#give me ten seconds and I'll be FINE and i can continue on! i can persevere!! my eyes just Do That

[swinging-stars-from-satellites]

hate being the kind of person whose physical response to stress/frustration is to cry

[nickfowlerrr]

so inviting, i almost jump in.

pairing: neighbor!bucky barnes x curvy!reader

warnings: fluff. pining. idiots in love? fake dating...kinda lol. a lil bit of angst but not too much.

words: 4.5k

notes: happy new year! i tried so hard to finish this last night but just couldn’t do it lol. this is part of the ciwywt universe, but i think it can be read as a standalone, too.

also - coherent, consistent timelines? sorry, don’t know her. idk where this fits in their story but it does bc i say it does. 😌 i really love these two and i hope you enjoy this lil fic as much as i do. thank you in advance for reading. as always, comments and reblogs are more than welcome, and so appreciated! 💞

"Ow,” you wince, “damn it," you grumble to yourself as you set your eyeliner pencil down, blinking rapidly to quell the tears you could feel about to form in your eye. You huff and turn to look down at the cause of your distraction, your phone ringing loudly as it lays on the counter. You see the caller and preemptively roll your eyes. Not this again.

You swipe to answer the call and his voice immediately floats into your ear, giving you no time to even utter a 'hello'.

"Before you say anything-"

"No," you state firmly, annoyance clear in your tone as you stop him before he can begin.

"Doll,"

"Bucky, I said no," you cut him off again. "It's a no. No. No, no, no. Not gonna happen," you continue despite his pathetic huff sounding on the other end.

"I know you said no..." he says before trailing off for a second, "but, doll, I really need you."

Damn him. You sigh heavily into the phone, putting a hand to your forehead to stop the headache you know is coming. He's really trying to pull on your heart strings... unfortunately for him, it's not gonna work.

"You don't need me, Bucky. You're gonna be fine. They're your friends, if you just tell them what you told me, they'll understand. You have nothing to worry about."

"That's not," he huffs, stopping himself, and you can almost hear him shake his head, "Will you at least try to come by?"

You know you won't, but you don't want to upset him any more than he already is.

"Yeah, I'll try. And stop worrying so much. You'll have a good time, I know it," you smile, the thought of him and his friends enjoying their New Year's Eve tugging at your lips.

"Yeah," he responds, sounding a little unsure. "Okay, well, I'll see you later?"

"Mhm...maybe," you say.

"Doll," he groans, causing an unbidden laugh to slip from you at his dramatics.

"I said I'd try, no promises! But I do have to go now, so, talk later. Bye," you finish, hanging up on him before he can try and talk you into making a promise you have no intention of keeping.

You sigh heavily as you set your phone back down, returning to your almost finished makeup. Just because you aren't going out doesn't mean you can't look good.

You're still so surprised he asked you to be his fake date to his New Year's Eve party. Both because you were surprised he was hosting a party to begin with, and because he needed a fake date.

But that was just it, he didn't need a fake date. He wanted to get his friends off his back with the constant set ups and double dates they'd plan for him. What he really needed to do was tell them the truth, just like he told you. He didn't want to date, at least not right now. He said his mind was on other things. That was understandable, so you weren't sure why he couldn't just tell them that...

A part of you feels bad for not helping Bucky out, but the other part of you knows you'd feel like a total outsider at a small party being attended by the avengers.

Like, the real-life superhero team, The Avengers.

That was an immediate 'no thank you'.

You were content to spend the night alone; just you, your grapes, and some apple cider to cheers to the new year.

--

The television plays on, another episode of a show you've seen ten times before just starting up, as a knock sounds at your door.

You furrow a brow as your head shoots in its direction. It only takes a second for you to come to the conclusion that it must be Bucky. You set your drink down and stand from where you were sitting cozily on your couch.

You fix your dress, and for no reason at all, check yourself in the mirror before you near the door, making sure your makeup isn't smudged and your hair still looks nice as you do.

There's another knock as you get to it and you open your door with a bit of attitude at his impatience.

"Bucky, how many times-" you're stopped short as you quickly see that the man before you is, in fact, not Bucky. "Oh, uhm, sorry, can I help you?" you ask.

"Yeah," the man laughs, "I'm here for the party. This is the right apartment, isn't it? Bucky Barnes?" he asks, looking at you quizically.

"No," you answer, "no, wrong apartment. He's just," again you're cut off, but this time by the door right down the hall opening, none other than Bucky peeking out to look down at you and - oh my god wait...is this - this is - holy shit you're talking to Captain America. Your eyes round as you look from Bucky back over to the man before you. "Oh, gosh, you, you're,"

"Sam Wilson," he smiles brightly at you, extending a hand. You shake hands as he continues, "and you must be-"

He is cut off from saying your name as it comes out of Bucky's mouth, almost frantically. You look from Sam back over to Bucky, your eyes still wide.

"I know you're still getting ready, but would you come here for just a second," he nods at you. You look once more between Sam and Bucky, your eyes narrowing as they land back on your own personal pain in the ass. What the hell is he up to... You and Sam go to walk over to him but Bucky speaks again. "Not you, Sam. You stay there," he says in a fuss. Sam puts his hands up, a look of confusion clear on his face at Bucky's demand.

You continue toward him and as soon as you're close enough to touch, he pulls you to him, turning you both so Sam can't see what you're saying. It's a hushed conversation, a whispered argument, really.

"You have to come over."

"No, I really don't."

"You do."

"I don't."

"You're staying."

"No, I'm not."

"You're staying. I'm not letting you leave," he says, trying to corral you into his apartment as you swipe at him, a back and forth of swats ensuing between the two of you.

"Bucky!" you finally whisper yell, stopping the battle as you ball your fists, almost stomping like a toddler in your annoyance. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I lied."

"Huh? To me? About what?"

"To all of you. But mostly them. I told them you'd be here. Because I thought you would be. But then you said you weren't coming, but I couldn't tell them that or they'd think I was just making up another lie about you..."

"Another lie?"

"I...may have... told my friends that we're dating and have been for a few weeks," he murmurs under his breath, so quiet you can barely hear his confession.

"You what?" you balk, trying your hardest to squash the stupid butterflies that are fluttering around in your stomach now at the idea of not only dating Bucky, but of being someone he brings up in conversation to other people.

"Alright, love birds, cute as this is, are one of you gonna invite me in or am I just supposed to stand here awkwardly in your hallway all night?" Sam interjects, walking to you both as you turn your heads to look at him.

Bucky turns entirely, moving closer to you, slipping his arm behind your back and resting his hand on your hip, "Yeah, welcome in. Steve said he'd be here with beer in a few minutes," Bucky says, an annoyed edge to his voice as he lets Sam through the door. Sam raises a brow at you and you force a smile. As soon as he's inside, Bucky snaps the door shut behind him, leaving you both in the hallway still.

"What the hell," Sam says, loud enough for you to hear through the door.

"Look, it started as a lie to get out of a date, but then I just kept using you an excuse to not go to things I didn't wanna go to. And ya know, more than half the time I wasn't really lying because I was with you," he tries to excuse himself.

"Are you insane?" you ask him plainly.

"I know, I'm sorry, but I really need you to be here tonight, please," he begs, his puppy eyes starting to get to you.

"You had only asked me to be your fake date."

"Yeah, once you said yes, I was gonna work the girlfriend thing in," he smiles wryly, rubbing the back of his neck in his anxiousness.

"You're ridiculous, you know that?"

"Is that a yes?"

You roll your eyes before acquiescing, "Fine. But you've gotta come clean tomorrow. You can't start the new year with secrets, it doesn't bode well for anyone."

"Deal," he smiles his real smile this time. Then his eyes drift down to your outfit and you warm, like you always do, under his attention. "You look good," he says softly, sincerity in his voice.

"Thanks," you accept quickly. You will not let him fluster you so easily. Not tonight.

--

More of Bucky's friends arrive soon after you get back from your apartment, your bag of grapes and bottle of unopened cider in hand. Bucky introduces you to each of them and you're now unsurprised that they know your name and exactly who you are. And you, for your part, are in awe of each and every one of them. Though you like to think you don't make it obvious.

And it's surprising how normal it all feels.

You for sure thought you'd be a nervous wreck around these people, but, especially with Bucky by your side, you've never felt so calm and comfortable, and at a party of all places. Though you suppose it helps that you're already so comfortable around his apartment. Still, it's nice. They're nice. And fun!

Card games are played, karaoke sung, and stories told as you all snack and chat the evening away.

You're all laughing as Sam talks about how everyone was sure Bucky had been making you up like a summer camp girlfriend after the fifth time he claimed you were sick or out of town so you couldn't show up to the events they had invited you to. Of course, you had no idea about any of them, but you do know where you were each and every night they brought up.

You were here.

With Bucky.

So, he wasn't completely lying. You smile and look to Bucky who stands right next to you. Your eyes instantly meet his, a smile of his own already gracing his face. You look back down, bashful despite yourself.

The night has passed so quickly and it's already nearing midnight. You're about to go get your grapes ready, but Steve's voice stops you, catching your attention.

"Ya know, I can't even remember the last time I've seen you look so happy, Buck," Steve smiles as he looks at the two of you. "I'm really happy for you, both of you,” he adds. “It's obvious how much you two care about each other. It's good to see."

You don't know what to say, and you're too scared to look at Bucky. You just force another smile, feeling a bit sad more than anything. Because this isn't real. Whether you'd like it to be or not. It isn't. You have to remind yourself of that.

Bucky's hand squeezing your waist, and the feeling of his admiring gaze on you as he pulls you closer to his side, doesn't help. It just makes that pit in your stomach grow deeper.

This is easy for him because it means nothing.

This is killing you because it means everything. It’s everything you never give yourself permission to dream about. Everything you want. And it’s what you know isn’t for you. It couldn’t be.

Just a few more minutes, you breathe, and then you'll go back to normal. No dating, just friends...just friends? Whatever it is you are to him...

You're lost in thought as the conversation continues around you, Bucky's hand never leaving you and his gaze never wavering. Even as he engages in the conversation, his attention is solely on you.

"Oo, countdown is going!"

The yell pulls you out of your head as your eyes snap to the television. What the hell! How did you just lose eight minutes? Damn Bucky always taking up your thoughts and distracting you.

You don't have the time to get to the fridge for your grapes as the kitchen is crowded, flutes of cider and champagne being passed out among the group.

You tsk, oh well. At least you have on your red underwear.

As the count gets lower, Bucky gets closer, and you mindlessly lean back into him as you watch the live broadcast from Time Square. Ten seconds hits and you all count along, Bucky's other arm comes around as he holds you from behind. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Bucky turns you around in his arms, catching you off guard as you look up at him, your hands coming to rest on his chest.

Two.

He leans in, and you're frozen. His nose brushes yours, as his lips brush against your own. Oh.

One.

"Happy New Year," he whispers against you, cheers and exclamations of the same sentiment shared all around the living room, between everyone else.

"Happy New Year," you whisper back breathily before you unthinkingly press closer to him.

His lips meet yours as he leans in ever closer and kisses you, so softly. Your eyes flutter closed as you return his affection, kissing back harder than you intend before you break away. It feels like magic, it feels like home. And you want nothing more than to do it again. To lose yourself in him so delightfully…

You remember yourself then and almost shy away completely before Bucky takes your face in his hand, turning you back to him. You lock eyes once more and you feel like you can't breathe at what you see in his. You don't have time to think on it before his eyes flick down to your lips and then he's kissing you again. His lips press harder against yours, still moving just as gently but somehow it feels much more intimate. Sincere. Real.

You deepen the kiss and then suddenly the whooping and claps around you both bring you back to reality.

You pull away, taking a sobering breath, blinking away the haze of longing as Bucky's delicate touch remains on your cheek. You gingerly reach to take his hand, slowly pulling it off of you. You hold it for a second, squeezing his hand before letting it drop.

The celebration continues all around but you need to get yourself together. Alone.

"'M gonna use the bathroom," you whisper to him, knowing he can hear you even through the din.

You exchange 'Happy New Year' exclamations with everyone you pass on your way to his bathroom and bid goodnight to the people already getting ready to head home. A lot of them have early mornings at the tower, so you get it.

There are only a few people in the living room with Bucky as you look back before you escape to the bathroom, taking your time to decompress.

Sam, Steve, and Nat were talking with him, but his eyes were on you when you looked at them.

You knew this was a bad idea. You knew you'd get caught up in the fantasy. And somehow, he still got you to do it. You curse yourself in the mirror and then notice your smudged lipstick.

The thought of your lipstick staining Bucky's lips right out there has you in a flurry of emotions...

He kissed you. Twice. That actually happened. But did it really mean anything?

Your heart twists as you refuse to believe it could have. You just need to... God, you don't know what you need. All you know is right now you can't stop thinking about Bucky's hands on you. You can't stop thinking of how soft and supple his lips are. And how damn good of a kisser he is.

You look at yourself once more in the mirror.

Fucking hell. What are you gonna do? You sigh, eyes squeezing shut before you shake your head at yourself.

You turn back to the door, opening it right when someone's knock hits.

You're somehow surprised, and yet not at all, to see Bucky staring back at you as you pull it open wider.

"Hey," you say, raising a brow and shoving every fuzzy feeling threatening to strangle you back down.

"Hey," he started. "Everyone left. I just, uh. Wanted to make sure you were okay."

"Yeah, I'm good," you nod.

"I'm sorry. About kissing you."

"Oh," you utter - sounding more dejected than you wanted to. "Yeah, no. Don't, don't even worry about it." You muster a shamefully see through smile.

His stare is near invasive as he really looks at you, analyzing you. He opens his mouth to speak, but thinks better of it, instead giving you a tight lipped smile in return.

He nods, then looks to the floor, "Okay," he accepts.

You nibble your lip, crossing your arms as he still stands in front of you.

He notices and moves out of your way, offering a small sorry and a huff of a laugh.

You walk back out into the living room as he follows.

"Wow, this place is a mess,” you breathe a laugh, hoping to keep the subject change.

"Yeah," he agrees, "I'll be having fun tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" you question. "Are you busy now?"

"... I guess not."

"Then grab a garbage bag, Barnes. We've got work to do."

He laughs, "Oh, yeah? You're gonna stay and help me clean up?"

"What are friends for if not clean up?"

He smiles at you as his mind replays his conversation with Sam, Steve and Nat just minutes ago.

He told them the truth about you, and their reaction wasn't what he expected, but definitely what he needed.

"Wait, sorry, you're not dating her?" Nat asked, puzzled.

"Yeah, I'm confused, too," Sam added. "You guys act more like a couple than most couples I know."

"And she's cute, you seem perfect together."

"Well, we're not. Not, not perfect together," he amended, "I mean we're just not together. We're friends. Nothing more."

"Looks like a hell of a lot more, if you ask me..."

"So," Steve finally chimed in, "you spend all that time together, you talk about her constantly, and I saw the way you kissed her at midnight, Buck, but you're telling us it's nothing more than friendship?"

Bucky didn't know what to say. But he knew Steve knew what he was really feeling. He knew exactly what he wasn't saying.

"Do you want it to be more?" he asked. "Because from an outsider's perspective, it seems like you have everything with her but the label."

"I..." Bucky looked around, making sure you hadn't snuck back out of the bathroom yet, "yeah. I do want it to be more. She's, fuckin' perfect," he breathed a laugh as his thoughts, as they always do, strayed back to you. That familiar warmth that fills his chest anytime you're near, or hell, anytime he so much as thinks your name, returned to him. And suddenly his thoughts went back to the softness of your cheek as he held you close earlier. How pliant and perfectly your lips moved against his as you kissed him back. Not once, but twice.

Even still, he thinks back to when he told you why he was so reluctant to go on the dates his friends kept setting up for him. It was a lie when he said it was because he didn't want to date right now... well, partially. He really didn't want to date around. And his mind was focus on other things.

Other things, of course, being you.

When you nodded and told him you got it, that you felt the same way, his heart felt like it deflated by ten.

He was getting ready to finally make his move and ask you out, for real this time. But how could he do that now? He didn't want to be another guy you had to swat away, he couldn't be another one of your rejections. And you gave out plenty, always to his selfish delight if he was being honest. In fact, he can't remember the last time you actually went out on a date. It's been months...

Most of your nights are spent together. Just the two of you. But if you weren't wanting to date anyone right now, and he asked you, he couldn't be sure what you'd say. More importantly, where it'd leave you.

Bucky wasn't stupid, he wasn't blind, and he wasn't deaf. He had every confirmation he could ever want that you liked him the same way he liked you. But he didn't want to chase you away by pressuring a relationship, especially if that's not what you want.

"It's clear she likes you, too, ya know," Steve pointed out what he thought was the obvious.

"I know, I just. I don't wanna push her away by moving too fast. I don't think she's looking to date anybody right now,"

"If you don't ask, you'll never know."

He knew they were right. He needed to just bite the bullet and ask you outright. And he would.

But as he watches you glide around his kitchen, so at home, putting things back in their rightful places and throwing away the random garbage left behind, he thinks maybe not tonight… He doesn’t want to ask a question that might make you leave. But then again…what if it makes you stay?

"Chop chop, supersoldier," you admonish him as he continues to watch, staring dreamily at you. Your back is to him so you can't see his face, but you can feel the weight of his gaze.

Bucky follows your lead, tossing away the empty cups and putting away the leftover food and drinks while you wipe down the counter.

It really wasn't that much of a mess, but you're glad to get it cleaned now, so you won't have to worry about it tomorrow.

Wait...why would you be worried about it tomorrow? This isn't your apartment. God, you really are always over here, aren't you...

You turn to Bucky as he ties off the bag of trash.

You just look at him for a minute. Admiring him from mere feet away while he does the same to you. It's quiet between the two of you, but you can feel the charged silence as it brims with words unsaid.

You know what you want to do right now. But you do what you think you should instead.

"I guess I'll head out, then."

"Oh," he breathes.

"Oh?"

"I just, uh,” he shakes his head, "Never mind."

"No, what is it?" you prod, now entirely curious.

Bucky's bright eyes flash back up to yours and you see him search for what to say instead of saying what was on his mind.

"Your grapes," he remembers, turning to the fridge to get them for you, "you didn't eat them."

"Oh, yeah, well, too late now," you laugh softly.

"What's your resolution?" he asks.

"That's not how the grapes work, Bucky."

"Come on," he goads. "What's your resolution? I wanna know."

"Hmm. Well, good question," you think for a moment, watching him as he rinses off a bunch, then pulls two grapes from their stems. You mindlessly purse your lips as you think. "I want to be less scared," you start quietly, eyes meeting his intent gaze, when he looks back at you, "More confident," you add with a little nod.

"You, more confident?" he asks. "You're one of the most confident people I know. And I know Thor," he adds, getting the laugh he was hoping for from you.

You shrug, "Fake it til you make it." You give a soft, almost sad smile. It physically hurts him to see that hint of sadness in your eyes, and he wants nothing more than to do whatever he can to take it away. He hands you one of the two grapes and you raise a brow as you take it.

"And you?"

Your heart rate kicks up as he steps close, invading your space and standing right before you.

"I…would like to communicate better."

You huff a laugh, tittering, "Yeah, that's a good one."

"Let's both start right now," he says, holding up his grape.

"Okay. Let's," you hold up your own grape, bumping it into Bucky's as if you were toasting before you both pop your own grape into your mouth, stupid smiles on both of your faces.

As you finish, Bucky takes a step closer, surprising you as you look up to him. A bit of deja vu coming over you as you swallow hard. You wait a long breath for him to say something. And then he finally does.

"So. This is me, trying to communicate better: I'm not really sorry that I kissed you. Either time. And if I'm being entirely honest, I'd really like to kiss you again right now."

You're stunned silent and you think you can hear your blood rushing in your ears as you blink up at him.

It takes you a moment before you think you can respond, but Bucky speaks again before you do.

"But I'm not going to do that. Because I want to do this right. In fact, I've been wanting to do this right for months."

"Bucky?" you murmur quietly.

"Doll, will you do me the pleasure of accompanying me to dinner and a movie this Friday?" he asks sincerely.

Your mouth is dry and you have to force yourself to swallow hard again so you can speak. "We always do dinner and movies on Fridays," you point out.

"I mean as a date," he clarifies, holding himself to his resolution.

You stare at him, unsure of what to say. Well, that's not true. You know what you want to say. You know what you want to do. You want to say yes, and you want to lean into him again and indulge him in one more kiss, because you want to kiss him as badly as he wants to kiss you. But that terrified voice in the back of your head is currently telling you to make a run for home as fast as you can. You want to fight the fear, really you do.

Bucky is keeping his resolution already, you're just not sure if you can do the same.

"Uhm," you drone awkwardly.

He laughs that nervous laugh you rarely get to hear...the one you love.

"Is that a yes?" he asks with a hopeful wince.

It takes you a second and then your mouth moves before your brain does as you respond to him.

You stand there, a bit shocked at your own answer, and not entirely sure where to go from here...

[15minlatewithbatbucks]

One of the bats has to go undercover as a patient of a particularly suspect new and upcoming therapist. Bruce already has a backstory fleshed out and a cover identity, but that's no fun now is it.

Dick: Okay, the bat council is now in session. First things first-

Steph: I'm the realest.

Jason: Shut the fuck up.

Dick: No, no arguing. We're here on a MISSION.

Tim: That's right, a very important mission.

Dick: One of us has to go undercover as Dr. Hoffman's patient. But why? Why are we seeking therapy?

Tim: Wrong answers only. If any of you get too real, Dick can and will find you a real therapist.

Dick: And Tim, no superhero related answers. Bernard's PowerPoint nights give you too much of an advantage.

Tim: You're just jealous I know that Batman is actually a tulpa.

Jason: You shut the fuck up too.

---

Dick: Okay, I'll go first to get the obvious answer out of the way. I'm going because I'm secretly Batman, BUT I'm not here about that. I just have incredibly selective amnesia and can't remember the code to the Batmobile.

Jason: Oh that one's good. Let me think.

Steph: Hoffman is a man, right?

Dick: Right.

Steph: Easy, I'll claim womanly problems. Maybe get prescribed a vibrator.

Tim: *wheezes*

Dick: Ok Gotham's in the dark ages of psychology but not THAT much.

Steph: Spoilsport. Fine, I'm Batman's long lost twin sister.

Duke: Come on, we can't all go to therapy because of Batman.

Jason: I don't know, I feel like all of us should go to therapy because of Batman.

Cass: I'll go because I'm Batman.

Jason: I'd vote for you.

Duke: I think I would go because Metropolis isn't real.

Tim: Like, the whole city is-

Duke: It's a conspiracy. The government wants us to think there's this wonderful city where nothing bad ever happens and an actual alien from space saves the day. Tries to make us buy into some utopian bullshit.

Tim: Hoffman's just going to drive you there.

Duke: Ha! He's not getting ME to a secondary location. He might be in on it.

Steph: Compelling, definitely compelling. I nominate Duke's for first place.

Jason: Don't jump the gun.

Tim: Yeah, you haven't heard ours.

Steph: Well? Let's hear it then.

Tim: I'm an alien spy, sent here to study humans. Only I'm not doing well because I was taken in by rich people and they act weirder than me. I want to know what it means to be human, but whenever I look around all I see is how to make a good margarita. It makes me... sad.

Steph: That's no good. We said wrong answers only.

Jason: Solid four out of ten.

Tim: Fuck off.

Jason: I think I would go because I was convinced I was the second coming of Jesus which is all fine and good, but my whole family is Jewish so it's making things a little awkward at the dinner table.

Steph: You did come back from the dead.

Jason: I did and I'll tell him that. Took a little longer than three days this time, though.

Tim: Okay, I'll be honest. Jason and Duke's are the best.

Dick: Hold on- Damian, do you have an answer?

Damian: Of course. And not one so foolish.

Duke: Well?

Damian: Well, my whole family is comprised of vigilantes and I'm under a lot of stress to be one as well and continue the family tradition. I will of course swear him to secrecy and avoid naming any vigilantes by name.

Dick: ...

Jason: This is what I'm talking about. This is exactly what I'm-

Dick: Yes, okay. Game's over. All of you are getting psych referrals in your inbox by the morning.

Steph: What about-

Dick: Duke won.

[blackbirdsblackberries]

I Hate The New Hero

Pt 2: A spider's nest is different to a bird's.

You exit the school building with two of your friends; Sherri Webster and Tia Hunt. You see Timothy leaning against the wall to the exit of the school building and you can't help but scoff, does he not have a life or friends?

Okay, judging by how the polls are going now, this one is winning!! I'll post the second part of Don't Drink The Kool-Aid soon (possibly tomorrow or the day afterwards). Don't be afraid to send in asks and such regarding anything! I love answering them and doing side stories/headcannons for this series or other series of mine!

The day rolls by painfully slow. How could it not when you're going to invite someone, who you're pretty sure would throw you to the wolves for a dollar, into your shitty apartment?

Tia notices your gaze and chuckles, you had already told them both about Tim and the project, they laughed and made fun of you - you'll get back at them.

Sherri pats me back "If you don't come back to school tomorrow we'll let the police know he probably murdered you!" Tia laughs at that and I grumble and elbow Sherri.

"Oh shut up! God, you're insufferable!"

"And you're about to be dead!"

"Oh please, no one in Gotham stays dead these days!"

"I'll make sure you do!"

Tia interrupts before the minor spat ends in the two forgetting Timothy is there - now looking at the three with the very hatred you'd give to your parent's murderers.

"Can you guys fight later? In the group chat maybe? I'm starving and want to go home - private school food tastes like shit." Sherri sighs but agrees and the two wave goodbye before leaving you.

You wave and after a bit of awkward silence you glance at Timothy who is now staring daggers at you, his eyes are calculating but aren't narrowed - like a feral wolf analysing it's target. You hold back a sigh as you raise a brow.

You make a hand motion for him to follow you and you start to walk along the path to your amazing, beautiful, posh, cool apartment that in no way is flawed.

The walk is silent and painful, at this point your willing to bust out the charms and joke with him but you're scared he's going to smash your head into the concrete as soon as you make a joke.

You walk past a poster that was hung up regarding the heroes of Gotham, Aranea is near the center hanging to the side of a wall. You scowl at it - the picture was bad and didn't flatter you at all.

Timothy catches your scowl and makes a show of rolling his eyes and typing something on his phone. You can't hold back any longer.

"What? You grading me or something? Speak the fuck up if you have a problem, Richy Rich." You sneer as you say the last part, he snaps his head up at you in offense.

"Oh, you want me to speak up?! Fine, you're a selfish brat who's got parents that fawn over you and you never lacked anything in your life yet you go after some sweet innocent girl who would a hundred percent save you if you needed it. Aranea is one of the best people in Gotham and it's disgusting that you are so rude to her!" Timothy rants. You can't help but raise a brow, you want to laugh so hard - the irony is right there.

Instead you roll your eyes "You hate me because I hate someone you fangirl over? How pathetic. Hate me for a real reason!" You try not to smirk when you see Timothy try to take deep breaths and calm down.

"... Let's just get to your apartment already." He states as he continues walking, you raise a brow. "Wrong way." He turns around and follows you silently.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Finally you stop in front of your stunning apartment. Out of the corner of your eye you see Tim raise a brow.

"How'd you get into a private school if your parents can't even afford an apartment building that doesn't look like it's had ten different crime scenes this week?"

You deadpan, ouch man...

"I got in through an engineering scholarship." You reply blandly, no point in spilling your emotions and true personality to a person like Timothy.

Timothy doesn't say anything else and you take that as the conversation ending and lead him into the complex and to the apartment you reside in.

It's home and you wouldn't want anything different. The plants are dead, there's a leaky tap, the clock that's stuck on the wall ticks annoyingly, there's a small spider making it's home in one of the corners and all the furniture looks one kick away from dust.

Your parents don't have much time to clean...

You look at Timothy out of the corner of your eye, despite loving where you live you know people will judge and Tim will probably use this against you some time in the future.

.............................................................................................

Tim's confused. You had always exuded "rich spoilt brat" behavior and seemed so stuck up yet live in actual filth? On top of that you got into Gotham Academy on a scholarship? Do high schools even do scholarships? It doesn't make sense.

Tim's not an idiot, he knows he's being petty but at the same time he can't bring himself to stop. Aranea is one of the kindest people he's met in Gotham, a saint, an innocent person who deserves a good life.

Yet, you hate her guts, you say awful things about her despite not even meeting her - or maybe you did, either way there's no reason for you to be acting like this.

Tim isn't petty, he won't use your living situation against you but the scholarship thing can be.. a small post can ultimately cause ridicule in the school.

He blinks a couple times, not noticing how he's already in a cramped bedroom - it's the size of a supply closet in the manor!

There's a bed in the corner, a window that's curtained up, a closet, a toy chest and a pile of sketch books that reaches halfway up the bedframe. It's cozy he supposes - for a sewer rat at least.

You mumble something about getting food before leaving the room. Seems you have some smarts and etiquette.

His phone buzzes and he looks down at the Gotham Vigilante Group Chat (GVGC), it's a message from Aranea.

Aranea: "Heyyyy!! I won't be able to go on patrol tonight, my mama wants to go out for dinner :("

Tim sighs, that's good. He can't go because of the stupid project so it seems he won't have to get horrendously teased for missing out on hanging with Aranea.

Tim's phone buzzes again and it's Bruce.

Bruce: "Message if (Reader) does anything sketchy. You can't trust someone so hateful."

Way to state the obvious. Tim already had multiple plans in case you did something.

He pockets his phone after responding with a thumbs up and he sits down, on the floor - assuming that's where they'll work.

.............................................................................................

Soon you come back with snacks in hand and had changed into more comfortable clothes - they were your dad's because in no way were you going to show Timothy your sense of style.

The clothes consisted of cargo shorts that were grossly oversized and tied with some shoelace to stop them from falling and an oversized shirt with the image of Garfield on it.

You raise a brow at where Timothy is sitting.

"Uh, why are you sitting on the floor?"

"That's where we'll work. Why?"

You think you're ready to go cry in a corner out of frustration.

"I have a bed."

"okay? I doubt it can even fit the both of us."

... Okay, that's true. Still, even if you hated him your parents didn't raise you to be rude to guests.

"Fine. You sit on the bed and I'll kneel on the floor."

You watch as his eyes widen, not expecting that response. You push him to stand up and make him sit on the bed before plopping down and taking a big sketchbook and flipping to the back of it.

"Okay, let's get started." You mumble, more so to yourself.

You two spend the next three to four hours researching, drawing things and writing down dates. By the end of it your tired and just want to sleep. It would have been done sooner if there wasn't an argument that caused you to storm out of the apartment and pace the halls and if Tim didn't leave to the halls to answer a call but at least it's over with.

You rest your head against your bed, you're still on the floor and more than content staying there, you doubt your body will even allow you to move.

Slowly your eyes close and you drift off to sleep.

[woso-dreamzzz]

Bike II

Chelsea Women x Child!Reader

Part of The Big Adventures Universe

Summary: You're good at bike riding

"I'm so tired," Erin complains, fanning herself," God, it's hot today."

"I need a nap," Millie agrees.

"A nap and to do nothing for the rest of the day," Niamh says as she passes by, stripping off her sweaty training shirt," I'm just going to go home and melt."

"Home and an ice cream," Zećira continues, nodding and completely satisfied with her plan," I can't wait to get home."

"You'll all have to wait," Magda says decisively from the day. She'd come in earlier than everyone else, taking you into the building for a toilet and hydration break.

Most of the team had actually been quite worried about you.

This heat is sweltering and you're still tiny and excitable with energy that makes you run all over the field. It's like an accident waiting to happen.

Pernille had you stop and take long drinks from your water bottle all through practice until it ran out and she sent you off with Magda to fill it up.

You and Magda never came back though so everyone just presumed you'd already been bundled up in the car where there's air conditioning to use while you wait for Pernille to finish up and change.

"There's a surprise out the front."

"Is it an ice cream van?" Guro asks," Because that's the only thing that will make me happy right now."

"It's not an ice cream van."

"Then I'm out."

"No you're not," Magda says sternly," You're all going out the front with a smile and you're going to celebrate and clap and give compliments. Got it?"

"It's hot," Sam complains," Can't we rearrange this surprise?"

"No, Sam. We're doing it now."

"Give them a second to change, Magda," Pernille says," We're all hot. We're all irritable. Give them a sec."

Magda huffs. "Fine. I'll be out the front." She points a finger at everyone in turn. "I expect you all out there in ten minutes."

Pernille manages to shepherd everyone out in five.

"Right," Millie says, adjusting her cap so it properly shades her from the beating sun," What's-Oh."

"Look!" You say," I'm riding my bike!"

You peddle quickly around the car park, little legs pumping as you turn your handlebars so you're going around in circles.

You're doing impressively well on your bike, a very slow for an adult but fast for a little kid. It's even more impressive when the team note that you've not got any stabilisers.

A little basket that wasn't originally there when Sam bought it sits on the front and in it sits your swan and moose toy as well as a little bouquet of flowers that Pernille bought you at the market this morning.

Most of the team is speechless until Jessie starts clapping.

"Well done!" She calls out," You're doing so well!"

You beam at the praise, puffing out your chest in pride and pump your legs even faster.

Magda also puffs out her chest and Pernille has to smother her laughter.

"I taught her to ride," Magda brags," We took her stabilisers off last week. Isn't she so good?"

"The best!" Jessie agrees warmly, still clapping.

"Best ever!" Sam yells out," Look at you go!"

The team seem to have forgotten their exhaustion as you skid to a stop nearly half an hour later, everyone crowding around you as you pant from your cycling.

"Look at this!" Zećira exclaims," It's such a cool colour!"

"It's red," You tell her," Like Arsenal and Sweden's goalkeeper shirt! I love red!"

"It is!" Zećira says, nodding along," And you've got a little basket!"

"For my toys," You tell her," And my water bottle. And I've got a bell!"

You demonstrate by flicking it, letting the noise rings out through the car park.

"That's so cool!"

You grin at Zećira before looking at Jessie, suddenly shy.

"Did I do good, Jessie?"

She grins at you, ruffling your hair. "So good. I'm very impressed. I didn't know you could ride a bike!"

"Morsa taught me," You explain," And Momma did too. At the park. They say if I keep practicing and getting better and better we can all do a ride together! Do you want to go on a bike ride with me, Jessie?"

Jessie grins. "I'd love to."

[cheswirls]

short asl thing based on @where-does-the-heart-lie's modern au :) i started this over a year ago but the beginning is all dialogue and felt more like a script to me i suppose??? which deflated my desire to work on it. anyway i checked it over recently and it's completely fine lmfao, self-confidence restored here we go !

-

"Yo. Aren't you usually in the middle of your shift by now?"

"I've been banned from the hospital."

"Like, for life?"

"No. For the next, uh.. Twenty-two hours."

"That's oddly specific."

"It was twenty-four, but I fell asleep after leaving the building."

"That wouldn't have to do with why they kicked you out, at all?"

"Hmmm. I'm too sleep-deprived, apparently."

"Ah. And, um, you called me because...?"

"I pressed a random number in my call log after waking up. Lucky you, I guess."

"Yeah. Right. Lucky me. And your car keys are...?"

"Confiscated."

"Ah, right, of course."

A beat of silence. Two. Three, then "Look, if you're busy, then–"

"No, no.  You called me, so I'll be there. Give me twenty minutes."

"Alright. Thank–"

"Thank someone else. Also, if you fall asleep in my car, I'm taking it as express permission to drive you around wherever I want."

"Ugh, go die. I don't even know why I bothered."

"LUCKY YOU, I guess," sounds off way too loudly in his ear. "No take backs. See you in ten."

"I thought you said–" Sabo breaks off as the call ends, leaving him staring blankly at his phone's too-dim screen. He squints, turns the brightness all the way up, and still squints as the sunlight proves too strong for the display.

Ace shows up in more than ten but decidedly less than twenty minutes. Sabo doesn't waste much brain power on it, only climbing into the passenger seat and yawning into his palm while his other hand fixes the seatbelt into the buckle. Not a second too soon, too, as Ace roars the engine to life and peels away from the curb at record speed.

Ace fiddles with the radio. He turns the music up, then dial it back down to inaudible. They hit the expressway and he leans over the steering wheel, frowning with his eyes fixed on the road far ahead. Sabo yawns again and this appears to be the limit to his patience. 

"Hey, so, I had a thought after you hung up on me."

Sabo grimaces. "You mean you–"

"Today's Wednesday."

He doesn't elaborate. Sabo is too tired to process. "Yes," he follows, after a second. He glances at the sky out the front window. "What time is it?"

"Oh, uh." Ace fumbles with hand placement so he can lift his watch to his face. "Nine forty."

Sabo takes a couple beats to try and process this, moves his eyes away from the skyline, and sighs as he pulls his phone out. 2:47 is what the display reads, which sounds much more believable.

"How did the minute hand get off?" he mutters to himself, chancing a look at Ace's busted wristwatch. Ace raises a brow, taking his gaze off the road to scrutinize Sabo. "No, it doesn't matter," he mutters to himself once more, sliding his phone away back on his person and out of his hands.

"My point is," Ace continues, like he hasn't just been interrupted by a whole thing. "Your timeout will be done midday Thursday. Did they switch your days off?"

"No." Sabo sighs. "They technically gave me the next thirty-six hours. Technically closer to forty. Something like that. I go back in on Friday. Sometime.” He tries to smile and it turns out very lopsided, from that he can make out in the rearview mirror. “Can you tell I’m tired?”

“I don’t think ‘tired’ is an accurate description,” Ace quips. “When did you eat a proper meal last?”

“Uh, yesterday. Maybe.”

“Maybe??”

“A ‘proper meal’ means different things to the two of us,” Sabo huffs. “On my account it was yesterday. I’ve had food since then, of course.”

“Alright, so here’s the plan,” Ace announces before absolutely whipping it around a curve. Sabo is his passenger in the passenger seat and had fully prepared to be so when he got in the vehicle, but he’d been vastly underprepared for this sudden course of action, which is how he ends up halfway out of his seat with his cheek slammed into the cold window. Ace doesn’t quite notice his brother’s terminal velocity until the car is once again on the straight and narrow, and only then it’s because of the audible thunk Sabo’s face makes when it collides with the glass.

“Aw shit. You good bro?”

“Ow,” Sabo mutters. “If I have broken bones I’m suing your ass.”

“Well, if you’re good enough to make jokes, I think you’re better than you’re letting on.” Ace keeps the wheel steady with one knee while he takes both hands away to crack his fingers. When he glances over at Sabo again, he looks even more pathetic – like he’s becoming one with the glass. “Anyway, as I was saying.

“I’m taking your ass home. You’re going straight to sleep and while you crash, I’ll make you something decent to eat and stick it in the fridge for you to heat up later. I’ll even make you two servings to eat two different times, since you clearly can’t be trusted to take care of yourself correctly.”

“Ouch.”

“I want you to conk out for as long as your body allows. We can reset your sleep schedule tomorrow, alright? Put your phone on silent; do not answer any calls. In fact, you know what, just give it to me.

Sabo glances over to see Ace’s hand held out to him, palm up. Fingers wiggling expectantly. His lips pull up into a grimace. “I’m not doing that.”

“Fine.” Ace takes his hand back. “But you will comply with everything else.”

“Wow! It’s so funny, I didn’t realize you turned into my mother overnight! Really tapped into your mom potential, huh? Anything exciting happen in your life that would cause that? I guess I wouldn’t know, since I’ve been a zombie for the past two days.”

“There’s nothing wrong with acting like your older brother, you dipshit, especially if you keep putting yourself through the wringer like this. You go home. You sleep. You wake up and eat. You go back to sleep. Then we do laundry. Does that sound agreeable?”

“That’s negotiable, at the least,” Sabo mumbles. “I will accept good food as a form of bribery.”

“Oh, nice, because I’m flat broke at the moment.”

Sabo makes a mental note of that, and then they’re pulling into the driveway. Ace lets him exit the vehicle by himself and then promptly manhandles him all the way onto the couch where it will be easier to force his body to relax than in a real bed. Ace knows this, so he calls him weird before chucking a loose blanket at his head. Sabo is almost too tired to function at this point, so he lets Ace have the last laugh in favor of finally closing his eyes.

Coming to is a surreal experience, especially since the sun is still out. He must make a noise because Ace is suddenly within view. His limbs are tangled in the blanket and still so heavy that he doesn’t bother moving. “Thought you would be gone,” he half-groans, eyes slipping shut again for a moment.

“I did leave,” Ace confirms. “I had to go pilfer some stuff to make stew with. It’s almost done, so I’ll hang here until then.”

Pilfer. That could mean any number of things. Sabo chooses to believe in the option where Ace is an upstanding citizen, and then remembers Ace saying earlier that he had no money. He frowns and squirms on the cushions enough to where it looks like he’s checking his pockets. “Where’s my wallet, Ace?” he bluffs.

“Somewhere around here,” Ace pipes up. “Your stomach will thank you for your contributions to the Portgas Household’s pantry!”

“Ugh, I got robbed,” he complains. “This sucks. ‘m going back to sleep.” He rolls over so his back is to Ace.

“Yeah, you do you, bro. Stew will still be here later. I’ll see you when you’re back in the world of the living.”

—

Luffy comes in late that night and slams the front door shut as loud as humanly possible. When he appears in the main room, he doesn’t seem to be upset, so Ace writes it off as a Luffyism. Sabo hasn’t stirred at the noise, so it’s all good.

Realizing this, Luffy pads closer to Ace’s side and looks at Sabo’s unmoving body warily. “Why is Sabo passed out like a corpse? Is he sick?”

“No, he’s not sick, he just can’t take care of himself. Which is why we are going to let him sleep for as long as possible.”

Luffy just nods to this, but it’s the uncomprehending Luffy-nod that means he’s just going to end up doing whatever he wants to regardless. Ace sighs, then jerks his head towards the kitchen. “He ate a little earlier, but I want him to eat again when he wakes up. There’s stew in the fridge if you want it – just leave him a little. Got it, Monkey D. Luffy?”

Luffy throws him a salute and then runs off in his socks. “Yippee! Ace made stew!”

“Think of your brother, Luffy, and make good choices!” Ace calls after him. “He’s a pathetic man who needs food to feel better or he’ll end up sleeping through Laundry Day!”

—

Sabo does not sleep through laundry day, but he does sleep for sixteen whole hours, so it’s just around noon when he forces himself up off the couch and into a warm shower.

Ace is around, which is mildly unexpected. But he’s still half-asleep, so everything is at least a little unexpected. He glances up from playing video games with Luffy to see Sabo leaving the steam-filled bathroom with his hair hanging around his shoulders. “You look like a wet cat,” he calls.

“Sabo’s awake!” Luffy cheers. “Ace thought you died at one point.”

Ace elbows Luffy in the gut, making him hunch over. “I did not!”

“He totally checked to see if your heart was still beating!”

“I’m undead, actually,” Sabo says completely seriously.

“Does that mean you don’t need to eat anymore?” Luffy questions. “Because I ate all the stew last night.”

“I saw that coming and made extra.” Ace finger-guns in Sabo’s general direction. “That’s why I bought two sets of ingredients. With your money!”

“With my money,” Sabo echoes, because it’s such a wild statement to have to deal with this early in the day. Well, early for him. “Fuck you.”

“I mean, I can tell Luffy where I hid–”

“Thank you, Ace, for agreeing to share your quarters with both of your brothers so we can all do laundry today on your dime!” Sabo raises his pitch so his voice is mockingly squeaky when he says this. He starts moving down the hall before Ace can start to argue, letting his and Luffy’s voices bleed into the background.

When he comes back out, now dressed, it smells significantly better than before. “I reheated the stew,” Ace announces, gesturing for Sabo to take a seat at the kitchen counter. “Let’s all have lunch before we head out.”

“You have to drink this too,” Luffy tells Sabo, sliding a Gatorade across the counter so it sets in front of him when he finally does take a seat. “Ace’s orders.”

“Gotta get those nutrients back somehow.”

“Aren’t we so considerate, Sabo?”

“Do you even know what ‘considerate’ means?” Sabo asks, lips quirking up into a half-smile. At Luffy’s shrug, it turns into a real smile. “Well, thanks anyway. Both of you.”

“No sweat. And look!” Ace brandishes a five dollar bill for both to see. “I found this baby for us to use on coins! It’s all on me today–”

“Where’s my wallet, Ace?!”

[ghost-in-the-hall]

Fall For Me (Poly! Sleep Token x Fem! Reader) - Part V

Thank you as always to @spookyghostjelly for beta reading for me, you're the best bb!! ❤️❤️

Hello everyone!! This chapter is going to be a little more plot/lore heavy. But, we still get some sweet and flirty boys. IV brings Reader dinner and II is becoming more comfortable in his flirting. Thank you so much for reading, if you would like to be added to the tag list let me know!

WARNINGS: None

Part IV - Part VI

My Masterlist! ~ AO3 Link!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today was one of those times where your store was absolutely slammed. "I'll be right with you Jay, just give me one second." You clap the older man on the shoulder as you round the counter.

"No worries darlin', I got all day." He smiles cheerfully at you." You hurriedly set a fresh batch of coffee to brew, quickly cleaning up the station.

"Next batch will be done in about ten minutes guys." You smile as you pass by a tow of your usuals, a group of old timers that would set up shop at the shelf along one of the windows and spend their day drinking cups of coffee and playing scratch tickets.

"Now Miss (Y/N), don't you go running off, I got a vibe to pick with you young lady." You skidded to a halt, turning in your heels to face the myriad of curious stares.

"You better make this quick Randy, I got a line out the door." You huff with a sarcastic smile.

"I just want to know what you're doing hanging around with those cultists." Your eye involuntarily twitched as he spit out the word. "I'd just hate to see you get mixed up in that crowd."

"They're nice boys Randy." You hurry up to the counter as you continue to call over your shoulder. "It might do you some good to actually get to know them before you try to crucify them over nothing.

"Why don't you try inviting them to the Fall Festival?" Jay asks gently.

"Unfortunately I don't think they'd go. I know it's hard to believe but they're just as nervous about you as you are about them." You explain with a huff.

"I think it's worth a shot at least." He leans in a bit to whisper to you. "Now I can't speak for everyone obviously, but I think if the townsfolk actually got to meet them and see that they're not some big ol' scary monster in the woods… well, they might just come around." He offers his advice with a patient smile. "If you're saying they're a good group of guys I trust your judgment. Your word means a lot more to me than some blood thirsty reporter after a story."

"Thanks Jay, I'll ask them. Who knows, maybe they'll show up." He bids you farewell before leaving you to tend to the rest of your sea of customers. After what felt like an eternity your store was finally empty. You groaned, slumping over the counter. The cool linoleum felt nice against your sticky skin. You jolted up at the sound of the bell ringing above the door, eyes flashing over to reveal II and IV looking at you curiously. "Hey guys." You give them a tired smile.

"Everything alright, love? You look exhausted." II approaches the counter, his eyes full of concern.

"Yeah, just a long day." You explain. You sit down in your chair, resting your elbows on the counter. II copies your motions, his eyes searching yours, his nose just barely out of reach from bumping into you.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" You shake your head in response.

"You boys are already too good to me as it is." You giggle as II playfully rolls his eyes. "I'll be alright, just gotta do some quick cleaning before I go upstairs. Then it's a cup of ramen cause I'm too lazy to cook and shitty movie re-runs until I pass out on my couch."

"A cup of ramen isn't a meal, doll." He tuts.

"I know that, doctor." He chuckles at your sarcastic tone. "I'll be alright, one night without a proper dinner isn't going to kill me."

"I wish we could come help more around here, I hate seeing you so tired." IV chimes in, dropping an armful of snacks on the counter.

"I appreciate all your help, but I promise you, I'll be just fine." You respond with a reassuring smile. Neither of them seemed satisfied with your answer but they could tell you weren't in the mood to argue.

II sighs, "just promise me after you finish up here you'll go get some rest."

"You have my word." You chuckle. The two of them finish their shopping, idly chatting with you as you do some cleaning up. "Goodnight guys, get home safely." You wave as they head out.

"I better not come back here and see you exhausted tomorrow." II warns playfully.

"I'll try my best." He winks at you before pushing out the door. IV wishes you goodnight before joining his companion.

You collapsed on your couch with a groan once you finally made it upstairs. Despite how much you were trying to convince yourself you weren't hungry your growling stomach said otherwise. You lay there, staring blankly at the ceiling, when suddenly the familiar rumble of a pick up truck pulls into the lot. You stood, walking over to the window and pushing the curtain aside. You saw IV fumbling with something in his passenger seat before kicking the door open. You met him at the back door, he froze when he saw you standing at the top of the landing with a smirk spread across your features. "I, uh, I brought some food." He offers bashfully.

"Come on up IV." You chuckle before heading back inside. IV steps into your apartment, eyeing you curiously.

"I'm sorry I showed up without an invitation." He apologizes. You smile, taking a couple steps closer to him.

"You're welcome here anytime." He breathes out a laugh as his eyes dart to the floor. You offer to take the food for him, setting up a spot for the both of you on your couch. "I am curious, how did you manage to get fast food without raising any suspicion?" You ask as you pop a fry in your mouth. IV chuckles in response, adjusting to sit more comfortably.

"It's a funny story actually, I pulled up at the drive through and the kid working there told me he liked my costume." You laugh.

"Really?" He nods. The thought of the Fall Festival popped into your mind; how you would love to bring the four of them because you know they would have a great time, how it would give them a chance to see the town for what it really was, and of course your little crush on the charming masked men didn't help either. "IV, do you think Vessel plans on ever going into town? You know, aside from you guys making supply runs under the cover of darkness." You joke.

"If I'm being completely honest, I don't know." He pulls his mask away from his face to take a sip of his drink. "I'm the newest of our little group so I can't give you the whole story, but from what I understand up until we reached here things weren't too great. There's a lot of people out there who want to get rid of us before they even have a chance to get to know us. We've been run out of town after town, sometimes through more… humane means… other times not so much. But, we have something good here, with the camp in the woods, with you." He pauses for a moment to smile at you. "That's something I want to try and hold onto for as long as I can."

You study him for a moment, "what if I tried to help?" You offer. "I could be the middleman for you. People in town know me, I grew up here, that has to mean something. I just… I don't want you to have to constantly be worried about someone being out to get you. I know that if they met you, if they got to know the people I know you are, they wouldn't be afraid anymore."

"I'm sure Vessel would be interested in hearing you out. Who knows, maybe you'll actually convince him." He chuckles. "Between you and me, if you bat those pretty little eyes at him, I'm sure you could convince him to do just about anything." He jokes as he shoots you a wink.

"I bet that line works on all the girls, huh?" You giggle, trying to shake off the heat that had settled in your cheeks.

"As long as it works on you I'm set." You playfully smack his arm. He nestles back into the couch cushions, letting out a soft groan as he stretches an arm over the back, the back of your neck buzzing as you feel his warmth seep into your skin.

"You're all a bunch of flirts." You smile at him.

"A bunch of flirts?" You roll your eyes at his mock annoyance. "It's not my fault that you're so captivatingly beautiful." You noticed that growing familiarity in your chest. The steady thrum of your heartbeat as you tried to hide your flustered state. IV leans in closer to you, his side pressed flush against your body. "Once I met you I understood what they were all fussing over." He chuckles before muttering, "the perfect being brought to us by Sleep." You turn to look at him, his hazy blue eyes coaxing you in deeper with every passing second.

"Who's… who's Sleep?" You whisper. IV tilts his head, a curious expression matching yours. The pieces must have clicked together because he returned to his usual smiling self a moment later.

"You'll find out soon, Vessel's probably waiting for the right time to explain." You accepted his explanation without a fuss. You trusted that if it was something you needed to know they would tell you. He glanced up at the clock, "I'm sorry to cut things short, love, but I should head back." You nod, standing and walking him over to the door.

"Thank you for bringing some food." You smile.

"Anytime." He responds with a wink. "Get some rest, alright? II will throw a fit." You both shared a laugh before IV reached out and pulled you into his arms. You froze at first, not fully comprehending that he had wrapped you in a hug. But, the moment realization set in your arms slipped around his torso. Neither of you were in a rush to let go, the two of you standing in a comfortable silence as IV held you close, gently swaying you from side to side.

"Goodnight, doll." His hand lingers in your hip, taking your hand and giving it a gentle squeeze before slipping out the door.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tag List: @spookyghostjelly @herripinkle @thepoisonedchalice @themultiverseofmars @saturnhas82moons @wingsofeternitysstuff @creamwhxre @itsyagirl-snowflake @bookishpenguino @m0cha-bunny @coreofpleasure @madsthenightowl @dangerkitten1705 @rainy-darling @shad0wcast @amara-among-the-stars @venuswinnyix @dontpercieve-me-pls @ripleyswife @thepityscene @lipstick-and-lycanthropes @vmpirekiss @savaneafricaine @mustluvecho @the-hole-in-terzos-shoe (I think that's everyone, if I missed you or you would like to be added please let me know!!)

[gothic-thoughts]

OFC I Don't Mind

Toji Fushiguro x Black Fem Reader Smut

MDNI, Roommate!AU, Friends2lovers, Drabble

CW: sending nudes to the wrong person (nightmare fuel), Toji has a job (😭), Toji intimidating you, some smashing at the end

Not proofread

Toji was still at work, typing on his computer when he was slightly startled by someone blowing up his phone, the ringtone repeating over and over in the quiet room. He rolls his eyes and stops typing, initially giving his fingers a break as he picks up his phone to see his lock screen now covered with messages from you, his roommates. They were all photos.

"The fuck…" Toji squints, typing in his password, "I swear to god if it's a bunch of memes…"

He opened the messages and his heart nearly stopped when he saw multiple mirror selfies of you in lingerie, then braless. His eyes were wide, unable to take his eyes off the screen, the only part of him moving was his thumb when his phone dimmed from lack of activity.

You: SHIT! You: FUSHIGURO DON'T LOOK AT THE LAST MESSGE You: *MESSAGE

He snaps out of his trance for a second to read the new message only for his eyes to roam back to the cluster of pictures in his inbox. His eyes look over every intricate design in the blue lace in the first pictures then to the dark brown areolas and smooth-looking skin of your tits in the next ones. A smirk slowly creeps across his face.

You: Im sorry they were meant for my fwb You: Ik ur mad his name is right next to yours on my phone and I clicked too fast. I'm so sorry You: Istg I didn't mean it Toji: Bullshit. You: Im being deadass,im sorry You: Just delete them

He takes a few seconds to read before a smirk creeps across his face.

Toji: I'll be there in 20. You: What, wait don’t hurt me! You: I said I was sorry. I swear it was an accident Toji: I said I’ll be back in 20 minutes. You: Bro relax! You: Just delete them and I swear it’ll never happen again Toji: Apologize in person. I will be there in twenty minutes.

Exactly 20 minutes later you hear the front door unlock and open from your bedroom upstairs, causing you to freeze in fear. His heavy footsteps climb the stairs. His footsteps sounded like thunder as they got louder and louder with him approaching your room. Finally, you heard him stop and knock on your bedroom door. You hold your breath. He waits outside the room for a few seconds and then you hear him knock again. You can hear his evil chuckle echoing throughout the hall. You take a breath and step closer to the locked door. “....Yeah?” "Open the door." “I feel like you gonna swing on me when I do so--” "Just. Open. The door." “Not if you gonna hurt me.” There's an angry sigh and he knocks on the door again. "You have ten seconds before I kick this fucking door in." “Toji, I told you it was an accident! You're doing a lot right now!” There was a short pause, as it became eerily quiet outside the door.

"Nine." “Wha- stop!” "Eight." “Fushiguro, you don't think this is an overreaction!?” "Seven." “Nigga!” "Six." “Alright, alright, fine!” You say unlocking the door before running back to the opposite side of your room. “It's open…” You hear his footsteps on the other side of the door as he walks in. He rolled up his sleeves as he made his way across the room, tossing his jacket onto your bed before he finally reached you with an exhausted sigh.

He sighs and reaches to hold your chin but instead, his thumb traces down your jawline and he tilts your head up to look into his eyes. His expression was no longer angry as he looked you up and down. You let out a shaky breath, finally breathing at the feeling of his surprisingly light touch. A few seconds pass as he stares at you, his thumb continuing to trace around the edge of your lips before finally he speaks. "I enjoyed ‘em a lot. Only thing pissin' me off is the fact they weren't for me." “Oh… oh…” "If you want to take away my anger, I have an idea of how you could do that." “You… you serious?”

He picks you up and tosses you onto your bed, the swiftness knocking the wind out of you before he even mounts you. You look up at him with wide eyes and lick your lips as he grips your wrists, pinning them about your head.

"You ask too many fuckin' questions. Now, lemme see those tits again."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Half an hour later, you were both sweaty as ragged grunts filled your room. One hand had your fingers hooked into the messy bedsheets while the other held his shoulder as if he'd go somewhere. His hands were firmly planted into the mattress as he continued moving with jealously-driven fervor. Your phone suddenly rings, showing your fuck buddy's number on the screen.

Toji freezes at first, the movement stopping when hearing the phone. He stares down at you for a few seconds as he tries to process all of this as you hear your phone ring again and again. "Answer it." “What?” "Answer. It." You slowly pick up the phone. “H-ello?” Toji is still staring intently at you as he hears your friend on the phone. He lifts both of your legs to his shoulders and begins to move again, uncaring what your friend could hear. The friend laughs over the phone. “You with someone right now?” “Wh-what? N-no, I'm fine, just… in the shower.” “Oh yeah?” The friend chuckles, “That shower must be packing then." “F-uck you.” Toji smirks when he hears your friend laughing in the background before you hang up the phone. “Sh-shut up, you're… acting like you didn't decide to go as deep as possible, you bastard.” He laughs and lifts your body off the bed, holding you in his arms as he pushes you against the nearest wall. "That a complaint?" “No”

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(a/n): sorry if it felt rushed i literally noticed its been a week since I last posted 😅😅😅

[isackwhy]

OK OK LEMME COOK, how about the reader who is friends with isaac, and they are fooling around, roughhousing with each other until they end up in an awkward position and i'll let you continue LOL

I JUST SMOKED I GOT THIS

isaacwhy fluff blurb <3

isaac and you were always wrestling. nine times out of ten you start it out of boredom. throwing light punches at him and telling him you can definitely beat his ass.

nick would say it’s an excuse for him to touch you—you deny it each time. he’s your best friend who you obviously do not have feelings for.

jeez.

you’re currently standing behind isaac, talking to him about your latest video as he makes food for both of you in his kitchen. “it’ll do fine, y/n. trust me,” isaac throws his hands in the air, spinning around to face you after he puts the nuggets in the air fryer. you get a mischievous smirk on your face and isaac’s eyebrows raise.

“y/n—“

“nah, nah, i can beat you this time. come on!” you laugh, throwing light punches into his abdomen. isaac deadpans at you, not even flinching as you hit him.

“pussy,” you mutter.

“i will suplex you into the beanbag—“

“do it, bitch,” you land a light kick to is calves. isaac stands still for a moment, crossing his arms.

“dude, you are no fun—ah!” you yelp when you’re suddenly hoisted over his shoulder, “down! isaac, down! bad dog!” you laugh, punching his back as you giggle. “no, no, come on. you wanted to fight. we can fight,” isaac giggle as well. you’re getting closer and closer to the bean bag and isaac has yet to let go as the house fills with both your giggles.

“WHA—BOOM!” isaac exclaims as you tosses you into the beanbag. you fall into the pile of pochita’s and various other stuffed animals. isaac is looking down at you with an adoring smile as you laugh, eyes screwed shut. “okay, you done? i have food i’m cooking for your hungry ass,” isaac sighs, turning his back towards you to go back to the kitchen.

you snap your eyes open and jump up, tackling him on the back, putting him in a fake chokehold. “just give up, isy, it’s over,” you tell him, legs wrapped around his waist. “oh god. i see the light,” isaac mocks, faking a gasp for breath. he spins you both around until he lands face first into the beans bag, causing you to let go and roll to the side.

you kick him in the thigh and isaac shuffles around through the blockage of plushies flying around you two. blindly, isaac reaches for your arm to pull you closer as you kick. because he’s much stronger than you, your body is suddenly on top of his.

you’re basically straddling him. you panic, face heating up while his does the same. his hands still have your forearms in hold as your body hovers above his. you gulp, looking down at him in this position. isaac is frozen, trying not to stare. you catch your breath, wiggling from his grasp and lightly patting his face.

“i, uh, win,” you mumble, getting up and facing away as your heart beats out of your chest. isaac stays with his back to the bean bag for a second, fixing his man-bun nervously.

he sits up, watching you as you walk away all flustered. “i guess. yup. you get that one,” isaac sighs, realizing how dumb he is. you giggle nervously, walking upstairs to go scream to larry about what just happened.

nick’s office door opens, “you’re a fucking idiot—“

“shut up!” isaac yells.

[idkwhatimdoinghere1655]

29th - Carlos Sainz

<word count - 3555>

Today was the day that came around once a year, where Carlos let you spoil him for a change. It was his birthday. Now, Christmas was also one of those days, but he had the excuse to spoil you too, and he always over did it. 

His birthday was the one day a year where you spoilt him. There was a slight damper on the mood, since he had to be at the track all day, and there was a lot of pressure on him and Charles this weekend as it was Monza. 

But, for after, you had planned the best night you could under the circumstances. To start off, you switched his alarm off as soon as you had gotten up, giving him an hour extra to sleep. As quietly as you could, you got everything of his ready for the day.

You set his clothes out on the chair in the corner, quietly ordered room service for when he woke up and left his keys, phone and wallet all in one place on the table next to the door. Before you quickly left the room, you checked that Carlos was still fast asleep.

There was no doubting that he wouldn't be waking up anytime soon, so you slipped out of the door and went to the bakery downstairs. You grabbed the closest thing they had to a whole birthday cake, but you had one of those waiting for when you got home in a few days. 

You were quick to get back and found Carlos still asleep, dead to the world. Even if you still had ten minutes before you needed to wake him up, you couldn't resist the temptation. 

Crawling over the bed and sitting next to him, you gently shook his arm. "Carlos, hey, Carlos," you softly said as he slowly stirred awake. "Shit, did I miss my alarm?" He said, quickly sitting up. "No, no, you've got loads of time. I have sorted everything," I explained, pushing his hair out of his face.

"Anyway, you wait there for a second," you said, scrambling out of bed and over to the bathroom, where you lit the nine candles that you could fit on the cupcake you bought. "Happy birthday to you," you started to sing, turning all of the lights off in the room to add to the effect. 

"Happy birthday to you," you continued, approaching where he was sat in bed, with the cupcake. "Happy birthday dear Carlos," you sang, perching on the edge of the bed next to him. "Happy birthday to you," you finished, looking at the beaming smile on his face.

"Blow out the candles," you told him. He didn't get them all on the first try, but they were out after a short while. "Happy birthday, my love!" you smiled, putting the cake down and throwing your arms around his neck.

"Thank you, querida," he laughed, kissing you on the cheek. You sat next to him as he reached over to the bedside table and picked up his cupcake. Plucking the blown out candles off, he placed them down onto the table.

"This was the closest thing to a cake I could find, so enjoy," you told him as he peeled the casing off. "That is fine by me, this is one good cupcake," he nodded, holding it out to you to take a bite. Just as you went to have some, he tipped it and smushed the icing on your face.

"Really?" you rolled your eyes at him with a giggle.

"It's my birthday, I'm sure you can let it slide for today," he cheekily grinned at you. 

"Oh so that's how you're going to be?" you asked, wiping the icing off your nose and licking it off your finger. It was pretty nice. "I'm the birthday boy, of course it is," he said, nudging you in the ribs. "I'll let you off for today. Breakfast should be here-" you started, but were cut off by a knock at the door. 

"Any minute," you finished, going to the door and collecting everything you had ordered. "So, I got pancakes, waffles, avocado on toast, and a small selection of their pastry collection," I told him, putting all of the plates on the table. "Whatever we don't have today, we can put in the fridge and have tomorrow," 

"Sounds great," he said, taking an empty plate off you and grabbing whatever he wanted. 

"Your presents from me and everyone else are back at home, so you can have those when we get back," you explained, putting a pancake and a waffle on your plate.

"You're here, so that's the best present I could ask for," he smiled as your cheeks flushed a rosy pink. "Well, I am going to make your birthday the best one I possibly can,"

"Like I said, you're here, so you've made a pretty good start there," he carried on flirting, loving how red you were getting. "Anyway, your clothes are on the chair and everything you could possibly need for today is over there,"

"Everything?"

"Yes, everything. And I'll need you to text me when you're all done, we have dinner booked for tonight at eight," you told him. 

"Sounds perfect, but I should get ready. We've got a lot of expectations for this weekend," he said, and you could tell he was worried. It was Monza, and they had to do well. "I know, but you'll do great, I know you will. You'll get that Ferrari 1-2, I'm sure of it," you smiled, kissing his cheek as he got out of bed and started getting ready. 

"Thank you for all of this," he said as he was just ready to leave the hotel room. 

"No problem, it's your special day and I will see you later, birthday boy," you said as he opened the door. "I love you," he told you, leaning down and kissing you. 

"I love you too," you repeated, watching him walk down the corridor and into the elevator. He turned back to face you and shot you a smile and a wave. 

Finally, the time had come to pick Carlos up from the track and take him to dinner. They had finished a bit later than anticipated, so there wasn't enough time to go back to the hotel room then the restaurant - you were just going straight there.

You drove through the back entrance of the track and parked up. It didn't take you long to find Carlos, since the Tifosi always stuck out like a sore thumb in any crowd. "Hey," you said to get his attention. He seemed like he had zone out for a moment, so he snapped back into reality.  

"Hey, I am ready to get out of here," he smiled, slinging an arm over your shoulders. "You look absolutely stunning, by the way," he said, eyes raking up and down your figure as you walked beside him. You knew you wouldn't have time, so you got changed before you went to get him. 

"Thank you, you did great in practise today. I told you you'd smash it," you grinned at him. You could barely contain the squeal of excitement that escaped your lips when he topped the timing sheet and stayed there for the whole of FP2. Sure, it was only practise, but it showed the Scuderia some promise for the weekend.

"Yeah, you did," he nodded with a smiled. You directed him to the car and took him around to the passenger side. "Oh I can drive," he said, trying to take the keys out of your hand. 

"You have been driving all day, I can do it," you said, moving them out of his reach. Carlos always drove everywhere, so you wanted to for a change. "You sure? I really don't mind-"

"Do you not trust me to drive, Carlos?" you asked, cocking an eyebrow at him skeptically.

"It's not that, it's a foreign country and you don't really drive at home as it is-" he started rambling, when you cut him off, "My love, I can drive perfectly fine. I got here in one piece, didn't I?" 

"Yeah, I guess you did. Just go slow, alright?" He asked. It really wasn't a case of him not trusting you, he didn't trust the other drivers around you. If he was driving, he'd control the car if anything went wrong, he wasn't certain you could. 

"Yeah sure," you sarcastically agreed, rounding the bonnet of the car and and clambering into the driver's seat. "So, where are we going?" he asked, gazing out of the window at all of the trees around the Monza circuit. 

"We're going for dinner, and then we're going somewhere else," you said, not wanting to give too much away. "And where would this somewhere else be?" 

"You will have to wait and see," you said, pulling out of the circuit and out onto the road. It was a stunning part of Italy and you loved looking at the scenery. "But it's my birthday," he whined, prodding you in the arm like a kid. 

"Carlos, you're twenty-nine, not eleven," you said, taking one of your hands off the wheel and prodding him back. "Hey, both hands on the wheel or you pull over and I'm driving," he suddenly turned all serious. "You really underestimate my driving skills," you grinned, glancing over at him. 

"What skills?" he giggled, waiting for you to tell him off. 

"If that's how you want to play around, the fine," you said, picking up speed down the empty road. "Querida, slow down," he instructed, thinking you'd just slow down and it was all part of the joke. "No," you smirked, bombing down the open road. 

The satinav told you to turn in two-hundred yards, and you were going to do that. "You need to slow down to turn, y'know?" he asked, trying to hide his nervousness. 

"I don't think I do," you said, slowing down ever so slightly and drifting around the corner. "Alright, I'm sorry, you are a perfectly good driver," he apologised, hoping you'd slow down. That was exactly what you did. 

"You nearly gave me a heart attack," he breathed, leaning back in his seat. 

"I've gotta keep you on your toes. It might be your birthday, but that doesn't mean we can't have some fun," you smirked.

"Oh we're going to have plenty of fun just because it's my birthday," he winked at you, moving one of his hands onto your thigh. His fingers absentmindedly drew patterns across the surface, leaving small tingles in their trail. 

After around another ten minutes of driving, you parked the car and hopped out, running around the bonnet to open his door for him. "That's my job," he said, stepping out of the car. "Not today it isn't," you smirked, closing it behind him. 

"Come on, our table is waiting," you said, taking his hand and leading him through the restaurant. You told the waiter your name, and he took you through to your table. He left you to get settled and choose what you wanted off the menu, and the look on Carlos' face was priceless.

"This is cozy, huh?" You said, pulling his chair out for him. Carlos sat down, looking at the space around you. You had booked the small balcony at the back of the restaurant that overlooked the views that Monza had to offer. 

There were supposed to be a few other people out there, but the tables had been moved out of the way and it left just you two out there. Green vines snaked up the walls and around the balustrades, a few roses sprouting about them. 

On the table sat two, single red roses in a small vase - which was a bespoke touch you had made. The sun wasn't quite setting yet, so that gave you time to have dinner and go to the secret location. "This is wonderful. Did you do this?"

"I sure did. It's pretty easy to get these kinds of things when you promise to bring a Ferrari driver with you," you smiled. He was wearing the clothes that you had set out for him this morning, but he didn't have anything else to wear.

"I guess it is," he nodded, scanning through the menu. "What have you been up to today? I hope you didn't miss me too much," he said, setting the menu down as he had decided what he wanted. "I will always miss you, my love. But, I've just been exploring and found the place that we're going to go to later,"

"And that place would be?" he pressed as the waiter came outside so that you could order your food and drinks. "You don't need to know," you said, before turning your attention to him. "I'll just get a coke, please?" Carlos asked the waiter, earning a nod from the waiter. 

"Could I get a non-alcoholic passionfruit martini, please?" you asked. 

"You can have a drink if you want, I don't mind driving," Carlos interjected. 

"But you won't know where to go," you told him.

"You can just tell me where to go,"

"Carlos," you sternly said, looking at him. He got the message and left the matter. "I'll be sticking with the passionfruit martini, minus the alcohol," you said.

"Of course, are you ready to order your food or would you like some more time?" he asked, looking at you. "I'm ready if you are," you replied, looking at Carlos for an answer. 

"Yeah, I am. I'll have the classic spaghetti bolognese," he said, as the waiter scribbled it down on his notepad. "I'll get the same, please," you nodded, handing him the menus. 

"Perfect, I'll have your drinks brought through soon," he smiled, walking away back through the balcony door. "Well someone liked the look of you," Carlos said.

"Oh stop it, he's just being friendly," you dismissed him. 

"I didn't know friendly meant staring at my girlfriend," he said, resting his arms on the table. "Carlos, I am here with you, it doesn't matter," you tutted, taking his hand from across the table. "Whatever," he sighed, gently stroking your hand with his thumb.

Your drinks were brought out to you, and you spent the evening just talking and enjoying yourselves. You enjoyed every minute you spent with Carlos, and there was no one else that you wanted to spend the time with. 

"Can I see where this surprise location is now?" he asked as you finished off your tiramisu. 

"Just wait for a few more minutes, alright?" you told him. Secretly, you were just as excited as he was and you really wanted to show him what you had found. Quickly, you finished off your drink and dessert, before flagging the waiter down to get the bill.

"Was everything good for you guys?" he asked, pressing some of the buttons on the card machine as he spoke. "Yeah, really nice thank you," you said, getting your card out of your purse. "Querida, I've got it,"

"Not a chance, it is your birthday, let me treat you," you said, pressing it to the contactless screen as it beeped in confirmation. The waiter left you to slowly leave the balcony, and the sun was just about to start setting in around fifteen minutes.

That gave you plenty of time to get to the mystery location. "OK, let's get out of here," you said, standing and taking his hand as you looked at the view for one final time. You had a better view waiting for you, anyway. 

"Lead the way," he said, letting you drag him through the restaurant and back out to the car. He went to open the door, but you pulled him back. "Wait a second," you said, rummaging around in your purse for something. 

"Turn around," you told him. Dubiously, he looked at you, but ultimately did as you said and turned so his back was facing you. You stood on your toes since he was taller than you, and placed the red fabric over his eyes, tying it behind his head. 

"I did not think this was what this special surprise of yours entailed," he smirked, his tone indicating thoughts that were far from innocent. "Get your mind out of the gutter, mister. That is not where this is going, unless you behave. Then I might think about it," you said, helping him get into the car. 

"But it's my birthday, baby," he groaned, grabbing you blindly by the hips and nearly pulling you onto his lap. "Just do what I say for now, and you might get lucky when we get back to the hotel later," 

"Fine," he whined, letting go of you and letting you walk around the front and into the driver's seat. "What's the point in the blindfold?" he asked, his hand finding its rightful place on your thigh again. 

"I don't want you to have a clue where we are, that's the point," you told him, driving through Monza. Finally, you pulled up in a layby along a deserted road and helped Carlos out of the car. "Can I take this off now?" he asked, clawing at the knot behind his head. 

"No way, just wait," you said, pulling his hands away and gripping his arms from behind. You tried to help him walk along the track and where you wanted to be, but he wasn't making it easy for you. 

"Just take it off, it's not that hard," he whined, swaying so that you couldn't walk him in a straight line. "If you want to have your way later, then I'd suggest you deal with it," you scolded him as he straightened up at your threat. 

"But what if I fall over?"

"Then I'll catch you," 

"As if. If I'm going down, you're coming with me," he said as you turned him around the final corner of the track to get where you wanted to be. "OK, stand here," you said, putting him in the spot that would give him the best view. 

"There you go," you said, untying the blindfold and tucking it into your bag as you let him take in the scene. You had found a hilltop spot, encased in bushes that was completely secluded from the outside world. You couldn't hear any cars and there was no one else around. 

It was on the edge of the hill and felt like it overlooked the entirety of Monza. Off to the left, you could see part of the track as the sun set on the horizon, casting a bright orange glow on the world. 

As you stood next to Carlos, you admired how the light made his eyes look golden as he looked over the landscape. "This is what you were finding all day?" he breathlessly said, unable to look away from it. "Yeah," 

He looked down to his left and pulled you into his side - right where you were always meant to be. Pressing a soft kiss to your head, he stared out over the view once more. Looking over, you spotted your little helper, making his quick dash away as he looked at you with a smile.

You mouthed a quick 'thank you' as he disappeared through the bushes. "Come on, let's sit down," you said. Carlos turned around and spotted the picnic blanket with a big, wicker basket sat atop it. 

"Where did this come from?" he asked, sure it wasn't there when you got here. 

"I might have had a bit of help," you smiled as he walked over to sit down. He settled on the blanket with a soft thud. Carlos rooted through the basket, pulling out a big fuzzy blanket and some plastic champagne glasses with a couple bottles of tonic. 

"I know you can't drink, so I brought the next best thing I could find," you said, standing in front of him. Looking up at you, he could have swore his heart skipped a beat. You were stood there, and it looked like the light was emanating out from behind you, like an angel sent from heaven. 

You looked golden as your eyes lit up in the light. "C'mere," he softly said, opening his arms out to you. You sat down between his legs, resting your back against his chest. "This is mesmerizing," he said, pulling the fuzzy blanket around the two of you. 

"It is, isn't it," you nodded. From behind you, you heard the click of a camera and realised your little helper had come back. Carlos hadn't noticed, so you didn't want to take away from the moment. "Thank you so much," he whispered into your hair, "I love you,"

No one had ever done anything like this for him, and he would have stayed there forever, with you, if he could. He engrained every tiny detail about the scene into his brain like a tattoo on his memory. From the way the trees gently rustled in the breeze, to the way you slowly breathed in time with him. 

"I love you too," you said to him, allowing your body to rest more of your weight onto him. You never thought perfect was fully possible until now, and you savoured every second of it. Eventually, the sun sunk to behind the horizon, leaving you under the twinkling stars of the night sky. 

You stayed silent, enjoying the time. "Happy birthday, Carlos,"

A/N - I know there's only a few hours left of his birthday, but hey. Happy birthday Carlito 🌶💖

|masterlist|

[xoxoavenger]

Try Me

pairing: Matt Murdock x Fem!Reader

summary: Y/N has powers that can heal any illness or wound through her cooking, which comes in handy when Matt gets hurt.

word count: 2279

warnings: small mention of wounds but not graphic

part 2

12 Days of Christmas masterlist main masterlist

"Matt, oh my God." Y/N said as she walked into the office to see Matt all bruised, a cut above his eye. "What happened?" She asked, walking closer to see it closer. He looked away, but she was already sitting on his desk, moving his glasses away.

"I, uh, I fell down the stairs." He told her, but she just shook her head and clucked her tongue. She reached into her bag to grab the pastry she packed that day. She always packed one everyday just in case, but she didn't think she would have to use it this early.

"Did you eat breakfast?" She asked, trying to keep herself from running a hand through his hair. Because of course she had to fall for him, her coworker.

"No, but I-"

"Come on, Matt." She smiled as she got off the desk, pulling her skirt down. "I can practically hear your stomach growling from here." With that she walked to her own front desk, Karen's old one. Y/N had taken over the blonde's position of secretary, and she was good at it.

"Good morning you beautiful people!" Foggy practically yelled as he walked through the door. The man had way too much energy for eight thirty in the morning. "Y/N, here's your coffee." He grabbed a cup out of the cup holder and placed it on her desk before winking at her.

"And here's your breakfast." She handed him a pastry, because she always gave one to him even though she knew it wouldn't do anything.

The truth was, Y/N had a power. It wasn't one she flaunted, hell, she hardly ever used it, but she practiced it just incase. She could heal people with her food; how, she wasn't sure, and she had only found it out ten years prior, when she made food for her friend. A couple minutes later, the small cat scratch on her friend's cheek was miraculously gone. After that, she continued to test her theory until there was no doubt in her mind that she had powers.

Just like the Avengers.

But she didn't want fame. She didn't want to be in an elite team of super heroes. She wanted the life she had, working with Foggy and Matt and Karen when she was in the office. It was a fine life.

Plus, she was totally in love with Matt Murdock.

"You're telling me I'm not the only one you make breakfast for?" Matt asked, causing Y/N to smile. She looked over to see Matt eating, which made her happy. She was glad he would be healing, and her heart was hurting slightly at the fact that Matt had to live all alone. Obviously he could take care of himself, but she wanted to be able to take care of him, to heal him when he did things like fall down the stairs.

"Fine, from now on, I'll make breakfast for both of you." She smiled as she looked between the two boys.

"That isn't fair! I bring you coffee, which means Matt has to bring you something too. You cannot just give your baking talents out like that!" Foggy complained, making Y/N roll her eyes.

"I'm sure I'll think of something. Until I do, just keep track." Matt smiled at her before going to his work, grabbing his glasses and putting them back on. Y/N stared for a few seconds before going to work filing and sorting.

~

"Matt," Y/N said in surprise when she walked in the next day. It wasn't surprise of his presence, he had often been in the office first now. Foggy told Y/N that he used to never come in, that Nelson and Murdock had once been done for because Matt never showed up, but he was obviously over it now. No, she was gasping because she was so in shock at his state. He didn't look any better from her pastry - in fact, he almost looked like he'd fallen again.

"Y/N," Matt smiled, but she could tell it was strained.

"Matthew, what did you do this time?" She sat on his desk once more, giving him the pastry. She took his glasses off before he could protest, and looked at his wounds.

"What do you mean?" He chuckled, shying slightly away from her. "I fell down the stairs."

"Twice?" She wiped her finger over some of the dried blood off his face.

"No, I fell the night before yesterday." He told her, wincing as she touched a fresh cut.

"No," She fought back, frowning. "That's fresh blood." She wanted to say that she knew it was new because the pastry should have accelerated his healing enough that he shouldn't be bruising this bad.

"Must've reopened a cut." Matt shrugged, but he made no move to move her hand. She rubbed her fingers over his bruises, hoping the pastry she brought today was enough to help him.

"I'm fine, Y/N. Don't worry about me." He waved her off and she stood, not wanting to annoy him.

"Have you figured out a way to repay me for the pastries every morning?" She asked, trying to find a topic he'd be comfortable talking about.

"Not yet. But, I promise I will." He looked in her general direction, eyes unfocused. She stared, not out of confusion or disgust, but out of wonder. Why would he hide his eyes? They expressed so much emotion, and they were beautiful. He must have sensed her staring, because he quickly felt around for glasses before putting them back on.

"Well, keep me updated." She said as she went to her desk.

"Morning!" Foggy was opening the door a couple seconds later, which put Y/N back in a good mood.

"Good morning, you beautiful person!" She said, referring to his greeting the day before.

"The usual, my fair lady." He said in a strange accent, and she tipped her imaginary hat to him.

"Thank you, kind sir. Whatever would I do without you?" She smiled as he went to his own desk.

"So, Matt figure out what to pay you with?" Foggy asked, bringing out his computer out of his bag.

"Not yet." Y/N shook her head, looking through the company emails.

"I know what he could pay you with." Foggy looked up and smirked at Matt, who began to talk at the same time of Y/N.

"What?"

"Shut it, Fog." Matt had temporarily paused his work, but he got back to it when the conversation dropped. Y/N looked between the two, but Foggy only smirked at her before going to do his own thing.

"Did you forget my pastry?" He asked, making her eyes widen. She had forgotten, and she felt slightly guilty. She reached into her bag to get Foggy's pastry, standing and bringing it to his desk.

"So sorry, sir." She joked, bowing and going back to her work. She couldn't help but sneak glances at Matt all day however, watching his bruise start to fade.

She smiled to herself when she left and his cut was almost fully healed.

~

She still made Matt pastries every morning, however he hadn't come in with any injuries that she could see.

Until he didn't come in a week later.

The door wasn't open, and even after she tried knocking she didn't hear any movement. So she tried calling him.

No answer.

"Hey Matt, I'm at the office and apparently you're not here, because you didn't answer the door, so if you could just let me know if this is a holiday or something?" She chuckled at the end, but her heart was beginning to pound. She called Foggy next.

"The time hasn't magically warped forward, has it?" He joked as he answered the phone.

"Where's Matt?" She felt bad but she needed to get down to business.

"He's not there?" Foggy began to get worried now as well.

"No, and he's not answering his phone." She told Foggy quickly. "Ya know what, I'm just going to check on him." She said, walking back out of the hallway and going down the stairs.

"Don't worry about it! I'm almost there anyway." He rushed out, but Y/N shook her head.

"I'm coming too." She wanted to help if she could, wanted to be there incase he happened to be injured. Foggy was quiet for a moment.

"Fine. I'll meet you there. He may be sick."

"He's not sick." She said. He had been eating her pastries every day, and she knew that was all someone needed of her cooking and baking to keep away from the common cold or viruses.

"He could be." Foggy pointed out, but Y/N shook her head as she walked down the street. Matt didn't live super far away, so it didn't take long for her to make it. Luckily, Foggy was also pretty close.

"I'll be there soon. Wait outside - the doorman is a stickler. He won't let you in alone." He told her, so Y/N confirmed and hung up. Foggy was there a minute later, and the two walked into the building together, hearts racing.

"He does this all the time." Foggy assured her, but she could tell he was freaking out, even if it was slightly less than her. "He probably just overslept." His voice seemed to give away more than his actual words.

"Right." She nodded as they began to climb the stairs. They got to Matt's floor and walked quickly to his apartment, Y/N banging on the door as soon as she could.

"Matt?" Foggy called out from her side, both of them going quiet to try and listen to what was going on.

"Matt, are you okay?" Y/N yelled, heart getting lodged in her throat as she couldn't hear anything.

"That's it," Foggy reached into his pocket to grab his keys, picking through them to find a key that Y/N assumed was Matt's. She stood back to let him open the door, and the two walked in, their worries for their friend outweighing the fact that they had just actually broken into Matt's apartment.

"Matt? Matt are you alright?" Y/N yelled, following Foggy in. She heard a groan from the living room and rushed with Foggy through the small hallway to see Matt on the couch, only in his underwear. She was about to look away when she noticed that he was covered in cuts and bruises, the blood wet around the cuts but drying down his body. There were at least four thick, deep cuts and dark, almost black bruises.

"Shit," Foggy muttered. He thought that Matt would be bruised from his after work activities, but he was hoping it wasn't this bad. He didn't want Y/N to come with him, but he couldn't exactly tell her no.

"Oh my God," Y/N made her way to his side, assessing the damage.

"I was hoping you'd find me." He muttered as he opened his eyes slightly. "I need your help." He grabbed her hand, shifting with a groan.

"With what? I can't stitch you up! I don't know the first thing about medical aid." She muttered, instinctively reaching up to push his hair out of his face.

"Maybe not," Matt chuckled but then ended up coughing, causing Y/N and Foggy to wince. "But you do know a thing or two about healing." Y/N froze, her heart stuttering. How did he know?

"What?" She whispered, but Matt squeezed her hand. "How did this happen? This is worse than falling down the stairs." She tried to change the subject, but Matt moved in pain again.

"I notice things." He said, as if that would explain everything. Before Y/N could answer, he was speaking again. "Could you make something while Foggy helps me clean up?" All she could do was nod and look in her bag, taking the two pastries she always brought for the boys out.

"If you can get these down, it'll help, but I'll make some soup." She smiled at him and got up, squeezing his hand before letting it go.

"What is going on?" Foggy whispered to Matt, making him chuckle slightly.

"Let's just say Y/N's soup is special." Matt closes his eyes and tries to ignore the pain while Y/N works. Foggy looks between them quickly.

"What the fuck does that mean?" He cries, making Y/N chuckle.

"It's alright, Foggy." Matt has a tired smile, one that worries his friend.

"You need medical attention." Foggy tries to convince Matt, who just shakes his head.

"Try to eat the pastries!" Y/N calls from the kitchen.

"What the fuck are pastries gonna do?" Foggy screams, wanting to rip out his own hair.

"Foggy, how many times have you gotten sick in the past six months?" Matt asks softly.

"That has absolutely nothing to do with you dying on the couch." Foggy gets up to grab a cloth to wipe at the blood on his face.

"I am not dying." Matt mutters with the roll of his eyes. Foggy returns and gets him to shut up by wiping at his mouth.

"The soup just has to heat up." Y/N comes out of the kitchen and kneels next to Matt. "Foggy, can you run to the store to grab some bandages?" She asks, taking the cloth.

"When I get back, you guys are telling me what I'm missing." He says very seriously before he walks out the door.

"How did you figure it out?" Y/N whispers, wiping his blood away with one hand and his hair out of his face with the other. "How did this happen?" She changes her question while shaking her head.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." He muttered, causing Y/N to scoff.

"The food I make can heal people. Try me." She smiles.

"Well, you know Daredevil?" 

//

tags: @avada-kedavra-bitch-187 @one-sweet-gubler @thefandomplace @punzoquack @mcueveryday @icequeen1371

[sweetiesicheng]

yeosang - one morning

word count : 531

-

you hear two phone alarms go off and groan. instead of getting up and turning the alarms off, you just continue to lay there. after a few seconds, both alarms are turned off. "honey, we need to get up. we need to leave for the airport in a few hours," you hear yeosang say to you in the midst of being half asleep.

you groan, "it's so early..." you mumble to him.

"i know, but we can get some sleep on the plane. by the time we get home, it'll be the afternoon and we can order delivery," yeosang says to you while rubbing your arm. "let's get up, baby," he says and you feel him kiss your cheek.

"ten more minutes," you mumble to him and roll onto your back.

you hear yeosang chuckle. "fine, ten more minutes."

yeosang gets up from the bed and gets ready as well as pack up some belongings that are lingering around in the room. you eventually wake up before ten minutes are up and do your morning routine. yeosang is folding some clothes while you're getting ready. when you’re done, you pack the rest of your belongings and both of you make sure that everything is packed.

"do you want to get some breakfast at that coffee shop we passed by?" yeosang asks while grabbing the keycards for the hotel room.

"yea, sure. i'm hungry," you mention and lift your suitcase so it’s up right. "are we good to go?" you ask him.

yeosang nods, "yea. let's go," he says.

you two leave the hotel room and head into the lobby. you check out of your hotel and go to the coffee shop to have breakfast.

—

the coffee shop is fairly busy despite only being opened for thirty minutes by the time you get there. you two get a table in the back of the shop and eat breakfast together.

"finally awake?" yeosang asks as you sip on your cup of coffee.

you nod, "mhm. i really needed this," you say and lean back in your seat. "i'm kind of sad that we're going home," you mention.

"yea, me too," yeosang starts, "but we can always come back another time. we didn't even get to do all of the touristy things." he says and eats another bite of his breakfast.

"it really does gives us a reason to come back," you say to him. "but you have schedules soon, so it'll be awhile."

"my schedules give me the chance to explore the world more though. maybe i’ll find another place for us to visit together," yeosang says and takes a sip of his coffee. "you should come with me," he suggests to you.

"you know i have to work," you immediately reply and fix some strands of your hair that had gotten out of place.

"well...i'll just have to buy you a plane ticket so you're forced to come," he says with a smile.

"kang yeosang, i have an apartment to help pay for," you say to him.

"yes, yes, i know," he replies before pouting, "guess i won't see my cute girlfriend..."

"okay, maybe one time."

"two times?"

"...maybe two times..."

[meownotgood]

movie date. / hayakawa aki x gn!reader, fluff, first kiss, lots of hand holding, going to the movies with aki. word count: 2.5k

You didn't think this was a scary movie. 

A first date at the movies is a bit cliché, but your friend offered you some tickets when their plans got canceled, and after they wouldn't stop prodding you to ask Aki to go, you ended up caving. He agreed, saying, Seems like fun, and that was that. You got your popcorn (Aki insisted on paying for it, encouraging you to get whatever size you wanted), you sat down in the theater, and —

Yeah, you should have checked what the movie was about before you agreed to this. You knew it just came out, and you knew was super popular right now, but that's as far as your knowledge went. Your friend is into horror movies, who knew. You, on the other hand, are definitely, definitely not.

And now, you're squirming in your seat, trying not to scream when the main lead starts walking into that big creepy house you know she shouldn't be walking in, all because you didn't bother to watch a single trailer for this damn movie. It's only been ten minutes, maybe fifteen, and your heart is already pounding, your hands are already shaking, and you're gripping the arms of your seat for dear life. 

Maybe you should just sneak away and hide out in the bathroom — No, that'd be way too rude, wouldn't it? You can't just leave, you're supposed to be on a date. You've got to tough this out. It's a movie, that's all it is. You can do it, you can do it… 

"Are you scared?" 

The sound of Aki's voice makes you jump, and you quickly tear your attention away from the screen, turning towards him to see he's already staring at you. When did he notice, how long has he been watching? 

Aki leans in just a bit closer, and he speaks a little quieter this time, a little gentler: "Do you not like scary movies?" 

You reply awkwardly, "Uhm, I… Not really. Sorry." 

"Do you wanna leave?" 

You're a bit surprised, and you hesitate for a second, considering it. In the end, you shake your head. "No, no. I'll be okay." 

Aki's eyes scan your face. His lips purse into a thin, troubled line. There's a tinge of worry in his gaze before he finally leans back, turning to watch the movie again. 

You'll be fine, you'll be fine. There's no need to leave, you can get through this. It's just a stupid movie. So stupid, so predictable, that you know exactly what's going to happen — And yet, you're still on the edge of your seat, still trying your hardest to breathe, and when there's another scare, you're still jumping halfway out of your seat. 

Instantly, you feel Aki tap your leg slightly with his finger — A warning that he's going to talk, and he leans in close to your ear to quietly ask, "You okay? Are you sure you don't wanna leave?" 

"Mhmm, mhmm." You nod, but you're covering your eyes with your hand as the movie continues, you're staring down at your feet and trying not to watch, willing yourself to just get through this. 

Aki stalls for a moment. He glances between you, then back to the movie screen (the screen is flashing bright red and orange, another scare scene playing out), then back to you again. Slowly, carefully, he reaches for where your hand is still tightly clenched on the arm of your chair. His palm brushes over your knuckles, and he rests his large hand on top of yours. 

You feel a tinge of embarrassment, your heart starts to pound with something other than fear, something warm, but you don't have much time to comment on it; you twist your hand, allowing Aki to lace his fingers with yours, and when the speakers blare another unnecessarily loud noise, you're instinctively gripping onto his hand tightly. 

Aki gives your hand a reassuring squeeze, and he gently rubs your knuckles with his thumb. His voice is no more than a quiet, comforting whisper. 

This scene is almost over. Tell me if you want to leave. 

Thankfully, you're able to get through the rest of that scene; it was almost over by that point, just as Aki said it was. You only open your eyes when you hear his voice in your ear, and when he gives your hand another careful squeeze. 

It's done. You can open your eyes if you want. 

Then, you're able to get through the next scene, and the one after that, and the one after that. The movie isn't all jumpscares, and once you're able to relax a little, Aki's hand in yours keeping you calm, you're able to pay attention to the plot, and it's actually sort of interesting. It's definitely something you'd enjoy, if it wasn't a horror flick. 

You're starting to enjoy yourself, you're beginning to lean back more in your seat. Aki never lets go of your hand, and he leans over to keep himself close to you, so close you can hear the sound of his breathing: in and out, deeply and languidly, like a comforting melody. 

I think this next part is going to be scary. Do you want to look away? 

The next scene is another tension-filled one; your heart is beginning to pound again, you feel that familiar prickle of anxiety and anticipation coiling in your chest. The movie goes quiet, too quiet, and then there's another loud bang — Before you can stop yourself, you're grabbing onto Aki's arm, you're tightly gripping his sleeve. And when it escalates into a super scary chase segment, you're pressing your face into his shoulder, clinging onto him as if he'll protect you. 

"You're alright," Aki mutters, and with his free hand, he presses his palm solidly to your back, gently rubbing in circles. "Just hold onto me. I think the movie's almost over." 

Eventually, the scene runs its course, and the movie comes to an end shortly after that. You've still got Aki's hand in yours when the credits start to roll, and when you finally turn to look up at him, Aki is already looking at you, tilting his head as if he's asking, Should we go now? 

You stand up, then, tearing your hand away from his, grabbing your jacket and your things while Aki takes the popcorn bucket. Aki places his hand on your shoulder to guide you as you make your way down the dark aisle, then out of the theater, and into the reception area. 

It's gotten rather late, so it's mostly empty, with only a couple people in line and some kids playing on arcade machines. Through the large entrance windows, you can see how dark it's grown outside. When you came in, the sun was shining, but now it's nearly pitch-black, nothing but street lamps illuminating the parking lot. 

"You hardly ate your popcorn." Aki ascertains while you walk, peering into the popcorn bucket. 

"Oh, sorry. I forgot about it." 

"It's fine. Here," Aki holds the popcorn bucket out towards you, giving it a half-hearted shake. "Just take it home with you. C'mon, I'll walk you out." 

Aki holds the door open for you as you exit the movie theater. The night air is a bit chilly, sharp each time you breathe in, cold air settling on the back of your neck and the tip of your nose. The sky is cloudy, but little dots of stars still shine through. 

When you go to cross the sidewalk, Aki places his arm out in front of you to stop you from walking when a stray car speeds by. And when you're leading him to your car, you're not sure what you were thinking — Maybe you wanted to lead him better, maybe you didn't want to lose him, but you end up grabbing his hand. 

It's warm; his hand in yours feels familiar, safe. You were beginning to miss how this felt. 

You break the silence when the two of you approach your car. You take your hand away from Aki's, digging in your bag to find your keys, and Aki zips up his jacket, then adjusts his scarf around his neck. 

"Uhm, thanks for…" You find them, and your car beeps when you click the button. "Thanks for coming out tonight." 

"No need to thank me," Aki replies, cold air wisping around his mouth as he talks, "What'd you think of the movie?" 

"It was kind of good, surprisingly." You open the car's rear door, placing your bucket of popcorn in the backseat. "When I was paying attention, I liked it. I just wish it wasn't so scary. I thought the visuals were pretty good." 

"Huh? The visuals?" There's a tinge of surprise in Aki's voice, but he quickly shakes his head and corrects himself: "Oh, yeah. You're right." 

Yeah, the visuals. To be honest, Aki wasn't paying attention to them. He hardly watched the movie at all. The entire time, he was staring at you. 

He was watching to make sure you were okay, he was observing the little changes in your facial expressions. He was doting on the cute way you close your eyes or scrunch up your nose when there's a scene you don't like, or the way you stare intently at something interesting, or the way you cling to him when the movie's getting tense — You're perfect. Just staring at you like that, your hand in his, was enough to give him butterflies. 

God, he's not about to say that though. It's your first date, and he's already head over heels. What's gotten into him? 

You turn back to Aki once you've closed your car door, meeting his eyes and slipping your hands into the pockets of your jacket. "I hope I didn't ruin the movie." 

"Of course not. You didn't. I enjoyed it." Aki looks down at his sneakers for a moment, then glances back up, a ghost of a smile forming on his face. "I'm glad you invited me. I'd like to go on another date soon — I mean, if you want to." 

"I'm-" You're flustered for a second, but you stand up straight and nod, clearing your throat before you answer, "Yeah, yeah. I'd like that a lot, actually. I'll let you know next time I'm free." 

With that, you turn to leave. You're reaching for the car door, wrapping your hand around the cold handle, but you freeze when Aki suddenly shouts, "Hey, wait." 

So, you turn back around, and you see Aki awkwardly shuffling, his hands balled up and shoved in his pockets. Even in the dim light, you can see the embarrassment on his face, the unsureness in his eyes, the way his cheeks are tinged a slight shade of rosy pink. Finally, he steadies himself with an exhale of breath, looking up and meeting your eyes. 

"I'm sorry, I hope it's okay if I ask you this, I just… I…" He sounds flustered; he averts his eyes for a second, he rubs the back of his neck with his palm. 

"Is it okay if I kiss you?" 

You stiffen up for a second. Trying to hide your embarrassment, you swiftly reply, "Oh, yeah. Of course." 

Aki hesitates for a few seconds longer. Then, he takes a couple shaky steps forwards, closing the distance between you and him. The light from the street lamp above casts shadows over his face, and his hand comes up to delicately hold your jaw, his palm cold, his fingers trembling ever-so slightly. 

You meet his eyes, and you watch as his gaze shifts from your own, down to your lips, and back up again. And then, finally, with his hand on your cheek pulling you closer, he tilts his head and leans in; your eyes flutter shut, your chest tightens, your stomach flips, and you feel his lips press softly to yours. 

Aki's lips are warm, a little bit chapped; he gives you a quick, chaste kiss, pulling away almost as soon as he leaned in. He meets your eyes when they flutter open, before he sheepishly looks away. 

It looks like there's something he's thinking about, something he wants to say to you, but you don't give him any time to say it — You fist the collar of his hoodie and pull him in for more. You're not going to let that be you and Aki's first kiss.

You hear him make a surprised sort of noise, but he doesn't protest; Aki's palms come to settle on your sides, and he kisses you back deeper, for longer. You grab the back of his jacket, feeling the smooth fabric beneath your fingers. Your lips lock again, then again, as Aki kisses you over and over, each one effortlessly tender. 

Your whole body feels warm, despite the cold chill in the air. Your spine feels tingly, and as your palms travel around to his chest, Aki's hands end up reaching for yours. You find your hands connecting, your fingers intertwining, until you're holding his hands just as tightly as before, and Aki is drawing shapes into your skin with his thumbs through each and every kiss. 

When you finally pull apart once more — Fully, instead of breaking away just to lean in and steal one more — There's heat between you, there's warmth where your breath mixes with his. 

Aki is breathing hard, his eyelids heavy, his gaze deep and filled with adoration. His face is painted bright pink, all the way to the tips of his pierced ears. You catch the way his expression softens, a little smile on his face, before he gives a half-hearted laugh and buries his face in your shoulder, wrapping his arms around you to pull you into a tight hug. 

"Sorry," He mumbles, holding you close, his voice hardly audible as he speaks into your coat, "I didn't mean to keep you out here in the cold." 

You can't help but giggle, and you return his embrace. "No, no, it's okay. I'm not that cold, really." 

Aki holds you for a bit longer. When he steps back, there's a big, stupid grin on his face, and he sounds a little giddy when he talks; it's a look you've never seen out of him, not once since you've known him. It makes your heart pound, it makes you feel like kissing him again, even though you know you should get going. You'll have to remember to kiss him more the next time you see him. 

"I'll, uhm, I'll let you go now." Aki shoves his hands back in his pockets, and as he talks, he's breathing harder, so more cold air wisps out from his mouth with each word: "Call me if you want to go out again, I'm not busy on the weekends. I can pick you up next time, if that's easier. And if you forget my number, I'll… uh…" 

"I won't forget it," You interrupt with a laugh. "I have it saved, stupid." 

"Oh, yeah. Yeah. That… makes sense. So you'll call me, right?" 

"Mhmm. We can go to the movies again if you want." You turn to open your car door, giving Aki one last glance. "But no scary movies." 

And Aki gives you one last smile. "Yeah. No scary movies."  

dedicated to my love @f1gments 🤲💓

[sailorsenshishitposter]

Kinji Hakari x Reader

⚠️Spoilers for chapter 238 kind of?

Kinji Hakari:

Your favorite movie is fight club, you love femboys or you just have a strong passion for dancing.

First Date:

You were out of money as usual and had heard rumors of an underground fighting ring. "It may not be legal but bills need to be payed. Besides, taxation is basically theft anyway so it evens out." You made your way towards the Gachinko venue, taking note of the other contestants. "This will be easy!"

You were now standing against your first opponent, a large, muscular man. "Hmpf. What are you supposed to be?" he sneered. You grinned. "My pronouns are they/them/causing mayhem!" You then struck him in the face, feeling his nose crunch under your knuckles. You only lasted a few more rounds, the rest of the guests being too scared to fight you.

As you were counting your earnings, a boy hung his arm around your shoulder. "Can you take my temperature?" You stumbled back awkwardly and tried to put some distance between the two of you. "...Why?..." The boy got right in your face. "Because you're giving me a massive fever babe!"

"..."

He took your silence as a okay to continue. "My name's Hakari and I think we can help each other out. I'll help you get some cash in exchange for hanging out with me and my crew for a day." You were already suspicious. "Crew?"

"Yeah, I have a harem of femboys. We wouldn't be dating though as I'm already together with Kirara and would need to ask them if they would be alright with being in a polyamorus relationship." The nerve of this guy to assume that you were already about to leap at the idea of going out with him! "I'm pretty good at gambling and I can get you some sweet cash from those earnings of yours. What do you say?" You shook his hand without hesitation. "All right, but you better not fail or your ass is grass and I'm going to mow it!"

Hakari introduced you to the gang and then took you to the local casino. "Stay here, I just need to make a quick stop!" It was now ten minutes later. "How good are you at baby sitting #######?" You noticed something behind him. "What the fuck is that?!" Standing there was an elderly man with teal hair. Damn, Hatsune Miku got old. "This is the old man. I can't leave him by himself and he needs an occasional walk every now and then."

Did he take some poor stray dog/old man to play house with? "This isn't what we agreed upon!" Hakari put his hands up in self defense. "I know, I know. Don't worry, I'll get you your money, you just have to make sure he doesn't sneak off. He's got a habit of getting into fights with people."

"Ugh, fine!" You eventually made it to the casino. You were worried that you would need ID but luckily the old man was able to "chaperone" the two of you. "Here's what we'll do. We split the money in half and then meet again in two hours." You then went your separate ways. You weren't really sure where to start so you went to one of the pinball machines. "Seems easy enough"

You were starting to get the hang of it when your ball hit a snag. "Huh?" You managed to open up a slot of some kind. "Three in a row. Well, here goes nothing!" You hit three times and were surprised that you didn't see bells or fruit. You had a match but you had never seen this before. Suddenly the words "FINAL EGGMAN" popped up and you then got a game over, losing everything that you had.

You kicked the machine. "Screw this game, I give up!" The old man then pipped up. "That's how losers think!" Whatever! You were off to find Hakari. By the time you found him you knew you regretted your decision. The boy was shirtless and yelling something about a "pure love train". You didn't see what all the fuss was about. After all, it's just pachinko.Wait, why was there music now? Shit. He was getting turnt up. "Hakari, stop!" But it was too late, for the next four minutes and eleven seconds, he was immortal. No one could stop him now. He ran out of the building and then used his femboy radar.

"I see one! The only problem is the giant meat head." Hakari then grabbed you and the old man. He threw a bag your way. "Here's the money. Now distract that guy over there for me while I go put on some smooth moves!" Ew. You were definitely never dealing with this guy again. "C'mon old man, let's get this over with."

Hakari had run up towards the stranger. "I'M BURNING UP FOR YOU BABY!" They grimaced. "I don't know who you think you are but let me help you cool off!" They raised a hand and an icicle pierced through Hakari's brain stem. "That takes care of that. Wait a minute. Where is my lord!?"

The two of you were going up to distract the random guy as Hakari had tasked you with but you weren't really sure on a plan on how to stall him. Then the old man began clutching his chest. "Hey! You're not having a heart attack are you!?" What came out of his lips wasn't something you had expected to hear. "He's so beautiful!"

"Huh?"

"Move out of my way, I need to see him!" The old man began to run off and honestly you couldn't really care. You were just glad that you could finally go home now. The old man was now in front of his target. "How can you connect with others?" The man raised a brow. "How can you love those beneath you... While knowing nothing of weakness?" Just before he could respond, the old man fell over.

"It seems he died of a heart attack." He looked down at his stomach which was frowning. "I should see if Uraume can get some use from this corpse and fashion me some waffles for breakfast."

[znerac]

Come Closer

Sorry for my terrible exuses of titles LOL

Pairing: Obi-Wan Kenobi x ftm!Reader

No specific pronouns are used but if i make a part two the reader will be described as ftm

Part 2

Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, No Y/N, Cheating (Readers Bf)

Words: 2.2k

Summary: after finding Kriz with another in bed, reader finds themselves in the arms of the general they've treated many times before.

.

Today so far was normal, patients were slow, and once you were off-shift you headed home. Of course, your apartment on coruscant wasn't the best, but you shared it happily with your boyfriend Kriz.

You found it odd how the door was unlocked, but brushed it off. You walk in with a happy 'im home!'. You begin to set your things on the counter, when an odd noise was heard. Of course, you thought nothing of it and called your lovers name. When you got no response, you got curious.

Walking over, your brows furrowed at the continuation of the noise, making your gut twist. Opening your guy's shared bedroom door, the pit in your gut deepened and your heart practically shattered.

The two in your bed jumped and your boyfriend started speaking, but you heard none of it. Walking out and shutting the door with tears welling up in your eyes.

You stood for a second in shock.

And then the tears started streaming.

You let out a choked sob and grabbed your bag, shuffling out just as your boyfriend came out of the bedroom.

Of course, you didn't have time to think, you were overwhelmed and disgusted. Rushing out of the building with a few held in cries.

Your mind was racing, and you didn't know where else to go but work, and so you did. You caught a cab back, and when you arrived you bumped into a few clones, apologizing profusely before you went back into your office.

It was pretty much the only place you could be alone. So you sat in your chair and held yourself, your mind going over the scene over and over. It plagued your mind, and it was too overwhelming, you nearly choked on your breath.

After about ten minutes, you heard a knock on your door. And you jumped, quickly wiping away your tears with a weak 'come in'.

The door opened, and you couldn't look up, staring down and grabbing mindlessly at a few papers, "can i help you?" you ask, thumb sliding over the documents.

"You bumped into one of my recruits, said you were upset. Is something wrong?"

You knew that voice, that voice was from a certain general who had a tendency to getting hurt. You looked up, surprised.

"General Kenobi? I- i uh it's nothing im fine, really" you lie between a smile. Obi-wan frowns, coming to sit down on the seat opposite of your desk. "You know very well i can sense that something is not right. Its better to talk about your feelings, you know. Why don't you tell me whats bothering you?" he says, asking again for you to talk. Your mouth wavers, opening and closing to speak. But you break out in a few more tears.

Obi-wan's eyebrows furrow, "Maybe i can help?" he offers, but you shake your head. "You.. Can't do anything. I just.. I" you pause to breathe. "I found Kriz.. With a girl.. When i went home" you say quietly. You watch as Obi-wan thinks, and it clicks. "Oh, I'm so sorry" he says, tone soft. You sniffle, shrugging. "Its.. Its fine. I'll get over it" you mumble, and he sits up. "But it's not fine, he broke your trust. Thats not just something you can forget." he explains, "i expect you probably don't feel like going back. I could offer you a stay in my quarters?" he offers, tilting his head to the side. You give a faint smile, "i.. I can't. I don't want to be a burden"

Obi-wans face contorts, "You're no Burden, Never" he says in an almost defensive tone. "Please, it would be be my pleasure. Besides, you deserve a break. Some peace" he excuses, standing up. "Come now, I'm not letting you be alone after such an event"

You smile faintly, appreciative of his caring demeanor. You stand up, grabbing your bag and slowly following him.

Obi-wan stays fairly quiet as you two walk, it feels tense. But somehow comforting. Although you don't really know the general all that much, you appreciate how caring he seemed to be.

Once you arrived at his quarters in the Jedi Temple, you step in a little nervously. But the clean and tidy surroundings make you just a little more at ease.

"What kind of tea do you like?" he asks, walking over to the set of counters and puts a kettle on. You follow, standing beside him. "I don't usually drink tea.. Just make anything you like and I'll drink it" you say, and Obi-wan looks over, "Ah.. Well.. I'll just make you one of my regulars. Unless you'd like something else?" he cocks a brow. You shake your head, "no, no its okay, I'll drink your uh, tea" you exuse with your hands up. He smiles, "Relax my friend, Take a seat. You could put on a holo if you'd like. Make yourself at home" he says, patting your shoulder and you nod.

You make it over to the little couch by the holo, taking in a shaky breath. Everything went by so quickly, and it felt a little unreal to even be here. You jump a little when you get a commcall on your wrist, but seeing the name your face scrunches and you quickly reject it. You end up taking off your link and setting it aside.

Obi-wan came back with two mugs, handing you one. "I sure do hope its alright, i just made it how i would usually for myself. But if you don't care for it theres always other options" he says, sitting next to you. You can't help but crack a weak smile, looking down at the drink in your palms. "Thank you"

He smiles over at you, and takes a sip from his mug. "Would you like to talk at all? Or would you prefer to just take your mind off of things?" he asks, tilting his head to the side and looking at you with those beautiful blues.

You think for a moment, looking at your transmitter before back at obi-wan. "Maybe later.. We can talk.. I just, want to relax for a little" you reply, and he gives you a nod. "Fair enough. Here, put a show on." he hands you the holopad, and you grab it. Choosing a random show you liked and throwing it up on the big screen.

You both sit quietly, until you start to talk about the show. Which, felt good. Obi-wan was a great listener. He looked over when you spoke, kept his attention on you, and replied when you asked him a question. It had been awhile since anyone actually gave you their full attention, and you were sure obi-wan could sense how thankful you were.

Eventually, you continued to drink your tea, actually finishing it too. "This was good, maybe your just great at making tea. I've never actually tasted one this good" you compliment, standing up. He furrows his brows, "well thank you, but, where are you going?" he asked, uncrossing his legs and sitting up. You pause, looking down at your mug. You thought he would want you to leave after the drink. "I don't know.. I kind of assumed you'd want me to leave after" you reply, and the other chuckles. "No such thing, I'm not sending you back there unless you choose to go. Please, Stay." he smiles, standing and taking your mug. "Here, I'll take care of this. Now why don't you go have a shower and refresh yourself, i have some clothes that could fit you." he offers.

You bite at your lip before sighing, "a shower does seem nice.." you hum, giving obi-wan a faint smile. He nods you to the refresher and you thank him before going, shedding your clothes almost instantly before hopping into the shower and relaxing against the hot water. You just let yourself stand there, soaking up all the warmth.

About five minutes into it, you hear a soft knock at the door followed with a "I'm just going to place these here, a Towel and something for you to wear" you hear obi-wan say. And you smile softly, thanking him before hearing him leave. You don't know how much longer you spend in there, but it just feels so nice you can't help but soak it up until the water starts to turn cold.

At that point, you get out and wrap yourself in the towel after drying your hair. You spend some time just standing there, going over the scenes once more. And then dry yourself off.

When you picked up the shirt obi-wan left you, you smiled a little. It was definitely his, or at least fit him. It was a plain white tee, and you slipped that on along with the gray sweats he gave you. It felt a little odd to be in another guys clothes, but you decided to savor the feeling. If your boyfriend could savor another person, you could let yourself at least wear these. You walked out, feeling a bit better and definitely more refreshed.

"Enjoy your shower?" you hear obi-wan ask, as he walks over to you from the little kitchen in the quarters. He handed you a plate with a neatly made wrap. "Oh, yeah it was.. Really nice" you say, taking the plate and thanking him for it. "Thats good to hear. Now how about you eat that, and then go take a rest. I'll be here, i just have some paperwork to do" he says, pointing to the plate. You cock a brow, "Rest? Like, sleep?" you ask. He nods. "I'm not taking your bed, obi-wan. I can rest fine on the couch"

"Nonesense. You can sleep in my bed, it's more comfortable I'd say. I'll take the couch, you need a good rest and I've had plenty." he smiles. You huff, thinking for a second. "You're not sleeping on the couch, this is your home, you can rest in the same best as me, we're both adults" you counter, and he raises a brow. "You're okay with that?" he asks, and you nod reassuringly. He gives you a final nod, "well then, please do get some rest. I still have to do some work" he says, giving your shoulder a small squeeze. "And if later when i come back, and you decide you don't want me to rest with you i fully understand" he says reassuringly before wandering off to his office.

You stand there for a second before going to sit, eating slowly and going over todays events again. It made you feel worse, but you couldn't help it. But what did help, was Obi-wan offering help and comfort. Which he seemed good at, and that made you feel a little better. Although, when you looked at your empty plate a few tears shed again. You get up to place the plate in the sink, and wander to obi-wans office. Gently pushing the door open. You watch with teary eyes as he turns his head and frowns. Then he stands, and faces you with open arms.

You don't hesitate for a second to jump into his arms and hug him. Feeling his arms wrap around you carefully, caressing your back to comfort you. You sob a couple times into his robes, leaving a small wet mark where your tears fell. But he says nothing, rubbing your back and letting you release those emotions. You spend a good couple minutes in his arms before pulling away, eyes red and puffy. And he smiles down at you, wiping the tears from your cheeks with his thumbs. "Let’s go lay, i can sense that you're tired" he suggests, and you nod. Turning and letting him follow you to his bed, and you glance at him before crawling in under the blankets. He waits a second, putting a finger up and going to grab a few clothes of his, and heading to the refresher. He comes back in just a simple sweatshirt and loose pajama pants, and asks you again if you're okay with him laying with you. Of course, you say yes and scoot aside so he can get in.

Once he gets comfortable, you wait for a second, biting your inner cheek. "Can we-"

He nods and opens his arms. And you shuffle into his arms, up against his chest with your head tucked into his neck. It’s comforting, and warm. And you feel yourself relax against him as he rests his arms around you.

Obi-wan moves his arm and suddenly you feel his hand in your hair. And you just melt, humming and leaning your head up into it. Of course he continues, and it just feels amazing.

It had been ages since anyone touched your hair, and it just felt special. Especially with how gentle obi-wan had been treating you. It was like he knew what you needed.

"Obi-wan?" you spoke up gently. He hummed in reply. "Thank you, for everything." you say in a somewhat weak tone, and he holds you just a little tighter. "Of course, Dear" he says softly.

You think for a little, feeling a buildup of emotions in your chest.

He kisses the top of your head, holding you closer, "It's going to be alright my dear, now just rest, okay?" he speaks softly, and you just nod.

Sleep was surprisingly easy to find that night.

.

.

Thank you for reading! Reblogs are appreciated ❤️

[loveroftoomanyfandoms]

Cooking Up Love, Chapter 2

Pairing: Chef!Matt Murdock x F!Journalist!Reader

Rating: T (for now, might change, might not)

Story Summary: Here

Warnings/Tags: Hallmark levels of fluffy, cheesy goodness (and speed that their relationship develops, lol), no use of Y/N, Matt is not a vigilante, he is a bit of a dick though, more tags to come as the story develops

Word Count: ~1800 (literally double last chapter, lol)

A/N: Thank you to everyone who liked and commented on the first chapter! If you'd like to be added to the tag list, please don't hesitate to ask!

And thanks so much to @theradioactivespidergwen for the adorable divider!

Tag List: @yarrystyleeza @hailey-murdock @mattkinsella @bellaxgiornata @danzer8705

You checked your smartwatch for the time as you rushed down the sidewalk towards Daredevil. Your GPS had told you that it'd be faster to walk there from the Bulletin than take a cab given the time of day, but you were starting to wonder if maybe you should've taken your chances.

You breathed a sigh of relief as you spotted the restaurant up ahead then slowed a bit so you could catch your breath before reaching the entrance. Okay. It's fine, I'm on time, I got this.

You looked up at the restaurant. Daredevil was displayed in dark red lettering above the entranceway, with different patterns of dots underneath each letter. Huh. Interesting choice.

You reached for the door handle and pulled, only to find it locked. Shit.

You looked at the sign next to the door. 

Hours of Operation:

Sunday: 11 AM - 2 PM

Monday: Closed

Tuesday - Thursday 5 PM - 10 PM

Friday - Saturday: 5 PM - 12 AM

You reached into your purse to call the restaurant… only to realize that you had left your cell phone sitting on your dresser at home.

You sighed. Great.  

"Can I help you?"

You turned as a pretty blonde-haired woman walked up and unlocked the door. "Oh, um, yeah, I hope so."

You dug a business card out of your wallet and handed it to her. "I'm with the New York Bulletin . I'm supposed to be interviewing Chef Murdock in a minute, but I left my phone at home so I'm unable to let him know I'm here."

The woman's eyebrows raised as she looked at your business card. "You're interviewing Matt?"

"Um, yes?"

The woman narrowed her eyes at you suspiciously. "Just a second, I'll be right back."

You waited as the woman went inside and locked the door behind her.

A few minutes later she returned and unlocked the door, this time with a friendly smile on her face.

She held the door open for you. "Come on in."

"Thanks." You stepped inside.

"I'm Karen," the woman said. "I run front-of-house."

"Nice to meet you," you replied.

Karen led you to a table near the right corner of the front entrance. "Matt'll be right out. Can I get you something to drink in the meantime?"

You shook your head. "Oh, no thank you, I'm fine."

"Okay, if you change your mind, let me know."

"I will, thank you."

You took your notepad and pen out of your purse, silently cursing yourself again for leaving your phone -- which was your only audio recording device -- on your dresser.

Since you couldn't even continue your brief research on Chef Murdock while you waited, you looked around instead.

The walls were all painted a soft white with the exception of the back wall, which was exposed brick with a built-in fireplace running along the middle of it. Side tables holding bottles of wine were the only choice of decor, giving the space a simplistic look.

You kind of liked it.

Ten minutes passed, then twenty… then thirty. What is the holdup, you thought to yourself. Surely he can't be that busy since they're not open for service yet .

You were just about to get up to go ask Karen if Chef Murdock had forgotten you were there when the kitchen door opened and Chef Murdock himself came strolling out.

His photo really hadn't done him justice -- his biceps strained against the sleeves of his chef's jacket and his jawline looked like it could cut glass.

Your eyes trailed up to his, which were hidden by the same red-tinted sunglasses he had been wearing in his photo. 

You swallowed and stood as he approached, sticking your hand out for him to shake as you introduced yourself. "Mr. Murdock, thank you for meeting with me. I was told that you don't do interviews."

He ignored your hand and sat. "I don't usually, but it seems like this one was… unavoidable. And it's Chef Murdock. I didn't spend three and a half years in culinary school to be called Mr. "

You hesitated before sitting and looking down at your sparse notes. "Okay, well then. Um, Chef Murdock, I'd like to start with a few questions, if you don't mind."

"Mmm."

You took a deep breath. "Okay, so you're a Michelin star chef, correct?"

"Three." 

You looked up at him again. "Excuse me?"

"I'm a three Michelin star chef."

"Oh. Um, excuse me." Asshole . "As a three Michelin star chef, what made you want to open a restaurant here in Hell's Kitchen? Why not somewhere like Manhattan?"

"I was born and raised here in the Kitchen."

You smiled up at him. "Oh, so do your parents still live here? They must be very proud."

Chef Murdock raised an eyebrow. "Well they probably would be, except my mother abandoned me as an infant and my father was murdered shortly after the accident that blinded me as a child, which you would know if you had bothered to do a modicum of research."

Your eyes widened, your smile quickly falling from your face. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry." That at least explained the glasses and the dots on the signage out front. It's Braille. "I had no idea, I --"

"-- didn't bother to come prepared, yes, that much is clear." Chef Murdock crossed his arms. "If this is the sort of unprofessionalism that everyone who works at the Bulletin shows, then I'm not sure I should be sitting down with one of their reporters. We're done here."

You opened your mouth to protest as Chef Murdock stood and stalked off, shocked that he had suddenly stopped the interview before it even had really started. 

You stood and put your notepad and pen in your purse, fighting back tears. What the hell just happened?

This was the first time you had ever failed at an interview -- you were known for both your professionalism and your ability to get to know your subjects on a deeper, more personal level in order to get them to open up to you.

You headed back to the lobby of the restaurant, willing yourself to not cry while you were still in the building.

Karen smiled over at you. "All done?"

"Um, yeah," you mumbled. "Could you let me out, please?"

"Sure thing." Karen unlocked the door for you, looking at you curiously. "Hey, are you okay?"

You shook your head. "Fine, fine, just gotta go."

You pushed past her and exited the restaurant, waiting until you had made it into the alley next to it before you burst into tears.

Matt sighed as he took his glasses off and tossed them onto his desk. At least that's over . He hadn't gotten to where he was by half-assing anything and he certainly wasn't going to let anyone ruin what he had worked so hard to rebuild, especially some so-called 'journalist' who couldn't even bother to do some simple research before sitting down for an interview.

"What the hell did you do, Matt? Karen just told me that that journalist from the Bulletin just ran out of here practically in tears."

Matt looked up and crossed his arms in front of his chest as Foggy's familiar footsteps stopped in front of his office. "She came completely unprepared, Foggy. I wasn't going to waste my time sitting down with someone who couldn't even bother doing any sort of research before coming."

"That's because she hadn't had time to do any! The interview needed to happen right away because of deadlines and stuff for the paper so it got sprung on her at the last minute, just like I sprang it on you at the last minute."

He paused as Karen's footsteps approached. "Kare, do you still have Ms. Taylor's business card? Maybe we can try to salvage this."

Taylor? "Wait a minute, who?" Matt replied confusedly. 

"Kelsie Taylor? The food writer from the Bulletin ?" Foggy sighed exasperatedly. Jesus, Matt, did you even try to remember her name?"

Matt shook his head, beginning to feel bad for being so harsh towards you. "That's not who she said she was."

"Matt's right, it definitely wasn't her," Karen added. "At least, that wasn't the name on the card she gave me."

"Who was she then?"

Matt said your name. "She did say she was with the Bulletin though."

"Her card's on the front podium," Karen said. "I'll go get it."

Foggy turned back to Matt as Karen left. "You never were going to do the interview, were you?"

Matt winced. The last time he had agreed to any kind of journalistic endeavor had ended in disaster and almost complete ruination of his culinary reputation, and quite honestly he was terrified of it happening again. "I was , but --"

Foggy groaned. "Don't even give me that bullshit, Matt. Do you know how hard I had to work to even get you that interview? They were going to give the front page to Fisk , of all people!"

Wilson Fisk, who owned Kingpin's, had been suspected of being behind several popular restaurants' sudden closures (more than one being due to 'mysterious' kitchen fires), as well as having bought most, if not all, of the positive hype and accolades he and his restaurant had received. 

Matt scowled. He would be damned if he was going to let that bastard steal the spotlight out from underneath him. "Fisk? Really? He's not even a real chef! His sous comes up with most of his recipes, he just modifies it a bit and slaps his name on it."

"All the more reason for you to get that front page interview."

Matt heard Karen's footsteps approach again. "Got her card?"

"Yeah, it's right here," Karen replied.

Matt could smell the subtle scent of your perfume as Karen passed Foggy your business card -- something lightly floral with a hint of vanilla.

Foggy read your name off of your business card. "This says she's the Features writer."

Matt's brow furrowed. "Features? You said the food writer was doing the interview."

"I assumed she was but I guess since it was a front-page article they wanted someone else to do it." Foggy pulled his phone out of his pocket and tapped at his screen. "Hang on, I'm gonna pull up the Bulletin staff."

Matt waited as Foggy pulled up the list of staff then tapped on your name. "Is this her?" he asked Karen, presumably showing her your picture.

"Yeah, that's who it was," Karen replied.

Matt nodded as his watch beeped with the time. "We have to get ready to open, but I'm going to go over to the Bulletin 's office in the morning to see if I can talk to her and straighten everything out."

He just hoped you accepted his apology.