#happy late frontiers day!
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zerothesonic · 2 years ago
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well it was supposed to be for frontiers day but better late than never i guess
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runefactorynonsense · 8 months ago
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Melotober - Day 15 - Pumpkin
Yes, I named a pumpkin after all of you!
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hydrossity-zone · 7 months ago
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Reference sheets of all Frontiers outfits including DLC, f2u ^^ (as usual, click for better quality)
full-res images: Adventurer/Explorer Sonic (alt link) Grind-Shoe Sonic (alt link) Korone Sonic (alt link) Holiday Cheer Sonic (alt link) Frontier Elite Sonic (alt link) Birthday Sonic (alt link) Felyne Armor Sonic (alt link) Hunter Rathalos Armor Sonic (alt link)
[Sonic SpeedSim Frontiers Outfits]
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kittygamer2888 · 1 year ago
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Oh yea--
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!
Especially this guy👍
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Today is the first-year anniversary of the day you were released and promptly imprisoned again. Happy Denial Day!
Rubbing it in again, I see.
I am not imprisoned. I have not been denied. I have only been delayed.
This is not a "happy" occasion. You have no cause to rejoice.... yet.
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obsessivevoidkitten · 20 days ago
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A Relaxing Caving Vacation
Yandere Male Naga x Male Reader CW: Noncon, fingering, anal sex, double penetration, copious amounts of cum, general yandere behavior, delusional yandere, overstimulation Word Count: 3k (Comm for @fandomsfanman hope you all enjoy it!)
Hiking, camping, fishing, really any outdoorsy activity, these were the things that you enjoyed.
But you needed something new. Another frontier to explore. A new obsession for you to focus on.
That new focus was spelunking. Cave exploration. The air, the quiet, the hidden stone depths, a secret to be explored, carved by nature just for you! It completely captivated you.
Of course, you weren't insane! You didn't go anywhere really dangerous. No Nutty Putty incidents for you, thanks. You stuck to big wide open caves without any treacherous narrow paths, instabilities, or areas particularly prone to flooding.
You were trying to decide what cave to explore next, you finally settled on Springwell Cave.
Apparently at the bottom it had blue crystals that glowed and a small pond of water, clear as glass. Very shallow and very safe.
It sounded perfect. You'd hike there, camp a bit in the surrounding woods, and after all that build up you'd delve into the cave!
But it had been a while since anyone had visited Springwell Cave. Anyone human, that was.
And so in slipped a male naga named Urzum. A lean but somewhat muscular man with white hair, dark skin, and gleaming silver scales.
He loved the soft glow of the crystals, the pure pond, the safety and seclusion. It was the perfect home for him during the day. At night he'd leave and prowl for food.
Lately he had been prowling for something else too.
He was in rut.
His every night was spent fruitlessly searching the woods for a mate to sink his twin cocks into and then cuddle. But it seemed no one was interested.
There were no nearby nagas and the other forest folk fled from him in fear even though he had never once hurt or hunted another hybrid being, just regular feral animals.
And so every dawn he retreated back to what was now his cave and masturbated furiously in a vain attempt to take the edge off his rut.
Urzum was getting desperate. Whimpering as he constantly switched between his cocks, fervently jerking one and then the other, spilling his seed. He was so very eager to slip it into a lover he could call his own, instead he was wasting it on the floor.
The cave was filled with his musk. His need was palpable.
Your day was spent hiking to the campsite, sun shining, birds singing, the cool breeze pregnant with the scent of honeysuckle as it danced through the branches of the trees.
Sure you could have driven much closer, but why would you do that?
You thought to yourself that it was going to be a perfect day of hiking and camping leading up to the cave!
By the time you got there, there was still plenty of daylight left. You set up your tent and a small fire and cooked yourself up a can of stew you had brought with you.
You enjoyed your meal and then cleaned up and put out the flames before strolling around the area. You were too tired from all the hiking you had done earlier and wanted to tackle the cave the next morning when you were well rested.
As the sun began to set you felt a growing sense of unease. Like someone, or something, was prowling in the darkness. Watching. Waiting.
Though it was probably just an animal you couldn't shake the feeling. And of course, wild animals could be dangerous.
Urzum had slithered out of his cave and near your campsite. He had not seen many humans in a while. Could you be the warm fuck pocket he had been dreaming of sinking his dual dicks into?
The snake stalked you silently to get a better read on you. It seemed you were a skilled little camper, perfectly happy in the rough and rugged wilderness. That was important. If he had a human mate it wouldn't do for them to be all sad because they didn't have their modern conveniences.
It also seemed that you respected nature and cleaned up after yourself.
And then there was just something in your eyes that really sold him on you.
Back at camp you could feel a gaze boring into you and you could swear you caught the eyes of a predator in the brush, reflecting the fading light.
Maybe a wolf or bear had encroached into this area. Maybe there was a serial killer on the loose.
You relit the fire and lit a torch in it. You swung it towards the shadows.
"Just get out of here, whatever you are! I'll fight if I have to!"
Urzum was flat out crushed. You hadn't even got to meet him and already a potential mate rejected him! Maybe you just had some misconceptions about nagas. Or maybe his scent displeased you.
The naga slunk back to his cave early to sulk.
After a couple hours, sure now that whatever had been stalking you was an animal and that it was long gone, you finally managed to sleep.
In the morning it wasn't even something you were thinking about. No, you had a cave to explore!
You made your way to it and took a deep breath once inside. You had expected it to be the cool earthy air of most caves but instead you were hit with an almost tangy slightly sharp scent. It could almost be described as somehow heady.
Ignoring it, you continued on with your little adventure.
What you had been smelling since you had entered was Urzum's home were the pheromones from his rut. And what you also didn't know was that your scent stirred the naga from his normal day time slumber.
He was overjoyed, recognizing the smell immediately. You must have had time to think after he left so obediently and decoded that his smell was alluring after all!
Why else would you follow his trail and stroll right into his den when it smelled so very much like him?
There was simply no other explanation.
There were no other paths that would get you lost, and it was a small cave, so you would be there soon! He started tidying up and readying his nest for his nice new human mate.
As you progressed through the few large rooms and spacious corridors of the cavern the smell got significantly more pronounced.
Crystals also started appearing in the walls. Larger and brighter as you kept going.
The room before the final one with the water was where you arrived next. The smell was dizzying there.
The source was quickly discovered.
Slithering towards you from a dark corner with no crystals was a massive naga. The type of creature that you had only heard rumors about existing.
The human half had black skin and hair that blended in well with the shadows. His scales were like obsidian, except for the underbelly of his snake half which was pearly white.
Your first thought was that he was going to kill you with those sharp fangs, but then you noticed two large erect cocks bobbing as he headed towards you.
It took you too long to get over your initial shock and the monster had you.
"L-let go of me! I don't know what you expect, but you are NOT putting those in me!!"
You squirmed in his grip but he held you close, slowly removing your pack and clothing as he did so.
"Ah! Of course you humans only have one!"
He gently fondled your balls and cock as he said this.
"Well, don't worry, this will feel amazing!"
You tried to twist away but you were pathetic in comparison to him. His cocks oozed copious amounts of precum, the perfect lube, that he scooped up with two fingers and worked into your asshole until it was nice and yielding.
"I d-d-don't don't want th-this!"
His fingering had you stuttering and mumbling, but he wasn't going to stop there.
"You're just getting a cold tail, darling! I know how bad you want this, no need to be all shy~"
He licked a stripe up your cheek.
"Why else would you follow my scent into my den?"
You tried to elbow him in the stomach but he didn't even seem to notice.
"I didn't even kno-oooh mm uhhh~"
He had slipped one slimy cock into your well prepped ass, it kissed your prostate perfectly with each thrust into you.
"Seeee!? You make such pretty noises being bred. No need to deny what you want~"
You glared at him but couldn't summon the brain power to do anything else as embarrassing noises spilled from your lips as he filled you.
Then his other cock joined the first, the stretch overstimulating you and bringing you to pleasured tears that he licked away.
"All that denial for nothing my love~"
Urzum was so happy. His rut was finally being satiated. He finally had a perfect partner to cold close while he drilled them with his cocks.
"You're taking it so so well!
You glared at him again but your gaze faltered as you spilled your seed and cried out in orgasm.
Only the first of many as you discovered that nagas took quite a while to finish breeding.
Urzum caressed your belly, bloated with unimaginable amounts of cum. He kept cumming in you over and over with seemingly no end in sight.
You were a sweaty, unkempt, musky mess by that point and had gone completely limp other than the occasional twitch, shudder, or orgasm.
After 6 exhausting hours he finally pulled his monster cocks out of you and cleaned you all up and dressed you. He made sure you were hydrated with fresh water from the cave's pond and even cooked you a little snack.
You were so compliant all fucked out like that, so cute, Urzum was very pleased. He laid on his bedding with you nestled on top of his coils as if they were a cozy nest.
Urzum could scarcely sleep, thinking of how wonderful life would be with his new mate while you slept like a baby.
But if he thought you were just going to stay that way he was wrong.
It was the better part of a week before you fully snapped back to your normal self. It didn't help that his rut continued for a long time and he kept fucking you stupid for hours at a time every chance he got. He had taken advantage of your shocked and obedient state to get to know all he could about you and teach you about himself as well. As if you were dating.
But you were thinking clearly and the fuckathons he subjected you too no longer made you an idiot for hours after. So while he was out hunting at night you took the opportunity to get the hell out of there.
It had been embarrassing to be turned into a quivering moaning mess but that didn't mean you would stay that way. You weren't broken and that damn snake wouldn't get the chance to break you.
You know he has left the cave by now so you waste no time being sneaky or careful. You rush out, thankful for the linear nature of the cavern.
In no time at all your face is met with the cool, fresh, night time air of the forest. The first time your nostrils had been free of Urzum's strong musk. Even after his mating season, it had remained thick in the cave's air.
For the first time in a while it seemed as if luck was actually on your side. The night was well illuminated by the pearlescent full moon, you'd be able to run without fear of injury in the dark.
Your legs burned with the effort, carrying you as fast as they could to safety and civilization. Once you made it to your car you'd get the fuck home and put this whole mess behind you.
And you'd never go caving again. No, you'd find a more sensible hobby. Gaming, perhaps.
Your sliver of good luck had run out though. As you made it up a hill you smacked right into Urzum. You fell on your ass and looked up at the naga. He was holding two limp rabbits, a bundle of foraged leaves and roots, and looked stunned.
"Wh-what are you doing out of the safety of the cave, love?"
He wound around you, carrying you in his coils as he resumed his way home.
"Oh, you must have wanted to help me hunt! That's no job for you my little mate~ I'm the provider!"
You squirmed and thrashed, you started to cuss him out and correct him but what good would that do? If he thought you were trying to escape he might be more vigilant and it would only make it harder to get away later! Best to let him stay in denial and delusion.
Urzum set the rabbits and forage down where he prepped food and then carried you to his nest, laying you down gently.
"Hunting is my job, baby. It's so sweet that you wanted to help but it isn't your place. I'll remind you of yours since you forgot so easily."
You fought him, but he just thought it was foreplay.
"Aww, acting all tough even though your needy little ass wants my cocks so bad."
Your validating moans were music to his ears when he pressed into you. First one cock, then the other. Both worked tirelessly at filling you up with musky naga seed. He forced you into a mating press, lovingly claiming your mouth with his own as his forked tongue probed the depths of your mouth. You probably should have bitten him but you were lost in waves of pleasure with each rock of his hips into you.
The naga’s hands explored your sides, caressing you as he had his way with you. He broke the kiss, a string of saliva momentarily bridging the distance between the two of you.
“See, my love? You look so much better when you are in your proper place!”
He plunged into you hard and fast, you couldn’t even keep up your typical rebellious gaze. You moaned lewdly and often as Urzum took you. He wrapped his arms around you and held you close as his dicks filled you up with his love, throbbing deep inside you for a few minutes as Urzum rode out his climax.
After that you were pretty quiet for a bit and your dedicated mate took the time to clean you up and make you some rabbit and veggie stew which you ate without complaint before going to bed. The effort of staying up late, running so much, and being fucked damn near senseless had taken a significant toll on your body.
The next morning you were clear-headed and better able to assess your situation. Running away hadn’t been successful. Nor had struggling during sex or outright telling him he was wrong and that you didn’t want to be his mate. You decided you just wouldn’t cooperate with anything he wanted at any level.
You wouldn’t even eat a single bite of food until he got the fucking point. Not one crumb.
When he tried to feed you some reheated rabbit stew the next day you refused to take the bowl that he handed you. When he tried to spoon feed you you moved your head away from the utensil, not letting it anywhere near your lips.
“I’d rather starve than stay here any longer!”
He smiled down at you and pinched your cheek in a way that felt condescending but was probably just meant to be sweet.
“Not hungry right now sweetie? That’s okay, you can have it later.”
But when later came you still refused. Now he was getting a bit worried, but you didn’t seem ill.
“I’m just not going to eat anything you touch!”
“Aww, is someone cranky? Are you mad because I haven’t been giving you enough affection? No problem, I know exactly what will work up a nice appetite and make you feel more than loved!”
“Wh-?”
Urzum put the bowl off to the side and pulled you close to him. He expertly removed your clothing in a flash and already had his fingers working his precum into your hole to stretch it. You fought, of course, but as always you were powerless against his invasion of your hole.
Your struggles quickly melted into little fidgets and squirms of pleasure as he sank both of his cocks at once into your well prepared asshole. You were on your knees in the nest taking both of his dicks, actually pressing your ass back against each thrust despite yourself.
“G-get off!”
“Don’t be fussy baby, I’m giving you what you need. You’ll feel better after this, I promise~”
He reached his arm around you and started jerking you off, his hand lubed with a mix of your precum and his, you scowled as you humped into his grip, cumming almost embarrassingly fast.
“If you just asked for breeding instead of getting all huffy we could do things a lot faster~ But I love when you get all bratty and needy!”
He kept working himself into you, playing with your spent cock, until you came two more times. You whimpered and moaned with each release until finally he flooded your depths with thick cum. You couldn’t see his balls, as they were nestled away internally, but they had to be huge to flood you so thoroughly.
As always, you were an overstimulated fucked out mess that was utterly helpless and obedient after a bout of lovemaking with your “boyfriend”. You complied with him spoon feeding you. He took it as proof you had just needed some sex to work up a proper appetite and to provide affection so you weren’t so fussy.
After your meal he cleaned you up and kept you warm and safe in his coils while you slept. He was content with how well he was taking care of you, you sleeping all cozy on him was proof enough of that.
You could act all defiant, bratty, fussy, and claim otherwise all you wanted but he knew you loved him, and he would NEVER let you go.
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fables-if · 3 months ago
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The Night of Ataegina and Betatun
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A high fantasy interactive fiction story based on Spanish mythology, folklore, and paganism. Set in modern-day Spain. Most locations and all the characters are fictional, except the type of fae that will be seen during the story.
Summary:
After leaving Imeria during your eighteen birthday to chase your dreams and college education, you return to the little village in Southern Europe that saw you grow up after receiving the horrible news that Caterina, the old woman that took you in after the death of your family and your adoptive grandma (or yaya, as you call her), is terminally ill and has a few months left.
During your return, Imeria is set in motion to host an ancient festival and masquerade. It’s supposed to honor two ancient Iberian deities, one called Ataegina, ruler of the underworld, and the other one Betatun, deity of fertility. Most Imerians don’t believe in the ancient legends but those who do, like Catelina say that it’s the most dangerous night of the year because the frontier between the mortal and the magic realm is so thin anything can happen. 
Returning home under the threat of Caterina dying is already hard enough, but will you be able to adapt back into Imeria and rekindle old friendships or form new ones? Will you uncover the deep and rich history of your home and the old magic it carries? 
We shall discover it all very soon.
Features:
Customizable mc: Gender, pronouns, and physical appearance
Build friendship or romance with four characters.
Learn more about Spain's folklore and pagan traditions. Uncover your family history and your abilities.
Develop your MC's personality as you go
Two characters are gender locked but you can choose the gender identity of the other two
Your choices can't be undone and will have consequences.
Characters:
Caterina: An older woman, well into her 80s who took in the MC after most of her family died. She doesn’t seem to have a family of her own, or at least that’s what Mc believes. Caterina has a sweet disposition, always up for helping anybody. She raised MC with the stories of the folklore of their village, so she will always know how to honor the traditions of Imeria. MC doesn’t remember very well what she did for a living but she used to do fortune and tarot reading for some villagers and they usually came to her for advice and help. 
Ana: She runs The Golden Apothecary, a small store where she sells traditional remedies. Her family has run the Apothecary forever, and it’s considered a family craft. Ana has golden shoulder-length wavy hair, almond ocean-blue eyes, and a button nose. She’s no taller than 167cm, with a voluptuous body and soft features. Ana is in her late 20s to early 30s.
Personality-wise, Ana is soft-spoken, sweet, and very open-minded. She strikes to accept everyone with open arms, as long as they’re good people. Unfortunately, some individuals mistake Ana’s kindness with weakness, which is untrue. Ana is extremely smart, stubborn, and strong-minded, she’s always kind but only to those who deserve it. She can be a lot to reckon with if she deems you a bad person. Ana dreams of seeing the world but there is something tying her to Imeria.
Supernatural or not (spoiler):
Ana is a Xana, a river spirit that helps those she finds worthy by offering them pure water or gold. Some people believe that Xanas interchange human babies with fairy babies. As a river spirit, Ana can’t be apart from her river or she’ll suffer horrible consequences.  She met Caterina when Caterina was a young maiden and bathed in her river. Ana saw the purity of her soul and gifted her magic. Xanas are mythological creatures that originate from Asturias, a northern region of Spain with strong Celtic influences.
Anne, An or Antón: Anne/An/Antón works on their family farm along with some of their siblings. The Zamora’s farm supplies Imeria with its fresh produce. Everyone knows the family since they’re a happy and amicable bunch. Anne/An/Antón is pretty tall, around 185cm, they have wide shoulders, a big frame, tan skin and are chubby. The shape of their face is round, with little freckles, big green eyes, long eyelashes, and a hooked nose. They have short straight brown hair and are a bit hairy.. Their voice is deep and loud, almost booming, exactly like their laugh. Anne/An/Antón is super extroverted, knows everybody in the village, and has a sunny and sweet disposition. They are super strong, from all the physical labor but their secret hobby crocheting, they’re always making little dolls for the children of the village or making clothes. In general, they’re super well-liked and have a golden heart. Anne/An/Antón is the MC's childhood best friend and neighbor. Unfortunately, after leaving Imeria they didn’t keep in touch. Anne/An/Antón is 25 years old. 
Supernatural or not:
Anne/An/Antón is an Ome, a mountain spirit, and a giant made of rock that turns into mountains after living for many centuries. Their whole family is made of Omes graznidos. Omes Graznidos are a type of mythological creature that originates from Aragón, a northeast region of Spain surrounded by mountains.
Diego, Diana, or Dix: Diego/Diana/Dix is new in Imeria, they have been living in the little village for less than a year. Nobody knows where they came from, they remain a bit of a mystery for everyone. They set up a popular lounge called “The Velvet Moon” in the middle of the village, very exclusive and chic which clashes with the rest of the decoration of Imeria. Still, the young Imerians love the place. They’re 31 years old but look slightly older. 
Diego/Diana/Dix is of average height, standing around 174cm, they’re pretty slender, with a petite frame and olive skin. They have an angular face, with sharp features, long shaggy black hair, and clear eyes that almost seem silver-colored. Diego/Diana/Dix keep mostly to themselves and can be seen riding their motorcycle around the village. They have a limp and can be seen using a cane. As mysterious as they are, they’re pretty talkative once you get to know them, and are very protective of those they love. Diego/Diana/Dix seems to be interested in the MC, since they’re always watching them, and seem to have a secret that they don’t want to share with anybody. They are very self-reliant, have learned to survive by themselves and have a hard time trusting others, but once you have earned their trust, they’re loyal to a fault. 
Rumors say they have a criminal past and are mixed with a bad crowd, but not everything seems as it is.  
Supernatural or not (spoilers):
Diego/Diana/Dix takes the form of a giant spectral dog, with long black hair and a permanent limp, which is called dip by Spanish folklore. They’re supposed to be emissaries from the devil and they suck the blood of the livestock at night. However, not all legends tell the entire truth. 
Bingen: Bingen lives in the forests near Imeria, where he has a small cottage and a little bit of land where he has a vegetable patch. Bingen is a well-known journalist for online newspapers. He’s an ecologist, and his coverage is mostly about the natural world and ecologism. 
Bingen barely sets foot in Imeria, he is auto-sufficient but he comes down to the village to visit Ana and her apothecary, and to buy a few things he needs.
Bingen has a square jaw with high cheekbones, sharp green eyes, and long blonde messy hair, usually kept in a braid. He has a sweet face with a straight nose, and round brown eyes that resemble a little lamb. He’s the tallest of the bunch, 1’90cm, very muscled from all the exercise, and has a big frame. He loves hiking and is very in touch with nature. Bingen has a hard time socializing, preferring being around animals and plants since he understands them better. He, as intimidating as he looks, is a sweetheart and really craves human connection. Bingen is not talkative but expresses his feelings and emotions through his actions. He might have a hard time telling you he cares about you but he’ll help you install furniture or will make you soup when you’re sick. He always shows up when you need him to.
Bingen recently led a rescue of a few teens who got lost in the forest and saved them from a wolf attack, since then a lot of the villagers have respected him a lot and brought little sweet treats to his cottage. He's in between 27-33 years old.
He has struck a friendship with Ana, who frequents the forest often.   
Supernatural or not (Spoilers):
Bingen is a Basajaún a creature that inhabits the forests of The Basque Country, Navarra, and some parts of Aragón. Basajaúns are described as giant hairy men who protect the livestock, and warn shepherds of wolfs during the night. Basajaúns are seen as protectors of the forest but also creatures of great strength and kinda dangerous. 
Rami: A green weasel-like creature, with a long and flexible body, similar to a snake, and little tusks. They’re friendly and sweet and help guide the MC during their adventure. Rami’s fur has healing qualities. 
Extra:
This project is made by an absolute amateur in coding so it's going to take a long time. I have been writing since forever so I trust in my ability to create a good and entertaining story and I hope you guys stay for the ride.
The Night of Ataegina and Betatún is also going to be a surprise gift for a dear friend of mine who absolutely loves Interactive fiction and this project (if I get to finish it;_;) might be the way I ask her out since we both harbor strong feelings for each other. So let's hope she doesn't find out about the project before it's time.
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yeahiveheardofbears-fics · 15 days ago
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Be My Anti-Valentine
You and your best friend Steve have a movie night on Valentine's Day, since you are both perpetually single. Except, maybe not for long...
hey babes! Happy way late Valentine's Day! I will say that i did base the reader character, once again, on my OC Mac from my ST rewrite series. so some side characters, relationships, and places will be from that universe. You don't need to read that to get the story, but if you like this dynamic then I definitely recommend it! I treat this little smut one shots like deleted scenes that didn't make sense in my main fic, but wouldnt escape my brain. I also did a lot of build up because I can't seem to write smut for Steve without making him an absolute loverboy <3 Enjoy!!
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l-bombs, friends to loves, lots of exposition word count: 14,096 TW: uhhh, really not much, this is pretty loving honestly. underage drinking i guess
REQUESTS ARE OPEN, IF YOU LIKE THIS, PLZ MESSAGE ME CAUSE I NEED INSPO <3
fic masterlist
read on ao3 or read below the cut:
February 14th, 1986
The neon glow from Family Video flickers just across the street, casting a greenish hue onto the wet pavement outside. Through the glass doors of Vinyl Frontier , you can see the faint movement of Steve inside, pacing behind the counter, no doubt pretending to look busy. You know better.
He’s probably just spinning a tape case in his hands, waiting out the last few miserable hours of his shift—same as you.
You stretch your arms above your head with a groan, then lean against the counter, staring at the real misery: the Valentine’s Day display Jet had you set up. Rows of records with love songs, sappy ballads, and an obnoxiously large hand-drawn sign that reads MAKE A LOVE MIX FOR YOUR SWEETHEART! in looping red letters. The entire thing makes your skin crawl.
You’re halfway through reorganizing the New Releases section—because some asshole put Iron Maiden next to Cyndi Lauper —when the store’s phone rings behind you. You sigh, abandoning the records to grab the receiver.
“ Vinyl Frontier , what do you want?”
There’s a scoff on the other end of the line. “Wow. That’s how you answer the phone now?”
You smirk, already recognizing the voice. “Oh, it’s you. My bad. Vinyl Frontier , home of angsty losers and overpriced imports. How can I help you, Steve?”
“Much better.” There’s a pause, then his voice lowers conspiratorially. “Listen, just giving you a heads-up—there’s a couple that just left my store, all lovey-dovey, handsy as hell. They’re headed straight for your store, so you’ve got, like, thirty seconds before you have to witness… whatever the hell they were doing here.”
You groan, already standing to peek through the store window. And sure enough—there they are. The couple in question, walking hand-in-hand across the street, their matching red sweaters obnoxiously bright.
“Ugh. Them?”
“You know them?” Steve asks, bemused.
“They were making out between The Smiths and Bauhaus the other day,” you say, flopping back against the counter. “I Lysoled the shelves after they left.”
Steve makes a disgusted noise. “Jesus Christ. They were all over the romance section at Family Video . Like, I get it, love is great, whatever, but I work here. Have some goddamn respect.”
You snort. “Happy Valentine’s Day, Harrington.”
“Oh yeah, it’s been real happy,” he deadpans. “Nothing like watching every couple in Hawkins remind me that I’m pathetically single.”
You roll your eyes, even though you feel the same way. “It’s like an infestation. Can’t even walk two feet without seeing someone swapping spit.”
“Tell me about it.” There’s some muffled conversation on his end, the sound of a VHS tape clattering onto the counter. “Anyway, you still coming over?”
“Obviously.”
“I grabbed your stupid movies,” he says, sounding so put out that you have to grin. “But just for the record, I still think your choices are ridiculous.”
“They’re perfect,” you correct. “What’s wrong with them?”
Steve exhales like he’s been waiting for you to ask. “Alright, let’s start with The Thing . How exactly is that an anti-Valentine’s movie?”
“Because it’s about paranoia and distrust,” you say. “There’s no love. Just body horror and existential dread.”
“Uh-huh. And Sleepaway Camp ?”
“You know damn well why.”
“Okay, fine, that one’s fair.” He pauses. “But My Bloody Valentine ? You picked a Valentine’s Day slasher . That’s, like, half giving in to the holiday.”
“It’s a classic, Steve.”
“Mm-hmm.” He doesn’t sound convinced. “I feel like you just wanted an excuse to watch a bunch of horror movies with me.”
You scoff. “Oh, please. I don’t need an excuse for that. I can bully you into watching horror movies whenever I want.”
There’s a beat of silence before he huffs a quiet laugh. “You know, I hate that you’re right.”
“I love that I’m right.”
Steve sighs dramatically. “Fine. But when I get nightmares about shapeshifting aliens, I’m blaming you.”
“You’ll live.”
“Debatable.” Another pause, then his voice softens just slightly. “Robin’s not gonna make it, by the way. She’s got a ‘not-date’ with Vickie.”
That gives you pause.
“So it’s just us,” you say.
“Yeah.” He clears his throat. “Just us.”
There’s a moment of… something. Not awkwardness, exactly. Just an awareness that wasn’t there before. You glance around the store, suddenly finding it hard to focus on anything. The record stacks, the cheap plastic Valentine’s decorations Jet made you put up, the couple now giggling in the corner near Fleetwood Mac .
“Well, that just means more popcorn for me,” you say, brushing past it.
“And I won’t have to listen to Robin complain about my movie choices.”
“ My movie choices,” you correct.
“Whatever.” You can hear the smile in his voice. “So, uh… you still coming?”
You twirl the phone cord between your fingers, a habit you thought you’d grown out of. “Yeah. I’ll be there.”
“Cool. See you later.”
“See you.”
You hang up, staring at the receiver for a second longer than necessary.
This was fine. Totally normal. Just another movie night.
Right?
---
Steve sighs as he hangs up the phone, rubbing the back of his neck before turning toward the counter—only to find Robin standing there, arms crossed, one brow arched so high it’s practically in her hairline.
He stops short, already exasperated. “Don’t.”
Robin tilts her head, feigning innocence. “Don’t what?”
“ Don’t make it weird.” He gestures vaguely toward the phone, like somehow the conversation itself was to blame for whatever this was.
She scoffs. “Oh, I didn’t make it weird. You did that all on your own.”
Steve groans, rubbing his temples. “Jesus Christ, Robin.”
She just smirks, shifting her weight against the counter. “It’s not my fault you two sound like a couple in a bad rom-com.”
He glares. “It’s your fault for having a date tonight.”
Robin immediately corrects him. “It’s a not-date.”
Steve rolls his eyes. “Same difference.”
“Uh, huge difference,” she says. “Dates are romantic. Not-dates are for pretending it’s not romantic while still getting nervous about it.”
He gives her a flat look. “That literally makes no sense.”
Robin shrugs. “Well, good news, dingus—you’ve got a not-date too.”
Steve scoffs, crossing his arms. “It’s not a date.”
Robin just lifts a brow. “That’s what I just said.”
He throws his hands up. “No, I mean—it’s not even a not-date! It’s just a normal night. We watch movies all the time.”
Robin sighs, then pushes off the counter, walking over to him with that look—the one that means she’s about to call him on his bullshit.
“Steve.”
“What?”
She softens just slightly. “You do realize that you two are both my best friends, right?”
He shifts uncomfortably. “Yeah?”
“And that I’m not blind?”
He groans. “Robin—”
“I mean, come on.” She starts ticking off fingers, like she’s listing off groceries. “You grab her movies for her even when you think they’re stupid, you call her at work just to talk, you let her make fun of you without even trying to fight back—”
“I fight back,” he protests weakly.
Robin ignores him. “—and, oh yeah, you both spent the last five minutes awkwardly dancing around the fact that you’ll be alone tonight.”
Steve crosses his arms tighter. “So what? It’s not weird to hang out with a friend.”
Robin nods sagely. “Totally. Just a friend.”
“Exactly.”
“Just a friend. On Valentine’s day. that you think is funny and hot and cool and—”
“Okay, I never said that I find her hot.” He throws his head back dramatically. “She’s annoying and bossy and thinks she knows everything—”
Robin hums. “Mmm, yeah. Real convincing, Harrington.”
“—and she’s constantly making fun of my hair—”
Robin shrugs. “You kinda deserve that one.”
“—and she has this stupid little smirk when she’s right about something, and she always has to be right, and when she gets all smug about it, she does this thing where she tilts her head a little, and she has this way of looking at you like she’s three steps ahead in a game you didn’t know you were playing—”
Robin lifts an eyebrow.
Steve doesn’t notice.
“—and she has that voice, you know, like all confident but a little raspy, and when she laughs at something she actually finds funny, not just something dumb Dustin says, it’s, like—”
Robin makes a face. “Steve.”
“—all breathy and warm, and she smells good all the time even when she’s just coming off work, and I don’t know what it is, but it’s like cherry or maybe something floral, but not too much, and—”
“ Steve .”
He finally stops, blinking at her.
Robin stares at him, then slowly grimaces. “You do hear yourself, right?”
Steve pauses. Blinks again. “Shit.”
Robin claps him on the shoulder. “There it is.”
He groans, dragging a hand down his face. “It’s not like that.”
“Uh-huh.”
“She doesn’t even like me like that.”
Robin snorts. “Yeah, sure.”
Steve points a finger at her. “You don’t know that.”
Robin raises both hands in surrender. “Okay. If you say so.” But she’s grinning, and it pisses him off.
Before he can argue, the bell over the door jingles, and a couple walks in, already giggling to each other. Steve immediately straightens up, plastering on his best customer service face.
Robin steps back with a smirk. “Don’t worry, lover boy. We’ll continue this conversation later.”
Steve glares at her as he turns to the customers. “I hate you.”
Robin flashes him a grin. “You love me.”
And unfortunately, she’s right. Again.
---
You hang up the phone, exhaling through your nose, then lean against the counter and let your head fall back, staring up at the ceiling. The sound of a throat clearing makes you lift your head, and when you glance to the side you see your boss, Jet, standing in the doorway of the back office, arms crossed, looking entirely too amused.
"Was that Harrington?" he asks, voice dry as ever.
You roll your eyes and turn away, stacking the pile of records you’d been sorting before Steve called. "No, it was the Pope. He wanted to know if we have any Black Sabbath in stock."
Jet snorts, stepping further into the shop. "So, Harrington."
"Maybe."
Jet leans against the counter, watching you work with that knowing look that always makes you feel like you’re under a microscope. "You two sure do talk a lot."
"Yeah, it’s called friendship, Jet."
"Uh-huh." He tilts his head. "Y’know, back in my day, we didn’t call it friendship when two people made goo-goo eyes at each other across a counter."
You nearly drop the stack of records. "Oh my god, shut up."
Jet just grins. "I’m just sayin’."
You huff and move to the other side of the store, grabbing a rag to wipe down the shelves. The Valentine’s Day display mocks you from the corner, obnoxiously pink and full of records Jet made you pull— Foreigner , REO Speedwagon , Whitney Houston , all the stuff people were eating up today.
"He's annoying," you say, mostly to distract from whatever the hell Jet was implying.
"Sure."
"And bossy."
"Mm-hmm."
"Thinks he knows everything."
Jet makes a vague gesture. "Yeah, yeah, you’re really selling it, kid."
You scowl at him, but Jet just chuckles, watching you scrub furiously at a perfectly clean shelf.
"You know," he says, a little softer, "you don’t gotta dance around it with me. If you like him, you like him. No shame in it."
You pause, grip tightening on the rag. "I don’t."
Jet tilts his head, unconvinced. "Look, all I’m sayin’ is… I’ve been around the block a few times. And I know the look of someone trying real hard to pretend they don’t care about someone when they definitely do."
You set the rag down a little harder than necessary. "And what look is that, exactly?"
Jet just grins. "The same look you get when you talk about him but try to pretend you’re just complaining."
You open your mouth, then close it. Scowl. Pick up the rag again.
Jet chuckles. "Listen, I don’t give a damn one way or the other, but if you wanna keep lying to yourself, at least try to be good at it."
You groan. " Jet ."
"Hey, just giving you some wisdom." He pushes off the counter, stretching. "Y’know, back in the day, I had a girl I danced around with like that. Thought I was bein’ slick, thought no one noticed."
You glance at him, wary. "And?"
"And turns out I was just an idiot," he says with a shrug. "So maybe don’t be an idiot, huh?"
You roll your eyes. "Thanks, dad ."
Jet winks. "Anytime, kid."
---
Steve shuts the register with a satisfying clack and stretches, rolling out the tension in his shoulders. It’s finally closing time, and for once, he’s actually looking forward to tonight—not just because it means getting the hell out of Family Video , but because he has plans.
Casual, totally normal, not-a-date plans.
Robin is watching him, arms crossed, in that ‘I know something you don’t want me to know’ way that makes his skin itch.
He sighs. “Just say it.”
Robin grins. “Say what?”
“You know what.”
“Oh, I was just wondering if you were gonna make a move tonight.”
Steve groans, grabbing his jacket. “Jesus, Robin. Again with this?”
“What?” she says, following him as he grabs the store keys and heads for the back door. “I think it’s a valid question.”
“Well, I think it’s a stupid question.”
Robin shrugs, undeterred. “That’s funny, because you didn’t actually answer it.”
Steve flicks off the lights, plunging the store into dim shadows illuminated only by the neon glow from the sign outside. He turns back to Robin, exasperated. “There’s no move to make.”
Robin smirks, watching as he fumbles a little with the keys. “Uh-huh.”
“There’s nothing going on.”
“Sure, sure.”
Steve scowls. “You really think I’d make a move?”
Robin shrugs again. “I mean, yeah.”
Steve groans, shoving his arms into his jacket. “Okay, fine, let’s say hypothetically I was gonna make a move. What would that even look like?”
Robin raises an eyebrow. “Go on.”
Steve exhales sharply, shaking his head, but then—he starts talking. Slow at first, still pretending this is all theoretical, but then it starts flowing a little too easily.
“Well,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck, “first of all, I wouldn’t just spring anything on her. She’s not the type you can just, like, surprise with that kind of thing. So I’d make it seem like a regular movie night. No pressure, no expectations. Just us hanging out, watching her dumb horror movies, which—by the way—are not romantic at all, so she wouldn’t suspect a thing.”
Robin hums. “Sly.”
Steve points at her. “Exactly.”
They step outside into the cold night, their breath fogging in the air. Steve locks the door behind them, still talking.
“Then, I’d wait for the right moment. Maybe during The Thing, since she always gets way too focused on the practical effects and starts ranting about how they were done. That’s when I’d sit next to her—real casual, nothing weird. But, like, closer than usual. Just enough to see if she notices.”
Robin leans against the wall, intrigued. “And if she does?”
Steve shrugs, flipping the keys in his hand. “Then I’d play it off, act like it’s no big deal. But if she doesn’t ? That’s when I’d start testing the waters. Maybe during Sleepaway Camp , since she’s seen it a million times and won’t be as locked in. I’d stretch, put my arm on the couch behind her—”
Robin snorts. “The yawn move?”
Steve glares. “No, not the yawn move. Just an arm casually placed behind her. If she leans in, then, boom—I know she’s comfortable with it. And then,” he continues, getting into it now, “if everything feels right, if she’s not pulling away or making fun of me, then I’d make my move.”
Robin crosses her arms. “Which is?”
Steve exhales, eyes flicking upward like he’s playing it out in his head. “I’d wait for the perfect moment. Maybe when she’s talking, because she always talks during horror movies—”
Robin raises an eyebrow. “You like that she talks during movies?”
Steve waves a hand. “That’s not the point. The point is, she gets really into it, and when she’s really into something, she forgets to be sarcastic for, like, a whole second. So while she’s mid-sentence, I’d just… shift toward her, lean in a little, make sure she notices before I do anything.”
Robin watches him, interested now. “And then?”
Steve tilts his head slightly, picturing it.
“And then,” he says, voice softer, “I’d go for it. Just—slow, you know? Like, give her the chance to pull away, but hoping she doesn’t.” He shakes his head. “I wouldn’t make it some big thing, no cheesy lines, nothing rehearsed. Just… see what happens.”
Robin stares at him for a second. Then makes a face.
“Okay, ew,” she says. “Reel it in, Romeo.”
Steve blinks. “What?”
“You were getting way too into that.”
Steve scowls. “I was just answering your question.”
Robin smirks. “Oh, you so weren’t. That was not hypothetical. That was a step-by-step plan.”
Steve huffs. “It was a theoretical —”
“You definitely have thought about this before.”
Steve groans, rubbing his hands over his face. “Robin—”
“You even mapped out the exact movie timing—”
“Shut up.”
“You are so nervous.”
“I am not—”
“Hey, what are you guys talking about?”
---
You’re walking toward Steve and Robin, hands shoved into your jacket pockets, head tilted slightly in curiosity. You glance between the two of them, your eyes narrowing ever so slightly, like you just walked in on the tail end of something you weren’t supposed to hear.
Steve immediately panics. “Why are you here?”
You blink. “Uh… hello to you too?”
He clears his throat, scrambling to backtrack. “I just—I thought we were meeting at my house.”
You shrug. “Eddie’s still working on my car, so I figured I’d just come straight here.”
Steve nods a little too fast. “Right. Cool. Yeah.”
Robin, who had been standing beside him with a smirk so smug it could power Hawkins for a week, is now outright grinning. She’s practically vibrating with barely restrained laughter.
Your eyes flick between them again. “What?”
Robin doesn’t answer. Instead, she turns to Steve with a knowing smile. “Well, I’m off to my not-date . Wish me luck.”
Your brow furrows. “Good luck?”
Robin winks—not at you, but at Steve. “You too.”
Steve glares at her. “Robin.”
She just grins wider and gives him a two-fingered salute before turning on her heel and heading off down the sidewalk, leaving you standing there with an eyebrow raised.
You shift your weight onto one foot, watching her go before turning back to Steve. “Okay, what was that?”
He shakes his head way too quickly. “Nothing. Just—nothing.”
You don’t buy it for a second. But whatever that was, Steve clearly isn’t going to spill, so you let it slide. For now.
You exhale, rocking back on your heels. “Alright, weirdo.”
Steve shifts awkwardly, clearing his throat. “You ready?”
You nod.
“Cool,” he says, fumbling for his keys like his hands suddenly forgot how to function.
Without another word, you both head to his car.
Once you’re at his house, Steve pushes the front door open first, stepping inside and flicking on the lights without a second thought. You follow behind him, toeing off your shoes as the familiar silence of the Harrington house settles around you.
As usual, the place is empty.
“Where are your parents this time?” you ask, already knowing the answer.
Steve snorts, tossing his keys onto the hallway table. “No idea. They left a note on the fridge, but I didn’t read it.”
You roll your eyes, unsurprised. “So, what? Business trip? Spa retreat? Another month of pretending they don’t have a son?”
“Something like that,” he mutters, shrugging off his jacket. “Not like it matters.”
It’s not like you’ve been here a ton, but every time you have been, it’s been the same—big house, too much space, and no parents in sight. Just Steve, filling the empty rooms with music or movies, like background noise could make up for the lack of anyone actually being home.
You don’t push it. Instead, you drop your bag on the couch and walk straight to the TV, glancing over your shoulder. “Movies?”
“Yeah, yeah, I got ‘em. You set up, I’ll grab snacks.”
You flip through the stack of VHS tapes he brought home from Family Video .
“You actually grabbed all the ones I asked for?” You sound surprised.
Steve scoffs, walking past you toward the kitchen. “You don’t pay me enough to improvise.”
“I don’t pay you.”
“Exactly.”
---
Steve tells himself he isn’t nervous.
He tells himself this as he unlocks the door, steps inside, and watches as you walk in after him, dropping your bag on the couch like you belong here. Which, in a way, you do.
He’s not nervous.
It’s just a normal movie night. Just like all the others.
Except it isn’t.
Because tonight, he has a plan.
A foolproof, step-by-step, can’t-go-wrong plan—one he stupidly let Robin in on, which means there is no backing out now. She’ll ask about it later, and if he tells her he chickened out, she’ll never let him live it down.
So he’s doing this.
…Right?
This is fine. If he just acts normal, you won’t suspect a thing. He pours the popcorn, pops open a couple of sodas, and grabs a bag of chips for good measure. When he comes back into the living room, you’re already loading The Thing into the VCR.
Steve watches you from the doorway for a second. The way you move so easily in his space. The way you don’t hesitate, like it’s your house too.
And yeah. Fuck . He wants this.
He clears his throat and heads to the couch, dropping down beside you—closer than usual.
You don’t say anything.
Step One: Close the Distance.
Easy.
Done.
You didn’t call him out on it, which means he’s in the clear.
The movie starts, and you sink into it, fully focused by the time the sled dog is sprinting through the snow, the helicopter in pursuit.
Steve lets himself relax. Just a little.
Step Two: Casual Arm Placement.
He waits. Gives it time.
You’re locked into the movie, already muttering something under your breath about the brilliance of practical effects. You do that a lot—talk through horror movies, not in a bad way, but in a way that shows how much you actually care about them.
Steve listens, nodding like he’s paying attention to what you’re saying, but really, he’s timing it.
Then, casually, effortlessly, he stretches, letting his arm fall across the back of the couch.
Not touching you. Just there. Close enough to be felt but not enough to be anything.
You don’t react.
So far, so good.
Steve suppresses a smirk. See, Robin? I got this.
Step Three: The Lean-In.
This one is trickier.
It has to be subtle . Smooth.
He waits again, watches as you settle further into the cushions, legs curled up beneath you, completely lost in the movie. That’s when he shifts—barely, just enough to angle himself toward you. Just enough to close the gap a little more.
Still, no reaction.
That’s either a really good thing or a really bad thing.
He reminds himself of the plan.
Wait until Sleepaway Camp for the next move. That’s when he’d test the waters, when you wouldn’t be as focused, when he could ease into it without making it weird.
But then you glance at him, just for a second, and something about the way you look—eyes slightly narrowed, like you noticed but aren’t saying anything—makes his stomach flip.
Fuck it.
Maybe he doesn’t want to wait.
You’re completely locked in when the scene shifts to the research station, the dog curling up in the kennel with the other huskies. It’s the moment before all hell breaks loose, the moment before the thing reveals itself.
It’s perfect.
Steve watches your profile, the way your eyes flick between the screen and your soda as you reach for it.
This is it.
This is the moment.
He turns toward you, leans in slightly, ready to shift even closer.
And then, of course, everything goes to shit.
Disaster: The Soda Incident.
He reaches for his drink at the exact same time you do.
Your hands knock together.
Oh, fuck.
Cold liquid spills all over your shirt.
You gasp, jerking upright as the icy soda soaks through your clothes.
“Shit—”
Steve freezes. Stares. His brain short-circuits.
This was not part of the plan. Not even close.
“Fuck—hold on—” He scrambles to set his drink down, moving fast like he can somehow reverse time and undo the absolute catastrophe he just caused. “Shit, shit, shit. I—I’ll grab a towel—just—shit—hang on!”
He bolts up so fast he nearly knocks over the popcorn bowl, tripping over the coffee table in his rush.
You’re just sitting there, stunned, dripping soda onto the couch, blinking at him like you can’t believe what just happened.
The movie keeps playing in the background, oblivious to the fucking disaster unfolding in real life.
Steve disappears down the hall, heart pounding, and he knows—
Yeah.
This definitely didn’t go according to plan.
---
You sit there, staring down at yourself, blinking at the damp fabric clinging to your chest.
What the hell just happened?
One second, you were watching the movie, minding your own business, and the next—Steve fucking Harrington managed to dump an entire soda all over you like some teenage rom-com protagonist who can’t keep his hands to himself.
Except this isn’t a movie, and Steve is currently gone, having bolted from the room like the place was on fire.
You exhale, peeling the wet fabric away from your skin, grimacing at the way the cold sticks to you. From somewhere in the house, you hear the telltale signs of Steve running around in a panic. Footsteps pounding up the stairs. The sound of a cabinet slamming. A muffled curse. Footsteps back down the stairs, faster this time, followed by another thud and another round of cursing.
Then silence.
You sigh, shifting uncomfortably, and just as you’re about to get up and find a towel yourself, Steve comes jogging back into the living room.
He’s got a hand towel in one hand and a shirt in the other, looking a little too disheveled for someone who was gone for all of thirty seconds.
“Okay, here—” he starts, reaching out with the towel.
And then he stops.
You blink at him. He blinks at you.
Because, yeah. If he was actually going to clean you up, that would mean touching your chest.
Steve goes bright red. “Right. Shit. Here—just—take it.”
He thrusts the towel at you, along with the shirt, and you grab them both, giving him a look.
“Yeah, genius. Didn’t really think that one through, did you?”
Steve groans, dragging a hand down his face. “I was panicking!”
“No shit.”
You push yourself off the couch, the wet fabric sticking uncomfortably as you shift. “Gonna go change.”
He nods quickly, eyes locked very purposefully on anything but you as you walk past him and down the hall toward the bathroom.
You shut the door behind you and sigh, shaking your head.
Steve had been weird all night. Fidgety. Kind of jumpy. Not normal.
And this? This had to be a new record for him in terms of absolute dumbassery.
You grab the bottom of your shirt, pulling it off with a wince, already shivering slightly as the air hits your skin. Then, you look at the shirt he gave you.
It’s not one of his polos or his sweaters—it’s a T-shirt, old and worn, with the faded logo of the Hawkins High basketball team across the front.
You snort. King Steve in his prime.
The fabric is soft, smelling like detergent and him, and when you pull it on, it’s tight. Not uncomfortably so, but enough that it stretches a little over your chest, fitting snug around your torso in a way that most of your own shirts don’t.
Great.
You shake your head and step back out, making your way to the living room.
Steve is at the VCR when you return, swapping out the tape for Sleepaway Camp , his back to you.
He glances over his shoulder when he hears you come in, eyes flicking down to his shirt on you before darting back up to your face.
“Uh,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck. “Sorry. Again.”
You shrug. “It’s cool, this is how most guys try to get me out of my clothes.”
Steve chokes.
Like, actually chokes.
“…Okay,” you say slowly, watching him. “That was a joke.”
Steve shakes his head so fast you think he might snap his own neck and you narrow your eyes. Something is off with him. But you let it slide, stepping back toward the couch as he finishes setting up the movie.
When he sits down again, he leaves a little more space between you this time, but you don’t comment on it. The movie starts, the opening credits rolling, and as the familiar music kicks in, you shake your head.
Steve Harrington is acting weird as hell tonight.
---
Steve is reeling.
He never fucks up like that.
Sure, yeah, maybe he’s been in a bit of a dry spell lately. Maybe he hasn’t had as many dates as he used to. Maybe he’s been selective (Robin’s word, not his) about who he flirts with. But when he does?
This is the part he’s good at.
The easy charm, the confidence, the effortless way he makes a girl laugh and then smoothly inches closer—that has always been his thing.
But this? This was a fucking disaster.
It has to be a sign that this was a bad idea, that Robin got into his head and made him think there was something here when there wasn’t.
Because if there was, he wouldn’t have botched it so badly. He wouldn’t have dumped a fucking drink all over you like a nervous wreck. Wouldn’t be sitting here now, stiff and awkward, trying way too hard to act like nothing happened.
He flicks a glance at you, at the way you’re curled up on the couch, adjusting yourself in his old Hawkins basketball T-shirt.
And—fuck.
The thing about that shirt?
It was his from junior year.
Which means it used to fit him.
Which means, on you, it’s tight .
Steve swallows hard and yanks his gaze back to the screen before his mind can wander any further.
Platonic. Just friends, Harrington. And friends don’t look at their friends’ boobs in a too-small shirt and think about—
He shoves the thought down so hard it practically leaves skid marks in his brain.
Instead, he focuses on the movie.
Sleepaway Camp isn’t a great distraction—it’s weird, and dumb, and kind of awful in the best way—but it’s what’s on.
You talk through it, like you always do, making the occasional joke, sometimes pointing out a particularly bad effect or cheesy dialogue.
Steve answers, strictly platonically.
He ignores any comment that could be vaguely sexual, even when you joke about the guys’ ridiculously short shorts or when you outright laugh at the worst attempt at seduction in cinematic history. Normally, he’d engage—he’d throw something back, tease, maybe flirt just for the hell of it.
Tonight, though, he forces himself to keep it neutral.
Because the more he thinks about what almost happened—the way he was about to go for it, the way he was about to shift even closer—the more his stomach twists.
The movie ends, and Steve is way too quick to jump up.
“Want another drink?” he asks, already halfway to the kitchen.
You nod, stretching as you get up to swap the tapes. “Yeah, sure.”
Steve heads to the fridge, grabs the handle, and—
---
You’re kneeling in front of the VCR, sliding My Bloody Valentine into place, when you hear Steve’s footsteps behind you.
“No more soda,” he announces like it’s a death sentence, hands perched on his hips. “I got, uh—water, orange juice, milk—”
You pause, turning to look at him. “Milk?”
Steve throws his hands up like that’s somehow your fault. “I don’t know, I’m just listing shit. We’ve got juice boxes if you wanna feel like a kid again.”
You roll your eyes, but the second he says it, an idea sparks in your head. You glance at the TV, then back at Steve, then at the couch, where the remnants of the soda disaster still linger. Tonight’s already off the rails, so why not lean into it?
“Why don’t we just make it a drinking game?”
Steve blinks, caught off guard. “What?”
“Come on, we’ve done drinking games before.”
“Yeah, but that’s when there’s more people.”
You narrow your eyes, tilting your head slightly. “And?”
Steve opens his mouth, then stops. He looks at you, thinking, probably trying to come up with a reason why that matters, why it’s somehow different when it’s just the two of you. But he doesn’t have one. Instead, he lets out a slow sigh, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Yeah, okay, I guess that doesn’t actually matter.”
You smirk, victorious, and push yourself up from the floor. You don’t know why he’s hesitating. It’s not like this is some big deal. It’s just a stupid drinking game to go with a stupid horror movie on a stupid holiday. It’s a way to make the night a little more fun, a little less whatever the hell this has been so far.
Steve still looks skeptical, like he’s waiting for some reason to say no, so you press on before he can talk himself out of it.
“We’re both alone on Valentine’s Day,” you say, watching his expression carefully. “Everyone else is out on their dumb dates, drinking their dumb fancy wine, eating overpriced chocolate, being all lovey-dovey. And we’re here, watching horror movies and trying not to spill anything else on my shirt.”
Steve lets out a quiet laugh through his nose, shaking his head.
Encouraged, you keep going. “For once, we don’t have to deal with interdimensional bullshit, no creepy government guys, no nightmare monsters from hell. Just a normal, boring, stupid romantic holiday that we’re stuck spending alone.”
He huffs, crossing his arms. “So, your grand plan is to drink through the pain?”
You shrug. “We deserve a night of dumb, normal young people shit.”
It’s only when you say it out loud that you realize how true it is. You’ve spent so much of the last couple of years dealing with things that no one your age should have to deal with. Near-death experiences, government cover-ups, missing people, watching friends suffer and not being able to do anything about it. It’s been a lot, and maybe it’s selfish, but you just want one night that feels easy.
Steve is quiet, considering. You step closer, just enough to reach out and clap a hand on his shoulder, half in encouragement, half in challenge.
“Come on, Harrington. It’s one night. What’s the worst that could happen?”
For a second, he just looks at you. There’s something in his expression you can’t quite place, something unreadable behind those brown eyes. But then he sighs, running a hand through his hair before shaking his head.
“Fine,” he mutters. “I’ll go grab something my parents won’t miss.”
---
Steve comes back into the living room, bottle in one hand, glasses in the other, expecting to see you on the couch where he left you. Instead, you’re sitting on the floor, pillows propped against the coffee table, legs stretched out, completely at ease like this is just how movie nights are supposed to be.
He stops short, eyeing you with confusion. “What are you doing?”
You glance up at him, completely unfazed. “It’s more fun this way.”
Steve squints. “Sitting on the floor ?”
“Yeah.” You pat the space next to you, smirking. “Come on, try it.”
He sighs but doesn’t argue, lowering himself down beside you, setting the bottle and glasses on the floor. His knees knock against yours briefly as he gets comfortable, and for some reason, that small, barely-there contact sends a little jolt through him. He ignores it, grabs the bottle, and tilts it in your direction.
“Alright,” he says, twisting off the cap, “rules.”
You hum in thought. “Okay, obviously, we drink every time someone dies.”
“Obviously.”
“Drink every time someone says ‘Valentine.’”
Steve snorts. “This is My Bloody Valentine , we’re gonna die.”
“That’s the point.” You grin and hold up a finger. “Drink when someone does something really fucking stupid, like running upstairs instead of outside.”
“Classic.” He pours your glass, then his, setting the bottle aside. “What about drink if you get spooked?”
You narrow your eyes. “You just want an excuse to make me drink more.”
He grins, bumping his knee against yours. “Gotta level the playing field somehow.”
You roll your eyes but don’t argue. “Fine. And… drink if there’s a sex scene.”
Steve raises an eyebrow. “You just made that one up.”
“Maybe.”
“You so did.”
You smirk. “It’s still a good rule.”
He shakes his head, but his smile lingers as he lifts his glass. “Alright, to terrible horror movies and drinking games.”
You clink your glass against his, and with that, the game begins.
Two-thirds of the way through the movie, and you’re both comfortably tipsy. Not drunk, but warm, relaxed, feeling looser, laughter coming easier.
At some point, Steve stopped noticing when your knee brushed against his. He didn’t think much of it when your arm pressed against his as you reached for your glass. Didn’t acknowledge the way you shifted slightly, leaning more into him as you adjusted yourself on the pillow, both of you sinking deeper into the comfort of the moment.
But now?
Now, he notices.
His focus snaps to the way your thigh is flush against his, how your elbow nudges his arm when you gesture toward the screen, still mid-rant about the practical effects.
And suddenly, it sobers him up just a little.
Not enough to stop enjoying himself, but enough to remember.
The plan.
The one he’d botched spectacularly earlier when he panicked like a fucking idiot and spilled soda all over you. He should have waited for the right moment, should have followed through exactly the way he told Robin he would.
But maybe this is the moment.
He watches you as you talk, completely wrapped up in explaining why this particular death scene is underrated. Your eyes are bright, hands moving as you emphasize certain points, and you’re not filtering yourself the way you sometimes do. This is that window—where you’re passionate, where your guard is down, where you aren’t trying to be anything other than exactly you.
And you look so fucking pretty.
His chest tightens.
He doesn’t think. Doesn’t overanalyze. He just goes for it.
His hand moves before he can stop it, reaching up to cup your face, fingers brushing along the curve of your jaw. Your words falter, breath catching, eyes flicking to his in startled confusion, but you don’t pull away.
And then he’s leaning in, closing the space between you, pressing his lips to yours.
It’s soft, tentative but steady, warm in a way that has nothing to do with the alcohol. His thumb strokes lightly along your cheek, grounding himself, savoring the way your lips part slightly, like you weren’t expecting this but aren’t against it either.
You don’t pull away.
You don’t pull away.
It’s a slow, lingering kiss, the kind that feels like it’s meant to happen, like it’s been waiting to happen. The kind that shifts something in the air, something unspoken but undeniable.
When he finally leans back, just enough to look at you, he searches your face, breath unsteady.
And for the first time all night, you’re speechless.
---
You stare at him.
For a full minute, maybe longer.
The kiss still lingers, warm on your lips, your brain lagging behind, trying to catch up with the reality of what just happened. Steve watches you like he’s waiting for something—maybe for you to freak out, maybe for you to say something, anything.
And eventually, you do.
“What—” You shake your head, eyes narrowing slightly. “What the hell was that?”
Steve opens his mouth to answer, but before he can, you cut him off.
“Wait, no. You’re drunk.”
“I’m not—”
“You’re drunk, and you’re feeling weird about Valentine’s Day, and you were caught up in the moment—”
“I—”
“We’ve been drinking, and you’re—”
“Jesus, would you let me—”
You’re still talking, half-rambling, voice layered with that dry disbelief you always get when shit blindsides you, and Steve, clearly realizing that you’re just gonna keep going, shakes your shoulder a little. Not hard, just enough to jolt you.
You stop. Blink.
He exhales. “I did it because I wanted to.”
Your stomach does something stupid and traitorous at that, but you shove it down, tilting your head slightly, giving him the flattest expression you can manage.
“Okay,” you say. “Well. Now you have.”
Silence settles between you. Not uncomfortable, but something. You’re still way too aware of the fact that his hand was on your face, that his lips were on yours, that you let him do it.
And worse—you kissed him back.
Steve shifts beside you, turning his attention to the movie, but his voice is softer when he says, “For the record, you kissed me back.”
You don’t respond. You just keep watching, your heart pounding way too hard for something as simple as sitting next to him. Your brain spins, trying to process the entire situation, trying to put all the little pieces together, trying to figure out what the hell you’re supposed to do with this new information.
And then, for some reason, you look at him.
Like, really look at him.
He’s still staring at the screen, trying to act normal, and to the average person, he probably looks normal. But you know him better than that. You’ve spent too much time around him not to pick up on the small tells—the way his jaw is a little tighter than usual, the way he shifts slightly like he’s trying not to fidget, the way his fingers tap lightly against his knee. He’s trying to keep his cool, trying to play this off like it isn’t a big deal.
And now, you can’t stop noticing things.
The two beauty marks on the side of his neck, just under his jaw. The way the glow of the TV flickers against his skin. The shape of his mouth, the way his lips look softer in this lighting, the way his eyes shift when something catches his attention on screen. The way his arms look in that stupid polo shirt, his biceps just defined enough that—
Nope. Absolutely not.
You shake yourself out of it, tearing your eyes away, trying to breathe properly again.
And then—like puzzle pieces clicking together—your brain finally catches up. The closeness, the arm around the back of the couch, the spilled soda. You turn to him, narrowing your eyes, and before you can stop yourself, you smack his arm.
He flinches, looking at you, completely caught off guard. “What the hell?”
“You planned this.”
Steve’s face does this weird thing—half shock, half shit, I’ve been caught —before he recovers, shaking his head. “What? No.”
You stare at him.
“Steve.”
He doesn’t say anything and you raise an eyebrow, waiting.
He shifts, clears his throat, and you see it all over his face—he’s absolutely about to try and deflect.
And then, just as he’s about to speak, you say his name again.
“Steve.”
And just like that, he freezes.
---
Steve feels cornered.
And not in a bad way, necessarily, but in a ‘shit, there’s nowhere to run and I’ve already been caught’ kind of way. You’re looking at him, waiting, eyes narrowed, arms crossed, the full force of your glare locked in.
And Steve—Steve does what he does best in moments of extreme pressure.
He rambles.
“If I planned this, it wouldn’t have gone so disastrously,” he starts, gesturing wildly like that’ll somehow help his case. “Like, this is the part I’m usually good at, okay? The flirting, the—moves, the whole making-it-seem-effortless thing. You know, the part where I don’t look like a complete idiot and spill an entire drink on you like I’ve never spoken to a girl before.”
You don’t say anything. You just raise an eyebrow, completely unimpressed.
Steve exhales, shaking his head. “And, honestly? It’s kind of your fault.”
That makes you blink.
“My fault?”
“Yeah, because you—you throw me off!” He gestures at you like that’s an obvious answer, like that explains anything. “You’re always making these stupid jokes, and you’re too quick, and you make fun of me before I can make fun of myself, and you never let me get away with anything. It’s—”
His mouth keeps running. His brain catches up about three sentences too late.
“—it’s really annoying, except it’s not, because I actually kinda—”
Steve stops mid-sentence, everything catching up with him at once.
Fuck.
You tilt your head, waiting.
He swallows, rubbing a hand over his face. “Jesus Christ, I’m an idiot.”
You hum. “Yeah, but I already knew that.”
Steve lets out a short, almost nervous laugh before dragging a hand through his hair. “Okay, listen. That wasn’t—I didn’t mean it’s actually your fault. That was—I’m sorry, that was just me being defensive, and that was a dick thing to say.”
You nod slowly, clearly waiting for the rest.
He sighs, looking at the ceiling for a second before bringing his gaze back to you. “Robin put this thought in my head. I mean, she’s been putting this thought in my head. Since, like, the second I met her at Scoops.”
You don’t look surprised.
He shakes his head. “But if I’m being completely honest, it was already there.”
That’s when you stop him.
“Of course she did.” You sigh, rubbing your temple like this is something you’ve been expecting.
Steve frowns. “Wait—what do you mean of course she did?”
You hesitate, shifting your weight slightly before reluctantly admitting, “Because she’s been saying the same things to me for months.”
Steve blinks. That is not what he expected you to say.
It takes him a second to process, but when it clicks, when he realizes what you just admitted, his mouth stretches into a slow, growing grin.
“Wait.” He points at you. “Are you saying you like like me?”
Your entire face shifts into the most unamused expression he’s ever seen.
“Did you just say like like ?”
“Yeah.”
You narrow your eyes. “How old are you?”
“Okay, what about fancy me?” He wiggles his eyebrows. “Sweet on me?”
“Oh my god.”
“Got a little crush on me?”
“Steve.”
“Are you pining over me?”
You groan, shaking your head. “I refuse to answer if you keep saying it like that.”
Steve leans in slightly, tilting his head. “Not answering kinda is an answer.”
You look at him, lips pressing into a thin line, but you don’t pull away.
And that’s when something in him shifts.
For once, he stops talking. Stops trying to play it off, stops trying to dance around it, stops deflecting. He just watches you, watches the way your expression flickers—sharp one second, a little softer the next, like you’re not quite sure where this is going.
And then, quieter than before, he says, “How do you actually feel?”
You inhale. Exhale. Then, with the kind of reluctance that makes his heart beat just a little faster, you start listing.
“Despite the fact that you’re ridiculous.”
He grins.
“Despite the fact that you’re a little too cocky sometimes.”
“Objectively false.”
You roll your eyes.
“Despite the fact that you’re an idiot who spilled an entire soda on me.”
Steve huffs a laugh. “Yeah, that was bad.”
You pause, hesitating, but then, softer, you add, “Despite all of that… I still like being around you. More than I should.”
Steve swallows. “Yeah?”
You nod once. “Yeah.”
Something settles in his chest.
He exhales, gaze flicking down to your lips briefly before meeting your eyes again, smirking a little. “So, theoretically,” he starts, tilting his head, “if I wanted to kiss you again, would I still be at risk of getting punched, or…”
You roll your eyes, but there’s something there now, something warmer, something less guarded.
So Steve doesn’t wait for an answer.
He just leans in and kisses you again.
This time, it’s different.
The first kiss had been tentative, careful, almost testing the waters. But this one—this is something else entirely. This one is lingering, deeper, his hand sliding along your jaw again, the warmth of his palm grounding you as his lips part against yours.
The shift is slow but undeniable—the way his fingers slide back into your hair, the way he tilts his head just enough to deepen it, the way your hand moves, resting lightly against his chest, gripping the fabric of his shirt like you’re steadying yourself.
Steve barely has time to think—barely has time to do anything other than sink into you—before the next thought crosses his mind.
Holy shit. This is actually happening.
He smiles against your mouth and feels the corner of your lips curve upward.
When you finally lean back, it takes a second for his brain to catch up, his eyes opening, his breath coming in unsteady, shallow waves. He stares at you, the way the glow of the TV dances against your skin, the way the softness in your eyes matches the one in his chest, the way his hands are still cupping your face, his fingers threaded through your hair.
He exhales, letting his forehead rest against yours.
And then, without thinking, he says the first thing that comes to mind.
"Wanna be my Valentine?"
You snort.
You literally snort.
"That was so lame," you mutter, pulling back enough to look at him, laughing a little. "Seriously, Harrington?"
He shrugs. "So?"
"So, you missed it. Valentine's Day technically ended like an hour ago."
"Yeah." Steve pauses, thinking. Then, "We can do better next year."
Your stomach does a fucking somersault.
"Next year?"
"Yeah." He's got that dumb, boyish grin again, the one that makes his eyes bright and that's simultaneously too much and not enough. "I can take you out. Somewhere nicer than just my living room, somewhere where we're both not covered in soda. We can dress up, make a real thing of it. Maybe dinner, maybe a movie, maybe the stupid arcade."
"You hate the arcade."
"Not the point."
You huff a quiet laugh. "And what about the year after that?"
"Ah, see that's the year we get really crazy. We take a vacation, maybe road trip to Chicago, rent a hotel room for the weekend."
"A hotel room, huh?"
"Yeah, and we can have a fancy dinner at a nice restaurant. One with tablecloths and candles and everything."
You narrow your eyes slightly, watching him. "So, basically, you're planning a bunch of cliche, classic Valentine's dates."
"Basically."
"Like we're a couple."
"Like we're a couple." He nods.
"And you want to keep doing this for years?"
"And I want to keep doing this for years."
Steve looks so certain, so unbothered by the fact that he just threw out the words 'for years' like it's the easiest thing in the world. Like it's a promise, a guarantee. And when you see the way his gaze softens, the way his eyes flick between yours, the way his expression goes a little more serious, you realize—
That's exactly what he's doing.
You swallow, looking at him, and then, slowly, you ask, "Why?"
"Because I'm an idiot."
You roll your eyes.
"Because I'm an idiot," he amends, "who's liked you for way too long, and I've just been trying not to notice it."
"Steve—"
"And because I know I've made a lot of mistakes, okay?" He pauses, exhaling a little shakily. "Like, a lot of mistakes. But the biggest mistake would be not going for this, not seeing where it could go."
You shake your head, your heart beating way too fast.
"Steve," you say, "we've only kissed twice."
"Yeah, and?"
"And... it's been twenty minutes."
"And?"
You let out a small, exasperated laugh, looking at him like he's insane. "It's been twenty minutes."
"Listen," he starts, and the fact that he's using the exact same tone of voice as you, the one where he's trying to argue, the one where he's determined and stubborn and refusing to back down, makes something in your chest shift.
He reaches for your hands, lacing his fingers with yours.
"There is a lot of shit we've had to deal with. A lot of crazy, unbelievable shit. But this is something I know, okay? This is something I'm sure about. So, maybe we go into it too fast, and maybe we take our time, and maybe we try a few things and figure out what works. But I don't care."
Steve squeezes your hands gently.
"We've spent the last three years dealing with monsters and evil Russians and upside-down hellscapes, and the second I got to kiss you, the second I got to actually act on the thing I've wanted for way too long, I didn't think about any of that. I didn't think about the fact that the world is probably gonna keep fucking us over. I didn't think about all the reasons why this wouldn't work or why we shouldn't be doing this. I didn't think about the risks or the bullshit. I didn't even think about the fact that I'm supposed to be spending Valentine's Day alone. I just..."
He stops, his breath catching a little.
"I just felt it. The way it made me feel. The way I just want to keep doing it, again and again. And the fact that I know, I fucking know, we're gonna have to deal with a lot more weird shit before we can even begin to be normal, I'm not worried. Because at the end of the day, if you're there, then everything else doesn't matter."
And with that, the last of your defenses crumble.
You stare at him. At this ridiculous, self-proclaimed idiot, with his perfect hair and his pretty smile and his dumb, charming confidence.
At Steve Harrington, the guy who used to be the most annoying, egotistical prick you'd ever met.
At the guy who's become one of the best people you've ever known.
At the guy who is, somehow, right now, here, saying all the right things.
"Shit," you mutter. "You're making it really hard not to fall in love with you."
Steve grins, and then, the absolute bastard, leans in.
"Then stop trying."
He kisses you again.
You feel it everywhere—in the way his mouth slides against yours, warm and inviting, the way his fingers tangle into your hair, the way he pulls you closer.
Your fingers curl into his polo, gripping tightly as you shift closer, and Steve groans against your mouth, his hands sliding to your waist like he can’t not touch you now. The warmth of your body pressed against his is enough to make him lightheaded, the scent of your shampoo mingling with the faint whiskey on your breath making his head swim.
His hands start to move without thinking, fingertips tracing over the fabric of your shirt—his shirt—feeling the heat of your skin underneath. You gasp softly, and Steve nearly loses his mind right there. He has to pull back, has to take a breath before he does something completely reckless, but even then, his forehead stays pressed against yours, his breath mingling with yours.
“Bedroom?” His voice is rough, barely above a whisper.
You nod. “Yeah.”
That’s all he needs.
Steve gets up first, pulling you with him, hands firm on your waist as he steadies you. You both stumble slightly, tipsy but nowhere near drunk, laughing under your breath as you navigate through the house. It’s not far—just up the stairs, past the stupid family portraits his parents insist on keeping up despite never being here.
And then, finally, his room.
The door clicks shut behind you, sealing you both in, the soft glow from outside casting long shadows across his walls.
And then, Steve is on you again.
He doesn’t hesitate this time, doesn’t second-guess himself as his hands find your face, thumbs brushing over your cheekbones as he kisses you like he’s been waiting to do this forever. Like he’s scared it might slip away if he doesn’t hold onto it.
The backs of your knees hit the edge of his bed, and you sink down, pulling him with you. Steve follows, pressing you down gently, settling between your legs as he leans in, his lips never leaving yours.
His hands start to wander, slow, exploring—mapping you out like he wants to memorize every dip and curve. And god, you’re soft. So warm, so right against him.
 His mind is already racing, imagining every place his lips could follow, every inch of skin he could trace, every way he could make you melt into him.
Your own hands roam, sliding down his chest, fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt. Steve leans back, just enough to let you pull it off, the cool air hitting his skin making him shiver. His chest is exposed, his hair a little messy, his arms flexing slightly as he props himself up, and the sight is enough to make you pause.
Steve smirks, catching you.
But instead of teasing, he leans down, kissing along your jaw, his voice low and soft as he murmurs, "My turn."
Steve teases the hem of the shirt he let you borrow. You sit up a little and he starts to lift it up over your chest, but it's a tight fit and it gets stuck. You're about ready to have him just rip it off at this point, but when he speaks, his voice is soft and gentle and his breath is hot on your skin and all the words die on your tongue.
"Hold your arms up, okay?"
You obey, raising your arms and letting him slide the shirt off. He tosses it on the floor and you shiver at the sudden cold, but it's quickly forgotten as Steve looks down at you.
"Fuck."
The word slips out of his mouth before he can stop it. His eyes drink you in, trailing over the swell of your breasts in your bra, the smooth skin, the curve of your waist, and suddenly, he's overwhelmed.
"So you don't think I'm like, a total perv, I didn't think that shirt would be that... snug when I grabbed it. So, uh, sorry, but I'm also not complaining, because you have a really great—shit, what was I saying?"
"Shut up, Harrington," you mutter, grabbing his neck and pulling him in for a kiss.
He chuckles against your lips, then shifts.
Steve starts slow, his mouth tracing a line down the side of your neck. He pauses, sucks at the hollow of your throat, feels the way your breath hitches when his teeth graze over the delicate skin. Your fingers card through his hair, nails lightly scratching his scalp, and the sensation is enough to make him shudder, a quiet groan slipping out.
Then, he moves lower, lips pressing a kiss in the space between your breasts. His hands trace over the tops of them, then down, cupping you, feeling the weight, thumbs swiping along the edge of your bra. You sigh, arching into him, and it takes every ounce of control not to lose it right there.
Steve leans back, eyes meeting yours, silently asking permission.
You nod, and he reaches behind you, unhooking your bra with a little more ease than expected. When he slides it off, his eyes flick down to the newly exposed skin, and you swear you hear his breath hitch.
Then, his mouth is on you, and all rational thought leaves your brain.
Steve knows his way around a girl's body.
But right now? With you?
It's like starting from square one.
Because right now, everything is heightened. Every noise you make, every little gasp and moan, every hitch of your breath, every brush of your skin against his. It's enough to drive him absolutely insane, enough to make him lose focus, and when he feels you shift underneath him, when he sees the way you look up at him, his mouth still wrapped around your nipple, sucking gently, he feels that familar tug in his stomach.
It's that same feeling—the one he can't shake, the one he can't get rid of, the one that has him thinking thoughts like 'fuck, she's so pretty' and 'holy shit, I really like her' and 'god, this is gonna ruin me, isn't it?'
But right now, none of that matters.
Right now, he can't stop.
You're arching into him, fingers buried in his hair, tugging lightly, and the sound that slips out when he scrapes his teeth lightly is enough to make his cock twitch. His mouth trails lower, over your stomach, kissing along your hipbones, and he's moving faster now, impatient, hands sliding to the button of your jeans.
He hesitates, just for a second, looking up at you.
"Is this okay?"
You nod, swallowing, and Steve's hands move. He undoes the button, slides the zipper down, and hooks his fingers into the sides. He doesn't wait for a response this time—he yanks, hard, and the sound that slips out is one part surprised, one part pleased, and it's so fucking hot that he can't stand it.
Once they're off, he looks at you, taking a second to breathe, to appreciate how fucking gorgeous you look, laid out on his bed in nothing but a pair of panties. Then, his gaze trails lower, and he sees the wet spot on the fabric, and it hits him.
Fuck, you're soaked.
He exhales sharply, his eyes flicking up to yours. "Holy shit."
"Yeah." Your voice is breathy, a little embarrassed, but there's something there, too. Something needy, something desperate.
"Do you have any idea," Steve says, leaning over you again, "how long I've wanted to see you like this?"
His hand slides down, palming you through the fabric, and when he rubs lightly, your entire body shudders.
"See, this?" He rubs a little harder, the fabric of your panties sliding against your clit. "This is my new favorite thing."
You gasp, arching into him.
Steve keeps going, rubbing you through the thin layer of cotton, watching the way your hips lift into his hand. He presses a kiss to your jaw, then to your neck, sucking lightly, and then, without warning, he slides off your panties and his fingers are back on you. 
"Fuck," he groans, feeling the heat, the wetness coating his fingers. "So fucking wet, baby."
His voice is lower than before, the pet name slipping out without thinking, and it takes every ounce of self-control not to start fucking his fingers into you. Instead, he teases, sliding his fingers, feeling the slickness, the way your breath catches when his thumb circles around your clit.
And then, he dips a finger inside.
You let out a low moan, a sound that has his cock twitching again, and the urge to just bury himself in you and fuck until neither of you can breathe is almost overwhelming. But he doesn't. He doesn't rush it.
Instead, he keeps going.
"This is what I'd think about," he says, adding a second finger. "When I would lay here, at night, after I was done talking to you."
You don't say anything, too focused on the feeling, but he knows you're listening. He kisses down your neck, fingers moving slowly, curling inside of you, his palm brushing over your clit, and then, when he adds a third finger, the stretch is enough to make your brain short-circuit.
"I'd be in bed, alone, and all I could think about was this." His voice is rougher now, the way you're squeezing around his fingers driving him insane. "What you would look like, how you'd feel, how you'd taste."
Steve picks up the pace, thrusting a little harder, his fingers curling, finding that spot, and the whimper that escapes is the hottest fucking thing he's ever heard. He's fully hard now, his cock straining against his jeans, and he has to shift, has to grind his hips against the mattress to take the edge off.
"And now," he murmurs, "I get to find out."
Steve presses his lips to yours, swallowing the moan as he fucks you with his fingers. He can feel the way your body starts to tighten, the way you squeeze around him, the way your breath gets unsteady, and he knows you're close.
"God, look at you." He curls his fingers again, watching the way your hips rock into his hand. "So pretty, baby. So perfect."
His free hand comes up, brushing over your nipple, and that's all it takes.
You gasp, clutching onto his shoulder, your head falling back as the orgasm rips through you.
And then, Steve has an idea.
Before you can even process, he's sliding lower, his lips moving, pressing open-mouthed kisses along your stomach, then down, until he's settled between your legs. You can feel the heat of his breath, and then, his tongue drags along the inside of your thigh, and the realization of what's about to happen sends a jolt through you.
You barely have time to process before his mouth is on you, and fuck, the sensation is overwhelming.
"Oh, god," you gasp, and your hands fly down, tangling into his hair, trying to anchor yourself.
He doesn't go slow this time. He's not gentle or teasing. He just licks a long stripe over your pussy, his fingers parting you, his tongue swiping through the wetness, savoring the taste, and when his mouth finds your clit, his lips closing around it, you have to fight to keep your hips still.
Your entire body feels like it's on fire, the pleasure sharp and white-hot.
Steve is relentless, his tongue moving expertly, swirling around your clit, alternating between hard, firm strokes and light, teasing ones. When he sucks, his tongue flicking, you cry out, a string of curses slipping out as your fingers tighten in his hair.
He groans against you, the sound muffled, his fingers gripping your hips tightly, and then, you feel it.
One hand slides under your thigh, his arm hooking under your leg, pulling it up and over his shoulder. His other arm wraps around the other, holding you down, his hand spreading you, keeping you wide open for him.
Then, Steve goes harder.
He doesn't give you time to breathe, doesn't let you recover. Instead, his tongue moves faster, licking, sucking, his face buried in you, his grip on your thighs iron-tight. The sound is obscene, filthy, wet and messy and fucking perfect, and when his teeth scrape over your clit, your back arches off the bed.
"Steve," you pant, trying not to lose it completely. "I'm—I'm gonna—"
He hums, like he already knows, and the vibrations are enough to send you over the edge.
Your entire body seizes, the pleasure shooting through you like lightning. You don't even know what's happening, if you're crying out or moaning or gasping or a mix of all three, but you can't focus, can't breathe, can't do anything other than let it rip through you, white-hot and fucking amazing.
By the time it finally fades, the aftershocks rolling through you, you're completely breathless. Your legs feel like jelly, your fingers are numb from gripping his hair, and you're positive that every nerve in your body is fried.
When Steve pulls away, sitting up, you look at him.
Your eyes are wide, your chest heaving, and it's only then that you notice the lopsided smile.
"Did I kill you?"
"Shut up," you mutter, your face flushing.
Steve's smirk widens. He crawls up, leaning in, his lips brushing against yours. "You taste amazing."
You're too weak, too fucked out to respond. All you can do is look at him, his mouth slightly parted in a loose smile, his lips shiny. And the fact that you're the reason, the fact that he was just between your legs, eating you out, is enough to make another pulse of warmth spread through your stomach.
Then, Steve looks down at you, his smile turning softer.
"Hey."
"Hi."
"You good?"
You exhale. "Yeah. Just... a little lightheaded."
"Sorry," he says, not sorry at all. "I'll try not to be so good next time."
He grins in a way thats too sweet, too genuine, and then, he presses a kiss to your forehead. He shifts, pulling back, and you're about to ask what he's doing when he reaches for the nightstand. He opens the drawer, digging around, and you're about to ask him why he's suddenly acting so weird when he holds something up.
A condom.
Steve glances at you, and his face does that thing—that half-shy, half-smirking thing—like he's still trying to play it off.
"We don't have to," he says. "If you don't want."
You hesitate.
It's not like you've never thought about it. You've imagined him more times than you'd ever admit, late at night, under the cover of darkness, when it's just you and your own mind and the things you'd like to do. But now the guy is currently in front of you, giving you the biggest puppy dog eyes of all time, as if he didn't just give you the best orgasm of your life with his tongue a few minutes ago.
Your heart stutters, and it's not because you're scared or nervous.
"Yeah," you say. "Okay."
Steve blinks, and then, he grins.
"Yeah?"
You roll your eyes. "Yes, asshole."
"Hey." He points a finger at you. "No name-calling while we're having sex."
You snort, and the laugh that follows makes him smile wider.
Then, without thinking, he leans down and kisses you.
The kiss is soft, gentle, almost hesitant, but you can taste yourself on his lips and it's enough to send a shockwave through your system. You wrap an arm around his neck, pulling him closer, and the second his bare skin presses against yours, the weight of him settling between your legs, the hardness of his cock pressing against your thigh, your pulse jumps.
Steve reaches for the button on his jeans, fumbling slightly, but once he's kicked them off, he's on you again. His body is warm, the skin soft under your hands, and his mouth finds yours, his kiss a little more desperate now, like he's trying to ground himself, his fingers sliding into your hair, nails scratching lightly against your scalp.
When you shift underneath him, spreading your legs, his breath hitches, the friction enough to make him grind into you. You bite back a whimper, arching into him, and when you reach between you, palming him through his boxers, his cock twitches.
"Off," you say, tugging the waistband. "Now."
Steve huffs a laugh against your mouth.
"Demanding."
But he doesn't hesitate.
He sits back, just enough to pull them off, and the second they're gone, you swallow.
Fuck.
Steve Harrington is a lot of things.
Gorgeous. Annoying. An absolute idiot.
But right now, you're noticing a whole new set of adjectives.
He's hard, the tip flushed and swollen, and he's a little bigger than you were expecting. He's lean and fit in a way that has heat pooling in your stomach, the muscles in his arms flexing slightly as he reaches for the condom, and the sight is enough to make you a little dizzy.
"I can practically hear you thinking," he mutters, leaning in again, his mouth finding your jaw. And then, there's that stupid, cocky smirk. "Like what you see?"
"Absolutely not," you deadpan.
"Uh-huh." Steve's grin widens, but instead of saying anything else, he tears the wrapper open, rolls it on, and then, he's leaning in, bracing his weight over you. "You're cute when you're lying."
You feel the head of his cock brush against your entrance, and when he leans down, kissing you softly, his hand finds yours.
He tangles his fingers with yours, pressing them down into the mattress, his thumb tracing over the back of your hand.
"Still okay?"
His voice is different now. Quieter, softer.
And something about it makes your chest ache.
"Yeah."
"Tell me if it hurts."
You nod, and then, slowly, Steve pushes into you.
He goes slow, inch by inch, his gaze locked with yours. It's intense, overwhelming, and you can't tell if it's the fact that his eyes are so fucking pretty, or the way his fingers lace with yours, or the way his breath stutters a little when he bottoms out, but whatever it is, you feel it everywhere.
Steve holds still, letting you adjust, his chest rising and falling unsteadily, his eyes a little more focused now, and you know he's holding back.
"You can move," you whisper, squeezing his hand.
He exhales, nodding, and then, he does.
The first few thrusts are slow, experimental. He's careful, gentle, and the feeling of him, stretching you open, the way his hips meet yours, the way his hand finds your thigh, pulling it up and wrapping it around his waist, it's all so much.
But when Steve looks at you, his hair falling into his face, his eyes dark, the words slip out before you can stop them.
"Harder."
His rhythm stutters. He blinks.
And then, the corner of his mouth tugs upward.
"Yeah?" He pauses, the smirk spreading. "Are you sure? Cause you might not be able to walk tomorrow—"
"Oh my god, Harrington."
"You know, I think we're past the last name thing at this point."
You groan, burying your face in his neck. The laugh that escapes him is so fucking dumb and beautiful and perfect, and then, without warning, he slams into you.
"Jesus," you gasp, your body arching, fingers clutching onto his shoulders.
"Still not my name," he quips, and before you can respond, he keeps going, his hips snapping into yours, and the noise that slips out when his cock hits a certain spot is obscene.
It's different, being with Steve.
With anyone else, you're always a little guarded. Always a little reserved. Always trying to keep yourself in check, make sure your reactions aren't too exaggerated, make sure you're not too loud, not too much, not too needy. But with him, it's different.
There's none of that.
Right now, the only thing in your head is him.
The scent of his cologne mixed with sweat, the softness of his hair, the warmth of his skin, the sound of his voice, low and breathy and perfect. His hand slides over your breast, cupping you, his thumb rolling over your nipple, and the pleasure shoots straight through you.
And then, he leans down, his lips brushing over the shell of your ear.
"God, you're gorgeous." He hikes your leg higher, angling deeper, and the drag of his cock inside you is almost enough to send you over the edge. "So beautiful."
You whimper, the sound high and desperate, and his lips press against your neck.
"Could stay here forever," he murmurs, and then, his teeth graze your skin. "Inside you. Just like this."
"Steve," you gasp, your head falling back.
His name on your lips does something to him.
It's almost instinctive, the way his body moves, the way he fucks into you, his hips grinding against yours. His fingers dig into your thigh, his other hand moving down, sliding along your hip, gripping your ass, and the way you react is perfect.
"Just like that, baby."
Steve keeps talking, his mouth running, whispering the most ridiculous things, like how he loves the way you feel and the way your nails drag over his shoulders and the way your breasts bounce when he fucks into you. And every single one of his stupid, filthy compliments has your body tensing, the heat building in your stomach.
Your legs are around his waist, the heels of your feet pressing into the small of his back, and when he leans forward, shifting the angle, his mouth finding your breast, his tongue swiping over your nipple, the sound that escapes is embarrassingly loud.
"Steve," you whine, the sound needy and desperate.
"I know," he murmurs, his breath hot against your skin. "Fuck, I know."
Steve knows what he's doing. And the fact that he's got you wrapped around his finger, completely under his spell, makes him feel like he's on top of the fucking world.
His hips start to lose their rhythm, his movements getting a little sloppier, and when you start to tighten around him, the whimper he lets out is downright sinful. He leans back, his eyes meeting yours, and when his fingers find your clit, his touch firm, the feeling is enough to send you over the edge.
You don't even try to stop the moan, the sound slipping out, and then, the words.
"Don't stop." Your nails drag down his back, fingers curling, and Steve nearly loses it right there. "Steve, please. Don't stop."
"I won't." His voice is rough, the sound making you squeeze around him. "I won't."
And then, his mouth finds yours, and the second your lips part, the second his tongue slides against yours, the sensation is too much.
"Steve," you pant. "Fuck. Steve."
The sound of his name, over and over, coming out like a plea, is too much.
It's the combination of everything—the way your body arches, the way you clutch onto him, the way you squeeze around him, the way his name slips out.
"Shit," Steve groans. "I'm gonna—"
"Me, too," you gasp, and when you squeeze his hand, the orgasm ripping through you.
He chases after you, the pleasure slamming through him, his hips stuttering as he comes, his forehead falling against yours. Your names spill out, mixed together, and then, the room is filled with nothing but the sound of ragged breathing, the scent of sweat and sex and his cologne mingling together, the faint buzz from the TV downstairs drifting through the room.
By the time Steve catches his breath, his head is spinning.
His limbs feel like jelly, and his arms shake slightly, his body half-collapsed on top of yours, the feeling of your bare skin against his making his pulse race. He doesn't pull out, doesn't move, just lets his forehead rest against yours, the sound of your breath the only thing keeping him tethered.
After a few moments, his brain finally catches up.
He leans back, watching you.
Your face is flushed, lips slightly parted, the light sheen of sweat on your skin making you glow. And the expression on your face—the blissed-out, relaxed, fucked-out expression—makes his stomach flip.
"Shit," Steve whispers.
And then, before he can stop himself, before he can think, he says, "I love you."
The words are quiet, a little shaky, and the second they slip out, his breath catches.
Your eyes go wide.
Fuck.
He didn't mean to say it. Not now. Not like this.
The thought comes, unbidden, and then, he's hit with the realization.
Oh.
That's exactly what he meant.
Because it's true.
It's always been true.
Steve has said those words before, a handful of times, and each time, it never meant the same thing. The first time was in eighth grade, during a game of truth or dare. It was a joke, an inside-out version of the words that had everyone laughing. The second time was to a girl he dated briefly during sophomore year. He wasn't in love with her, not really, but the way she reacted, the way her entire face lit up, made him wish he was. And the third was to Nancy, when he was convinced it was true. That it would be true. Forever.
But the second it leaves his mouth, the second he says it now, the weight of the words settles over him.
It's heavy. Solid. Like the kind of thing that can't be taken back, the kind of thing that changes everything.
And when he looks at you, when he sees the way you stare back, the look in your eyes making his chest ache, the words hit him again.
He loves you.
"Fuck," Steve says, exhaling sharply. "Sorry, I didn't mean—I shouldn't have said—"
"You love me?"
Your voice is soft. Small. A little incredulous.
"I..." He pauses, looking at you.
You don't say anything, and Steve doesn't know if he's ever felt this fucking terrified in his entire life.
And then, slowly, your lips curve into a smile.
"You love me," you repeat, the smile spreading.
"Yeah."
"Like, love-love?"
"Oh, so ‘love love’ is okay to say, but ‘like like’ is childish?"
You ignore his call back. "Like, 'I want to hold your hand in public and fall asleep on the couch together and wake up with my face buried in your hair and spend the next ten years wondering what took us so long' love?"
The corner of his mouth tugs upward.
"All of the above."
Your heart jumps, and without thinking, you lean in, kissing him softly. When you lean back, Steve's eyes are a little wider, and the hope in his expression is almost painful.
"Do you...?"
You grin, and the second the words slip out, you know they're true.
"Yeah. Iove you too, Harrington."
"Hey," he starts, tilting his head. "I told you, we're past the last name thing."
"Fine," you say, rolling your eyes. Your face softens as you meet his gaze, and you move your hand to fix some of the hair stuck to his forehead. "I love you, Steve."
He's never loved his name more.
"So," you start, "where does that leave us now?"
"Well, according to my calculations, you are currently in my bed, naked, and I am stil insi-" he pauses, realization hitting him. "Oh my god. I told you I loved you for the first time while I was still inside of you. What kind of maniac does that?"
"Is this what love is like for you?"
"Oh shut up," Steve says, smiling, and finally, he pulls out.
He rolls over onto his back, staring at the ceiling, and then, without looking, he reaches for your hand.
"How about," he says, squeezing lightly, "we sleep, and then, tomorrow, we can talk about all the ways we're going to tell our friends and make them suffer?"
You snort, looking over at him. He's taking the condom off, tying it off, and then, he tosses it into the trashcan beside the bed. He turns back, shifting closer, and the fact that you're both naked, in bed, post-coitus, isn't lost on you.
"And the day after that," he adds, pulling you closer, "we can spend the entire day here, naked, in this bed, and we'll figure out a new plan."
"A new plan?"
"Yeah."
He's so close, his nose brushing against yours, and when his eyes flick between yours, there's a look there. A promise.
"We can make a new plan every day," Steve says, his voice a little lower, "for as long as you want."
And then, he kisses you, and it feels a little like the world shifts.
It's a small shift, just enough for everything to click into place.
Because now, everything is different.
Everything is new.
It's a promise.
And when Steve pulls away, when his eyes meet yours, when he smiles, a little crooked, a little sleepy, a little in love, you can't help but smile back.
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e-vay · 22 days ago
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Why do you think Amy should get her own year(or not) and What would be your Year of Amy wish-list
There should be a Year of Amy because Amy is the best, of course!
Seriously, I think it would be so beneficial to have a Year of Amy. When I hear from people who tell me they used to hate Amy, it turns out a lot of them had just misunderstood her character (either by their own doing or by some of her prior portrayals). I think it would be a great opportunity to really let her character shine and be able to establish everything she represents in a clear way so SEGA can set the record straight. It's been really encouraging to see Amy included in the lineup more often lately, but personally I still say it doesn't happen enough! (I'm greedy when it comes to my girl, it's just how I am lol). Plus, I think it'd be good to highlight the feminine representation that's in this franchise. This fictional world is full of so many awesome characters, including strong and powerful women, and I think sometimes that gets overlooked when there's so much emphasis on 'The Big Three' (Sonic, Tails and Knuckles).
If I'm shooting for the stars, my wishlist would include Amy having her very own game! I love getting to play as her and she was my favorite part of the Frontiers DLC, and I feel like the story that happened in Frontiers is a great setup for any of the members of Team Sonic to have their own game. OR! If it's too much to ask for Amy to have her own game, I'd be happy with a follow-up game to Frontiers where you get to play large portions of the game as each member of Team Sonic individually. I loved how you got to play as everyone way back in Sonic Adventure, and I'd love to get that experience again now that their characters have developed in different ways.
I'd also love to see some animated shorts with her. Whether it's super-detailed, story-driven animations like SXSG Dark Beginnings or something simple and cute like Chao Tales, I just want to see more! Animation is incredible and I love that the Sonic Team creates a lot of animated shorts; it would be even better if they revolved around my favorite hedgehog!
ALSO! I want more accessories/merch. Amy loves shopping, so this would be an awesome opportunity to sell some skirts/dresses, cutesy mini backpacks (I know there are a couple of Loungefly bags out there but I want more!!! Especially more artistic designs instead of the same character art they've been using for decades), wallets, baking sets, etc. I want to buy ALL the cutesy things!
I don't know that Year of Amy will ever happen, but hey, maybe 2027 will be Year of Amy since that's when Sonic 4 comes out! Either way, every day is Amy Day in my heart!
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mashiraostail · 10 months ago
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Hii! can i request your take on how wyll would react to a partner that is just ridiculously into him? like, they blush and giggle everytime he makes a joke, anytime they talk to him in camp they are def staring at his stomach, they cling to him at every opportunity. that kinda thing.
i LOVE your writing btw
this how i am with Wyll in my play through he goes "well met" and im kicking my legs and giggling
sorry i've been kinda MIA turns out being an adult with responsibilities like lowkey takes up a lot of my time.
Wyll doesn't like to flatter himself, he's the Blade of Frontiers that's special enough. He doesn't also have to be the apple of every wayward adventure's eye, he doesn't have to be anything particularly special to look at. So he doesn't, flatter himself that is, he doesn't immediately think that he's the reason his newest traveling companion is fluttering and blushing and stumbling in every direction. He figures you're just like that, excitable and always happy to see a familiar face in such a treacherous situation. He decides that he's more than happy to be that familiar face for you. It had been that way since your first meeting at the grove, you had reached out and rested a hand on his bicep as you invited him to join your camp and something about the twinge of color in your face and the way you struggled to hold his gaze made him feel glad to have been invited, he accepted easily. He briefly wonders if perhaps your constant watching and nervous fluttering comes from a place of distrust, distrust in his eye, in his pact, and in his history, that concern didn't last long.
As you traveled together it only became worse, the less clothing he had on the fewer syllables you could choke out at him, all of his jokes were the funniest things you'd ever heard and if you had any say in the matter you would always walk beside him. He didn't mind, actually the opposite, and he wondered when it might be time to start flattering himself with the notion that you would enjoy more than just friendly conversation.
He can feel your eyes on him, which isn't unusual, but lately it seems to be more. What could have been mistaken before for an excitability about or a desire for friendship and a familiar face was slowly morphing into something more tangibly lustful. He could feel your eyes on his stomach, gliding down the wiry trail of hair below his navel, darting between the protrusion of his hipbones, down the V of his shirt collar and over the veins in his bicep. When you spoke your eyes fluttered between his face and his body and if it were anybody else he wondered if he would feel as flattered as he did right now.
Often he finds himself looking for a reason to go to you, maybe he likes flattering himself or maybe he just likes you. He'll bring you books to read on relevant topics like mind-flayers and mind-flayer transformations, areas you're going to travel through, enemies you'll have to fall and so on. When the day is out and you all settle in at camp he's usually looking for you first of all.
"There you are-"
You try to not go so dutifully to him, you know your oogling is obvious, you'd feel more guilty if his distaste of it were clearer but you couldn't get a read on him and you couldn't help yourself at the best of times. It was especially hard to get a read on him when he seemed to be looking for you almost as often as you were thinking of or looking at him.
"Wyll." You're sitting by the camp fire, back against a log when you see him walking towards you, or hear him call out for you.
"I was looking for you." He stops barely a foot away, looking down at you. You instantly feel heat rise up your chest, you can feel it pool between your collar bones and climb slowly up your neck, the color burns your cheeks.
"You were....looking for me?" And gods help you, you try to look at his face, his face is as lovely as the rest of him but at night you get to see his uncovered arms and stomach and you can't help but desperately want to see it all.
"I found something for you today, it slipped my mind earlier but I saw it in my pack and remembered you." He's holding a book up, "I hope I can blame this forgetfulness on our unwanted passengers." He taps his temple, "otherwise I fear what will happen to me in my old age."
The worst part of it all is you're extremely capable, Wyll's watched you fell hundreds of enemies by now, and that's in the past week alone. But somehow all he had to do was crack a light joke and you were giggling and smiling at him like a school child. Though he didn't seem disdainful of it, he actually looked rather proud, so the embarrassment about it was reserved for you alone.
"It's a book about the Underdark and the Myconid colonies there. I'm not sure what it was doing in that empty tavern basement but...I guess my old habits can still come in handy sometimes." He shrugs and holds it out to you, "I figured you would like to read it."
"Thank you for thinking of me." You're sure he can see the wash of color over your skin darken, especially so when he reaches out his pointer finger to brush against your hand as you take the book from him.
"Don't thank me, it's easy." He shrugs and procures an apple and a dagger, though he's probably had them the whole time and you only tore your eyes away from his chest to notice now. "Room for one more? I can share this apple as repayment." He nods at the empty spot beside you and tries not to laugh as you flounder to sit up and make room for him.
"What's gotten into you lately?" He's still standing as he begins to peel the apple with the slightly dulled blade, pushing it occasionally against the pad of his thumb, he drops the scraps for the cub and Scratch who come dutifully to him, "you seem jumpier than usual."
What had gotten into you was Wyll's incessant need to test the water with you. He'd sit by you and your thighs would touch and you would be able to feel his breath on your shoulder when he spoke; he'd offer to take your bowl after dinner and cover your hand with his when he did, and he would laugh at you, and rest his hand on his stomach where he must know you would look. He'd watch you preen and purr at the attention, and you would go to him like a moth to a flame and he would celebrate the victory of it as if he hadn't had you all along.
"I'm just...exhausted." You rub your face to sell the lie, and it was certainly a lie, you couldn't feel tired around Wyll only jumpy, clingy and nervous.
"Really?" He frowns, "shall I leave you then?"
His frown was enough to make your chest and stomach bloom with excitement, he wanted to stay with you.
"No! I can't sleep so early.... I'll be up all night. I'd like your company."
You watch the subtle flex and give of his bicep and forearm, illuminated in the firelight, as he rounds the edge of the dagger across the apple's skin, the vein on the back of his hand gently protrudes as the blade of the dagger presses against his thumbprint. Every twist of the dagger brought his biceps to life, the steady strength of his arm coaxing the apple's skin to surrender in slow, deliberate ribbons; and you genuinely aren't sure what to do with it all. You wanted to feel his biceps ripple under your hands, watching the practiced ease with which he moved made you wonder what else he was well practiced for.
"We should have somebody paint you a picture. when we get to the city." He slices of a bit of the peeled apple and offers it to you, "it would last you longer."
"A painting wouldn't do you justice." You take it from him as he sits down, you hear him kiss his teeth and laugh through his nose.
"Careful, you won't like me with a big head. What are you trying to butter me up for, exactly?" He slices himself a cube of the apple and despite the shame anyone else would feel at his previous words you can't help but watch as his teeth sink into the apple with a crunch. You watch the flex and pop of his jaw as he chews and the bob of his Adam's apple as he swallows. If he can tell you're watching he doesn't seem to mind.
"Nothing in particular." You shake your head at him and accept another small chunk of the fruit he was cutting.
"Ah." He twirls it in his hands, "but you are trying to butter me up then?"
"I don't know if I would call it that, I just can't help myself."
"You know, at first I worried you just didn't trust me." He offers a chunk of apple to the cub and scratch before throwing it into the distance, they run after it and he grins, "but now I'm worried I'm becoming vain, thanks to you."
"Vain?" You pique, "why's that?"
"I can tell you're always looking, and I'm preening like a peacock for you. Dunno why, you'd caught something the second you met me, didn't you?" He nudges his shoulder against you before going on, the flush rising again to your face was all the answer he needed, "I'll tell you the truth, if you'd like to hear it, I aim to live by the standards of a gentleman. The kind of man my father would have been proud to raise. I like to do things properly, slowly, deliberately." He sets the dagger down, "but, when we met, I could feel you looking at me at camp that night, the way you talked to me, and preened for me, it felt good. I felt like I wouldn't have minded to throw away those standards, to enjoy you the way you seemed to enjoy me."
"So why didn't you?" You sounded almost petulant, and you were looking up at him with so much earnest that he wondered again what would be so bad about throwing caution to the wind.
"Just because I wouldn't have minded to do something doesn't mean it would be the right thing to do. I am glad to take my time with this, no matter how difficult I find it at times. It's rewarding to...enjoy flattering myself with your attention while I consider, with time, all the ways I'd like to return it. You deserve much more than a lustful, needy, late night tryst, as wonderful as it may sound in the heat of the moment. You deserve all the careful time and consideration I can muster the will power to afford...I only want you to know that I understand you, and I feel the same way. When the time is right, and when I can give you the sort of night you deserve, you'll have me. I promise."
If you were to ask Wyll he would tell you he honestly had no idea how he kept his head from growing to big to fit in camp. Gods, you were practically purring in his lap and all he had offered up were some honeyed words and close contact. He'd never tell, but maybe it was all a bit self indulgent because gods did he love watching you bloom for him, he didn't mind letting you push the envelope, put your hands on his chest, let them wander a bit, he had more than enough will power to deny himself in the end and it would all be worth it when he finally found the right time to have you, or at least when he finally ran out of will power.
He wouldn't mind waiting until then anyways, not when you gave him enough attention to hold him over for a life time.
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baronessvonglitter · 1 year ago
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he's got you on a pedestal, and me in his arms
Frankie Morales x bff!Reader | WC: 3.6K
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Summary: you've known Francisco "Frankie" Morales your whole lives. Not even his marriage kept you from being in his life and in his bed. Then one fateful weekend everything changes and you have to find the will to give him up.
WARNINGS: 18+ Only! Mature and Explicit, brief mention of underage sex (both parties are minors, 14-15 years old, and is consensual), childood friends, friends to lovers, friends with benefits, established relationship, cheating, idiots in love, reader and Frankie are the same age, mention of infertility (reader), fluff and angst, midlife crisis, camping sex, oral sex (f receiving), biting, creampie, oh and some sleepover antics of the nonsexual kind as well.
Author's Note: this is a re-upload. The original had a link to another site to read it, then I thought, why not just post here, dummy? This takes place before the events of Triple Frontier, and I'm a sucker for the whole "they knew each other all this time but only realized they're in love too late" kind of story. Also, bonus points for anyone who knows where the title of this story is from!
FRANKIE MORALES MASTERLIST | FULL MASTERLIST
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You and Frankie stand side by side in the middle of the campsite, admiring the newly-erected tent that will serve as your shelter for the weekend. "You did that in a fifth of the time it took me." He shakes his head. "I'm both impressed and angry. And of course I was watching your ass the entire time." To emphasize this he gives your ass a little grab.
"I know," you reply smartly with a smirk. You grab a bedroll in each hand. "Did you remember to bring your Hello Kitty blanket?"
Smirking back he chuckles and takes the bedrolls from you and places them inside the tent. "Damn, I knew I forgot something." A late evening chill sends you both inside. Frankie quickly unrolls the beds and you lay on them, close together, staring up at the see-through roof, gazing at the stars. "C'mere," he motions you to join him. You scoot next to him and rest your head on his chest as he wraps his arms around you protectively. "This is nice, huh?"
"It's peaceful," you whisper. The inky blackness of the sky is only disturbed by the faraway specks of light that the stars give off, before the clouds move to finally reveal the moon.
"You ever just get tired of the constant stress of the world and just want to disappear for a little while?" Frankie sighs contentedly, leaning back with you nestled on his chest, his face illuminated by the gentle moonlight.
"All the time," you whisper back. "But only if I get to disappear with you."
He holds you closer, and when he presses a kiss to your temple you feel his lips curve into a smile. "Sometimes I just wish things could be like the good ol' days when we were kids. No worrying about, well, anything really. Just having fun and not having to care about all the other bullshit." He takes a deep breath and exhales, and you listen to the beat of his heart as you rest your head on his chest. "I think I'm only truly happy when I'm with you."
It's not the first time he's ever said this to you, this man you've shared most of your life with, who you've known since childhood and grown up to do everything with. Only now when you hear these words you're reminded of the ways your lives have forked off into different directions. Your responsibilities have changed, and when you raise your eyes to meet Frankie's you're tempted to just take him away from the woman you convinced him to marry. But there's one small catch that halts such a decision on your end.
He nudges you. "I thought you fell asleep there. You got so quiet. That's not like you."
"You're imagining things." You try to push your worrisome thoughts away.
"You know if you fall asleep first, I'm obligated to get out my Sharpie and draw a dick on your face."
You bury your face into his chest and laugh. It's one of those little traditions you carry out, ever since you were young and innocent enough to sleep over at each other's houses. "I guess I'll have to do my best to stay awake." You kiss his cheek.
Frankie pulls you in closer, sighing contentedly. "I think I really needed this.." his voice trails off and his breathing becomes deep and even until he's on the brink of falling asleep. "This is nice," he whispers, eyes closed.
This.. the yearly camping trip you take, a tradition that started that first year of his marriage, the year that separated your paths. This allows you to reconnect.
At one time there was nothing you didn't do without the other: you graduated kindergarten in the same class, learned to ride bikes, and Frankie even defended you from the school bully, earning a black eye for his efforts. You had your first kiss together at a friend's birthday party, playing Seven Minutes in Heaven. You fumbled towards each other in the dark of a closet, and once your lips met there were fireworks. It was one of those rare moments when you realize the person you're supposed to be with is already your best friend.
When you were teenagers and spending the night was no longer appropriate, you stayed down in his basement until his parents were asleep and you practiced kissing on the couch, trusting each other as you went a little further each time, until the night it happened and, unable to control yourselves, you were suddenly half-dressed, trying to keep quiet as your bodies came together. It was a blur of warm flesh, wet kisses, and a twinge of pain that was soon overshadowed by growing need. You didn't cum that first time, but Frankie definitely did, and after weeks of worrying you were relieved to find you weren't pregnant. Years later you found out that you would never be able to be a mother at all.
But that new chapter had begun, and so you spent nearly every spare moment together fucking. He'd sneak into your bedroom or you'd drive out to lover's lane and get hot and heavy in his truck. You were a couple, unofficially, always together. Even your families expected that one day you'd get married and have a family. But your paths diverged after graduation, when he joined the military and you chose to go to school across the country. You stayed in touch, called when you could, but time and distance kept you apart. You were both too reticent to talk about the future, and when you both started to see other people it became apparent that your childhood love had come to an end.
You kept in touch sporadically, typically when you were both in town visiting your families. And you'd hook up, as if time hadn't created any distance between your hearts. When you got your first apartment after college Frankie offered to help you move, and by the end of the day, despite the aches and pains after carrying boxes up two flights of stairs and arranging furniture, you still found time to christen every room, fucking like rabbits against any and every flat surface of your new place. Frankie had stamina like you wouldn't believe, but he always insisted it was only with you.
You were on-again, off-again, trying to kickstart your separate careers. But your friendship remained even when you dated other people. There were a few times when you found yourself in his bed when you were someone else's girlfriend, or vice versa. There was no malice or guilt involved. You just sought each other out because it was natural. Even when he got engaged you never lost faith that you would lose him. You liked his wife-to-be, Melissa, and even got along with her. But the night before she and Frankie were to get married, it was you he spent the night with, worried he was making the wrong choice. You'd convinced him, after he'd eaten you out from behind then fucked you hard, spread-eagle on your bed, to marry her. The next morning you stood at the altar with both of them, looking on and smiling, still feeling the drip of his cum from the night before.
What would Melissa think if she knew? Does she even have a grain of suspicion when you drive away with her husband to be unreachable for a whole weekend? This year everything is different, and maybe as you pulled away from their driveway, as she waved and blew kisses, she was gloating inside with the secret knowledge that she's the most important woman in his life now.
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Frankie looks so serious in his sleep and you stifle your giggles as you draw on his face with eyeliner.
He stirs from his sleep. "Did you just draw a dick on my face?"
"No, you're dreaming," you lie, continuing to vandalize him with crudely drawn dicks as you straddle him.
"What the fuck? Stop that!" He laughs hysterically as he tries to push you off. "Babe, I said stop! There's no way those things are even proportionate!"
"Art is subjective! They don't need to be proportionate!" You're barely able to catch your breath from laughing so hard.
"Oh yeah? Subject this!" Frankie rolls over onto you, grabs your eyeliner pen and scribbles onto your face with it, drawing a huge dick and balls on your forehead and your cheeks. You let him, your eyes shut tight, trying to stay still though your body shakes with laughter. "Oh man.. look at you." He leans forward admiring his handiwork. "You look like a little dick-covered goblin. It's hilarious."
You ask for your mirror and he finds it within your duffel bag, then you both take turns checking out each other's artistry, giggling like kids. "Is it too much to ask for a few veins on these guys?" He grumbles.
"You have to earn dick veins. See this one right here? That's you. I drew it from memory. See the slight curve?"
Your smirk turns him on. "Anything else I have to earn? Maybe a wet nap to wipe all this away?"
"I've got something wet you can have.."
With a barely suppressed growl Frankie leans down and kisses you, tongue ravishing your mouth as your moans intermingle, and your limbs wrap around him as they've done hundreds of times. His heated kisses travel down your jaw, your neck where he leaves little love bites, marking you as his to whatever dumbass you decide to flirt with once you part ways after the weekend. Desire blooms, pink to hot red under your skin as he rips open your shirt, sending buttons flying in every direction. Jesus, you're already soaked for him, but he's taking his sweet time as usual, leaving you to want, to beg, to whimper. It's no use. He nips at your breasts, leaving love bites on them as well, little spots of magenta on the tops of your soft tits, before giving attention to your nipples, sucking one while plucking the other, feeling them harden so nicely in his mouth and under his savvy touch.
"Where the hell'd you learn all this patience?" you mutter, biting your lip as his tongue swirls around your navel, while he adeptly pulls down your shorts and panties together.
He glances up then laughs. "Even with those dicks drawn on your face, you're still so hot." He pays attention to the little tattoo of his name on your hip bone, giving it a gentle bite as well, feeling his blood surge when you sigh, arching your hips up, then laves it with his tongue to soothe it. Then he dips his head between your thighs, keeping one hand on your breast and the other on your thigh as he softly swipes you with his tongue, tasting you, moving his tongue in slow circles as he holds you down, knowing you like to be dominated in small ways like this. You taught him everything he knows about eating pussy, from those first fumbling attempts in high school, you guided him on what you wanted and how you wanted it. Now he knows it by heart, but he still listens to your body's signals, to your shuddering sighs and high-pitched screams when he's doing it right.
Tongue tickling your clit, then gently biting your swollen pussy lips, bringing out a sharp, stifled cry from you. "Don't pretend you don't like it, baby," he coos, his breath whispering over your slick folds. "Come on, let me hear you scream.."
Your thighs threaten to close around his head but he's strong enough to keep them wide apart, effectively restraining you as you grind against his face, offering up that honey he can taste even in his dreams. "Come on, baby.. come on.." he urges you, almost tantalizing you, and before you can put forth a smart response the dam breaks, and you feel it in the weakness of your knees before the fire within surges and makes you cry out, fucking his face until you're completely satisfied.
Not missing a beat, he flips you over and lifts your ass, admires your sopping cunt before running his finger along your wetness and offering it to you to suck off. You moan around his finger as he starts to fuck you from behind, spreading your thighs wider so he can see where you're joined, watch the smooth, rhythmic movements as you back up on him, your ass cheeks rippling with each bounce. "Fuck me.. fuck me.." you wail as your fingers clench the fabric of the bedroll beneath you, it's upholstery scratchy against your face as Frankie pushes your shoulders down and keeps your ass up.
"Jesus Christ!" he moans, and the rest of what he mumbles is completely inaudible as he speeds up, knowing the rhythm you like, the rhythm you need in order to cum, and his hands are magic on your clit as he rubs you from beneath.
"Frankieeee!!" His name turns into a moan, punctuated by the slap of his balls thwacking against your cunt. Your hair is wrapped around his hand, and he pulls you up as you support yourself on your arms. He presses in deep and your eyes widen from how he grazes your cervix, careful not to cause you any pain. Your arms wobble as a series of shocks originate deep within your cunt, growing and spreading as you start to cum. Frankie feels the swell rise within you and grunts, pushing harder because that's what's going to send you over the edge. You cry out in unison as you clench around him possessively, keeping his cock there where it belongs, in the first woman he ever fucked, in the only woman he measures everyone else against. He spills himself inside you, fingers indenting themselves on your hips, leaving small bruises, marking himself on your skin.
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"We're a disaster," he moans later, catching his breath next to you.
"But we're fun."
"I don't know," he sighs. "It just feels like I've been living a mundane kind of life the past several years."
You raise yourself on an elbow, studying the solemn look on his handsome face. Lately in your texts and emails he's been downhearted, and now you're seeing it in person. His words pull on your heart. "We just fucked and now you want to get sad on me?" Then you smirk and press a soft kiss to his lips as you gently trace his graying beard with your fingertips. "Hey, listen to me: there is nothing mundane about Francisco Morales, okay?"
His smile is wide and he kisses your fingertips. You've put a bandage on his heart. "You're right, I think what I meant was, I've just been in this rut, this monotonous cycle, just doing the same thing over and over."
"Yeah. It's called Middle Age. Population: us." You take some makeup wipes from your bag and you both wipe away each other's dick artwork.
"Hey, no need to remind me I'm not that young anymore," he laughs, trying not to make a face as you wipe his face clean. "I don't wanna be the guy clinging to his youth. I just miss our younger days."
You sigh, settling in against him. "Those were the best times.. stealing my mom's car to go to parties, playing pranks at school, skipping class to make out in your truck.."
"They say high school will be the best years of your life and we laughed it off, calling it bullshit. Maybe they were onto something."
You playfully smack his shoulder. "Don't say that! I'm in my prime."
Frankie chuckles and kisses your forehead. "Sorry, I'm just in my feels tonight."
So are you, and you can't help the next words that come out of your mouth. "Sometimes I wonder how it would have turned out for us if we'd gotten together like everyone thought.." In the distance you hear thunder rumbling.
He shifts position slightly. "I'd like to think we actually would've stayed together. We've known each other forever. That kind of bond doesn't just go away." You're both quiet, lost in those dangerous thoughts of 'what-if' when he says, "You know I'd make you my wife if it weren't for Melissa, right?"
"Don't say that. Melissa's a good woman for you. She doesn't put up with your bullshit."
He continues as if he doesn't hear you, or chooses not to. "I'd leave her for you. I just don't want to continue this charade that we don't mean anything to each other, that our calls and our weekends together are dust in the wind, meaningless."
"Nothing between us is meaningless.. never has been," you whisper as your heart threatens to beat its way outside of your body, to fly straight into Frankie's chest and merge with his own red, throbbing heart. "Frankie, I think your judgment is just a little clouded.."
"Do you know how many times I've laid in bed, thinking about you? How many times I wish my wife was you?"
He starts an ache inside you, one that only he can provide the remedy for, but now things have taken a serious turn. You've never defined your relationship, you always just were. "Frankie, stop. Don't say that. Melissa's one of the few females I actually get along with." You tell yourself if you keep saying her name it'll humanize her, keep her as the victim of the story, the heroine, the protagonist. Whatever will help label you as the villain, because what else would anyone call you if they knew what you were doing?
"I don't take stock in what people say. We can always go back. We can't get back the time that was taken away from us, but we can claim the future for us." He takes a deep breath. "I'm leaving her. I've made up my mind. I'm going to tell her when I get home." He sees the look of shock on your face and he mistakes it for something else. "I've been thinking about this for a long time. This is what I want. And I know it's what you want. You know what? Fuck it, let's just run away together. She'll take the hint. I don't love her the same as I love you. She has to know this by now. Let's just start our lives together. Just go where we want. We can have that." His hands are gripping yours now, and the way he talks is manic, as if he's barely holding onto the last shred of his sanity.
You're shaking your head, going against your weaker nature. "If you'd asked me this a year ago I would've said yes immediately.. I'd follow you to Hell, you know that." Your heart breaks as you consider your next words. "Frankie, you can't leave Melissa, and we can't continue this.."
A pause. "Why the hell not?" You can hear his heart breaking in his voice.
You struggle with what little honor you have left. You promised Melissa you'd keep her secret. But you've also been betraying her trust for years. Your heart is heavy with the choice you have to make.
"She's pregnant," you answer quietly. And the rain starts, a light patter on your tent.
Frankie stares at you as if you're speaking gibberish. "I don't.. wait, what did you say?"
You groan inwardly. It's bad enough you had to say them once, now he needs them repeated. "Frankie, you're going to be a dad.. Melissa gave me the news yesterday.. she wanted to be the first to tell you."
He processes this, and you watch the expressions that cross his face: disbelief, calculation, understanding, then realization. You commit to memory the look of joy that's etched across his features. "That explains so much," he says, a smile growing on his lips. "That's so.. wow!"
Your own heart begins to break. It should be you with the life within you, but it's not. It never will be. You try to be happy for your best friend. As of now, that's all he'll ever be to you. There are so many things you want to say to him in this moment, but you swallow each and every word so that they're stopped in your throat and you choke on them.
When all is said and done, you can't be the number one girl in his life anymore. In fact you're already losing him. He hasn't even brought up the idea of running away with you. That small window of time you once shared has run out. And you have to learn to be okay with it.
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At the end of your weekend together, you drop him off at his home where his wife waits out front, a beatific smile on her face. Your stomach twists as you try to keep from your heart turning bitter.
Now that you're both faced with the reality of your separate futures, Frankie turns to you before he exits, and an emotion crosses his face to which you can't put a name. "That can't really be it for us. Nothing has to change between us," he says, a last-ditch effort to keep you.
"We're always going to be friends," you tell him, a tear in your eye that you hope he doesn't see.
"We've never been just friends."
"But I've been selfish in keeping you around.. and I'll never be able to give you what she's giving you."
It's quiet in the car, and there is rarely quietness between you.
"I love you," he says, and you don't doubt it for a minute. You grab hold of his hand.
"I love you too," you tell him. "It's their turn now."
You watch from your car as he reunites with his wife, the intimately joyful conversation they have, after which Frankie picks her up and embraces her happily. It's both the worst kind of pain and the best.
dividers by @firefly-graphics 👑
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josgalaxy · 5 months ago
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MY PERSONAL RANKING OF BALDUR'S GATE 3 COMPANIONS FROM WORST TO BEST (spoiler alert!!!)
Of course this is just my humble and personal opinion, let me know if you agree! Trigger warning, I have a lot to say:
11. The Emperor
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I know he's not technically a companion, but let's be honest, he is with Tav since day one. Let's just say this one is a shady bitch. From the get go I didn't trust the Emperor, and going forward with the game my suspicions were confirmed. Not only he literally exploited everyone that could help him reach his goals, but he shows no true loyalty to anyone but to himself.
Proof that the Emperor is just a gaslighting bastard: 1. Lied to the whole party by changing his appearence to seem more trustworthy 2. Killed his dragon bestie Ansur that was just trying to find a cure for him. 3. Kept a Gith prince imprisoned to exploit his power and was willing to eat his brains out to get more powerful. 4. Tried to sleep with Tav and secure their trust (btw, a kinky bitch). 5. LITERALLY SIDED WITH THE BIG BAD NETHERBRAIN as soon as Tav was not okay being manipulated anymore (like babygirl, you spent the entire game telling me we had to kill that thing and now you're ending up siding with it? Excuse me??)
So, yes, The Emperor deserves to rot and I was very happy to fry that calamari.
10. Minsc (and Boo)
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So, I haven't played bg2, so I don't have that kind of attachment to the old characters. I don't mind that he is juts this brainless hunk, and I like the fact that he carries a cute hamster with him. He kinda reminds me of Kronk, and I love Kronk so he gets a few points for that. But other than some muscles, dumb jokes, and Boo, what else is there?
Let's just say that he made me smile a couple of times, but I got bored of him (but not the hamster) almost instantly.
9. Jaheira
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Same here folks, I appreciate Jaheira but I don't feel that attached to her as the rest of the companions (probably because of the fact that she and Minsc are introduced in the game quite late). I mean, you get this badass milf Elf (mother is mothering) that can turn into a panther and has a cute accent... how can you not like her? But do I find her as interesting as other chatacters in the game? Not really.
I would probably share a drink with the tho, to hear all the stories from back in her day.
8. Wyll
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Before any of you come for me for putting The Blade of the Frontier this low, let me explain. I like Wyll, I like the fact that he is a dancer, he's romantic, and that his main goal is to help people. I mean, he made a pact with a literal devil to save his city! Don't get me wrong, I think I would be friends with him irl, but as for character growth and depth, I think he passes off to be more bland than the rest of the companions, probably for his too goody two shoes attitude.
Let's just say if he was a spice, he would be flour. Sorry.
7. Minthara
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You see, a long time ago my first playthrough, when I met Minty, I seriously contemplated killing all the Tieflings just to be with her. This is just to let you have an idea of the hold this woman has on me. HAVE YOU SEEN HER? Apart from being a hottie, and incredibly useful in combat as a paladin, she is hilarious without even trying. When you see an [ ! ] over her head you know for a fact she is about to tell something UNHINGED. I'm gagging.
Anyway, just so you know I haven't sacrified the tieflings to recruit her. I'm not a monster. I simply knocked mommy out and found her in Moonrise Towers.
6. Lae'zel
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I believe Giths and Drows are quite similar: they both crave violence and see any kind of kindness and compassion as weaknesses. But what makes Lae'zel a better character than Minthara, is the fact that she evolves from her prejudices and violence, while the drow doesn't. She starts off as this ruthless and closeminded character, but later on she learns to challenge authority and her tyrant, save her people, find compassion in others and fall in love.
I think her romance is one of the best ones in the game. It starts off as a simple one night stand where she tries to dominate you, pure physical, but then she starts to soften and open up to Tav. I mean the rooftop scene where she calls you Source of my Joy?? Sounds more like Bae'zel to me.
5. Gale of Waterdeep
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To be honest, Gale is literally my type irl: a hot scruffy nerd whose ideal Saturday night is reading a book and drinking some wine in front of the fireplace. Also, he has a cat! He is a bit of yapper, I know, but I find him quite charming, even though he eats magical boots from time to time in order not to explode and kill everyone in the vicinity
I believe Gale had the potential to be a heart-throb, but the only thing that gave me the ick about him, was the fact that he is too obsessed with his ex! I get it, she is the goddess of magic, but that doesn't change the fact the she literally groomed him since he was a child. He was willing to go full Manhattan Project just to get her approval. You are cute magic man, but you need to get over your ex.
4. Halsin
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May the Oakfather protect me. He is such a dreamboat. He is kind and forgiving with everyone, loves animal and nature - duh, is great with kids, and let's not forget he is absolutely gigantic (points for him). He even carves out a wooden duck for you at the end, so cute! I love the fact that he knows his boundaries and is particularly attentive to respect everyone, like when he flirts with Tav but will wait for them to speak with their partner in order to have an open relationship.
I know he may not have the same depth some other characters have, but who cares?? Teddy Bear over here is fine as he is. What can I say, I'm a sucker for big men that try to be gentle.
3. Shadowheart
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Shar's favourite Princess is one of my favourite characters in the game. She starts off as being wary and skeptical about Tav, but she quickly opens up as soon as one shows her kindness. Which is heartbreaking since she led her life following the Lady of Loss, hence without any kindness or compassion. Her backstory is particulary well made, so that you can truly see her growth: from standoffish, she ends up being such a goofy and sweet character. From putting all her faith in a goddess that has literally taken everything from her, she then learns how to discover herself and prioritise her feelings for the first time. I love that for her.
She is quite frustraing sometimes since she keeps missing in combat, but we love our emo babygirl anyway.
2. Astarion
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So, the only reason I didn't put Astarion in first place, is because I know for a fact that in real life I would LOATHE the man. But we're not irl, so his gaslighting and manipulative tricks are overshadowed by his witty answers, his flirtatious expressions and the incredible velvety voice of his (thanks Neil Newbon). And to think that I thought I had successfully avoided the Vampire phase... well, I hadn't met this diva right here.
His backstory is one of the most heartbreaking, and with the right choices, I believe he can grow more than any other companion, which is why he is such a fan favourite among the fans. He starts off as being a vain and manipulative twink, but as you get to know of his past and the horrible things he has been through, you realise he is simply a victim that doesn't know any better.
I just love his confession scene to Tav: "I had a nice, simple plan - seduce you and manipulate your feelings. All you had to do was fall for it. And all I had to do was not fall for you... which is where my nice simple plan fell apart." EXCUSE ME?? WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT??
1. Karlach
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She's an icon, she's a legend, and she is the moment.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Karlach officially is the most likable companion of this messy rank. From the first moment you meet her, it's so difficult not to fall in love with this fireball of energy and kindness. Her backstory is probably the saddest of them all: a hopeful kid that gets betrayed and forced to live with a deadly engine that will one day burn her from the inside, like a tragic metaphor for an illness.
She is also smocking hot (and not just because she is literally burning), I mean, the tats, the muscles, the badass hair and half horn?? Child, she ate and left no crumbs. She is a total smokeshow, and despite her bubbly personality she is not afraid to be a bit sexy and flirtatious. Can we talk about the: "I wanna ride you 'till you see stars" YES MA'AM, PLEASE MA'AM.
But in spite of everything bad that has happened to her, Karlach is always smiley, loves her friends deeply and uses every moment to be a goofball and dance around. She is too pure for this world, which is why you feel that her horrible fate is particularly unfair to someone like Karlach. To be honest, her scene in the harbour after defeating the brain is heartbreaking.
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So folks, here it is my personal ranking from least to most likable companions of Baldur's Gate 3.
Let me know what do you think!
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haechansdoll · 2 years ago
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morning - lhc x reader
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Pairing : Lee Dongyuck x f!Reader
Description: morning fluff , cute and soft. (I am lately having this cute aggression towards haechan, I just wanna squish him, bite him and nom nom him AGHHHH STOPP skskks)
Warnings : none
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It was a frizzy autumn morning the first feeble ray of the rising sun peered through the window surpassing the light green curtains billowing softly in the wind, two lovebirds were still nestled in the soft bed placed against the wall of the room as the wind brushed over them they burrowed  better in the cocoon made of blankets of nay color.
He hugged her closer to his chest, his touch like a feather as he brushed aside a dark rebel lock covering her cheek he took his time admiring his princess the one and only woman who he has ever loved and who has ever showed anything but the deepest tender love she held only for him, he lost track of time as he stared in awe at her gorgeous features when her eyes fluttered open softly, sleep still clinging to them as she slowly focused her gaze on him, her eyes a bright shade of light green melting with light crinkles of golden he would have stared at all day never getting tired, affection and love dancing in them making them shine like fresh honey on a sunny day,  tenderness dripping over her smile as her hands curled on his heart leaping up with mirth at the soft intimate touch of her Queen taking her place on her throne that has always belonged to her alone, she was an irresistible temptation he felt drawn to like a bear to honey, he leaned closer disclosing his lips only to brush an achingly reverent kiss on her forehead .
“Good morning my princess.” his voice a soft murmur for her alone to ear
“Good morning my bear.” his fingers bolder as he brushed her dark locks in their proper place, his gaze full of promises as he melted his lips on hers.
She loved kisses of any kind for every time he disclosed a side of him for her alone to discover, precious treasure for them both was every kiss they shared, soft, deep and long, savored slowly like a spoonful of honey but way more sweeter.
It was a lovely kiss slow and unhurried as they took their time showing off their love to one another not caring about anything else, the world outside fading out, time slowed almost to a stop not bothering to disturb them in the slightest it would have been useless anyway to desire them to rush over, after a while, they desired to last longer, reluctantly they pulled away only to take breath, their gaze locked to one another mirroring nothing but lovestruck affection, bright green melting with chartreuse in a peculiar color that was only theirs, he hugged her closer to his chest leaving a kiss full of devotion on her hair making her smile even brighter, their voices murmuring sweet nothings to each other with light tender caress, the soft sound melting with the birds chirping outside.
His voice low and deep, sweet like honey as he professed his love unable to keep it hidden in his heart any longer
“I love you y/n.” her smile brightened her features, warming his whole heart with the scorching heat of her love
“I love you too Haechan.” it was unbelievable how these words always manage to make his heart melt completely, making him so happy as he never was unable to know what to do with himself, ready to obey her every order, doing everything and even more just to see that smile reward and precious treasure for his love, he so generously spoiled her with, unable to stay way from showering her with all his love.
They did not rush, nor hurried there was nothing to be anxious for anyway no one chiding him with duties, letting them savor each second of their married life away from the ruckus of the palace, who risked breaking them apart, nestled in a far away village in a cozy cottage hidden amidst the forest, their official duties was to strengthen the border, when needed, and keep an eye on the frontiers with Jade, cultivating in the meanwhile the good relationship between their countries.
Their heart beating in sync, filled with gratitude for that magical story they began to write since their childhood, their friendship nurturing the bud of that tender feeling bloomed to the fullest, a sweet continuation to his messy past, a balm and a reward to them both for sticking close no matter what, strengthening an unbreakable bond forged in blood and written in the stars like in a fairytale whose destiny they choose themselves, the beautiful and passionate tale of the bear and the princess written by their love.
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vinophidian · 11 months ago
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Happy Birthday, King Dice! 🎲🎉
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A little doodle that I made for the occasion ^^ I am a day late but I was playing Sonic Frontiers, whoops 💜
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lillaydee · 6 months ago
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The Arrangement Epilogue
Pioneer! Joel Miller / Reader
Your life crumbled to nothing during a migration to Jackson, forcing you to agree to an arrangement just to survive.
NOTE: Possible inaccuracies in baby developments, food intake and inheritance or ownership laws coming. I really know nothing, but I needed to put some stuff in for the sake of the story line, so please forgive me and take everything in the spirit of storytelling yeah?
WARNINGS: Protective Joel (The Last of Us), Ellie & Joel Bonding (The Last of Us), Good Parent Joel (The Last of Us), Parent Joel (The Last of Us), Soft Joel (The Last of Us), Joel is Bad at Feelings (The Last of Us), Joel Needs a Hug (The Last of Us), Hurt Joel (The Last of Us), Joel Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (The Last of Us), Jealousy, Mutual Pining, Fluff and Angst, Frontier Joel, Alternate Universe - No Cordyceps Outbreak (The Last of Us), Virgin Joel, Virgin Reader, Minor Character Death, Period-typical Misogyny, Marriage of Convenience
SERIES MASTERLIST
Part 11
OK SO I HAVE ZERO SELF CONTROL SO IMMA JUST UPLOAD THE EPILOGUE TODAY TOO. HOPE YOU LIKE IT. TQ SO MUCH FOR READING! 🥰🥰🥰
---
Joel locked his front door, a bit grumpy that he had to be up this early. Ever since he started working with his father when he turned 16 last week, he had been given the very unwanted task of feeding the animals first thing in the morning, which, as far as ranch life was concerned, was the God-awful five in the morning. He felt as if he had just fallen asleep, and here he was, walking over to the family ranch with his eyes hardly opened.
The family had stayed up late last night, and he didn’t want to leave early just to catch his unfortunate, usual bedtime. It was a special event, after all.
Fifty years. That’s how long his namesake, his Pops and beloved Nana had been together. And it was hard not to feel jealous of them. They were still so very much in love. For as long as he remembered, it was rare to see one of them without the other. Pops was never an idle man, always working on something or other, and Nana was always right there, keeping him company, a project always in her hands for the grandchildren or the business. They were always talking and laughing, hands on each other at all times, giggling like teenagers in love. How a couple could go fifty years without running out of things to talk about, he never knew. But he would love to find out one day.
Considering the amount of times he heard Pops tell the same story over and over again, he was shocked to find out that he had never told anyone the story of how he and Nana had met and married in the first place. He was saving this story for their fiftieth anniversary, he had told everyone during his speech last night, the room filled with the original Millers, children and grandchildren, and family friends.
Everyone listened intently, this old man telling his family how he came to meet the love of his life, his very reason for living, his eyes full of love for her, full of nostalgia and happy memories with her.
“Thank you for a wonderful fifty years, darling, I am the luckiest man alive. My heart beats only for you, my dear. I love you so much.” He then took Nana by the hand and kissed her lovingly.
The whole room was silent. There was not a dry eye in the room. Great Uncles Will, Tommy and Benny and Great Aunts Liv, Maria and Diana were the only ones who knew the story, and even they were teary. Shockingly, not even Great Uncle Max and Great Aunt Tess knew this, despite the fact that they had all been friends for fifty years. Heck, they were the unofficial Millers.
Aunt Ellie, despite knowing she was adopted and was there from the beginning, apparently didn’t know this either. She and Aunt Sarah were inconsolable, sitting in their brother, his father’s arms while the story was being told. His father was wiping tears off his cheek, touched by his parents’ love story. The siblings went over and hugged their parents, crying into their shoulders, thanking them for being the greatest parents anyone could hope for.
If he was ever lucky enough to fall in love one day, Joel hoped he would have a story like that to tell too. And that, in his mind, was a tough one to beat.
He walked quickly in the early spring morning, wanting to get the job done as quickly as possible. Nana had promised him breakfast today. And he was never going to say no to that. He walked past the office and workshop for the tailoring business that Nana and Great Aunt Maria started, Miller Tailoring, which Aunt Sarah and Aunt Lucy, along with Aunt Ellie’s partner, Aunt Dina, now ran. Right next door was Miller’s Constructions, the business his Pops and Great Uncles started. Aunt Ellie ran it now, some of his male cousins working under her. To no one’s surprise, she was the only child from the first generation of the original Millers who had taken to carpentry and building, despite everyone being roped in for the work in the beginning. She really was her Papa’s daughter.
Joel had the option of working for either business, as everyone in the family did, but he knew squat about tailoring, taking almost ten minutes to thread a needle, and successfully crushed his thumb the first time he tried to hammer a nail in place. So here he was, headed for the ranch, which his father and Uncle Danny ran together at this ungodly hour to earn his place in the family business. Everyone starts from the bottom of the barrel, Pops had said, even family. 
Pops, Nana and the great aunts and uncles were all retired now, reaping the benefits of their hard work during their youth. Apparently, the lands began as a combined less than half an acre between the four families. They had expanded to over 70, and there were talks of expanding further.
Joel hurried, the morning chill that still came with early spring starting to get to him. He quickly did his tasks, some of the ranch hands already there, making sure he performed them up to standards. By the time he finished, the sun was up, and he quickly ran to his Pops and Nana’s to get that promised breakfast, always a treat. He needed it for the rest of his work day, after all.
He and his cousins loved their grandparents. Loved the advantage of living in close quarters with everyone. Pops and Nana’s house was basically sanctuary. No one could be harmed if they were there. Hugs from Nana were the best, her beef and vegetable stew even better.
Aunt Ellie, Aunt Sarah and his Mama all learned how to make that stew, but none of them could quite get it to taste exactly like Nanas. If he was lucky, he could have whatever’s left of that delicious stew she made for Pops last night for breakfast, that is, if Pops hadn’t devoured all of it himself after everyone left. It was his favourite meal, despite the unfortunate event that was the stew’s first try, which left everyone howling last night. Pops claimed it was delicious, to which Great Aunt Maria answered with a quick “Heck no it wasn’t,” to a roar of laughter from everyone. Pops then told everyone that he would eat it every day if it meant staying married to Nana, earning him a kiss from her. She still blushed every time they kissed. It really was the sweetest thing to behold.
Sometimes, they stayed over just to hear Nana read to Pops, his head in her lap, her hand scratching his head absentmindedly. He knew Pops could read. He distinctly remembered him reading contracts and newspapers. Apparently he could not read very well when they first married, and the habit of listening to her read to him stuck. And after all these years, they still kept that tradition alive, even if the grandchildren joined in. But Pops always had one restriction for these sessions - her lap was for his use only, much to his grandchildren’s chagrin. Greedy, greedy, greedy.
When he approached, the house was still dark. He knocked on the front door, placing the jars of fresh milk he had brought for them on the bench that supposedly no one was allowed to use ever, it was their special bench, that and the swing overlooking the land. Aunt Ellie, Aunt Sarah and his father had often complained that their only times spent on that swing were back when they still couldn’t form memory, how unfair!
Weird, Joel and his cousins used to think – he and his cousins played on that swing all the time, Pops and Nana watching them happily. Maybe it’s true, parents and grandparents had different rules and standards, even if they were the exact same people.
There was no answer. He knocked again, harder this time, just for good measure. The grandchildren had always been warned again and again by their parents to knock when visiting Pops and Nana. You never knew what those two were up to behind closed doors. Apparently, the three siblings found out the hard way. What they saw still haunted them to this day.
There was still no answer, so Joel used the key everyone seemed to have and unlocked the front door. The house was quiet. It was almost seven, it was quite unthinkable that they were still asleep, even with last night’s festivities. Early birds get the worms, Pops always said.
He didn’t know why, but standing there in that familiar room, there was an unease in his heart. He ran up the stairs and frantically knocked on their bedroom door. Nothing. He knocked again, yelling for his Pops and Nana, his heart beating fast. He opened the door and rushed in.
There they were, still in bed, the framed old kerchief and lace hankerchief with their initials in the corners on the wall above their head. They were facing each other, looking so peaceful and in love. Pops holding Nana close to his chest with his right arm, his left holding her right hand between their bodies, fingers entwined, legs tangled, his lips on her forehead.
They looked like they were sleeping, but his heart was telling him otherwise.
Joel nervously went over and tried to wake his Nana, his hand jerking back as soon as he noticed how cold her skin was, as was his Pops’, his cheek wet with drying tears.
He ran out, gunning it towards the other houses, screaming for his parents, his siblings, his cousins, his aunts and uncles, great aunts and great uncles, for everyone. Everyone came out, still dressed in pyjamas, getting their housecoats to go over. Joel was inconsolable, begging for someone to help his Pops and Nana. His Uncle Marcus, the family doctor, ran ahead to their house.
Their bedroom was soon filled with heartbroken sobs. Aunts Ellie and Sarah laid on the bed with their parents, his father sitting at Pops’s feet, tears flowing out of their eyes.
Nana had left first, peacefully, in her sleep, Uncle Marcus later told everyone. Pops must have woken up to his lifeless wife, and held her close, mourning her, before his own heart gave out. His body was warmer than hers when Marcus got there, the tears on his face still drying.
“He died of a broken heart,” Aunt Sarah had tearily whispered.
No one could find reason to disagree with her.
Pops wasn’t exaggerating after all. His heart really did beat for her.
**********
They buried the beloved lovebirds in a single casket, the great uncles coming out of retirement to build their brother and sister a special one to fit them both. Aunt Ellie, Aunt Sarah and his father helped prepare their parents for burial, leaving their fingers entwined. They chose the spot where the swing stood. The one Pops had built for Nana. The two would sit there for hours in each other’s arms, looking at the view, the land it covered now part of their legacy.
Aunt Ellie played the guitar, tearfully singing the lullaby her beloved Mama used to sing for her and her siblings, and later her nieces and nephews to sleep.
The family stood in silence for a long time after the burial, remembering this couple who had devoted their lives to each other for fifty happy years, so in love with each other that they couldn’t bear to part from one another, even in death.
Their love for each other was the definition of romance. Their love story was one of fairy tales and dreams. One that was all-consuming. A love that inspires love stories, poems and songs for generations to come.
And to think it all began as a marriage of convenience.
Just an arrangement.
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lordofmelancholy · 4 days ago
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By Your Hand (SFW)
Oneshot; Jinx x Ekko AU: Post-Apoc (Silent Frontiers) Word count: 2.1k+
Content: hand holding, hand size differences, size difference, modern AU, Character Study, soft Ekko, soft Jinx TW: Talks of mutual suicide (non-explicit)
Synopsis: A Late Night conversation brings realizations and wants. Sidenote: See the end of the work for additional notes
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The pair had been hunkered down in an old motel room far from base that night when she had first asked her question. 
There had been only one bed in the dingy room they had found and on any other night similar to this one, such sleeping arrangements would have been the perfect recipe for a night of rare fun to be had between the two. Of whispered secrets, a spare drink or two from a flask conveniently attached to a hip or thigh, a card game perhaps or maybe instead a night of passionate sex even if it would be on a mildewy, stained bed or a floor that hadn’t seen the business end of a carpet cleaner in years perhaps.
However Ekko had been too tired for any of those this time around- even if his long-term crush was up for the latter- he simply just wanted to sleep instead. And it was very rare that he ever actively  wanted to sleep. Insomnia of course was a real bitch especially now during times like this where sleep often never came regularly and you took what you got. But while Jinx often relished the times in which sleep never came so easily to her; all too happy to spend her nights fluttering about and working on random projects all up into the wee hours of the morning, Ekko himself instead did his best to gain whatever rest he could grab at. 
Sadly however, it seemed as though on a night like this that that wasn’t so much a plan in his favor. 
As the hours whittled away and night took over, Ekko still found himself awake, laying on his side staring out the shuttered, grimy window as rain thrashed about in the parking lot outside; a small pool of water flooding where the street had caved in sometime ago. Jinx was curled up against him in her usual spot behind him, her body pressed up along his back as she dragged her fingers up and down the long half of his arm in a familiar soothing gesture. And for a moment or so, it seemed as though it would be a peaceful night. She hadn’t said much in the past few hours, seemingly deep in thought while listening to the rain with her head on his arm. Her silence however should have been his first warning that something was going to happen that would throw his entire night for a loop, but despite that Ekko didn’t think much of it. Instead relishing her soft weight against him. Her nails dragging on his skin. . .
That was until. . .a random question had manifested itself in the space between them seemingly out of nowhere. 
He shouldn’t have been all that surprised about it to be honest. This wasn’t the first night where she had indulged him in a little questionnaire. In fact on nights like this, back in the days before when all they had to worry about were school projects and homework and not so much wondering whether or not by tomorrow they would be eaten or shot at, were often spent dabbling in these little Q&A’s. They were often used as ways to drive their brains and consciousness into overdrive just enough to feel even the faintest dredges of exhaustion pull at their lids. Questions and their respective answers nothing more than feeble attempts to while away the hours until sleep had finally sucker-punched them. .and on any other night, he would have indulged her like he always had. . .except for tonight however. Tonight the train of questions had taken a bit of a strange and unwanted turn.
“Ekko, would you kill me, if I ever asked you to?”
It hadn’t been the first time questions of this nature came up during these late nights. Usually it happened when Jinx was feeling a little sentimental. And any other time Ekko would have been content to have just humored her with a response. But the difference between then and now, was the fact that that question was never said so bluntly before. So absolute. So said in such a way, that Ekko couldn’t help the chill that went up his spine all the way to his throat. He didn’t like this question. “Hrm, what kind of a question is that to ask me?” Ekko rumbled in response. He felt the bed shift under his side, and felt Jinx move up higher on top of him to the point she nearly threw herself over him like a throw-blanket, her fingernails now against his jugular. 
Then she repeated “It’s just like I said, would you ever kill me if I asked you too?" 
As quickly as he could manage with her weight on top of him, which was somewhere between his normal speed and that of the speed of a body rolling in its own grave, Ekko turned over to look at Jinx better. He stopped for a moment, quietly enraptured by how the dull, rain-streaked glow of the light outside reflected off Jinx’s eyes as she blinked, their noses close to touching; "Are you talking about one of your hypotheticals again? Like that one involving a radioactive spider. . .or what was it, a raccoon or something at a gas-station or some-shit, cause I swear -".
"Just answer the question” 
A pause. There's authority in that tone now.
He blinked slowly. Casting his gaze to the side;
"I don’t wanna . .” 
With a sullen stubborn huff, Ekko rolled back over, glancing at the cheap watch on his wrist. It was already ten past one in the morning and the itchy tired feeling growing behind his eyes was becoming noticeable  but it had meant nothing to him. He was used to nights like this, where sometimes even if he was bone-tired and desperate for rest, he would still just lie in bed with his eyes closed and not drop off until the last minute. As far as he was concerned he could be dealing with hours of this ahead yet. And it also did not help that this line of questioning hit far too close to home; had made his tired heart ache.
With the way life was and the way life had been over the years, there was always the possibility of situations like what she had mentioned occurring. They were instances in which Ekko often tried desperately not to think about. Call him superstitious, but with the way the world worked nowadays he wasn’t in the mood to take his chance and to entice fate. To tease chance. The idea terrified him too much to even consider them. And lord knows it would be even harder to sleep if Jinx kept prodding him with existential nightmares of questions he would have rather not have discussed.  
So he left the question unanswered. 
But just when the silence stretched out just long enough for Ekko to think his partner had dropped it, she then quietly said, 
“I’d trust you. To kill me, I mean."
A sigh of irritation huffed out of Ekko’s nose, 
"I don’t want to talk about this Jinx. Go to sleep”
“You don’t have to be afraid you know.” 
She whispered to him, soothing as she pushed the collar of his shirt down lower on the back of his neck, hair tickling along his skin. A shivery feeling spread across Jinx’s face as she nuzzled his warm skin. Her own so pitifully chilled against him. “I’m not saying this like I'm planning on dying anytime soon.” With a chuckle, she added, “maybe ever if i have a say in it. But if I have to… if it ever comes to. . .that... I think it might be nice if it was you to do it. You, your gun. . .”
She trails off at the end, so much so that for a moment it entices Ekko to turn back over on his shoulder. And when he does Jinx is quick to snatch at him. She grabs him by the wrist, ogling almost in silent greed at the jagged creases of Ekko’s palm. The nonsensical web of lines seem to make sense to the woman, with how she nods and shrugs and hums with an air of perhaps seasoned expertise. She flexes the palm with one hand, jabs rather rudely at the broken line arcing from Ekko’s pinky to his trigger finger as she kneads and squeezes the break with her thumbs in stern deliberation. She then suddenly takes the palm, and presses it against her face where Ekko’s fingers instinctively cradle and caress her; both seemingly now marveling and perhaps noting at the moment the difference in size between her face and his hand.  
She sighs at the soft scratch of calloused skin:
“or your hands...” She finally murmurs after some time, somber in tone and brow,  “they all would be nice...” 
Ekko stared at her. Stared at how the light twinkled in her eyes, shone on her dusty pale skin. How his hand nearly cupped the entire side of her face. How she seemed to enjoy it. How she seemed to relish in his touch. Of the weight against her skin. How he himself marveled at the chill that spread across her flesh and seeped into his own. And he wanted to say something. To bark a retort back. To claim that this was a dangerous line of thought. But he just didn’t seem to have the words, nor have the energy to really run the ramifications of what his partner was saying back over in his head, 
"Go to sleep, Jinx.” he instead said. Softer this time, thumb still caressing at her. "Please." 
And the look on her face seemed almost disappointed in a way. But it softened again quickly, and Jinx slowly let go of his hand as she finally wished him a goodnight. In the ringing silence after however, Ekko had forgoed his sleep and sat up watching as Jinx’s breathing deepened from her graceless sprawl across the bed. An uncharacteristic respite, all things considered, if not for the girl’s demonstrated propensity for falling asleep in the most unorthodox of places. As she slept however, her laxed fingers lay curled up close toward him, an oversight permitted by unconsciousness.
Quickly, but steadily, Ekko took the hand in his own, marveling for a moment, though not the first time, at just how small she was compared to him. He squeezed, reflexively, fingernails printing the faintest of crescents against the softness of pale-skin. The thinnest of lines. The whisper of charm. Of a substitute mark that wills the continuance of his partner’s journey— selfishly at his side. He laid down a little on the bed to save the stretch and risk waking her, as he took her hand and brought it to his neck; his own fingers puppeteering her own as he pressed her nails into his jugular, little by little, until he felt a small stinging bite of her nails in his skin.
He was thankful she was a heavy sleeper.
But this was the part in tonight’s story, where Ekko assumed he would ultimately have to give an answer to her question. And perhaps deep down he always knew that the answer would be yes. That he would in a heartbeat if he so had too. Because he loved her. And because whatever she wanted or needed he would give to her, even if it meant at the expense of possibly losing her forever. And the thought of losing her scared him. He could never nor did he ever picture a life without her by his side. The mere thought made him sick.
Her question alone like acid on his skin and organs. Shriveling his stomach and bringing bile to the middle of his throat choking him. Bringing perhaps the worst images possible he could ever possibly imagine of how his life would be without her. .
But perhaps that was also why, had he been willing to answer her question, the reason on whether or not he would have asked her the same. Asked her whether or not Jinx would have agreed to the same terms she had so boldly given to him. To take his own life if he ever so asked her. Because unbeknownst to her, Ekko had often asked himself that question as well. On whether or not he'd too want his life to end at the hands of his best friend, his partner, the woman who had saved it in the first place perhaps never even knowing that she did. . . . 
And it’s for that, that the answer comes quickly to him. Immediate, thunderously loud and enthusiastic with every soft-kiss he gives to each of her knuckles and fingertips as he watches her sleep.
Yes. 
Yes.
A Thousand times and Forever
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Notes: Ah young love, is there anything truly more romantic than two lovers vowing that if they should die that there’s no better way to heaven then by each other’s hands?
Well maybe for these two there’s nothing more romantic then just that, but as we can see one just happens to be a bit more open about the idea compared too the other. Ekko naturally happens to be really subtle over the fact he’s tired of this mortal coil just as much as Jinx is, compared to Jinx, whose explosive personality often tends to hide a much more tragic underbelly. Hence her bluntness forwardness and tendency to start throwing curveballs such as this at him.
But it all certainly doesn’t help that in the end Ekko is just a hopeless romantic by heart.
After all, wherever SHE goes, he goes too and if she dies you bet your sweet ass he’s going with her one way or another. And though he’d rather not think about it for the time being. . .least we know how’d he’d like to go if he so must
Ah young love indeed. . .
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