#hopefully sunday or monday i can get that going and start posting the chapter next friday

[dianagj-art]

Hey, yeah so it's slau's anniversary and I wanted to do something but I got something else going on rn so .... next week maybe

[pikespendragon67]

Pikes Summer Check-Up 2024 Edition

Started to go “hm I still have to unlearn the don’t speak unless spoken to mindset that I have” but remembered I could do a checkup post instead!

Current life updates:

Right now I’m saving up for conventions happening this August, though plushie collecting & Steam summer sales miiiight have interfered. Whoops. (…and I wonder if I should get back to my FE Cipher card collection). My next big-ish trip is visiting my middle school best friend with another high school friend. I’m also hoping for my next big trip this year to be Boston in late September to meet with a friend. After that, it should be a trip with my middle school best friend to a farm, something Halloween related with IRL friends depending on what they want to do, no clue for November, and seeing relatives for New Year’s.

Gonna see if I can reorganize my closet since everything in my room got reassembled when we got new flooring. Feels cluttered as a result. Hopefully my back won’t kill me.

Might have jury duty next week too OTL

What I’m watching:

Current schedule for watching anime is as follows:

Mondays - Digimon rewatch along with Spice & Wolf 2024. I really like Lawrence and Holo’s banter. For Digimon I just got to where Mimi obtains her Crest. Man adult me really just became Joe, huh.

Tuesdays are filler at the moment since I need to wait for Pokemon Horizons to update on Nettingtonflix (I watch the dub) and I finished Kakuriyo. Part 2 of Kakuriyo was…eh, I guess? I noticed stiff animation a lot and I didn’t really get the sense of drama/urgency that I was expecting. Might throw in some more Digimon episodes until Horizons updates. (I’m liking it so far, though it’s not something I’d shout to the heavens about)

Wednesdays - Baccano finally. I might need to rewatch some parts because they retell events from different perspectives, but I see repeats and get confused if I already watched the episode or not because of that.

Thursdays - Moribito. I’ve heard this show was good, though I think I need to rewatch this one as well since I miss important info when something dramatic’s not happening. The curse of having a show as background noise during your lunch break at work.

Fridays - Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure rewatch. Friends were talking about watching it so it got me interested in rewatching once more. I’m still on Phantom Blood but I’m excited for the rewatch until I hit Stardust Crusaders. Unfortunately it’s not my favorite part and it’s the longest.

Saturdays - My Hero Academia and Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin. I’m gonna see if I end up liking Sakuna more as an anime or as a game. As for Hero Academia, I’m really liking how this current season’s hyping up the finale. And with the manga ending next month, I kind of hope Vigilantes can be animated

Sundays - Tower of God season 2 and My Deer Friend Nokotan. Nokotan kind of reminds me of Lucky Star, but I’m hoping the shitposts aren’t just making fun Koshitan. Tower of God season 2 looks pretty promising. Though I lament that God of High School had to rush everything into 1 season.

I’m getting hyped for TYBW part 3 subconsciously and also hope the light novels get covered.

In terms of stuff on Youtube, it’s mostly let’s plays for games that I want to see if I want to play them myself. I appreciate that SMT 5 Vengeance fleshed out certain characters more, but damn. I also finished watching the ProZD Plays Ace Attorney 2. Franziska is wonderful, I wish she was in a different game. I liked case 2 the most in spite of Hotti’s mere existence.

What I’m Playing:

Stopped TTYD in the middle of chapter 6 since I didn’t want to deal with the turning platform section. So now it’s back to 428 Shibuya Scramble. I’m in the 3 PM section of the game now and things are getting spicy. So far my rankings of the routes are Tama > Minorikawa > Osawa/Achi > Kano.

I also have quite a few fighting games in my Steam library now! I still only button mash, but I’ve been playing with some folks in the Granblue community and my friend Merlin. My “don’t speak unless spoken to” mindset unfortunately kicks in when it comes to inviting people to play games, though. Like granted people are busy and I don’t want to bother them but aaaaaaa (so if you wanna play with me on Steam I’m free most weekends. Though my wrist may fatigue itself too. F)

I’m also contemplating if I want to have various small fics in a collection or add alternate endings in my main Bleach fic

AND NOW, I end asking how ny��all are you doing. Any cool things on your end?

[melodygatesauthor]

Weekly Update - 05/18/2023

Hey all! I think I'm going to start doing weekly updates since I have a lot going on and a lot of fics in the works! I want you to know what I'm currently working on (WIPs) and I'll also toss some life updates in here as well. I'm also going to mention requests I have in the pipeline and when I'm expecting to complete them. Maybe your request is in there! (It probably is)

Going forward the updates will be on Sunday, I'm just doing this now because I have ADHD and it's on my mind today lol.

Since I've been really following the winds of inspiration lately, I want to keep doing that so I'm just putting this here so you know where the winds are blowing lmao.

I'll also mention if I think my current longfic is going to be delayed or anything here as well.

Gonna cut it up into sections to keep it consistent and easy:

Long/Chaptered Fic Updates

Currently I'm working on A Bit Dodgy, as many of you know. There will NOT be an update this Monday (05/22/2023). Though I will be working on it this week for @welcometostayingawake to edit and I'll have it to post by 05/29/2023 (that's the goal). If it's going to be pushed back again, I'll let you all know the Sunday before (05/28/2023).

Mini-series Update

Worth the Risk Part 3 should be out this week. That's the goal anyway. I have a good chunk of it done but there's still a lot to do. <- Still hoping to have this out this week but we will see (05/22/2023)

Uploading The Fractured Moon Part 2 (either tonight or tomorrow yay) Continuing to chip away at The Fractured Moon Part 3

There's a top secret fic series coming out HOPEFULLY this weekend, but it may be next weekend instead depending on how quickly I can get it finished. I'm losing my mind over it. (It's a 3 parter and all 3 parts are coming out at the same time teehee) <- Editing that today 05/22/2023. Hope to be done with it by tonight!

In June there's a writing challenge for Pride that @flightlessangelwings is putting on and I'm working on my fic for that so I'll be announcing more for that fic once I have the details better outlined!

Fool Me Twice should be getting a part 2 soon. I'm hoping I'll feel inspired to at least start it this week but maybe not. <- Taking this off the list for this week. Focusing on ABD and requests (05/22/2023).

Still considering doing 2 other parts for The OJ Problem but honestly, it's not that exciting to me rn. Since it's more of a Valentine's Day fic I might consider just doing those next year. <- Taking this off the list for this week. Focusing on ABD and requests (05/22/2023) will probably just put this on for next year for valentine's day.

Requests

I still have a sizeable amount of requests. REQUESTS ARE STILL CLOSED CURRENTLY. If your request is in blue, that means I'm going to try to work on it this week (05/21-05/27). If it's in pink, I'm going to try to work on it a different week. It's taking me a while to get into the headspace for some of them so thank you for your patience. Green means it's done I'm just working on editing now. They are posted in no real order, just working on them as I feel inspired to.

Blue Jones X f!Reader requested by @saraicus

There are 2 prompts in particular that I liked from the list you sent so I'll be doing them. - His eyeliner running down as he’s banging you against his desk - You’re a new patient and he just grows overprotective towards you. Doesn’t want you to meet other men and keeps you in solitary confinement for his jealousy sake.

Moon Boys X f!Reader by @ravenz-hope

Gamer reader and the boys getting angsty over her being too obsessed with the game (most relatable thing ever) <- Haven't had the time to set up the post but this will be coming out very soon. Need to finish editing as well (05/22/2023)

Moon Boys X f!Reader by @simpforbritgents

Asking for something like Feeling Flustered where the moon boys are doing guided phone sex.

Moon Boys X f!Reader by @mercuryrosesixx

Moon Boys w/ a f!Reader w/ nipple piercings. <- Started working on headcanons (05/22/2023).

Marc Spector X f!Reader by @blueflowerhat

Marc shower sex based on AI prompt.

Steven Grant X f!Reader by Anon -

Steven and Reader are both virgins. Marc is guiding/coaching Steven.

Doctor Marc Spector X Patient Reader by @burnincrown

Role Reversal (sort of) of Not a Doctor - Marc is the doc, reader is the patient and he takes advantage - Dark Fic

Nathan Bateman X f!Reader by @campingwiththecharmings

This is the prompt that hit me like a Nathan-shaped mac truck! -> “if you don’t like my teasing why are you moaning”

Nathan Bateman X f!Reader by Anon

Cam girl reader x Nathan - Nathan turns to a cam girl, he's been kinda stalking her. (Excited hehe)

That's it for right now. I'm a busy lady as usual but I like having a few different projects going at once! More coming soon! Thanks for always being so awesome and supportive. Love you all!

[iantimony]

tuez

yayyy

listening: release radar: i get it now (sammy rae) (wauuughhhh. emo. i miss my partner) come over (cat's pajamas) stuck (scene queen) nerima (raspberry pie) never me (penelope) beirut (rob blivion) rule #34 (fish in a birdcage) bourgeoisieses (conan grey) milk town/mr carter (nep) doppelganger - lullaby (ethan bortnick) my baby loves to dance (kenya grace) horror night (starcourt) (@delta-orionis, you will like this one)

some from last week that i forgor to note down: tiny human (elohim), some type of skin (aurora), chukotka (otyken), training season (dua lipa, chloe caillet mix), georgian spirit (equbeats), online (twrp), someone else (kenya grace)

aaaand formentera/formentera ii again.

podcasts: wtyp on the francis scott key bridge collapse, and jim gordon must die podcast of all time

reading: i started reading 'bunny' by mona awad because it came up as a recommendation in libby when i was returning mdzs. i am going to be valiant and give it one more chapter but i do not like it. it feels like its trying very hard to emulate a certain type of vibe that i already don't find super appealing in fiction so the trying-vibe of it makes it even more uninteresting to me. the premise is a girl at a mfa program in nebulous New England Private Liberal Arts School(tm) which like, fine, dark academia or whatever; there are four (five?? i literally cannot remember which, lol) other girls in her cohort who are a weird clique and call each other 'bunny' and are rich and sheltered but harboring a Dark Secret Club. sure. the first few chapters ooze 'not like other girls'-ism, the 'bunny' characters themselves feel flat and like caricatures in an unappealing way, main character's other friend ava also is a caricature in a boring way, just very uninspiring. like i said i will give it another chapter or two but if it continues to bore me i will return it.

i finished the scum villain extras! very charming.

watching: keeping up to date with dunmeshi, yay, and also been continuing to watch endeavor with a friend. it's good! i love a mystery show! it is impossible to watch without subtitles though because they are So British. relatedly i am going to terf island for two weeks in june (london and then edinburgh) so if you know any recs for food, places, etc i am all ears!

playing: this weekend was going to be 3 dnd games in a row ... then monday was postponed to next monday ... but my sunday group, which is normally every other week, has decided to play next sunday as well bc we skipped a few weeks ... so Next weekend is the 3 day dnd combo lmfao. i don't mind too bad.

making: pottery!!! some bisque came out and i am soooo chuffed (<- endeaver tv show britishism rubbing off on me) this will be its own post with more images because i want to @ the inspiring artist, jbbartram-illu on tumblr (shop); i am obsessed with the cave painting mugs from a few months ago that immediately sold out so i was like fuck it i wanna make my own. and i am obsessed with my lil fat horses. i put amaco ancient jasper on the inside and just a matte clear on the outside. hopefully it is matte enough. i also put little hands on the handles and now i want to make some more cave painting mugs that are just the hands, i could cut out some templates to sponge underglaze around maybe...

my beautiful cracked-the-code bowls and two maybe teacups, post-trimming:

and also trying a new glaze technique: bisqued underglaze and then liquid latex over top! that way you can slather a background on and just peel it off after without painting around the details. im ngl peeling off the latex was soooo satisfying. background is laguna celadon froth.

i've also glazed my citrus juicer, just a plain warm yellow color, looking forward to that :3

glaze: mother's day gift (planter, it's. fine. idk. she'll like it i hope), and also some fixed stuff! didn't bother taking pics, the black eye bowl from feb 6 tuesdaypost is now food safe on the inside because i sanded down the kiln medium bit that got stuck in there and re-glazed it. i also tried to fix the bowl from march 12 tuesdaypost by just lightly sanding the inside and slapping some laguna celadon froth over it...it looks exactly the same now, just with some sort of float-like blue splotches lol. no pictures of it but eh. might give it away, we'll see.

eating: Spicy Clam Pasta With Bacon, Peas and Basil Recipe (NYT): tasty. idk about 'spicy' but definitely yummy.

misc: definitely in a weird spot brain-wise...the anxiety and tummyache link/feedback loop is very real for me now, so i am going back on an extremely low dose of ssri about it, and even though i have been on this med before in much larger amount i am still experiencing aaa about it. i keep going between "going back on this is a good idea" and "or i could just keep taking ~10mg of cbd every other day bc that felt like it was doing something, even if it was just placebo i had a noticeable difference in mood" so like. bluh. idk. i wish i could just Know what the best course of action is instead of having to fuck around and find out. such is life. i am literally taking the world's babiest dose rn (breaking the starter pill in half) so it will be fine. as long as i dont get bad side effects im willing to do a few weeks on it and see what happens.

[partnersincrimesuau]

Another Few Updates ☆ﾟ･:*:･｡★

Yes I am aware it's Sunday. Yes I am aware I haven't posted Chapter 2 Page 43 yet. Yes I am aware my Information Centre says "Pages posted every Friday at 8pm Central Australian Time". Yes I am aware I haven't posted a page on a Friday since, like, January.

I'm getting off track LOL

UPDATE NUMBER ONE - Where's Page 43?

I have one week left of school before a two-week holidays, and I'm SWAMPED with homework for now. For clarity; I have three assignments due on Monday, two more I finished today, and one I finished last week. I hope this clears some things up... and explains why I'm so behind on Partners In Crime.

Page 43 IS finished, and IS ready to upload. However, I am still working on Page 48; and for those who don't know, I like to always be ten pages ahead of my posting page. Therefore I SHOULD be working on Page 53. Once the holidays start and my assignments are finished, I can catch up on these pages. Some of them shouldn't be as long as others so hopefully it won't take ages to finish them.

I plan on posting Page 43 next week. So sorry for the delays, I know there's been a few this chapter. I'm not doing this on purpose.

UPDATE NUMBER TWO - A brief solution

It's currently 12:03am as I'm writing this sentence and I'm about to jump into bed, so yes I won't be posting anything after this post tonight. HOWEVER! I've decided that tomorrow, instead of posting Page 43, I'll post some concept art!!! I feel like that'll be a good placeholder for now. There are plenty of concepts for earlier pages that I plan on posting, and I might throw some early drawings of Condor in as well!!! ^^

UPDATE NUMBER THREE - Maintenance

I finally went through every "infected" page and fixed the 'next' and 'previous' links. For anyone who didn't know, there were a ton of early Chapter 2 pages that were "infected" somehow, by something I can hardly begin to explain. The "Chapter Start" links, as well as the "FAQ" and Discord links were completely untouched. They worked fine. But EVERY SINGLE 'NEXT' OR 'PREVIOUS' LINK, FOR SOME REASON, JUMPED TO THE MOST RECENT PAGE!!! There were pages from December that sent you to the page I posted eight days ago - it made NO sense.

Thankfully, I've gone back and fixed every one of them. HOPEFULLY, it won't happen again. (If it persists, PLEASE tell me. Don't hesitate to comment saying "Jinxy this page has a disease, it's doing the link thing again" - that's actually really helpful. Shoutout to the readers who did tell me btw, you guys are legends!)

UPDATE NUMBER FOUR - IT'S THE BEST MONTH OF THE YEAR!!!

IT'S JULY!!! That means... NINETEEN DAYS UNTIL MY BIRTHDAY!!! (It's on the 21st of July for those in other timezones, lolll). I'll probably be partying with my besties then so you won't find me online, but I'll probably do a little picture of myself like I did last year. Just thought I'd mention it here, haha.

Anyways I think that's about it... it's now 12:14am and I might go to bed. Or I might catch up on Miraculous Ladybug because I heard the finale for Season 5 is out...? We'll see ^^

Thanks for your patience everyone!!!! See you tomorrow ^^

[quinloki]

Quicksand - ALTERNATIVE

If you haven't read Quicksand up to chapter 5 you're going to be terribly confused.

Fem Reader x Sir Crocodile

CW: Language, violence, blood, moral ambiguity, murder, sexual themes and situations, yandere, angst with a happy ending, a referenced instance of physical abuse. 18+ only

ADDITIONAL CW: Dub-con, kidnapping, imprisonment

The alternative version picks up at Chapter 6- there's a lot of overlap for the first few chapters as the story slowly peels away from the original. The alternative chapters explore Sir Crocodile's yandere tendencies in a setting where the reader rejects him (vs the original where she never ran).

You can read it as it posts to Tumblr, or sate your curiosity on AO3 // Wattpad immediately.

Chapter 7: Shifting

Going to work was utterly nerve-wracking, to the point that you nearly considered calling off. Spending the day job hunting seemed like a better use of your time than spending the day nearly ready to vomit because you weren’t sure when the CEO would decide on a surprise visit.

You checked your phone one last time to see that there weren’t any missed calls or messages. You hadn’t heard from him since you left, and it was one-half a relief, and one-half a concern. Sunday, you had been in a fit of sleeplessness and nerves, randomly napping when your tension had simply forced you to rest. Last night at least you got a few hours in a row, and hopefully it would be enough to get you through the day.

Getting into the office, you checked in with Buggy. He gave you an odd look, but wasn’t prompted to say anything. You’d come into work on Monday’s a little strained before, but it had been quite a few months since anything had happened to cause it. You wanted to ask him if Crocodile had said anything, but if something was already being done against you from an employment standpoint you were sure Buggy would’ve cut to the chase and let you know.

Asking about Crocodile yourself would’ve been completely out of character for you. Your job was almost entirely internal within the West branch, you had no direct concerns or contact with the CEO. You barely had direct contact with anyone higher up the ladder than Buggy.

"So, how'd it go?" Alvida questions as soon as you were out of Buggy's office. Her voice had the usual almost melodic tone it got when she knew she was on the verge of juicy gossip.

"Horrid," you assert, and something on your face must have backed you up because Alvida’s entire demeanor slumped.

“Oh, honey. I’m sorry.” She gives you a hug, patting your back a little. “I expected if it went poorly you would’ve come in with too much makeup or a really bad new haircut.”

You snort and lean into her hug a little. Alvida was a good friend, and even as the main hub of gossip in the office, she’d never betray your actual trust.

“It was good for a moment, but,” you heave a big sigh before moving to sit at your desk and begin to work. “Well, I got cold feet I guess.”

“At least it wasn’t Buggy.” Alvida offers, starting a pot of coffee for the three of you.

“Haa, I almost wish it was.” You admit with a chuckled sigh.

“… Oh dear.” Alvida replies after a moment’s shock. “Can I… I mean, you need to talk about it?”

You shake your head. “I don’t want to just yet, and I don’t even know that I should.”

“Alright. Well, if you just need someone to confide in or vent to, you can trust me, (Y/N).” Alvida says, setting a cup of coffee next to you before sitting at her nearby desk.

“I know Alvy, thank you.”

You start sorting through your work, making idle talk with Alivda.

“Do you know what Buggy did over the weekend?” You ask with a little less energy than you meant.

"He's been working on starting his own business. I guess he's been consulting with some of his old friends." Alvida said absently.

"Oh wow." You stop working and look over at her. "Seriously?"

Alvida shrugs. "As seriously as I think he does anything. I have no idea what kind of business it is."

“Huh… I wonder if he needs any help organizing it.”

Alvida nearly drops the papers she’s working on. “You? Change jobs?” She looks completely flabbergasted. “I… mean this as politely as possible, but I honestly thought you’d retire from here. No risks, no changes, no leaps of faith. You fit in well here and enjoy it, I’m surprised.”

“Mm, maybe I could use a challenge.” You say with a small smile as you return to your organizing. “Besides, it’s not that much of a change, I already know how to handle and work with Buggy.”

“Fair.”

The two of you worked in silence for a while longer before you came across a piece of information that nearly made you groan. "The auction next week is being hosted by Donquixote Doflamingo?"

Just what you needed. Another Warlord in your life.

"Yeah, the CEO of SMILE, Inc.? Well, new CEO, he stepped up after retiring from modeling last year, didn't he?"

"Beats me," you admit with a shrug, wondering internally how many of the Warlords had legitimate businesses as fronts. "Isn't SMILE a pharmaceutical company? From Model to CEO of something like that seems like a heck of a leap."

"Oh, I'm sure he pulled some strings," Alvida says. "His money has money." You snort at her sarcasm. "Still, they say he was educated in the Holy Lands, so he's probably smarter than he looks."

Alvida flips her phone and holds it out to you. There's a picture of a tall, well-built man on the beach in glaringly pink swim trunks with hair so blonde it's almost lost in the sunlight. His shaggy hair is drenched, and it looks good on him that way. You can feel the arrogance rolling off of him in the photo, it's obvious he's aware he's being photographed.

"I'm surprised he's retired from modeling." You admit. "He's not even thirty yet, I can't imagine."

"He's been doing that work since he was 16, I think? He might just be tired of it." Alvida says, seemingly disinterested. "He'd be cuter if he wasn't so aware of his good looks."

"Can you get me a behavioral write up on him before the Auction?" You ask. "I know we usually have more time with these big profile events, but anything would help."

"Sure, I'll have Galdino and Cabaji help me." She assures you. "Think you're going to have trouble corralling him during the auction?"

"Maybe. Better to over prepare than under prepare." You roll your shoulders and release some of the building tension and check your phone. Still no messages. That’s good, you can focus on the task at hand.

Aside from dealing with Doflamingo for a couple of days, you also have to brace yourself to see Sir Crocodile again. He’ll be present during the auction proper, though, if you can make it work you may be able to hand things off to Alvida that day. He’s technically a visitor from another branch, so you don’t have to work with him at all.

It depends on how you feel in a week’s time. If you think you can face Sir Crocodile neutrally, then you will. Otherwise, there’s no shame in hiding behind your good friend who hasn’t slept with the CEO of your company.

You get things organized and pop into Buggy’s office for a moment before going on your rounds to check in on all the teams.

“Hey boss,” you say evenly, pulling out the pages about the upcoming auction. “Can you see if you can get us some extra hands? Donquixote is a big name even in big names, and I’d like to make sure the staff is beyond capable of tending to any requests he may have while he’s here.”

“As flashily as I can!” Buggy says with a smile. “Feeling better?”

You smile a little and nod. “Yeah, sorry for worrying you this morning, boss.”

“Bah, it’s fine. As long as you’re feeling better.” Buggy waves a hand.

“I hear you’re starting a business, boss.” You say pointedly, causing him to flinch.

“Ah, ha ha, I mean, I’m sure I could use your help… (Y/N).” Buggy answers rather sheepishly, almost hiding behind his desk.

You chuckle a little. “I was thinking it was about time I started looking for a new job, so you can certainly keep me in mind, boss.”

Buggy lights up almost instantly, practically screeching with glee. “(Y/N)! You would be an immense help! You’re so much better at organizing people and things than I am, and you’re really good with words and getting people to do what you need, and I’m not failing or anything so far, but I would be so relieved to have your help.”

“Let’s get through this auction, and we can talk about details.” You say, pointing at the papers you’ve left behind. “I’m going to check on the teams and do my rounds, but I’ll be back for this copy later, so make those calls, boss.”

The rest of the day went on without incident and you headed home only a little later than usual. Being able to work through lunch while still getting to eat lunch made the day go smoothly, and you were grateful for Buggy's consideration. There was less stress after work as well, knowing that you wouldn't have quite the mountain to deal with the next day.

On top of everything else he had managed to get some extra hands to help out during the auction, and even better than that, Buggy himself would be coordinating them. All you had to do was determine how they would be utilized, and then your boss would oversee them. Leaving you to focus on Doflamingo, and eventually, possibly Sir Crocodile.

You really did want to just quit and leave the Metro before the auction, but it would leave Buggy and Alvida in the lurch and you didn’t want to do that to them.

The drive home was dull and long. Traffic was terrible this time of the evening, and honestly you should’ve just stayed at work for a couple of hours and gotten more done before trying to get home. Hindsight and all that. You listen to some music and meander your way home without incident.

After you get inside your apartment you check your phone and see a message.

From Sunawani.

Taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly, you open it up and read it.

Sunawani: The auction was supposed to happen in the South Branch. I can have it returned to that venue if you prefer, but I wanted to be clear I didn’t know it had been changed until today.

You: It’s okay. Thank you, and I’m sorry.

You pause for a moment and then continue. Admitting your plan won’t hurt anything, and maybe it’ll help him to move on as well.

You: After the auction I’m putting in my notice.

Sunawani: I will be true to my word, Miss (Y/N). You aren’t required to leave.

You: I know. I just need to.

Sunawani: Need?

You: Yes.

You: I don’t want to get into it.

There was a long enough silence you set your phone down and went about your evening routine. You took a shower, changed into comfortable clothes, and started something to eat before you checked your phone again.

Sunawani: Very well.

The two words twist your heart a little and you put the phone down. There’s no other response that would’ve gone well, but the finality in the statement stings more than you expected. The conversations of the last two months start dancing through your head and twist your stomach so hard you’re barely able to eat. You pack the leftovers into the fridge and go to bed early.

Your rest is restless, and your dreams are full of sand and citrus and cigar smoke.

. . . . . .

After Monday you kept feeling like you were being watched. You couldn't find anything definitive, but there was a powerful sense of being stalked that itched at you randomly. You wrote it off as being stressed about the auction at first, but as things progressed for the preparations you were less and less stressed.

Despite the lessening job-related stress, the strange sensation wasn't abating.

Alvida’s write up on Doflamingo prompted you to practice with Dandy to prepare for the man’s arrival. Practicing with Dandy went well. Aside from the fact that you spent a couple hours every day interacting with him in the first place. You were, at least, finding a decent space between fully business and marginally interested.

You'd need to fawn over Doflamingo a little more, but you couldn't bring yourself to do so with Dandy. You knew him too well, and you absolutely weren't going to give him any ammunition to use against you down the road. As coworkers it was best to keep him at slightly more than arm's length, preferably with a taser, if you were being honest.

Organizing the space, equipment, and laying out the plans and event timing went smoothly as well. The extra hands - provided by Sir Crocodile and managed by Buggy - were a huge weight off everyone's shoulders. Especially since they were all not just competent, but quiet as well. No zany quirks, no desire to be the center of attention. They were more like you and less like Buggy or Dandy, so they didn't stress Buggy out and they didn't create additional work.

But they weren't creative. They came to people with questions on everything, almost more akin to computers than people. Not that it was a bad thing, the lack of personal decision making might have been part of their contract for all you knew. They were extra hands, and extra eyes, but that was really it.

Alvida caught you glancing around on Friday when things were finally coming together.

"What's got you so twitchy, (Y/N)?" She asks, "Anything I can help with?"

"Ah, no. Everything's pretty much handled. The Auction's Wednesday, the VIP will be in Tuesday, and I'll sleep again sometime Thursday, I'm sure." You joke, stretching. "I just keep feeling like someone's watching me. It's been itching at me for the last few days, and I can't shake it."

Alvida leans in after looking around to make sure you’re alone.

“Could it be related to your date?”

“Hah?” You almost yell the questioning sound and cover your mouth. “What do you mean?”

“Well, things went south, right?” She prompts. “You said you got cold feet, did you bail, after… you know, sex?”

Your face goes red, and you make a face and it’s really all the answer Alvida needs.

“Oh, honey.” She pulls you in and hugs you loosely. “Love, some people don’t walk away well.”

“It… it can’t be related to that.” You say after a moment. “I’m certain.”

“Oh?”

“… Alvida, you… can not breathe a word of this.” You assert, looking up at her from the loose hug you’re still in.

“On pain of death, (Y/N).” She vows, putting a hand up.

“It was the CEO.” You say and feel her entire body tense for a second.

“Are-you-shitting-me?” She hisses quickly, leaning in even closer to you and trying to keep her voice down.

You shake your head. “I was surprised too.”

Alvida puts a hand to her mouth for a moment and looks around, thinking. “You should tell him.”

“What?!” You bark before lowering your voice. “No. No way. Alvida, I… I had mind-shatteringly good sex with the C. E. O. of this company and left while he was sleeping.” You practically growl the words at her. “I’m looking for a new job after this auction, I can’t ask him for help!”

“Are you being fired?”

“No-! No, I’m not. I’m quitting on my own.” You assure her. “I… don’t…” You purse your lips and look away.

“Oh, honey.” Alvida hugs you tightly. “I’m sorry.”

“… It’s alright.” You manage to keep your voice even as you hug her back. “I’m not even thirty. I’ll, I dunno, move, find new work, move on. It’ll be alright.”

“I know, but it hurts right now, and I’m sorry you fell so hard.” She says, patting your back gently.

“Haa, yeah. Me too.” You admit.

[lennjamin-o7]

i kid u not, u r one of the only things i look forward to every month, and you have a bonus of having something resembling a regular update schedule.

thank you.

🥺🥺🥺 You are very sweet. I'm glad you are enjoying it. 💚💚💚💚💚

I'm trying very hard on the schedule part lol. Schedules are good for my brain, but my work schedule is odd. It's work for 4 days, off for 2 days, work for 4 days, off for 1 day and repeat. It's very weird. Which means that my work week doesn't line up with a regular week at ALL. It's very jumbled. Which is kinda why the 2 week update fell through, and I had to switch to 3 weeks. I just didn't have enough offtime to write between updates.

But there is some interesting news with that. I finally have a date on when I start as manager. Which means I will be working a regular Monday through Friday schedule. And I also will get off work earlier in the day every day. (Though at the cost of waking up a bit earlier, which, isn't as nice)

Which means(theoretically) I will have more time to write, and no weird work schedule.

Which means (theoretically) I can write chapters a bit faster 😃.

So, the next chapter on January 4th will be the last chapter I write while doing my current work schedule. The next chapter after it, I MIGHT still keep on the 3 week space just to give myself some breathing room to learn my new job. But after that, I FULLY intend to pick up the pace a bit. Though the posting date might change from Wednesday to Sunday, we'll see.

It's all going to go a bit wibbly wobbly, but hopefully in a GOOD way.

💚💚💚💚💚

[stormxpadme]

I had the loveliest evening with @sianascera and @busymagpie which was sorely necessary, too, because now the madness starts *sigh*. Alas, I have packed, I have washed my hair, chapter update for Tuesday is ready and drafted, celebration and gift smutshot for post midnight today is drafted as well, carsharing dude is giving me headaches about leaving time but should hopefully be in time enough to be back in Austria with family late afternoon so I can still go shopping some hot outfit for tomorrow night's cocktail bender. Then it's like 2 hours of sleep tomorrow and at 6.45 am Saturday our plane to Hamburg for musical weekend takes off. On Monday evening we get back to Austria, by Wednesday I have to be back at work in Munich, then it's 5 day of trying to keep my desk as clean as possible on like 2 hour sof sleep every night and hungover as fuck probably ... On Sunday 20th, I got a customer appointment on side job, so not much weekend there either ... And then then on 23rd next surgery is on. I'll be SO ready to crash at Mom's couch after that, you have no idea.

[tonystarksfavoritedaughter]

Crazy Rich Avengers

Chapter 1:

Summary: You and Peter have been dating for a little over 6 months and have not yet met the Avengers. You were getting curious as to when you would meet them, until you get an invitation from Tony Stark himself, inviting you and Peter to Wanda and Vision’s wedding in Hawaii over Spring Break. You thought that it would be nice to go and finally meet everyone, but what will you think after you’ve been tested by the team?

*Based on the movie Crazy Rich Asians, each chapter will be a different scene from the movie. There will be 15 chapters. Also includes a GIF from the movie scene at the beginning of each chapter.

A/N: I’ve had this series planned for a little while now, and I just got this chapter done and edited and I feel really good about it. I didn’t know if anyone would want to read this until I posted about it yesterday and got some really good feedback, so thank you all who liked it and asked to be on the taglist so much! This chapter is the first scene of the movie, just some things are switched up to fit Peter and the Avengers. Just note that this one is kind of short and nothing much really happens in this chapter since it is just the beginning, but hopefully the next one is a bit juicer. 

Warnings: swearing and fluff 

Word count: 2166

Chapter 1

“Okay class, make sure to email me those presentations by Monday. I don’t want to keep reminding you guys over Spring Break because I’ve still got a life outside being a professor.” The whole class laughs at your professor’s bluntness. It kind of reminds you of your friend from high school, who would always spoke her truth, even when no one asked for it. You packed your things and waited for a clear space to exit your row. Who knew so many kids would be in a business class? Not you apparently. You were a culinary student at the Institute of Culinary Education or ICE for short. Your dream was to become a baker and own your bakery, hence the business class. This was your last class of the day, and you couldn’t wait to see your boyfriend. You two had been dating for a little over six months and it was the best six months you could ever ask for.

You exited out of the classroom, finally, and made your way towards the elevator. On the way down, you looked through your messages and saw that you had five new texts from Peter.

Peter: Hey babe! I’m out of my photography class now. (1:15)

Peter: Waiting by the couches (1:15)

Peter: I miss you (1:17)

Peter: I’m hungry. Let’s go to that pizza place for lunch. I really want some of their cannoli’s (1:20)

Peter: Y/NNN!!! WHERE ARE YOU??? (1:23)

The elevator stopped at the lobby and you walked over to Peter, who sprang out of his seat and practically ran over to you. He hugged with the force of what you assumed felt like ten tons just based on how tight he held you. You laughed at his clinginess and pushed him off of you.

“Dude my class ran like ten minutes late. What’s the matter with you?” you laugh.

He held your hand in his own and smiles at you. “Just missed you is all. Did you see my text about the cannoli’s?”

“Yeah I saw it.”

“And?” he asks hopefully.

“Aaaaaand what?” you played dumb just to see his cute pouty face.

“Can we get cannoli’s?”

“Yes, we can get a cannoli.”

“Ah! You’re the best! Cannoli’s!” he yells at an insane volume for someone who’s just walking down the street. This earns you both a weird look from the people on the sidewalk. You were about to kiss his cheek until he just took off down the street with your hand still in his. You guessed you never knew he liked cannoli’s so much. Maybe you should try out a recipe and make him some one day.

You get into the pizza restaurant and sit down across from each other and waited for the waiter to take your order. You order your drinks; Peter gets Diet Pepsi and you get a Sprite. Both of you talk about how your classes went and held each other’s hand while you talked.

“So, I’ve got to do this project for my class,” Peter began, “And my camera is at the Compound, so tomorrow I’ll be a little late getting home.”

“Okay, that’s fine. Oh! Speaking of which,” you slam your palms on the table, which makes Peter jump a little. “When am I going to meet them? I mean we’ve been dating for going on seven months now, and I still haven’t met them. And I know they know about me because I got a message from Nat telling me happy birthday two weeks ago.” You raise an eyebrow at him waiting for his answer.

“Speaking of said topic, that reminds me. We got invited to Wanda and Vision’s wedding. And it is next Friday in Hawaii, which is perfect because a) we don’t have classes because it’s Spring Break, and b) I know Hawaii is one of your bucket list places.”

Your jawed dropped for several reasons. One, it’s Wanda and Vision’s fucking wedding! You never met them, but from the way Peter talked about them, you could tell they were meant to be. You always thought that they were like what you and Peter had times one hundred.

“Are you serious? They’re having their wedding in Hawaii?”

“Yeah. They thought that since Mr. Stark – “

“What can I get you two today?” the waiter asked breathless. You didn’t even realize how busy they were.

You looked up at him, “I’ll have a slice of the cheese pizza please?”

“And I’ll have two slices of the meat lovers. And can I get three of your best cannoli’s please?” Peter smiled at the waiter as he wrote down your order.

“Alright that’ll be right out.” He walked away almost jogging to get your order in. Goodness they were slammed.

“As I was saying,” Peter continued. “Mr. Stark has one of those beach houses in Maui and so, they thought that it would be the perfect place for them to tie the knot.”

“Wow, so, we’re invited? Like we’re going to Maui and attending the wedding? And meeting everyone?” you asked now slightly worried.

“Yeah,” he drags out confused. “That’s what kind of what ‘You’re Invited’ means.”

“I know, it’s just…this will be the first time I’m meeting them and I always imagined it would be at a like Sunday dinner type of thing. Not a fucking Avengers wedding!”

“It’s okay, I know they’re gonna love you no matter what.”

You take a sip of your drink, “This is also works out for another reason because MJ has been asking us to come see her ever since she moved to Kahului.”

“All the more reason to go.”

You both get your food and Peter immediately starts on the cannoli’s that he’s been longing to eat and practically moans at the taste of them. You get the check and pay and tipped extra for your waiter, because they need to be paid way more than minimum wage. The two of you walk out and head home so you can spend the rest of the night together.

“So, when do we leave for Maui?” you ask, swinging your intertwined hands between the two of you.

“Umm, I believe on Saturday.”

Today was Thursday so that means that you only had tonight and tomorrow to pack for a whole entire week. “Shit! I have almost no clothes washed, are you kidding me?” you yell. “Why didn’t you tell me this sooner?”

“I just found out this morning!” he yelled back.

“Okay, well it’s a good thing tomorrow I don’t have classes because now I have to do laundry all damn day.” You reach your shared apartment and go to change clothes and you go straight to the laundry room, faster than Peter could imagine. All of your good, cute clothes had to be air dried and so that’s what you did first. After half hour of folding, and drying, and hanging up clothes non-stop, Peter came in wrapped his arms around you.

“Baby, you’ve been here for forever, come sit down with me,” he pleaded.

“I will once I have all the clothes done, but until then,” you pat his cheek. “I can’t.”

He sighs an ‘okay’ and plants a kiss on your cheek and walks away. About twenty minutes later you had gotten all the laundry done and went to join Peter on the couch. He was watching reruns of Brooklyn 99 which was one of your favorite shows. He put his arms out and made grabby hands and you leaned into his touch. You laid your head on his chest with the rest of your body sprawled out on the couch. He put his arm around your shoulders and kissed the top of your head. You looked up and kissed his lips and sat up just a bit straighter. One of his hands went to the back of your neck and the other rubbed your thigh, and you relaxed even more into him. Your right hand carded through his hair and the other sat splayed on his peck, slightly gripping his shirt. You two stayed like this for what felt like hours, just basking in each other’s comfort. You pulled back to breathe and gave him one last kiss before going back to your original position, laying on him.

“What do you wanna watch?” He yawned.

“Well since your yawning and –“ you yawned this time. “And so am I, let’s just take a nap.”

He hummed in agreement and led you to your shared bedroom and he changed into just a pair of sweatpants. You laid down and he did shortly after. You turned, facing him as your chests were touching. You stared at him for quite a long time before you even realized that you were. His face scrunched up that was so cute you wanted to take a picture.

“What?”

“Nothing. You just look cute,” you said back.

“I love you.”

“I love you more.”

“Nope. I do,” he challenged.

“That’s impossible because I love you to Jupiter and back,” you kissed his nose, ultimately shutting it down because you were tired. School had kicked your ass this week and you hadn’t really had anytime to just lay with Peter. You scooted down a bit so, you could lay your head on his chest, your legs intertwined, as he held you against him so tight that nothing could slip in between you two.

The next morning you had woken up extra early to make some French toast for you and Peter. You got out the bread and butter and the rest of the ingredients and started cooking. Since you were the one who was in the culinary department, the silent agreement between you and Peter was that you would cook, and he would clean your mess. You tried to not make too much of a mess, because you weren’t that mean. After a couple more minutes you got breakfast done and at that exact moment you put the toast on the plate, Peter comes waddling out with his hair a mess. It was almost like it was scripted like a scene in a movie.

“I smelled French Toast,” he smiled.

“Mhm, I thought that I would be nice and cook breakfast for you this time.” You pecked his cheek and gave him the syrup.

“Eat up and get ready for a long day of packing suitcases, babe,” you winked at him.

“Oh boy.” You didn’t hear his sarcasm often, but when you did it always made you chuckle.

He went over to the couch and you followed setting up the coffee table and turning on Spongebob to watch as you ate. You turned towards him and smiled and received a kiss on the nose. Today was going to be a good day, you thought.

It was now four thirty in the evening and you and Peter were packing up all your belongings into your suitcases. “Okay so you need your swim trunks, flip flops, sunglasses, and what else?” You ask.

“Is that just for swimming?” You nodded. “Then yeah I think that’s it.” You went over to his drawer grabbing his trunks out along with your swimsuit. You had all your clothes spread out into separate piles consisting of swimwear, pajamas, nice shirts, casual shirts, and wedding attire. Peter grabbed all of his clothes and stuffed them into his suitcase and you did the same. After that you went to the bathroom to grab all extra stuff that consisted of teeth and hair products, and everything in that category. Peter went into the kitchen to the medicine and started to pack anything that might be needed for allergy’s and whatnot. You figured you would pack your purse of carry on items before you left tomorrow morning.

After two hours of packing and double checking, and once the bed was cleared, you flopped down face first and groaned. “I’m so exhausted,” you huffed.

“Aww, is my baby tired?” He asked this as he pressed feather-light kisses to your neck that always made you shudder.

“Yes,” you say as you awaited a kiss on the lips. He happily kisses you, slow and lovingly, and you feel like you could stay there for eternity. He pulls away for minute to catch his breath. “We should probably figure out what we want to do for dinner.”

“How ‘bout leftovers? There’s still some enchiladas or lemon pepper chicken in the fridge.”

“Ooooh, let’s do chicken.”

You get up from the bed to heat the chicken up in the oven. “Imma make some garlic cheesy rice too!” You shout from the kitchen.

“Sounds good, baby.”

You two make your dinner and eat in a comfortable silence, watching TV. You both decided to watch one more episode of Parks and Rec before calling it a night, and Peter figured it would be smart to go to bed early since you would both have a long day of checking flights and meeting the Avengers tomorrow; and that was tiring by itself.

Tag-List: @randomstufflol29​ @spideyspeaches​ @binnotjin​

[bobohu4eva]

Pink Lace - Chapter 4

Characters: Baekhyun x Reader

Genre: College AU, stripper AU, fluff, smut, slow burn

Summary: Baekhyun, a philosophy professor with mysterious wealth, got himself completely fucked over a girl who can’t let him into her life.

Word count: 4k

Warnings: sex work, mentions of sexual assault, adult themes/situations, eventual smut

Tag list: @smolbeanmika @leave-me-in-the-summertime @totallynerdstuff @bbhmystar @nana-banana @kimyhappy @thegreatandi @geniusloey @deligxt @baekswifey @bbhyun506 @lovebuginlove @bellamendoza @baekyeonoreo

Masterlist

When you woke up your head was pounding. Reluctantly, you dragged yourself out of bed anyway.

“Hey Mia” you spoke as you knocked on her door “I need a favor.” 

She opened the door just enough for you to see her tired form, bedhead and all looking back at you. 

“It’s 9am on a Sunday what the hell y/n.” She opened the door the rest of the way and rubbed her eyes. “What is it?” 

You felt bad waking her up, but you needed to tell her what had happened. And you needed your car back, which was still parked at the club. 

“I’ll explain more on the way, but Baekhyun drove me home from work last night and I need you to take me to my car.” 

You saw your roommates eyes widen “He drove you home? Are you insane?” 

“Just let me explain everything, I promise it’s not as crazy as it sounds.” 

“Okay, let me get dressed though.” She looked at you skeptically, closing the door and meeting you in the living room soon after to get going.

“So he drove you home.” She stated simply, keeping her eyes on the road as she made her way through the streets towards your work. 

“I know it sounds bad but he saved my ass last night. I was so nervous about him possibly showing up that I let some assholes get me blackout drunk. When he showed up he took me into a room to sleep it off and drove me home.” 

“You got wasted at work? You know how dangerous that is.” She reprimanded you. 

“I know, I know. And I usually don’t, but these guys seemed nice and I was so nervous that I just kept taking the shots they bought me. The assholes had me in a VIP room for a while too, from what Baekhyun told me. I can’t remember any of it though, thank god. All I remember is laughing and having a good time and then waking up with my head on his lap.” 

“Baekhyun’s lap? How do you know he didn’t just make it all up to seem like some sort of hero?” 

“Yeah.. He usually always gets there early, like 7 or 8, and when I woke up it was past midnight. He told me I was asleep for a few hours.” 

“So he just sat and watched you sleep that whole time... that’s not weird at all.” 

“I told you it’s not like that! If it wasn’t for him I would’ve been all on my own last night. I don’t even wanna think about all the fucked up shit that could’ve happened to me in there if he hadn’t taken me somewhere safe to sleep it off.” 

Mia stayed quiet. She knew you were right, Baekhyun had actually helped you. 

“I can’t explain it but it’s different with him, he’s not like the other guys there at all.” 

“Y/n, do you like him?” 

Her question caught you off guard. You didn’t know what to say. Did you like Baekhyun? 

“What do you mean?” 

“I mean do you like him as more than just a customer.” 

“Well...” There was a pause, and you knew she could tell what was going on in your head. 

As you were trying to form your thoughts, Mia was already pulling into the parking lot of your work. She parked next to you, but before unlocking the doors she looked over at you. 

“You know you can tell me anything. I’m not gonna judge you if you have a crush on your professor, even if I think it’s a really bad idea. You’re my best friend.” 

“I don’t know what I feel. He’s always so sweet to me that it’s hard not to like him, even though I know I shouldn’t. I know I’m pushing these feelings down but they’re getting harder and harder to ignore.” 

She gave you a sympathetic look and you heard her car doors unlock. “Let’s get home, it’s too early to be thinking about this now anyway.” 

You got out and entered your own car, starting it and making your way back towards your shared home. When you got back you started making breakfast for the both of you, as both a thank you and I’m sorry for waking her up so early on a weekend. 

The two of you were in the middle of destroying some cinnamon rolls when she caught you off guard again. “Do you have a picture of Baekhyun? This whole time I’ve been  imagining him as a smelly neckbeard. He’s cuter than that, right?” She asked you, and you couldn’t help but crack up. 

“Yes” you laughed “he’s cute, really cute actually. Definitely the most attractive professor I’ve had in a while. Let me see if I can find something.” 

“Ooooo yes I wanna see.”

You logged into your universities website and started searching around, seeing if there were any photos of him there. To your dismay you couldn’t find anything on there, so your next guess was facebook. You typed in his full name, and what popped up was not what you had been expecting. 

There were several posts, all fairly old, and all pictures of him with his arm around a beautiful girl. His ex. 

Mia saw the change in your face and immediately snatched your phone out of your hand to see for herself. 

“What the fuck y/n...” She said as she stared at the phone, eyes wide. “THIS is him? This man right here.” She turned the phone around, pointing at him. 

“...Yeah. And I think that’s his ex in the picture too.” 

“Fuck the ex y/n this man is fucking beautiful... no wonder you like him. I would too. I’m sure half the girls in your class would love to hop on that.” 

You took your phone back, looking intently at the image on the screen. 

“She’s pretty.” 

“Who? His ex? Of course she is, look at him!” You just kept staring at the picture of the two of them together, feeling how it made your stomach twist up in discomfort. “Damn you do like him if you’re that stressed over one picture with his ex.” 

You knew she was just teasing, but she was still right. 

“Shut up, I just haven’t seen her before. I knew about her but seeing a picture of them together feels different.” 

“Y/n you have the fattest crush on this guy come on just admit it.” 

“It’s not a crush! I just think he’s an interesting person, and he’s attractive, and he likes me, soo..” 

“So what? Are you gonna try to fuck your professor?” 

“MIA” You shouted, and grabbed a pillow to hit her with. 

“Come on if I had a professor that hot I would too! And you already know he’s into you too.” She said, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively, prompting you to roll your eyes. 

“He’s my professor, that’s the problem.” You sighed. “And my customer. Starting anything with him is a bad idea.” 

“It’s definitely a bad idea, but it could be really fun.” 

“An hour ago you thought I was crazy for letting him drive me home and now you’re telling me I should sleep with my professor just cause he’s hot?!” 

“Well I didn’t know what he looked like then! You should’ve at least told me he was cute.” 

“You’re so shallow!” 

“I’m not shallow! Y/n you need some spice in your life, maybe he could be good for you. And he’s rich.” Her eyes suddenly went wide, before asking you, “What car does he drive?” 

“An Audi... we still don’t know if he is though! He’s still just a professor, remember?” 

“You should try to find out how he has all this money, what if he’s secretly a mafia boss or something.” 

You only rolled your eyes. Sweet, shy little Baekhyun, a mafia boss? It was laughable. He was way too nice. 

“If he is rich, I don’t know how. Maybe he’s just a trust fund baby or something.” 

“Yeah maybe, but you’re gonna find out! Did he pay you last night?” 

That thought hadn’t even crossed your mind, you assumed your money bag was empty when you got home since you hadn’t given any dances but you hadn’t looked inside of it either. “I don’t know... let me check.” 

You got up and went to your room, returning with the bag. You sat back down in the living room with Mia and dramatically unzipped it, before holding it upside down and shaking it. Both you and Mia gasped at what fell out. Hundred after hundred fell until your living room couch was decorated with hundred dollar notes. 

“What the fuck...” You heard Mia whisper, obviously just as shocked as you. 

You gathered the money and counted the bills. Over two thousand dollars had been in that bag. You looked at your friend in disbelief. “He must’ve paid me for every hour I was asleep...” 

“Holy shit” 

“I have to give it back, this is too much.” You started shoving the money back into the bag, but Mia grabbed your wrist, stopping you. 

“Are you crazy? He gave you the money for a reason! You’re basically set for the rest of the semester now.” She was looking you in the eyes intently now, not letting you ignore her. 

“No, you don’t understand. I didn’t even give him a dance or anything I was literally just asleep and then cried a lot, he shouldn’t have paid me at all.” You said, shaking your head in disbelief.

“It’s your money and I can’t tell you what to do with it but I’d keep it if I were you. You’ll probably just hurt his feelings trying to give it back.” 

“I don’t care. I’m giving it back. Especially if he is just a professor I don’t want him spending any more money on me.” 

“It’s up to you...” She looked skeptical. You knew she wanted you to keep the money so she could reap some of the benefits as well, although she would’ve never admitted to it. Deep down you just couldn’t help but worry that Baekhyun couldn’t afford to give you that much. You had to at least try to give it back. 

The rest of Sunday went by in a blur of netflix movies and youtube videos. Sundays were your lazy days, a sacred tradition you were dedicated to keep. You knew however that when Monday rolled around, you were going to have to try to give Baekhyun his money back. You weren’t sure what that would look like, but for now the plan was to just corner him after class and tell him he needed it more than you did. Hopefully, he would accept it and that would be the end of it. 

~

Class on Monday was even more confusing than the previous days. You felt like you understood less with each passing class period, not more. The concepts he talked about only got more and more abstract, to the point where you had little clue what was going on at all. 

You were anxious about class ending as well, since you were going to have to face him to try to return his money. 

Eventually the lecture ended, and today you had to wait for several other students to talk to him first before he could get to you. They all had questions about their essays, the essay you had yet to even start. 

You knew Baekhyun saw you waiting and purposefully made you go last, although this time you were grateful. 

“Do you need help with you essay too?” He asked once he was done talking to the last student. You shook your head. 

You glanced towards the door, making sure the last student was out of the room before before pulling out the stack of cash that had been in your bag Sunday morning. “I can’t accept this.” You said, placing it on his desk. 

Baekhyun looked surprised, however he still wasn’t going to make this easy for you. 

“Why not?” He asked simply, looking genuinely confused. 

“I have plenty of money already, from you. I didn’t even give you a dance or anything and I know you don’t make THAT much as a professor and I just-”

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me y/n. Just keep it. I promise I’ll be just fine without it.” 

“No. You need it more than I do, I already have enough to keep me going for a while and this was too much, I didn’t even do anything to deserve it.” 

“Y/n. Please. Just take it.” The look on his face was tired. You could tell he was telling the truth, he wanted you to have it, but that didn’t stop you from feeling guilty, and you weren’t taking no for an answer. 

“You’re a college professor, not some hotshot CEO, I know you don’t have this kind of money Baekhyun. I’m not keeping it.” You said, crossing your arms. 

Baekhyun just sighed, scratching the back of his head. He looked annoyed, but also somehow.. sad? 

“I told you there’s a lot you don’t know about me. And I’m not taking it back.” He said staring down at the wad of cash. Obviously he wasn’t taking no for an answer either.

“Baekhyun pleaaase” You looked at him again, giving him your best puppy eyes but he wasn’t having it. His face remained stoic, the only visible emotion was a twinge of what looked like sadness. 

“Y/n...” He sighed again. “I’m going to my office now. You can come with me, or you can take your money and go home.” He said sternly.

You pouted, but picked the money back up, shoved it back in your pocket, and followed him anyway. Eventually he unlocked the door to what you assumed to be his office and he held the door for you to walk in. He sat down at his desk, and you sat across from him on the other side. As you looked around, you couldn’t help but smile at how Baekhyun the office was. The space was very cozy, filled with little trinkets and lots of books, all of which you were sure would make absolutely no sense to you. Everything felt so much like him. He had pictures of him and his friends sprinkled throughout as well, and the room even smelled like his comforting scent. 

You took the wad of cash back out of your pocket and placed it on his desk. He didn’t acknowledge it. 

Once both of you were sitting down, an awkward silence filled the air. Baekhyun was sitting right across from you, but instead of the usual intense eye contact you’d grown accustomed to, he was staring solemnly down at his desk. 

He was the first one to break the silence. 

“My parents died in a freak accident last December.” He said it without looking up at you, eyes still fixated on his desk. “A semi hit them going 20 over. They both died on impact.” 

Your stomach lurched. “Baekhyun wh-”

“Between the two of them they had quite a bit of money. I inherited it. I could quit this job if I wanted to. I have more than I even know what to do with, so just keep the money, please.” 

“I-I’m sorry, I didn’t know...” Your voice was barely loud enough for Baekhyun to hear. Finally he looked up and you met his eyes. 

“There’s no way you could’ve. I understand why you probably thought what you did but I definitely don’t need it, so keep it.” 

“But-”

“If anything” he interrupted “I feel bad I couldn’t give you more. We were up there longer than what I paid you for but that’s all the cash I had on me and I didn’t wanna have to leave you alone to go to the ATM.” 

“Baekhyun, I...”

“You can go now, sorry if that was uncomfortable but I wanted to tell you before you insisted on giving the money back.” He said, scooting the cash back towards your end of the desk. His expression was once again blank, making it impossible for you to try to figure out what was going on in his head. 

“It’s okay. I’m sorry about your parents.” 

Although he had told you you could leave, you found yourself planted in the chair and against your better judgement, you stayed. Maybe it was the cozy feel of the room, or the comforting smell of old books and vanilla, but you didn’t want to leave yet. 

“Were you really close with them?”

He smiled at your question, and because you were still sitting in front of him, even though you didn’t have to be. 

“Yeah, they were amazing parents. They always supported the things I was passionate about. Lots of parents would get mad at their kid for studying something as useless as philosophy but they always had my back.” He sighed solemnly, the sadness making it’s way onto his face. “You never really learn to appreciate things until they’re taken from you. I should’ve visited them more often, told them I loved them more. Everything I have now is because of them.”

“I’m sure they were really proud of you.” 

“Yeah, luckily I was able to make the best out of my degree. Most people who study philosophy aren’t as lucky and end up doing something totally unrelated. I at least get to teach people about something I’m passionate about.”

“Is that why you keep working here even if you don’t need the money?” 

“Yeah.” He shrugged. “ And I know my parents wouldn’t want me to quit just because of the money. It would also get awfully boring to just sit around at home all day and not work anyway. I like having somewhere to go and feel productive.” He paused for a second, eyes meeting yours again. “And if I wasn’t here I wouldn’t get to see you.” His face turned up into a smile with his last sentence. 

At first his words made you think he was just trying to find an excuse to hit on you, but his face told a different story. His smile was so gentle and welcoming, it didn’t feel like any kind of sexual advance, just his raw emotions. Emotions that he was willing to show you without any filter. Baekhyun had always been so open with his feelings with you, it made you feel even worse for how hesitant you were about your own.

You couldn’t help the pink tint growing on your cheeks at his statement. 

“You’re blushing.” He said, now grinning. 

“Shut up.” You tried to hide your face, but with him sitting directly across from you, staring intently there was nothing you could hide.

“You’re lucky I like you enough to let you talk to me like that, any other student would be in trouble.” 

“So you admit I get special treatment?” You asked, leaning back in the chair and crossing your arms, one eyebrow raised at him. 

Before answering, Baekhyun leaned towards you, resting an elbow on the desk, halving the distance between the two of you. “Sweetheart, I’ve never even spoken to a student outside of campus. Special treatment is an understatement.” 

Your face turned an even deeper shade of red at his use of the pet name, which didn’t go unnoticed by him. 

“Y/n, do you have a boyfriend?” He asked you as casually as one would ask about the weather. Your eyes widened, not at all expecting him to ask such a thing. 

For a moment you just stared at him in disbelief, hoping he’d say something else but his expression remained the same. Eventually you shook your head, but before he could ask you anything more you had your own question for him. 

“What happened with your ex?” 

Immediately his face fell into a deep frown. You’d caught him off guard again, and this time he didn’t quite know what to say. 

“Well...” He said, still pausing to think. “After I got the inheritance from my parents things just changed. All we did was fight about money. She didn’t even seem to care that my parents were dead. She just wanted access to the money. Eventually she realized I wasn’t going to give it to her and she left me.” 

“I’m so sorry, that’s awful.” 

“But that’s how I got to meet you.” He smiled, taking one of your hands in his. “I’m glad she left me when she did, and Chanyeol talked me into going to the club that night.” 

“Baekhyun...” You felt yourself getting scared again. The things he was telling you and the way he held your hand was beginning to feel too intimate, to a point where you were becoming anxious. You felt an unfamiliar sensation blooming in the pit of your stomach. 

“I remember when he pitched the idea to me, I called him a dumbass.” He laughed. “I really didn’t wanna go but he dragged me in there.” 

“Well I’m glad he did too.” You responded shyly, before you could think twice about your own words.  

Now it was Baekhyun's turn to blush. He was already shocked enough that you were willingly staying in his office, hearing you say something that flirty to him sent his mind into chaos. 

“Y/n...” He grabbed both of your hands now, looking into your eyes with that familiar intensity. “Do you.. like me? Not as a customer or a professor, but as a man?” 

He had been wanting to ask you since Saturday night, but couldn’t find the courage. He knew how terrible of an idea it was to be having this conversation with one of his students, but when it came to you all rational thought seemed to fly out the window. He had stayed up all night torturing himself with the thought. He needed to know. 

But you could only stare back wordlessly. Not because you didn’t want to tell him no, but because you couldn’t deny to yourself that you did like him. You just couldn’t get the words out. It was one thing to feel something deep inside your heart. It was another to be able to say it out loud.

Baekhyun quickly noticed your discomfort and withdrew his hands. “You don’t have to answer that, sorry. But you know how I feel about you. I just need to know. Whatever your answer is, whenever you’re ready to tell me, I’ll accept it. If you want me to leave you be, just tell me and we can act like we never knew each other before last Monday.” 

But you didn’t want that, not at all. Your feelings for him had only grown and you couldn’t see yourself ever going back to only seeing him as your professor. It was too late for that now that you knew what his arms felt like wrapped around you. 

“I know I don’t want that.” You said so quietly, it was almost inaudible. But Baekhyun still heard you.

His eyes widened in surprise, but his smile found its way back into his face as well. “I really hoped you wouldn’t choose that. But whatever you do decide, will be fine by me.” 

“Okay.” You spoke, as you got up out of your chair. “I should go. Thank you for explaining everything.” 

“Don’t forget this” he said, holding the wad of cash. You sighed, and took it from him, shoving it back in your pocket “and thank you for listening.” 

Baekhyun waved you goodbye as you exited his office, shooting you another gorgeous smile that you couldn’t help but return. As you walked back home you felt that same unfamiliar feeling still blooming in your stomach. You tried to ignore it, but it was unmistakable. This is what people were talking about, the feeling of butterflies in your stomach when you talked to someone you liked. You’d felt it before with past flings and crushes, but never as much as now. 

And the more you let yourself think about it, the clearer it became to you. You were becoming just as fucked for him as he was for you. 

Next Chapter

[losingitinjersey]

Moving sucks.  

It’s a ridiculous amount of effort, emotionally and definitely physically.  I’ve been burning myself out to no end yet managing to pick myself up and keep at it day after day.  Today is the first time I’ve allowed myself to really just let down.  

Let’s back up, shall we?

My last post was on Sunday, March 28th.  Since then, we had to vacate the house for the new owners to walk-through (yep, they bought it sight unseen and without a home inspection), and then have been packing non-stop.  

On Monday, April 5th, the movers arrived at 8:30 a.m. and the four guys spent the next 11 hours loading up our home into their two trucks (yes, I realize we have too much stuff), then driving the hour North to Williamsburg, taking a lunch break, then unloading all our things into our new three-story townhouse.  As expensive as the process was, I’d do it again in a heartbeat.  No way this pregnant ass can haul heavy furniture and boxes of books up three stories.  

The rest of this long week has been spent using every waking moment unpacking and organizing our new home, working full-time, and taking care of erp (or, really, just keeping an eye on her as she explores her new abode). 

Today, Friday, April 9th, I woke up later than I have all week (7:30 a.m.) completely groggy and out of it.  Instead of my normal routine of playing with erp on the floor for an hour, I immediately poured a cup of coffee and sat on the couch while she played.  I just have nothing left in me right now.  And, thankfully, I’ve done enough with the house that there’s a relatively good semblance of structure to the home.  Yes, there’s TONS more that needs to be done, but the kitchen is pretty set up, the family room and dining room have all the major pieces in the right places, my office is functional yet still needs to be decorated, erp’s room is in a good arrangement - though we can’t find the crib screws so she keeps having to use her pack-n-play.  The bedroom needs some serious work but I can’t do that without Kevin assembling the bed and he doesn’t seem to care it’s not done, and the guest room/Kevin’s office is more or less done.  

Tomorrow, will be a long day spent at the old house grabbing anything else we left, cleaning and turning in our keys to the neighbors.  As much as I’m dreading having to do that, it’ll be nice to be able to officially close out that chapter and fully experience this new place.  

We’re really enjoying the division that three-stories brings!  Being able to have such separation between areas has been nice, especially once I installed a baby gate so we can feel confident letting erp roam without worrying about the many stairs.  It’s fun to be in a new area, especially one that’s built around such a work/play/live lifestyle so we’re looking forward to exploring the area. 

The townhouse feels waaaaay too new.  Like, super clean white carpets, no stains on the walls (until we arrived, seriously it’s like you brush up against it and BOOM stain) and all brand-new appliances (though, I can’t figure out how to use the dishwasher after six attempts).  I’m sure we won’t get our deposit back because there’s no way I can return the place to such pristine conditions, but Kevin keeps telling me to just let it go.  Thankfully, we put down our rugs in the living and dining rooms so I at least feel better about playing and eating in there.  Coming from a house with all hardwood downstairs, it’s super weird to be in a fully carpeted house.  My feet (and erp’s knees!) are very happy.  

I haven’t found a good spot to put up my full-length mirror yet, so I’m sure my ootd posts are going to vary until I get that figured out.  Definitely looking forward to continuing to find places for all my things and getting the house fully organized.  As much as I hated moving, I’m surprised how much I’m enjoying the process of organizing the home,  Working out layouts of rooms until I find one that fits well, creating new routines and finding out where things should go.  Before this, I haven’t moved in four years so it’s been awhile since I’ve hard to start over like this.  It is hard though, knowing that we have to do this all again in 15 months when we move to Philly.  As such, I’m definitely keeping a lot of boxes packed - which hopefully should help some later on.  

It’s weird that it’s Friday since it’s been such a long past four days but glad I’m finally able to shut down my urgency to organize and take the time to just sit for once.  We’ll see how long this lasts.  

[peacehopeandrats]

The Monday Mountain

Look at this! I remember how to use tumblr!

Okay, so the end of the school year this year was super hectic and we had a family member also graduating from high school, so the past few weeks have been super chaotic. Now, of course, my pet sitting is going to kick up again in full force, but because of Covid, I’m not doing as much work as I usually do. That means I’ll have more time for writing.

I’ve heard from readers and some people were begging me to finish some fics, so that will be my goal for the rest of this year. If there is anything that you want me to continue with, please let me know. You can tell me here, or go to the fic and leave a comment telling me you want more.

Monday - Getting my act together! Today is a day of rereading Monster In The Storm so that I can finish it up.

Tuesday - Finish reading and/or begin writing.

Wednesday - More writing. I do have a schedule for writing every day, but because of pet work I won’t always be able to keep to it. I will try, though.

Thursday - Writing/Editing. Hopefully by this point in time I’ll have something ready for editing.

Friday - Final touches.

Saturday - Posting. Fingers crossed for this one. You know how I am.

Sunday - Start reading for the next fic, because this should be the final chapter of MITS.

[the-twi-light-zone]

Godless

Chapter 1

Hello! This is going to be my first time writing something requested, so please bear with me! I wanted to post something... so this is just a little teaser chapter! Hopefully I can get another part out Sunday or Monday! Thank you @rexburn12 for this wonderful idea!

Request:

Ok Are You Cool With Male Reader Being A God, And The Reason Vampires And Wolf Shifters Exist? I Can Give You A Prompt. Male Reader Is The God Of Wolves, War, Death, The Sun, And The Moon. Y/n Is In A Deep Sleep, And Is Awoken By One Of His Last Worshippers. When It Happens Every Vampire, And The Wolf Pack Feels His Presence And They're Shocked,And Confused. Clarification: He Created The Children Of The Moon, Vampires, And The Wolf Pack. He Meets Leah First, And They Imprint On Each Other. He Decided To Hide His True Nature As A God From Her, And Leah Does The Same( Hiding She's A Wolf Shifter) Trying To Get To Know Him More, And Not Rush Into Things With Y/n Doing The Same.

.......................................................................................

Slowly opening his eyes Y/N takes in the dark surroundings, tall evergreens wave greetings while shifting the moonlight across his face. Breathing deep he takes in the scent of the forest from the mud, leaves, trees, and hints of salt water. Sitting up Y/N heaves himself off of the forest floor, swiping debris from his backside while looking around at the surroundings. A small dying fire burns from behind with puffs of smoke floating up and away into the night. Next to the fire lays many different trinkets all ranging from a gold chained necklace, to silver cups overflowing with wines and blood, knives glint against the moon as they stick out of the log they were lodged into.

E/C eyes flicker across the ground where a still body of a rabbit lays, eyes wide with dead fear. Deep humming comes from his throat as he takes in the ritual that was long thought to not have worked. Chuckling he moves forward hand grasping at the hilt of one of the knives, and with a swift tug the blade is freed from the object. Turning the sharp blade he observes the intricate design of the wooden and silver clad handle. Sliding the knife into the side pocket of his pants he gathers the golden chain holding it up and slowly making to put in on around his neck. 

Taking steps in a direction unknown to him he walks off into the night glad to be awake to check in on his creations. Making a small list in his mind Y/N checks off his original creations he senses are still ‘alive’ and ‘well’. His checklist then runs to his last creation made and the sole enemy to his first. Vampires and Shapeshifters natural born enemies like most cats and dogs, and almost quite literally in a sense in this situation. 

.......................................................................................

A sudden presence nearly knocks over the pack members who sit idly by a big fire, taking everyone by surprise when it isn’t something they have dealt with before. The pack shifts uncomfortably waiting on the alpha to decide just what they need to do about the sudden presence on their land. 

“Everyone I want whatever this is found now. Leah and Jared head north, Seth and Jake go east, Paul and Quil to the south, Embry and myself with go west. Everyone else get back to Emily’s.” Sam’s deep voice breaks through the silence and is all that is needed to get the shapeshifters moving heading to the designated zones. Shifting into her wolf Leah and Jared make quick work of running through the brush and slowly coming the side of their territory. 

Leah is hit with the scent of a male, taking another whiff of the air she smells the human closer than before. “Jared, there is a human male in our area.” Leah’s thoughts are brought to a stand still as she finally sees the back of the male, the dark shirt tucked into the even darker pair of pants. Turning away the pair of shifters make their way to Emily’s while Jared explains what they saw to the rest of the pack.

.......................................................................................

Y/N felt the eyes of two of his creations on his back, in there shifted forms they could never hide from him. Glancing back he catches a glimpse of one of their tails, the gray tail slowly swiping back and forth. Y/N smirks as he turns back around and starts another trek through the dark woods. His creations could never hide from him in wolf form, in human form though. That would be a challenge in itself, even for a creator who made it to where they could blend in to their surroundings.

For now though, and until they met again they wouldn’t notice his true self or intentions...

Chapter 2,

[jobean12-blog]

Top Shelf: Chapter 8- Drunk In Love

Paring: Bucky x reader (Bookshop/bartender AU)

Word Count: 2,656

Summary: You have a fun night hanging with Bucky at the bar and a wonderful time at Sunday dinner with grandma but then Bucky drops some bad news...

Author’s Note: So I know I usually post on Monday’s but this week is the HBC’s week of kinks and I’m super excited and plan on writing something small each day so I figured I would put this out a day early since it was ready. Thank you all for your continued support. I used the photo of 1940s!Bucky as Bucky’s grandpa :) I love him so. Your amazing kindess and loveliness really keeps me going with this. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading! Love you all ❤❤❤ (ps the italics toward the end is Betty’s story of how she met James/grandpa :)

Warnings: Fluff, sweet Bucky (when is he not haha), smut (thigh riding, sorry not sorry), implied smut, alcohol consumption, angst (I’m sorry!) 18+ only please

Previous Chapters: 

Chapter 1: Enchantment

Chapter 2: Cookie Crumble

Chapter 3: Sweet Anticipation

Chapter 4: Read Between the Limes

Chapter 5: Secrets on the Shelf

Chapter 6: Love Between the Covers

Chapter 7: Love Lines & Sould Finds

“Yes,” you whisper, suddenly feeling like you jumped the gun, but the words had just spilled out. “I’d love to be your boyfriend, if you’ll have me?” He says the first part so decisively and with so much certainty that you just stare up at him and smile. “So, is that a yes?” he asks, his grin lopsided. You jump and throw your arms around his neck, kissing him firmly before breaking into a smile and whispering, “yes, definitely yes.”

When the two of you finally come back to reality you see Sam standing with his arm around Nat, both giving you knowing smiles.  “Back to work Barnes,” Sam says, his eyes bright. “Oh, yea!” Bucky replies, giving you a squeeze and another quick kiss. He hops around the bar; his head held a bit higher and a pep in his step.

Nat rushes over and grabs your hands, “I TOLD YOU!” she yells over the loud chatter of the bar. You try to contain your happiness to a small squeal but fail when she starts hopping. “I feel like I’m drunk but I haven’t even had a sip of my drink yet! Speaking of, where are our drinks?” She reaches behind you and grabs two cold glasses, handing you one. “Try it! It’s amazing!”

The rest of the night is spent chatting and laughing with Nat while Sam and Bucky work the bar. More often than you’d like to admit your eyes drift to Bucky behind the bar. His sleeves are rolled up and the top few buttons of his shirt are undone, giving you plenty to ogle. Every so often he catches you staring, and you watch his eyes darken making your breath hitch. “Stop eye fucking your boyfriend, please,” Nat teases, emphasizing the word boyfriend.

With a startle you whip your head around, “what?!? I am not doing any such thing.” You turn back to look at Bucky, his eyes crinkled in a smile as he laughs. “I mean, maybe that’s exactly what I was doing but can you blame me? Look at him!” Now Nat throws her head back with laughter, “no, I guess I can’t.” Throwing Bucky a wink and an appreciative smile, you try to keep a straight face as you waggle your eyebrows.

It’s after 2am when the bar starts to close, you and Nat swiveling around on the stools and giggling. “Should we help them clean up?” Nat blows a raspberry, making a face and says, “no way!” a little too loudly. “No way, what?” Sam asks, sidling up beside Nat with a smirk. “Nat doesn’t think we should help you two clean up,” you say quickly, trying not to laugh. “Oh, I see how it is,” Sam teases. Bucky catches your eye as he’s walking to the back and motions for you to follow. You tell Nat and Sam you’ll be right back, leaving them to their fun.

Following Bucky to the back you watch him place the container of clean glasses down on counter. He rinses his hands and wipes them clean with a towel before starting to unbutton his shirt. You’re leaning in the doorway, your eyes fixed on his long fingers as they easily work their way down his shirt. He reaches the bottom and looks up, pulling his shirt off and smirking at your reaction. “See something you like, doll?”

Your eyes travel down his chest, following the trail of hair from his pecs to the waistband of his jeans. His ab muscles flex as he grabs his backpack and pulls out a tee shirt, your bottom lip now caught between your teeth as you try to hold back a moan. Throwing the tee shirt over his shoulder he stalks toward you, his arm reaching over your head and pulling the door shut with a click, the motion pushing you closer to him as the door nudges your back.

“Hi,” is all you manage to say, your fingers dancing over his skin as pins you against the door. His hands cup your face, gently brushing your hair back before he kisses you, slow and deep. He parts your leg with his thigh, and you gasp into his mouth, your dress riding up, so the fabric of your underwear rubs on his jeans. You can’t help the way your hips move along the thick muscle of his thigh, the friction hitting just the right spot.

Grabbing onto his shoulders you continue moving your hips back and forth, your orgasm building quickly as Bucky’s mouth travels over your neck. “Bucky, oh my god,” is all that leaves your mouth before your body trembles and you cum on his thigh, your wetness soaking through your underwear.

Bucky carefully moves his leg and holds you up, bringing your lips to his. “That was so fucking hot,” he murmurs into your mouth. “We need to go home; my jeans are way too tight right now.” You giggle and give him a nod, running your hand over the bulge in his pants, “yes, I want to go home right now.”

With quick goodbyes to Nat and Sam you leave the bar. The cool night air is a stark contrast to your heated skin as you make your way down Eldridge Street. Bucky can’t keep his hands off you, stopping to kiss you every few feet. When you finally reach his building, he opens the door and practically sprints up the steps, the two of you falling through the doorway of his apartment in a lip lock.

You wake to the warmth of the early morning sun shining through Bucky’s bedroom window. Your body is tangled with his as he peacefully sleeps. Brushing some hair from his face you give him a kiss and carefully get up, grabbing his tee shirt from the floor and throwing it over your naked body.

Tip toeing into the bathroom you wash up and give yourself a tour of his apartment. It’s unsurprisingly neat and comfortable, the warm colors and wooden furniture making it feel like a lived-in place. He has several bookshelves lining the walls in the living room and you smile to yourself, loving that he’s surrounded himself with them.

“You look so much better in my shirt than I do.” You look down at yourself before turning on your heel, “I could argue with you on that.” Bucky walks over, his sweats hung low on his hips. He winds his arms around your shoulders and holds you against his chest. “Hungry?” Just then your stomach grumbles and you both laugh. “I definitely could go for some breakfast!”

After breakfast and some fun in the shower you leave Bucky’s and return home to do laundry and bake the cookies for dinner at Betty’s. You decide you also want to try one of your new recipes for a chocolate pie, hoping to get an honest opinion from both Bucky and his grandma. The day goes by quickly as you bake and clean, Bucky texting you silly pictures from the book shop.

‘I wish I didn’t have to work tonight😢.’ You read his text, wishing the same. You want to go to the bar again, but you promised Nat some girl time and you needed to do some things around your apartment. ‘I know, me too, I miss you.’ You send the text before thinking it through, cringing to yourself and hoping you didn’t overstep.

An, ‘I miss you more❤,’ comes through almost instantly and with a giant sigh of relief, you send several heart emojis back followed by a picture of your finished chocolate pie. ‘I tried a new recipe! Hopefully, you guys will like it🥰!’ The next few texts come through quickly, Bucky making his excitement know. Nat arrives shortly after and you veg on the couch with cookies and wine, hardly talking about anything other than the boys.

When Sunday afternoon arrives, you’re pacing your apartment, rambling to Nat on the phone. “Why am I all of a sudden nervous, it’s not like I’m meeting his parents and I’ve met Betty before!” Chewing on your lip you huff into the phone causing Nat to laugh, “listen, calm down, eat a cookie and get dressed or you’re going to be late.”

Bucky meets you at your apartment and you catch a cab together, his hand in yours as you walk to Betty’s apartment. “This stuff smells amazing, I can’t wait to eat it all,” he says, pulling you into his side. Kissing the top of your head, he whispers, “she already loves you, don’t worry about anything.” You let your shoulders relax feeling somewhat lighter after his sweet words.

Betty’s apartment door is slightly ajar, the delicious smell of lasagna wafting through the small space. “Oh man, that smells so good,” you say as Bucky opens the door. “Hey grandma, we’re here!” Betty pokes her head around the corner of the kitchen with a smile, “oh good, kids, come on in! I need some help.”

You brush past Bucky and put the cookies and pie on the table, going over to Betty and asking, “what can I do?” She pats your cheek and instructs you to set the table, yelling at Bucky to help get the lasagna out of the oven and get the drinks.

Once the table is set and the three of you are seated Betty gets to talking. You had checked with Bucky on the way over, asking him if it was ok to ask her questions about his grandpa, James. He assured you it would be fine, and she would be happy to talk about him. And she was.

We met when I was 19, not long before the Vietnam War. James was so handsome with his dark hair and beautiful blue eyes. It was summer and I was at Coney Island with my friends and some of the army boys had come out to have some fun. The moment I laid eyes on him; I knew. “Knew what,” you asked, your head cocked to the side and a dreamy look in your eyes.

That I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him. Thankfully, he felt the same because that night my life changed forever. Just like any other show off he approached me and asked if he could try to win me one of the stuffed bears at the water gun game. He kept saying he was a good shot. Well, turns out, he won three times in a row and I got the biggest stuff bear they had. “She still has it too,” Bucky chimed in with a smile. You squeeze his hand, “it’s all so romantic.”

We spent the whole evening together. James took me for a walk on the beach that night and we bonded over our love of books and literature, quoting all our favorite stories and authors. It almost felt too good to be true but when we kissed for the first time on that sand, I knew he would be the last man I ever kissed.

He went to Vietnam. I knew he was going to and I had to let him, but it was the hardest thing I ever had to do. So hard, I wasn’t sure I would make it through. I wrote him every day and sent him books I had read with my notes in the margin. They were more often just the words in my heart that had leaked onto the page. He kept them all of course, telling me they gotten him through many nights.

When he returned home, we got married right away. It was a small wedding but just what we wanted. After that we moved into this apartment and I got pregnant in the next year. One day, we were walking down W 15th street, or more like I was waddling because I was about 8 months pregnant and we passed this quaint little bookshop. It was one of those moments where we looked at each other and it all just clicked.

Walking inside we were immediately surrounded by the familiar smell of old books. We spent the whole afternoon exploring the shelves for books for the baby’s library. We left with probably close to 30 books, hands, and hearts full.

Later than night when we were building the bookshelf for the baby’s room, James sat back and pulled me into his lap. He asked me what I wanted in life. I told him I had everything I wanted and more. He understood because he felt the same but then he added in a quiet voice, “what if we had our own library.”

At first, I didn’t know what he meant. Maybe one for the house? But then he started telling me his idea. He spoke with so much passion that I couldn’t have said no even if I wanted to. And I didn’t want to, I was all in. It was perfect for us.

So, after Bucky’s father was born, we saved up, bought the space, and turned it into the bookshop. From day one James was fully invested. He gave it so much of himself and we had so much success. Everything he did he did for us and I know he’s so happy that Bucky has taken over and we didn’t have to sell before he passed.

Betty slowly got up and walked to the living room, taking a photo off the mantle. “Would you grab the cookies and pie dear and Bucky put on the coffee please?” You both jump up and do as she asks, clearing the table and setting out the dessert and coffee cups. She returns with the photo and sits down, handing it to you. “That’s James and I in front of the bookshop the day it opened.”

Her smile is wide, but her eyes are sad. You look down at the picture, your own eyes blurred by tears, “you are beautiful, and James is so handsome. You really look like him Bucky.” When you look up, Bucky’s eyes are on you and not the picture. Something floats across his features that steals your breath. Something akin to pain but it quickly vanishes when Betty speaks again.

“Oh, my darling, this pie is scrumptious! You are quite the baker.” You and Bucky look over, smiling as she takes another bite. “I’m so glad you like it! Will you try some Bucky?” He reaches over and cuts a giant slice, “you bet I will!”

It seems as if the painful moment has passed as he happily chews the pie, groaning at how good it is. You kiss his cheek, taking a bite yourself and smiling. “It did come good! I have to add this to my recipe book.” The three of you enjoy dessert and more lovely conversation, helping Betty clean up before you leave.

You say goodbye and head out the door, promising to be back soon with more baked goods. Bucky’s hand is tight around yours as you walk down the street, deciding to take a stroll before getting a cab. The night is warm and beautiful as Bucky pulls you into his side. You can tell something is off but you’re not sure if you should ask. The moment with the picture sits at the forefront of your mind and you decide to take the gamble.

You stop walking and wrap your arms around him, “Bucky. Talk to me, what’s going on?” His brow furrows and his lips turn down in a frown. Your stomach sinks as thoughts that he is going to end it creep into your mind. He must notice the look in your eyes and quickly kisses you before saying, “it’s not you at all, you are perfect.” Taking a deep breath, he continues, “it’s the bookshop. I have barely been able to pay the rent these past two months. I don’t know what to do.”  

@aesthetical-bucky @bugsbucky @book-dragon-13 @buckys-broody-muffin @devynsdiary @eurynome827 @hawksmagnolia @hailmary-yramliah @hiddles-rose @itsunclebucky @ikaris-whore @jhangelface0523 @jewels2876 @loricameback @littledarlinhavefaithinme @littleredstarfish @metal-armed-cuddly-dork @mushyjellybeans @marvelgirl7 @marvelandotherfandomimagines @nano--raptor​ @nerdypinupcrystal​ @randomfandompenguin​ @sallycanwait68​ @softpeachbarnes​ @scarletsoldierrr​ @the-wayward-robot​ @when-the-hell-is-bucky​ @nordlysinthewoods​ @moonybarnes​ @rinthehufflepuff​ @irishflutiegirl​ @jamesbarnesappreciationclub​ @fire-flv​ @nd1998sc​ @captainchrisstan​ @vherriepie​ @godofplumsandthunder​ @amandatar-06​ @throwmyheartawayagain​ @flyawaybay 

[soulbutterlanguages]

Week #3 Russian Study

OKAY ! So I’m getting a bit of a head start on this coming week because I decided to create a new plan for myself. Usually I would be posting on Sunday but this week it’s on Friday. 

This week I bought a 3-Subject notebook and organized it (grammar, exercises, and vocabulary) I fell just a bit behind because I wanted to formally input the grammar, vocab I’ve learned thus far, so I spent a day or two doing that. 

My goals for this week were 

get to chapter five in New Penguin (got half way through chapter 4, I plan on finishing it tomorrow)

watch two Real Russian Club videos

master family tree

learn ten verbs  (говорить, понимать, работать, знать, читать, есть, пить, делать, играть. Nine, it’s fine.)

master accusative case and when to use it

do 20 xp duolingo everyday (Honestly, I did not expect to keep up with this one, but I actually averaged at about 70XP/day) 

Other wins this week

made a playlist on spotify and I’m really excited about it

I read a russian post on instagram and I understood the first sentence without any help! Which is pretty good for two weeks in ! (It said “I work in a disney store”) 

I started a journal and I’m very happy with it

Rest of this week/Next week goals

Saturday- I don’t expect to have a lot of time so I’m going to go easy a little bit

Finish Chapter four in New Penguin

learn 10 new words

make 20 sentences with the words you already know

Duolingo

Sunday- Grammar Day !

learn about adjective declension in the nominative case

learn about the prepositional case (chapter five New Penguin) 

Duolingo

Monday- Reading !

Find a children's book and try to read it (note all unknown vocabulary)

draw a map of my room (with labels)

Episode 6 of Real Russian Club

Duolingo

Tuesday -Grammar Day

plural nouns

episode 7 of Real Russian Club

Chapter six of New Penguin

Duolingo

Wednesday 

learn 10 new words

make 20 sentences

Duolingo

Thursday- I don’t expect to have a lot of time so I’m going to go easy a little bit

Duolingo

3 new verbs

Friday

Review (test on this week’s vocab/grammar)

Duolingo

I’m thrilled with myself that I haven’t gotten burnt out and that I’ve sort of fallen into a routine with this. I feel like I’m really making progress. Now hopefully I can refine that routine just a little bit to create a bit more discipline. 

[hongnanglen-arina]

See You On Monday | SVT Interactive AU

01: Aren’t ghosts always mean?

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Masterlist | Previous | Next

Warnings: none Words: 1.611 A/N: Hey there! Here’s the first chapter of my little experiment. At the end of each chapter you have to decide for the next move (please leave a comment on the chapter’s post to vote) On November 10th the first ‘voting’ will be closed. Based on the result, chapter 2 will be posted on November 15th. After that, each week you have 3 days for making a decision until the next chapter comes out on Sunday. I hope you will like it… and as always, please remember that English isn’t my first language so excuse my grammar ♡

I may make a taglist :) tell me if you’re interested to be added

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“Who are you?”

Your eyes slowly adjust to the bright room, finally finding the owner of the new voice.

“I asked you who you are!”

His loud voice echoes through the room and you flinch. Trying to form an answer. This was a game. So no need to be scared y/n! But what was your characters name again? What role do you have to play? You curse under your breath. Some more research about the game would have been better than just hopping straight in.

“I-I….. I’m…” You stammer as he suddenly rushes in your direction, causing you to shriek in confusion, crossing your arms in front of your chest almost instantly.

That’s when he runs through you and you inhale sharply, your eyes growing wide. What? You turn around to see a person jumping out of the window, the boy following him but stopping in front of it. “Fuck… what the hell??” He brushes his fingers through his hair and stomp on the floor.

You look at him all confused. Are you a ghost? He clearly ran through you. Does that mean his question was towards that intruder? Taking a better look at him, you suddenly recognize him from the game cover. His turquoise-greenish hoodie looked so nice and soft and was a nice contrast to the other boy’s clothes.

“Jeonghan! We heard you scream! What’s wrong??”

Your head turns to the door where 3 other boys appear, seemingly out of breath. They make their way over to the other but before they walk through you again, you quickly get up and stand with your back against the wall, watching the people gather in the room.

“Cheol, I told you there was something off! And I was right! There was a weird guy dressed in all black going through our stuff! He probably took some things with him!”

“Damn… we should check our belongings. Jun, tell the others so that they can go to their rooms and hopefully everything’s still there. Vernon, let’s check if he took something from us.” Jeonghan is still in front of the window, looking outside, lost in thoughts when the boy with wavy hair joins him, placing a hand on his shoulder. “You okay?” The other boy sighs. “Yeah..”

Without a word, you watch how the two at the window join the other with the cap, going through their bags and the things that are scattered all over the place. While they are stepping over the futons, you are unable to move away from your spot. They don’t see you. They didn’t hear you.

“Hello?” You try again.

No reaction.

“Seems like I’m okay. Gonna check on the others.”

“Okay Vernon. We’ll come too…. in a bit.” With that said, one of them leaves the room and you give Jeonghan and Cheol a quick look before following Vernon. Carefully walking behind him, you study your surroundings. “This looks like some kind of guesthouse… maybe one near the beach?” 

You enter a room and see Vernon sit down next to someone who was wiping his tears, patting his back.

“He got Seungkwan’s wallet.”

“Shit.”

“Besides that, our room is fine though.” A smaller boy announced and Vernon gives him a nod.  

Someone with very sharp features enters the room. Another new face. “My room is okay. What about you?”

“My photos! My credit cards! My money! Also my cards from the coffee shops! They were already full!” The boy beside Vernon whines and Vernon continues patting his back but looks at the other and mouths ‘wallet’. The boy in the door makes “Ohh” and leaves the room after looking around the room and for a second you think he saw you.

“What… am I supposed to do here?” You ask yourself out loud and the boy in the door stops in his tracks, turning around. 

“Did you say something?”

The boys all look up confused and shake their heads. “No… why, Wonwoo?”

Wonwoo cocks his head to the side. “Just….” But then he shrugs after a while and leaves.

You catch yourself covering your mouth, carefully looking at the three boys on the floor. So it was possible for them to hear you? Maybe your mission was to catch the thief? Recalling the words from the mysterious voice, you let them circle in your mind. I have to… join the group… as a ghost I suppose… and what? Make it out alive? You can’t suppress the laughter but quickly cover your mouth again, making sure they didn’t hear you.

How am I supposed to ‘make it out alive’ when I’m here as a freaking ghost? What a stupid game.

Suddenly loud voices can be heard from the floor below you, causing everyone to stand up and leave the room in a hurry. You follow them without saying anything, scared of being caught although you aren’t sure whether they should know that you’re there or not.

Finally down in the living room, you see 4 boys discussing loudly, maybe even arguing. 

“Dino, think again!”

“We locked the door twice, I’m super positive!”

“Maybe he came through a window?”

“But we made sure they were all closed except the ones in the living room and we were there so how, Joshua?”

“We just arrived, guys. Maybe there are rooms we haven’t seen yet?”

“We are 13. And we arrived like 4 hours ago. That can’t be.”

“But we’re all hella tired, Hoshi, so I’m sure we haven’t explored the whole place yet.”

“Again, we are 13! No way a stranger can enter without us noticing it!”

“Seokmin, Dino, Joshua, Hoshi, enough!” All heads turn to the voice. It’s Jeonghan and Cheol.

“Seungcheol is right. You should stop yelling. All we can do now is to see what we’ve lost and what we can do about it. What does it help to find the person who forgot to lock the door or whatnot? The things are still gone.”

Oh his full name was Seungcheol. You make a mental note. “I’m with Jeonghan. Have you already checked your belongings if there’s something missing?” Seungcheol asks and the one from before starts. “My wallet. Gone. Poof!” “Okay Seungkwan, that’s not good… anything else?” “My camera.” 4 more boys enter the living room and you can’t help yourself but to count.

Aha! 13! Okay these are the boys from the cover!

Following their conversation a little halfheartedly, you study your surroundings again for a moment. Even in the living room, some things were all over the place. Some pillows, some jackets… you see a picture of a beautiful pastel colored painting laying on the ground. Slowly making your way to it, you hear the boys still talking. 

Picking up the painting, you look around to find the spot where it belonged to. 

“Oh there!” Standing on your tiptoes, you hang it on a little nail in the wall, stepping back a bit to see if it’s okay but then adjust it a little bit until it was perfect.

It was strangely quiet in the room. You blink and turn around to the boys, just to see them all staring at you with shocked and confused expressions. Oops…

“Okay y’all.. u-uhm I can explain… Well, I’m playing a game. Not sure if I can say that but-“

“JESUS DID YOU SEE THAT!? THAT PAINTING MOVED ON ITS OWN!!”

“Am I dreaming???”

“That’s definitely not a dream.”

“It moved… not the other way round! It didn’t fall down though!”

You stand there, mouth open but nothing coming out while you are still holding your hands as if you are going to explain the situation. Telling them that you are all in a Play Station game and you are the holy ghost who has to help them somehow. Ridiculous.

A very skinny boy walks over to you, super brave. Not like the others who are going wild on the other side. You watch the boy inspect your spot and also the painting on the wall, making ‘mmh’ and ‘ahh’ noises from time to time. He stands really close to you and you feel the urge to try and touch his arm when he turns around to state “There’s nothing here. If anything, a ghost.”

One of the taller boys choked at his words. “G-ghost…. ?? A real ghost… y-yah Minghao… no funny. Nope.”

“That’s the only logical explanation, Seokmin. I think Hao is right.” Wonwoo says.

You swallow hard. Is it a good thing to show yourself just half an hour into the game or so? Or does that mean game over? Cursing at yourself for not making any research before starting the game, you yeah the youngest looking one whisper “It just happened….. m-maybe it’s still here? I…. heard about people asking them to move something to show their presence…. like in movies….”

“We could try it.”

“H-hey.. what Dino just said… you don’t wanna-“

“It literally just hung a painting back on its nail. What mean ghost does that??”

“A… not mean ghost?”

“Exactly!”

“Aren’t ghosts always mean?”

“Says who?”

“Guys! Stop…..” Seungcheol rubs his temples when Jun grabs a glass of water from the coffee table, walking over to a closet and placing it on it before joining the boys again. Minghao is back besides them as well.

You stand next to the painting, looking back and forth from the boys and the closet.

“So if you’re there. Show yourself by moving the glass.” Vernon says into the room which is awfully quiet. Everyone looking around, waiting for an answer.

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What are you going to do?

Give them a sign by lifting the glass OR stay where you are without giving a sign?

You can decide.