Actually, yes.”

“Wrong!”, Laura clarified quickly and pushed past you into her old home without waiting for you to beckon them in.

You let the other girls pass without protest as well. Laia was the last one. She looked up towards the clouded sky one last time before going inside: “I wish the weather was better though.”

You almost snorted. Whenever she had the chance, Laia would bring up how bad the weather in England was compared to Spain.

Victoria rolled her eyes: “You will survive, Laia.”

”Would a hug help?”, you asked to which the Spaniard nodded immediately.

“Yes.”

“Knew it.”, you laughed before pulling her towards you. With your chin resting on Laias shoulder, you forgot for a moment that she didn’t live here anymore.

You stayed there until you heard Alessia yell from the kitchen: “Oh my god, we need to upgrade your dinner for tonight!”

Laia and you followed the others into the next room. You shrugged nonchalantly: “What’s the problem with wine and crackers?”

“With wine, you need Italian food.”, Alessia stated.

“And a spanish dessert.”, Laia added before turning to the other two Arsenal players that were too busy with their lips on each other to care about any kind of food. “And no, Vicky and Laura, you cannot each other up. Respect the single ladies here!”

“And we want to contribute some Dutch and Austrian food.”, the defender explained with a cheeky smile on her lips.

You couldn't help but get a little sentimental as you watched your friends teasing each other, reminding you of the time when you all called these four walls your home. The melancholy hit you out of nowhere and your heart was torn into a million pieces, but the presence of your friends managed to put the many shattered pieces back together again.

“Man, how I missed you girls.”, you sighed whole-heartedly.

There was an amused sparkle in Alessia’s eyes when she replied to your comment: “We still see each other in training. We’re not completely gone.”

“Yes, just because we moved out doesn’t mean we’re not your friends anymore you idiot.”, Victoria reminded you with her direct Dutch manner.

Instead of looking into anyone’s eyes you focused on the flickering candlelight in front of you, while you admitted: “I know that. It just sometimes feels a bit lonely. I miss the random talks in the living room and stuff like that.”

 “No wonder you’re a bit down the music is depressing.”, Laia observed, making her way to your beloved record player.

Maybe because the Spaniard herself went through dark times in her football career she was the one who was able to find the lightness in every moment so easily it was an art the defender perfected over time.

“Don’t turn that off!”, you protested smiling weakly.

“Can anyone help me to top the pizzas or not?”, asked the blonde striker.

Luckily for her the Austrian was the first to offer her help as they swiftly went to the kitchen to give the food the last finishing touches before it was put into the oven.

Alessia's face was one of pure concentration: “What do you think more cheese?”

“Of course, more cheese!”, Laura declared.

The half-Italian nodded in agreement: “Alright.”

“Laia put on something more.”, Victoria began but was confidently interrupted by the Catalan woman.

She assured her grinning: “You don’t have to tell me, I’ve the best playlist for that.”

“Excuse me!?”, you formed your lips to a pout which could almost compete with Leah Williamson’s one as Laia switched to Latin dance music.

Laia's brown eyes twinkled mischievously at you, her hips starting to swing to the rhythm of the beat: “Just trust me on this.”

“Fine, but I won’t dance.”, you quickly clarified.

She shrugged unimpressed by your statement: “You don’t have to.”

“Good.”, you replied.

“But you will later.”, Laia stated firmly.

A soft smile was playing on your lips: “I’m unsure about that.”

“Girls, the pizza is done.”, Alessia chirmed, the delicious smell of the Italian dish which was made by her family recipe filled up the room.

When she and Laura placed the finished pizzas fresh from the oven on the table, Victoria clapped excitedly:” Amazing.”

“Come try it.”, the Austrian said, waving Victoria over to her.

While the midfielder sat down, Laura cut her a piece of pizza and held it in front of her face so she could take a bite.

Victoria chewed happily: “It’s so delicious.”

One after the other, you all joined the table, pouring each other wine and trying the pizzas.

You watched all your friends crowded your kitchen like they used to do a few months ago.

“At least you’re all happy now.”, you grinned.

Laia turned to you with a raised eyebrow: “You should be happy too.”

“I am.”, you replied a little too quickly. A half-truth that came too easily and that was hard to describe to other people.

Alessia shook her head. As usual, she looked right through you: “She is not.”

“Rude.”, you said. You weren’t offended but a little taken aback by how quickly she caught on to your lie.

The striker remained unimpressed: “At least you haven’t told your face that yet.”

You raised your eyebrows in surprise, you hadn’t realized that you were frowning. Your eyebrows had begun to knit together, creating a small crease on her forehead, and her molars were clenched together. A bit longer and you would have given yourself a headache by the end of the evening.

Victoria refilled your now empty wine glass with a gracious smile: “Yes, so how are you really.”

You took a deep breath, preparing yourself to let your guard down: “I’m okay.”

“You’re sure?”, Laura asked for confirmation.

“Yes. I just get a bit sad and nostalgic around the end of the year.”, you finally admitted.

Your friends went quiet. It wasn’t an uncomfortable silence but rather a thoughtful one which was quickly ended by Laia looking at you incredulously: “But you can be proud of yourself.”

“Proud? Are you serious?”, you laughed.

“Obviously I’m serious.”, the Spaniard nodded, glaring at you sternly.

You shook your head, the crease between your brows making a reappearance: “Of what?“

“Oh my god, are you kidding?”, Victoria suddenly burst out.

“No.”

The dutch midfielder heaved a frustrated sigh. “Remember when you moved in here? Look at you now.”

The memories came back with force like a ball hitting you right into the face during a football game. It was one and a half years ago and you should have been overjoyed to have just signed your first contract for Arsenal, but all your thoughts were preoccupied with your recent break-up. Your move to London was the last straw for your ex, she ended the relationship via text. The majority of your first few weeks at Arsenal were only made bearable by your housemates.

You bit your lip, trying not to laugh about your past self: “Vicky, I was a heartbroken wreck back then.”

“That’s what I’m saying! You’re so over it! You’ve grown so much as a player and as a person!”, she disagreed with you passionately.

You let your gaze wander lovingly over the faces of your beloved friends before concluding: “I grew only because of all of you.”

“Hey, no. With us all.”, Alessia corrected you promptly with a knowing smile playing on her pink lips.

She was right about that when you thought back fondly on the development of the friendship between the five of you.

The sense of togetherness you all developed on and off the pitch was nothing short of remarkable. Even at hard times when things with the head coach got difficult you stood together. Yes, you had befriended teammates in the past, but the true power of female friendship was evident in your former roommates.

“You’re right, Laia’s English improved so much since she moved to London.”, you remembered smirking.

“Excuse me?”, the Spaniard huffed playfully.

Laura patted her shoulder sympathetically:” It’s true.”

“Yeah, yeah, okay.”, Laia admitted.

You gratefully squeezed the striker's hand: “Thanks for the pizza, Lessi. It was great as always.”

“You’re welcome. I tried to perfect the recipe in the past year.”, Alessia proudly raised her chin.

With curiosity in her voice, the Austrian wanted to know:” Is it originally from your Italian family side.”

“Of course.”, the blonde replied, her laugh warming even the coldest of hearts.

Meanwhile Laia rose solemnly from her chair:” You know what, girls?”

“What? It’s not midnight yet.”, you remarked after you checked it on your phone.  The time really flew by when you spent it with your friends. While the conversation and the wine flowed.

The defender rolled her eyes in annoyance:” I can read a clock, y/n. Thank you very much.”

“So?”, you looked at her with anticipation.

“Yes, what are we doing?”, Laura questioned matching your excitement.

“It’s time for dancing.”, Laia announced grinning roguishly.

“No.”, you objected.

“Yes.”, she answered, her voice full of enthusiasm.

“Laia”, you warned her as the Catalan pretended not to have heard the warning and took your hands to lift you from your chair.

“Come on, y/n.”, Laura interjected.

“Ugh.”, you groaned while the fellow Arsenal players started to dance around you.

Slowly you began to move your body to the music as well, feeling the weight of the year being lifted from your shoulders as Alessia chirped in your ears:”You’ll feel better afterwards.”

The promise which the sentence held turned out to be true. The melancholy wasn’t gone entirely, but there was a lightness in your steps now which was new tonight.  

“We’re such bad dancers.”, you laughed out loud.

“Who cares?!”, Alessia asked, flailing her arms as she spun in circles around the room.

You thought about if for a second and then nodded: “Good point, actually.”

Victoria who almost knocked a small golden table lamp from one of the dressers while doing the robot, reminded you: “It’s just us!”

“And that’s more than enough.”, you said fondly as you watched your friends doing silly dance moves in your living room like they used to.

They didn’t hear you though. Instead, the music stopped, and your teammates suddenly scrambled through your apartment. A glance towards the clock revealed why. It was five minutes before midnight. Victoria and Laura ran out on the balcony, carrying snacks while Alessia and Laia frantically filled champagne glasses.

You met on the balcony exactly at midnight, quickly clinking your glasses together.

“Happy New Year everyone!”, Laura yelled into the night sky, right as the fireworks started around you.

Victoria pressed a quick kiss to the Austrians cheek before turning back to the group in front of her: “Happy New Year, girls!”

Your heart felt like it was going to burst out of your chest as you just stood there on the balcony, watching your former housemates and current teammates sip on their champagne and light some sparklers.

The nostalgia was still there but less sad and heavy. It started to transform into something that filled you with hopefulness and excitement for the new year. You felt at peace knowing that no matter what, the girls would always be by your side.

You blinked at them one more time: “Can’t wait for another year with my girls.”

gif and image source: https://www.tumblr.com/stargirlsfc/746487956612775936/lets-fucking-gooooo?source=share, https://pin.it/3K5c1msTJ

[kairiscorner]

✧˚ · . just friends with suguru getou.

🍰 genre: fluff !!

✒️ word count: 924

💭 summary: you both swear, you're just friends... but friends don't know the way you like to be held, how to make you feel butterflies in your stomach, do they?

💗 special mentions: @moonswolfie @xoxo-cha

🍥 author's note: y'all i can fix him i swear (i didn't know how to end it so i'm sorry if it ain't good enough 💔)

as suguru lay on his bed in the dormitory, silently reading a book, you figured things were too quiet for such a fleeting weekend. you decided to engage in your favorite pastime: annoying the hell out of him. you kept whining how boring today was, how there was nothing to do; how much you wanted to go to the nearest amusement park or arcade and just drag him everywhere. this kind of pestering would usually annoy someone else, but suguru wasn't just someone else to you; sure he was your friend, but... there was a sort of unspoken connection between you two; an invisible boundary you both step over time and time again, but never fully discuss about. you both pretended as though nothing's more than just friendly between you two, that those little touches and gestures you both do for each other—all the tolerance and fondness you two have built up towards each other is nothing more than a friendly relationship. nothing more than that, definitely not.

the boy chuckles as he looks over at you from behind his book, a sweet smirk dancing on his lips. "bored?" "extremely." your childish groan of a response elicits a laugh from the boy, forcing him to sit up and put his book away. "well... what do you want to do?" he asks you in a hushed whisper, his hazelnut colored eyes and darling grin making you feel hot in the face as you stared back at him while you lay down on your back, with his upside down image in your eyes stifling a chuckle at how cute you looked.

"keep looking at me all cutely and i might forget we're friends." he jokes as he lies back down on his back, teasingly placing one leg over your stomach, making you whine again. "sugu!" you exclaim in faux annoyance. "what, my lovely? am i too heavy?" he teases, knowing full well how you like being teased like this, and believe it or not... he likes it a lot, too. his smirk widens as he places his other leg on your stomach, crossing his legs and squishing you. "so tiny..." he mumbles under his breath as you pout, trying to push his legs off while he, in all his classy douchebag fashion, effortlessly pushes his legs back down onto your stomach, chuckling at your futile resistance.

"you're an asshole, sugu..." "i'll take that, you know satoru can't be the only asshole to you." he quipped, making you furrow your eyebrows in false frustration the minute you got out of his legs' grasp. you lay down next to him on his bed, placing your arms on his chest in an effort to push him back down onto the bed to lie down with you. "yeah, he's an ass, but... you're a weirdly special kind of asshole." you mutter in a hushed, sentimental tone. suguru gives a small snort at that, smiling wider. "so, i have the nicer ass?" "not like that!" you exclaim, playfully hitting his chest, making him laugh harder. "sure... if you were to choose between us, though, who'd be your pick?" he asked you with a sly voice. his question was quite vague, really, so you held off answering by telling him so. "too vague?" he repeats, sneakily wrapping his arm around your shoulders, pulling you closer to his chest.

"fine, uh... if you were to be... in a relationship with either of us... who would you pi—" "neither of you." you say in a sweet tone, smiling all innocently to seal the deal. suguru looked at you with a sort of surprised expression, was he getting mixed signals from you all this time? was he being too presumptuous of your feelings for him? for a split second, his cheeks are tinted with a slight shade of red, and he utters something under his breath that you couldn't make out.

you look up into his eyes and poke his cheek. "why? why'd you ask?" suguru stayed silent for a few seconds, formulating a made up excuse in his head, but only a small chuckle escaped his sweet lips. "i just, um... thought you'd choose him because of how close you two are." "ugh, nah, he's cool but also such a maniac sometimes." now that makes suguru laugh heartily, you can't remember when he's laughed like this before. "really? a maniac? as if you aren't?" "you're more maniacal than me, suguru getou." "i guess i am, because... i think you're more than just my friend sometimes." he whispers, looking at your face in such an ethereal way; you've never been looked at with such kind, selfless eyes before, that held nothing but pure adoration for you in them.

he tries to shift the topic immediately with some small talk that you couldn't care less about, but you wanted to keep him pinned right then and there about his confession—so you took the plunge and kissed him. on his bed. on that lazy, uneventful weekend afternoon that felt like all time had slowed down. your legs were wrapped around his, like how friends do; your hands were on his chest, gripping at his shirt and pulling him closer into the kiss, like how friends do—you pulled away for a second to catch your breath, and with a soft voice that only he could hear... you uttered those words he never dreamed of hearing would come from you, because he never felt that it was possible.

"i love you, suguru."

like how friends do.

[2kverrr]

Hey! Would you be able to do a SGW Alphabet for Sandayu Oda from Cyberpunk? Either him or Goro Takemura. Thank you!

no worries !! I've never wrote for either of these characters so please do excuse any inaccuracies. thank you so much for another request :)

GORO TAKEMURA || SFW Alphabet

CYBERPUNK 2077 || 1.4k Words

A: Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

Takemura spent the majority of his life displaying honour and loyalty, proving the willingness to protect his employer in order to move up the Arasaka ranks.

So he's not really one for billboards with your faces on, he is much more comfortable providing quiet and subtle acts of his loyalty, making sure you're safe, relaxed and feeling okay. Offering you tea or some breakfast the moment you're up. Making sure you are equipped with everything you need for the day ahead.first to make you smile every morning and every night before you rest.

Whereas when it comes to the man himself, he values intimacy, being transparent with one another, savouring those moments where it feels like the two of you are the lone couple on earth.

B: Best Friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

You could trust him with your life, your deepest secrets, and he'd always offer a pragmatic, if sometimes blunt, perspective on your problems.

Though he's not your average Panam or Kerry, he's your rock? Always there and unchanging. He's not exactly one for spontaneous adventures or risky outings, but he would be willing to help you plan the takedown for a multi-billion ED corporation and then be there for you when you mess it up.

C: Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

He might not initiate them often, but when he does, it would be a gesture of trust and a way to offer comfort and closeness. Think less of playful snuggles and more of a serious, almost protective embrace.

D: Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

Of course he can cook, it's rare your see him eating fast food, and when he does, he's it's harshest critique. He enjoys cooking, it something he can bend the rules a little with, try new things and spice it up.

The cleaning too, he weirdly enough enjoys ironing and tidying. He never lets it get to certain level of messy, tidying is simply just a part of his routine.

E: Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

No lengthy explanations, no crying, no emotional outbursts. There'd be an unsettling amount of formality like he's in some sort of business transaction.

F: Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

He hasn't really thought about it, plus he couldn't really care less about it. He doesn't understand why so many people see it as one of the most important stepping-stones in life.

"Foolish Western sentimentality." He preaches.

G: Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

Again, he's not the cutesy kind of gentle, it's hard enough to imagine holding eye contact him for over 4 seconds never mind imagining him cuddling up to somebody.

HIs touch is never harsh, never around you.

H: Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are they like.)

A lot like cuddles, he doesn't really initiate them but never rejects them. He prefers to be hugged straight-forwardly, after a long day.

I: I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

He's a man of few words, so don't expect a lot.

It's hesitant yet delivered with an intensity and sincerity he applies to everything. It's more of a declaration of loyalty and commitment, a promise to protect and cherish, rather than a romantic outpouring.

J: Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they get jealous?)

He's neither jealous nor insecure, once you both promise to commit to one another, he completely trusts your words and expects you to do the same.

K: Kisses (What are their kisses like?)

They wouldn't be sloppy or overly passionate, but rather a careful, deep expression of his feelings once he commits to them.

L: Little ones (How are they around children?)

Uncomfortable and unsure on how to act around them. He's aware that he's not the most approachable and he does honestly try his hardest to not seem it

M: Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

He's always up before you, there's never been a moment where you've woke up and he's still out like a log.

He's swift to offer you a drink, food, a bath running, Goro has it all prepped.

N: Night (How are nights with them?)

Unless he's out on a mission, he usually in bed pretty early and sticts so a routine. He's willing to watch a TV show of our choice until you fall asleep, if he's not staying.

He cooks, every single night. He always cooks something different each night, and never fails to impress you.

O: Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they spill everything all at once or slowly reveal things with time?)

It's gonna take a while, a long long while.

It starts with small stories from his childhood, harmless. It's rare he exposes his feelings, so you've got to assure that you're going to stick around.

P: Patience (How easily angered are they?)

He's as cool as ice. His patience never runs thin, sure he can act 'impulsively', but these 'impulses' have really been very delicately thought through.

Q: Quizzes (How much would they remember about you?) Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)

Everything. No doubt.

He'll always find a way to weave it into conversations and dates, even small things like how you dislike a certain shade of blue.

R: Remember (What is their favourite moment in your relationship?)

To put it into simple words: He's the type of guy to scroll past a star sign reading on social media, but scroll back up to check your moon, sun and rising for when mercury is in retrograde.

S: Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

Like Meredith - You're safe, no need for explanation.

T: Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

He doesn't tend to struggle when it comes to planning events, he's quite naturally thoughtful and transparent.

Throughout his day he'll notice things and often think of you, these things he doesn't fail to forget.

U: Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

When it comes to comforting you, he gets awkward and hesitant. Even after years of being together he'll still stutter and slighty panic when you show a large wave of emotion.

V: Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

Not at all, as long as his clothes are clean, ironed and fresh. His body is washed and able, he's not bothered.

W: Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

Takemura dedicated his entire life to his line of work before meeting you, it was his objective that he was dead set on. Whether he has you or not, this man will always find something or someone to dedicate his life to. It really means something if you or one of those people.

X: Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

I'm not so familiar with Takemura, so please do forgive me if any of these are a bit out of place:

He holds no mercy during board games, you best bet you will be paying rent EVERY single time you land on his monopoly property.

He listens to Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters and is quite keen on Franz Ferdinand.

He lets you cut and style his hair whenever it's due.

As much as he'd deny it, he's a sucker for a chick flick. You watched Mean Girls one night because you thought he'd fallen asleep, you're about an hour in and turn you head, his eyes are widened and immersed.

Since then, he'd suggest watching 10 Things I Hate About You, She's the Man, 13 Going on 30, purely for YOUR entertainment... not his. Not one bit.

Y: Yuck (What are some things they wouldn't like, either in general or in a partner?)

Mess, especially if he's just cleaned up that particular area. He appreciates a partner that shares his value of clenaing up after yourself.

Z: Zzz (What is a sleep habit of theirs?)

Not sleeping.

[teriwrites]

The Fatal Choice: Part 4

My Live Reactions to Reading Through My 2013 Novel

Area man shocked that entire city isn’t overrun by horrible, upper class shitheads actively collaborating to oppress their citizens and, in fact, is mostly made up of everyday citizens

So much disdain for alcohol

I can’t tell if this poverty being equated with morality is a character bias that’ll be rectified with time or literally 15-year-old me being ignorant

I’m gonna say a mix of both, but pretty cringe either way

Delroy just ordered straight rum from the bar

In a glass

The man supposedly doesn’t drink

This will have zero consequences

Ironically enough, rum is now my go-to spirit (but I’m more of a cocktail girly)

Anyways he’s seeking information from a guy in a seedy bar, ofc

YEEEEEES MY GIRL’S HERE

‘After helping Delroy brush some of the dirt off of his coat, the woman stuck her hand out. “I am Adriana Estep, aromatherapist in these parts. I can’t imagine somebody looking as dignified as you coming here very often. You must be quite desperate.” looooooove her

Delroy is lucky she’s so good, he’s the most gullible SOB I’ve ever written

‘Darkness overpowered everything, and it cast the poorer side of the city in shadow. The only dim light that the city received was the moonlight, which wasn’t enough to overpower the ceaseless darkness.’ I think it might be nighttime, you guys!

Delroy is just like me, fr, cannot handle strong smells, I also have to avoid visibly recoiling whenever I enter a perfume/incense/candle/scent-based store

“I have very close friends that were thrown into the dungeons. I need to know where they’re being held and if there’s any way I could break them out.” “Now you’re talking,” Adriana grinned. (I’m telling you, she’s the best)

AND she’s literate, what a badass

“If I want to try and get a job as a guard, then I’ll have to know what time slots are available. Later, I can say that I found myself another job and being a guard with my back up, so I don’t need it after all.” “Genius,” Adriana smiled, and then walked across the room to grab something. When she returned, she had a paper in her hands. “There’s only one thing. I already have a schedule of their work.” (I should’ve written this book about her)

‘Suddenly, she returned and handed him an incense burner. It smelled of Lavender, and Delroy couldn’t help, but feel a little less depressed after smelling it.’ I don’t think I knew how aromatherapy worked

Adriana stop flirting with the man, he’s ace and you’re a lesbian

(I’m not sure either of those were true in this draft but I’m Confident they were not meant to wind up together in any capacity, she's just sorta playful like that)

‘The bed that Delroy had the privilege of using was almost too comfortable.’ this is the second time I wrote about bedding being too comfortable, which I would’ve dealt with at the time, as I had to sleep with a resin back brace in high school and whenever I slept without it, I felt like the soft mattress was gonna suffocate me

People conveniently discussing current events downstairs in the inn the following morning to let Delroy know what his timeline is

‘Delroy couldn’t imagine how people could celebrate the deaths of others, criminals or not.’ we’re not supporters of capital punishment in this house

He just got struck with like a weirdly overpowering muscle spasm in his arm, and I'm really struggling to remember if this has literally any relevance or if it happened ~just because~

“I’ll get you back, my brothers,” Delroy vowed, and he clenched his fist, forcing his arm to stop twitching. “I don’t know how far I must go, or how much time it will take, but I will get you back.” my guy, you know exactly how long you have (roughly a week), and exactly where you need to go to do it (the jail, obviously) but the sentiment is there, at least

Ending Thoughts:

Delroy can leave now actually, the main-est of characters has arrived! Adriana was a longtime favorite character that I wrote, and I'm really hoping that I wrote more about her in this draft because to this day I still have a bunch of her lore circling through my mind. Arguably, she was the first to fit into an archetype I still often find in my writing: capable, fiercely independent (often to a fault, which requires addressing during their personal arc) women hiding their sense of being overwhelmed by the narrative. For other examples of this, see: Charlotte Wilson, Ingrid Berg, Rhonwen Castell, Winifred Pewitt (dw, we'll cover each and every one of them). I suppose Kristen can also slot somewhat into this archetype, too, but she's a little too openly codependent on her peers and open emotionally to quite fit in the slot. Anyways, still seeing a lot of that personality shining through, though not all of it's positive. Delroy definitely has a bit of a pretentious streak, which he totally did Not adopt from 15-year-old me, the girl who was 'too good' for reading YA or listening to popular music yet secretly loved Kelly Clarkson. Definitely not.

[in3rci4]

LEONARDO'S DIFFERENT VERSION DATING HCS ( PART 2 )

Warning : Yandere hints ¿??????? Idk

IDW comic's Leonardo ( This one might be much vague since i didn't read the next comics after Leonardo's stopped being mind controlled )

Depending on his mood he might be more open about PDA some days ( Special occasions , peace before / after war, etc ), but in general he likes to keep it simple in front of others and let himself go in private

Unless you already know or start training self defense he won't let you go on missions , he would try to convince April to persuade you to stay with her while they do their stuff

Tries to take you beautiful or aesthetic places , but more often than not you two will be interrupted , so to avoid that he started to give you more gifts and spend more quality time inside a safe place

He loves it when you compliment his appearance , but if you compliment his skills and wisdom ? OOF , this man would be all giggly and blushing like a school boy

Denial and silent jealousy , he would not communicate his thoughts and would try himself to stop thinking that way , but it only gets worse . Fortunately , when he's on the edge of exploiting he would try his best to talk with you about it

Even when he's on the foot clan he would still choosing you

He would probably kidnap you and force you marry him and keep obedience and loyalty towards him ( And if he was feeling threatened by certain someone close to you , he wouldn't doubt twice on hurting them bad enough to make them know who you belong to )

After it's all over he would apologize for his actions and spend more time with you than before

Although his jealousy might be transform into more straight to point , being a little sharp with his words but nothing extreme

LEONARDO 2003-2009 ANIMATED SERIE ( I haven't watched it in a long time too lol )

At first he would be shy with PDA , but as times passes by he would start to care and less about what other people has to say

Wich would leads to a shameless romantic Leonardo

The ego bust when you compliment him is insane , he might act all humble but he won't stop smiling proudly for your words

Quality time and service are his main love languages , but gifts with sentimental reasons behind them are also a good part of him too

Rarely gets jealous since he trust you with his heart , but that doesn't stop him from not liking a person at all for trying to hit you ( Worse if they know that they were dating someone )

He would act fake nice to the point it's way too obvious for everyone in the room that he's not content with their presence , and would act clueless if you said anything about it

10000000+ points if you're good with kids and eldest people , makes his heart go brrr for you

DARK CLONE LEONARDO ( TMNT 2003 - 2009 SERIES )

Ok so first to talk about this version I say that if you decide to keep being his friend you have to teach him a lot of stuff ( Maybe I'll add a HC )

Maybe you're a close friend of the turtles , maybe you're Leonardo's partner / ex

The thing is that you were just or more patient with him than his counterpart , making him reflex about his existence , morals , actions , everything

So he decides to stay on Earth and try to be like the other turtles , to give his " brothers " a better life far from their creator

So , after a long time of learning , communicating and spending time with you , he decides to date you so he can be finally your boyfriend ( You told him that mate is weirdly used to call a partner here , he asked why , but you avoided the question flawlessly lol )

That being said , he would be slow with PDA but once he learns all the types of affection , he would SHAMELESSLY french kiss you , talk about how good you were last night , hug you on the air , etc

Even he's more civilized than before , he would steal without care things that he knows you like or need ( Be careful with saying " Oh I wish I had money to buy x thing" he won't think twice on breaking the law if it means he'll get it for you )

Cuddling with him is cool until you wake up first but he don't , and he won't let go even in his sleep ( Might even pull you much closer like if he's trying to absorve you with his body )

Yes , he did learn the sharing importance , but with you ? Hell nah , he growls to anyone who is way too much confident with you , including his brothers , but specially humans and the og turtles ( Leonardo having it worse , he would probably get hurt more than once just for talking with you inconveniently alone )

If you talk with him about his jealousy he would try his best to not push you away , but don't expect it to happen soon or fade away completely

Your loyal servant at lifting heavy weights , helping you get something out of your reach , etc , but if you don't know how to fight or be just as strong as him , good luck on trying to go on a mission / train or put yourself at any danger

[anxious-acorn]

Wip Wednesday!!!

La Folie de Toi 🔞

Ch. 2: Dad Beak Dad (Snippet)

Walking up to greet the short king, you held your hand out with a warm smile. “That’s quite alright, your majesty. The name’s Y/N, or I also go by Vixen- it’s a little easier to remember since I love to fox around!” You wagged your tail and wiggled your ears, and Lucifer lit up.

“Oh ho my golly, you’re a fox! How cute, and weirdly sexy, but mostly cute!” The other demon took your offered hand and shook it with a nervous chuckle and you snorted. Charlie looked ready to dig her own grave, and Vaggie just appeared to be amused by the whole situation.

“Well, at least on that sentiment, we can agree,” Alastor’s clipped tone sounded beside you as he set a large hand on your head to muss your hair, and you grinned slyly at the irritated buck.

“Dear Vixy here is also my mate,” he said, and Lucifer choked for a moment.

“You actually got someone to tolerate you? Wow, Bambi, I never thought you had it in you! Good for you! Vixen, my condolences,” Lucifer teased, bringing your hand to his lips to kiss in a show of mock sympathy.

“Hah! Ya know, Vix and I was in a porno that started a lot like this once,” Angel said from the bar, and you burst out laughing at the faces and noises spluttering from the two men beside you.

“What’s my favorite saying, Angie?”

“Make fuck, not fight?”

“I’ll accept it.”

You laughed with Angel, and Charlie gave a halfhearted chuckle, her eyes squinting in unease.

“That would be so much funnier if you weren’t talking about my dad,” she said. Vaggie patted her back with a soft smile, adding a loud, “Don’t even think about it,” to Angel who looked ready to wreck the poor princess with whatever he was about to say next.

“Angel, you are a dear friend. I will miss you should you ever suggest such a thing again,” Alastor ground out, twisting his head completely around as his eyes flashed black. This only seemed to make the spider want to poke the proverbial bear more and you chuckled at your mate.

“Well to be fair, he’s not wrong, darling. ‘How to Solve a Love Triangle in 669 Positions’ was one of our biggest hits! Alas, we can’t all solve our rivalries with raucous love making,” you shrugged and turned back to Lucifer with a kind smile. “Back on the subject at hand though, your majesty. I-“

“Just Lucifer is fine, dear,” he interjected. He seemed a bit overwhelmed, so you nodded and continued.

“Lucifer. Well, as Charlie here mentioned, I work with a network of professionals who specialize in the mind. My hope is to get some, if not all, to live and work here at the hotel. The space we currently use is dimensional, so if everyone is on board, I’ll just reposition the space itself in a room here. In that scenario, I would just request living quarters for the staff. If I’m not able to get everyone, then we may request your help in remodeling an area on one of your floors to provide the right space.”

The king nodded, seeming absorbed in his thoughts. “Hm, yes, fascinating. Welp! If you end up needing me just let me know! I’ll just be in my office doing… important… things. It was good to see you again Maggie!” He hugged and spun Vaggie before squishing Charlie in a hug with an, “I love you sweetie,” and waved awkwardly goodbye to everyone else as he zipped out of the lobby.

Charlie and Vaggie both seemed dazed, while Alastor looked confused but pleased. Angel looked like… well, like you before a kill. You knew what he was thinking, but you also knew he was finally beginning to value his afterlife. He would have to let that bone go. ‘Still good spank bank material,’ you thought, shooting Angel an amused grin as you shook your head.

“Oh! Almost forgot,” you walked over to Angel at the bar. “How have things been going with Vel?” Sitting next to him, you zapped his salary in front of him and accepted the whiskey offered by Husk with a smile.

———-

End snippet

I’m not sure when I’ll have it out but hopefully before the weekend :) I keep getting distracted and drawing 😂

[binah-beloved]

Binah Pining Headcanons

Lobotomy Corporation Warnings for mentions of exhaustion and passing out

yes i will eventually do Ruina ones too

~ * ~ -You are the one single thing she is uncertain about -Everything else is trivial and dull to someone as apathetic as she. But you, oh you- whenever she sees you her mind short circuits, going blank for a brief moment -It doesn’t sound like much, but it is for Binah, she’s not used to being lost for words from just a simple glance -She doesn’t know whether to confront you or keep quiet, either- her heart starts acting weirdly whenever she approaches you, even if it’s with work-related business -It results in a lot of her staring at you from across the room as you feel a pair of eyes bore into the back of your skull -Binah expresses these odd feelings in small ways- leaving a cup of hot tea for you, carefully organizing the files you need to work on so she can make your job a little easier, or just keeping an eye on you from afar -She’s entirely aware of how intimidating she is, so at first she tries to refrain from actually speaking to you most of the time. Yet you don’t seem to mind, engaging her in conversation on your own volition like she’s one of your coworker friends -The casual talks you have together become a bright spot in the otherwise midnight depths of the Extraction Department -It’s a little surreal for your fellow employees, seeing you chatting with their Sephirah so calmly as she listens intently to your every word -You can talk about anything, even the most boring, silly matters, and the normally cold Binah will still become keenly interested in the subject -Sidenote: she really wants to wrap you in her cloak, as it can get rather cold in the facility (and she also just wants to hug you but don’t tell anyone that)-Once you passed out from exhaustion and woke up with her heavy furred coat draped over your body- she never did explain why…

-Speaking of which, Binah begins picking up on your habits and mannerisms during work. She’s incredibly observant, but this is the first time she’s actually cared about observing anything apart from death and destruction -She worries, silently, when she knows you’re not feeling well and sees you come to work anyways. On the days she can see you struggling to even function, she’ll come over and suggest that you retire for the evening. It comes out sounding more like a command, but the sentiment is there -As I mentioned, there have been times where you’ve fallen asleep at your desk due to overwork or sickness, and somehow, every time, you find yourself back in your bed when you wake up again. No one knows how it happened, because Binah’s very careful to make sure no one sees her carrying you back to your room -She’s internally hesitant about touching you. Her touches never linger, merely a brief hand on your shoulder most of the time, but it’s more than she offers anyone else. She knows her strength, so any touches are kept light, as to not hurt you -Keeps you away from the Well, no questions asked -When before Abnormality breaches only sparked vague interest, now her first thoughts go to you and if you’re alright- for some odd reason, she doesn’t relish your pain as she does for the rest of humanity -So she keeps you nearby as often as she can, close to someone she knows can protect you. She’s not an ex-Arbiter for nothing -If you have the habit of crafting little gifts for your coworkers, she’ll keep any you might give her forever, even if they’re just made of paper or something -Binah likes it when you laugh. It makes her feel something warm, something other than apathy -Practices smiling less sadistically- only for you, though. Luckily, you don’t seem to mind her smile either way -If you happen to hum while you’re working, she’ll find herself idly humming along, soft enough for no one but her to hear. She has a nice singing voice, even if no one knows about it -Her heart doesn’t entirely melt, per se, but it does defrost in your presence, just a little bit -Binah doesn’t know if she’ll ever be able to confess to you. In your current situation, it feels impossible- yet she finds herself hoping for the first time, wishing to say those simple words to you someday in the future. But not today. Or tomorrow. Or the day after that -(She knows how she would confess, though- she’d give you her other earring)

[sunny6677]

Photography.

A Spooky Month x Reader.

Summary:

2010, September 29th.

In the late month of September, Y/N L/N decides to move back to a town they visited once in the past-with their old friend Radford helping them out with certain difficulties.

However, at midnight a few days later-Y/N decides to go out late at night without realizing how late it is, with the sole intention of using a camera they're particularly sentimental about. But they end up running into some rather spooky company-who end up being the cause of the many faces they end up meeting.

PROLOGUE PT 3: Photo Frames.

————

"Uhhhh.. hey!"

Radford exclaimed, quickly letting his head face the box yet again. Bending bis arm back, he slowly reached into the wide but delicate space.

Y/N's eyes trailed over his slim hand as it fumbled around briefly in the shadows—before finally shooting back. Held in his hand right then was a photo frame.

"Why don't we—take out some of your photos? We can even look over them if you want!"

"..look over them?" I repeated. "Radford, why would I wanna do that? We're supposed to be unpacking."

"C'mon—it wouldn't hurt!" He giggled, "We can just look over them real quick and get back to unpacking some of the other stuff!"

Radford blinked, letting the photo he had in his hands drift closer to his chest. He arched a brow, laughing, "Heh—why do you have a photo of a bunch of trees?"

"A bunch of trees?" I repeated.

Though upon letting my eyes scan over the photo, I quickly realized what he was talking about. Dark wood stretched so high up you couldn't even see the puffs of green that must have been on it. A field of soft green grass right below it.

I blinked a few times, feeling my lips give a slight curl of a frown. "Oh. Uh.. I—I dunno. I just sort of.. wanted to take a picture of them."

Radford, with an oblivious smile still on the side of his face, lowered his hand to the wooden ground. The photo frame didn't land harshly, but it landed with a slightly loud thud that made me flinch. I heard the metal of its frame clank against the floor.

My heart began to quicken slightly within my chest, and I spoke softly. "..Ra—Radford."

Within a few seconds, his hands appeared to now be holding another photo frame. This time, it was a photo of—

"What's this one for?"

"..uh.. nothing. It's, uh.."

..It was a small frame of a bright blue void with puffs of white hung from above, with the faint silhouette of a bird flying overhead. The sun that shone from the corner of the photo made a shadow be cast by the creature—but whatever it was appeared to be small, and it's feathers were a bright red color.

Looking at the photo, I.. I wasn't sure why, but my heart began to beat a little more. "Can—can you just.. give it to me?"

"Uh.. yeah! Just gimme a sec. These look kinda sick." Said Radford quickly. Rapid as a bullet, his hand lowered to the floor again, placing the photo frame on top of the other one he had practically slammed onto the ground.

At the sound of it clanking against the other photo frame, I flinched again. A more puzzled look began to appear on my face. Why was he so interested in these photos anyway? I didn't even know he had an interest in this kind of thing. If.. if he had any at all.

Radford laughed to himself—fumbling a little with another photo frame, before lifting it up into his hands.

This time, the photo was of.. a black void. With specks of white scattered all across it. It was a sight I'd.. grown used to. Well, of course I had. I was a human being. And there was a day and night cycle.

The more my eyes lingered over the photo, I felt something weirdly.. heavy begin to dwell within my chest, and I wasn't exactly sure why.

I felt a lump in my throat, and I swallowed.

Radford only looked over it for a few moments, not really bothering to say anything this time. For right then as he looked, his eyes flickered over to the box again, and this time he just sort of.. stared.

Before I could speak, he tilted his head. "Uh.. hey, what's this doing in here?"

I tried to open my mouth in response, wanting to know of what he meant. "What do you—"

And.. then I saw it. Upon seeing it, I.. just sort of froze. Stiffened.

It.. was like time stopped. Just looking at the small item itself. The item itself was a small, sticky figurine of a snake. The snake was looped around, and with its jaw closed over its own tail, it appeared to actually be in some kind of loop.

Then—Radfords hand lifted up, and he began to reach foward into the box. His palm opened. He was—he was heading directly for it.

"Is this supposed to be from a movie or something?"

"Wait, no—don't!"

Without thinking, my hand just.. sort of shot foward on its own. I really—I really don't know. I'm sorry. It just.. happened on its own. I shouldn't have done it—but..

My hand opened itself, and with only the force of a shove, I practically smacked Radfords hand away. It.. well, I only intended to push his hand away. I processed the sound of my own skin smacking against his own, which practically rang throughout the entire area like a dramatic echo.

Radfords arm drew back like an animal cowering—his hand drooping downward. Immediately, my gaze flickered up to his face. I.. I saw his now wide eyes almost immediately shift, stuck on me with such worry. His mouth was completely parted.

As his gaze lingered over me, I felt my eyes go wide. It felt like the more his gentle eyes looked into my own, the more I felt a knife of guilt begin to pierce into my soul.

I didn't understand. A strange numbness washed over my skin.

"..du—dude, are you okay?"

..only then as he asked that did I finally notice the shaky breaths begging to escape my mouth.

I was stuck. Looking into his panicked gaze. I raised my brows, letting my pupils flicker to my lap.

"..I.."

I paused.

"I'm not.. sure."

..silence drifted in the air, and I let out a sigh. My palm lifted itself to my face. I felt my fingers clench onto the bridge of my nose as I grumbled.

..feeling something gentle wrap around my shoulder, and the sensation of something warm brushing against me, I swallowed down a lump in my throat.

"I'm—" I let my face lift up from my palm. "I'm sorry. I don't.. I don't know what's come over me."

"No—you're.. you're good! What—" His voice softened, "Is.. is something going on?"

I tried to speak.

"..it's.." I found myself pausing, "..no. No. I'm fine. I just—don't.. don't touch that, okay? It's.. it's important. Really important."

"..oh."

"..."

"..hey. I'm.. sorry. It's—kinda hard to cheer you up when I'm not really sure what's bothering you. Are you sure you can handle unpacking stuff with me?"

"..yes. I'm sure. It's just—hard to look at some of this stuff is all."

..Radfords gaze shifted from me, to the box. And so did mine. I let myself just.. look at the small snake.

"..God, I'm.." I sighed. "Again, I'm—I'm sorry."

"Hey, it's fine. We can make this work!" I heard Radford say from beside me, "Let's just—try unpacking everything as fast as we can, okay? If you don't wanna look at some of this stuff, then we can just unpack stuff without saying anything!"

"..maybe."

"..why'd you pack it if you have such a hard time looking at it anyway?"

"..it's.." I trailed off. "..it's just.. something you wouldn't understand. It's really hard to.. just get rid of things sometimes."

"..."

Radfords grasp around my shoulder tightened, and I saw him smile from in the corner of my eye. "..hey. I'm.. I'm at least glad you felt like you'd be comfortable with me helping you. Even if it is hard for you to look at all of this."

..awkwardly, I gave him a weak smile in return. "..thanks, Radford."

"...here."

..curious of what he was about to do, I looked. He grabbed a fabric I had placed inside of the box, and—slowly—he placed it in front of his eyes.

"I can make this into a blindfold! Then I don't have to see your stuff."

"..a.. blindfold?"

"..yeah! Heh.. or.. is that just stupid?"

"..."

My lips slowly turned upward, and a soft snicker began to escape my mouth. The heavy sensation I felt in my chest turned into something more tingly.

"..hahah.. yeah. Kinda. Haha.."

As I laughed, he slowly lowered the fabric from his face, momentarily frowning—but gaining a slightly wobbly smile in return.

I let my hand reach up to my socket, and I wiped away a tear that had already been begging to seep out.

"..alright, let's just.. try to keep unpacking things for real this time. Maybe it's better we just don't say a word at all with how I've ruined plenty conversation already."

"Heh.. don't worry, man. You haven't ruined anything at all. Let's just put up the rest of the photos now, okay? Then we can get to the other boxes."

"..yeah. Heh. Okay."

..Radford didn't tear his gaze from off of me, blinking a few moments more. Before he lifted one of his slim hands, his fists slowly balling up. Gently, he moved it closer to me with a larger smile than before.

I had already moved my hands back into the box, grabbing one of the other photo frames and setting it to the wooden ground as softly as I could. Noticing his fist, I arched a brow. "..what?"

"C'mon! We should at least bro fist before cleaning right? Movies usually have that as kinda like a transition thing before cleaning montages and stuff.."

"..is this gonna make you clean faster or something?"

"..maybe."

..I rolled my eyes, still smiling.

"..heh.. alright."

So, reluctantly, I let my arm lift itself up—and balling up my aching fist, I gently knocked my knuckles against Radfords own.

[buckwheeler]

the way i would structure the Taylor Shannon fic is. We’d be in a no Shannon death timeline so Shannon and Taylor meet when buck and Taylor are dating and Shannon and Eddie are mid divorce. They meet at some kind of Chris event where everyone’s playing nice but shannon is clearly a little ostracised and Taylor and she have a little conversation by the buffet. Or Taylor has snuck off for a cigarette because the major extended family fun thing is stressing her out a little bit and she finds Shannon doing exactly the same thing so they have a little moment and Taylor thinks hm if I wasn’t in love with this buck guy…

So they they bump into each other a little while later, post bucktaylor breakup. At this point we’re also solidly post-divorce and Eddie and Shannon are approaching divorcedbestie territory. Anyway they just bump into each other in a bar or maybe even at the club. And shannon says I read your book actually. And Taylor’s like oh. Really. And Shannon’s like yeah. Yeah it was really good. Cut to making out in the bathroom stall. cheeky semi-public fuck and then they are both kind of embarrassed and like. Jeez we might be getting a little old for this. Taylor’s still a little sore about the buck of it all. And they don’t know what to say next and it’s a bit of a weird drunk moment and they just kind of let it pass.

So now it’s the buckeddie wedding. Taylor and buck have just recently become friends again. She’s still a little surprised to be invited because she’s pretty sure Eddie always hated her. And oh. Shit, yeah, there’s his ex wife shannon. Hot shannon, from that one night in the bathroom stall. Shannon who looks up at you from under her eyelashes, from under her fringe, with a little smirk on her face when she’s sucking down her cigarette. Christopher’s mom. She’s sat over there with hen, who Taylor always liked. And she’s a little shy about it but she sidles over and hen gives her a genuine smile and shannon does, too, and. Something else in it. Taylor remembers how she had sweat, how Taylor had licked the sweat from her neck. Her thighs, too. It had tasted good.

So everybody’s feeling a little sentimental. And Shannon’s been laughing harder than Taylor is funny, all night, and letting her stick to her side, a little bit. And Taylor’s dancing with some clumsy cousin from eddies side of the wedding. And he keeps stepping on her toes and she catches Shannon’s eye where she’s dancing with buck, actually, weirdly enough, and throwing her head back and laughing at something he’s said. But still seems to feel Taylor’s eyes on her, or. Seeks her out. And they catch each others eyes, and. Shannon levels her with a real particular kind of smirk.

They duck out for a smoke. And Taylor remembers that first time they met. And shannon presses her against the wall. And gets her teeth into her. And they both decide to be a little more grown up about it. And Taylor has booked herself a nice hotel room. So. They go from there

[ethernetmeep]

as for more documentation type posting, arcade was fun. went to give a surprise visit to my partner, left thinking about many things. they have a whole bag dedicated to photos never picked up by their owners via photo booth. it made me realize how gloomy that truly is. the loss of photos is a bit sad, yes, but it is also the humanity of it. i will never know any of these people, i will never know what they like or what they do. most are likely tourists, staying to see family or friends. even if not, its unlikely i will see them. their memories i have glimpsed into, photos with children, parents, siblings, plushies won. there was one of a woman with two stuffed animals, mid 30s. i will never know her. i will never speak to her. it is deeply , deeply saddening. & there was another of a boy, one singular boy, teenage age, alone. maybe he did it for fun. there was one where he was no longer there. i asked if i could take the one without a person in it & given permission. gently cut off with scissors. the photo is in the bag my partner gave me, sitting there. a reminder i physically cannot know everyone, but a reminder i can still appreciate them for the idea of who they are. sonder, if we are to simplify.

sorrowful thoughts aside, a definite experience. played a piano game the most, essentially playing piano keys fast to get tickets. got 8th & 11th place respectively. when i first entered my cash into the red machine, offered a mother & her daughter to use my card if they so pleased since the mother said she didn’t have any money. she respectfully declined. i have a story related to this i will write later.* gave partners friend a few of my rocks in the bag said partner gave me. mostly for rocks. i think he saw me offer the card to the mother & daughter, but it wasn’t to save face or appear more noble than i am. it was a genuine question. of course i’d want the card back since it was mine, but i am never afraid to offer to pay for a thing or two.

it was nice to just play alone, weirdly. last time i was in an arcade was july 24th 2024 & like that other arcade the one i went to also had small plushies that you would get because you would play until you win. no aliens this time. good. didn’t play it, but did play another & attempt to get a hamster plush for my partner. didn’t get it, sadly. its alright, i got him a sonic toy from the rewards machine instead. saw a parent & child play against one another on the.. um… puck machine. clangs. blinked away the forming memory before it could stay

what else.. saw a child smack the glass. tiny, talking 3 years old? not good with ages. got a butterfly with his tickets, saying “buhfly”. knelt to his level & offered my bee, albeit not saying it outright. let him hold it; dropped it. picked it up & buzzed with his ‘buhfly’ & smiled at him before going back to get more prizes from the machine. many of the prizes i got are simply micro plastics & trinkets, but one i got because of two things. i originally wanted the highland cow that was over the counter (i like highland cows), but then if you squeezed it orange guts essentially came out & i realized i would rather not like to see that actually. settled on a… wait, is that…

the squid themselves…. in a different form, but a squid. finally i no longer have the itch in the back of my mind that is related to said squid & arcades. i like them. said my goodbyes & went home happy & healed & jolly

here is my subsequent proof of score

*oops, i uploaded & forgot the story. when i was younger, we had a book fair & i used some of my money to get an old friend a poster. funnily enough, i liked the sentiment but forgot i lose something so i then proceeded to get upset when i didn’t have enough money for another thing i wanted. nowadays i don’t feel that way, of course, just made sense to mention.

[pacifymebby]

11, 15, 19 😊 xxx

hello lovely, thank you for the ask <3

11:A song that you never get tired of

When the Sun Hits / Slowdive I genuinely don’t think I’ve ever skipped this song, I even make people listen to it at work. 

15:A song that is a cover by another artist

Make the World Go Away / Ruen Brothers (I can’t remember who this belongs to originally originally but I think all the crooners and rock n roll singers covered it back in the day)

19:A song that makes you think about life

One For the Road / Ocean Colour Scene  - idk im old enough that theres kids from my year at school that have died, and I’ve lost friends to sad things, and I’ve lost relatives who were old but not old enough and this is always a song that when it comes on all those people flitter through my mind and it makes me think about like, how fleeting It all is? But also how thats a good thing probably, and like I like the sentiment of like what do you do when sorrow hits? Get up and dance get up and smile/ drink with your friends/ gather with the people you love. Every time I listen to it I get weirdly emotional. 

[ranting-princess]

231002

I just watched a video of my dog who passed away a few months ago due to old age. It was the first time I ever felt so much sadness, I cried whenever I thought of him. I'm okay now. I look at his pictures and I think he's so adorably cute but I still miss him. I haven't cried thinking about him in so long but I did tonight at 3am. The video I watched was a video I edited for a project in school. I didn't think too much about the video. I just wanted to finish it quickly. It was a blurred video of my dog during our daily walk. When I was editing the video, I thought I was so cool creating a sentimental dream-like video that revolves around my dog. I didn't put too much meaning into the video but now I was filled with so much emotions I burst into tears. I miss him so much. "What did he look like? Was he smiling? What did he sound like? How soft was his fur?" It made me think of so many things... at the end, all I thought of was how much I missed him. The night he passed away was a very traumatic moment for me because he died in my arms. I was arguing with my friend that night, we were messaging each other on social media and my dog was whining. I didn't know how much he was hurting... I was insensitive and annoyed, I carried him all the way to the living room and put him on his pet bed then went back to my room and kept arguing with my friend. I kept hearing him whining loudly so I went down again because he just sounded so sad... he sounded like he was in pain. I was worried. I went down and tried calming him down, petting him. He started breathing weirdly and was making a weird sound, I was scared. I feel like I knew what was about to happen so tears started welling up. I kept petting him for a while until I went up to my parents' room, knocked on the door and croaked out "Dad?" I kept calling his name until he woke up. When he did, I barely let out "Guinness isn't feeling well". He said he would take him to the vet in the morning... but that would've been too late, I was sad and angry because there was nothing I could do. I knew nothing was open this late at night. I went back to petting him until he suddenly froze. He stopped breathing. I was full on crying now and I couldn't keep my volume down. I stayed there on the ground crying, petting him, hoping he would move but he didn't. I wasn't really close with my family nor did I have many friends to rely on. He was the only one who gave me happiness when I was at home. He loved me unconditionally. He was my best friend. I miss him so much. I have so many regrets but my biggest one was that I should have treated you better. I knew your end was coming, you've lived a decade long already but I keep forgetting when I see you running around so lively with a big smile on your face. But time is limited and you stopped moving around so much, you stopped eating the treats you loved so much... I should've known. Why did I get angry at you? Why couldn't I have been more patient and kind? I left you when you were in pain. I don't think I will ever forget that. I should've treated you better. I'm sorry. I love you. I miss you. I hope you're happier now and I hope you're in peace. I miss you Guinness.

[limitlesses]

𝐒𝐀𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐔 𝐍𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖𝐄𝐃 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐈𝐃 𝐀𝐒 𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐃𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐏𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄, 𝐇𝐈𝐒 '𝐀𝐂𝐓' 𝐖𝐀𝐒𝐍'𝐓 𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐈𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐂𝐊 𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐒. Maybe it was a defense mechanism -- his reluctance to admit anything that could possibly condemn him as human. Maybe it was something born from the sudden realization that he was, in fact, being perceived as a person in these softer instances with Suguru.

No one else looked at him like this, how Suguru looked at him right now, that subtle concern furrowing his friend's brow, the flicker in his eyes, the line of his lips, the unspeakable so clearly spoken in the silence between them; the way he just knew that Suguru knew. Knew him, knew him as someth--someone... capable of getting just a little overwhelmed sometimes.

Part of Satoru felt repulsed ---- at himself, with the way he so easily and almost eagerly enjoyed sharing a taste of vulnerability with another person, like they were sharing a secret. He was accustomed to bragging about his accomplishments, talking about his flaws felt new, weirdly forbidden.

Memories of his own parents not meeting his glowing gaze as a child, clan members deeply bowing as he passed them by, of his mother beaming proudly at him when he tripped over a raised stone and no scrape marked his skin with that thrum of protection, her expectant and excited look, and how she told him to stand back up -- not offering a hand so as to not disrupt Infinity's channeling, an urgent let's go show your father.

It felt almost wrong, having Suguru see the equivalent of a scraped knee, and somehow not be met with... disappointment? Satoru didn't know how else to finish that thought. He didn't know what he was thinking, really, just that it felt strangely... pleasant, an exhale of a breath he hadn't realized he was holding in for a long time.

Stupid, really. He was a sentimental idiot. Suguru was just being nice. He was always nice -- to everyone, not just him. Alternatively, Satoru was only nice to Suguru -- haha, alright, maybe that made him a bad person, but he wasn't put on this Earth to be saintly.

Satoru walked at a brisk pace, long legs carrying him through the crowds -- the Shibuya scramble was relatively diluted with the angle they were gunning for, thankfully, and Satoru led whilst casting his gaze over his shoulder whenever he managed to lurch ahead of Suguru, smiling at him. He had to laugh; blissfully ignorant to the world of curses, of their current life? He couldn't fathom it, there was no point of reference in Satoru's mind except for the movies he watched, the books he'd read ---- the mundane was exactly that to him, it was mundane, and he'd reach sooner for fantasies and adventures because that typically involved the unusual, the abnormal, special powers and great threats... because that was relatable to him.

❝ I can't imagine, it's all I've ever known. Before I could even talk -- ❞ He was honest but not for the sake of ---- flexing, or trying to sound cool. It was just a blunt truth. Six Eyes awakened the moment he was born, Limitless came forth just a few years after.

But then Suguru's following words stole any other reply right out of him. He almost didn't hear him, passing by someone loudly talking on their phone about some presentation. But his heart heard it and latched on, gripping tight.

It wouldn’t be so bad if you were still at my side.

He couldn't help but chuckle -- a lighter, genuinely fluttery-feeling'd sort of laugh, one that crinkled his eyes nearly shut, one that made his cheeks hurt, a wide toothy smile. He couldn't help himself, nor could he hide the color that bloomed across his face.

❝ That was awfully romantic, ❞ he didn't say it like it was a bad thing, testing the waters, eyes darting from the alley ahead in favor of pinning him with a more flirtatious quip. ❝ I might just swoon, Suguru. ❞

He didn't quite know what else to say to that, the WoW comment earning Suguru a bit of an eye roll -- otherwise, Satoru's mind was stuck on repeat. He got them through the final few turns of their walk, practically prancing up the stairs outside the Ottotto brewery, then subsequently sliding into the cozy and surprisingly nice looking 'hole in the wall' soba place. Quiet, a few other customers were softly slurping up their meals in warmly lit booths, some reading the newspaper or a book while leisurely eating, others in gentle conversations amongst friends. Satoru got them seated near a window, sliding into the space across from Suguru easily.

❝ What would you be -- if you didn't have your powers, I mean. ❞ He slid his sunglasses back up from the lower portion of the bridge of his nose, head tilting with a piqued curiosity. Suguru's throwaway guess at him becoming, fuck, some marketing guy was funny, but totally foreign and they both knew that he'd never fit into a normal mold. But Suguru could ---- hell, he went to a regular school first, right? Before coming to Jujutsu High. Satoru was homeschooled before his clan sent him off. What did Suguru want to become when he was younger, before the word 'sorcerer' got introduced?

A server dropped by, a young woman -- politely giving them menus, welcoming them, and he flashed her a smile and thanked her before she excused herself and scurried off. Vibrant eyes flashed through the shaded lenses of his glasses and flicked back to Suguru, expectant of a thought-out reply -- he knew the other wove his words far more carefully, thoroughly, than him.

𝐒𝐔𝐆𝐔𝐑𝐔 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐅𝐔𝐋𝐋𝐘 𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐀𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐒𝐄𝐄𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇 𝐒𝐀𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐔’𝐒 𝐁𝐔𝐋𝐋𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐓.  Sometimes he felt like the only one capable of doing so, which was maddening in and of itself.  They all seemed to take him at face value; never looking any deeper, or seeing Satoru for anything outside of a boy housing such a formidable ability.

But Suguru saw past all of those walls, those defenses Satoru had constructed.  He didn’t care about his strength —- much less that ego of his, ever-present and expanding with each successful mission.  SATORU’S STRENGTH WASN’T WHAT DEFINED HIM —- at least not in Suguru’s opinion. So when Satoru attempted to play off his discomfort with their surroundings, Suguru remained ever silent; watching him through his own carefully constructed mask of patience.  

He felt Satoru’s hand on his shoulder, patting the fabric of his uniform, lingering, before eventually falling away.  

Satoru wasn’t fine —- but he was a damn good actor.  Sometimes, Suguru wondered if Satoru was attempting to convince himself of the things he said when deflecting from the root of the issue.  He knew what that was like, personally; trying to convince himself that he was fine when he wasn’t.  Or that he wasn’t terrified of the curses he had seen when he was younger, that the rest of his friends and family couldn’t.

He found himself wishing that Satoru would let him in more.  Trust him enough to lean on him, let him shoulder some of the weight he carried.  What was the point of them being the strongest together if they didn’t carry all of those burdens equally?

But perhaps it went beyond all of that.  A much simpler rationale —-- that maybe Suguru just wanted to be closer.

He was relieved when he finally received a real response from him.  A small smile tugged at his lips as he met Satoru’s gaze, before it traveled back down to their feet, focusing. 

When they were finally off the train and out of the station  ( narrowly avoiding the height of the Shibuya Scramble )  Suguru managed to catch up to his lankier counterpart, adjusting his bag so that it was properly situated against his back again.  

He took a moment to think about Satoru’s words, before offering a reply.

❝ I don’t know… sometimes I think it’d be nice to live a life blissfully ignorant of all of the shit we have to deal with. ❞  His violet eyes darted across the street to the young couple now entering a bakery, all full of love and life and hope as their hands extended downward, clasping their daughter’s, and swinging her up into the air.  Listening to that little girl’s laughter while feeling worlds away from that reality, himself, made his heart feel a bit funny.

❝ —--Besides, ❞  he spoke quietly, his gaze returning to Satoru’s, ❝ it wouldn’t be so bad if you were still at my side. I think we’d still find a way to have fun, even if we were normal.  You’d probably become the strongest advertising exec or some shit. ❞  Suguru couldn’t help but laugh out loud at the thought of Satoru in a business suit. 

❝ Or, well… maybe the strongest paladin in WoW is a bit more believable. ❞

[blushweddinggowns]

#12, ugly Christmas sweaters, please.

Eddie, unsurprisingly, was not a huge fan of Christmas. He didn’t really hate it per say, at least not anymore. Sure, from ages one to twelve they were pretty hellish, but ever since he came to live with Wayne, Christmas was kinda nice.

They were broke as fuck, so it’s not like Eddie ever had much under the tree, but Wayne would always scrounge up enough to get him a few things. He’d also make the best chocolate chip pancakes ever, their own version of Christmas dinner, which was secretly Eddie’s favorite part.

Twelve years of bad holidays and nine of good equated to Eddie being relatively neutral about the whole thing. His ambivalence on the holiday had never been much of an issue. 

Until now.

Because Eddie decided to fall for a man who had a Christmas-obsessive best friend. A Christmas-obsessed best friend that had his boyfriend wrapped around her finger.

Technically, Steve had warned him about this. But he didn’t expect her antics to start in November. Because apparently, the planning for a holiday ugly sweater party with homemade ugly sweaters was extensive. At first, Eddie was certain it was an idea she randomly had while high as a kite, but no, it was a Buckley family tradition. And this year, Robin decided that their little group of weirdos were officially part of the family.

And that sentiment was too adorable for even Eddie to make fun of. But that didn’t mean he had to like it. Because the making of twelve ugly sweaters included the enlistment of Steve’s help, and the enlistment of Steve's help meant that Eddie wasn't allowed to completely hog his weekends anymore.

The guy was learning how to knit for this fucking thing, and that took time. Hell, even when he got to see him, Steve brought the knitting needles with him, and Eddie had to fight with freaking yarn to get his attention. And it was a losing battle. Steve always shut down any complaining, with some variation of the speech, "Babe, I got her kidnapped by Russians and almost eaten by demons. All in less than two years. The least I can do for her is knit a damn sweater."

Not to mention how he was so weirdly secretive about the whole thing. Anytime Eddie tried to get a look at what he was doing he was rebuffed, and Steve had had the audacity to kick him out of his own living room more than once.

But the day before the party finally arrived, and it marked the end of Steve's obsessive knitting tear. Eddie thought he'd be relieved the whole thing was over, but he'd been fidgety and anxious all night.

Eddie was just on the edge of teasing him over being such a nervous wreck over sweaters when Steve stood from the couch, nervously announcing that he had something for him.

He dug behind a couch cushion, pulling out a cheap little green gift bag with bright red tissue paper. He dropped it into Eddie's lap with a nervous smile, "Open it."

Eddie felt the bag up with a smile, immediately guessing what it was.

“I thought the Buckley tradition was to open them in a group?” Eddie asked, tearing away at the tissue paper, "Did you get Robin's permission for a holiday transgression?"

Steve shrugged, chewing his nails while he watched Eddie pull it out, “Well, she helped me make it so she's vaguely aware. But…I want you to see it now. Uh, without an audience.”

It was every Christmas color jammed into one ugly sweater. Red, green, white, and blue, all in horizontal stripes. It was impressively bad and Eddie was more than ready to start laughing at it.

But then he turned it around.

The bright red words were knitted in sloppily, but they were clear enough to make Eddie's jaw drop.

I Love You Eddie Munson

Eddie stared at it, mind coming to a complete halt. They...hadn't said that to each other yet. Eddie had thought it sure, probably a million times by now, but he had been too chicken shit to say it out loud himself, always worried about scaring Steve away.

But here it was, staring him in the face.

Steve was gnawing on his lower lip as watched him stare at it, getting more and more anxious by the second, “I-I thought it would be…endearing? But you don’t have to say anything back! It was a stupid- idea.”

"This is the ugliest thing I’ve ever seen,” Eddie interrupted, embarrassingly close to tears, “I have never wanted to hate something more.”

He clutched it to his chest, looking up at Steve with a wet laugh, “I love it. I love you, you fucking dork.”

Steve grinned back at him, obviously relieved.

"It took me like a month to make. You better like it!" He laughed, pulling Eddie into a hug, "And I promise, you only have to wear it once."

Eddie shook his head against Steve's shoulder, still holding onto his new favorite piece of clothing for dear life.

That little shake was the only warning Steve was going to get, because if he thought that Eddie was going to only wear it for Christmas parties, then he had another thing coming.

The I love you sweater became a winter wardrobe regular for years to come, clashing colors be damned. Eddie ignored all offers Steve made to make one that wasn't hideous and never missed a chance to explain what it meant to anyone who asked.

But despite how much Eddie loved it, Robin was the real winner of the gift. Because Eddie never complained about her kidnapping Steve during the holidays again.

[havethetimeofyourstyles]

in which harry joins a new gym and you’re a trainer there.

a/n: happy new years loves! wishing you all a lovely and happy 2021! first fic of 2021 and im so excited to write more stories this year! to start the new year, here is boxer!harry for you, and this is for my very own timetravelathon fic challenge! if you’d like to join, please let me know, I’d love to have you on board! this story takes place in the 1990, and i know some of the songs mentioned weren’t released specifically in 1990 (just a few years after), but just pretend it was lol because they’re too good to not mention in this story hehe, but happy reading and pls reblog and leave feedback <3

thank you to @sunflowers-styles for beta reading this for me, love you always!

WORD COUNT: 22.6k of (kinda) boxer!harry x trainer!yn filled with angst and smut

WARNINGS: mentions of abandonment and blood 

COME INTO MY INBOX AND LETS TALK ABOUT ‘143’ i’d love to know your thoughts!

pls rb to share! <3

16 August 1990

With every move he made, Harry felt a bead of sweat drip down the side of his face, down his back, and trailing down his chest. Small huffs of breath were released from his mouth, trying not to make it known that he was exhausted, but he continued until all of his energy was used up through the very end. 

“C’mon,” he muttered to himself, anticipating the certain words to be yelled out. 

He’d been going at it for a while now, muscles aching as he felt like he was about to collapse any minute. But he was determined to finish, to feel the satisfaction running through his veins, knowing that this was his best round. 

“And time!” His trainer yelled at him, clicking the stop button on his timer. 

Harry got in one last punch before putting his arms down, the soreness made his limbs feel like jello as he shook them out. The black leather punching bag was swinging back and forth, the chain that held up the speed bag rattled and slid against the metal bar. Harry loved that sound because it indicated that he was going his hardest to where the chain couldn’t keep up. 

“Nice one, kid.” Henson, his trainer said as he fist-bumped Harry’s red glove. 

Harry simply nodded in appreciation, too exhausted to speak as he placed his gloves onto his knees, leaning down as beads of sweat dripped down onto the matted floor. Several harsh breaths came out of his mouth as he sniffed in the fresh oxygen that was mixed with the musky scent of the gym. 

Benny, Harry’s best friend, exited the ring, wiping the sweat off his forehead with his arm before walking towards Harry, who was still leaning on his knees. Benny tapped Harry’s glove, making him stand up straighter, and Harry patted Benny’s back. 

“Good job out there, mate,” Harry told his best friend. Benny was in the ring with one of the other trainers, Mike, doing one of the nonstop routines. Harry liked training with Mike in the ring, but not when it was for cardio and timed rounds; he liked when it was chill, so he knew how hard he had to hit the target, which were the pads. But for the timed rounds they did, Harry was usually by the speed bags and Mike was in the ring. 

“You too, man,” Benny breathed out with a smile. 

They headed over to the bench to take their gloves off and catch a breather. The pair would do a  cardio day every Thursday to get a good, sweaty workout in, and it always left them exhausted, but definitely much stronger. 

“Hey, I’m not gonna be able to workout next Thursday,” Benny mentioned. Harry furrowed his brows as he put the end of the strap between his teeth to pull it off from the velcro, taking one glove off. 

“What? Why not?” Harry asked confusingly. They never really had to call off a workout, especially Thursdays, unless one of them was sick, but other than that, neither of them missed any workout days. 

“I’m taking the wife on a date,” Benny smirked, clearly very excited to spend some time with his wife, but Harry wasn’t amused. 

“On a Thursday? Why can’t you do that on Friday?” 

Benny rolled his eyes. “Because we both called off Friday, so we’re having a four day weekend to ourselves,” he explained. 

Harry huffed, clearly not entertained. “Guess so…” 

Benny knew Harry was always like this, ever since they were younger. The two had been so close ever since they met, now that Benny had a wife, Harry always felt like the third wheel and that he rarely saw Benny, however, that wasn’t entirely true Benny exercised with Harry every night during the weekdays, and sometimes they even grabbed a bite to eat afterward when Benny could use that time to be with his wife, Marianne. 

Harry had an overwhelming fear of abandonment, it led him to have anxieties about how Benny could just get up and walk out of his life, even though he wouldn’t. Maybe it was why Harry is so attached to him; he’s the closest to Harry and it would completely destroy him if Benny ever decided that he didn’t want to be his friend anymore. That fear only grew based on an unfortunate turn of events that happened in college, four years ago, and it left Harry to pieces. Benny had never seen Harry so broken where he literally had to pick him up and take care of him. He never wanted to see his best friend like that ever again because it absolutely crushed him. 

“It’s two days that we’re not going to be seeing each other, chill out. Didn’t know you were that in love with me,” Benny joked, hoping to lighten up Harry’s mood. Luckily, it worked because Harry breathed out a chuckle, throwing his towel at Benny’s face.

The two collected their belongings and walked over to the trainers as they always do at the end of every workout to have a light chat with them. Henson and Mike told them they did a great job and asked to confirm if they were still on for tomorrow, which Benny and Harry both agreed to. Benny also mentioned about not being able to work out next Thursday and Friday, including the reason why he wasn’t able to. 

Henson and Mike looked at each other as if they were keeping something from the two. Harry titled his head  and looked at Benny as if he was asking if he knew the reason why they were looking at each other weirdly, but Benny just shrugged his shoulders, just as clueless as Harry. 

“Are you gonna tell us why you’re acting suspiciously?” Harry asked. The two trainers both sighed defeatedly. 

“About that…” Henson started. “Next Friday…we’re closing,” he added. 

“Like, closing for the day?” Benny asked innocently, hoping they didn’t mean what he really thought. 

“No…for good,” Mike stated. Harry and Benny’s eyes both widened, words coming out of both of their mouths profusely. They were both talking over each other, disagreeing and not accepting the fact that the gym was shutting down. 

“You can’t just do that-”

“-No, we refuse to let you close down-”

“Alright, guys! Settle down. You’re starting to act like kids, for god's sake,” Henson interrupted the tantrum that was about to start. 

“You guys can’t just do that!” Benny exclaimed. 

“Why are you guys even doing that?” Harry asked. 

Mike sighed. “We mutually decided that it was best to close down because…we really need the money. My rent has been skyrocketing crazy high because more people have just decided that moving to Los Angeles is fun.” He rolled his eyes, and Harry slightly chuckled because it was true. Hollywood was the place to be and people from out of state had just figured out their new profound dream to move to one of the busiest cities. 

“Fight Night will never be forgotten, alright? We’re just ready to let this place go. Plus, the roof is leaking and the wall is tearing apart, and that’s gonna be a pain to fix,” Henson added. 

Mike and Henson were brothers and built Fight Night when they were in college. With the help of their father, they decided to build a place to gain strength and power, all while helping others defend themselves. Harry and Benny had been frequenting it ever since college, and it felt like home to them. Aside from the yelling and stuffy scent, it was a place for them to release any type of anger or stress.

Benny introduced Fight Night to Harry when he had physically picked Harry up from the ground on, what possibly was, the worst night of his life. It was something Harry looked forward to after classes, anxiously bouncing his leg up and down, waiting to get to the gym. Fight Night helped rebuild him, and now, he was in disbelief that the gym was closing. 

“We’re old as fuck now. We wanna live our lives freely. Time to retire now, don’t you think?” Mike said with a sad chuckle. They were both in their late fifties, so Harry and Benny understood why they wanted to be free of work. 

The four of them hugged it out, a very emotional and sentimental hug that was heartwarming but sad. Eyes were slightly watered before Henson pushed them and said, “We’re closing the gym next week, not fucking dying! We have time for this bullshit for an entire week.” 

Harry and Benny left the gym with bittersweet hearts, but they kept Fight Night close to them, knowing that they owed a lot to the gym and the two men who built the facility. Mike had recommended some gyms that were close by if they were still interested in boxing, which they definitely were, so they were planning to check them out first before signing up. 

“Do you wanna get something to eat?” Harry asked once they were outside of the gym. The air was humid, nothing different from inside the gym since it was summer and the sun was beginning to go down. 

“Nah, I’m good. Gonna get home to Marianne. I’ll see you tomorrow?” Benny pat Harry’s back, nodding. 

Harry waved. “See you.” He watched Benny walk away before getting into his silver 1990 BMW 5 series, sighing. He always hated going home, and he always tried staying out for as long as he possibly could. 

As he drove home, he anxiously tapped his hands on the steering wheel as he couldn’t quite keep them still. It’d been happening for a while, a lot more often than he’d like, but he couldn’t help it. 

Walking into the darkness and emptiness of his home, he sighed sadly as he sulked all the way to the restroom to shower. The hot steam relieved his achy and sore muscles, but he was hoping for this shower to also release any occurring and bad thoughts he had in his head. 

He couldn’t help but think about the gym closing down. After going there for years, he couldn’t imagine going to a new gym; he’d adapted and adjusted to Fight Night that it would take him forever to find a gym that truly made him feel wanted. He was scared, to say the least. 

Harry was never a big fan of change. He liked being comfortable and stable and didn't like to move around a lot. So, the thought of going to a different gym that wasn’t Fight Night, terrified him. It only added to the list of things that had abandoned him. 

Once he was out of the shower, white towel secured lowly on his hips, showcasing his beautiful toned torso that was filled and inked with tattoos, his pager beeped. He wondered who it was as he walked over to his nightstand, considering that it was nearing nine in the evening. 

He deeply sighed when he saw the pager read ‘345987,’ immediately knowing who it was. The pager code meaning ‘I’m horny’ could only mean it’s coming from Lizette. 

Deciding not to answer the page, Harry set his pager down before walking back to the restroom, only for his home phone to ring, causing him to stop in his steps and answer the phone. 

“Hello?” Harry answered. 

“Hey, baby,” Lizette said seductively. His brows furrowed, holding the towel to his waist as it had loosened up a bit. 

“What do you want?” 

“You know what I want…” He knew exactly what she wanted. If she hadn’t paged him, he would still know what she wanted from him since all he provided to her was sex. “Isn’t it such a coincidence that I’m outside of your door right now?” Harry didn’t say anything but pinch the bridge of his nose before hanging up. 

He walked towards his front door, sighing before opening the door that revealed Lizette on the other side, wearing a low cut top, cleavage clearly showing, and high waisted denim shorts. She leaned on the doorframe, smirking as she looked Harry up and down, noticing that he wasn’t wearing anything but a towel. Harry gulped as she stepped forward, placing her hands on his stomach before completely taking the towel off, and a smug smile plastered on her face. 

Harry lets her take over like he always did. The feel of someone else’s body holding his, and lips kissing his own and his skin was something he couldn’t compare to anything else. Harry simply only did this to have some companionship, and Lizette made him feel a lot less lonely even if she was only there to have sex with him. He enjoys it twenty-five percent of the time—the other seventy-five percent was him actually wallowing in wanting someone to love him for him. 

After they were done, Harry immediately covered himself with the blanket as Lizette got out of the bed to change back into her clothes. Even though they had sex multiple times and she’s seen him naked, there was something about the vulnerability after the sex that he didn’t want her to see because she didn’t quite deserve that if he was being honest. 

“I had fun. Call you next time,” Lizette bid him goodbye before smacking a big kiss to his cheek, leaving a lipstick stain on his skin. She walked herself out, and once Harry heard the slam of the front door closing, he cringed slightly, wiping the lipstick off. 

He turned onto his side, deeply exhaling. He didn’t feel anything but numbness—it was always like this. He used sex to cope with how he felt, but it only made it worse. Honestly, he didn’t know what else to do, so it was the only thing he turned to, other than boxing. 

Harry fell asleep in his lonely room by himself. His heart was empty and felt like an isolated building that only carried his sadness. 

The entire week had gone by in a flash — Fight Night was officially closed down for good. 

Harry and Benny helped clean the space out as they reminisced and talked about the memories that were made in that gym. A lot of the stories had to do with girls walking by the gym, glancing through the window to see men working out, and then promptly walking into the gym to try and hit on the guys. 

Harry had tried convincing Henson that he could run the gym, but he shot down the idea before Harry could convince him. 

“Kid, look. If you want to run your own gym, do it. I want you to own a gym under your name. Not mine or Mike’s. You deserve to have something of your own, and whatever that may be, work for it. Work hard for it. I know you got it in you because you’re a hard worker, determined. You need to see that for yourself.” 

A conversation that was supposed to convince Henson to let Harry run the gym turned into a sentimental series of words that Harry really needed to hear. Harry didn’t say anything else and nodded as he took in Henson’s words to his heart. Henson was someone Harry looked up to. He was an old man with wise words, and everything he said was either meaningful or mean, in a way to show tough love. So, his words were something Harry lived by. 

The following Monday after Fight Night closed, Benny and Harry were on the search for their new gym. They didn’t plan on quitting the gym after their favorite one had closed down, and Henson and Mike made them swear they wouldn’t stop working out. 

Now, the two were walking into a gym that was up the same amount of time Fight Night was. ‘Don’s Box’ was what the gym was called. The building was newly reconstructed, making the place seem more modern and a little less dingy. The space was quite big, able to fit two rings, six punching bags spread throughout, eight-speed bags, and a weight rack. The walls were painted black, but the amount of natural light from the window was plentiful enough to make the gym feel bigger and brighter. 

A decent amount of people were at the gym, sectioned off with a few kids from eight to twelve on one side, and the rest of the adults on the other. There was a good mix between women and men, and everyone hyped everyone up with motivating words and claps over the music that was playing through two speakers that were hung in the corner. 

“Can I help you?” An older man with gray hair had asked the two. He looked quite intimidating; wearing nylon sweatpants and a black long-sleeved shirt that was rolled up to his elbows, showing his gold watch. The look he had on his face was stern as he crossed his arms, waiting for an answer. 

“Uh, yeah. We’re interested in joining your gym,” Benny told the man. The man looked the two up and down and scoffed. 

“Sure you guys are ready for that?” 

“We’ve been boxing for years, so yeah, we are.” Harry chimed in, a slightly defensive tone added to his words. 

The man glared at Harry, stepping towards him. Harry was slightly taller than him, but he knew the man could definitely take him at any given moment, but Harry wasn’t looking to fight the man, honestly. He wanted to act and look tough in front of him, so the guy wouldn’t give him any crap for it later down the road during his workouts. 

“Alright, alright. Take it easy, pa.” You interrupted, placing a hand on the man’s shoulders, making him turn his head. You raised your brows at him before tilting your head a bit, telling him to step back. The man backed off, giving Harry a snarly glance before huffing. 

“I’m just messing. Gotta know how tough my athletes are to be here,” he spoke in a lighter tone than he was to the man in front of him, putting his arm around you. 

“Thought you were gonna ‘stay on the sidelines’ and let me handle it?” You quoted your father’s words back to him, and he chuckled, putting his hands up, surrendering as he knew he couldn’t win against you. 

“Alright, alright. I’ll let you handle it.” Don, your father, quickly looked at Harry up and down, and you rolled your eyes, knowing he wouldn’t do anything to potential customers. He walked away and you breathed out a chuckle, scratching your head. 

“Sorry about that. You two are interested in joining?” You asked the two men in front of you. They were rather…attractive, you noticed. The one on the left was gorgeous with beautiful brown skin that looked so smooth. He was wearing a pair of red short-shorts and a white muscle tee. You noticed that he was wearing a wedding ring, so you averted your eyes off of him. The man next to him, however, was absolutely stunning. His left arm carried a sleeve-full of tattoos, and you wanted so badly to examine and look at every single one. With chocolate brown curls, his green eyes had a tad bit of a glimmer to them, not too much though, because if you were being honest, they were a bit dull, like he was exhausted and needed to let off some of the stress that he held based on how tense he looked. 

You tried not to observe and think about it too much as your ability to read individuals thrived while meeting new people. You shook it off the thought, not wanting to assume things about their lives and seem too creepy in front of new and potential members. 

“Yeah, we are. I’m Benny, by the way.” He shook your hand, smiling. 

“Nice to meet you. I’m Y/N. I run this place.” You offered the same smile back. Your eyes looked over at his friend, and he gave you a soft smile. “Y/N,” you repeated, taking your hand out for him to shake. 

“I’m Harry. Harry Styles,” he introduced fully. A beautiful name for a beautiful man, you thought. He shook your hand as you felt the softness of his skin mixed with a tad bit of roughness from the callouses, probably from heavy-lifting. 

Something about Harry introducing his full name had made you a bit weak in the knees. His deep and accented voice had made you a bit flustered as chills ran up your body. You’re acting like a fool, your subconscious told you. You were never one to show your obvious attraction for men, you were more into watching them from the side. But once Harry walked in, it seemed like you didn’t know how to keep your chill. 

“Perfect. Nice to meet you both. Signing up shouldn’t be too long—don’t want to keep you two from working out.” You led the two men to one of the offices, knocking on the wooden door to greet Jamie. “Hi. These two are looking to sign up. Do you mind helping them out?” 

“Of course! Come on in, guys,” Jamie greeted them, offering them to take a seat along with some water, which they both said yes to. 

“I have to get back to my session, but you both are in great hands. Jamie is one of our best,” you told the two. You sent an innocent wink at Jamie, which he sent one back while Harry watched the entire interaction, feeling uneasy. 

It was quite obvious how attractive and pretty you were. The moment he first saw you, his breath had immediately hitched in his throat. You had the most gorgeous face he’d ever seen, and when you spoke, your voice was soft and gentle, making Harry a bit more safe in a place he’s new to. 

Jamie had gotten their details and credit card information down before asking them if they needed a tour of the place. They both had said no, seeing as things were pretty self-explanatory and they’d been to a boxing gym before. 

They headed out of Jamie’s office and to the main floor, walking over to the heavy bags since the section was less crowded to start stretching. Harry rolled his shoulders and neck around, swinging his arms forwards and backward as he looked around the gym. 

This was something he had to get used to—being in a new place, surrounded by new people. At Fight Night, he was around the same people for four years, and he was comfortable — he was fine with it. But now, he had to go through the same process all over again. Nerves and anxiety crept up his skin as he tried to jump around lightly, warming up a bit but also trying to shake off the unwanted feelings. 

“Hey, you okay?” Benny asked concerningly as he stretched. 

Harry’s brows raised, covering up his anxiousness. “Hmm, yeah, I am. Y’know, just a, uh, new place, that’s all,” he brushed him off. 

“Okay. Well, whenever you’re ready to go, just tell me,” Benny told him before going into his bag to grab the wrapping tape. 

Harry nodded, smiling in appreciation. Benny had always been a great friend to him, and Harry was a great friend to Benny as well. They always took each other’s feelings and concerns into consideration—always making sure the other is okay. They both really appreciated it because some friends weren’t lucky enough to talk about their feelings and be that vulnerable with one another. They trusted each other; they were like brothers. 

Harry grabbed his jump rope, deciding to do a little five-minute warm-up to get his heart rate going. He faced the boxing ring to the left of him, noticing that you were in the ring, so he decided to casually watch you box. He then noticed that you had boxing pads on instead of gloves, and the people you were training were the kids that he had seen earlier. 

He watched you instruct the excited kids who were prancing around with their boxing gloves on, in every color imagined. You helped them fix their form, their stance, and their punch; telling them that they had to be quick with their hit to bring their glove back to the side of their face quickly, so their opponent doesn’t have a chance to take a hit. The kids demonstrated for you, punching your right hand that was covered with the pad. You praised all of them, of course, correcting a few things, but overall, everyone was a natural fighter. 

Harry’s heart rate definitely started to pick up, and he didn’t know if it was how fast he was jumping rope or because of the flutter he felt as he watched you interact with the kids. He truly never felt this kind of feeling where his heart picked up from the simple act of looking at someone. 

You had definitely noticed Harry staring at you from your peripheral view, and you had thought it was a simple glance, but he never looked away. So, you took the opportunity to take a quick look at him while the kids were practicing. 

Your eyes met him and you sent him a small smile, along with a wave with your boxing pads. Harry’s eyes widened, realizing that you were waving at him, and what happened next had embarrassed him even more. With how fast he was jumping, he suddenly got tangled with the rope, causing him to trip against it. Luckily, he caught his fall, but he was already embarrassed enough. 

Harry’s heart completely dropped, cheeks flushed. He couldn’t believe he had made a complete fool of himself, especially at his new gym. He so badly wanted to tell Benny that he was ready to leave, but when he looked over at his friend, he had already started his workout, being so focused and in the zone that Harry didn’t want to be a burden. 

When he turned back around to see if you were still looking, he jolted back a bit as you were behind him. 

“Are you okay?” You asked concerningly. 

“Uh, yeah. I…yeah, I’m okay. Thanks.” He cleared his throat, trying to cover up the fact that his voice almost cracked. He was so stunned by you. The way you made sure he was okay was possibly the nicest thing someone had done for him as you looked at him with your sweet eyes, and your posture was giving him your full attention. His heart pounded through his chest; the simple action and effort that was being put into this was making him overwhelmed. 

“Okay. Let me know if you need anything, yeah?” You told him as you looked at him intently. He simply nodded, knowing that he couldn’t process any more words. 

You gave him one last smile before quickly going back to your students. He watched you climb into the ring so effortlessly before continuing your training class. 

Harry took a deep breath before walking over to one of the speed bags that was in the corner, hoping to hide away from the embarrassment that he felt. Wrapping his hands up, he anxiously scanned the room, noticing that everyone was doing their own thing. There was a possibility that no one else had seen him almost fall on his face, except you, which he really wished that it was the entire gym who saw him instead, not you. He lazily hit the speed bag, trying to warm up and shake off his mortification. Harry continued hitting the bag, eventually getting into a rhythm as his fists alternated between one another, along with the rhythm of the music of Montrell Jordan’s ‘This Is How We Do It.’ 

Soon enough, all the worry and stress that was in Harry’s head and body was shaken off and completely forgotten about as he focused on his strong punches, making sure to connect his mind to his muscles, so he could feel his muscles working. 

And for the time being, life wasn’t all that bad. 

A month had passed since being at Don’s Box, and Harry and Benny quite liked it. They had newer equipment and their music was always on point, playing the best of 90s R&B and Hip-Hop. It was their favorite music to listen to, especially while working out. The people there were nice and cool, never getting in each other’s way and letting everyone do their own thing while still having fun, keeping the space safe and comfortable. 

Harry found himself walking into the gym at nine at night, an hour and a half before it closed. Usually, he wouldn’t work out this late, but during the day, he had felt so unmotivated and lazy to even get out of bed. He could put the blame on Lizette because she had gone to his house the night prior, doing the same thing they always do, but he knew she wasn’t the one to blame. Something about saying no to her and having her not talk to him had physically pained him. They were in a specific arrangement, he knew that. But having someone leave him again was something he couldn’t go through. 

‘What’s Luv?’ by Fat Joe, Ja Rule, and Ashanti was playing when he set his bag down onto the ground against the wall, next to the heavy bag. He started to stretch as he took a look around; not many people were working out at this time, which he liked. 

His eyes continued to search the gym, in hopes he would find you still here. Before the slightest bit of disappointment could settle, he saw you walk out of the hallway with Jamie, smiling and laughing at something he had said. He made a face as a hint of jealousy rushed through as he saw you with Jamie. He knew that there was no point in being jealous because he barely even knew you. But for the past month that he’s been at Don’s Box, you always had this look of excitement on your face when you saw and greeted Harry. It made his stomach flutter every time you would flash him your beautiful smile as you would carry the conversation, asking him about his day and if the music was good, which he commends you for putting his favorite songs on. 

Looking away, he decided to just focus on the quick workout he could get in before the gym closed, so he retained his attention back to stretching before bending down to grab the tape from his bag to wrap his hands. 

“Uh, hi, Harry,” you smiled as you greeted him. He looked up at you. The way the light was positioned behind your head made you look like an actual angel; you were ethereal. 

He stood up and smiled softly. “Hi. How are you?” He asked, trying to contain his nerves from just looking at you. You were gorgeous, as you always are every day. You were wearing a pair of black leggings and a light pink t-shirt that was tied into a knot with the word ‘angel’ that was surrounded by wings printed in the middle. Kind of a coincidence, he thought, thinking back to when he called you an angel in his head. 

“Good, good. You’re here later than usual—without Benny too,” you pointed out, but immediately cursed at yourself for making such an odd observation and telling it to his face as if you were keeping track of the times he’s gone into the gym. 

“Yeah, I was pretty…tired during the day, so the only time I got a burst of energy was right now. And Benny is with his wife and in-laws tonight, so it’s just me tonight,” he explained with a soft chuckle. 

“Well, glad you got the chance to make it in,” you said genuinely. He simply nodded, not knowing what else to say but instead he captured himself into you as you stared at him with your captivating eyes that spoke right through him. What was happening to him? He thought. This hadn’t really happened before, and he was good at letting his walls go up and guarding his precious heart. 

“Hey, I’m gonna head out,” Jamie said, greeting you goodbye, and taking Harry out of his thoughts. “Hey, man. Have a good workout.” He shook Harry’s hand, and Harry smiled, nodding. 

“See you tomorrow,” you told Jamie, smiling a bit as you waved. Jamie left the gym, and it was just you and Harry, along with a few other people who were wrapping up their workout. 

“Are you not gonna go with him?” Harry asked, and you raised your brows in confusion. 

“Why would I go with him?” You wondered. 

“Oh, I just thought you would leave with him, y’know, your boyfriend…” he trailed off, slyly slipping in the word boyfriend in that sentence. 

You giggled, shaking your head. “No, no. Jamie isn't my boyfriend. I’ve known him since I was ten, but nothing’s ever happened between us. Besides, he has a boyfriend of his own.” Harry raised his brows in shock as his shoulders visibly relaxed. “No need to worry, Harry. I’m all yours,” you flirted a bit. You normally wouldn’t flirt so easily with someone, especially if they were a member of your gym, but something about Harry had made you release all the stress you had once you saw and talked to him. 

Harry blushed, grinning as his dimple popped out on his cheek. Your eyes lightened once you noticed that feature, making you think that he was ten times cuter than he already is. 

“You’ve been in the ring, right?” You asked curiously. Harry nodded, and the corner of your lips turned up. “Great! We have about a little less than an hour and a half, so if you’re looking for some intense cardio, I could do it with you—y’know, train you and guide you, and whatnot,” you suggested. 

If Harry’s being honest, he wasn’t planning on doing cardio today—just a few routines to get his muscles warm, but the way you’re looking at him and how you spoke to him so softly and effortlessly, he couldn’t say no. 

“Yeah, I’m up for it,” he responded. Your eye brightened, resisting the urge to squeal from excitement, telling him that you were going to get the mitts and to meet you in the ring. He chuckled slightly as you walked over to the equipment room to get the mitts. Harry quickly hit the speed bag to warm up until he saw you walk out of the room. 

He put on his gray sweater and a green packers beanie, so he could sweat more before he met you in the ring with his gloves pressed between his arm and the side of his body. You put the mitts in between your legs as Harry handed you one of the gloves. Holding onto the end of it, he put his hand inside as you pushed the glove towards him, so it would sit on his hand tightly before strapping it securely for him before proceeding to the next one. The proximity between you two was quite close as you helped him put on the gloves, and you could smell the faint scent of cologne mixed with the slightest bit of sweat, giving him that unique musk; the one that doesn’t smell horrible at all but lured you in. 

You quickly snapped out of your thoughts and looked up at Harry. “Good?” He nodded, punching the gloves together to make sure they felt comfortable. “Ready?” 

“Let’s do this,” Harry said, skipping in place to warm his body up before getting into his stance. His left leg was a few feet away from his right leg as he bounced around a bit, waiting for you. 

You faintly smirked, nodding your head before you put on the mitts. Since Harry was very familiar with the mitt workouts, you figured that you didn’t need to explain what each number represented since mostly all trainers and coaches use the same numbers for the same punch. 

“Okay, let’s warm up a bit. Give me one,” you instructed. Harry put his gloves up to protect his face as you held your right mitt up. With his left hand, he punched your mitt, not giving his full strength. “Is that all you got?” You challenged, knowing that he had more power in him. 

“I-I don’t want to hurt you,” he said honestly with a small pout, standing straight from his boxing stance. Usually, you would take offense to that statement, barking back a comment saying that just because you were a girl it didn’t mean you couldn’t take a hit, but you didn’t go that far into it, knowing Harry didn’t mean it that way whatsoever. 

“You’re not gonna hurt me, Harry. I’ve trained so many people—all with different body types and strengths. My hand has felt all different types of power, so hit the mitt like you mean it.” You hit his shoulder, building up his motivation. He nodded, getting back into his stance as did you. “Now, give me one.” 

This time, Harry’s glove met your mitt with full potential and force, and you took the hit well—not moving back or being stunned. 

“There you go! Keep going,” you told him, and he continued giving you jabs. ‘In Da Club’ by 50 Cent was blaring through the speakers as Harry breathed in through his nose and out through his mouth. Several huffs of breath came out loudly as he punched, moving and dancing around the ring with you as the two of you occasionally shifted and switched positions. 

Harry got in a few more punches before you switched it up, telling him, “1-2.” Harry jabbed with his left hand and crossed jabbed with his right hand, putting his full range of motion into his right punch. He did that combination five times as he started to feel sweat dripping down his back and the sides of his forehead. 

You were yelling out words of encouragement and motivation, praising him for his punches, to which he responded back with a better and solid punch to your mitts. 

“Nice!” You took a step back to move around the ring to take advantage of the space as Harry jumped and skipped around to wherever you directed him to. “Wanna take a break?” You asked. He shook his head no, determined to finish this workout that he couldn’t even think about wanting to take a break because he really didn’t want to. “Okay, 1-4-3,” you told him. With force, he jabbed, hooked with his left hand, and hooked with his right hand. 

This feeling that he had felt—being in the ring with you—was something entirely different than when he was in the ring with Henson or Mike. The stress that he physically carried onto his shoulder had washed away into nothingness, leaving him with a drive that didn’t include overthinking and fear. The fear that had left him worried and depressed, that his life would amount to nothing—that fear disappeared inside him once he threw the first punch. It was exhilarating and fun, and he didn’t know he could have this much fun in the ring. But this was the most pleasure he’s ever felt while boxing. 

You ordered him to do some different combinations, such as ‘1-2-3-5,’ which was a jab, cross jab, leading hook, and rear uppercut. You also included moments when he had to duck because you were swinging at him. He definitely had gotten into a rhythm, punching and moving faster. You were the trainer, the person that was supposed to instruct him, but you matched his rhythm and energy and moved quicker with him as well. 

You were starting to get a sweat in as well, and that was mostly because of the adrenaline rushing through your blood as you moved excitedly around the ring. 

After a while, a timer had gone off, telling you that it was time to close up as Harry’s focus was cut off—the sound making him look up hastily. Throughout the time you were working out with Harry, people were slowly starting to make their way out, but the two of you were too focused on working out that you hadn’t even noticed that it was just the two of you left in the gym. 

“Oh, guess we’re closing.” You stood up straighter, wiping the sweat on your forehead with your forearm. “Feelin’ good?” You asked Harry with a proud smile. 

“Feelin’ great,” he smirked. 

“Good, I’m glad. You did great!” You complimented, ripping the velcro strap with your teeth as you took off the mitts. Harry did the same, shaking out his arms as he clenched and unclenched his fists to relieve the ache from making a fist for more than an hour. 

“Thank you. You’re a really great trainer, by the way. This was…the first time I had fun in the ring,” he told you honestly, and without knowing, the slightest bit of him had opened up to you. 

Your eyes brightened, a glimpse of shimmer reflected on your eyes. “Really? Thank you, that makes me really happy, actually.” You felt like you were going to cry on the spot. No one, except your younger students, had ever told you that they had fun in the ring since most people used boxing as a way to get stronger and improve their punches. But fun? That was the first, and you would definitely keep that with you forever. 

You and Harry walked to one end of the ring as Harry held open the top two ropes with his hand as he stepped on the bottom two ropes with his foot, holding it open for you to get out. You blushed, thanking him before you got out of the ring as he followed you out. 

Once you two were on the ground, you turned around to face him. You watched as he took off his beanie, shaking his hair out as they bounced; curls were now formed into waves because of the heat and the sweat that had produced in his beanie. He looked…extra good right now. With his cheeks flushed, hair messy, and sweat dripping down his forehead, you couldn’t put into words how incredibly sexy he looked. 

You cleared your throat, not wanting to get caught for ogling him. “I, uh, have to check on some things before closing. Take your time! And I’ll see you on Monday?” You raised your brows and curled your lips in as you looked up at him. A sense of flustered-ness settled in you as you waited for his answer. 

He breathed out a chuckle as he looked down briefly before looking back into your eyes again. “Yeah, I’ll see you.” You nodded your head, waving at him before you headed over to the office. Harry smiled as he watched you walk into the hallway until he couldn’t see you anymore. 

A small blush formed onto his cheeks as he contained himself from smiling too big and too wide. He put all of his stuff back into his bag, grabbing his towel, ridding the sweat off his skin. Grabbing his belongings, he took another glance at the hallway, hoping to get another look at you before he took off, but you were occupied with closing the gym, so he didn’t bother staying any longer. 

With a small smile on his face, he walked out of the gym, taking in this new profound feeling that he’d never felt before, hoping this feeling would last. 

The next morning, Harry had a sudden urge to go back to the gym. His upper body was quite sore, but he figured he could do some leg exercises to balance the soreness he felt. He normally wouldn’t workout on the weekends since those were his rest days, but despite being sore, he didn’t feel tired. It could also do with the fact that he wanted to see you again, not wanting to wait until Monday to do that again. 

When he walked into the gym, ‘Ride Wit Me’ by Nelly was playing and his head slightly bopped to the music, walking over to the corner of the gym to warm up. He scanned the gym, looking for a particular person, but couldn’t find you. There were a decent amount of people, not too crowded or too little, so it should’ve been easy to find you. Thinking that you were probably in your office, he shook off the slight disappointment and got ready to workout. 

Throughout his workout, his head wasn’t in it. He kept glancing through the mirror to see if you had shown up, but you hadn’t. His eyes were always looking over at the front door every time someone would walk in, but a small frown settled onto his face when he realized it wasn’t you. 

He wrapped up his workout an hour later, thinking that he somewhat still got a good workout in. He walked out of the gym, saying bye to some of the guys that had caught him before he left. 

It was nearing noon when his stomach had growled, urging him to consume some food. There was a Mediterranean hole-in-the-wall restaurant right across Don’s Box, and his mouth watered at the thought of it. He walked to his car that was parked on the side of the street to drop his bag off before walking across the street to the restaurant. 

He scanned the menu, standing on the side since he didn’t know what he was ordering yet. The sound of the door ringing and a voice that was speaking to him brought him out of his thoughts. 

“Are you in line?” Harry turned his head towards the voice, and his heart nearly beating ten times faster when he saw you. He had a shocked expression on his face, not expecting to see you, especially when you were wearing the complete opposite of what he normally sees you in. You were wearing a pair of blue denim overalls with a black t-shirt underneath, along with white Reebok sneakers. You had a bit of makeup on; an orange sparkly eyeshadow look with some mascara that made your eyelashes look full and natural. Your lips were painted in a red-orange lipstick stain, bringing out more of your natural lip color. 

The beauty that Harry’s eyes were blessed with made his knees weak, sending shivers to his skin. Your angelic appearance had struck him so hard that he was sure he would see the light of day, hoping to meet you up there since you were a real-life angel. 

“Y/N…hi,” he managed to spit out. 

“Hi, Harry. Did you just workout?” You asked. 

He nodded, feeling a bit nervous. “Uh, yeah, I did.” 

“You don’t usually go in on Saturdays…” you noticed, only seeing him during the weekdays. You’re off on Saturdays, but there was one Saturday that you had gone into the gym briefly, and you didn’t see him there. 

“Yeah, I felt like going in today,” he said, obviously leaving out the part that he only went to the gym to see you again, but you didn’t need to know that bit. There was a moment of silence between you two until Harry remembered that he was probably holding up the line for you. “Oh, you could go ahead. I’m not ready to order yet.” 

You smiled, nodding your head as you stepped forward in the line. “Have you ever been here before?” 

“No, I haven’t. Do you have any suggestions?” 

You slightly squinted your eyes at him. “Do you trust me?” You asked. 

That was a difficult question for him, and somewhat vague. Did you mean overall, at the moment, or for his food order? Either way, he nodded because he knew that it didn’t matter what you meant--he had this sense of security with you that he would trust you with his life, and that said a lot, considering that he’d only known you for a month. 

“Yeah, I do trust you,” he stated honestly. 

His words brought a grin to your face, looking at him appreciatively. Based on your observations of him, you noticed that he was a bit closed off; he didn’t open himself up, and if he did, it took a lot in him to do just that. So, hearing him tell you that he trusts you made you grateful, and you would never do anything to take advantage of that trust because he didn’t just give it out easily. 

“I got you,” you simply said before turning back around towards the cashier. Harry softly smirked as he took a step forward to stand next to you. You looked at him, flashing him a toothy grin before quickly facing forward. 

You ordered your favorite dish from the restaurant, which was a beef kabab plate, for the both of you. Harry quickly got his wallet out, offering to pay, but you told him that you got it this time, hoping your words conveyed that you wanted there to be a next time. He shyly thanked you for the lunch, keeping your words in mind because he would definitely be up for a ‘next time.’ 

Luckily, you didn’t have to wait long for your order to come out, which was fortunate for Harry because he was starving. You suggested eating outside since it was a beautiful day out and Harry agreed, following you out of the restaurant. 

You two sat on the metal chairs, digging into your dishes. Harry’s mouth watered as he ate, his stomach being satisfied. There was a comfortable silence that settled between you two, only making small conversation when you asked if he liked the food, which you were glad to hear that he loved. 

“So, how long have you been running Don’s Box?” He suddenly asked, wanting to get to know you better. 

You raised your brows at his question. “For about two years now. My father, Don, opened the gym when he was twenty-five, that’s when he had me as well. But when he opened the gym, it practically changed his life. He’d boxed all of his life, and he was happy training other people when he started getting more people to come into his gym. When I was about six, he told me that he wanted me to run the gym when I turned twenty-five, only if I wanted to. But of course, I did. I looked up to him all of my life, and the gym made me happy as well,” you explained, smiling at the memory of when you were younger, being excited to turn twenty-five to do the same thing your father did. 

A soft smile appeared on Harry’s face as you reminisce on the memory. 

“How long have you been boxing?” 

“Since I was eight. Don showed me the ropes when I told him I was ready. There used to be a seating area on the side of the ring because when I was younger, I used to sit there and watch him work and train people. So, I was pretty interested and intrigued about fighting to get myself stronger, even at the young age of eight,” you chuckled. 

You were a daddy’s girl, always had been since you were born. Don had always set a pretty amazing example of how you should go about living your life. He would always say ‘Live your life with a strong punch. Keep your head up, and don’t let anything get to you because you’re so much more than what other people say. But if you need to cry, you can—there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.’ 

As your eyes watered from the thought of your father’s words, Harry watched as you got emotional and he couldn’t help but think that you’ve crossed a line in asking too many questions. 

“Sorry, I always get emotional-”

“I’m sorry if I’ve overstepped—I should’ve kept the questions to myself-”

“Oh, no! You didn’t overstep whatsoever. I’m glad you asked me those questions, I just get soft and emotional over my dad, so hence, I’m tearing up,” you let out a somewhat pathetic chuckle as you couldn’t believe that you almost cried in front of this gorgeous man. You dabbed the corners of your eyes with your napkin, stopping the tears from falling out. 

Harry nodded understandingly, waiting for you to regroup yourself. You kept apologizing, but he kept telling you that you had nothing to be sorry for. 

“Really, if you need to cry, you can…” he told you. Your eyes widened; you were just thinking about your dad’s words two minutes ago, and for Harry to say the exact same thing Don had always told you without even knowing that Don had said those words. 

Not wanting to cry in front of him, you simply nodded your head, holding the napkin on the outer corner of your eye, so the napkin would catch your tears. 

Harry quickly changed the subject, sensing that you needed it, and you really did, so you were grateful for that. He busied himself by telling you what his favorite ice cream flavor was since he was suddenly reminded that there was a shop just down the street. He kept you occupied by talking about all the sweet treats that he used to eat with his mom back home, and how much he missed walking down the streets in the city to eat some ice cream. 

“My mum used to make this really great chocolate mousse pie, and we would eat it every weekend. It was extremely sweet, but it was delicious. I really miss it…” he told you. That had been a while ago, but it was like he could still taste the dessert as if he just ate it yesterday. 

“Is your mom back home in England?” You asked, figuring that there wasn’t any harm in asking to get to know him since he asked you some questions as well. 

“Uh…actually, I don’t know where she is…” he said honestly, and you knitted your brows in confusion. “I mean, honestly. I don’t know where she is. Ever since I went to uni, she’s been all over the place, taking vacations and barely calling. I-I feel like she’s forgotten about me,” he spoke ever so softly as he was fragile. 

You listened to him intently, giving him your full attention as he was opening up a part of his life that you knew he doesn’t tell a lot of people. A part of him that he’s kept in for so long and just the passing sense of relief he felt saying those words and speaking up about this subject had made him feel so much better. 

“I’m sure she didn’t forget about you.” 

“Seemed like it. We inherited my grandfather’s will—left us a generous amount for each of us that’ll take care of us for the rest of our lives. And she took that and ran with it. I mean, I get it—she wants to live her life, and now’s the time to do that because she’s got the money for it, but I feel…abandoned. She got up, said goodbye, and just…left. It just makes me think that I’m not good enough—that I wasn’t good enough to stay.” Harry opened a can of worms that he can’t take back anymore. But the trust that he had in you already made him want to talk about everything with you; to open up about all of his stresses and insecurities. 

Boldly, you reached your arm across the table but immediately pulled away because you didn’t want to touch him without asking. But before you could open your mouth and ask, Harry had reached forward, meeting your hand halfway as his palm was facing up as if it was a way of saying ‘you can hold my hand if you want.’ Blushing, you reached forward again and took your hand into his. 

The touch was sweet and tender as you two held hands; the want to hold each other tighter was present, wanting to take away Harry’s pain. 

“Harry, you will always be good enough. I know we just met a month ago, but I already know that you’re the sweetest, kindest person. Please know that. You are enough, and I’m grateful that you’re here and that I’m sitting across from you, eating lunch,” you declared. Harry sniffled, not knowing what to say as he put his head down, so you continued. “For as long as we’re friends, I’m gonna stay.” You spoke with complete honesty as you caressed the back of his hand with your thumb. 

Harry’s head lifted up at your last statement in disbelief as if this was the first time someone had ever said that to him. 

“Really?” 

You squeezed his hand, making his heart flutter. “Yeah. As long as you want me to,” you reassured, nodding. 

Harry gave you a soft and appreciating smile as he took a deep breath. The breath that he held in throughout the entirety of the conversation was finally let out in relief. He shrunk back into his seat, still holding your hand as you continued rubbing it, and he breathed out a chuckle. It was an overwhelming feeling that was riddled with happiness and a sense of security washed over him. 

It was like he had been waiting for you; someone new that unexpectedly came into his life was scary because it was change, but it was a good change. A change for the better. He had been vulnerable enough to open himself up, and it all led to the tight bond and trust you two had with one another, sealing your friendship and relationship. 

And you both knew this moment was going to change everything. 

Time had passed by rather quickly as it was nearing the end of October. The weather was getting chillier as the sun was beginning to disappear behind the clouds earlier. There was something about the fall weather that Harry adored. It may have to do with the fact that the gloomy sky had occurred more often, or how he got to call it a night early. Whatever it may be, he liked it, or he used to. 

In recent times, he wanted the sun to stay out until it was time to go to bed. He wanted warm days instead of gloomy. His new changed attitude towards life had to do with you. 

You and Harry had been hanging out quite a lot; getting to know one another, getting a bite or drink, and working out together, it definitely gave Harry the chance to let go of his past. He was happier, smiled more, and laughed a lot which he didn’t know he was capable of doing those things again until he met you. 

Benny loved it, though. He sure cherished it because seeing his best friend happy again was something he was afraid he wouldn’t see again. But that didn’t stop him from having a little talk with you, trying to protect Harry and set you straight. 

When Harry was occupied with hitting the speed bag, Benny walked over to the ring, where you had just finished another class with your younger students. 

“Hey, Benny!” You greeted him once you saw him walk towards you. 

“Hey, do you mind chatting for a minute?” You raised your brows, nodding your head. Benny usually didn’t talk to you privately nor was it anything serious, but by the look on his face, it seemed pretty serious. “So, you’ve been hanging out with Harry a lot, hmm?” 

You smiled softly. “Yeah! Hope you don’t mind that? Know I’m taking your best friend and all…” 

“No, I don’t mind. I’m actually glad you are. He seems quite taken by you, and I haven’t seen him like that in a very long time,” Benny said honestly. You seemed to know where this conversation was going now, and now that you thought about it, you expected this from Benny because they were like brothers and Benny would do anything to protect Harry. “What I’m trying to say is…if you’re only hanging out with him to fuck with him, don’t bother. He’s been through enough, and I know he can’t handle anymore of that and I can’t stand to see him like that again.” 

“Like what?” You hesitatingly asked. 

“Like…just know that he was a mess. He couldn’t get up, eat, drink, shower, or anything. I had to physically help him. I don’t want to see him like that ever again.” Benny shook his head as if he was reliving the horrible nightmare that he went through a few years ago. 

“Is this about his mom?” 

“He told you that?” He asked, just to make sure, and you nodded. “Kind of. But that’s only half of it. He’ll tell you when he’s ready, but I’ve already said too much. Just…take care of him, okay? He tries to act tough sometimes, but he’s trying his best to not break down. Although, I haven’t seen that kind of look on him since he’s been hanging out with you, so you’re probably doing something right.” 

You nodded understandingly. “Thanks for talking to me. I don’t plan on breaking his heart at all, and I’m quite taken with him myself,” you admitted. 

“Good. I’m glad you are. He’s a great guy.” Benny smiled, and you agreed. 

Benny didn’t talk to you for much longer before he started getting cold from standing around, so he ended the conversation and went back to working out. 

Meanwhile, as you and Benny were talking, Don took the chance himself to talk to Harry, seeing as you were occupied. 

“Harry.” Don made himself present around him. 

Harry immediately stopped his workout, greeting your father. “What’s up, Don?” 

“So, I’ve noticed that you’ve been hanging around Y/N a lot.” Don’s stance changed as he crossed his arms, sporting a slight frown. Harry gulped; he always found Don to be quite intimidating, ever since he joined the gym, but Harry didn’t want to seem like he couldn’t have a serious conversation with the father of the woman that he’s slowly falling for--no, he couldn’t act like that. “What’s that all about?” Don added. 

“I’m just…we’re friends, so we’re just hanging out. Nothing more,” he told Don honestly. Although he would like there to be more, he didn’t know how you felt about him or if you even felt anything for him at all. 

Don nodded. He could tell that Harry was holding back on something he wanted to say, and he had an idea of what that was. So, he let loose of the intimidating and protective act, knowing that wasn’t really him anyway, and his expression softened as he uncrossed his arms. He placed a comforting hand on Harry’s shoulder, taking a deep breath. 

“You have this look of wanting to say more and you don’t have to tell me, but I will tell you this…if you want to date her and go out with her, you can. This isn’t approval and a ‘yes’ for you to take her out because I don’t need to do that--she can make her own decisions. All I’m saying is that if you want to, go for it. Life is too fuckin’ short to not do anything, to not say anything.” 

Harry’s shoulders relaxed and he smiled in appreciation at Don’s words. “Thanks, Don. I definitely want to take her out, but I just don’t know how she feels about me.” 

“Oh, I’m pretty sure she feels something for you--she hasn’t told me, but I just know. You’re the first guy in a while that she’s been hanging around with consistently, and that comforts me, in a way. Knowing that she’s living her life and not holding back anymore.” Harry stayed silent, taking his words in. He tried not to overanalyze what Don had said because you’ll tell him and open up to him when you want to, just like how you’re patiently waiting for Harry to open up fully as well. “Just…don’t break her heart, okay? She’s been through enough and I just want her to be happy.” 

Harry nodded understandingly, saying a soft ‘okay’ before Don changed the subject and talked about how  Harry should train with him one of these days, which Harry immediately said yes to and they planned for the following week to train. Don left him to finish his workout, telling him to have a nice night as you and Harry were going out to dinner. 

Benny and Harry finished up their workout, and before they were able to head out the front door, Harry stopped, telling Benny to give him a minute. Harry fast-walked towards you, lugging his bag on his shoulder. You were coming out of your office, which was why Harry couldn’t say goodbye to you after his workout. 

“Hey, we’re heading out,” he said, wiping the bit of sweat on the back of his neck with his towel. 

“Oh, okay. I’ll see you later?” 

“Yeah, I’ll pick you up,” Harry suggested, pursing his lips into his mouth as he contained his smile. You nodded, eyes sparkling as you looked up at him. “I’ll, uh, page you,” he slightly smirked. 

“Okay,” you mindlessly responded as you were getting quite lost in his green eyes that looked at you intently with a gleam that sat so perfectly against his irises, making his eyes glimmer brightly.

He gave you one last smile and a little wave before walking out of the gym with Benny. You were left stunned as you stood there, completely drifted away from reality as you were in a dream about Harry. You felt a small nudge on your shoulder, causing you to snap out of your thoughts and dream as you turned around to see your father laughing. 

“Get back to work.” A smug plastered on his face. 

A breathy chuckle was released from your mouth as a hint of embarrassment emerged onto your face with wide eyes. You got back to work, focusing your attention on training your next client, but your mind was racing at the thought of Harry. 

As he promised, Harry paged you when he was outside of your apartment complex. He wanted to knock on your door like the proper gentleman that he is, but the buzzer machine to let people in wasn’t working, so paging you would have to do for now. He waited for you outside of his newly washed car, making sure it was nice and clean for you as he leaned against the passenger door. 

You walked out of your building, and Harry was immediately blown away. You were wearing a black skirt with stockings that hugged your legs, and a white knitted sweater since it was on the chillier side. 

Every time he saw you, his heart would beat incredibly fast, pulse pounding through his veins. His stomach was in flits of butterflies, soaring in his heart and stomach, making him extremely nervous. Every time he saw you, everything would stop, like you were the only person in the world and everything was okay. 

“Hey, H,” you flashed him your smile, one that he looked forward to every time he saw you. 

“H-Hi,” he stuttered, clearing his throat to start over. “Hi. You look really nice.” 

You blushed. “Thank you! You look great as well. Love this top.” You reached forward, lightly tugging at his red-orange knitted long-sleeve. He paired it with blue jeans that flared at the bottom with white sneakers. His fingers were covered in beautiful silver rings, making his hands look quite gorgeous. 

“Thank you, shall we?” 

“Yeah, oh, I got you something.” You reached into your bag to take out the cased CD, and before Harry was about to protest, you handed it to him. “I made you this mixtape. Just some songs that I think you’ll like—I’m sure you know all of them, but they just made me think of you,” you said shyly. 

You weren’t normally shy and you would call yourself a pretty strong and confident person, but you had been so nervous to give this to him—even making the tape left you anxious and shaking. 

“Wow, this is…very thoughtful of you. Thank you so much.” Harry looked at the CD with the songs written in your handwriting. There were 10 songs, and Harry knew all of them. They were all…romantic songs. 

“That’s not weird, right? Y’know, making you a mixtape?” You asked unsurely. The odd feeling had popped into your mind at the last second as you watched Harry observe the CD, not giving a bad nor good reaction to your gift. 

“No, not at all! I really appreciate this. No one has ever made a mixtape for me before, so this is really nice and special. Thank you again.” He reached forward, wrapping one arm around your shoulders as both of your arms found their way around his waist. You somewhat weren’t convinced that he liked it, and he could tell just by how you were looking at him--looking for some more reassurance--that it seemed like he didn’t like it. When he pulled away, he looked at you before saying, “Really, it makes me happy that you took the time to make this for me. It’s so sweet and thoughtful of you, and I already love all the songs on here, so I’m one-hundred-percent going to enjoy this.” 

You nodded, smiling softly as he opened the door for you and you thanked him, blushing as you got in. It seemed very much like a date and you couldn’t help but smile at the thought of that. 

Harry drove to the sandwich shop that waited for you both. It was twenty minutes away on the other side of the town, but Harry had been raving about it so much to you that you told him that you two should go, which Harry was more than happy to take you. 

The sound of Boyz II Men filled the speakers of Harry’s car as the two of you sang your hearts out to ‘On Bended Knees,’ putting full emotion and passion into singing. You held up your water bottle, pretending that it was a microphone, and Harry kept shifting his gaze on you, trying to keep his eyes on the road, but also wanting to look at you as you sang. He smiled to himself, absolutely loving how you were so carefree--something that he admired about you. 

His heart fluttered, curling his lips into his mouth before he did something that was quite bold of him to do. Reaching over, he grabbed your hand, intertwining your fingers together. Your body was frozen, but you continued to sing, covering up the fact that Harry was holding your hand so casually. You were stiff as a board, so you tried loosening up, swaying your body from side to side, slightly averting your eyes towards him as he continued to drive. 

The moonlight cast through the car window, giving him a dim glow, accentuating his features; jawline prominent, his lashes shadowed down onto his cheeks, and his eyes were calm; the light reflecting against his glassy green eyes. Your heartbeat a million miles a minute as you looked at him. You had this appreciation and admiration for him--that you were lucky and grateful that you have him and that there was nothing more beautiful than the man sitting beside you. 

With your face on fire, you smiled as you carried on, singing with the warmth of Harry’s hand connected with yours. 

You were sitting across Harry, munching on your sandwich as you listened to him talk about how he wanted to actually find a job. He’s been sitting around, living quite wealthy as his inheritance sat safely. But he’d been getting bored. Every day was a routine for him and it was a pretty boring routine, he would say. The only places he really went to were the gym and the places that the two of you went together, but that was it. He needed a hobby, something that he could escape to that doesn’t require breaking a sweat from punching bags and mitts. 

“You said you like books, so maybe you could see if the bookstore down the street from the gym is hiring. That would be a nice little place to work at,” you suggested. 

Harry’s eyes lightened up, apart from thinking that was a great idea and the other part from being surprised that you remembered such a small detail about him when he’d talked about books briefly with you. 

“I should definitely do that, thank you. I love that bookstore, it’s-”

“Y/N?” Harry was interrupted by a man who had walked over to your table. Harry looked up, observing the guy as he was looking at you so intently. He quickly looked at you as you were looking up at the man with a shocked expression on your face, wide eyes and mouth slightly opened. 

“Uh, hi,” you said, feeling slightly uncomfortable. Your eyes glanced at Harry and he had a worried expression on his face, eyes asking if you were okay. You nodded softly, bringing your attention back to him. 

“I-I’ve been calling the gym and paging you, but you haven’t been answering any of them…” the man mentioned slyly. You were quite speechless, not expecting him to be here and not knowing what to say. 

“I, uh-”

“Can we talk right now?” He asked. You were flickering your eyes between Harry, someone that you were completely infatuated with, and the man that you were completely irritated with. But if you didn’t talk to him right now, he wouldn’t leave you alone and wouldn’t stop calling you, so you made the mistake of saying a soft ‘okay’ as you got up, looking over at Harry, giving a subtle smile. 

Just by the way he was looking at you, you knew you had regretted your decision and you wished that you hadn’t given in so easily. 

Once you were outside, you crossed your arms, in a way to seem reserved and closed off, but in reality, you really were. The uncomfortableness you felt was something you haven’t felt in a while as it felt like your stomach was boiling as bile salivated your mouth. Your fists were hidden underneath your arms, clenching, and your lips were curled into your mouth to immediately spew inappropriate sayings and vile remarks. 

“What do you want to talk about?” You asked, brows pinched together. 

“I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for quite a while now, but I just wanted to talk. I hate how we ended things…” he said remorsefully. You tried not to fall for the pouty look he was giving you as if he knew quite well you would fall for it. 

“It’s been six months, Max,” you reminded him. You and Max had an ugly breakup, and you had been picking up your own pieces yourself. You two had been together for nearly a year until he started to act differently. Noticing that he was going home late, staying at the bars until the early hours of the morning, and being quite rude and dismissive towards you, it ended in a screaming match where he ended up spitting out rude comments at you--calling you ugly, useless, and boring. It also caused him to confess that he was cheating on you for half the time you were together with him, and you thought that was a lie he made up just to make you angry, but a month after the breakup, you had found out that was true because you had accidentally bumped into the girl he was cheating on you with. At the time, you couldn’t blame him because the girl was absolutely gorgeous and seemed a lot of fun, but now, you know your worth and you absolutely didn’t deserve that whatsoever. 

For six months, you hadn’t seen him, but he had been leaving you countless calls to the gym phone. However, Max wouldn’t dare to step foot in the gym ever again because Don had clearly threatened him when he saw Max on the street, pinning him up against the brick wall by his shirt and yelling in his face that if he ever came close to you or the gym ever again, he wouldn’t see the end of the day. 

Don would’ve lost his shit if he saw Max in front of you. 

“This is pointless. I was fine living my life for the past six months without you. In fact, I haven’t even thought about you until you showed up. Couldn’t you see I was doing just fine? Why can’t you just leave me alone?” Your tone was scornful, not wanting to be in front of him anymore but instead the lovely man inside. 

“I just assumed you wanted some sort of closure…” 

“If I wanted closure, then I would’ve called you. But I don’t need closure. I was doing okay-” 

“With who? That man inside the restaurant?” He interrupted, brows raised. His demeanour suddenly changed just because you had given him the slightest bit of attitude. Max went from soft, wanting forgiveness to the Max that you saw last--completely offensive, rude, and a dickhead.  

“Yeah, his name is Harry, by the way. I was doing okay until you showed up!” You rolled your eyes, making your way back inside to Harry, who was waiting for you inside. 

Of course, Max wasn’t done until he got the last word, so he yelled out, “You know, whatever you’re doing with him, he’s gonna leave you; just like how I left you.” You slowly turned around, heart aching as his words had definitely done something this time. “You think Harry cares about you Y/N? Think again, he’s gonna leave you and you’re gonna be alone. You’re nothing, Y/N--not without me, at least. You aren’t worth anything, and you had to take over your dad’s gym to feel like you are. Stop fooling yourself.” 

Your eyes watered, trying your hardest not to let them slip from your eyes. You had already felt weak tearing up in front of him, so you couldn’t imagine what he would think if you bawled your eyes out. Suddenly, you heard the bell above the restaurant door chime. You didn’t bother turning around, but you somehow knew that it was Harry who was behind you. 

“Everything alright here?” Harry asked warily, eyes pointed towards you. 

“Yeah, man. See you, Y/N.” With that, he walked away, hopefully for good. Harry knew everything wasn’t alright with how you’re ready to burst into tears. As much as he wanted to follow him, force an answer out of him as to why you were in such distress, he was more worried about you. 

Standing in front of you, Harry placed an arm on your shoulder, his other hand held the brown paper bag that had both of your leftovers as he didn’t want to eat without you. Your body was tense, not because of Harry’s touch but because of the words that had taken such an effect on you, and you were doing everything to not break down in the middle of the sidewalk. 

“Hey, you okay?” Harry asked softly, bending down slightly to look you in the eyes. Your eyes were pointed down at the ground, thinking that if you looked Harry in the eyes, you were going to break. 

“Uh, c-can you take me to the gym, please?” You asked once you fully gained the courage to speak, but your voice was shaky. 

Harry immediately nodded. “Yeah, yeah, of course. Let’s go.” He put his arm around your shoulders and you comfortably nuzzled into his side as he guided you to his car. 

The drive back was silent—the complete opposite from the drive to the restaurant. Instead of happiness radiating out of your bodies, the space felt gloomy. Harry’s mind had spiraled as he drove, thinking about what that man could have possibly said to you. He was torn between wanting to be angry, but he was more concerned for you because you had never been this silent before. 

Once Harry was in front of the gym, you immediately got out before he was able to turn off the car. Using your keys, you unlocked the front door, turning off the alarm system before throwing your purse, not caring where it landed and rushed towards the heavy bags. 

This was where you let all your anger out. The place where you screamed at the top of your lungs with no care on who might hear you. This was your safe space, and if someone was going to judge you for utilizing your safe space, then they didn’t belong there. 

You screamed, punched, and kicked the heavy bag with full force as your tears had streamed down your face. Your heart was beating painfully with every scream you forced out of your body. Your punches were solid, making the bag swing back and forth, but your knuckles were starting to redden because you didn’t wrap your hands. 

Harry quickly followed you, a frown plastered on his face as he watched you let your anger out all on the heavy bag. He let you do your thing, watching from the sidelines before he waited for the right moment to cut in. 

“You. Fucking. Stupid. Piece. Of. Shit,” you yelled out with every punch. You sniffled, continuing to punch the bag, eyes glossy from your endless amount of tears. 

The friction from the leather and your bare skin was rubbing against each other, cutting and peeling open your skin. Your hands had numbed the pain, so you carried on with your punches until Harry had wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling you into his chest and away from the heavy bag once he started to see redness and blood scattered onto your knuckles. You screamed, your body protesting, wanting to continue punching, but you knew you didn’t have any more energy. 

Turning around in his arms, your face was met with his chest, sobbing into his shirt. Harry’s hands soothed your back, comforting you as his heart ached from the sadness you radiated. Your bloody hands clutched his shirt as you cried, tears staining his shirt. Your whines and whimpers filled the empty gym, echoing back at you. 

Everything hurt—your heart, eyes, body, and your hands were now starting to sting. Harry held you tighter, carefully taking a seat onto the ground and bringing you down with him. You sat in between his legs and your head rested on his shoulder. 

After a moment, he felt you calm down and your body physically relaxed. Mindlessly, his hand brushed your hair back from your forehead, pressing a kiss to your skin. Harry hadn’t realized he did that until he pulled away and he hoped he hadn’t crossed a line by doing that. But when he kissed your forehead, you pulled him closer, burying your face into his neck. 

“Talk to me—tell me what you need, angel,” he said softly, wanting to help and be there for you. The nickname had completely slipped out as he’d been calling you that in his head. He’d never seen you break down at all, so this was very new to him. 

You shook your head, nickname going over your head. “Nothing. Just you.” 

Harry nodded his head, heart fluttering at your words as he held you tighter. He continued to soothe your hair and back as he heard you sigh deeply at the comfort. Looking down at your hands, he realized they were still bloody and cut up, and he knew that your cuts needed to be treated as soon as possible. 

“Can I take care of your hands? I’m still gonna be close, just wanna bandage you up.” You sniffled, nodding your head. Harry slightly smiled, carefully getting up before helping you up. He wrapped his arm around your shoulder, first asking you where the first aid kit was, and you two walked to one of the offices to get the kit before going to the restroom. “Wanna sit?” He asked, patting the cold counter. Nodding your head, you placed your hands on the counter, but he quickly stopped you, taking off his jacket for you to sit on. 

“Thank you,” you softly said to him gratefully before jumping to sit on the counter. 

Harry opened the box that contained multiple and different types of bandages, an instant cold pack, thermometer, antiseptic wipes, and scissors. Harry washed his hands well before grabbing the antiseptic wipe and ripping it open. He situated himself between your legs, gently grabbing your hand to rest on his. He looked up at you, first asking you if it was okay to start, and when you said yes, he slowly and carefully started to wipe the area around the cut. 

You watched him as he cleaned your cuts; he was so focused on wiping the blood that stained your skin and was careful not to press too hard because you were starting to bruise already. As you watched him, you felt immensely grateful. It’d been a while since you had a true friend that would help you with anything and take care of you. Your feelings for him had skyrocketed, heart pounding so loud you could feel it in your ears. 

“The guy at the restaurant was my ex-boyfriend, Max,” you suddenly said. Harry looked up at you to let you know that he was listening as he continued to clean your hands. “It was a bit of a messy breakup; he called me names, insulted me, and confessed that he was cheating on me. When I saw him at the restaurant, that was the first time since the breakup, and it was like I relived that day again.” 

“Did he say anything to you?” Harry asked, holding back his anger because he knew the answer,  Harry watched through the window the entire time and noticed your posture and demeanor change, causing Harry to quickly pay and rush outside just in case anything happened. 

“Y-Yeah.” Your voice croaked. “Said I didn’t amount to anything—that I wasn’t anything without him-”

“That’s bullshit, Y/N-”

“I’m so mad at myself.” Tears were forming in your eyes again as you looked down at your lap. Redness brimmed your eyelids as you sniffled. 

“What? Why?” Harry asked confusingly. 

You shook your head at yourself. “For years, I’ve been training—learning how to defend myself for when I need it. I was raised to have a strong mindset, to not take shit from anyone because Don told me not to. But when he came around, I didn't say a word, let alone move a muscle. I hate how he made me weak. I hate how I didn’t stand up for myself.” Your voice was shaky and your tears streamed down your face as you paused for a moment. “He told me that you were gonna leave me just like everyone else in my life did,” you added. 

Harry was seething, breathing in through his nose as his face hardened. He masked his anger because his priority was to comfort you, so he tried to let go of his anger for a moment. 

“Listen to me.” He placed his hands on the outside of your legs, bending down to look you in the eyes. Your glossy eyes looked at him, a small pout on your face. “You’re the strongest person I know, alright, angel?” This time, you heard the pet name loud and clear, making your heart do backflips. “You didn’t let him walk all over you, no, you’re much more mature than him to ever start something. He wanted to see you angry, and frustrated. He wanted to add fuel to the fire, and you didn’t give him the satisfaction. You aren’t weak at all. You’ve got a strong heart, and I’m sure that punch of yours to his nose would damage it for good.” 

You breathed out a chuckle at his last statement, nodding, knowing he was right. Harry smiled, dimples showing proudly as he wiped the tears that were falling from your eyes. Giving him a half-smile, you leaned forward, pressing your face against his collarbones. He stood up straight to wrap his arms around your back. You daringly placed a kiss onto the exposed skin that was peeking out from his shirt. Harry’s face warmed up at the touch that was so soft and delicate, yet felt like it was burning through his skin. You pulled away, looking up at him as you thanked him. 

Your eyes darted between his eyes and his lips as your face was just inches away from him. His face was delicate and his beauty shined over the darkness of the world. It was as if he didn’t seem real like you couldn’t believe someone so beautiful and breathtaking was standing right in front of you. You studied every curve, movement, and freckle on his face as they all very well defined him, heightening your admiration with every look of his perfections and imperfections. 

Harry blushed under your stare, clearing his throat as he felt nervous. He pulled his face away a tad bit, offering you a small smile. “Of course. Always gonna be here for you. Now, let me just finish cleaning your hands before taking you home.” 

You nodded, letting him finish with his task. His hands were gentle as he wrapped the bandage around your hand. Your heart was filled with so much admiration and gratitude that you simply wouldn’t know what to do if Harry weren’t there today. The growing feelings had taken over your heart and mind that you were a bit scared, but nonetheless, you let them take over. 

Harry sat at the bar next to Benny, nursing a beer he had ordered ten minutes ago. It had been a while since they hung out together, but that was because Benny was trying to get his wife pregnant, so when Marianne calls, they spent their time baby-making. The other reason was that Harry was spending most of his time with you, which he loved every minute of. 

“So, a little bird told me that you’ve been going to the gym on Saturdays now,” Benny mentioned, a hint of tease in his tone. 

Harry chuckled. “Really? And who told you that?” He asked, taking a sip of his beer. 

“Starts with a D and ends with an N,” Benny laughed, giving you the obvious answer. 

“Well, I’ve been going in on Saturdays because Don always schedules our training sessions on Saturdays. Nothing else,” he slightly lied. After his first training day with Don, Harry told Don that he wanted to continue training with him because he gets a good workout with him rather than by himself, hitting the heavy bag or speed bag, so Don always scheduled for Saturdays since those were the easiest days. 

But other than the training sessions, he also got to see you on Saturdays, which he really enjoyed because sometimes after his workout, you two would grab a bite to eat or plan to hang out later that day. He liked it, he liked you. 

“Hmm, interesting. It doesn’t have to do with a particular trainer who also happens to own the gym?” Benny raised his brows. 

“Not really into Don, to be honest,” Harry joked, bouncing around Benny’s question. They both laughed, slamming their hand on the bar top. 

“Really, though. I’m happy for you. You’ve been in such a happier mood, and that’s all I want—is for you to be happy. She’s doing a great job,” Benny said honestly. Seeing his friend happy after everything he’s been through had lifted a certain weight off of his shoulders, and it seemed like he didn’t need to worry about Harry. 

Harry simply nodded, smiling as words weren’t necessary. He always felt like Benny was always concerned about him, and although he appreciated him being worried, he didn’t need to anymore because Harry was finally feeling much happier than he was before. 

“There you are.” A voice was suddenly heard next to Harry along with a hand on his shoulder. Harry tensed up, and he hadn’t in a while, but he knew that wasn’t your voice nor was it your touch. Harry turned his head to the side to find Lizette sitting on the stool next to him, giving him a smug smile. He didn’t say anything but look at Benny, and saw his eyes narrow, confused as to why Lizette was here. “I’ve been calling your home and paging you. Why haven’t you been answering me?” She pouted. 

Harry knew that pout all too well. She used it to trick you into saying yes to her and getting what she wanted, but Harry was stronger than that now; he knew how to hold his ground. 

He hadn’t seen Lizette ever since the week before he joined Don’s Box. With all of his time spent with you, he hadn’t really thought about Lizette, if he’s being honest. You had fully taken every inch and space of his mind that it was maximum capacity, but he still found a way to make space from the invading thoughts of you. 

“Just been…busy, Lizette, that’s all,” he said, not giving her his full attention as he looked at his bottle. 

“Too busy for me?” 

“Yeah, something like that.” He didn’t want to outright be rude to her because naturally, Harry was a kind and thoughtful man, so he kept his harsh thoughts to himself. 

She inched closer to Harry, close enough to where her mouth was against his ear as she whispered, “Well, since I so happened to run into you, how about we go back to yours?”

Harry took a deep breath. He felt like he was his old self again—making impulsive and not so thought out decisions that end up fucking him and his emotions over in the future. Being with Lizette was something, and it helped make him feel a little less lonely, even though she immediately left right after she got what she wanted. 

But Harry hadn’t felt lonely at the moment and in months. He had his best friend next to him, having a drink, and he had you. He wasn’t lonely at all. So, why was he getting off the stool and putting his coat on before closing his tab for the night? 

Benny’s eyes widened, looking at Harry as if he was asking what the actual fuck was he doing. Harry simply shrugged, patting his friend on the back before following Lizette out of the bar. The air was cold, but it wasn’t a delightful cold that he wanted to be in. It almost seemed kind of eerie as the gray clouds hovered over them. 

Lizette hugged Harry’s arm. “I’m glad you agreed.” She leaned up to kiss his cheek, but he immediately pulled away, taking his arm out of her hold. 

“You should go home,” he told her. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out as she was confused. “Get a ride home. I’m not taking you home nor am I going with you. I don’t want to do this anymore, Lizette.” 

“But you came with me-”

“That didn’t mean I was saying yes to your offer. I came out here with you to get you off of me and not embarrass me in front of my friend and the entire bar.” Harry’s voice was stern as he crossed his arms. “I know you’ve never really cared about me, so please just do me a favor and leave. I’m happier now-”

“You’re happier? With some other girl, huh?” Harry nodded and Lizette rolled her eyes, expression annoyed as she was beginning to get angry and defensive. “You think she cares? Guess what, Harry, she doesn’t. She’s gonna leave you just like your mom left you, your ex-girlfriend left you. Remember when she fucked your best friend in college? That she left you to be with him? And look at them now, they’re married! They don’t give a single fuck about you! What makes you think that this girl you’re seeing does?” 

Lizette had definitely hit a nerve. Harry had gone four years without hearing the story on how his ex left him for one of his friends from uni. The situation was quite sad, and it left Harry in pieces. Not to mention, Lizette was his ex’s best friend and she somehow seduced him into regularly having sex with her, which wasn’t entirely her fault because Harry was lonely and needed to feel something to fill the void of his loneliness. 

“Don’t think you’re so easy to love, Harry. It takes a lot of effort to do that, especially with you. You’re gonna continue being scared and closed off, and people are gonna continue to run away-”

“Harry?” Lizette was suddenly interrupted by you. You were walking to the bar because Benny had invited you, thinking that it would’ve been a nice surprise for Harry and to hang out with just the three of you. But you had seen Harry and some woman on the street and his face looked angry. “Uh, hi.” 

You turned towards the unknown woman as she looked you up and down before turning towards Harry, raising her brows as she figured out who you were and who Harry had been spending so much time with. 

Harry completely blocked you out, his attention was towards the statements Lizette had made. He had been doing so much better, and all of a sudden the relapse hit him ten times harder, like his accomplishment of being okay with himself completely disappeared. 

 Was he that hard to love? He knew that he pushed people away, that’s for sure, but he didn’t realize that it was difficult to love him. Harry then thought about the people that had left him because they didn’t love him enough to stay. His ex left him for his friend, it seemed like his mum had forgotten about him, and soon enough, Benny was gonna get tired of him and so were you. 

“And you are?” You asked, scowling at the woman in front of you. Lizette smirked, seeing as there was an opportunity right in front of her. She didn’t find you 

intimidating whatsoever. 

“Oh, guess Harry didn’t tell you, but we’ve been sleeping with each other for years. Friends with benefits, if you will,” Lizette answered with some sass and a snarl to her tone as she watched your expression turn into a hurtful one. 

Your face had softened as your eyes welled up with tears, but you didn’t dare let them fall. You looked at Harry and it seemed like he was in his head, but you had no clue he was ‘seeing someone.’ It felt like you had been cheated on, even though going out as friends didn’t mean anything to a fuck buddy. All of the moments you spent with him—the laughs, storytelling, training, and tension-filled moments had connected you both to one another. It made you feel special that you were seeing a side of Harry that no one else had, but you were wrong. 

“Guess you’re the new girl he’s seeing?” 

“What’s it to you?” Your brows knitted. 

Lizette shrugged. “Nothing. Just know that Harry’s difficult and loveless. So, just get out while you can.” She reached over to touch your shoulder, but you quickly stepped back before she could. She was talking as if Harry wasn’t right next to you two, and if this was a ‘women looking out for women’ type of situation, you weren’t going to accept it because she outright just insulted Harry. 

You were livid as your eyes turned dark, stepping closer to her. “Stay away from him, or I swear to god-”

“Or what? What are you gonna do?” Lizette challenged, stepping closer. She was slightly taller than you since she wore four-inch leather boots.

“Wanna find out? Next time I see you with him or hear you talk shit about him again, then you’ll find out because I can guarantee you’ll never see the light of day.” You held eye contact with her as she looked at you with such fierce emotion. 

“Cute. Harry’s got a little bodyguard,” she scoffed, stepping back. “I should go,” Lizette suddenly said, breaking you out of your heartbreaking thoughts. “I’ll call you,” she told Harry, despite what you had just said. It seemed like he wasn’t even listening as his blank stare was trained onto the ground. She walked away, her heels clicking against the cement. The satisfaction she felt right now felt good, knowing her words had definitely affected you both. 

When Lizette was far enough, you turned back towards Harry. This time, he was looking at you in a confused state, and it didn’t seem like him. 

“I-I didn’t know you were seeing someone-”

“You should go…” he said straightforwardly. You raised your brows as you were taken back. 

“I’m sorry?” 

“You should leave. For good. Get out of my life while you can. I promise I won’t get mad.” His voice cracked and was shaky. He couldn’t even look you in the eye while he was talking because he knew that would break his heart even more, especially if you were to actually leave for good. The negative thoughts had taken over, and this was what he did—pushing people away and giving them a way out before they realized that Harry wasn’t a lovable or worthy enough person to stay around for. 

“What makes you think I’m going anywhere?” You questioned confusingly. You wondered if he even thought about the conversation you two had a few moments ago when you had told him that you were staying for good. 

“They all do, anyway. They all leave and they never come back.” His voice was starting to raise slightly, frustration and anger pouring out of his veins as his eyes were starting to tear up. A pout remained on your face as you watched the distress never leave his angelic face. “Just please go.”

“I’m not going anywhere-”

“Why won’t you-”

“Because I care! Why don’t you get that?” You raised your voice, not too loud to startle him, but enough to convey your emotions and frustrations to him. 

“Because you’re going to eventually! You’re gonna leave and use me and never love me. I’m used to it, so you could go now!” Harry was starting to cry, light sobs were coming out of his mouth as he was trying to hold them back. You took a step forward, wanting to comfort him as your heart broke at the sight, but he stepped back, not wanting your touch. 

Your heart sank when he stepped back away from you because he had never done that before. You two were always comfortable with one another that both of your touches had felt like security. Your tears had streamed down your face, quickly wiping them. 

“Harry, I’m not gonna leave…” 

“It’s fine. You don’t know what it’s like for someone to leave and never come back. You don’t know what it’s like to feel completely loveless that someone physically had to get out of your life and not want to be in it anymore. You don’t know what it’s like!” He spoke firmly as he cried, tugging his curly locks in frustration. 

“I don’t know what it’s like?” You spoke loudly, and Harry looked up at you. “I know exactly what it’s like because my own mother left me when I was eleven-years-old, and I have no idea why!” You vented, sniffling. “You don’t think I know what it’s like to constantly wonder what you’re doing wrong because the people that were supposed to be there for you completely vanished? Because I do! I know that feeling quite well. So, don’t tell me I don’t know shit because it seems like we’re in the same boat.” 

Harry was speechless. Sure, you two had been close and had talked about your lives and childhood, but this was something that you two had to dig deep for because it wasn’t something you regularly spoke about nor did you tell new people that you’d just met. 

“I-I’m sorry I had no idea…” 

“You couldn’t have had any idea, Harry. But just know that that day my mom left me still confuses me. The look on my dad’s face when he told me that mom left still haunts me. The crying I did since I was eleven hurts me because she didn’t love me enough to stay.” 

“Y/N…” 

“It’s fine, I get it. I know we’ve known each other for only a few months, but I did not expect this from you, especially because of all that we’d talked about. I’d say I’m the newest person in your life but I’m also the closest, besides Benny. So, don’t shut me out.” Your heart was beating through your chest and all of your emotions began to pile up like they were leaves, falling from the branches of the trees. 

Harry looked defeated, knowing that you were right. He sniffled, not knowing what else to say because all he felt was a painful feeling in his chest since Lizette had gone up to him at the bar. 

When he didn’t say anything, you just nodded, knowing that it was best to give him some space so he could realize that you were here for him and that you weren’t going anywhere. 

“Call me when you wanna talk…” you told him before turning around. Harry watched you—he knew that he should go after you, not be scared and let you in, perhaps tell you that he’s practically in love with you, but he doesn’t move, feet glued to the ground. 

When you were only a few feet away, you turned back around, knowing that you hadn’t gotten your final words out yet. Harry looked up when he heard footsteps approaching him. 

“Fuck whatever people say to you; trying to degrade and bring you down because whatever they say, it’s not true. I will always be there to defend you, Harry. Don’t think I won’t be because I will always be on your side.” You paused for a moment. Your heart was fully opening and was beginning to be vulnerable. Trying not to let it overwhelm you, you continued. “Don’t think you’re not easy to love because you are. You’re extremely easy to love, y’know that? I would know because…I love you. And that’s crazy to say because we’ve only known each other for a short period of time, but I can’t help what I feel. So, there you go.” 

Before Harry was able to say anything, you walked away, and he could hear you sniffling and crying. Harry’s mouth was ajar, completely speechless and shocked, but his heart fluttered as he took in your words. You really loved him, he thought. No one had said those words and really meant them or they hadn’t felt real to him when he heard them, so the shock that he felt was new. 

You were far enough where Harry couldn’t see you. He hadn’t even moved an inch, and he knew that later on, he was going to be very disappointed in himself for not chasing you down and telling you that he loved you too. But for now, he needed to take it all in and hope that when he did tell you, it wouldn’t be too late. 

Taking a deep breath, you walked inside to your apartment, sniffling as you went straight to the bathroom to take a long and hot shower. Before you left your place to go to the bar, you had been contemplating your appearance because you wanted to look good. Nerves were all over your body as you were getting ready, and you sulked at how the events had completely turned tonight around. 

When you were out of the shower and changed, ready to get into bed despite the night only being nine in the evening, your pager beeped. Picking it up off the bedside table, the message was sent from Harry, reading ‘143.’ You raised your brows, reading it again and reading it once more. Your heart was pounding, studying the numbers to make sure you read them right. The simple code for ‘I love you’ was printed on your pager and you wanted to scream. 

Before you could actually scream, there was a knock on your door. You walked quickly, opening it as Harry was standing behind it, holding his pager out as he smiled softly at you. You had just finished crying in the shower, so your eyes were red and a tad bit swollen, but you were close to crying again because of how overwhelmed you felt. 

“Did you mean it?” You asked hesitantly, holding your pager up. 

“Of course I do. Did you mean it?” He retaliated back, wondering if you meant your three words as well. 

“Of course I mean it, Harry. Why wouldn’t I?” You asked, wiping the tear that had slipped down your face. 

“Because I love you. I love you so fuckin’ much that it hurts,” he claimed in one breath, feeling the tension and weight that he held in his shoulders release. “You’re everything to me, and you make my world less frightening. I just see your pretty smile and my day completely turns into a great one. I don’t wanna waste a day not telling you that now, and it feels pretty damn good to say it.”

You slightly nodded until you remembered one of your concerns earlier. “What about Lizette?” 

“Lizette was someone I used to sleep with. I haven’t seen her nor slept with her in months—before I even met you, I promise. And I’m sorry for assuming that you didn’t know what it felt like for someone to leave and that you had to tell me under those circumstances. But just know, that I’m not gonna leave, unless you tell me to, that is.” Every bit of him was opening up and he wasn’t hiding away. He was being completely vulnerable and it had scared him a bit, but when his words came out, he felt himself get better. 

You looked at him through your glassy eyes, vision blurred for a moment until you adjusted them and clearly saw the gorgeous man in front of you. His eyes were filled with tears as well, and you thought, how could someone still look so pretty while they cried? But that was Harry for you; someone who was genuinely beautiful no matter what. Someone who had a heart of gold and a flashing smile that made your heart swoon and knees weak. 

You simply reached your hand out and Harry walked towards you, into your apartment as he came close to your face as your bodies were pressed up against one another. The back of his fingertips gently brushed the side of your face, admiring the beauty that stood before him as he opened his heart up completely, not wanting to go another day without saying those three words back to you. 

The corners of your lips turned up and your tears were replaced by happy ones. You had walked away from Harry after you said I love you because he was looking at you like he had seen a ghost, not a friendly one, but more of a scary one. So, hearing those words were just music to your ears. 

“You mean that? That you love me?” You wanted to hear it again and again and again. 

“Ever word. I love you, angel,” he repeated, adding your nickname. He pressed his forehead against yours, inches away from your lips. 

“Never stop calling me that,” you instructed him, smiling. The first time he had said it, you came to the conclusion that you absolutely loved hearing that name come out of his mouth, especially if it was specifically for you. 

“Only if you never stop telling me that you love me,” he slightly smirked, dimples poking out. He was so immensely happy that his heart could burst just because of the love that he felt for you. 

You giggled. “I love you, baby-” 

“I, uh, wait. Do you mind…not calling me that?” He hesitated, and you raised your brows confused. “Someone else called me that, and I just don’t like hearing it. Never have since it came out of her mouth,” he explained shyly. 

A sudden realization came to your face as you realized that Lizette probably called him that. “Okay. I won’t call you that, ever…darling.” Harry’s lips began to slowly turn up, already liking that name so much better than the other one. He hugged you; and you smiled, closing and opening your eyes to make sure you weren’t dreaming. Your arms snaked around Harry’s waist as he cradled your delicate face in his hands. 

“Never stop calling me that,” he repeated your words as you two smiled and laughed until your jaws started hurting. 

His eyes flickered down to your lips and back up to your eyes. You pursed your lips, blushing as you watched his eyes glance back up and down. You rubbed the tip of your nose against his, pulling him closer; hearts beating in sync as butterflies filled your stomach. 

He brushed his lips against yours before fully connecting them, feeling every spark and shiver that traveled down his spine. You smiled into the kiss as the softness of his lips moved and molded against yours, feeling completely in bliss. The way his lips slotted perfectly with yours made you saturated and dizzy off of his love and touch. Butterflies were still in your stomach, but they were calm like they had been fluttering around for this moment, his touch, in order to relax. 

Pulling back, he smiled down at you, eyes love-struck, before giving you another kiss, and pulling away and kissing you again once more. 

“Kissing you is my new favorite thing,” he stated, drunk off kisses. You breathed out a giggled, wrapping your arms around his neck as you breathed in his scent. You felt his breath against your neck, feeling completely happy and content in each other’s arms. 

There was no fear in the air; just the two of you with open hearts and arms, welcoming in the new and profound feeling that you both took in, knowing that it’s going to change everything for the better. 

You pulled him inside and Harry kicked the door closed with his foot. His arms were holding you tight as you walked back to your bedroom. Opening your mouth slightly, Harry took the chance to meet your tongue with his, swiveling and tasting each other causing a shiver to run down your spine. 

You pulled back when Harry laid down on the bed, taking in the gushy feeling you had as you smiled. 

“Want you,” you simply stated. 

“You have me, angel.” 

“I know, but I want you. Need you,” your eyes pleaded for his touch, to feel him inside of you, for him to make you feel good. You desperately craved for his hands on all of you, his mouth kissing every inch of your skin, and his love passionately pouring out of his veins. 

Harry nodded, smiling. “Need you too. Need you forever,” he said, connecting your lips again as he hovered over you. 

You two kissed for a while, giggling against each other’s lips and having his weight on top of you as your hands roamed his back. You bucked your hips into his, feeling the hard-on that was growing in his pants, which made Harry grind into your center, moaning softly into your mouth. 

“Please do something,” you said, and he nodded, getting off of you before taking his jacket and shirt off swiftly. His tattoos were showcased in front of you and all you wanted to do was kiss every single one of them. “You’re beautiful, Harry,” you complimented, and he blushed, a soft ‘thank you’ came out of his mouth. Next was his pants, and before he was able to take his briefs off, you stopped him, telling him that you wanted to do it. 

You got off the bed, switching positions with him as you were now standing up as Harry laid down on the bed. You smiled, eyes glancing all around his body. He suddenly felt shy and intimidated under your stare, but he knew he had no reason to be because you were simply admiring him. This time around when it came to physically be vulnerable with someone, he knew he didn’t have to worry anymore when it came to you. 

You took off your lilac nightgown, exposing your body to Harry’s eyes. Your nipples had hardened due to the exposure to the cold. His eyes glimmered as he gazed at your stunning and beautiful body. Every curve and inch was something he tried to remember, and he was quite speechless at the sight. He reached out, gently grabbing your hips as he roamed his hands up your body and to your breasts, grabbing both in each of his hands. 

He looked up at you and you smiled down at him as he placed his mouth on your left pebbled nipple, sucking and licking it as his hand fondled with the other. You laced your fingers through his hair, scratching his scalp as he did so, switching over to your right nipple. 

Harry pulled away, looking at you. “You’re an actual angel. You’re so beautiful.” 

“Harry…” you blushed. 

“You are, angel. So beautiful. Can’t believe I get to see you like this.” He kissed the valley of your breasts and down your stomach before getting up and pushing you down onto the bed with ease. He settled in between your legs, arms hooked under your thighs. 

Continuing kissing down your stomach, he reached the hem of your underwear, looking up at you before asking, “Can I take these off? Wanna make you feel good—the same way you always make me feel good.” 

“Please. Take them off. Wanna feel your mouth on me,” you pleaded as your arousal heightened. You wrapped your legs around his back, eagerly pulling his head towards your center, making Harry let out a chuckle. 

“Easy, angel. Not going anywhere.” Harry kissed your stomach once more before pulling off your beige underwear. You were glistening below him; you made a complete mess in your panties. “Fuck, you’re so wet. This all for me?” 

“Mhm. All for you, Harry, please,” you whispered impatiently. Harry’s dirty talk had only increased your need for him as it was quite surprising to see this side of him since he was more on the shy and reserved side outside, but nonetheless, you loved both sides—you loved him. 

Harry leaned down, pressing multiple kisses to your inner thighs, nibbling on the skin gently. You bucked your hips as he trailed his kisses towards your pussy that was eagerly waiting to be touched and licked. When he got there, he pressed a kiss to your clit before kitten-licking your sensitive button, making you softly moan. 

His tongue licked into the entrance of your pussy, gathering your arousal on the tip of his tongue to lubricate your clit even more. 

“Fuck,” you groaned as your hands found his curly locks, tugging at them gently. 

“You could do that harder, I don’t mind it,” Harry told you before going back to eating you out. You pulled harder and Harry deeply groaned against you, sending vibrations up your body. 

His hands wandered around your body, feeling the softness of your skin against his hands. Your skin had formed goosebumps due to his touch, and Harry smoothed out your skin so you were warm. He sucked on your clit quite harshly, earning a moan of his name from your lips as he grabbed both of your tits in his hands, squeezing them. 

You placed your hands on top of his, squeezing them with him, and Harry almost came at the sight of that. There you were, moaning his name out, getting your pussy eaten, and squeezing your tits on top of his hands. A sight he truly was lucky enough to see. 

Harry pulled one hand away to rub your clit as he tongued around your wet hole before tongue fucking you. He rubbed your clit at a moderate speed, enough for you to thrust your hips off the bed. Harry pulled his other hand that was still on one of your breasts away to pin your hips down onto the bed. 

“Stay still for me, angel,” he instructed, voice deep that made you even wetter. “You taste so good. Could eat you out all day.” 

“Harry…” you trailed, whining desperately for your release. “W-Wanna…cum…need to.” Your sentences were broken and Harry thought that was a good sign, knowing that he was doing so well you couldn’t form a proper sentence. 

“Tell me what you need. Let me know, so I can get you there.” 

“F-Fingers,” you told him, and he immediately brought his fingers to your clit, rubbing it before inserting two fingers inside your pussy. He thrust slowly, curling his fingers up to feel your walls.

He felt you pulsing around him as your legs were wrapped tightly around his back as you screamed his name over and over again. 

“C’mon, love. Give me one,” he encouraged, thrusting his fingers a bit faster. 

Once he hit the spot over and over again, you saw stars. Your vision had gone white for a few seconds, and you felt dizzy. The pleasure that ran through your body was overwhelming in the best way possible and you choked out a few sobs. It had hit you like a brick that you saw coming, but you were still surprised and shocked by the impact. 

Your hands held Harry’s hair tight that he thought for a moment that you might actually rip it off. Harry rubbed your pussy as you came down from your high, licking your orgasm that was seeping through your cunt, taking every drop of it. He looked up to see your head thrown back, chest heaving, and a vein that was bulging against your skin. He kissed your thighs while his other hand trailed across your body. 

When you finally were able to catch your breath, Harry kissed up your body, leaving the softest and loving kisses to your skin as you were quite sensitive. You grabbed his face, bringing his lips to yours as you immediately stuck your tongue in his mouth, swirling it with his to taste yourself on him—a mixture of his taste and your orgasm all on his tongue had made you wetter. 

Harry was grinding himself against your leg, trying to relieve some pressure. 

“Want you,” you told him once he pulled away, looking at him intently. 

“You sure?” 

“Absolutely. Please? Only if you want to-”

“I definitely want to. Just wanna make sure you were sure,” he breathed out a chuckle. 

“Course I want to.” There was a bit of silence between you two as you were simply just admiring him as he hovered over you. “Are you gonna fuck me, Harry?” You broke the silence, and Harry broke out of his trance, shyly giggling before getting off the bed. 

He peeled away his briefs, cock standing straight up from the slight painful restraint. He was big—girth and length wise, and you felt your mouth salivating from just looking at him. He got back on the bed, in between your legs as he sat on his knees. Spitting on his hand, he grabbed a hold of his dick, stroking it to relieve the pressure. The view was beautiful in every single way possible, and you didn’t dare to bat an eye because you didn’t want to miss one second of it. 

Wanting to take over for him, you reached forward, replacing his hand with yours as you slowly stroked his cock for him. Harry had a smug smile on his face but soon changed into a face of pure pleasure as your hand worked against him. His mouth was open as he let out a soft moan, looking down at your eyes as you were looking up, completely loving his reaction to your touch. 

“You’re so pretty, Harry,” you complimented as you continued to touch him. Your other hand reached forward to fondle with his balls, rolling them into your hand as Harry whimpered. “Love seeing you like this. Most gorgeous man I’ve seen in my life.” 

“Please, angel, you’re being too nice…” he managed to groan out, hands gripping your thighs. 

“But it’s true. Look so pretty when you’re like this, but also when you’re hitting the heavy bags. When we go out to eat and you mindlessly drink your entire drink while waiting for the food. But I think you’ll look extra pretty than you already are if you cum.” Your words of declaration were getting him on the edge as you stroke him. The way your voice slightly changed as you looked up at him with the most innocent eyes made him thrust into your hand, gripping the flesh of your skin as he threw his head back. 

“You think so?” 

“Mhm. Gonna be so pretty when you cum all over my body, my tits. Can you do that? For me, can you do that? Please?” You were completely begging for it, but even with all the begging, he knew that you had all the control right now. 

Your feet rubbed his calves up and down, and it was the simplest touch, but it heightened Harry’s need to let go. 

“Wanna cum for you, yeah.” His breaths were heavy and harsh as your touch was focused on his tip, wrapping your delicate hands around the head where he was most sensitive. 

Harry’s moans stuttered as a series of profanities slipped from his lips, spilling onto your stomach and breasts. You smiled to yourself as you studied his face when he came undone; his mouth was open, occasionally biting his lip, and eyes shut closed as his head was thrown back—he was the most beautiful person you’d ever seen, and the fact that you got to see him like this was an honor. 

When he came down from his high, he slowly opened his eyes, meeting yours, staring right at him. You smirked, body covered in his orgasm, and he thought that was a picture worth taking. You were gorgeous covered in his pleasure that you caused, and you seemed to love it too since you made no effort to wipe it off. 

Boldly, he leaned down, dragging his tongue from your stomach to your tit, spending the most time on your breasts as he nibbled and licked your nipples, collecting his orgasm from your skin and held it on the tip of his tongue until he reached your mouth. You willingly opened your mouth as his tongue delved right in, feeding you his cum. 

You two passionately kissed, tasting him ever so sensually. You moaned into his mouth, thinking about how the sight of Harry licking his orgasm off of your body was the sexiest thing you’d ever seen. With your hips jerking up, you felt yourself getting wet again and in need to release once more. 

You whimpered, pulling away. “Please. Need you so bad.” Harry nodded, agreeing. 

“Condom?” He asked, and you immediately reached over to your bedside table, ripping open the condom before rolling it onto his dick that was still hard. 

Harry curled in his lips, watching you. You gave him a few extra strokes for good measure, earning a soft moan from his mouth. He took his length in his hand, running the tip up and down your slit, collecting your arousal and lubricating his cock. He gave you one last look and you nodded before he slowly pushed in, indulging in your wetness and softness. 

A moan came out of both of your mouths, feeling completely full and warm for one another with the stretch Harry had on you. He planted his elbows on both sides of you, holding himself up over you as he slowly began to thrust. 

“Fuck,” he groaned. “Feel so good for me.” He placed a kiss on your lips as he whispered. He found a rhythm as he started to move faster, rocking his hips against yours, making you moan. 

It was a feeling like no other, and it was the amount of love you two had for one another that made this experience much more special. Love was practically oozing out of both of your veins, filling the room to its maximum capacity as the both of you moaned out in pleasure. 

You wrapped your legs around his waist and your arms looped around his back, hugging him closer to you as if he couldn’t get closer. You whined into his ear, the sounds of your pleasure were music to his eyes, sending a shiver down his body, making him jerk. But that jolt had hit your g-spot, and you screamed out in ecstasy. 

“Right there. Keep doing that. Keep fucking me,” you managed to say. Harry maintained his pace, going deeper, and fucking you into oblivion as you kept crying and screaming his name out. 

Harry’s lips attached to your neck, nibbling and licking your skin, leaving a few decent size love bites that he was sure to admire when they’d fully formed. Your nails had raked down his back, leaving a burning but pleasurable sting down his skin, letting him know that he was doing an amazing job. 

“You like that?” He groaned into your ear, leaving chills rising onto your skin. 

“Mhm. Just like that. Don’t stop. I-I’m so close.” You threw your head back into the pillows, and Harry took the opportunity to attack your exposed neck with kisses again. Your hands found Harry’s hair, tugging at his curls as he kissed you. That encouraged him to fuck you harder and faster, repeatedly hitting your special spot. “O-Oh…” 

“Come on, angel love. Cum for me, please. Wanna see you make a mess around me,” he encouraged you. 

With a few more thrusts, you were done. You had fully and completely released around him as your orgasm hit you like a ton of bricks. Your vision had gone white for a few seconds, head dizzy, and your breaths were caught in your throat as your hips involuntarily jolted, meeting his thrusts that were fucking you through your high. 

Harry started to thrust sloppily, burying his face in your neck as he spilled into the condom. His hot breath was against your skin as he started to slow down, coming down from his orgasm. 

The room was silent as the only sounds present were the heavy breaths and the post-orgasmic whimpers coming from your mouth as you two held one another. Your nails gently scratched down his back, contrasting to the desperate and needy scratches that you had given him just a few minutes ago. 

Harry lifted his head up, meeting your eyes before connecting his lips against yours, tongue meeting first before your lips moved in sync so passionately and lovingly that you both unspokenly agreed to never taste another pair of lips again. 

“I love you so much,” Harry said, resting his chin on your chest. 

You smiled down at him, eyes gleaming as you looked at your love, your entire heart, the man that had stolen your breath and heart just by one look. 

“And I love you too.” 

Waking up to the warmth of the body next to you was your favorite thing in the morning—had been for six months now. The sight next to you was something you wouldn’t get used to as you always found yourself feeling so lucky every single time you woke up next to him. 

But a pout formed onto your face when you saw that the space next to you was empty. The crinkled yellow sheets were left, missing a certain person that you had been excited to see this morning since you closed your eyes the night prior. 

Turning over to your bedside table, you grabbed your pager, seeing if you had any messages, and one specifically stood out to you, making you sleepily smile at your pager. 

“Goodmorning, angel,” Harry greeted as he stood in the doorway of your bedroom. He was wearing a gray sweatsuit, holding a white paper bag in one hand and a smoothie tray, that held two smoothies, in the other hand with a loving smile plastered on his face, making his dimples poke out. 

“Mm. Hi, darling.” Your arms reached forward, gesturing him to come to you, and he gladly did, situating himself on your body as you wrapped your arms around him. 

You two stayed like that for a moment, basking in the presence and gratitude of one another. It was nice until your stomach started growling, making Harry chuckle. 

“C’mon, gotta feed my girl before we head to the gym.” He got off of you, helping you up and out of the bed before helping you make the bed. He walked over to the kitchen before you went to the restroom, and when you walked out, Harry had your breakfast set on a plate. 

You two made light conversation, mostly enjoying the silence and tastiness of the food before you got ready to go to the gym. 

When you walked into Don’s Box, you were immediately greeted by a few of the members, giving you high fives, as well as saying hi to Harry. The entire gym had found out you two were together when they started to notice Harry coming into the gym almost every day and staying until the gym closed, so a few people had their speculations. Don was certain you two would get together from the very beginning, and he had told you that the only reason he was trying to act intimidating when Harry first walked in was that he sensed that something would happen, and he was right, something did happen. 

Benny was ecstatic; jokingly telling Harry that he could now spend time with his wife since you had taken all of Harry’s time now, which Benny earned a push from Harry towards the ropes of the ring. Benny’s wife was also pregnant and wanted Harry to be the godfather, which Harry immediately took on that responsibility and role. But that also meant since you and Harry were planning on staying together for the long run, you were becoming a godmother as well, which you were very excited about. 

You climbed up into the ring as Harry followed. You had a day off, and no one needed your attention other than Harry, so you helped him put on his gloves after you wrapped his hands in tape, and you put on your mitts, making sure they were tight before clapping the mitts together—Harry punched his gloves together, making sure they were comfortable. 

You raised your brows at him teasingly. “Ready, darling?” 

“Ready as always, my angel,” he responded, and you smirked. 

“Give me a good one. Give me 1.” 

talk to me about your favorite moments, your thoughts and feelings about this pls! thank you for reading <3