#gloomy nights // casual talk

[burningdeception]

"I'm tired..."

[rqnarok]

LATCH | pervy!old man!logan x fem!reader

summary: you come up at logan at night and he finally gives in to his desires. 

content warnings/tags: smut, mdni! little to no plot. old man!logan. unspecified age gap. soft dom!logan. sub!reader. pervy!logan. pet names (kid, kiddo, little girl, princess, etc). logan calls himself ‘old man’. fingering (f receiving). innocence kink. not proofread. wc: 1,5k

Logan Howlett is not a good man. 

“I’m not a good man, sweets.”

He has not been a good man in years. 

Still, when he scoops your sobbing figure in his arms on that day at the X-Mansion, he feels like a good man. 

“C’mon. Let’s go, kid. I’ll take care of you.”

Ever since then, you look up to him as if he is some kind of savior. A hero. A good man. 

And he starts to believe that. 

At first, it started oh, very casual—innocently. By working himself to death for the sake of your comfort. Earning money so that he could see that smile on your pretty face when he gives you gifts: new dresses, books, food—anything you want, really. He’d give it to you.

You walk up to him one Friday, showing your brand new sundress that you bought using his money, “Logan! It fits me so well, don’t cha think?”

The sight of you twirling around and giggling in front of him is enough to be his bad-day-cure, “Spin one more time, princess. Don’t have my glasses on.” 

He lies. He just wants to catch a glimpse of your cottoned panties in the process. 

Logan perceives himself as a sick fuck when he starts seeing you in that way. But hey, he did say that he is not a good man, right?  

He tried to control it, he really tried. Composing himself and creating some moral values in his head in an attempt to be in charge of his corrupted desires. 

But Logan forgot one simple thing: he can control himself all he wants, but he could never control you. 

You may be content but you are far from stupid.

It takes you months to perfect this mastermind plan—or so you call it. This mischief came into you when you decided that you had enough of Logan and his games. You know he yearns for you and you feel the same way, too. 

He peeks over you so… hungrily and thinks you wouldn’t notice? 

When you confront him about it one morning, he nonchalantly brushes it off by letting out a dry chuckle and mutters something around, “What ya’ talking ‘bout, kiddo? Go ‘head finish your breakfast.”  

But you know! You always catch his yearning gazes and… hear him over the shower one time. Moaning and grunting your name when he thought you were out buying the weekly groceries. It upsets you that he does not give in. 

So then, you concluded that you will determine to bring his temptation up to the surface and break his poor self-control through this little contemplation of yours. 

It takes a while to gain your courage and when you finally creep up into Logan’s room, the clock on the wall ticks at half past two in the morning. 2:30 AM. 

Logan said he’d take care of you, right? Said he’d do anything for you, right? Well, you need him now, “Logan? Logan? It hurts.” You whisper into the chilly air as you shake him up from his deep slumber.

And y’know, he’s a tired old man—so it takes him a while to wake up. He grabs his glasses from the nightstand beside him and slides them right on. When Logan sees you standing sleepily before him in your nightie gown, Good Lord. 

“Hey, hey—what’s goin’ on, princess?” You’re all teared up and your lips are bitten red. You look heavenly in the shaft of moonlight that slips through the window and into Logan���s bedroom. 

Your actions speak for themselves as you make your way onto his lap and nuzzle into his greying beard. “Tell your old man what’s got you so upset. C’mon.” He wants to take a good look at your face but you are so latched to him—snuffling into his broad shoulder all gloomy and wretched. 

“Hurts so bad.” You repeat yourself as your arms make their way around his neck. “Hurts, Logan.” 

“Hm? What hurts?” 

Pure silence as your little fingers wrap around Logan’s wrist and place it on your knee. Then, you’re guiding him up up up and he knows where this is going but he could not stop it. 

Fuck. He curses himself. Should’a know you’d pull some shit like this.

Finally, you stop his large calloused hand on top of your pussy. It’s heating up. Logan can feel the warmth of your cunt through your thin white cotton panties—his middle finger twitches with the urge to palm you. But no. That’s not what a good man should do. He tries to remember all the moral values he has created in his head while he sighs deeply and closes his eyes. 

“Kiddo-”

“Want to cum, please, Logan.” You take his face in your hands in the way that you always do and his hand is still on top of your clothed mound. “Please…! You said you’d help me, take care of me. I’ll be good, promise. Please.” His eyes open and he looks at your big eyes then your lips then your eyes again. That’s when you know you had him. “Hurts.” 

With half-lidded eyes, you watch Logan lose his composure, “Yeah? You’d be good f’me?” His head goes forward as he pampers your face with gentle kisses and you gulp because you don’t know what to do now. 

“Why don’t you lay down and let me take a look?” 

His scent combination of beer, whiskey, and cigars lingers around you as you rest your aching body on his bed. Looking up at him all mesmerized and lust-filled. 

Logan tries to soften his features for you. He thinks the heave of your chest moving up and down, up and down is one of the most beautiful things he has ever seen. He said he’d take care of you and that’s all he’s doin’ now. Taking care of his pretty baby. 

“C’mon. Open up to your old man.” He says, patting the sides of your thighs to part. And you did what you’re told, revealing the wet spot of your panties, and Logan curses. Mutters something under his breath. 

“You’ve been touching yourself here, Little Missy? That’s what got you dripping?” You throw your head back and huff a breathy ‘ah’ at the feel of his big fingers rubbing circles along the slick. Logan wants you to sing for him, “Use your big girl words, c’mon.” 

“Y-yes! Been touching myself…” Your red cheeks heat up at your own answer, suddenly feel so little. Logan hums deeply at your reply, hooking his fingers at one side of your panties and pulling them aside. Oh, he can tell. “Mhm.”

You were in a moment of bliss until he stopped his movement and brought your panties back to its original place, “Show me.” 

“L-Logan…” you respond by shaking your head erratically. Nononono— this isn’t a part of your plan. This becomes humiliating. No way. 

“What d’ya mean no, princess?” Logan grins—he knows you’re playing something and he is not going to lose so easily. “You want me to take care of you, yeah? Gotta show your old man what you were doin’ so he knows what he can do.” 

Well, he is not wrong. You let a huff defeatedly and roll yourself onto your front, shoving one of Logan’s pillows between your plushy thighs. And Logan is bewitched and hypnotized and fuck, so hard. His cock sticks up in his boxers briefs it hurts. 

Through his lens, he attentively watches every move you make: how your nightie gown hikes up to your chest and reveals a glimpse of your breasts, how you roll your hips in circles, how you throw your head back up facing the ceiling. The noises you make—sounds he not-so-accidentally heard when he passes your room at night when he comes home from work. This is what you've been doing? 

“Aight’. I know the problem is, sweets.” You slow down your movements as you gaze at him all doe-eyed. He places his palm on your back to still you. Your head lulls back and forth as you wait for his guidance. 

“You need something inside. Have you had something inside, baby?” He turns you to him oh, so delicately as if you are something fragile. 

You shake your head slightly at his question, suddenly embarrassed. Logan is so hard at this. He can't hold back anymore. “I see. ‘S alright, little girl. Lean on top of me. I’ll show you how it’s done. Y’ just need to trust your old man, yeah?” 

And you do. You always do. You love him. 

He smiles down at you, showing the wrinkles and scars on his face. “I love ya’. Give me some sugar first. Let me kiss ya’.” 

The kiss is more than just a distraction. It’s a repetition of him saying I love ya’ through his actions. What comes next is new to you, his large fingers probing at your entrance as you hiss and whimper and sob. Logan eases you open while kissing your inner thighs, letting you feel his scruffy beard. Raining you with his sweet praises, “Oh, that’s a good girl, alright. My sweet girl.” 

Then it leads you to it. The main purpose of your plan here in the first place. 

The clothes you both had on are thrown all over the floor as he hovers above you, taking off his glasses—placing kisses everywhere he can reach. “Y’want it?” And the tip of his cock finally nudges between your folds in an aching stretch and you mewl.

“Your old man’s gonna take care of you.” 

He always does.

[loafgeto]

BOY BEST FRIEND'S BROTHER | choso

choso kamo x fem!reader

synopsis: you and yuji are the closest in your little group of friends, but there’s one secret you haven’t told him: you have a huge crush on his eldest brother.

contents: fem!reader, 18+ mdni, explicit language, she/her pronouns, virgin reader, foreplay, dirty talking, praising, cunninglus, fingering, overstimulation, orgasms, corruption kink, protected sex → unprotected sex, pet names (baby, angel), soft/gentle choso. fluff at the end(?), not proofread!!

word count: 7.1k (longest one yet😍)

notes: reposted for the millionth time… pls, let me just feed my readers.

You’ve known Yuji ever since your first year of high school. The two of you became exceptionally close, as if you both were born in the same womb. He was like your older brother— since he was older than you, and extremely supportive and kind. Sure he enjoyed playing jokes and messing around with you, and there would be bickers between the two of you, but you both would find ways to solve your problems.

A lot of people have easily mistaken you two to be in a relationship, it was normal for the two of you. Some asked if you’ve kissed, or even fucked. Of course, none of those are true— but most assume you’re just too shy to admit.

Either way, you and Yuji don’t allow the misconceptions of others impact your relationship. It’s been roughly four years since the two of you became friends. And honestly, it’s good to say you two know each other from the back of your heads. There were never much secrets or anything hidden between the two of you.

Well, except one.

You know Yuji never forces you to tell him everything but he was always the first person you’d go to when something happened or came to your mind. It was a secret you’ve been quiet about for an entire year, and it’s gotten to the point where you’re starting to feel guilty for not telling Yuji.

It was a month before this secret of yours occurred. You were invited to Yuji’s house due to the amounts of homework assigned and you planned to stay the night. You knew Yuji had three older brothers, but you’ve only ever met two of them. His eldest brother was occasionally occupied with his job and was barely home, so you never met him until that night.

When you first met Choso, it was like the same interaction you had with his other brothers. You both shook hands and introduced each other, but he was rather reserved and didn’t necessarily want to converse much due to the workload he receives each day. You couldn’t blame Choso though, and figured he’d come around.

Well, it was more like you did.

You found yourself spending most days at Yuji’s house, especially when Choso was around. You both grew quite a bond, and Yuji was extremely happy to see his best friend get along with all of his three brothers. Choso used to return home around 10pm each weekday night, but after a couple months, he begin returning around 6pm.

This gave you more interactions with Choso, and eventually, you began developing feelings for him.

You couldn’t grasp how or when you started receiving these feelings about him. It was just— one day, you were looking at him and talking to him, unable to break your gaze while your heart raced quick. You were flustered, breaking your words and trying to remain calm. Choso never brought the fact up either, and seemed rather unaware about it.

And you were embarrassed to tell Yuji about your huge crush on his elder brother, so you just remained silent and pretended as if nothing was bothering you. Of course, Yuji often noticed your moods and always questioned what was worrying you, but you always dismiss it and claim you were just having a gloomy day.

Yuji had no reason to question you further. He was an optimistic person, who causally lightens the mood of others and makes the atmosphere more pleasant and cheery. And because Yuji perceives your relationship with his brothers as casual and friendly, he never suspected anything.

You've seen numerous situations where someone had a major crush on their best friend's sibling, and the outcome was either good, or bad. And now that you're in the situation, you anticipated on the worse outcome.

"Hello? Y/n?" Yuji taps your shoulder, causing you to snap away from your thoughts. You turn to him and he chuckles. "What are you thinking so much about?"

"Oh. Nothing, of course. I'm just dozing off easily today," you reply with a small smile. You couldn't admit to Yuji that you were day dreaming about his older brother.

"Is something bothering you? Like for real?" Yuji tilts his head, sounding genuinely concerned. He noted that this behavior has been frequent, and he worried that you were facing issues that caused you to daze away like this.

"Not really. I'm just getting small sleep, that's all. Don't worry too much," you try to reassure Yuji, and your friend nods, seeming to back off since it appeared you didn't want to talk further more about it.

"Well.. anyway, wanna have a sleepover tonight? All of my brothers are home, plus it's a three day weekend! We can all stay up and play games- oh! Or even watch an entire movie franchise- like the Hunger Games with Jennifer Lawrence!" Yuji quickly switches the topic, sounding enthusiastic as he mentions this sleepover.

Sleepovers were common between you and Yuji, and your parents even paid no mind to Yuji spending the night at your place. So, you accepted. Not only because the sleepover was going to be fun, but because Choso was going to be there too. Your heart began beating fast as the image of Choso pops in your head and you refrained yourself from smiling too much in front of Yuji.

"I'll come by around 5. Gotta pack my stuff and help mom cook rice before I leave," you inform Yuji, who nods while pulling out his phone.

"I wish Megumi and Nobara can join us, sucks that they're going out of town this weekend," Yuji sighs in disappointment.

Your other two friends- Nobara and Megumi, were often occupied with their own things. There were several times where you four had sleepovers other than hanging out, but you all still were the bests of friends. You heard that Nobara was going to another city for her weekend, while Megumi was visiting his dad a few towns outside of Tokyo.

“Come on, let’s head back to class,” Yuji says, groaning as he jumps out of the chair he was in.

Lunch period was about to end soon, so the two of you left the cafeteria and joined up with your friends that were already in the classroom. Needless to say, the rest of the school day flashed by at an instant and you were already heading home.

You were honestly too excited as you walked the entire way home with Nobara, since she lived a few streets away from you. While she was babbling about some of her shopping experiences, you were pondering about what to wear, what perfumes to bring, or whatever would get Choso’s attention. Should I wear my expensive lingerie just incase? You thought.

“You’re not even listening to me,” Nobara nudges you away from your thoughts and you turn to her with an apologetic expression.

“I’m sorry, Nobara. I’m just spacing out a lot today,” you give the same excuse, smiling awkwardly.

“You’re always spacing out,” Nobara smirks before leaning close. “You got a boy on your mind?”

Blood quickly rushes to your cheeks and you turn to her, immediately shaking your head to which she laughs.

“Hah! Yes you fucking do have a crush on someone!” Nobara’s smile grows wider as she steps closer to you. “Come on~ tell me! Who is it? I won’t tell anyone! Oh, let me guess- Yu—“

“What! No, no! No way, definitely not Yuji!” you decline quick, glaring at Nobara.

“Well that means you do like someone though.”

“I don’t.”

“Don’t lie, yes you do!” Nobara huffs, furrowing her brows as she continues to nag you about your crush. But you just didn’t answer her at all. “Come on, I won’t tell a soul. Not even Megumi!”

“Bye, Nobara. My house is this way,” you roll your eyes at her with a grin, as you quickly retreat down your street to your house.

“Y/n!! I’m going to find out!!” Nobara shouts after you.

You sigh, feeling relieved that Nobara didn’t follow you and further inquire you about your crush. Of course, it wouldn’t necessarily be bad to tell her or anyone at all, but you still felt embarrassed, let alone anxious.

For one, Nobara had a thing for Choso. Well, it wasn’t necessarily a huge fat crush, but she considered him to be quite attractive and would definitely date him. Yuji heard the statement, of course, and immediately declined her being his older brother’s girlfriend. So imagine Yuji reacting to your crush on Choso.

Well, you didn’t want to imagine it further.

Shaking those thoughts away, you quickly enter your house. You change into a set of comfortable clothes before entering the kitchen to prepare rice so that your mother would have less work to do when she arrives home. You texted your parents that you’d be staying at Yuji’s afterwards, and got to packing.

You were probably going to stay the entire weekend, so you packed enough clothes until then. You gathered your woman products, skin products and shower products and other essentials you needed. And just incase, you wore your nice and expensive lingerie.

Not that you expected anything to happen, though you were somewhat hopeful. It was easy to imagine because you’re still a virgin. And it was imaginary to have Choso be your first time. But you just couldn’t help it at all.

You left the house afterwards and made your way to the nearest bus stop to get to Yuji’s house. He lived farther away from you, though it wouldn’t hurt walking there by feet, you just decided to take the bus since it’d be easier for you.

The bus ride lasted 20 minutes and soon enough, you arrived in Yuji’s quiet and welcoming neighborhood. You didn’t know a lot about their parents, but Choso was primarily the one taking care of his siblings. He worked countless of jobs, trying to earn enough money while going to school. He honestly did everything for his younger brothers, and he was able to get them all a nice house in the neighborhood. You admired Choso for that too.

You step onto the porch, pushing your suitcase with you before pressing the doorbell. It was about 5pm, so Choso mustn't been home yet. You waited by the door for several minutes, and heard footsteps on the other side of the door.

As the door clicked and swung open, you expected to see a smiling Yuji standing there- but instead, it was Choso. Your mouth slightly dropped as you saw him. Of course, you didn't expect to greet him first.

"Oh, you're here," Choso says, stepping to the side to allow you inside. "Need me to carry your stuff?"

"Ah, no, it's fine," you give Choso a reassuring grin, feeling blood rush to your cheeks as you stepped into the house. Choso nods, closing the door afterwards and follows you into the living room. "Where's Yuji?"

"He's in the game room with Kechizu and Eso," Choso replies, watching as you push your suitcase close to one of the sofas and he returns his attention to your figure. "Do you want to try my cream puffs?"

"Cream puffs?" you turn to him, raising a brow. You notice that he was wearing an apron, long sleeves rolled past his elbows, and hair tied back into his usual two high pony tails. He wore his usual aloof expression, but when it came to you, his expression seemed to soften.

Choso nods. "Yuji told me you were sleeping over this weekend, so I decided to try making cream puffs. I've only made three so far," he replies, directing you into the kitchen.

You follow him, smiling and becoming even more excited to try the dessert he prepared. "I would love to try some."

Choso grabs a plate with three cream puffs on the top as you followed him. He turns to you, gesturing you to take one. “This is my first time making them, so tell me how they are.”

You nod, taking the cream puff in the middle. You examined the dessert for a brief moment, it looked tasty of course and for Choso’s first time making them, it was amazing already. You smile at him before taking a decent bite out of the cream puff. You could taste buttery and lightly rich flavor, especially with the pastry’s cream.

“They’re amazing, Choso! You should definitely make some more,” your eyes brighten and your smile becomes wider as you take another bite of the cream puff. Choso was initially a great cook, and anything he made would turn out perfect.

“I’m really glad you like them,” Choso couldn’t help but grin at your reaction to the pastries.

Hearing you compliment him made him feel some sort of way he couldn’t describe. Maybe it was from all of the years spent working hard to make sure his siblings got what they needed to live a happy life. He never stopped to take care of himself, or done anything in his own time since he was always working or taking care of his brothers. Choso never complained or expressed his concerns, exhaustion or anything to his brothers, due to not wanting them to worry. And they always assumed he was just fine.

Choso decided to try one of the cream puffs next, surprised at how good they actually turned out. He was definitely going to make more and share with his brothers, and you, of course. He was glad that he took time off work today.

“I’ll make some more. You can join Yuji and the others upstairs,” Choso says, placing the plate down before returning to the rest of his baking materials to create more of the pastry.

“I can help— if you want,” you offer with a smile and he turns to face you again.

Choso contemplated, but he nods his head shortly afterwards. “Sure. Just put on an apron.”

You nod before walking over to the wooden drawer beneath the kitchen counter. You pulled it out before grabbing a simple white apron with a bunny sewed onto it. After lacing it around you and washing your hands, you joined Choso’s side.

As he was beginning to demonstrate on how to combine the pieces of the cream puff, your mind quickly went somewhere else. The idea of you being alone with Choso made your heart skip beats, and you could feel your face becoming hotter as you realize how close you were to him.

It felt as if you two were on a home cooking date. It was insane to think about such things, especially if you aren’t even dating— but you couldn’t help it at all.

“It’s quite simple and easy once you get the gist of it,” Choso remarks as he finishes creating his cream puff. He then hands you the piping bag with the cream filling and gestures you to fill the choux pastry prepared beforehand.

You take the piping bag into your own hands as Choso moves to the side, observing how you moved your hands. You were becoming nervous, feeling his gaze directly on you and you were definitely going to mess up.

“You got this. There’s no need to be anxious,” Choso assures, pressing a hand against your back to relieve some tension. "Here."

Choso stands behind of you, his build completely towering over you as he places his hands over yours. You didn’t move an inch as he begins guiding your hands with the piping bag to fill the choux pastry, and you could feel his hot breath lightly brush against your ear.

You could feel your heart pounding in your eardrums and you turn your head slightly, noticing how close his face was to yours. Everything about him was just so appealing, and you wish you could just kiss him in that moment.

“Got it?” Choso questions.

“Yeah.. I got it,” you reply with a nod as Choso removes his hands away from yours, but he still remained standing behind you as you picked up the cream puff that was just made.

You took a bite out of it, not noticing Choso was still there and turn around. “Choso?”

Choso tilts his head, noticing how some of the cream got on the side of your mouth. “You got some on your mouth,” he says and lifts his hand, using his thumb to brush off the cream. The gesture was completely unexpected and you swore your heart could leap out of your chest.

He was still so close to you, and you refrained from making any awkward or flustered expressions as he licks the cream off his thumb. You both stare at each other for a brief moment after that, not speaking until Choso initiates a step closer to you.

“Y/n, there’s something I want to ask you,” Choso begins and he reaches for your hand.

At that moment, alarms went off in your head and you’re internally panicking. This was one of the moments you’ve been dreaming of and waiting for, but you don’t even know how to react properly. You open your mouth, about to respond as he was leaning forward to grab your hand.

“Do you-“ Choso starts to say, but he was completely cut off when someone rushes down the stairs.

“Big bro, is Y/n here—?!” Yuji’s voice echoes from the stairs. Your eyes widen slightly as you drop the cream puff from your hand and quickly push Choso away when Yuji steps into the kitchen. “yet— oh, you are here! When did you get here?!”

You give Yuji a bright smile as you walk past Choso, patting your hands against your apron. “Been here for a little bit. Just decided to help Choso make some cream puffs, since you were busy playing video games,” you reply, furrowing your brows at Yuji.

Yuji slaps his hands together and slightly lowers his head. “Sorry, forgive me!”

“It’s fine. I got to eat some cream puffs though!”

“Whaat, big bro, are you still making some?!” Yuji asks, tilting his head to look at Choso who was picking up the cream puff you dropped.

“Yeah,” Choso nods, not giving you or Yuji a look before facing his back against the two of you. “I’ll make some more. You guys go have fun.”

“Great!” Yuji excitedly replies before returning his gaze back to you. “Come on, come on. Kechizu just got a new multiplayer game for all of us to try and play! We need a fourth player!”

You give Yuji a nod before he starts walking out of the kitchen. You remove the apron from your body and glance at Choso, who still had his back facing against you. You didn’t want to blame Yuji for ruining the moment, but you were curious on why Choso acted like that.

Well, it wasn’t like you could inquire about it since Yuji came back to drag you away. But it remained occupied in your head as you joined Yuji and his other two brothers in their video game.

Choso shortly joined after, bringing along a small plate of at least 10 cream puffs. He didn’t utter anything and just quietly sat on one of the bean bags while you, Yuji, Eso, and Kechizu all bickered loudly over the video game.

You glanced at him occasionally, and he had that same aloof expression while watching the four of you. The two of you would make short eye contact, but you’d always be the one to break away first. You felt flustered— embarrassed, especially because that moment in the kitchen earlier remained in your mind.

For the remainder of the evening, you avoided long eye contact with Choso. The atmosphere continued to be cheery, as Yuji and his other brothers were lightening the mood with their loud voices and enthusiasm. It got you distracted for a while.

When dinner time came around, Yuji suggested takeout instead so Choso didn’t have to cook, and Kechizu ordered a large family takeout platter from a local Japanese restaurant. You ended sitting next to Choso while you all were dining, and it was somewhat awkward. But you and Choso didn’t make it obvious, so there were no further complications.

Afterwards, the five of you gathered by the large TV in Yuji’s room and watched one of the Hunger Games movies— because Yuji wanted to. It was boring, since you’ve all seen the series countless of times but Yuji would never get bored of it.

And shortly enough, you all fall into a deep slumber.

It was late into the night now, and you happen to wake up several hours after everyone else had fallen asleep. The entire house was quiet, and you could hear the faint sounds of everyone sleeping, minus Eso’s snores.

You adjusted your eyes to the darkness around you, before getting up slowly. You were lying on Yuji's bed while Yuji was on the other side, hands and legs sprawled out. Kechizu and Eso were sleeping on Yuji's couch by the TV, and Choso was sleeping while sitting up on one of the bean bags.

Ignoring your thoughts, you close your eyes in order to return to sleep. But no matter what, you just couldn’t. After tossing and turning to find a comfortable position, you decided to get up for a glass of water.

You leave Yuji’s bed and slip out the room and quietly walk down the stairs. You read the clock by the door, and it was about 2:30 in the morning. You enter the kitchen, walking towards the fridge and opening it before grabbing a cold water bottle.

The image of Choso popped in your head again, and you could only let out a sigh. Who knew what was going to happen now? Was it going to be awkward— or would you two act as if nothing’s happened? You quickly open the lid of the bottle before gulping down half of the liquid. You figured if you didn’t act awkward, and as if nothing happened, then the two of you would be fine.

“Y/n?”

Choso calling out to you immediately causes you to jump slightly from your spot, and you turn to him with a surprised expression before glaring. “Please don’t scare me like that.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Choso replies, stepping further into the kitchen. Even though it was dark, you could still see his silhouette and as he went closer, you were able to see his face. “Can’t sleep?”

You shake your head, putting the water bottle in your hand down on the kitchen counter. “I guess I’m still energetic from earlier— when we were playing the games,” you reply a lie, not wanting to admit that he was the reason why you couldn’t sleep.

Choso went silent for a moment, until he approached you closer. “Can we talk about what happened before that?”

“H-Huh? Before that?”

“I wanted to ask you something,” Choso continues, now standing directly in front of you. His dark eyes pierced into yours, and your heart rate began pacing fast again. “Y/n, how do you feel about me?”

“I..” it took you several moments to even utter something, as you were completely astonished from his blunt question. He was so close to you, watching how you reacted while desperately waiting for an answer. But before you could even continue your answer, Choso sighs softly.

“I didn’t mean to put you in an awkward position. You don’t have to answer my question if you aren’t comfortable,” Choso starts backing away, lifting an hand to awkwardly rub the back of his neck. “Just forget I asked and we can just act as if nothing happened.”

Choso turns around, starting to walk out. You’re uncertain of what to do, but your body responds before your brain could and you follow him. You quickly wrap your arms around his waist and press your face against his broad back.

“I like you, Choso,” you murmur, but enough for him to hear clearly.

There was a brief pause before Choso turns around to face you. At that moment, you couldn’t describe how you felt— you were just all over the place since you basically confessed. His eyes were slightly wide, but he looked relieved and a smile forms on his lips.

Choso doesn’t reply and only pulls you forward in order to press his lips against yours. With no hesitation, you return the kiss as your hands grip his shirt. The moment was surreal, and even it if was just a dream, you wanted to feel the moment.

“You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting to kiss you,” Choso speaks once he pulls away, keeping his lips near yours. “Been waiting too long.”

“Me too.. Been wanting you ever since we met, Choso,” you reply, nearly unable to meet his gaze until he kisses you once again.

“I’ve been bad. So fucking bad,” Choso continues as he pulls away again, gently pushing you back against the wall before smashing his lips onto yours more passionately. You let out a soft moan into his mouth as you feel his body press against yours. Choso places a hand on your hip, while the other moves to hold your jaw. He pulls away again, “I was always thinking about you. Always thinking about how I could make you mine. I even changed my shifts so that I can come home early to see you whenever you visited.”

“C-Choso..”

You pull Choso back to kiss him again, sparing him no time to continue rambling about his feelings but it was very much mutual. The moment was tensed with passion, and you both quickly became addicted to one another.

Choso moves his lips to your cheek, down to pepper kisses on your jaw and then along your neck. You bite your lower lip, unable to refrain the arousal you were receiving from him.

“W-Want you s’bad.. Choso..” you mutter with a short whimper, a hand going up to grasp his hair that was becoming loose. “Have always wanted to feel your kisses.. and your touch.”

Choso grits his teeth. Goodness, you were too cute. He still honestly couldn’t believe that you reciprocated his feelings. You were always with Yuji, laughing snd smiling— always having a good time. Choso, like many others, found it easy to believe that you were infatuated with Yuji.

“Damn it. You make me want to ruin you,” Choso quietly says before he gently takes your hands into his. “Come on.”

He leads you back up the stairs and pass Yuji’s room, where everyone else remains dead asleep, and quietly into his room down the hall. When you both enter inside, he quickly shuts the door before pulling you close for a deep kiss.

The room was filled with the soft sounds of your kissing and muffled noises, and Choso couldn’t seem to keep his hands away from you. He walks you back towards his bed and pushes you down, lips still against yours.

You tug Choso’s shirt as his body hovers over you. He was showering you with kisses all over your face and body, touching you like how you’ve always imagined him doing. “Fuck.. touch me more,” you coo as Choso moves to kiss your jaw.

“Where do you want me to touch you?” Choso asks, brushing his hand over your thigh.

“I-I don’t know.. everywhere-“ you reply, quite uncertain. You were practically new to this but no matter where Choso touched, he was able to pleasure you either way.

“You have to be more specific so I don’t make you uncomfortable,” Choso frowns slightly, lessening his touch on your inner thigh which makes you squirm. He acknowledged that you were inexperienced and timid, but he remained patient. “Do you want to show me instead?”

You nod, guiding his hand near your inner thighs. He understood quite frankly, seeing how much of a mess you already were under him. Choso gives you another kiss, but on the forehead before rubbing his hand against your inner thigh, causing you to tremble slightly.

It all was causing you to soak your panties, and you guide Choso’s hand that was on your thigh underneath the shorts you were wearing. You had no idea what came over you, but at that moment, it didn’t matter. Even Choso was surprised with your gesture but he didn’t stop.

You felt the tip of Choso’s fingers rub against your wet folds and you moan softly as a response. “You’re so wet..” Choso comments quietly, proceeding to rub two of his fingers against you before pushing them in.

The sensation of his fingers spreading you causes you to gasp and you return your hand to grip his shirt. Choso doesn’t move his fingers, instead he waits for you to adjust to them.

“Do you want me to stop?” He asks next but you quickly shake your head.

“K-Keep going..” you murmur, and Choso could feel your walls clench around his two fingers.

Choso could feel blood rush to his already hardened dick, and he starts pumping his fingers in an out of you at steady pace. He was still able to receive soft moans from you, and you held him close as he gradually starts increasing his pace.

Shortly after, he slips off your shorts and underwear, spreading your legs apart to thrust his fingers deeper. You hold back your louder moans, as it was still late into the night and you can’t wake the others up.

Choso peppers kisses against your chest before moving down for your crotch area. He gives you a glance and you nod before he latches his mouth against your clit and slowly began moving the same fingers in and out of you. Your moans start to penetrate through your sealed lips, and your hand grips Choso’s hair.

His circles his tongue around your clit slowly and lazily, and curled his fingers to rub your g-spot. “Always thinking about this pussy. So, so beautiful,” he comments.

You moan as a response, indicating that he was pleasuring you too well. You have never felt his sensation before, but you knew damn well that it was addicting. You were practically craving for more now that you know the feeling, especially from Choso. The way your body reacted to his touch caused him to increase his pace, and his eyes raise to meet yours as he fucks your pussy with his mouth and fingers.

“Ohh, fuck yes. That feels- s’good,” your voice breaks at how deep and fast his fingers thrusts into you, making your back arch. It felt so different from your own fingers and you were quickly reaching your orgasm.

“You close, baby?” Choso questions, pulling his lips away but still thrusting his fingers. You give him a nod, being unable to properly respond with words. His lips meets yours once again, and the two of you share a rough, passionate kiss.

Choso’s fingers began thrusting quicker, to the point the wet squelching noises of your pussy began resonating the room. He covers your mouth with his as your moans kept coming out and he knew you were reaching your high.

He pulls away, going back down to flick his tongue against your clit. At that moment, the two of you couldn’t care less at who was hearing you. Both of your hands grip the bed sheet as you release over his mouth and fingers, a loud mewl following after.

Choso licks his mouth clean, before licking the other wet areas of your body where you cum got on. He kisses you, pressing his tongue against yours and you two share a sloppy kiss before he leans back to stand up. He was so goddamn hard, and you could even see the tent in his pants. Choso was so pussy drunk, and so desperately wanting to shove his cock into your virgin pussy.

“Please.. Choso..” you whimper, spreading your legs wider for him. “I need your cock in me..”

Something snapped in Choso as you said that and he couldn’t wait any longer now— seeing how your pussy was waiting for him. Choso pushes his pants and boxers down, freeing his throbbing hard cock. Your eyes watch as he pumps his dick a few times with pre-cum leaking out and he leans over to open a drawer next to his bed.

He grabs a condom kept inside and quickly opens it, slipping it on his cock. “This okay, baby? Are you ready?” he asks and you only nod again before he aligns himself against your wet entrance.

Your lips tremble as you feel the tip of Choso’s cock push into you slowly. It felt weird, and your reaction immediately causes him to stop moving. “Are you uncomfortable?” he asks again.

“N-No.. I’m okay,” you reassure, grabbing his forearms that were propping your thighs. His tip was already stretching you out, and you couldn’t imagine his entire length in you just yet.

Choso nods before slowly pushing his cock in all the way. You both let out a gasp, and Choso could feel your tight walls clenching so hard around him. It hurt, and you could feel tears reaching your eyes. He starts rocking his hips sensually, allowing you to adjust to him and the feeling.

“You okay?” Choso asks again, leaning down to kiss your cheek. He notices your welled tears, wiping away the ones that were poking out.

“Y-Yes..” you reply as your hands interlock with his, feeling his cock rub your walls so well. “It hurts..”

“I know, baby. Do you want me to stop?” Choso whispers, kissing away your tears that streamed down the side of your face.

“No, no. It’s okay. It feels good too..” You shake your head, eyes shutting as you adjust yourself to the feeling. “Faster..”

Choso was quite appalled but he didn’t decline your request. He starts thrusting faster, moving your hands over your head and grunting lowly at your tightness. It aroused Choso to know that he was the first, your first and how you practically wanted him to be the first.

Your moans fall out each thrust he gives, and his pace starts fastening as you wrap your legs around his waist. Choso was so deep into you, wrecking your walls and turning you into a sex lover. You never thought it would feel this great, and you understood why so many people were addicted to it. Choso then kept his mouth on yours as he fucked you faster, balls slapping against your pussy and you could feel him drill his cock deeper and deeper.

"Mmh- fuck!" you mewl out as Choso pulls his lips away, pounding you in the position.

"I knew I'd love this pussy of yours," Choso grunts, pulling his cock out before guiding your body over so that you'd lay on your belly. He places his hands on your hips, pushing them back against his and sliding back into your aching hole.

"S-So deep!" you cry out, feeling his entire length sink deeper into your pussy.

Choso grips onto your hips as he thrusts his cock quickly into you, his hips slamming against your ass cheeks. You bury your face in the sheets of his bed, refraining your erotic moans to echo the entire room. But it just felt too good- his cock and this position that allowed his cock to make him feel so fucking deep in you.

You throw your head back slightly as your hands move underneath your chest to prop up. Choso leans forward, eyes nearly shutting because of how good your pussy felt around him. He was nearly reaching his orgasm and he knew you were close again too.

"'m so close- Choso!" you utter through your moans, more pleasured tears rolling down your cheeks.

"Me too, angel. Fuck," Choso groans, groping your ass to the point his hands could leave a print.

A knot forms in your stomach when Choso's cock rubs against your g-spot each deepening thrust and your head drops to the mattress as your moans uncontrollably escape your mouth and bounce off the walls of his room.

"Baby- shit. You gotta lower your voice," Choso reminds, groaning as your pussy clenches his cock again.

"I-I know.. But I can't.." you reply, covering your mouth with a hand.

Honestly, Choso found it slightly amusing, yet cute about how you were trying to keep quiet but couldn't. And even though he was the one to tell you to lower your voice, he wanted to pound into you faster, and deeper- and make more moans escape past your pretty lips.

“C-Cumming..” you utter beneath your hand covering your mouth, and Choso hastily slips his cock as you came all over him.

You’ve never came this much before— it was appalling to see how much you can cum. Your mind was dizzying and fogging up, and you could feel Choso pull his cock out. He was panting heavily, hands still holding your hips before he uses one to slip off the condom filled with his cum.

Yet, he was still hard.

“Again,” you say, turning yourself around and pulling him close by placing your hands on his nape. “Wanna ride you, Choso..”

Choso didn’t expect you to want to keep going, but he couldn’t resist the urge of wanting to see you ride him. After you situate yourself on Choso’s lap with his guide, he rests your hands on his shoulders. You bite your lower lip, quite conflicted because you didn’t even know how to ride a dick properly.

“Don’t worry. I’ll guide you,” Choso reassures, caressing the side of your face before leaning towards the drawer to grab another condom.

But you stop him and shake your head. “No protection.. it’s okay.”

Choso raises a brow. “You sure, baby? It’s risky without it.”

“It’s okay.. promise. I trust you.”

Choso’s heart ached at the way you softly spoke of how you trust him, and he nods his head before returning his hands to the side of your hips. He props you up with his strength before pressing the tip of his cock at the entrance of your swollen pussy.

He gives you a final look before guiding your body down, and his raw cock pushes pass your folds. You both moan in unison as Choso’s entire length fits into you perfectly. The bare skin of his cock in you was entirely different from when the condom was on, and Choso could also feel how different your insides were.

Choso starts guiding your hips up and down on his cock, and you’re both moaning, staring at each other with affection and lust. Your grip on Choso’s shoulders tighten as he indirectly allows you to bounce by yourself, allowing you to experience.

You’re on your heels as you bounce on his throbbing cock, moaning and mumbling his name as you’re clenching him whenever you slide your hips upward. Choso’s watching intently, low grunts increasing as he feels your pussy taking him just as he’s always imagined.

“You’re doing so fucking good, angel. Fuck- keep riding me like that,” Choso praises, his head leaning back as you start bouncing faster. You’re literally uncertain whether or not you’re moving correctly, but with the guide of Choso’s hands and his reaction, you assumed you were doing good.

You could feel the tip of his cock smack the entrance of your womb whenever you sink his entire length deeper into you, and you’re looking at him for more direction since you still clearly didn’t know what else to do. Choso used his hands to guide your hips to grind forward on his dick, and he looks at you.

“Just like this, baby.”

You take what Choso guided you to do in mind and then action, seemingly noting that he enjoyed those certain movements. Now, he’s the one moaning louder, whimpering lowly and muttering how amazing your pussy was.

He initially starts lunging his hips up as your bounces on his cock become more erratic, and he cups your ass. “C-Choso! Your cock- feels so, so good,” you could only utter as your legs start trembling, and you’re barely unable to keep yourself up.

“Yeah? I’m all yours now, baby- I’ll give this cock to you whenever and wherever you want,” Choso groans, gently tightening his grip on your ass as he starts controlling his thrusts up into you again. “Fuck- let me be your boyfriend. Please, angel.”

“Yes, yes, yes!” you nod your head, wrapping your arms around him and pulling him close for a deep kiss.

Before Choso could reach his final orgasm, he quickly pulls you off him and his cum shoots all over the floor of his room. You both pull away from the kiss, panting heavier and fall back against the bed.

Choso stares up at his ceiling, taking in what just happened. Hearing your pacing heartbeat and heavy pants, he lifts a hand to gently rub your back.

“You okay?” he inquires.

“Mhm..” you reply, snuggling yourself close to him.

Choso chuckles softly, more elated with the fact that you were now his, and he was yours. He’s never necessarily been in an official relationship, besides from the experiences of blind dates or one night stands. He’s met a few nice girls, but he wasn’t into them the way he was into you. When he first met you, he was originally happy to know that his younger brother had a good friend. But as you often came around, he started to notice the little things about you. And one day, he just discovered how deeply he was falling for you.

He was always occupied with his job and taking care of his siblings that he subsequently forgot about his own health and care. But you were there— making sure he had his dinners, chatting with him about his day, making Yuji and the other two help clean up the house so he didn’t have to. And in order to see you often, Choso started sending in requests about changing his schedule to the main office. It took a few months, but with how diligently he worked, he was granted the schedule change. And he was so grateful, because it allowed him to spend more time with you— even if you were there for Yuji.

But now, he knows your feelings for him and it was all that mattered. Tonight, and possibly for the rest of his life, he’s the happiest man in the world.

LOAF4U. thank you for reading! please do not copy my work or publish in another media without my permission.

[monster-disaster]

[shadow monster] Monster at midnight

male!shadow monster x male!human!Reader Good to know: well, cheating and dubious/non-consensual, but not in a traumatizing way, I guess? mxm, oral

Summary: The new bed your wife got came with something else.

It all begins with your wife's newfound obsession with antique stores and online markets. What starts as a casual interest for her soon turns into a frequent activity for you, with mornings and afternoons spent in parking lots, waiting for strangers and whatever she bought from them through the internet. These transactions are mostly pleasant surprises—garden tools, books, and seasonal decorations that would cost much more in stores. They are harmless things, and you have no issue picking them up just to make your wife happy.

The situation takes a strange turn when she gets another bed. At first, there is nothing wrong with it. It is much bigger than your previous one, giving her and you enough space at night to sleep without kicking each other every few hours. It looks good, and it's comfortable.

So it's fine, right?

However, after a month, things start to feel off. You begin waking up at odd hours with an unsettling feeling of being watched or touched. Sometimes, you wake up drenched in sweat, feeling inexplicably hot and agitated. On other nights, you find yourself waking up aroused, ready to climax at any moment. This last detail you keep to yourself, driven by a strange instinct to remain silent about it.

When you finally bring up your concerns to your wife, she just laughs it off. "I don't know what you are talking about," she says. "I sleep like a baby." You hum in response, uncertain whether it is a good sign or something you should worry about. "Maybe you're overworked," she continues. "You're always so tired when you get back from work." You are tired because you can't sleep at night, but you keep this answer to yourself, partly because your wife's explanation sounds much more rational than the unsettling fantasies that have been plaguing you. Her suggestion that you're simply overworked and exhausted from your job is a comforting alternative to the bizarre thoughts swirling in your mind.

Yet, even with her reassurances, the nights don't get any easier. The feeling of being watched, the burning heat, and the unbidden arousal continue to haunt you. You toss and turn, trying to rationalize these experiences, but they persist stubbornly.

In the quiet, dark hours of the night, your thoughts wander, and you can't shake the growing sense of unease. There's an underlying tension, a feeling that something is not quite right. Despite the logical explanations you try to offer yourself, a part of you wonders if there's more to this new bed than meets the eye. The once-pleasant surprises from your wife's shopping sprees have now taken a turn, leaving you questioning what you've welcomed into your home.

- With an exhale through your chapped lips, you let your head fall back on the pillow, arms tucked beneath it. Your body melts against the mattress as your muscles relax and your eyes close, ready to fall asleep again despite the nagging feeling in the back of your mind.

It's nothing, you tell yourself. Your wife is right; it must be stress from work. Maybe you should take some time off. A few days of vacation would do some good for both you and the still-sleeping woman next to you. Go somewhere warm and sunny. No matter how much you love living in Grimbrook, the gloomy town can play tricks on one's mind if they're not careful.

Something nudges your leg, and you scowl into the darkness. Your wife's name rolls off your tongue in a low, barely audible grunt as you pull away from her, but the sensation remains around your calf. The hold reminds you of long, slender fingers with sharp nails grazing your skin. It's warm and heavy, and you have to shake your head to dispel your ridiculous thoughts.

A shiver runs down your spine, and you tell yourself it's just your imagination, fueled by exhaustion and stress. Yet, the feeling lingers, making your heart race. You take a deep breath, trying to calm yourself, but despite your efforts to rationalize, the sense of unease is undeniable. You glance at your wife sleeping peacefully beside you, and suddenly, a thought crosses your mind; what if your wife is right? And wrong? What if there is really nothing wrong with the bed, but stress has nothing to do with your problems? What if you are going insane?

What if…

But no. There is a hand on your calf, moving up and up until long nails graze the back of your thigh. Your heart leaps into your throat, and you jump as you struggle for what feels like an eternity to turn around and yank the blanket off your body in one frantic motion. The springs creak as your back hits the bed, but the sound is drowned by your pulse pounding in your ears.

And you need several, several seconds to believe your own eyes.

The darkness is thick and almost tangible in the bedroom. A strange, eerie fog rolls across the floor, curling around the furniture and casting shapes and shadows on the walls. They stretch and twist in ways they shouldn't do, and at the end of the bed, a creature kneels, barely distinguishable from the surrounding darkness. The monster is lean with a hunched posture. You can see the long, slender fingers tipped with sharp nails, the same ones that grazed your thigh moments ago. Multiple eyes glimmer faintly at you, reflecting what little light there is coming from the window. The monster's skin is so dark that it nearly blends into the blackness, a seamless extension of the night itself.

As your heart races and your breath comes in shallow gasps, you struggle to make sense of the sight. The monster's eyes, too many, seem to pierce through you, seeing into the deepest corners of your soul. You feel paralyzed, unable to move or look away. The weight of its gaze is heavy and oppressive on you.

For a moment, the world narrows to just you and the monster. The bedroom, the house, your sleeping wife next to you, and everything else fades into insignificance. It's as if time itself has stopped, trapping you in this moment. With him.

He is the one who breaks the stillness of the room, placing his large hands on your thighs just above your knees. His grip is strong, and his touch is cold yet surprisingly soothing. Your muscles twitch at the sudden feeling, and you brace yourself on your elbows, wanting to sit up but halting your attempt as you speak hurriedly. "Hey! Hey! Hey!" Your voice is still hoarse from sleep but filled with alertness and panic as you stare at the monster with wide eyes. He looks back at you with a calmness you certainly don't have. The creature’s multiple eyes glint in the dim light, each one reflecting an eerie curiosity. "Who… What are you?" you manage to stammer out. The monster tilts his head when he hears your question, the movement is seemingly innocent and almost graceful as his fingers flex around your legs, sending shivers up your spine.

The silence stretches, heavy and tense, until finally, you hear a sound that seems to resonate in the air and within your very bones.

It's… purring.

It's deep and reverberating. You can’t tear your gaze away from him, a strange mix of fear and fascination holding you captive. The purring grows louder, filling the room with a sound that is both comforting and lulling. The rhythmic vibration somehow keeps you grounded, preventing you from losing your mind entirely.

The fog that had enveloped the room now swirls lazily around the bed, as if it too is under the monster's spell.

But you don't get an answer.

Instead, his grip on you slips up and up and up, and before you can say anything, his hands are under the thin fabric of your loose underwear. Your lips fall open as your breath catches in your throat with a strange, strangled sound that bounces out of your heaving chest. Your first instinct says to grab him, but your body freezes before you can do something stupid. His long, sharp nails graze over your inner thighs, too close to your balls, and there is no way you are ready to risk it with a reckless move. Now, you have to be smart, but damn, your brain stopped functioning several seconds ago.

"Wait! Wait!" You gasp. "You shouldn't… It's not…" No matter how you try, the words don't want to roll off your tongue as you hobble for some coherent thoughts. The tips of his nails wake goosebumps on their way, making your tense muscles tremble at the feeling. While one part of your mind is frozen by panic, the other is intrigued. Despite his looks, the monster doesn't seem dangerous with his big eyes that stare at you with as much curiosity as you watch him.

When you don't say anything else, he moves again, punching a startled groan out of your chest. His long, slender fingers curl around your dick, holding it steadily and firmly. "No!" You wheeze, trying to pull away, but the movement makes him tug on your shaft, and you swear you can see stars for a moment. Your cock twitches, and you can feel your arousal building up in the base of your spine despite the absurdity of the situation.

The creature purrs again. The sound is short and excited as he lets you go only to tug on your underwear before you can catch your breath. Your cock juts out, half hard, while the waistband of your boxer stretches around your thighs and slips down off your legs as you struggle to reach it. The monster does nothing to help you, mostly because his attention is entirely elsewhere. "Look," you inhale. "We shouldn't…" Now that your cock is bobbing under his heavy, intense gaze, there is no way a flimsy fabric you use for sleep can be more interesting for him.

He shuffles forward a little, the bed dips under his weight as he finds his new place between your legs, forcing you to spread them open for him. Your lips open again to say something, but he takes hold of your cock, and again, your mind goes blank. The black monster with several eyes and no words tugs on your cock experimentally, stroking you into full erection as he explores your shaft from base to tip. Your hips buck upward automatically, and you groan at yourself. You shouldn't do this. You shouldn't enjoy this. And yet, when his thumb finds a vein at the underside of your cock, you can't stop the tingling feeling running through your body. His large palm feels warm and velvety as it rubs up and down on your erection. His fingertip ghosts over the edge of the crown of your cock, teasing the sensitive skin under it to the point you can't even breathe to say something. Your lungs burn for air, and your voice is barely audible when a wheeze escapes your lips. One glance at the monster hovering over your cock is enough to know his next step. And while your body aches for it, your mind still trying to hold onto the reality. "Don't!" Without even acting like he hears you, he leans in and licks a tentative path along your shaft, lingering at the tip and teasing the small hole there. His tongue is thick and long, you can feel every movement of the wet muscle on your throbbing cock. Your chest expands with a ragged inhale as you stare at him taking you into his mouth. He is warm and wet, and his long, long tongue wraps around you easily. "Fuck!" Your voice is loud and hoarse in the silence, mixing with the wet, suckling sound of the dark creature around your cock. Adjusting his grip at the base, he takes you deeper until you can feel his throat tightening and working around you.

The sight of the monster's fingers and long, sharp nails so close to your most sensitive area surges adrenaline through your veins while his lips rubbing up and down on your hard shaft softens the sharpness of your survival instincts.

The monster backs away, jerking you off with his hand much more easily now that your cock is soaked by the mix of your pre-cum and his saliva. His fist rubs up and down on you for long seconds while your hips rise and fall as you fuck into his hold, chasing your pleasure. Every rational thought is out of your mind, and you don't even fight for it anymore. Not when he dips his head back, letting his tongue circle on the tip of your cock, sliding lower and lower until you are in his mouth again.

The slurping sounds of his lips are loud as he drools down to your balls, using his free hand to play with them softly, carefully. Your groan is almost painful as your back arches away from the bed from the electric jolt that shoots through your body, making your muscles flex and spasm.

Your oxygen-deprived brain can't even fathom anything outside the thick, curling fog around you and the monster between your legs. Your toes and fingers go numb as they curl, and you grab onto the sheets under you. You tug on the fabric with every wave of pleasure washing over you, making your muscles twitch and turning your bones into liquid. Your shirt sticks to your body like a second skin from the thin layer of sweat covering you. You are all lost and ruined under the sensations. His drool dripping down to your balls is tickling and messy and so fucking good. And his tongue is long and wet, wrapping and massaging your erection all the way from the tip to the base.

It goes like this for a while, you wheeze and writhe while he sucks you deep down to his throat, and when you think you can't go higher, the creature starts to purr. The vibration tightening and fluttering around your cock makes you shout with a release. Before you know it, you spurt your cum into his mouth. He swallows down your load easily, and every gulp sends sparkles over your spine until it almost cracks under the pressure of your orgasm.

By the time your body goes limp, you are dead to the world. Your eyes fall shut when the darkness takes you so you don't see the monster retreating to his hiding place while the thick, rolling mist slowly disappears, leaving you and your wife on the bed as if nothing happened.

The next day, when your wife joins you in the kitchen while the scent of coffee lingers in the early morning air and you are more relaxed than ever before, you say nothing about your midnight visitor. When she asks how did you sleep, you reply with a smile behind the brim of your cup.

[sugrhigh]

ALL YOURS - ( roomie!matt pt 5 )

summary- you and your roommate matt have been sleeping together for a minute now, but neither one of you wants to ask the other what it means. feelings come to fruition one night at a party and the dynamics of your relationship change once again.

warnings- nsfw content ahead people so read at ur own risk, swearing, drug/alcohol use, dom!matt kinda, unprotected sex, it’s straight up smut at the end so fr don’t read it if u don’t want to!

roomie!matt x fem!reader

a/n: THIS IS TECHNICALLY PART 5 OF THE ROOMIE!MATT TEXT SERIES so if you haven’t read those you might be a bit confused. link to the master list is here.

strap in because it’s kinda long so i hope u guys love this final chapter as much as i do <3 inbox is always open xo

@sleepysturnss

rain patters against the windows mercilessly as the tv drones on, interrupted only by booming thunder every few minutes.

its late in the day now, and the cloud coverage makes it extra gloomy, even with interior lights on. not that this bothers you.

storms have always been a source of comfort in your eyes. something about them makes you feel safe, reminds you that the world is far bigger than whatever is worrying you.

“oh, i’ve been meaning to ask if you’re still seeing that guy. what’s his name again?” nick asks from beside you, scrolling mindlessly on his phone as he slumps against the couch.

you’ve been sitting like this for hours together, rotting in his living room while it continues to pour outside.

“it’s luke, and no, i’m not talking to him anymore.” you reply, trying to sound as casual as possible.

he looks up at you now, clearly a bit shocked to be hearing this. “please tell me it’s not because of my bitch ass brother.”

you bark out a laugh before you can stop yourself, mostly due to the fact that it’s absolutely because of matt. just not for the reason he thinks.

“as if. it was my decision, don’t worry.”

this is only half true. you did cut the poor guy off, but only because matt had essentially instructed you to do so before you guys had sex for the first time a month ago.

and then you hooked up again. and again. and a couple more times after that. neither of you could stop coming back for more apparently.

none of your friends know yet. as much as you want to be honest with them, you haven’t really talked about the details of this little situation. you’re almost positive matt hasn’t been seeing anyone else, but you also haven’t outright asked.

and there’s no use telling everyone about something that might not even be real.

“what made you do that? was the sex bad? is he an asshole?” nick interrogates further, clicking his phone off so his full attention is on you.

you can’t tell if he’s suspicious or if you’re just genuinely paranoid, but you don’t like this line of questioning either way.

“no he’s fine, he just wasn’t doing it. and his breath always smelled for some reason.” you’re lying through your teeth, but his face morphs into an expression of disgust like he’s buying it.

“ew, major turn off.”

“you’re telling me.”

nick sighs and snuggles further into the cushions, resting his head on your shoulder as he stares at the tv.

“well for what it’s worth, i’m sorry it didn’t work out. but who knows, maybe you’ll meet someone sexy at nathan’s tomorrow.” he says.

“yeah, maybe.” you feed into the hypothetical, even though you know that won’t be happening.

at least not if matt sturniolo has a say in it.

-

your music is playing softly over the speaker as you get ready, perched in front of your vanity like a doll. you’ve just finished your makeup when you hear a singular tap on the door.

“can you hurry it up in here?” matt calls as he pushes it open slightly.

you find it funny that he’s always sure to knock, ever since he walked in on you naked that fateful afternoon. even though you’re literally sleeping together now, he makes it a point to not invade your privacy.

“can’t rush perfection, matthew.” you taunt him as you put your palette and brushes back in their rightful place.

he moves further into your room, walking over to stand behind you. he’s dressed up in jeans and that black muscle tee you love so much, tattoos on display as his hands go to knead your shoulders lightly.

“you do look amazing.” he compliments.

“likewise.” you reply before meeting his searing gaze in the reflection of the mirror.

he increases his pressure slightly, digging his fingers into your neck in a steady pattern. you already know what he’s angling at and he hasn’t even spoken.

“you know, we could just stay home.” matt suggests with a smirk.

“c’mon, we can’t keep ditching our friends. they’re gonna get suspicious at some point.” you shake your head and stand up, because the massage is starting to feel a little too good.

“nobody cared when we left early last time.”

you cross your arms over your chest and turn to give him a pointed look. “because you convinced them that i was sick.”

“so i’ll just tell them a different lie.” he shrugs.

“oh my god, i am going to this party with or without you, so you better make up your mind before the uber gets here.” you say over your shoulder, headed out of your room toward the stairs.

“such a brat.” he grumbles, but you hear him following you regardless.

“only for you.”

two hours later you’re standing in the middle of nathan’s living room, dancing along with the typical crowd. nick and madi are on either side of you, both bopping around drunkenly to the beat.

you’ve had three shitty drinks at this point and your head feels a bit fuzzy. you’re positive your cheeks are flushed, which is actually kind of nice.

matt was with you minutes earlier, but he’s ventured off to get another drink. it’s selfish that you miss him every second he’s not around.

it’s just nice having him by your side. sure, it was kind of casual at first, and you didn’t think it was going to develop so quickly. but now whatever is going on between you means a whole lot more.

you like when he asks you to spend the night in his room, or when he saves the last can of redbull for you so you don’t go to work without caffeine. you like that he’s been replacing the flowers he got you every time they start die, the way he insists on driving you places even if it’s out of his way.

you just like him, and it’s more than casual. at least it is to you, and you can’t imagine that at this point he doesn’t feel the same.

but you don’t want to be the one to try and put a label on it. quite frankly, it scares the shit out of you, and you’re still not drunk enough to keep thinking about it in the middle of this party.

you see chris a few feet away against the wall, beer in his hand as he chats animatedly with nathan. you know he has what you’re looking for, so you shout that you’ll be back and head their direction.

they both smile at you as you approach, almost perfectly in sync.

“what’s up!” chris leans down a bit so you can hear him better.

“do you still have that joint you mentioned earlier?” you ask into his ear.

he nods happily, and nathan shoots you both a questioning glance. by the looks of his sleepy eyes, he’s probably already crossed.

“we’re going to smoke!” you fill him in, motioning toward the front door.

nathan nods and tells you he’ll stay back, so the two of you shuffle your way out of the living room, trying to avoid bumping into as many people as possible.

you pass the kitchen, and as your eyes scan the people you spot matt huddled in the corner. he’s talking to a very obviously enthusiastic girl, one that you don’t recognize. your stomach drops at the sight of them, and you hate it.

he doesn’t see you, so you turn your head and keep following behind chris. he’ll stop talking to her soon. he’ll probably even come looking for you instead.

right?

the crowd thins as out by the door, and the two of your step out into the fresh air moments later. the street is relatively quiet, and once the door is shut the noise of the party is muffled. there’s nobody else outside, and you’re grateful.

the other townhouses stare at you as chris crosses the short driveway so he can hide underneath the tree in the yard. you follow his lead, watching as he fishes the lighter and joint out of his front pocket.

“keeping it handy, huh?” you joke.

“you caught me at the right time, i just packed it upstairs.” he smiles before putting it between his lips.

the flame burns the end as he takes a hit, exhaling up toward the sky. you pass it back and forth in silence, both enjoying the momentary break from socialization.

chris clears his throat a minute later, nudging at the grass with his toe absentmindedly. “so, i have a question to ask you.”

he looks over so he can hand the joint back, and your hands shake ever so slightly as you reach out to take it.

“yeah?”

“i think matt is seeing someone. do you know anything about that?” he asks bluntly.

you try to remain calm as you shake your head at him, though it seems impossible. you aren’t prepared for this at all.

“uh, no?”

chris smiles just a little bit, like he’s already got you right where he wants you. “so he doesn’t bring anyone over? it’s just the two of you?”

your narrow your eyes at him. “just ask what you want to ask.”

“are you guys together?”

there it is. you were expecting it this time, and it still makes your stomach flip.

“no. i mean, kind of? we’re not like, dating. we’re just…uh…hooking up.” you’re trying so hard to figure out how to put it that it sounds horrible.

he just laughs. “no you’re not. that kid is in love with you.”

your jaw drops slightly in surprise, and this only makes chris chuckle harder.

“what the fuck are you talking about?” you ask him once he finally calms down.

“i’ve seen how he’s acting lately. so fucking goofy, like he’s got his head in the clouds. he only ever gets all dopey like that when he really likes someone, and i kind of suspected it was you.”

it’s hard to find any words. there’s simply nothing on your brain, no coherent thought to be found. chris gives you a playful nudge.

“it’s okay, i won’t tell anyone if you don’t want me to. but i think you feel the same.” he makes a guess, and he’s very accurate.

you look away as you take your final hit, trying to decide how you want to respond. you exhale the smoke and pass the remainder of the joint back to him.

“okay, you got me. i do want it to be like, a real relationship. and i’ll talk to him about it soon, i promise. just please don’t tell anyone until i do.” you plead.

he wraps an arm around your shoulder, pulling you into a side hug. you relax into him, and you have to admit you’re a bit relieved that at least somebody knows now.

“of course not. i’m here to support you both whenever you’re ready. everyone else will be too.”

“thank you. that makes me feel a lot better, seriously.” you say truthfully as he pulls away.

“good.” he nods in satisfaction, giving you a loopy grin.

“i’ve mooched enough, so i’m gonna go back inside, but thanks again. i owe you a blunt for the reality check.” you point a finger at him as you back up off of the grass.

“i’ll never turn that down.”

the high has taken over as you spin around to walk normally, and it’s nearly impossible to stop smiling. having confirmation that you’re not crazy for feeling the way that you do is wonderful.

you head back inside the house, almost positive that you’d find matt hanging out somewhere with your friends.

but as you pass the kitchen again, you spot him in the same place, leaned up against the end of the counter with a solo cup in hand. it seems like the girl is even closer than she was before.

your face falls immediately. it makes you angry that it’s been so long and he still hasn’t told her to get lost yet. if he wants to be all possessive over you, then you shouldn’t have to act so cool for him.

you’re certainly not feeling collected right now. and he deserves to know that.

you wedge your way around the people chatting and pouring themselves drinks without a second thought. matt sees you coming before you actually reach him, and he looks confused by your irritated expression.

you wrap your fingers around his arm wordlessly, right in the middle of the nameless girl’s sentence. he doesn’t put up a fight. in fact, he’s practically hot on your heels as you pull him back toward the hall.

“uh—hey! we were talking bitch!” she shouts after you.

“don’t care.” you don’t even give her the satisfaction of making eye contact.

there’s really no point. matt is trailing behind you like a puppy, and that’s all that matters. he clearly doesn’t want to be there any more than you want him to.

“what’s going on?” he asks as you maneuver around the outside of the crowded living room, making a beeline for the staircase.

it’s taped off to everyone except your group, in case of emergency.

this feels like one, considering you don’t even care if anyone sees you together. you don’t respond, you just let go of his hand and step over the thin barrier, glancing behind you to see if he’ll follow.

there’s a curious look in his eye, but he does the same.

you continue up the stairs, making sure he has the perfect view of your ass as you go. you can literally feel him staring, which only stokes the fire.

“are you taunting me right now?” matt asks as you reach the second floor.

this makes you pause, and you turn around so you can wrap your hand in his shirt. you yank him into the bathroom, slapping the light switch on with your free hand.

you close the door behind you, which suppresses the booming sound of nathan’s music playing through the speakers.

“what the hell is this?” you uncurl your fist and shove his chest to put some space between you.

his eyebrows shoot up in surprise as he regains his balance and sets his cup down on the counter. you realize you probably spilled some of it by dragging him around, but that’s not your main focus right now.

“what do you mean?”

“don’t you dare play dumb. you can’t stand it when anyone else even breathes near me, so why would you think that i would be okay watching you flirt with some random girl for fifteen minutes? you either want me or you fucking don’t, matt.” you spit, crossing your arms over your chest defensively.

it’s shocking that you’re being this honest with him, but you’re faded and you’ve been pushed beyond your limit.

no use tip-toeing around it now.

“you think just because she came up to me that somehow means i don’t want you?” he asks, and there’s more of an edge to his tone now.

“how am i supposed to know? we haven’t talked about it, whatever this is.” you wave your hand back and forth between the two of you.

a look of understanding passes over his face. “oh, this is about labels, huh?”

this infuriates you more, because that’s not even the point you’re trying to make. he’s aggravatingly calm right now, like he’s so sure of himself.

“look, if you don’t want to be in a real relationship with me, then fine. i don’t care. but i’m not gonna keep exclusively sleeping with just you if that’s the case.”

matt is silent for a moment, eyes darting across your face. you can see him gazing at your lips, and it drives you crazy.

he takes one step forward, staring you down with those pretty blue eyes. even though your height different is relatively small, it still feels like he’s towering above you.

“are you really trying to tell me you wouldn’t care at all if i wanted to see other people?” he asks quietly.

his face is so close, and you breathe in his familiar smoky cologne. it’s dizzying, being this overwhelmingly attracted to someone.

“of course i’d be upset, but there’s not much i can do about it if you don’t feel the same.” your voice is hushed now too, and you wish you didn’t sound so weak.

matt cups your chin gently with one hand, forcing you to keep your focus on him. your heart is slamming against your ribcage now, begging for some kind of relief.

“i want to be with you so bad that it kills me.” he finally admits.

it’s your turn to be stunned, and you stay completely still as his thumb grazes over your bottom lip slowly.

“i had this whole thing planned, i was going to take you to a fancy little restaurant and ask you out like a gentleman. but you just couldn’t wait, could you?” his voice is husky, pupils blown out in lust.

“i…really?” you ask breathlessly.

“really. so what do you think? you wanna be mine?” he goads with a smirk, gripping your face a bit tighter.

it’s normally hard to swallow your pride, especially with matt, but you’re so vulnerable in this moment you can’t tell him anything besides the truth.

“i do.”

“good, because you already are.” he growls before closing the gap between you, lips crashing against yours.

he tastes sweet, like the soda he’s been mixing with vodka all night. it’s a pleasant mess of teeth and tongue as you deepen the kiss, passionate in a way that you’ve never experienced with him before.

his hands travel down to grab at your hips, pressing against you so your lower back bumps against the sink. you tangle your fingers in his hair, pulling enough to elicit a groan.

it vibrates against your mouth, and you feel yourself throb just from that little noise alone. he’s normally not very vocal, but you bring it out of him.

matt’s hands slide up your body, finding their way under the hem of your sheer lace top. his cold rings press against your stomach as he slowly inches higher, leaving goosebumps in their wake. you let go of him, throwing your hands upwards so he can peel the shirt over your head.

“so fucking pretty, just for me.” matt praises as he tucks your hair behind your ear, attaching his lips to your neck seconds later.

you tilt your head back to give him a better angle, sighing in pleasure as he nips at the soft skin. one hand is feeling up your chest as his teeth dig into your collar, tongue sliding over the marks he’s leaving in an attempt to soothe the irritated areas.

you move your own fingers down between both of your bodies, ghosting them over the crotch of his jeans, palming him just a bit. his dick is already straining against your hand, and he hisses a string of curses into your shoulder.

“no more teasing tonight, i need you now.” he grumbles, already out of breath as his hands travel to undo the button of your pants.

you take the lead and slide them down yourself, tearing your thin panties off with them because you want him just as much. it doesn’t seem fair that you’re the only one exposed, so you tug his muscle tee upwards in desperation.

matt doesn’t protest, he just tosses it to the floor with the rest of your discarded clothes. you let your fingers rake over his skin, down his abdomen and over his happy trail until your fingers meet the waistline of his jeans.

you glance up at him through your lashes as you unbuckle his belt, entirely naked now, and he swears he could finish just by looking at you.

the sensation of your hands skimming against his thighs as you drag his jeans and boxers to his ankles makes him twitch. nobody has ever turned him on the way you do, and it’s frightening how good you make him feel.

but you always enjoy everything just as much, because he’s the best dick you’ve ever had. perfect length, enough girth to stretch you out, and he knows exactly how to move to your liking. matt even keeps it trimmed nicely.

the tip glistens with precum, and you pull your hair back with one hand like you’re getting ready to put it in your mouth.

“no, stand back up baby.” he instructs, and the commanding note in his voice makes you push yourself off your knees, extending to your full height.

matt turns you around so you’re facing the mirror, one hand on your side and the other on your back as he forces you to bend at the waist. your forearms press flat against the cool marble counter, and the assertiveness of it all sends a jolt of excitement right to your core.

his palm comes down on the curve of your ass without warning, just hard enough to sting. you let out a whimper, arching your back more as you gaze at him through the reflection.

he pulls his bottom lip between his teeth, smoothing his hand over the place he just hit. his eyes are so dark, so full of desire that it just solidifies the way you feel about him.

“you like that? you want me to be rough?” matt leans over you, cock pressed against you as he speaks into your ear.

“please.” you whine, shifting your hips to try and feel more of him, to feel anything.

he stops your movements immediately and smacks your ass again, this time on the opposite side. it makes you groan in delight, almost involuntarily.

“you’re gonna look at yourself while i fuck you, got it princess?” he says, backing up just a bit so he can take his dick into his own hand and pump a few times.

you nod as you feel him line himself up at your entrance, and you know that at this angle you’re perfectly on display for him.

he pushes himself inside of you in one fluid motion, and you gasp as his fingers squeeze your hip. matt doesn’t give you time to adjust to him like normal. instead he immediately starts to pick up speed, wrapping your hair in his free hand so you can’t look anywhere else besides in front of you.

your lips are parted as you moan, eyes fluttering at the stimulation. you can hear matt grunting behind you, a deliciously dirty sound.

“look at how pretty you are, taking me so well. all fucking mine.” he marvels, rocking your body against him even harder.

skin slaps together, and his pace is making your legs tremble. you can feel the party raging on underneath you, and it’s strangely even hotter in this setting.

“shit, you fill me up so good matt.” you tell him, catching his eyes for a second before he throws his head back.

“fuck.”

he’s hitting it so well, and you can feel yourself tightening around him with every stroke. it’s turning him into an even bigger mess.

“god, if you keep that up i’m not gonna last much longer.” he warns, bucking his hips into you at a slightly different angle.

you cry out at the new sensation, a guttural noise that you didn’t even know you could make.

“i’m so close, right there babe.”

matt listens perfectly, using the hand on your waist to guide you so that you bounce against his thighs in the same spot. you’re a whining mess, and you can’t keep looking in the mirror.

you feel the tears as your eyes screw shut. the fire in your stomach is growing, spreading throughout your whole body. he tugs your roots a little bit more.

“come all over my dick, pretty girl. it’s all yours.”

his words are what send you over the edge, and your body shudders as you feel yourself giving in to the high, releasing all over him.

“fuck, matt, stay inside.” you pant, and he groans loudly.

two more sloppy strokes and you feel him tense, filling you up as he finishes. matt lets go of your hair, dragging his fingers along your shoulders, you back. you look so fucked out, makeup smudged slightly under your eyes, and you both love it.

he pulls out slowly, giving you one last tiny pat on your ass.

you’ve both got stars in your eyes as you stand, and you can feel the wetness pool against your thighs. thank god you’re on birth control. this was a special occasion anyways.

you turn, and matt immediately pulls you in for a kiss. you smile slightly, because you can’t help it.

“come on, i need to get cleaned up.” you pull away slightly.

“fine.” he sighs, but he lets you go regardless.

you wipe yourself off with some toilet paper quickly and flush it while he redresses. you two have been missing for minute now.

you guess it doesn’t really matter. sure, you should probably be discrete about having sex around your friends. but you’re also together. officially.

“so, does this mean i can tell the other girls in your dms to fuck off?” you joke as you put your underwear back on, shimmying into your jeans next.

“you can honestly tell them whatever you want.” matt runs a hand through his hair, smiling at you like a fucking goofball.

you’re just situating your shirt into place when the door comes swinging open, revealing a very drunk nathan. you and matt freeze, completely unsure what to do.

his eyes go wide as he realizes what’s going on, mouth hanging open like he can’t believe it.

“woah. no fucking way”

[storiesfromafan]

Reflection

A/N: Hi, long time no post. My bad. Have had some writers block, which I can't say it gone haha. Will do my best to keep posting once I have done more writing.

This is a sequel to The Argument, for those patiently waiting. Sorry if it's not that good, been working on this for two days. This was the result haha.

Pairing: Mattheo Riddle x Fem!Reader

The first week without Mattheo Riddle was hard, left cold from his words. The second week without Mattheo Riddle was sad, missing his presence and affection. The third week without Mattheo Riddle you focused on your schoolwork and friendships. The fourth week without Mattheo Riddle was spent reflecting on your relationship, and all the red flags that now were so obvious.

               But mixed in with the red flags and toxicity of your relationship were positive and good things. The notes he would pass to you, scribbled in his writing were words that made your heart warm. It wasn’t always his words per say, sometimes borrowed poetry to express what he couldn’t say in his own words. Or how he would always open a door and allow you to enter before him or pull out your chair for you to take a seat. Not to mention when walking the grounds, he would always be ready to put himself in harm’s way to protect you.

Besides all the good things of your relationship, you couldn’t forget the possessive and jealous nature inside Mattheo. Part of you understood the reasoning behind it. But you had chosen him, no one else. Wasn’t that good enough? Apparently not.

               Sitting up in your bed, the rooms curtain’s open and allowing the morning light into your dorm room, you sleepily noted two of your roommate’s were already gone while the remaining girl was dressed, making her bed. Taking that as a sign to get yourself moving, you reluctantly got up and headed for the connecting bathroom. Slowly you woke up as you brushed your teeth and combed your hair, before returning to your room to make your bed and dress for the day. Once happy with everything, you made your way to breakfast.

               Saturday mornings were always the best, for it was the start of the weekend. Which meant no classes. And you could travel into Hogsmeade! You looked forward to going into the small town outside of the school. It was a wonderful way to refresh yourself, and a butterbeer with Mattheo was always good. With that thought you froze, stopping in a hallway not far from The Great Hall. The ache returned to your chest at the thought of your ex-boyfriend.

               How Hogsmeade trips together were what got you through the week. Casual dates at The Three Broomsticks together, cuddled up in a corner drinking butterbeer together. So many fond moments there together. Now it felt cold, gloomy.

               No, you told yourself. He does not get to take that away from you!

               Agreeing with yourself you ventured on to breakfast, before making plans with Pansy to go to Hogsmeade together. The walk to the town was mostly quiet, except for small talk. Pansy wasn’t sure what to say to you. After your breakup, you spent the night talking and crying to the dark-haired girl. Pansy did everything she could to be there for you; listening, cursing Mattheo, comforting you and holding you up. You might have pulled the pin, and Mattheo would have been hurting, but you were the one to have exploded, heart being blown to smithereens.

               The sudden familiar sounding laughter hit your ears, and upon looking ahead of you and Pansy was Draco, his lackeys and Mattheo. Seeing him sent a cold shiver down your spine. You had done everything outside of classes and meals, to avoid him. But here he was now, before you as you moved closer to Hogsmeade. The Slytherin males were hanging out around one of the entrances to the town. You averted your gaze of your ex, while Pansy reluctantly stopped to speak with Draco when he called her over. You had planned to continue into Hogsmeade and wait for Pansy to catch up. But Draco had other plans.

               “(Y/L/N)!” Draco called. “What’s the rush? Unless it’s Riddle, you’re avoiding” he laughed, along with his lackeys while Pansy scolded him.

               You stopped, taking a deep breath to calm yourself. “Not at all Malfoy. Just wanted a chance to get a butterbeer or two before you lot pile into The Three Broomsticks and ruin the atmosphere”.

               Yes, it was snarky. But he deserved it. Draco was always a pompous ass, but that’s thanks to his daddy. Yet you thought how worse Draco was to Mattheo. Your ex could be a pompous ass, but it wasn’t consistent. He was only a pompous ass when guys were around you, which still wasn’t a good excuse. Mattheo didn’t walk around like his shit didn’t stink, nor did he throw around his father’s name or anyone close to him with any shred of power. He was like everyone else.

               “I’ll meet you in Hogsmeade Pansy” was all you said before turning from the group and continuing into the gloomy town.

               Mattheo watched you walk away, again. And just like the first time it hurt. Any moment with you around, not talking to you or holding you, hurt his heart. He curses himself every second for what he did and said. His stupid mouth gets him into a lot of trouble, but this time it lost him the one person who mattered.

               With a small comment of seeing them later, Mattheo put his hands in his pockets and took off to the Shrieking Shack. He wanted to be alone. He needed to catch himself before he did something stupid. This past month Mattheo spent his time in his own kind of hellish reflection. It was mostly spent recalling those words he said to you:

               “Oh please. Any guy gives you attention and you’d run off with them. After all I showed the slightest interest, and you became a puppy that would follow me everywhere”.

               “Y/N, you would let any guy have you if it meant not being alone”.

               Leaning against a tree, hoping he was out of anyone’s line of view, Mattheo clutched at his brown curly locks and pulled them. The same curly locks you would mindlessly play with; twirling a curl around your finger, brushing back from his face, pulling when he made a smartass comment. Now they were just another reminder.

               He felt himself cracking from the most interaction with you in a month. And he had no one to blame then himself. And blame himself he did, religiously.

xoxoxox

               You finally caught up with Pansy some time after you ventured on. You both did some light shopping in relative silence, before retiring to The Three Broomsticks. Perched in a quiet corner, warm butterbeer in hand, you both savored your first taste of the reward at the end of a Hogsmeade trip.

               “Why does butterbeer go down so well?” Pansy mused, not entirely hoping for an answer.

               “Maybe its being out in the cool weather all day, and the warmth is a welcome comfort” you replied looking at your drink in thought.

               Maybe it was the company too that decides how well a butterbeer goes down. Drinking with those you are close to makes it better, a social drink with good banter. But then there is sharing a butterbeer with someone dear to you, the person you adore more than anyone. Memories of cuddling up to Mattheo came back to mind. You stiffened, taking a sharp breath, that Pansy didn’t miss. She put down her butterbeer before placing her hand over yours, making you jump.

               “I know” she said softly, voice calm with a touch of knowing. “It’s alright to remember the times with him. It can either be a reminder of what’s missing or a lesson to learn from. Ultimately, it’s your choice on which one it is”.

               With that Pansy removed her hand and went back to drinking her drink. Not mentioning him again. She said her piece. For Pansy had seen the torment Mattheo was putting himself through. As well as your own heartache. She wasn’t fond of what Mattheo said, or how he acted. But she knew you both were meant to be together. Yet she wouldn’t get involved. You both needed to work through it yourselves and make the decisions yourselves.

               No sooner had you finished your butterbeer did the loud voices of Draco and his lackeys came floating into The Three Broomsticks. They took to a set of tables across the room from you both. The somewhat comfortable atmosphere you and Pansy had been present for was now ruined by the loud chatting and laughter. And in the end, you both decided it was time to head back to the castle.

               By this time there were a few other students on their way back to the castle, and you both had a couple other Slytherin girls join you on your walk back. As you came to the joining road that led to The Dark Forest, you decided to hang back and watch the lake. Pansy shot you a concerned look, but with a small smile from you, she nodded and let you be.

               So, leaning against the wall, you looked out over the lake. After today’s trip you needed some processing time. You wanted nothing more than to push back the thoughts of Mattheo, push everything into a book that you would slam close and file on a shelf in your mind, putting it in the past. But its funny how the mind and heart work against that wish. Pansy words had stuck with you, shedding new light on it all. You did the only thing that you could think to deal with her words, mentally you made a Pro’s and Con’s list.

               When you had completed the list, the Con’s had outweighed the Pro’s but two things. That meant it was best to leave Mattheo as a lesson learned. With that thought you felt the ache in your heart stronger then ever before. Why did it hurt to label him a lesson?

               Because you love him, you told yourself. It’s hard to put that part away. Love is not something you can turn off or throw away.

               You glared out at the lake, not so happy with yourself. Because you know its right. You love Mattheo, and you can’t put that away in a book on a shelf in yourself. And you also know that no one is perfect. Even thought Mattheo was a pompous ass, jealous and possessive, there was more to him. His action always spoke loudly, he cared and took care of you. He never made you feel scared of him, just angry by what he would say or do. You felt safe, secure and loved with him.

               The sound of crunching snow caught your attention, standing up you turned and expected to see another student. Unfortunately, it was none other than Mattheo. He stopped in his tracks. You both stared at each other, eyes locked together. Neither knew what to do or say. Finally, you came back to your senses, and flight mode kicked in. Turning from the gorgeous male before you, you started to make a move to head for the castle.

               Mattheo was quick to react, moving forward and grabbing your arm, stopping you in your tracks. You turned to look at him, silently asking for him to let you go. But he wouldn’t. He wasn’t sure why he did this; he had no idea what to say to you. Mattheo had decided to admit defeat. He slowly released your arm.

               “Sorry” Mattheo said softly, voice a touch croaky.

Which for the first time led you to take a good look at the boy before you. His hair looked to have lost some shiny, while his curled looked droopy. He looked paler than usual, with light bags under his eyes, that also looked red. Had Mattheo been crying? There was another round of aching in your chest. Mattheo was hurting like you.

“I know I’m the last person you want to speak too…” he paused, silently giving you a chance to tell him to get lost and walk away, but you didn’t. “I don’t know why I stopped you, if I’m being honest”.

You nodded your head, not sure what to say. Or even if you should speak.

“Seeing you today, earlier…” he ran a hand threw his droopy curled locks, “it’s had me thinking…”

Again, you nodded. Now choosing to keep your lips tightly together. Something told you to stay quiet and listen.

“It hurt, its all hurt really. And I know it’s my own fault. Can’t keep my big mouth shut, ha-ha”. His hand dropped from his hair. “I can finally register that my words have consequences”.

Pro – can take ownership over what he did.

“For that…I am sorry” Mattheo said, eyes looking right into your own. “I am sorry for what I said…have ever said to upset you or doubt me or anger you. I am sorry for never seeing what I had before me; someone who chose me and wanted me. I am sorry that I got jealous and possessive, driving away any male around you”.

Pro – apologising for what he done, without any excuses.

“But I won’t say I’m sorry for loving you” his voice cracked. “Loving you is the only thing I won’t apologise for, because I fell in love with you. From Your kindness, caring, affection, smartass-ness, unapologetic self for putting up with me”.

Pro – loving you, all of you.

“So, I get it…if you want to slap me or punch me – just no kicking below the belt, please” Mattheo joked, or was it more concern you’d do it.

Instead of doing what he thought you would, you stepped up to him. You tilted your head up, eyes boring into his. The expression on your face was blank, which was slightly scaring Mattheo. Taking a deep breath, you slowly released said breath.

“Before you showed up, I had made a Pro’s and Con’s list. And the Con’s had won” you stated softly, watching the light dim in Mattheo’s eyes at your words. “But just now you provided with me three new Pro’s, which looks to have changed the outcome”.

Hope rose in Mattheo’s eyes, while he held his breath.

“If you can promise me to do your best to work on your jealous and possessiveness, I promise to give you all my love and would never have anyone but you”.

That was all it took. Without so much as a word, Mattheo pulled you into a tight hug. “I promise to do anything and everything to prove to you that I am worthy of you”.

Pulling back, you placed a hand on his cheek. How he had missed your touch. You lent in and placed a soft kiss on Mattheo’s lips. He wasn’t a lesson to learn from. He was the person you were meant to be with, plain and simple. Even if he drives you crazy.

A/N: as always, open to feedback. As well as requests :)

[uglypastels]

The Boy is Mine (Z's edition) // e.m.

a/n—guess who's baaaaack. Yeah, I didn't expect it either, but a long and lonely day and some scrolling through this hell site made me stumble upon a few posts that actually made me excited to write again, so here I am.

This fic is a part of @carolmunson's blurb challenge. I had so much fun writing this, and thank you so much, Carol, for sparking that inspiration back in me.

word count: 2.4k

warning: a LOT of fluff. Eddie and reader being menaces towards each other. teasing. playfighting. slight spanking. innuendos and suggestive talk. Swearing. possibly rusty writing as this i haven't written anything in months (i think that's it??)

He was sunshine, I was midnight rain -Midnight Rain, Taylor Swift

The downpour came completely out of nowhere as if someone up in the heavens was throwing buckets and buckets of ice-cold water at the same pace. The entire morning had been a perfect summer’s day, bright and sunny, warming up the ground underneath you, toasting all rooms and cars. It’s what made you want to go out in the first place. You had enough of sitting on the couch every weekend and practically dragged Eddie out of the house by the sleeve of his baggy sweatshirt. 

Now he was the one hauling you back inside, both of you looking like a pair of drenched cats. 

‘I swear to God, if you don’t get your ass over here right this second!’ He shouted through the rain, his hair sticking to his face, water dripping down onto the floorboards of the trailer. He just ran inside, holding an arm out to keep the door open. 

‘I’m coming.’ you said, with none of the urgency that Eddie held in his tone. The rain, while cold, felt nice and refreshing against your face. Taking a deep breath in, you let the summer night air fill your lungs, almost forgetting about your impatient boyfriend who was standing waiting for you on the threshold. He called out your name, but you weren’t listening.

‘I’m serious, sweetheart,’ Eddie leaned against the doorframe, growing tired as he watched you twirl around in the rain. ‘If you don’t stop and come inside right this second, we’re gonna have a problem.’ 

‘I really doubt it,’ you shouted back, making another turn on your heels as the rain caught your cheeks. You couldn’t quite explain what made you act like this, but it was a freeing feeling to just stand outside and let Mother Nature weep her sweet, sweet tears.

‘Oh yeah, and why’s that?’ Eddie challenged, a smirk pulling at the corner of his lips. 

‘Because you’re too much of a pussy to come outside and get wet again.’ It was a known fact that Eddie hated rain or water in any form, really, touching him. If there was a way for a person to take dry showers, he would be the first in line to try them. There was something truly unexplainable about him but truly endearing, so who could blame you if you poked fun at the way he groaned when he couldn’t dry himself off properly after a swim or moaned about his hair being a mess?  

Even from the distance of the driveway and the gloomy twilight as the sun set, you could see the blank stare he was sending your way; that are you shitting me right now glare only he could provide so casually and yet charmingly. 

You poked your tongue out teasingly at him as you twirled around once more, arms spread wide open to receive another bucket load of rain on top of you. 

‘C’mon, you’re gonna get sick!’ your boyfriend made another attempt at getting you inside, but if you were one thing, it was stubborn. All spun out, you leaned against the hood of his van. Perhaps a bit too provocative, with your chest forward, as you took deep breaths. You weren’t sure how soaked through your shirt was yet and if the water made the material see-through, although, seeming from Eddie’s reaction, it just might have been. You had closed your eyes but dared to shoot a glance up at him briefly and just about caught him cursing to himself. 

You had spent most of the day driving around, stopping here and there to grab something to eat, but it had been right as you decided to stroll past Lover’s Lake that the clouds formed above your heads, and the rain started to fall. Eddie, ever the romantic, ran back to the van like a startled alley cat, quickly disappearing into his comfortably, dry enclosure, and he had run just as quickly back into the trailer once you got there. Overall, besides his hair, he suffered minor damage. His clothes were already nearly fully dry again, but the rain had only gotten worse since then, and there was no way he would—

Your boyfriend cursed again, shaking his head in amusement, as he pulled his sweater over his head and threw it behind him to the ground. You knew as soon as he made that one step past the threshold. You were fucked. 

‘Don’t you dare,’ he said the second he saw you hesitantly step back. Ironically, his threat spurred you on to keep moving, and before you knew it, the two of you were making laps around the car through the muddy ground. 

‘C’mhere you,’ Eddie said, and despite your best efforts, you both knew it was inevitable that he would eventually catch up to you. You shrieked out as your feet suddenly left the ground, and you were hoisted up over his shoulder. 

‘Eddie!’ you hit him on the back, getting bumped up and down as he walked proudly to the trailer door. ‘Put me down!’ 

‘Just so you can run away again? No way, princess,’ he chuckled, adjusting his grip on you, making you bounce around even more. His hand rested on the back of your bare thigh, the shorts you were wearing that day doing a not-so-tremendous job of covering you up. God, the walk up to the trailer had never felt that long.

‘Edmund Lorenzo Munson,’ you stated, ‘put me down– ahh!’ you squealed as you felt the sharp snap of his hand against your ass. ‘You did not just do that!’

‘You bet I did,’ and to prove his point, he did again, this time a little harder. ‘I told you it would only mean trouble for you if you stayed out there.’

‘Don’t be so dramatic,’ you rolled your eyes just in time before he put you back on the ground. The trailer was warm from a long, sunny day, and the usual ambience of the clock above the TV was overruled by the harsh tap-tap-tapping of the rain on the roof. 

‘Oh, I’m dramatic,’ Eddie scoffed, ‘says Miss Let-me-run-around-in-the-rain-until-I-catch-pneumonia.’

‘Ok, first of all,' you held up a finger. ‘That’s not even true. I was out there for about five minutes, so don’t be like that. Second,’ you pointed up a second digit. 'That was dramatic. And third…’ You had finally let yourself look down at his naked, rain-soaked chest. ‘Actually, never mind.’

‘No, no, finish your thought, princess.’ His arms twisted around your waist, swaying the two of you from side to side. His lips were stretched in a wicked grin. Perhaps you were making him forget the state he was in and that he was, in fact, supposed to be mad at you, at least a little bit.

‘You know what, I suddenly forgot what I wanted to say.’ You shrugged and slipped out of his hold, reaching the couch. Once sat, you had the perfect view of your boyfriend, who stood towering over you in nothing but his ripped jeans, arms now crossed as he shook his head in disbelief. His rain-kissed skin was shimmering in the room's low light, and his hair was once again drenched, with curls still dripping water onto his shoulders.

‘Why am I not surprised by that,’ Eddie’s smile persisted as he looked you up and down, a line of worry crossing his brows. ‘I’ll get you some dry clothes.’ And with that, he turned around but did not even take three steps before a small pillow hit the small of his back. But Eddie, accustomed to your hijinks as well as you were to his, barely flinched and affectionately put up his middle finger. 

‘Love you too!’ you shouted after him, already peeling off your shirt. Now that you were inside, the room's warmth started tingling your body, and the dampness of your clothes felt suffocating. Not that you would ever admit to the goosebumps rising on your arms—no, not to Eddie, at least.

A few seconds later, Eddie returned wearing a black t-shirt and sweatpants and holding a stack of fresh clothes for you. He threw them at you one by one, but with some effort, you caught everything despite his terrible aim. You then considered throwing your wet clothes back at him, but the poor boy had suffered enough, so you quickly got dressed. In the meantime, Eddie headed over to the kitchen, looking for something in the cupboards.

‘I was going to suggest making something to drink to warm us up,’ he answered before you even got the opportunity to ask, ‘but it seems I run out of, like, nice cups.’ Nice,  in this case, really just meaning “clean”. He looked around some cupboards while you walked up to him, wrapping yourself around him and looking over his arm at the pile of dishes.

‘There, I used that one this morning.’ You pointed at a mug that had once been clearly hand-painted by a kindergarten Eddie. The wonky blots of colour almost matched the inside, which was stained with coffee remnants from that morning.

Eddie picked it up, hesitating, ‘you sure?’

‘Yesh, of course, just rinse it off, you dork.’

While Eddie got busy making what you hoped would be hot chocolate, you busied yourself by looking through the other cupboards for something to eat. ‘Do you have anything sweet in here?’ You were still looking around the shelves when Eddie pulled your chin in his direction and pecked a kiss onto your lips. 

‘I meant more like cookies or something, but thank you.’

‘Yeah, I think we got a pack of those iced biscuits around here somewhere.’ Indeed, on top of the highest shelf, which he knew you wouldn’t be able to reach, there was an unopened pack of sugar-vanilla-icing-coated cookies. By the time Eddie handed you your mug of hot chocolate, you had already eaten two, dipping your third one in the drink. Knowing Eddie, he would have already poured in some colder milk for you, leaving you with no need to be hesitant on your first sip. The beverage warmed you up from the inside, and you couldn’t help but let out a satisfied sigh of relief. 

‘What?’ you looked up at Eddie, feeling his gaze on you, but as soon as you addressed him, his eyes focused on his own drink.

‘Nothing.’ He leaned casually against the counter.

‘No, no, you were clearly thinking something so just spill it out.’

He made you wait by taking one long sip of his hot chocolate (extra cinnamon). He leaned forward to grab a cookie, but you quickly pulled them away, knowing he was trying to prolong your wait for an answer. 

‘Fine,’ he smiled, ‘I was just thinking that you’re so fucking cute when you’re stubborn.’

‘Try again, loverboy,’ you replied, unimpressed. 

‘It’s true!’

‘It’s not, and we both know it,’ you glared at him with narrowed eyes. ‘So just tell me.’ 

‘It was, actually,’ he stole the cookies back from you, taking one. His eyes never left yours as he scraped the sugary vanilla icing off the top with his teeth. You both tried keeping a serious face, but that was simply never an option for the two of you. It was just the question of who was first to break. 

You kept looking at him with your unimpressed and unconvinced look, trying hard to push back the smile, much like he was most likely. 

‘Ok fine,’ he bit into the biscuit. ‘I was just thinking, I can’t believe that you even make your biscuits wet. Like, that is actually horrid.’

‘Are you fucking kidding me?’ You laughed, exasperated, finally cracking down on your serious look. ‘Eddie? Seriously?’

‘Yes! I mean, look at it,’ He pointed at the cookie you just pulled out of your drink. Half of it was darker as it soaked up the liquid, the icing slightly melting off, too. ‘It’s all soggy and gross, and you like that?’ 

‘You need to get yourself checked out, Munchie.’ You bit into the “soggy and gross” biscuit, enjoying the chocolatey infusion of the baked good. 

‘Very funny.’ He slurped his hot chocolate until he drained the last sips out of the mug and placed it down on the counter, nearly pushing off a stack of plates. You weren’t far behind him, finishing your own drink and placing the dish back as well. The two of you were shuffling around the small kitchen space, manoeuvring past each other until you wrapped your arms around him, engulfing him in a tight embrace. Eddie kissed the top of your head as you murmured a sweet “thank you”.

‘For what?’ He asked. 

‘For everything.’ You said against his chest. ‘Taking me out today, the hot chocolate, making sure I don’t die from pneumonia.’

‘Well, it’s still early.’ He corrected your last point, and you let your teeth grace over his chest, nipping him lightly. 

‘Ow!’ he laughed through his shock and pain. ‘Did you just bite me?’

‘No.’ You said, mouth right against the fabric of his shirt. 

‘No,’ Eddie mimicked your mumbling, pressing his face against your hair. ‘God, you’re so annoying.’

‘Am not!’ you gasped. ‘You are.’ 

‘I am?’ He raised his brow, and stupidly, you agreed.

‘Yes.’

‘Ok, fine.’ and so, you were up in the air again. ‘I’ll show you just how annoying I can be.’ With you over his shoulder once more, he brought you into his bedroom, dropping you into free fall down onto the mattress. You bounced as the springs creaked underneath. 

The room was a mess, and you had to push an abundance of random objects off the bed as you made your way to the top of it. Shirts, underwear, folders, guitar picks, pencils and books all fell to the ground. Eddie got onto the mattress, too, falling to his knees upon it and slowly making his way to you. You were all too aware of his tactics, knowing he was trying to take the slow approach to tease you. So, instead, you tried to make yourself a bit more comfortable, propping up the pillows for a better headrest. Picking one up, you noticed the little brown notebook lying there. 

‘Dear Diary,  God, Harrington is so hot. I swear I just want to take his big fat—’ You started making up things as you flipped the pages, but before you could read into any of the actual lyrics or campaign ideas that Eddie had jotted down, he ripped the notebook out of your hands and threw it across the room, falling somewhere onto his desk into a pile of cassettes. 

‘I hate you.’ He said with a smile, his hair now tickling your cheeks as it dangled down in semi-wet strands. 

‘Hate you more.’ You pulled him in by the collar, kissing him passionately, continuing your chaotic yet perfect day until the late hours of the night.

the end.

my own analysis on the challenge - i feel like "my Eddie" is different each time I write him, even when writing for no particular au, but I usually I do try to make him a little bit goofy and awkward, always in on the joke and hyper and just.. .cute, ya know haha. I also always love to add in random ideas about him, so that's how we get hydrophobic!eds here, but he's also totally got a major sweet tooth, and yes, his middle name is Lorenzo. i don't make the rules.

I also feel like setting the setting as a "romantic" night will really show what people consider romantic in terms of personal preference, which should be super interesting to read.

thank you so much for reading!

if you want to check out more of my writing, feel free to do so here

and all the other stories from this challenge are somewhere around here

and if you enjoyed this fic, please remember that the best way to support writers is to reblog and comment <3 and my inbox is also always open if you feel like talking more :))

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[pepsiluvr0209]

*shuffling...*

Now playing: Step on me by pepsiluvr0209

WARNINGS: Angst, mentions of alcohol and cheating

FAKE CHRIS!!!

Chris Sturniolo x Reader

ₓ˚. ୭ ˚○◦˚.˚◦○˚ ୧.˚ₓ

"Oh, I think you're standing on my left foot."

He loves me. He gives me flowers, he says I’m pretty. He holds me at night and hugs me in the mornings. He opens the door for me and carries me to bed. He kisses my forehead and tells me how much he can’t live without me.

But he also lies. He shouts and throws things. He makes me believe something I know is not right. And he cries. He breaks down and sobs.

Sometimes he doesn't talk to me but when he does it’s like honey dripping from his soft lips. He loves me-

“I don’t fucking love you!” His soft hair is strewn everywhere, eyes blown out wide and hands shaking in overwhelming emotion.

Fame got to my baby’s head. He stumbles through the door late, belt undone and beer in his unsteady hand. Sometimes he doesn’t even make it to the bed, so I make his home the couch.

"It's hurting but that's okay…

I was in your way."

“It hurts.” “I know.” I coo, using all my force to lift him up from his underarms, dragging his seemingly lifeless body to the sofa, acquiring all of my strength to rest his soft head on the pillow. Swallowing the pride I desperately lost all those years ago, I reached for a blanket, knowing that putting him in what was once our bed, would result in me on the floor. Again, and again, and again. As I’m tucking him in, he opens his eyes and I see ‘him’. The boy I met in freshman year. Wide eyed and full of excitement. Before he even wanted to touch a single drink, shrinking up in disgust everytime someone mentioned alcohol, before he had everyone at his feet and it was just me and him. My happy boy. Full of hopes and dreams, and I think, 7 years later, only he knows what life is like once you’ve achieved the things you’ve dreamt about. Is it dull? Does it make you neglect me? Or did you just fall out of love? “I don’t understand how you don’t hate me.” He whispers. I glance up at him, and he seems sincere. “I could never hate you.” A pathetic lie, but at this moment I love him and I fear I always will, no matter how many girls he sleeps with, no matter how many days he hates me, my love only gets heartbreakingly stronger and it kills me inside. You're not who you once were, but then again, neither is he.

"Oh, I think your holding the heart of mine."

“God Y/N, what do you actually bring to the table? I’ve got girls fucking me left and right and what the actual fuck do you do here?” He drops his gaze to stare you dead in the eyes. “Are you really that pathetic Y/N?” He tilts his head. “Waiting for me… If your whole fucking existence is to pick me up when I fall, do you know how fucking sad that is!?” He’s picked up into a shout, letting everything out. And I let him. “I know you're not dumb, you never were. Fuck, you were the smartest person I knew in school. You,” And he threw a finger at me. “Would never, ever let anybody run over you but what are you doing now!? Being a fucking housewife? A fucking caretaker? Do. You. Know. How. Selfish. That. Is? Do you!? Because I’ll tell you what, now you’ve left me with guilt Y/N… you have… And this,” And he gestures to the scenery around him. The gloomy kitchen walls, the freezing breeze which you can’t tell if it’s coming from the open window or the dark stare he has trained on you. The marks on the carefully painted walls and the shards of shattered porcelain and glass, creating a mosaic of pure heartbreak around you. He takes a deep breath. “This is what my life is now. You hear me? Mine. N-Not yours, it was never meant to be yours.”

“It could’ve been ours, Chris. It could’ve been-”.

“No it fucking couldn’t.” He casually walks up to you, crouching down slightly to be directly at your level. “And you know why Y/N? You fucking know why? Because I don’t fucking love you!”

"Squeeze it apart that’s fine."

"Go on and step on me…."

He could barely hear it. But it was there. Regardless of the cracks in your voice and the muted decibels he could hear it, and did it break his goddamn fucking heart. “I do.”

“No you don’t.” He mutters, shaking his head and moving away from you facing the wall. “Anybody with fucking braincells would’ve left by now,” He tilts his head, “But you still stay and I don’t know why.”

“Because you're still you Chris, I know it.” You softly cry. Your plea carries through your own waves of sorrow and neglect.

He just stares at the wall ahead of him. “What the fuck does that mean?”

You sniffle and catch your breath. “I just… You broke me Chris.”

He turns to look at you, eyes softening. Your sweet boy’s on the verge of breaking. “I don’t know how it got this way.” He whispers.

You step up to your broken boy and wrap your arms around him. He’s forgotten what it’s like to touch you, to smell your perfume and god, is it enough for him to just start bawling. He knows how bad he’s treated his girl, fuck he hasn’t even treated you, it’s just been you. Always been you.

“Chris, I don’t know who I am anymore. But I lost myself ages ago. You made me someone I know people would sh-shake their head at and laugh at. ‘Poor girl. Waiting around for someone who doesn’t love her. Who treats her like shit.’” He only holds you tighter. “You're right.” You sob. “Do whatever you want, do whatever you fucking want because I’ve earned my title now.”

He inhales and I hear it. “Don’t let me go.”

He loves me.

"Free to be all that you want to be.

...Do what you want with me"

ₓ˚. ୭ ˚○◦˚.˚◦○˚ ୧.˚ₓ

Fuck step on me, play DEATH my melanie fr bc guess whose backkk!

Also sorry this is so short, I just wanted to write something hehe

Thank you for all the love of white ferrari, I hope this is good and made you feel something ���

Also thanks sm for over 100 followers <3

[shatcey]

Dark IF (Harrison)

William Harrison

@.archiveikemen made a wonderful translation of the prologue to this event. I recommend reading it in advance so that there are no questions about how we got into this story.

@.kurishiri has compiled an amazing masterlist on this event. I'm doing summaries, so I'm not there. If you prefer to read the full translation, you have that option as well. Not necessarily for this story… This is the main reason why I'm making a summary to fill in the missing parts.

Before I start, I wanna say that for some magical reason (I believe it's fate) I read two stories in which Victor and Harrison are present. And it feels like I'm reading a continuation of the same story. To some extent, this is true. Ally, it's not what you think. I mean, I was destined to read those two stories, not that Vivi or Harry… I don't even wanna finish this sentence…

(clears throat)

This time… there is no feeling that we should read bitter ending first. This is a completely different ending, and it seems final, nothing will remain after it. It's very sad, and if you don't wanna cry, I recommend scroll to the premium one.

Warning(!!!): blood and mention of death.

Kate is running after someone. The glass slipper slipped off her foot, as expected, and the magic changed her dress, but it's not that important. She's running after someone… She follows him into the woods and looks around. There's no one there, and she can't see the castle lights anymore.

Suddenly, a voice asks her why she is here. She looks in that direction and meets the gaze of bright green eyes. Kate honestly replies that she followed him. He looks stunned. Then she asks what his name is. He replies that it is the lying Fox Harrison. Kate thought he looked gloomy when he said that. When he asked her why she followed him…

Here we go… our continuation of William's bitter ending…

Harrison looked surprised for a moment. Kate tried to remember where she might have met him, but she couldn't remember anything. He replied that yes, it is (a liar). But Kate couldn't stop wondering why she was feeling so nostalgic…

He offered her to walk her home, and on the way she talked about herself non-stop. How she appeared here, what she has to looking for, he listened to her very carefully, but he didn't seem to want to talk about himself.

When Kate saw her house in the distance, she suddenly felt lonely and upset. When he said goodbye and turned to leave, Kate grabbed his sleeve. It seemed to her that if she let him go now, she would never see him again.

He asked her if she hadn't talked enough. No, that's not the case, she wanted to thank him for listening to her so attentively. She asked him if she could see him again.

No, no, no, mister! It won't work with us. She remembers you, sort of, and we all know there's nothing to hate you for.

Kate agrees with me and tells him the same thing (the last part). And she added that, of course, she continues to look for what is missing, but she would like to see him every day and talk about casual things so that she can forget about her problems. She thinks that only in such moments she can become herself again. The silence drags on, and she sadly asks if that means "no". But he patted her on the head and add...

You're not stalking her, are you? It's not that creepy if it's you, but still… It's very suspicious that you'll show up as soon as she calls you.

Finally, he released his sleeve from her grasp and left, saying "good night, Kate."

Kate returned to her room. In my opinion, it's too decent one for the Cinderella. She writes in her diary about what happened to her. She has been keeping a diary since she came to this world. By the time she finished writing about the ball, the pages had run out. And she started a new diary with a description of the meeting with Harrison.

And suddenly Kate realized that she didn't remember telling him her name… How does he know that?

A week later

Kate calls his name in the woods. Harrison said irritably: "Again?". Kate remembers that since the day they met, she has been calling him every time something happens to her. He pointed out that she shouldn't spend so much time with him. She still hadn't found what was missing. She feels pang of guilt, but assures him that she is doing her best.

He took the basket she was carrying and asked if she was going on a picnic today. He led her to a beautiful field of flowers.

He mentioned that the prince had been looking for someone recently. The woman who wore the glass slippers. No way! We're in Cinderella, and the prince was looking for someone? Who could it be?

Kate thinks he was looking for her. And in a happy ending, she should marry a prince. And maybe if she gets a happy ending, she'll find what was missing. She noticed how concerned Harry looked and changed the topic.

She can't remember the lying Fox in the Cinderella. No one remembers because… he doesn't have a role. The lying fox has always been hated. He can travel between fairy tales, but he cannot be a character in any of them. There is no fairy tale with a lying fox. Kate was terribly angry. Why didn't such a kind and wonderful person have a fairy tale? She took her diary and started writing something in it.

She tells him that people just don't know how wonderful he is, and she really doesn't understand how anyone can hate him.

The prince appears. Of course, he needed to spoil this wonderful moment.

The prince looked at her and immediately recognized her as the person he was looking for. Kate looked at Harry and noticed how dark his eyes were. She reflexively grabbed his sleeve. I like that part of hers. Don't let him slip away, girl!

The prince noticed Harry and told her that she shouldn't spend time with this "filthy creature". Another person who asks to be punched. This is a rather disturbing tendency.

Kate thinks that despite the fact that she is Cinderella now and should marry the prince, as soon as she noticed that Harry bit his lip, she hugged him. She thinks it's not her happy ending. So she tells the prince that she cannot respond to his feelings.

I rephrased it a bit, originally it was "my happy ending is not about being with you" but I think it's more appropriate to talk about the happy ending she was thinking about. Despite the ending of the fairy tale imposed on her, she doesn't consider it happy. Maybe I'm wrong.

She gets up, grabs Harry's hand and runs away. Good girl! if you can't solve the problem, run away from it. Good advice from Ally.

They're running towards the cliff. I don't like this place… this is already a bad sign. Harry tells her to go back to the prince. He told her that if she chose him, she would not find what was missing. But if she chooses a prince, she might find it. She said she knew that. But she's only happy when she's with him.

The prince appears. A persistent bastard.

She wants to retreat, but there's only a cliff behind her. Prince felt sorry for her that the fox had deceived her. And he said he had to kill him, or her, or both. This guy is really crazy. He took a sword and stabbed someone through. Kate and Harry fell off a cliff.

Bitter ending

Harry hugged Kate so that nothing would happen to her as they rolled down the hill. They fell into a shallow river. Kate thought that the water in this river was the same color as Harry's eyes. She looked around and found that he was lying a little away. She gasped and ran up to him. He clutched his stomach, trying to stop the bleeding, but it was no use. He opened his eyes and smiled at her.

No, she's not, but he is… She remembered that the prince's sword was definitely pointed at her, but Harry protected her. And even after that… He protected her the whole time they were falling off the cliff.

He told her that she had been here thousands of times. She was in Cinderella, Alice, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty. And every time she had to find what was missing. She did it over and over again, and he could only watch her.

He explained that in this world, if she had a bad ending, she would return to her original world. And at that moment, her memories are erased.

So he lied… they had met many times before.

He asks her to return to her world, forget everything and be happy. She doesn't want that… He wipes her tears, says he loves her, and… dies.

She begs him to open his eyes, after all, he's lying, it must be a lie. But… he's already gone. She had been crying on his chest for who knows how long. Suddenly she heard footsteps.

Victor, do something!

No, not that!

He told her that this was what Harry had asked him to do. Bring her back to her world and never return her here again. But if she comes back, she'll forget Harry, and she doesn't want that. She said she loves Harrison and that's probably why she's coming back to this world… she wanted to see him again.

Despite the fact that everyone hated him, despite the fact that he had no place in any fairy tale, Harrison was the main character in her fairy tale.

Victor took the small key that hung on Harrison's chest and handed it to Kate.

This is also not what I asked for. I should have been more precise from the very beginning.

She doesn't remember how much time has passed since then. She continues to wander through this distorted fairy-tale world in the form of a lying fox, who cannot be a character in any fairy tale. Unable to change story, she just wishes of a happy ending and is overwhelmed by her helplessness.

After another bad ending, she returns to the river and lies down in shallow waters. In her slumber, she continues to dream of a happy ending that will never come true. "I love you, Harrison".

Premium ending

The prince's sword pierced through her… She was lying on the bank of a shallow river, and Harrison next to her looked like he was about to cry. She looked down and saw that there was a lot of blood flowing down the river.

Harry asked why she was protecting him. This time, the prince pointed the sword at Harry, and the moment she realized it, she stepped between them. No, really, girl, dodge! Fall to the ground, throw the sword aside… Do something so you DON'T die. Why do you always act like you have 9 lives?

Kate answered Harry's question that you don't need a reason to protect the person you love. Harry desperately push the wound on her stomach. The moment he thought that if he died, she would just return to her world world and forget about him. He explained to her that this was not the first time she had come to this world in search of something was missing.

She's been through a lot of bad things, and he's watched her die many times… She finally understood why she was feeling so nostalgic. She thinks that if she dies, she will forget about him.

Harry says that as long as she's happy, it doesn't matter how he feels. But he doesn't want to be forgotten anymore. Oh, no, it's a painful topic.

Oh, no, that's a painful topic as well…

She took out her diary. The lying fox is hated, and cannot be a character in any fairy tale. But in this diary she writes only about him, as if he were the main character. And so, with trembling fingers, she writes "the tale of the lying fox" on the cover. She started to lose her conscientiousness, but she heard Harry's words.

That's cute and all… but… the plot is missing.

And suddenly she's not dying anymore. Her eyesight has returned to normal, and there are no more wounds on her.

Victor! Why didn't you do it last time?

Harry asks Victor why he is here (and not at the theater, as I believe he lives) but Victor explains that a new fairy tale has been born in a destorted fairy-tale world, and it will exist as long as Kate is here. He congratulated Harry on his own story. Kate hugged Harry, feeling incredibly happy, and Harry hugged her back even tighter.

Victor clapped his hands, and the scenery completely changed.

Victor disappears, leaving them alone, and Harry asks her if she will continue to write his story. She's the only one who can do it. She happily answers "yes" and hugs him. They laugh and touch each other, as if they can't believe their happiness.

She tells Harry that she finally understood why she never managed to reach a happy ending. That's because the only happy ending for her is with him.

This is a fairy tale that never existed. Until now. And she found it in a slumber. Their own warm happy ending.

It's going to be a very long… I have a lot to add from myself.

I really love this story. It has several levels of meaning, a concept that is very close to real life. It caused a lot of strong emotions. I thought that Will's bitter ending was good. It's good, but compared to this one… It's too primitive. New clues and discoveries about the characters that were side ones in the previous part of the event. And… how poetically it is written… I have indeed given you a complete translation of one part, but I will not tell you which one, so as not to embarrass myself if it's not quite accurate.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Story is often associated with the life of the person. And we have Kate who writes a story (in the diary). So the meaning is very simple… She's writing her own story, her own life. And her story affects other people's lives so much that it creates a new one. I don't know about you, guys, but the thought gives me goosebumps. We never know how our words or actions will affect others, we never know what people will remember about us over time. So the fact that it can be so grandiose is overwhelming. I have a college whose words I remember for many years, and they became a good motivation for me. I'm sure he doesn't even remember saying them.

There was a part in the premium ending where Harry adds an ending to the story… If you look at it from a relationship perspective… A relationship (from my point of view, absolutely silly and unrealistic) is the work of two people. They both add something to their story that changes both of them and the direction they are moving. And Harry adds something from himself to this story, and only after that a fairy tale is born. Kate kept a diary all this time, but in the bitter ending Victor didn't create a fairy tale for them. If it was him… It only happened when Harry added something. He may have added an ending that's important to any story, but I like to think that's not the case. I like this concept way too much to give it up so easily.

The part in the bitter ending where Harry says he's seen her in every fairy tale hit very hard. I remembered another story and I'll tell you about it at the end, off topic part. I'm surprised what after seeing so many times her bad endings… he can still be surprised, sad, and actually continue feel… Emotions can be quite tedious and painful, and sometimes it's easier to just shut them down. Probably not all people can do this… In fact, I don't recommend doing this…. A world without emotions looks gray. Maybe it was depression… hmmm…

So now I have a vague idea of what was in the Harry's story for 95k in the first Dark IF. But I would still like to read it if I had the chance.

I really love this Kate. I don't remember her being so pushy or clingy in his route, but her desperate desire to be with him was literally palpable. And it was from the very beginning. And I find it refreshing that there was no sudden revelation "OMG, I LOVE HIM!". It's becoming old. She didn't realize it all of a sudden, she always felt this way and only in her thoughts tried to convince herself that this was not what she should do. Like… "I have a task… I have to do it… but…" In fact, it's very similar to real life again. I didn't expect that there would be so many references of our daily struggles...

I'm even more interested in Vivi. Is he some kind of keeper of this world? Is he as attached to it as Harry is? With the key? But he's more detached from the characters than Harry ever was. Perhaps because of how long he's been here… I don't know. We don't see any magic in him other than changing a fairy tale by clapping his hands, but Harry said he can do it too, so I don't see any difference. And if Vivi didn't create anything, then how was the fairy tale created? Who did this and why?

In William's Bitter Ending, Vivi said he will restart the story. So… he has sort of control over it. And it was he who sent Kate to look for the missing piece… so he should know what is missing.

Vivi is actually very sympathetic here. In the bitter ending, he seemed very upset about Kate's loss and gave her the key so she could stay. I suppose he had no other choice. It wasn't very kind of him, he should understand how difficult it is to be a lying fox in this world, but he still offers her this option as an alternative to forgetting everything. And in the premium ending, he is sincerely happy for them and believes that their future will be bright.

But… Maybe it's just a slumber… To find answers, we need to wait another year. Hopefully when Vivi's story comes out. But around April next year, Vivi's route will be released, and perhaps it will give us at least some hints of what to expect from this event. I'm very much looking forward to it.

And finally. But this is really off topic. There is a game called Mystic messager. If you play it, you know a character named Seven. That's not his name, that's what he called himself. For those of you who haven't played this game, this game in the form of a chats. You have several options to choose from, and based on your choises, you will reach one of the endings with one of the characters. There are a lot of bad endings. The whole game will take you 10 days (if I remember correctly). And less if you've reached a bad ending. Real days. But if you want to reach another ending, you should start over. And all the characters will think of you as a complete stranger... again. Doesn't it sound familiar? There was a theory in the community that Seven was the only one who never forgot. Who remembered her every restart, who loved her on every route. And then I read Harrison's endings… I thought… this is proof that the theory is correct. It doesn't matter that this is a completely different world and completely different developers. It still counts!!!

After reading Vivi's story translated by @.reccyls… I want to add a bit. I feel terribly stupid because I didn't figure out what was missing. It's like I'm truely a biggest idiot. That's how I feel. It was kind of obvious… And I like Vivi even more now. His " There has never been a single person like you before." hit me hard. As if it's really impossible. I don't feel despair from him, just calm loneliness. It's like he's already come to terms with it and doesn't even think that anything can change. This is even more upsetting.

And finally, there was another fairy tale mentioned in Vivi's story… a little mermaid. We don't have any characters from this fairy tale yet. Is this a hint for the next group of boys?…

dividers @.sister-lucifer (recolored with the author's permission)

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

🔝 𝕊𝕋𝔸ℝ𝕋 ℙ𝔸𝔾𝔼 🔝

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[burningdeception]

"Why do ya got that mark on yer face?" He is pointing.

"Well damn, can't a guy smile a bit?"

Shinji frowns, but only for a moment. For the first time ever, the mimic changes form in front of another. Like a shadow, it becomes a silhouette, morphing and changing shape like clay before taking another form.

"Is this one more ta yer taste?"

He can't help but snicker almost horsely, he thought that maybe the other Nnoitra would like seeing his own face.

[humanitys-strongest-bamf]

It Was Always You | Levi Week Day 7 - Royal!AU

ngl i did not have confidence that i would actually finish/get to writing this but i did hooray

#: @leviweek2023

✧ word count ➼ ~2.3k ✧ notes ➼ royalty!au, soulmates!au, forbidden love, fluff, princess!reader, knight!levi, slightly suggestive at the end but sfw overall

The walls of the castle were damp and gloomy. This wasn't new. It was old. It looked fine during the day when sunlight could light up the corridors and there were people roaming the halls to simulate the illusion of livelihood, but it was currently nighttime, which meant the only things lighting up the hallway were the dim lanterns hanging off the walls and the torch that your knight held behind you.

You didn't ask to be a princess. You didn't want it. You remembered you had gotten whisked away by some bandits a few years ago and found yourself thanking them for it. You ended up experiencing the world and found yourself having a good time traveling with them, learning about the unique struggles that commoners had that you were never exposed to, being forced to live within the depressing walls of the castle.

You glanced back towards your knight and felt a small hint of pride upon seeing his unamused expression. You had ran off outside the palace walls again into town. There was a small celebration and you were curious, so you put on some commoner-like clothes and snuck out. You had only arrived in town for about an hour before Levi found you and dragged you back home.

You sighed as you stepped into your quarters, slightly smirking once you heard Levi also step inside and shut the door behind him so you could talk more freely.

"Quit running off like that," he scolded, scowling at you.

"Really expect me to just be cooped up in this gloomy castle?" you asked dryly, rolling your eyes.

"Where you're safe? Yes."

You looked at him with an exasperated expression.

"Safe from what?! My own shadow?!"

The scowl and look of disapproval on his face was unwavering.

"Just doing my job, Your Highness."

You grimaced at him addressing you by your title. You were close enough with your personal knight that he usually just called you by your name. The only time he ever referred to you as a formal princess was when you were being bratty.

Seeing that you had no intention to leave again and given how late into the night it was, Levi began turning, opening up the door to leave your quarters. His duty was to drag your reckless ass back into the castle, and he had done exactly that.

"Wait," you blurted out before he could fully open the door.

He paused, not turning back towards you, but not making any further motion to leave either.

"Stay?" you asked.

He looked at you over his shoulder.

"It's late."

"Please?" you whispered as you stepped towards him. "Just for a bit."

He clenched his jaw, knowing that it wasn't going to be "just for a bit", but he went ahead and shut the door again.

You've known Levi for years at this point. You remembered getting taken away by some mercenaries a few years ago after you had foolishly left the castle on your own. Unlike the bandit group you hung out with, this group wanted to hold you for ransom, having been hired by an enemy nation.

Levi was quick to rescue you. It was precisely the fact that he was forced to have that experience of having to chase after you because of a casual misstep of yours that made him so pissed about the fact that you still left the castle at the first available opportunity. He couldn't rest for more than a few minutes without having to be worried that something had happened to you.

When Levi first started guarding you, he was nothing but irritating. However, as much as he irked you, you couldn't stop talking to him. You found yourself always going to his side whenever you saw him around. You got to know him, and he got to know the parts of you that no one else did. You got close, and eventually chose him as your personal knight.

Somewhere along the way, you fell in love with him. You knew that deep down, but you didn't want to admit it to yourself. It was too painful.

You were engaged to someone else.

Being a princess meant you had responsibilities, whether you liked them or not. You were due to be married off in a few months to some royal from Marley in a desperate attempt to maintain the rapidly deteriorating peace between Marley and Paradis.

"I can't bear being trapped within these walls," you hissed through clenched teeth. "Day in and day out, it's about Marley this and Marley that."

You paused from your rambling and scowled. The mention of recent politics reminded you of your very undesirable engagement.

"You don't want to marry him, do you?" Levi asked quietly, now leaning with his back against the door, listening to you.

You scoffed in response, as if you were astonished that he even had to ask the question.

"Of course not! Why would I?" you exclaimed, throwing your hands up in the air in frustration. "I'd lose what little freedom I have and just be drowned in politics and be reminded every day that I was-"

You paused mid-sentence to take a breath, getting more and more upset about the topic.

"-that I was essentially sold off for political value. It's bullshit, and I hate thinking about it because-"

You suddenly cut yourself off, glancing towards the ground, unsure if you should continue. You were getting more and more frustrated and you knew your only source of relief was something you weren't allowed to have.

"Because what?" Levi asked, although some part of him deep down knew what you were going to say.

"...because I'm in love with someone else," you whispered.

Levi slightly parted his lips as his body ever so subtly tensed up. While he wasn't surprised by the news that your heart had been taken by someone other than your political fiancé, he still found the words harsh as they came out of your mouth. He wasn't sure why he cared, but he had been your confidant through the years, so he undoubtedly cared about you in some regard.

"Yeah?"

His body further tensed and he shuffled in place a bit to adjust for the discomfort that was rapidly arising within him as you slowly walked towards him.

He was curious as to who it was. He had a feeling that he knew.

Like you, he has felt that unnatural pull towards you. He always told himself it was inappropriate, but anyone observing could see that he was gentler with you than he was with anyone else. He would spend hours listening to you and talking with you, even when he didn't have to, just so you didn't feel as lonely.

His only duty was to make sure you didn't run off and get yourself into trouble outside the palace walls, but he always stayed and listened, even providing you with advice from time to time.

As a result, he knew what you were about to say. He's felt it too. It's like the universe was trying to push you together despite how wrong it was.

Levi was always there for you. He's picked you up when you were down, both literally and figuratively. He was likely the only person in the entire castle that saw you as a person and not just a princess. The idea of leaving this palace and never seeing him again while pretending to be happy with another man hurt you in ways you couldn't describe.

You slowly walked right up to him, never taking your eyes off him. Once you were right in front of him, your hand raised up to his cheek and you let out a small exhale upon the skin-to-skin contact. Upon looking directly into his eyes, you could see that there was some sort of mutual understanding there.

"It's you," you whispered, your voice barely audible. "It's always been you."

You couldn't deny that some part of you felt like you were meant for each other. It didn't feel like a case of accidental love. It felt like the universe was giving you all of the signs that you were meant to love him, and that the only thing keeping you apart were the politics that were shoved onto you the minute that you were born.

He let out an unsteady breath as he processed your words, desperately trying to keep himself from reacting to finally feeling your touch.

"Tell me the truth, Levi," you muttered, looking directly into his eyes. "Can you honestly say that you haven't felt this too?"

He immediately averted his gaze upon your question, trying to resist the feelings that were rapidly arising within him.

"Tell me."

He had always shoved those feelings away. He'd banish them to some dark corner of his mind, and he was successful for years, but now he couldn't keep those feelings from being at the forefront of his mind.

When he finally looked into your eyes again, you could see the turmoil and conflict within them. You knew the answer, even without him saying a word. A selfish part of him wanted to answer and tell you that he was in love with you too and that he could never keep you off his mind. He wanted to tell you that he felt like hell every time you ran off, being plagued with worry over if you were okay.

He wanted to tell you the absolutely sting that he felt in his heart when he heard the news that you were engaged to someone else.

It was wrong. It was selfish. You were already betrothed to another man, but the thought of being with someone else made you feel nothing but despair. However, this current moment, looking at the man right in front of you gave you a sense of hope and peace that you had never felt before.

It was always Levi.

You brushed the hair out of his eyes, with the flickering of the torch on the walls reflecting off his gray eyes that were gently gazing into yours.

It was selfish.

It was selfish, but you pulled him forward, and leaned in to gently plant your lips on his.

Feeling him on you made your heart want to jump out through your throat. It made you feel excited, but also nervous.

Levi took a subtle, but sharp inhale upon feeling your lips on his. He hesitated, knowing how wrong this was, but also knowing how right it felt.

He hesitated, but it wasn't long before he returned the kiss, his hand falling onto your waist.

What started off as a gentle, loving kiss quickly deepened into a more passionate one, with your own lips parting as you fully pressed your body up against him. His palm on your waist sent shivers throughout your body, and the more that you kissed him, the more that you realized just how badly you needed him this entire time.

You gently bit at his bottom lip, but before your hands could begin roaming elsewhere, you felt him suddenly pull away, breaking off the kiss and turning his head to the side.

"Shit," he whispered, breathing heavily. "We can't be doing this."

"Why not?" you challenged, leaning towards him as he pulled away.

"You're a princess," he said sternly. "You're engaged, and I'm-"

"You're what?" you asked with a scowl, not letting him finish what probably would have been a self-deprecating statement. "'Just' a knight? The only person I can trust in this whole damn palace that cares about me and not just my title? The annoyingly overbearing knight that saved me all those years ago?"

You stared at him intensely as you spoke, refusing to accept his comment of not being allowed to be with you, although you knew that was the reality surrounding you.

"...The man I'd much rather marry," you continued, your voice dropping down to a whisper. "The love of my life? My soulmate?"

Levi remained quiet as you spoke. He felt it. He's always felt it, even when he didn't know it.

You knew that if you were with Levi, it'd cause nothing but trouble. Sleeping with him could even cost you your claim to the throne if you're caught, but a small, selfish part of you wanted that. You longed to live a normal life, and living that normal life with Levi was your definition of a happy ending. You couldn't care any less about your political power. You'd throw it all away in an instant without second thought.

Even the thought of being on the run with Levi sounded better than being forced to live the life that everyone around you expected you to live.

You pressed your forehead against his as you whispered again.

"If you asked me to run away with you, I would do so in a heartbeat."

He scoffed, but didn't pull away.

"You do plenty of running away already."

"I mean it, Levi," you said as you pulled away, looking into his eyes again. "I'd run away for good. I'd gladly leave this place and never come back, especially if it meant that I could be with you."

You pulled him into another kiss before he could respond. This time, he didn't hesitate in returning that kiss, as the both of you quickly got lost within each other's touch and presence.

You were meant to be, and your relationship would cause nothing but trouble, but you knew that it'd be all worth it in the end if it meant that you could live that normal, mundane life with Levi Ackerman: your knight and love of your life—your soulmate.

#: @chaotic-on-main @romantichomicide95 @levisbrat25 @leviismybby @moonmalice @averysmolbear @cathybarn @tclbts @belovedackerman @bejewelledd @sad-darksoul @ackermendick @aomi04 @apolloshaiku @laraackerman @pulpolicia @raenacreates @nube55 @roseofdarknessblog @saenora @noctemys @sixpennydame @sleepyfairyxo @heichoucleanfreak @svftackerman @catskze @levis-squishy-cheeks @dumbfound-princess @evas-leslas @kokosmiles @mrsmiagreer @nixie-writes-aot join my taglist!

[fieldofdaisiies]

azriel x eris | 3,6k words | warnings: none | masterlist

The past few days have flown by faster than expected, leaving Azriel feeling on edge, as if he's sitting on needles – or more accurately , standing on them.

It's only been a week since he last saw Eris, and his family still has no idea about their clandestine meeting. And they will never find out about it. There's a lingering fear that Eris might say something to reveal their secret meeting in the Autumn Court, and everything will blow up and his family will find out.

Eris on the other hand can also never find out Azriel didn't go there under Rhysand's order but entirely of his own volition. What would it look like? And what explanation would Azriel have for it?

Now, he is standing in the throne room of the Hewn City alongside his brothers, anticipating Eris' arrival. Though he wished to remain in the Court of Dreams, he had to come here. 

It almost felt like something was pulling him to come here. When he stood in front of the large mirror in the corner of his bedroom, checking his appearance once more before leaving, there was this tug on his ribcage, urging him to move, to come here. It had been a prickling sensation within him, almost like something tickled his soul. 

However, the discussion with Rhys about whether Elain would accompany them or not dampened that sensation.

“Shouldn’t Elain stay with Nyx?”

Rhys turned to him, frowning. “Elain wants to join us, Madja stays with Nyx.” End of discussion. “I will fly with Elain, you will carry my mate.”

Was Rhys truly still worried he would make a move on Elain? 

Bastard, Azriel thought.

Azriel’s stands tall, shoulders squared and suddenly the tug is back, akin to his heart that all of a sudden beats a little faster within his chest. He can’t make out the source of this reaction, but he guesses it might have to do with Eris' imminent arrival. 

Nervousness is a feeling Azriel is not really used to, or at least hasn’t felt in the past years. Now he does feel it and it adds to his confusion about the whole situation with the prince of the Autumn Court. 

Trying to calm his senses, Azriel looses a long breath. His eyes trail over the polished ebony walls. He is not paying attention to the conversation Keir and Rhysand are having, a haze forming in his mind which makes forming coherent thoughts kind of difficult. 

Through his lashes he looks at the onyx ceiling, the beasts that are carved into it always somehow reminding him of the beast his father is. The beast his stepmother is. The beast that Beron is. 

It’s similar to the beasts on thrones atop the dais are fashioned out of, the thrones that Rhys and Feyre occupy. 

Azriel lowers his gaze and rolls back his shoulder, feeling a little ache in his neck from yet another sleepless night. When he looks to his side, hoping to ease some of the tension in his neck and shoulders, he realises that he is not the only person that feels nervous, or uncomfortable.

Elain’s discomfort is tangible even in the air, her brows are furrowed, her slim shoulders slightly slouched. He wonders if it has to do with being here and the eerie, gloomy atmosphere of the Hewn City that seems to dim her sunshine. Or has it to do with…Lucien being away? 

The Vanserra male hasn’t been here for a while, Azriel thinks. Last time he saw them talking for probably the first time, but this was weeks ago. Since then…he hasn’t come back. Azriel has no idea if he will return. Maybe this year he won’t come here for Solstice. 

Azriel lowers his chin, inhaling deeply, the same moment the large, black doors open, creaking as they slowly reveal the male behind them. 

For Azriel it feels like time stands still. He can’t breath when his eyes land on Eris strolling in through the large ebony doors, his feet within his luxurious boots casually gliding over polished floor. The Autumn Court heir holds his chin high, everything in his demeanour arrogant, proud, cunning. The perfect portrayal of the Autumn Court prince. 

Eris truly is a prince in his own right, he doesn’t need Beron for anything – not for power, not for strength, not for knowledge, not for glory. However, another thought sparks in Azriel’s mind; Eris is not only prince, he is the future High Lord of Autumn. There is nothing but power and strength within his stroll, within his appearance. He walks gracefully, elegantly, and Azriel can’t look away. 

His Adam’s apple bobs when awareness dawns on him. Eris is wearing a cobalt jacket, not the same as last year, no, a different one. An embroidery of diamonds of the same colour now adorns either breast of the jacket.

But Azriel can only focus on one thing — Eris is truly wearing a cobalt jacket, one of the same colour as Azriel’s siphons. 

The Autumn Court air is breathtaking. Azriel feels his chest warm, a little kernel of an indescribable emotion now exploding and letting heat seep into every cell of his body. Azriel doesn’t like the feeling but at the same time he does. But he can’t feel this way, not for Eris.

Not for a male who is his declared nemesis and he will soon wed a new Lady of the Autumn Court. There is no place for Azriel. He will never be the person on Eris‘ side. Can never be. He will never be the most important person in Eris’ life. And he will never be worthy of the title as consort of the High Lord of the Autumn Court. 

So, Azriel can never allow these feelings to take root in his chest. He needs to get rid of them, free himself from his desire, from his covert desire, for the Autumn Court prince.

Eris is most definitely doing much better at ignoring whatever he feels for Azriel. It is as if the anger and pain from their meeting a week ago still sits deep because Eris doesn’t even deign Azriel a look. He formally greets Rhysand and Feyre, and then bows at Cass, Nesta and Elain, and of course Keir. They exchange a few words but none of necessity and Eris only seems half-focused.

“We shall discuss things at a later point,” Rhys says, only for Eris and his inner circle to hear, out of the earshot of Keir.

Eris tips his chin in silent agreement, hands casually folded behind his back as he stands strong and tall, a look of arrogance on his face. 

However, his eyes betray him – they are swirling pits of worry, regret, or pain, endless but also empty. Yet, his gaze searches, moving through the crowds of people gathered in the throne room. He looks around, trying not to make it too obvious that he is looking for something. For someone.

And is Elain who can read him, can read his expression and can see the concern within it.  She finally says, her voice steady, but a touch sad, “He isn’t here. Lu—your brother, he isn’t here.”

Eris blinks, once, twice and then he folds his arm in front of his body and bows. “Lady Elain, it is my pleasure to finally properly meet you. I should have introduced myself more properly before. Eris Vanserra, heir to the Autumn Court.”

Her body remains as stiff as a poker, gaze remained fixed on the Autumn Court heir. Her chest heaves visibly and then with a small smile on her lips, she bows her head. “It is my pleasure, Lord Eris.”

Their eyes meet and now also a soft, and kind smile blooms on Eris‘ face – something hardly anyone has ever seen on him. Slowly, he extends a hand, “Would you like to dance with me, my lady.”

Azriel is furious, nearly bursting out of his own skin; that is not how it was planned. Not at all. Eris was supposed to dance with Nesta and most definitely not Elain. 

Azriel wants to step in, end this before it starts, but he remains where he is, shoulder leaning against a black marble pillar that grounds him. His eyes are trained on Eris and in the prince’s expression, he spots a kind of polite patience he has never seen there before. But there is also interest, and a hint of intrigue, etched upon his handsome face.

Eris wants to get to know his brother’s mate, Azriel gathers, that is the reason why he wants to dance with her.  He doesn’t do it because of her beauty, nor because he is interested in her (at least no in the way Azriel thought at first). Eris is interested in her, but for a wholly different reason than Azriel thought.  

And yet, he can’t shake the feeling of utter envy. But he isn’t jealous of Eris now about to dance with Elain, rather of Elain dancing—

That is bullshit. His fingers curl towards his palms, knuckles turning white, marred skin stretching until it hurts.

“I think…” Elain’s voice is hushed as she speaks and takes a delicate step forward. It feels like the whole throne room holds its breath – will she decline, like she has declined all of Lucien‘s advances, or will she do it for the sake of the alliance between Night and Day?  

Or because she wants to meet her mate‘s family, despite not having accepted the bond with Lucien yet.

“I would like to dance with you, Lord Eris.” Her small hand easily slides into Eris‘ extended one and he curtsies, before guiding her onto the dance floor.

﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌

Carefully, the Autumn Court heir leads Elain into the middle of the dancefloor and it feels like the whole room holds its breath; Azriel definitely does. 

“May I?” Eris asks in a polite voice, his hand hovering near Elain’s waist. 

“You may.” She smiles up at him, tipping back her chin. Eris’ gaze meets hers and he has to admit that his brother’s mate is quite a delicate female, soft and lovely, her eyes pure and kind. She is what Lucien deserves, his little brother’s counterpart. 

Eris gently rests his warm palm on her waist, his other hand taking hers into his. He always makes sure he treats her gently, not wanting to overstep a line. He can sense her nervousness, it has a very strong scent, and he doesn’t want to make her even more uncomfortable. 

She has not fully adapted to the fae life and that is visible very easily, but she is on a good way, Eris thinks.

“Were you surprised when I asked you to dance?” Eris looks down at her, Elain is quite short in front of him. His body is towering over hers, but he can feel that he isn’t the reason for her nervousness, rather the situation of them dancing in front of so many people, of the attention being on them. On her. 

“No.” Elain tilts her chin upward, her fawn eyes meeting his amber ones. “You probably have questions. Questions I don’t think I have an answer to.”

Eris seems surprised over this answer. Is he so easy to read or is she just…what is her hidden power?

“What makes you think I have questions?”

A smile graces her lips and she nearly steps onto Eris toes, but he guides her, leads her and avoids it. “You have a curious look on your face, and if you didn’t have questions you could have also asked my sisters to dance.”

“Your sister is mated now,” Eris answers, as they glide over the floor, music and chatter surrounding them. The music of the small orchestra pulses through the air, guiding their every step as they twirl and move over the polished ground.

“So am I.” Her voice betrays her, but Eris has already known anyway.

“You haven’t accepted the bond yet.” Not a question. And observation. Eris would be able to scent the bond, scent his brother. It is completely obvious they haven’t accepted the bond yet.

“No.” Elain averts her gaze as if she is no longer able to look him in the eyes.

“Lucien is a good male.”

“I know,” Elain breathes. “But he is fae and way too good for me. I will never be worthy of him.”

That answer doesn’t surprise Eris, it rather shocks him. How could she ever say something like that. “Lady El—”

“Can we please focus on dancing, Lord Eris.” Her fingertips dig into his shoulder, and there is enough pain in her voice that Eris decides to stay calm. He won’t push her. He has no right to do so. No one has. 

And going into detail about it all would be too much for this dance that will end soon anyway – Lucien and Elain should do it at their pace, and Eris has no doubt that one day they will find their way to each other. 

The dance continues in silence. Elain‘s feet move rather effortlessly across the floor, every step, turn, and twirl elegant, not as skilled as Nesta, but still graceful thanks to Eris leading them. 

When Eris twirls her, her dress flares around her like a dark blue halo. She is a whirlwind of energy, her feet barely touching the floor, her body bending and moving with the music, hands tightly holding onto Eris, who spins her, lifts her and smiles when his eyes meet hers.

“I know we finished this conversation, but I need you to know something.” Eris spins her and then catches her in her arms again. “Don’t allow these thoughts to take root within your mind. You are worthy of my brother, and whoever makes you feel like you don’t, is wrong.”

His gaze lifts, and his eyes, like glowing embers, meet those of hazel, shining like moonlight falling upon a forest. Azriel is looking directly at him, has been watching them –him– the whole time and a smug look appears on the Autumn Court heir‘s face.

He twirls the Elain again, spinning her so often that her feet almost leave the ground, yet her small frame is always safe in his strong hold. She is Lucien’s mate and hence also his to protect, his to keep safe. 

“One more thing.” The music is calming, the piece almost coming to an end. Elain gives him a curious look, waiting for him to continue.

“You are my brother‘s mate – no matter if you’ve accepted the bond or not. It makes you my family as well. That is why I wanted to dance with you. I wanted to get to know you, Elain.”

Eris dips his chin. “And no matter what will happen between you and Lucien, you will always have my protection.” 

If he weren’t leading them, Elain would have probably stopped moving. Her lips part slightly and her eyes widen. “Thank you.”

The music ends, Eris wants to step back but Elain squeezes his hand, keeping him close. “If it makes me your family, you are also my family.” A long pause follows.

The words seem difficult to find, voicing them even harder, but Elain inhales deeply and finally continues. “Which means if you ever need a place to…stay, to escape to, you will find shelter with me.”

He hasn’t expected that. Out of everything she could have said, he has not expected that and it warms an odd part of his chest that he has thought to be long dead, rotten and wrenched. Tears burn behind his eyes and he starts to blink rapidly. Eris squeezes her hand in return, not able to answer, too baffled by her kind offering. And his throat is too dry. 

Elain steps away from him. “It was my pleasure meeting you, Lord Eris.” A small smile is on her lips. Then she turns and walks back toward her sister.

﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌

Eris halts right next to Azriel. So close their shoulders brush, and slowly Eris‘ scent seeps into Azriel’s nostrils until it is the only thing the shadowsinger can focus on. 

The Autumn Court prince smells like a whisper of smoke, accompanied by the scent of freshly cut wood with musky hues and a subtle hint of earth after rain.

Eris doesn’t quite know why he walked to Azriel, and not back to Keir or the High Lord and Lady of the Night Court. But it was almost like something pulled him into this direction, a little tug on his body and he followed, letting himself be guided by it.

Eris' eyes follow Elain as she weaves her way through the crowds of people to her sister and the Illyrian brute who have also just returned from their dance.

“She is beautiful," Eris says, voice nothing more than a whisper of admiration. “A ray of sunshine even within this place of utter darkness.”

He inhales deeply, Azriel’s scent now all he can smell. 

"But blue isn’t her colour.”

Azriel has to admit that as well — neither blue nor black are her colours even though he had hoped so not more than a year ago. 

"Green is,” Eris continues. “Just like it is Lucien‘s colour." A faint smile graces his handsome face.

Azriel swallows and clears his throat. He doesn’t want to talk about Lucien, nor Elain. “We are not here to talk about Lucien again.”

"No. No, we are not.” Eris rubs his hand over his jaw. “I’m here to apologise.” Eris keeps his voice low so only Azriel can hear him. “For what I said about your father. I had no intention to hurt you, nor to get involved in your personal affairs.”

Eris’s gaze stays trained on the bustling crowd of dancing people, his broad chest heaving with deep inhales while he drinks in Azriel’s scent. 

Night-chilled mist and cedar – beguiling.

Yet, Eris doesn’t let it show what the shadowsinger’s scent does to him, how taut his skin grows solely from smelling Azriel.

“Your jaw?” Azriel gives Eris a sidelong look. There is still a faint hint of a bruise on the side of his face, but it has faded mostly. Thank the Cauldron.

“Almost healed.” Eris inhales deeply, closes his eyes and turns to Azriel who slowly parts his lips, his brows creased.

“I‘m still sorry for it.”

“I deserved it.” There is a cold in Eris’ voice, that makes Azriel shudder and his stomach coils. He knows that this is what Eris has probably always been telling himself when Beron punishes him. Tortures him.

It makes Azriel want to reach out, take his hand into his own and just hold him. But that wouldn’t work for several reasons – they are in public first and foremost all. And they are enemies, and lastly there is the issue of his hands. Wouldn’t the Autumn Court heir with his polished and immaculate appearance feel disgusted about him? Would he not be grossed out from Azriel touching him?

“No,” Azriel says, his heart heavy with emotion. “No you didn’t. You deserve a lot, but not that.”

A small smirk tugs on Eris’ mouth, but it fades as quickly as it appeared. “Rhysand offered me to stay for the night.”

A subtle gasp escapes Azriel’s lips, and a flicker of shock passes over his face.

Eris will stay here. In the Night Court. In the Moonstone Palace. Like back then. When they…kissed.

The shadowsinger feels how his hands turn clammy, cold sweat breaking out on the back of his neck. 

He has thought his unexplainable feelings and the confusion would vanish when he just stays away from the heir for long enough. And Eris staying here, being so close to him once again, will most definitely not help in fighting against the turmoil raging within him.

And it is almost like Rhys has read his mind (which is impossible, Azriel’s mental defences are always up) because his brother scraps a talon against the shield in his mind, asking for entrance.

Azriel lets him in.

“You will escort Eris to the Moonstone Palace. Keep an eye on him.”

Azriel whips his head into the direction of the High Lord, Rhys’ hand intertwined with Feyre’s while he’s sitting in a sprawl atop his throne. Before Azriel can protest, the High Lord starts talking again. 

“Ally or not, I don’t feel good about letting him stay there all alone.” Rhysand looks directly into Azriel’s eyes, even across the distance. “I can trust you with fulfilling this job, Az, can’t I?”

“Pulling rank?” A snarl follows Azriel’s question.

A cold chuckle returns from Rhys, his expression smug, arrogant. “If needed, yes.”

Azriel turns away, glaring out at the dancing people. “I’m taking you there.”

Dumbfounded, Eris turns to the male next to him, his auburn brows curled. “You do what?”

“Rhysand offered you to stay here – I‘m taking you there. The Moonstone palace,” Azriel snaps, anger boiling inside of him, mingling with the overwhelming sensation of Eris being so close to him.

Eris only gives him a long look, not saying anything, but Azriel can tell exactly what he is thinking about. Because he is thinking about the same. 

Will this evening end with another kiss? Or more?

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[aishangotome]

Ellis Twilight: Chapter 6

Chapter 5

♡———♡

William: Alfons has new information on the kidnapping case.

Jude: Could ya save that for later? We're busy righ' now.

Jude replied without looking up from his papers, looking annoyed.

William: Oh my. I remember Jude being relatively proactive when it comes to human trafficking and kidnapping cases.

Jude: ...............

Ellis asked instead of Jude, who decided to ignore him.

Ellis: What's the new information?

Alfons: Apparently, a friend of a friend is going to meet the ringmaster of the circus in question tomorrow night.

Kate: Whoa!?

I didn't notice Alfons sneaking up behind me, and I screamed when he whispered in my ear.

Alfons: Ah ha! What a wonderful reaction. Are your ears sensitive?

Ellis: Don't do that, Al. Don't play with Kate.

Alfons: Hehe, I got scolded by the bodyguard.

(I don't know what Alfons is thinking either... I have to be careful.)

I regained my composure, sat back down in my chair, and listened to William's explanation.

Kate: The ringmaster... But I thought the circus was disbanded?

William: Yes. It's strange, isn't it?

The king of Crown with bloodshot eyes narrows his eyes cheerfully, even though he's talking about the case.

William: It's certain that the "ringmaster" has important information regarding the mastermind behind the kidnapping.

William: We don't know if the "ringmaster" is the culprit or if there's someone behind it.

Alfons: It would be appropriate to capture the ringmaster alive and interrogate him.

Alfons: I've got the information on where they're meeting. I'm competent, aren't I?

Alfons smiled, exuding a complex, sweet fragrance.

William: I want you to go there tomorrow. What do you think?

Ellis: Okay.

Ellis agreed as casually as if he had been invited to a picnic.

Jude: Tsk... Ya got the information, so ya go.

Alfons: I'm not good at physical combat, like restraining and interrogating. I'm delicate.

Ellis: So --

Ellis: Can I kill everyone but the ringmaster?

The gloomy voice instantly drowned out the lively exchange between Jude and Alfons.

(-!)

A shiver ran down my spine.

I should have heard that phrase before.

I was startled by the ominous words that slipped out of Ellis' lips, and I looked up at him next to me.

William: --Yes, I don't mind.

William: If you decide it's necessary, there's no reason to stop you.

William: Be true to your evil.

Ellis: Understood.

I had gotten used to the idea of encountering conflict.

(But that was...)

(Because Jude and Ellis didn't take the lives of people who attacked them out of personal grudges.)

Realizing this, I realized that my job as a "Fairytale Keeper" to record their sins had not even begun.

(It was just that way until now.)

(In the Crown's mission to "fight evil with evil"... it may not be so easy.)

Ellis: You don't have to worry about anything, Kate.

Ellis: I'll protect you.

Kate: You be careful too, Ellis.

Ellis: Me? ...Hehe, thank you.

Ellis: It's kind of refreshing to be worried about at a time like this.

I naturally think that he, who is kind and always thinking about the happiness of others, must be heartbroken to kill someone.

(...I hope we can finish the mission without Ellis having to kill anyone.)

--And then, late the following night.

-

The woman, who was said to be an acquaintance of Alfons' friend, had bright red hair and entered a small, deserted bar without noticing that we were following her.

The building was old and dilapidated, and it looked like an abandoned house.

Kate: ...Should we go inside too?

Ellis: In that narrow, deserted store, they might notice us as soon as we enter...

(But if there's another entrance and we lose sight of her...)

While I was waiting anxiously, imagining all sorts of things, the woman came out of the store before long, despite my worries.

(Huh... That was faster than I thought.)

Red-haired Woman: I think I'll pass. I thought it would be nice to follow my dreams, but... It seems like it's too much for me after all.

The woman said to the inside of the store and walked briskly down the night road.

Kate: It looks like the recruitment failed...

Jude: .............

Jude quickly turned and entered the store.

Ellis stepped in, and as I was about to follow him -

Ellis: Ah.

Ellis looked at the woman leaving and raised his voice.

Kate: Ellis? What's wrong --

I looked in the direction of his gaze and saw...

Red-haired Woman: Gah! Gah...!

A thick arm protruding from the back alley grabbed her.

It was all in a flash - and the next moment, her figure disappeared as if being dragged into the darkness.

(Could it be the kidnapper!?)

Ellis: ..............

Before I could think, Ellis ran off.

I hesitated whether to head for the store or the alleyway --

Kate: ...!

A step behind, I ran into the alleyway after Ellis.

-

Looking into the back of the alley - several men surrounded the woman, trying to gag and restrain her.

(How could they...!)

Ellis: Are you the kidnappers?

Kidnapper: .....!

Sharp eyes turned to me, confirming the figure of Ellis and me behind him.

Kidnapper: --The woman is worth money, take her alive. Kill the man.

At the command of the man who seemed to be the leader, the men ran towards us.

Kate: ...!

I swallowed a scream that was about to escape and tightened my stomach.

(S-something, a weapon...!)

I instinctively grabbed a deck brush that was leaning against the back of the alley and held it up - but Ellis' hand gently restrained it.

Ellis: Kate, stay still.

Ellis kicked the ground.

(Ah-)

--The next moment, blood splattered.

As Ellis approached, the men collapsed to the ground one after another as if their strings had been cut.

(...A knife...?)

I strained my eyes in the darkness and finally noticed that his hand was holding a black-bladed knife.

The black blade moved as if swimming in the darkness, easily taking lives.

And yet... Ellis had the same expression as always.

(Is this really Ellis...?)

The kind and gentle image of him reaching out to everyone and the emotionless killer in front of me now did not match at all... I just stared at him in a daze, still clutching the deck brush.

Ellis: ...I think that's everyone.

Ellis turned to me in a pool of blood, having finished off everyone without giving them a chance to scream.

The discomfort I had been trying to ignore came crawling back.

"Shall I kill this one?"

Ellis: Kate...?

Kate: Huh... Ah.

Ellis: Your face is pale. ...Are you alright?

Ellis sheathed his knife and walked towards me.

The moment his hand reached out, I shuddered.

(...!)

Ellis: ..............

For a moment, the hand that looked like it was stained with blood was a clean hand that hadn't been splashed with a single drop of blood. That seemed like a sign of being used to sin, and it made my chest tighten.

Ellis: ...I'm sorry, you were scared, weren't you?

His palm didn't touch me, and it was quietly lowered.

Ellis: I should have asked you to close your eyes so you wouldn't see.

His eyes, like the twilight sky, were filled with concern and worry for me.

Ellis understands that this scene is scary.

That confuses me even more.

(Ellis, are you okay?)

Kate: Um...the woman?

Ellis: Hmm...she's fine. It looks like she just fainted.

Jude: Tch...did ya kill them all?

Ellis: Jude. How about the store?

Jude passed by me and Ellis, walked briskly up to the corpse, and inspected it coldly.

Jude: When I got in, they had already escaped in a carriage from the back door. They're fast.

Jude: Damn, you shoulda' kept at least one of them alive. We can't question them now.

Ellis: I'm sorry. They said it would be okay if we just captured the leader alive...and besides,

Ellis: They were trying to harm Kate.

Kate: ...

(So, this carnage is...)

(Because I came along, Ellis...)

Ellis: ...It's okay now, Kate.

Ellis smiles gently.

But I...I couldn't smile back at him, smiling in a pool of blood.

-

The woman who was attacked was carried away by Jude and taken to the town doctor.

Alfons was going to find out the details later from his playmates, so we were to return to the castle.

Kate: ............

Step by step, I walked down the hallway.

The shock of seeing someone die up close.

And my heart couldn't accept that Ellis had brought it about, and my legs were shaking.

Ellis: ...............

While escorting me to my room, Ellis was considerate and kept a little distance from me.

Ellis: We're here, Kate.

When I looked up, Ellis was smiling a little sadly--.

As I was about to thank him for walking me to my room, I suddenly realized something important.

(Ellis protected me...but I haven't even thanked him.)

Kate: Thank you for protecting me earlier, Ellis.

Ellis: No, it's my job to protect you, Kate.

Ellis: But, I failed this time...

His voice, falling into the dim light, was tinged with regret.

Ellis: It would have been better if you hadn't seen that.

Ellis: I already knew you were a hard worker who pushes yourself even when you're scared.

Ellis: Before we went into the alley, I should have said, 'You go with Jude.'

(Ellis...)

Ellis: Next time, I'll be careful not to kill anyone in front of you.

(Only in front of me...so when I'm not around?)

Kate: ...Ellis!

I impulsively grabbed his hand as he was about to leave.

(I can't believe that someone who comforts me with such words in the face of fear and pain wouldn't be hurt by killing people...)

Kate: Ellis...doesn't it hurt?

Ellis: ..............

Our eyes met, and he looked at me curiously.

As we stared at each other, for some reason the surprise in his eyes disappeared.

Ellis: Ah...I see.

Ellis: I thought you were just scared of me.

Ellis: You were making that face because you were worried I was hurt...

Ellis: ...You're kind, Kate.

He smiled softly, and my heart tightened.

Ellis: I might scare you again if I say this, but...

Ellis: It doesn't hurt that much, so don't worry.

Kate: ...Really?

Ellis: Yes, really. ...See, my hands aren't shaking like yours.

(Even when he asked me, "Should I kill you?")

(Even when he killed so many people just now...he didn't hesitate.)

(Is it because it's a job "for someone"?)

Ellis is a person who makes people happy.

He gives happiness and feels the joy of others as if it were his own.

For that reason, he can even dirty his own hands.

(But...in the end, is there really happiness for Ellis?)

(Ellis' own happiness...?)

With the emotions welling up inside me, I squeezed his hand, which I was still holding.

Kate: ...Hot milk.

Ellis: Huh...?

Kate: My body is cold...would you like to drink some with me before bed?

Ellis: ..............

After being surprised, Ellis softened his eyes as usual.

Ellis: Sounds good.

Ellis: I actually like hot milk with sugar and butter in the middle of the night.

Ellis whispered happily.

His smile was so out of place with the cruel scene from earlier, and it made my chest ache even more.

(For someone...for me, whom he just met...Ellis, who gives everything...)

(I want to make Ellis himself happy.)

.

.

.

.

.

Chapter 7

If you’d like to support my translations, feel free to buy me a coffee here! :)

[mabelstone]

Bad Habits

matt stone x reader

part four of provocateur <3

part three, masterlist

word count: 3.5k

CW: oral sex, not so awesome sex, a bit more sex, mentions of pregnancy tests, and not very friendly conversations lol

(I've changed to first person writing this - it just flows so much more naturally. I hope that's okay, I'm in the habit now...)

***

It's been four months since my application was finalised. Surprise! I got the promotion. I got a lovely, big office with floor to ceiling windows, overlooking the gloomy but gorgeous heart of Manhattan. I decorated the place quite nicely, a photo frame of my dog on my desk - made from the finest mahogany, a low maintenance fern in the corner and two leather seats for important people to park their backsides. (I truthfully don't think the seats will get much use, but they just fill the space so well, I couldn't resist).

Much has happened in these past four months. For starters, Matt and I rendezvous nearly every second day. Please don't get me wrong, I still hate his guts. But there's something so intoxicating about the way his words cut like a knife but then his body heals the damage tenfold. When I'm under him, I am a living, breathing surge of electricity that no force in this realm could tame. But then that feeling kicks in after when I remember just who I was letting live between my thighs for short periods of time. The most repugnant, self-assured bastard I've ever met. It makes it easy to leave, I must admit. But some invisible pulley mechanism keeps reeling me back in time after time.

That was until last week.

Well actually, last week was a bust.

I went over with the intentions of cutting the cord until I'd seen his messy hair - presumably he'd just woken up. He told me I looked beautiful, then bent me over the sofa and laid into me so good, I nearly said I loved him.

Then the next day fell on it's face too.

I'll set the scene; down on my knees with my hands on his, taking him down my throat inch by inch while he delivered an influx of praise and degradation.

"You can take more than that," as he grabbed a fistful of my hair.

"You must've been very popular in school," he joked, followed by a quick, and almost pained sounding, "no, no, no, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," when I started to pull off.

And the occasional, "God, you're perfect," that seemed to slip out on its own without his realisation.

By the end of it, my cheeks were soaked with tears and he pulled me off by my hair, gasping with spit dripping from my chin like a big slobbery dog.

Okay. So last night I finally did it.

My naked body atop his cold kitchen counter, back arched like a cat as his tongue dove in and out of me. I reached a shaky hand back to grab a fistful of his hair, my stomach doing acrobatics at the noises he was making. Of course, within small minutes, I was a trembling mess, lost in overstimulation, hurtling through my third orgasm of the night where I was nearly blind.

“That’s enough,” I pleaded with him, tears spilling down my cheeks. I locked my legs together best I could while trembling like a hypothermic slowly freezing to death. I batted him away, sitting back on my heels, heaving and panting as I tried to regulate my heart and lungs to a comfortable rate. His long arms snaked around my body, warm lips kissing up my spine before he pulled my back flush against his chest.

"Mmm, God, I could do that forever," he mumbled against my shoulder, a drop of his sweat falling from a curl and splashing down my bare chest.

"We can't," I spoke soft, a gentle protest. "This isn't working." My heart dropped at my own words, I could almost hear his doing the same.

"What do you mean?" He asked a bit defensively, pulling away from me. "What part of amazing casual sex isn't cutting it for you?" He was obviously trying to omit an air of humour, though I could tell he was in disbelief.

"Yeah, it is amazing, but," I continued to talk as I slid off the counter, heading to his bedroom to find my clothes. "I think it's, like, fucking me up psychologically." I slipped on one of his t-shirts - a bad habit that I'd be entertaining for the last time - that fit me like a knee length dress.

"You fallin' in love with me?" He grinned at me across the room, slipping on a fresh pair of boxers.

"Funny," I dead panned, shimmying my way into my far too tight panties. "I had to take another pregnancy test."

"You're not pregnant, right?" Suddenly all the blood drained from his face, his demeanour shifting from indignant to serious in a fraction of a second.

"No," I laughed, his stress slipping away just as fast. "I just think we're too old to be fooling around like teenagers. Don't you wanna find a nice girl and settle down?" I shoved his shoulder playfully to soften the blow, but he wasn't having it.

He squinted his eyes, scanning my face as if he were a computer analysing me.

"You met someone, didn't you?" He concluded pointedly, ticking his jaw as he had so many times.

When I didn't reply, he pushed further. "Is he any good?"

"I'm not sleeping with him," I scoffed, walking into his ensuite to pee while he stood at the door, arms folded. Oh, yeah. We've gotten very comfortable.

"I'm actually shocked." He looked like a kicked puppy.

"Do you want to be in a committed relationship with me, Matthew?"

"I- uh-" He stammered, and I scoffed from my spot on the toilet.

"Exactly." I rolled my eyes, washing my hands and glancing up at him through the mirror. There's no way he's that fucking selfish. Obviously I wasn't actually asking him to be my boyfriend, but it still stung a bit to be honest.

"Oh, come on. We don't exactly have the foundation to be this perfect, healthy couple you dream of," he countered, staying where he was while I pushed past him. "We've got an awesome thing going, Jumpy. Let's not make any rash decisions."

"No... I've thought it over," I reassured him, heading for the front door. "You've said it yourself. No strings attached. Let's keep it casual, dude," I mocked him, making air quotes with my fingers.

"Don't come crawling back when he can't make you finish," he took me by surprise, slinking in front of me and opening the door.

"At least he's worth more than just a fuck," I countered, though I instantly regretted what I said. "See you at work, Matty." I reached up on my toes and pecked his cheek while he stared on in disbelief.

So, yes. I started online dating. And don't call me an asshole, because while I may have been the only one Matt was fucking, his phone was always blowing up with random women begging for him to go out with them. I went on a few dates, with most of the guys either so self obsessed it made me wonder if they'd rather being jacking off in front of a mirror, or so business driven that it felt like they were trying to sell themselves to me. Either way, it was all a big failure until I met Trey. He was funny and handsome and so charming. I could spend hours listening to him babble and never get bored. We didn't seem to have much in common besides our sense of humour, but he seemed genuinely interested in me beyond what was beneath my clothes.

He was quite a successful business man, telling me about all the overseas travel he does and - I zoned out the rest. He was really gorgeous. Pale blue eyes, short brown hair. I think he was only like, 10 years older than me. We went on quite a few dates before we finally stumbled into his penthouse, limbs entangled on his bed like pretzels. I hadn't even thought about Matt the whole time. Fuck, I'm thinking about Matt. Whatever, he probably has some bitch in his bed right now. He'd been giving me the cold shoulder at work and it was actually starting to hurt my feelings. Fuck it.

"Wanna have sex?" I murmured against Trey's lips. I needed a good distraction fast.

"What a stupid question," he smiled, flipping me onto my back. He reached over me to a little dresser beside his bed, pulling out a singular condom, ripping the packet with his teeth before placing it back on the dresser.

He continued to kiss me, his tongue roaming the entire expanse of my mouth, his hands gently carding through my hair. This is way better than a cheap fuck. His lips connected with my throat, leaving hot kisses across my skin, trailing down to my collarbones, goosebumps covering my skin. My hands roamed his neck and shoulders, the smell of his cologne only turning me on more. He gently unbuttoned my blouse, revealing my lack of bra.

"You're so beautiful," he confessed, taking one of my breasts into his mouth. I autonomously arched my back, my hands rubbing up his sides in a silent plea for him to take his shirt off. He got the memo immediately, pulling it over his head before pushing my skirt up, revealing the prettiest panties I owned. He wasted no time locking lips with me again, impatiently pulling his pants off and rolling on the condom effortlessly, not pulling away from me once. “Ready?” He pulled away briefly to look in my eyes. I nodded with my lip between my teeth, preparing for the pain to come after he slipped my panties to the side.

He slid himself in slowly. He definitely had length. But there wasn’t that usual pain I’d grown accustomed to over the past couple months. I rolled my hips, encouraging him to pick up the pace. He lifted one of my legs over his shoulder, hitting my cervix in one precise thrust.

“Trey,” I moaned, digging my nails into his shoulder. Okay, he was definitely long, surprisingly. He continued to pile into me, a bit more gentle than I liked it, but he was getting the job done nonetheless. I grabbed his free hand palmed it into my breast, trying my best to bounce my hips against him in the difficult position I was pinned in.

“You feel amazing,” he groaned with his forehead against mine, our sharp breaths huffing against one another. His strokes were deep, almost too deep. Ow, fuck. I got a cramp in lower abdomen, presumably from the blunt force trauma to my cervix. I tried to enjoy the next few minutes, but with all the work stress, and thoughts of Matt, and that horrid pain in my stomach that seemed to be getting sharper, I had a brilliantly, terrible idea.

I swear, I have never had to do this before. But he’s so nice, and I actually really like him! I wouldn't want to crush his self esteem.

“Oh!” I cried out, throwing my head back in mock pleasure. “Yes! Right there! I’m gonna-“

Please, never ever ever let Trey find out what I’m about to do.

I arched my back so far back, I swear I could’ve slipped a disc. Our bare chests touching, I flexed my walls to mock the contractions of an orgasm, contorting my face and moaning his name like an award winning actress.

“Oh, fuck,” he moaned, spilling into the condom with three final (painfully deep) thrusts. Once he composed himself, he peeled his sweaty body from mine, panting like a dog. I did the same, though I’d be lying if I said it was half genuine. Finally when I could stretch my body out, the cramp started to subside.

“Wow,” he breathed from beside me, pulling the condom off and tying it before throwing it into the bin beside his bed. “You’re just… something else.”

With lack of constructive things to say floating through my brain, I turned onto my elbows and kissed him. Good save.

“I need to use your bathroom,” I smiled against his lips, slipping off the edge of his bed and chucking on the dress shirt he wore to our date tonight. Bad habit. “Oh, shit, sorry, can I wear this just for a moment?”

“Of course, it looks cute,” he grinned at me, motioning to his bathroom with his head. “Down the end of the hall to the left.”

His place was breathtaking. The highest level of the building, the walls lined with tasteful art. In his bathroom was a signed photo of him and Shaquille O’Neal. Interesting. I could actually see the New York Times’ building from his bathroom window and couldn’t help but wonder what Matt was doing right now. Or, who he was doing. I’d never admit it to anyone, but I wished I was with him more than anything right now.

Despite this, I splashed my face with water and headed back to Trey’s bed where… he was dozing off. Typical. As quietly as humanly possible, I slipped my clothes from earlier on and grabbed my things. On my way out the door, one of my heels slipped from my grasp and clattered loudly against the hardwood floors. I winced and glanced over at Trey, who, thankfully, was dead asleep.

I looked at my notifications to see ‘one deleted message from Matt Stone’ and nothing else. I sighed and shot Trey a text,

little family emergency, sorry to run out on you

you looked very relaxed. i had a wonderful night, i’d love to catch up again xxx thank you for tonight

Then I hailed a cab, holding my heels in one hand and my handbag in the other, hair a mess, looking like a corner girl who’d had a reasonable working night. Hah. If Matt saw me right now, he’d say exactly that.

***

Work was slow that week, many late nights and early mornings that seemed to roll on one continuous loop. I was up to my elbows in editorials and research projects that I often didn’t even have time to go down for lunch. I even had to ask a friend of mine to watch my dog.

“It’ll all be worth it, this is your dream!” She reassured me, starting to close her wire door in my face. “Don’t stress about the dog, he can stay here as long as you need. Isn’t that right, baby? Yes it is! Say bye to mommy!” She cooed at him, and I couldn’t help but fear that by the time I came back to collect him, she would’ve tossed him into her car and travelled across the country with him. I was already on the verge of being late, so I had to slip that thought to the back of my mind until further notice.

The new intern, Annie, walked in with big, bouncy blonde waves and a ginormous smile that told of her very little time here so far. “Good morning!” She beamed, and I must say, having such a charismatic, fresh face around the office gave me a little boost of energy.

“Good morning,” I smiled back. “What can I do for you?”

“Oh, um- Mr. Stone offered to buy you a coffee this morning. Something about an anniversary?” Her faced flushed even just saying those words.

“What anniversary?” I snorted, shaking my head.

“Sorry to be rude but, aren’t you together?” She tilted her head like a confused puppy, and seemed quite pleased when I shook my head at her. “O-oh! Okay…”

“May I please have an iced latte with 3 shots?” I spoke without taking my eyes off my computer, an arrogant habit I’d unfortunately picked up. She nodded fast and rushed out of the room. I took this chance to have a break from my computer (not even an hour in).

“Happy anniversary,” I let myself into his office, sitting in that dreadful velvet chair.

“I’dunno what you’re on about,” he sighed, eyes glued to his desktop.

“Well, thanks for the coffee, anyway.”

“Again, no clue what you’re talking about,” he sighed emphatically again, resting his fingers on his temples. “Don’t you have a fuck tonne of work to do?”

“You are such an asshole!” I laughed exasperatedly, cursing myself for even trying to interact with him.

“How was your… date?” He popped the ‘t’ on date as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.

“Wonderful,” I deadpanned, heading for the door. Maybe it was a good thing that I put a stop to our unprofessional fuck-sessions.

“So, he any good?” He looked up at this point, intrigued.

“God, yes,” I lied through my teeth, strutting back into my own office.

The day rolled on slowly as anticipated, but on the bright side, I finished all the really important stuff. Even though it was approaching 8pm now. I took off my headphones and shut down my desktop when I heard something that made my stomach drop.

Rhythmic pounding of something from the next door office. I opened my door and crept into the hallway to make sure my ears weren't deceiving me. No fucking way.

A very vocal woman crying out, "yes, Matt!"

"Keep you voice down," he scolded, followed by her now muffled sounds of pleasure. Truthfully, it made me queasy, but also so angry that I could bust down his door and slap the shit out of him. I hung around his doorway in shock, feeling like I was frozen in place. Was I really jealous when this is what I wanted? He didn't owe me anything. After all, we were just screwing.

"Oh, Y/N," I heard a soft whimper for him and my heart dropped, eyes widening so far, I'm surprised they didn't fall out of my head. I had to bring a hand to my mouth to stop myself from laughing.

"What?" She panted, sounding just as shocked, if not, a little offended.

"Huh? Nothing, just- just keep going," he sighed frustratedly, but the pounding never started again.

"Oh my God!" she shrieked, and I had a rough idea where this was going. I quickly ran back to my office, sitting behind my desk as if I'd been there the whole time, though my racing heart said otherwise. As if on cue, his office door opened with such force that it slammed against the door frame and shook the wall between us. Then I saw those elegant blonde waves bouncing as she practically ran for the elevator.

Annie?

Don't laugh, don't laugh.

But I couldn't help myself, bursting out into near maniacal hysteria, trying to muffle my amusement with both of my hands - how I imagine he tried to shut her up before he ruined it all. But it was no use, he heard and sheepishly walked to my door, rubbing a hand over his face.

"Real professional," I blurted, trying to calm myself down so I wouldn't laugh in his face. No, I was more respectful than that. I placed my hands in my lap a blew out a long breath I seemed to be holding, forcing back giggles.

"Seriously, fuck you," he growled, walking closer and closer to my desk, a pointed, accusing finger coming toward my face. "You are the biggest slut I know, so I don't know how you can judge."

"I'm the biggest slut?" I scoffed incredulously, standing before him where his heaving chest was only inches from mine. Suddenly, it wasn't funny anymore. "You'd fuck anything with two legs and a heartbeat so long as it looked in your direction! Fuck you."

"Here you go," he laughed in my face, looking down at me like a kid. "I hear you making personal calls. 'Oh, Trey, I'd love to go to Dubai with you! Even though we just met and I only want your money.'" He mocked me in an irritating, high pitched voice, his face red with anger.

"Get the fuck out of my face," I snapped, shoving him back by his chest. "You're insane! Eavesdropping on my private conversations?"

"I'm not eavesdropping, I couldn't care less," he seethed, his tone condescending as he slowly lost his grip. "These walls are very thin, you know."

"I know," I laughed, slinging my bag over my shoulder. "Oh, Y/N," I mocked him this time, on my way out the door when he grabbed my wrist.

"Don't tell a soul, or I will ruin you." He threatened, eyes dark and his tone serious.

"Let go of me, Matt," I groaned, dramatically ripping my arm from his grip. "I'm going to Dubai, you know that," I feigned a smile, surprised with the pang of upset I felt when his face dropped.

"You're actually going with this dude? You think he gives a shit about you?" He had that stupid judgemental look on his face, and that was enough to stop me feeling bad for him.

"I thought you couldn't care less?" I turned from him, heading for the elevator. "It's not me you have to worry about. Interns will say anything to get a permanent position."

I didn't have to look back at him to know what his expression would be, and the slam of his office door confirmed that for me.

they are so toxic... i can't decide what ending i want to give them. maybe only 1 or 2 chapters left <3

[burningdeception]

"You think it's gross?! They taste good, man! The hell you talkin' about?! Make her eat pineapple first or somethin'!"

I guess I know why they call you a pussy because you are what you eat

❝ If anyone calls me a pussy I'mma break their fuckin' face. ❞ That's fucking right. Like HELL he was going to tolerate that kind of disrespect. Him, eating pussy? Not in a million fucking years! Why the fuck would he do something that disgusting? He didn't want to have his face in a vagina. It looked nasty and he bet it tasted just as nasty too. A pussy was meant to be penetrated, not eaten. He really couldn't understand guys who liked eating women out ( or give head to another guy, for that matter ). Nnoitra really disliked the service aspect of it. He would absolutely hate to make himself uncomfortable just to make a woman feel good. That was not how things were supposed to be. So no, he had not, and would never "eat pussy".

[lady-october]

Pairing : Oli Sykes x Female Assistant Genre : Romance, Smut (18+ Only) Previous Chapters : Available on Ao3

Story Content : Smut, Drama, Choking, Power dynamics, Romance, Rough sex, Sadism/Masochism, Dom/Sub, Mentions of addiction & self harm, Degradation, Praise kink, Exhibitionism, Orgasm denial, Breath play, Dirty talk.

Summary :

“Don’t you see what a dangerous game you’re playing? Why did you have to look so fucking delicious tonight, I couldn’t stop undressing you in my mind, thinking of all the twisted things I want to do to you.” She had only worked on the touring team for three weeks, but her mind had been hijacked by dirty thoughts of a man she barely even talked to. Sure, he was very attractive, but were there other reasons she was so uncontrollably drawn to him? This is a filthy story of pain, self discovery, and love.

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Chapter 22: I'm sorry, this directory is encrypted

Chapter title is lyrics from "DIg It"

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Drip.

While registering that something had just connected with my face, I only felt annoyance – the urge to continue sleeping overriding any coherent thoughts about it, or the ability to question why something wet was running down my cheek out of nowhere.

Drip, drip.

My features shifted into a frown as even more droplets began smacking against my skin, causing my consciousness to swim back to me. Suddenly, the warm and solid body next to me was in motion, a hissing noise surrounding us, growing louder, more intense.

“Fucking hell.” Oli uttered, as the very abrupt downpour pelted us mercilessly, rudely interrupting my deep sleep.

While snuggled up last night in silence, we must have drifted off under the stars on the rooftop of the hotel. And now the weather had decided it was time for us to wake up.

We shot up quickly with a yelp, legging it towards the exit, trying to avoid getting completely drenched in the process.

But it was too late; we were soaking.

Our mutual panting echoed in the stairwell after Oli slammed the door shut behind us.

Eyes wide as saucers met mine as he leaned against the door, clearly also pumped full of adrenaline from being awoken so unexpectedly by the icy shower.

I couldn’t help but laugh as I shivered, and he quickly joined in.

“That’s one way to wake up.” He said before taking my hand and pulling me up against him, his arms wrapping around my waist. All of which would have been heavenly if it wasn’t for our cold and soaked clothes, plastered uncomfortably to our bodies.

Smiling down at me, his eyes had softened, and his wet locks had taken on a darker shade as they clung to his temple in little circlets.

“I had a nice time last night.” I said without thinking, feeling rather stupid, knowing the date hadn’t gone according to plan whatsoever. Yet despite starting off rocky, the sex and the long talk afterwards had been nothing short of incredible, leaving me with an odd sense of hope for the future. Which was strange considering the gloomy and uncomfortable topics. 

Thankfully it seemed the man holding me agreed with my statement.

“Me too.” He whispered before leaning in for an unusually chaste and short-lived kiss. Pulling away he uttered what had been on my mind as well, “I don’t know about you but I’d really like to get changed, this feels fucking horrendous.”

I huffed out a laugh, fighting my shivers, “Yes please, let’s go.”

Taking Oli’s hand I started descending the steps.

But he didn’t follow.

“Shit, my phone’s still out there,” he looked towards the fire door then back to me, “I’ll see you later, yeah?”

Disappointment settled in me, having expected us to spend the morning together for some reason.

Which surprised me. Not just because of the expectation, but because I wasn’t overcome with panic at the mere thought of casually spending so many hours in a row with a man who had a romantic interest in me.

“Yeah, I’ll see you later.” I responded after a moment, trying not to let the disappointment be evident in my tone of voice. But when I attempted to let go of his hand, he held onto me. 

“One more thing,” he said, appearing slightly nervous, “can you start wearing underwear again?”

For some reason his question made me uneasy. 

I couldn’t tell if it was because of Mat – because of everything we talked about last night – or because he was trying to abstain from sex with me. It also made me worried that I’d done something wrong, similarly to how I felt last night when he’d been reluctant to open up about his nightmares – something I’d asked about twice now.

“Sure.” I finally settled on, not wanting to pry, not wanting to push him.

He visibly relaxed. Whatever the reason for his request, it was clearly important to him.

“Thank you.”

Letting go of my hand he took a deep breath before disappearing back out into the loud rain. I sighed deeply, trying my best to let go of the uncertainty our short morning interaction had brought on. Hoping it was just my anxious thinking patterns playing tricks on me.

Descending the steps, I made my way back to mine and Liam's room where a robed Liam was snuggled up in bed with a large sandwich in hand.

“Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in–” He started teasingly, smiling from ear to ear, but confusion quickly claimed his features when he took in my appearance, “What the fuck happened to you, love?”

Laughing, I pointed towards the window, at the downpour outside, “We fell asleep on the roof.”

“With… Oli, I presume?” 

“Yes, with Oli.”

“Sorry it’s hard to keep track of all your lovers.”

The grin was back on his lips, but I just glared at him.

“I’ve only been on one date with Mat– and we only kissed,” I started but quickly remembered that’s not quite true, “Oh, wait, I guess I may have maybe also seen him cum...” I continued under my breath as I began digging around for my toiletries in a rush so I could disappear into the bathroom, feeling both embarrassment at my admission and surprised I had somehow momentarily forgotten all about that incident.

Liam, who had previously been lounging – relaxed as could be – shot up into a sitting position, looking stunned, “Listen, I was just joking around– you what!?”

“I’m gonna go shower.” I quickly mumbled before running off.

“Okay, but you better tell me everything afterwards!” I heard him yell as soon as I shut the door behind me.

When I came back out I was also wrapped up in one of the lush robes the hotel had to offer. Liam scooted over as soon as he saw me, patting the space next to him on the mattress, indicating for me to join him.

I paused, wanting to talk about everything that’s happened – maybe even get some advice. But I was nervous, still not used to talking about my feelings with others, and only really having opened up to Oli so far.

Only Oli, huh? Sounds like I’m getting pretty invested in him already.

Shaking the unpleasant and unnecessary thought out of my head, I instead walked over to the large tray of room service, filled with breakfast foods, attempting to avoid both my own mind, and Liam, all at the same time.

“Yay, you got bagels!” I said with a bit more enthusiasm than the ordinary food warranted, but Liam was having none of it. 

“For the love of god, Alice. You can’t leave me hanging like this.”

I took a deep breath.

Okay, I can do this.

Abandoning the plethora of foods for now, I made my way over to Liam and joined him on the bed, feeling like a pair of gossiping teens at a sleepover. 

While I left out most of the explicit details, Liam’s jaw was still on the floor for most of it. Once I came to the part about Fay I learned that Liam already knew of the love triangle, which made sense as he started working with them right after it all happened – right after Oli’s recovery.

When I got near the end of the story, in the middle of telling him that I’d developed feelings for Oli – that I craved the emotional connection with him despite my commitment issues – I realised how effortlessly everything had flowed out of me, how easy it had been to talk to Liam, and I wondered distantly if it was because Oli had inspired me, pushed me, opened up whatever part of me that I’d sealed shut so tightly for everyone else in my past.

“So, what are you gonna do?” Liam asked once I was done naming all the reasons I felt pressured into dating Oli and Mat at the same time; how all of this was happening too fast, at a time in my life when I felt so very lost.

“I think I have to see both of them until I can figure things out. It’s all just horrible timing though, isn’t it?”

“You don’t have to do anything, love – you don’t have to date either of them, but I’ll tell you this much; there’s no such thing as the right time.”

I frowned, knowing damn well this couldn’t be happening at a worse period in my life, “What do you mean?”

He paused, considering his words, “I think the universe has a way of pushing us when we need it most. So a lot of the time the right people will enter your life at the worst possible time, but if it’s meant to be then you will still manage to keep them around. Mostly because you will feel the urge to fight for it, to make it happen even when everything goes against you.” His sympathetic eyes grew questioning, “Do you feel any of that?”

I thought about it for a beat, recapping all the discomforts I had put myself through – and continued to put myself through – in order to cling onto the things I wasn’t ready to let go of, “I guess I do. I think I would’ve gone home by now if I didn’t.”

He smiled at me, “Well I’m very happy you’re still around, regardless of the reason.”

The talk had left me feeling lighter than expected, and with a lot less panic about the situation. Which thankfully made the prospect of running into Mat today a lot less daunting.

Or so I’d thought, until it actually happened.

A couple of hours passed and it was time to set off; to drive the two hours back to the venue and begin all the preparations for tonight's show. But once we were done packing the van up with the essentials for the gig, I realised I’d forgotten my bag in my room, so I ran along to quickly retrieve it.

I was locking the door behind me, holding my previously missing bag, when I saw the elevator doors starting to glide shut in the distance.

“Wait!” I yelled, sprinting down the corridor. I was incredibly grateful to see a hand appear on the door, holding it open for me. Once I got to the open elevator I was wearing a smile, ready to thank the kind stranger, but my smiling lips were quickly joined by wide eyes.

“Hi.” Mat said calmly, grinning at me as he held the elevator doors.

I knew I’d have to face him any moment now, but I’d been hoping it would’ve been in the van, surrounded by everyone else, effectively removing any pressure to hold a conversation. Instead it had to be in a claustrophobically small metal box, with just me and him.

“Hi.” I eventually responded before coming to stand next to him, facing the door, finding it nearly impossible to maintain eye contact after what happened last night; after he watched me melt from Oli’s fingers moving over my pussy, after spanking me.

I guess it’s only fair that we’ve both seen each other's expression when we’re deep in uncontrollable pleasure.

The tension between us was unbearable as the elevator moved from floor to floor, at a pace that convinced me the passing of time had been tampered with – now very clearly moving in slow motion. 

When there was only one floor left, Mat launched forward to press the Stop button, causing the elevator to halt with a jolt.

My heartbeat was already in my throat when he turned around to face me, giving me a stare that felt intimate despite the distance between us.

“I don’t want things to be awkward between us.” He sounded nervous.

“Me neither.” I quickly responded, even though I didn’t have a single clue how to make things any less awkward.

My response caused all of the evident nerves to promptly fade away from him. 

He took a step closer to me, some of the unreadable emotion from last night now on his features, “Spend tonight with me, at the club.”

Since we all had tomorrow off, the VIP section of a local club had been booked for all the bands that were performing tonight, as well as their entourage. Considering what happened at the last afterparty we went to, I had my reservations about even attending now when the Mat spanner had been thrown into the works. But since I was the designated driver I didn’t have much choice.

“I don’t know.” An involuntary smile tugged at the corners of my lips, feeling quite intrigued by this unexplored version of him.

He took another step towards me, slowly stepping into my personal space, “Cause of Oli?”

Something was different about him, he wasn’t usually this demanding, this intense – no, that was Oli’s domain. Mat was always the laid back one, the patient and polite one.

“Yeah.” I breathed, looking up at him as he pinned me with his unreadable eyes.

“You can spend time with him too.” His voice came lower, quieter, due to our close proximity.

The eye contact that had seemed hopelessly awkward just moments ago, was suddenly unbreakable, the tension between us growing more magnetic, surrounding us with a sense of desire.

“Your friendship is odd.” I said distantly, feeling equal parts nervous and excited.

“Can’t argue there– what do you say?”

A smile spread across his lips as my expression gave away my intentions before speaking. I already knew I wanted to agree to his proposal, wanting to spend more time with him in hopes that it would help sort out the tangled mess inside me.

“Alright.”

“Looking forward to it.”

His smile grew momentarily before his gaze fell to my lips, his demeanour shifting, growing dirty, determined.

I felt myself hold my breath as he leaned in, so convinced he was about to kiss me that my mouth fell open. But instead he stepped back and reached for the elevator controls, ready to end our intimate moment. I was about to exhale, to relax and fight the sense of disappointment I was experiencing, when I noticed his fingers hovering, never actually connecting with the button. 

I swallowed.

Suddenly fiery, filthy eyes shot back to mine before he grabbed me, crushing my lips to his, pulling me flush against him. 

I dropped the bag in the process, struggling to form any type of coherent thought as his hands raked over my body – until he got to my very sore behind, which pulled me back to myself enough to feel torn in half, both finding this morally wrong – like I somehow belonged to Oli, like I’m already his girl... Yet the other half of me wanted nothing more than for his rough hands to touch my bare skin, hating the layers between us. 

But my moral dilemma was short lived. Paying more attention to how he was handling me I noticed the sharp sense of urgency in his kiss, in the way he tensed beneath my fingers that were digging into his shoulders, how tightly he was pressing me against him, how his hands were studying my shape as if trying to almost memorise it for later. 

As if he might not get another chance to feel me in this way. 

Whatever the reason for his desperation, it felt like more than lust, more than being rushed due to having stopped the establishment's only elevator.

Oli had told me he falls too hard, too fast – was Mat the same? Was this an emotionally indulgent moment?

He let go of me as quickly as he had grabbed me, and there was suddenly several feets worth of space between us. I hadn’t realised, but he’d pushed me up against the back of the elevator during our brief yet passionate embrace. Which I was now thankfully leaning against, feeling disoriented and incredibly overheated.

Mat wiped his bottom lip with the back of his hand, appearing barely contained as he started the elevator again, his dark eyes eating me up, clearly wanting a lot more than these short, stolen moments between us.

I was speechless, merely a receiver of the energy he was aiming my direction like a laser beam before the doors opened. Wordlessly, he broke our eye contact and stepped out of the elevator, leaving me to gather myself.

But sadly I never got a chance to.

Only seconds after leaving me, an elderly couple joined me in the small metal box, forcing me to use my legs prematurely, which now felt more like spaghetti than flesh and bone. 

Another unfortunate consequence of not getting a chance to pull myself together, was the fact that the first person to lay eyes upon me as I stepped out of the hotel was Oli. 

I knew he could see it on me, how flustered I was. He’d seen it on me an endless amount of times.

The only difference being that this time he hadn't been the one to cause it. And since I had been right on Mat’s heels, it was pretty obvious something had just transpired between us.

I wanted to disappear, to simply run away. Maybe just dash into the woods behind them to never be heard from again. I could find a cabin somewhere and just enjoy life as a hermit, forage for berries and learn to catch fish in the lake. 

While it was just a wild fantasy, it felt infinitely more compelling than spending the next two hours stuck in a van with the two of them.

Kicking myself mentally I lowered my head and quickly made my way to the driver's seat, which Liam was already occupying.

“Get out, I’m driving.” I muttered before essentially pulling him out of the van.

He stepped out, slapping my hands away, “Alright, alright– I just thought I’d drive since you drove us here yesterday.”

“No worries, I’m fine to drive.” I shot him pleading eyes, hoping he’d catch the hint.

He squinted at me, “Okay, but if you think this will get you out of driving us back tonight after the club you’re mad – I was promised I could have a drink.”

I hesitated for a moment, looking over to the passenger seat which was already taken by Matty, knowing that if I didn’t drive I’d have to sit in the back with the others. At the same time I knew how much driving this route had exhausted me yesterday, and doing it twice in the same day would be pushing it, especially considering how much work we had ahead of us.

I felt myself deflate.

“Fine, you drive.”

Dread filled me as I walked back around the van, trying my best to not catch anyone's eye when I opened the van door, only to find that I was faced with yet another problem.

There were two rows worth of seats in front of me; in the front row Lee was sitting near the window furthest away, with Mat in the middle who was watching me with anticipation, clearly hoping I’d take the seat next to him. 

In the back row however, Oli sat all alone, staring distantly out the window. 

And while the energy from the front row was warm and welcoming, I knew I’d have to pick the back seat.

I told myself that it simply made more sense this way – there was so much more room in the back row after all. But somewhere in the back of my mind I knew my subconscious was calling out to Oli. I just couldn’t tell if it was due to guilt, or because I wanted to be closer to him, having missed him this morning.

As soon as I shut the van door behind me, Oli looked in my direction. His large eyes locked with mine and I could tell he was happy I was back here with him, despite the sadness in them, despite the defeat in his posture. And while there was an entire empty seat separating us, I felt the comfort from his presence, confirming I’d made the right choice.

It scared me, terrified me even, how attached I was growing, how much I seemed to crave his presence around me in more and more ways each passing day. How quickly it was happening, and mostly how powerless I felt against it.

It struck me that I’d never let myself get this attached to anyone before, having chronically kept everyone at arm's length my entire life. Even my mother. 

I was so uncomfortable with the idea that I started regretting coming back here, wishing I’d just taken the driver’s seat and dealt with the exhaustion afterwards. All of which was made infinitely worse as I realised the sheer amount of ‘firsts’ Oli had been for me; first to open up to about all my fears, all my struggles; first to explore my kinks with; first to pull me in like a magnet, occupying my mind and heart so many hours of the day.

First person I couldn’t seem to get enough of.

Suddenly I was feeling nauseous as we drove along the winding road, and I knew it wasn’t because of the road, or the amount of bagels I’d had this morning, but because of all the inner demons I couldn’t seem to fight off any longer.

Terror began to press in from every direction, and before I knew it a panic attack was building inside me. I could tell it was going to be an unusually bad one when my breathing sped up, rapidly turning into hyperventilation.

That’s when I saw Oli’s open hand resting in the middle seat, reaching for mine.

My wide eyes shot to his worried ones; they were so tender, filled with the softness I craved, my heart ached at the sight.

He shoved his hand closer to me, pleading for me to take it, to let him comfort me.

Somehow it felt like a trust-fall to take it, like jumping out of an aeroplane with Oli being my untested parachute. All I could do was hope his touch would settle me, when I knew it had the potential of making me infinitely worse.

I didn’t even consider if anyone could see us as my fingers intertwined with his, too preoccupied by my narrowing vision, my speeding pulse, how I felt like I couldn’t get a full lungs worth of air.

Once he had a good grip on my hand, he squeezed it, rubbing his thumb on my skin slowly, silently letting me know he was there for me.

I focused on his touch, his presence, as I began taking deeper and deeper breaths, my heart rate dropping slowly.

It was working, I felt the parachute open before my face hit the ground. Ironically the man that had caused the sudden and severe onset panic was now the one to ease it away from me.

We held eye contact as my body slowly returned to normal, a glowing, affectionate smile making an appearance on him as he noticed how I was calming down, coming back to myself.

I was bewildered, amazed at how well such a simple gesture had completely disarmed the bomb inside me. Looking down at the hand still tenderly holding mine, brushing my skin lovingly, I had to fight back tears for what felt like the hundredth time around the man next to me.

He must have noticed my struggle, uncertainty making an appearance on him. Squirming in his seat, his eyes darted to check what the others were doing, then began untangling our fingers. But I stopped him, holding his hand tighter, determined to not break whatever spell that had managed to stop my panic attack dead in its tracks. I had never been able to stop one myself once it had reached that stage, neither did I know it was possible.

The vulnerability on his face once he realised what I was doing should have startled me, should have sent me right back into my spiral of panic, but instead I just smiled at him, feeling rather calm as his gaze flickered between me and our hands.

I don’t know if anyone noticed what we were doing in the back of the van, but we continued to hold hands for the rest of the journey.

It was such a simple gesture, yet it somehow felt like the most intimate thing we’d done so far. 

So why am I not terrified all of a sudden?

My mind kept attempting to race with these thoughts, touching on the things that usually triggered me, but every time I felt the pressure build inside me, I would just squeeze his fingers, and they’d squeeze me right back, pumping my veins full of his comforting energy. Making me feel safe.

Once we got to the venue, parking up next to the tour bus we’d left here overnight, we let go of each other. My fingers had completely cramped up, hurting as I stretched them, but I hadn’t even noticed during the long drive.

We wordlessly parted ways for the day, right as Liam showered me in the usual tasks. And before I knew it, my feet were hurting almost as much as my butt did.

When all the opening bands had performed for the night, I was with Liam backstage, making sure all the props were in the correct places for the stagehands, when Mat tapped on my shoulder.

“Are you alright to stand a bit further out than usual? I’d like to see you during the show.”

He was bouncing on the spot, clearly pumped up for the impending performance. Yet the laid back demeanour still somehow remained.

How odd.

I considered his request, still a bit taken aback from what happened in the elevator earlier, but also unsure how to respond considering there was a reason I kept to the shadows when I could; I don’t particularly enjoy the public attention.

“Maybe.” I responded teasingly, trying to keep the mood light.

He just smiled at me, knowing there was no time to argue.

“I’ll take it.” He said before walking up on stage with the rest of the guys. 

Well, everyone except the lead singer, who entered the stage last, on a later cue.

I was looking around for the man in question in the hopes of catching a glimpse of him before his performance, knowing he’d be close, but I wasn’t expecting him to appear right in front of me as I turned around.

“You look lovely.” He purred, coming to stand only inches away from me.

I was about to thank him, compliment him back, but he spoke almost immediately, clearly rushed – which made sense considering we only had about 30 seconds before it was his turn to run up on stage.

“You sticking with me later tonight?”

My heart sank.

“Some of the time.” The face I wore was apologetic to say the least, not wanting to admit I’d already agreed to spend time with Mat at the club – not after the expression Oli wore when he saw me leaving the hotel this morning.

His hand reached for mine, holding it in his with a surprising tenderness considering the high energy that was radiating off of him, also clearly ready to expel a high amount of it for the crowd in a moment.

Distantly I wondered how much energy he had when not on tour, when he didn’t spend so much of it on performing.

“Am I bad company?” His eyebrow raised, turning his grin more questioning, yet flirty.

“No, you’re great company.” Even though I really didn’t want to tell him, I knew there was no point in trying to hide it, especially since he’d see us together tonight anyway, “Mat’s already asked me.”

The smile fell away from him completely, almost as if it had been a facade entirely, and whatever urgency there had been in Mat’s behaviour earlier completely paled in comparison to whatever had just taken hold of Oli.

Regret washed over me for not waiting till after the show to tell him, made worse by the music starting – meaning we only had around 15 seconds left together. 

Throwing a quick glance towards the stage, he pinned me with all-too serious eyes and let his hands rest on my arms, as if wanting to hold me in place, causing worry and confusion to rush over me at the immediate shift in behaviour. For a brief moment he appeared uncertain, questioning whether he should speak or not, but his decision was made clear by the rant that followed.

“The nightmares, they started when I was a teenager; my girlfriend at the time killed herself, slashed her wrists one night,” he spoke so very fast, saying things I didn’t have a chance to even begin unpacking. All I could focus on was the fact that he needed to be on stage in mere seconds, yet he was opening up to me out of nowhere, not leaving any room for me to react or respond, “I know it wasn’t my fault, but it messed me up, made me real scared of some things – made me real hard on myself in many ways.”

“Oli!” A stagehand yelled next to us, interrupting him.

“Wait!” He barked, then immediately threw him an apologetic look before returning his intense attention to me, “I’ve dreamt about you for a month now, most nights you torture me, try to kill me–” He shook his head in distress, seemingly out of frustration due to the time constraints, “I know I’m not making a lot of sense – I can explain much better later, but my point is–”

“You really gotta get on the stage man.” The poor stagehand continued, only trying to do his job, but Oli’s attention remained on me, talking over him entirely.

“I don’t open up to people a lot, and I know you don’t either,” he searched my face for a split second, his eyes darting all over it, sheer panic in his stare before he gently shook me in his hands, “You’re very special to me too.” 

He let go of me and shot up the steps leading to the stage so fast I barely had time to realise he was gone.

I was left standing alone in the dark, completely stunned, as the man that had just dumped a ton-of-bricks worth of intimate and bewildering information on me, started singing the words of the first song in the setlist.

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