#gotta leave in an hour for my other job and then going to the movies with a friend

[peachlit]

tired as shit, barely got any sleep 😞

[buckyalpine]

You need Bucky’s cuddles

Bucky x civilian reader

Some angst with all the fluff

You needed cuddles. It was one of those days. Nothing was particularly wrong, you just needed to be held. Specifically by a certain super soldier. Bucky had been away on missions for the past 2 months, only staying home for a few days in between to recover before he was sent off again, leaving you alone in the large compound. Tony had been more than welcoming, happy to let you live with Bucky where you'd be safest.

You'd waited all day for him to get home so you could jump into his arms and snuggle up against his chest, desperate for his warmth. The low rumble of the jet had you running off to the hangar, your feet moving faster than you could comprehend as soon as the doors opened.

"Hi sweetheart" Bucky's voice was muffled as he kissed the top of your head, catching you with ease, chuckling at the way you practically crawled up him, your legs wrapping around his waist. "My pretty girl"

"Missed you" You kept your face tucked against his neck, breathing in his scent, sighing in relief at the fact that he had no injures. You wanted nothing more than to drag Bucky up to your shared bedroom and slip under the covers for some desperate cuddle time, but instead you found yourself being set back down on your feet.

"Missed you too sweets butI gotta finish up some stuff with Steve and I'll see you soon okay?"

Your reunion was short lived as he jogged off behind the captain, both men disappearing around the corner seconds later, leaving you alone again. Your heart sunk as you made your way back inside, shaking off the uneasiness you felt.

Cuddles. You just wanted some cuddles.

But his job was to save lives, keep the world safe and you were just a civilian. Nothing you did compared the the danger he put himself through on a daily basis, you had no right to burden him by being clingy and annoying, no matter how much you missed him.

You decided to busy yourself by making a snack for the both of you, placing his share on a plate for when his was finished while you ate at the kitchen island. You didn't want to bother Bucky by being overly clingy, glancing at the clock every so often, hoping he'd come down soon. You made your way up to see if Bucky wanted to eat anything, stopping when the sound of booming laughter coming from the conference room caught you off guard.

"Bucky?" You stopped by the conference room where the Sharon, Sam, Steve and Bucky sat, papers scattered across the table though it didn't seem like they were particularly busy, all washed and changed into comfy clothes.

"Hey doll, be done in a bit" Bucky smiled while the others greeted you, going back to looking over their mission report.

"Just wondered if you were hungry" You placed a sandwich and some cookies in front of him, hoping he'd take a break and hang out with you for a bit but instead he thanked you with a kiss to your hand.

You left the group to their task, putting on a movie n your bedroom to pass the time, still glancing over at the clock as minutes had turned into an hour.

Then two.

You found yourself holding onto his pillow, your throat oddly tight as if you were fighting against your body's attempt to release all your pent up emotions.

You needed your boyfriend.

You weren't sure why. You missed him so much and the gnawing anxiety you had been feeling all day kept growing with each second he wasn't there to make you feel better.

You felt awful because you had no reason to feel this way yet it only seemed to get worse. Around dinner time, you didn't bother going down, dragging yourself out of bed to change into your pjs and trudging down the hall in hopes that the team would be wrapping up.

It wasn't uncommon for post mission meetings to take a full today but surely they could excuse Bucky from this one at least for a little while. The scent of take out carried down the hall making you stomach rumble sending your emotions tumbling down further. You hesitantly stepped into the room where they were still gathered.

"Will you come to bed soon?" You asked hopefully, shuffling on your feet while Bucky set down the papers he was skimming over. Steve and Sam looked over at you with apologetic smiles while Sharon walked over with a tray of coffee cups.

"I'm a little busy y/n, I'll come up soon, alright?" Bucky glanced over his shoulder to where you stood with your soft pjs and fluffy slippers, not catching the way your face fell as he grabbed a mug and hummed, "we still have to go over a bit more of today's footage, give me about an hour"

"You'll come in an hour?" Your bottom lip jutted out slightly, unable to control the tiny pout that made its way to your face.

"Promise love, an hour and not a minute longer, wait up for me okay?"

"Alright" You kissed his cheek before bidding the rest of them good night, ignoring the way your chest felt tight, not having the guts to tell your boyfriend that you needed him right then and there. You curled up under the sheets, tossing and turning, the bed feeling entirely too empty when you knew he was home, the faint light of the clock staring at you in the face.

You waited and waited, the lonely feeling settling deeper in the pit of your stomach as one hour turned into two. You could hear the sound of laugher from the conference room again as more time passed.

He wasn't coming.

****

Bucky hadn't noticed the time as he chuckled over a video of Sam falling out of the air, snorting each time Sharon replayed it. As soon as the mission was over, he wanted nothing more than to spend the day with you but he figured it would be best to get the mission reports out of the way first. Nothing made him happier than being home, especially when the first thing he saw was your happy face.

He munched on a fortuned cookie, scribbling down his signature on the last few sheets of paper, getting up and stretching before glancing over at the clock, his eyes growing wide when he saw the time.

Shit.

****

Hot tears started to trickles across the side of your face and onto the pillow, no longer contained by your rapid blinking. You froze at the sound of the door creaking open, the faint light from the hall pouring into the room making you bury yourself into the sheets further.

"Doll?" Bucky quietly shut the door behind him, his heart sinking at the sight of the little ball wrapped up under a heap of blankets, the sound of your muffled sniffles breaking his heart further.

"Oh angel" He strode over, slipping under the covers to wrap his arm around you, your tear stained face stayed pressed against the pillow, your arms wrapped around yourself with how badly you wanted to be held. "What's wrong love"

"M-missed you. Just wanted cuddles" Your voice came out a strained whimper, melting into a sob when he pulled you into his chest, stroking up and down your back. "Missed you so much"

"M'sorry love, I'm so so sorry" Bucky cooed, feeling more guilty and awful than ever for neglecting you and not paying attention to the time, squeezing you to his body as if you'd disappear if he let go. "M'here babygirl"

"I didn't want to bother you" You hiccupped while Bucky hushed you, shaking his head, blinking back is own tears as he kissed your dampened cheeks, before cradling your head to his chest again, the steady beat of his heart calming you down.

"Never, you'd never bother me angel, you're my priority, you always come first" Bucky's voice grew shaky, the realization of how much he missed you as well hitting him all at once, feeling the soft warmth of your body against his, the scent of your shampoo, the feeling of being home. "You deserve all the cuddles my sweet little bunny, all the cuddles in the world"

You whimpered while Bucky slipped his hoodie off, letting you rest against his bare skin, holding you securely. He frowned at the sound of your tummy rumbling, pulling away making you whine, his fingers tilting your chin to meet his eyes.

"Did you eat dinner baby?"

"I was waiting for you" You whispered while Bucky internally smacked himself, he had half a mind of letting Steve use him for training instead of their industrial punching bag. The blonde would certain be on board if he found out.

"Come here my love, let me make you dinner" Bucky scooped you up in his arms, carrying you down to the kitchen where he set you onto the counters before quickly putting together his ma's pasta recipe, one of the few meals you'd live off of. He plated a bowl and taking you right back upstairs where he fed you while keeping you tucked in his lap, kissing you between giving you bites.

"Promise you'll drag me out by the ear next time baby, I'd drop everything in a heart beat for you" Bucky cupped your face in his hands after you'd finished eating, still feeling immensely guilty, especially when you asked for so little. " Especially when you want cuddles?"

"You'll cuddle me any time?" you asked curiously while he chuckled, pulling the sheets to cover you both, once again hugging you close to his body, this time the both of you shirtless, bare skin pressed against each other.

"Any time love. Could be in the middle of a mission, I'll find us an secret place to snuggle"

"Any time?"

He turned off the alarm that was already set to wake him up for training, kissing your forehead before closing his eyes.

"Any time"

[kimhargreeves]

The Night Shift -Mike Schmidt x Reader (FNAF live action)

Summary: You and Mike have never gotten on the right foot, always bickering and never standing each other's presence. The day comes when both of you are interviewed for the same job and are forced to work together to see who will win the job as a security guard at a deadly pizzeria.

(A/N: The Fnaf movie is almost here! Anyone else ready to watch it this weekend?! Here's the Mike Schmidt x Reader I promised a while back. Hope it's okay but female reader is mentioned to be a bit of a goth/alternative type of girl. Also, things may change in the next part since I am writing this a few days before the movies release date. Let me know how I did and if you want part 2 once we've seen the movie)

I'd also like to tag these kind people who asked me to tag them once this was up, @riaqiax @ahsfan23 @lufvg

"Please come again and have a fantastic day!" I beam and smile as I watch the client I had attended begin to leave the store I was working at.

As soon as they are out of my sight I sigh deeply and frown looking at the direction they left. "I don't get paid enough for this crap." I tell no one.

The client has begun to ask many questions, wether the store finally had the item they had been asking for, or if the movies on the dvd sections were any good, if I had any recommendations for any.

After about half an hour of trying to convince the person to take something from the store, they had decided to leave with a few snacks and movies.

The store I have been working at happens to be a combination of many things, dvd rentals, clothes, snacks and a few figures for sale. At least it paid a bit better than the last job I had, it was a nice job with nice alternative music but the pay wasn't that good.

"(Y/N), you're on your break. Make sure to come back in 15." My coworker passed me when they returned from the restroom.

I nodded my head and left the store beginning to walk further into the mall where I have been working for a few months and began walking to the food area hoping to fill my stomach with some cheap food.

It was a calm Friday with only a few people or families circling around the building. Many kids running over to small area, an ice cream shop called 'Ice Cream Parties'.

I ordered my usual choice of food. Three sandwiches, fries and a taco. I reached my hand into the bag and began to eat minding my own business when I sat down by an empty area and I stopped chewing when I saw two men running past me.

Two security guards running fast and avoiding running into people. Immediately this caught my attention, so I began to follow the guards and quickened my pace when I heard a girl yelling for her dad.

I stayed behind from a crowd that formed near the mall's water fountain and I saw a figure, no, two in fact inside the water fountain, but one was beating the other and the worst thing was that it was one of the security guards.

"Daddy!"

People took out their flip phones and began to take a few pictures of what was happening, it quickly ended when the two men who had run past me earlier stepped into the water and pulled the poor man beneath the security guard away.

One of them began to deal with the man with a small girl running over to her beaten dad, and the other one roughly began to question the young man's actions and took him away inside an office room.

"Fuck." I muttered when I saw the man was dragged away.

I rolled my eyes and went back to my working place and spotted my coworker, "Hey, you think you can cover for me this time? Something very important and tragic happened."

My coworker nodded his head and as soon as he agreed I started running back outside the store and into the security room.

"Do you know how many paperworks we gotta do and how our establishments reputation will only decrease any more because of what you did?!" I heard the deep voice of a man question the young security guard.

"How many times are you going to give me a hard time, Mr Schmidt?"

"The man deserved it." He answered his boss.

His boss remained quiet probably just staring and him and not knowing exactly what to do. "So that's what you think? You're fired."

The man sighed but said nothing. "I'll have you sign a few paperwork before you leave and an investigation will be taken place right now. So this'll take some time to be resolved."

His boss has walked past me but said nothing assuming I was the guards family. I rolled to eyed and leaned my head forward and tilted it when I saw Mike crossing his arms.

"You're anger issues has only gotten worse." I say uninterested and notice Mike roll his eyes when he saw me.

"The fuck is you're problem?" He looked at me again and scoffed when he noticed my appearance.

Freshly dyed black hair and now with a single piercing over my eyebrow.

"You look like shit."

"I was about to say the same thing." I tell him not bothered by his words.

"Why are you so weird?" He scoffed again and looked away from me.

I poured pretending I was hurt. "Daddy issues. What can I say?" I chuckled darkly "You have anger issues, my guy. I have daddy issues. Tell me what's worse."

Mike remained silent when I mentioned him that. I looked around the onto sound coming from the clock on the wall.

"Why did you do it?" I ask him wanting to know his reason on attacking a man in front of his young daughter.

"And why should I tell you?" He remarked. "I don't owe you any favors because you got me this job weeks ago."

"I only did it for her and you know it." I defended myself and crossed my arms over my chest as well.

"Well I don't need anyone's help and that being less from you. I can take care of my own problem."

Mine has been struggling for a while now. Barely having enough money for himself, rent or raising his sister since she had no one left to look after her. The guy has his issues but it doesn't mean he had to be like this, he doesn't have a lot of money and the first thing he does is try to get himself fired… well he is definitely fired now.

Another thing I'd like to mention. Is that Mike and I have never gotten along, we've known each other for almost our entire lives and know what has happened to each other, but we've refused to get along. Not once had he been nice to me and never have I been nice to him.

We've both been through a lot of mess, similar to one another's, and instead of making us grow closer we simply grew further apart.

"Michael." I warn.

"(Y/N)." Michael says back now each of us looking at one another.

I try to remain calm and not start up another argument which always happens when we're together in a room.

Mike is the first to break eye contact and he sighs when he checks the clock again. It's nearly 2pm.

He mutters a few cursed words and looks down at lap. "Can you do me a favor and pick up Abbey from school?"

I lift an eyebrow looking at him. "Please? I know you don't own a car, so you can take mine."

Mike digs for his car keys inside from his pocket and holds them up for me. I smirk as I take them from him.

"Why trust me with your car? I can easily steal it from you and escape town."

"Because deep beneath all the bitchiness, black clothes and awful piercing. I know your a bit less tolerable when it comes to kids." Mike said glancing back at me and looking a bit too relaxed in this situation

I stared at the worn out paper sign in my hands. A second job wouldn't hurt…"Wanted security guard for night shift. Quickly I scribbled the number on my palm and crumbled the paper over and left it on the backseat.

I stepped out of car when I had parked it and recognized Mike's little sister. "(Y/N)?" She asked not expecting me at all.

Many months ago I had looked after her, now I only see her every once in a while, whenever she'd leave school early, Mike would have her stay at the mall until his shift would be over.

I came to see Abbey as a little sister as well especially since we saw each other growing up and Mike would take odd jobs at night leaving me to look after Abbey while she was still rather young.

"I'll be your escort for this ride. Hope that's fine with you, and hopefully you're teacher doesn't think I'm here to kidnap you." I tell her when I see her teacher looking at me weird.

Abbey waved her hand at the teacher making then sure she knew me.

"I'm late to my shift, so, let's hurry up shall we?" Abbey nods her head and got into the backseat when I got into the car again and turned it back on and starting driving back to the mall.

"It's been a while since we last saw each other. Thought you wouldn't remember me." I joked at the young girl while I glanced back and saw her looking outside the scenery as I drove by the familiar streets

"Of course I still remember you. My brother mentions you often." Abbey said getting my attention from her.

Didn't expect Mike to talk about me to his younger sister, Abbey.

"Oh? What does he say about me?"

"Says you're a bitch, weird and complains about his job or yours." I frowned and remained quiet. Of course why was I expecting nice from him.

"Those are his words, not mine. I actually enjoy spending time with you." Abbey said.

My expression softened when I heard Abbey says she enjoys my company. I smiled to myself and agreed with her, "I also enjoy spending time with you, Abbey."

Abbey hummed still looking outside the windows. "My brother got fired, didn't he?"

"…Yes, he did…"

Mike and I only exchanged a few words when I arrived back. He was fired, of course he was or he'd be in prison for what he did. He was probably going to celebrate later that he would no longer have to see my face at work. The guy has his problems but always finds time to argue of talk about me.

I feel for Abbey especially since she has no other female figure to talk about and have to stand and listen to her brother being annoying most of the time.

"Hey! You lose your brain there for a second?" Mike questioned which earned him a shove from his sister.

"(Y/N) thank you for picking me up from school and taking care of my dumb brother." Abbey said being the only polite and rational one out of the pair.

I smiled and patted her short hair. "Anytime Abbey. Maybe we can have a small girls night sometime." I suggest which made her smile a bit.

"You'll only end up corrupting her." Mike said playing with the car keys in his hands.

"Mike." Abbey said making him look down at her with his brown eyes.

He rolled his eyes and shrugged a bit. "Thanks for looking after my sister…well see you never." He said taking his sister's hand and beginning to leave.

How rude. If he weren't cute I definitely would've thrown him again into the water fountain..wait..what am I even saying?! Forget this, I've lost about half an hour of work time because of doing the guy a favor.

I huff to myself watching Mike and Abbey leave the mall for good. I turn around and headed to my work but the moment I arrived, I spotted Tom coworker and my boss looking at me with a face that said it all.

"You're fired."

"Let's hear a round of applause for the birthday girl!"

The lights changed and was now shining across the stage with cheery music playing as background while kids cheered when the pizzerias mascots made an appearance.

The pizzerias staff began to clap along when they began to sing 'happy birthday ' to me. My entire class was invited to my party.

My uncle was the one who invited them over since he knew I didn't have that too many friends, and he wanted me to get in with the right crowd. He knew that I was in a group of kids who would often bully others, I did it so I wouldn't be alone or be the one getting bullied.

I definitely chose the wrong crowd back then, all because I didn't want to be lonely…

My aunt and uncle raised me as their own since I could remember. They treated me like their own kid since they could never have any. They liked to throw these types of parties and invite everyone they knew.

Both of them were always fond and always liked to help financially to one of my classmates, that one being Mike Schmidt. He was kinda of a shy kid, and wasn't that fond at making an appearance at a birthday party without a present to give.

My uncle and aunt didn't mind that he didn't have the money, they still convinced the small kid to come and have a good time. Mike didn't want to leave his very little sister behind so my aunt would be carrying her everywhere.

I watched with glee as my favorite animatronic made his way towards me. I got up on my seat and smiled wide as I watched Bonnie come in with a colorful and big cake in his hands. One of the staff from the place approached and grabbed the cake placing in front of me, the cake seemed delicious with it's different colored candles.

I hugged onto my stuffed Bonnie plush as I wrapped one arm around the animatronic and felt one of its large paws patting my head.

I stared at the worn down building ahead of me as my hands were kept on my bike. 'Freddy's Pizzeria' read a sign just outside. The guy in charge must be inside or late to our meeting, as soon as they fired me from my job at the mall was when I decided to call this place up.

I'm a night owl after all so this'll be a piece of cake. All I gotta see is how much is the paycheck and I'll make sure to be the best security guard.

Maybe I'll be the only one around and have a nice time inside, remember those fond memories of the times I would come to this place and love following around the animatronics.

I knocked on the door a couple of more times waiting until someone would show up. The door slowly opened and I came face to face with an older looking man with large glasses.

"You're (Y/N) (L/N), correct?"

"Yes, sir. It's nice to finally meet you in person." I smiled trying to be as nice as I can.

"Pleasure is all mine…Please come inside." He said when he spotted the weather was beginning to change.

It was getting a bit chilly and the clouds were turning grey, about to rain a bit probably later. "You got here rather early."

"Yeah. The most important thing about a job is getting early." I chuckle beginning to follow the man not that far behind, but still remaining close to the entrance. "I do live a bit far from here but it's no trouble."

The man stopped and turned to face me. "You own a car?" He questioned and I knew I would be screwed if I said No.

"W-Well I don't..but I'm willing to come out here at any hour."

As soon as he was about to say something else, another knock was heard from the other side of the door. The man gave me a quick look and walked past me to open the door once again, I was surprised when I saw I wasn't the only one here.

Mike Schmidt had also applied for the job…

"No fucking way." Both Mike and I said looking at each other and wanting to strangle each other.

[141shousewife]

You like movies? You wanna make one?

Minors DNI I WILL eat you.

ill make this another part if it does well

cw: nsfw, price x female reader, TA reader x Professor! Price, slight jealousy/arguing, filming, price x plus size reader

Johns voice echos inside of the linoleum lecture hall. You quietly listen to the scribbles of a red pen and the sound of his voice. Normally the sound from his auditorium during lectures is moderate, but today he is particularly chipper as his voice bleeds into the shared office you currently revise essays in.

"-Excellent! and what do you think the director is trying to convey with this wide frame shot?"

Your eyes continue to graze over the same words again and again: "Director" "Shot" "Film" "Cinematography" "Intention" "Audience"

You love your job, but reading first years' dull writing for over an hour and a half has your eyes and brain hurting.

Being John's TA had a lot of quirks; good pay, free snacks, and lots of academic validation that you will not expand on in front of your friends when questioned, and lastly the sharply dressed professor that lounges around and insists on your everlasting 'genius', and is admittedly fun to run your eyes over and imagine him slowl-

"ALRIGHT- that is going to wrap up our time for today, it's Friday so I don't want to keep you all. Remember to make good choices and turn in your makeups by 11:59 on Sunday. Okay, get outta here."

You rest your eyes and listen to the symphony of zipping backpacks, chairs being pushed in, and the different conversations of "i gotta turn in-" or "what are you doing this weekend-" quickly zip by the door of the closed office. You take a moment to settle into your rolling chair as you hear Price sending off students warmly. His brown suede dress shoes quietly grow louder as they hit the tile close and closer to the office door.

Price's office is cushy and expansive. There is enough room for more than the desk, rug, couch, and mini-fridge fill the space a subpar amount. The two desks that occupy the warmly lit, carpeted room are positioned across the room from each other. John's desk is littered with a desk lamp, books stacked on top of each other, a desk of pens and a closed cigar case.

As you hear the him begin to answer the last few questions from students while slowly opening the office door, you gather your materials and move to the couch and sit beneath the warm throw that adorns it.

The couch dips in on itself significantly and creaks under your wide bottom as you curse it for its announcement.

"Of course- and if you have any more questions feel free to email me."

The girl that you see him talking to- the sliver of her that you can see is smaller than you and blonde, she catches her hair in between two of her fingers and leans into his personal space.

"Could I come to your office for help on my essay, this Saturday, around say 6?

Not fully understanding what she is asking, he straightens out his back in concern and responds to her in a hushed tone.

"Do you not have a device in order to submit an email? If not the library is open from 9 am to 9 pm during the weekend."

She provides even less space for him and looks up with a smile.

"No Professor, I do, I just meant if I needed some... special help"

He maintains a warm demeanor but shuts her down

" I'm afraid not- My office hours are for working and if you make a comment like that again I am at liberty to report you to the dean, so I would suggest you leave now. Have a nice weekend."

He opens the door fully to enter and shuts it behind him and the blonde pads away quietly with less of her dignity than before. He rolls his eyes as he greets you.

"You can't make this stuff up. Flirting when she hasn't even turned in her essay on time. Bold."

You speak without fully thinking; wondering why Price is acting so insulted by a conventionally good looking girl shmoozing him. As he sets his laptop and other things on his desk you speak.

"She was a pretty girl John. It's not like its such a low blow."

John turns quickly quirks his head "You can't seriously be implying I would date some...kid? one of my students? She's not my type. "

You immediately jump to defend yourself with in hindsight- a bit too much gusto.

You say while sarcastically chuckling "I wasn't saying that! and come on it's just us, she- girls like her, are everyone's type."

John steps closer to where you are sat on the couch and looks down at you with his eyes furrowed and his hands in his pockets.

"Well she's not mine."

He reaches over on top of his desk a grabs a cigar, he quietly throws a "You mind?" over his shoulder and upon you responding "You're all good." he clips his cigar and lights it.

He turns around and steps closer as puffs it and he eyes you over.

His gaze is- uncomfortably intense, in a way that makes you wanna say sorry- or maybe start stripping...

He seems to catch wind of you being in thought.

"What do you care anyway?"

You look at him to respond but nothing comes out of your mouth as he sits the cigar down and steps closer to you until he's standing over you. His legs stand interlinked with yours and brushes them.

You feel something other worldly pull your body up to stand in front of him. You stare at him breathlessly and try to ignore the cinnamon, sandalwood and cigar smoke that's making you want to rub your-

John's voice pulls you out of another depraved thought

"I can't believe you think a girl like that is my type. I date women. Grown women. "

Your voice barely sounds like your own. You barely get the words out.

" I swear that wasn't what I meant. I just thought-"

John cuts you off "I know what you thought, you thought I was going to let you have a self deprecation fest, but I'm telling you that the women I want.. don't look, talk, or think like her. I don't want girls."

"I like women. Women who look, talk, and think like you." He toys with the bottom of your skirt in a way that makes your face grow warm, his hand brushing against your thick thigh.

You start to protest immediately, " You don't need to flatter me John, I'm sorry."

John starts speaking over you in frustration, "Why is it unbelievable that I would prefer you? I'm not flattering you. I'm not a liar or someone who compliments out of pity, you know what- here"

He huffs and grabs your wrist and places your hand directly over his khaki covered hard-on and whispers

"Does that feel like pity to you?"

As you stare at him dumbfounded, John's hand reaches up and holds the base of your skull with his large hand.

All of your breath re-enters your lungs like he just jump-started your entire system.

John looks at you with mischief you cannot quite place.

"How about I help you see how good you look?"

You track his gaze towards his Nikon and immediately look at him in horror.

"You wanna record me? No. Absolutely not. I look horrible on camera and you want to film my O-face and chubbiness from a side profile? You've lost it!"

"Honey, if you don't want to film because you're uncomfortable we can forget it right now, but if this is about the way your 'chubbiness' looks then I'm telling you that I wanna see this body. On me. On video."

[moxfirefly]

"I'm not letting them go. They're mine. They've always been mine."

For a bestie mikey who is jealous, someone's taking readers' attention away from him?

These quotes are hard to work with XD

Ray, my beloved. Always coming in clutch 🤌

Rated Mature (suggestive themes)

Mikey felt a stirring next to him that prompted him to open his eyes. The midnight nap he’d decided on when you had sat next to him was disturbed and he wanted to groan displeased.

“Sorry Mike, I gotta use the bathroom be back in a sec.” That gentle hushed tone only served to help him drift back, almost at least. Woefully he accepted his best friend having to leave for a few minutes.

It was something of tradition at this point, falling a sleep next to you during movie nights. Mikey had wordlessly cemented the fact that he got to sit next to you and you had reinforced it by always finding your place next to him.

He took the second to stretch out, enjoying the pops of each achy limbs, patrol had been a bitch a few hours ago. He saw Leo konked on the armchair, Donnie in the kitchen making more popcorn as a sleepy April scrolled through Netflix to find something else to play.

“—Well im gonna need you in a bit to measure again, probably tomorrow too”

Raph’s voice rang from behind where he was sat on the couch. Mikey looked back to see him talking to you and holding your arm extended.

“Remind me why I’m doing this again?” He asked mocked annoyed as he used his pointer and thumb to measure your arm.

“Because I wanna win $100 bucks at work” You laughed when he moved to your other arm to do the same.

“What fucking weird job makes an ugly Christmas sweater competition?” He used both his hand to grab your waist, using it as reference for the torso of the sweater.

Mikey raised a brow ridge, why had he felt a pulse of something when he saw his brother man handling you.

“Hey if I win you’ve got $50 waiting for you, so make it as ugly as possible.” You arched your neck when he wrapped a hand around your neck and mumble something, clearly mapping out the measurements in his head.

That, yeah that felt really weird in the bottom of Mikey’s stomach. Why did Raph have to loom over you, hand around your pretty neck and smiling to himself.

“Well come by this week, I’m gonna need you while I’m making it.” He finally let go of you, and it took a second of trying to think straight to not jump Raph.

“Mikey and I are playing that new game where you romance all the hot people—“

Donnie piped in, “Baldur’s Gate.” You threw him a finger gun for the assist.

“Well ya think you can detach yourself from numb nuts for a few minutes at a time?” He asked playfully.

“Well you’ve got her measurements what more do you need, dude?” Mikey finally spoke up, making Raph and you turn towards his groggy annoyed face. “I got an idea but I gotta re-adjust or re-make whatever don’t come out right.” He spoke matter of fact, his gaze was mocking him.

“I can’t just take breaks between.” You offered to ease the sudden tension in the air.

“I’m sure Mikey can survive five minutes without ya, right buddy?” He clamped both hands on your shoulders and smiled at his youngest brother. “Man quit being handsy with her.” It came out before he could really assess what his mouth had vomited out. Under a different tone of voice it could’ve been taken playfully but this was the full opposite.

“Chill man, I ain’t stealing ya girl.” He chuckled and if Mikey could blush he would. He glared at Raph, not noticing your own blush creeping up your cheeks.

“Looks like it since you wanna keep her all week.” He was getting up now, less groggy and more peeved than anything.

“Mike—“ Your voice was gentle trying to ease the fast approaching boiling tension in the air.

“Aww, Mikey’s worried his bestie’s gonna be my bestie all week? Man just let it go.” Raph wasn’t even remotely serious poking fun at his younger brother.

“Im not letting her go. She’s mine. She’s always been mine.” He shot a deep glare at Raph, who face quickly fell upon hearing those words.

It took a few seconds for Mikey to fully comprehend what he had said and the implication behind it. His eyes went wide, landing on your own wide eyes and the blush that scattered itself further down your chest.

Fuck, what had he done?

[the-marshals-wife]

Ugly Sweaters and Mistletoe (Sebastian Wilder x Reader)

─ ���⋅☆⋅⋆ 𝐑𝐘𝐀𝐍 𝐆𝐎𝐒𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓 ⋅☆⋅ 𝐌𝐀𝐈𝐍 𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓 ⋅☆⋅ 𝐀𝐎𝟑 ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─

A/N: Merry Goosemas! 🎄 After all the comfort and joy he has brought me this year, I had to dedicate my holiday fic to another of his darling characters. I rewatched La La Land and endured the agony of the ending just so I could write this.

{Forgive me the mini chunk of exposition at the beginning, there's a ton of dialogue afterwards, I promise. I must give reader some set-up/backstory or I will perish.}

Description: Sebastian Wilder x waitress Fem!Reader, festive fluff | Warnings: suggestive themes, kissing, alcohol/drinking mentioned | Setting: a year or so after the epilogue | Word count: 2.6k

Imagine Sebastian surprising you with some holiday magic

Christmas had officially come to Seb's, and it was better than you'd ever imagined. As you tie your apron around your waist and make your way onto the floor to begin your shift, you try to take in all of the splendor. Garland was draped across the frames on every wall, each table had a cloth with festive print, and a beautiful tree decorated in blue and silver twinkled in the corner of the stage. Perhaps best of all, the club was absolutely brimming with guests wearing the flashiest, gaudiest holiday sweaters you'd ever seen.

You slip behind the bar, head buzzing with anticipation.

"Merry Christmas," you greet the mixologist.

"It most certainly is," he smiles, pausing to wipe his brow, "These sweaters are good for business. We got a lot of thirsty folks tonight."

"I better stay on my toes," you reply.

Even without the holiday trimmings, working at Seb's was the best job you'd ever had. The staff were some of the most easy-going people you'd ever met, the atmosphere was electric, and the music was sensational. Where else could you buss tables for a decent wage and hear a jazz concert every single night? The tips weren't too shabby either. It wasn't uncommon for you to bring drinks to studio execs and business moguls just as much as the working class jazz enthusiast. It'd taken a few years to get off the ground, but now, there was hardly a person left in LA who dared to call themselves "in the know" that hadn't at least heard of this place. By the time you'd sent in your application, Seb's was quite well-established on the scene. That was nearly a year ago now, and the club had only grown in popularity since. Even the odd movie star would visit from time to time. Some would sneak in and try to blend with the rest of the clientele, while others would leave a brigade of paparazzi out on the sidewalk, crowding around the door until said celebrity had to inevitably depart. Sebastian was quite irritable on those days, though he admitted to liking the publicity.

Oh, Sebastian. Admittedly, your favorite part of the gig was not the music or the money, but the owner himself. That was something you tried to keep to yourself, although perhaps to varying degrees of success. Like many of the nights that had come before, in the ocean of faces, you find yourself looking for one in particular. You see the band warming up on stage, but the charming, somewhat enigmatic pianist is missing.

Your fellow waitress for the evening bounces into the bar behind you, snapping you back to reality. She's decked out in a peppermint-striped sweater dress and fuzzy reindeer antler hairpieces.

"Oh my gosh, I love your outfit," you smile.

"Thank you! I love yours," she beams, "Look at this place! Cal said there was a line forming down the block two hours before opening."

"I know, this is insane," you agree, taking in the view again, "I can't believe so many people came."

"And I seriously can't believe you got Sebastian to do this," she chuckles, stacking drinks on her tray.

You pick up a cloth and start polishing a glass. "What do you mean?"

"He's super strict about the aesthetic of this place. Everything's gotta fit 'the jazz vibe', you know? He wouldn't even let people wear anything special for Halloween."

"Really? I wore a princess tiara and had glitter all in my hair on Halloween. He didn't say a word to me about it."

She stops long enough to shoot you a pointed look. You could instantly feel your cheeks turning red.

"My point exactly," she responds, smirking, "Boy, am I glad, too. I love working here, but around the holidays, it has been like a funeral home. No lights, no tree. Not even a shred of tinsel."

"You're kidding," you say, realization finally starting to sink in.

"Now it's like the mall at Christmas in here," she declares, "Whatever you're doing, honey, keep it up."

She winks. Before you can explain that her guess was as good as yours on what that might be, she's walked away and left you to your stunned thoughts.

Did Sebastian really do all this just because you asked? You try to think back to the moment that you suggested it to him. By all accounts, it had been a night like any other. You were cleaning up your tables, eagerly thinking about the upcoming holiday season, especially since it would be your first working at Seb's. At your last job, they talked about doing an ugly Christmas sweater night for the staff and guests, but you left before getting to participate. You always thought it would be fun. So, when Sebastian walked you to your car that night, like he always did when you worked the closing shift, you brought it up.

"Sounds...colorful," he'd remarked, nodding thoughtfully.

And that was it, until a week ago when you saw the pile of fliers on the bar for Seb's first ever ugly Christmas sweater party. You'd been too excited to realize how out of the ordinary it was. Thanks to your amused coworker, you now wonder how you could have missed it.

More anxious than ever to see him, you make yourself busy, going out to your tables and collecting orders. Yet by the time you deliver your third full tray of drinks, there was still no sign of Sebastian. From the back of the room, you can see the rest of the band up on stage shrugging and talking amongst themselves. Just as you're about to sneak into the back to look for him yourself, you hear a familiar voice.

Sebastian hurriedly walks up alongside you, surveying the full club.

"Oh good, they didn't start without me," he says, out of breath.

"I was starting to think you got lost, Wilder," you say, turning to face him.

"Just had to swing by the North Pole and grab a change of costume. I definitely didn't forget it in my car," he replies, slicking back his tousled hair, "So, what do you think?"

He peers down and holds out the bottom of his bright red sweater, a huge golden saxophone emblazoned on the front surrounded by tiny silver music notes.

Your hands fly up over your mouth, the sight filling you with instant joy.

"I freaking love it," you grin, "It's glorious."

"Think it's snazzy enough? Or, should I say, jazzy enough?"

"It's so jazzy," you answer, giggling in delight.

He chuckles, shaking his head. "You look pretty festive yourself."

You glance down at your green yuletide apparition, the two googly eyes of a fluffy white cat in an elf hat staring up at you.

"Thanks. It was between this and one that had Santa with a Hawaiian shirt and a margarita. This one spoke to me though."

"I think it's speaking to me too," he says, raising an eyebrow, "The eyes really follow you, don't they?

Just like always, Sebastian had you laughing and nearly forgetting the rest of the world.

"Speaking of eyes following you," you begin, gesturing, "Don't you have a show to start?"

"Indeed I do. Time to jingle some bells," he says, clapping his hands together, "See you after?"

Your heart skips at the suggestion. "I'll be here."

He starts to walk off, but then you're struck with sudden remembrance.

"Wait, Seb!" you call after him, reaching into your apron, "I almost forgot."

He spins on his heel and returns, his bright blue eyes wide with expectation.

"To complete your look," you say, holding out a Santa hat, "You're the boss, after all."

"Of course. How can I refuse?" he smiles, taking it from your grip and placing it on his head, "You don't have a long white beard for me too, do you?"

"No, no, you're good. I left that in my other apron," you snort, playfully shoving his arm, "You better get up there, Jazzy Claus."

"That's good. I'm gonna use that," he replies before dashing away.

Now remembering that you're on the clock, you quickly maneuver back to home base where more orders are surely waiting on you. Across the club, Sebastian finally makes his way onto the stage and up to the microphone.

"Happy Holidays," he greets after the boisterous applause, "I see a lot of folks who have donned their gay apparel. I know I have. And I've got just one question for you. Who here is feeling the Christmas spirit?"

The audience laughs and whoops in confirmation as you arrange a round of refills on your tray, stealing glances as you go.

"I think we've got at least a few," he smiles, scanning the crowd, "But if you're not feeling it yet, I believe you will before the night is over. I'd like to thank you all for attending our first ever 'Ugly Sweater Celebration.' We've got a great line up for you tonight that will hopefully put a spring in your step, and maybe even bring some cheer to your hearts."

"But before we start rocking around the Christmas tree, I want to take a moment to thank a very special someone."

You nearly drop the glass in your hand. Before you can move, the soft glow of one of the stage lights is pointing directly at you. Your pulse begins to race, and through your stupor, you hear Sebastian continue.

"The lovely Miss Y/N, without whom tonight's party, and much of the magic here at Seb's, would not have been possible."

As the audience claps in your honor, you look up to see Seb's gaze fixed on you. In that moment, the glitter and garland faded away. All that remained was you and he.

Only once he sat down at the piano and began to play did time start again.

⋆

The party was a complete success. People even cheered for an encore of ''Zat You, Santa Claus?', which Seb was all too happy to give. Meanwhile, you somehow managed to focus on your tables and get through the rest of your shift without busting from excitement, Seb's speech about you replaying in your mind. As much as you enjoyed the festivities, you couldn't keep your thoughts from wandering to what might await after the final carol was played.

Now that the last guest had left, and the rest of the staff had gone home, you and Sebastian were the only two left in the building. The suspense quickens your pace as you switch off the remaining lights and gather your things. Like clockwork, Sebastian stands by the door waiting for you.

"I'm about to sweat to death in this thing," he says as you approach, keys jingling in his hand, "You ready for some fresh air?"

"Don't have to ask me twice," you reply, pulling your purse over your shoulder.

He holds the door open for you, locking up once you're through. You wait for him at the top of the stairs like usual as he switches off the neon, going through the motions of the nightly routine in uncharacteristic silence. You figured he was exhausted from spreading holiday cheer, yet you couldn't help but wonder if anticipation was weighing on him as well. The damp night air brings little relief as you step onto the sidewalk, but it would take an arctic breeze to chill your nerves.

He locks the outer door and lets out a dramatic sigh.

"Much better," he exhales, "At least three degrees cooler. Maybe five."

You start off down the block side by side.

"I'd say about four and a half," you nod, "Why don't you take the sweater off?"

"And undo all that Christmas spirit? I think not," he scoffs.

"What was I thinking?" You roll your eyes, bouncing your palm off of your forehead.

"You didn't have one of those eggnog cocktails, did you? Which was not my idea, by the way," he adds, shuddering.

"Absolutely not, that was disgusting. Just the smell of it-," you gag, wishing you could dispel the memory entirely, "If I never have to serve another of those again, it'll be too soon."

Silence falls between you for a moment as you turn the corner and start down the alley towards the parking lot.

"I think my halls are officially decked," he says, a bit quieter than before.

"Same. I smiled so much, my cheeks hurt."

"You're not going to report that as a workplace injury, are you?" he teases, "Cause if you are, I'm gonna need to lawyer up."

Your expression turns sly. "Well, we might be able to come to some sort of arrangement."

"Uh oh, like what?" he asks, faking nervousness.

"Like...you agreeing to have a Christmas party every year from now on," you respond with confidence.

"Oh, so that's how it's gonna be. I give ya an inch, and you take a candy cane mile!" he throws up his hands in feigned exasperation.

You step ahead of him and begin to walk backwards, staring him down.

"We could always take it to court, Wilder. But I'm warning you, my lawyer has never lost a facial injury case. I think you should just accept the deal and walk while you still can," you say sternly, trying not to crack up.

He stops in his tracks and crosses his arms, frowning, "I didn't take you for a cutthroat."

"That was your mistake, Jazzy Claus," you smirk, "Never judge a woman by her ugly sweater."

Sebastian can keep up the charade no longer, breaking down into laughter. You swiftly follow suit.

"Alright, alright. Twist my arm, why don't ya," he concedes, rolling his eyes and starting to walk again.

"I knew you'd see it my way," you chuckle, pleased with your victory.

Your car comes into view, and with the playful moment passed, you determine to tell him what you'd actually intended to.

"I really enjoyed tonight. Everyone did. Thank you for doing all of this."

"It was a great idea. I'm glad you thought of it."

Your journey ends as you reach the front of your car, and you stand face to face.

"That's all I did. You're the one who brought it to life and pulled off a Christmas miracle," you remind.

"Because of you," he states, "I get stuck in my ways sometimes. But when you're around...not so much."

"Well, I'm glad I can help," you offer, glancing down at your shoes.

"I meant what I said up on stage, Y/N. This place is better with you," he pauses, inching closer to you, "So am I."

You're momentarily lost for words, captivated by his softened gaze.

"I also meant to hang this somewhere out here." He reaches into his pocket and produces a sprig of mistletoe tied with a thin red ribbon, "But there's really nothing to walk under. And then I thought, 'maybe that's a weird thing to do', even though it's a time-honored tradition. So you know, I just spiraled from there."

You grin and take the sprig from his open palm.

"Don't overthink it, Wilder," you say, holding it over your head.

He takes only seconds to accept your invitation. The space between you disappears as he leans in and captures your lips in a tender kiss. Time stops once more as you kiss him back beneath the winter stars. This too was better than you'd ever dreamed.

"Do you have any plans for New Years Eve?" you ask, awestruck.

He slips his hand into yours and smiles.

"I do now."

[romanreignseater]

You’ve Made A Mess.

Roman Reigns x Reader

Rating: 18+

Warning: Nasty hand job, really.

“Roman’s being a brat and you wanted to show him what happens to brats when they lip off too much.”

A/N: I don’t have much to say, but I hope you enjoy 😅!!

GIF: @jeysuso

com·bust

/kəmˈbəst/

to explode…

Contrary to popular belief, the Tribal Chief is a very busy man. From behind the scenes work on furthering the Bloodline’s story, to brand deals and promos, to shooting for WWE2K23.

It’s not easy being the Tribal Chief.

Roman is pretty stressed nearly everyday. Whether he’s out and about or at home dealing with the kids. You always try your best to bring his stress levels down, but he still seems very stressed.

And, you’re starting to hate it.

Roman’s attitude is out of this world. You’ve honestly never seen a grown man act like such a brat. Not only that, but his attitude is always directed towards you. There’s your kids, his family, your family, his business partners, your friends, his bosses… but all that attitude goes to you.

“Y/N, where are my Jordan’s?! I left them right here in front of the door.” You roll your eyes from the laundry room, as he yells across the house about some damn Jordan’s.

“Baby I don’t know where they are. And can you please not yell across the hallway, your son is still sleeping.” Roman footsteps are heard barreling towards you.

He enters the laundry room staring at you with hard eyes. “Why you gotta have an attitude with me?!” He expressed. You stared at him with no amusement in your face. “Joe, I don’t have time to deal with this right now. I just said I don’t know where they are, you have plenty of other shoes to wear.” Mentioning to his large show collection.

“You’ve been so distant towards me, what’s the problem?” He said softly while lifting your chin so you can look him in his eyes. His brown orbs twinkle as he looks at you.

You’d always loved his beautiful eyes, always seeming to get lost in them.

“The problem is you, Leati.” The Undisputed Champion knew anytime you mentioned his first name, you weren’t happy.

“I know I’ve been a brat, and my attitude isn’t the best as of late. But I shouldn’t be directing that towards you. I’m sorry baby.” You thought to yourself, as you were glad he understood what the problem was. He seemed pretty sincere.

“Fine. I accept your apology, but don’t bring that attitude with me, cause you know I’d whoop that ass.” Roman and you shaked hands understanding your agreement. Although, Roman is the Tribal Chief, he was very much scared of his wife who he towered over.

“Well, I’ll go find my shoes and you leave you to it.” He swiftly kissed your sweet lips and exited the room, as you stared at his perfect ass. “That boy is gonna pay… he��s gonna pay.” You said to yourself.

2 Hours Later…

You and Roman were sitting on the couch watching Black Adam (pretty good movie 8/10). Roman’s hoodie was over his head and hands in his pockets. You were cuddled up next to him, enjoying the time you guys spent alone without the kids.

But…

Your attention was focused on his spread thighs. His bulge prominently poking through his black sweatpants, looking delicious. You just wanted a bite… Your hands traveled from his burly chest to the lower part of his stomach. Roman eyes stayed trained on the screen.

“That boy is gonna pay… he’s gonna pay.”

Your thoughts from earlier in the sparked through your mind. It was go time.

Your hand laid down gently onto his dick. The weight of your hand made the Tribal Chief twitch a little. You smirked to yourself as you began massaging him through his pants.

Your eyes were focused on the movement of your hand, when a deep voice drew you back to your senses. “Baby…” Your eyes met into an intense daze.

“What?! I told you not to bring that attitude to me.” The abusive massaging of his cock did not cease. “I’ve stopped, I understand my mistakes.” He said as his breathing hitched. “But, you need a punishment big boy.” Your smile absolutely devilish.

Your hands then pull down his pants with his boxers. His cock sprang out with life and he hissed as the cold air of your living room hit the tip of his dick. Your plan:

Jerk him off, with no mouth. Overstimulate him as much as possible.

You wanted him to pay. He typically loves the feeling of your dangerous mouth, but you wanted to overstimulate the hell out of him with just your dainty little hand. You spit on your hand with absolute filth. Roman’s eyes watched as your hand began to slowly pleasure him. “Shit baby, just like that.” He moaned as the minstrel of your hand moved fluidly.

The feeling of his rigid cock felt wondrous in your delicate hand. “You like that big boy?!” Your lips moved as he looked into your eyes to say. “Yes mama. Gimme that mouth baby.”

You met his slightly open lips with a kiss. His eyebrows tweaked into questioning look. “Bab-y, I meant your mouth on my dick.” You looked into the ceiling as if you’re thinking about it. “I think… no!” Roman’s face was contorted in utter disbelief. “I do what I what honey, and you’ll just have to deal with it.” As he was about to speak, his eyes rolled to the back of his head when the top of your nail flicked the slit of his tip. “F-uckkkkk, oh my god!! Don’t stop that mama.”

You spit on the tip of his dick to add a little more moisture to his already swelting dick. You let your hand move up and down, abusing his cock. “Ooo-o baby that’s so g-ood.” Roman said expressing his gratitude for pleasuring him. “I know sweetie, I’m a professional.” Your smile shining as bright as ever. As his legs began shaking, his cock twitching feverishly, and his head lolled to the back of the couch.

“I’m ggg-onna cum.” His teeth clenched together as he indulges in the feeling of his climax reaching its point. The motion of your hand fasten and he was about to combust. “Aaaaaaa… that’s it mama, I’m gonna cum.” His moans sounding similar to yours, as you’ve never heard him moan so “women-like”.

His legs trembled as he gave out, and came all over his built thighs. But, the punishment is just beginning. Your hands continued to jerk him off, without stopping. “Wait, baby no more.” He begged, wanting to the overstimulation to stop. “No can do big boy.” His cock so ruined and spewing out more cum. His heart seemed to be beating out of his chest and eyelids fluttering shut.

You let go of his cock and licked up his cum off of your hand. “Mmmmm, tastes so good baby.” As Roman lifted his head back up, you licked the cum that had fallen all over his cock and thighs. You tongue was now in a scoop form taking in all of his cum. Roman’s eyes low as he watched you swallow his kids.

When you rised, Roman noticed the cum left on the corner of your lip. He wiped it off with his massive thumb as he looked you in the eyes. He then takes his thumb and sticks it in his mouth. You watched your filthy man swallow his own cum.

“Well I gotta go to sleep. Bye baby!” You said as you leaned forward to kiss him. You ran upstairs as he pulled up his pants and continued to watch the movie.

“I think I would make a better Black Adam.”

THE END!!

I hope you all enjoy this story 😉.

[hrefna-the-raven]

The hunt

Fallout masterlist - main masterlist

Cooper Howard/The Ghoul x reader

Chapter 1 - The plan

Summary: Dom Pedro's caravan is in sight but you and Coop know exactly how to play this in your favour 😉

(this happens before Cooper ended up in that grave)

Words: 1404

Warnings: swearing, violence

Notes: this is still quite gender-neutral 😊 the next chapter will be less neutral for *cough* naughty *cough* reason 😇

Chapter 2 - The bounty

You snatched a sniper rifle from your backpack and made your way towards the upper level of a towering building, concealing yourself behind a weathered wall as you surveyed the approaching gang. Cooper gazed at you for a moment, lost in thoughts. You continued to be full of surprises and unusually well prepared for someone this young but then again, compared to an over two centuries old ghoul everyone seemed young. He came to the conclusion that, despite having only known you for a few hours, he enjoyed your company way too much. From the moment you looked up, a mischievous smile playing on your lips, he felt an ache, an old familiar pain from days long past, intertwined with a connection he rarely ever formed with others, even before the Great War. And yet, there was something about your way of being, a sweet tune that resonated perfectly with his own woeful ballad.

"Seeing something you like?", you teased, grinning at him.

"Certainly not what's headin' towards us.", he huffed, pointing at the group heading towards your position.

Cooper scolded himself internally, he'd never been this distracted, not on a job, not with anyone else. He grumbled, pulling his attention back to the task at hand. Dom Pedro's so-called caravan turned out to be a pack of seven well armed raiders, one of them wearing a modified power armour.

"Guess someone tried to fuck us both, but not in the fun way", you joked.

Cooper chuckled as he took hold of your rifle and peered through the scope at the armoured raider.

"Feelin' all mighty hiding behind his twelve-piece cast-iron skillet set but he's gonna have a hell of a surprise. Aim just below the chestplate.", he whispered in your ear, a pleased smirk forming on his lips as he loaded his revolver.

"And what are you gonna do?"

"Distract them with my irresistible charms."

Cooper stood up, shrugged his shoulders, and winked at you before making his way towards the raiders.

You aimed at the power armour's chestplate, waiting patiently until you heard the ghoul's whistle, drawing the raiders' attention to him. A faint smile tugged on the corners of your mouth. The way he carried himself, full of confidence and that smug grin plastered across his face, made your heart beat faster. Throughout your travels and hunts, you had met many different personalities but not a single one was quite like him. It wasn't merely your crush on the pre-war Cooper Howard whose movies you devoured whenever you had a spare moment, this connection deepened the instant you finally encountered him, winding its way under your skin, striking its roots into your beating heart. You weren't oblivious to the subtle glances he stole in your direction, leaving you to wonder if he had been caught in the same dilemma.

"Well, I tell you what, boys, whenever somebody walks around as fancy and loud as you, they gotta have something worth takin'", he slowly pointed at the wooden crate tightly clasped by the taller raider, "you know it'd be a real shame of those fine bottles would go to waste on a bunch of dickheads like you."

The armoured one stepped up, pointing his minigun at Cooper, his voice hollering from behind the mounted rusty cage.

"Oh yeah? What about you, ghoul? Did the radiation melt away your brain or why do stand here, unarmed, trying to threaten us?!"

Cooper laughed, raising both hands in a fingergun gesture, aimed at the raider.

"Careful buddy, ghoul's got magic powers."

He imitated shooting which you took as your cue and fired a shot right underneath chestplate. The raider stood still, like frozen in time for a second, leaving you wondering if you had missed but then he collapsed on the ground without a sound. Your eyes widened at the sight, marveling at how easy you just took out someone in a power armour. You usually avoided those while hunting alone but this was a game changer. With a swift reload of your rifle, you took aim at the next raider, a chuckle escaping your lips as you observed their startled reaction to their companion's sudden death.

"So what will it be? Shall I reload my", his eyes wandered to his fingers, a wicked smile spreading across his lips, "guns or will you be good little raiders and hand me that crate?"

One of them pushed his way through the group, pointing his gun at Cooper. Before he could even reach him to shout his threats, one of your bullets found its mark and took him out, his lifeless body slumping to the ground in front of the ghoul who was still grinning.

"We still outnumber him, you morons! Get him!", another one screamed.

What happened next was the precise reason why you'd decided to forgo Dom Pedro's proposition and opted to work with this remarkable gunslinger. Cooper snatched his revolver out of the holster, his body leaning slightly backward as a flurry of shots rang out and before your mind could even comprehend what exactly happened, all of the raiders, with the exception of the one clutching the crate, were lying on the ground, crimson pools forming around their corpses. You stowed away your rifle, slung your bag over your shoulder, grasped the shotgun and made your way down to join Cooper.

"You got two choices, buddy. You either join your friends in their eternal nap or you hand over those fine bottles and be on your merry, very much alive, way."

Hiding behind the corner of a crumbling wall, you watched the scene unfold. The raider trembled so much that you could hear the bottles clinking together as he sat the crate down. Faint sobs escaped his lips, his feet moving a few steps backwards before turning around, fleeing in terror. Just as he passed by you, a deafening shot echoed through the ruins, his head exploding into countless tiny pieces before his corpse hit the ground, the blood drops, brain matter and skull fragments raining down on the sand. Cooper cocked his brow, intrigued by the unfolding murder scene that lay before him. You emerged from around the corner, your shotgun resting casually on your shoulder as you strolled over to him.

"No witnesses", you chuckled, kneeling down beside the crate and carefully packing the bottles into your backpack, "besides you shouldn't be the one to kill him."

"And why's that?", he asked, a nagging feeling in the back of his mind warning him not to, yet equally aware and afraid of the answer you'd give.

"Feo fuerte y formal", you replied, trying your best to mimic his thick accent, "although I much preferred your character when he didn't kill the villains. I know, I know, you're not truly that movie character, you're just...you."

The smile that graced your lips was genuine and innocent. He froze, hearing those words again after more than two centuries knocked the air straight out of his lungs.

"I know a place we can lay low until we take on Dom aaand", you wiggled one of the bottles, "we gonna have some fun, partner. We definitely deserve it."

You hummed a song he didn't recognise and your fingers found his hand, your broad smile hidden while you walked in front, tagging him along. No one had ever bothered to look beyond his ghastly appearance and acknowledged him for who was truly hiding behind that scarred noseless face. He was one to shoot anyone who admitted to have been ordered to kill him and definitely anyone who would have dared to take his hand, dragging him behind them like a puppy. To be honest, he definitely had shot a few for far less. And yet here you were, wrapped in the golden glow of the desert sun, a beautiful smile dancing across your lips, doing exactly those two things without any bullet holeson your admittedly attractive body. And to add insult to injury, deep down, locked away in his shrivelled heart, a glimmer of joy and affection shimmered in the darkness. He'd never admit it to you but, in the ways and words of the world before the bombs, he was falling for you and he feared that if you'd truly tempt him, he'd be too weak to resist and he couldn't bear the thought of letting another one into his wounded heart. The wounds of betrayal of the last person he held in there were, after all this time, still as painful as then.

Chapter 3 - The spoils (18+)

Feel free to reblog if you liked the story 😊

Tags: @dreamtofus

[toomanystoriessolittletime]

A walk in the woods

Week 1 of the Winter Writing Challenge

Prompt: "I can't believe you talked me into this"

Summary: Frankie talks you into taking a walk to the local farm to pick out a Christmas tree.

Pairing: Frankie Morales x fem. reader

Wordcount: 1.3k

Rating: G

Warnings: fluff, fluff, fluff

If you want to get notified when I post new fics follow @toomanystoriessolittletime-fics and turn on notifications

This was not how you had planned to spend your Saturday. It had been snowing all week. And with having to leave the house for work every single day, you were looking forward to catching up on housework and not leaving the house. Or wear pants.

People were going fucking crazy the closer Christmas came and you were looking forward to not dealing with stupid people for at least 48 hours. 

Maybe bake a cake. 

Or talk Frankie into spending the whole day cuddling on the couch while watching some shitty Christmas movie on TV. 

Frankie and you had only moved to this neighbourhood three months ago. 

You had gotten the job offer you had always dreamed of. The only problem was that it was in another state, far away from all your friends and family. 

Ready to decline the offer, it was Frankie who told you to take it. Who made plans with you, talked to real estate agents to find the perfect home for the two of you. More than once you asked him if he was sure it was the right thing to do. 

And he, like the perfect man he was, told you everything would be okay as long as you two were together.

Moving states also meant moving to a whole other climate with actual seasons, leaving you to experience your first real winter in twenty years. 

„I can’t believe you talked me into this,“ you pouted, zipping up your winter coat. Frankie grinned at you, wrapping a scarf around your neck, kissing your nose. 

Bella, your three year old Jack Russel terrier was already excitedly circling around the two of you, waiting to get outside. 

„Come ooon. It stopped snowing for the first time in days. We’re just walking up to the Farm to find the perfect Christmas tree, and then we can go home,“ he hummed. 

You sighed. 

„I put on pants for you. I was looking forward to no pants today,“ you dramatically whined. 

He grinned. 

„I’ll help you get out of them later,“ he winked before he kissed you. 

Okay this… wasn’t so bad. 

When you got to the farm they had hot drinks and some snacks. The area was huge, so you did not see many people on the hunt for the perfect Christmas tree, which you found rather quickly, letting Frankie handle the reservation and making a date to pick it up at the end of the next week. 

You powered out your dog in the meantime. Forming and throwing snow balls for her which she tried to catch with her little snout, barking at you when it disappeared and coming back for more. 

You picked her up after a while, just in time for Frankie to be finished, making his way back to you. 

„Ready to go home?“ He asked, taking your hand. You nodded and he took Bella from you to set her down, taking her leash. 

„Let’s take the way back through the woods,“ he kissed you softly and you smiled. 

„Okay I gotta admit, getting out of the house wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be,“ you said as you slowly walked through the woods, back to you house. You looked up at Frankie who was still holding your hand, smiling up at him. 

Sometimes you were scared of how much you loved him. 

Things hadn’t always been easy, but you grew with every challenge, choosing to work through your problems, coming out stronger every single time. 

Frankie was your person, and he would not get rid of you so easily. 

„Told you so,“ Frankie said. Bella barked in that moment, making you both laugh. 

„You know I have to admit I was scared to just pack up our life and leave. And sometimes I miss our life back in California, well, I miss the people but… I’m glad you talked me into taking the job.“

„Couldn’t let my girl say no to her dream job. You are killing it. And honestly, I miss our friends too, but it’s also nice to have you all to myself,“ Frankie stopped walking and pulled you into his arms, kissing you. You wrapped your arms behind his back, smiling against his lips. 

„I’m so proud of you baby,“ he whispered and you pecked his lips. 

„Proud of you too. Three months and already getting promoted. We are killing this adult life thing,“ you kissed him again, both of you chuckling. Frankie had quickly found a job as a helicopter pilot for local emergency services.

Parting from him you took his hand and started walking again. 

„I’m freezing. Let’s get home,“ you said, only to cry out in surprise when the wind picked up and a whole bunch of snow from the trees above dumped down on both of you. 

„Oh my god,“ you began to laugh, wiping your eyes with your glove, Frankie’s hand still in yours. 

„What the fuck?“ Frankie laughed and you shook your head to get the remains of the snow off of you. You were still laughing when Frankie let go of you hand, and you looked at him just in time to see him dropping down to one knee in front of you. 

First alarmed that he had hurt himself you frantically searched for any injury when you noticed the small velvet box in his hand. 

Eyes widening your mouth dropped open in surprise, watching him smile cheekily up at you. 

„Frankie…“ you whispered. 

„Baby… I’ve been trying to figure out how to ask this question. I should have done this a long time ago, because I knew you were the one on the day that we met. I was pretty much in love with you the moment you walked through the door of the coffee shop where we met. These last years… Fuck I’ve never been so happy in my life and I keep waking up every day next to you, waiting that something is gonna happen, but all you do is love me for me. It’s… I love you. So much. And I want to spend the rest of my life loving you and making you smile and laugh and cum…“ he winked and you laughed, tears in the corner of your eyes. 

„I love you baby, will you marry me?“ He finally asked and you nodded.

„Of course I’ll marry you Frankie,“ you smiled and he seemed to breath out relieved. It was only then that you realised he had opened the box, revealing a beautiful ring. He got up from his knee, taking your hand and slowly pulling your glove off. 

„This ring was my grandmother’s. She and my pa were married for 64 years before they both died,“ he explained, taking the ring out of its box. 

It was a golden band with a small green stone. 

„It’s an emerald. Apparently it’s known as a symbol of truth and love,“ he explained while slipping the ring on your finger. It fit perfectly. 

„It’s beautiful,“ you whispered and he looked at you. 

„Yeah?“ He asked.

You nodded. 

He kissed you then, wrapping his arms around you, pulling you as close as possible. 

„We’re gonna get married,“ he whispered in between kisses. 

„We’re gonna get married,“ you giggled back, your hand playing with the hair that was in his neck. 

Bella barked and you both looked down at her, having forgotten about her for a moment. She had found a huge branch, her whole body shaking excitedly as she nudged her nose against it, waiting for someone to throw it for her. 

You both laughed. 

„Come on, let’s get home,“ you said and he nodded. He carefully helped you put your glove back on, kissing your hand, before one of his arms pulled you against his side. 

„I gotta get my fiancé out of her pants,“ he whispered against your ear and you let your head fall against his shoulder.

Happier than ever before. 

[more-sonorous]

wake up calls (sun, moon, stars part 2)-- jatherid blurb

have some jatherid crumbs. can't get this universe out of my head!

.....

Living with David was almost as good as Katherine expected— the only problem was that she hadn’t planned for his sudden reclusiveness. In retrospect, she should’ve expected the sheer amount of sleeping David was doing. He was historically horrible with change— the stress sent him into periods in which his narcolepsy would worsen considerably. Now that she was living through it again, she remembered freshman year of college when he’d take multiple naps a day while still getting eight hours of sleep at night. Still, it was a little bit alarming and she found herself worried for his wellbeing and wishing her job would just go fully virtual already so she could be home with him more often.

He’d wake up with his alarm at seven every day and hunch over his laptop at the little desk in his room, doing class work for hours on end. Jack had taken it upon himself to bring Davey a sandwich or some other small lunch, but when Kath came to get him from his room in the evenings, most of the food remained untouched or merely nibbled off of.

David slept a lot, but when he was awake, he was the best roommate Kath and Jack could’ve asked for. He tidied up at least once a day and provided witty conversation and classic David sassy remarks, and he enjoyed Disney Princess movies just as much as Jack did (too much) so the boys bonded over that. Kath found herself wishing he’d leave his room and join them for more than an hour or two each night.

About a week into living with them, Kath went to go fetch Davey for dinner at around six and found him uncharacteristically asleep, slumped over his desk with his face pressed against his laptop. Normally he napped around 11 and 3– never this late. Her heart clenched in her chest at the sight of the furrow in his brow, even during sleep. He looked stressed even in unconsciousness. A ham sandwich sat abandoned on a paper plate beside him, only a couple of bites missing.

Kath dropped to a crouch beside his desk chair and gently ran a hand through his untamed curls, scratching her nails against his scalp. “Davey, hon?” The nickname Davey slipped out— Jack had been calling David that exclusively and it was difficult not to do so as well. “Davey, you wanna wake up for me?”

Lashes fluttered and slivers of green eyes peeked up at her. Davey’s stressed frown seemed to twitch as he finally met her eyes. “Mm.. what time’s’it?” 

“A little past six. Dinnertime. Jack made soup, it’s really good.” She glanced at the sleeping laptop he was using at a pillow and carefully pushed her hand through his hair once more, pushing the unruly swirls of dark brown away from his eyes. “Come and eat, okay?”

“No, no. Gotta finish this paper.” He mumbled, words still sleep-slurred and tinged with the Polish accent she heard so rarely from him. She oftentimes forgot that he was quite literally born in another country until moments like this took her by surprise. He sat up and rubbed a hand over his eyes, before trying to bring the laptop to life. 

“When’s it due?” Kath quickly grabbed his wrist to stop him before he devolved into that hyper focused state of his, and tugged him to look at her. “Davey, when’s it due, hon?” 

He glanced between Kath and the screen. “Monday.”

“It’s Friday, Davey, you’ve got a couple of days. Come eat dinner and then if you’re still worried, you can bring your laptop out into the living room and work with Jack and I. Okay?” She slid her fingers to link with his, and gently squeezed his hands. “Hey, you’re really stressed about something, aren’t you?” 

He gave her a wry little smile and blinked with sleepy eyes. “How could you tell?” 

Katherine merely raised her eyebrows and brushed her thumb across the laptop imprint on his cheekbone, which seemed to tell him enough. He winced and dropped their eye contact immediately, splotches of pink developing beneath his freckles. She let out a soft sigh and cupped his cheek in her palm, studying him as if she might find an explanation just by looking hard enough. “Wanna talk about it?”

“Not really.” After a moment of hesitation, Davey shut his laptop. “What’s dinner again?” 

“Sancocho— don’t look at me like that, I know I'm butchering the pronunciation.” 

Davey laughed the laugh of someone that had to sit through multiple years of Katherine butchering Polish words and climbed to his feet, stretching the lingering drowsiness from his lanky limbs. Thankfully some of it still clung to him as he shuffled out of the room behind her— Davey, when sleepy and relaxed, was one of Kath’s favorite versions of him. He was so much less rigid and calculated, especially as he slumped into one of their barstools with a wide yawn. Jack turned around from his place at the stove with a bright expression.

“Mornin’ sleeping beauty.” Jack teased, earning an easy smile from Davey. He crossed the kitchen, gently running his hand across David’s upper back as he did so. Kath could see color splotching Davey’s cheeks as Jack set a bowl down in front of him and asked: “You sleep okay?”

“Like a rock.” David muttered into his soup, earning a little laugh from Jack. 

Kath smiled slightly and parked herself in the chair next to Davey, gratefully accepting a bowl of soup from Jack and thanking him with a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you, Jack. This looks great.” 

“We’ll see. It’s my Mamá’s recipe.” He explained with slight hesitance, still ladling soup into his own bowl. Kath didn't know much about Jack's childhood (due to journalistic instinct, she was ravenously curious and ate up any sliver of information he provided) but she did know that both of his birth parents were Columbian immigrants. She knew his birth mother was dead and his birth father was in jail. That was the extent of it-- she also knew that his birth mother had some delicious recipes, because Jack was always cooking from a well-loved notebook she'd left him. “Normally she made it with pork but I did this one with beef, since I’m living with two Jews.”

“Your poor goyish heart must be in shambles.” David joked, slightly under his breath, which earned a shocked laugh from both Kath and Jack. He smiled slightly at the reaction and bit his lip, stirring his soup once or twice. “But really— thank you, Jack.”

Kath knew he was touched just by the sound of his voice. She didn’t really keep kosher, because she wasn’t as strictly religious as Dave was, so the fact that Jack had gone out of his way made her heart swell. He slid into the seat next to her and plopped a teasingly wet kiss on her cheek, like the overexciteable puppy dog of a boyfriend he was. “You gonna bless the food, Dave?”

“Sure.” Davey uttered a prayer in Hebrew (Kath loved the honey-like way the foreign words flowed out of his mouth. David was a polyglot and he had this way of speaking in other languages that captivated her. Polish, Hebrew, Yiddish, German, French- his genius brain never ceased to amaze her). Then he translated and Jack murmured a quick Catholic blessing. The two rounds of praying was a tradition they’d established on Davey’s first night staying with them and it had really stuck.

Then they ate, and when Davey hummed his pleasure with the meal, Kath didn’t ignore Jack’s triumphant little smile. 

Soon Davey was collecting their dishes for washing and Kath trailed behind him, leaning against the counter and watching him work. “You want to play a board game with us?” 

“Gotta finish my paper.” He muttered, offering her an apologetic smile. 

“Davey… you have two whole days to finish your paper.” She made her voice a little whiny as she tugged on the hem of his shirt. Jack seemed to be on the same page as her as he hopped onto the counter on Davey’s other side.

“Scrabble, Dave. Think about how many words your big brain knows. And I’ve got Game of Life, too. Please?”

Kath carefully grasped Davey’s wrist and squeezed, making her eyes big and sad. “I miss you. It’s like I’m living with a ghost…”

“Alright, alright.” He sighed, giving a great eye roll and finally giving in. Katherine sent a thankful grin Jack’s way and received a wink in response as Davey set their bowls on the drying rack. “We can play Life, but only if I get the blue car.”

“Blue car’s all yours.” Jack hopped down from the counter and rushed off into his bedroom to get the board game.

A little over an hour later found them all laughing over Jack’s six kids and massively accumulated debt. Davey, of course, somehow ended up as a millionaire. To Kath’s slight surprise, he’d chosen a little blue man figure to marry, after much deliberation. Jack had whooped excitedly and loudly proclaimed that this was ‘an apartment full of gay rights’, to which Davey dryly pointed out the pink figurine Jack had chosen for a wife. Jack pouted that it was Katherine, and that Davey shouldn’t ‘do bisexual erasure’. Then Kath chose a little pink wife as well, and Davey smiled, and all was right in the world.

She spent the rest of the game wondering if Davey had gone through some sort of sexuality crisis/realization and never told her, which made her feel strangely upset. 

Even as Jack begged Davey for last-minute donations and attempted to swindle Kath (designated banker) into slipping him some extra cash, her mind lingered on her best friend and that stupid little blue peg. Obviously she’d be overjoyed if Davey was gay, or bi, or something– she was bisexual herself, so it would just become another thing for them to bond over– but the fact that he hadn’t told her was driving her up the wall. They told each other everything. She told David about Jack the minute he’d asked her out (by slipping her a hand-drawn sketch he’d done during what was supposed to be a business meeting discussing some graphic designs Jack was going to do for Kath’s boss). They didn’t have secrets. That wasn’t how they operated. 

Davey won the game and Jack reluctantly put each of his six kids back into the Ziploc baggie they’d come from. Kath remained deep in her own head as the boys cleaned up, and only watched absentmindedly as Jack swindled Davey into watching a movie with them. Kath eventually convinced herself that it was nothing to worry about. It was just a game and a plastic game piece. Plus, Dave didn’t owe her anything. If he wasn’t straight, he’d tell her eventually.

Still, a curious, journalistic little spark had lit within her. She curled up on Jack’s lap, the two of them sharing the big armchair she’d brought from her previous apartment, and Davey turned into a little ball of blankets and curly chocolate-brown hair on the couch. 

Jack smirked. “Tangled?”

“Tangled.” Davey affirmed, a little smile tilting his bowed lips. 

Kath watched with exasperated fondness as the boys sang along to the film’s soundtracks, Jack singing Flynn’s part like he always did (he had an incredibly pretty voice. Kath adored moments when she could silently listen to him sing– he always wanted a duet partner, and now that Davey was around, Kath could immerse herself in the loveliness of his tenor range.) and Davey singing Rapunzel’s just as enthusiastically, though his parts of the songs came out a bit rougher. 

Maybe she just felt safe around these two goofballs, or maybe she was exhausted from the stress of preparing for the looming quarantine, but Kath found herself drifting off. She wasn’t surprised to wake up to the credits rolling, cheery acoustic music softly filling the room. She was surprised to feel the total lack of Jack warmth. Her boyfriend was a human furnace. A human furnace that was currently crouched by the couch, where Davey was sleeping, curled up in a tight ball. She had no idea how someone that tall could make himself so small.

She watched Jack hesitate, one tan hand hovering over Davey’s hair. The awkward lingering ended after just a moment, and he carefully ran his hands over the dark curls, like he was touching something soft and sacred and breakable. He spoke in a low voice, a barely audible murmur. “Dave? Davey, movie’s over…”

Davey’s eyes opened, and he peered up at Jack through his lashes. Kath wondered if Jack felt the same surge of fondness that was currently coursing through her chest. “Hi.”

“Hey.” Her boyfriend smiled, his dark eyes taking in the glory of Sleepy Davey. “I was thinkin’ you might like to go back to your own bed.”

“Yeah.” Voice raspy with sleep, Davey sat up and dragged the sleeve of his sweatshirt over his eyes. He was loose like this, uncaring and a bit uncoordinated. Kath could watch him wake up a million times and never grow tired of the soft breathing and slow movements. His eyes met hers and she offered a tired smile of her own. “Did we miss the end of the movie?”

She felt her own smile begin to grow. “Yep. But I don’t think you ever see the end of any movies, Davey.”

A little laugh shook his shoulders as he clambered to his feet, tugging the fuzzy throw blanket more tightly around his slender form. Soon he was bending down and pressing a little kiss to her forehead, and Katherine felt pleasantly warm from her head to her toes once he pulled away, smiling a little smile reserved just for her. “Night, Kathy.”

“Goodnight, Davey. Sleep well.” She gave his hand a quick, gentle squeeze and watched him amble back to his bedroom, pausing to smile at Jack– who’d been watching in careful silence.

“G’night to you too, Jack.” After a moment of deliberation, Davey bumped their shoulders together. Jack’s dimples emerged with a bright smile, and Kath thought that she could live like this forever. Soft words, quiet goodnight, a molasses-like air of drowsiness crowding their little living room– it was like something out of a dream, or a book. She took a mental picture of her boys sharing little smiles and hoped that there were millions more moments like this to come.

Jack returned the nudge and ruffled Davey’s hair. “Get some rest, will ya’?”

“You don’t have to tell me twice.”

When Davey’s bedroom door clicked shut behind him, Jack straddled Katherine’s lap and earned a slight laugh from her as she rested her hands on his hips and pressed a kiss to his neck. He tugged his hands through her hair and gently kissed the shell of her ear once or twice, a pouty sort of tone emerging with his next few words. “Where’s my goodnight forehead kiss?”

“Right here.” She teased, and sloppily pressed her own lips to his forehead. 

He laughed a bright, sunny laugh and tilted his head back and away, though he looped his arms around her shoulders and leaned in closer anyways. “Davey makes it look so much more romantic.”

“‘Cause he’s six feet tall and he looks like a Roman marble statue.” Kath raised her eyebrows at Jack as she slipped her hands beneath the hem of his fitted t-shirt, which featured the skyline of Santa Fe– a city Jack had never stepped foot in and was still obsessed with. “You’re stuck with me for now.”

“Stuck with you?” He scoffed and cupped her cheeks in his hands, big brown eyes roaming over her face with an unmistakable look of pure admiration. “I ain’t stuck. Far from it. In fact, I’m happy as hell.”

She felt her face prickling with a rush of blood at Jack’s sweet words, and gave silent thanks to God for bringing such a lovely boy into her life. “I’m not Christian, but I’m fairly certain hell isn’t supposed to be happy…”

“Fine. I’m happy as fuck. How’d you like that?” Ridiculously, he wiggled his eyebrows and plastered a smirk onto his face, so lopsided that it dimpled only his right cheek. He somehow managed to be incredibly attractive despite his endearingly stupid expression, and Kath’s racing heart rammed against her ribcage, thoroughly pleased. She could love this boy. Maybe she already did. 

“How would I like that?” Now, her only goal was to mess with him. “Probably in the shower, so Davey doesn’t wake up.”

“No, I meant–” Realization dawned a second too late, and big brown eyes grew wide. Jack grinned one of those sunny grins that made his crooked canine tooth look all the more endearing, and Kath felt herself smiling at the giddiness that blossomed on his face as she ran her hands down his arms. “Yes, that’s exactly what I meant.”

“Let’s go, then.”

Jack followed her suggestion nearly instantly, hopping out of the chair and running his hand through his impossibly black hair. It fell back into perfect waves and she watched with jealousy as the silky strands framed his face perfectly. He was too attractive for his own good, especially as he smiled and beckoned her towards their bedroom. 

Kath was definitely, certainly in love.

Except she was constantly thinking about a pair of sleepy green eyes and pale hands covered with freckles, alongside Jack’s dimples and the veins that decorated his muscular inner arms. Something was wrong with her. She wanted to avoid unpacking that for as long as possible.

[charliesangel67]

Period Emergencies:

Warnings: None, pure fluff. Mentions of periods.

Authors note: No decription of readers body or anything other than reader having a period. no use of y/n or female character so this can be read as a gender neutral reader. This is written in first person using I,me,mine,my pro nouns.

English is not my first language so I apologise for any grammar mistakes etc.

W.C- 508 (yea... sorry this is really short)

Parings- CEO!Bucky Barnes x gn!reader

After spending hours of moaning and groaning restlessly in bed, I finally decided to go to the kitchen and get some ibuprofen. But upon getting out of bed, I fell to the ground with a large thud. “Uhhh” I groaned in pain.

“Baby, are you okay?” Bucky asked with a concerned tone in his voice.

“All good babe, just got my period.” I announced to him as I saw him come out of his office and enter our shared bedroom.

“Oh, okay. I'll be home in about 10 minutes, just stay in bed until then.” He responded, “Wait, weren't you in a meeting?” I questioned,

“Yes, and? I run the business, I can decide to leave if I want.” Bucky calmly replied. “Can you at least get me some ibuprofen?”

“Top draw of your bedside table.” He replied, disappearing from the door frame. And within seconds I heard the door shut behind him as his car pulled out of the driveway.

Turning to my bedside table, I opened the draw and sure enough there was a pack of ibuprofen laying amongst my other period care items. After taking a tablet I decided to hop in the shower and clean myself up a bit before Bucky gets home. As I turned off the running shower, I heard a knock on the bedroom door, “Come in!” I yelled to the visitor even though I knew it could only be my husband.

“Hey baby, are you feeling any better?” He asked sincerely. “No, still feel like shit” I sighed.

“Well, I got you some of your favourite snacks and some tampons and all that, we can watch a movie and just chill if you like. However I do have to run into the office quickly.” Bucky responded. “Yes! Let's do that. Why do you have to run in? Don't you work from home on Fridays?” I asked disappointed. “Yeah, I do. But some new employee almost shot himself ‘cause he didn't know how the fucking gun worked. So I gotta go sort that out, probably fire him or place him in an office job.” He laughed off.

“Oh, okay. I guess I'll see you later then"

"Bye doll, I love you” Bucky said as he brought me into his warm embrace.

“Mmmhh” I hummed, breathing in his sweet and all too familiar scent of cinnamon and peppermint mixed with his expensive cologne.

I decided to pass some time, snacking and watching tiktoks until my husband returned. And after a couple of hours, he did. I set up the bed for him while he got changed into sweats and a hoodie before crawling into bed beside me. “What do you wanna watch, doll?”

“How about, my all time favourite movie, Because I want a little cry today. How does the Notebook sound?” I asked sweetly knowing that Bucky hated watching it because he always had to hide that he was crying.

The rest of the night was spent watch multiple movies, snacking on tv snacks and pringles and cuddling with my Bucky.

Yeah, ummm. Well this was really shitty, but I hope u enjoyed that 😅

[writtenjewels]

Night Watch part 2

Part One

When Wilson told him there would be someone studying during the night shift, Jason pictured some kid. He was caught off-guard by the presence of a full-grown man. He had looked up on Jason's approach. Jason's heart gave a little skip in his chest. He was surprised, that was all. Sure, the guy had a fine square jawline and he had dark eyes pretty enough to be jewels, but so what?

“Well,” Jason spoke up once Wilson left them alone. “Good night.” He turned and made it a few paces before Salim called him back.

“I thought we could talk,” Salim suggested. “We'll be seeing a lot of each other, after all.”

There were no set rules against it. Clearly Wilson had a friendly relationship with the guy. Jason never had a problem with chatting in his other jobs. Still, the idea of talking to Salim made him squirm a little. Wasn't this guy here to study? Besides, it was Jason's first night, and he should acquaint himself with the job rather than waste time.

“I got work,” he grunted. He tugged the brim of his hat down over his eyes and walked off. This time Salim didn't stop him.

It took Jason walking half the perimeter of the building before he shook off the weird nerves. He was going to make a pretty shit watchman if his first encounter with a stranger unsettled him this much. He continued his circuit, mentally talking himself out of his funk. The only thing to do was talk to Salim and settle the awkwardness. The guy was still at the table, reading and taking notes.

“Hey,” Jason greeted. Salim looked up and gave him a smile. His whole face seemed to warm up from the expression. “Uh.” Jason cleared his throat and shook his head to clear it. “I'm Jason,” he introduced.

“I remember,” Salim assured him, looking amused. “Wilson introduced us about half an hour ago.”

“You don't gotta be a smart-ass,” Jason complained with a scowl.

“My apologies. It's a pleasure meeting you, Jason. My name's Salim.” He held out his hand and Jason shook it. Jason couldn't help noticing the strong, calloused grip. He let the hand drop and fidgeted with his cap.

“So what are you studyin'?” Jason asked.

“Ancient history, culture, music.” Salim's face grew brighter as he spoke. “I tried to teach my son that knowledge is never a waste of time. There is always something to learn, some way you can understand the world around you.” Jason smiled with him. The guy's enthusiasm was infectious.

“I'd better leave you to it, then.”

“You don't have to. That is,” Salim clarified, “I would be interested in hearing your thoughts.”

“I donno about that.” Jason fidgeted with his cap again. “I get all the history I need from cable TV.” Salim gave him a disgusted look and snorted.

“Typical.” Jason fought the amused smile and failed. Salim caught it, his face going wide. “Oh, you were messing with me.”

“All those books and you're still pretty ignorant,” Jason teased. The guy teased him first, so he figured a turn-around was deserved. “This is why I prefer the movie,” Jason added, and felt a little pleased with himself that he made Salim laugh.

“On second thought,” Salim mused, eyes sparkling, “maybe it is better for you 'leave me to it.' I'm finding it hard to focus.”

“You started it,” Jason reminded him, though amiably stepped back to give Salim space.

That wasn't so bad. Once he broke the ice, it was easy talking to Salim. There was something really charming about the guy. Night watch might not be too bad with him around.

[applejaax]

Blue Hour

Chapter 1: The Dreadful Implications of a Pizza Delivery Man

Steve dropped his keys on the table when he entered the apartment. Robin was nestled on the couch fast asleep under an afghan, with the tv mindlessly droning on in the background. He took the remote from her hand and turned it off, startling her awake.

    “Ya gotta stop falling asleep with the tv on, Robin. It’s gonna rot your brain with subliminal messages from infomercials,” Steve said sarcastically, dropping the remote down onto the coffee table.

    “Wow those are big words for you, Steve, don’t hurt yourself now,” she retorted, tugging the blanket over her head and rolling away from him.

   “Haven’t heard that one before.” Steve rolled his eyes and went to the kitchen.

   It was a barren wasteland in the fridge besides some fresh vegetables they’d gotten from a local farmers market for no apparent reason, a single jar of jam, and a few beer bottles. He took one and shut the door.

   “Pizza for dinner?!” He called out. Robin’s hand came into view with a thumb up in approval and disappeared again. He laughed and leaned on the counter, sipping from the bottle in his hand.

    For three years, since he moved away from Hawkins, Steve’s been living with Robin in Illinois. She had been accepted and enrolled in some private university. At first he was upset about her leaving him all alone after everything they’d endured. In the end though it was nothing but a blessing in disguise. He pitched the idea of them moving in with each other and how good it would be for them. Robin wasn’t too keen on it at first because she wanted to make new friends, or even meet a girl she could really connect with, and suspected he’d get in the way. That was a pretty deep cut to his ego at first, he wouldn’t lie. However, with much annoying pleading and begging on his end, she eventually agreed.

     His parents had opposed, especially his father on the premise that Robin and Steve were dating. Steve never fully expressed why that would never in a million years happen but all it took was a, ‘she’s not my type, Dad,’ and that was the end of it. His mother had been the one to fully convince his old man that this was a good thing for his son. Somehow, that worked.

   Now here they were. They stayed about 5 miles off campus in a rundown neighborhood. The rent was low and the standards of living even lower. Everything in their apartment was broken. The ceiling leaked, the floors creaked, and the walls were made out of paper machete. Yet, Steve never felt more at home. He’d rather live here in this dump than step one foot back in their hell-bound hometown. In fact, it was his worst fucking nightmare. This was paradise in comparison.

   He worked a pretty simple office job in a marketing company. It wasn’t ideal but it paid well and didn’t require him to have a degree. He’d gotten lucky, he was aware of the privilege that living in the city provided. Also, who his parents were and his surname did help too. Regardless, he no longer felt like a nobody failure the way he did in Hawkins. There were so many opportunities and options out here. He could truly flourish without second guessing himself anymore. Hawkins had nothing left to offer him and all it took was an outside perspective. He was happy he’d left. He hoped and prayed, for whatever reason there may be, he never had to go back there.

  That was wishful thinking.

   About an hour after Steve had called in their pizza order there was a knock at the door.

   “Robin, pizza’s here!” He called from his bedroom down the hall.

   “I’m busy! Get it yourself!”

    Steve groaned, pausing the movie he was watching and rolled off his bed.

   “You’re so lazy!” He threw the front door open. His eyes grew wider than saucers and it felt like lightening crackled under his skin as time seemed to slow.

    A pair of brown eyes like rich soil after heavy rain, brown curly hair to match in contrast to skin as fair as moonlight. A smile with dimples and lines in the cheeks that caused creases under the eyes that made them light up like fireflies. Steve was dreaming. He had to be. No way this was real. He wanted to reach out and touch his soft skin, when he knew he shouldn’t. He needed to ground himself and stop the impending spiral but it proved to be too late for that.

  Oh fuck. This is bad.

   Steve’s brain malfunctioned and he couldn’t form a single coherent thought let alone any words. His mouth moved like a fish out of water as he tried to form a sentence or even a sound. He simply gaped at the person in his doorway for an uncomfortable amount of time.

   “Uhm, sir?” The man waved his hand in Steve’s face. The cadence and pitch in his voice was all screwy. Not right at all. It snapped Steve clean out of this mortifying stupor.

   He blinked rapidly and swallowed hard, throwing the money at him, snatching the pizza, and slamming the door. He turned and leaned on it for support, trying to catch the breath that was steadily running further and further away from him.

   Robin came sprinting from the bathroom with damp hair and a shocked look on her face.

  “What the hell happened?!” She asked, Steve couldn’t respond, he was paralyzed. “Steve?” She approached him slow with her hand out.

   “Robin, he looked like him,” he managed to say around the lump in his throat. “He looked just like him.” He slowly hugged his knees to his chest and fought the tears that threatened to fall.

   This couldn’t be happening. Everything was going so well. Maybe even too good to be true but he didn’t care. There wasn’t a damn thing out of place and this was the landslide he’d been anxiously awaiting to fuck him over. He was cursed, he was sure of that. There was no other rhyme or reason for it.

   They moved to Robin’s room when Steve found the courage to even stand up. They sat on her bed with the pizza box wide open. The smell of cheese, tomato sauce, and garlic nauseated him despite the fact he was starving.

   “I mean, doppelgängers do exist! They say it’s dangerous to come across your own. It’s really fascinating. I guess it makes sense though because how can we have all these billions of people on the planet and not have someone look exactly like us, you know?”

    Steve didn’t say anything. He let her ramble on as if it would help when it certainly didn’t. This dug up memories he’d presumed he’d buried forever. He was certain he’d laid it all to rest along with his dead boyfriend. After this whole hot mess, he felt like he’d regressed to square one and all it took was a similar face. He didn’t want to throw himself a pity party but damn he couldn’t catch a break.

    “Steve…Steve!” Robin flopped on the bed next to him. “Am I doing it again…with the talking too much thing?”

     Steve sighed and picked up a slice of pizza, biting into it hesitantly and watched the cheese stretch.

    “Kinda,” he said with his mouth full.

    “Shit. Sorry. I’m not good with this sorta thing. Comforting people isn’t my forté. But I’m a decent listener…sometimes.”

    Steve stared at her for a moment, then mustered a smile. A mask that was quick to falter and dissolve away at any moment.

    “It’s fine. There’s really nothing either of us can do in this situation.” He set down the half eaten slice of pizza. His appetite was gone. “You’re right about one thing. I guess we’re bound to see someone who looks like someone we know or knew eventually.”

   “Yeah, but…I’m just- I’m so sorry.”

    “Don’t be. It’s nobody’s fault.” Steve could hear the strain in his voice. “Would you mind if I uhh-“ He signaled towards the door and Robin nodded encouragingly.

    In his bedroom, Steve curled up under his blankets and laid there in the dark for what felt like an eternity. The tears that spilled from the corners of his eyes had finally dried but it wasn’t over. Especially since now all he could do was torture himself with nothing else but the thought of Eddie.

    He meant the world to Steve and taught him so many lessons he wouldn’t have learned otherwise. His mind had never been more open than when he was with Eddie. He was someone everyone could rely on but nobody wanted to put their faith in. Steve did and it was so worth it right up until the very end. He still kicked himself for the period in which he regretted even meeting Eddie. Or that he wished they could swap places. It was only because the visceral pain of letting him go and moving on was something he could hardly handle. The wounds tore open so often that he let the memories of Eddie die, too, just to get some release from the heartbreak.

     It was like he didn’t exist anymore in Steve’s world and he preferred it that way as opposed to living the rest of his life in agony. There was no other way to let go besides that. And tonight, that man at his door, instantaneously destroyed walls he’d put his blood, sweat, and tears into building to free himself of Eddie and everything they’d shared. To put it lightly, this was a slap to the face and a boot to the gut. 

     He was gone. He deserved to be here but he wasn’t. He was never coming back. Steve had come to peace with that, and his grief, before he’d left Hawkins. It was one of the things that helped him cope the most. Now he had to pick himself up all over again and he hoped it wouldn’t take as long as the first time around, or both him and Robin were doomed to suffer.

****

    Steve didn’t remember falling asleep. He woke the next morning to a migraine, swollen eyelids, and the phone ringing off the hook. He shoved a pillow over his head and waited for it to stop. He had work today but he didn’t want to go. He felt like shit after last night. He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling for a long time until the phone started up again and forced him out of bed.

    “What do you want?!” He answered gruffly. He sounded like garbage and felt even worse. 

   “Well, geez. Hello to you, too.”

    “Dustin!” He sighed in relief. “Wait, shouldn’t you be in school instead of bothering me at 8 in the damn morning?”

    “The city has changed you, Steve. I don’t like it.”

    Steve rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah. Get on with it.”

    “Okay, okay. I’m not at school right now because I have something important to tell you. I couldn’t wait,” he paused for a beat. “I think he’s back, Steve.”

     Steve’s heart lurched and plummeted hard into his stomach. His sadness was overpowered by fear. His throat tightened up as panic rose. The room started to spin and he lost his balance, stumbling back into the wall.

   “Steve? Talk to me, man! Are you okay?”

    “I’m- good. I’m good.” He rested his head in his palm and slid down to the floor in defeat. “Tell me everything.”

[why-the-heck-not]

Hi! I've been a follower for some time now and I always see your posts about trying to be productive and consistent. I'm a student who's studying fully online, and because I'm only doing my thesis, I spend all my time to myself, it gets really lonely, and I feel somehow disconnected with the work and end up not doing it at all. Do you have any tips? Also, I really enjoy your updates!

Hii! I truly get you, I’ve been doing like 95% of my studies at home myself too. Got the same feelings, so I don’t rly have a solid solution, but libraries help a lot. There are other ppl there so it’s not so lonely, and less distractions and something abt going home around the same time other ppl are going home from their jobs makes me feel a lot more like I’m actually in this society/world etc.

Ideal would be to have like a routine of going to do ur studies somewhere and coming back home after u’ve done ur things for the day. (I don’t follow this but would love to and I think it would really help; did do that in january for like a week and it was nice & I felt like a real person (but then the winter got to me lol)).

Also other things that have helped a bit:

Leaving the apartment every day, no matter where or for how long. Just gotta get outside

Routines <3 a sleeping schedule <3 makes things feel a lot less like a mess. (especially a solid morning routine is very important I think)

Going to the gym in the morning (bc gets u out of the house for a decent amount of time first thing so then the threshold of leaving somewhere later on the day is smaller)

Purposely going in places when it’s the 5-6pm rush hours (mainly grocery store bc like where else would I go) even tho it sort of sucks. But I used to avoid those and then realized I’d been seeing like maybe max 10 ppl per week and felt insane, like in an apocalyptic movie sort of way. Just try to get urself to places where there’s other ppl lol (except a warning: friday & saturday evenings? Stay inside lmao, there’s only friendgroups etc. out, and that makes it feel very lonely (at least that’s my experience lol))

Podcasts and music and tvshows and books all the time lol drown out the lonely (not maybe the healthiest but better than a social media doom scroll bc that just makes it feel like u’re the only one living like this, and u’re not)

Walks !!! Walks make everything better always. Feel sad? Frustrated or confused about anything ?Not fully there? Walk it out !! (Also music/podcast during the walk and it’s super chill)

Caffeine bc dopamine & serotonin (nothing a cup of coffee wouldn’t solve)

Putting on actual clothes you could to public places with every morning, even if u aren’t planning on going anywhere rly anytime soon

Live in delusion; u’re not ”studying while feeling lonely”, you’re now the obsessed genius who has no time for anything/anyone else character trope

[charliethomascoxuniverse]

I was in the kitchen of my apartment staring down at a small rectangular black case that I believed contained a recorder. I believed it contained a recorder because I had been told as much, but I didn’t know for sure because I had never actually opened it. How had I let this happen? I had been tasked with one job in the summer vacation after my first year at drama school — to learn to play the instrument for the school’s tour of the Nativity play. I hadn’t. And the term was starting in T minus 12 hours. All I could do now was pray.

Then something amazing happened. God called me! Well not quite, but close enough. My agent. I had auditioned for a film early on in the summer holidays, had heard nothing for two months and had long since concluded that I had not been successful. Yet this was the call from Hollywood myth: “Kid … you’re in the movie.”

Luckily, I would no longer be showing up to drama school the following day hat in hand, apologizing for my incompetence. Instead I’d be apologizing for having to relinquish the role of Shepherd Number Three, as I would be filming an adaptation of “The Merchant of Venice” — playing the role of Lorenzo — with none other than Al Pacino.

As this life-changing news began to sink in, and on top of the relief from narrowly escaping detention, what was most exciting to me was the prospect that this job might be the point after which I could legitimately call myself an actor.

I had wrestled with this idea for the last few years. I knew I wanted to be an actor. I had won a place at a top drama school and had even played a small part in a film. Admitting, however, that I was an actor (to anyone who might ask) made me feel like a fraud; I would find myself instead saying things like “I’m trying to be an actor” or “ I want to act.” It was like I hadn’t earned the right to the title yet. Surely sharing the screen with Al Pacino would change that.

The next few months spent filming this, my first major motion picture, was everything that I could have imagined it would be. It all still feels like a dream, littered with incredible moments, but one in particular stands out.

We were filming in a remote part of Luxembourg before a Christmas break that happened to include my 21st birthday. In order to keep morale high the producers hired a private dining room in a restaurant nearby, and twice or three times a week the whole cast would be invited to dinner. Not everyone attended every meal, and I would say on average people went once a week.

Not me! I was there Every. Single. Time. I never missed a dinner. It wasn’t for the free food or out of boredom, but because we never knew on which nights Mr. Pacino would turn up. Even if I were never seated anywhere near him, I wasn’t going to miss the opportunity to “have dinner with Al.”

On one of our last evenings before the break I turned up to dinner marginally late, and to my amazement spotted an empty chair next to Al. I’m not sure what gave me the courage other than naïve bravado, but knowing this was a once in a lifetime opportunity I casually eased my way round the table and nonchalantly slipped into the seat next to … Michael Corleone. Carlito Brigante. Lieutenant Colonel Frank Spade.

Now although Mr. Pacino was always friendly on set, none of my inexhaustible efforts to say something fascinating or hilarious on this evening led to the explosive conversation I had hoped for. Truth be told we barely spoke to one another. The producer on Al’s other side selfishly hogged him for most of the evening, which I felt was rather uncharitable!

As we got up to leave, however, and probably in another lame attempt to engage him, I mentioned to Al how cold it was outside. This is how I recall the banter that followed:

“Cold huh? … Where’s your leather jacket?”

I froze. He sounded like someone doing a clichéd impression of Al Pacino.

“Leather jacket?” I repeated. “Umm. I don’t have one.”

“You don’t?”

Silence.

“Well you gotta get one,” he said. “Every actor has to have a leather jacket.”

That was it. Not the most memorable exchange of all time, and undoubtedly forgotten by Al by the time he had stood up and donned his own, impossibly cool leathers.

What he couldn’t have known, of course, was that he had answered a much larger question of mine. I could have sworn I had grown a few inches taller. Impostor syndrome be gone — I was officially an actor. The Godfather himself had declared it!

On the way back to the hotel, my head still in the clouds, my dad called to arrange picking me up for the holiday break at the airport.

Just before we hung up I heard my mother’s voice interrupt him in the background. “Oh, yes, Coxy,” I remember him saying. “Mum wants to know what you want for your birthday.”

A knowing smile crossed my face. “It’s funny you mention that …”

~*~

(X)

[slaymybreathaway]

YOU'VE REALLY GOT A HOLD ON ME

◇Chapter Two◇

Chapter List Masterlist

Word Count: 850

Content Warnings: smoking, mentions of law breaking, Darry being funny

1965 ◇ Outside the Curtis House

"What were you doin', walking out by your lonesome?" Steve asked as he flicked the ash off of his cigarette. The gang had made it back home and were standing gathered around the front steps.

Everyone turned to Ponyboy for an answer. "I was coming back from the movies, I didn't think-"

He was interrupted by Darry "You don't ever think, not at home or anywhere that it counts," he looked like he was going to say more, but he stopped himself when he saw the look that Gracie was giving him from where she sat on the top step. They often argued about how hard he was on Ponyboy and he didn't want to fight with her today.

"Leave my kid brother alone, you hear?" It ain't his fault the Socs like to jump us," Soda stood up for Ponyboy.

"When I want my kid brother to tell me what to do with my other kid brother, I'll ask you...kid brother," Darry responded, cracking a smile at the last line as he jokingly caught Soda into a headlock.

Gracie watched with a smile as the brother's play-fought but she was brought out of her stare when she heard Dally say her name. "Hey Gracie, you workin' the Nightly Double tommorrow?" He asked, lighting up a cancer-stick.

"Yup, all weekend. Why, d'ya need me to sneak you in again?" She asked. It wasn't the first time and it probably wouldn't be the last. Dally would do anything to break the rules and Gracie would rather he did it without hiding in the back of someone's truck.

The blonde boy nodded as he took the cigarette out of his mouth to speak. "Yeah. Me, Johnny and Ponyboy are thinkin' of headin' over for the second showing. What's on?" He asked, his New-York accent dripping off of his vowels.

The woman thought for a moment. "Uhh, some beach flick with Frankie Avalon. I don't get a chance to look at the films so I can't tell you if it's any good or not,"

Dally shrugged as he inhaled, letting the smoke fill his lungs. "'S fine. I'm not going for the plot of the movie anyways," he admitted.

Soon enough the gang had went there separate ways. Sodapop and Ponyboy disappeared inside the house, racing to see who could get to the shower first. Steve and Two-Bit left to find a poker game that was going on and Dally went to Buck's. That just left Darry and Gracie alone on the porch.

"Are you staying for dinner?" Darry asked as Gracie stood up from where she was sitting.

The woman shook her head with a sigh. "Nah, I gotta go to work," she stood infront of Darry and looked up at him. Being 5"8, she was quite tall for a woman, but he had always been taller.

Gracie saw the look of disappointment on his face as Darry sighed. "What?" She asked, crossing her arms.

"You work too much," he expressed, a look of worry on his face. It's been every day this week that she's pulled a double, working in both the salon and the drive-in and it didn't go without notice.

Grace couldn't help but break into a laugh, a hand on Darry's arm to try to stabilise herself. "No, I'm being serious, Gracie. You haven't had a day off in the past two months... that's not good for ya" he protested.

"Well look who's talking, Curtis! You're working yourself to an early grave," she shot back. It was a true statement and Darry couldn't deny that.

"I know, believe me I do but you're working more than me! The only way I get to see you anymore is if I book in for a wash and blow-dry," he joked. Darry could be real-funny if he wanted to, but that was Two-Bit's job so his jokes were rare.

Gracie cracked a smile as she thought of what he said. "Aw, you miss me don't you?" She taunted, but Darry seemed less than pleased.

"I'm worried, that's all. You gotta promise me that you'll cut down your hours," he asked.

"Ok," Grace started. "I'll cut down my hours just as soon as buisness in the salon picks up," she agreed and kissed Darry on the cheek before she walked down the porch steps.

"Oh- and I gotta pay off the loan I took out to pay for beauty school... and I gotta get my car fixed.. and yanno, winning the lottery would be nice, If I ever actually bought a ticket," she continued to mess with him as she walked down the front yard of the Curtis house.

Darry shook his head with a smile. "God you're difficult, Micheals!" He shouted across the yard.

Grace chuckled "It's one of my best qualities!" She shouted back, taking one last look at him. She started walking down the street to her house, one thought on her mind:

I can see why I was so in love with him when I was seventeen