#had this sitting drafts for a while and i'm finally not too busy to finish it off

[demi-pixellated]

Detective Gallus

[calicoheartz]

need need need something about Caitlin dating a famous popstar, think Sabrina carpenter

☆ espresso ; Caitlin Clark

summary : caitlin clark x pop star reader!

synopsis : you are the music scenes next hot thing , who happens to be dating worldwide famous wnba player (set a tiny bit into the future)

warnings : tiniest bit suggestive if you squint , pure fluff !

my master list ㇀♡

a/n: thank you to the lovely person who suggested this! i changed some of the lyrics in the song for it to make sense but it shouldn’t be too noticeable. Enjoy ◡̈

You were the music industry’s next hot thing. From performing at smaller venues, to headlining at Coachella; you were everywhere. Along with your wnba superstar, Caitlin Clark.

The two of you had met while you were preforming a gig at a local bar , a little right before you got your big break. Ever since then, the two of you had been inseparable. Both instantly drawn to each others passion and drive for your careers.

But with Caitlin’s demanding basketball schedule and your international shows and tours , maintaining your relationship proved to be a challenge. Only relying on calls , texts , and surprise visits whenever you can to steal a moment together amidst your busy lives.

It had been almost 3 weeks since you’ve seen your loving girlfriend. With the wnba draft and Coachella starting to kick off, the universe was simply pulling you two away from eachother.

You were sitting in your dressing room , preparing to go on stage to kick off the second weekend at the bustling festival , the biggest festival of the year for that matter. Your nerves were practically eating you alive, you knew she would be in audience. You toyed with your hair as your makeup artist finished the final touches of your look , as you fidgeted with the hem of your skirt. The skirt that perfectly hugged your curves , delicately adorned with lace and bows , your signature look.

You soon snapped back to reality, with the cheers from the audience slowly making its way into your mind. There was no doubt in your mind that this was the moment that could make or break your career. You planned on preforming your newly released song espresso , as a way to give your girlfriend a little treat on her first day back.

You made your way to the stage , sporting your signature beach waves and skimpy clothes, the intro to the song soon began and your eyes darted across the crowd. Begging to meet with the one pair of eyes you can call her own.

You hear the crowd begin to chant your name , you lock eyes with Caitlin briefly, sending a smirk your way. Prompting you to slowly begin to sway your hips as you begin to sing..

❝ now she’s thinkin’ ‘bout me every night oh, is it that sweet? I guess so ❞

you turn towards caitlin , seeing a big grin on her face , as she very well knows the melodic tune is referencing your whirlwind romance. Your hips continue to sway as the lyrics danced off the tip of your tongue , hitting every note in the process.

❝ And i got this one girl

And she won’t stop calling

when they act this way..

I know i got ‘em ! ❞

The crowd begins to scream , noticing your small wink towards caitlin , making it painfully obvious of your ode to her throughout the song

As the lyrics then again roll off your tongue like sweet honey, you continue to prance around the stage earning gasps and applause from the audience, and most importantly; a hungry gaze from your girlfriend. Her eyes practically undressed you as they wandered from your hips to your face, and vice versa. You immediately felt butterflies in your stomach, it had been so long since shes looked at you with those eyes. And as much as you wanted to jump off the stage and into her arms, you only had to finish the rest of the chorus and verse before concluding your set.

You began…

❝ I'm working late 'cause I'm a singer…Oh, she looks so cute wrapped around my finger! ❞

The music continues and you feel as if you are on cloud nine. If this doesnt fully establish your relationship with cait, then youre not sure what will. You practically feel her eyes burning into you as you resume your soft sways, slowly becoming more provocative as you reach near the end of the song. You hair slowly flows with the gentle breeze, as you shoot a glance towards your girlfriend, receiving a approving nod in return. You hear your cue, and make your way to the front to face the audience head on, you quickly hit your iconic signature pose while belting

❝ Mmm, that's that me espresso❞

And the audience erupts with claps and chants as you quickly exit the stage, locking eyes with your manager who signals you to head to the back. As you make your way down there, you feel a strong and warming embrace wrapped around your hips, with soft kisses peppering your neck. “Cait!” you squealed, unable to hide your excitement to see the brunette, she grins at your reaction, snaking her arm beneath you as she slowly begins to carry you to your dressing room.

She soon gently puts you down, as she gently begins caressing your cheek. “You did amazing” she muttered, “everytime you preform you never refuse to amaze me with the amount of talent that you have-” you cut her off with a deep and tender kiss, tasting the mango flavored lipbalm that glistened on her lips.

You giggle, simply muttering , youre my honey bee.. Come get this pollen ;)

anywaysss this is my go at pop star reader x cc !! tbh i feel like this is train wreck but you be the judge of that! tysm for reading 🎀

[zodiyack]

Little Loner

Pairing(s): Jace Wayland x fem!reader

Warnings: clary being jealous but then cupid??, I wrote this while sleep deprived, fluff at the end, Clary x Simon if you squint.

Words: 1,743

Author's Note: I finally finished the requests. Now have some drafts while I work on sequels and stuff <3

Masterlist | The Mortal Instruments Masterlist

Taglist: @matth1w, @redspaceace-writes, @fandom-puff, @darling-i-read it,  @simonsbluee,  @thewarriorprincessxo,  @sebastianstanslefteyebrow,  @livlaughquinn,  @bubsonnobx,  @bunnyweasley23

Jace leads Clary to Hodge, but hesitates when he sees an open door. He finds himself pausing to admire the scene, leaning on the door frame with a crooked smile. Clary moves to get a better view and is confused.

A girl sits in a windowsill, her pencil hitting the paper lightly as she sketches out the scenery outside the window. The light appears to angle just right, giving her an almost angelic presence. Black runes cover her skin, some disappearing to hide under her clothes.

Clary leans over to Alec and whispers. "Who is that?"

Alec simply nods a little. "Y/N. Jace has a thing for her, but he's never acted on it." Clary feels her heart break a little. "Shame, really. She likes him too, but they're both too stubborn to be the one to confess."

"Oh..."

"My advice," Alec looks between her and the room, "stay away from Jace."

He moves on before she can ask much else, walking along the halls and calling to Jace quietly. Jace is brought back to reality as he gives one last look into the room before venturing on.

"So, Y/N..." Clary tries.

She doesn't miss when Jace blushes slightly, "another Shadowhunter. She's been here a long time, however she really only talks to me."

"Why's that?"

He chuckles a little but shakes his head. "That's none of my business to tell. She's a great person when you get to know her though." That's all the information he gives before they reach their destination. He opens the door and gestures inside with a nod.

His expression stays neutral, stoic as he explains, "You may find Hodge a little eccentric, but he's one of the greatest Shadowhunters that's ever lived." He looks down at the cloth in her hand and his brows furrow. "Here, give me that."

She walks inside of the giant room, her body and eyes exploring. The two boys walk in after her. They watch her carefully. Despite her distance, Clary can still hear Jace and Alec by the door.

"Don't lead this one on while you pursue your little loner. You'll get her hopes up, and if she decides to stay...the rune to fix a broken heart is the most painful one." She could practically feel Jace roll his eyes.

"I'm not leading her on."

"Oh? Is that so? Because I don't normally go around flirting and being handsy with random people, Jace." Alec warned. "It's obvious, the way Clary looks at you. I'd tone down your 'lack of leading her on' before she gets the wrong idea."

The doors shut suddenly, causing Clary to flinch, and Alec storms off down the hall, leaving Jace to think over his words. The more he thought about it, the more he tried to deny it.

Jace opens the door, "The Silent Brothers are ready for her."

When Clary and Jace set off for their next location, she noticed a new companion had replaced Alec. It was the girl from before. The girl that Jace liked.

"I didn't expect you to be joining us..." She tries to make conversation, but Y/N barely acknowledges her.

"I admire your attempt, but she won't talk. Not unless she's comfortable with you." Jace smiles at the girl in question, who smiles to herself but stays quiet.

"How long would that take?"

"Patience is a virtue, Clary." Jokes Jace. "I suppose I was the first person who ever really tried, so there's not much to go off of. She's coming with us because I asked her too."

The redheaded girl can't help but glance between the two every now and then. She isn't sure whether she feels jealous or wants them to be together, but she can say one thing for sure; The tension was nauseatingly strong.

"Why didn't Hodge come with us?"

"He hasn't left the institute in years." Jace shrugs as he continues walking. "Some say it's a spell."

"He's agoraphobic." Y/N giggles at Clary's bluntness, leading to the ginger giving her a small smile. One she returned. They stop and turn, Jace crossing his arms while he waits.

"Is that him?" Clary asks.

Jace follows her gaze and shakes his head. "No, that's Harold, the groundskeeper." He tilts his head, leaning in a bit, "that's him."

She looks up a little and feels a small shiver of unease crawl up her spine. A comforting hand is felt on her shoulder, and she's met with Y/N's smile when she turns her head. The action leaves her wondering how obvious her discomfort was, but she still is thankful.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Clary looks to the two as though asking for help, but nods regardless. "We will help you to remember."

The trio follow the tall robed man, Clary a little more hesitant. Y/N turns, kind smile still standing, and lifts a finger to the middle of her lips. Clary nods and follows behind.

Along the way she trips, "Ow!"

Jace turns his head instantly, shushing her. "You'll wake the dead."

Clary rolls her eyes. She catches Y/N giving her an apologetic shrug, the girl nodding with her head to continue.

"I can't believe this place is just outside of the city..."

She follows the duo to the window like ledge they looked through. Jace's voice catches her off guard, "Welcome to the City of Bones." His breath is right next to her ear, sending her hairs to stand on their ends.

"This is where the Silent Brothers draw their power, from the bones and ashes of Shadowhunters."

"All of them are buried here?"

"Yes." Jace looks to the wall, "One day," he taps a skull, making Y/N giggle, the sound eliciting a smile to slide upon his pink lips, "that's gonna be me."

Clary stops to look at the skeleton. Sensing her unease, Y/N urges her forward with a light touch. Clary stops a few steps forward, inspecting the room from entryway.

"This is as far as we go." She looks at Jace, and he assures her, "You'll be fine."

"So you've done this before?"

Y/N and Jace exchange a glance. She dawns an apologetic look as shakes her head and Jace replies, "No."

Clary decides to continue to try and talk to Y/N, "Have you ever met Magnus Bane?"

The girl only shakes her head.

"You know... I'm quite jealous of you." Clary admits with a laugh. Y/N tilts her head in confusion, prompting Clary to continue. "I thought Jace was into me, and if I'm being honest, I'm really into him but... I'd be stupid to stand in your guys' way."

Her brows furrow, even more confused than before. Clary's hopes range from high to doubtful, there's a chance Alec was wrong, that she didn't have feelings for him, but she saw the way the two looked at each other. She might've been naïve and clouded in her conflicting feelings, but she wasn't blind.

"Jace likes you too. And honestly...you should go for it." She looks away, ashamed of her own assistance in helping the guy she liked be with someone else. However, she doesn't have time to mope, when a voice she hasn't heard before causes her to snap her eyes back to Y/N's face.

"Is it that obvious?" A shy expression, laced with a little embarrassment, greets her.

"You-"

"I talk, yes." She chuckles. "Jace wasn't lying. I mostly talk to him, but after I realized my feelings for him, I started to confide in Alec. My only problem was that I didn't realize Alec also had feelings for Jace... But, Alec saw how much I love Jace, and told me that he had found interest in someone else. Whether that's true or not, I don't know, but, my feelings for Jace have always been around since then. I'm just...not too sure what to do about it."

Clary nods understandingly, and places her hand atop Y/N's. "Talk to him."

Y/N thinks about it for moment, and then nods. "Thank you."

"Hey. Can we talk?" Jace turns, nodding when he realizes it's Y/N. The blond looks around the infirmary, making sure Simon and Clary are accounted for one more time before he returns to facing her. He follows her to the study, sitting beside her on the piano seat.

"What's wrong?"

Her fingers press into the keys, a slow recollection of a piece by Bach. "It's nothing... I spoke to Clary-'

"You talked to Clary?" Y/N giggles at his dumbfounded expression. "M'sorry, that just caught me a little off-guard, you don't normally talk to anyone else."

"That's fair. Basically, she gave me some advice to a problem I have, not that I asked her for it- she actually noticed it- anyways, after Simon and the vampires and everything- I guess- my point is, Jace..."

"Yes?" His eyes were laced with concern, no longer amused by her sudden socializing.

"I like you. Like, really really like like you." She bit her lip. "Like...I'm in love with you."

Y/N stared at Jace, waiting for his answer. She grew nervous as time started to feel slower. The seconds felt like they were snail's paced, so close yet so far away. Sweat dripped down her forehead and her heartbeat rang in her ears. It was all so overwhelming until-

"I'm in love with you too."

"You what?"

Jace smiled shyly. "I'm in love with you too. I've been for a long time now." His eyes trace over her lips, the distance between them closing gradually. He hovers above her lips when his eyes meet hers again.

It's all in slow motion and superspeed at the same time. She lets go of control and lets her instincts take the reigns. Her lips crash into his and he lets out a surprised groan. Their eyes both close as they kiss one another, their lips partaking in a dance they somehow know. By the time they pull apart, they're out of breath and their eyes are blown.

"How long?"

She blinks. "Pardon?"

"How long have you been waiting to do that?"

"If I'm being honest, a month or so after we met. What about you?" Y/N giggles.

"Since we first met."

Clary leans against the door, heart half broken and half full, yet content with herself. Maybe she should look into what Simon's benefits are.

[sydsaint]

A little taste of what's to come with our fav GM Reader and her boys. <3

Summary: GM reader flexes her hard-earned experience and the benefits that come with it to Ava at a draft meeting. But offering Ava some wisdom isn't the only thing that she's got on the agenda.

"Your boys lost the match fair and square, Pearce." You smile across the table at your fellow general manager. "Which means that Smackdown gets first dibs at the NXT roster, courtesy of Ava, of course." You turn in your chair to face Ava sitting a few seats away from you.

Ava flashes a friendly smile at you. This is her first WWE draft meeting, so she's still in the feeling-out process of everything. "I'm just happy to be here." She admits.

"And we're happy to have you here." Pearce nods. "But back to business. YN, do you have a pick from the NXT roster to kick the night off?" He turns back to you.

"I do, yes." You grin and twirl your pen in your hand before pulling open the vanilla folder in front of you. "Smackdown will be taking Carmelo Hayes as our first pick from NXT." You inform the room.

A knowing scoff escapes Pearce's lips. He taps his pen against his palm and nods at you. "Excellent choice, YN." He compliments you. "Your eye for talent never ceases to amaze me." He adds knowingly.

"What can I say, Adam? I can't help but have good taste." You laugh and wink at him playfully.

The meeting drags on for a few more hours while you and Pearce go back and forth on draft picks. Ava chimes in when one of you has a question about the NXT roster, but otherwise stays silent and soaks in all the information she can get. Ava especially keeps a keen eye on you. She aspires to be like you one day. A strong woman that commands authority and understands the inner-workings of the company like the back of your hand.

After the meeting finally comes to an end, both you and Pearce are feeling satisfied with your respective picks. The two of you shake hands and part ways until the next executive meeting or PLE show. You are just about shoot the boys a text that you're finished up with your meeting when Ava approaches.

"YN! Hey, again." Ava cracks a friendly and eager smile as she walks over to you.

"Hmm?" You glance up from your phone. "Oh, Ava! What's up, girl?" You greet her.

Ava bounces on her heels nervously and smiles at you. "Sorry to bother you." She bites the inside of her cheek. "But I was hoping that we could talk for a minute?"

"Yeah, sure." You nod and pocket your phone. "I've got some time before my date gets here."

Ava nods and the two of you move to a more comfortable spot to chat for a bit. You both take a seat out in the outdoor lounge and take advantage of the warm sun still hanging in the sky.

"You were great earlier." Ava starts the conversation. "I mean. It's so cool how you manage to control the narative when you're negotiating with Pearce." She gushes. "That's what I want."

"Thanks, Ava." You giggle at her awe of you. "You did good for your first draft meeting too." You offer her an encouraging smile. "I know you haven't been in charge of the NXT roster for long. But you seem to have a good handle on it. Your knoledge of everyone really helped Pearce and I out with our picks." You assure her.

The smile on Ava's face grows wider at your encouraging words. "Thanks, YN. That really means a lot." She blushes.

"Of course!" You nod. "You've got a bright future kid." You knock into her shoulder playfully.

You and Ava chat for a while about work. You offer her some tips about things that you had to learn the hard way in order to move up in the business. Ava soaks up the information and doesn't hesitate to ask questions, which you like.

"Hey, I actually have another question for you." Ava prepares to drop another ask on you. Not that you mind. "If you don't mind, that is." She adds.

"Ask away." You smile at her.

Ava picks at her nails for a second before nervously meeting your gaze. "Are the rumors true about you, LA Knight, Grayson Waller, and Austin Theory?" She asks you sheepishly.

A laugh falls from your lips upon hearing Ava's question. "Well it's no secret that Knight and I have a special relationship." You half-answer her. "But when it comes to Theory and Waller? Well, some things are better left to the imagination, don't you think, Ava?" You tease her and your phone buzzes in your pocket.

You take out your phone and quickly read the new message. Ava watches you curiously as you rise to your feet and pocket your phone before pulling down your sunglasses.

"You're doing great as the GM of NXT." You praise Ava one last time. "But don't ever forget that being the GM comes with it's own special perks." You grin at her as a fast-sounding car whips into the parking lot.

Ava watches you gesture for her to follow you as the luxury car sounds closer and closer. She follows you out to the front of the building where she spots the luxury car she heard now sitting still. LA Knight leans against the drivers-side door and nods to Ava when he sees her.

"You out here picking up strays now, darlin?" Knight peers at you over the rim of his aviators.

"Just giving a newbie some tips from a pro." You grin back at him. "You ready to go? The boys are starting the party without us from the text I just got from the pretty boy." You add.

Knight chuckles and walks around the car to get the door for you. "The party don't really start until you get there, sweetheart. You know that."

"Take care Ava!" You offer Ava one last wave. "Shoot me a message if you ever need anything, alright, girl?" You add.

"Yeah! Okay!" Ava nods, her eyes sparkling with awe as you dissapear into the car.

Knight walks back around the car and pulls his glasses down to get a good look at Ava. "You have a nice rest of your day, sweetheart." He shoots a wink at her before pushing his glasses back up and disapearing into the car as well.

Ava watches the car speed out of the parking lot and shakes her head. Oh yeah. She's definetly got a new role model to look up to.

In the car you laugh with Knight regarding your little display. "Oh her face was so cute." You giggle.

"She did looked pretty shocked, yeah." Knight agrees. "How'd the meeting go with Pearce?" He asks you.

You smile to yourself and look at Knight knowingly. "It went great. Smackdown is about to become the A-show again. Trust me on that, babe." You laugh to yourself. "Because I've got Carmelo Hayes in my office on Friday night. And he's all mine to work with."

"Hayes, huh?" Knight glances over at you for a brief second. "You ain't looking to add another boytoy to the roster, are you?" He asks you.

"We'll see." You shrug, plans for new rivalries and storylines already forming in your head.

[mintpurrfect]

⩇:⩇⩇ — Menace

⤿synopsys﹕seong taehoon is an absolute menace, always annoying the hell out of you. it's his way of showing his love, but he'd rather jump off a building than admit it though.

⤿character﹕ seong taehoon x gn!reader

⤿genre﹕fluff

⤿warning﹕cursing, bad grammar and typos

⤿note﹕It's been awhile! Here's some Taehoon stuff which had been sitting in my drafts for some time that I just finished a few minutes ago. 890 words | not proofread.

Taehoon was walking around the YHC's office, trying to find anything that would get rid of his boredom. He didn't have anything else to do as he had just finished his training.

His eyes wandered around before stopping at a wooden door across the room. He mindlessly walked towards the door and opened it.

There, he saw you sitting on a chair in front of a desk, seemingly writing something.

Walking towards you, Taehoon had decided that you're the one to ease his boredom. He took out an unoccupied chair from beside you and placed it really closely to where you are before sitting on it, body facing towards you.

You stayed quiet even after noticing his presence, too busy with jotting down ideas flowing through your head.

Taehoon watched you for a while, observing you. How your eyebrows knit together in deep thought, how your eyes seem to light up whenever a new idea comes to mind or even how your lips form into a small pout when you aren't satisfied with what you wrote.

You were getting uncomfortable with the way his eyes were watching you intently.

With a sigh, you dropped your pencil and glanced at him, "What do you want?"

"I'm bored."

You rolled your eyes before continuing to your previous task, "Go train or something."

From your peripheral vision, you could see how he inched closer to you but you didn't make any move to scoot away, "I'm already done training."

"Why'd you come here of all places?"

"I wanted to annoy you."

How very blunt of him. You rolled your eyes again, making up your mind to just ignore him and pretend that he's not there. After all, ignorance is bliss.

Well, that was your plan until he decided to be a total menace.

"What's that supposed to be? Duck?"

"It's "crack", Taehoon." You replied, trying hard not to break the pencil you're holding in half but he's just making it hard for you not to do so.

"Mallow?" He mumbled,

You let out a deep sigh, "It's "mirror", those are "R's" not "L's", gosh... "

You're trying your best to contain your annoyance and focus on writing but the man, either oblivious to your frustration or just doesn't care, most likely the latter, spoke once more, "Your handwriting sucks,"

"You suck." You retort earning an amused look on Taehoon's face.

"Your insults are just as bad as your penmanship."

'I swear to god, if you don't shut up, I'm going to stab you with this pencil-'

Curses after curses flood your mind but you refrain yourself from snapping and held back. Nothing good comes out with arguing with the guy.

Realising that you won't respond, he let his eyes wander once again. Taehoon then fixated his brown eyes towards your hair.

After contemplating for a few minutes, he decided to raise his hand and brush his fingers through your hair.

Feeling the gentle touch, you momentarily stop writing to register what was happening.

Taehoon was playing with your hair, watching closely how it moves as he twirled it around his fingers.

You just decided to ignore him and continue on with what you were doing. You started scribbling on your notebook, your messy handwriting filling up the page.

A few minutes have passed and you're finally done. Taehoon was still somehow playing with your hair, he didn't even speak once after he had started.

You slightly tilt your head towards his direction, raising an eyebrow when you noticed how he was zoning out while absentmindedly twisting a few strands of your hair into his index finger.

Taehoon felt your stare and finally snapped out of his thoughts. His auburn (?) eyes turned towards yours. He didn't speak and just continued to stare into your eyes. Without warning, he leaned in closer to your face without breaking eye contact.

You felt your heart skip a bit but managed to put on an unbothered facade. You're sure that if you gave any ounce of flustered reaction, he won't stop teasing you about it.

But gosh, did his lips look so tempting right now.

Your eyes subconsciously trailed down towards his lips for a few seconds before you noticed what you were doing and looked away. He was leaning towards you in a painfully slow pace and it was obvious that he's teasing you on purpose.

'Damn it..' you thought to yourself. A soft sigh escaped your lips before you finally decided to take the matter into your own hands —quite literally if I may add— you brought your hand up and grabbed the back of his head before pulling him closer and closing the distance between the two of you.

Taehoon froze in surprise as he felt your lips against his. He would never admit it but he felt his heart flutter. Slowly but surely, his lips started to move against yours and his eyes closed shut as he savoured the feeling of your kiss.

You pulled away after what felt like hours, and you could see a small smile on Taehoon's lips,

"Didn't know that you wanted me that much." He said, giving you a cocky smirk but the pink tint on his cheeks and ears betrayed how he truly felt.

"Oh, shut up." You rolled your eyes playfully before pulling him in for another kiss.

[eddiemunsons-missingnipple]

Eddie Munson x fem!reader

Summary: You and Eddie are guests at Joyce and Hoppers' wedding. When Eddie sees you in your dress, he can't seem to keep his hands off of you.

Warnings: slight voyeurism, fingering, squirting. Established relationship. Dirty talk, Eddie and the reader are little horny dorks in love. Also, Eddie smokes weed (not surprising for a man who carries weed in his lunchbox instead of food)

A/n18+ not proof read ignore any mistakes, please. This has been in my drafts for months now.

"Come on, babe, we're gonna be late," Eddie yelled from your shared bedroom.

He was currently trying to put his unruly curls in a low bun. He's currently wearing a black button-up shirt and black jeans with combat boots. This was your compromise since you told him no to his vest. You, on the other hand, were currently in your bathroom putting on makeup.

Usually, it takes you and Eddie both a while to get ready. You and him rushed around your trailer, trying to find something you misplaced. Your home wasn't dirty, but it could get chaotic sometimes. Eddie referred to it as "organized chaos."

"I'm going as fast as I can. ya want me looking like a clown or something? "

Today was Joyce and Hoppers' wedding day. They invited you and Eddie to come to the ceremony and reception afterward. You've known Joyce since you were a kid and would babysit for her sometimes if Jonathan couldn't. Eddie was a little too familiar with Hopper since he constantly got arrested for vandalism by spray painting his bands name on anything.

You finally finished applying your makeup, and now you hunt down to see where you hung up your dress. Rushing into your shared bedroom, you see Eddie sitting at the edge of the bed about to light up his joint. You snatch it from his lips and toss it on the bedside table. "Babe, really? Right now?"

"Don't act shocked. You know I smoke before I go anywhere." He defended and went to grab the joint from his table.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. have you seen my dress?" You asked him as he lit it up and took a puff. He immediately started coughing and choking.

Rolling your eyes, you begin to panic and search high and low for your black dress. Joyce told you it was a black tie event, and Eddie couldn't have been happier to hear that since he knew you couldn't put him in a funny little dress shirt. You ran around your home while Eddie was busy coughing up his lungs in your bedroom.

You stop and see it's been draped over the couch the entire time.

"I found it." Yelling out to Eddie. Entering the bathroom, you take your robe off and slip the little black dress over your figure.

The dress was black with spaghetti straps and a small slit up the side of your leg. Joyce helped you pick it out when all of you went dress shopping two weeks before the wedding. Eddie hasn't seen you in it yet, only seeing it on the hanger. When you emerge from the bathroom and into your room, his eyes go wide, and his mouth gapes slightly.

"Come on, we can leave now, or we'll be late." You ushered him off the bed, but Eddie immediately grabbed you from behind and nuzzled his face in your neck.

"we can be a little late." He purred in your ear.

You push yourself away from him and head to his van. The entire ride to the venue was pure torture on yours and Eddie part. With him constantly trying to rub his hand up higher and higher on your leg. You fought him off pretty good but it took everything in you to not let him pull over and fuck you in the back of his van. The way Eddie had been thinking about you when he saw you in your dress is how you have been thinking about him in his dress shirt. Especially when he decided to roll up the sleeves and expose his inked forearms. You just knew the both of you were in for a very long, long night.

His hands were roaming up and down your torso, and he stopped when he discovered your exposed thigh. He groaned and grinded into the swell of your ass. "No we gotta go."

-

Now it's time for the reception which is being held outside the venue of the wedding ceremony was at. Thankful you can finally eat and drink the night away with your friends and family. Eddie had other plans for you, apparently all day long since putting on this dress, he couldn't stop touching you. His hand ran up your thigh even during the ceremony. You had to gracefully smack it away a few times when it got just a little too high, and you could see some people starting to notice. If looks could kill, Eddie would be dead before it's time to cut the cake.

The wedding was beautiful, and Joyce and Hoppers' wedding vows were so romantic even Eddie cried a little. You've never seen Jonathan and Will look so at peace now that they knew their mother was in good hands. El looked beautiful, standing next to her new mom.

Now that you're both seated and able to eat, Eddie has been preoccupied in a conversation with Steve. "Thank God for steve," you think to yourself. Now you don't have to worry about Eddie's wondering hands on you while you try to enjoy your meal.

Unfortunately, it was too good to be true because just when you thought that, he leans over and whispers in your ear, " Either you let me finger you under this table or im not gonna let you come later."

He moved away and went back to laughing after whatever Steve just told him. Acting as if he didn't just threaten you a moment ago. Pouting at the threat and also knowing he's about to finger you with all of your close friends next to you. Carefully, you spread your legs open and scoot closer to the table. You feel Eddie's hand once again creep up your thigh, only this time he didn't stop.

Eddie squeezes it a little and brushes his finger over your covered pussy. You let out a shuttered breath as he moves the lace, keeping you two a part. You try to level your breathing and focus on your food. He runs his middle finger up your wet folds and starts softly rubbing your clit. His dips, his finger lower, collecting some of your slick and brings it back up to your clit.

You whimper a little and try to cough instead, hoping no one would notice. He doesn't stop and continues to lazily rub your clit while keep his attention on Steve. You bite your lower lip when he pushes down on your sensitive bud just a little harder and rubbed it just faster. You can feel yourself getting closer that tightness in your core getting stronger. Your breathing gets heavier, and before you come, you jump up from the table and excuse yourself. Hurrying yourself inside and to the nearest bathroom. You don't pay attention to Eddie calling after you.

You're a little embarrassed at what was happening, but you also didn't want him to stop. You knew if you came at that table, you wouldn't be able to hold back any moans escaping your mouth. Eddie knew that too he knew you couldn't be quiet even if you tried. You hear a little knock at the door and hear Eddies muffled voice behind the door.

"Baby, you okay? "

Opening the door slightly, you look up at him, and he can see your dazed face, and he frowns. He pushes his way inside and pulls you in for a hug. Kissing the top of your head as he smooths down your hair. "Want to go home?"

"I'm sorry we can go home if you like." He reassured.

Shaking your head no, that's now buried in his chest. He smells good, and it somehow brings a sense of calmness to you. He sways you back and forth as you hold onto him.

"I don't wanna go home yet." Your voice muffled. He pulls back a little and kisses you on the forehead.

"Wanna continue in here, sweet thing?" He smiles and wiggles his eyebrows.

He chuckles and slowly backs you up against the wall. The cold tile against your naked back makes you jump slightly. He kisses down your neck and hooks your leg over his hip. He grinds his cock into your core as he nips and bites the tender flesh of your neck. You let out a breathy moan and move your head back to give him more access.

You look up at him and give what he asked a second thought. You wanted to continue and never actually wanted to stop. You just know you can't keep quiet, and what if someone heard you. "I'm loud, Ed. what if someone hears me?"

"I'm gonna cover your mouth with my hand so no one can hear. Kay?" He pulls away from your throat and smiles at the little marks that are starting to blossom.

Nodding your head, he brings his large ringed hand up and covers your mouth. He brings his other hand back down to your wet folds. He pushes the lace of your panties to the side and dips a finger into your tight entrance. You moan in his hand. "I can't wait to get you home. I'm gonna fucking ruin you". He whispered harshly in your ear.

You loved it when Eddie got like this so greedy with passion and lust. Not being able to keep his hands off of you. He doesn't even care about his pleasure right now knowing he's gonna get it later. Right now, it's all about you and getting you ready for what he's gonna do when you both are home.

The thought makes your pussy flutter against his finger that's currently pumping inside you. He brings another finger to join and curves them upwards inside you. The squelching sound of your pussy as Eddie fingers you bounces off the tiled walls. His fingers are relentless inside you, and you whimper against his hand as his fingers find that sweet spot inside you.

"Or should I have you crying as you bounce on it? You'd like my dirt girl?"

"I know, baby, it feels good, huh?" His grip on your mouth tightens just a little. You close your eyes when he moves your leg up higher around his waist. His fingers deeper inside you and rubbing against the spongey spot on your velvety walls.

Your pussy clenches as your slick coats his fingers and drips a little down your leg. " You gonna come for me, baby, huh?" "Fuck you're so tight I can't wait to feel you wrapped around my cock squirming under me" He grunts out.

He's breathing heavily against your ear as he continues to whispersing dirty things to you. Your legs buck, and you move to wrap your arms his shoulders for leverage. He takes his thumb and starts rubbing your clit while his fingers relentlessly fuck you. "Fuck sweetheart you're making a mess all over my hand. "

You moan his name, but it comes out muffled against his hand. Eddie give your pussy a few more strokes of his fingers. He presses and rubs that spot on your walls, and you're coming all over his hand. Leaning your head back, you cry out as you gush all over him. Clear liquid squirting out and soaking his arm and getting on his pants. Your legs almost giving out from under your as your climax washes over you. His fingers keep pumping in and out of you as you come down from your orgasm.

You grip onto him tightly and bring him closer as you ride it out. You're trying to catch your breath and keep your balance, but your legs legs feel like jello. Your mind foggy, you don't really comprehend that Eddie has been calling your name.

"Hmm, what's wrong, Ed?" Your voice sounding so sleepy and small.

"Hey, there's my girl. I thought I lost you for a second. " He said, moving the hair from out of your face. You smile and hold onto him tightly. Eddie hooks his arm under your legs and carries you out the bathroom bridal style.

"I was gonna ask if you wanted to dance now, but it seems your legs have gone all wobbly on me." He joked as he carried you outside to the van.

"I wanna stay." You whined.

"Baby, I would love to stay, but you soaked me back there." Hiding your face in his neck as embarrassment washes over you. He laughs and helps you get in the passenger side of his van.

"Can we still dance later?" You asked as he helped buckle you in.

"Yeah baby, we can dance all night if you like." Eddie said as he closed your door. He hops in the driver's seat, leaning over to give you a quick peck.

He takes off down the street, strumming softly on the steering wheel. Eventually, exhaustion from the hectic day plus the orgasm Eddie just gave you takes over. He looks over at you and smiles to himself as he makes his way back home. Eddie feels bad he'll eventually have to wake you up, but he has some promises and plans to fulfill.

[heyhihellosworld]

𝗣𝗵𝗼𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗵𝗲𝗿

Lewis Hamilton x reader

Word count: 4,2k

Summary: Your first assignment in your new business seems to be a little too good to be true thanks to one British guy.

Warnings: Fluff, smut

Notes: First time I wrote for Lewis but it was pretty fun. I think this is my first fic without angst, wow. This has been in my drafts for months because I never seemed to be able to finish it but finally I did, its not the best. The smut is horrible as well, sorry x

"Are you ever gonna let that camera go?"

You rolled your eyes at your friends remark, she had been a pain in the ass the whole day. Nagging you about seeing the real thing but you didn't mind her. Photography was why you where here in the first place.

"No, this is what I do, remember?"

You watched up just in time to see her eyes roll, your own almost hurting to not do the same. "Can you at least put it down so we can go and eat, I'm starving" she tried, a whining strain to her voice.

"Only if it makes you shut up" you grumbled, giving her a grin to let her know you were joking with her. "Yeah yeah" she chuckled, clapping her hands together as you put your camera down in its case gently.

"Finally"

You shook your head at her, flinging an arm around her shoulders as you let the camera dangle from your neck "so what do you wanna eat?"

-

You settled for a sandwich in one of the cafeterias around the paddock, sitting in two of the chairs close to the track while chatting. There was nothing going on at the moment, practice two was just done here in Silverstone.

Your friend seemed in a much better mood after your food and didn't bat an eyelash as you told her you had to get some more photographs around the track. She was more interested in going around to look for drivers since you had access to all the space thanks to your job.

"Then we will go around the garages" you promised, smiling as her face lit up. She had agreed to come this first time since you were too nervous to go alone, she din't know shit about f1 but she found the drivers hot, of course, so she had agreed and despite her ranting and whining from time to time you were grateful she was here. This whole experience was gut wrenching as it was and to be lonely all weekend would have made it even more so.

She stayed in the seat on her phone as you started to move away in the paddock. Getting some close ups on the track and facilities. You had just started in the business, driving your own photography company. It had been rough in the beginning and really scary but with the support of your family and friends you had thrown yourself out there and gone for it and it had already paid off.

So far it was all good, you had gotten multiple assignments, surely pretty small ones like a one to one photo shoot and a couple shoot but it was rolling. This was your first bigger assignment, an assignment taken on from a magazine regarding Formula one and so here you were, photographing and plating their magazine and website.

You pull your phone out to text your friend to meet you by the garage while you walked into the corner. You didn't know a lot about formula 1, probably even less than your friend but you had googled the basics in panic the day before you went to not look like a complete fool, but it was still very new.

You leant against the wall in the far corner, it was pretty calm in the paddock right now, most people being inside their garages, eating or just relaxing in their motor-homes. You flicked through some of the photos you had taken, you were really happy with the result so far. You had all you needed of the race-track and the paddock ones were almost done. Now you needed more inside photos, something that couldn't have been taken by anyone.

You angled your camera again zooming in on the person that where now walking straight to you. He was looking up in the sky as he walked, his cap low and hair sticking out from the back, he was smiling lazily, hands in pockets and he looked amazing, at least through your lence.

You quickly snapped a couple of photos, seeing how the action got his attention, now looking straight at you as you snapped some more before his face turned confused and the pictures didn't turn out as great anymore.

You lowered the camera again, flicking through the few pictures and you couldn't help but smile at how good they looked. This was what you needed.

"Uh, excuse me did you just take pictures of me?" Your head snapped up, falling out of your happy bubble as you were face to face with the man. You swallowed, not really knowing what to say. "Uh-I yeah? Is that not okay?"

The man shook his head "No no, it's all good just weren't prepared for it"

You nodded, smiling up at him, he was definitely as good looking in reality as in your lence. You forced your eyes down, flicking the first pic up on your screen "They got really good, look"

He reached down, a smile making it's way on his face as he hummed "It's really good actually, you think I can get that?"

You thought it over before shrugging "yeah sure"

He got stuck in thoughts, "eh, I can't really give you my phone number..."

You chuckled "Well then it's gonna be hard"

He nodded, "Are you gonna post them somewhere, maybe you can send them on Instagram?"

"Yeah sure, can't guarantee the quality but sure, what's your name"

He blinked at you, one two three times making you feel stupid. "What?"

"Aren't someone who is here to photograph supposed to know the drivers?" he chuckled teasingly, his eyes sparkling as he showed his perfect line of teeth.

"Oh"

Heat covered your cheeks as you realized your mistake

"Lewis Hamilton" he grinned, chuckling as he saw you write it down. "Well that's actually fantastic" you hummed, impressed by yourself even more now, not only a good picture from the inside but an amazing picture of a driver, well done.

"Not to be rude or anything but it dosen't seem like you belong here on a daily basis"

You smiled at him, loving how natural he was to speak with. "Well no not really. I have just started my new assignment to take photos for a magazine and website about formula 1 so here I am. I have never seen the sport before and I have absolutely no clue on what's going on"

He smiled sweetly. "Well, if you want too I can take you around into Mercedes and maybe show you this side of the paddock?"

Your eyes flicked to him, surprised over his offer "Really?"

"Yeah of course, consider it payment for the nice picture"

You chuckled, humming at him "Then it's better be good"

His smile widened as he nodded "It will, come on"

You followed him on the way, it was still fairly empty. Your eyes got stuck on his side profile, he was gorgeous in a way not many where, everything about his face fitting perfectly together, his eyes the softest ones you had ever laid eyes on and his whole person was just.. beautiful.

"So, what's your name?" he asked, looking at you as you quickly moved your eyes to your camera, flicking and clearing through the pictures. "Y/N" you hummed

"So what's this job you've got?"

"Well actually it's my own business. I created my own company a few months ago to be able to do what I wanted to but under my own terms"

"Wow that's really cool" he hummed making you scoff. "What are you saying, you're a freaking race driver" you chuckled, seeing him flash a smile "It's different things"

You arrived at the Mercedes garage and you immediately snapped your camera up, you had gotten strict directives that you couldn't photograph any details nor while they where working on something specific. You could photograph staff and drivers but all photos had to be gone through by the teams before being posted.

You took some stray photos of the workers, the car and on Lewis's back as he walked further into the garage. You pointed the camera down for a little while as he showed you through the area, he told some stories about Mercedes, showed different mechanical things and talked you through the basics of a race weekend. You didn't know whether it was because it was an actual interesting sport or because of the guy who was telling you about it all but you were intrigued.

Lewis dragged you around, watching as you stopped to take pictures every now and then before you left the garage, going out on the street again where your friend was waiting with a sour look.

"Shit i'm so sorry"

She only raised her eyebrows with a small shake of her head but the smile betrayed her. Her eyes snapped and face fell as her eyes landed on Lewis behind you, mouth slightly open as she stared at you. "That is why you left me here?!"

"He showed me around the garage" you chuckled, leading her towards Lewis who looked at the two of you "Right, okay if my friend comes along for the rest of the tour?"

"No of course not" Lewis smile, showing his perfect line of teeth. "Lewis"

Your friend introduced herself, still looking at him like he was from another world.

"Right, I will just run in and grab my water bottle, wait here" Lewis smiled, jogging back into the garage whilst your friend turned to you.

"Wow" she breathed, looking at you with big eyes whilst you chuckled "Who is that?!"

You grinned at her, pursing your lips "Lewis Hamilton, a driver"

She whistled, shaking her head "unbeliveable"

You couldn't help but laugh at her astonishing look. "Calm down, I took a picture of him, we chatted for a few seconds and he offered to take me on a tour around the paddock so I could take some more pictures" you explained, her smile only widening

"Seriously? He offered?"

You shrugged at her excited face "Well yeah, but only because he wanted the picture"

"Sure only because he wa-"

"I'm back, let's go" Lewis smiled as he jogged back up to you. You flashed him a smile before looking at your friend in warning before following Lewis along the road. "If you see any drivers tell me" you hummed, taking your camera in your hands to have it ready to shoot.

"One coming up" Lewis smiled, pointing at a red clothed man standing outside the garage he probably was a part of.

-

He took you both around the circuit, pointing out in different garages and telling you about them. You sneaked shots here and there, found many of the drivers and filled your camera with perfect photos.

It was really funny to talk with him and it shocked you how humble he was and how natural it was to talk with him. You felt satisfied as you returned to the Mercedes garage.

-

"He totally wants you" your friend grinned as you watched Lewis walk back to his motor-home to attend a briefing.

You scoffed, looking at her with an eyeroll "absolutely not"

"He does and you totally want him too" she giggled clapping her hands together dramatically. "Shut up"

"I mean I don't blame you, he is fucking unreal but don't try to deny it"

You were just about to talk back to her as your phone interrupted you, hands as a reflex taking it out from your back pocket.

"Who is it?"

Your eyes searched the screen, a smile threatening to break through as Lewis had texted you his number on Instagram.

"He sent me his number"

"And you said he doesn't want you, dummie" she said seriously watching as your face broke out into a huge smile as you read Lewis text

"Thank you for today, it was lovely x"

You saw Lewis the next day as well, after he had texted you to say thanks you had continued texting, the conversation ending in him asking for you both to eat lunch the coming day. An offer you gladly accepted.

The lunch had been smooth, conversation had flowed and after your friend had gotten an unexpected call that lasted for a suspiciously long time you had continued on your own with the British man, learning a few more personal things and having to stop yourself from staring him down as he sat so casually in his chair, looking too good.

It was going towards the end of the weekend and all your photos were done, having today to choose which ones to use.

"So, how many should you have on the track?" Lewis questioned, looking over the exemplars you had printed out of the material "Uhm I can choose but I thought like five?" you murmured, feeling his eyes on you as you scanned over the pictures.

He nodded, humming as he weaved through them, "this one?"

"Nah it's too dark" you disagreed, picking up two other instead "do you think these two goes together?"

A nod confirmed what you had asked and you smiled up at him. "Thank you for helping me this weekend, it's honestly been so much fun" you admitted bashfully, looking down on the chosen pictures with heat covering your cheeks. "No worries, it's been a pleasure" he smiled, watching as you divided the chosen pictures to the others in different folders before putting them back in your bag.

"Anyway, I won't hold you up anymore since i'm guessing you should go get ready for the race?"

"Probably should.." he admitted "but there are no rush" he added, his eyes looking over you intently.

You didn't really now what to say so you stood up, watching as he did the same with an unsure expression over his face before he turned confident, grinning at you as he walked so he stood before you.

"Hey, I forgot to show you my drivers room. I'm sure it would be a big plus if you could get that onto the layup" Lewis suggested, his eyes boring into yours seriously. You knew exactly what he initiated and were his thoughts were going but it didn't face you because it was exactly what you'd been thinking to, what you had wanted since the second you landed your eyes on him.

You thought it over for a second but it was not hard to know what you wanted. "Yeah maybe that would give me a favor" you hummed, looking up at him with a smug grin. He flashed you a quick smile before grabbing your arm and leading you over the paddock and to the Mercedes garage.

This time he didn't talk nor show you around just ushered you into his drivers room, closing and locking the door behind him

"Just for some privacy" he grinned as you jokingly raised your eyebrows at the man.

"Of course" you chuckled meeting him as he walked towards you. "You need to say no if you don't want this"

"I want this" you hummed, loving how his breath fanned your face and how his eyes sparkled in the light.

"Fuck your so sexy" he groaned as you bit your lip, blinking up at him innocently.

You couldn't stop your huge grin as you let your hands crawl up his body to his hair, one hand pulling him down to you so that you could meet his lips.

He answered the kiss immediately, not hesitating a single second before absolutely devouring you, kissing you with a brutal force. His teeth clashed with yours, his tongue swiping over your lips before fighting its way into your mouth, challenging yours for dominance.

His body pressed into you making you feel all of him. He walked you backwards until you reached the couch where he spun you around, sitting down on the couch before urging you to sit on his lap.

You stared down at him, his intense look almost daring you to sit down and take control.

You bent your head down, tilting his chin up with your hand before your mouth met his again. This time you put up a fight, trying to gain the dominance but he had the upper hand, slowly guiding you to straddle him, getting all the control back. He pulled back slightly, looking into your eyes with an amused glint, lips tilting into a smirk.

"I let you straddle me and suddenly you think you can take control?" he tutted, stroking your chin with his thumb. "That's not how it works here sweetie" he murmured, his voice making your eyes roll in annoyance.

He tutted again, his fingers brushing up over your chest, teasingly running over your collarbone until he wrapped his fingers around your throat, not squeezing but just holding while he stared into your eyes.

One of your hands came to hold his hand over your throat, staring back at him, challenging him but deep down you knew you didn't stand a chance.

He kissed you again, holding you still with his hand as he took control without a problem. You hummed into the kiss, letting your other hand travel up his body and to his neck, combing your fingers through his hair and pulling him more firmly against you. Your hips started to move against him looking as his face faltered for a moment, lips parting slightly and eyes falling close at the stimulation.

"Hmm" you teased, grinding against him again, even harder than the first time, loving the small sound he let out as you did so. His hand squeezed around your throat, like a warning to not get ahead of yourself, but you loved that little control you'd gained from your movements.

The other hand that wasn't around your throat flew to your hip trying to control your movements. This time it was you who tutted, taking his hand of your hip and holding it down. You knew you didn't stand a chance if he really wanted to keep it there but he let you do as you wanted at the moment.

"Enjoy it whilst it lasts" he said lowly squeezing your throat again but it only made you smirk. Lips catching his again, moving softer against them this time, sweetly licking his bottom lip before entangling your tongue with his, humming into his mouth.

He had enough as you sucked down his neck, small purple marks littering his throat, his eyes closed involuntarily, his breath getting heavier as you found the right spot.

"Okay okay I think you have gotten enough" he growled, standing up with you before close to dropping you down on the couch again, quickly climbing on top of you, completely controlling you body as he gripped your neck and slammed his lips against yours, hips grinding roughly into yours making you pant. You were so so ready for him to do something, anything.

Lewis felt the same, dick impossible hard straining in his jeans. His hands tugged at the fabric of your shirt snatching it off your body simply and quickly, a gasp leaving your mouth at the rough movement.

He unbuttoned your jeans but before he could tug them off you stopped him, his eyes snapping to yours with worry he had crossed a boundary but you just smiled, stroking his chin before tugging on the button of his t-shirt. Feeling slightly vulnerable being the only one bare.

He immediately caught on to what you wanted and tugged the shirt over his head, throwing it down on the floor.

You drank in his bare torso, fingers reaching out to touch his stunning body. Fingertips tracing his many unbelievably sexy tattoos, sliding over his defined muscles slowly. Slowly teasing his torso before slowly sliding down to where his jeans sat, fingers dipping in the hem of them, Lewis watched your every move, letting you take your time to touch him and feel him up. He didn't actually have that much time but he didn't care, he would take the time.

Your hands reached his zipper, his eyes trained on your hands, a deep breath exhaling as you unzipped and pushed his jeans down.

He stood up, stepping out of his jeans before snapping back into action. His fingers unzipped your jeans and helped them off of you, drinking in your bare body with widened eyes.

"You're really really beautiful" he murmured, leaning over you again as he mouthed wet kisses up your side. "You are too" you murmured back, meeting his lips in a soft sweet kiss.

He gently rolled on top of you again, helping you crawl up so you were half sitting against the arm of the couch, his hands gently squeezed your boobs through the material of your bra and soon one of the hands abandoned your torso, moving down to your thigh.

His eyes met yours with a serious question hanging in them but all you did was nod, it was what you wanted, what you needed. With that his hand slid upwards, gently rubbing your sensitive clit over the rough material of your lace panties. Your eyes closed shut at the sensation, lips parting as a heavy breath came through.

You opened your eyes long enough to see his cocky smirk but you didn't feel like stopping him to put him in his place, not when what he did felt so good.

You bucked your hips, trying to signal for him to take them off. Lewis looked at you with hot eyes, licking over his bottomlip before his fingers moved upwards, slowly peeling your underwear off.

You couldn't help but let out a small huff as you core was exposed to the cold air. You'd never felt so needy before and especially not after only seeing the guy for barely a weekend. It was like your body was on fire from his touch and you were drunk on the feeling

When he didn't move into action again but only looked at you you lost patience, grabbing his wrist to make him touch you again.

The deep chuckle he let out was set to annoy you but when his fingers circled your clit again it was all forgotten.

"Fuck Lewis" you whined, your hips moving on their own accord to make him touch you just right. "That's it?" he murmured, eyes searching for yours. You didn't answer with more than a hum eyes glazing over.

"Okay stop" you breathed as you felt your orgasm coming, not wanting to come already.

Lewis looked at you confused, not seeing why he couldn't make you cum like this but he didn't question it, stopping as you wished.d

"Can you tell I haven't been laid in months?" you chuckled, trying to gather yourself from the overwhelming feeling.

Lewis chuckled, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear before connecting his lips with yours again. You let your hands explore again, feeling him down his stomach, loving the way his tense muscles felt under your fingertips.

You let them dip into the hem of his boxers, teasing him before snapping the clothing back onto his skin. You loved the way he looked at you, the way his eyes dilated and the way his tongue stuck to the side of his lips. He was mesmerizingly beautiful but he was just as hot.

He quickly discarded his boxers, tired of the material stopping you both and you gave him a cheeky grin as you watched him before your hand started to stroke him gently.

The moan he let out stuck in your ears as you continued. Not getting to carry on for too long as he soon pushed your hand away "need to be inside you" he breathed, your skin fluttering in anticipation.

-

"Fuck, fuck fuuuck" you groaned, your whole body arching as he bottomed out inside of you.

It felt timeless as he thrusted inside of you. Your eyes fluttering shut every other moment and all that left your mouth was moans and whines.

You felt drunk on him, something you hadn't felt in a very long time and something you wouldn't expect to feel after the pretty causal weekend you'd spent together. But it was all pent up tension and excitement.

You couldn't tell how long time had gone as Lewis trusts became erratic, his small moans and breathy breaths getting more and more pressured and his head fell back more and more. When he lifted your legs over his shoulders it was a done deal, your moans getting stuck in your throat, your eyes rolling as you came hard, making Lewis cum with you only moments later. His deep groan filling the room.

You didn't know where he had went, to tired to care as he had murmured something after pulling out of you but when you felt the bed dip you opened your eyes, turning to look at him.

"You're really beautiful" he murmured lowly, one hand stroking your face lovingly as your eyes felt to heavy to keep open

"You are too"

[missmungoe]

I LOVE TIDESWEPT SO MUCH THANK YOU FOR THAT TIDBIT OF WHATS GONNA HAPPEN IN THE NEXT CHAPTERS!!! ALSO CONGRATS ON UR WONDERFUL BABY!!!!

I'm so glad!! I just finished drafting chapter 8, which clocked in at a whopping 25K, and the epilogue is well underway, so have a little sneak-peek while I edit!

(and thank you<3<3<3)

He resurfaced, painfully, to a familiar chamber.

It took effort getting his eyes open, and to focus enough to make out the blurry world taking shape through the receding dark, yielding first to a warm glow, until he could make out the carved corners of a white-painted ceiling, and the rolling green hills and forests of the silk wallpaper wrapping around the room.

He knew where he was―their chambers in Loguetown, in their marriage bed―and for a confused beat, Shanks wondered if he was dreaming, or if he’d drunk himself into such a state of utter disorientation, he was hallucinating while awake. It wouldn't be the first time.

He tried to sit up, which was a mistake, as a wave of agony surged through his chest, choking his breath.

There was a flurry of noise and movement above him―raised voices, and what sounded like several chairs being pushed back―even as he couldn’t make out what was said, dizzy from the pain, although gathered from their urgency that something had happened, and realised only belatedly that the reason was him.

Someone touched his brow, forcing his eyes to focus, as he found himself looking at a familiar frown.

“You’re awake,” Doc said, without embellishment, although Shanks had known him long enough to recognise relief when he saw it.

He tried to speak, although found his throat so dry he could only manage a rasping wheeze, and when he tried to move, instantly regretted it, as another blinding burst of pain left his vision swimming.

Tattooed hands pushed him down, as Doc said, “Lie still. I’m not entirely convinced you’re on this side of the river, so better not push your luck. You’re hanging on by the Fates’ thread as it is.”

The words took time reaching him through the confusion, but then he couldn’t remember how he’d gotten here. His whole chest hurt; it felt like there was something squeezing it, and a glance down saw that it was heavily bandaged.

“Where am I?” he finally managed to rasp, although wondered if anyone caught it, his voice was so hoarse.

“Loguetown,” answered a different voice, somewhere to his left, and turning his eyes found Hongou. Unlike Doc, he wore his relief more openly. “Welcome back.”

Closing his eyes, Shanks tried to make sense of what they were saying, but his thoughts were like silt, slipping through his fingers when he grasped for them.

But he’d gone to Loguetown, he remembered then. He’d gone to Loguetown to help Ace. There’d been a ball, and―

“It’s been nearly two weeks,” a new voice spoke, as Yasopp materialised, and Shanks saw then that his eyes were glassy―that they all were, although he was still having trouble putting the pieces together, as Yasopp rasped, “We thought you were dead.”

“You were dead,” Doc corrected gruffly.

Shanks almost asked if he was sure he wasn't, but then death shouldn't include this much pain. Dying, then, and slowly from the sound of it.

Doc was examining him, trying to get his eyes to focus on him, but Shanks couldn’t follow his instructions, too busy trying to make sense of his jumbled memories, and how’d ended up here, in this state. Had there been a fight? He remembered the ball, and Blackbeard, but after that...

“Teach?” he rasped, which didn’t quite encompass everything he was asking, but then he could barely string together a coherent thought, much less articulate it.

And he thought he already knew the answer, but then they wouldn't all be in the palace if Blackbeard still held the throne, and so wasn’t surprised when Yasopp said simply, “Long live the new king.”

The words settled over him slowly. And he wondered if he should feel relief, to know they'd succeeded, but all he could hear was what Yasopp wasn't saying.

But just was he was about to ask how he'd ended up here, he remembered.

Are you here to steal me, Captain?

His breath shuddered, and it was like a dam broke, as it all flooded back. The ball, and Makino, alive. The hunt and the chase through the forest, and―

There were hands on his shoulders, trying to hold him down, but he wasn’t listening, his voice a guttural rasp, “Where is she?”

They didn’t answer, even if there could be no confusion as to who he meant, and catching Yasopp and Lucky exchanging a glance, Shanks was about to demand they tell him when,

“We don’t know.”

It dragged his eyes to the foot of the bed, and Ben where he stood, his arms crossed. His first mate’s expression was drawn; he looked like he hadn’t been sleeping, and while usually unfazed at delivering hard news, Shanks saw the effort it took for him to say this.

He was out of bed before they could force him back into it, and heard them protesting, as more hands reached to stop him.

“Boss!”

“What part of ‘you were dead’ did you not understand?!”

"Bonk Punch, a little help here!"

A man Shanks didn't recognise appeared between them, with curly hair and a strong accent. “Vy vould strongly advise against tha―”

Shanks shoved past him, and their hands released him as he strode, half-stumbling through the sliding doors, their voices calling after him. Only Ben didn’t try to stop him.

He was barefoot in his breeches, his shirt open and his torso bandaged, but couldn't have cared about how he appeared any more than the pain, his mind narrowed to a single thought.

Startled servants looked up as he appeared, their eyes springing open as they hastened into bows, but Shanks didn’t acknowledge them as he crossed the royal guest wing. The corridors had been stripped of any evidence of the former king, the black carpets and the garish paintings gone, but he wasn’t looking at his surroundings.

And he didn’t know why he was so sure he’d be there, but when he arrived outside the war room, the guards didn’t even pause at the sight of him, only opened the doors to let him in.

Ace was behind the desk, considering a map of East Blue spread across the top. Luffy and Sabo were with him; they all looked up as Shanks entered, the former’s face brightening. “Shanks!”

Ace’s reaction was more controlled, although his surprise was genuine, like his relief as he said, “Back from the dead.”

He was in an unbuttoned waistcoat and shirtsleeves, the latter rolled up to his elbows. And he wasn’t wearing his crown, but Shanks didn’t need to see it to know who the new king was. And while he looked relieved to see him awake, the weight of his eyes told Shanks he knew why he was there, even before he spoke.

“Where is she?”

He’d regained some control of his voice, still hoarse, but stronger now, and this time it wasn't a question but a demand.

Ace’s mouth firmed. And he was abruptly reminded of a different moment, not even a year ago, standing before the same desk, and a different king, informing him that he couldn’t go through with his engagement.

In the corner of his eye, he saw Luffy and Sabo exchange a look, but Ace hadn’t taken his eyes from his, the level weight of his gaze unyielding, and Shanks was about to repeat himself when he turned from the desk.

He watched as he crossed the room to pick something up, before walking around the desk until he was standing directly in front of him.

He wasn’t as tall as his father had been, and didn’t command the room in the same way, a humbler authority that recalled another, but then the late queen had compelled whole crowds to silence with a lift of her chin. And it was no less effective, Shanks found, as Ace held out what he was carrying.

He stared at the sword in his hands, silent in her scabbard, the sea-green hilt and the moonstones catching the sunlight through the windows where the sea looked in, gentle under the cloudless sky.

“We found it in the underwater passage,” Ace said. His voice sounded far away. “Her clothes, too. We think she must have tried to swim out, but…”

Shanks wasn't looking at him, his eyes on the sword, and didn’t know if it was because he feared what he’d find in his eyes if he met them, but heard it in Ace’s voice when he continued, “Your crew’s been out every day looking. We’ve searched the passage, and the whole coast, but there’s no trace of her. But the currents are strong, and the sea could have carried her out―”

“But you haven’t found her,” Shanks said, lifting his eyes from Siren.

Ace’s features drew together, as though he heard what he was really saying. And it was the boy and the king then, the former’s stubborn hope clashing with the harder knowledge of the latter, even as he said, “It’s been two weeks, Shanks. If she was alive―”

He didn’t finish, but Shanks already knew what he’d been about to say; had lived his whole life at sea, and was no stranger to how dangerous it could be, even gentle East Blue. The underwater passage was a perilous attempt even for an expert swimmer, and even if she had made it through, the currents beyond were the most dangerous part. The ocean would have been freezing cold, and with the steep cliffs, she would have had to swim quite a distance to get to shore.

No, he knew the most likely outcome was that the sea had claimed her. He was a captain before he was a king, and Shanks knew the sea. It had no kindness to spare, or mercy, and even the most unbending of wills faltered under that impervious authority.

“When Teach told me she was dead, I believed him.”

His voice was rough from disuse. And he wasn’t looking at Ace, or Luffy or Sabo, his eyes on Siren.

He thought of it in her hers, the way she’d wielded it, water incarnate, not like he would have taught her, and yet he couldn’t imagine it any other way. And he thought of how she’d endured, and lived, and how she’d never given up, even when he had.

He'd accepted the truth without question once, and in doing so, had failed her. This time, he didn't care how long it took him; he wouldn't accept it until he saw it with his own eyes.

Wrapping his fingers around Siren's scabbard, he took the sword from Ace.

“Where are you going?��� Ace called after him, even as Shanks suspected he already knew. But while anyone else might have told him it was fruitless, it wasn’t what he got, and looking over his shoulder found the king there, his shoulders straight, but the hope in his eyes without shame.

And his answer was simple; the only answer he would give now. The vow he had made her, and that had no care for the laws of mortal unions, and if death had truly done them part, he would cross the river if that’s what it took, and demand her return from the Fates themselves.

“To find my wife.”

[drewharrisonwriter]

One Day at a Time - Ch. 3: A Busy Day

Pairings: Dave York x Female Reader

Series Summary: A man washed ashore, with no memory, and no name, finds a home and a life in the middle of nowhere.

Author's Notes: This story has been sitting in my drafts for over a year, waiting for the perfect moment to see the light of day. It wasn't until recently that I found the inspiration to finally finish the last two chapters, thanks to the incredible Keri @absurdthirst. Her story, "Washed Up," struck a chord with me—it had such a similar plot and concept to what I had in mind, and it reignited my passion to bring this piece to life. Keri's writing has been a constant source of solace and inspiration, and I'm endlessly grateful for her creativity and the way she crafts stories that speak to the soul. If you haven’t checked out her work, you absolutely should!

Warnings: Please be aware that this story contains elements of violence, explicit sexual content, and pregnancy. Additionally, there are medical inaccuracies throughout—because I don’t work in the medical field, so please take it all with a grain of salt. Enjoy the ride, and thank you for reading! 😊

Read this on AO3 | Check out my Masterlist

The morning sun filtered through the curtains, casting a warm glow over Dave’s room. You stirred, nestled against his chest, the steady rhythm of his heartbeat a comforting sound in the early light. For a moment, everything felt peaceful, almost surreal, as you recalled the events of the previous night—how naturally things had unfolded between you, how right it had felt to be with him.

But the tranquility was short-lived. The distant sound of commotion from outside gradually pulled you from your reverie. You frowned, sitting up slightly, straining to hear. It was the animals—something wasn’t right.

“Do you hear that?” you asked, your voice tinged with concern as you looked over at Dave.

He was already awake, his brow furrowed as he listened. “Yeah… sounds like trouble.”

You quickly slipped out of bed, throwing on your clothes as you headed for the door. Dave was right behind you, pulling on his pants and a shirt before following you outside.

The scene that greeted you was chaotic. The chickens had somehow gotten out of their coop, scattering across the yard, while one of the cows had wandered too close to the fence, its head stuck between the slats as it tried to reach for some grass on the other side.

“Oh no,” you muttered, running a hand through your hair as you assessed the situation. “How did this happen?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Dave said, his voice calm but firm. “Let’s just get things under control.”

Together, you sprang into action. You grabbed a bucket of feed, using it to coax the chickens back into the coop while Dave worked to free the cow from the fence. It was a hectic start to the day, the two of you working side by side, but despite the stress, you couldn’t help but notice how seamlessly you and Dave functioned as a team.

“Got it,” Dave grunted, finally managing to free the cow. The animal gave a disgruntled moo before lumbering back to the pasture.

“Thanks,” you called over, catching your breath as you secured the coop door, the last of the chickens safely inside. “I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.”

He flashed you a small, tired smile, wiping the sweat from his brow. “Glad to help. Besides, I think I owe you after last night.”

You chuckled, shaking your head. “I think we’re even.”

As the morning wore on, you both found yourselves immersed in the tasks of the day. There was always something to do on the farm, whether it was tending to the animals, checking the vegetable garden, or handling the endless paperwork that came with running the place. Normally, the routine was comforting, but today felt different—busier, more intense, like there was an undercurrent of tension that neither of you could quite place.

By the time the afternoon sun was high in the sky, you noticed Dave beginning to slow down. His movements were more deliberate, his expression pinched as if he was in pain.

“You okay?” you asked, pausing in your work to look at him.

He nodded, but the slight grimace on his face told a different story. “Just a headache,” he said, trying to brush it off. “I’ll be fine.”

But as the day wore on, it became clear that this was more than just a simple headache. Dave’s condition worsened, the pain in his head growing more intense, his hand occasionally pressing against his temple as if trying to hold the pain at bay. You caught him stumbling slightly, his breath coming in short, sharp gasps as he tried to steady himself.

“Dave, you need to rest,” you insisted, concern lacing your voice. “You don’t look good.”

“I’m fine,” he tried to argue, but the strain in his voice was evident.

“No, you’re not,” you said firmly, moving closer to him. “Come on, let’s get you inside.”

Reluctantly, he let you guide him back to the house, his steps unsteady as you led him to the couch. By the time you got him to sit down, he was pale, sweat beading on his forehead as he squeezed his eyes shut against the pain.

“What’s happening?” he muttered, his voice barely above a whisper. “Why does it hurt so much?”

You didn’t have an answer, panic rising in your chest as you grabbed your phone and called for an ambulance. “It’s going to be okay,” you said, trying to keep your voice calm. “Help is on the way.”

As you waited, you sat beside him, holding him against your chest, feeling helpless as he fought against the pain. He didn’t say much, his breaths coming in shallow pants, but you could see the confusion and fear in his eyes.

When the paramedics arrived, they quickly assessed his condition, noting the severity of his symptoms. “We need to get him to the hospital,” one of them said, motioning for the stretcher.

You followed them to the hospital, your heart in your throat as they rushed him inside. The doctors took over, running tests, asking questions you didn’t have answers to. All you could do was wait, pacing the sterile hallway, praying for good news.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, a doctor approached you, his expression serious but not without hope. “He’s stable for now,” he said. “But we need to keep him for a few days to monitor his condition. He’s experiencing severe migraines, which could be a result of past trauma.”

“Past trauma?” you echoed, your voice trembling slightly.

The doctor nodded. “It’s possible that the migraines are being triggered by something in his past—memories that his brain is trying to process. We’ll need to keep him under observation to see how he responds.”

You nodded, the weight of his words sinking in. “Can I see him?”

“Of course,” the doctor said, leading you to his room.

When you entered, Dave was lying in bed, his eyes closed, a look of exhaustion etched on his face. You approached quietly, taking a seat beside him, your hand resting on the edge of the bed.

“Hey,” you said softly when he stirred, his eyes blinking open slowly.

“Hey,” he murmured, his voice hoarse. “Sorry about… all this.”

“Don’t apologize,” you said, giving him a small, reassuring smile. “The doctors say you’re going to be fine. They just need to keep you here for a few days.”

He nodded weakly, his gaze distant, as if he was lost in thought. “I keep seeing… flashes,” he said after a moment, his brow furrowing. “Like… memories. But they’re all jumbled. I don’t know what’s real and what’s not.”

“What kind of memories?” you asked gently, leaning closer.

He shook his head, wincing slightly at the motion. “It’s hard to describe. There’s… a tower, I think. And a fight. Someone was there, someone… dangerous. But it’s all blurry, like a dream that’s slipping away.”

You listened, your heart aching for him as he struggled to make sense of the images in his mind. “Do you recognize anyone in these memories?”

He hesitated, his eyes narrowing as he tried to focus. “Maybe… I don’t know. It’s like trying to grasp smoke. Every time I think I’ve got it, it just… disappears.”

You reached out, taking his hand in yours. “It’s okay. Don’t push yourself too hard.”

He looked at you, his eyes searching yours for reassurance. “What if… what if these memories are bad? What if they’re things I don’t want to remember?”

You squeezed his hand gently, offering him a comforting smile. “They’re still a part of your past that might help you remember the rest….”

He nodded slowly, his grip on your hand tightening slightly. “Thanks… for being here. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

You stayed with him as long as the hospital allowed, but eventually, you had to leave, promising to return the next day. The ride home was a blur, your mind occupied with worry for Dave and the strange flashes of memories he’d described.

In the rush and stress of the day, with everything happening so fast, the Plan B pill slipped your mind completely. Between worrying about Dave and dealing with the chaos on the farm, it simply didn’t cross your thoughts again as you made your way home.

The next few days passed in a haze of worry and exhaustion. You visited Dave everyday, but each time you saw him, it seemed like he was slipping further away, lost in the maze of his own mind. The doctors assured you that his condition was improving, but the frustration of not knowing what was real and what wasn’t weighed heavily on both of you.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Dave was cleared to go home. The ride back to the farm was quiet, both of you lost in your own thoughts. When you finally arrived, the familiar sights and sounds of the farm seemed to have calmed the man sitting beside you in the car. 

That evening, after settling back home, you both found yourselves sitting on the porch, the sky painted in hues of orange and pink as the sun dipped below the horizon. The silence between you was comfortable, but there was an undercurrent of something unspoken—something that had been lingering since Dave’s return from the hospital earlier that day.

Dave finally broke the silence, his voice low and thoughtful. “You know… I’ve been thinking. Maybe what happened between us, that night… maybe it triggered something in my head.”

You turned to him, curiosity and concern mingling in your gaze. “What do you mean?”

He hesitated, his eyes distant as they fixed on the treeline in the fading light. “When I was in the hospital, I told you that I started getting these flashes—like memories, but they were all mixed up. There was this one… a tower, a fight… It felt real, but at the same time, it was like a bad dream. And it keeps repeating…”

You bit your lip, unsure of how to respond. “Do you remember anything specific? Anyone?”

He shook his head, a flicker of frustration crossing his features. “Not really. Just… fragments. Faces I can’t place, voices that I recognize but can’t make out the words. It’s like trying to put together a puzzle with missing pieces.”

You reached out, placing your hand gently on his. “That must have been terrifying.”

He nodded, his thumb brushing over your knuckles in a soothing rhythm. “It was. But what scared me the most was that I don’t know if those are real memories, or if they’re just my mind playing tricks on me.”

You squeezed his hand a little tighter, offering him a warm, encouraging smile. “Whatever they are, they don’t define who you are now. You’re here, and you’re safe. That’s what matters.”

His gaze finally met yours, the hardness in his expression softening. “You always know what to say, don’t you?”

You chuckled softly, a hint of self-deprecation in your tone. “I try. But I’m serious, John… Whatever those flashes are—if they are really memories—good or bad, they’re just pieces of the past. They don’t have to control or define your present and your future.”

He was quiet for a moment, mulling over your words. “I guess I’m just worried,” he admitted, his voice barely a whisper. “What if remembering changes the way I feel about everything? About us?”

Your heart swelled with a mix of emotions as you held his gaze, your eyes searching his for understanding. “Then we’ll deal with it when it happens. But right now, we’re here. And I care about you… a lot.”

A small, tentative smile tugged at his lips. “I care about you too. More than I thought I could, given… well, everything.” You both chuckled, the sound lightening the mood just a bit, a shared acknowledgment of the complicated history between you.

You leaned in closer, your voice soft and tender. “Then let’s not let fear of the unknown ruin what we have right now. We’ll take it one day at a time, remember?”

He nodded, his expression relaxing as he gently pulled you into his arms. “Yeah… one day at a time.”

As you rested your head against his chest, you felt the steady, reassuring beat of his heart beneath your ear. The worries and uncertainties were still there, hovering in the background, but for now, you were content to let them be, trusting in the moment. You closed your eyes, savoring the warmth of his embrace, the feeling of being held so close, so securely.

But then, as the quiet deepened and the night settled in around you, Dave tilted your chin up, his gaze searching yours with a newfound intensity. The air between you seemed to thicken, charged with a tension that neither of you had acknowledged until now.

Slowly, he leaned in, his breath ghosting over your lips as he hesitated for just a fraction of a second, as if giving you the chance to pull away. But you didn’t. Instead, you closed the distance, pressing your lips to his in a kiss that was as tender as it was filled with unspoken promise.

When you finally parted, breathless and slightly dazed, you kept your foreheads pressed together, your eyes fluttering open to meet his. The unspoken words, the fears, the hopes—they all hung in the air between you, but the kiss had said more than words ever could.

“You know,” you began with a teasing smile, “the last time we started making out like this, you ended up in the hospital the next day. Maybe we should put a warning label on our kisses.”

Dave laughed, the sound rumbling in his chest. “Oh, so that’s how it is, huh? You’re saying kissing is bad now?”

You grinned, poking him lightly in the ribs. “I’m just saying, I’d like to keep you out of the ER for a while. Can’t have you back there… the nurses swoon over you...”

He shook his head, a playful glint in his eyes as he leaned in closer, his lips hovering just above yours. “Well, maybe I should kiss you again, and if I do end up back in the hospital, kiss me again… in front of the nurses.”

You raised an eyebrow, feigning skepticism. “Wow, that’s pretty bold!” You laughed. 

His smile widened, his voice dropping to a low, teasing whisper. “Oh, that’s something I want to do.”

Before you could respond, he captured your lips in another kiss, this one filled with a light-hearted passion that made your heart skip a beat. 

Any lingering tension melted away as you both laughed softly against each other’s lips, the playful banter turning into something sweeter, more intimate.

Next Chapter 👉🏻

[dduane]

Hi there! I'm not sure if this is something you've talked about before in another post, but I just finished the first draft of my first novel, and I was wondering if you could talk about what your experience was like getting your first novel edited and published. I have this story that I'm excited about but no idea what to do with it now that I've reached "The End," do you have any advice on what my next step ought to be towards eventually getting it published? Thanks in advance!

First of all: thanks for asking. ...And now I have to warn you that I am possibly one of the worst possible people to ask about what their first novel's publication looked like... as it was completely atypical.

Not that that's going to stop me, mind you. (And you know what? I'm inserting a cut here, because this goes on a bit. Warning: contains [calculated] dissing by old friends, pulp non-fiction, unexpurgated language, unexpected awards nominations, and advice that's worth just what you're paying for it.)

What happened with me and my first book goes like this:...

In the late 1970s I was starting to burn out on psychiatric nursing, and was offered a job as assistant to the novelist and Star Trek ["The Trouble with Tribbles"] writer David Gerrold. I took it happily, as I was in a place in my life where I really needed some kind of change. The work with David was part-time; I also occasionally did special duty nursing shifts to help make ends meet.

Now during this period, I was writing for my own amusement (as I'd been doing all my life from about age eight onward). Right then I was working on a project I'd been tinkering with from my late high school years right through college, nursing school, and my first couple/few years of practice as an RN. This was the background worldbuilding for a vaguely Tolkienesque, somewhere-between-late-Medieval-and-early Renaissance fantasy scenario featuring a couple of moderately unusual magic systems, a sexually diverse culture, and a pair of "These Two Idiots"-style protagonists with complex interleaving problems.

While I was working for David, I had a lot of opportunity to observe, close up, what the life and workflow of a career writer looked like. Slowly, over a year or so, the realization crept up on me that what David was doing, I could do too. And it was at this point that I finally admitted to him that I thought I might want to write as well.

David's (as I later discovered, extremely calculated) eyeroll could probably have been seen from space. "Oy, not another one," he moaned. After which I went away from the abortive conversation pretty much resolved never to speak to him about this again... but also with a single thought filling my brain: You fucking supercilious sonofabitch, I'm going to show you that I'm not just another one.

...I'll never be able to thank him enough for that. Fury can be so motivating. :)

In the aftermath I got busy pulling together my background material with much more focused intent, and beating the most significant parts of it into something that started looking like a plot. It came together with surprising speed and unnerving insistence—one of the very few times in my career when a project, once begun, has simply flung me into the writing chair and insisted that it was the most important thing in my life and needed handling now. And when in the fullness of time David went on vacation, leaving me to house-sit at his place in LA, I immediately started using his very early computer to transcribe my novel's so-far-only-handwritten draft material.

I took what I thought was considerable care to cover my tracks... but not quite enough. On his return from vacation, when he was putting out the trash, David found some of my discarded draft pages, read them, and confronted me (with a certain amount of friendly teasing) about what had been going on. Then he said to me, "What I've seen of this thing doesn't look too bad. Let me see it when you're finished, and if it looks good enough, I'll ask one of my publishers if they want to take a look at it."

So that's what happened. I finished my first draft and a polish of it in about six weeks, and passed it to David. He read it and immediately handed it on to his editors at Dell, who were just starting a fantasy line for which they needed product. Two weeks later, they said they liked the novel and made an offer, which I accepted. Not a vast amount, but respectable enough. So there it was, my first sale: this book. Which then got me nominated two years running for the Astounding Award, and opened the door for the sale and publication of So You Want To Be A Wizard, as well as my earliest Star Trek work and my entry into the animation world.

I remember very little about the editing process, except that it was painless. What was not exactly painless was the book's cover, about which...well, the less said here the better. But the book came out to generally good reviews. So, with this series of events behind it, you can see why as regards first-publication stories, I'm a first-class outlier and should definitely not be counted. (Also to be avoided by new writers if at all possible: the experience of having half their strongly-selling first novel's initial print run pulped in the warehouse* because it was taking up room needed by a new book by a world-famous novelist.) (Whom I have long since forgiven, since it wasn't his fault, and...well, what can you do? Shit happens.)

...Anyway, that's more than enough about me. Now let's talk about you.

My first advice about what to do with the novel you've just finished? Stick it in a drawer (literally or figuratively speaking, whichever suits your case better) and don't look at it for at least a month. Two would be better. You can spend those two months thinking about your next moves... because you need to give those some consideration before you do anything else.

The question that you first need to answer is going to at least partially shape what you do next. And it's this:

Are you seriously considering making a career out of writing?

It's not that it can't be done! Of course it can. But it won't be easy... not at all. Anyone who tells you it will is either just outright lying through their teeth, or trying to sell you something. ...Or both.

Be honest with yourself as you consider this. If you aren't, you may be letting yourself in for considerable pain over a prolonged period... and I'd sooner you were spared that, if you can be. In particular, be clear about the difference between the statements "I want to write" and "I want to be a writer." Often enough people like the sound of the lifestyle and what they see as going with it—the signings, the book tours (physical or virtual), the interviews, the best-seller lists—without any real concept of the grueling, day-to-day, weekends-are-for-other-people, why-am-I-making-less-than-minimum-wage-most-of-the-time labor that underpins it.

If you simply want to write and be published—without the concept of a career necessarily being involved, or the lovely shimmering dreamlike vision of Giving Up The Day Job—you now have work pathways available to you that would've been unimaginable in the previous century. Self-publishing makes it possible for you to get your work in front of many, many eyes without necessarily having to submit yourself to the specific set of trials that go with achieving the initial stages of an intended career. Selfpubbing still has significant unique challenges of its own, of course, which have to be evaluated so that you can tell (as the commercials say) if they're right for you.

But if you're thinking of a career in what's usually being referred to these days as "traditional publishing", then you face a number of challenges that don't necessarily come with the self-publishing end of things. In particular: many publishing houses no longer consider manuscripts that come to them un-agented. So you're going to need to find an agent who's willing to represent your work... and this is a task that no longer looks anything like what it did when I found mine. (Or rather, when he found me, having been recommended to me by one of my editors. I've been with him for even longer than I've been with @petermorwood... and that's saying something. But this is yet another way in which my career's been wildly atypical.)

There is so much that could be said about this subject alone—the business of researching agencies to see which one seems like a good fit for you, the art of writing the perfect query letter to get their attention focused on a given book, and so much more—that I could hardly begin to even skim the surface of it here. There are whole websites devoted to shopping for agents, not to mention how to pitch yourself and your work to a given literary agency.

Let me leave this whole subject here for the moment. We can come back to it another time, because right now you need to be thinking this through. ...This I'll say, however. For the past six to nine months I've been pulling together links to various online resources that can be beneficial to new writers just getting started. These will be available as posts over at the FicFoundry.com site that I'm going to be bringing online before summer. I'm hoping to build that into kind of a compendium site or clearing house for online resources on this subject. We'll see how it goes.

Meanwhile, thanks for inquiring about this. You're standing at the first branching of what I'm hoping will be, for you at least, a fascinating variant of the Choose Your Own Adventure genre. :)

More on this later.

("Wait. Did she just call us idiots??")

*Now that we live in the era of just-in-time warehousing, this is something that fortunately doesn't happen much any more... as far as I know. But once upon a time, if somebody's new best-seller was going to the warehouse in its many thousands of copies, and your relatively-less-well-selling book was taking up space that could be used by the other author's "more valuable"/higher-priced titles, your books (5-10K of them, in my case) were simply thrown into a machine and turned into papery mush. And these go on your sales record as "unsold copies". (sigh) Some discussion of this phenomenon can be found over here.

[countryclubkook]

Everything Has Changed

Pairing: Rafe Cameron x Reader

Warnings: angst galore, mentions of drugs and alcohol, toxic relationship, language

Summary: everything in your relationship with Rafe has changed, you just want it back

A/N: life has been so very busy for me lately and i haven’t had time to write hardly anything along with the fact that i’ve had such terrible writers block. i sincerely apologize for being gone for so long. this has been sitting in my drafts for quite awhile and i finally got around to finishing it and hope you enjoy🤍

It had always been you and Rafe for as long as you could remember, anywhere he went you went too. The two of you were inseparable as kids and it only furthered as you became teens and began dating. Your relationship was surprising to everyone due to how different Rafe was when it came to you. He took you out for candlelit dinners by the beach, set up picnics at the park, watched the stars with you on warm summer nights, but that all changed when you two graduated.

Rafe's father began demanding more of him since he was now a legal adult and could pull his own weight which only stressed Rafe out. You knew how Ward could get as you had known him for years and worried about how Rafe was handling it. It started with small changes such as less time with you and more time with his father working, but then his personality shifted. He became more irritable and snapped at the smallest of things around him. He began going to more parties and showing up at your house in the middle of the night with bloodshot eyes and pupils dilated only wanting a quick hookup before leaving, he wasn't your Rafe anymore which started the downfall of the relationship.

“What the hell Rafe? this is like the fifth time you’ve done this. What’s going on?” you asked while trying to put your hand on your shoulder only to have it harshly shrugged off.

“Nothing, I'm fine. Why do you care anyway?” he snarled at you while rolling his eyes, already heading for the front door.

“Because I love you Rafe!” you hoped that he would turn around and tell you he was sorry, that his dad has just been putting so much pressure on him and he can’t handle it, but he just kept walking. “Where are you going? We aren’t done talking about this, you can’t just walk away because you want to go snort more lines.” that seemed to snap something inside of him as the next thing you know, you’re pinned against the wall with his arms on both sides of you, the strong smell of weed and whiskey radiating off of him.

“You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about bitch. Stay out of my business and stay away from me. I don’t need you anymore.” you hoped for a second you would see the old Rafe somewhere in his eyes but you could only see hatred swarming around.

“Fuck you. I can’t keep doing this shit with you Rafe” you managed to get out, your voice coming out in a semi broken whisper. A lump in your throat and tears in your eyes that were threatening to spill as he reached the front door without another word or look back at you.

Once he walked out of the house with a loud slam, the only thing you could do was run to your bed and just cry yourself to sleep wanting nothing more than for him to snap out of it. For him to just be the sweet boy that you fell in love with as a kid and stayed in love with throughout your life so far. You wanted your candlelit dinners and picnics as the two of you looked up at the stars on clear nights, you wanted the boy who traced words onto your back with his fingertips and made you guess, you wanted your gentle boy that you weren’t scared to be around back. Deep down, the both of you knew that as soon as morning came, he would be at your doorstep begging for your forgiveness and you would forgive him like you always do. It wasn't good for either of you but it was all you knew, a constant cycle of hurt all for the hope that one day he would love you the same way again.

[aelove]

hold on

PAIRING: best friend heeseung x gn reader SYNOPSIS: Heeseung has always been enchanted by you. Since the day of your first meeting in kindergarten, he knew that you were destined for each other. He's always imagined spending forever with you, even going so far as to apply to each and every college that you did, so that you wouldn't have to leave his side. However, as graduation draws near, fate reveals its own differing plans for the both of you. GENRE: angst, best friends to lovers au, high school au, kind of a star-crossed lovers au, right person wrong time au WARNINGS: unedited, major character death, frequent pov changes, please lmk if you feel that there are any other warnings that should be added WORD COUNT: 3.4K NOTE: this has been in my drafts for so long, so i'm rlly happy to finally publish it !! and thank you to my lovely esther bae @urszn for the beautiful header which was the perfect motivation to finish writing ♡ MASTERLIST | NAVI

Heeseung couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief at the sight of you, an invisible weight falling off his shoulders.

“I thought I’d find you here.” Heeseung said, hoping his voice doesn’t reveal his previous state of panic. Despite his casual comment, he had actually spent the last forty-five minutes frantically searching for you. Your room was the last place he’d expected to find you. Yet there you were, silently sitting on your bed, bundled up in every fluffy blanket you owned, completely unaware of the outside world and the mental breakdown that had just been cut short by your appearance.

It’s otherwise dark except for the messily placed star stickers strewn across your ceiling, illuminating the room in a pale green light. Knowing of your fear of the dark, Heeseung had gifted you the stickers for a past birthday, but you had always refused to use them. worried that they would eventually die out, opting for a regular lamp instead.

"Don’t make me laugh, Hee. I saw the hundred missed calls you left." You couldn’t help but smile at the sight of him. He was leaning against the door frame in his favorite matching gray hoodie and sweats. His eyebrows were slightly furrowed in worry, but he looked absolutely gorgeous. You had always thought he looked as if he came straight out of a cringey teen romantic series. With his sweet doe eyes and all his other pretty features, it wouldn’t be hard at all to fall for your best friend. He would be one of those sweet best friend types that was always there for the protagonist. They’d be high school sweethearts, joyfully spending the rest of their lives together in each other’s arms. Maybe they’d settle down in the countryside after one too many years spent in the chaos of a big city. They'd eventually have two kids and maybe even a cat or —

"So you were ignoring me, huh?" Heeseung questioned, interrupting you from continuing your delusions. His lips were jutting out in a joking pout, and he was standing with his hands on his hips, giving the impression of an upset little kid. You couldn’t help but let out a small laugh at the sight of the unserious glare he directed towards you. You patted the spot across from you, welcoming him to join you in your latest coping mechanism. At your invitation, he finally entered the room, carefully stepping over the numerous clothes and stuffed animals littering your floor to make his way next to you.

The bed dipped a little, creaking as Heeseung sat on the bed, scooting next to you. You adjusted the pile of blankets so that they enveloped both of you. Leaning your head against his shoulder, you could smell the notes of tangerine and oak from his favorite cologne. You both stayed there for a while, relishing in the presence of the other. You both enjoyed the respite the other provided, neither making a move or attempting to break the silence.

For the past week, both of you had been so busy preparing for the upcoming exam season that your only chance to see each other was in passing while hurriedly rushing through the halls to the next class. You had also started using lunches as a free period to study for your respective classes, so it had certainly been a while since you had last been this close in proximity. Heeseung found himself immediately comforted in your presence. Heeseung looked down at you finally up-close and his heart ached at the sight of the remnants of tears trailing from your puffy eyes. He didn’t know what to say, but his every nerve yearned to know the reason behind your current misery and eradicate its existence. 

The dark circles under your eyes had also grown significantly, almost at an exponential rate compared to his memory, and you looked so fatigued that he vaguely remembered hearing one of your shared teachers expressing concern about you to another teacher when passing her classroom on his way to a different class.

Heeseung had known you long enough to recognize that this type of behavior wasn’t uncommon for you. As a professional procrastinator, you were a proud night owl, and both of you often stayed up together. But your appearance made it seem like you had hit a new extreme of sleep deprivation. The fact that you had obviously been crying before he found you just made him feel worse. He didn’t know the reality of whatever you had been dealing with, but he was confident something was wrong. He just wished he could do more to help you, that you would rely on him more, that you would realize he’d always be there for you.

"Why now? I thought you said you were never going to use the stickers," Heeseung asked in a desperate attempt to fill the silence. He had said the first thing that came to mind, but he couldn’t deny his eagerness to hear your answer. With the stars bathing his vision in an unfamiliar green hue, feelings of uncertainty spread through his body. Maybe it was just the fact that college decisions would soon be arriving, but nothing felt right anymore. The only thing he would always have complete confidence in was his relationship with you. You had stuck together through thick and thin, and he had no doubt you would always have his back.

"I thought it might help me come to terms with everything. You know, since we don’t have that much time left together either. It’s kind of healing, being one with the darkness. Besides, shouldn't you be glad I’m finally putting your gift to good use?" You had also come to the realization that the stickers' lifespan had nothing to do with your use of them, but you preferred leaving that out. You would rather not draw attention to a fact that he had no previous idea of, knowing Heeseung would tease you relentlessly about it otherwise. He was very similar to you in that you both often shared equally stupid sentiments. It was one of the reasons you both got along so well.

"What do you mean?" Heeseung's voice was firm, despite being puzzled by your statement. You had spoken of separating as if it was something guaranteed in your future. He was offended that you had even considered parting ways with him, but even more hurt by how sure you were about it. "YN, we’re always going to be together even after graduation. You’ll forever be my number one, and I better be yours."

While you had been more focused on avoiding his teasing, it seemed your previous sentence had taken all his attention. The sudden seriousness of his tone took you aback, making you wonder if you had somehow angered your best friend.

"Hee, you know I don’t mean it like that. I love you so much, but it’s inevitable that we’ll eventually reach a point in time where we can’t be together 24/7." You sat up, adjusting your position so that you were both face to face. He frowned and avoided your eyes. Cradling his face in both your hands, you tilted his head up, but he continued looking away from you. He looked upset, but you knew that you had only spoken the truth.

"Hee?" You smiled at him, hoping to find some sort of confirmation or consolation in his reactions. You didn’t like seeing him unhappy; it didn’t suit him at all.

"Have we already reached that point then? I know you’ve been avoiding me, and it’s not just a phase. We haven't had a single decent conversation with each other in the past month. You can’t even deny it. You’re not answering my calls or texts. You’re not even talking to me anymore." Heeseung tried not to lose his composure, but he was sure that his voice must have betrayed his true feelings because he could feel the tears starting to gather.

Heeseung wished that you would just reach out to him. You were such a precious person to him, and he absolutely adored you. To everyone who had ever known Heeseung, it was obvious just how much he loved you, shown through his actions alone. His every thought revolved around you, and he had no doubt that he would do anything for you.

Heeseung had known you long enough to easily recognize all your emotions. It was almost like he had a spidey-sense solely dedicated to you. Whenever he heard even the slightest hint of sadness in your voice during a call, he was immediately on his way to you with your favorite foods in hand.

Heeseung could spend all the time in the world by your side and never get bored of his best friend. He had pulled more all-nighters than he could count just to keep you company as you hurriedly crammed to finish a project for school. Even if he had already finished the same assignment weeks in advance, he was always there to help you. In fact, it was only after learning of your dangerous tendency to procrastinate that he had taken it upon himself to do the exact opposite.

Everything Heeseung did was with you in mind. In fact, he had been determined to stay by your side even after graduation, so he made sure to apply to all the same colleges as you. He had never considered leaving your side, so it stung hearing you talk as if you had already accepted the idea.

The sight of your best friend with tears brimming in his eyes was too much to handle, and you felt as if you were on the verge of crying as well. You immediately reached out to hug him, hoping to comfort him and bring him back to his usually happy self. Heeseung remained silent even as he hugged you back.

“Hee, I’m so sorry. Please don’t cry.” You do your best to assure him with your words, but you couldn’t help but feel out of place trying to comfort your best friend. It had always been him in your current position; he had always taken care of you. It made you feel incredibly guilty that your friend had done so much for you that it would never be possible to pay it forward to him in this lifetime. 

“You’re right. I was avoiding you and I’m so sorry, Hee. I haven’t been completely open with you either. I know you’re probably also anxious about college and life after graduation so I didn’t want to trouble you.” Hearing your confession, Heeseung stilled. Breaking away from the hug, he wiped his tears and looked directly at you as if telling you to continue on.

“I really didn’t want to tell you about it, but I realize now that it’s probably best that you hear it from me first.” As the first tears started to fall, you dropped your head to rest on his chest. You were full-on sobbing now, afraid of his reaction, but you continued on, finally whispering the truth to the person you had been most determined to hide it from. 

Heeseung had always hated goodbyes. As a child, whenever family came to visit, he was always the odd one out at the end of the trip, the only one who had shed no tears. The dramatics associated with partings just didn’t come naturally to him. He didn’t like how everyone else would break down in tears or how the hugs seemed to never end. It all felt awkward to him. It didn’t mean that he wasn’t sad or that he wouldn’t miss spending time with his family; it was just that he had never been the type to openly show his vulnerabilities. It was only in complete solitude in the peace and quiet of his room that Heeseung would allow himself to mourn. 

This wasn’t like that though. No, not at all. He had been completely confident that his family would visit him again, but Heeseung wasn’t sure that he would ever see you again. The love of his life was about to disappear out of his life before he could even confess his feelings. It wasn’t even the feeling of a forever unreciprocated love. Heeseung knew that you loved him in the same way that he felt about you. He had originally planned a big confession to take place in the coming weeks as graduation approached, but it seemed as if fate had alternate plans for the both of you. 

Heeseung felt like a ship lost at sea, tossed and tormented by relentless waves of grief. The weight of your eventual absence was a heavy burden on his heart, engulfing him in a whirlwind of memories and regrets, unable to escape the torment.

It was with great reluctance that Heeseung forced himself to enter the Hospital. The stark, white walls and dreary interior echoed with the sounds of crying, likely from families experiencing their own goodbyes. It was all so overwhelming and just made him more nauseated at the thought of finding you here. He was right outside your door now, but he found himself still in place, his knees growing weak. As much as he hated the idea of ever having to part ways with you, he knew he would regret not seeing you in your final moments. A violent cough erupted from behind the door, echoing through the hallway, serving as a painful reminder of the finality of your current state. He choked up as his hand reached for the handle; the pounding of his heart growing in frequency upon touching the cold metal. 

It took a moment for Heeseung to gain the courage to open the door, but he was absolutely floored at the sight of you when he finally entered. Upon his arrival, your parents stepped out into the hall, deciding to give you both some privacy. It completely broke him to see you look so much more fragile than he remembered you ever being. He approached your bedside with a lump in his throat, struggling to find the words he’d wanted to tell you. 

It’s obvious to see from his appearance that your best friend had been taking the news of your sickness very hard. His hair was disheveled and his eyes were swollen but he still looked as beautiful as ever in the dull light of the hospital room.

“I missed you, Hee.” You mustered out a weak smile at your best friend. Despite being bedridden, your smile remained bright, but Heeseung couldn’t help but feel that as if it looked out of place compared to your dull appearance. The eyes that he often found himself lost in were now almost entirely devoid of their previous shine. 

“I love you.” Heeseung blurted out, hoping you could hear the sincerity in his voice. He wished he could say more, but he couldn’t speak. The longer he looked at you in your delicate state, the harder it was for him to maintain his composure. He had imagined the two of you spending your lives together, side by side. He had already planned everything out. He knew where he wanted to propose and how he was going to do it. You might not have realized it, but you were the object of all of Heeseung’s affection. The persistence of your image in his mind was the only thing that relentlessly haunted him, and it terrified him just how much he loved you. 

“Hee, you know I love you too.” You had spent the entire day saying goodbyes to loved ones, but it was only after seeing Heeseung that you felt completely disheartened. Tears were pooling in the corners of his eyes and with it, your guilt continued to grow. 

“I’m going to miss you so much, Hee. You were the best best friend and first love that anyone could have asked for. You’ve always done so much for me. That’s why I need you to promise me something.” You held his hands tightly in yours, wanting to ingrain the feeling in your memory forever. 

“I’m wishing you all the best. You’re such a lovely person and I know that anyone would be lucky to be the recipient of your friendship and love. Promise me that you’ll start living for yourself. I’ve held you back for so long and I’m so sorry that I didn’t realize it earlier.” You paused to look at Heeseung for confirmation. He hesitantly nodded his head in agreement.

“Do everything that makes you happy, okay? I might not be able to stay by your side, but I’ll always be there for you. I’ll be your guardian angel, so trust that I’ll be watching over you. You’ve spent your whole life looking after me, so now it's my turn to return the favor.” You smiled up at him, gesturing for him to lean down towards you.  Heeseung’s eyes welled up with tears as he obeyed your request. He was determined to stay strong for you even as his cheeks grew wet, biting his lip in an effort to suppress the sobs from spilling out his chest.

“Don’t miss me too much, yeah?” Your voice broke a little seeing your best friend look so defeated. You wiped the tears from his face and pressed a kiss to both of his cheeks, resting your forehead against his. 

“Don’t cry. You’re too pretty to be crying over me.” Your comment only made him cry harder, though, and you couldn’t help but let out a small laugh at the sight. 

“I love you so much, Hee.” Heeseung took you by surprise when he cradled your face in his hands. Time seemed to slow down as he pressed the gentlest of kisses to your lips. You wished  it could have lasted forever; you wished that you could have spent forever by Heeseung’s side. You were so grateful to have met Heeseung, for him to have been your first and last love.

After your passing, Heeseung often found solace in the stars, the same stars that had once adorned your ceiling. He would gaze up at the vast night sky, eagerly searching for your light among the countless others, hoping to feel your presence and know that you were watching over him.

While he had long been stressed about what to expect from life after graduation, Heeseung knew that nothing could possibly go wrong, not with you watching over him. Just as you had expected of him, it didn’t take long for Heeseung to get acclimated to college life. He had already befriended quite a few people in the same major as him. They all shared similar personalities, and he knew that he would quickly grow close to them. He lucked out with his courses, somehow managing to get his ideal schedule. With everything just as perfect as he had always dreamed, he knew he had nothing to worry about.

While the ache of your absence never ceased to disappear, Heeseung didn’t want to erase you from his life or pretend as if you had never existed. He was adamant about never forgetting you. He continued to keep you in his memory, proudly referring to you as his "best friend" and "soulmate." He wrote heartfelt letters to you, pouring out his every thought and emotion onto the page, imagining that you were still there to read them. He still had your number saved in his phone, often calling it just to hear your voice on your voicemail. Whenever he came home for a break, he visited your parents without fail, who continued to treat him as their own son. He made sure to stop by each and every one of the beloved hangouts you had once frequented together, where your laughter and smiles had once, allowing himself to be reminisce in the cherished memories you had shared.

Heeseung carried you with him always as he continued to live his life just as you had wished for him to do. And just as promised to you, he lived each and every day to the fullest. The pain of your loss never quite left him, but Heeseung's heart swelled with gratitude for the time he spent with you, for the memories you shared together. Heeseung would be forever grateful for the serendipitous intertwining of his life with yours, a testament to the power of fate. You might not be his last, but you would always be his first love, remaining foremost in his mind and heart, etched and woven into the tapestry of his life.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING !! and a million thanks to my lovely moots @kimsohn @chiyuv & @luvhyun3 for helping me with proofreading ILYSM 💗

networks : @kflixnet @k-labels @enhanet

permanent taglist : @ilynaevis @yeongwonie @gfksn @luvhyun3 @esc6pism

[apprenticestanheight]

hi!! i have a request :) would it be okay if you wrote a specs x transmasc reader where the reader gets specs to help him with a testosterone shot?? its totally okay if no tho!! have a good day :)

T - specs x transmasc! reader

hi nonnie!! I'm sorry this took a while--this one has been sitting in my drafts for a good few weeks now and I've had it written for just as long. My object permanence is the absolute fuckin' worst, however, and I, admittedly, forgot to edit this before today because of getting distracted by other projects and also getting so anxious I physically could not will myself to get out of bed multiple days in a row since you sent this one into my inbox.

HOWEVER, I did get my shit together today (started on medication for adhd because I told my dr I thought I had it and we're testing it out to see if it works for me to help with those symptoms + anxiety management wot wot) and so, here this is!! I am, once again, sorry for the delay, and I promise if you send another request in I will do my best to do it that week.

fic type - this is fluffy!!

warnings - there are mentions of needles in this

In the five years since you'd come out and the five and a half since you and Specs had started dating, you'd only asked him to help you with your weekly testosterone shot maybe twice in the three and a half years since you'd finally gotten through all of the necessary hoops and had been able to start taking it.

Normally, you could do it yourself without a hitch, sometimes a little squeamish at the sight of the needle, but that Friday you'd asked him to help because he did it a bit quicker than you did--even if by just a solid second or two--while the two of you were on a time crunch in a rush to meet Elise and Tucker. Also, somewhat, as a way to squeeze a bit more time with him out of your day because you had to work an eight hour shift from 3-11, and when you got home he'd either be reading a comic while half asleep or asleep on your side of the bed in your absence.

He agrees to your ask without questioning it, getting the shot ready while you talk to him about how work has been because you've worked a string of evening shifts for the past three weeks and have been too drained to talk about it the next day. He happily listens, occasionally commenting where it's appropriate to make a remark or agree with an opinion you hold about a coworker, though he also acknowledges that he only has your bias to base an opinion on and not his own.

"Thank you for this, by the way," you murmur as you're standing up to pull your pants down to your thighs. "I know I could've done it myself, but I've missed you a lot lately and wanted to squeeze in an extra few minutes."

That remark brings out a soft smile from Specs, given to you as you're sitting back down. A second later, you can see the debate as to whether or not he wants to give you a forehead kiss occur in his expressions before he pauses, presses a quick but somewhat lingering kiss to your forehead, one of his hands reaching up to cup your cheek.

"I've missed you too, for what it's worth," Specs says. "Elise has kept us busy with her clients and Tucker and I have kept ourselves busy with Spectral Sightings stuff, but we've not seen much of each other lately and it's been hard."

You've missed him so terribly that it hurts, and there have been multiple points in the lulls of your evening shifts wherein you've been tempted to just pick up the phone and call him. You haven't for fear of being judged and seeming co-dependent, but you're at a point where you don't care how co-dependent it makes you seem. You're allowed to miss him when you're working evenings and don't get much of a chance to see him except for in your easier mornings.

You're nodding your agreement with his sentiments as he finishes getting your shot ready. You watch the needle go in, unblinking and relatively unphased, grabbing a "fun" Band-Aid--one shaped like a ghost, one of many from a Band-Aid kit gifted to you by Tucker for your birthday that year--to place over it as the slight pain from the injection settles and the needle is removed.

You pull your pants back up and rake your hands through your hair as Specs discards the needle properly, ever the one to be cautious about how your injection needles are handled, and you're thanking him as you put your testosterone away as it's meant to be stored.

He does a bit of idle cleaning while you finish getting ready, and you wind up stealing one of his button downs to wear over a black shirt. You kiss his cheekbone as he tosses you your keys, and the two of you leave your shared house hand in hand, so full of contentment that you already know how happy you seem is bound to make Tucker fake a gag while he smiles.

[dazed-poltergeist]

A Wild Accusation

Pairing: I wanted to squeeze an Ezio x Reader into this plot but it didn't fit :(

Warnings: None. Unless extramarital affairs trigger anyone..?

Summary: A male Reader gets accused of having an affair with a noblewoman.

Add. Notes: Just a drabble that was sitting in my drafts for a month, taking place during AC2. I’m trying to start writing in third person so I could feel like I have a little more flexibility with POV’s lol

<✉️> { I haven't written anything in forever. I guess I was busy with school and playing AC Syndicate and Black Flag and whatnot, but hey, now it’s summertime and I got all the time in the world. I went back to my older writings to get a ref for the pre-fic formatting but why did I change so many of them to be in blue?? Ik I had a blue theme going at one point but why did I change my fics for that??? Trying to maintain the aesthetics ig idk (T0T ) I also watched “Midsommar” :) My review: What the fuck }

-Simon, June 2024 __

Leonardo had left to a local nobleman’s place to work on a commission from the said noble’s wife. The work on that commission has been ongoing for the last few weeks. Fortunately, these particular aristocrats were lenient when it came to how Leonardo worked and allowed his “assistants” to come along with him. These said assistants were Ezio and (Y/N), whose job was to merely keep him company and, sometimes, unintentionally distract him.

The two “assistants” were sitting on some couches placed in the lounge that Leonardo worked in for his commission. While the latter discussed with the nobleman on what he would need for the next parts of the artwork, the wife walked in with an announcement for her husband. Unfortunately for the two nobles, everybody else could hear them, too.

“I have something to tell you, caro mio [my dear]” the wife started, “and I'm afraid you will not like it.”

“Did something happen? What is it?”

“I, um… I have had an affair with someone that lately has been working for us.”

(Y/N) and Ezio immediately looked at each other after hearing that, with the half-joking assumption that the other man was in the affair. They made fake flabbergasted faces at each other, and silently laughed at their own reactions while shaking their heads in denial of any involvement. Leonardo, who was eyeing them the whole time, was relieved to know that they had no part in the affair.

The husband stated after a pause, “From what I know, affairs are supposed to be kept secret,” the artist and his assistants raised their eyebrows at that part, “why are you telling me this?”

The whole ordeal was already unhinged for (Y/N), who began to pour himself a drink from the lounge table.

The wife, though hesitantly, answered: “I'm pregnant.”

(Y/N) paused his drink-pouring. Then he gave another surprised look at Ezio and Leonardo, but he finished filling his glass. As he started taking slow sips, he and the other two men were listening to the continuing conversation.

“You must promise me that you won't hurt the man once I tell you who he is,” the wife pleaded, “not in any way.”

“I already have a guess at the father's identity,” the nobleman established in an aggravated tone while wearing a forced smile.

“Oh good lord, he-”

“It's the (Y/L/N), is it not?”

(Y/N) accidentally inhaled some of his drink over that, and proceeded to have a coughing fit. Leonardo, Ezio, and the aristocrats were waiting for him to respond to the sudden accusation, which wasn't making the fit any better.

When the assistant finally managed to clear his airpipe, he began his objection: “I can confidently assure you that I had nothing to do with her romantically, intimately, platonically, or in any other way. In fact, I was always at least an arm’s length away from her.”

The nobleman turned to Ezio, who shook his head in denial, and Leonardo spoke before the aristocrat could make more wild accusations.

“I find it bold, and personally insulting, that your first assumption was directed at my assistants.” While he wanted to stand up to his friends, Leonardo didn't dare to continue, since the commission he had at hand meant a lot to him and he didn’t want to anger his host.

The said host eyed everyone in the room, all while trying to wrap his head around the whole scenario and think of a rational way to respond to it. His wife finally spoke in his place.

“I believe that it is best that you all leave for today. Not to worry, Signore da Vinci, you can finish your commission, we just need some time to resolve this new ordeal.”

She didn't need to say more. Ezio and (Y/N) took Leonardo’s heavier art supplies and left the room with them, then the painter followed his two assistants and closed the door behind him.

But, Leonardo still managed to hear one more bit of the nobles’ conversation.

“I wanted to tell you that the man I had the affair with is the butcher.”

“The butcher? Of all people! To be honest, I would've felt better if it was one of the young men that helped Signore da Vinci.”

__

[quihi]

Okay, overall thoughts on Fablehaven and Dragonwatch. I hope to write in more detail later - I have a first draft of a post about my take on some of the religious themes and allegory in Dragonwatch - but I gotta start somewhere (that requires less citations).

I saw Carnival Quest on the library shelf last November, read that, and had so much fun I decided to go for more Brandon Mull and reread Fablehaven. (I don't read a lot of kids books, as an adult, but I hadn't felt like reading in awhile and this made reading fun.) The first book was rough, honestly—it was his first published book and it shows. The prose felt clunky and awkward, but I got used to it and it improved. Seth drove me insane—so much of the plot was driven by "Seth screws up." But it was a quick and easy and fun read, and the world and concept were a delight!

Books 2–4 were great. I only read the books once or twice over ten years ago, so all I remembered was the general concept, a little about Kendra and Seth, and a vague idea of the final battle. I got to experience all the twists again! It was very fun to see the people who populate this increasingly large world, and the people around the edges like that rich couple in Georgia who have fairies but have never seen a preserve. Like, how did they get involved, how much do they know? It's clear that Kendra and Seth are way more deeply involved than someone who just discovered the preserves normally would be. I have a lot of thoughts about their parents and how Fablehaven fits in with their lives, and I think I think about that a lot more as an adult—it doesn't bother me but I find it more sad now.

Keys to the Demon Prison was big, and wow did we see the world. It added a lot of stuff that hadn't felt foreshadowed at all—the Eternals, Vasilis, Bracken—so it felt a little disconnected and like there were some deus ex machina. I liked the ending, though, and how everything wrapped up with swapping the demon prison and the fairy realm.

So, fun series! They definitely felt like kids books, but I would still recommend them to kids and adults who want to read a fun, magical adventure.

After this, life got busy, and I needed a break, and time to let the books sink in and read a few other books, so I didn't start Dragonwatch until January. I raced through the first three books, then took about a week off before I could get myself past the beginning of Champion of the Titan Games, then finished the series in under a week. They got so frustrating and dark that I needed that break, but I'm glad I didn't force myself to keep reading when I was worn out.

Okay, look, I know this seems to be an unpopular opinion, but I enjoyed them. I don't know if it helped because I read them all in under a month and didn't think too hard or reread them in between, and I hadn't been eagerly awaiting them—I don't think much about Mull or keep up with his new books. I didn't notice a lot of the continuity errors that I guess were there, though I did notice the big thematic change from darkness being neutral to being more evil (though I have some thoughts on that, too). There were definitely some weird choices. The structure of book five felt very similar to Fablehaven's book five.

I liked Knox and Tess. I see reasons they would be introduced, and while they could have done more (Tess: spends entire series as the innocent girl, gets teleported around a couple times but never to anywhere from which she can get home), I couldn't help liking them. They're decent foils for Kendra and Seth, at least. I think I'd have liked more of them, over cutting them. I badly wanted Knox and Seth to sit down for a good conversation about mistakes and forgiveness.

One of the story choices that baffled or irritated me most was not putting Marat or Agad back in charge of Wyrmroost, after Celebrant lost his status. I guess the best argument is there wasn't time between them returning from Stormguard Castle and Seth's disappearance, and the explicit consent of both Kendra and Seth was needed, but like, that should have been the first thing they did. I guess no one thought of it. And I suppose there was still the issue of no easy way to leave.

There was a lot of religion, which I began to notice in Master of the Phantom Isle, and was surprisingly blatant in Return of the Dragon Slayers. Religious themes in books don't bother me, though I know that's a YMMV topic and I understand why some people don't like it. (Thank you to the Fablehaven fandom for, as far as I can tell, not getting into absolute hatred of Christianity.) But, well, they were still overall the fun adventures that I was reading for, even as they got more sad and the character arcs got deeper. I'm glad I finished and read through the whole series.

I was left with a lot to think about. I have ideas for fanfiction. Mostly canon compliant, set after Dragonwatch, with some earlier, and also one romance AU that I'm worried about people's reactions to the ship. I'm buying a lot of the books to reference more easily, since I like referencing books when I write and I'm no longer twelve years old with the time and urge to flip through and reread books a dozen times until I know every plot point by heart by the time I return them to the library, but I do have more disposable income.

So, uh, I'm not really one to rate books, but I'd still call these solid and fun overall, though they have their flaws. I far prefer enjoying books to criticizing them, so I'd rather like them and try to find ideas and headcanons that improve them, rather than linger on the elements I dislike. I want to be positive!

[emimayooo]

Emi in Japan (2024) – May 30th to June 5th

(Link to Day 1) (Link to Day 2/3) (Link to Day 4) (Link to Day 5-6)

Hey guys,

Wow, it's been a hot minute since I've last journaled! I've just been soooo busy, but I've finally had some time to sit down and write.

Here are some highlights:

I finished my bachelor's degree! Next semester I'm off to post-grad because I am Not Sane! Fandom studies, here I come.

I met up with my fandom friend two more times before she goes home. The first, she came to my hometown, and the second, we went to Yokohama's Chinatown! We've had such a blast hanging out with each other IRL<3

I reunited with Tom, the love of my life. He's a five pound toy poodle who jumps like a bunny. I would die for him.

Now, onto the nitty gritty!

May 30th: Emi the Host

On Day 8, my fandom friend R visited my hometown!!! I was soooo friggin' excited that she was coming, especially since it was the first time a friend had ever visited me here.

Wearing my favourite sunhat, I went to meet her at the station. When she arrived, we walked to one of my favourite cafés, Chako. It's a loghouse with a super cute interior & exterior. Every time you go, they serve you a different tea cup. I just love it.

I had the margherita pizza and Vienna coffee (my second cup of coffee in my life!), while my friend had curry and an iced latte. It was very yum. And I paid, because in Japan, it's polite to let the host pay, because we're the one responsible for you! So let me pay, boy🫵🤡

Afterwards, we ordered bubble tea and visited the local shrine. My friend insisted on paying for a small keychain I wanted, and while I resisted, I lost the battle when she brought up the strong USD lol. I just can't resist a good bargain...

I initially wanted to take my friend to a park, but it seemed like it was going to rain, so we went back to my place. When I asked Jiji (grandpa) if he wanted to say hi, he said he was feeling too weak, so we went to the granny flat where I live without introducing them to each other.

While in the granny flat, we cooled down with the aircon on, snacked, and chatted about WIPs. My friend freaked the fuck out when I showed her my 90k draft for the longfic that made us friends LOL it was so cute and motivating. We also chatted about potentially co-writing a Sylvgrid fic together! Very exciting stuff.

While we were chatting, my grandpa came in! And he said he cooked for us motsu-ni (offal stew)! And oh my goodness it tasted so good and my friend loved it! And then he chatted with her with me as the interpretor, bragging about how handsome and cool he was in his youth. Oh Jiji XD!

I then walked my friend back to the station and waited with her until her train arrived. We said our goodbyes and promised to meet up again, which you will read about soon hehe!

June 1st: Tom, Beloved

On June 1st, I reunited with Tom the Toy Poodle. Guys, I'm in love with this dog. I want to kidnap him and take him home with me to Australia, he's just that cute! God, he's making me remember my Dog Person phase, which lasted until I ended up having my own cats. Now I love dogs, but worship cats.

Just look at him. HOW IS HE REAL???

June 2nd: And So It Ends

June 2nd was Hardcore, baby, for I worked on my last assignment for my bachelor's degree. I fought shitty weather, shitty wifi, and recorded my presentation inside the truck because the reception inside the granny flat is God Awful, but I did it. I did the damn thing. I Finished University.

But because I’m a clown I’m doing post-grad to study fandom wish me all the luck you have besties LOL🤡

For my thesis, I’m hoping to explore the cultural tensions between Eastern and Western fandom, specifically in terms of how religion has an impact on it. You know, what with antis mirroring the mindset of conservative cultural Christianity. We’ll see how I go with that!

For dinner, I went out with my mum and her two friends. I became so shy because they couldn’t stop gushing over how cute I was lol I am not kidding or bragging they just would Not Stop😅. Is this how Apple Pie feels when I smother her? Lol.

I'm starting to reach the age where my perpetual singleness is Notable. So of course, developments in my love life were inquired after. I told them I'm not that interested in romantic relationships. Which is true! My ideal life partner is a platonic one, since I'm aspec. I do have crushes, though, so I can see myself being in a romantic relationship. But I'd be perfectly happy never being romantically partnered for the rest of my life. I think I'd also be happy partnered with children. Either way, nae bother!

But yes, one of them definitely seems to have clocked that I'm surely some flavour of Queer, since she was like "so, you're not that interested in having a boyfriend–or whatever else–but it's friendship that's important to you?" and I was like "yep :D" and she was like "that's okay! you're still young after all" and I was like ":)". But we shall see how my love life, whether it be platonic or romantic, turns out.

June 3rd: It's So Flyday, Flyday, Chinatown!

On June 3rd, I met up with my fandom friend in Yokohama's Chinatown for one last meet-up! As ever, we had an absolute blast together. We explored the main road as well as the more hidden alleyways of Chinatown, until we found a cozy looking restaurant that was away from the hustle and bustle and the tourist crowd. My friend speaks some Mandarin, so it was really cool to see her talk with the waitress, haha. Now I know what my friends feel like when we go to Japanese restaurants together!

We had dim sim, this super yum fried tofu dish, and these chive pancakes. I loved it all, honestly!

After lunch, I got to pet the dogs who belonged to the people behind us. When we were eating, I kept sparing glances at the doggies lol (a dachshund and a jack russell) because omg were they so well-behaved and adorable in the dog pram. Just so so cute.

To sign off our day in Chinatown, I asked my friend to get a caricature of us drawn, which she thankfully said yes to! While I can't show you the art because, well, it looks just like us LOL, do know that it's suuuuper adorable. I have a collection of caricatures for whenever I visit a new place, but this is the first one I've had drawn with another person. I'm kinda hooked lol now I want caricatures drawn with all my loved ones.

My friend and I said our final goodbyes, since she's leaving soon. I am so, so glad I got to meet her IRL, and I'm sure we'll see each other again, whether it be in Japan, the States or Australia<3.

(Side note: My grandpa needs to go under another round of radiation therapy, so my mum will be staying in Japan until the end of the mouth, instead of the planned June 4th. While I'm sad Jiji's gotta go through it again, I'm glad mum will be around! It's been nice spending time with her, for both me and Jiji.)

June 4th: Chillin' & Catchin Up'

June 4th was chill! What with uni being over, I find myself with a lot more free time. I went into Chichibu to browse the local BOOK-OFF, a secondhand store which sells books, CDs, figures, video games, you name it, they got it. I found a Sanji figure that I thought my dear friend @homelygrantaire would like and so I bought it on his behalf, before I then sent it off to their address. I learned a lot about international shipping in Japan from that experience, which is good for me to know, since I'm sure I'll need to send stuff back because Japan is shopping paradise right now LOL.

For lunch, I had this super average savoury crepe at a Gelato place. I should've just ordered gelato lol but I wanted a proper lunch and for some reason, most places are closed on Tuesdays here. But to make up for it, I got my favourite bubble tea and tried out a bakery I'd never been to before. I chatted with the elderly owner and found out that they'd been in business for 40 years. Wowza!

Once I got home, I caught up on my belated crit letters for the Fanauthor Workshop. Thanks for your patience, guys! I loved reading all your pieces.

(Btw, writerly mutuals, you should totally sign up for the asynchronous summer session so you can join us and make soooo many friends. Applications end June 14th!)

June 4th: I...WROTE?!

And so this brings us to today! Not much happened. Mum and I went to this AMAZING Chinese restaurant that is world class quality. Seriously, the owner trained as a chef in Ginza, Tokyo's luxury district. The man knows how to cook!

Once I got home, I helped my mum and Jiji spread weed-killer lol which was a first. Then I had an afternoon nap. Night time, I realised I had free time...AND SO I WROTE!

Yes, besties, you read that right: I'm writing again! Woo!

I don't think I've written in like a month and half so it's been great getting back into it. I ended up revising my galeheart fairy tale au, which I hope to have finished sometime soon. I'm so sick of it living in my drafts, unposted, when it's so close to being done ugh. Hopefully it'll be out by the end of this month!

Thanks for reading my journal, guys. Each entry is getting longer and longer lmao but I hope you enjoy reading them, nonetheless. See you next time!

With love,

Emi xoxo