#he wakes up and when you realize he’s awake you just start screaming and thrashing around in your binds again… he just rubs his face

[carnivorousyandeere]

BRUCIE ANGST BRUCIE ANGST BRUCIE ANGST

Was the last Brucie post real or was he dreaming? :]

[innerfare]

Nightmares - Part 1

Summary: What sorts of nightmares do they have about losing you?

Characters: Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Ace, Sabo, Law, Kid

Genre: Angst

CW: SFW // that being said, caution- contains mentions of death, suffering, and slavery

——— 

Luffy:

He grins at the sight of you standing on a cliffside looking out over the water, tranquil in the peace of night. He hurries toward you and puts his hand on your shoulder to turn you around, ready to place a happy kiss on your lips, only to stop short at the sight of your face. You’re completely devoid of joy, the life and will to live sucked out of you by a force he can’t control. You’re a husk, and he’s powerless against it. He realizes the darkness isn’t from night, that there are no stars glimmering in the sky, that the world has had the goodness sucked out of it, yours along with it, leaving you empty. He wakes up with tears in his eyes and buries his face in his pillow to muffle his sob. 

Zoro:

It was an accident, and he watched it happen. If he’d been just a little stronger, a little faster, a little better, it never would have happened. It was an accident, but it was his fault. He stared down at your lifeless shape covered by a funeral shroud, grinding his teeth in rage at the sight of all those flowers left by mourners. You would have loved to have seen those flowers, to have picked them up, buried your face in them, and inhaled deeply. You would have loved the weather that day, too, bright and sunny, as though the universe was taunting him. When he wakes up, he’s in physical pain from the amount of tension in his muscles. 

Sanji:

You’re in the clutches of his brothers while his father watches on in approval, and he’s trying to save you but to no avail. Suddenly, he’s seven years old again- too small, too slow, too weak to put up a fight, completely at the mercy of his brothers. Only, they aren’t tormenting him, they’re tometning you, and from the looks on their faces, they sure are enjoying it. The look on your face, though, is one of complete anguish. And then you scream in pain, and he’s awake again, sitting up in bed with a sheen of sweat on his skin, the image of your face in such pain burned into his brain. He doesn’t register that it was only a nightmare until he puts eyes on you, and even then, it takes him several days to recover from the nightmare. 

Ace:

It starts off normal, him approaching you on deck and wrapping his arms around you, intending to say a joke in your ear that will have you giggling and him grinning proudly. But then you shove him off and sneer at him. He doesn’t recognize you, doesn’t recognize the look on your face as you look up at him. You look disgusted, completely and utterly grossed out by the mere idea of his arms around you. You begin taunting him, saying all the things he’s used to others saying but never you. “You’re a monster. You were never supposed to be born. How could I possibly love someone like you?” When he finally wakes up, he doesn’t thrash around or cry. He’s completely paralyzed by the nightmare, by the fear, and accustomed to the feeling of rejection, even if it hurts more coming from you. Even when he wakes up, the nightmare isn’t really over.  

Sabo:

You’re on stage in an auction house being sold off to the highest bidder. He’s there, but he can’t get to the stage, as if he’s trapped behind invisible glass. He’s screaming his head off and throwing himself at the glass, but everyone just ignores him, the slave auction continuing as though he’s not even there, Sabo completely powerless against the injustice of it all. You’re crying and struggling in your shackles, but it’s no use. He wakes up thrashing, ready to fight anyone who stands between him and you. When he’s met only with darkness, he doesn’t relax but instead gets dressed and wanders off to find some work to do, the sound of your shackles clanking as you struggle against them stuck in his head like a sick song, the sight of Celestial Dragons bidding on you like an object lighting in him a fire that will burn down every auction house in the world. 

Law:

Bang! He never sees the nightmare, but he always hears the gunshot. He wakes up in a cold sweat, shivering beneath his covers, the taste of metal lingering in his mouth and the gunshot still echoing in his ears. He’s awake, but he’s back in that treasure chest, and this time, you’re the one laying dead in the snow. Alternatively, you’re in a hospital bed, writing in pain, screaming in agony, calling out his name, pleading with him to save you, and he’s in sea prism stone handcuffs, forced to watch you succumb to an illness only he can save you from. Again, he wakes up in a cold sweat, the sheets tangled around his legs, trapping him and making him feel like he’s still in that nightmare, completely and utterly useless. He has to climb out of bed and walk it off, might even train a bit with his sword to regain a sense of control. 

Kid:

It’s never like it happened with his first love, Victoria. And it’s always some way new. You fall overboard during a storm and drown, Kid diving into the water to save you but sinking due to his devil fruit ability, Killer diving in to save him but leaving you to die. You get deathly ill and he enlists the help of his ally, Trafalgar Law, to save your life, but he betrays Kid and kills you. He gets captured by a crew of enemy pirates, and when the crew comes to save him, you get killed in the crossfire. The nightmares just keep coming like this, you dying because he couldn’t protect you or expected someone else to do it for him. And each time he wakes up, it is with a renewed certainty that the only way to keep you safe is to do it himself.  

———

Hope you enjoyed it! If you want more, you can check out my masterlist here!

[pietrobarnes]

It’s Okay Buck, I’m Okay

Bucky Barnes x Fem!Reader

Genre: Hurt/Comfort (slight fluff at the end)

The room was dark, the moon casting a silver glow through the curtains. I lay beside Bucky, listening to his steady breathing. These moments of peace were precious, as his nights were often plagued with nightmares. I watched the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest, feeling grateful for every second of tranquility he could get.

Suddenly, his breathing quickened, and he started to thrash. I knew the signs all too well. Another nightmare. My heart ached seeing him like this, trapped in the horrors of his past. Carefully, I placed my hand on his shoulder, hoping to soothe him awake without making things worse.

"Bucky, it's just a dream," I whispered softly, my voice trembling with concern. "It's me, Y/N."

But in his dream, Bucky was being attacked. His eyes flew open, filled with a wild panic I hadn't seen before. Before I could react, his metal arm shot up and wrapped around my throat, squeezing tightly. I gasped, my hands instinctively trying to pry his off, but his grip was like iron.

"Bucky, wake up!" I managed to choke out, my voice barely a whisper.

His eyes were wide and unseeing, filled with terror and rage. His metal hand tightened around my neck, cutting off my air supply. I could feel the cold metal digging into my skin, the pressure building as I struggled to breathe. My vision blurred, and a wave of dizziness washed over me.

"Bucky, it's me," I rasped, my voice barely audible. "Please, wake up.

He was still lost in his nightmare, his face contorted with fear and fury. The pressure on my throat increased, and I felt my strength ebbing away. My heart pounded in my chest, each beat a desperate plea for air. I could feel the life slipping from me, my body growing weaker with each passing second.

"Bucky, please," I whispered, my voice hoarse and fading. "It's okay, Buck. I'm here. I love you."

My words were barely audible, and I wasn't sure if he could hear me. My vision darkened, and I felt myself slipping into unconsciousness. Summoning all my remaining energy, I let out a muffled scream, hoping against hope that someone would hear.

As if in response, the door creaked open. I saw a flash of Steve's silhouette in the doorway. His eyes widened in horror as he took in the scene.

"Bucky, wake up! That's Y/N!" Steve's voice boomed, filled with urgency.

Bucky's eyes flickered, confusion washing over his face as he slowly came to. When he realized what he was doing, his hand immediately released my throat. I collapsed onto the bed, gasping for breath, my vision blurred with tears.

"Oh God, Y/N," Bucky's voice broke, filled with anguish. "I'm so sorry, I didn't know—"

Steve was already calling for Dr. Banner, and within moments, the room was filled with concerned faces. Thor gently lifted me, carrying me to the small medical room in the Avengers Tower.

As Dr. Banner and the others tended to me, Bucky stood by the door, his face etched with guilt and despair. I wanted to reach out to him, to tell him it wasn't his fault, but I was too weak to speak.

After what felt like an eternity, I began to regain consciousness. Steve was by my side, his expression softening as he saw my eyes flutter open.

"Hey," he said gently. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore," I croaked, managing a weak smile.

"Do you want to see Bucky?" Steve asked, his voice cautious. "He's been beating himself up about what happened."

I nodded slowly. "Yes, I need to see him."

Steve motioned for Bucky to come in. As soon as he stepped into the room, he burst into tears, rushing to my side and dropping to his knees.

"Y/N, I'm so sorry," he sobbed, his voice raw with emotion. "I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to leave me after this. I wouldn't know what to do with myself if you did, but I would understand."

I reached out, gently cupping his face in my hands. "Bucky, I knew what I was getting myself into when I fell in love with you. I'm not going anywhere."

He looked up at me, his eyes filled with a mix of relief and disbelief. "You mean it? You're not leaving?"

"I mean it," I said firmly. "We'll get through this together. You're not alone."

Bucky's tears flowed freely as he leaned into my touch, his body shaking with emotion. "I don't deserve you, Y/N."

I smiled softly, brushing a tear from his cheek. "We're in this together, Bucky. Always."

In that moment, surrounded by the comforting presence of our friends and the love we shared, I knew we would find a way to overcome any nightmare. Together, we were stronger than the darkness that haunted him.

—————

Should I make a taglist?

[m-musings]

okokokok, i LOVE how you wrote the overwatch boys, and I have a kind of long-winded request for Cassidy, Hanzo, Genji, and (if you write for him) Ramattra:

their s/o was previously a test subject for Talon experiments, something they have nightmares about. how would the boys react to their partner having one of said nightmares and trying to attack the person trying to wake them up.

ik this is kinda specific, but thank you if you write it! ♡♡♡♡

A/n: oooo this is a good request, let's hope my angsty writing chops are up to par bcuz i really hope this lives up to what you want (hcs under the cut!)

Warnings: general angst, accidental physical violence, mentions & implications of past torture (also op doesn't really know how to write nightmares/night terrors asdfghjkl) Word Count:1586

Headcanons: Cassidy, Genji, Hanzo and Ramattra with a Former Talon Test Subject S/O (Separate)

Cassidy:

When Cassidy awakes in the middle of the night to the sound of you fiercely muttering at no one, its safe to say he's concerned.

He listens for a moment as you make alarmed noises, trying to discern what exactly is going on.

After turning over to flip on the light, he glances over at your sleeping form thrashing around with your brow furrowed in terror.

"N-no... get a...away f-from me..." Cassidy hears you say clearly, getting more worried by the second.

As he begins to reach over to try and rouse you from your slumber, the volume of your voice grows from a to an earsplitting shriek.

As you keep screaming, you start becoming combative, slapping and punching at Cass while somehow still asleep.

"Whoa, hey, hey, hey! Jus' h-hold on a darn second here!" He says as he tries to block your attacks by grabbing your hands.

"No! NO! Let me out!" You wail as tears start streaming down your cheeks.

"Darlin', it's a dream, you gotta wake up! I'm here, just open your eyes!"

Debating between forcing you to wake up and just continuing to reassure you and talk you down from the fear, he decides that the latter is probably going to be the safest for both of you.

After a several minutes long struggle, you slowly stop trying to fight Cole as your once frantic breathing begins to return to its normal pace.

Your tired eyes begin to blink open as the last bit of panic leaves your body in a few small gasps. When you fully regain consciousness, Cassidy sighs in relief as realization begins to sink into your thoughts.

"Are you okay, what the hell happened there?!" Questions Cole as he smooths his hands over your hair.

Choking out a small sob, you gently grasp his bicep to try and ground yourself as more tears begin to fall from your eyes.

"Cass, I-I'm sorry... I- I was back in Talon and the pain j-just wouldn't stop!"

His heart drops at the mention of the evil organization, knowing what kind of awful treatment you went through while kept there.

"I tr-tried to get away but I just.... couldn't! It was awful!" You whisper as you cross your arms over your chest.

"Darlin' I'm so sorry... I am so sorry..." Cole responds faintly before carefully pulling you into a hug.

The room grows still again for a moment, with only the sound of your hushed weeps filling the air.

"I don't wanna go back, please don't let them take me!" You cry into Cole's shoulder as he holds you close.

"No, no, you won't. I swear that as long I'm breathin', I will always make sure you never have to go through that ever again."

Genji:

Genji is all too familiar with nightmares. During the first couple years after his confrontation with Hanzo, he would very frequently have them. He's been through that whole song and dance a million times before.

Which is the reason he immediately knows what's happening when he wakes to the sound of your screams next to him.

He rushes to throw your shared quilt off and make sure you're okay, getting punched once or twice in the process.

After the nightmares pass and you calm down enough to speak, Genji is right there to comfort you.

"It's alright, my love, it is over now... Are you okay?" He questions as he holds one of your palms in his.

You shake your head no as you take several sharp breaths in and out.

"I was there again... in that-that godforsaken lab with fucking Moira prodding at me like cattle! It felt li-like it would never end! I can't go through that again!"

"And you don't have to. I don't know all of what happened to you, but I promise you will never have to face it on your own. I'm here to help you however I'm able to."

As the fearful adrenaline steadily leaves your veins, Genji brings your hand up to his chest so you could feel his heart beating just beneath his cybernetics.

"I love you and will sit here with you as long as you need me too."

With a sad, shaky laugh, you nod and you take your hand back in order to wrap yourself around him.

He does the same in turn as you embrace him ever so slightly tighter before he ushers for you to lay back down together so you can get some much needed sleep.

Pulling the blanket back over your bodies, he scooches in a little closer and begins to hum softly in the hopes of lulling you into a nightmare-less slumber.

Watching as your eyes begin to flutter closed again, he hears you mumble something just before you doze off.

"Thank you, Genji... I love you too."

Hanzo:

Hanzo already has trouble sleeping himself, so when your nightmares come around, he's already wide awake.

As you toss and turn underneath your blanket, he tries to calm you down by running his hand over you head, not caring if he gets hurt by your unintentionaly violent movements.

Once the night-terror ends, you start holding your face in your hands and rock back and forth as Hanzo rubs assuaging circles on your back.

"My dear, what can I do? How do I make the fear stop for now?" The archer inquires as you continue to shake in place.

"I don't know, Han... every time I close my eyes, all I can see is the lights and the wires and the needles... It won't go away no matter how hard I try. I just want them to be gone." You state, anxiously starting to press at your temples.

With a noiseless sigh escaping from his lips, Hanzo moves closer to place an arm across your shoulder and rest his forehead against your head.

"I am sorry for not being there with you. If I were able to change history, I would have gone to great lengths to rescue you."

As you begin to cry at his admission, he places a delicate kiss atop your head.

"I would never ask you to do something that dangerous for me. I couldn't bear it if something happened to you..." You sob out as you bury yourself into Hanzo's side.

Hanzo is quick to wrap his other arm around you, offering a comforting squeeze before ushering you into his lap.

"You wouldn't ever have to ask for my help. I would trade my life for yours if it meant that no more harm would come to you."

Ramattra:

It's uncommon for Omnics to dream- let alone have nightmares- so the first one you have around Ramattra? It comes as a bit of a shock to him.

When he hears you yell, he all but rockets out of his reboot cycle to scan the room for any hidden threats to your safety.

After seeing nobody there but the two of you, he glances down to see you- fast asleep but clawing at the air like a trapped animal scratching at a predator.

He then decides to do a scan of your vitals, just to make sure you aren't in any immediate medical distress. The scan reveals to him that your heartrate and breathing are through the roof.

Just as he's about to cross the room to try and wake you up, you shoot up from your fitful rest with a loud inhale as you slam your hands down onto the mattress below.

Swiftly joining your side on the bed, he cautiously turns your visage towards him as he goes to brush a few stray strands of hair out of your face.

While your eyes try to adjust to the low light of your room, you call out Ramattra's name, receiving a modulated but relaxing shush from his vocalizer.

"Calm yourself, pet, I'm right here. Now, tell me what has happened."

As you take a moment or two to collect yourself and come down from your frenzy, you gaze up to meet the faint glow of his faceplate emitting from his eyes.

"It's Talon; they... tormented me... a long time ago. Had me chained down as a doctor injected chemicals into me before he began flushing them out and started the whole process over again..."

Watching as you barely manage to hold back tears, His joints all seem to freeze in place as fury begins to creep in and take over all his systems.

"They need to suffer for their misdeeds. Who are they?..." He presses, his voice now hauntingly deeper than before .

"I don't know their names, and even if I did, I would do everything in my power to forget them."

An uneasy silence fills the space between you two, staying there for a minute before the large Omnic grunts and lifts you into his arms.

"I am sorry for what you had to go through. Just know that if any pain ever comes your way again, the offenders shall be personally dealt with." Ramattra claims as he rests his faceplate against your jaw.

Relishing in the cool feeling of his metal features against your warm skin, you nod appreciatively before he begins to lightly sway you to and fro.

Watching as you drift back to sleep, Ramattra makes a mental note to hunt down the Talon members who hurt you the next time he meets his allies. He wouldn't and will not stand for the mistreatment of the only human he has ever cared about.

[fandoms--fluff]

Nightmare

Part 2

Kid!Fem!Reader x Damon!Salvatore x Stefan!Salvatore

Warnings: Swearing, mentions of boobs, mentions of sex, blood ig

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

It's 2:30am and your thrashing around in your bed, crying. Your dreaming about some time in the early 1890's when you were kidnapped by a vampire hunter, he was torturing you. He was using vervain ropes to tie you up and stab wood through you, getting closer to your heart every time. You did eventually get away but the dream is recapping every part of the torture that happened.

At some point you started to scream. Katherine came running in as fast as she could since the room she's staying in is right next to yours.

"Hey, hey, hey y/n wake up" she said, shaking you.

Once you woke up and saw Katherine sitting at the edge of the bed beside you, you jumped into her arms. Your head resting on her shoulder, crying your eyes out.

"Were you having a bad dream, hun?" Katherine asked rubbing your back.

You nodded feverishly. "You want to talk about it?"

"Wan' Stefy and Damy" you whined and then nuzzled your head into her chest.

Without much thought and because your tired, you started to trace the curves of her boobs from the cleavage of her top. Katherine looked at you and smiled, holding back a laugh. She stood up and started walking to Stefan's room with you in her grasp, continuing the movements of tracing her breasts.

You guys finally got to Stefan's room and right as she was about to turn the doorknob she heard noises of him and Elena having sex.

"Okay, how about we go see Damon instead" Katherine looked to where now you started to suck on your index and middle fingers.

She just decided to let that be Damon's problem, knowing there was a high chance of you biting her fingers. Now she was heading to Damon's room and opened the bed, going inside.

Katherine went over to his bed and placed you on it, making sure you couldn't fall off before waking him up.

"Damon!" All he did was just grunt and turn the other way. "Damon wake up! y/n had a nightmare" that woke him up and he sat up to see you and Katherine.

You rushed and climbed into Damon's lap, still crying. "I'll leave you two alone now" Katherine said while she left, going back to her room.

"What was your dream about y/n/n?" Damon asked, trying to pull your fingers out of your mouth.

You tried to bite him but stopped when he gave you a 'don't even think about it or else' look.

"Mean 'erson hur' me. Burn a wot and awmost kiwl me" you said with a sob.

Damon looked down at you with widened eyes, thinking you would've forgotten about that experience by now. "Oh bub, it's okay. I promise that will never happen to you again" Damon said, reassuring you.

You looked up at him and he wiped the tears off your face with his thumbs. "Pwomise?" You asked.

"I promise" He said and kissed your forehead.

Not so long after, you fell asleep Damon noticed Alaric leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed and a smile on his face. Damon just rolled his eyes while Alaric walked in going over to him.

"That was cute and impressive" he said to Damon.

"Well she's my baby sister. Literally" Damon said nodding down to where you were now sucking your thumb, leaning against his chest.

Damon laid down with you still laying on his chest, pulling a blanket up. “So are you just going to stand there and stare at us sleeping?” Damon said while closing his eyes. 

 Alaric softly smiled again then left, closing the door on his way out, going back to bed.

In the morning (later)

Every one is now  awake and downstairs, Bonnie and Elena making breakfast. At first Tyler was helping but then got kicked out after almost starting a fire on the counter somehow. Stefan was sitting on one of the couches with a mug of coffee and realized that it was way too quiet.

“Hey where’s Damon?” To Stefan’s question everyone looked around the room, not seeing him. 

Katherine just chuckled and everyone turned their heads towards her suspiciously. “What?” She asked.

“What did you do?” Stefan started to walk over to her.

“She didn’t do anything.” “Yeah, listen to Mister history teacher over there” Katherine said with a smirk. 

“Just go to his room and you’ll see why, it’s cute” Stefan listened to her and sped up to Damon’s room. 

“It is never a good sign when you say something is cute” Elena said walking over and sitting on the couch opposite from her, with a plate of the food her and Bonnie just finished.

“If you don’t believe me just wait until the three of them come down here” She said back to Elena.

“Three? Is y/n with Damon?” Tyler asked and Katherine just nodded.

Soon Stefan and Damon came down the stairs with you in Damon’s arms, leaning on his shoulder, still half asleep. 

“Was she with you the whole night?” Stefan asked as Damon sat down next to Bonnie.

“Yup, she had a nightmare, Katherine brought her to my room at like two in the morning, crying” He said, starting to play with your hair.

“Wait was y/n crying or was Katherine?” Jeremy asked confused, while grabbing some of the food.

“y/n” Katherine said glaring at him. 

You looked up, hearing your name being said, rubbing your eyes with closed fists cutely. You then were staring at some fruit on Bonnies plate. “Do you want a piece of pineapple?” Bonnie asked you.

You nodded your head and bonnie handed you a piece, you started to chew it and after a couple seconds brought your hands up and spat it out into them. Making a disgusted facial expression. Damon immediately carried you over to the sink in the kitchen to wash your hands, getting all the chewed up pineapple off. He also grabbed a paper towel to wipe your chin.

“Alright you don’t like pineapple, noted” Damon said and walked back into the room where everyone else is, everyone now finished their food. “Down p’ease” You mumbled.

He set you down and you went over to Elena, making grabby hand motions. Elena smiled and picked you up, setting you on her lap. Damon sat down, looking offended because you picked you’d rather go to Elena than stay with him.

You turned to face her and saw her necklace. You reached a hand out and touched the necklace but then quickly took back your hand, burned by vervain. Your eyes started to water and Elena pulled you into a hug and started to rub your back. 

“I’m sorry” Elena whispered.

You rested your head on her shoulder and started to trace the curve of her boobs showing. Everyone started staring at what your doing and Elena looked confused before Stefan came over lifting you up, placing you on his hip.

You looked at him with a pout on your face. “Where did you even- why?” Stefan asked while Caroline chuckled at what you just did. 

“Hmmmm I wonder where?” Katherine said smirking at Stefan then Elena. 

“What are you talking about?” Elena asked.

“The fact that last night she started to do that exact same thing to me last night and then when I got to your room you guys were having sex. Also just the fact that she’s related to Damon” Katherine said and you started to kick Stefan to let you down.

Everyone stared shocked at the couple while Stefan let you down. “What did I say about the kicking yesterday?” Stefan said crouched down to your level.

“yes kicking” You said with a smile and ran over to Alaric, clinging to his legs.

“I’m pretty sure that won’t sink into her mind anytime soon” Caroline said and went over to you lifting you up from where you were holding on for dear life to Alaric’s legs.

“Wow she has a strong grip” He said, surprised. 

When Caroline sat back down you started to play with her hair and brought it up to your nose to sniff it. “Smell ‘ood” you said looking up at her.

“I think she likes your hair” Tyler said.

“Don’t be a smart ass” Bonnie said to him.

“ass!” You exclaimed, excitedly.

“No, remember what I said yesterday if you said a bad word?” Stefan said, looking at you. 

Again Jeremy and Tyler were laughing, not helping at all. You look confused at Stefan’s question, your head laid down against Caroline’s chest. 

“Well what I remember is that if you said a bad word you get time with a bar of soap in your mouth” Stefan said. 

“Okay. I no say bad word” You glumly answered your brother.

Meanwhile Elena got a text. “Guys, it’s Elijah. He said we need to meet up. Like now” Said Elena, standing up.

[bean-bean2000]

The Hacker - Part 9

Pairings: Bucky x Reader

Status: Ongoing

All feedback is very welcome and appreciated!

Warnings: angst, mentions of torture, reader feels hopeless, swearing, fluff.

Please let me know if i missed any warnings and I will add them.

Series masterlist

Part 8

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You begin to stir as you feel a draft in your room, making you shiver and grab the sheets closer to you.

You're searching blindly, eyes remaining closed from pure fatigue and unwilling to open them, but you can't find your sheets. You grunt in annoyance and open your eyes as you sit up.

You take a few seconds to focus as you squint, until you recognize where you are. You put your hands back down on your bed but feel damp concrete beneath you. You rip your hand away and scan your surroundings.

No. It can't be. NO NO NO NO NO!!!

You try getting up but your met with resistance and the sound of chains clanging. You start to panic as you examine yourself, covered in dirt, blood, cuts and, bruises. Your ribs are broken. You touch your face and feel the fresh cut spilling blood onto the floor and your shirt.

The room is dark, except for the faint light coming from under the door across the room. You see the suitcase sitting on the table.

You shake uncontrollably as you realize what's going on.

"I never left. I'm still here. This can't be, please... please no...I can't do this anymore. It was just another trick from his serums...I thought...I made it out..." you whisper to yourself, tears flowing down your cheeks.

You hear The Reaper's laughter surrounding the room, starting low and getting louder by the second.

"NO STOP IT! NO! GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME YOU MONSTER! JUST FUCKING KILL ME ALREADY YOU COWARD." your screaming uncontrollably as you start pulling on the chains, cutting your wrists deeply.

You fall to the floor in defeat.

You hear his footsteps approach you until his shoes are in front of you.

"Well, well, well... you truly thought you had escaped, hmm? You really think you would ever leave? You're going to stay here as my little experiment for as long as I desire. You will suffer here. You will die here, alone, in pain and nobody will ever find you." he laughs maniacally.

"Now, where were we?" He walks to his suitcase on the table.

"Shall we try.... this?... my favourite little instrument... very effective..." he chuckles in excitement.

You look up in terror as you see it "No, not that, please anything but that!" you try to scramble away but are backed into a corner.

"You can never escape. You will be tortured forever." He says as he turns the drill on.

You're screaming as thrashing around to get him away.

You feel strong hands grab your shoulders and another pair of strong arms holding your legs and waist down.

You hear familiar voices calling to you when you suddenly gasp awake.

You're drenched in sweat. Bucky is holding your shoulders down on the bed as Steve is holding your legs and waist down.

You're breathing heavily, trying to understand what's going on. Your eyes are wild, your brain trying to make sense of it all.

"Look at me, doll. It's me. It's not real, it was a nightmare." Bucky says as you stare into his eyes.

You start calming down as you hear Steve reassuring you as well.

"It's ok Cyber. You're safe, it was just a nightmare. We're here." he says as he lets go of your legs, but keeps one arm wrapped around your waist.

Your breathing starts to even out as you understand what's happening.

"It... I...it was so real..." you breathe out.

"I know, doll, I know. It's okay, just keep breathing slowly." Bucky says as he rubs your shoulders and helps you calm your breathing down to normal.

You feel Steve rub his hands up and down your legs in comfort, helping you ground yourself back to reality. You stay there for a few minutes in silence.

"I'm sorry." you whisper, tears brimming your eyes. "I didn't mean to wake you...."

"Doll, please. Don't apologize for this, ever. Trust me, I understand. It's okay, we'll help you find a way to get these nightmares under control." Bucky tells you as he brings you in for a hug.

The bed shifts as Steve moves himself closer to you and Bucky.

"We said we would always protect you. We're here for you, for anything... we mean it." He gives you a gentle smile as he holds your hand.

"Thank you.. I don't know what to do... I can't sleep, and when I do, I'm back there with that monster....." you say quietly, beginning to shake again.

Steve and Bucky are next to you on either side, each holding a hand to comfort you, reassuring you that they'll help you out through the entire healing process.

"I'll make you a tea to help you sleep again" Steve says, getting up and walking towards the kitchen.

You feel Bucky's eyes on you as you turn to face him.

"I get it, you know? It's not easy to open up and talk about it. I can help you get through this. Steve too, he helped me when I needed it most."

You sigh and shrug your shoulders, playing with the edge of the covers.

"You don't have to tell me anything. I want you to talk about it when you're ready. Just know that I'm here for you, we are here for you. Just say the word and we're there."

Steve returns with a tea and hands it to you gently.

He crawls back into bed and turns the TV on.

"What do you want to watch? We'll watch whatever you want" he says.

You tell them your favourite comfort show and they turn it on.

You finish your tea, feeling warm on the inside as you snuggle into your covers.

You don't realize when you start dozing off until you feel them get out of the bed and place your covers over you.

You reach out and grab them "Don't go... please... stay..."

They look at each other, unsure.

"Please, you make me feel safe." you say, as you push the covers over and move to the middle of the bed to make room for the both of them.

They chuckle and get into the bed, each one next to you. Steve is behind you, Bucky in front of you. Their warmth and the sound of their breathing lulls you back to sleep.

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

You wake up to both Steve and Bucky's arms wrapped tightly around your waist. The both of them had turned to face you in the night, each with their faces in your hair as they snore.

You giggle at how cute the two super soldiers are when they sleep.

You try to move out of their grasps to go to the bathroom and get ready for the day, when their arms both tighten around you and they move closer to you.

"Where are you going?" Bucky mumbles, tiredly.

"I was going to go shower and start my day..."

"No need. I postponed all missions until further notice. We're all off." Steve says to you, smirking.

"What?! Can you even do that?" you ask incredulously.

"Of course, I'm the team leader. I do what I want." he chuckles.

"And more importantly, you get to do whatever you want, doll." Bucky says to you, smiling.

You giggle and shake your head.

"Can we just have a relaxing day? Stay in, watch movies, eat junk food?" you ask them hopefully.

"we? you want us to stay?" Bucky asks.

"Well... I mean.. only if you want to... It's okay if you don't... I was just, it's because I thought-" you're cut off by Steve laughing.

"Of course we'll stay with you. Who else would we spend the day with?"

You blush and start to laugh as you wiggle your way out of their arms and head to the bathroom.

"I'm going to shower, I suggest you both do too..." you say jokingly as you give them a knowing look.

"Ha Ha you little joker" Bucky rolls his eyes.

"We'll be back with snacks and blankets!" Steve declares as he and Bucky walk out of your room.

When you get out of the shower, your bed is covered with a plethora of snacks and junk food and tons of blankets and pillows. They closed the lights and turned on your LED lights for a more appropriate lighting for movie watching.

"Oh my god guys! This is insane! Thank you so much!" you squeal excitedly as you go hug them both.

You all settle into the bed with you in the middle and both men next to you on either side.

As you're going through the movie list, you get lost in showing the two super soldiers all of the classics from the 90s and early 2000s that they hadn't seen yet. You feel so comfortable and at ease that the events of the previous night are forgotten. You get lost in the moment of being surrounded by Steve and Bucky, their warmth and laughter enveloping you.

In just a few minutes, you're already smiling ear to ear and talking their ears off as you eat your favourite snacks.

Steve and Bucky exchange a look with each other, communicating silently.

We got our girl back.

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

Please let me know what you think, all feedback is welcome! This may be turning into a stucky x reader? Let me know if you would prefer a bucky x reader or stucky, I could change the plot a bit accordingly.

Let me know if you would like to be added to the tag list!

Tag list:

@unaxv

@winterslove1917

@kandis-mom

@cjand10

@ordelixx

@abbyyourlocalmilf

[hauntedhowlett-writes]

take care - chapter 1

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2

Pairing: Joel Miller/Reader

Rating: Explicit (18+, MDNI)

Word Count: 6,684

Read on AO3

Summary:

“Sorry.”

You tilt your head. “For what?”

He follows behind you, shutting the door with a soft click. You turn to face him, the small hallway pressing the two of you closer together.

“For not gettin’ there faster,” he grunts, not meeting your eyes. “For you havin’ to get up to take care of her.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. You know, it’s okay to let someone else take care of things once in a while,” you reply.

He regards you with that intense stare of his, the one that makes you want to confess that sometimes, when you lie awake at night unable to sleep, your hand slips beneath the waist of your shorts to thoughts of him. You press your lips together.

“Maybe…maybe you need to have someone take care of you,” you say.

Additional tags: explicit sexual content, p in v, cunnilingus, blow job, dirty talk, mild angst

A shrill scream breaks through your subconscious. Your eyes snap open and you’re out of the bed before your brain even comes fully online, rushing across the hall to Ellie’s room.

She’s thrashing in bed, eyes squeezed shut and fists flying, legs trapped in the faded floral top sheet. She lets out another gut wrenching wail that spurs you back into action.

You gently grasp her face in your hands as you start firmly saying, “Ellie, sweetheart, it’s me, I’m here. It’s a dream. Wake up.”

It takes a few repetitions, but her eyes eventually snap open and she goes limp once she realizes it’s you, and not whatever haunts her memories.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” she whispers as she buries her head against your stomach.

“No, you don’t gotta be sorry, honey. It’s okay,” you whisper back. You run your fingers through her sweat damp hair, pushing it off her forehead.

You’ve known Joel and Ellie for three weeks, since they’d stumbled upon your cabin in the woods after escaping Silver Lake and that fucking creep of a leader. You’re pretty certain he’s only stayed for so long because you get along with Ellie like a house on fire and he likes seeing her smile.

You and Joel take turns hunting or heading into the ghost town to find rations. Ellie does a pretty good job setting small game traps now, and she’s been a big help with your garden.

Most of the time, Joel pretends you’re not there. Sometimes, when Ellie says something crazy, he’ll give you a look, like a disapproving father who needs the only other adult on his side, even as you’re trying your best not to laugh and encourage her.

Ellie’s breathing evens out as she falls back asleep. When you lift your head, Joel is standing in the doorway, chest heaving with deep breaths.

He steps in the room, eyes trained on Ellie. “She okay?”

“Yeah. Poor thing had another nightmare,” you tell him. You shift slowly, carefully, moving the girl back to her pillow and lifting the sheet back over her.

“Sorry.”

You tilt your head. “For what?”

He follows behind you, shutting the door with a soft click. You turn to face him, the small hallway pressing the two of you closer together.

“For not gettin’ there faster,” he grunts, not meeting your eyes. “For you havin’ to get up to take care of her.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. You know, it’s okay to let someone else take care of things once in a while,” you reply.

He regards you with that intense stare of his, the one that makes you want to confess that sometimes, when you lie awake at night unable to sleep, your hand slips beneath the waist of your shorts to thoughts of him. You press your lips together.

“Maybe…maybe you need to have someone take care of you,” you say. Oh, god damnit. The impulsive thoughts won. You feel your cheeks burn up from the implication of your words and his eyebrows draw together.

“That’s not a good—“

“Forget it. Forget I said anything. I’m just…gonna go get the coffee started. Yes.” You inch your way past his broad body, shoulder brushing his as you make your escape. “I’ll leave some for you!”

One of the reasons you’ve stayed in the house for so long, instead of venturing out to find other people, is the field of solar panels. They allow you the luxury of using an actual coffee maker instead of the packets of instant bullshit that taste like mud. You set the machine up, watching it slowly drip and brew like it will hold all the answers to your problems.

Ellie pads into the kitchen shortly after the pot fills. She looks at you sheepishly.

“Sorry for waking you up earlier,” she mutters.

“You and Joel have both gotta stop saying sorry for every little thing.” You hand her a half full cup that she dumps a spoonful of sugar into from the cellar on the table. “Don’t let him see you drinking that or he’s gonna complain about me wasting the good caffeine on your youth.”

She laughs and gives you a little salute before heading back to her room. You put your own coffee in a travel cup and go to get dressed so you can check the game traps and feed Millie and Champ, your two horses.

Joel’s nowhere to be found when you head back to the kitchen, dressed in your cold weather gear. The coffee pot is suspiciously less full than it had been when you left, though.

Great. You’ve made it weird.

You grab the coffee thermos and your rifle before heading out into the woods surrounding the farmhouse.

At least you can keep yourself useful and busy.

——

Joel lays in bed, staring up at the yellowing ceiling as his brain plays an endless loop of your words.

Maybe you need to have someone take care of you.

His immediate reaction was to shut it down. No, he doesn’t need anyone to take care of him. He’s been on his own this long, and will continue to be long after he delivers Ellie to the Fireflies.

But the longer he thinks about it, the more his resolve crumbles. The seed of uncertainty has been growing roots in his brain ever since that little girl risked her life to save his. And when he found her covered in blood and screaming into the cold winter air after what David had tried to do to her, he started to wonder whether he was willing to give her up. He’d failed one daughter already - he doesn’t know if he’ll recover from failing another.

He scrubs a hand over his face. Then there’s you. Another root digging into his brain. When they’d come across your cabin, thinking it was abandoned and wanting to rest for a bit, he wasn’t prepared to have a beautiful woman point a gun at his head when he came through the door. But you’d quickly dropped the weapon seeing the state he and Ellie had been in. You’d offered your home to them - hot showers, clean clothes, warm food, and surprisingly easy companionship that’s making the choice to leave harder with each passing day.

And now…now you’re offering something Joel hasn’t even thought of in years. Beyond some quick work with his hand when the urge is too strong to ignore, Joel hasn’t known that kind of release in…a long time.

Would it be so bad to do something with only himself in mind?

After a few hours of him wallowing with his inner turmoil, he hears the front door bangs shut. He listens as you stomp the snow off your boots before the heavy booted footfalls are replaced with soft socked ones. He can hear Ellie talking to you, followed by a chorus of giggles that makes his chest tighten.

When he enters the kitchen, he sees you standing at the counter, skinning a rabbit with surprising efficiency. Ellie is watching, eyes wide like she can’t look away. You set the hide in a parchment lined bowl to be dealt with later before narrating how to cut the meat from the bones.

“That’s fucking disgusting,” Ellie comments, nose wrinkled.

“Might be, but do you want stew or not?” You huff out, faux annoyance lacing your tone. “Chop the potatoes, then, weakling.”

“Was it from one of my traps?” Ellie asks you as she pulls out another cutting board and grabs the potatoes from their box.

“Sure was, kid. You’re keeping me well fed.”

Ellie’s lips quirk in the tiniest smile, the flicker of pride in her eyes making Joel’s heart squeeze in his chest.

He chooses that moment to make his presence known, entering the kitchen with heavy steps. You look over your shoulder and flash a tentative smile at him before going back to prepping the rabbit.

“Where the hell’ve you been?” Ellie asks. Joel reaches out and tugs on her ponytail.

“Around,” he replies. “You need any help?”

“Grab some stock and onions from the basement? And hand Ellie some of the tomatoes and celery to dice,” you instruct.

He grabs the required items from the basement and places two ripe tomatoes and two onions on the cutting board in front of Ellie. He also finds the big stock pot from your cupboard and sets it on a burner and turns it on a medium flame for you.

“Thanks,” you murmur, both hands full of bloody rabbit chunks that you toss in the pot. Once they’ve browned a bit on the heat, you motion to Ellie to dump the vegetables into the pot.

Joel watches as you explain the steps to Ellie, enjoying the calm of your voice as you speak. When you look up for a moment and catch his eye, he doesn’t break the contact. Instead, he watches as your cheeks turn a pretty shade of pink before you duck your head back down.

Fuck.

——

“What do you call a factory that makes okay products?” Ellie asks.

“Christ, not this again,” Joel grumbles around a mouthful of rabbit stew.

“What?” You ask, paying him no mind.

“A satisfactory,” Ellie says.

You press your lips together, fighting back the giggle bubbling up. “That…that was awful.”

“You’re literally trying not to laugh!”

“No, I’m not!”

“Yes, you are!”

You throw a napkin at her head and she ducks. Joel is giving you that disapproving father face of his, but at thirty years old, you let it bounce off of you.

Besides, he’s not fooling anyone. The corners of his eyes crinkle as he wrestles his own smile into submission.

“Can we play one of those board games tonight?” Ellie asks.

“Which one? I’m not doing Monopoly again. You’re a sore loser.”

She sticks her tongue out. “Fine. I’ll go pick.” She abandons her empty bowl at the table to go raid your stash of board games in the living room.

Avoiding Joel’s gaze, you grab both bowls and bring them to the sink. As you start to rinse them, you feel the older man step beside you, his shoulder brushing yours.

“I got it,” he says, gently pulling a bowl from your hands. “So…,” he starts, clearing his throat.

“So?” You reply, peeking at him from the corner of your eye.

“Is that…offer…still available?” He’s staunchly refusing to meet your questioning look.

“Offer? What offer?” He raises his eyebrows at you. It takes the gears in your head a second of turning before your eyes go wide, the spoon you’d been washing slipping from your fingers and clattering against the steel sink, but you finally catch on. “Oh! Oh, that…uh…that offer. Right. Yes?”

“That sounds like a question. I need you to be certain.”

You straighten your shoulders before turning to face him, meeting his surprisingly heated stare. “Yes.”

“Good. That’s…good,” he mutters. “Tonight? After Ellie goes to bed?”

“Sure, yeah,” you whisper. He’s pressed closer to you, his chest grazing against your breasts when he takes a deep inhale. His tongue swipes across his bottom lip and your eyes track the motion, glued to his mouth. “Tonight works.”

He shuts the water off, stepping back to set the bowl in the dish rack and reaching for the hand towel on the stove. Ellie runs back into the kitchen, holding the faded Sorry! game box.

“Alright, losers, let’s go,” she says before flopping gracelessly into her chair at the table. “I’ve got a good feeling about this one.”

You risk one more glance at Joel, who seems to have moved on from the moment you’d shared. He sits beside Ellie and helps her set up the game.

“I call red,” you announce as you take your seat across from them.

Joel wordlessly slides the red game piece to you, fingers brushing against yours in the exchange. Just that little touch lights your nerves up, makes you press your thighs together a little tighter. Joel must notice, because his lips tip up in a little smirk before he schools his features back to stoic and grumpy when Ellie gives him the green piece.

“Let’s get this over with,” he mutters.

——

After five games of Sorry!, three of which you lost, Ellie finally announces she’s calling it a night. She’s been yawning through the last game, so it was only a matter of time, but she wanted to beat Joel just one more time.

“‘Night,” she says as she heads back to what you now consider her room, leaving you and Joel at the table. You stand, picking up the discarded game pieces and cards and putting them away neatly in the box.

Joel stands wordlessly, leaving your line of sight and you think maybe he changed his mind.

Large, warm hands circle your hips, pulling you back against a broad chest covered in worn flannel. His fingers slip beneath the hem of your thermal shirt, calluses dragging on the soft, sensitive skin just below the waist of your jeans.

You tip your head back against his shoulder to look up at him. One of those devilish hands slides up the front of your body until his palm presses to your throat, angling your chin so that he can press his lips to yours.

It’s your first kiss in who knows how long, and you hadn’t realized how much you missed this kind of connection with a person. His lips are a little chapped, but surprisingly gentle considering how aggressively this man lives his life. You twist around in his grip until you’re facing him, looping your arms around his neck and pressing your body tighter to his.

His tongue traces your bottom lip and you open to him with a groan. Like the noise breaks some sort of spell, he pulls back.

“Have to be quiet,” he whispers. “Can you do that for me?”

You nod your head and he rewards you with another kiss, this one rougher, more demanding. He wraps his fist in your hair, tugging your head back to change the angle to his liking. Your fingers play with the hair at the nape of his neck and this time, it's him that groans into your kiss.

“Have to be quiet,” you whisper, voice teasing. His eyes narrow, another smirk playing at the corner of his lips. You like this look on him - hair disheveled, lips kiss swollen, eyes glinting mischievously in the low light of the kitchen.

He moves suddenly, crouching slightly and wrapping his hands around the backs of your thighs before lifting you up from the ground. You let out a surprised squeak, your fingers digging into his shoulders and legs wrapping around his waist as he carries you out of the kitchen.

You can’t help the laugh that escapes you, and Joel shushes you with a bright smile you’ve not seen yet on the man. Your laugh tapers into a quiet giggle as he shoulders open the door to the guest room he’s been sleeping in, on the opposite side of the house from your master bedroom and Ellie’s room. Once inside, he turns to press you against the door, using one hand to keep you suspended while the other flips the lock.

“Don’t wanna scar that nosey kid more than I already have,” he says before kissing down your neck, beard scratching against your sensitive skin. You let out a quiet whimper as he bites your shoulder, your hips snapping against his. You can feel the hard length of him through his jeans and that quiet desperation that you’ve been feeling for the older man continues to boil in your veins.

You drop your legs from his waist, standing on the tips of your toes as his hand refuses to relinquish its grip on your ass. You push at his chest and he steps back only enough to allow you room to stand on your own two feet.

You wiggle both your hands between your bodies as he continues to press kisses to your neck, your jaw, behind your ear. Locating his belt, you unbuckle it quickly, tugging it through the loops and tossing it away like it offends you.

Joel distracts you for a moment by gripping your face in his palms, kissing you like you’re the air he needs to breathe. You quickly return to your task, tugging open the fly of his jeans and reaching your hand in to palm his cock through his boxers.

“Shit,” he hisses. His head drops back, eyes shutting as you work your hand in the limited space.

It’s not nearly enough.

You drop to your knees, working his pants down until his cock bobs free, thick and long with a bead of precum already pooled at the tip. You grip him at the base, leaning forward to let your tongue swipe across the head and collect the small essence of him.

A rough groan leaves him as you guide him into your mouth. He cuts it short, sticking a knuckle between his teeth to stem his noises. His other hand rests against the back of your head, not pressing, but like he needs to touch you, needs to feel you.

His hips snap forward unexpectedly when you grasp his balls in your hand, making you gag slightly. You can feel the burn of tears at the corner of your eyes as you look up at him. His eyes are wide, laser focused on where his dick slides between your lips and into the tight, wet heat of your mouth.

Without warning, he pulls completely free of you, a hand wrapping around your upper arm and tugging you to stand. He rips your shirt over your head before ridding you of your jeans and panties before you even realize what’s happening.

“What–”

“On the bed. Now,” he grunts, pushing you gently toward the mattress. You sit on the edge of it, naked as the day you were born, eyebrows drawn in confusion.

Joel removes the rest of his clothes before standing before you. “Spread your legs,” he commands.

You move to obey, but must not be fast enough for his liking since he presses his palms to the inside of your knees and wrenches your thighs apart before dropping to his knees.

“Wait, wait,” you say. He stops, looking up at you. “I’m supposed to be taking care of you .”

“Trust me, baby, getting the chance to eat this pussy is taking care of me. Now lay back and shut up.”

You shut your mouth but you don’t lay back, propping yourself up on your elbows to watch as he presses kisses to the inside of your thighs. You’ll be damned if you’re going to miss committing even a second of this to memory.

His tongue swipes through your folds before lavishing broad circles over your sensitive clit. He hums, the vibrations adding to the onslaught of sensation against a part of you that’s gone without attention for so long.

“ Joel, ” you whisper, trying to keep your voice low. He looks up at you from between your thighs and your head drops back on a moan you were meant to be holding back.

“Remember what we said about being quiet,” he rasps, pulling away from you to run his fingers through the slick pooling at your entrance before sliding one, then two inside in quick succession. “You’re so goddamn tight.”

“Been a while,” you huff, voice breathy. Your hips chase his fingers on every withdrawal and when his mouth returns to your clit, your back arches from the bed.

“Gonna cum,” you warn. His pace doesn’t falter as he works you over until your tummy tightens almost painfully. With a slight graze of his teeth, your release washes over you, your muscles tightening around his fingers, your thighs pressing against his broad shoulders.

He stands, beard glistening from his attention, and he slips an arm beneath your back, using it to haul you further up the bed.

“You want this?” He asks, tugging at his still hard cock. You nod, spreading your legs for him once more as he positions himself between your thighs. “Then be a good girl and take it.”

He slides the head over your clit, making you shiver, before slowly pressing inside. His eyes stay trained on your face, watching your expressions as you envelope his cock.

When he bottoms out, he shifts forward so that his elbows rest on the mattress beside your head. Your fingers claw between his shoulder blades as you flutter around him, adjusting to the sensation of being so full.

“You okay?” Joel asks, voice strained. You nod, shifting your hips and making both you groan. He drops his head to your shoulder. “Don’t be movin’ like that if you want this to last.”

You do it again, and this time Joel takes matters into his own hands, pulling back before snapping his hips forward, punching the air from your lungs.

He sets a pace that should hurt, that should feel brutal, but it just feels so damn good . The weight of him surrounding you, the pressure of his hips against yours, the breath you share as he kisses you again, biting into your lower lip to stave off his own moan.

He pulls out, grabbing your hips and twisting until you’re on your stomach. He hitches your ass higher and lands a smack to one cheek for good measure before sliding back inside you. You bite down on the pillow beneath you, letting your noises out into the stuffing.

Joel slams into you again and again and again, like all that pent up frustration you’re sure he bottles up tightly has finally boiled over. He leans over your body, the angle going impossibly deeper, and slips his hand over yours, folding his fingers into the spaces made, what feels like, just for him.

He doesn’t say anything else. All you hear from him at the little groans and grunts that you’re certain would be an amazing experience at full volume. But what he can’t say with words, he does with his touch.

The trail of a hand down your spine, the flex of his fingers between yours, the press of his lips to your shoulder as he chases his release and sends you hurtling towards another.

With a cry into the pillow, you cum around him, muscles trying to stop him from ever leaving your body again. But with a few more thrusts, Joel pulls out, cum landing across your back and ass.

You flop down flat on your belly, body spent and brain offline from the two delicious orgasms. You hear him move about the room, the sound of clothes rustling and open and shut of the door reaching your ears as you lay there boneless. He returns a moment later and runs a wet washcloth over your back and between your thighs, cleaning you of any evidence of his enjoyment.

He shifts you around the mattress until he can tug the covers over your naked body. To your surprise, he climbs in beside you, an arm wrapping around your waist and tugging you toward him.

Joel Miller is a cuddler. Who would have thought?

“Thank you,” he whispers, pressing a kiss to the crown of your head as you slowly sink into sleep.

____

“Wake up, kid,” Joel says, shaking Ellie’s shoulder. “We gotta go.”

Ellie mumbles something in her sleep. With a roll of his eyes, he tugs the blankets off of her, causing her to roll onto the floor with a thud and a surprised yelp.

“You asshole,” she snaps. “What’s the big rush? Why are we leaving now?”

“Because I said so. Now, come on.”

Blessedly, she listens. She gathers her backpack and tugs on her jacket and shoes before trailing out after him into the dark morning.

At the back of the property, Joel directs them to the all black horse named Champ that he’s already saddled.

“We’re stealing her horse? Isn’t that a bit low, even for you?” Ellie asks.

Joel ignores her, swinging himself up and situating himself. She’s right. It is low.

But he knows that if he stays, he may never want to leave.

And he’s got a job to finish.

[babaukulele]

I feel like Keigo would be so good about helping with night terrors, he definitely has some himself. Mine have been more prevalent than usual so allow me to indulge for a second here.

CW: nightmares/ night terrors, pet names (birdie)

Mainly fluff as always

I feel like Keigo would be so good about helping with night terrors, he definitely has some himself. Mine have been more prevalent than usual so allow me to indulge for a second here.

CW: nightmares/ night terrors, pet names (birdie)

Mainly fluff as always

You had always had really extreme nightmares, the rate of which varied day by day, the factors not all that clear. You did however notice that you had less when you slept with someone else in the room. Ever since you had started sleeping with Kei they had nearly vanished, his heroic status and protective wings making you feel safer than ever.

You lasted a good two months pretty much nightmare free, in fact it was often your golden eyed partner needing to be soothed in the night. You felt so incredibly special to be someone he could find safety in, even in his most vulnerable state. You had warned him that sometimes you wake up violently, sometimes thrashing around or even screaming. He had been very understanding and almost completely dismissed it until that first night you finally awoke with a yelp followed by a crash.

His eyes flew open and he immediately covered the bed with his protective wings. His hands roamed around the sheets and his heart almost stopped when he realized you were no longer next to him. He started to yell out your name and roll out of the bed when he recognized the sound of your ragged breathing.

A feather flipped on the bedside lamp and illuminated your hunched body laying on the floor. You were breathing hard and tears rolled down your face, the bed sheets still reaching out for their fallen comrade.

Hawks triple checked that the room was clear and then carefully lowered himself next to you. Your eyes were wild and unfocused, your body coursing with adrenaline leaving your entire body shaking, ready to sprint at any minute

Hawks approached you slowly and kept his voice to a whisper.

“Hey birdie”

You didn’t look at him, couldn’t recognize if you were still stuck in whatever hell you had just woken up from. You wanted to scream, fear paralyzing you to your in between state.

Hawks saw it in your eyes, you were still half asleep.

“Y/N, can you hear me? It’s me, Keigo. Or Hawks, too. You had a bad dream, but it’s over now.”

Your eyes started to focus in, you still stared at the ceiling as your chest heaved.

Hawks gently slid a hand to your shoulder and traced it up till it was under your head, keeping all contact very clear and purposeful. To his relief you didn’t flinch away.

Slowly, he propped your head up till you were looking at him.

“You’re okay, we’re okay…” he recites the current date, time and location, trying to ground you back with him in the present.

Your fingers start to curl around his arm that is keeping you upright as your mind finally registers the change in reality.

Your eyes squeeze shut and you can’t help but let out a whimper of relief. Keigo sighs, relieved himself that you're finally awake and away from whatever left you so distraught.

His big arms pull you into him, his wings covering you but still allowing the lamps light shine in to keep your senses engaged. He had never known to do any of this, until he had met you. Not until you had treated him with the same kindness and empathy that he had strived to remember and return one day.

“Are you hurt? You took quite the fall.”

You shook your head as you wiped at your cheeks. He gently replaced your shaking hands and wiped your cheeks with his thumbs.

“It’s alright, I’ve got you. You’re safe here, I promise.”

You took a shaky breath as your heart rate finally started to slow. You looked up at him through wet lashes almost shy.

“I’m sorry I woke you up and scared you like that”

He cooed at your unnecessary apology and lightly flicked your nose with his pinkie.

“What so I’m allowed to wake you up anytime I get scared or lonely or come home late but you can’t wake me up when you have a nightmare? What a double standard y/n”

His false swoon is almost pitiable. You smack his chest and puff out an annoyed breath. You know he’s right though. He lets out a relieved laugh as you lean your head into his chest.

“Maybe we could talk about it in the morning, but for now why don’t we get you off the floor and into something more comfortable?”

He tried to remember all of the little tricks you had used for him in the past, changing clothes and bed positions to feel like you weren’t in the same space as before. Lighting a candle to add a different scent and even turning down the temperature for peak comfort. You were touched at all the effort. You splashed your face with some cold water to rinse off any remaining sweat or tears and then crawled back into your partner's arms. Not that you had ever really left him, his clingy tendencies soothing you more than ever, clinging to you as you transitioned into a better sleeping space.

You kept the light on for as long as you needed, you and Kei whispering to each other until your eyes grew heavy once again. He watched your breath even and your features soften, staying awake as long as he could manage to make sure your sleep was peaceful. You slept through the night intertwined in each other’s bodies and protection until the sun rose high once again.

[rhiandoesfandom]

Ficlet- Nightmare

Blitz tosses and turns, his feet kicking and claws thrashing against the blanket. His tail tightens around Stolas's leg, so tight that it wakes him up and pulls a feather or two.

"Darling?" Stolas asks, watching him. He tries to blink away his grogginess and his face turns into concern. He decides to try and shake Blitz.

"Blitz. Blitz darling you're having a nightmare", he says as he gently rocks his shoulders.

Blitz starts awake and breathes heavily and his claws catch against Stolas's arm, drawing blood.

Stolas quickly covers it and it starts to heal.

"Wha-What happen- fuck did I hurt you?!" Blitz asks in distress and Stolas shakes his head, "Of course not darling. I'm alright. Are you?" He asks, giving him a small smile.

Blitz notices it with the little amount of pentagram moonlight strewning into the room, and lets out another breath, trying to relax his muscles.

"I-just bad dream is all", he looks away. Stolas pulls his hand away from his arm and the cut is fully healed. He takes Blitz's hand and rubs the top.

"I know that. What about?", Stolas asks. Blitz winces, "I don't know if you want to know", he replies. Stolas lays back down and pulls the blankets over his shoulders, turning away, "Alright, goodnight then".

Blitz blinks, "Hey, aren't you gonna tell me to tell you anyway?" Stolas coos, "I'm tired Blitz. I just wanted to make sure you were alright". He closes his eyes but it's like he can hear Blitz frown.

"Okay I was in the circus", he starts. Stolas smiles to himself and sits back up to listen, pulling the blankets over him again.

"Will you ever have one when you aren't at that circus?" Stolas asks. Blitz chuckles, "I dunno". He lays his head on Stolas's lap.

"Anyway, I was in the circus and I couldn't save everyone again, but-you were there. And Via, and Loona. I couldn't save any of you. And I screamed and pushed through the rubble but you were all gone. And I-", he chokes in his words and Stolas pets down his forehead, "I understand. That does sound scary. But we're alright".

Blitz sits up and puts his hands on Stolas's cheeks.

"Stols what if I can't protect you", he asks with tears pricking his eyes. Stolas's face melts and he leans into Blitz's lips, giving him a gentle kiss.

"We can protect each other", he says confidently, "I promise nothing will happen to me", he tells him. Blitz gives him a small nod and lays back down on his lap.

Stolas drifts again while sitting up. Blitz realizes and lays him down on the pillow, then huddles under the blankets and cuddles against his back.

"I wish I believed you", Blitz whispers to himself.

[icequeenlila]

A Son for a Son

Chapter 9- 'You've done enough'

Neteyam's pov.

„No!“

Neteyam woke with a jolt.

Screaming, he realized in a daze, blinking against the dizziness.

The sudden movement left his head spinning, sleep weighing heavy on his mind and body. He could hear the blood thrum in his ears.

It was still night time, the fire had died, only the soft glow of Pandora’s bioluminescence bringing light into the darkness.

Neteyam looked around, his head thick with dizziness, trying to find the source of the sudden noise.

“Noooooo!”

Lo’ak is screaming.

And just like that, Neteyam was wide awake, his nerves pulling tight, his eyes sharpening, the heaviness lifting off his body. And he moved.

“Lo’ak.”

He sat up straight, cowering right next to his baby bro, leaning over him protectively. Around him he could sense the others waking up, starting to move, but he paid them no mind.

Lo’ak let out another agonizing cry, his body squirming, lifting off the ground and falling back. His eyes were still closed, but he cried and cried and cried.

“Nooooooohhh!”

He’s dreaming.

“Lo’ak.”

It was their mother’s worried voice, still thick with sleep, but alert. Again, Neteyam did not look up.

Instead, acting on instinct, he reached out both his hands towards his baby brother.

With one he took ahold of Lo’ak’s cheek, finding it wet and hot from tears. Neteyam could feel his brother’s skin shifting beneath his fingers as Lo’ak clenched and unclenched his jaw, as he threw his head from one side to the other, shaking his head as if to prevent evil.

Feeling own tears spring to his eyes, Neteyam let his other hand rest on Lo’ak’s chest, directly over his heart, feeling it racing, beating hard under his ribcage.

And then he pressed down gently, stilling Lo’ak’s head, keeping it from thrashing. Neteyam let his hand weigh down on his brother’s chest, softly, oh so softly as to not restrain him, as to not scare him. Grounding him.

“It’s just a dream”, Neteyam soothed, and he started to shake his own hands. Softly. Sending little sensations into Lo’ak’s body to wake him up, gently. “Wake up, Lo’ak. We’re waiting for you here.”

It hadn’t happened often, but Lo’ak used to have nightmares when he’d still been a young child. They weren’t too bad and their mom always noticed soon enough, and she always had woken him just like this. Holding him, putting soft pressure onto him, shaking gently, soothing with her warm voice.

Neteyam felt fear weighing cold inside his own belly, he didn’t even really know what he was doing, if he was doing right, if this was actually of any help. He had woken from his brother’s cries and his mind had jumped directly to those early memories, and without thinking, Neteyam had copied his mother’s actions .

Lo’ak’s cries grew softer, turning into something more like desperate whining.

+

Told ya next chapter starts with my favorite boy screaming✨

Prepare for mama bear Neytiri, bc she will be mothering her ass off. Also, in this chapter Jake will get his hardest punch to the gut yet (see chapter's title). It's gonna huuuuuuuuurt💙

Link to the fic: https://archiveofourown.org/works/44201029/chapters/111150181

Have a nice week!✨

[depressedhouseplant]

🔞 In Darkness I Found You 🔞

Chapter 2

Tags: Descriptions of sexual assault

Yoongi was running. This Alpha was slower than some of the others. Outrunning him was easy. It was when he was inevitably cornered that speed didn’t matter. He was simply too small to get out of their grip. He spent more and more time in the pen. He always knew it was one of those Alphas when they had the cuffs and the hood. The Omegas couldn’t learn their way around. Then if they got loose they wouldn’t know where to run. Yoongi didn’t need to know how he got from the holding area to the pen. He only needed to find a weak spot in the pen.

He was outrunning this Alpha too easily. The Alpha was getting frustrated. Forget frustrated, he was getting angry. Yoongi heard the sound of the tranquilizer gun being placed in its housing.

“Yoongi! Wake up!”

Yoongi opened his eyes and saw Hobi sitting up in bed next to him. He had his hands on Yoongi’s shoulders like he’d been shaking him awake.

“What...what happened?” Yoongi sat up and tried to slow his breathing.

“You were having a nightmare,” Hobi said. “You started screaming and thrashing around, but I couldn’t understand anything you were saying.”

“I’m sorry,” he said, pulling his sweaty shirt away from his torso. Yoongi looked at the clock. They’d barely been asleep 3 hours.

“No, don’t apologize. I was just worried about you,” Hobi said. “Let me get you a dry shirt.”

“Okay, thank you,” Yoongi said, still trying to catch his breath. Hobi got up and went to his room to get another shirt. Yoongi rubbed his belly. “I’m sorry, pup. Daddy didn’t mean to startle you.”

Yoongi was terrified that he’d lose this pup. He’d already lost its sibling as a consequence of escaping. This one was the runt and runts rarely thrived. Hobi’s brother seemed to think it was possible though and Yoongi was willing to do whatever it took to keep this one.

“How’s pup?” Hobi asked from the doorway.

“Think I startled it,” Yoongi replied. “It’s really too early for them to move, but I just kinda know.”

Hobi sat on the bed and helped him change.

“Do you want to find out what it is?” Hobi asked.

“Nah. I haven’t known all the other times. I’ll let it be a surprise,” Yoongi replied. Hobi helped him lie back down & Yoongi started scenting him again. Yoongi hated the smell of Alphas. They smelled too strong. Hobi didn’t smell like most Alphas. He still had the basic smell of an Alpha, but there was something else, too. Maybe Christmas? Or a warm drink on a cold day? It was comforting. It was safe. This Alpha wasn’t going to knot him without his permission. He wasn’t going to chase him around a pen that belonged in a prison. He wouldn’t chase him at all. Yoongi hadn’t known comfort & safety in a long time. He still wasn’t completely sold on the safety part, but he felt comfortable with Hobi. Hobi laughed a low laugh as Yoongi scented him. The kind of laugh that echoed in his own chest.

“What?” Yoongi asked.

“You’re definitely a lover and not a fighter,” he replied as he hugged Yoongi tighter.

“I don’t have to fight anymore,” Yoongi replied.

“The only fighting you’ll be doing is with Daisy or Violet for a prime spot on the couch when Tae finally lets you off bed rest,” Hobi told him.

“Why does he care so much?” Yoongi asked.

“Because he wants you to have a happy, healthy pup, too. I know you’re afraid of him because of his profession, but I promise he wants to help you just as much as I do,” Hobi told him. “He became a nurse because he wants to help people. The nurses who took your pups away, who knows why they did it. Maybe they got paid enough to look the other way or they didn’t realize how bad it was. I’m sure Tae has already researched how to manage a high risk pregnancy with a runt. He already said he was getting you the prenatal vitamins.”

“It’ll just take some time,” Yoongi replied.

“I’m sure. Once you see he’s trying to help, it’ll be better,” Hobi ran his fingers through Yoongi’s hair.

“Thank you,” Yoongi nosed at Hobi’s neck.

“You think you can go back to sleep?” Hobi asked.

“I’ll try,” Yoongi said.

“I’m right here if you have another nightmare, but I hope you don’t,” Hobi assured him.

“Me too,” Yoongi managed to sleep through the rest of the night. When he woke up, it took him a moment to realize he wasn’t chained to the bed. It was still raining outside, but not the monsoon that had been coming down last night. He’d rolled over on his other side and Hobi was cuddled up behind him with his arms wrapped around him. He was in a real bed, in a nice house, with 2 Alphas who genuinely cared about his well being. And his pup’s.

The pup.

Hobi’s hands were covering Yoongi’s belly. Yoongi’s hands were on top of Hobi’s. He was protecting a pup that wasn’t his. Alphas didn’t do that. Alphas rejected pups that weren’t theirs. Yet somehow during the night they’d shifted and Hobi was guarding Yoongi’s pup. Yoongi couldn’t stop himself from crying.

“What’s the matter? Did you have another nightmare?” Hobi picked up his head, still mostly asleep.

“No, it just hit me that I’m not there anymore and I woke up to an Alpha holding me & protecting my pup & I just got overwhelmed…” he sniffled.

“Get used to waking up to an Alpha holding you and protecting your pup,” Hobi smiled at him as he propped himself up on his elbow. He still had one hand on Yoongi’s belly. Yoongi rolled over on his back and looked up at Hobi.

“Why?” he asked.

“Because for some reason you collapsed on my lawn in the middle of one of the worst storms I’ve seen in a long time and I’m a sucker for a charity case,” Hobi replied. Yoongi smiled back. Charity case didn’t even begin to cover it.

“I could say thank you for the rest of our lives and it wouldn’t be enough,” Yoongi told him.

“Once is enough,” Hobi lied back down on his side and Yoongi stayed on his back. He looked over at Hobi.

“Can I kiss you?” he asked.

“Sure,” Hobi leaned down and gently touched his lips to Yoongi’s. Yoongi kissed him back. Hobi’s lips were soft. Yoongi knew his were rough. Lip care wasn’t high on their priority list when the Omegas were pregnant. Making sure they were healthy and gave birth to healthy pups was the priority. Of course, healthy and well taken care of were 2 very different things. Yoongi couldn’t remember the last time he’d been kissed. The Alphas didn’t exactly woo the Omegas. He liked this kiss, though. It was a kiss he could stay in forever.

“You and the pup need breakfast,” Hobi whispered against Yoongi’s lips when they parted.

“Okay,” Yoongi desperately didn’t want Hobi to leave. He was afraid if Hobi walked out of the room then he’d wake up and be right back in that hell hole.

“Or I can get Tae to bring you something,” Hobi said. It was then Yoongi realized that he’d clamped his hand down on Hobi’s arm. He let go of Hobi’s arm.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to,” Yoongi said.

“I’ll get Tae to bring something. He’s a better cook than I am anyway,” Hobi replied. He grabbed his phone and texted his brother.

“Is that a phone?” Yoongi asked.

“Yeah. It’s called a smartphone,” Hobi replied.

“How is it smart?” Yoongi asked, resting his chin on Hobi’s shoulder and looking at the phone.

“You know, I don’t really know,” Hobi laughed a little. The Alphas were never allowed to bring anything with them. The last time Yoongi had seen a cell phone, it flipped open. He’d never seen one like Hobi had. Hobi touched the screen and it did things Yoongi had never seen before.

“You wanna try?” Hobi asked.

“Sure,” Yoongi tentatively took it from him.

Hobi was still showing Yoongi how to use his phone when Tae came in with pancakes, orange juice, and another vitamin.

“I haven’t been able to get to the store yet for the right vitamins, but something is better than nothing,” he said as he put the tray down. “I was going to make banana pancakes, but I wasn’t sure if you liked bananas.”

“I think I like bananas,” Yoongi said.

“Well, we’ll try those tomorrow then,” Tae said. “Is there anything you don’t like or are allergic to?”

“Um, I don’t think I’m allergic to anything. I’m not really a picky eater,” Yoongi replied. He couldn’t afford to be.

“I thought I’d stop at the grocery store on the way back from work and maybe pick up some things you’ll eat. I’ve found a lot of ideas for what to feed you if you’re carrying a runt. Good news is there’s a lot of resources out there. I’m also friends with one of the midwives and I’m sure she’s got suggestions, too. Definitely bed rest though. Unless you’re going to the bathroom or bathing, you need to be in the bed,” Tae had obviously spent a lot of the night doing research.

“I…thank you,” Yoongi said.

“I’m happy to do it. Eat up before my brother gets any bright ideas with your pancakes,” Tae looked at Hobi.

“I would never eat a pregnant Omega’s food,” he said. Tae rolled his eyes, but smiled a little. “I’m gonna get ready for work. I’ll check on you before I leave.”

“Thanks Tae,” Hobi said and moved the tray over so Yoongi could eat. He cleaned his plate and drank the juice faster than he thought he would.

“I think I might go back to sleep for a bit,” he told Hobi when he finished.

“I just heard Tae let the dogs back in, so I should be good to stay with you,” Hobi told him. “I might stay awake for a bit.”

“Okay,” Yoongi settled back down. Before he was totally asleep, he heard Tae and Hobi talking.

“What are you thinking?” Hobi asked.

“It’s a minor miracle he isn’t dead. He didn’t miscarry that pup right before he fell in the yard, he was bleeding for a while. When he lets me, I want to do a full exam,” Tae said.

“He’s got scars on his wrists and ankles,” Hobi said.

“I also noticed needle marks. He had a lot of IV something,” Tae added.

“You think he’ll be okay?” Hobi asked.

“Physically probably. Emotionally who knows?” Tae replied.

“He panicked when I tried to leave to get breakfast,” Hobi told his brother.

“Are you surprised?” Tae pointed out.

They were silent for a moment, probably looking at him. He had his back to them, but it was touching Hobi’s leg.

“I hope the pup will be okay,” Hobi said.

“Me too,” Tae agreed. Then Yoongi let himself fall asleep.

[the-royal-blue-network]

Mikey was startled awake around eleven o’clock in the morning by the sound of his sister screaming bloody murder. Jumping up from the couch, he quickly grabbed the poker from the fireplace and rushed to his sister’s room. 

In the room Paula thrashed around in the covers; a thick layer of sweat coding her entire body.

“Just give him one more week.” She pleaded her arms flailing around.

“Paula!” Mikey yelled.

Still lost in dreamland, or more accurately nightmare land, Paula continued thrashing around. 

Realizing that he probably wouldn’t be able to get threw to her, Mikey got onto the bed and pinned her down. Hopefully restraining her would not only keep her from hurting him or herself, but maybe it would wake her as well. And sure enough, after a few more minutes of trying to fight him off, Paula’s eyes shot open as she gasped for air.

“It’s okay. You were just having a bad dream.” Mikey said.

Sitting on the edge of her bed, Mikey pulled his sister into a seated position and into a hug.

Paula wasn’t used to this. Her father wasn’t big on hugs, and with him being the only family she’d ever really been close to, she never grew up receiving hugs. So when her baby brother flung his arms around her, hugging her close, Paula didn’t know what to do. 

“Oh, sorry.” Mikey said, slowly pulling back.

“No, it’s okay. I just wasn’t expecting that. Dad was never really a hugger.” Paula said.

Mikey scratched the back of his head.

“Speaking of dad, we should probably get going.” Mikey said, causing Paula to nod.

…

“You nervous?” Paula asked as she pulled into the drive-thru of a Dunkin Donuts. 

“Yes and no. If dad values family as much as he says he does then he’ll be happy to see me. But does he trust me?” Mikey said.

That question had been in the back of Mikey’s mind since he left his mother’s house the night of his eighteenth birthday. He would hate to have come all this way only for his father to turn him away.

“Like I said last night, or this morning rather, dad doesn’t blame you. You were a baby.” Paula pointed out.

Driving forward, Paula picked up the coffees and donuts before they made their way to the safe house. Making her way around back, Paula was relieved to see only one SUV parked outside; that meant fewer men today. Fewer men were exactly what she and Mikey needed. 

Hopping out of the car, the siblings made their way inside. Using the private elevator, reserved for Pauly and his closest of men, Paula and Mikey made their way up to the top floor. The elevator led right to Pauly's office so the siblings didn’t have to worry about being seen by the others before they even had a chance to see their father.

Lucky for them, today was one of the few days Pauly was actually all alone. Usually Simon or one of Pauly's other men were sitting across from him, chatting him up while he worked.

“Hey kiddo how’d you-” Pauly’s sentence died on his tongue as he turned around and came face to face with the one person he thought he’d never see again. 

Pauly froze for a moment, causing Paula to look back and forth between her father and brother confused.

“Why’s he looking at you like this is the first time he’s seen you? Didn’t he give you the code?” Paula said looking back and forth between her brother and father.

“Actually I got it from Gus.” Mikey said sheepishly.

Paula whipped around and shot daggers at her father.

“You gave Gus the code!” Paula yelled.

Unlike her father, Paula liked to keep a respectable distance between herself and the men she worked with. Too close and they started acting funny.

“Relax, you’re gonna change it tomorrow anyway!” Pauly said.

Though this was true Paula hoped her father wouldn’t make this a habit. The list of men she could trust in this city was already short as it is; she would hate to have to remove her own father from it.

“Next time I’ll let you know before I give it out.” Pauly said holding his hands up.

Paula nodded sharply.

“Thank you.” She said.

Now that that was all squared away, Pauly turned his attention to his son.

“Mikey!” He said holding his arms out.

Mikey stepped forward, allowing his father to grip his face.

Leaning in, Pauly pressed a kiss to both of his son’s cheeks before standing back to really take him in.

“Look at you! You’re a big fucking man now!” Paul said, tears starting to form in his eyes.

For months after Mikey and Paula’s mom took Mikey and up and left him, all Pauly did was cry his eyes out. In the mornings before he started his days, anytime he got a moment to himself, and late at night after he put Paula to bed, all Pauly did was cry. He’d lost the one thing that was most important to him, his family; well at least to third of it anyways. After those few months, Pauly reminded himself that he still had a daughter to look after and provide for. So Pauly dried his eyes and kept it moving. Soon the pain of his wife’s betrayal became dull and didn’t affect him as much, but not a day went by when he didn’t think about his baby boy.

“I’m sorry I never looked for you.” Pauly said with watery eyes.

“It’s not like you could have called the cops.” Mikey joked, trying to lighten up the mood.

Pauly smiled at how understanding his son was. But that still didn’t mean he didn’t feel bad.

“Come sit. Tell me everything. How long are you in town for? Are you married? Any kids?” Pauly asked as he closed the door and headed to his seat.

Mikey laughed.

“No kids and no spouse. I do have my eye on this boy though.” Mikey said timidly.

The other night Paula and Mikey had talked extensively about how her coming out to their dad went. To Pauly sexual orientation didn’t matter, all he wanted were healthy and happy kids.

Leaning back in his chair, Pauly’s face fell, causing Mikey’s stomach to twist.

“A boy?” Pauly asked slowly.

Mikey swallowed hard.

“Son that’ll get you put in jail.” Pauly said with a serious face.

Mikey rolled his eyes as his father and sister began to laugh.

“I hate you.” Mikey said with a laugh.

Paula order them a late breakfast while Mikey caught his father up to speed on his life. Taking his sister’s advice, Mikey skipped over much of the abuse he suffered at the hands of their mother and her friends. Telling their father about it would only send him out on a hunt for heads. 

Pauly called his secretary and informed her that he’d be spending the day with his children, and after lunch Pauly, Mikey, and Paula went for a drive where Pauly talked to Mikey about the family business. 

Wanna Read More LGBT Stories? Click HERE and Visit The Royal Blue Network Today!

[herzblutballade]

Whumpuary Day 1: Nightmares

Language: English Genre: whump just a little bit of hurt and a whole lot of comfort Characters: my OC Cae & @marmeltier's OC Cynthia

CN: Nightmares, disordered sleep, unhealthy relationship with sleep, mentions of hypothetical threat/danger/harm/fight, mention of character being turned into a vampire.

Author's Note: Yeah, let's not even pretend, this turned out very fluffy, not whumpy at all. No regrets tho, I got to write my precious bbys pre-relationship & broke my own heart in the process, 11/10 would do again

***

When the screaming started, Caedes had assumed the worst — and rushed over immediately. He was careful to move as quickly as possible without making a sound, his heart pounding vigorously as he was sneaking through his own house. There’s barely any distance between his bedroom and the guest room, but with Cynthia’s agonizing screams ringing in his ears, it felt like an eternity until he finally reached her.

But when he opened the door and peeked inside, there was nothing — no intruder, no attacker, no tangible danger. Just Cynthia thrashing around in the guest bed, screaming her lungs out.

It’s only now that he’s sitting on the edge of the bed, close enough to make sure she is truly unharmed, that his heartbeat is beginning to resume its usual rhythm. »Cindy?«, he asks, voice lowered, gently shaking her shoulder in an attempt to wake her from her troubled sleep. »Hey, Cyn.«

At first, she doesn’t wake, doesn’t answer, just twitches and whimpers in her sleep. Just when he’s about to raise his voice again, louder this time, she jolts awake, sitting up straight, scanning the room with eyes wide open, a look of absolute terror on her face.

»Hey. It’s okay.« He desperately wants to soothe her, but doesn’t know how, doesn’t dare to initiate any more touch, afraid of startling her even more. So he just raises his hands in a typical gesture of surrender, trying to demonstrate that he’s not here to harm her in any way. »It’s just me. You’re awake now. You’re safe.«

She’s still breathing heavily when her gaze finally fixes on him, and it takes a long moment until she seems to recognize him; until she realizes where she is. She blinks at him, lips parted slightly, no words coming out.

»You were screaming«, he explains, suddenly feeling a bit silly for showing up in her room with a sheathed knife on his belt, ready to fight who- or whatever was threatening his best friend. »I thought …« His words trail off and he shrugs, smiling apologetically.

»Nightmares«, Cynthia sighs, »just those damn nightmares again. I …« She takes a deep breath and buries her face in her hands, rubbing her eyes as if to clear the remnants of her bad dreams away. »Sorry, I forgot to warn you before staying over. Peaceful sleep is … not really a thing for me.«

»It’s okay. Now I know«, he replies, mustering a half-smile. »Sounds kind of familiar, honestly.« In fact, he barely ever sleeps anymore now that his body has much less need for rest than a regular human’s; before he got turned, his sleep was terrible most nights, too, especially the dreams, even though he often couldn’t recall them clearly enough to write them down or tell anyone about them.

Cynthia looks at him for a long moment, as if pondering what to say or do.

»Want to stay up together?«, Cae suggests, his smile widening. »Until you feel a bit better, at least. How about a cup of tea? I’ll set up a kettle and try to think of a good distraction while we’re waiting for the water to boil.«

Although her eyes still have that haunted look to them, Cynthia’s lips now curve into a soft smile, too. »Yeah, I’d like that. Tea sounds nice.« As Cynthia crawls out from under her blanket, Caedes stands up from the bed and reaches his hand out to her, helping her to her feet as soon as she takes it. Before he can turn to leave the room, though, she suddenly catches him in a tight hug. She seems to hesitate for a split second before she adds: »Not being alone sounds nice, too.«

At first, the sudden closeness catches him by surprise, and he freezes mid-motion, unable to react, unsure how to react, but finally, he manages to wrap his arms around her, too, holding her close for a moment that seems to go on for so long he begins to wonder when the appropriate time to let go would be.

Hugging her just a little bit tighter, he lets himself enjoy being this close to her for one more cycle of breathing in and out. »Come on, let’s get you some tea«, he murmurs then, forcing himself to let go and lead the way to the kitchen.

Not being alone sounds nice, too. It’s true: When it’s the right person keeping you company, it absolutely does. Even — or especially — in the most vulnerable moments.

[koolkat9]

Whumptober 2022: Day 4

Prompt: NO.4 Dead on your Feet: Hidden Injury || Waking up Disoriented || Can’t Pass Out

Relationship: England + Canada

Rating: T

Word Count: 637

Stay With Me

Arthur tapped his foot impatiently. Matthew should have been back from his infiltration mission hours ago. But he wasn’t, which was why Arthur was wide awake, listening for any sound that would signal his return. He was starting to nod off when someone entered his dugout. Upon hearing the thumping, Arthur sprung up and reached for his gun. “Arthur, it's me,” the intruder whispered, “It’s Matthew.”

Arthur lowered his gun and sure enough, at the entrance stood Matthew. He was leaning heavily against the wall, clutching his side, but he was here. Arthur stumbled off his cot towards his ward. “Christ, what happened to you lad?” He asked as he looked Matthew over.

“I-I’m fine…Just a little flesh wound is all.”

Matthew tried to step forward but his legs buckled. Luckily, Arthur was there to catch him before he fell to the floor. He helped Matthew over to the cot and sat him down. Quickly he took off Matthew’s jacket and lifted his shirt. He found the boy’s side to be a bloody mess, literally. “Oh, God…” Arthur breathed out, “Did you walk all the way across No Man’s Land like this?”

Matthew looked away. “Maybe…”

“God damn it.”

Arthur rushed over to where he kept some spare medical supplies and grabbed some bandages and a cloth. He poured some water from his canteen and started cleaning the bullet wounds.

Matthew slumped forward, head resting on Arthur’s shoulder. “You’ve got to stay with me, poppet,” Arthur murmured.

“I’m…Fine…”

Arthur worked as quickly as he could, cleaning and bandaging the wounds and whispering for Matthew to stay awake.

“There,” He sighed, pulling back, and checking his work. They were a little sloppy, but they would do. “Matthew?”

“Th…Thank you…Dad…” Matthew's eyes fluttered closed and leaned against Arthur once more.

"Matt–" He sighed, hair carding through Matthew's matted tuffs. "Sleep well, love.

—

When Matthew came to, the whole room was spinning. When he tried to move there was a piercing pain in his side. He took in a sharp breath.

His heart was hammering in his chest, he couldn’t recall where he was, only that it was dark, cold, and the stench of death hung in the air. He wanted to scream and thrash and he couldn’t explain why. Nothing seemed right and he felt fear tearing at him from the inside.

“Oh!” A surprised voice came from across the room. The bed dipped under someone’s weight. Matthew tensed. “Are you awake dear?”

The voice was familiar, soft, warm. “Can you hear me Matthew?” they called.

A hand found its way onto his and gave it a squeeze. The young nation groaned.

“There you are. You’re going to be just fine, lad.”

“Dad?” Matthew rasped.

“Yes. Yes, I’m right here poppet.”

Matthew’s vision was blurry, but he could make out his guardian’s messy blond locks and bulky uniform that never fit him just right. Though fear still gnawed at him, knowing Arthur was there made it just a bit more bearable.

“You’ll be out of it for a little while, in pain, but you should be more or less well enough to be up and about by tomorrow or the next day,” Arthur explained.

Matthew nodded, though he still felt scared. For all their healing and revival abilities, getting injured and nearly killed never got easier. He weakly gripped at Arthur’s hand.

“Don’t worry Matthew. I’m not going anywhere.”

Matthew swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded.

Arthur’s thumb brushed against his wet cheek. Matthew hadn’t even realized he had been crying until now. “Shhh…Just rest. I’ll stay right here, I assure you.”

“O-Okay.”

“That’s a good lad.”

With Arthur by his side, Matthew let his heavy eyelids slip closed. It wasn’t long before sleep took him once more, Arthur softly humming to send him off peacefully.

[romeoandjulietyouwish]

"don't come any closer" "it was a nightmare, that's all" I always wondered what would've happened if Vex walked in on Percy having a nightmare, or at least the aftermath of one.

Vex hears someone screaming. She jerks awake and before she even knows what she's doing, runs towards the sound. It carries her out of her bedroom and down the hall. It's then she realizes it's coming from Percy's room. The screaming has stopped, but instead she hears him pleading, sobbing.

Without hesitation, she wrenches open the door and walks in. Percy is laying on his bed, thrashing wildly, covering in sweat and tangled in the sheets. She runs over to him, reaching across his bed to shake him awake, but before she can touch him, he sits bolt upright, looking at her with unseeing eyes. He's clearly terrified.

"Don't come any closer!" He shouts, holding a hand out defensively. His breathing is ragged. "I can't take anymore, please, please."

Vex's heart breaks for him, "Percy?" She says gently, lowering herself a bit so she's not towering over him. "It's alright, you're safe."

"Liar!" He shrieks. He scrambles back quickly. "Where's Cass? Don't you fucking touch her!"

Oh boy. Vex gently sits on the edge of the bed. "Percy, you need to calm down. You're in Greyskull Keep. Cassandra is safe, remember? She's not here right now, but no one is going to hurt you, I'm not going to let them. You need to breathe."

Her words seem to have some effect on him because his head shakes and then he blinks, once then twice. He swallows and lowers his shaking hand. Vex looks at him gently, "It was a nightmare, that's all."

"Vex?" He asks, voice scratchy and hoarse.

She nods, "I'm here."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." He yanks a hand through his sweaty hair. "I didn't mean for you to see that."

"It's alright, darling," she assures him. "Everything is alright. You're safe."

He nods and takes a slow breath. "It's been a long time since I had one that bad." Vex watches him slump in on himself, feeling his own pulse point which Vex is sure is racing.

"What can I do?"

Percy sighs. "I don't there's anything you can do, unfortunately. The demons are dead, now it's just my fucked up brain."

To Vex, Percy always looks older than he is. Maybe it's the white hair, maybe it's his pompous, noble confidence, but either way, defenseless and panicked, the Percy in front of her looks young. Which is why she finds herself asking, "How about a hug? It usually makes Vax feel better."

Percy looks at her nervously for a moment and then mutters, "Couldn't hurt." To her surprise, he moves over to her and presses himself into her arms. He's far too skinny under those clothes, she realizes. But she holds him close, leaning her head against his.

His breath shutters against her neck. Vex finds herself wondering how he deals with the nightmares when there's no one to wake him up and comfort him.

Nevertheless, she holds him for a long while, calming him when his breathing starts to pick up. In the darkness of his bedroom, she allows herself the shed a few tears for him and for his suffering.

[mediocre-daydreams]

(ch. 4) wild heart // bucky barnes

i keep my visions to myself

pairing: bucky barnes x reader

summary: in order to protect you, bucky has set one rule for himself: avoid you. he finds himself breaking that rule 30 minutes later. (he does more than break it; he tells it to go fuck itself and now bucky's in too deep.)

warnings: swearing, self-deprecating bucky, emotionally immature bucky

w/c: 3.2k

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oh, thunder only happens when it's raining players only love you when they're playing say, women, they will come and they will go when the rain washes you clean, you'll know

bucky had already settled comfortably (or as comfortably as possible given that he was still sleeping on the floor) when he was rudely interrupted by the sound of sniffles. no, not just sniffles—it was more like soft whimpers, the kicking of sheets, and the occasional gasp for air. is this what it’s like for everyone when i have nightmares? except it’s probably worse since i usually scream and thrash.

it was you, he realized. steve didn’t usually have audible nightmares—he tensed and froze. so it had to be his other wall mate, which unfortunately happened to be someone he didn’t know and had no intention of getting to know.

as much as he tried to block them out and wish for them to stop, your quiet cries didn’t cease. eventually, the guilt of it all got to him. he knew nobody else would be able to hear anything, since he was only able to because of your shared wall and his super-soldier hearing. he reluctantly stood, dog tags clinking together as he rubbed the drowsiness from his eyes, and fumbled over to your door. bucky rose his fist to knock but realized that was probably stupid, since you were asleep, after all. he hesitantly cracked the door open, not wanting to startle you and have a menacing shadowy figure be the first thing you wake up to after having a nightmare. you showed no indication of having been affected by the small creak, so bucky opened the door fully until the back hit one of your unpacked boxes. he winced at the soft thud, but thankfully it seemed like you were a deep sleeper, as that didn’t wake you either.

bucky revoked his previous statement. he’d crouched near the side of your bed and gently called your name, hoping to gradually rouse you awake. oh, she’s a deep sleeper alright.

he squeezed his eyes shut, hating that he’d been the one in the situation. my whole plan to not to affiliate with her is getting off to a really bad start. great job, bucky. nothing says “not friends with the winter soldier so no need to gossip about me” more than being caught in the newbie’s bedroom at 2AM.

“uh, hey. wake up,” he hushed, unsure of himself. he wasn’t usually on this end of things. “hey, open your eyes, or something. um, i command you to come to consciousness.” he felt stupid. (to be fair, he did sound pretty stupid.)

he tentatively outstretched his flesh hand to brush his fingers over your hand, which was gripping the sheets like they were the only thing grounding you in reality. well, that was kind of true.

“i don’t know- wake up!” he hissed, patting your hand a bit impatiently until your eyes fluttered open. oh, so she doesn’t have those dramatic nightmare awakenings like i do, where you totally embarrass yourself and/or attack the well-meaning person who comes to wake you up. lucky.

your eyebrows were furrowed as you tried to take in the fuzzy shapes in front of you. oh shit, that’s not a fuzzy shape. that’s a fucking silhouette. i knew this was a bad fucking idea—wow, it’s my first day and i’m surrounded by the best security system ever and i’m gonna die. go me.

“holy-” you scrambled up, crawling backward to put as much distance between yourself and the figure as possible. your heart, which had already been racing from the intensity of your dream, was now threatening to burst out of your chest. it was like you could hear its pounding in your ears.

“hey, it’s just me!” bucky whispered, holding his hands up reassuringly. he kept them hovering as he stood up to full height. “sorry, i heard you, um, crying or something from my room. we share a wall,” he explained, motioning to it.

“oh,” you choked. “sorry, that’s so embarrassing.” you rubbed your eyes, and bucky couldn’t tell if it was because you were groggy or if you were crying.

“no, don’t be embarrassed,” he came around to your side of the bed slowly, like he was approaching a wounded animal. “can i sit next to you?”

you nodded, scooting over and clutching your blanket up and pulling it up to your chest. you were sitting criss-crossed on the corner of the bed, your back perpendicular to the headboard. the mattress sunk under bucky’s weight. you smiled a bit.

“sorry, i’m heavy,” he laughed, running a hand through his hair. “i’m not really good at comforting people,” he confessed. “i’m usually the one having nightmares.” he turned to look at you. your face was a little puffier than when he’d last seen you, and your hair a little more matted at the back of your head. you wouldn’t meet his eyes.

“i don’t know what you were dreaming about but… i know that having nightmares in a place like this can be pretty intimidating. it was like that for me, at least. everyone seemed so strong and put together, and i had just gotten back from wakanda. i felt broken and alone and people would come into my room every night and wake me up when i was screaming. i’m not very nice when i wake up, unlike you. i would get all aggressive at them,” he chuckled.

“but you’ll come to realize that all of us have those kinds of dreams. some of us have them less frequently and some people have them quietly. but, if it’s worth anything, i’m glad we share a wall. so that i could’ve heard you and come check on you. you shouldn’t… you shouldn’t be crying on your first day. you deserve something good; a fresh start.”

you tilted your head up at him, and bucky could finally catch sight of your red-rimmed eyes. “thanks,” you sniffed. “i don’t usually live with other people, so i didn’t know that i made noise when i slept, actually.” you fiddled with your fingers as your eyes darted across his face as if looking for some sort of reassurance.

“thanks for checking on me. i’ve never- nobody’s ever- i appreciate it.” bucky’s heart splintered at the implication behind your words. in the 40s, he’d had steve. in wakanda, he had shuri. here, he had all his friends. but the times when he was loneliest? when nobody was there to wake him up, and it was like he was living a constant nightmare? that was when he’d been in captivity in hydra. he thought of you, waking up from a nightmare alone in a dark room in some dingy new york apartment, and he had to clench a fist at the unfairness of it all.

“it’s not a problem, doll.” the nickname slipped out before he could even think about it. shit. way to go, again! nothing says “no affiliation with the deadliest assassin of the century” more than being alone in her bedroom in the middle of the night and being all sweet on her. good one.

“do you want to talk about it?” he asked gently. his eyes were soft as he carefully pressed his flesh hand on top of one of yours, which was resting on your knee. you shivered at his touch, and bucky made a move to pull away, but instead, you flipped your hand around and grabbed onto a few of his fingers. your other hand came down to find his metal hand, and even though this wasn’t really about him, bucky melted a bit at your willingness to touch his prosthetic.

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now here i go again, i see the crystal visions i keep my visions to myself it's only me who wants to wrap around your dreams and have you any dreams you'd like to sell? dreams of loneliness

“honestly? not really,” you sighed. “i don’t really want to think about it.” bucky had been there before too. he’d repressed all memories of his time as the winter soldier until the blank gaps there were all he could think about, and they had overtaken his brain. he knew that you, and everyone in general, would have to confront the things which haunted you at some point. but tonight he didn’t push it. he wasn’t ever going to push you into something you weren’t comfortable with, especially not when you were so vulnerable.

bucky lifted your intertwined hands between the two of your bodies, prompting your chin to move upwards and catch his gaze again. “want a glass of water? uh, hydrate or diedrate. that’s what the spider-kid taught me.”

you giggled, pulling away from him. “sure. can you show me where the kitchen is?” he hadn’t expected you to tag along with him. he kind of hoped you wouldn’t. sneaking around with him at night was definitely and for sure not good for your image. well, fuck that. she needs somebody right now, so… i’ll start enforcing the rule tomorrow. well, technically it is tomorrow; at sunrise, then.

he smiled at you as you led him through a maze of cardboard boxes. in the cover of darkness, it felt easier to talk to you than during the few awkward interactions that he’d fucked up. but it was probably a bad thing that he liked you being with you your general presence because that’d only make things a lot more difficult for him. and you, though you weren’t even aware of the rule he’d set.

he poured you a glass of water, pointing out the water filter that tony loved to brag about. “it’s better than brita,” he liked to claim.

the water was downed instantly. you immediately refilled your glass.

“want some tea, or something? or i can make you a snack too. not to brag, but i’m kind of a pro at gourmet late-night cereal. i’m an incredible chef.”

you looked up at him with big bug eyes. fuck, you were so sweet-looking. he’d do anything for you probably be willing to help you with things because it was the gentlemanly thing to do and his ma would have whacked him upside the head if he didn’t.

you hesitated as the possibilities of things that could go wrong ran through your mind. you could accidentally drop the kettle and the boiling water could give bucky third-degree burns on his feet. or the mug could explode from the shock in heat increase, or you could be getting a bowl for the cereal and then drop it and get porcelain all over the floor and maybe one of you would step on the shards and get cut. and if you didn’t step on the shards, maybe you would get cut when trying to pick them up. actually, scratch that; bucky had a metal hand. but you could wake people up.

cereal seemed to have the lowest probability of giving either one of you seriously debilitating injuries. and you supposed you were a bit peckish.

“i haven’t had a midnight snack in forever,” you divulged, reaching for a box of honey nut cheerios on a top shelf. your toes slipped and you fell to the flats of your feet with a quiet hmph. bucky bit back a smile at your struggle.

“don’t laugh at me, asshole,” you grouched, sliding out of the way and gesturing for him to get the box instead. “i probably shouldn’t call you an asshole, huh? since you woke me up and got me cereal and everything.”

bucky handed you the box, amused. “you barely know me. i couldn’t be the biggest asshole ever and you’d never know about it.” he shook his head as he looked down at you, tutting. “classic rookie mistake. always underestimating your opponent.”

“first of all, you’re not my opponent,” you said, bustling around the kitchen for a spoon as bucky dug for a bowl. he settled on a stupid one patterned with dancing cats, hoping it’d lighten your mood. “and second of all, i don’t think i’m underestimating you. i’d say that’s me giving you the benefit of the doubt; which by the way, i don’t think i need to do.” you pulled out a spoon triumphantly, having dug through quite a few drawers.

“sure, i’ve only known you for like, 24 hours. and sure, every single one of our interactions up until now have been really weird, but i think i’m going to like you a lot, bucky. i don’t know, you just seem… good. wholesome. kind.”

bucky resisted the urge to point and laugh. him? good? wholesome? what was he, the easter bunny? he didn’t want to crush your spirits though, so he opted for holding the bowl out to you with both hands as if presenting you an award.

“your bowl,” he announced.

a few infectious laughs bubbled out of you as you admired the watercolored kittens and carefully poured your cereal. bucky decided he liked the sound of your laugh. as much as it was a bittersweet melody, it was one he knew well. you’d met less than a day ago and this was your first real conversation, but there was something about you that he’d never seen in anybody else. maybe it was because he saw himself in you.

grabbing his own bowl, he scooped a couple of handful of cheerios for himself. you slurped happily at your own.

“what kind of milk?” he asked absentmindedly, wandering over the common area couches where you’d just had game night. you trailed behind him.

“soymilk. it’s objectively the best milk.”

“huh. you struck me for a 1% kind of gal.”

you gasped in mock horror. “cow milk? never! i’m lactose intolerant. but even if i wasn’t i want nothing to do with a bodily fluid that comes out of a commercially kept livestock’s udder. it’s a fucking udder.”

he snorted, tossing back a few more cheerios. “you’ve got a point,” he mumbled, his mouth full of cheerios. “i love cheerios.”

“i can tell,” you grinned, taking a seat next to him. the couch had sunk so much under his weight that the cushions were literally slanted around him, and you slipped right down the slope until you were touching thighs. 

“you seem very enthusiastic about them.” you giggled, pointing to his face. “must be why there are crumbs all over your mouth.”

bucky blushed, hand coming up to cover the bottom of his face as he chewed as quickly as he could. you laughed, pushing his hand away so you could brush off the crumbs yourself. “you’re cute, bucky.”

“d-don’t say things like that, doll. you’re going to send an old man into cardiac arrest,” he stammered, caught off guard by the way you seemed to perceive him. kind. cute. an asshole. 

“well, why not? it’s true. plus, you call me doll. so unless you want to send a rookie 6 feet under before she makes it to sunrise, you better quit it too.”

he sighed, placing his half-eaten bowl on the ground. you gulped down the rest of your cereal and followed suit.

“can’t help it, doll,” he teased. “ it’s just second nature. all the pretty girls in the 40s got their little names, but doll is my favorite. and so far, you’re the only person i like around here.”

“ha! so you think i’m preeeetty,” you beamed, throwing one of your legs into the air and throwing yourself into bucky’s side dramatically. “you. think. i’m. pretty.” you emphasized each word with a poke to his arm. “what a charmer, you are. if your intention was to distract me from my nightmare, it’s worked very well, just so you know.”

“it’s true,” he threw your words back at you. “i’m glad i was able to help, even if it was just a little.” he relished in the feeling of your head against his bicep. it had been a while since he’d touched another person, really touched. apart from the occasional handshake, brushing of arms as he’d squeezed by someone, or the accidental foot touch, this was the first time since arriving at the compound since he’d been so physically and emotionally close to somebody. it was the first time since leaving wakanda that he’d been so close like this to a girl.

“mhm,” you hummed, rolling your head around until it was your crown and not your side against his arm, to stare at the ceiling. “it helped a lot, actually. i haven’t… i haven’t been like this with someone in years.” you whispered, your voice shrinking back to the shy volume it’d been back in your bedroom.

“oh?”

“yeah. i don’t really have anyone. i chose not to, ‘cuz it was better off for everyone that way.” you shot up suddenly, alarmed. “wait, you know about me, right? you know about… everything?” you waved your hands around nondescriptively.

“if by everything, you mean this supposed bad luck stuff, then yeah. and for the record, i don’t really give a shit. no offense. i’ve had my fair share of bad luck, doll. and so far, all you’ve done is make my night a hell of a lot better.” he threw his arms behind his head and settled into the cushions a bit more comfortably. you watched him from where you sat, a few inches away, as he stared at the ceiling contemplatively.

“i don’t care for whatever people told you about yourself before. there’s always gonna be someone who spouts bullshit, and it’s up to you whether or not you believe it. but for what it’s worth, i chose to stop believing it. and once i did, i realized that none of the things they were saying about me were true. i had just internalized them to the point where i started reflecting them.”

you shimmied closer, pursing your lips. “you’re smart. i kind of hate that for you.”

“well, i’m 106. i’ve got some grandfatherly wisdom in this old brain.” he rapped his knuckles on the side of his head as you nestled yourself back into the side of his body where you were before.

“bucky?” you whispered. he hummed and looked at you affirmatively. “it’s true, isn’t it?”

bucky’s blood ran cold. he was wrong. he should’ve never let it get this far. shit, this was why he set the rule in the first place-

“is it true that you’re 106? you’re not joking about the whole old man thing, are you?”

it was like someone slapped the flextape from that annoying commercial that always played before one of bucky’s youtube videos on protein shake recipes over bucky’s punctured lung. “no, i’m not lying. i heard you and wanda talking about me outside the gym,” he murmured. you smiled sheepishly.

“most people… know what i’ve done. what happened to me. and you should probably know at some point—actually, you should definitely know,” he sighed. “but not tonight. it- it’s a lot, and you’ve already had quite the night. so, you can ask me whenever. but maybe we’ll take it easy for now?”

bucky gently ran his hand over your jaw, and you looked at him with the most terrifyingly adoring gaze he’d ever seen. you shouldn’t be looking at him that way.

“thanks, bucky,” you smiled. “thanks for looking out for me. i was right. you are a good guy.”

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