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harringtonstilinski · 1 year ago

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Always The Babysitter - Chapter Eleven: The Pollywog

Author: @harringtonstilinski Characters: Steve Harrington x Olivia Henderson(OC) (eventually) Word Count: 2,167 Warnings: fluff, lil' bit of angst, Smut: no | yes; A/N: Hi, friends! We've got some fluff in this episode!! If you like this chapter, please do not hesitate to reblog and give some feedback, whether it be in the reblogs, comments, or my inbox. As always, read at your own risk and enjoy 😊

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I had Steve drop me off at the station on the way to school so that I could show Hopper that I could go to a party and not be at the station all night… and so that Steve could go get some breakfast. Hopper was surprised and so was I, so I got a little bit of work done before Steve came back by to pick me up.

We rode to school, just talking about nothing, reminiscing on a few memories, laughing. Once we got to school, we sat in his car, eating our breakfast, still laughing and sharing our favorite memories with one another.

“Oh, my god,” I said, swallowing my bite of food. “Do you remember that time when we were like 12 or 14 and your parents busted us for looking at their special book?”

Steve laughed, putting his hand on the steering wheel. “Yes! It was one of the few times they were actually home for a while.” His laughter died down, and so did his mood before he took a bite of his breakfast sandwich.

I sighed, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought that one up.”

“No, no, it’s… it’s cool,” he said. “I like it. I like this.”

Looking at him, I asked, “Like what?” before looking at my own breakfast sandwich and taking a bite, eyes back on him.

“This. Us. What we’re doing.”

“Being friends?”

He nodded. “Best friends.” Taking another bite, he sighed before chuckling. “You might be upset with me for bringing this up, but what about the time before you started getting busted by the cops?”

I had to think for a moment before smiling and chuckling. “The 4th of July party at Tina’s? “

Nodding, he said, “Yeah. That’s the one! When they came and tried to break the party up because some snitch called them and said someone ordered a keg?”

“Oh, my god, I totally forgot someone called!” I exclaimed, laughing. “And we ran back to your house, almost falling in the woods from laughing, and then actually falling into your pool from not watching where we were going?”

Throwing his back against the headrest, Steve laughed… hard. I haven’t seen him laugh that hard in a while, and it felt good to see him let go for a moment. As his laughter started to die down, he cleared his throat. “Do you, uhh… do you remember what else happened that night?”

I nodded my head, looking down at my half eaten sandwich. “I do. How could I forget?” I looked at him, his eyes already on me. I had a feeling about what would happen next, and I wanted it to, but I instead cleared my throat. As I opened my mouth to say the memory, I heard the first period bell ring.

“Guess that’s our cue,” I sighed. “Let’s go try and learn something. Oh! Did you ever finish your essay?”

He shook his head, “No. I missed the deadline.”

“Steve, I’m so sorry,” I said, sadness in my tone and facial features.

“It’s alright, there’s always next time,” he sighed. “Come on. We don’t wanna be late.”

~~~

Second period. Gym. Well… it was Steve’s gym period. I had another class, but Steve had also asked me to sit in the gym with him like I used to, so I went and got my classwork from my teacher and went to the gym.

Watching Steve in his element playing basketball was… awesome. I hadn’t seen him play in what felt like forever, it was nice seeing him play again… even if it is against Billy Hargrove being a skin. Skins vs Shirts.

When I heard someone grunt, I looked up from my papers, seeing Steve and Billy’s back towards me. I could hear their conversation.

“Harrington, right?” Billy said. “I heard you used to run this school. That true? King Steve they used to call you, huh? Then you turned bitch.”

“Hey, maybe you should just shut up and just play the game,” Steve said.

“Don’t let him get to you, Steve,” I muttered, knowing he couldn’t hear me. I was about three benches high on the bleachers.

Billy went around Steve, getting the ball from him while knocking Steve to the ground. I jumped a little, a grimace look on my face. My eyes were on Steve the whole time as he got up, so I guess Billy made a basket because his teammates cheered for him.

As soon as Steve rested his hands on his knees, I went back to my work for a moment before hearing Nancy calling his name. He walked over the bleachers, grabbing a towel and putting it around his neck.

I felt a tap on my arm, so I looked over, seeing Steve gesturing to the door with his head. I put my stuff down, and got down off the bleachers, following him and Nancy to the pathway in between the gym and another building.

“What are you doing here?” Steve asked.

“What do you think?” Nancy retorted. “Where were you this morning? I missed first period.”

“No need to be harsh,” I muttered.

“I figured Jonathan would take you,” Steve said.

Looking at me, Nancy asked, “Wha… what is he talking about?”

“I told you to go on easy on the fuel,” I sighed. “You remember the party last night, right?”

“Yes.”

“What happened during and after?” I asked, crossing my arms.

“I remember dancing, and… spilling some punch, Steve got mad at me because I was drunk, and then you two took me home.”

Steve scoffed. “No, yeah, see, that’s where your mind gets a little bit fuzzy. That was your other boyfriend. That was… that was Jonathan.”

“I don’t understand,” Nancy said.

“In all fairness, I did tell him to take her home,” I said, gently tapping a couple times on his shoulder.

“It’s pretty simple, Nancy,” Steve said. “You were just telling it like it is.”

Looking at me, she asked, “What?”

Seeing Steve looking at the ground, I knew I had to take care of this. “Uhm… let’s see. Apparently, all three of us killed Barb ‘cause she’s the only person on your mind these days and we don’t care, apparently Steve is bullshit, and your whole–”

“Our whole– our whole relationship is bullshit, and… I mean, pretty much everything is bullshit, bullshit, bullshit,” Steve said, counting the last three bullshit’s on his fingers. “Oh, yeah, also, you don’t love me.”

“I was drunk, Steve,” Nancy said. “I don’t remember any of that.”

I stood a step back as Steve exclaimed, “So that makes everything that you said– it’s what? It’s just bullshit, too?”

“Yes.”

“Well, then tell me,” Steve said, voice breaking ever so slightly.

I stepped back to him, feeling the need to be there for my best friend now more than ever.

“Tell you what?” Nancy asked.

“You love me,” Steve said.

I was pissed at Nancy for giving her retort of, “Really?”

“Harrington!” came Drew’s voice. I turned around and looked at him as he said, “Dude, we need you, man! That douchebag’s killing us, let’s go! Come on!”

I felt Steve’s hand brush against my back as he said, “Alright!”

Turning my head, I looked at Nancy, rolling my eyes as she didn’t give Steve the answer he wanted. She looked down in the direction of my shoes before looking back up at Steve, giving us both the answer we knew; she didn’t love him and she probably never did.

Putting his hand on my back, he pushed me gently, but I shrugged him off as he told Nancy, “I think that you’re bullshit.” Hearing his footsteps walk away, all I could do was keep my eyes on Nancy.

“Did you ever really love him?” I asked. “Like, truly?”

She didn’t give me a reply either.

I scoffed. “I still stand by what I said last night. That you just ruined the best thing you ever had. I hope you don’t fuck up with Jonathan because if you do, there’s no coming back from that.” I walked back into the gym, taking my seat. I couldn’t focus on my school work, so I just watched Steve play basketball until it was time for them to hit the showers.

~~~

As I walked outside from turning in my homework late, I saw Billy’s car zoom off. All I see when I look at him or his car is the color red. I still wanted to hurt him. Before I could run off after his car, an arm on my shoulders pulling me in the opposite direction stopped me.

“Let me take you to work.”

“Steve, I don’t wanna work, I wanna kill,” I said.

“No, you don’t.”

I sighed, relenting. We got in his car and drove in silence for a few moments before he said, “Thank you. For being there for me today.”

“Anytime,” I smiled.

“And last night.”

“It’s no problem, Steve. Really.”

I looked at him, seeing the ghost of a smile creep across his face. We didn’t bring up Nancy or the fact that they broke up. We talked about almost anything and everything, and not the fact that my feelings for my best friend hit me like a charter bus.

When we arrived at the station, Steve told me to stay put as he got out. I watched with confusion as he walked over to my side of the car and opened the door. He helped me out, which I told him he didn’t need to.

He wished me a good day at work before he gave me a hug, our special hug. I walked to the station door as I heard his car door shut before turning around to wave him goodbye before he drove off.

I walked inside, punched my timecard and got to work doing all the things that Flo prepared for me, like always.

“Where’s Hop?” I asked.

“He went out,” she replied.

“Where, Flo?” I smiled.

She didn’t say anything, and that told me she really didn’t know.

I sighed, and stood up. She started writing something on her pad of paper as I grabbed my things and went back outside the station. Walking home, I knew that what I was doing was stupid, but Hopper was like a father to me since my own abandoned his own family.

When I got home, I asked my mom if I could borrow her car, to which she told me she needed it for errands. I totally understood, so I walked back outside and got on my bike, going to whatever property Hopper was on since that morning I heard him say something about the pumpkin patches.

When I found him, he was standing with a man from the lab. I only knew he was from the lab because Hopper told me about him. I guess Hop heard me walking quickly towards them because he turned his head before approaching me.

“What are you doing here?” he asked. “You’re supposed to be at the station.”

“And leave all the fun to you? No way.”

He sighed. “Stay quiet.”

We walked back over to the man, the smell of the rotting pumpkins hitting me in the face.

I watched as men in white hazmat suits packed a few pumpkins into metal boxes. “What?” I said quietly.

“Well, you were right about these pumpkins,” the other man said. “Some nasty stuff. And the smell– gee, mother of God.”

“Damn,” I muttered.

“Dr. Sam Owens,” the man said.

I looked at him, seeing his hand sticking out.

“Olivia, or Liv,” I said, shaking his hand.

“We got a last name?”

“You from the lab?”

He looked at Hopper, who was looking ahead.

“Then to you, I have no last name.”

“Henderson,” Dr. Owens said.

“What?”

“What exactly do you think is going on–” Hop said.

“Well, I told you what I think,” Dr. Owens replied. “But, we’ll run the tests, and we’ll see what comes up. In the meantime, I just need you to keep the area clear for us. I don’t think it’ll be more than a day or two.”

Turning to face Dr. Owens a little bit, Hopper asked, “What do you want me to tell people?”

I swatted a few flies away from me as Dr. Owens replied, “I��m sure you’ll think of something. Olivia can help you.”

“Olivia can do what now?” I asked, swatting at the air.

Dr. Owens walked away as Hop’s radio went off. “Hey, Chief, you copy?”

Hopper answered with, “Yeah.”

“Do you remember that Russian girl Murray was going on about the other day? Yeah, well, now I’m thinking he’s not so crazy after all.”

Hopper looked at me, putting a hand on my shoulder to guide me to his truck as he said into his walkie, “Stay where you are. Do not move.” Putting his radio away, he said to me, “Put your bike in the back and get in, now.”

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

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~~~

A/N 2: hi, friends! i have no excuse why this late. i really don’t. but, please do not hesitate to reblog and give some feedback, whether it be in the reblogs, comments, or my inbox.

Additional Note: there’s kind of a deleted scene in this episode where hop and liv talk. if y'all are interested, i can write that scene for you!! also, i know that some of y’all are waiting to see your requests, and i promise i’ll get to them. the writer’s block hit really bad with them. atb is the only thing i have motivation to post for at the moment.

~~~

Forever / Everything Taglist: @stiles-o-dylan24 @stixnstripesworld @fandom-princess-forevermore @quanticobae @mischiefandi @kellyashcroft @lauren-novak

Steve Harrington Taglist: @madaboutjoe

If you’re tagged and didn’t want to be, please let me know.

~~~

*Please don’t post my writing anywhere else without my consent. The author of this work will always and forever be @harringtonstilinski.

All characters, story lines, and plot aside from y/n and her storyline & plot, are all of the work of The Duffer Brothers.

*These works contain material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited.

No part of these works may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher.

Posted on January 15, 2024

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askamnesiamoonjumper · 8 months ago

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uhhhh. how about alpine thoughts? or how your alpine lore works?

CRACKS KNUCKLES. I’m not proof reading any of this btw ok unfiltered yapping session GO

ok not gonna go too deep into it bc the next chapter is big alpine lore related so it would basically just be redundant but I can still just jot down some general hc stuff that I think will be explained in story but still just wanna have fun jotting down :3👍

-Ok so. Bc the twilight travels rift (that’s the name right??? The twigoat statue/bell one? That) has the three colored bells/statues (red blue and yellow) my thought was the bell might have been made by three people? Or goats in this case I suppose lol, haven’t thought much beyond just some kind of sorcerer/mage group of some kind, that’s basically it, not thought super hard on it beyond that but we’ll get there when we get there ig

-Accession/twilight spirits are essentially like the opposite of ghosts !! Even though they look similar I think they are actually more similar to mj, in that they still have their bodies. But for twi spirits it’s because they are basically frozen/immortal and NOT dead. As I said they are opposites, life and death and all that. The way they form is the same as corruption BUT the difference is they are calm/control their emotion/can accept the magic from their soul, where as corruption is rejecting it/being overwhelmed by it. I think a good example of this is in the prologue it was shown that snatcher makes flowers/plants wilt but twilight spirits have their whole flower thing going on yk? You get the idea

-the alps and subcon I think would be close/trade often!! (I think this got mentioned in the prologue Iirc?)

-Delilah’s mothers side of her family live in alpine while her fathers side of the family lives in subcon, hence she vaguely mentions it in fic a few times (but I also think she also clumped lotus in with her family too but more so to use as an excuse to not be super detailed abt her alp trips) (oh yeah uh if u don’t know Lotus is my TG follower twilight spirit goat oc who is dels guardian! :3)

-the bell isn’t supposed to ACTUALLY lead to the twilight realm, it’s more so meant to just a window/peek at what it’s like, …meant being the key word here (hence Hattie’s in game diary mentioning she thinks she wasn’t supposed to be there) probably gonna slip in some lore about it being under a spell/enchantment of some kind? Maybe only people tied to magic or the twilights specifically can enter, weither it be literal as in knowing TG/Lotus or following them, or more metaphorically like hat being from space counted her? Shrugs I’ll think on it a little more later ig all I know is if you got magic or ties to it you can go to the astral plane directly yayyyy :3👍 fun!!! I love going to the disorienting space afterlife for a visit it’s just an average Tuesday for me it’s fine dw about it

-twigoat religion/following is based more so on Buddhism/concepts of nirvana in my head, like there isn’t an underworld or hell or anything it’s all just one place, but TG isn’t actually a god or anything it’s like the game lore they were just a regular mortal goat who decided to protect the astral plane/watch over it after becoming a twilight spirit/traveling to the bell.

-Design detail is all twilight followers wear silver bells! :3 but NOT gold bc that’s basically saying they are doing it wrong/don’t care. (Examples of this: TG, Lotus, Dels, shady sunburnt, Rei (gold), shapes later/timeskip specifically for a different twilight character later that I’m not spoiling rn, and also party crasher has gold bells but not so much for twilight lore reasons but changeling council lore reasons which I’m not spoiling here sorry womp womp)

-I feel like believing in the twilight realm VS following the twilight goat are like separate things? Just bc the actual astral plane is a concept while TG is a person/religious figure so like most characters would know of or believe in the astral plane but not all of those characters actually follow TG youknow? Having proof of an afterlife basically means beleif in that plane isn’t part of the religion but following the religions morals/teachings IS if that makes sense???? hopefully u get the idea.. lol

-Lotus is TGs follower > dels was Lotus’s Follower > so I think @twipsai s oc zebu would be dels follower :3 (like I think they’d just be a reference and not an actual character in aau but idc I’d still kill for a!zebu <3 love that thing)

Uhhhhh I think that’s all bc my other hcs i think of either bleed into spoilers or I’m already gonna bring em up in the next chap sooooo yayyy :D👍

#a!au #grace post

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sugareey-makes-stuff · 1 year ago

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For the end of year asks I have. So many:

2, 3, 10, 25, and 30!!! 💛💛💛💛💛

Hiya friend! Hell yeah, gimme all the q's! Here's what I've got after putting some thought into it for 2023:

2. How many fics did you work on this year? (They don’t have to be finished or published!) Oh my God. I don't even know?!! I'm an artist at heart, but 2023 became a BIG writing year for me vs. art or craft making. Not by choice, since Adulting was really hard and everything was basically on fire, so I think I took up writing as a way to journal and cope tbh. My guesstimate between finished works AND WIPs together: I must have been working on at least 20 writing works. Which is kinda crazy...especially trying to do that for 2 fandoms. 😁

3. What’s something you learned about yourself as a writer? I'm actually good at writing and extract Feelings when I'm given a limited word count. Like, I can somehow make the story work if I carefully choose my words and/or sentences since that word count makes sure I get to the point and I don't ramble on for too long. I've definitely been more aware of how I write depending on what it's for. Also, those short word counts have taught me to be cleaner or punchier. Which is always a good thing! I started writing microfics in 2022, and in 2023, I started writing more drabbles. When I signed up for a couple of fic exchanges, I graduated to writing short fics that were 2k or less. So, I think if I generally set some kind of word count for myself, that gives me a framework to determine how big the thing will end up being.

10. What fic made you feel the happiest to work on? OOO, that is a tough one! Okay, I honestly love Pink Lemonade (Sterek, T, 600 words with art) because it's a ficlet with art, and the whole creative process just flowed when I made this whole thing! I wanted to play more with silhouettes for art (which I think we'll see more of for 2024). And then I already had this little story planned out in my head, so I threw those words down. I think this was probably one of the easier works I've put together because everything cooperated. Also, soft boys! ♥️

25. What did you use to write? (e.g. writing programs, paper & pen, etc.) Scrivener! That program has changed the way I write, and I swear by it every day! The features are awesome (hello to color coding and snapshots), but I absolutely love that I have the ability to link to internal and external links. Lifesaver for a geeky researcher. I feel like I can actually organize my drafts AND my notes without being a trash goblin, so I've definitely been willing to write more because of that. When I had a recent power outage though, I did actually do some paper and pen writing, which was pretty neat. It makes the idea more concrete, and you bet that's going to become a fic soon. It's about...well, being stuck in a power outage...surprise! 😂

30. What’s something that you want to write in 2024? I technically want to write sooo many things but I will narrow it down to a couple. The first one would be another installment out for Where do we go from here? I miss making things for Perciver, but 2023 really didn't let me give them the TLC they deserve. I looked back at my fic doc the other day, and I'm glad past!Krissy wrote drafts for 2 possible installments. They've got legs, so it would be amazing to get both of them out! I also want to see if I can get at least one of my longer Sterek fics posted up as well. Maybe it comes down to taking the baby steps to see which one I can finish first...the 50k 10-11 chaptered Beast that I started a year ago, or the 10-15k 5 + 1 Things fic that I started a month ago. We'll find out, I'm sure!

Thanks so much for the asks!

__ Previously asked: 15 and 17 Want to ask me more writer q's? Let me know via the 2023 in review fic writer asks!

#asked and answered #ask meme #2023 in review #fic writer asks #ask game #about me #writing

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jeoniius · 3 years ago

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Next Life | kth (m)

☆ summary: Although you and Taehyung didn’t believe in first and second lives, you both wished you’d find each other in the next life as you both looked at the sky that night.

☆ pairing: husband!tae x wife!reader

☆ genre: angst, smut.

☆ warning: sexual content, angst

☆ word count: 4k

☆a/n: Finally this is done. Thank you so much @jkiddingjeon for beta-ing the fic, it meant A LOT. I really love this fic and I hope you enjoy it too. ngl it's a pretty heartbreaking fic so get ready for some ANGST.

Love. Hate.

It’s always adjacent to each other. Something that’s always there when the other is present. It also changes people. How it makes people go from loving someone and being best friends with someone to trying everything they can to pull them down, to take them out.

You’d say you can relate to it. In more ways than one. You had seen your fair share of people going from loving them unconditionally to talking shit about them the next day. Divorce was one of them. All the promises and vows made of staying through health and sickness, through good and bad, thrown out of the window.

You thought of it as one of the most heartbreaking things and now you were here. Doing the exact thing as you watched the clock tick by, thinking of ways and excuses to get you out of this marriage. This marriage that ended everything. It hadn’t always been like this. No, you were in love. You were so madly in love that if anyone had told you you’d stand in this place today you’d not believe it.

You are still in love. So madly in love but the difference being you want it to end. Maybe that way you’d find each other again.

As time went by, you stood by the railing of your balcony. The bright light of the city shined underneath you as you thought Tomorrow would be it. The end of what once was seen as a beautiful love story by not only you but by many others. The final chapter.

Maybe love and hate stood adjacent to each other but you could never hate him.

And so you stood there, taking it all in, you thought about where it went wrong.

7 months ago

“I can’t believe you think that!” you shouted, hands up in the air as you walked back into the apartment, him following you behind.

“Well I wouldn’t if you kept your distance!” he said, raising his voice.

“Oh my god. One hug. It was one hug. And that too because he was leaving.”

“It didn’t look like one,” he argued back.

“Are you freaking kidding me right now? Nothing happened, you know that.” you said trying to calm yourself down.

“Stop trying to argue with me all the fucking time.” he bit back.

“Oh, I am arguing? You were the one who started it.” You took long strides towards him.

“You were the one who accused his wife of cheating although you have no proof whatsoever” you gritted through your teeth as your finger poked his chest.

He let out a loud groan as you run your hands through your hair. “You know what, Taehyung? You can stay here. I’m leaving.” and with that you grabbed your purse and keys and strode out the door, slamming it behind.

Kim Taehyung.

The love of your life. You met him in college. As cliché as it sounds, he was the heartthrob with his extremely good looks and his unbelievable flirting skills. You weren’t supposed to know him at all if you thought about it.

Your college held its annual fest, and you were the head of the management. You had stumbled across him when he had come to drop off some supplies instead of his best friend. You got into a small quarrel when he commented on how you were the head of the management when you were only a freshman and questioned your ability to pull the entire thing off when it was only three days from the fest and not even one percent of anything was done.

You got into a bet with him as you made him promise you that he’d treat you to something of your choice if you pulled it off. Nevertheless, you pulled the entire thing off within the next two days, proving him wrong. As a promise, he treated you to something really expensive(of course you had picked it) and then swore to never question your ability.

You started seeing more of him, with his surprise visits to your class (which usually ended up with girls surrounding you asking how you knew him) or him coming to your seat in the cafeteria just to give you some new juice he got for you. Sometimes he’d ask you to come to one of his basketball matches and then took you to dinner afterward.

You felt your heartbeat increasing every time you saw him or heard his name in fact, and before you knew it, you were confessing to him, putting your heart on the line.

The day you confessed, you ran out before he could even reply. Too scared to be rejected. But Taehyung did something you’d never expect. He brought you to an amusement park, took you to dinner, and then confessed to you with thousands of chocolate (literally).

You both had your fair share of arguments and then makeup sex. Mind-blowing sex to be exact.

Your relationship with Taehyung was built on trust. He’d be there waiting for you every time you came home late and vice versa. You’d be at all of his games. You’d go to every party, hang out with your friends.

Once he graduated, he’d wait to pick you up every day. Every day you’d go to your favorite café, with your friends, complete assignments and projects, argue about who won the last UNO game, girls vs boys.

He spent every hour with you when you struggled with your dream job and you did the same. When you finally did get the job, he asked you to marry him. You nodded then and there. Tears escaped, phone calls were made. Everyone came to the engagement party and then the wedding and you truly thought everything you ever wanted was there. Your family, your friends, his friends, him.

But what you didn’t know then was what followed after. Just like promises are made, they are broken. Trust is broken and the bond doesn’t stay.

The first two years were bliss. You went to Paris for your honeymoon and then to New York. Yes, New York for your honeymoon. You experienced the love in Paris and the rush in New York.

You spent most of the days in Paris, going to spots of attractions, enjoying the food in the café, walking around the streets drunk and completely in love, having late night sex, morning sex, just lots of sex to be exact.

But in New York, you spent your days going to Times Square, Bars, and Pubs had ‘the’ New York pizza and cheesecakes and hotdogs and whatnot. Went shopping and sightseeing. Roamed around the streets at night, met so many people.

You believed you had found what you had been looking for all your life. Someone to go to romantic dinners and the craziest parties with.

But what followed was something you didn’t think would happen. Every marriage has its ups and downs. You had to. But then it started.

Every party would become an excuse to start arguments, every late night at work would lead to assumptions. At first, you thought it would be fine. Talking would help, it was always the key for the both of you but lately, every time you spoke or tried to solve the issues, it would end in huge fights, sometimes followed by sex, or even if not sex, you’d stop talking to each other and then one day pretend nothing happened.

Although in heels you walked around the park near your apartment. ‘It will be fine’ you told yourself as you tried not to break down. Deciding it would not be a good idea to go anywhere at that hour, you sat by a bench.

The cold wind hit you as a shiver ran down your body, the thin wine slip dress doing nothing to stop it. The screen of your phone lit up as you saw multiple texts from Taehyung. A part of you was happy that he cared enough to text you. You clicked on his profile as a series of texts came up.

Tae: where are you?

Tae: come on Y/N, don’t be stupid.

Tae: it’s really late. where the fuck are you?

Tae: baby, you’re scaring me.

Sighing you got up and made your way out of the park. Since you lived in a complex, it didn’t take you too long to walk. As you opened the keys, you saw Taehyung pacing around the living room. “Where are my keys?” he muttered to himself, not noticing your presence.

A clinking sound made Taehyung look up as the keys hit the ceramic bowl on the kitchen top. “Where were you?” he asked, trying to control his anger. You didn’t answer him as you took off the heels, internally sighing when the cold floor hit your barefoot. “Are you seriously gonna ignore me? I asked where the fuck were you?” he pulled you by your wrists stopping you from going further. “Don’t do this.” you gritted through your teeth as you harshly pulled away before going inside your shared bedroom.

You slipped out of the dress and you got inside the shower, the hot water touching your skin as you stood there. No matter how much you tried not to think about it, you always went back. Where did it go wrong?

You changed into shorts and one of Taehyung’s oversized shirts as it reached mid-thigh. Getting inside the covers, you relaxed, the cool sensation of your bedsheet and covers calming you somehow as you turned towards the glass wall.

You heard a sigh as Taehyung got inside the room. He got inside the covers and stared at your back as you tried to keep calm. You felt an arm wrap around your waist as he pulled you closer, back colliding with his chest, nuzzling his face at the crook of your neck. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.” his voice came muffled as you felt the vibrations on your neck.

“I really am.” he said, taking a deep breath pulling you closer if that was possible. You sighed, turning to him.

“I felt really cheap, you know” you said, hands reaching to cup his face. “I’m so sorry baby.” he sighed, closing his eyes as you ran your hand through his hair. “I know.”

He pressed a kiss on your lips as you pulled him closer, hands wrapping around his neck. You sighed into the kiss as his lips trailed down towards your collarbone, sucking and nipping then. Soon enough he was inside you as he went on an animalistic pace. “Do you think he can fuck you like this?” he growled. You ignored him as you knew you were close, focusing on your climax. You came within the next few minutes as he rubbed your clit while thrusting.

Later on, he lapped up the spilled contents lazily as you screamed his name, your cries stroking his ego.

He wrapped an arm around your naked waist as he fell asleep on his stomach, head on your chest, legs tangled over your naked ones. You stroked his hair as you stared at the ceiling, his words ringing in your ear ‘Do you think he can fuck you like this?’

A small realization crept inside your head. He was never gonna trust you.

He stirred in his sleep, pulling you closer, he pressed an open-mouth kiss above the swell of your breast in his sleep. Releasing a long sigh, you kissed his head, quickly pushing the thought aside.

That was the first mistake.

“I love you so much,” you said.

You pulled the robe over your body tightly, a coffee cup in your hand. Picking up your phone you looked at the time. 3:08 am it read. The city still buzzed with life. The cold breeze hit your face soothingly as you closed your eyes. Only if you had done something before, things wouldn’t have gone wrong.

4 months ago

Your phone buzzed as you frustratedly rubbed your face. You dreaded picking up the call, not wanting to have to shout again. Things had been gradually worsening between you and Taehyung. Late-night fights, coming home drunk, not talking to each other for weeks had become a common thing nowadays and no matter how hard you tried, no matter how many times you both tried to co-operate, you didn’t seem to escape it.

“You should talk to him.” Ae-ra said, handing you a cup of tea.

Tea.

You never liked tea. You were more of a coffee person. You preferred the rush, the adrenaline. But nowadays, you were tired. Tired of doing the same thing over and over again. Having the same quarrels and fights over and over again. Tea seemed to calm you.

“And then what? Get into another fight?”

“You know what I mean, babe.” She said as she rubbed your arm soothingly.

“Maybe later. I cannot deal with him now.” you sipped on the cup.

What you didn’t know was that “later” would come that fast. You went back to your apartment to get more of your clothes. You planned on going at night, when he was most probably out with his friends or whoever kept him busy nowadays. But to your surprise, he was there.

You opened the main door, using the key you had with you to meet with his laying figure on the couch. His head shot up at the sound of the door, eyes meeting each other. He looked drained, hair messy and bags under his eyes. You cursed under your breath, debating if you should just go back to Ae-ra’s place and come later for your clothes.

“Look who’s here.” he scoffed as he got up from the couch.

Deciding on the former, you walked past him without taking another glance, into your shared bedroom. Taking a bag out, you shoved as many clothes as possible wanting to stay away from this mess. “Are you gonna ignore me now?” you heard him as he entered the room.

You zipped up the chain as you walked towards the door wanting to leave. He grabbed your hand before you could go any further. He felt so scared when he saw you packing your stuff, so much that it suffocated him. “Fucking answer me.” his voice raised as he stared at you.

Taehyung’s eyes softened as he saw the dry tears on your cheeks and he wanted nothing more than to pull you close and never let go. To talk to you and tell you it would be fine, that you would figure it out together.

As he saw your tired eyes, glossy as you tried to keep your composure, he wanted to kiss you so badly and keep you tucked away from every bad thing; ever, even himself if he was bad for you.

And maybe he would have done that. Hugged you and kissed you. Kept you in his arms if you didn’t start talking.

“Leave me the fuck alone.” you pulled away harshly. “You know what? Yes, I am ignoring you and gladly will.”

“What is wrong with you? You cannot just come and go like that.” he said, hands gesturing to your bag.

“I can and I will. You cannot stop me” you clarified.

“ Yes, I can. I am your husband for god’s sake.” a frustrated tone laced his words.

“Husband?” you scoffed. “When were you a good husband? Where did this go when I stayed up till dawn every day waiting for you?”

“You know how hectic things have been at work.” he looked at you knowingly.

“That doesn’t mean you’d stop spending time with me!” you yelled.

You knew you were being unreasonable. Things really were hectic at work for him. But you couldn’t help but feel lonely when you came home after a long day to an empty and cold apartment and then stayed up every day almost all night for your husband. You felt so neglected when he’d come home and go to sleep straight away without saying anything.

All the doubts about your marriage slowly were coming true and you wanted nothing more than to prove it wrong. But talking about it led to arguments with Taehyung. So you decided to stay away from home, so that you didn’t have to think about it, to begin with.

That was the second mistake.

“You are going nowhere.” Taehyung took the bag from your hand and walked towards the bed. “You’ll stay at home.”

“Home?” a humorless chuckle left your throat. “I will go anywhere I want, but home.”

“I mean it Y/N. Stop acting like a kid. Go wash up and come to bed.” he sighed.

“I’m not staying” you concluded, ready to leave your stuff behind as you turned.

You felt a pair of hands wrap around your waist as he stuffed his face in the junction of your neck and shoulder. A tear left your eyes, followed by streams, and for some reason, your heart broke, it felt like he was pulling you apart from inside.

You felt his warm breath as he mumbled something. He pressed you towards him as you silently cried.

Later that night, as he fucked you slowly, something different than his usual dominating aura, your heart ached, but you couldn’t pinpoint why. He kissed you ever so passionately, that you cried.

Something told you that it would be over soon, so you hugged him as close as you could when he slept. You cried as he hugged you in his sleep like you would go away if he didn’t have you in his arms.

“I love you so much,” he mumbled in his sleep.

That’s when you realized how bad the entire situation was. How bad you were for him just like he was for you. How bad this marriage was.

And what followed after confirmed everything you ever doubted.

2 months ago

“You think I didn’t see you?” you yelled.

“What are you talking about?” he looked curious.

“Oh sure, play the good guy, make me look bad, why don’t you?” you scoffed.

“I have no idea what you are talking about.” he repeated. “How would you? You thought you were good enough to keep it away from me.” you said. His eyebrows crashed as he tried to understand. “I saw you with her. Maybe that’s why you were always late. You were too busy fucking her.” a bitterness stayed in your mouth. “Are you kidding me?” he said as he raked his fingers through his hair.

“You are accusing me of cheating, Y/N? You?” he scoffed. “Don’t think I forgot about the party.”

“Oh my god. You were never going to believe me, were you?” you looked at him with a glint in your eyes.

“You are being paranoid Y/N,” he said calmly.

“You know what? Maybe I will go to him. The guy you accused me of cheating. Maybe I will let him fuck me. Clear all your doubts and make it true!” you were screaming now.

“I can’t do this anymore,” he said, voice so calm maybe you would have been scared if you were thinking straight.

“Neither can I.” you said as you walked out of the house.

The next day when you woke up, you felt bad for yelling at him. So you decided to go back and talk to him. And maybe you would have if fate didn’t have anything else planned.

As you walked into the house, you saw a man sitting on your couch, Taehyung at his side as paper lay in front of him. The man looked at you briefly before turning back to Taehyung. “Thank you for coming on such short notice, Mr. Lee.” he said as he shook hands with the man. The man nodded.

Before leaving, he looked at you, “See you in court.”

You furrowed your brows before realization hit you. “Tae, what did he mean by that?”

He kept quiet as he gathered the papers. “Baby, what’s wrong? Talk to me.” you tried again. Taehyung got up as he handed you the papers, then went to the bedroom. You stared at them as you couldn’t process anything.

You cannot get divorced. You cannot live without him.

You walked inside the room as you saw him looking out. “Tae, we can talk, right? You don’t mean this.” your voice shook.

Walking up to him you wrapped your arms around his, face buried in his back as you mumbled “This is a joke, right?”

You heard his sigh before he turned to you, eyes glossy. “We can’t keep doing this.”

“We won’t. We’ll figure it out. We don’t have to do this.” you went on.

“Y/N-”

“No, no, you don’t understand. You are out of your mind. We can’t get divorced.”

“I’m sorry, but I cannot do this anymore.” he said,

You looked at him. “Why are you saying it as if it is all my fault?”

“I don’t mean that.”

“You absolutely mean that. Your face says it all.” you gestured toward him. “Oh. You really are gonna do this?” you said as he rubbed his face.

“Well, fuck you, Kim Taehyung. You can do whatever you want. You can blame me all you want but you and I both know the minute I walk out, you are going to regret this.”

“You can keep going for my heart and put all this on me, but you will miss me to your bone the minute this is over.” you said as you stormed off.

That night, you went back to Ae-ra’s place. You screamed at the sky pretending it was him while he stayed awake that night as he looked at the sky. “I’m so sorry Y/N. I love you so much” he said, tears freely falling.

It really was over. All your doubts came true. Your marriage ended. Maybe it was for the better. ‘You’re being paranoid’ he said. He was right. You became paranoid.

You wiped the single tear and looked at the sky, soft light spread across as the birds sang. 5:00 am

You picked out the attire you were going to wear to the court. Your phone buzzed as you picked it up. It was Ae-ra. It’s gonna be okay. You’ll get through it. she said.

You went to the court that day. You watched him as he entered the room, a black tux hugging his frame. He had become more buff than he was the last time you saw him two months ago. As he ran his fingers through his hair, his shoulder blades flexed. The same shoulder blades that had your nail marks reminding the night before from every morning you’ve spent together. You smiled at that memory.

Soon the judge walked in and the process went on.

At one point in your relationship with him, assuming was something you both picked up. Long gone was the trust which was the key in your relationship. Maybe it was for the better. You both were paranoid; assumptions feeding more into it.

But what you both gradually became, was bad for each other. Not at the beginning of your relationship, but somewhere in the middle, it went out of hand. Maybe if you spoke to each other more, maybe if you hadn’t pushed your thoughts the first day it came, then maybe you wouldn’t be here. But everything happens for a reason.

Kim Taehyung was the heartthrob of the campus. Kim Taehyung was the first person you confessed you loved. He was the first person who heard ‘I love you’ from you. He was your first love.

As the saying goes, some people are in our lives, just to teach us a lesson. Good and Bad. Kim Taehyung was that for you. You were still in love with him. Distance makes the heart grow fonder and yours did. You loved him more than you did before. And so maybe letting him go was easy. You were bad for him and he was bad for you. But that didn’t stop you from loving him.

And that didn’t stop him from loving you as you sat at the courthouse, as he looked at your face when it was over, as he lay in his bed alone that night.

Maybe you weren’t meant to be. Or maybe you were, but you didn’t know-how. But it was fine. And maybe as time goes by, it would hurt less.

Although you and Taehyung didn’t believe in first and second lives, you both wished you’d find each other in the next life as you both looked at the sky that night.

taglist: @mwitsmejk

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makeste · 3 years ago

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BnHA Chapter 320: Deku vs. Class 1-A

Previously on BnHA: Flashback!Kacchan was all “fuck Deku and fuck his stupid goodbye letters, I need to speak to somebody in charge.” Endeavor was all “hello, I am Somebody In Charge.” Kacchan was all “listen up asshole, you need to let us go out and collect our wayward nerd because you stupidly left him alone with All Might and that’s a fast track to disaster right there.” Endeavor was all, “[self-incriminating silence].” Rat Principal was all, “okay sure, have fun kids.” Back in the present, class 1-A was all “hi Deku” and Deku was all “I’M FINE!!!!!” and Kacchan was all “THAT’S WHAT I THOUGHT YOU’D SAY YOU DUMB FUCKING NERD” and so the kids all got ready to fight, because OF COURSE they’re gonna fight. Sorry guys, but yeah it’s happening.

Today on BnHA: Kacchan is all “what’s up Deku you look like a possessed Rorschach test, so anyway how are the new quirks coming along.” Deku is all “they’re coming along like THIS” and uses Smokescreen to try and get away. Kacchan is all “PHASE ONE COMMENCE”, and Kouda, Sero, Jirou, and Ojiro leap into the fray to shower Deku with heaps of love and violence, because this is a shounen manga and kicking someone’s ass while simultaneously proclaiming your undying admiration for them is just how it’s done in these parts. The KoudaSeroOJirou squad then passes the baton to Satou, Momo, Tokoyami, Kaminari, and Shouji, who are all “fuck this mask” and do a bunch of stuff to tear Deku’s mask off because they’re the real heroes. Shouto is all “LOOK AT THE LITTLE CRYBABY, THAT’S RIGHT, GO AHEAD AND FUCKING CRY and by the way let us share your burden please,” and once again I swear this is all very deeply moving and touching within the actual context. The chapter ends with Tsuyu being all “look at me. I’m the cliffhanger now,” and damn.

lol what

I don’t think anyone was expecting that. I mean, not that I’ve got anything against Tsuyu or anything. anyways it’s a very nice cover and I love the colors and I hope this means Tsuyu’s gonna do something badass

also, “Deku vs Class A” -- pretty much the expected title, but it’s still got me hyped nonetheless fuck yeah let’s go

IIDA ANGST

Iida Tenya really said “fuck the uniform code, we’re leaving the helmet at home today.” sorry kids, prim and proper C-3PO Comic Relief Iida has left the building. can I interest you in some Serious Iida

meanwhile Kacchan is all “sup Deku, I heard you got a few more quirks, and might I just add that you look like the Snyder Cut of Detective Pikachu”

“you look like a tarred and feathered squid” okay easy there Kacchan. I mean it’s all true of course, but still

“thank you all for coming” OH EXCUSE ME SON, WERE YOU PLANNING ON GOING SOMEWHERE. LET’S JUST SEE HOW THAT PLAYS OUT

yep and there’s Smokescreen, right on cue

okay Horikoshi, I leave it in your hands. hopefully you can come up with some more interesting combos than my dumbass predictions lol

LOL THIS ISN’T A COMBO AT ALL

“explosions solve everything” -- Horikoshi Kouhei, 2021. something something shockwave, something something handwave ta-da no more smoke. lol okay then

oh, ouch

he would know, wouldn’t he. nice application of one of your many hard-earned life lessons, Kacchan

by the way you guys, just as an experiment, I’m going to try to anticipate some of the discourse this week in the hopes of preemptively addressing it and thus saving myself some time later on lol. so here’s our first test run!

ANTICIPATED DISCOURSE: “oh my god what a fucking hypocrite can you believe this fucking guy”

PREEMPTIVE REBUTTAL: it’s precisely because Kacchan has been in this exact situation himself that he’s able to recognize his past self in Deku now and call him out on it. just because it took him sixteen years to get it through his head that he can’t accomplish every single thing completely by himself doesn’t mean Deku has to go down that same path. so yeah, maybe it is a bit hypocritical, but if you insist that the only people qualified to call out stupid shit are people who have never done a single stupid thing in their own lives, then what you’re basically saying is that absolutely no one on earth is qualified lol. so yeah, I’d have to disagree

and one last unrelated note, I’m willing to bet the whole “you didn’t even say a word before you ran off” thing is possibly the first thing Kacchan’s said in this whole encounter that actually does stem from genuine hurt rather than his tough-love-harsh-truths strategy. I’M TAKING NOTES HERE HORIKOSHI. at this rate it’ll take twice as many chapters as DvK2 for them to hash out all the stuff between them, geez

anyway so I gotta say, so far Deku vs. Class A is looking an awful lot like a DvK3 wearing a hat, trenchcoat, and sunglasses lol

OH SHIT I TAKE IT BACK??

FUCK YEAH, YOU GO KOUDA. and I guess he ditched his mask as well! excellent

so far the strategy here seems to be “Kacchan says all the mean tough love shit while the rest of 1-A balances it out with warmth and kindness”, which actually works pretty well imo. Deku is one of those people that doesn’t usually need a Kacchan Translator anyway, but just in case, this is very efficient

mm but of course Deku is slingshotting himself away with Blackwhip. all right then, who’s up next!

FUCK YEAH

okay but seriously you guys, what is going on with Sero’s face in these last couple of chapters though, it’s really starting to unnerve me. is he trying to emulate Kacchan’s whole asymmetrical facial expressions thing?

in fact let me just quickly hit pause here because,

ANTICIPATED DISCOURSE: “SERO IS TOGA??!”

PREEMPTIVE REBUTTAL: no

oh snap looks like Jirou’s getting in on the action too!

poor Jirou probably spent days racking her brain trying to think of something she could bond with Deku over. is Horikoshi doing these in reverse order of the kids who have had the most interaction with him? that would explain why poor Kouda didn’t get a flashback lol

omg. well that answers that

so by my count, Satou and Hagakure are the only ones remaining in this first tier of kids who Still Appreciate Midoriya even though they’ve barely ever spoken two words to him in their lives lol. so they’ll probably be next, and then we’ll get to the next tier of kids who are pretty good friends with him but not quite besties. and then we’ll move on to the IidaRokiRaka trio, and then lastly, to the boy who is in a tier all his own

BUT FIRST, A WORD FROM OUR SPONSOR

and by “sponsor” I mean the Dekuangst. just in case that wasn’t clear. indeed, many thanks to the Dekuangst for making this all possible

(ETA: okay so this whole “take me away” line seemed pretty weird to me, and sure enough it’s yet another one of those cases where only the verb is specified, and the object is left to the reader’s interpretation. so even though the translation says “take me away”, I’m pretty sure that what Deku’s actually saying is “take you away” -- as in, his loved ones will be taken away by AFO.

and that is literally the way he phrases it, though -- the verb used is “奪う” (ubau), meaning “to snatch away; to dispossess; to steal.” which, god, that hurts my whole goddamn heart though, because for him to say it like that?? not “AFO will kill you”, but “AFO will take you away from me.” he can’t have nice things anymore because of AFO. he can’t be around the people he loves because AFO will hurt them. he can’t have happiness because AFO will take it away from him. anyway so where the fuck is AFO right now, motherfucker I just want to talk.)

by the way can Ojiro just extend his tail to whatever fucking length he wants or what because it’s like twelve feet long in this panel lol

WOOO FUCK YEAH TOKOYAMI

YOU LOVE TO SEE IT!! BUT WHERE’S YOUR FLASHBACK? YOU’VE HAD A BUNCH OF INTERACTIONS WITH HIM, THAT’S NOT FAIR

okay so now Satou’s stepping in which is back to my anticipated order, so maybe Toko will finish his little moment afterward

dskfjfkk

“REMEMBER THAT TIME DEKU BORROWED SATOU’S FOOD COLORING” Horikoshi says, sweating. “AND REMEMBER THAT TIME HE, UM, SMILED IN HAGAKURE’S GENERAL DIRECTION”

actually I am curious about what Hagakure’s part will be because, you know, the whole traitor thing lol

(ETA: funny how we just skipped right over it huh. can we get a traitor reveal countdown started here? definitely getting close to that time.)

whoa lol wtf

MOMO??? THIS HAS MOMO WRITTEN ALL OVER IT DAMMIT

-- SWEET MOTHER OF FUCK

“SORRY MIDORIYA-SAN, I LEFT MY FUCKING CHILL AT HOME IN THE LOCKER NEXT TO IIDA’S HELMET” holy shit lmao

and here I thought she’d get a flashback to her time on the Baku Rescue Squad or something. but nope, no flashbacks from Momo, only terrifying sci-fi torture devices

poor Dark Shadow is such a trooper omg

“why am I the only one who has to make prolonged contact with his smelly disgusting self” taking one for the team there DS

FUCK YEAH KAMINARI NO JUTSU

THE PRICKLY BASTARD WHISPERER STRIKES AGAIN!! don’t suppose you brought any clean clothes you could sneakily force him into huh Kami

okay here we go, so now Shouji and Tokoyami are joining forces

um excuse me this is fucking awesome

wonder how he’ll break free? don’t think he’ll reveal Fa Jin until the end of the chapter, so maybe Air Force or something? idk

TOKO GETS AN EXTENDED MOMENT BECAUSE HE IS A TIER TWO PATREON REWARD LEVEL FRIEND YAY

WHY IS MOMO MAKING THIS FACE LOL YOUR THING WAS WAY WORSE

and Shouji just casually hitting him with what is easily the best comment from anyone yet. too bad Deku’s just gonna ignore it. you deserve better Shouji

KAMINARI OMFG

it only just occurred to me that Kami is currently trapped inside Dark Shadow right along with him lmao omg. realest one in the entirety of BnHA, right here. we will never forget your sacrifice

aaaaaaand Deku’s yeeting himself

do you really hate the thought of taking a bath that much my dude

oh shit the mask!!

-- oh shit the feels

o(TヘTo)

fuck. and I mean, we knew he was crying, that was a done deal. but still, to see him in this much pain is just...

and the acknowledgement that he knows they’re worried about him, but that it doesn’t change his mind one bit. this, right here, is why they have to be a bit harsh with him, you guys. because they’re up against the full, unbridled stubbornness of Midoriya fucking Izuku, and if they don’t match that stubbornness with an equal stubbornness of their own, they basically don’t stand a chance

(ETA: quick note that there is apparently another mistranslation here -- rather than saying that his friends are oblivious to the danger, what Deku is actually saying is that none of his friends have activated his Danger Sense once throughout this entire fight. which I had been wondering about, and it turns out Horikoshi actually confirmed it. so basically none of the kids bears any ill intent toward him, and there’s literal proof right there.

incidentally, as @class1akids pointed out, this also casts an interesting light on this chapter in terms of who hasn’t fought Deku yet. not to play the Hagakure Traitor Music for the billionth time you guys, but I’M JUST SAYING lol.)

anyway, but the good news is that they all seem to understand that. and the even better news is that we have reached the tier 3 friends!!

“OR ELSE” lol, great to see Shouto wielding his friendship just as aggressively as Deku once did towards him. I do love a good role reversal

p.s., ANTICIPATED DISCOURSE: “why is Shouto being so cruel to Deku can’t he see how hard this is on him”

PREEMPTIVE REBUTTAL: this is a callback to the classic “even heroes cry when they have to” Shouto line from chapter 137. Shouto is clearly following Kacchan’s lead here and going for the more ruthless approach, knowing that the gentle approach isn’t getting through to him (if anything it’s only making him more stubborn as we saw on the previous page). basically it’s his way of pointing out that even heroes are still only human, and so is Deku last time he checked

ah okay, and there Tsuyu is at last

okay real talk, I get why Tsuyu is included in the tier 3 friends, because she was one of the first people to team up with Deku going all the way back to USJ. but that said, this probably would have had more impact if their most recent interaction hadn’t been like 150 chapters ago

but anyway though it’s still a good speech. maybe not quite a cliffhanger-level speech, but a good speech nonetheless. in a way though, I’m glad to see that Horikoshi seemingly didn’t give a fuck whether he ended this on an actual cliffhanger or not for once

and that “headed toward the climax” part has me excited too, ngl. because if we really are getting to the so-called climax this soon, that makes me even more certain that there is indeed a DvK3 in the forecast. so I presume that next week (or I guess two weeks from now) will be the tier 3s along with the remaining tier 2s like Kirishima and Aoyama

and then after that, well... [orange and green banners being hoisted] [sound of screeching airhorns and vuvuzelas in the distance] [sound of All Might approaching in his car which I didn’t notice until I looked back at this page a second time whoops] THE PROPHECY WILL NOT BE DENIED

#bnha 320 #midoriya izuku #bakugou katsuki #asui tsuyu #tokoyami fumikage #kaminari denki #todoroki shouto #class 1-a #bnha #boku no hero academia #bnha spoilers #mha spoilers #bnha manga spoilers #makeste reads bnha

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toru-oikawas-milkbread · 4 years ago

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Incorrect Haikyuu | pt.2

Pairing: Haikyuu boys x f!reader

Word count: 1.5K

Notes: As before, the incorrect Haikyuu chapters are linked in the masterlist for my preferences! Follow the link in my bio to find them 💕

Osamu, completely deadpanned as he holds up his champagne: “And to my new sister-in-law, I say this: you have released me”

You:

Atsumu:

Osamu: “This idiot is now yours”

<>~<>~<>

Kageyama: “Wait, so you’re telling me that I’m just supposed to squeeze this stress ball and not throw it at people who stress me out…?”

You: “Yeah, that’s exactly what I’m saying”

Kageyama: “Oh”

<>~<>~<>

Sakusa, getting worked up about the apartment: “What is this, (y/n)? This is dust, it’s dust! It’s a mess in here!”

You: “Cut that out! Stress is bad for the baby!”

Sakusa, stopping immediately: “Baby? What baby?”

You: “Me! I’m the baby— this is bad for me!”

<>~<>~<>

Suna, rolling his eyes: “You are so embarrassing”

You: “Let go of my hand then”

Suna: “No”

<>~<>~<>

Kita: “Do you think that you might be experiencing guilt?”

You:

You: “What’s that?”

Kita: “You know, when you feel bad about something that you’ve done”

You, scoffing: “That’s not a real thing”

<>~<>~<>

You: “There’s only three ways to do this. The right way, the wrong way, and the (y/n) way”

Sakusa: “Isn’t that last one just the wrong way?”

You: “Yeah, but it’s faster”

<>~<>~<>

You, groaning: “Why do I feel so bad?”

Suga: “(y/n), you just ate 24 cupcakes in 10 minutes”

You: “I’d do it again”

<>~<>~<>

Daishō: “You know what— I’m sick of this. You all only hate me because you do not like me and I’m mean to you. Grow up”

You, who only wanted to make friends with him: “God, there’s something so wrong with you”

Kuroo, nodding: “I tried to warn you”

<>~<>~<>

Your older brother Akaashi: “(y/n), how long have you been sleeping with Suna?”

You: “What?”

Akaashi: “How long have you been sleeping with Suna?”

You: “That’s… disgusting… and wrong! I don’t even get… why would I… I’ve never had sex with anyone anywhere! It’s none of your… you have the nerve— the audacity… okay, look, Suna is my companion, technically. And he is terrible. And how… how do I know, frankly, that you’re not sleeping with him? Huh, maybe you are! Maybe you’re just trying to throw me off, hmm? Check and mate”

Akaashi:

Bokuto:

Kuroo:

<>~<>~<>

Akaashi, a perfect man, husband material, adores you and treats you like a goddess: “Break my heart. Break it a thousand times if you like. It was only ever yours to break anyways”

Terushima, hasn’t showered in 3 days, feral, tongue piercing: “Sit on my face until I can’t breathe”

<>~<>~<>

You: “This guy has been bothering me”

Kyōtani: “Kill him”

You:

Kyōtani, softer: “I’ll kill him for you?”

You: “Kyō, no—”

<>~<>~<>

You: “Kuroo, what is this?”

Kuroo, confused: “A mop?”

You, turning to Bokuto: “Now tell him what you called it”

Bokuto, shamelessly: “Wet broom”

<>~<>~<>

Akaashi: “I love all of my friends equally”

Akaashi, squinting at the smudged writing on his hand: “(y/n), Bokuro, Kiro, Leg, Hyena”

<>~<>~<>

You, to Daishō after the Nekoma vs Nohebi match: “Let’s share secrets, I’ll go first! I hate you”

<>~<>~<>

You: “Hey, Rin, guess what?”

Suna, stoned off his ass: “What?”

You, touching his chest: “I got your nipples”

Suna, scared: “Well, give them back!”

<>~<>~<>

You, shyly: “I made you a valentines day card. I know it isn’t much, but I hope that you like it”

Tendō, tearing up: “It’s just fine”

<>~<>~<>

You, drunk at a sleepover: “Would you rather kill Daishō—”

Kuroo, also drunk, immediately: “Kill Daishō”

Daichi, one of the only sober people: “You didn’t even hear the other option”

Kuroo: “I don’t need to”

Daishō, the other sober person: “I don’t feel safe here”

<>~<>~<>

Iwaizumi: “Kyōtani is a grump. He’s not a good guy. He’s going to be mean to you”

You: “Okay, but you don’t have all of the facts”

Iwaizumi: “Which are?”

You: “I love him”

<>~<>~<>

You: “Not to worry, I have a permit”

Cop Daichi, confused: “This just says “I can do what I want” with your name signed to it”

You: “Exactly”

<>~<>~<>

Oikawa, drunk: “I would die for my team. I love you guys”

You, smiling: “That’s sweet”

Iwaizumi, teasingly: “I want you to die anyways”

Oikawa: *Burying his nose into your shirt as he cries*

<>~<>~<>

Terushima: “I have this beautiful rock. (y/n) gave it to me”

You: “I threw it at you”

Terushima: “She’s very sweet”

<>~<>~<>

You: “Wanna hear a funny joke I heard earlier?”

Suna: “I’m more into dark humor”

You, shutting the light off: “Okay, so it went like this—”

<>~<>~<>

Akaashi: “I’m going to the store. Can I get you anything?”

You, laying horizontally on the sofa with Bokuto and Kuroo: “I’m always a slut for Doritos”

<>~<>~<>

Atsumu: “We have fun, don’t we (y/n)?”

You: “I have never been more stressed out in my entire life”

<>~<>~<>

You: “Kōtarō, I know that you snuck out last night”

Bokuto, internally: “Play dumb”

Bokuto: “Who’s Kōtarō?”

Bokuto, internally: “Nailed it”

<>~<>~<>

You: “I know that you think my judgement is a bit clouded because I like Kita”

Aran: “You doodled your wedding invitation”

You: “That’s our joint tombstone”

Aran: “Oh, my mistake”

<>~<>~<>

Osamu: “People are like slinkies”

You: “Explain”

Osamu: “Not good for much, but it makes you crack a smile when you push them down the stairs”

You:

You: “Please don’t push your brother down the stairs”

Osamu: “You can’t stop me”

<>~<>~<>

Sakusa: “Will you turn the lights on?”

You: “I don’t need them. You’re the only light in my life”

Sakusa:

Sakusa: “Babe, that’s cute, but I can’t see”

<>~<>~<>

You: “You remind me of the ocean”

Suna: “Why?”

You: “Because, you’re salty and you scare people”

<>~<>~<>

You: “Would you two stop fighting?”

Lev: “It isn’t a fight, it’s a creative discussion”

Yaku: “No, it’s definitely a fight”

Lev: “Creative discussion”

Yaku: “Fight”

Lev: “Creative discussion!”

Yaku: “Fight!”

Lev: “Creative! Discussion!”

You: “I cannot believe that you’re fighting about whether or not you’re having a fight—”

<>~<>~<>

You: “Alright, who broke the coffee pot? I’m not mad, I just want to know”

Hinata: “I did. I broke it”

You: “No, you didn’t. Kuroo?”

Kuroo: “Don’t look at me, look at Bokuto”

Bokuto, entering the room: “What? I didn’t break it!”

Kenma: “Huh, that’s weird. How did you even know it was broken?”

Bokuto: “Because it’s sitting right in front of us and it’s broken!”

Kenma:

Kenma: “Suspicious”

Bokuto: “No, it’s not!”

Akaashi: “If it matters, probably not, Kageyama was the last one to use it”

Kageyama: “Liar! I don’t even drink that crap!”

Akaashi: “Oh, really? What were you doing by the coffee cart earlier?”

Kageyama: “I use the wooden stirrers to push my cuticles back. Everyone knows that, Akaashi!”

Hinata: “Okay, let’s not fight. I broke it, just let me pay for it, (y/n).”

You: “Hinata, no! Now, who broke it?”

Akaashi, whispering: “(y/n), Yaku has been awfully quiet”

Yaku: “REALLY?”

Akaashi: “Yeah, really!”

Yaku: “Oh, my god!”

*Yelling ensues*

You, off to the side to Oikawa: “I broke it. I burned my hand so I punched it. I predict that ten minutes from now they’ll be at each others throats with war paint on their faces and a pigs head on a stick”

<>~<>~<>

You: “Haha, I win”

Kuroo, raising his eyebrow: “I have you pinned to the floor”

You: “Exactly”

<>~<>~<>

You: “Back me up guys!”

Kita: “Whatever she said, she’s right”

You: “Hah! See!”

Atsumu: “Also, fuck you Osamu!”

Osamu: “I wasn’t even a part of this conversation, what the fuck—”

<>~<>~<>

You: “Can you guys manage not to kill each other while I’m gone?”

Kindaichi: “(y/n), we’re not babies. In fact, we’re both older than you”

You, walking out the door: “Okay, fine. I’ll be back soon”

Kindaichi, immediately: “I hate you”

Kageyama: “Fuck you, bitch”

<>~<>~<>

Atsumu: *Tapping the table*

Osamu: *Taps back*

Aran: “What are they doing?”

You: “Morse code”

Atsumu: *Aggressively taps table*

Osamu, flipping the table: “YOU BITCH, TAKE THAT BACK!”

<>~<>~<>

Suna, holding a knife: “Someone’s gonna die”

You, throwing confetti: “Of fun!”

<>~<>~<>

Oikawa: “I’m ignoring you”

You:

Oikawa: “I said, I’m ignoring you”

You:

Oikawa: “Stop ignoring me! I’m ignoring you!”

<>~<>~<>

You, putting honey into your tea: “Hell yeah, get in that leaf soup, you sexy bee sauce”

Kita:

Kita: “Do you take constructive criticism?”

You: “I absolutely do not”

<>~<>~<>

Sakusa: “Can we do that thing?”

You, confused: “What thing?”

Sakusa, wrapping his arms around himself: “This thing”

You:

You: “Do you mean hugging?”

Sakusa: “Yeah”

<>~<>~<>

You, sighing contently: “Good morning, cruel world”

Suga: “Isn’t it goodbye?”

You: “The world may be cruel, but I’m still kicking”

<>~<>~<>

Daichi: “How many cups of coffee have you had?”

Suga: “None”

Daichi: “How many!?”

Suga: “Five!”

Asahi: “I’ve had eight”

Daichi: “What”

Ennoshita: “Weaklings. I’ve had ten”

Daichi with a vein popping out of his forehead: “WHAT!?”

Tanaka: “Get on my level. I’ve had thirteen”

Ennoshita: *Gasps in admiration*

Daichi: “AGAIN, WHAT!?”

You: “I’ve had fifteen”

Ennoshita and Tanaka: *Gasping* “A god”

Daichi: “NO! Are you alright!? You need to go to the hospital!”

<>~<>~<>

Osamu: *Napping on the sofa*

Atsumu: *Shoots a bebe gun at the ceiling*

Osamu, falling onto the floor: “THIS IS WHY (y/n) DOESN’T FUCKING LOVE YOU!”

<>~<>~<>

Sakusa, groggily as he woke up from his nap: “(y/n), I gave you a spare key to my apartment for emergencies only”

You: “But this is an emergency!”

Sakusa: “What is it?”

You: “I missed you…”

Sakusa:

Sakusa, flushing: “I guess I missed you, too”

<>~<>~<>

Kuroo: “People who sleep without socks on make me worry”

Yaku: “People who sleep WITH socks on are not to be trusted”

You: “People who sleep are weird”

Bokuto: “I was a sock once”

Tsukishima: “What does that even mean?”

#haikyuu!!#haikyuu #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu x female reader #haikyuu x reader fluff #haikyuu fluff #incorrect haikyuu

216 notes · View notes

batarangsoundsdumb · 4 years ago

Text

guess fucking what? my inbox is so fucking full right now i'm unloading all of this shit in one post.

For the 11th gotham memes: gothamites react to bruce being jacked in a tiktok he made with kids, like super yoked, ripped as hell

fucking hilarious thanks. i think i did it in one meme post, but i genuinely don't remember which one

i dunno which of the batfam would do this but one time i was sleeping over at a friends house and ended up on the floor bc the bed was so very small and i just stayed there because the rug was soft

that's a drunk jason move i don't know what to tell you

tim and jason are "i listen to pop punk" solidarity. whenever jason highjacks the batmobile theyll go on long ass car rides blaring mcr and paramore and then never talk about it again

as they should!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! tim: no jason it's my turn using the aux cord i gotta put on my jams jason: don't you dare put on weird shit tim: don't worry, you're gonna love this *plays fearless (taylor's version)

hear me out hear me out, red hood stans 🤝 nightwing stans t h i g h s

holy shit yes.

SNL au: Bruce breaks character when pretending to superman and says something like "I'm not superman! You've seen his gps!! It's from 2001!!!" @sabeanybabe

superman flies past the snl building the next day just to say 'actually it's from 2005, i'm not a heathen'

does your back hurt from carrying the batfam fandom

it hurts more from the exotic rock collection i keep in my backpack, but thanks for the concern.

I love your posts by why would you always leave the best parts in the tags?

as a treat for the people that check the tags ;) (and also because i'm committed to the short post aesthetic)

somehow your playlist was everything i never knew i needed. i mean it. this is my new favorite playlist.

and don't you dare get a new favourite playlist!

babe ur stoner tim playlist is exactly too perfect, earth is literally blessed by ur existence

babe thanks so much! i love my stoner tim playlist because it's just my usual playlist but people think it's an artistic choice that i put taylor swift and britney spears in there, when it's just what i unironically like listening to

JANDKSKDK BILLY RAY CYRUS ON THE STONER TIM PLAYLIST I LOVE IT IT

again it's not even an ironic choice, i know every single word and i genuinely like the song

The last chapter of Fundamentals of Casework has me crying at work. Thanks I love it @dudelookitsalesbian

oh babe, i'm sorry, but also, not sorry i love chapter 4 so much it's my lovechild with the 'mental illness' tag

soooo....stumbled on your tumblr by some stroke of fate??? read your DC fanfic first. which is PHENOMENAL btw. then found all the batmemes; the funniest thing EVER bc everyone forgets about regular old gothamites. kept scrolling and your blog pops up as recommended. clicked on the ao3 for shits and giggles and waddaya know?!?!? it's YOU!!! you're LEGEND!!!! ever seen that meme? it's a video of a cat that got into a baseball field and the two announcers get really invested in his escape attempt and start giving a play by play of the cat instead of the game. memeable moment: "GREAT stuff from the Cat!!!"

i seriously think about this ask every single day and it's so fucking funny to me that i've never seen the meme you're referencing, but i still find myself going 'GREAT stuff from the Cat!!!' whenever i see something funny. but wow i'm glad you liked this steaming pile of garbage

Fav dc character overall? And fav batfamily character?

don't ask me to pick between the loves of my life, but i can tell you i've cried about every single batfamily member and also wally west (my beloved)

What's your opinion on fans having a problem with batfam being "too big"? And some even claim that batfam is just "Bruce Alfred Dick Damian" and the rest of them are just "friends and allies" (source: reddit) Personally, I like batfam because of this reason but idk

stupid. a family can never be too big. i'm not that big a fan of like huge batfam stuff with everybody from every single universe, because as much as it's funny for bruce to have like 30 kids, it just feels a little too OOC for me.

This is the best tag I've seen involving the batfam, thanks for thinking of it

This is canon now @nctxrejects

lmao yeah i think at that point alfred has had to sit through like at least a dozen coming out talks and just has a pride flag collection in the attic that he pulls out whenever a kid comes out

idk why batfam hits different as compared to any other superhero family

bc it's found family and usually the other superhero families are almost all genetically related in one way or another

I don't know if you watch the umbrella academy but I saw your last post about batcest and saw the similarities. But the thing is (although I think it's weird) in TUA, they addressed it by saying "they were raised as weapons, not siblings" or something along those lines, which is simply not the case with batfam.

yeah i watched tua but i also thought it was ridiculous and they still treated each other as siblings so i didn't like the luthor/allison thing, and am glad they stopped doing that shit bc it fucking sucked.

Hot take: Batcest shippers are the same people who believe adopted siblings are not actual siblings

smoking hot take: batcest shippers are the people who watch 'my sister got stuck in the washing machine' porn

Duke was adopted by Bruce?

not technically no, but do i, tumblr user batarangsoundsdumb, look like i care?

True story but I had to change my freaking name because it used to be "Damien" and most people would go "OH LIKE DAMIAN WAYNE" like please I'm just tryna live

true story, but i don't actually think of damian when i hear the name damian, literally the first thing that pops up is damian darkh like bruh what?

apparently dc comics company supported comic stores by giving out new titles and stuff during the beginning of the pandemic to help them run and I just think that's wholesome

ah yeah that's so fucking cool, still don't like dc, the company, because this world is a capitalist hellhole and we're all owned by warner brothers or disney with no in between.

ayo looking at tumblr head canons and finding out bruce is actually a terrible father is a punch in the gut

lmao yes, in like 50% of comics bruce is a terrible father and it gives me whiplash

oooh I just saw the jason todd vs winter soldier post and the real question is: batman vs iron man

while iron man has like hundreds of cases of armor, batman could throw out an emp and have the guy dropping out of the sky in 2 seconds.

dickfast = fastdick = quickdick = quickie

magnum hot take

hey bata(?) just thought I'd let you know I have copied the obnoxious emoji and Billy Ray post for use on simping men going forth

thank you 😘🌷 (@spacebarsidecar)

why would you do that to your followers???? i get why i did it, but why would you???

what is scarecrow made the nightwing funko pop himself, like those diy-ers that paint over other ones

oh god no, horrible take, horrible take, that's a disgusting thought oh no

I see your HC that Bruce and Oliver fucked and raise you this: Dick and Roy ALSO fucked

yes they did and it was a horrible moment for jason to find out dick has fucked both of his best friends

"at this rate bruce adds like 1 child to his family every decade or so" Duke is introduced in 2013, Damian as Damian, not as an unnamed child, in 2006. And he is already 14 years old, Robins rarely remain Robins after 16 😬 It looks like a new Robin and Batkid will appear in a couple of years

i mean i can't wait? but somebody will probably die first tho, we're due for another major character death. my money's on either cass or duke this time.

BRO you're so right all of your Bruce's ex headcanons are amazing but they aren't ships, that's kinda wild. Like I don't want any peeks into how their relationship was I just want to see everyone make fun of them

lmao YES it's just i love bruce being a slut, like good for him.

I am in love with your posts your honour thank you

omg thanks are we like,, gonna kiss now?

The justice league needs to have a meeting to discuss how many of their members/partners have slept with bruce. Because through a combination of cannon & fannon (if DC wasn’t homophobic) we have AT LEAST: 1) clark 2) lois 3) oliver 4) dinah 5) john

Thats not counting villains or random civilians @dudelookitsalesbian

yes yes yes, they'll have a yearly meeting about how many of their collective exes could be out for revenge and batman's list just keeps getting longer.

tim was like "i'm drake now" and everyone was like ahh so your fursona is a dragon and tim was like pffffft no. ducks.

and what about it?

when steph's fighting livewire and she zaps her with lighting and nothing happens and then they both just. stand there awkwardly for a second and talk. yeah i couldn't stop laughing at that batgirl steph is the BEST

oh yeah that was fucking hilarious and i think it would be so cool and sexy of dc to give steph a little comic series,,, as a treat

Hi I absolutely adore all of yours "Bruce and Oliver very badly pretending they didn't fuck each other" memes

lmao i do too

I need you to know that “Bruce Wayne had frosted tips” is one of my favorite Bruce takes of all time it’s so galaxy brained. you’re right and you should say it

he also painted his hair blonde once when he was travelling and in conclusion, this is why he's being blackmailed by the gotham gazette.

you know my thing about gordon being branded as the only good cop in gotham is its a load of shit like arguably he's a good person and not working to screw people over or anything but the fact that he also works w. batman makes him a shit cop. like yea batman is better than the mob but its still illegal its still an abuse of power he just not making bank

babe, all cops are bad cops. (but yeah youre absolutely right, working with vigilantes makes you a shit cop, but also working against vigilantes just makes you an asshole cop yanno?)

ruh roh i think i’m about to add “so not yeehaw” every time i don’t like something

that's a very good vocabulary upgrade

somehow i feel like steph already knew. like babs obviously knew but i feel like bruce got high/drunk in front of steph and started telling his boarding school stories and steph was just like “oh you fucked up i’m never gonna forget this”

steph and bruce have weird uncle/rebellious niece dynamic and they just hang out sometimes and bruce will be like 'i once broke my arm when i tripped over a hedge when i was drunk so oliver drove me to the hospital on an electric scooter' and steph will just have to sit there with that knowledge in her head.

Hello I just wanted to tell you you are So right in all your steph opinions bc she is, in fact amazing and I think that's very sexy of you. Ps. Your Bruce/Oliver fic is hilarious

babe, thank you so much and yes steph is amazing and i love her and she deserves the world and she's the best member of the batfam hands down. also thanks

In Supersons we see a couple of kids that are implied to be Damian and Jon's children and the boy has laser eyes and can fly, so I asume he's not adopted. The girl, who calls Bruce grandpa, can also fly, btw. So it's canon (probably by accident) that Jon can have kids and he must have married one of Bruce's kids. (I'm hoping for Damian, mostly because any other of his children would be waaaaaaaaaaaaay too old.) @artemisa97

lmao that was probably an accident seeing as jon is a 17 year old superhero in the year 3000 (by the jonas brothers)

You know, I'm a die hard fan of your memes, but I gotta say one thing: if Gothamites actually took gas mask everywhere with them, then the Scarecrow would just be a weird dude in a weird costume, and not a villain oh so scary. DC really should just takes notes from you.

bold of you to assume there's no gothamite anti-maskers

How does it feel being the funniest person on this app?

horrible, next question.

I can't listen to Green Day or Billy Joel without thinking of your post about how Bruce got arrested at a Billy Joel concert @nightwings-kid

yeah that's your mistake, i on the other hand can't enjoy billy joel without thinking about the glee rendition of 'uptown girl'

I've FINALLY been watching the Batman animated series and I gotta say, after watching "the gray ghost" I am CONVINCED that Batman is a closeted super hero geek who was 100% freaking out the first time he met Superman and is just REALLY good at hiding it.

superman: so what do you do in your free time? batman, thinking about the superman fanfiction he's writing on the batcomputer: i have no free time

bruce and oliver be like boyfriends to co-workers 401k (do the justice leagues get 401ks??? not that bruce and ollie would need them, but-)

lmao yes just 400 thousand words of bruce realising 'oh dip oliver is such a fucking dumbass' (also i don't know what a 401 k is but i assume they don't?)

Gothamites would totally boo superman as he saves Gotham while batman is out. @meenje

he's like 'okay think about that next time you want to be saved from an alien octopus'

I just took long break from dc comics and I come back to see ric grayson ??

i think it's very cool and sexy of dc to see dick and just think 'you know what? let's just give him a traumatic brain injury' and then didn't develop his character in any real way

SPEAKING OF RIC GRAYSON, gothamites making confused memes out of ric grayson is much needed

'dick grayson is my taxi driver? can anyone explain what the fuck happened he looks like an italian plumber?'

i hate to say it but batfam are def "marvel characters" in that sense they are characters who are human but become superheroes unlike most dc characters who are gods trying to be human maybe this is why I like batfam

fair enough

#this is only like half of it #but at least you can get like a few answers #yanno fuck it #bataranswers #ask #asks #anon

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danidrabbles · 4 years ago

Text

Cowboy Like Me - Part One

Story Summary: HERE.

Chapter Summary: Three months after your arrival at Statesman’s Kentucky department, Jack and yourself are sent out on your first assignment together. You find out you didn’t know your partner as well as you thought you did, while Jack is forced to confront the decisions he made one year prior.

Rating: M ......for now.

Word Count: 11.2k (I know...) (also, the irony of this blog being named danidrabbles vs. this word count is not lost on me, trust me)

Warnings: Language, canon-typical violence (mentions and use of weapons, mentions of death and murder), alcohol, innuendo but no smut, feeeelings, way too many creative liberties with / assumptions about the art world - I think that’s it, but please let me know if I missed anything!

Notes: Absolutely terrifying to share my child in fanfic form with the world, but here we are... This story (even this first chapter) has known many versions, but this final one would not have been here if it hadn’t been for Astrid @javier-pena, who quite literally dragged me through this with her constant encouragement and unlimited enthusiasm. Please read her wonderful Mandalorian fic ‘The Hunt’. Astrid, I’m tipping my imaginary cowboy hat down to say that I can’t thank you enough, darlin’. I also want to mention @frannyzooey and @jura-moon who, with their stories, have inspired me endlessly and relit the writing flame within me that had gone out. Thank you!

PART ONE: LONDON.

“No, wait,” you whisper, and you hold two fingers up to emphasise your words.

“Wasn’t gonna do anything,” Jack hisses back.

The two of you are taking cover behind a broad column, face to face to fit the space together. The footsteps to your side stop, and then there’s the sound of hushed voices, too soft to make out what they’re saying. There are five of them, that much you know, all equipped with a gun.

You nod down at the hand resting on the holster under his arm, raising an eyebrow. “Sure.”

“Not yet,” he clarifies with a sigh. “But hiding here ain’t it… Eventually, it’s only gonna expose us more.”

“We’ve got to wait,” you say. “Listen, they’re eager, right? They’ll come to us, and if we wait for them to come to us, we can take them out in close quarters instead of at long range.” Your head perks up at the soft sounds coming from the other side of the room.

“That’d be a perfect idea if you had your little knives and I had my whip, but we gotta take ‘em out with these,” he reminds you, holding his gun up for you to see. “Remember?”

You sigh, palming the gun still sheathed in the holster on your hip. He’s right, you acknowledge with a nod, it is different without your weapons of choice. “What about visibility?”

Above you, there’s a light flickering on and off, colouring your surroundings in bright red at steady intervals, forcing your eyes to refocus every time colour bleeds back into the room.

“Think it’s a disadvantage for all of us,” he provides.

The sound of footsteps is back, this time almost rhythmical, on your left and right. “They’re probably splitting up,” you whisper, listening again before you add, “Three on the left, two on the right? Maybe?”

He listens, too. “Sounds about right.” Then, he grins. “How ‘bout a little competition, hmm? First one to take out three wins.”

Your face falls and you manage a sharp, “Jack, no,” but shit— He’s already rounding the corner. You have no choice but to come out of hiding to cover him, following only a second after he emerges from behind the column. The sight of the both of you, guns raised, fills the room with silence, until Jack fires a warning shot, which makes the footsteps turn frantic. There’s a sound to your left, and you turn, quickly firing at one of your assailants who has their gun pointed at Jack’s back, hitting them right in the chest.

Jack’s head whips around in surprise. “Thank you, darlin’,” he says, an appreciative smile apparent in-between the flickers of light. “But that one was on my side, so that makes the score one to zero in my favor.”

“All I heard was, ‘First one to take out three wins’, nothing about sides,” you counter. “Which would make it one to zero in my favor.”

“Hmm,” is all he says, and it sounds far too amused.

“What’s that?”

“S’nothing, I just… knew you’d play along if I made you.”

You roll your eyes at his remark, then refocus, scanning your surroundings. There’s crates, columns, some furniture; plenty of places to obscure you from view. You can’t see a thing during the little intervals where the lights aren’t on and it makes you feel dazed, like you’re moving in slow-motion. There’s also no footsteps, so you decide that forcing everyone to the back of the room by checking the hiding places is probably the best course of action, as it will eventually leave them cornered, easier targets. Turning to convey your plans to your partner, you find him gone from your side.

Then there’s a grunt, and a thud, and then Jack’s voice echoes through the room, “One-one.”

Before you can even think of replying, a shot flies over your shoulder, and you dive behind a large crate. You look over the top with narrow eyes, spotting someone hanging from the ceiling. It’s a smart move in theory, but only if you don’t miss; it draws attention, reveals your position. You wait, and when no shot follows, you look over the crate again, seeing the person who just shot at you struggle with their weapon.

You raise your gun, take your aim and hit them in the chest at the exact same moment as the room lights up. Another shot rings out behind you, followed by a groan, and you immediately turn towards the sound. You find Jack standing there, looking far too proud and with a body slung over one of the chairs behind you.

“Thought I’d return the favor and make things exciting,” he says. “That’s two-to-two.”

You offer him a short, fake smile, then move through the room with him. It’s nearly impossible, with Jack wedging himself into your path to be the first to check your corners on account of the current score, and after some frantic shuffling from your target, and some missed shots from you and Jack, there’s only one spot left. You will yourself to focus on the far corner of the room, cross stepping closer and closer with Jack hot on your heels.

“You’re paying attention, right?” Jack says, picking up his step again until he’s slightly ahead of you. You can see the grin on his face form between the flickers of the lights overhead. “’‘Cause I would just hate for you to lose, doll.”

God, you hadn’t even agreed to participate in this pointless bet, but you can’t help but think about how satisfying it would be to wipe that grin right off his face when you win…

Suddenly there’s a shuffle from behind the couch in front of you, followed by a click, and it makes you both duck just before two shots come your way in quick succession. Jack’s hand closes over your upper arm, dragging you behind the fallen table he’s found cover behind, and you’re both silent for a second to listen to more shuffling from your target’s hiding place, followed by two more shots.

“Looks like we’ve successfully trapped our rat in the corner,” Jack says, voice low.

You nod. “Okay, I’ll go, you c—”

“Oh, hell no.” Jack chuckles softly. “Nice try, but I ain’t handin’ you the victory on a silver platter like that.”

Your shoulders drop with a sigh, “You know I don’t actually care about this bet, right? Just need you to cover me.”

He makes a face, then pulls another 10-bullet magazine from the clip around his waist as he thinks. After sliding it into place and pulling his hand back overtop the weapon, a tick confirms the reloading of his gun, and he gives you a quick nod.

“I’m going to need verbal confir—”

“Just fuckin’ go. I’ll cover you.”

Before he can change his mind, or do something decidedly Jack-ish, you step over his body, staying low, as you sneak out of hiding on the opposite side of the table during a moment where the room is covered in darkness. Behind you, you hear Jack mutter a soft curse before he begins shooting in the general direction of where the shots had originated earlier.

You approach carefully, operating out of sight. When you’re close enough, you press your back up against the nearest column. Quickly checking your gun between the flickering lights, you nod to yourself, then hold it close to you as you start to count when your distracted opponent fires back at Jack.

One, two, three…

four, five…

six.

Bingo.

You approach the couch, pointing your gun over it. The man behind it immediately raises his own weapon at you, aims for your chest and fires, but all that follows is a soft click, accompanied by a look of horror on his face at the realization he’s emptied his magazine.

In the split-second you contemplate your options, the bet entering your thoughts again, Jack comes up to stand beside you. You take him in from the corner of your eye. He’s not looking at you but has his gun still firmly held in both hands. When you turn slightly to look up at him, your eyes meet, and you’re sure that in that moment, the exact same thought crosses your minds at the exact same time. You both point your gun down and pull the trigger.

It’s impossible to tell who lands the kill shot in the end.

Jack scoffs, hands dropping to his sides with a shake of his head. “Christ, you liar.”

You’re about to retort when you hear it: a click behind you.

The realization makes your eyes widen, but it’s too late. You hear the shot before you feel it, and it lands right in the middle of your back, making you wobble. Next to you, Jack huffs, hand landing on the back of the couch at the pressure that he’s no doubt also feeling at his back.

It’s silent for what feels like the longest time, save for the heavy breathing behind the two of you. Until…

“You’re out, agents.” Ginger’s voice crackles over the intercom.

The lights flicker on in the room, bright and almost yellow, and the loud buzzer that rings through the practice space indicates the end of training. Around you, everyone rises up from their fake-deaths. They gather around, shrugging out of their protective clothes and celebrating their win, congratulating the last woman standing as they make their way to the exit.

“What the hell, Ginger!” You shout. “You said there were five!”

There’s a soft noise coming through the intercom, before Ginger’s voice is back, “Here’s a refresher: Always verify the information you get, don’t just blindly follow it.”

“Oh, come on…”

Next to you, Jack pulls the magazine of practice bullets from his gun before he holsters it. “It’s not like it really matters,” he says.

“We were just taken out by the recruits,” you scoff. “It matters.”

Meanwhile, your mind is already racing, going over the details of the training, thinking on where you went wrong, but it’s a short contemplation because Ginger is right: You should have confirmed your targets before running out in the open and exposing yourself, have a better plan... Which reminds you—

“Hey,” you say, drawing Jack’s attention again. “Next time I would appreciate a little heads up if you’re going to disappear on me like that,” you say, jabbing your thumb over your shoulder. “I mean, if I can’t even trust you during training, how am I supposed to trust you when we get back out there?”

His eyes narrow and it’s like he’s about to say something, then thinks better of it and turns away from you. “We ain’t going anywhere anytime soon anyway.” His voice is stained with spite and immediately after he says it, he starts making his way towards the exit.

You huff as you pull at the velcro straps to get the vest off your body and drop it into the container with the rest of the protective clothes next to the door, before following after him.

He isn’t wrong, per se. You don’t know about the details because it seems to be a sensitive topic judging from the one time you brought it up, but Jack had been put on non-active months ago after a mission in Cambodia and hasn’t been sent out by Statesman since. After a bit of an unconventional first meeting between the two of you, Champ, the head of Statesman, had decided that partnering you two up would be a good idea. Truthfully, it made sense; Jack’s a senior agent who needs to be eased back into things, you’re a junior agent who could learn from him while you could keep him reined in.

But it’s been three months since and you still haven’t been sent out on a mission, and it isn’t how you envisioned your transfer to this division of Statesman to be.

You imagined high-stakes missions, traveling the world, learning from the best—

Okay, maybe that last part had worked out.

Truth be told, Jack had proven himself a very capable agent from the very moment you met, but it didn’t really sink in until one of your first training sessions, when you discovered Jack insisted on carrying around a lasso and whip on top of this Statesman issued gun. You laughed it off at first, thinking it was just part of his cowboy-like fashion sense. Then he opted to practice his lasso skills on you, betting he could catch you with it in under a minute. Figuring it would take him more than a minute to even find you in the large training space, you agreed. In hindsight, the smirk on his face when he asked should have been enough for you to realize your mistake right away. He found you, got the rope looped around your body, and, rather indignantly, forced you to the ground; all in under 36 seconds.

It wasn’t until after, when the rope was looped around a rubber target dummy, that he showed you the lasso could turn electric…

You continued your sessions together, learning to anticipate each other’s moves, play off of them to use it against your opponent; getting a routine down and using the training time to prepare for your missions. But there’s only so much preparing you can do, especially with someone who is as much of a wildcard as Jack, someone who often makes his own plan. But the missions never came, causing Jack to become somewhat of a ticking time bomb, closer to exploding with each passing day that you weren’t sent out. You’re sure Champ has noticed by now, but still, he insists on having you train together more. And, on occasion, that means playing target practice for the new Statesman recruits.

“Being taken out by the recruits isn’t going to improve our chances, you know.” You jog after him until you’re walking next to him.

“That mean we should just take it?” Jack asks, manoeuvring through the corridors back to the main building, bumping your shoulder occasionally.

“Whatever happened to, ‘You know me darlin’, I’m always jumpin’ at the chance to pencil in a little extra training time with you’?” you manage in your best impression of his voice to echo the words he said before the two of you entered the training space earlier.

“I changed my mind and thought of something better, that’s what happened,” he says, looking at you before gesturing between the two of you. “Us two, puttin’ all our hard work to good use out there in the field. And I don’t mean any funny business.”

“Hmm, yeah, no, exactly, ‘cause we don’t practice that kind of stuff.”

You set it up for him, and you have a feeling he knows but can’t help himself. One corner of his mouth turns up, and you consider the slight change in his demeanour a small victory.

“But we could.”

You chuckle, open your mouth to reply—

“I know, I know.” He grins, before you can say anything. “Just puttin’ it out there, lest you forget.”

He stops walking, so you do as well, standing next to him and leaning against the wall as to not obstruct the hallway. He turns towards you and for a moment you just look at him as he sighs and combs his fingers through his hair while the furrow returns to his brow. “But… Christ, don’t you wanna get back out there?”

“Of course I do,” you say with a sigh. “At this rate that recruit dangling from the ceiling is going to get a mission before we do.”

“See! That’s what I’m talking about, partner.” He leans in, lowers his voice like he’s about to tell you a secret, “I say we—”

“Hey, Whiskey!” The exclamation echoes through the hall, followed by your own code name. Both your heads perk up at the sound, finding one of the recruits at the end of the hall. “Ginger’s asking for you two!”

Ginger Ale’s promotion to handler meant that she was able to enjoy a lot more of Statesman’s luxuries, including her own office. As you walk in, you can’t help but notice how nice it is: It is spacious, but modest with the way she has decorated it, has a gorgeous view and is full of the latest tech; it is exactly what she deserves.

You’ve gotten to know her well during the past few months. She is intelligent and resourceful, warm and encouraging. Her work is thorough and precise; she cares a great deal about the details of a mission, and you have no doubt that you could always trust her if she were to ever guide you through one.

But training is another story, apparently…

“I’m not accepting any repercussions for that training,” you say the moment you spot her by the window.

Ginger chuckles at that, and it sounds unlike her, like she’s nervous. It’s almost as intriguing as the next words she speaks, “Then I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t call you in here for that. Why don’t you have a seat?”

You shoot a quick glance at Jack, who looks equally responsive despite his silence; lips pursed, an eyebrow cocked. He strides towards her desk to take her up on her invitation, and sits down in one of the two chairs opposite her workspace. You follow quickly, taking a seat in the empty chair beside him, looking up at Ginger as she makes her way to the see-through screen on her desk.

Ginger taps the screen twice, and it lights up. It’s full of pictures of the same man, all taken on different occasions. He’s slender, mid-40s, you’d guess, with a pair of round glasses perched on his nose and has blond, wild hair, some of it missing on the top of his head.

“Nathaniel Jones,” Jack says, leaning in to take a closer look at the pictures. “Nathan resurfaced?”

“Yes,” Ginger says.

“I’m sorry, um, who is Nathan?” you ask, looking from Jack to Ginger and back.

“He’s an art thief,” Ginger answers.

“Not just an art thief, he’s one of the best, even wanted by the good folks at Interpol,” Jack corrects, turning to you. “Steals pieces all over the world and replaces ‘em with fakes, good fakes, then sells ‘em. They even suspect him of stealin’ an ancient Chinese gu from an exhibition in Nanjing, which he kept for his own personal collection. Think he might be capable of puttin’ the Gardner Museum theft to shame someday…” He trails off.

You nod, not entirely sure what that means, but you’re sure it would be an impressive feat. And Jack would know. While he’s been on non-active, Jack has taken up a new hobby: art history. You didn’t think he’d be the man for it, but apparently when Jack sets his sights on something, he goes a little hard, and if the many times he’s threatened to ‘leave the agency and live off that sweet, sweet art appraiser salary’ are anything to go by, he is quite good.

“However, no one has been able to catch him. He leaves no physical evidence, but he always allows himself to be photographed, as you can see,” Ginger says, gesturing towards the screen.

“Show off,” Jack scoffs. “Where did they spot him?”

“London,” Ginger replies, tapping the screen again to reveal an aerial map of the city centre, two red dots corresponding with some of the pictures she’s shown you earlier. “There’s a big auction coming up and he’s expected to strike.”

Suddenly, her words are kicking in. Nathan is like.. he is kind of like a target, isn’t he? And he was spotted in London… Expected to attend an event where he could get caught...

“Ginger, are you—are you saying what I think you’re saying? You’re sending us on a mission?”

“Yes and no. It’s…” Ginger hesitates, eyes flickering to Jack quickly, then continues, “It’s a mission, but it’s not our mission. It’s… It’s at the request of Kingsman.”

But it’s a mission. A real mission, in London. And it's perfect. With Jack's art expertise and both your skills as agents, you’re sure you’d be an excellent addition to the Kingsman team for this mission. A mission. Finally—

“We ain’t goin’.”

—and then Jack says that. His voice is low and dead serious, lacking any hint of sarcasm. “You know I’m not fucking doing that.”

It takes you completely by surprise, and you whip your head around to him so quickly that the muscles in your neck protest. "What?"

He ignores the question, stares straight at Ginger. Something is seriously wrong. He’s tense, maybe even more than you’ve ever seen him. It’s in the way his jaw twitches, and how he’s gripping the arms of the chair, but most of all in his eyes; it’s something you can’t place.

“They just need someone who can look at the pieces they have at the auction house, to authenticate and appraise them before the auction,” Ginger says, “and an extra couple eyes to do surveillance during the auction.”

"You should send someone else, ‘cause I ain't doin’ it."

Ginger sighs. “You think I would ask this of you if there was someone else who could do it?”

“Come on, Ginger,” Jack laughs bitterly, a thumb coming up to swipe at his bottom lip. “No art appraisers available in London?”

“You know they can't just get a civilian in on this.” Ginger sounds frustrated now.

"Well, it’s what Kingsman is gonna have to do."

You raise a brow at the way he snarls at the word ‘Kingsman’. So that’s what this is about. “Okay,” you begin, speaking in the kindest, most understanding tone you can manage as you turn towards your incredibly stubborn partner. “Okay, clearly there’s something going on here, with - with the Kingsman, right? But maybe by going there you can…,” you gesture with your hands to find the right words, “work it out?”

He seems to consider this, lips pursing further, not looking at either you or Ginger, and after some moments of quiet contemplation, he begins to sit up. “Hypothetically — and by that I do mean hypothetically — if I were to agree… Do they even know I’m the one comin’ to consult?”

“Jack—”

“It’s a simple question,” Jack interrupts, voice slightly raised. “Yes or no?”

You give Ginger a hopeful look, but her silence says enough.

Jack lifts himself out of the chair, drawing the same conclusion. “Then there’s no chance in hell.”

"Well, do I get a say in this at all?" Your voice comes out angrier than you intended, but it’s fitting. You are angry. Angry that he’s making decisions without you again, angry that he would blow this chance for the both of you after he hasn’t shut up about how he wants to get sent out on a mission.

"Not in this one,” Jack all but barks at you.

You rise up from your chair. “Excuse me?”

“Sorry, doll, but I’m not going all the way to London to help Kingsman as some sort of… last hurray before we're back to bein’ fucking… practice bait for the recruits!" Rounding the chair, Jack makes his way to the doors to Ginger’s office.

You're about to go after him, demand he tell you what the fuck the big deal with Kingsman even is, when Ginger speaks,

"What if it isn't one last hurray?"

Jack keeps walking. “Don’t bother.”

“If you go, I can talk to Champ about sending you out on more assignments.”

Now that makes Jack stop in his tracks. He doesn’t quite turn around yet, his back is still to Ginger and yourself, but he does angle his head to the side to indicate he heard her. It’s something. You can feel your anger simmering down and your heartbeat picking up; hopeful at Jack’s hesitance, giddy at the prospect of more missions. “And all I have to do is look at the pieces?” His voice is barely any louder than a whisper.

“Look at the pieces, authenticate and appraise them, surveillance,” Ginger summarises. “That’s it.”

His hands find his hips with a sigh, and he tips his head down. He stays like that, oh so still… “Tell them I’ll do it,” he says, “but not because I want to.” Then he pushes the door open and walks away.

“So…” You draw the word out before clicking your tongue.

You’re sitting across from Jack on the jet, still a long way from London. Ginger has arranged for one pretty much right away. Once you’ve gotten over your initial, dazzling impression of the jet – it is enormous, far too much for just two people, with a literal pool table in the middle and a fucking bar with two doors next to it that lead to the sleeping compartments – you begin quietly observing him.

He hasn’t spoken a word since you left Kentucky and, if anything, he seems to get more miserable the closer you get to your destination. The longer you see him like this, the more your enthusiasm for the mission cools, and the more you actually start to get worried this is a bad idea after all.

You have waited as long as your curiosity, and the tension, allow for it, but given the explosive start of this whole thing, you’re certain you have to know the apparent history between him and Kingsman. You’ve tried asking Ginger, as she certainly knows more about it, but she insisted it wasn’t her place to tell you. So, really, you have no choice but to bring it up now.

“When are you going to tell me what the deal is with you and Kingsman?”

“Nothin’ for you to worry about,” comes his instant reply, clearly having anticipated your question. He’s got one hand cupped along his jaw to support his head so he can stare out the small circular window, while his shoulders, judging from his posture and the expression on his face, are currently supporting the weight of the world. “It’s all gonna be just fine.”

You scoff. “Please. I’ve known you for some time now, I’ve seen you in a lot of moods, but I’ve never seen you sulk, and…,” you gesture towards him, slumped back in his seat as he is, “…you’re sulking, Jack. Clearly there’s a good reason for that.”

He sits up at your remark, adjusts his hat, then pinches the bridge of his nose, giving you a clear sign that he doesn’t want to have this conversation – at all, but especially right now. You give him a few more seconds, but when it’s clear he isn’t going to speak, you try another direction.

“Is it um, is it about Cambodia?” you gently pry.

“Woman, can’t you take a hint?” he grunts. “Or do you just like getting a rise outta me?”

“I’m not asking just because I’m curious what can get such a rise out of you,” you say. “This is an assignment, technically it’s our first official one - the bank doesn’t count,” you add quickly. “And I would just like to be a little more prepared than last time.”

“The bank counts.”

“We didn’t even know—”

“The bank counts,” he repeats, and he probably thinks he’s being oh so funny and clever right now, focussing in on your mention of your first meeting like he isn’t doing it just to try to change the subject.

“I want to know what I’m about to walk into, Jack,” you say sharply.

“We all want things, darlin’,” he says with a sigh, getting up from his seat. “I for one would like ya to stop bringin’ this up.” And then he walks off to quite possibly the only place he can escape to right now, announcing, “I’m gonna hit the hay.”

“Sooner or later I will find out about it, you know that, right?” you call after him, your final attempt to make him just tell you what happened.

He hesitates – it's brief, but he does, a slight change in his step, a twitch of his upper arm. But he doesn’t stop, leaving you to watch as he slips through one of the doors next to the bar and disappears out of sight.

You will yourself to keep working and wait for him to return, thumbing through the thick files Ginger sent along. But as more time passes, the letters begin to dance in front of your eyes and your eyelids get heavy with sleep. Had this seat been this comfortable before? Your body sags into the leather and you allow your thoughts to drift away from your partner’s mysterious history with Kingsman. After all, you think, naively, trying to justify letting the sleep overtake you, if Jack has decided to accept the assignment, how bad could it really be?

Okay. So. Turns out it could be really bad.

After touching down in London, you’d been escorted straight to the auction house, where Agents Galahad Sr. and Galahad Jr. would meet up with you. Jack had been fidgety the whole ride, leg bouncing as he resorted back to gazing out the window. You don’t know how long he had locked himself away for on the jet, but when you’d woken up, he was back in his seat across from you, case files in his lap but fast asleep, or doing a pretty good job pretending. After arriving, you entered through the sliding glass doors, and spotted two men, both sharply dressed. One was a bit older than the other, and the older one wore a pair of glasses that left one eye obscured from view. The older man had barely taken your hand in his to introduce himself, when his colleague spotted Jack, and all hell had broken loose.

Currently, you and the man you now know as Harry, if all the frantic yelling from the other agent is anything to go by, are forced to settle what has become a standoff between Jack and Harry’s colleague. They’re standing across from each other, weapons pointed at each other after Harry’s colleague aimed his at Jack, to which Jack pulled his own gun from its holster and pointed it at the other man.

“What the fuck is this, Harry? What is he doing here?”

There’s something about his tone that confirms beyond his actions that he’s more than furious. You feel a flush creep up your neck in response to the situation you find yourself in; you feel embarrassed that you have no idea what’s going on.

“Eggsy,” Harry says. “There’s no need for theatrics.”

“He’s right. Jack, put the gun away,” you say.

“Like hell – I’ll put my gun away when he puts his gun away,” Jack answers, his eyes never leaving Eggsy’s hands.

“I— Me? I should put my gun away?” Eggsy scoffs. “I’m not even puttin’ my gun down around you. Last time you pulled a gun on me, you tried to kill me—” He looks at Harry, “You tried to kill us.”

Jack sighs. “Listen, things are different now—”

He’s saying more after that, but all that you’re hearing is that he isn’t denying it, and it replaces the flush from earlier with goosebumps that break out all over your body. That’s why he didn’t want to come here. Jack, your partner Jack, had attempted to kill two Kingsman agents.

“Why are you so calm about this, Harry?” Eggsy’s voice comes out strained, and it almost sounds like a plea.

“Agent Galahad,” Harry says sharply. “You know we can’t let our personal feelings get in the way. I simply think we should give Agent Whiskey a chance to do the job he came here to do.”

“Yes,” you blurt out. “I swear, that’s all we came here to do; do the appraisal and help with the surveillance later. After that, we’ll be out of your hair.”

Eggsy looks from you to Harry and back, gripping the gun so hard it shakes, then lowers it with a sigh. “You better.” He turns his attention back to Jack. “Or I swear, I’m gonna put so many fuckin’ bullets in you that no amount of Alpha-Gel can fix it. You got that?”

“Loud and clear.”

You heave a sigh of relief when the men holster their weapons, and as if knowing exactly when to appear, the auction house assistant enters the room, blissfully oblivious to what she had just missed out on.

Her accent is posh, especially compared to Eggsy’s, when she says, “I see everyone has arrived. Shall we?”

As she leads you to the room where the paintings are being kept, the auction house assistant informs you about them. They’re all part of a week-long event, an auction to help out up and coming artists. It’s all information you already know from the preliminary work you did for this assignment. What you don’t know is that artists usually make little to nothing from their art being sold at auction houses, but that this auction has a scoop: The artists will receive royalties from works sold on the secondary market. The works up for auction tomorrow are among the most anticipated, and they’re expected to sell at a high price. And even though you’re no art expert, you can certainly see why when the assistant leads you into the room where the works are stored.

The white walls are adorned with paintings of the most beautiful artworks. They’re all landscapes -– cherry blossom by a lake, a cave lit in a way that could be described as enchanting, a waterfall between oddly shaped high rocks, a lavender field at sundown. But they’re painted in a way unlike anything you’ve ever seen on account of the dazzling colours and unusual brush strokes. It instantly makes you want to look closer; it makes you want to touch, flit your fingers over the bumps of dried paint – an instinct you obviously don’t act upon, but you want to. It’s bitter to imagine how such stunning works would not have benefitted the artist if it would be sold at another auction house…

Jack looks equally impressed, whistling as he looks around the room before he gets to work. As he does, you watch curiously, from a distance as not to disturb him – Eggsy’s leaning against the wall next to him, much less subtle about his observant role. While you watch, you take note of the care Jack is putting into his work right now, unusually patient in his methods, evident in the way the gloved tips of his fingers brush along the canvasses, how he uses his pocket magnifying glass to inspect the painting from top to bottom, and the soft tone he uses with the assistant. It’s the kind of stuff you’ve never really been able to see him do, you realize, so different from all the tactical training you went through the past few months.

By the time he’s nearly done, you’re deep in conversation with Harry. He’s polite and to the point, with a rich voice and a kind laugh. And clearly, he’s no fool. You had struck up the conversation in hopes of prying some information out of him about Jack’s history with Kingsman, but Harry changes the subject each time you try, focusing back on the “extraordinary artwork”. It’s like the universe is conspiring against you, waiting to drop the other shoe at the right moment – or maybe these agents are just too well trained…

“That fuckin’…” Lost in thought as you are, you’re startled when you suddenly hear Jack’s voice sail through the room. “We’ve got a problem,” he declares, rounding the corner, coming back into view with Eggsy hot on his heels. He’s striding over with large steps as he plucks the latex gloves off his hands, and the concern on his face is apparent; his lips are pressed together in a thin line and his brows are furrowed. He comes to a halt in front of Harry and yourself, his fingers brushing along his chin before he explains himself, “So, all of ‘em are exactly as I expected ‘em, right? Until I get to the last one, inspect the brushstrokes and… something don’t add up. I think he’s already made the switch.”

Jack’s unexpected discovery at the auction house had led to a small crisis. From Eggsy, who demanded to know how Jack was so sure and if he wasn’t aiding a wanted criminal again. And from the auction house personnel, who started a frantic investigation into how someone could have gotten in and out of the secured room. It was a mystery that was quickly solved when they pulled up the security footage from last night, which showed Nathan, dressed as someone from the cleaning crew, rounding the corner where the switched artwork was located with a cleaning cart, and reappeared with it moments later.

No one expected Nathan to strike before the auction; the thief usually operates in plain sight during the events he targets. It forced Harry, Eggsy, Jack and yourself to rethink your strategy, and you had agreed to meet up early next morning to come up with a new plan. The stiff goodbyes you’d shared with the Kingsman agents served as a cold reminder of how you’d arrived here.

And even now, as you’re lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, it’s an unpleasant feeling you can’t shake, a feeling that’s keeping you from sleeping more than the jetlag. Before you can think any better of it, you’re up, through the door, walking down the hallway, and knocking on Jack’s hotel room door. He opens almost immediately, and that, combined with the way he’s still dressed in yesterday’s clothes and is doing a poor job of hiding the half-empty whiskey bottle on the dresser behind him, leads you to believe he hasn’t slept a wink, either.

“Hi,” you say, brushing past him and into the room.

“You know,” he says as he closes the door, a slight slur in his voice apparent. “This isn’t how I imagined it.”

The comment throws you off. “This isn’t how you imagined what?” you ask with a frown.

He gestures towards you. “You, barging into my hotel room.”

“I—”

“Usually less clothes involved,” he interrupts with a chuckle as he walks toward the dresser and plucks the bottle off of there.

“Yeah, well…” you look down at yourself, at your sweatpants, the soft dark blue T-shirt you’re wearing, “I’m sorry this isn’t doing it for you, Jack.”

He looks up at you, cocks his head with a grin. “Oh, I didn’t say that, darlin’.”

You sigh. You’re used to this endless back and forth, the pet names, it’s what Jack does with everyone, but you’re no longer in the mood to play into his little game. “I’m not here to get you into bed, Jack.”

“Good,” he says, and he doesn’t miss a beat when he adds, “in my dreams we don’t make it to—”

“I’m here to give you one final chance to tell me what happened between you and Kingsman,” you say with a raised voice before he’s even finished.

He makes his way over to a glass table by the window where his tumbler is waiting for him, and he pours it half-full. “And what if I don’t?” he asks.

You take a deep breath. You don’t want to give him the chance to derail the conversation by hiding behind his wit. Or walking away. You’re serious, this is serious, and you want him to know it is. “If you don’t, then that means I can’t trust you.” This time, it’s you who doesn’t miss a beat when you add, “and Jack, if I can’t trust you, I can’t be your partner.” Maybe it’s a weak threat, but it’s the truth. This is your first mission together and he’s already keeping things from you. How could a partnership possibly work like this?

You’re surprised when he doesn’t immediately have a smart retort for you. Instead, your words make him freeze, and if you didn’t know better you swear it makes him sober up. You know that he can tell you’re not kidding around, can practically see the cogs turning in his head in what you assume is him making a quick list of pros and cons. After some time, he reaches for a second glass, pouring two fingers before simply asking, “Drink?”

“Depends.”

He thrusts the glass in your direction. “Take the drink and sit down.” He gestures towards one of the leather chairs next to the table, but you stand your ground, looking at his extended arm but not taking the drink from his hand. “Please,” he says, and with the way his voice slightly goes up at the end, it’s almost a question.

You can’t help but raise an eyebrow at that, and your legs are walking you towards him before you’ve even really accepted his invitation. You take the glass from him and plop down in the chair with a huff. You still can’t really tell if he’s serious, so you wait for him to speak.

Jack brings the glass to his mouth, throwing its contents back with one big gulp before refilling it and taking a seat himself. His hand moves up to his face, two fingers rubbing along his moustache as he looks at you and gnaws at his lip. “I erm— It’s not—” Then he averts his gaze, and after a beat of silence he settles on, “It’s a long story, though.”

You’re taken aback, not used to seeing him like this. You’ve gotten to know Jack as charming, confident, cool, but while he is stuttering out his reply, the flush in his neck creeps up to his face, and his shell seems to be cracking. He is flustered, maybe even anxious, and you have a feeling that he’s not exaggerating when he says that it’s a long story.

You nip at your drink, the oaky taste with hints of vanilla settling pleasantly in your mouth before burning down your throat. “I have plenty of time to listen.”

And so you do. You listen to him explain how Kingman and Statesman worked together to stop Poppy Adams and take down her toxic drug empire. But that, somewhere along the mission, his personal feelings got in the way. After purposefully breaking a vial of the antidote they’d stolen from one of Poppy’s facilities on Mont Blanc, he had been shot in the head by Harry, who suspected him of being a traitor. Luckily, Eggsy had reacted quickly by using Alpha-Gel, effectively saving his life. (“Even got the battle scars to prove it,” he says, pointing at the scar on the side of his face). The next thing he remembered was waking up in Kentucky, where Ginger brought his memory back. He followed the Kingsman agents to Poppy’s hideout in Cambodia, where he nearly kept them from releasing the antidote worldwide, before they overpowered him and brought him back to the States in cuffs. Naturally, he was suspended indefinitely.

Throughout his story, you’re dead silent, hanging onto his every word as you sip your drink.

“Guess I kept this from you for so long ‘cause… I didn’t want this partnership to end before it properly began. But with you comin’ in here at two in the mornin’, demandin’ to know the truth or else, I figured…” He pauses with a sigh, face twisting into a something you can’t quite place. “Damned if I do, damned if I don’t.”

Your brain is failing to process all this information at once, and Jack takes your silence as a prompt to continue,

“And I hate it. ‘Cause for the first time in a long time, I was havin’ some fun again.” He nods at his own statement, then looks up at you, his eyes searching your face. “When we were training together and you picked up on everything I was doin’… You anticipatin’ all my moves made me wanna anticipate all o’your moves, to become attuned to you and your…your stupid little knives.” His smile falters, and there’s that look again. “I mean, we’re a good team, aren't we?”

Jack’s always chatty, but the way he’s talking right now he’s being downright loquacious. It’s probably on account of the whiskey, but it still makes you choose your words carefully, unable to be as blunt or demanding as you were earlier. “All of that training stuff,” you begin, “I think it means nothing if we can’t be honest with each other.” You pause, so your words can really land with him, before asking, “Can I trust you to do that?”

“After all that, can you trust me to do that?” He’s making that face again, and the flush on his cheeks is back and—

Oh.

You completely forget about his question because suddenly you can place the look on his face: He’s ashamed.

He’s ashamed and he thinks you’ll see him differently from this point on and that that’s why— Wait. Do you? The weight of his story is starting to catch up to you. Because holy shit, the Poppy Adams situation last year was intense. You remember the TV broadcastings, the utter chaos across the globe, but nothing about Cambodia that could have made you connect the dots previously. Had Jack succeeded when he went after Harry and Eggsy to stop them from releasing the antidote, millions of people would have died – literally millions. Which— Yeah, that’s a lot to process. Your partner almost played a key part in allowing that to happen…

Almost.

Because here he is, all the tell-tale signs of shame suddenly apparent; the way he’s turned away from you, how his eyes keep darting away from yours, the red splotches on his neck, his quivering Adam’s apple. However, you also know that feeling ashamed isn’t the same as feeling guilty. You can feel ashamed over something that you’ve done, freeze and feel your gut twist at the memory, but still feel like it was a necessary evil. Does he feel any remorse for what he’s done? Just like that, there’s only one thing that really matters, that you need to know.

“Do you regret it?” you ask. He’s silent, and as you watch his finger trace the rim of his glass with a frown, you can tell that wasn’t what he was expecting, so you elaborate, “Cambodia, I mean.”

It makes his frown ease up. “All the time.”

You can feel yourself sag into the leather in relief before taking another swig from your glass. The whiskey seems to make you lose-lipped as well, because before you can really debate if you should push this any further right now, you’re firing another question at him. “Then why did you do it?”

It doesn’t sound accusatory – or you don’t mean it that way, at least. It’s simply curious, but it still makes Jack twitch, the liquid in his glass sloshing around with it. And as flushed as he was before on account of his candour and the alcohol, your question seems to drain all the colour from his cheeks.

“No, don’t—” He cuts himself off and grimaces at his own sharp tone, quickly correcting himself to something softer, “I think that’s enough story time for tonight, alright?”

It’s not enough, not really, but still you find yourself nodding, setting your empty tumbler down on the glass table that separates you. “We should...get some sleep, be prepared for tomorrow,” you say, standing up from the chair, wincing when you take note of the clock.

Jack makes a noise that somehow sounds detached; it’s not agreement, but not disagreement either. He makes no haste to get up, so you simply look down at him from where you stand. “See you in the morning?”

“Sweet dreams, darlin’,” is what he offers with a lopsided smile that doesn’t reach his eyes.

You return the sentiment with some words of your own, but have a feeling it’s in vain, that his bed will stay unkempt as it is, before you let yourself out of his room. And when the door closes behind you with a soft click, you’re left with your thoughts again, and you realize the conversation has done nothing to make you sleep easier either.

“Excellent, there you are.”

You’re fresh out of the car that has escorted you to a tailor shop in London. It was early. So fucking early. You hadn’t slept and can still taste hints of oak and vanilla in your throat every time you swallow. But now, inside, after passing through a secret door behind one of the changing rooms in the tailor shop, Harry’s voice is warm, dare you say pleased, when Jack and yourself report for duty, and something about his optimistic tone makes you forget about the early hour and the hotel whiskey. It makes your shoulders straighten and your head cock with interest.

And you’re clearly not the only one.

“Found anything?” Jack asks.

Harry leads you to a wall full of screens, where a Kingsman agent is frantically typing on the keyboard in front of him. “One of our agents found the stolen piece for sale on the black market.” One of the screens displays some sort of advertisement on what looked like the dark web; it had several marketplaces for illegal stolen goods.

“Son of a bitch is trying to get rid of it before the auction’s even started.” Jack scoffs.

You jerk your chin at the screen. “We need to ambush him, catch him red-handed.”

“Arrange a meeting,” Jack agrees.

“Precisely,” Harry nods.

“I’ll go,” Jack says instantly.

“Fuck no.” You hadn’t even noticed Eggsy until now. He’s leaning against one of the walls, then pushes himself off, making his way over with his arms crossed over his chest. “Absolutely not. I’ll go.”

“‘course you are” Jack scoffs. “Probably couldn’t tell the difference between a watercolour and an acrylic painting to save your life.” The statement is more of a murmur, but it sets Eggsy off all the same.

“What’s that?”

“You couldn’t sell the bit, Galahad!” Jack exclaims. “We ain’t got the time to fight about this while someone else steals the piece from right under our sorry noses. I’m the most competent man for the job and this bastard has been doing this for years now, so we really should be fixin’ to get ourselves this meeting.”

It’s Eggsy’s turn to scoff. “Oh, so you can excuse mass murder, but draw the fuckin’ line at art theft, Whiskey?” He all but spits out Jack’s codename, walking up to him until their toes almost touch.

Jack’s chest rises as he takes a deep breath, no doubt firing up to counter, but before he can even open his mouth, you raise your voice.

“Alright, stop puffing your chests out at each other, Christ.” Neither of them so much as bat an eye. “Obviously we both want this target, correct? You asked for a Statesman agent with art knowledge, and well, this is him. So, let’s just work on this together, be professionals, and then be fucking done with this assignment. We send Jack to the meet—”

“No—” Eggsy immediately interrupts.

“Jack is going to the meet,” you repeat louder, giving Eggsy a look. “He’s the least likely to be made because he actually possesses the art knowledge to make it convincing and…,” you pause for a second to swallow, and the taste of whiskey still prevalent in your mouth immediately takes you back to the night before, “…and I know you don’t trust him, but I do. I can vouch for him, hell, I’ll even go with him if it makes you all feel better, but Jack goes.”

You don’t miss the way Jack’s head whips around to you, but before you can turn to meet his gaze, Eggsy is speaking again. “He’ll make you right away.”

“You have a tech guy here, right?” You ignore his statement to continue explaining your plan. Your hands land on the shoulders of the man behind the keyboard. “Pretty sure he can put together some fake credentials and create the fake online presence of a pristine, wealthy art collector – a website, social media, news articles, the works. We’ll suggest a public place to meet up, like a restaurant, all to give the target some false sense of security… and then we take him in.”

No one says anything for a while, until Harry, who had been watching the scene before him silently, finally gives his verdict, “I think it sounds like a fine plan. Get to work,” he orders the Kingsman agent behind the keyboard.

“And what about you?” Eggsy asks you, clearly displeased.

You shrug. “I don’t know, I can pose as like… a waitress?”

You adjust your tie in the mirror or the restaurant bathroom, then fold the collar of your dress shirt into place and smooth your hands down over the apron you’re wearing; to play the part you have to look the part. Although… You’re pretty sure the average waiter doesn’t have knives and a gun hidden away in a thigh holster under their apron. You hadn’t been entirely serious, but you were nothing if not true to your word, playing the role you’d suggested. You take one last look at yourself in the mirror before exiting the restaurant bathroom to take your position.

As you enter the restaurant, you find it’s mostly empty, just like Kingsman has arranged it to be. Your eyes find Jack, tucked away into a corner close to the door, having also done his best to look the part. His hair is in its usual side part, but somewhat slicked back, and he’s wearing a navy suit that’s much fancier than the ones he usually wears. You pass his table quickly, your eyes meeting briefly, and he nods at you once as you take your place in front of the window across from his table.

Daytime is the perfect time at a restaurant to clean the windows, right?

Your supplies to really sell your performance are already waiting for you, and you reach down to dip a cloth into the warm water, wringing it out above the bucket before bringing it up to the window. Via the glass, you can see the reflection of the table Jack’s sitting at, and the look on his face makes you want to turn to him, to reassure him one last time—

“I’ve got eyes,” Harry’s voice suddenly informs you through your earpiece. “Target approaching on foot, alone.”

Behind you, Jack sits up at the message, face transforming, relaxing, visibly slipping into the role of rich art collector. You focus yourself back on your work, rubbing the cloth along the window as your eyes search for the target through the glass. And then you see him approaching the restaurant with quick, short steps. He’s even more slender in person, but has the same pair of round glasses perched on his nose. His short, blond hair dances in the wind, and he brings one hand up to smooth it back down onto his head while the other hand carries a black briefcase.

You bring your hand up to the side of your face and press the little button on the earpiece. “Target confirmed,” you say. “Permission to continue mission?”

“Message received,” comes Harry’s reply. “Continue mission. Good luck, agents.”

Nathan enters the restaurant shortly after, and you will yourself to focus on your fake task at hand. Leaning down to wet the cloth again before getting back to work, you hear Nathan and Jack making introductions, and in the reflection you see him take his place across from Jack, setting his briefcase down next to his chair.

“I must say I’m surprised about getting an offer so soon.” Nathan checks his watch. “The auction hasn’t yet ended and the piece we discussed is… at the auction.”

“Technically,” Jack replies.

The man chuckles at that. “Technically, indeed.” He pauses, narrows his eyes. “Tell me, how did you know?”

Jack folds his hands and places them on the table as he begins his story. “Given my… reputation, I was allowed to view the pieces ahead of the auction and I found myself… distressed, when I realized my personal favourite piece was, in fact, a forgery. You see, it was damn near perfect, but then I noticed the brushstrokes; the way they were angled. I know about your…” Jack pauses, searching for the right word, “methods, and I knew I had to get in contact. Figured I could get the piece for a much better price from you than I could at any auction.”

“And how would you know about my…,” Nathan pauses, mirroring Jack’s earlier intonation, “methods?”

Shit. There’s a slight hitch in your stroke of the cloth along the window. What if he just made Jack? In the reflection you can see your partner’s look of contemplation, how he’s almost calculating what to say next and how to do it. You drop the fabric from your hand to land into the bucket by your feet, and take the dishcloth that’s slung over your shoulder to wipe your hands dry as you listen.

“I’m simply an admirer. Of this work, o’course,” Jack says, gesturing towards the briefcase next to the chair. “But also of your work.” Jack leans in, speaks softly when he asks, “Is it true, about the Chinese gu?”

Nathan doesn’t answer definitively, but his lips purse in a pleased smile before he pushes his glasses farther up his nose. “You’ve done your homework.” He sounds impressed, and you can’t help but be amused at the way Jack’s feeding this guy exactly what he needs to hear right now.

Leaning back in the chair, Jack matches the other man’s expression and gives him a casual shrug. “Told you, I’m an admirer.” He pauses, eyes drifting down to the case next to the chair, then asks, “Can I see the piece?”

There’s a long moment where Nathan doesn’t answer, but then, without a word, he reaches for the briefcase, clicks it open and gives Jack a view of the artwork inside.

Jack whistles. “Gorgeous,” he says, looking up at Nathan with an impressed smile. “Your replica looks just like it.”

Nathan smiles proudly, and you know you’ve got him when you hear what he says next, “You won’t believe how easy it is, especially with these smaller pieces.” He seems to catch himself, too; cheeks flushing the slightest bit before he’s checking his watch again. “Listen, I hate to cut this short, but I have another appointment; let's wrap this up, shall we?��

Jack shifts, looking down as if he’s contemplating the question. “I don’t think so.” He reaches inside of his suit jacket, produces his gun from its holster and points it at Nathan under the table, removing the safety with a soft click. “You’re gonna come outside with me – calmly, quietly, no need to make a fuss – and we’re gonna make sure every bit of stolen artwork is gonna go back to their rightful owners.”

Across from him, Nathan moves fast – surprisingly fast. He pulls his own gun from his jacket, points it at Jack. “Do you think I’d come here unprepared? I’ll tell you how we’re gonna do this: You’re gonna let me walk—”

As he talks, you glance over your shoulder, take in their positions, guns out but hidden from view of the rest of the restaurant. You look at Jack, and he doesn’t look at you, but his head jerks in a short nod. You turn away again, hand slipping under your apron, fingers flitting over one of the smaller blades in the holster before slowly slipping it out of the leather.

“—I mean, what’s your plan, hmm?” Nathan asks. “To shoot me here? For everyone to see? Whether you’re law enforcement or not, I know you’re not gonna do that.”

Jack’s grip on his gun tightens. “And you are?”

You turn and bend down, and to the untrained eye it would look like you were about to tie your shoelaces. During your movement, you swing the knife and throw it towards the table in front of you. There’s a soft swoosh, and then the knife lands in Nathan’s thigh with a squelching sound. He yelps, reaches for his leg, and in the process, the gun drops from his hand. Jack catches it effortlessly before it can clatter to the ground, then kicks at the bottom of Nathan’s chair. It sends the man tumbling backwards, the wood hitting the floor with a thump. You’re back on your feet in no time, rushing over to shield the man from the view of the few people in the restaurant, shoulder to shoulder with your partner who had the same idea.

“Oh, sir! Are you okay?” you ask, kneeling down to pull the knife from his thigh. He keens in response as you hide the blade away in the pocket of your apron.

“Oof,” Jack says, making a face and holding the lapels of his jacket as he looks down at the squirming man at his feet. “Came clattering down harder than a screen door in a storm.”

“I know,” you say with faux-concern, taking a hold of Nathan’s hand and pressing it down over the wound with a wet sound. “That was quite a fall! Let’s get you up, we should get you some air. Come on.” He struggles against you, but with a firm grip on his arm, you still him, then haul him onto his feet. You look at Jack with a knowing grin. “Sir, can you help me get this man outside?”

You find yourself watching from below the overhang of the restaurant, sheltered from the London weather, as Jack escorts Nathan to Harry and Eggsy, who are waiting by a dark car. As Eggsy helps Nathan into the backseat, Harry sticks his hand out at Jack, who contemplates the gesture for a split-second before taking Harry’s hand and shaking it. They exchange some words, briefly look in your direction, but you’re too far away to really make out what they’re saying. Eggsy closes the car door and watches the two agents, seemingly contemplating if he’s going to follow his colleague’s example, and you can’t help but breathe a sigh of relief when he does. Jack says his goodbyes in the form of a two-finger salute, then turns to make his way to you.

“Well?” you ask when he stands next to you, leaning back against the window as you both watch the car drive off. “Did we save the art world?”

“Close enough,” he says. “Harry said to thank you on Kingsman’s behalf, and that they’ll handle it from here on out. They just… want our mission reports within the week.”

You groan, eyes closing and shoulders dropping at the reminder. “That was the one thing I hadn’t missed about going on missions…”

Jack grunts softly, in agreement, you think, then says, “Think it was a successful first assignment together?”

“I’d say all the training’s paid off,” you say, shifting and knocking your shoulder against his. “Be sure to mention that in your mission report, yeah?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Jack chuckles shortly, then shuffles his feet and shoves his hands in his pockets. “Been meanin’ to ask you… Did you mean what you said earlier? ‘Bout trustin’ me?”

You look at him, trying to determine whether he’s really asking or just being a dick, but he keeps looking straight ahead, his expression giving nothing away.

“I did.” You pause before adding, “I wouldn’t be much of a partner if I didn’t, right?”

He cracks, the corners of his mouth turning upwards, a slight hint of a smile appearing. He looks at you from the corner of his eye. “You are a good liar…”

You can’t help but match his expression, thinking back to how exasperated he looked in the red flickering lights of the training space days ago. “I’m not that good.”

He’s quiet after that, head tipping down to look at his shoes as his eyebrows knit together and his tongue comes out to wet his lips. It feels tense, suddenly, and you don’t know if it’s because you said something you shouldn’t have. Does he not believe you? Maybe it’s just your imagination. You think of something to say to break the tension, or to at least change the subject.

“It was my wife,” Jack suddenly says, head shooting up to look directly ahead again and straightening his back.

Your mouth opens, then closes, seriously doubting if you’ve heard him right. With a confused shake of your head, you ask him, “Sorry, what was that?”

He clears his throat. “My wife. She’s why I turned on the agency.”

You frown, even more confused than before. “You never told me you’re married.”

He’s pausing again and your heartbeat picks up, cheeks heating at the idea that he has mentioned his wife and that you simply forgot. It’s just that Jack… He didn’t seem to be the type to be in a serious relationship. You rack your brain, going over the interactions you’ve had with him and scanning for the word ‘wife’ or ‘spouse’ or—

“Was,” he corrects. “It was years ago and... she died.”

—oh.

There had been so much emotion in his voice, and it’s all so unexpected that he knocks the absolute wind out of you with it. He almost doesn’t look like himself when he finally looks at you. He takes a breath before he continues, “Two methamphetamine users killed her durin’ a robbery. She was pregnant with our son and… and I guess, in my fucked up mind, that justified—”

“Stop,” you say. “You were right earlier. It’s— You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to tell me.”

“You were right,” he presses. “And I thought you oughta know it, ‘cause I—” He stops himself with a bitter chuckle before continuing, “Christ, this is gonna sound so fuckin’ cheesy, but… The whole thing in Cambodia, that’s not who I wanna be. I wanna be… better, y’know? Do the right thing, be a good agent, not be a shitty partner, the whole nine yards, and I… I’ve been thinking on it and I think it starts with trust.” He cocks his hip, hooks his fingers in his belt loops, and it might have been somewhat funny if he didn’t look so bashful when he peers up at you after. “And me workin’ on my communication skills and bein’ earnest, which I’m honest to God tryin’ my damnedest at right now,” he adds with a hint of a smile. “That sound acceptable to you?”

Blinking up at him, you let his words wash over you. You had truly meant it when you said you trusted him back in the hotel, and with the way he is standing across from you, all but wearing his heart on his sleeve, you trust him to be truthful and genuine with you now. There is only one answer you could give him.

“Yes.

#agent whiskey #agent whiskey x reader #jack daniels x reader #agent whiskey x you #jack daniels x you #kingsman the golden circle #kingsman 2 #pedro pascal #cowboy like me fic #dani writing #(screaming) i can't believe its real and here!!!

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princessphilly · 4 years ago

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Word Count: 5118

CW: angst, smut but not super filthy smut (medium filth?), bad language

Dress and shoes that Nina wore in this chapter

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Only three more chapters and an epilogue left

Nina fidgeted as dug into her pocketbook for her keys to her parents’ house. It was time for Sunday dinner, the one meal a week that she wasn’t responsible for cooking and therefore, Nina never missed it. Cooking was not her forte and Nina had no problems with that. However, this Sunday dinner, she needed to talk to her family about their lives changing.

The smell of roast chicken filled the house and Nina took a deep sniff as she opened and closed the door. Aryanna and Dad were watching the late game aka hate-watching the Ravens vs Saints. The Steelers were playing on Monday night this week.

“Heey sweettart,” Vernon said, getting up to give his oldest daughter a hug.

Nina hugged her father back, holding him close for a second. “Hi Dad.”

“Oh no!”

Nina ended the hug, turning with her father towards the tv. Lamar Jackson had just run for a 20-yard touchdown. They all groaned; the Steelers needed the Ravens to lose as both teams were running neck to neck for the AFC North crown. As Nina got absorbed into the game, the situation with Sidney was still in the back of her mind.

Nina had talked to her mom earlier in the day, explaining everything to her mother, well everything but the sex. Tracey had listened with an open ear before telling her daughter not to make a decision over her potential happiness just because of how it could affect her family. Tracey had reminded Nina that Jason, while he was at UNC now, had been a 5-star tight end prospect and they dealt with the media when it was time for him to sign with a college.

After talking to her mom, Nina had taken a nap before coming to sunday dinner. As she watched the game, waiting to eat, Nina hoped for courage. However, she kept it to herself when it was time to eat, instead listening to Aryanna talk about school, her dad talk about his new position at work which meant that he wasn’t going to be going out on the road as much anymore. Nina shared some stories about her clients while Tracey talked about the switch to travel nursing over working in the hospital. But when it was over, Nina gulped and summoned her courage.

“So, I got news,” Nina started once dinner was over and dessert was served. She looked down at her glass of water. Before she could continue, Aryanna piped up. “Let me guess, you’re breaking up with Sidney Crosby because you’re a punk.”

“Aryanna!”

Nina glared at her little sister while Tracey reprimanded, “That was rude, little girl.”

“Sorry,” Aryanna muttered.

“Anyway, before I was rudely interrupted,” Nina said, “I have news. After thinking about it, talking to Sidney, and going over the pros and cons, I’ve decided to give him another chance.”

Tracey smiled as Aryanna shouted yes. Vernon looked at his daughter and carefully said, “Are you ready for it?”

Nina grimaced. “As ready as I can possibly. Are y’all?”

“We only want you to be happy, sweetie,” Tracey consoled. “Plus, I saw those pics of you two. He’s smitten.”

Nina groaned while Aryanna laughed. Vernon added, “We were already planning to move soon anyway. We’ve been looking at homes in South HIlls and we just closed on a house in Mt. Lebanon.”

“Oh wow. When was I going to find out,” Nina said with a smirk. She knew her parents had been thinking of moving for a while but the market had been super hot for a long time. Before she had moved into her current apartment, Nina had heard of the different arguments her parents had about moving to different areas. But before they could find somewhere, someone else would snap it up.

Tracey grinned. “We weren’t going to say anything until we closed because of how long it took to find somewhere. It’s taken almost two years and we even saved enough to offer forty percent as a down payment. It’s a fixer-upper though but it has a bigger backyard for my garden and the schools are better.”

“What are you going to do with this house,” Nina asked before taking a bite of her sweet potato pie. Fuck, she wished she could bake and cook just so she could make herself sweet potato pie all of the time.

Vernon replied, “Probably sell. There are people looking to buy even though this area isn’t that great. ”

“I guess it’s settled. This is exciting though.”

Tracey snickered before looking at her husband. “I hope you are still excited when we need you to help pack, Ni-ni.”

Nina looked to her right before taking out her phone and sending a quick message. Free monday? 12pm?

She received a quick response. Yup, just tell me where to meet

Vernon casually commented, “I’m also looking at it this way; this is a practice for when Jason is in the NFL and becomes famous.”

“Good point,” Tracey said. “I can start practicing telling people no even more now.”

Nina laughed. “Looks like I have nothing to worry about then.”

The conversation switched to the Steelers game tomorrow night as they finished dessert.

Honestly, Sidney was a bit surprised to get a message from Nina so quickly. He had fully expected her to wait until Wednesday and he had been preparing himself for the worst possible outcome. As a competitor, prepping for each game meant learning his opponents’ strengths and weaknesses. Nina wasn’t his opponent but Sidney was now very aware of the power she had over him with just one look, let alone her touch or words.

Nina had asked to meet somewhere that wasn’t at their homes. Sidney suggested lunch but after looking at his schedule, he asked if Nina could maybe meet him at the Pens offices and then get lunch after. Fidgeting in the smaller conference room, Sidney began to worry that Nina wouldn’t show up when the clock showed that it was already five minutes past the time they agreed to. But then, Nina wasn’t the most on time person either so Sidney rationalized to himself, he should worry if it was fifteen minutes passed and she still wasn’t here.

Then outside the door, Sidney saw Nina talking with Evelyn, one of their PR mavens. They were having an animated discussion and Sidney smiled softly. Nina opened the door and grinned at him. “Hi Sid, sorry for being late.”

Evelyn waved at Sidney and he waved back. After Nina walked in, Evelyn peeped in and said, “I was just catching up with Nina since it’s been a while since she’s been here.”

Sidney nodded as Nina replied, “thank you so much for the advice, Evelyn, I will definitely use it!”

Evelyn waved goodbye before closing the door firmly. Nina chose a chair directly across from Sidney and sat down. There was a brief pause before Nina giggled. “Oh my God, you looked like you were about to die before I showed up.”

“Well, I had to remind myself that you’d show up but part of me still was worried because of everything in our last conversations,” Sidney replied.

The aura in the room turned serious as Nina bit her lip and folded her hands together. “Yeah, those conversations,” Nina started. “I like you a lot, Sidney Crosby, but… I hate this circus that surrounds you. I know that it’s something you can’t control but I hate it. But I realized, especially after talking to my mom, there’s nothing I can do about it now. My life’s forever changed.”

Sidney cleared his throat but Nina stopped him. “Let me finish, Sid because I can already tell you’re ready to make promises you can’t keep. So let me save both of us the headache.”

Sitting back, Sidney leaned in his chair. “What are your plans, pretty girl?”

“You have to get over being super private and claim me publicly. You want me to be yours, Mr. Crosby? Then you have to let the world know we are together. No are they or aren’t they bullshit.”

Nina glared at Sidney when she was done. Sidney flushed; part of him hated the idea of letting the world know more than they really needed to know about his personal life. At the same time, he already knew he was going to do whatever Nina asked him to, in his own way. “You know I don’t use social media,” Sidney began before trailing off. Then he smirked.

Nina casually said, “you’ll find a way.”

“I already figured it out,” Sidney drawled. “What else do you want, pretty girl?”

“No more surprise meet ups with people from the team, let me know ahead of time. Just like I’ll let you know ahead of time whenever I decide you should meet my fam.”

Sidney actually blushed while Nina arched an eyebrow. “I know I’m amazing but that was a bit uncomfortable when I think back. At least you didn’t abandon me to talk to your teammates and let me fend for myself.”

“I’m sorry, Nina,” Sidney apologized. He felt really bad now: he had been so excited that he really didn’t think about how Nina would have felt. Nina shrugged; it wasn’t that bad to be honest because Sidney stayed at her side, introduced her to everyone, and made sure she was included. But that didn’t mean she wanted him to continue doing that.

Nina smiled at Sidney and asked, “what do you think, Sid?”

Sidney scratched his jaw as he thought of his reply. It was relatively simple but it would also be life-changing for him. He finally said, “Yes, it all sounds good. But I have one thing?”

“What’s that?”

Sidney smirked as he looked Nina up and down. Nina rolled her eyes as she smiled. She could guess where his mind was, right in the gutter. But Sidney surprised her when he said, “Then let me spoil you. I have no problem claiming you publicly, but I want you to let me treat you like I’ve been wanting to treat you.”

Nina gave Sidney a bashful smile before looking to the side. “I’ll never say no to purses and shoes but I don’t want you to buy out the store-“

“I already know that, sweetheart,” Sidney firmly said, “but let me treat you like you deserve.”

“Okay, okay,” Nina conceded.

Sidney pushed his chair back, making space. Then he patted his lap. “Come ‘ere.”

Nina got out of her chair and sat on Sidney’s lap. “You know where we are,” she hissed even though she had obeyed him.

Wrapping an arm around her waist, Sidney smiled. Smelling her coconut-vanilla scent, he realized how much he had missed her. “I know, I’m not going to do anything inappropriate, pretty girl. Just missed having you close to me.”

Sidney kissed the back of Nina’s neck, causing her to shiver. “Watch the postgame of our next game, Nina. Now, what do you want for lunch?”

“Um, honestly, I want Chipotle. I have to get back to work in about an hour so nothing fancy,” Nina replied.

Turning so that she was facing Sidney, she placed her index finger over his lips when he opened his mouth. “I forgot to add this earlier but I’m also going to say this now. I’m not quitting my job anytime soon. I’m going to finish my Ph.D. and if I decide to stop working, it’s because I plan to teach full-time. So, if you expect I’ll be waiting at home and living for you, now you know that’s not going to happen,” Nina stated.

Sidney opened his mouth to reply but the door opened. “Hey, I’ve been looking for you, Sidney!”

Nina squeaked in surprise and Sidney sighed. It was Brian Burke and Sidney was sure that it was probably something important but this wasn’t quite the moment where he wanted to see him.

Brian smiled. “It looks like you two have made up.”

Nina weakly waved. At first, she was going to move off of Sidney’s lap but his hand around her waist made that impossible. “I’d introduce myself but I figure I interrupted,” Brian continued.

“It’s okay, I was on my way to get lunch,” Nina replied.

Sidney added, “With me.”

“Don’t forget, you said you wanted to help with more planning for our pride game this season,” Brian reminded Sidney.

“Ohh, the pride game! You’re getting more involved in it? That’s awesome,” Nina exclaimed.

Sidney blushed as he smiled under Nina’s praise.

“Would you be interested in being involved, Nina,” Brian asked.

Nina paused for a second, her eyes wide. “Um, sure.”

“I can get your contact information from Sidney,” Brian asked.

Nina nodded as Sidney rubbed his hand up and down her back. Sidney said, “I’ll let you know,” as Brian closed the door.

Placing a hand over her face, Nina sighed. “Wow.”

“It’s fine. Look, your first volunteer project,” Sidney kidded.

“I need to eat.”

The game against the Isles had gone well. Sidney had tallied two assists and a goal in a 4-2 win after having a four game slump. Normally post-game interviews were a necessary evil but he was a bit nervous this time. Not because he knew they were going to ask about getting out of his slump, but because of what he was going to say.

The first couple of questions were easy softballs. Then Sidney was hit with the question that opened the door.

“Sidney, great breaking your slump. There were rumors that your personal life was affecting your game on the ice. What do you think about that?”

Sidney looked at the reporters, all ready for him to give a cliche. Instead, Sidney admitted the truth. “My personal life was affecting my game on the ice. But we’ve fixed our issues and I’m glad.”

There was a pause, as if the reporters didn’t know where to start. Sidney looked at one of the PR interns to the side. The intern gave him a slight smile and a quick thumbs up. Sidney decided to continue, “We prefer to keep our relationship private for now but she means a lot to me and is very important to my life. I will not be answering any more questions about my relationship at this moment.”

Luckily, the rest of the questions were about hockey but Sidney knew that his statement was going to be a big part of what everyone was going to talk about. Once back in the locker room, Geno gave Sidney a big grin. Tanger said, “You did it?”

“Yeah but I’m serious, I’m not going to answer a bunch of questions about my personal life,” Sidney replied. “Now though, every time we struggle, the dumbasses will start talking about it.”

Tanger grimaced as Geno said, “Fuck them.”

Guentzy laughed as he stated, “I agree with Geno. Fuck them.”

Sidney laughed as he pulled his shirt off before pulling off his pads. Sitting in his crocs, hockey pants and pads, Sidney pulled out his phone. There was just one message from the only person who’s opinion mattered to him, wow😍 .

Sidney replied back, made it official for u but in the way u wanted 😁😏

😘🥰 part of me can’t believe it but i’m happy u listened to me, was Nina’s reply.

Sidney texted, only 4 u, before finishing getting undressed so he could take a shower.

To be totally honest, Nina thought her life would have exploded the minute that Sidney admitted that he was seeing someone in the post-game conference after the Isles game. It wouldn’t take much to put 2 and 2 together, especially when she went out with Sidney and the Malkins to a popular Shadyside restaurant the day after. But things were relatively calmer.

There were still the nasty looks from other people, especially women when Nina was out by herself, running her everyday errands. But there were also people who seemed to defer to her and it felt so fucking weird. Like, if she wanted to, Nina felt like people were ready to let her do whatever she wanted because she was now Sidney Crosby’s girlfriend.

Nina bit her lip as she waited in line to pay for her groceries. Then someone bumped into her and it was Ron. “Hey Nina, long time no see.”

“Hi Ron,” Nina replied with a strained smile.

“Not everyday one sees their ex. Look at you, shopping like the rest of us. Your man ain’t ordering groceries for you.”

Nina resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She could feel the eyes of other people at Weis and she knew there were people looking for something to gossip about. Nina definitely didn’t want to give Ron the satisfaction of a reaction. She merely replied, “I have my own life I have to take care of on my own.”

“Oh wow, because I remember the way you two were looking at each other that time we went out on a date. Makes me think you were cheating on me with him,” Ron goaded.

Nina gave him a blank look. “We were long over, for almost three years, before I went out with Sidney. But you had two other women when we were a couple,” Nina stated with a shrug. “Anyway, it’s my turn to check out. Bye.”

Nina tuned Ron out as she checked out. The cashier commented, “That guy seems like a dick.”

“You live and you learn,” Nina replied with a smile as she paid, unaware that someone had uploaded video of that encounter to the internet.

Sidney gulped down his protein shake, home after practice. The season was starting well but he felt like the team could be better. Sidney wanted another cup, one more cup and he felt like this was the year. Then his phone buzzed and he saw it was his mom.

“Hi Mom,” Sidney said, sitting on his sofa. He had some time before he needed to get ready for tonight and it was always good to talk to his mother.

Trina chirped, “Hi Sidney, how are you?”

“I’m doing good, short practice today before our game against New Jersey tomorrow,” Sidney idly replied as he turned his tv on. Flipping through Netflix, he chose an episode of How I Met Your Mother.

He could hear his mother’s smile through the phone when she teased, “Your father told me you told the press that you are seeing someone last week. Is it that girl you kept talking about over the years?”

Sidney giggle-honked before admitting, “Yes, it is. I’m finally dating Nina.”

“Are you sure it’s a good idea? This is something totally different for you,” Trina asked, concerned. Her son had a relationship with Kathy but this situation with this new girl was something totally different. Part of her was worried that since Sidney had wanted this girl for so long, that he was diving into this without really thinking about it.

Sidney replied, “You sound like Nina.”

“Hmm, I do?”

“Yep, Mom, you did,” Sidney said, “Nina wasn’t sure if it was a good idea for a long time but I managed to convince her it was.”

Trina was still feeling skeptical. From what she knew, this girl was from the area, a fan of the team, a different race, and had worked for the team for a period of time. It was possible she could be playing the long game. “Is she there with you now?”

Knowing her son, Trina was convinced that Nina was already living with her son. Her son, when he decided he wanted something, went all out to get it. She was surprised when Sidney said, “No, she’s at work, then she has class.”

“Class,” Trina asked, her tone perking up. This sounded interesting.

Sidney informed his mother, “Nina decided to get a PhD in rehabilitation science this year. She works as a physical therapist.”

“That sounds interesting, isn’t that how you met her,” Trina idly said. The door opened and Troy stepped in. Trina put her finger to her mouth to shush her husband.

Sidney scratched his head, wondering where his mother was going with these questions. “Yes. Nina works somewhere else totally different now. But she’s looking into becoming a professor after guest lecturing at, I think, Pitt.”

Trina raised her eyebrows. That was interesting information. Switching the conversation to more mundane subjects, Trina filed that information in the back of her head. It sounded like this Nina was a bit more well-rounded than she thought.

Sidney sighed when he hung up on his mother. That conversation felt like one thing but he could sense there was another undercurrent. Then he received a picture message from Nina and his mind went straight to the gutter. Sidney sighed; it was going to be a long night.

“You look very nice.”

Nina smiled as she replied, “Thank you,” to the guest.

It was kind of last minute, this dinner that Nina found herself invited to. It was thrown by Nathalie and most of the top brass of the Penguins were here as well as Sidney, the Letangs, and the Malkins. Because Sidney had gone public with their relationship, Nina had found herself suddenly invited. Luckily for her, Nina already had an appropriate cocktail dress for the occasion.

Her dress was black with an asymmetrical one shoulder with a bow but it came to just above knee level. Nina’s heels were gold, an impulse purchase several months ago that she was happy to have. The outfit was classy, understated, and definitely Penguins colors.

Sidney seemed to like it as well from the way his arm stayed possessively around Nina’s waist whenever possible. At least it wasn’t a public event; the possessiveness would have looked bad. But because it was informal and in a private room at PPG arena, Sidney was able to get away with it.

The length was a blessing and a curse. A blessing that it meant that Sidney couldn’t try to do any funny business during dinner but a curse in that the more he touched her, the more Nina wanted him. By the end of the night, it was obvious that Sidney was getting close to losing his cool and Nina was loving it.

As soon as they got into the car at the end of the night, Sidney pounced. His lips touched hers, demanding and devouring as he kissed her. Then abruptly, Sidney let go. “You'd been torturing me all night in that little black dress. So sexy, the way it showed off my pretty girl’s body.”

Sidney already knew that Nina was perfect in every way anyway. However, as soon as he saw her step in with that black dress and gold heels, it took every ounce of media training and self-control for Sidney not to strip it off of her and fuck her right there. Right now, he was glad that he hired a car after this event.

Sidney didn’t even do anything in the car other than keep his hand on Nina’s thigh. The difference was that he told Nina every filthy thing he planned to do to her once he got her home. Nina wiggled on the seat, her legs shifting as Sidney whispered what he planned to do to her. It was insane, what he could do to her with his words.

Nina had expected Sidney to push her against the wall when they got back to his place but instead, he just guided Nina to the kitchen before taking out two glasses. Picking out a wine, Sidney poured two glasses.

“I’ve missed you in my bed but I’m patient,” Sidney stated, his hands palming Nina’s ass before giving both cheeks a smack. Then Sidney picked up the glasses of wine and passed one to Nina.

Nina smirked. “I’m not,” she said as she took a sip.

“Can’t be patient for me, pretty girl?”

Nina shrugged as she took another sip. Then she delicately licked a drop that was on her lower lip, causing Sidney to visibly grunt and shudder. “Maybe,” Nina finally replied.

“Good.”

Sidney sat down in a chair and patted his lap. Nina sat on his lap, the hem of her dress riding up. “Did you have a good time?”

“I actually did for something that was pretty last minute. Don’t ask me if I remember everyone’s name yet.”

“That’s okay,” Sidney reassured Nina. “No one expects you to remember everyone, yet.”

Nina snorted before taking another sip of her wine. Idly, Sidney added, “Fuck, I love this dress.”

“Maybe if you move your hands higher underneath it, you’ll get a surprise,” Nina taunted. Licking her lips, she winked.

Unable to resist a challenge, Sidney moved his hand higher and higher. Then he whistled when he realized Nina’s surprise. “You went commando all night and didn’t tell me?”

“I’m lucky this dress was lined so well that no one could tell,” Nina admitted. “But it was worth it.”

“How,” Sidney asked as his hand touched Nina’s pussy. She was already wet.

Nina smirked. “Because I knew if you found out tonight, the look on your face would have been priceless.”

Sidney ignored that statement as he stroked Nina’s core with his fingers. Rolling her clit with his fingers, Sidney hissed at the idea that Nina was here, with him tonight. His pretty girl, perfect in his lap. "I love how wet you get for me, pretty girl."

"Only for you, daddy," Nina moaned as she clutched his shoulders. Sidney growled at her words, her pussy clenching harder on his fingers.

Suddenly, Sidney picked Nina up and placed her on the table. Nina smiled as she hiked up her dress and spread her legs. Sidney licked his lips. “We’re gonna see how many times you cum for me tonight, pretty girl.”

“Fuck, I can’t wait,” Nina moaned as his mouth met her core.

Sidney woke, at first disoriented because someone else was in his bed and curled up on top of him. Then he realized it was Nina and he relaxed. Her head was on top of his chest, one arm on him as she slept on her side. Carefully extracting himself, Sidney went to the bathroom. After relieving himself, he watched Nina continue to sleep, now curled into herself. Sidney took a quick picture, it was so cute. However, after taking the picture, he checked his messages. “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” he chanted.

Nina opened her eyes slowly, her body deliciously sore after last night. Stretching out her arms, she sleepily asked, “What’s wrong, Sid?”

“Seems like someone has something against you, pretty girl,” Sidney said, suppressing his fury.

Nina’s eyes snapped open, sleep now forgotten. Sitting up, she queried, “What happened?”

“There's a video of you with some guy at a market.”

Grimacing, Nina sighed. “I ran into Ron while getting groceries. He was being a jagoff asshole.”

“You don’t look bad at all, PR thinks you handled it perfectly.”

Nina got off the bed and walked over to Sidney. Wrapping her arms around him, she pleaded, “Fuck him and fuck whoever took video.”

Snuggling into Sidney’s chest, Nina nipped one of his nipples. “Plot your revenge later, Sid. It’s eight am and I know you have a maintenance day today. Come back to bed.”

“‘Come back to bed?’ You know this is my bed,” Sidney joked. His anger was going away each second that Nina was pressed against him, her lips giving him little kisses and bites on his upper body.

Nina looked up at Sidney, giving him soulful eyes. “Please, daddy?”

Trailing her hands around his neck, Nina murmured, “I’ve been so good. Please?”

“Fuck, how can I say no,” Sidney groaned as Nina giggled. Picking her up, he tossed her on the bed.

Scooting back, Nina spread her legs as Sidney settled in the middle of them. “I love the way you fuck me, Sidney.”

Sidney smirked, his brown eyes smoldering as he crouched over Nina. “Oh do you?”

“Yes, I do,” Nina hummed, her fingers tugging on his chain. “You should do it again.”

Sidney settled between Nina’s thighs, pulling her legs around his waist. His lips lowered to hers in a gentle kiss. Slow and drugging, enough to make both of them red hot for each other, full of promise. Pulling away, Sidney nipped Nina’s lower lip. Nina sucked her lip into her mouth, her brown eyes meeting Sidney’s. Cupping Nina’s chin, Sidney reminded her, “How do you ask, pretty girl?”

“Please fuck me, daddy,” Nina asked, her body arching towards his. “Make me yours.”

“Good girl.”

Nina tried hard not to feel self-conscious as she made her way to the ice-level with Aryanna, Catherine and her children, and Anna with Nikita. It had been a week since that awful article with video from her interaction with Ron. It had been set up to make Nina look like a gold digging whore and it hurt to have guys, guys she had only gone out with once or twice, say things that made her seem horrible. Nina hadn’t admitted that part to Sid when he was in a fury about it. Lauren had reminded Nina that men tend to be assholes about women that they couldn’t have and that Nina was way beyond their level even before her current relationship.

Even though Nina had distracted Sidney that morning, by the afternoon, that article was off the internet. A radio host had mentioned it and then within an hour, issued an apology for talking about it. However, it was forgotten pretty quickly as more people cared about the Steelers potentially staying undefeated with a game coming up against the Browns.

Nina smiled as they reached the ice. The team was doing warm-ups and Sidney was in the midst of his pregame rituals. She actually had more enjoyment from watching Aryanna react to watching the guys on the ice. Tanev gave the glass near them an ice shower while Geno and Kris had greeted Nina and Aryanna while saying hi to their families. Then, very unexpectedly, Sidney broke one of his traditions and came over. Giving the glass a small shower, Sidney waved at Aryanna before smirking at Nina. Nina smirked back before giving Sid a little wave.

As people took pictures of Sid waving to her, Nina smiled. She could live with this, maybe. ‘No, that was a lie’, Nina thought as they made their way to the family box. She was going to have to live with this now, it was too far gone to go back. And she didn’t want to.

164 notes · View notes

mettywiththenotes · 3 years ago

Text

320 bits I wanna talk about

Iieda looks like he’s doing the *inhale* before the BOI IF YOU DON’T- meme. Something along the lines of “BOI IF YOU DON’T GET YOUR ASS BACK TO UA-” kind of thing lol.

He holding something in definitely. Maybe charging up for an attack? Idk but he sure seems concentrated

Actually, Iieda seems kinda considering. Maybe he’s weighing up if he should join in the fight, as if he’s asking “Will I have to fight Midoriya, if it comes down to it? Or can the others handle this?” Something tells me he doesn’t want to have to weigh in on the fight. Maybe tear into Izuku verbally, but fight? No I don’t think he wants to do that

But also, I find it interesting that that black panel of text is under him and then it cuts to Bakugou yelling at Izuku. I mean, it could very well be Bakugou thinking that, but if that’s so, then why is Iieda the first person we see?

So, I think it’s Iieda thinking that. Tensions are rising, it seems. I’m expecting his turn to be full of a lot of emotion, or at least trying to get across to Izuku that he feels betrayed but mostly just wants Izuku to come back home.

I don’t really know what’ll happen with Iieda exactly, but I’m totally interested to see what happens

I know Bakugou has problems with his emotions and words and stuff, but I also think here he’s trying to anger Izuku in order to get him to fight back, maybe so he’s more angry than flexible in a fight, so the end result would be Izuku getting too angry to predict anything and eventually tripping up, and that’s when 1A could capture him.

The one thing to remember about Izuku is that allowing him to think is going to be the opponent’s downfall. We saw in the Kacchan VS Deku 2 fight that Bakugou knew this and so kept attacking as much as possible so Izuku wouldn’t have time to think. Which worked, because Izuku is great at analysis, so making his “Win” attitude [getting competitive therefore putting more energy into attacking than strategy] come out over his “Save” attitude [you’re my friend and I want to help you] is kind of a weakness of his. That’s kind of one of the reasons he lost that fight.

Then again, maybe Izuku has improved since then? I don’t really know but I think enough time has passed for him to have maybe improved more on that so idk we’ll see

I really love Bakugou’s expression in that bottom screencap lol

His wound!! All bandaged up!! I wonder if there’s a scar there or smthg :O

LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

I know Enji or Bakugou probably gave them details about the multiple quirks but I still find it wild that everyone just knows now

KOUDA! MY SWEETHEART! I’m glad he’s getting a part in this too, along with Sero. Two of them who didn’t really hang around Izuku but still want him to come back :’)

Sero and Black Whip! Finally! I mean it’s not much but it’s still better than nothing

Also, seems like Sero is trying to taunt Izuku to get him to attack him maybe [same as Bakugou feeding into Izuku’s competitive side] soooo idk Sero following Bakugou’s lead? Maybe :)

Look at how,,,, innocent Izuku looks,,,,, *head in hands* AND SERO TEACHING HIM!!

I knew this lil moment would come bite me in the ass at some point, I knew and yet I’m still tearing up goddamn

That “I thought she was going to tell me its a useless hobby” bit really drives home how Izuku’s friends are 1A, that he loves them and they were the only friends he’s ever had [except Bakugou but he was a bully at the time so I’m not really gonna count him for back then]. HOW many people before UA had gone around and told Izuku his taking notes hobby was useless? SHOW me the people!

I, mettywiththenotes, will NOT allow anybody to slander one of my own!

I know it’s like the only moment Izuku and Ojiro shared, with the sports festival thing, but it’s still really sweet that Ojiro sees that Izuku stood up for him

*head in hands*

Shouldn’t this kid be more worried that he’s likely going to get kidnapped?

“Yeah this super evil villain guy has decided he wants to kidnap me and take me away, but like nbd guys really, that’s why I left in the first place! So I wouldn’t be a burden!” Somebody get this kid a fucking therapist or some shit

This is kind of a chilling and pretty scene though. The rain falling above Izuku and him looking down with these piercing green eyes likely being the only light between them. Good stuff.

Satou! Aha I like how he’s pulling all the stops, such as “I WON’T LET YOU BORROW MY INGREDIENTS FOR ERI!”

Also let’s appreciate that Satou caught Ojiro and Jirou and managed to land on a freaking traffic light. The balance on this kid! Very well done

Kaminari putting Izuku in a headlock! How cute :)

Be cuter if they weren’t trying to subdue a martyr-complex cryptid from killing himself, but still

Does Shouji have some kind of support-item?? Or could he always do the stretchy thing?? Or I guess maybe he’s just stretching his arms out like branches [like he usually does] and using them as more like a capture weapon rather than his usual stuff. I don’t think we’ve ever seen him use his heteromorph body and quirk for anything other than the 5 senses, though I could be wrong

Also Shouji remembering what Izuku said at the training camp, I’m so glad! Shouji always seems like the kind to be so protective over his friends, so I’m glad he remembered that. Then again, Izuku did compare them to freaking ALL MIGHT, but if the nice analytical kid in your class who knows your limits and strengths says you could basically beat A GOD, then that’s definitely one for the memory scrapbook lmao

“It’s nice and dark here, Dark Shadow.” Who said that?? Kami or Izuku?? I just have this mental image of Izuku being shrouded in darkness and trying to keep his eyes open from falling asleep haha

Tokoyami remembering that from all the way back then!! It makes me think that not only have Bakugou and Izuku been watching each other, but that Izuku has always had everybody’s eyes on him! Which is true, he’s inspired everyone! It goes both ways; Izuku loving his friends, and them loving him back :’)

Kami telling him to take a bath lmao I love it. Finally somebody said it

*ugly sobbing noises*

This kind of segment, with a mask falling, a space in-between and a reveal, reminds me of Compress’ reveal :) In that, the person is hiding their identity and then when the mask comes off, they reveal who they truly are underneath

While Izuku is of course determined to go after AFO and is quite the fearsome powerhouse, I really think when he takes off that mask, he’s showing who he really is underneath - a scared little boy who just wants everyone to be happy

JESUS, SHOUTO REALLY IMPROVED HIS QUIRK HUH!! LOOK AT IT, IT’S EVEN HIGHER THAN THE SKYSCRAPERS!!

“The burden placed on you... it doesn’t allow for tears, right?” He sounds so sassy here.

Kind of like saying “Oh you look upset. But that’s weird, I thought Heroes weren’t supposed to cry.” Lol it really shows here how pissed Shouto is at Izuku

But then he relents from that snark and is like “Hey, come on, we’ll share this burden. I’m not letting you go it alone, remember that we’re all here.” :’)

I love when Shouto is sassy and passive aggressive but I also love it when he shows that soft side of him

Okay, this is something I really love.

Tsuyu didn’t join the Bakugou Rescue Squad because “they would be just like Villains breaking the rules”

But here she is, learning from that regret of hers and coming right back to make sure Izuku isn’t the one struggling. She wants to be a part of this rescue squad and pick up where she left off :)

Tsuyu has always struggled with her regrets. It was shown after Kamino when she cried, but for me, I only realised this fully during the Joint Arc when she had her regrets about not making better decisions and not being quick enough [I think that was it].

“I won’t cry in such a flurry” reminds me of “I want to live a life without regret” and so that’s what she’s saying here. This won’t be another regret of hers. She wants to do her best to save her friend

“When scared, you’re allowed to tremble when it’s tough, you’re allowed to shed tears. That’s how you become a Hero like in the comics.”

I feel like that quote piggybacks off of Shouto’s “Heroes cry too”, in that, this is now 1A comforting Izuku. This is them fully coming up to him and telling him that they can help, and that he’s allowed to feel sad about his situation. Shouto’s quote was the teaser, while this entire chapter [and the rest that come to follow] is the main course.

And this is exactly who Tsuyu is. Reassuring, comforting, someone dependable. It says a lot that she’s come from not going to help in Kamino, confessing her feelings and crying about it, then coming back in a similar situation and offering her help - that she’s not willing to just let an opportunity go to better herself. I think I remember reading a few posts on her crying after Kamino and saying it was “performative” or that she just “wanted attention” or smthg like that, but I think she’s really just quite an honest person, and here she is making a great show of how she won’t let something like her guilt slow her down from being the hero she wants to be.

[A part of me feels like this is also a little more evidence with the whole People Not Caring About Bakugou’s Feelings Of Helplessness but like. I digress. It kinda counts but at the same time, it’s not what is going on at the moment.]

Seeing everyone try to reassure Izuku was lovely, and I can’t wait for the rest. I’ve seen a lot of people waiting more for Bakugou’s portion of the battle [AND YEAH DUDE ME TOO] but I really feel like Bakugou’s won’t come until like 2 chapters later or something.

Cause, if this chapter is anything to go by, we’ll probably get through Mina, Mineta, Kirishima, Hagakure and Aoyama next chapter, and then we’ll move onto the “more important” conflicts which will be Iieda and Uraraka, and if their segments are chocked with tension drama and tears, then Bakugou will have a whole chapter to himself hopefully.

Which means we’ll probably have to wait 2 more chapters until we get that sweet, sweet Bakugou chapter :( I hope I’m wrong and it comes sooner than predicted but whatever

I know for some people, that’s all they want, but personally I love these little bits that reflect on the background characters. As someone who isn’t really obsessed with the background characters but also likes them enough to appreciate their development/the little moments they have, I gotta say I really liked this :)

#bnha #bnha 320 #bnha spoilers #bnha manga spoilers #class 1a

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kerosene-insomniac · 3 years ago

Text

wondering {bakudeku}

Pairing: Bakugou Katsuki x Midoriya Izuku

Warnings: traumatic experiences, omegaverse, mentions of kidnapping, mentions of suicide, forced captivity, parental aizawa, crying, katsuki vs kota, protective kirishima

Chapter: 3/??

Word Count: 3728 words

Summary: Izuku wakes up in the hospital, absolutely terrified to find out that the rescue had been real. He meets Aizawa, who offers him answers to most of his questions. Meanwhile, Katsuki is in the waiting room with most of the Baku-Squad, contemplating his choices.

{0.3} Cruel

“It was so much easier when I didn't want anything. Not getting what you want can make you cruel.”

― David Levithan

I Z U K U

When Izuku opens his eyes, he briefly wonders if someone is playing a cruel trick on him. That if, for some fucked up reason, he had finally died.

But Izuku knows better.

The room that he’s in is dimly lit, but smells heavily like a hospital. Izuku can hear the beeping of machines and feel the tubes that were hooked up to his body. He was obviously in a real, honest to God, hospital room.

Not the filthy room in the back of the warehouse where Izuku saw a shady doctor.

Izuku ignored the oxygen mask on his face and tried to sit upright, only to find that his wrists were shackled to the side of the hospital bed.

What the-

“We didn’t know if you’d wake up feral.”

Izuku flinched in surprise, snapping his head in the direction of the voice. A tall, dark-haired beta sat in one of the plastic chairs that adorned the room. His long hair was pulled up in a loose bun, and he looked like he hadn’t slept in a very long time.

Then why is the room so dark?

The unfamiliar beta studied him for a second, his book still open in front of his face. “We also wanted to keep the room dark so you wouldn’t hurt your eyes.”

Izuku blushed as he realized that he had spoken out loud.

The beta sighed, closing the book in his hands and placing it on the table next to him. “Bakugou will be happy to hear that you’re awake. He’s been fighting with Kota over who got to sit with you.”

Kota?

Kacchan?

“My name is Aizawa Shota.”

Izuku swallowed thickly, trying to process all the information being offered to him. A large part of him thought that it had all been a dream. Their captors liked to play cruel tricks on them, where they would trick everyone into thinking that they were being rescued.

If that was all real, then so was….

Oh my god.

Izuku’s breathing picked up as pure fear shot through his veins. “I-I thought that it was fake. I didn’t think that any of it was real…”

A moment of awkward silence hung in the air.

After a few moments, Aizawa gradually stood and approached the bed. He looked exhausted and stressed, but his pheromones were calm and soothing. Usually, betas didn’t have much of a smell.

But Aizawa smelled earthy, with the faint sweetness of a pup.

“I know that this is a little overwhelming.” Aizawa murmured, his voice smooth and controlled. “But I promise you that you’re safe.”

Izuku’s chest tightened. “I attacked a hero.”

Aizawa shrugged. “You were feral.”

“No, I wasn’t.”

The beta blinked, his expression completely void of emotion as he raised an eyebrow at Izuku. “You weren’t feral? Red Riot and other heroes, including myself, all saw you go ballistic. You attacked two of the strongest heroes in the city, Midoriya.”

Izuku shook his head, listening to the monitor beep next to him as his heart rate rapidly increased. “That’s not how my quirk works. I use adrenaline as a fuel source, meaning that-”

“Even in a feral state, you have full control.”

The small omega nodded, his green eyes falling to his bound wrists. “I still don’t understand the specifics of my quirk, but I promise you that I was lucid. My body just moved on it’s own when a shit-ton of alphas broke into my nest.”

Aizawa blinked again. “Your nest?”

“I-” Izuku’s tongue felt heavy. “I had been there a while.”

How long had I been in there?

Kacchan looked so...mature.

Aizawa’s eyes softened as Izuku’s fearful pheromones filled the air. “You know, nobody is blaming you for how you reacted, Midoriya. You’ve spent ten years of your life under emotional distress, so going feral was perfectly normal.”

Izuku’s heart nearly burst out of his chest.

Ten years?

“And...and the pups? Are they okay?”

The tired beta nodded, offering Izuku a tight-lipped smile. “All fifty-three pups have been returned to their parents. Kota has also been reunited with his family, but certain circumstances have prevented him from going home.”

Circumstances?

Izuku’s heart rate picked up again. “Is he okay? What’s wrong with Kota?!”

“Calm down. I promise you that he’s more than fine.”

The small omega was shaking under his blanket, absolutely terrified at the idea of Kota being hurt. It was like his very soul was attached to the pup, which was more than concerning for Izuku.

Because Kota isn’t his.

Not by a long shot.

Aizawa sighed, still studying Izuku in the dim light of the room. “Kota imprinted on you, Midoriya. Since he was an orphan by the time he was kidnapped, his inner pup attached itself to the only person he could trust.”

“What does that mean?” Izuku’s voice was hushed.

The beta took a deep breath, shifting his weight slightly. “It means that Kota genuinely believes that you’re his mother. He remembers his parents, and his other family, but it would cause too much emotional distress to separate you.”

Izuku swallowed. “But it can happen eventually, right?”

Aizawa’s lips were set in a straight line. “Pups only imprint on their parents. After his parents died, Kota lived with his cousin for two years. He didn’t imprint on her the way he was supposed to, no matter how hard she tried.”

“I-I still don’t understand…”

The beta sighed, his eyes flickering to his feet. “For some reason, Kota’s inner pup chose you to replace his parents. There’s no actual way to break the imprinting without causing him extreme pain. He’s convinced that you’re his dam.”

Oh, Kota,

I’m sorry.

Izuku felt tears prick at the corners of his eyes. “I didn’t mean for that to happen. I’m so sorry.”

Aizawa shrugged, obviously trying to remain put-together. “His cousin, who is his legal guardian, is a full-time pro hero. All she’s asking is to eventually meet you and discuss a plan, but she’s not angry. She’s thankful that you kept him safe.”

And god, that was enough to make Izuku sob.

Gentle hands touched his shoulder, rubbing comforting circles into his skin. Normally, Izuku would have growled or snarled if someone touched him without his consent. This time, though, the unfamiliar touch felt like a blessing.

“You did a great job at protecting them,” Aizawa reassured him, his voice completely gentle. “The pups only suffered from malnutrition and emotional distress.”

Izuku gasped for air, his tears feeling like acid on his face.

Aizawa hummed, gently comforting the small omega. They sat in silence for a few minutes as Izuku continued to cry, which was the most emotion he’s shown in years. The reality of what happened was hitting him full force.

He’s free.

“Wh-where’s Kota?”

The beta next to him took a deep breath at Izuku’s question. “As of right now, he’s bickering with Bakugou in the waiting room. The doctors let him see you a couple hours a day before he goes home with his cousin.”

Izuku’s heart thudded in his chest.

“So I didn’t imagine that, either.”

Aizawa’s eyebrows furrowed. “Imagine what?”

Kacchan.

Izuku took a shaky breath, actually thankful that Aizawa removed the oxygen mask on his face. “I thought maybe that I hallucinated seeing an old friend of mine. He looked just as surprised as I felt.”

“Ah. You’re talking about Bakugou…”

The small omega nodded, looking down at his hands. Scars lined his hands from his early days of captivity where his traffickers were testing the limits of his quirk. Even though he healed incredibly fast, it almost always left scars.

Physical and emotional.

Aizawa sighed, earning a shy glance from Izuku. “I’m aware of the bare minimum in terms of your case. But I’m well aware of the little shit Bakugou used to be.”

“Used to be?”

The beta nodded. “I was his teacher at UA. He carried a lot of weight on his shoulders and lashed out at others to keep them away. I forced him into therapy during his third year, which continued well into his career. He’s changed a lot.”

Izuku’s chest felt tight. “He must be angry.”

“Yes. But with himself, more than anything.”

I’m not so sure about that…

Izuku didn’t say the words he was thinking. Honestly, the idea of Kacchan being so close and hanging around Kota filled his veins with dread and fear. After all, the alpha was never known for his patience with other people, let alone pups.

Honestly, Izuku isn’t even sure why Kacchan’s here. He must be busy with his job and possible mate. What the hell was he doing here in the first place?

And where is my mom?

“Before I tell them that you’re awake, we have a few things to discuss.”

Izuku’s eyebrows furrowed as he faced the solemn beta. The air shifted to one of uneasiness, washing over the omega like cold water.

Aizawa’s face was serious and blank, making Izuku’s stomach churn. “Your file listed you as quirkless. Bakugou also swears that you’re quirkless, yet our tests proved otherwise. Where did you get this quirk, Midoriya?”

Why does he sound so...scared?

Izuku took a shaky breath, his adrenaline spiking. “I wasn’t aware that I had one until the day I was kidnapped. I, uh, tried to commit suicide earlier that day and...somehow survived throwing myself off a ten-story building.”

This time, it was obvious that the new information surprised the stoic beta. Aizawa had pulled away from Izuku in surprise, with a mix of conflicted emotions plastered on his face. At the most, he looked incredibly sad.

Then, his face became stoic again.

“I see... how did quirk traffickers find out about your quirk?”

The small omega’s chest felt tight as he took a labored breath. “They watched me fall. When I somehow came out unscathed, they grabbed me and shoved me in a van.”

Aizawa’s gaze softened. “So the blood they found near that building you were last seen...that was actually yours?”

“Yes. One of the kidnappers stabbed me with their quirk.”

Izuku stared at his hands again, trying to fight against the onslaught of memories. Sometimes that day felt clear and fresh like a bloody wound, leaving a scar on his psyche that would never go away. After all, his life did technically end that day.

Aizawa nodded, looking satisfied with Izuku’s answers. “The police will have questions for you, I’m sure, but I’ll go let the doctors know that you’re awake. They need to discuss your injuries and such.”

Injuries?

“Can I ask you a question before you do?”

Aizawa’s eyebrows furrowed. “Sure. I’ll try to answer it, but I can’t make any promises.”

Izuku smiled softly. “I was just wondering why you’re the one sitting with me? You don’t even know me or understand who I was before all of this.”

The beta sighed, awkwardly scratching his chin. “I had myself trained to deal with victims of trauma. Bakugou is trained as well, but he didn’t want to overwhelm you with anything. He trusts me more than some random person, so I agreed.”

“Why does he care?”

Aizawa shrugged, hiding his surprise well. “I can’t tell you that, Midoriya. If you want to know, then you should ask him.”

*******

K A T S U K I

“Are you okay?”

Katsuki swallowed thickly at Kirishima’s words, trying to fight off the impending nausea. “Honestly? I have no fucking clue.”

Kirishima smiled knowingly at his best friend, patting Katsuki’s shoulder. The red-haired beta had been sitting with Katsuki at the hospital when he wasn’t patrolling, knowing full well that the alpha had taken a paid leave off of work.

To be fair, Katsuki had saved up more than enough vacation time.

Katsuki couldn’t go to work with Izuku in the hospital. He had way too much to say and too many things to apologize for. The small omega had been unconscious for three days straight due to the amount of sedatives in his system, according to the doctors.

Apparently, his quirk could make him immune to certain chemicals when his adrenaline was high. That’s why he wasn’t affected by the tranquilizers.

A fucking quirk.

After hearing Izuku mention someone as influential as Shigaraki Tomura, plus the sudden appearance of a quirk in someone diagnosed otherwise, was enough to bring up Katsuki’s memories from high school.

All For One was locked up in Tartarus, but that doesn’t mean that he didn’t get his disgusting paws on Izuku. How the fuck else would the small omega be aware of someone as repulsive as Shigaraki?

It made Katsuki want to puke.

“You don’t have to do this, Kats. I mean, I’m-”

Katsuki growled, effectively cutting off Kirishima. “Don’t even fucking start. I’m the reason he ran off that day. I’m the only person he has left, Shitty Hair.”

Kirishima sighed, not even intimidated by the angry pheromones coming off of Katsuki. “I just don’t want you putting your mental health on line in an attempt to fix your mistakes, bro. He’s obviously traumatized and unstable, with a pup on the way.”

“Are you saying I can’t handle it, Shitty Hair?”

The beta flinched at the calm tone in Katsuki’s voice. “I’m just saying that you can’t let your emotions affect major life decisions. I know that you still have some feel-”

Don’t you fucking dare...

Katsuki growled loudly, sitting much straighter than before. “This has nothing to do with the fact that I had feelings for him as a pup, Kirishima. This has to do with the fact that he needs a stable place to go with someone he’s familiar with.”

A heavy, tense silence filled the air.

Kirishima studied Katsuki for a few moments before sighing in defeat. “Alright. I’m sorry for implying that you couldn’t handle this, Bakubro.”

Katsuki glared at him for a moment before nodding. Despite how emotionally constipated he had been in high school and middle school, he had much more control over his anger and other unpredictable emotions.

“I’m sorry, too.” Katsuki mumbled, looking away from his friend.

The beta grinned, shifting his focus away from Katsuki to look at the display in front of them. “Have you ever noticed that Kota is a bit like you? It’s kinda funny.”

So what if I have?

Katsuki huffed with annoyance as his stupid-ass friends fawned over the brat in front of him. He was eating a protein bar, anxiously bouncing his leg as he looked around the waiting room.

Honestly, Katsuki felt like he was on the verge of vomiting.

Raccoon Eyes and Pikachu were gushing over Kota, who looked like he was on the verge of a meltdown himself. To be fair, the alien idiot was here because Kirishima was supporting Katsuki, and the yellow idiot was here because he’s the only other male omega Katsuki knows.

He had been helping Katsuki out a lot in the past few days.

The day of the rescue, Katsuki had to make a split-second decision.

The decision itself was relatively easy, but that doesn’t change how unprepared Katsuki was. After contacting his parents (who had been horrified to hear about Izuku) and discussing things with them, Katsuki decided that his former childhood friend would stay with him.

Inko died four years after Izuku supposedly did. Even Katsuki tried to visit her when he could and apologized repeatedly, that didn’t stop the woman from dying of a broken heart.

In some sick way, Katsuki is thankful that Inko wasn’t alive to find out what exactly Izuku had been through. Judging from the pup in Izuku’s stomach and the way Kota treated alphas around his dam, it didn’t take a genius to figure out the truth.

So, Katsuki had to prepare his home for Izuku.

Katsuki wasn’t even sure of where to begin when it came to having a home fit for a male omega. Considering how rare they actually were, the stressed alpha had no choice but to ask the only other male omega he knew.

Dunce Face.

According to Kaminari, Katsuki needed proper nesting materials, pheromone filters, heat toys (which he made Kaminari get), an abundance of clothes, toiletries, and probably more.

Since Katsuki had decided to give Izuku a place to stay, he’s been a mess of nerves and anxiety. Hell, he’s made himself throw-up just from thinking about the fact.

And that’s not even thinking about the unborn pup.

“You’re so cute!”

“Right? Look at his little scowl!”

“Aw, he’s blushing!”

Kota growled loudly, pushing the hands from his face. “Stop it! I’m not cute, you stupid dummies!”

Kaminari giggled, obviously not even bother by the pup’s rough exterior. “You might have to get better with the insults, Kota. Bakugou has whole arsenal just for myself, and that’s not even counting the rest of the Baku-Squad.”

“Why should I care? He’s a dumb, ugly alpha!”

That’s it, you little shit.

Katsuki released a warning growl and pointed a finger in Kota’s direction. “You better watch your mouth and look in the mirror, you brat. You’re an alpha too!”

“Yeah, but at least Izu thinks I’m cute!”

The crimson-eyed alpha felt his eye twitch. “Then he must have low standards. Either that, or he’s lying to you.”

Mina shared a look with Kirishima as she moved to sit next to him. Even Kaminari looked amused as he watched both alphas bicker.

Kota huffed, crossing his arms in clear indignation. “You’re just mad that Izu’s mine! He’ll never like a big, dumb, ugly alpha like you!”

“Keep talking shit, you little-”

“Mr. Ground Zero?”

Katsuki’s gaze left the stubborn pup and looked in the direction of the voice. The doctor, a short alpha male with graying hair, stood next to them with a clipboard in his hands. This alpha is Izuku’s doctor, even though he voiced his disdain over Katsuki.

What the fuck does he want?

“Eraserhead just wanted me to let you know that he’s awake.”

Katsuki’s world stood still.

For the past three days, Katsuki’s had to find the right words to say to Izuku, who thought that he’s murdered ten years ago. He’s practiced and Shitty Hair, and even fucking rehearsed in mirror, for fuck’s sake!

He’s awake.

Katsuki’s mind blanked as he bolted upright, completely forgetting his previous argument with Kota. “How long has he been awake?! Why the fuck didn’t you notify me right away?”

The doctor blinked, not even flinching at the alpha’s hostile tone. “We had to detach Mr. Midoriya from some of the machines and make sure that he was cleared by our psychiatrist to speak with you.”

At least they did one thing right.

“Izu’s awake?!”

Kota appeared next to Katsuki, pointedly stepping in front of the older alpha. Faintly, the rest of the idiot squad could be heard snickering behind them.

The tired doctor looked down at the pup, plastering a kind smile on his face. “He’s awake and perfectly ready to see you. When you see him, just remember that his body still hurts from his injuries.”

“Can I see him now?” Kota’s tone was obviously annoyed.

I think the fuck not.

Katsuki huffed, earning a glance from the doctor. “I don’t think that the pup should be there while I talk to him. I’m not sure how he’ll take some of the information.”

The doctor nodded, earning a cry from Kota. “That’s probably a good idea.”

“That’s not fair!”

Katsuki looked down at Kota, who looked on the verge of tears as he glared at the doctor. For a split second, Katsuki felt bad for the small pup. Not that he’d ever admit it, of course, but he’s known Izuku longer than this snot-nosed brat.

With a sigh, Katsuki knelt down next to Kota.

He stills smells like Izuku.

Lucky bastard.

Katsuki cleared his throat, earning a glare from the pup. “Izuku is gonna need a lot of comfort after I talk to him, brat. You help each other, right?”

Kota narrowed his eyes, still scowling. “Why should I tell you anything? I bet that you just want to hurt Izu like every other alpha! Why do you get to see him first!?

“Do you wanna help him or not?”

Silence.

Katsuki took that as his answer, standing upright again and looking at the doctor. The old alpha had an amused gleam in his eye. “Let’s just get this over with. I doubt that he’s gonna want to be in the same room as me for very long, anyway.”

The doctor’s eye twitched as they walked away. “I think you’ll be surprised. After all, it’s been ten years. And his psychiatrist isn’t worried, either.”

“So he’s finished his psych evaluation?”

Katsuki couldn’t help but feel cautious.

The mental trauma that Izuku’s experienced in the past ten years would be enough to permanently change even the strongest alpha. And judging from his quirk and how he had taken Kirishima’s attacks like a pro, Izuku would be unstoppable if he went feral again.

The older alpha nodded, leading Katsuki down the familiar hallway. “I can’t discuss details, but the psychiatrist discussed his memories of you. As of right now, he’s just nervous about seeing you after so long.”

Katsuki’s heart-rate picked up speed. “Somehow, I doubt that.”

“Well, we’re here. Are you ready?”

The crimson-eyed hero froze as they stopped in front of a closed door. Izuku’s nervous scent was leaking out, making everything seem much more real in Katsuki’s mind.

Am I?

Katsuki took a shaky breath as his nerves sky-rocketed. “Just make sure Kota’s ready to head in after we’re done talking. I know for a fact that hearing about his mother is gonna break him. It would break anybody.”

“Of course, Ground Zero. Good luck.”

The doctor left Katsuki in the hallway, humming to himself as he looked at another patient file on his clipboard. Even though he been wary of Katsuki’s relationship with Izuku, he definitely had been more than understanding.

With a bated breath, Katsuki grasped the handle to the hospital room and twisted it open. As soon as the door opened, Izuku’s nervous pheromones hit him like a brick wall.

Katsuki’s eyes locked with emerald green.

#alpha/beta/omega verse #bakudeku fan fiction #bakudeku #bakugou katsuki #bakugou x midoriya #bakugou #midoriya izuku #izuku midoriya #bakusquad #bakugou x izuku #bnha fanfiction #bnha crack #bnha #bnha bakugo katsuki #bnha aizawa #parental aizawa

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anyoneseenadam · 4 years ago

Text

Home: Chapter Seven

azriel x reader (acotar)

summary: (y/n) is a daughter of Persephone, still recovering from the trauma of her fall into Tartarus and doesn’t have time for a stupid, handsome, annoying, stunning, injured man. But now they’re stuck together in the middle of nowhere and there only chance of getting home is if she can heal him, and fast.

warnings: big spoilers for mark of Athena and house of Hades, also for the acotar series, eventual smut, blood, PTSD, graphic descriptions of violence, injuries and torture, enemies to lovers so az is a bit of a dick to start, swearing,

word count: 3.9k

a/n: I’m entirely writing this to distract myself from the real world but honesty I’m having a great time, I think there will be one more chapter after this one and maybe an epilogue but asides from that, also feel free to message or ask if you want to be tagged :)) anyway enjoy and pls comment and shiz :)

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Azriel had once joked that you were like an actual flower, needing water and sunlight to use your powers. At the time you had laughed but now as you stood in front of the mirror, wiping the tears from under your eyes, and preparing to walk into the world of all things dead, you understood. The dress you wore was one of the few fancy ones you reserved for the dinners you were often dragged to before your fall. It was lavender, with tulle cascading down your legs from the waist, paired with a tight corset top and tulle off-the-shoulder sleeves. As you sat with a ‘humph’ and started applying your makeup, your stepbrother walked in.

“Well you look cheery,” Nico said, sitting on your bed.

“I look like an evil power puff girl,”

“You look like you are a princess, which you are so my dad is going to be pleased.”

“I really don’t care what he thinks,” you snapped, and Nico help up his hands. He was wearing all black as usual, simple dress pants and a loose black shirt tucked in, his belt matched his rings, and his dark hair and even darker eye bags made him look every bit the Underworld prince. “Sorry, I’m not mad at you,” you said turning back around to carry on with your makeup.

“I know, it’s stressful for you,” he moved to sit next to you, resting his head on your shoulder and you applied eyeliner.

“I don’t wanna get sick again, I have things to do. Plus I’ve got to convince your dad to let me ask for this favour. I just feel like it’s all going to go to shit.”

“I get it, you’ll be fine though. Also I’m pretty sure your mum is going to do anything for you if it means you’ll speak to her again, so she’ll be on your side at least. That’s three vs one.” He nudged you as you put down the eyeliner.

“That’s true.” You bit the inside of your lip and Nico, sensing your worry, changed topic.

“Tell me about Azriel,” He said, and you caught his eye in the mirror.

“Huh?”

“Well I gotta make sure that when you become his problem it will be permanent, I don’t want you coming back,” he joked.

“Fuck you,” you laughed shoving his shoulder and he giggled, rolling onto his back.

“I don’t want to do thisssss,” Nico said in a sing-song voice lying flat on the floor.

“Me neither but I’m not going in alone bitch,” you laughed, starting to feel slightly better. It was moments like this that made you regret pushing your friends away, the thought of seeing them was always scary but when you were with your brother again you remembered why you loved them so much. You assessed your outfit in the mirror and sighed.

“What?” Nico asked, sitting back up.

“This would look really nice with a dark red lip,” you said, biting your lip.

“Do you have one?” he asked, and you nodded. He was quiet for a second before reaching out and ruffling through your makeup, finding your favourite red lipstick. “Do you wanna try?”

“Yeah, but if I cry it’ll mess up my eyeliner.” You said with a shaky laugh. He laughed quietly handing you the lipstick and you looked at him in the mirror, taking in a shuddering breath. You were stronger than this and you could handle it. You closed your eyes for a minute, counting your breaths, before opening the lipstick.

Once it was applied you lifted your chin, staring down the girl in the mirror. Nico grabbed your hand softly and you tore your eyes away, standing and pulling on your shoes.

“Are you ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

Azriel was in a shit mood. He was 90% sure that you had cast some sort of spell on him when he was with you, something that made him happy and relaxed, because now that you weren’t here he pretty much wanted to throttle everyone.

Amren had been helping him look for a way to get back to you. The first thing they had tried was winnowing, he pictured your face; your smile, the way your hands felt in his, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t reach you. So they had been scanning books since then, reading up on every theory and myth. Nesta had brought him to speak to Gwyn who had told him about the theory that there could be up to at least 20 other worlds. Amren had also made him talk through every detail about this world he could remember, writing diligent notes as Cassian gave him weird looks when he spoke about Bucky Barnes.

“He’s a character, it’s a simple concept.”

“Yeah but how do you get an emotional connection to a character?”

“Shut up both of you.”

The pain in his chest was only growing as well, and he came to the daunting realisation that if he failed this; if he couldn’t get back to you, or get you back to him, he would probably have to deal with it for the rest of his long, long life.

He felt bad for taking his frustrations out on his family who were just worried about him, but he had never felt this way before. All he could think of was the way your eyes cleared when the realisation dawned on you. The way you had gone from sobs to a different, all-consuming kind of pain, just for a second, your eyes clearing as you realised you might never see him again. He hated himself for not being strong enough to put up a fight, he knew he wasn’t a match for a god, but he should’ve tried, he was too shocked at the time, too heartbroken, but now he was terrified that you might think he gave up on you. He had to get back to you, he was afraid what you might do if you were alone again. If you were alone after having the bond dangled in front of you, only to have it ripped away moments later.

It was almost 3am and everyone else in the house had gone to bed, but Azriel didn’t sleep well normally, and he especially wouldn’t while he was apart from you. He looked up from his book when he heard someone clear their throat, his head whipped up an incredulous smile gracing his features when he saw you sitting there.

“Baby,” he started moving forward but you held your hand up, stopping him.

“Oh that’s just too sweet, you kids are giving me so much content,” you dabbed at your eyes, and Azriel frowned.

“(y/n)? what’s going on?”

“Oh I’m not (y/n) sweetie, but that’s just adorable. My name is Aphrodite, Goddess of love and beauty, I often appear as whoever you find most beautiful.” Azriel’s heart dropped, the brief happiness he felt seeing your face gone as the lady spoke.

“Aphrodite? Hermes mentioned you.” He said, tensing as he realised he was dealing with another god. “In fact he said it was your fault this all happened.”

“Oh Hermes, always blaming someone else. You should be thanking me.”

“And why would I do that.” Azriel knew the look on his face was deadly, but something about seeing a god cower under his gaze was feeding his ego.

“Haven’t you worked out why you can’t travel back to her.” She raised her eyebrows at him, her expressions may be on your face, but as he paid more attention she seemed like a completely different person. “I have the power to move through world’s, you do not. I just thought that poor, sweet girl had been through enough that she should get to meet her soulmate. I waited for you after your mission and then just made you forget and let the two of you fall in love naturally, I mean I get teary eyed thinking about it, you’re just too cute!”

Azriel’s shoulders relaxed slightly, “So why are you here? Are you going to bring her to me?”

“Hmm I could, but I’d get in so much trouble, plus she’s very smart and I want to see if her plan works. You people are so very entertaining.” Her face rippled for a second as she turned, and she briefly looked like Mor, then Elain, then back to you. “But you, poor boy,” He chose to ignore the condescending tone, “You were dealt a very bad hand love wise, so maybe if she doesn’t succeed I could pull a few strings, but I do have a holiday planned so it may be a few decades.”

Her laugh made him feel sick and he glared at her, “What did you say about her plan?”

“Oh yes! She’s going down to the underworld to try find a solution,” Aphrodite was moving around the room gracefully as Azriel sat back down, the weight of Aphrodite’s easy words hitting him. She picked up one of the books laying on the desk and made an unimpressed noise, throwing it back down carelessly.

“That’s where the dead go right?” he asked, silently praying he was wrong,

“Yup! Don’t worry though, her mother lives there too,” she said ‘mother’ with a slight snarl, but Azriel ignored her. “You know I get why she likes you, you’re very pretty aren’t you?” She walked over to him, swaying your hips and he had to remind himself it wasn’t you as she sat down in his lap, forcing his hands to stay clenched at his side. She ran your hand along his jaw, tilting her head with a smile as she stroked his face. Her thumb rested on his bottom lip as he glared at her with murderous rage, trying to reel it in as he remembered she was possibly the only one that could help him.

“Well I guess I better go,” She sighed dramatically then pressed a perfectly polished gold coin into his hand, “Flip this if you need me, emergencies and sex only.” She winked at him, before kissing his cheek and standing, waving seductively before vanishing. Azriel sat for a few minutes, reeling from the interaction he just had. Is this the world I’ve entered now? Gods who can do whatever they want? He wondered if that’s why you avoided talking about the Gods, if maybe growing up with this had made you bitter to them. He wanted to ask you and talk to you about it, or anything for that matter but instead he just pocketed the coin and stood, winnowing to his room, and collapsing on his bed.

“Sweetie, you look beautiful,” Your mother cried out as you and Nico arrived, you were leaning heavily on his arm, while surrounded by death, the coldness of a lifeless place seeped into your bones and weakened you, you had learnt as much the first time you visited. You gave your mother a tight-lipped smile and hugged her awkwardly.

“Oh I missed you so much dear,” she stroked your hair, and you fought the urge to roll your eyes.

“You could’ve visited.” It was hard to keep the bitterness out of your voice, after all you had gone through and she hadn’t visited once. A look of shock passed over her face but before she could reply Hades thundered in, his usual outfit, ‘the robes of death and despair’ as you fondly called them, were replaced by a dark suit, his hair slicked back from his face. He came to Persephone’s side and rested a hand around her waist pulling her in slightly, and despite yourself you felt a little jealous of their closeness as your mother looked up at him with doe eyes.

“Nico, my son, how are you?” Hades deep voice silenced the room, the very air seeming to stand still, and Nico flushed red as he was put on the spot. The four of you exchanged pleasantries as you made your way to the ridiculously long table, Hades sat at the head on one side, Persephone on the other, with Nico and you facing each other in the centre. The wood was dark, but the table was covered in all sorts of colourful food and you all helped yourselves while making small talk, only managing to hear your parents due to the eery silence of the room, dead guards not needing to make any noise.

After the first few courses and once you had consumed enough white wine to gain some courage you turned to face your mother.

“Mum, I think I need a favour if that’s okay?” you asked with great caution, extremely aware of the powerful forces surrounding you.

“Well that depends dear. What is it?”

“After the battle and the… fall, I never got my reward remember, I instead asked to be able to come get it when I needed it.”

“Yes of course, I thought that was very smart!” your mother spoke cheerfully but you could feel Hades’ gaze on your back, burning through your skin and bones to the very essence of your soul. “Let me guess, you need it now?”

“If that’s okay, some things have changed recently and I now know what I need,” you smiled at her, “I met a man, well actually he’s a faerie. Aphrodite wanted us to meet because we’re soulmates and after my fall she thought I deserved to see him, but since he’s from another world he had to go back, and we can’t be together.” You wiped away a few stray tears you forced out; this was your game. Your mother didn’t visit you often so she had never seen this side of you, the side that could manipulate even a god into giving you what you wanted. “So I thought, maybe for my reward I could become Fae and be permitted to live with Azriel in his world, and maybe come and visit my friends occasionally?”

“Oh that sounds lovely dear! That’s so alike me, I had to beg my mother and even then she didn’t let me stay here,” your mother rattled on and you smiled at her, but your shoulders were still tense as you knew you hadn’t won yet. You turned to where Hades sat, rubbing his temples.

“I get it. I do. But I really don’t think my brother would allow that, it’s too much.”

“Too much?” you asked, a bitter laugh escaping.

“I understand you went through a lot,”

“Do you?” you couldn’t stop the biting words, “Because the last I checked you both sat and did nothing while I was tortured down there. You could’ve done something, but you didn’t, you made a choice not to, and now I ask for ONE thing, and it’s too much?” Hades’ glare was murderous, but you weren’t going to back down.

“I mean if you really think about it, I’ll be out of your hair if you agree. One less demi-god always seems to be a win for you guys.” Nico said your name in warning, but you slowly stood. “I am not asking for much, I am asking to be allowed to live a life with the man I love and after all I have been through, fighting YOUR battles, I think it’s the least I deserve.”

You held Hades’ gaze for a few more seconds until he spoke. “Are you sure your not a child of Nyx?” he asked, and you grinned, cocking your head to the side.

“Why would that be?”

“You have a pure evil streak in you girl and uncharted power. You better learn to control it, before someone catches on.”

“We won’t have a problem I’m presuming?”

“I’ll see what I can do,” he said gruffly, going back to his meal and you relaxed, moving to hug your mother goodbye, whispering thanks to her, before linking arms with Nico and leaving.

The next day you awoke to a golden invitation to Olympus, and you smiled, soon. You’d be with him soon.

Olympus looked much nicer since Annabeth had gotten involved. You may have been biased but it seemed to hold a sense of home it never had before, the clinical cleanliness now feeling purer and more loving. The throne room however had remained much the same.

You stood alone in the middle surrounded by the arc of thrones, but you refused to take your eyes of Zeus. You had received a wink from Apollo and a smile from Aphrodite as you walked in but beside that it had been eye contact for at least five minutes. You knew better to speak before you were spoken to but the way they surrounded you and stared down on you was bringing up bad memories and you were really fighting a panic attack.

Seemingly sensing this Apollo cleared his throat, “Perhaps we should start father?” While you were grateful a part of you hated how well the flirtatious god knew you, he was the first to tend to your wounds when you first escaped, healing them enough so you wouldn’t die from blood loss but not enough for anyone to suggest he was picking favourites. His warm hands had provided a sense of comfort you thought you had lost entirely.

Zeus nodded slowly, a letter appearing in his hand, “So these are your terms? Transformation into high Fae, permission to live in a new world with visits back to this one twice a year?” you presumed Hades, or your mother had written the letter, neither of them present currently. You nodded clearly, not entirely trusting your voice.

“I guess it’s only fair, but a full transformation will hurt,”

“I’m sure I can take it.” you lifted your chin, holding your shaking hands tightly in an attempt to conceal them.

Zeus laughed, not taking his eyes of you, “I’m sure you can. Does anyone have any major oppositions?”

Aphrodite raised her hand, “I’d like to add that during her transformation, her womb changes shape so she may birth Illyrian children.” You shot her a grateful look, still not entirely sure why she was suddenly so invested in ensuring your happiness, but you wouldn’t complain.

Hera was the next to speak and you fought the urge to roll your eyes, “Why is she getting special treatment again? What did she do that was so different?”

“She was tortured for days!” Athena exclaimed,

“So?” Ares now.

“She was a child, it was brutal.” Apollo jumped to your aid and soon the chamber was filled with shouting voices as they argued over your fate.

“SILENCE.” Zeus quieted the room instantly and every eye turned to him, but he remained focused on you, “Well then? Answer the question girl, what makes you so special?”

You thought for a second before answering, “I don’t consider it special treatment. After the battles I’ve fought and the pain I’ve endured to help your causes, I’d consider it a form of retirement.” You kept Zeus’ gaze and let a streak of the evil Hades had warned you off show, smiling when his smug smile disappeared. He waved his hand, “Very well then, High Fae with altered womb and permission to live in their world and visit our occasionally, that is all?”

You nodded and he assessed you before holding out his hand, his gaze darkening. You furrowed your eyebrows as your limbs started to tingle before pain took over your entire body.

You had felt pain so many times before, pain that left more than just physical trauma, but this was different. You felt as if your blood had become fire and every bone was breaking as new ones reformed. You didn’t have any sense of time or place, all you could feel was pain. At one point you thought it was over only to open your eyes, feeling impossibly soft sheets beneath you, and see Apollo hovering over you, sweat dripping from his brow as he took some of the pain away, even for just a moment.

When you finally awoke you were on the ground. You stood up quickly, almost knocking yourself over as your movement were much faster than usual. You were outside a glowing city, it didn’t have skyscrapers like New York, but it was so comforting to look at you felt yourself being drawn in. As you crossed the border however, a beautiful man with dark hair appeared, his eyes narrowing.

“Who are you and why are you trying to get in here?” A shot of fear went through you as you felt his magic, it was thick in the air and powerful.

“I’m not going to hurt anyone, I’m just looking for someone,” you explained, swallowing down the lump in your throat. The handsome man’s gaze turned vacant before softening after a moment.

“I apologise, I’m Rhysand. Let me help you find whoever it is, what’s their name?”

“That’s okay, really. His name is Azriel, but I don’t think he’s expecting me.” Rhysand stopped, his head turning towards you, “what is it?” you asked.

“(y/n)?”

“How do you know my name?” you stepped back but he held out his hands,

“No, no I’m Az’s brother, let me take you to him.” he grabbed your arm softly and suddenly you were standing in a warm room facing Azriel. You felt tears fill your eyes as you stared at him, he uttered your name in question and you nodded running into his arms, completely engulfed by his scent, tears of joy running down your face when you suddenly realised something, pulling away.

“Did you say brother?” you turned to Rhysand, feeling all the plants in the air respond to your calls, when Azriel tugged you back to him.

“Not biological don’t worry.” He whispered and Rhysand laughed.

“I like her.”

“Hmm I was two seconds away from castrating you,” His eyes widened slightly and you laughed, turning back to Azriel as he looked over you.

“How- you, you’re Fae?” His eyes were filled with worry again, afraid he was being tricked.

“I never got my reward remember, I knew I would need it in the future,” you smiled at him as he cupped your face and leaned down to kiss you. You pulled apart, Azriel growling when you heard catcalls, turning, and seeing the room had practically filled. A shot of fear went through you as your eyes landed on another man who had red siphons, and Azriel followed your gaze, a hand stroking your face in reassurance.

“So this must be (y/n), welcome to our home, I’m Feyre,” A beautiful woman stepped forward and clasped your hand in hers, which you noted were stained from paint. Everyone else soon made introductions and they urged you to sit as you found out about this makeshift family Azriel was in.

“Oh! That’ll be Nyx, I’ll go,” Feyre said when a baby started crying in the distance,

“Wait what did she say the babies name was?” You asked, holding in a laugh.

“Nyx?” Rhys said,

“Oh, course, cool cool cool,”

“What?” Azriel asked, looking at you strangely.

“I’ve kind of met her,”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, she’s like the evilest deity there is, and she did not like me,” Rhysand stared at you with a look of shock on his face, but before anyone said anything else, Amren was laughing loudly.

“You must tell me all about these Gods girl.”

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

tags: @tastedlikedamnation

#acotar #acowar #acofs #acomaf #acofas #Azriel #azriel x reader #percyjackson #Heroes of Olympus

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topsytervy · 4 years ago

Text

Good Books, Bad Movies ~ Rafe Cameron, JJ Maybank

Blurb: After reading the first two Percy Jackson books, JJ discovers that there are movies.

Word Count: 988

Warnings: swearing, grammar/spelling mistakes, no big spoilers just brief plot description, I think that's it.

This was based on a random little shit post I made a while back and I decided it's been a while since I've completed ANY of my writings that I'd whip up something short and new. This is definitely not the best but it's here and it exists.

also, don't mind me dropping off the face of the earth for months at a time and never posting anything, just interacting and reading things. Between work and my brain finally grasping at the fact that I don't need to have every little thing I write to be at least a thousand words, I've got barely anything to post.

~~~~~~~~~

You sighed as both of the boys got situated, Rafe and JJ making themselves comfortable with their heads on your chest.

Just a couple of minutes ago, they were playing some video game as you sat on Rafe's bed, a book you've read countless times before in your hand.

"Seriously, Y/N/N. What book is more interesting than us?" JJ whined as he paused the game, looking back at you as you raised your eyebrows and looked at him over your book.

"A 13-year-old boy killing monsters."

Rafe and JJ shot each other a look before setting down their controllers. "What?"

"Percy, the kid, is a demigod and he has to head out on this quest and a lot of shit goes down in the process. Good series. I've read it at least five times all the way through." You explained, shuffling into a more comfortable position.

Rafe glanced at JJ before returning his gaze to you. "Would you read it to us?"

Your eyes flickered between the two boys before nodding. "Sure."

And now here you were, looking like a mother about to read her two sons to sleep, the game forgotten about as you flipped to the beginning of the book.

"Chapter one, I accidentally vaporize my pre-algebra teacher." You began, earning a smile from each of them.

By the time you reached chapter four, you grabbed your bookmark, assuming both the boys had fallen asleep on you but Rafe lifted his head.

"Why are you stopping?"

You stared at the older boy as you shut the book. "Well, I thought that'd be a good place to stop for now."

"No. One more chapter. Come on." Rafe whined like a child.

You felt JJ nod his head against you and you sighed once again. "Fine. One more chapter."

You didn't end up going to bed until 1 AM, making a good dent in the book before you told the two that there was no way you could make it through another chapter. Over the next few days, every time you were with JJ and Rafe, you three got comfortable somewhere and read The Lightening Thief.

It didn't take long for your little trio to be on the third book, you reading and sipping a tea or hot chocolate as one of the boys played with your hair and the other drew mindless shapes on your legs that you had draped over his lap.

It was early morning when JJ burst into Rafe's house with a bag in hand, looking as if he won the jackpot.

"Rafe, Y/N's been holding out on us." He said as he dropped the bag on the counter, making his way towards the pantry and pulling out the popcorn.

Rafe and you both raised an eyebrow at the blonde pogue as he walked towards the microwave, put the popcorn in, and set the time before hitting start.

"Did you know that they made the first and second Percy Jackson books into movies?"

Rafe's eyes lit up as you groaned, placing your head on your arms that were resting on the island. "JJ, please tell me you did not spend money on those movies."

Rafe walked over and placed his hands on the younger boy’s shoulders. "JJ, please tell me you did."

JJ grinned. "Oh, I did, my dear friends. I did."

Rafe clasped his hands together and closed his eyes, a smile on his face as you groaned again.

"J, no." You drew out, as you slowly shook your head, not moving from your position.

Rafe and JJ both shot you a look. "What are you whining about? You love these books, rightfully so, and now we have the movies to watch." JJ pulled them out of the bag.

"That's why I'm whining. I love these books and the movies...oh my god." You raised your head as you looked at them. "I already watched the movies and, on their own, they're good but they don't do the books any justice. Like, the writers fucked it up to the point where Rick Riordan was like 'uhm people aren't going to like this'."

Rafe and JJ both blinked at you before Rafe spoke up.

"I'll go grab the beers."

"Yeah. Grab some blankets too. We gotta be comfy for this."

***

You shot the two boys a look that screamed 'i told you so' as they made a face as the credits of the second movie rolled.

The two had spent the majority of both movies pointing out the differences between the films in the books. Rafe even opened up his notes app and began writing all the flaws, claiming he'll need this for reference later when he writes a review.

"I cannot believe the writers would do Uncle Rick dirty like that," JJ muttered, shaking his head as he tipped back his beer.

You stood up and crossed your arms. "Maybe next time you'll listen to me."

The boys shot you a look before turning back to each other. "I wasted money on this." JJ sighed.

You walked over and placed yourselves between them, leaning your head on Rafe's shoulder as your hand-rubbed JJ's back.

"Time to start a podcast called 'books vs. their movies: which ones were good and which were disappointments'." You closed your eyes as you remembered all the books you read and then watched the movies just to feel the regret of watching them.

"Had your heart broken one too many times?" Rafe asked, smiling down at you.

You nodded. "The only reason why I watch the movies at this point is for the actors."

Rafe patted your thigh. "Well, how about we grab The Titans Curse and continuing reading that to take our minds off of this?"

"Alright." You agreed before you all stood up and made your way back upstairs to Rafe's room, the boys stomping up ahead of you, skipping steps as they did.

~~~~~

#jj maybank #rafe cameron #jj obx #jj outer banks #rafe obx #rafe outer banks #drew starkey #rudy pankow

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setterspirit · 4 years ago

Text

play date with raden

tw; some more serious topics; mentions of drinking, teen pregnancy, etc.

❥ ‑‑‑‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑ ‑

“unless raden and you want to go to the park, that was the plan, yes,” you reply, nodding slowly and eyeing your son who seemed unfazed by your look of... disgust.

“then i can wear these!” eito declared, punching his fist in the air in triumph, heading over to his legos.

“no, absolutely not,” you insist, shaking your head vigorously and shooing your son back into his room, this time following him to pick out the outfit he would wear today.

“but mama, i want to wear these,” the five year old pouts, a frown on his face as he looks anywhere but at you.

“and i’m saying you cannot,” you reply firmly, placing the clothes you’d picked out on his bed. “i’m amending the rule i made concerning those-” you gesture to the pants he’s wearing, unsure what to even call them. “monstrosities,” you settle on. “you can wear those only around the house if it’s just the two of us.”

“what if uncle kei, uncle kenji, uncle kanji, uncle taka, uncle ken, or auntie mai are here?” the young boy questions, knowing he doesn’t have to look so nice with them.

at “uncle ken” you freeze, eyeing your son curiously. kentarō had only recently allowed for eito to call him uncle, and you still weren’t used to it. he had been so uncaring in the past, often shaking you off or ignoring you whenever you would invite him to join you and the rest of the group in an outing or dinner with eito. but recently, he’d been more willing to go, and at first it had thrown you off, but you eventually got used to it, often enjoying his company when he would join your group.

“yeah, those are the only exemptions,” you finally answered with a tight lipped smile. “now please be a good boy and change before raden gets here,” you finished, turning around and walking out of eito’s room, closing your eyes in exasperation once you’d reached the livingroom. god, sometimes being a mother was difficult, but you honestly wouldn’t change it for anything.

before you can get too lost in your thoughts, a knock at the door sounded, signaling that raden and his parents had arrived. eito, having changed into the clothes you’d picked out for him, raced to the door, excitedly pulling the door open to reveal the smiling face of his best friend and his slightly tired looking mother.

smiling at the woman as she watched her son race away to start playing with the legos eito had abandoned earlier, you offered to let her in, smiling and leading her to the dining room when she accepted your offer.

you were so thankful to the nishimura family, who’d been skeptical about leaving their child alone with you at first, but had soon warmed up to you when they realized just how much you loved and cared for eito. you didn’t blame them for having their skepticisms, it was only natural the family get to know you better before they leave their child in your care. you were, after all, only 20 when you’d first met them. leaving two toddlers with a 20 year old single mother was nerve wracking to any parent, young or old. so they hung out with you, invited you over to have dinner with them, observed how you interacted with their son and your own. for a 20 year old, you were quite mature, probably due to the fact you were raising eito alone.

“so, how have you been, l/n-san?” she questioned, fully turning her attention towards you.

“i’ve been good! i recently reconnected with an old friend, so that’s been keeping me in a happy mood,” you replied with a bright smile. the woman across from you observed your shift in features, from your usual soft smile to a bright, genuinely beaming smile.

“really? who is this ‘old friend?’” the woman questioned, interested to know what kind of person could make your mood shift so much.

“suna rintarō,” you replied excitedly, watching as nishimura’s eyes widened upon the realization of who you were talking about.

“hold on, suna rintarō, as in ejp raijin’s middle blocker suna rintarō?” she questioned in disbelief, with you nodding your head excitedly in response.

“yeah, we used to live next to each other and we went to the same elementary school before i left japan,” you responded, nishimura’s full attention now on you. “i don’t know how he found me, but he did, and we’ve been catching up since that big msby vs adlers game.”

“how do you mean, big?” the woman questioned, eyebrow raised questioningly.

“oh, you didn’t know? that game was like a huge one for old rivals,” you replied. she knew you knew a few famous volleyball players, she did follow your twitter, after all, but she didn’t know that you pretty much knew all the big names in the volleyball world now. “kageyama, ushijima, and hoshiumi used to be rivals, not just with each other, but also with four of the starters on the jackals team, too. sakusa, bokuto, miya atsumu, and hinata. that game was hinata’s welcome back to japan, in a way, and he was playing against his high school setter, kageyama tobio.”

nishimura nodded, intrigued. “and you know them all because?” she wasn’t trying to say you were lying, she would never call you a liar, she was simply curious to know how you knew all of this.

“i was a manager for date tech,” you replied with a small laugh. “and my cousin plays on the sendai team, the frogs, and he played on the same high school team as kageyama and hinata.” let’s just chalk it up to the fact you had a lot of connections to professional volleyball players.

you continued to talk a bit, pausing to watch your sons before nishimura received a text from her husband, asking where she was. it was nearing noon when she finally had to leave, so you bid her goodbye before preparing lunch for yourself, eito, and raden — mac & cheese because what 5 year old didn’t love mac & cheese?

the rest of the day passed rather uneventfully, eito and raden continuing to play with the legos tsukishima had bought eito, with you going around the house tidying things up or cleaning little messes you found they’d made. often times, you’d find yourself texting suna, too, catching up with him during his breaks between practices.

by the time dinner came around, raden had been picked up and taken home, the boys promising they’d see each other again at school. once he’d gone, you had eito clean up his toys that he and raden had missed, helping your son out so you guys could hurry over to mai’s for a dinner and game night with the boys.

TALK ABOUT SURPRISES

[ masterlist | eight | nine | ten ]

word count; 1.5k+

fast facts;

fact #1; there’s a HUGE difference between the way y/n acted in elementary school vs how she acted in high school. she was always the more timid between her and suna, so hearing her say she would willingly go to parties threw suna for a loop.

fact #2; futakuchi was a semi-bad influence in high school, but he mellowed out more in third year because of his newfound title as the vbc captain. that didn’t stop y/n from partying, though, as she sometimes needed to blow off steam and parties were the easiest way.

fact #3; y/n has only had one relationship, the one person being eito’s sperm donor. he walked out on the relationship when y/n told him she was pregnant, so now she’s worried about getting back into a relationship, especially because now she also has to think about eito’s feelings.

fact #4; the nishimura’s have been a huge help to y/n as she raised eito. they’ve given her helpful tips and watched after eito when she needed a babysitter and aiko was busy.

✨) summary; l/n y/n is a single mother living with her 5 year old son in sendai. suna rintarō is a professional volleyball player, the middle blocker for the ejp raijin. the msby black jackals vs the schweiden adlers is a game between two of japan’s v league division 1 teams that bring together many old rivals. y/n is dragged to the game by her cousin, tsukishima kei, claiming she needed to get out and do more than just work and take care of her child. reluctantly, she goes along with the usually salty blond — leaving her 5 year old with a babysitter — to watch the game between two of tsukishima’s ex-teammates. suna makes the executive decision that he will be going to the game to support his former teammate and setter, miya atsumu, with komori asking if he could accompany the middle blocker so he could support his cousin, suna readily agrees and they also invite washio to go with them, knowing he’d want to see bokuto as well. a chance encounter at the game of old reunions brings together two old friends and feelings start to re-emerge. follow y/n and suna as they get to know each other again, fend off any unwanted attention, and work through parenthood in “talk about surprises!”

a/n; some suna x y/n content in the beginning, mama y/n and eito content at the end. i’m really sorry if you want more suna content! i just wanted to show y/n and how she is as a mother. next few chapters should be a rollercoaster, you’ll see. 👀 see ya in the next update, loves! 🤍✨

updates every monday!

taglist; @pieckiya @its-the-aerieljeane @amatee @crayonwriting @reblogthatgoodfanfiction @mint-mai @akaashiwife @kac-chowsballs @sugarb0 @bdanie @the-golden-jhope @goodpop9 @navymacaroons @tendo-sxtori @sirachano0dles @seijqhigh @hannahlxu @mattsunsupremacy @winunk @briidge @kageyamasgirl @yongboxerrr @kiyoovmie @elianetsantana @ofmiceandsharks @bokutokita @honeydrip @tycrackculture @madmelle @kitkozume @gushinim @luckypartyranchmug @kenssister @matsukawaslut @smthn-about-smthn @devilkittymusic @tsukkisfatsimp @k3nma-fairy

bold and strike through means i couldnt tag. ):

check the masterlist to see how you may be added to the taglist. <3

#talk about surprises #haikyuu!!#haikyuu #haikyuu social media au #haikyuu smau #haikyuu suna #haikyuu suna rintarō #haikyuu suna rintarou #suna rintarou #suna rintarō #suna rintarou x reader #suna rintarō x reader #suna rintarou smau #suna rintarō smau #pro volleyball!suna #suna x reader #suna x y/n

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pinoyrella · 4 years ago

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“A Love So Beautiful” Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Two Days and One Night

FT: Tsukishima Kei, Yamaguchi Tadashi, Hinata Shoyo, Kageyama Tobio, Yachi Hitoka, Fukurodani + Nekoma + Nohebi

TW: Mild Language + Minor Injuries (Kuroo get a lil booboo, Yaku ankle go brrr)

Genre: Fluff, Comedy, Angst, Coming of Age + Slow Burn

- This chapter contains fluff, comedy and drama.

WORD COUNT: 5,000+

“A LOVE SO BEAUTIFUL” Masterlist 🌸

A/N: HIIIII omg how r u guys 🥺 i was having a hard time figuring out how to... do this chapter, but i hope you enjoy! pls forgive me for the cringe and cheesiness of everything i fken swear im trying but i- ToT call me macaroni bc i be cheesy 🙈

PS: This chapter is taking place during the Cats vs. Owls OVA that comes after season 3! (and also a few minutes of s3 ep10)... I’m trying my best to line up the story w the actual series ToT, so it’s currently ur first year - spring time! Cherry blossom season is coming!!!🌸

A warm Friday afternoon.

“What do you guys think of this design?” Yachi asks as she passes a paper over to you and Tsukishima as Yamaguchi leans in from her side. You drop your pen to your notebook before picking up the small flyer, bringing it closer to the three of you.

“This looks great Yachi! What’s it for?” She stands immediately, her hands clenched into a fist while her eyes shine with excitement. “It’s a rough sketch for the volleyball club’s poster!” “Whoa, that’s so cool! So this is what a manager’s job is?” She nods as you hand the flyer back, smiling to your friend; happy that she’s having fun and enjoying her job.

“Hey” The four of you turn your heads, watching as Kageyama makes his way through the door. “AAAAAAAHHHHHH!” The sound of a familiar scream comes down the hallway.

The four of you watch as Hinata shoves past Kageyama, nearly knocking him over. “HEY!” Kageyama begins to charge until noticing the presence of his classmates. He lets out a low grumble before following the orange boy, making his way to you.

“GUYS!” Hinata jumps excitedly, looking between the four of you. “Look!” He pulls his phone out, facing it to you guys, completely ignoring Kageyama next to him. “What is it?” Yachi asks, confused. Hinata takes his phone back and realizes his photo gallery is on-screen. Tsukishima and Yamaguchi hide a snicker before he immediately changes it to his text messages, bringing the phone back to you guys.

On his screen shows the flyer for “Japan’s National Tournament, Tokyo Area Qualifiers”. The five of you look up to him in confusion as he continues, “Let’s go!”

...

“WHAT?”

And this is where you found yourself, a suitcase in hand as you make your way to your seat on the Shinkansen. You try to lift your suitcase above to the compartment, but the weight of the baggage slips past your grasp. You brace yourself for impact before you open your eyes to see it in the compartment above you. Feeling a presence to your left, you turn to find Kageyama.

“Let me help you from now on” he says softly, his hand resting on the back of a seat as one is holding onto the strap of his backpack. You immediately take a step back before thanking him, making your way to sit beside Yachi.

Just behind Kageyama is Hinata, following Yamaguchi and Tsukishima, as well as other passengers. Tsukishima, obviously unamused onto why there’s a hold up “Hey King, could you hurry up?” Kageyama realizes there’s a line of people behind him, immediately sitting in the seat to the front of you.

Hinata throws his luggage above before plopping down to the side of Kageyama, Yamaguchi and Tsukishima following.

The announcement for the bullet train begins, and you soon fall into a quiet slumber, your head resting against Yachi.

“Y/n, Yachi-san… Yachi! Y/N!” You are awakened to Yamaguchi’s voice “Wake up idiot, we’re here” You turn to find Tsukishima’s face just inches away from yours. Surprised, you jump, bumping your head against Yachi’s, waking you both up.

“Ah!” You both yelp, holding onto your heads. Kageyama turns from his seat to the sound of your cry, only to find Tsukishima’s face close to yours. “Tsukki!” You hiss before apologizing to Yachi.

“Come on guys, let’s go” Yamaguchi begins removing your luggages from the compartment above, as the six of you make your way off the train. Moving through the crowd of people towards the station.

“Are we there yet?” You yawn, still exhausted, before bumping into Tsukishima’s back. “We’re here, open your eyes idiot.” You slowly open your eyes, looking up to the building in front of you. “It looks so cozy” Yachi compliments as the six of you make your way inside. “Akaashi and Bokuto-san sent me this address, one of their teammates’ relatives owns this place!” Hinata says. “No wonder you’re able to provide a place for all of us to stay for the night” Tsukishima replies, before noticing you were no longer behind him.

The sound of a huff causes him to turn around. As he turns, he sees you struggling to move your luggage above the doorstep. Sighing, he makes his way to you, but Kageyama rushes past him, helping and assisting you instead. The carpet had stuck to the wheel of your suitcase.

Tsukishima’s eyes widened in shock by the sudden movement of his teammate, before rolling his eyes, turning his attention back to his other friends.

“Thanks Tobio!” You thank as he gives another smile. “I told you, let me help you from now on” He says, tapping the right of your shoulder; before the two of you walk after your group.

Hinata and Yamaguchi make their way to the register, collecting the room key as the six of you make your way to your room.

Yamaguchi inserts the key, twisting it before Hinata opens the door, jumping right in. “TA DA!” He cheers, the five of you walking in, Tsukishima yet again, unamused.

“This room is insanely big” You comment as you settle your suitcase to the side.

“It’s going to be like a sleepover!” Hinata exclaims, Yamaguchi turning his head. “Oh, you’re right Hinata!” “Thank god it’s only for one night.” Tsukishima bluntly adds, before exploring the cupboards.

Hinata then brings his wrist up to check the time. “AH!” “What?!” The five of you turn in concern for your friend’s sudden outburst. “We have to hurry!”

The sound of shoes squeaking against the floor echo throughout the building along with balls.

“Wow, so this is the Sumida City Gymnasium?” You walk ahead of your friends, looking around before turning to face them. “It’s so much bigger than the one in Sendai!” “Well, this is Tokyo” Tsukishima replies, Yamaguchi giving a sheepish smile, before the sound of squabbling catches your attention.

“WHAT WAS THAT?!” “Stop it Yamamoto, don’t let that snake bastard get to you.” The man in green smiles, pointing his finger to the calmer guy in red. “You always have that hair, are you sure you’re not lying about your height? Are you actually 180 cm-” “HUH?! I’d never do something so petty!”

You watch as the three go at it, before someone from the red team’s group notices you guys. “Shoyo?” One says quietly as he makes his way over to you guys.

“Kenma-san!” Hinata runs over, meeting Kenma half way as the five of you follow. You hear Kageyama mumbling. “Nekoma’s setter… Nekoma’s setter… Nekoma’s setter…”

“You made it” Kenma says before Hinata nods. “Bokuto-san sent me the flyer! Akaashi-san’s teammate gave us a place to stay, and it fell into our weekend, I didn’t want to miss it!” Kenma nods before turning to face you and the others, feeling chills down the spine of his back when making eye contact with Kageyama.

“Hey, it’s skinny!” Tsukishima jolts, as Nekoma’s team follows their captain, making their way to your group and Kenma. “Long time no see, don’t tell me you’ve grown taller” “Kuroo-san” You watch the two, before the one named Kuroo turns to you. “I haven’t seen you before” He leans down, closer to your height. Tsukishima watches as he does so, feeling a bit irritated. “Hmm”

You become flustered, unable to move as his face comes closer to yours, before you feel someone pull you behind. Kageyama stands in between you two, having you to his back, silently staring at the taller senior. Everyone is surprised by Kageyama’s action, especially Kuroo before eyeing back up to his regular level as he smiles down at him.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare your friend” Kageyama ignores him, turning to face you and whispering “Are you okay?” Kuroo is left shocked by being ignored, and his teammates snicker behind him.

“I- I-” You stutter, still flustered before another player, much calmer and collected from Nekoma, approaches you. The tall figure gives you a sincere apology for his captain’s behavior. “I’m sorry about that, our captain can be a little…” He turns to look back to Kuroo, before looking to you. “A little bitch” A much shorter boy with strawberry blonde hair joins in, Kenma letting out a snort.

“HUH?! YAKU- if anyone’s a little bitch it's your short ass, Mr. 165 cm.” “165.2 CM DICKWAD!” You watch as the two seniors get into a catfight before another player walks into the situation. “Kuroo-san!” Said man turns his attention to his teammate. “The girls’ game will be done soon”

Kuroo responds with an “alright” before collecting his team together. “Be sure to cheer us on, kitten~” He winks to you before bidding your friends a farewell, walking off.

Your team makes their way up the bleachers, listening to the announcer announce Fukurodani and Nekoma’s match. You watch as a very muscular man throws his jacket in the air, only for his teammate to catch it. “BOKUTO-SAN!” Hinata cheers besides you.

The crowd from Fukurodani’s side begins to chant, before Nekoma is announced. You turn your attention to a much shorter girl with a megaphone. “Go, go Nekoma! Push it, push it Nekoma!” “Great job Cheer Captain Akane!”

The bell goes off as both teams make it to their sides, the lineup and game beginning.

Watching as Fukurodani takes the first serve, you turn to see the excitement in both Hinata and Kageyama’s eyes.

Turning your attention back to the court, Akaashi proceeds to set the ball to Bokuto. Your eyes sparkle as you see how high the man can jump, then the sound of him smashing the ball, as it hit’s Kuroo’s palm, causing it to fly up.

You don't realize the direction it’s flying too, your eyes widening as the ball comes directly your way. You bring your palms up at the perfect time, catching the volleyball immediately in your hands. You stare at it in shock as all eyes turn to you.

“HEY! HEY! HEY!!!” Bokuto cheers along with his school, getting the point.

The game continues, Fukurodani taking the lead. “Holy crap, Bokuto is a beast” You watch as the millionth spike he hit touches the ground of Nekoma’s side. “Right?! He’s so cool! Hinata exclaims before you both turn to the court, only to notice a sudden change in Bokuto’s mood, after Kuroo blocks his spike.

The crowd goes silent, and you turn to Hinata making a face of confusion.

Bokuto’s attitude changes completely, causing a break to be issued, Akaashi giving the man a pep talk.

The break ends, and they are back to the game. You notice Bokuto’s attitude had gone back to his original state, as he becomes happy to spike yet again.

“It must have been Akaashi-san who brought Bokuto-san backup.” Tsukishima comments, crossing his arms as he becomes invested into the game. You turn to smile at him, not knowing he was actually watching.

The gym goes quiet, the final set, and Bokuto’s team is winning. Nekoma is under pressure before Bokuto sends one final spike down, earning the final win for Fukurodani.

Nekoma falls in defeat, you feel remorse along with Hinata for them, knowing Hinata really hoped to play against them at Nationals.

The six of you walk out of the gym. “So… Nekoma isn’t going to Nationals?” You ask, feeling stupid for asking such a question, before Yamaguchi speaks. “No, not unless they lose this next match.” “What?” “For Tokyo, unlike Miyagi, they have two Representative slots open, while a third for venue sponsorship.” He explains as you tilt your head, still confused. “Dumbass” Tsukishima jokingly insults, flicking your forehead. “There are four teams playing here, only one of those four won’t be able to go to Nationals. The other three, will be going. If Nekoma wins the next match against the other team, they will be going to Nationals” Tsukishima explains in a much easier way. “Ah! Thanks Tsukki!” You thank him, not even realizing he had called you a dumbass.

“What are we waiting for? Let’s go cheer them on!” You exclaim, the five cheering after you. “Yeah!”

“Do you even know where the next match is being held?” You stop to turn, looking at Tsukishima. “Nope!” You say with a smile.

You follow as Yamaguchi leads you to another court, on the other side of the venue.

As you make your way past the gates, you stop with Yachi, the delicious scent of food surrounding the air. Yamaguchi and Tsukishima turn to see you too, before looking at each other. “Do you guys want to get food before the game starts?” You look up to your two friends, pleading with puppy eyes before Tsukishima sighs.

“Hinata, Kageyama!” Yamaguchi calls his friends ahead of them. The two stop to turn as you run up to them. “Do you guys want anything from the stalls?” You ask. “You guys can go find the seats! I can take care of everything myself!” You state, as Tsukishima looks to you. “By yourself? You have two hands. Two hands. You barely even know how to use them, and there’s six of us. There’s no way you can gather food for everyone, and make it back in one piece.” The blonde bean pole says, before you give him a pout.

“I’ll go with you boss.” Kageyama butts in, standing to your side as he ruffles your hair. “Tobio! Stop doing that” You laugh as you fix your hair before looking back to Tsukishima. “That settles it! Now go, get us seats!” You shoo your friends away before walking away with Kageyama, missing the glare Tsukishima gives Kageyama.

Standing in front of a takoyaki stall, you order the biggest plate, before noticing Kageyama to the stall besides you. Paying for your order and taking the ticket, you make your way to Kageyama as he pays for something.

“What did you get?!” You ask him in excitement. He jumps in surprise by your sudden presence before looking down to you, bringing the item he had brought up to your view. You stare as it dangles from his fingertips, a cute trinket in the shape of a strawberry milk carton. You blink before he grabs the ends of your bag, bringing it up to his level.

You watch in confusion as he is attaching it to your bag’s zipper, before speaking.

“It’s for you” He looks to meet you eyes as he gently drops your bag, letting it hang off your arm again. You stare at him, before looking down to it, then back up to him. “What? Tobio-” “It just reminded me of you.” He says giving a soft smile before taking the ticket from your hand and walking back to the takoyaki stall.

You watch as he walks off, looking down to the keychain with a small smile, really grateful for a friend like him.

Making your way into the gym, you scan to find Yamaguchi waving for you. “Kageyama- Y/n! Over here!” You make your way to them, Kageyama follows with the box of takoyaki in his hands. Handing out the sticks, you push Kageyama to be in the middle, then opening the lid to the box.

“It smells so good!” Hinata exclaims as he’s about to poke his stick into a ball. “Thank you y/n!” Yamaguchi and Yachi say in sync, as you make your way to Tsukishima, handing him a stick before he declines. “Are you not hungry?” “Not really” He bluntly replies, you pout again before turning back to the others, stabbing your stick into a ball.

Then turning your attention back to the court, seeing the game between Nekoma and Nohebi has already begun.

“Lev! Stop flailing your arms around! I can’t dig the damn ball!” Yaku yells, scolding the taller boy. “But Yaku-san, you’ll still get the ball no matter what!” He snaps back frustrated. You watch as the Yaku scratches the back of his head, taking it as a compliment. Kuroo gives him a look of annoyance before resuming back to their positions.

The game between the two continues, Nohebi taking the lead as Nekoma fights back. Just as Nohebi’s captain is about to spike, Lev jumps, sending it flying upwards. “One touch!” He yells, as Yamamoto runs after to hit it, then causing it to fly further away. “Shit!”

Just as the ball makes it into the audience, you watch as Yaku catches up to it, sending it back to the court. “WOW!” You cheer for him, impressed by his quick reflexes. Turning your attention towards the ball, you watch as Nohebi tries to keep the ball from touching the floor. Their captain, sending it flying up towards the net, before Lev jumps again, immediately smashing the ball back down to their side of the court.

The gym cheers as Lev turns to Yaku in excitement. Your eyes follow his, only to see Yamamoto assisting Yaku. “He fell-” Yamaguchi says. “He landed on someone’s foot as he was trying to get the ball.” You look at Yamaguchi before back down at Yaku limping. Yaku turns to apologize to the guest before facing the court. “I’m fine!” He yells, taking a step and immediately feeling a shock of pain course through him.

Just as he falls, Yamamoto catches him as their coach makes their way to them. “Shibayama!”

“I hope Yaku-san’s going to be okay” Yachi adds as the match continues. You watch as the coach tends to Yaku’s wound, before going back to the game.

Nekoma struggles, getting used to Shibayama now on court. Nohebi is still in the lead and the gym watches in anticipation.

Shibayama visibly looks calmer, adjusting himself before Daisho spikes the ball towards him. You hold your breath until Shibayama is able to stop the ball, sending it up before Kuroo smashes it back down to Nohebi’s side of the court.

“All right!” Nekoma cheers as you give out a sigh of relief. “You seem really invested into the game” You turn and notice Tsukishima looking down towards you. “Well, it’s really interesting…” You blush, stabbing another ball and plopping it into your mouth.

Nekoma begins catching up, getting used to the new player on the court, very close to winning the set.

The whistle blows, a new player making his way onto the court.

“A pinch server” You overhear behind you. “Didn’t that guy dislocate his thumb in the last match?” Turning your attention back to the court, you watch just as the ball barely hits the net. Kuroo and Nobuyaki catch it, before Fukunaga sends it to the other side. You watch the ball, thinking it would make it in before the whistle blows once again. “Out!” The pinch server yells.

“Out? No way!” Hinata cries. Bringing your hand up to your chin, “He blocked it”. Your friends turn to you, as you continue. “I saw the ball, it was in the court, but the pinch server guy, he extended his fists to block the referee from seeing it.” “Whoa…” “Talk about conniving” Tsukishima adds, before taking the stick in your hand, stabbing a ball and bringing it up into his mouth.

You turn to look up at him, watching as he puts the same stick you had placed on your lips to his. ‘Indirect kiss’ You think, bringing your palms up to cover your face, letting out an internal scream.

“Y/n-chan!” Yachi faces you. Kageyama and Hinata turn to look at you, then to Tsukishima, before Tsukishima looks back to them shrugging his shoulders as he focuses back on the game.

“Shibayama!” You watch the captain make his way off the court. “Wait- What happened to Kuroo-san?” “I think he busted his fingernail” “Ouch....” Turning your attention to the scoreboard, Nekoma is a point away from winning the game, to have their captain subbed out at a time like this is a big risk.

Daisho jumps, aiming for Lev before switching to Shibayama. Fortunately, the boy is able to receive it, sending it to Yamamoto before he aims to smash it. The ball then touching the Nohebi’s middle blocker’s hands before flying up, and far from the court. You watch as Daisho attempts to chase after it, only for it to fall, finally touching the floor. The match has ended.

“Thanks for the game!” The teams exchange before Yaku meets with his team, eyes filled with tears as he hugs them.

You watch as Kenma looks up to the stands, finding Hinata and giving him a nod. You turn to your friend, watching the smile spread throughout his face. He can’t wait to play against them at Nationals.

Walking out of the venue, you look up to notice as it’s night time already.

“I didn’t even think it was so dark outside already” You comment, Kageyama turning his head to you, watching the moon shine in your eyes. “We better get going before” Yamaguchi states, leading the way back to the cozy inn.

“Ah!” You let out, dipping into the onsen besides Yachi. “This feels so good!” Your cheeks redden from the temperature in the room. “This is so relaxing, I’m so happy we were all able to come together, traveling is so much fun, especially with your friends” Yachi replies before you give her a smirk. “And especially without your parents!”

The two of you share a laugh as the boys prepare the futons.

“One, two, three, four...” Yamaguchi counts. “I think we’re missing two more futons.” “Really?” Hinata recounts the futons. “Oh, I’ll go ask for more!” “I’ll come with you Hinata!” Yamaguchi exits the room with Hinata, unintentionally leaving Kageyama and Tsukishima together.

The two not even realizing they were the only ones left in the room, turn to face each other, then turning around to scan the room, only to notice Yamaguchi and Hinata are no longer with them. The tension is intense and super awkward.

They separate, going to opposite sides of the room.

As Tsukishima is about to place his headphones on, he feels a stare from behind him. Turning to see Kageyama staring at him. “What?”

Kageyama turns away immediately. “N-n… Kni.. Knife… N...” “Huh?” “Nothing!” “You should have said it clearly the first time.” Tsukishima glares back before you walk in with Yachi.

“Oh? Where are Yamaguchi and Hinata?” You ask. “Right behind ya! Excuse us” Yamaguchi replies, as Hinata runs in, dropping the futons down. “I told you I could have helped carry one.” Yamaguchi sighs before helping spread the last two futons out.

You turn your attention back to Kageyama, who is in the corner of the room. Making your way over, you squat to him. “Why are you so far away from us Tobio?” Kageyama snaps his head, coming face to face with you. He immediately stands, flustered from the close contact, before you rise up with him, giggling. All while Tsukishima hears your giggles through his headphones.

As night falls, you lay on your futon, your eyes shut as the sound of rustling keeps you awake.

“Hinata?” You whisper. The rustling stops, as he turns around facing you. “Yeah?” “You okay?” You ask in concern. “I can’t really sleep, did you bring your stationery pouch?” He replies quietly. “Ah” As you reach over to your bag to grab the pouch for him, the lights turn on, waking everyone up.

“Ugh-” “What happened?” “Hinata, what the hell” Tsukishima puts his glasses on, looking up slowly to the boy standing in the middle of the room, facing the five of you.

“Lets play a game!”

“A game?” The three question as Kageyama is still asleep in his futon.

And this is where you found yourselves, gathered in a circle around the kotatsu.

Hinata makes his way around, handing each person a slip of paper as your pens are spread across the middle of the kotatsu.

“Okay, now everyone grab a pen!” You all grab a pen, waiting for the boy’s instructions.

“In this game, we are going to write down a confession. Then, we are going to fold it, place it in the center of the table, mix it around, and we are all going to take one script!” He says as he plops back down to his seat in excitement. “What are we, 8? This is so stupid” Tsukishima comments before removing the cap of the pen, wanting to get this over with.

Intrigued, you take your pen, resting it above the slip of paper thinking of what to say. You try your best to sneak a peek from your friends’ slips, but you are all spread out a little too far. You put the pen to your chin before your eyes wander to Tsukishima, an idea finally popping to mind.

‘I really like someone in this group, but please keep it a secret.’ You write before folding your paper, being the first to drop it in the center of the table. Tsukishima glances up, giving a low smile seeing you excited, even for such a silly game.

Just as everyone drops their slip on the center of the table, Hinata jumps, swooping the papers up into his hand, and shaking them around if he were rolling dice, before bringing his cupped hands around, asking for everyone to grab a script.

You take one from his palm, waiting for the next instruction. Once Hinata makes his way to everyone, a single slip in his hands he begins. “Ready? Okay, let’s open them!”

You all begin to slowly open your scripts, reading what is written. You freeze as you read yours.

‘I’m in love with Y/n.’

You feel your soul leave your body, immediately looking around between the group of your friends, then to Tsukishima as he keeps his eyes on his.

“Yay! We’re done, okay goodnight” Hinata says before jumping back into the covers of his futon, immediately turning and falling asleep.

The five of you look at the boy in disbelief, before heading to bed.

You toss and turn in your futon, unable to fall asleep. Slowly getting up, you make your way out to the balcony, shutting the sliding door quietly as you lean on the railing.

Letting out a huff, you gaze up into the sky, resting your head against your arm, not noticing the door sliding open and close.

“What are you going?” You jump, turning around to see Tsukishima standing with his hands in the pockets of his team jacket. Letting out a sigh, you pout as he makes his way over besides you, leaning his back against the railing.

“Don’t scare me like that!” You quietly scold him before turning yourself to the night sky, missing the small smile he gave.

“I couldn’t sleep” You admit, as you rest your chin on your arm again. “That makes two of us” He replies, turning to lean on the railing with you, facing the night sky. “What happened?” You look at him before answering. “Nothing much really, I’m just overthinking.”

Tsukishima stays silent, the guilt still eating him up from the time he had brought you to tears during the Spring Interhigh Finals. Were you just as bothered by this as he was? Has it been keeping you awake restless at night? Did he really do this to you? He wishes, if he could promise to never hurt you again, he wouldn’t waste a second to commit.

But really, you were thinking of the confession you received on the script. You don’t realize how quiet Tsukishima’s been before you ask him. “Why are you still awake?” He looks to you immediately, staring into your eyes before shrugging. “I just felt off” “Off? What’s wrong Tsukki?” You ask concerned. He lets out a sigh, before standing up completely, facing you.

You watch as he gazes down at your features, confused as he takes his hands out from his pockets.

“I’m sorry y/n” He begins, looking straight into your eyes. The look he gives you, is a look of absolute sincerity. You tilt your head, still confused, as you were about to respond he continues. “I’m really sorry about what happened during the Spring Interhigh Finals, in the infirmary.” Your eyes widening, remembering that day.

“I…” He continues, and you listen. “I didn’t mean anything I said. I was very frustrated with the game, and how useless I felt when I had to leave because I let myself get hurt during the match… It’s still honestly, not an excuse to take everything out on you. But after seeing-” He stops himself, his eyes turning away as he was just about to admit his final outburst was due to seeing you in Kageyama’s jersey.

“After seeing?” You question still looking up to him. “After seeing… you… in Kageyama’s jersey…” He mumbles the end as he takes a deep breath looking back to you, completely flustered. You blink, looking down, registering what he just said. ‘After seeing me copy a jerky?’

He takes a step closer to you, “It was the last straw, and I allowed my harsh emotions to drown you.” You turn your attention back to him. “You didn’t deserve that. Especially when you were there for me. When you came to support me, and the team. And, I know it doesn’t look like it at most times, maybe all the time, but, I appreciate you so much. I’m very fortunate to have you in my life, even after so long.” You look up to him. “I’m really sorry y/n.” He finishes, his gaze stuck to you as he awaits your response.

You blink once more, eyes tearing as you give a warm smile. These are one of those very rare moments with Tsukishima you have come to treasure deeply. “I forgive you Tsukishima Kei.”

His eyes widen as his body comes closer, his arms wrapping around you unconsciously. You still, surprised by his action. Before exhaling calmly as you feel the warmth from him around you. Wrapping your arms around his neck, you cling to him. Your face pressed into his jacket, mumbling something.

“Huh?” Tsukishima pulls away, his arms still wrapped around you as he looks at you in confusion. “What did you say?” “Can you make me a promise, Tsukki?” He stares, waiting for your request. “Can you promise to never hurt me again?” Not even taking a second to think. “I promise, pipsqueak.”

“You get three strikes, this is your first one” You give a final cheeky smile before muffling your face back into his sweater as he lets out a sigh of relief, placing a hand to the back of your head, bringing his chin to rest above it.

He promises to himself as he holds you close, a smile warming his face.

‘And it will be the last.’

A/N #2: WAAAA!!! thank you so much again for reading💞 im sorry if tsukki seems a little off, i wanna think tsukki is actually v soft when it comes to emotional and sentimental situations.. at least w the ppl he doesnt mind showing that side to, u kno what i mean?

ohh!!! i also have one more or 2 exciting news!!!

i have another series wip on the way! once im able to get the prologue and at least plan the next 5 chapters, it’ll be posted!! im so excited bc i love osamu sm pls.. oops i said his name 😳

i also plan for another series but, im still debating whether or not to write it bc, as u can see, i cant write angst for shit let alone write in general how r u guys still here ASDFGHJKL😭

anyways, i hope to see you in the next chapter!! thank you so much for putting up with my bad grammar and english, i love uuu guys 💖

i will now go back to my excessive amount of homework and studying to do, let us pray for my dumbass, amen.😔🙏🏼

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“A LOVE SO BEAUTIFUL” Masterlist 🌸

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