#i got crutches to use for the next week or so until all the swelling goes down and i can walk more normally

[camillahex]

fucked up my knee so badly!!!!! it likely is not as bad as i first thought (i was very worried abt a torn acl) given how it felt when it happened but it is still a bad sprain and it hurts!!!! and i can't walk very well!!! i hate it!!!!

[scorpio-hotch]

FBI Hotch: 6. Taking care of him after he gets hurt

Thank you so much for the request!! I had a lot of fun with this one :))

Aaron Hotchner x gn!reader

Word count: 1.5k

Warnings: Talk of injury, injury care, showering together

My 100 follower milestone prompt list

Taken Care Of

It was about midnight when you pull into the parking space outside your and Aaron’s apartment building. As you put the car in park and take out the key you hear Aaron unclick his seatbelt and start to try to get out of the car. “Wait,” you say and place your hand on his shoulder.

He had gotten hurt on the last case when a stray bullet fragment hit him in the left leg. Luckily the case had been local so you could go straight to the hospital with him and take him home. He hadn’t been hurt too badly but he would have to use crutches for the next few weeks and would be out of the field for at least a month. He was grumpy about it. He hated getting injured. He hated even more having to be taken care of. But tough luck for him because you would be taking care of him until he was all better.

You get out of the car, going around to his side to help him out. First you get his crutches out of the back seat and grab his bag so you could carry it inside for him. Next you open his door and help him get out and situated with his crutches. He whispers a small “thank you,” to you as he begins moving towards the building.

Once you get inside he starts to go towards the stairwell. He always preferred using the stairs to the elevator. “Aaron, honey,” you call out to him, reminding him he couldn’t use the stairs.

He turns to see you standing in front of the elevator. He grumbles to himself as he maneuvers his way besides you. You look up at his pouty face while you wait for the doors to open. His brows furrowed making him have a very serious, almost angry looking expression.

You take a moment to think about how when you got to the hospital he had been insitiant that you hold his hand while they stitched him up. He’s never been a big fan of needles. So of course you stood holding the big bad BAU unit chief’s hand and running your fingers through his hair while he got a few stitches. He was cute. He liked to pretend he was stoic and felt no emotions, but on the inside he was a big softie.

The elevator door opens and you both step inside When you get to your floor you had to slow down a bit so Aaron could keep up. When you get inside the apartment Aaron dramatically throws himself down on the couch. “I wanna take a shower and go to bed,” he groans out.

After putting your stuff down you take a seat next to Aaron’s head on the couch, your fingers finding their way into his hair knowing that would always soothe him.

“Okay baby,” you say, as you continue to scratch his head, “let me go get everything ready for you.”

You help Aaron move to the bedroom so he can sit on the bed while you start the shower and get everything in order for him. Making your way to the en suite bathroom you start the shower, letting it get heated up checking the temperature with your hand. With that handled you pull out a couple of towels for you and him to use when you are done. Leaving the bathroom you walk past Aaron who is laying on the bed with his arm slung over his face. Poor boy. Quickly you make your way to the kitchen and grab some plastic wrap, making a stop at the closet to grab some medical tape before making your way back to the bedroom.

Standing in front of Aaron you rub your hand over his chest lovingly before you start to unbutton his shirt. He stops you for a moment. “I can do it,” he says.

“I know,” you say, running your hand over his tight shoulder, “But I want to help you.”

He lets you finish unbuttoning his shirt before you kneel down in front of him and help him out of his pants, making sure to be careful of his injured leg. After you get those off you grab the plastic wrap to wrap around his bandages so they wouldn’t get wet in the shower. After taping it in place, making sure that it was water tight. He pulls off his white undershirt while you strip your clothes off, getting ready to get in the shower. After you help him out of his boxers, he stands up on his crutches and makes his way into the bathroom with you.

You get into the shower first, helping Aaron step in after he rests his crutches against the wall. He supports much of his weight on you, not wanting to put too much pressure on his hurt leg.

You can feel him relax a bit under the warm water. You’re sure it helps a bit with the tension and pain. It’s always good to be in the shower together with your body pressed up against his. Even under these more unfortunate circumstances there was something nice about the intimacy of it. After a moment you reach down and grab the shampoo and squeeze some of it into your hand. Your hands make their way to Aaron’s head washing his hair for him. He lets out a sigh of contentment and rests a little bit more weight against you as he relaxes even more. You wash out the shampoo and add some conditioner to his hair. Next you get his body wash and get it nice and lathered up in your hands. You know after the day he’s had, Aaron just wants to feel clean. You start scrubbing his body, starting with his chest, making your way down to everywhere else. You avoid his left thigh knowing you were gonna clean the wound there in a little while. After he was all clean he leaned down to reach for your body wash. You stop him. “It’s okay honey,” you say, knowing he was about to start trying to clean you up, “I’m taking care of you tonight, not the other way around.”

You clean yourself up the best you can while helping hold Aaron up. You both stand under the water for a little bit longer before it starts feeling cold. You shut off the water and step out of the shower, helping Aaron out as well. You dry him off a bit before he uses his crutches to go back into the bedroom. You dry yourself off before following him. You see that he pulled on a pair of boxers and a soft grey t-shirt. You get some pjs on as well, before settling in front of him similar as you did before. You pull off the plastic wrap, putting it aside to dispose of later. “I’m just gonna change the bandage and then we can go to bed, okay.”

He nods, “okay.”

You take off the bandage that was covering the wound, remove the gauze as well, putting them with the plastic to be thrown away. His leg was definitely a bit swollen and you could tell that it was tender and painful. You flush out the stitches with saline before dabbing on a bit of antibiotic ointment. You put some more gauze over the injured areas before wrapping the whole area up in some bandages. The only bandages you had in the house were bright green, but you don’t think he minded too much. After he was all wrapped up you pressed a light kiss to his leg above his knee, right below the bandage, whispering, “All better,” into his skin.

That made him smile. You helped him pull on a pair of pajama pants and lay back in bed before you got him some ibuprofen to help with the swelling and pain a bit. You handed it to him with a glass of water and got settled on your side of the bed. You saw Aaron shifting around trying to get comfortable. You opened your arms up so he could cuddle with you, telling him, “c’mere baby.”

He got settled with his head resting on your chest and his arms wrapped around your middle. “Thank you, sweetheart,” he mutters into your chest.

“Of course, baby,” you tell him as your hand rubs circles on his back, “I love taking care of you, whether you're injured or not. ”

He looks up at you with so much affection in his eyes, leaning up just enough to press a kiss to your lips. “I love you so much,” he says.

“I love you too. Get some rest now, okay.”

He settles back down against your chest. You keep your hand on his back rubbing soothing circles until you feel his breath even out and you know he’s asleep. You look down at his beautiful sleeping face and all you can think about is how you wouldn’t want to be anywhere in the world but here, taking care of him.

[beauvibaby]

there won’t be anyone else — t.seguin

a/n: obviously my timeline isn’t going to be accurate, and I know he went back to Canada for a large portion of his recovery but this is what worked… should I do a part 2???

Part two here!

summary: tyler asks his best friend to stay with him and his daughter during his recovery

word count: 5.2k

tagging people who interacted with my post: @i-am-a-lost-girl16 @mandypants95 @fallinallincurls @sidscrosbyy @myhockeyworld87 @lilyhood22 @joeyisourranger @je-ne-regrette-rien @youngbeezer @slimdebrusk

“Y/N?” Tyler spoke nervously, you tore your eyes off of the six month old in your arms, she gurgled in complaint as she grabbed at your face, “what’s up?” You asked him, shushing his daughter as she kept pinching your face. He smiled at the sight of you two, “I have to have a couple of surgeries, big surgeries, and I’m going to need a lot of help with Willow.” He explained, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck, “do you think you could come stay with us for a while?” He finally asked, you nodded instantly, you’d known Tyler ever since he came to Dallas. Long before he ended up as a single father to little Willow. “Of course, Ty.” You assured him, “anything you guys need.” You added, giving him a soft smile as Willow reached for her daddy. “Hi baby girl.” He grinned, smothering her in kisses, “glad you finally wanted to come back to me.” He teased her, holding her above his head as she giggled, the sight alone melted your heart as she grabbed at his beard the second it was in reach. “When is the surgery?” You asked him, you were fortunate enough to run an online shop, so really, as long as you could bring your supplies to his house, which you knew he’d have no problem with, you’d be set.

“Next week,” he paused, glancing over at you, “in New York.” He rushed his words together. “New York?” You gasped, eyes going a little wide. “You don’t have to come!” He stated, “my mom is going to meet me there, and then she’ll fly with me back here.” He explained, “I’ll be gone for a little over a week, then I can rehab here.” He added, realizing he didn’t explain anything very well. “Are you sure you don’t want us there?” You asked, motioning to Willow who was happily laying on his chest, gurgling away, probably close to taking a nap since she just ate. “I do, I really do, but it’s not worth the hassle, she’ll be happier here.” Tyler sighed, resting his chin on top of her head. “I’ll send you a bunch of pictures and videos of her, promise.” You laughed softly, thinking of how crazy this recovery is going to be for him. “You’re going to do great.” You assured him, seeing the wheels turning in his head, “I’m sure of it, and I’ll do anything I can to help.” You murmured, running a hand through your hair as all he could do was muster up a smile.

***

Day 1.

Tyler’s mom FaceTimed you that night, once he was coherent enough to remember seeing his daughter. “Hi, Mrs. Seguin.” You spoke softly, Willow looking around with wide eyes on your lap, you flipped the camera to show her, “Tyler.” His mom mumbled, handing the phone over, he looked exhausted but the way his eyes lit up when he saw Willow, she’d just had a bath so she was only in a diaper, showing off her chunky little legs. “Hey, Willow, hi baby.” He spoke, she focused in on the phone, rapidly swatting at it as she recognized his face. You giggled, moving her around to be sitting more on your chest, her face next to yours. “Say hi.” You cooed to her, waving her hand for her, she bounced excitedly as he smiled at her.

Day 2.

He was a little grumpy that day, but tried not to show it as he got to see Willow via FaceTime again, you knew he was already tired of being unable to move.

Day 3.

You were talking to him encouragely as he walked for the first time in three days, Willow sleeping in her room, Tyler’s mom held the phone out in front of her. You knew it had to be hard for her as well, to see her son like this, all because he was playing the sport he loved. You took some time to talk to her as the nurses helped Tyler get back in bed.

He didn’t feel up to talking again that day so you were sure to send him photos and videos of Willow, she was finally sitting up on her own without falling over.

The next week went on like that until he was finally coming home, luckily it was right during Willow’s long afternoon nap, so you could help him get settled and get everything in order before his mother had to leave to catch a flight tonight.

***

“Hey, Tyler.” You smiled, opening the car door, greeting him brightly, he tried to mimic your eyes excitement, but you could tell it didn’t quite meet his eyes. “Hey.” He mumbled, letting out a soft groan as you helped him get out and onto his feet, he gave his mom a hard time about using the wheelchair, you could see the pain floating in her eyes, just overly worried that he would fall. “I’ve got him, Jackie.” You assured, walking directly beside him as he hobbled with his crutches, she nodded, grabbing the bags out of the car as you helped him get inside the house.

“Thank you.” He sighed, leaning into the couch cushion as you put a pillow under his leg. You just gave him a reassuring smile, his mom dropping the stuff by the entryway, “be easy on her, I know it’s hard for you, but imagine if you saw Willow like this.” You added in a whisper, understanding came across his face as he nodded, motioning for her to sit beside him, you let them have their moment as you grabbed his bags and brought them to the room he’d been staying in, on the first floor for now, until stairs weren’t a questionable decision.

You put the clothes in the laundry, and moved some stuff down to the guest room, humming softly as you did this stuff without question, just doing it to be helpful, not thinking of how much the small gesture would really mean to him.

After a while, you peeked in on Willow and she was still sleeping soundly with her arms above her head, you smiled, carefully shutting the door to the nursery and heading down the stairs with the monitor, Jackie had to get going if she was going to make it to the airport in time. So you both said your goodbyes, and you could tell it was hard for Tyler to let her leave like that, but what was he to do, she has a life to get on with as well.

“How has she been while I was gone?” Tyler asked, looking at Willow on the monitor, his heart clenching in his chest, wanting nothing more than to hold his baby girl again. “She was good, Ty.” You giggled, easing his nerves, he nodded, “thank you, so much, I know we just started the recovery process but you’ve already helped so much.” He explained, adjusting himself on the cushions, “you don’t have to keep thanking me, I’m happy to help, I love spending time with her, and you.” He smiled at your words, giving you the side eye as you turned away in embarrassment. You two had always been flirty, but once he came to you and said that was going to be a dad, he changed, he stopped going out, he spent his time at home, and it only made it easier for you to imagine a life with him. “We like spending time with you too.” He whispered, resting his hand on your knee right before Willow started to cry. You could tell he briefly forgot he couldn’t go get her as he went to sit up but then stopped himself. “Don’t worry, I’ll get her.” You hopped up, excited to see her when she finally got to see him for the first time in over a week, you took the stairs two at a time as you heard her crying get more intense.

As you picked her up, you completely forgot that Tyler had the monitor, and could hear and see you tending to her. “Oh my goodness.” You cooed, scooping her up, “your daddy is so excited to see you.” You grinned, kissing her chubby cheeks, making a brief face of disgust as you got a whiff of her diaper, “let’s get you cleaned up first.” You whispered, grabbing her a new outfit, this one having dealt with a small blowout. You quickly changed her and put her in her little jean shorts and a pink shirt, if it wasn’t for you, you were certain Tyler wouldn’t have anything girly for her to wear. He was watching the whole time as you took care of her like she was your own, his heart swelling in his chest, he’d always had a thing for you, but as he saw you with his baby, it only made him fall harder. And he became determined to make you his by the time he was back to playing.

He turned the monitor off and shimmied himself to be sitting up more properly as you came down the stairs, “who is that, Willow?” You gasped, pointing towards Tyler, she began to bounce in your arms. “It’s daddy.” You grinned at her, walking over to him and allowing him to take her. He breathed out in relief, “I missed you so much, baby girl.” He groaned, hugging her tightly, she pushed on him so she could lean back and look at him, she looked at him with a completely serious face before trying to bite his nose. He broke into a fit of laughter as he moved her away from his face, “that’s not nice princess.” He joked, tickling her sides, she giggled swinging her little legs as he lifted her up. “I swear she grew in a week.” He mumbled, sitting her on his good side, she sat on the couch, chewing on her hands and getting drool everywhere. “And she sits now.” He groaned, dramatically resting his head in the couch, she mimicked him and fell into the cushion. “Crazy girl.” You commented, taking the chance while she was distracted to tie up the top part of her hair, she definitely had his hair and all it did was fall in her eyes. Tyler smirked at you, you rolled your eyes at him, “now she looks like a real little princess.” You quipped to him, he faked a gasp, dramatically hoisting her into his chest. “How dare Y/N say that about my princess.”

It was a lot of extra work, and mess, but you brought her jar of food and bib to the couch so Tyler could feed her, knowing it was one of his favorite times with her as she was so smiley. “Have you ever tried this?” Tyler asked curiously as you sat beside him with her in your lap, she happily ate the spoonful of puréed apples, peas and beets. “Baby food?” You asked with a laugh, he nodded, pushing some more into her gummy smile, she gnawed on the spoon as he tried to take it away. “No, I haven’t.” You answered as you contained your laughter, “I tried it once, I figured it couldn’t be so bad, and it was even worse than bad.” He explained, carefully prying the spoon from her hands, she pouted at him, about to cry until he gave her the last bite and let her chew on the soft rubber spoon. “I’m sure it was.” You snickered, lightly wiping around her mouth, “when’s that first tooth gonna come in? Hmm.” He spoke to her, rubbing her little tummy as she burped, he smiled at her, the love he had for her was something only a father and daughter could share, and it was beautiful as you could see the concern on his face as she began to whimper. You let him take her as you went to get rid of the jar and spoon, coming back with her bottle.

“I just changed her, so she should be good for a while after this, is it alright if I go get some work done?” You asked him, he easily nodded as he laid her back on his chest, holding the bottle up to her lips as she eagerly started sucking on it. “Yeah, of course.” He spoke, not hearing you had already started walking away once he nodded, he smiled as you were tying your hair up sloppily while you walked, something you’d always done when you were getting focused on a project.

He turned on the golf channel, sinking into the couch with Willow as she fell asleep once her bottle was empty, he laid her down in the cushion beside him, boxing her in with a rolled up blanket and leaving his hand resting on her as he himself fell asleep.

***

Tyler had been home for a couple of weeks, physical therapy had been stepping up a lot, which meant he was incredibly sore by the time he got home, and incredibly stubborn. He figured, if he could do it just fine with a doctor walking beside him, there was no reason he couldn’t walk ten feet into the bathroom. Well, he quickly found out he was wrong as he stumbled from a pain in his hip and ended up on his knees, cursing as he couldn’t push himself up. You heard him fall, then the sounds of him cursing to himself and you shot up. “Tyler!” You called, rushing towards his room, he felt his cheeks flush with embarrassment as you rounded the corner. “Hey, hey, are you ok?” You gasped kneeling beside him. He shook his head, slumping against the wall in defeat, “what’s wrong?” You asked, looking over him, trying to make sure he didn’t pull any stitches, or injure himself again. “I just can’t get up.” He muttered, slamming his fist on the wall. “I’m a fucking professional athlete and I can’t stand up on my own!” He snapped, he thought you’d move away at the tone of his voice, but you didn’t, you only moved closer, wrapping your arms around him in a hug. “I know, Ty. It’s going to be ok.” You whispered, his breathing was ragged as he finally gave in and hugged you back. He calmed down as you just stayed there, letting him hug you as tight as he needed, you pushed his curly mop of hair back once he completely calmed down. “You ready to get back up again?” You whispered, he nodded watching you stand up and give him your hands. “Just push with your good leg, alright.” You gently reminded him, stepping a little sideways to give your feet some traction. “One, two, three.” You pulled on his hands as he slid up, his back against the wall steadying him, he planted both feet on the ground, you quickly grabbed his crutches.

“I’ll just wait until you’re back in bed.” You mumbled, taking a seat on the edge of the bed, he nodded, hobbling to the bathroom right outside the room. Your adrenaline high quickly crashed as you waited for him, and you found yourself laying flat on the bed as you waited.

Tyler came back into the room, stopping in the doorway as he saw you stretched out on half of the bed. A smile came over his face as you shifted in your sleep, burying half your face in the pillow, inhaling softly as you felt at peace. He didn’t wake you, he couldn’t bring himself too, so he carefully got into the opposite side of the bed, the thumping in his chest so loud he was certain you could feel it as you subconsciously rolled towards him, resting your hand on his chest as he threw the blanket over you.

Eventually, morning came, and when you woke up in the empty bed, the events of last night came rushing back and you leaped out of bed, not only was Willow crying from her room, but you didn’t see Tyler anywhere, you instantly became worried he’d fallen again and you’d slept right through it. “Y/N?” Tyler called as you went rushing past the kitchen looking for him. “Tyler!” You gasped in relief, placing a hand over your chest as you saw him pouring a cup of coffee. “I thought you fell again, oh my god, where did you sleep? Oh, the baby, let me get the baby!” You rambled heading for the stairs, he chuckled as he listened to you stomp up them, Willow’s crying soon stopping as you picked her up.

He was feeling a little better today, so he managed to get Willow’s morning bottle ready, and some toast for himself, settling himself at the table as you came down the steps. Your hair was tangled in itself, you didn’t have makeup on, and you were in oversized sweats and a tank top, but you’d never looked better to him as you giggled with his daughter on your hip.

You called his name as you walked into the kitchen, spotting him at the table, he didn’t answer, but his eyes were pointed in your direction, “Tyler?” You called again, snapping your fingers. He blinked, “what? Sorry.” Tyler muttered sheepishly, “did you want eggs?” You asked him, eyeing him suspiciously as you maneuvered Willow in your arms to give her her bottle. She happily started drinking it as you propped it up on your cheek, pulling the eggs out of the fridge. “Give her to me.” Tyler chuckled, making grabby hands for her as you struggled to balance everything, you happily gave her over, glancing back as he cooed down to her, whispering a good morning as he kissed her messy head of his hair, they looked so like in that moment, Tyler with his hair sticking all over the place, and Willow with hers pushed to the side from you, with a clip barely holding it back.

“I’m not sure if you’re up to it, or if you want to, but I was going to go to the pumpkin patch later today, if you and Willow want to come?” You offered, “I know you hate having to use that wheelchair but it would be so fun to see her next to all those giant pumpkins.” You raddled on, giving Tyler the chance to admire you, “yeah, that sounds fun.” He answered, smiling when you turned to face him excitedly, “I’m sure you have some cute outfit for her planned out too.” He rolled his eyes jokingly, and you nodded eagerly, of course you did, how could you not, it is her first fall season after all.

“Here ya go.” You mumbled, sliding a plate in front of him, he furrowed his eyebrows, “I never answered about the eggs.” He didn’t argue though, as he picked up his fork and took a bite. “I know, but you’re doing a lot today, you need them.” You giggled, offering a small piece to Willow, now nearly eight months old. She happily mushed it with her couple of teeth, smiling brightly at Tyler, he nodded reassuring her that she was doing good.

Finally you were loading up into the car to go out for a while, Willow dressed in the cutest outfit she had, something you’d bought before she was even born. The belle sleeve onesie just barely still fit her chunky frame, and the red overall skirt over top just made her look even more adorable, and of course, a matching red bow in her hair. Tyler jokingly didn’t approve of how short her skirt was as he took her from you once you arrived, she sat perched on his lap as you pushed the wheelchair down the isles, thankful for the wood boards they had put down as paths in the dirt, Willow was making noises at everything she saw, reaching out to touch the pumpkins every once in a while. “Let me get a picture of you two.” You stopped his chair next to a huge pile of pumpkins, and he stood Willow up on his lap as she grinned at you, it was by far one of your favorite photos of them so far.

An older couple was walking by and smiled at you, “would you like me to take a photo for you?” She asked, and before you could even process her words, Tyler was answering with a yes please. You felt the blood rush to your face as you approached him, he handed Willow to you, and you were about to stand beside him but he gently pulled you to sit on his good leg, you didn’t have time to react, you only smiled for the camera just like he was. “Oh, how beautiful.” The older woman cheered, handing the phone back over to you. “Thanks.” You mumbled, Willow hiding her face in your neck, suddenly shy. You clicked on the picture, and you felt like your chest would explode, you looked like a family, but you weren’t. “Y/N?” Tyler called, you quickly shoved your phone in your pocket, “are you ready to go?” He asked, taking the baby back from you, confusion laced in his tone as he saw the look on your face. “Yeah, Uh, yeah let’s go.” You mumbled, pushing the chair towards the exit, he held in a sigh, trying to figure out what had caused your sudden mood change.

***

“It’s Christmas!” You heard Tyler cheer as he got Willow out of her crib, the nine month old clapping her hands out of his excitement. Tyler was on the upside now, his second surgery complete, and now rehabbing both, he was able to walk without his crutches, he had to go slow on the stairs, but the doctor encouraged him to keep working on them. In a few weeks he’s going to be skating for the first time in months, and you were terrified, meanwhile he was ecstatic, ready to feel like his normal self again. You smiled, keeping your eyes shut as your door opened, “it’s Christmas!” Tyler shouted, putting Willow on the bed and letting her crawl up to your head, mushing on your cheeks, you gasped lifting her up quickly, sending her into a fit of giggles in her reindeer pajamas. “Christmas? Your first one!” You spoke to her, Tyler smiled, sitting beside you. “Merry Christmas.” He whispered, handing you an envelope, he laughed as you put Willow down and quickly pushed yourself to be sitting against the headboard beside him. She made her little baby babble as she played with the bunched up blanket. “You didn’t have to get me anything.” You spoke softly, opening the envelope, revealing a gorgeous Christmas card. “Oh shush, just read it.” You could hear the nerves in his tone, you shot him a smile before letting your eyes run over the extensive writing he’d done.

“Y/N, you have been a godsend in mine and Willow’s life, there isn’t anyone else I would’ve trusted to leave her with during all of this, there isn’t anyone else I’d want to be helping me off the floor at three am. What I’m trying to get at is,

There isn’t anyone else. I don’t think there will be anyone else.

So, if you’d kindly accept my gift, dinner, without Willow, a date, that’s what I’d like to call it.

Love, Tyler.”

“What’s the matter, Seguin? Too afraid to ask me in person?” You quipped, he opened and closed his mouth searching for the right words to say, “is that a yes?” He finally asked, a hopeful look dancing in his eyes. “Of course it’s a yes. I’ve only been waiting months for you to ask.” You giggled, catching him off guard by pecking his lips, it isn’t like you two hadn’t shared kisses before, but it was normally in a drunken state. “Uh-huh.” He hummed pulling you back in for a proper kiss, Willow shrieked, startling you both. She was looking at you angrily, before snuggling up to her dad, as if saying you weren’t allowed near him. “Good job, princess, gotta protect daddy from mean ol’ Y/N.” He murmured to her, earning a glare from you, but as he broke into laughter, you couldn’t even keep up your charades. “Come on, it’s Christmas, she’s got presents to open.” You mumbled, kissing her chubby cheek, “presents!” He cheered, holding her up highly, she giggled as he lunged her back down.

The date had gone as good as you could’ve hoped,

not exactly how he’d planned, but still a great night, the sitter had cancelled, and the restaurant he wanted to take you too didn’t offer a pick up option, so you ended up eating pizza on the living room floor, watching Disney movies, per your request, and talking about everything and anything. And of course, there were lots of stolen kisses.

***

“It’s alright to be a little scared you know.” You reminded your now boyfriend, he was about to go on the ice for the first time in months, and the anxiety just hit him, what if’s repeating themselves in his head. Willow was fast asleep in the stroller, tired from her own activities this morning. “But–“ “No but, you’ve got this babe, you’ve been warming up to this for months, hell, you probably skate better than you walk.” You cut him off, giving him a short pep talk, you squealed in delight when he pulled you in for a quick kiss. You pulled away with a smile, “now, go show that ice whose boss.” You giggled, pecking him once more before patting his shoulder, you weren’t allowed to watch him rinkside, no distractions allowed, so you took Willow for a short walk, all the while she slept. You kept yourself busy, getting caught up with things on your phone as you waited for Tyler to call and say he was done.

Finally as you went back to get him, Willow was awake but grumpy, and hungry, so you kind of just rushed in with her on your hip. Also remembering you had some stuff to do for work today that was time sensitive, “how’d it go?” You asked as you bounced her in an attempt to get her to calm down. Tyler slung his bag over his shoulder, “it was great, rusty, but it felt good.” He explained shortly, sending your urgency, “I’ll put her in the car.” He offered, taking her from you, and instantly she calmed down, only making you feel worse. You knew it was common for her to go through phases, hell, she’d done this with Tyler where she wanted nothing to do with him for almost a whole month, you didn’t realize how bad it would hurt. He shot you an apologetic smile, “hey, just take a deep breath. You’re gonna get everything done on time.” He assured you.

***

New Years had come and gone, and Willow’s first birthday was quickly approaching, as were her first steps. Tyler was sad that they were going to be happening so soon, but at the same time he was beyond excited for her to be running around in no time.

She quickly grew out of the phase of only wanting Tyler, which both of you were grateful for, as he could see it eating away at you.

“Come on, come to dada.” You heard Tyler, you peeked your head around the wall, seeing him sitting on the floor arms reach away from Willow, she looked at him quizzically, reaching her arms out, she wobbled but didn’t fall. “Come on baby.” He encouraged her, she took one step, two, three, and he just kept sliding back until she couldn’t go any further. “Oh my god!” You and Tyler shouted at the same time, “shit,” he jumped now knowing you were behind him. “Hi.” You laughed, sitting beside him, “I think you officially have a walker on your hands.” You told him, pressing a kiss to his cheek. He furrowed his brows for a moment, he looked as if he was going to say something, but then decided against it. “Yeah I do.” He chuckled in agreement, setting her back on her feet and grinning as she did it again, and again, and again until she was too tired to do anymore and just plopped herself on your lap.

“Hi baby.” You mumbled, kissing her forehead, she sighed, nuzzling into your neck, instantly falling asleep. “She loves you.” Tyler mumbled, tucking your loose hair behind your hair, you bit your lip as you looked over at him. “I love you.” He breathed out, relief hitting him when you broke into a huge smile, “I love you, Ty.” You mumbled, he kissed you as good as he could with Willow curled up on your lap. “Let’s go put her to bed, yeah.” He laughed, taking her from you and disappearing to her room in record speed.

***

Tyler had his first morning skate today, finally getting back into a routine with the team, he was anxious as it was on a Saturday, thankfully no game today, but it was Willow’s birthday party. Of course, all planned by you, Tyler clueless on what to do for a one year old, all he knew is it had to be puppy themed, because those were her absolute favorite things.

“Woah.” Tyler stopped in his tracks, seeing the decorations you’d spread out around the house, his dogs happily laying with party hats on their heads. “Baby, this is awesome.” He chuckled as you came around the corner to greet him, “I know it is.” You laughed, welcoming the hug he offered you. “Thanks for doing all this for her.” He mumbled against your head, “of course.”

***

“Dada, dada, dada!” Willow shrieked running towards him, “Willow?” He gasped, his first game back resulting in a loss, but he scored and you couldn’t lie, it made you emotional. And he was all the clueless to you two being here, “surprise!” You grinned as he scooped her up, “you came?” He mumbled in shock, kissing his daughter before pulling you in with his other arm, “of course we came.” You whispered against his lips, smiling as he finally kissed you, “you did so amazing, babe, I’m so proud of you.” You cupped his jaw with one hand, “thank you.” Is all he could get out before Willow started to speak. She reached for you, “mama.” Your breathing hitched, and Tyler’s smile had grown. You looked to him, afraid to over step, “yes baby, that’s mama.” He assured her, “Tyler.” You cautioned, taking her as she kept reaching for you.

“Y/N, she’s just as much yours as she is mine, you’ve been here since she came home, you’ve taken care of her like a mother, and I don’t plan on letting you go anytime soon. So yes. You’re her mom.” His words brought tears to your eyes, he smiled softly wiping away the tears, kissing your forehead as Willow watched curiously, she kissed your cheek with a smile, having learned early on to be affectionate to people she liked. “Thank you baby,” you cooed to her, resting your head on top of hers. “Mama?” She hummed, smiling against you. “Yeah.” You agreed. “I love you.” Tyler sighed, snapping a picture of his girls, he said the words right before he snapped the picture, getting the most genuine smile from you. “I love you.”

taglist: @boqvistsbabe @tortito @2manytabsopen @heybarzy @barzysreputation @yzas-stuff @iwantahockeyhimbo @calgarycanuck

[sup-hoes-its-me]

Emotion (Kakashi x Reader)

A/N: Kakashi again...can't get enough of this mans tbh. U r an empath due to your kekkei genkai and Kakashi has always been difficult to read. Friend to lovers. Sharing one bed folks, we got some steamyyy shit here. Angst warning as well.

Word count: 6000

He was always alone. Ever since his childhood, he walked the world completely alone with only a few people there to support him. No mother, no father, no mentor, no teammates. He was at the mercy of fate his entire life, things being stolen from him time and time again. 

He just prayed that he could keep her. Y/N L/N, the only woman to have wormed her way into his heart and made a home there.

When they first met, Kakashi and Y/N, she cursed him for being such a weirdo. Apparently his mind was empty and his heart was seemingly full of sand. He was conditioned that way, and that is how he lived for the longest time. It wasn't a surprise for him to hear that.

But she thought it was stranger than anything she'd ever seen, and so she followed him. She would figure him out, bring him back down to Earth from his supposed high horse. That woman was determined, and frankly he didn't mind her being around. She was quiet enough that it didn't matter. Not to mention on the missions they had together, she was quite the partner.

Over time, she'd learned to read him like a book. It was part of her clan's kekkei genkai. The ultimate empath, I suppose. The ability to read a persons every single emotion and then turn that, if they so choose, into power. 

She was never the greatest fighter, but her negotiation skills were the best they could possibly be. She would dive into the emotions of another and manipulate them backwards and forwards to get what she wanted. 

It was overwhelming, walking into a room of people and immediately being bombarded with so many feelings coming at her all at once. Occasionally, if the situation was bad enough she'd have to take a seat and clear her mind, organizing each person in her mind like a filing cabinet of empathy.

But damn, did she try to weasel out every bit of feeling she could. It was just something that came so naturally, she couldn’t help but instigate whatever was brewing up inside him.

"Kakashi, if you're happy, you know you're allowed to express it. You don't have to hide it away," she told him, staring at the masked man sitting across from her at the table. He was watching as she sharpened her kunai, and she could feel the content running off his body in small bursts. He was feeling better. Better than he had in a little while. Of course she picked up on it.

He sighed, rolling his eyes. She was always reading him, he knew that. He just preferred when she refrained from mentioning it. It did, most times, feel like a bit of an invasion of privacy, how she could deep dive into the corners of his mind. There were things no one else could ever possibly know that she did. It was strange, but he was used to it.

"What? Want me to smile or something?"

"No, but you should let yourself go. Just drop the facade."

"Stop doing that. Getting into my head."

Quietly, she set down her blade and picked up the next one, taking a cloth and softly wiping away any dirt. Her eyes slide up to his for a moment, her all knowing gaze filling his vision. "It's basically impossible. Especially if you're the only one around. There's nothing else to focus on except you." He knew that. It wasn't like she had an on or off switch. That was the downside of this dojutsu. Unlike sharingan and byakugan users, hers was always pulling the strings of her brain.

"You've got that mission next week. With Naruto and a few of the other kids, right?"

"Yes."

"It's A rank, isn't it?"

She hummed in agreement. He had a habit of knowing about all her missions, more importantly being the dangerous ones. He wasn't necessarily scared for her, probably not. He was more cautious than anything. There was this nagging feeling in his head that he shouldn't let her go on these missions alone. That it was too dangerous for her to handle. 

But he was wrong. She was stronger than he thought, and could hold her own in battle. He was just a worrier. He'd just lost too many, seen too many bodies in front of his eyes to trust. God, he wanted to trust her, but he couldn't. She was too vulnerable. His friend, one of the only ones who hadn't died yet. For all he knew, her days numbered, that's how paranoid he was about everything.

"You'll be careful?"

"That's a silly question." He gave her a look that said he was more serious than anything, and she sighed. "Of course I'll be careful. I have people that would miss me if I wasn't." He was one of them. She could sense his fear whenever she said goodbye and his relief when she returned. He really tried to remain objective, but his heart said otherwise. 

And she would be a liar to say that she did not experience the same relief seeing him come home from missions, even if he was beaten and bruised to the bone, she was just happy he made it back. So many never got to come home. It was a sick world, they lived in, but she could relish in the little comforts.

"Don't worry about me. I'll always turn out fine. It's you and your dumb students we have to worry about."

"I hear you. Those kids are enough to drive a person mad." He rested his chin in his palm, the mere thought of those kids causing his blood pressure to rise.

"Thankfully my students never gave me any trouble. Sweet little things."

"Well, aren't you just lucky, Y/N?"

"What can I say? Kurenai and I got the luck of the draw with our students. You men had it rough, I have to admit," she laughed. It was funny that he was so unfortunate to have gotten assigned the Uchiha and the Uzumaki, two completely opposite but persistent forces. "Despite your perverted tendencies and your perpetual lateness, you still did a great job teaching them."

"Thanks. But do you really have to call me a pervert? I'm really not."

"Yeah? That explains why you read porn in public. Admit you're a pervert, you dumb old man."

"We're the same age-" he began to argue, but she just cut him off with her harsh words.

"Creep," she muttered, running the sharpening stone along her blade. He narrowed his eyes. She was being awfully annoying, and he knew she could sense his irritation building up. Yet she continued just to be a pain in the ass.

 He warned, "Hey. Watch it, L/N."

"Okay, okay, I'll stop...Pervert." She ducked her head when his hand reached out to wring her around the neck for being so frustrating, and she continued to laugh. It was nice, having a friend she could joke with and be around without having to worry about what she said. He might pretend to be mad, but she could feel the happiness still rolling off his body thickly under all that fake neutrality. 

He was happier than he'd been in a long while, and she found herself swelling with pride knowing that she might have helped make that happen. Her lips curled into the gentlest of smiles as she peered back up at him, and he found himself smiling back even if it was just through the mask. 

He swore in that moment, he'd make sure Y/N didn't end up like all the others. She would live. He'd break this wretched curse just for her. He was sure of it.

______

"How could you be so reckless?! Do you want to die?" Kakashi shouted at his friend who could only stand there angrily, arms crossed over her chest and one foot in the other direction. She didn't need to be lectured by someone who took just as many risks every single mission as she did.

"Kakashi, I really don't want to hear it. You have no idea how it went."

"Yeah but Naruto does, and we were just talking."

She placed her free hand over her chest and exclaimed even angrier than before, "You're going to trust a kid over me? Naruto even?" It was just low to trust Naruto when she was right there to explain herself. Just let her speak for once, she wanted to say but he of course, had something else to say.

He waved his arm toward the ramen shop, eyes glaring. "Don’t be rude. He's right there. What is wrong with you?"

Indeed, Naruto was sitting inside Ichiraku with Jiraiya at his side, munching on pork ramen while the pair fought outside. Kakashi was eating with them, taking a break from his work to just relax with his master and student when out of the corner of his eye he noticed Y/N stumbling down the street on her crutch. 

He heard when she got back home that she was in the infirmary for a couple days. He had no idea for what reason until Naruto explained to him what happened. She was being needlessly reckless on the battlefield, relying too much on her kekkei genkai and not enough on her brain. She threw herself right in the way of an enemy, for what reason, he didn't know. All he knew was that she could have died and she didn't seem to care one bit.

Rightfully so, he was mad. Normally he preferred not to make a scene in the open like this, but there wasn't anyone else around and he was red-hot.

She huffed. "He knows I don't mean anything bad by that. How could he not? I'm also his sensei, you know."

"Doesn't matter," Kakashi brushed off her words. "What you did was dangerous and you don't seem to care. Next time what are you gonna do? Run right into the arms of the enemy?"

"No, I would never. Kakashi, you're just being a jerk right now. I'm literally injured from the hip down and you have to yell at me? Jeez, just be grateful I'm alive, okay? Things happen," she tried to reason with him, but he didn't acknowledge it. He wasn't exactly feeling all that rational.

"Things don't just happen like that."

She groaned, "Well apparently they do, because it happened to me."

His eye narrowed and she noticed the way he clenched and unclenched his fists a couple times by his sides. Clearly he was just trying to channel his anger, but he really had no reason to be so upset. She hadn't done anything to him. He really needed to relax. "This is so like you L/N's. Always so emotional. Always thinking you're stronger than you actually are."

"Excuse you-"

"Get a grip, you aren't going to live forever."

"First off, don't interrupt me. Second, don't talk about my clan ever again, you hear me, Hatake? We don't live to please your dumbass," she cursed, how dare he say shit about her clan. That asshole. He was just being so...so unlike himself. She had no idea what had gotten into him, but she hated it and just wanted to continue on her way before he said something else stupid. 

Normally, she didn't expect to be bombarded in the street nearly the second she leaves the hospital, but Kakashi never fails to surprise her.

"I've got to go. Don't bother following me." With that, she took off past him, rushing as fast as she could on her crutch, which was pathetically slow. Silently, she cringed at how ridiculous she must look waddling around like this in a fit of rage. Nevermind that. She had better things to do.

He huffed out the breath he had been holding to walk back into the ramen shop, taking his seat beside Naruto and slouching down into the stool. Immediately, Master Jiraiya met his eyes, wisdom about to drip from his tongue once again. "You need to go apologize."

"Why? She clearly doesn't want that right now."

"Well, to start, you insulted her clan which is a big no-no. Imagine saying that to an Uchiha. You're lucky she let you off so easily."

"Yeah, Kakashi. You kinda just attacked her out there in the street," Naruto added.

Jiraiya continued, "Mainly though, the longer you let her stay angry, the worse it'll be for you in the end. Trust me."

"She said don't follow her."

"And you're actually going to listen?" The older man laughed. "You and her fighting reminded me a lot of young Tsunade and I. And let me tell you, you don't just let a woman like that go. I sure did. It’s not a fun time."

"Yeah, Kakashi sensei, go find Y/N."

The jounin stood from his stool and slapped a ramen voucher onto the counter top to pay for his meal. This really didn't seem like a good idea, he had to admit. But he would trust the process. This was the author of his favorite romance series, after all. How could he get something like this wrong? To put blind faith into Jiraiya on realistic romantic matters was probably the not the wisest thing to do, but it was the only thing he had to go on. "I'll go, but this doesn't sound like good advice."

"If you let this go, she's might run into the arms of another man for comfort. Do you want that?"

Tch, there was no way she was gonna do that. She barely had any friends. If anything she would go see Kurenai. Still, he pulled back the cloth at the entrance and muttered, "I gotta catch up to her."

"'Atta boy," Jiraiya cheered, waving off the copy nin. "Another bowl, Naruto?"

"Yes, please!"

Kakashi walked down the streets, looking for the woman he was sent on a mission to find and apologize to. He searched through the shops and the stands for her, walked by her apartment no sign of her. It wasn't until he stumbled by the bookstore that he found her eyeing down the display out front, leaning comfortably on her crutch.

"Y/N," he called to her, and he watched as she tensed up without a second. He caught up to her, walking to stand beside her in front of the store windows. "I need to talk to you."

"What do you want?" She questioned, peering over at him with a quirked brow. He seemed calmed down by now. Thankfully. "Also, didn't I tell you not to follow me?"

"You did, but Jiraiya told me to apologize."

"So this isn't even on your own accord, you're doing it because Jiraiya told you so." He groaned. Of course she would twist his words and find some way to make things bad on his end. She was angry with him, what did he expect to happen? Her to accept him with open arms?

"Listen, I'm sorry for yelling at you. I was just overwhelmed."

"With what? I wasn't paying attention to anything but the anger." She picked at her finger nails in an attempt to remain casual, but really she was just itching to hear what he had to say. She was willing to give him a second chance, only because he was normally so sweet. This was just out of character for him.

He replied, "I was scared for you. Naruto told me about how you nearly died, and I was upset that you did that. I was upset because I could only think about what if you had been overpowered and the enemy killed you." His explanation was weak, but he hoped she would accept it as truth. He really wasn't lying. When he heard she was in the hospital indefinitely, he nearly had a heart attack himself. He worried for her every time she left on a mission without him. It just meant that if she failed, he wasn't there to protect her himself. He couldn't handle that thought.

"So you were worried?"

"Yes."

"Well, that's sweet of you, isn't it?"

"I'd miss you, you know. If you died."

She froze. That wasn't what she expected him to say. When she looked over at him, he was just staring into the storefront window, but she could feel the sadness in waves running off his body. She wobbled around on her crutch to face him, a hand getting coming up to rest on his shoulder. "It's okay."

"I don't want you going on missions without me because every time it scares the shit out of me thinking they'll bring you back dead. Every time. I don't know why."

"It's normal to worry for your teammates."

"It's not the same, and you know it."

"Ah." And she felt it. Even if it was just a little hint of something, she felt his infatuation roll off his body and she took it in like a drink of cold water. So refreshing. Was he attracted to her? She had no idea before this that he cared so much but from the sound of it, he had some strong feelings attached. She wanted to reach out and hug him, tell him it was going to be okay, but that felt too personal. Instead, she leant back and muttered, "You know, Kakashi, I worry about you too."

"It's good we both have someone who cares, right?"

"Right."

"Well, I should be on my way, but, uh, if you need some help getting up to your apartment-"

"I should be fine."

"Okay, good."

"Yeah, so uh, see you," she turned on her heel and started heading in the other direction toward her home when suddenly, his hand reached out to stop her. 

"Wait, Y/N. I think..."

"What is it?"

"It's just that I need you. Please be careful from now on."

She stopped, turning around just enough to get a good look at his face. He only watched her, a glimmer of something she didn't recognize in his eye. 

"As long as you take care of yourself too, Mister."

"Y/N, I…"

All she could feel was a rough fabric rubbing against her face for a second before the full picture came into view. 

Mask to lips. I repeat, mask to lips.

She stared at him, as he kissed her right there in front of their favorite bookstore. When he pulled away after a second, he seemed just as shocked as she was. She pressed a hand to her forehead and struggled to find the right words to say. 

Kakashi Hatake just kissed her. 

And she definitely liked it. More than any other kiss she’d ever had before. She loved it. Mask or not, that was one of the best surprises of her entire life, and she honestly had no idea how to react. She settled for the easiest possible thing, running in the opposite direction, give herself time to think over what that meant for the two of them if anything at all. Kakashi wasn’t the type to have a girlfriend, he was always single. There just wasn’t room in his life for her.

There was plenty room in her life to fit him in comfortably. And there was more than enough room in her bed as well. 

Flustered, with heat coming to sit in her cheeks and run up her neck, she turned and motioned in the direction of her home. She just had too many thoughts to sit here and pretend she wasn’t dying inside from the tension.

"I've got to run home now," she managed to say. "Well, not run, with these crutches and all, but you know what I mean."

"Yeah, I should be going too. I'll see you around,” he mumbled, running his hand through his hair and down the back of his neck. 

"See you."

And into separate directions they went, just as confused as ever.

______

"Kakashi, I swear to God, if you don't stay on your side of the bed, I'm gonna-

"You'll what? Hit me? Go ahead. You're the one that keeps snoring."

"Shut up!" she exclaimed, rolling over in the bed and planting her fist directly in the middle of his chest. He didn't even flinch, she hadn't meant to hurt him anyway. She was just so annoyed. You would think that the stoic Hatake would be easy to sleep beside but no, he was a pain in the ass. He was rude. He was way too hot under the sheets. He still smelled like dog even after taking a bath. Just overall a bad experience, definitely 0 out of 10.

"What? It's the truth."

She groaned, throwing one of her arms over her eyes, burying her nose in the crook of her elbow. "Whatever. Don't ever mention my snoring again. It’s embarrassing me." She was self-conscious. She was usually so good at maintaining a cool and calm presence and now Kakashi was seeing that all crumble. Great. 

"Fine."

"Can't you just stay on your side so we can both sleep comfortably?"

"Can't you just stop snoring so I can sleep comfortably?" 

What a bastard. She could practically feel him snickering beneath his mask, and she felt frustration bubbling up in her chest. He was annoying. The audacity of this man, laughing and causing trouble in the night when they clearly had a mission to continue tomorrow. She could actually feel the delight radiating off his form.

She jumped up from her spot and threw herself onto the man beside her, attempting to make a vicious grab for the throat so she could maybe shut him up for just a few seconds. He dodged easily, taking her wrists in his calloused hand and lowering them to rest on his chest. Still, he continued to laugh at her. She felt like an utter joke sitting there on his stomach, looking at him through loose strands of her hair. 

She grumbled under her breath, her cheeks puffing out full of embarrassment, "Stupid."

"Me? Stupid? Look at you."

She replied swiftly, "What about me? You're the one with that ugly grin on your face." Quickly, she snatched her hands out from under his to cross her arms over her chest. She rocked back a bit on her knees to get a better look at his indeed ugly face. 

Except he definitely wasn't ugly, and that grin was more devilishly handsome than anything else. And honestly, she felt herself starting to get flustered in the position she'd put herself in. Of course she didn't hate Kakashi. He was one of her friends and coworkers. It was just that sometimes he could be casually attractive and she found herself falling under his spell. 

He just looked so fucking good lying there, staring up at her with a glimmer in his dark eyes. She could see the smile outlined under his mask. His hands had felt warm and firm around her own fingers. She missed his touch, there she said it, any touch on her body from Kakashi Hatake felt like heaven. He was far too cute, and the soft contact between them drove her crazy.

She wanted to punch herself for thinking such silly things. This was Kakashi, one of her frenemies. Not boyfriend material. Stupid. Silly. 

If only he didn't look so good, Jesus christ. Get your brain out of the gutter, Y/N.

Little did she know, his mind was already waist deep in those damn gutters and he was loving it.

"You really think that?"

"What? That you're ugly?" She asked, tilting her head to the side just a bit as if to think about it. Only a second later, another mischievous smile crossed her lips. "Of course."

He lifted his fingers to slid along her waist and down to her hips, fingers curling ever so slightly around her curves. She shuddered as his hands slid down to hold the sides of her bare thighs in his hands, his warm, strong hands with the softest fingertips. She wanted to die.

Had they kissed before? Yes. We're they somewhat romantically involved? Maybe. Did that give him any good reason to rest his rough hands on her thighs like that? Probably, and her thoughts were running a mile a minute at this point. 

"Kakashi...stop that," she said softly, her voice lowering from how it was before. She suddenly felt a lot smaller, scared even. Hooking up with Kakashi wasn't something she planned on doing anytime in the near future, if at all. He was her friend, and she felt strange sitting in his lap with his hands all over her. It felt so right but wrong at the same time, like she was breaking the law. Well, laws of friendship that is.

She cared about Kakashi, more than she wanted to admit. He wasn't just a friend, he was something weirdly in between and she couldn't exactly put her finger on how she felt about him. All she knew was that if she was going to have sex with this man, it would be the right way. They would have to date first. She wasn't just gonna sleep around this time. He was different. 

She wanted to impress him, to make him smile and laugh, to take him out to dinner and hold hands on their way home, to kiss at her doorstep. She wanted all of that before any of this.

His hands dropped from her sides and she crawled away from him, grabbing her blanket and cradling herself in it. "Listen, Y/N, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"I know, it's not your fault. Don't worry about it."

It was quiet. Just the sounds of both their breaths filling the air and the crickets chirping in the darkness outside. She shifted in her blanket to rest her head on the wall, leaning against it with her shoulder. He remained on his back, staring up at the empty ceiling tiles. 

It was now so terribly awkward. Thanks, Y/N.

Finally, he broke the silence. "You, uh, don't snore all that much. I was just teasing you."

"Thanks," she exhaled. "You're not as ugly as I said."

"I know."

Wow, Kakashi. So modest.

Her words fell right into place as she spoke, emotions slipping out with each breath. She looked at his profile in the dark, the way his bedhead stood on end, his nose pointed upward and his lips sat calmly, the curve of his chin under the edge of his mask, the way his eyes just sat there unmoving and gentle, brows soft above the eye. She took in all of him as she confessed, "I just don't want it to be like this. I don't want to fall for you this way."

"I get it."

"I just think that you and I could be something different. You're not like the other guys to me, at least, I don't think of you that way," she took a deep breath. He still stared deep in the ceiling, and somehow it made her comfortable enough to confess everything she'd been feeling. It was as if he could just lay there and listen without words forever. "I don't want you to just fuck me before we really...well I don't know, we've never even been on a date. I...I think I'm ready to fall in love with you."

"Then let's do it."

She peered over at him, lips agape with surprise. She hadn't expected much at all, but certainly not that. "What?"

"When we get back to the village, I'll take you on a date, more if things go well. We can take it as slow as you want," he told her, turning to lay on his side, facing her. He watched as she cuddled further into the comforter, only a peek of her face in his view. She was actually kinda cute through all those worn and torn layers. "I don't think I can let you go this time."

"Really?"

"Anything for you."

She ducked her head down to stare at the hardwood beneath her feet. She was overwhelmed by how nice he was being. Normally, it didn't go like this. Things normally got sexual so quick there wasn't even a chance for these sorts of conversations. It was just different with Kakashi. She could say no to him and expect better, because she knew he could deliver. "No one has ever treated me like this before."

He smiled. "Well, it's about time someone did."

"Can you hold me?"

"Come on." He lifted his arm up with the covers attached so she could crawl over and burrow herself next him, tucked right against his side. He rested his arm around her shoulders and held her close to his chest. Things were looking good for the both of them. Better than they had in a long time.

He wished this kind of thing could last forever. The beating of her heart, the laughter in her voice, the shine in her eyes. He just wished he could have bottled it all up and held it close to him for the rest of his life. 

But he waited too long, and the opportunity slipped from his grasp.

______

The pair fought hard. Kakashi was better than her, everyone knew that. The enemy targeted her for that reason. It was clear as day that she was important to Kakashi, and the enemy quickly caught onto that. He was quick to bring the knife to her neck, pressing the woman’s back tightly to his chest. The blade stung her skin, already piercing the flesh from the bit of pressure he applied.

She cried out, feeling a trail of blood begin running down her neck. Her nails clawed at his arm, desperate to get him to release her from his clutches, but he persisted. One hand held onto her chin tightly, keeping her face from thrashing, and the other continued to apply more and more pressure into the blade. 

For the first time in a long time, she found herself feeling unrestricted fear. She was scared. Scared for her life. She’d never been in this situation before, feeling so completely and utterly helpless like a deer caught in the headlights. Kakashi was right there, she should have known everything was going to be okay. After all, she had the village’s strongest veteran on her side.

It wasn’t the pain that caused the tears to bubble up in the corners of her eyes, no, it was Kakashi. The way his eyes darted over to the them, and she could feel his heart beginning to race, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end, and the fear creeping up into his heart. He never wore his heart on his sleeve. He was so closed off, sometimes she could only get a wisp of emotion from him, especially the ones that showed such vulnerability. 

Now it all seemed to come tumbling out like a landslide. She was drowning in fear, his and her own. 

“Let her go,” he called out, practically pleading with the man across from him, but it was in vain. 

“Like I’d listen to some filthy leaf shinobi,” the spy replied angrily. He felt so hot, burning up with so much anger she wanted to throw up. What had they done to upset him this badly? Her jaw was starting to ache from being held so tightly, and she swore she could taste blood running down her throat. This was bad. This was so terribly, miserably bad. 

Kakashi stood there, his hands hovering at his sides, unknowing of what to do. She was already bleeding out all over the collar of her shirt. If he made a single move, the man could easily finish the job with one fatal swipe. The copy nin felt cornered. Hopeless. What was there left to do? He’d let the love of his life fall in the hands of some petty criminal. 

Come on, think of something. Anything. Just think of something.

“What? You upset I’ve got your little girlfriend here?”

God, he was so desperate. The man taunting him didn’t help at all. He just felt himself spiralling deeper into hopelessness. He bargained, “Please, just let her go. I’ll give you whatever you want.” 

It wouldn’t work though. This man was set in his ways, and there was no changing that. He came into this fight knowing exactly what he wanted to do. And he was going to finish the job. 

“This is for what you shinobi have done to my people,” he sneered before she felt the knife dip further into her neck, sliding painfully across her throat. He dropped her head from his grasp, and as soon as he had, her body crumbled down to the ground. She collapsed in a bleeding heap on the dirt. 

The criminal quickly ran into the forest behind them, getting lost among the trees and the bushes within seconds. None of that mattered though. Kakashi could only run over to her limp body lying there on the ground, sputtering and coughing on thick blood filling her throat and lungs. Her cheeks and lips painted red now from spitting so much up. He fell to his knees beside her body, and for the first time in a long time, he felt a tear drip down his face.

She cried, hot tears running down her cheeks into the dirt on either side of her head. She cried for her pathetic self, having been attacked and injured in this way. She cried for Kakashi, feeling the pain and sadness, the panic, radiating off his form. She took in every emotion he was feeling, wanting to savor being with him for as long as she had, to fully take him in one last time. 

“Y/N, it’s gonna be okay,” he whispered, his hands running over her hair and cheek, smearing blood on her skin and his fingers. “We’ll bring you back to the village. The Hokage can fix you.” His words were so soft into the air, like if he spoke any louder he would hurt her.

They both knew that none of what he was saying was true. She was as good as dead.

She lifted her hand weakly to sit on his other hand. “I…” The woman took a labored breath.. “Love you, Kashi.”

“No, no, no. Don’t say that,” he hushed her, feeling his heart grow heavier in his chest with every second that passed, every look at her bloody neck and face, her laboring chest as she took hopeless breaths. He was falling apart in this moment, desperate for fate to change, for her to magically be better. He choked, “You can’t die, Y/N.”

“It’s okay.” Her words were slurred and hard to hear, liquid bubbling up in her throat to the point she was almost incomprehensible. “I love you,” she confessed once again. She wanted those to be her last ever words to him, the words he would remember for the rest of his life. To know someone out there loved him more than anything else.

He had to know that he was her everything. He was the best thing that ever happened to her, and she was going to miss him so terribly wherever her soul went after this. She just wished there was more time to tell him everything she felt. Yet, time was passing faster than she thought, and all those words felt impossible.

“I love you, too. You have to live for me. Just keep breathing, it's going to be okay.”

“It...hurts.”

More misery erupted his chest, and he found himself wanting to scream. Tears dripped steadily down both his cheeks now as he watched this woman die in front of him, one of the only people he truly needed in his life. “I know, baby, I know. I’m sorry I let this happen to you.”

She nodded faintly, her eyes beginning to close. He was starting to panic. Was this his last moment to say goodbye? Their time together was so short, how was this fair? He’d already lost everyone he ever cared about, and now this? He felt like the gods were laughing down at him and his misfortune. 

“You were the best thing that ever happened to me. I don’t know how I’ll do this without you.”

She didn’t respond, but she was still breathing. 

“Y/N, please.”

And he watched as her chest fell still and her labored breaths were silent on his ears. He found himself gathering her form up against his chest, her head cradled in the crook of his neck, just sobbing into her hair, weeping for a long lasting love gone in an instant. 

 He carried her body home that day himself. Something he never anticipated happening, but should have prepared for. He always thought he was going to watch as someone else carried her home to him, death long gone before he had the chance to see. He never thought it would be right in front of him. He thought he could protect her, save her from the clutches of fate. He was so wrong.

Kakashi was alone once again.

[unloved-cadillac]

The Doctor Friend. (Levi x Reader)

Summary: you fell and twisted your ankle but hey, at least you got the cute doctor.

C/n: Doctor Levi has been on my mind for a while now.

Of all the times that you wanted to die, this just sealed the deal.

Hange knew that you had bad joints and a horrible stamina, but no. She wanted to go bike riding because “it’s so fun!!” Little did you know, the four-eyed lunatic didn’t know how to ride a bike and as she took off, trying to catch up to you, she bumped into your bicycle and a whole collision took place.

“Ow!” You tell as you lift your head up and hold your leg. “Holy shit! Y/n, are you okay?!” Hange asks frantically as she puts her glasses back on. “Do I look okay?! My leg is twisted in the fucking bicycle!” You tell at her as you try to move your leg out. “Wait. I can help. Don’t scream.” Hange says and leans down to analyze your leg. It caught in the chain and the bar held it in a very awkward position.

“Why in the actual fuck would you suggest bike riding if you don’t know how to ride!?” You ask as she begins to pull your ankle out. “I-I don’t know! It seemed like fun!” You roll your eyes, clearly annoyed, but that emotion got throw out the window as Hange yanked your leg out and pain shot through your system.

“HANGE! WHAT THE FUCK??!!!” You tell and hold your leg. “I’m sorry but it worked. Come on. Let’s get you to the emergency room.” She helps you up by throwing your arm around her shoulder and you hopped to her car.

The ankle started to swell and it burned. The utter shock and pain made your eyes water but you weren’t crying. It was just so “hot”. Hange tried talking to you and lighting up the situation but all you did was glare at her.

“Listen, an old friend is the doctor at the hospital. We’ll be done in no time.” She smiles and you scoff and hold your ankle. You propped it up on the dashboard and saw how it looked like a dog had bitten it. “God help me not kill this woman.” You mumble as you glare at her. Hange gulps as she drives and tries not to speak to you to anger you more.

~~~~

Hange helped you out the car and took you into the hospital. She took you to the counter and began to speak frantically. “Please. My friend has a broken ankle and I don’t know if she’s going to die cause it looks really bad so please help her.” You furrow your eyebrows at Hange as a few teardrops fell from your eyes.

“C-Calm down ma’am. We’ll help her. Marco! Get a wheelchair!” The young receptionist yelled to a younger man and a wheelchair was brought to you. They took you to a room and you had to sit on the bed while you waited. You looked at your ankle, wincing as it began to bruise purple and black.

Few minutes passed and the door to the room opens, revealing a man in white coat.

“Hello. I’m Dr Ackerman. I’ll be attending your injury.” He says and you nod at him. “I’m Y/n.” You introduce yourself as he looks at your chart. He smirks and holds up the clipboard. “I know. So,” he walks to you as he puts on latex gloves, “let’s take a look at that ankle. Lay it on the bed for me.”

Nodding, you place the injured leg on the bed and he began to examine it. “How did this happen, Ms L/n?” He asks. “My friend and I went bicycle riding and she forgot to mention that she couldn’t ride so she bumped into me and my leg twisted in the bicycle as I fell.” He picked his head up and narrowed his eyes. “Your friend wanted to ride when she couldn’t?” You nod and chuckle. “Hange is always so clumsy but this made her ten times worse.” You say. “Hange? Hange Zoë?” He asks and you nod. Your eyes widen when you realize.

“You’re the doctor friend?” You ask and he nods.

You watched him as he pressed and felt your ankle and winced when he hit a certain spot. “Hurts here?” He asks and you nod. “Hm. Okay. So let me take an x-ray of it. Won’t take long. We just need to know if you didn’t have a fracture.” Levi helps you down and his strong arms carry you to place you on the wheelchair. “All set?” He asks as he stands behind you. “Yeah.”

The x-ray didn’t take long. You did have a tiny fracture but a fracture nonetheless. You and Levi spoke about your mutual friend and each other. You found out that he loved tea but the hospital’s tea was one of the worse he has ever tasted. You told him about your work and how your boss always wore funky ties and funny socks to match which made him chuckle. “He tells the worst jokes too. It’s so weird but it makes us all happy.” You say and he nods. “Yeah. It’s good to have a good boss who tries to make your day better. Take mine for example. Dr Pixis has been here since I was an intern and is old enough to retire but he won’t until he sees the new wing of the hospital up and going.” “That’s nice of him.” You say and Levi hums in agreement as he massages your ankle.

Levi took you back to the room and began to tape your ankle up. He put a cast on it and then wrote on his notepad. “It will take a few weeks to heal. The swelling itself, will be down a bit in a few days but you will need to go to an orthopedic surgeon to drain the fluid from it. I’m giving you a prescription for some pain killers.” You smile as he talks and you start to notice how freakin attractive this doctor was.

The way his hair was set in a stylish undercut, black piercings on both ears, grey eyes that shone blue and his clear skin. He definitely has a skin-care routine for sure.

He hands you the note and you put it your pocket. “When you go out, the nurse will bring you a pair of crutches. So use that and try not to put pressure on your ankle.” He says as he pushes you to the front of the hospital. Hange ran up to you and Levi pulled you back as she got closer. “Oh, Y/n! Are you okay?! Levi is she okay?” She asks and Levi scoffs. “She’s fine, Four-Eyes. Apparently, you’re the one who caused this.” Hange slumps here shoulders in defeat. “Yes. But it was an accident.” Hange groans and you chuckle. Levi squats next to you and you look at him. “Take care, Y/n.” He shoots you a smile and you smile back at him. “I will, Levi. You too.”

Levi wakes up and walks away as you watch him leave. Hange switches her gaze between you and him and she stands in front of you. “He’s cute huh? Want his number?” Hange asks and you shake your head. “Hans. Just take me home. Oh. Wait, you need to get my meds first from the pharmacy.” You take out the prescription letter from Levi and your eyes read the medication. But what caught your attention was the little message at the end:

‘Hospital tea is shitty. Call me if you want to have a good cup of tea with me. Don’t forget your meds, brat.’

xxx-xxx-xxxx

Levi.

You smile as you read it over and over again. You tear that part off and hand Hange the prescription. Maybe this whole nightmare of a day wasn’t so bad after all.

🖤🤍Thanks for reading🤍🖤

-Caddy.

[dokifluffs]

Injured | Ushijima Wakatoshi

Pariring: Ushijima X Reader (gender neutral)

Genre: fluffyyyy 🤧

Request: “Ushijima s/o taking care of him because he’s injured” - anonnie 

Author’s Note: you got it, homie 🤧 Thank you for requesting and happy reading!! <3 I may have gotten a lil too carried away with this imagine 😗😗 

It started when one day, you had to pick up Ushi from his practice about half an hour earlier than it was supposed to end

When you picked him up, he came out with crutches, his left foot bare but wrapped. Kageyama aided him and held the doors open for him, helping him into the passenger seat of your car

“Are you okay?” You asked as soon as he shut the door, the two of you waving Kageyama goodbye as he jogged back to practice

Fortunately, since it was the off season, practice wasn’t too long or as intense. Games were more spaced out than the games during the season, where games then were played more often

“Yeah,” he sighed dejectedly. You could see he was a little bummed out. It wasn’t the first time he had sprained his ankle- this was actually the second time but it happened again on the same ankle

“How’d it happen?” You refrained yourself from adding “this time” at the end. The first time, he rolled it and the doctor said it was a low grade one sprain but to make sure to stretch and be mindful while playing

“We were scrimmaging against each other and Romero got bumped into while blocking, so he handed on my ankle. It didn’t hurt too bad but it’s swelling a bit more than last time.” He looked at his foot as you drove through the city

Instead of going straight back home, Ushi had called his doctor before you picked him up so that’s where the two of you went to first

The day was cloudy, not too sunny but not too gloomy

Arriving there, you helped him out of the car and walked beside him as he walked with his crutches. The office was pretty empty so the wait was practically nonexistent

“You were very lucky this time, Ushijima-san. If the injury had been more severe, there could have been some permanent damage,” the doctor had said after running his physical tests and x-ray

You felt just the slightest bit of Ushi’s hand squeeze yours, his skin rough and warm from practice and years of playing. You couldn’t imagine what it felt like for him, the feeling of standing on the edge of a cliff and any further, he would’ve fallen: his volleyball career would have been over as soon as it started

Any permanent damage to his ligaments would have made his ankle weaker

But it wasn’t permanent. You heeded the doctor’s words carefully: let him rest, ice it for fifteen to twenty minutes every two to three hours, wrap it, elevate it

Again, this wasn’t your first time helping him out when he was injured but last time, it wasn’t as bad as this time. Last time, he was able to walk without applying too much weight that would cause him pain

The drive home from the doctor’s was calm. If Ushijima was feeling anything, you couldn’t read it on his face or the aura around him

“How was your day?” He asked, catching you off guard as you entered the neighborhood

“Oh, it was fine. I was doing a bit of work to get ahead and then I picked you up and here we are.” You worked from home, managing your own personal business as it steadily grew, especially overseas

Arriving home, you helped him out of the car and then held the front door for him. It was bright with a calming ambiance coming from the pale sunlight that shined through the tall windows, the light bouncing off the white walls

“I’m going to take a shower before resting,” he stated as he approached the stairs

You nodded as you dropped off your belongings on the kitchen counter but watched from behind him as he went up the stairs with his crutches, just in case anything were to happen

As soon as he was safely upstairs, you returned to the kitchen and prepared dinner. Music played all throughout the spacious room as you cooked away. You prepared a special hayashi rice for him knowing how much he liked it and maybe, this would raise his spirits a bit more

Though you didn’t even know if he was disheartened or not. Ushi was strong. He has been and always will be. You know this. He’ll rise to the world stage with his team and blow away any opponent he would face. You believed in him

When he came back down, he wore a simple, slightly baggy white shirt and black shorts, his hair just a bit damp but fresh with the shampoo he used

He came into the kitchen, the savory aroma scent of the hashed beef that you made, now dished in front of him as he sat down

The two of you peacefully ate dinner while the walls and lighting changed all around the room as the sun set over the horizon outside. It was quiet, filled with the sounds of the two of you eating, silverware to the dishes

You were actually stumped, not knowing what to talk about. The two of you had been together for years but it felt like the beginning when the two of you were first talking- but the thing was, the two of you at that phase didn’t know what to talk about

“Dinner is delicious, Y/N, thank you for making it.” He spoke, giving you a small smile

“Of course,” you said, bringing a bite of rice to your mouth. “I’ll prepare an ice bag after dinner,” you said, to which he nodded and that was basically all the two of you talked about for the rest of dinner

It felt weird

After dinner, he made his way to the living room, sitting on one of the lounge couches. Only a few slivers of light were shining as much as they could in the distance. You gathered the dishes into the sink but grabbed a bag, filling it with ice

Bringing it and a towel. When you approached him, he brought his leg up, setting it on a pillow

He tried to reach for the bag only for you to step away. “Let me,” you smiled. He sat back and relaxed as you placed the ice bag over the towel, draping both over his leg

“Talk to me, Ushi. You’ve been quiet..” you sat beside him on the edge of the couch. “What’s on your mind?”

“Well..” he took your hands into his. His fingers rubbed across the palm of your hands every now and then as he gathered his words

“I was actually scared..” he admitted, taking you aback. “The thought of knowing how fast everything could’ve ended if it was worse”

Your hands closed around his hands, your thumbs rubbing over his knuckles continuously as you listened

His hands were far bigger than yours, stronger than you could ever know but to him, you were able to make him feel small despite you being up to his neck

The two of you spent the rest of the night just talking in the living room. One conversation let to another, your touch never leaving him

In bed, you made sure to be cautious with your movements, not accidentally kicking his leg

For the first time in a while, the two of you stayed up “late” which was really just an hour later, continuously talking

There was no need for him to be up and early for the next two weeks

It felt like you were falling for him all over again, it felt nostalgic

Sleeping, he laid on his back with a pillow beneath his leg as you slept beside him, your arm resting over his chest, close to his side

For the rest week, everyday was the same for the two of you. You prepared breakfast, lunch, and dinner

You made sure he rested as much as he could but he couldn’t keep still the entire time. He lifted weights and worked with his upper body strength to make sure he would be able to come back stronger than ever

He played calm nature sounds over a speaker as he worked out, though you preferred music, but he preferred natural life

About a week passed and things were going smoothly

But tonight, the Adlers were playing a match against a team from the states and Ushi wouldn’t be there tonight

The two of you sat together on the couch in the dimmed living room after dinner, watching some tv before the game would go on live

You usually watched their games, sure to cheer him and his team on whenever you could but it felt different now that he was right beside you

The game went on and it was intense. The score was constantly neck and neck until the last bits where the Adlers were able to successfully pull ahead

Ushi’s sub wasn’t as strong as he was when he swung but he had a nasty cut, making the other team struggle with getting the ball back up to Kageyama

He made some commentary every now and then about what could’ve been done instead. Some plays even surprised him

He had seen games throughout high school and maybe a few Adlers’ games but the recordings were specific to only him to analyze his plays

But seeing the broadcasts were entirely different

Just as his eyes were settled on one angle, the camera switched

The Adlers were able to win in a 4-1 match

To you, it felt like after watching this match with him, it was like something changed. The usual times he worked out got a bit longer

He asked you to make some changes to his diet, which you complied and you even found him on the call with his doctor about things he could do to strengthen his ankle in a secure way that won’t damage it further while you were working in your office

Around the third week, he began to do some light stretches just to be safe for now and opted to use a single crutch more than two crutches

Whenever you were around Ushi after a game or even before, there were different distinct auras he would project as he drew himself to the game and his opponents

He was so passionate about the sport, you admired him for it

But the aura you felt as he stretched, worked out, the way his arm would snake around your waist a lot more often than when he would be playing everyday

To be honest, you really loved that he was home. Since you worked from home, you were pretty alone except for the days he came back from his practices, games, tournaments, and his rest days

It felt nice that you could take care of him and see him so often everyday. To wake up beside him and to still feel his touch against your skin and body when you woke up

Rolling into the fourth week, he began to stretch regularly. He was slowly able to walk but was careful about how much weight he was putting onto his leg

To return the favor, while you went out to get a couple things before you could really start dinner

He did the best that he could and in his mind, he planned to make a couple of dishes he knew how to- basic ones he’s seen you to so many times

Stepping through the door with a couple of bags in hand, a smile instantly spread across your lips as you watched Ushi standing still in front of the stove, wooden spatula in hand as he did his best to make the first dish

You set the bags on the counter, which he didn’t hear over the sound of the stove

You wrapped your arms around his back, burying your face into his toned back, how nice it felt to feel how warm his body was through the fabric of his shirt

Your hands rested on his chest as you took him in, enjoying every bit of the moment, even if he was slowly burning food

When the smell got a little too intense, you took over though there was no saving what he did but it was okay

“I just wanted to help out as a way of thanking you for taking care of me so much, Y/N,” his voice low in your ear, you could practically hear the rumble in with every word

He rested his hands around your waist with your back to his chest, holding you every so lightly in his arms but not tight enough to restrict you

He stayed beside you the entire time you made dinner, helping you out in any way he could, doing as you instructed

You didn’t know if it was just because of the moment the two of you were able to share but dinner tasted better than normal. Instead of sitting across from him, you sat beside him

He occasionally fed you bits of the dishes the two of you prepared and made together even though he was never really one to do this kind of stuff

It was a very sweet gesture though

Going into the sixth week, you drove him to his doctors once more for a check up. He didn’t need crutches to walk and it was a bearable to apply his weight onto his leg

“It seems like your sprain is almost fully recovered. To be safe, I recommend you continue your stretches but don’t jump right back into playing just yet for the best results,@ the doctor said while inspecting the new x-ray

Although he didn’t say it, you could feel just how eager he was to get back into gears, to play with his team again

He did the most he could to build strength in his legs and body but just enough to not over do it

Before you knew it, you were suddenly standing on the sidelines with a special pass at his first game back, the stadium filled and cheering loudly as the announcer announced his official return after a roughly six week rest

You wore one of his jerseys proudly and cheered him on from the sidelines

He was back stronger than ever and you knew this was going to be another win for the Adlers

~~~~~ Thanks for reading! Masterlist for more! Please do not repost anywhere else!

Tags (send me an ask if you wanna be tagged for all my haikyuu posts): @yams046  @mazey-chan  @sunboikyo00  @kara-grayson04​  @fortheloveofbakugo​

[autumnleaves1991-blog]

Benny x fighter!reader has been PLAGUING MY MIND EVER SINCE I SENT THE FIRST ASK ABOUT IT!! There are SO many ideas that are swirling around my head. How does Benny react to them getting really hurt and are on crutches for a bit. How much sex can they have while sparring before the gym owner yells at him. What’s their relationship like with Will and the rest of the guys? sparring tournament between them and the boys? What’s the rest of their relationship like? Lots of cooking, meal prepping and sleep probably. (This isn’t a request per say more just me thinking about them 🥰)

I was going to answer all these questions but then I got distracted by the first one 🤣

Warnings: mentions of injury

When you get really hurt. Fighter!Reader x Benny Miller

Benny knows that your profession is dangerous, I mean you fight for a living. But he also knows that there is safety measures in place to make sure that injuries don’t get to serious. Ring doctors, ambulance crews, trainers, and refs, it’s a pretty standard deal.

But one night the fight gets a little too rough. You’re drenched in sweat and struggling to keep your hands up, swaying on your feet. Benny is screaming for someone to stop the fight but the whole thing is happening in slow motion. It’s not until the other fighter lands a right hook to your jaw and your head snaps to the ground that the whistle is blown. Benny bulls his way past your trainer and is cursing the guy out but you’re already passed out.

They take you to the hospital in the ambulance and Benny sits in the waiting room for the longest six hours of his life. All the boys are there, making coffee runs, and annoying the nurses with their questions but Benny just sits there hollow. Will in the chair next to him, never leaves his side.

When the doctor comes out and tells them they had to do surgery do to some swelling on the brain, Benny can’t stop the bile rising in his throat. He begs to see you and the doctor takes him back after he lies and says he’s your husband. The ring in the glove box of his truck is a reminder of how much he wants to make that true.

He can’t bring himself to come any closer when he enters the room. The wires coming out of your body, the steady beep of the heart monitor, and the slow rise and fall of your chest is all he needs to break down and thank whoever is listening that you’re alive. He stumbles the rest of the way and collapses in the chair, holding tight to your hand and kissing your knuckles over and over again.

He sits there for as long as they will let him, and the whole time you don’t wake once. “Come on baby, wake up,” he begs rubbing your hand over and over again. The nurse tells him visiting hours are over and he goes to argue but she says that you need your rest and he reluctantly leaves your side. The boys are all still sitting in the waiting room and he collapses into their arms letting his brothers support him. They go get something to eat that doesn’t come from a vending machine and go back to Bennys house.

The guys pass out all over the house on the couch, guest room, and recliner but Benny is wide awake in your shared bed. He can’t sleep and when he tugs on his clothes and grabs his keys, Will is up on the couch waiting. The brothers go back to the hospital and sit in the waiting room till visiting hours are open.

One week later your eyes flutter open and Benny has to suck the air back into his lungs when your eyes meet. The boys had been taking shifts staying with Benny and Santi is asleep on the couch in the corner, his snores loud in the silence. “Benny?” your voice is scratchy from disuse and he grabs you a cup of water, cradling your head to help you take small sips. “I’m here baby, I’m not going anywhere.”

He presses the button for the nurse and they come in with the doctor. You fade in and out as they explain what happened to you, Santi waking when they come in and placing a kiss on your forehead. “Hey Slugger,” he teases, “gave us all quite a scare. Especially this guy.” He pats Benny on the back and you observe how utterly exhausted he looks.

“We want to keep her one more night for observation but then as long as she has someone to stay with her, she can go.” Benny quickly agrees saying that he’s taken off the next month from his training and fights. Your eyes widen and you go to argue when he shakes his head no at you. “Well alright then, how would you feel about a little something to eat?” The nurse smiles and you nod watching her go.

“I’ll leave you two alone. Good to see your eyes again, Benny I’ll be in the hall. Do you want me to call the boys?” Benny nods and Santi steps out leaving you alone. His voice shakes and he sits on the edge of the bed, holding your cheeks. “I didn’t know if you were going to wake up. I thought I lost you.” His eyes flood with tears and he bends down placing a watery kiss on your lips. “I love you so fucking much, baby.”

You cry reaching your aching hands up to his cheeks and holding him softly. “Not as much as I love you Benjamin Miller.” He laughs and kisses you again. “I need to ask you something,” he clears his throat and pulls away, reaching into his pocket. “I had this plan to do it all romantic but you almost dying was the kick in the ass I needed to get the balls and ass you.”

“What?” “Will you marry me?” You blink a couple times before your eyes fill with renewed tears and you tremble with a breathless “yes.” The two of you smiling as he puts the ring on your finger. You pull him close and kiss him, neither of you noticing the door opening and three grown men piling inside until their cheers fill the room.

“That’s it brother!” “Get it!” “Congratulations!” You laugh and turn towards the three men, all of them coming over to cover you and Benny with hugs and kisses to your head. “Hey be careful with my fiancé,” Benny teases scolding them, “Santi you already got to kiss her when she woke up!”

You laugh and lay against the pillows hand still firmly in Bennys and smile. The playful banter between these four soldiers, these brothers, your family.

[thiswasinevitableid]

62. you set off the fire alarm and I have a test tomorrow, and I might strangle you

Sternclay, sfw, please!

Why do fire alarms only go off in March? The one time Stern set one off (he fell asleep studying and the dinner he was reheating started smoking) it was in that endless stretch of time where the snow is no longer festive but will keep falling for at least two more months.

More importantly, who is responsible for interrupting his carefully planned out six hours of sleep before his midterm at eight this morning?

He stands in the freezing cold with the building’s other three occupants; the single man who looks like he stars in lumberjack porn and the girlfriends who live on the ground floor.

“Sorry” The other man mumbles, “I was making doughnuts and the oil I was using got too hot without me noticing.”

Stern runs a hand through his hair and keeps his voice low, “Why were you cooking with hot oil at three in the morning?”

“When I can’t sleep, I bake.”

“Can I suggest a less flammable hobby in the future?”

“Hey man, it was an accident. And it’s not my fault they stuck the fire alarm too high up for me to get to it before it called the fire department.”

“Too high? You’re taller than I am and I can reach mine.”

“My ceilings are higher and it was tucked between the cabinets and the roof.”

“Oh yeah, ours is in a super-weird place too.” Aubrey, one of the ground-floor neighbors, pats the offenders arm, “it’s okay Barclay, it’s just a little smoke.”

“That may be the case for you three, but I have an exam that’s worth thirty percent of my grade in six hours and I need my goddamn sleep.”

“Yeesh, man, chill out. They’re already waving us back in.” Aubrey points to the door of the three story house.

“I timed everything to optimize my sleep schedule so it actually is a big deal.”

Barclay glowers at him, “Look, I said sorry. But maybe get used to the fact the world doesn’t run on your schedule, mr. control freak, and fucking get over it.”

Stern keeps a smile flat as he bites out, “go to hell” and heads upstairs to salvage what’s left of his schedule.

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

The crash from downstairs comes at nine p.m; he has a huge day at his internship tomorrow, but Stern doesn’t hear any sounds after it, and he is not about to let a neighbor die on his watch.

“Barclay? Are you okay?” He puts his ear to the door, the heater drowning out all ambient noise.

“Nope, not really, agh, fuck, the doors locked, lemme try to stand-”

“Stay put.” He runs upstairs, grabs his wallet, and uses his debit card to trick the lock, “Shit, what happened?”

Barclay is clutching his forehead, blood between his fingers, and his ankle is swelling. “I got really dizzy, caught my foot on the couch and then my forehead on the table on the way down. Ow, fuck, it better not be broken” he growls as Stern kneels to look at his foot, “I’ve got a shift in six hours.”

“I can’t tell. You should get to a hospital; if it’s injured and you try to work on it, you might have an even worse fall.”

“Fuck, I’m not even sure I can afford the ambulance, let alone the fucking E.R.”

He knows Dani and Aubrey are out, “Any family in town, or a boyfriend?”

“No, if there I woulda called them.” He snaps, then tries for a slow inhale, “sorry, it just, it hurts-”

“I can take you in my car, that’ll be one less worry.” Stern helps Barclay up, gets him to his sedan, then tells him to hold tight while he gets something for his head. He ends up grabbing the first clean fabris he finds, which is how Barclay ends up in the E.R while holding a “Roswell, NM” tank-top to his forehead.

“Sorry to ruin your, uh, souvenir?” He mumbles as they wait for the doctor.

“It’s for a good cause. Besides, I know how to get bloodstains out of fabric.”

“That...that makes you sound like a serial killer.”

“If I were a serial killer I would wear things that could stain.” Stern winces, “sorry, I read too many true crime books.”

“I just don’t have the stomach for them. I like fictional mysteries but real ones?” he shivers, “makes me think an axe murderer is gonna break into my place. I mean, you did it with a credit card.”

“If you’d had the chain thrown it might have been another story. “

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Barclay shifts in the plastic seat, “you, uh, you don’t have to hang around. Know you got a rigid schedule.”

Joseph runs a hand through his hair, “I’m sorry for being so annoyed last week when you set off the alarm. I’m not always great at handling changes.”

“To be fair, doughnuts probably weren’t the best stress baking choice.”

“Did they turn out?”

“Nah. I’ll have to try ‘em another time. Did, uh, did your test go okay?”

“Yes. I, um, I got a perfect score.”

Barclay laughs, the sound like warm honey, and Stern blushes at looking so deeply nerdy in front of someone with a smile like that.

“Mr. Cobb? We’re ready to see you.”

The bearded man gives an slightly awkward wave as he follows the nurse through the double doors. Stern returns the gesture, pulls up the chess app on his phone, and settles in to wait until his neighbor is done.

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

Barclay comes out his nap the scrchh of a brush on tile. His first thought is that he’s so late for work he’s unavoidably fucked. His second one is who the fuck is in his bathroom?

His ankle twinges, jogging his memory; he got back from the hospital at 11:30, no stitches needed on his head but bedrest required for his ankle. He’d been contemplating how to convince his manager to let him shift from the warehouse to somewhere he could sit. Joseph raised an eyebrow and asked for his phone while telling him to go get into bed. All Barclay overheard was a polite, steely voice mentioning the labor laws in Dane County and how it’d be a shame if someone were to arrange an OSHA spot check. The last thing he recalls before falling asleep was Joseph telling him he had the next day off.

That doesn’t explain the cleaning sounds, though.

“Oh, you’re up.” Joseph pokes his head in from the hall. His hair is coming loose from his usual slicked-down style and he’s in a V-neck and sweatpants instead of the suit Barclay sees him in most days, “I hope I didn’t wake you; since you gave me the spare key I thought I’d check on you when I got back from my internship and leave you some take-out from the Thai place around the corner--you said the green curry was your favorite--but then I thought I should wait until you got up to see if you needed anything, so I, um, I cleaned your tub while I waited for you to wake up.”

Barclay isn’t sure what part of that is the most baffling. Or the most touching.

“Why the tub?” He eases his legs over so he’s sitting on the edge of the bed.

“It’s satisfying. And I, um, I clean when I’m stressed.” He wipes his hands on the rag in his front pocket, “I was worried about you, and my internship was murder today. They’re mounting a case against one of the biggest employers in the state and everyone’s on edge.”

“Heh, kinda makes me glad I work at WalMart.” Barclay takes the crutch Joseph offers him and hobbles into the kitchen, “oh, uh, if you want to try some cake, there’s leftover cinnamon spice cake in the fridge.”

“I think I will, thank you.” He bends into the fridge and wow has his ass always been that nice, “can I grab you a drink from in here?”

“One of those pre-bottled Kahlua things in the door; have ‘em for a friend but one sounds good right now.” He watches Joseph open it for him, setting it down before he pulls out Barclay’s chair for him. Normally, the kind of fussing and light ordering around Joseph has directed at him makes him bristle. This last day, it just made him feel safe and cared about.

He could get used to this.

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

“Good lord, we’ve even got a flood warning.” Joseph sets down his phone as rain attempts to pummel the house to dust, “Some days I wish we lived closer to one of the lakes but this is not one of them. Should we check to see if Dani and Aubrey need any emergency supplies for if we have to shelter here? I always keep more than I need.”

“Nah, Dani’s got a strong self-sufficiency streak; got her a bucket emergency kit for Christmas last year.” Barclay pops the cork on the Pinot Grigio they got for dinner, “and I don’t think they forgot your semi-drunk promise that if they ever had to run from a flood they had full permission to break open your front door to be safe on the third floor.”

“I meant it, drunk or no.” Joseph takes down the plates and portions out the carbonara; he’s been trying to cook when he has time, both because he likes it and because it gives him and Barclay something to talk about. Not that they need the help.

Things changed after the trip to the E.R; Barclay would bring Joseph fresh cookies or pie. Joseph would offer Barclay rides when their schedules overlapped. Barclay introduced him to his favorite trivia night spot. Joseph took some of his cookies to a worker-owned bakery where a former co-student worked, which led to Barclay getting a new job.

Now they see each other almost every day, whether that’s watching movies on Barclay’s cramped couch or joining Dani and Aubrey for board game night.

He’s pleased with how the pasta turned out, even more so with the fact that when their legs bump together beneath the table, Barclay doesn’t pull away.

They’re on the couch, chatting about the recurring themes in ghost movies, when the storm starts in earnest. The sky is so dark it may as well be nine at night, the lighting and thunder performing a cacophonous two-man show across it. The closer the thunder gets, the more Barclay tenses.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah” a thunderclap makes him jump, “I know it’s silly but I fucking hate thunderstorms, I have since I was a kid.” He chuckles, “my mom would always end up making a pillow fort for me to hide in.”

“We could do that now.” He offers, tapping his foot against Barclay’s own.

“Know this might be hard to believe, but I wasn’t always six-two.” The other man teases.

“Don’t count me out just yet. Wait here.”

It takes some precarity and most of his thumb-tacks, but soon he’s waving Barclay to come join him.

“Holy shit” Barclay laughs as he sees the bed and part of the floor in Joseph’s tiny bedroom are curtained in blankets, “do you ever half-ass stuff?”

“No one can ever prove I haven’t.”

“Uh huh.” Barclay climbs into the fort, “that’s Joseph speak for ‘no.’”

Joseph plugs in his UFO lights and follows him in, “I’ve failed plenty of times.”

“Not on this. Man, this is gr-” A thunderclap makes him jump, nearly knocking one blanket down, “uh, maybe if I…” He lays on the bed, Joseph deciding it’s the least awkward option to join him in that position.

“You really didn’t have to do this.” The green of the lights add a charming tint to Barclay’s eyes.

“I wanted to.”

His friend looks away, keeps his gaze on his feet as he murmurs, “How come you’re always so nice to me?”

“Because we’re friends.”

“It’s, uh, it’s not because you want something from me?”

“Of course not. Barclay,” he touches the cooks arm, “anything you’re thinking is a favor with an ulterior motive....well, it isn’t. It’s something I did to look out for you.”

“What if I, uh, I didn’t think it was favor hunting and was, uh, a different word that started with “F’?”

This time, when the thunder sounds, Barclay nestles closer to him.

“Oh, Barclay” he drapes a protective arm over his waists, “I didn’t mean it to be. At least, most of the time. There were, um, sometimes when I was more flirtatious than I’d have been if it were anybody else.”

“Do you...want to flirt more?” Barclay mumbles into his shoulder.

Joseph tips Barclay’s chin with his hand, brings their lips together as lightning flashes through the window. When he pulls back, Barclay’s eyes are wide. He kisses him once more just to see if he can make them entirely pupil, then whispers, “I hope we can do more than just flirt.”

“Joseph” strong arms slip below and across him, “fuck, babe, if it’s not flooded tomorrow, promise you’ll let me take you out tomorrow?”

“I’d like nothing better, big guy. In the meantime..” he rolls so Barclay is atop him, “I have some thoughts on how to keep your mind off the storm.”

[thetomorrowshow]

unless you take your army back ch. 4

First  -  Previous  -  Next  -  Read on AO3!

okay so I’m moving to college this week!!! My updates will probably be delayed or sporadic until I figure out my schedule, but I will definitely not stop writing :)

cw: temporary paralysis, blood, injuries

~

Crutchie twitched into wakefulness when he heard noise, and was almost instantly annoyed. Had he slept right through the whole day? He’d wanted to practice walking some more before anyone got back, had only been planning on napping for a few minutes. With the commotion around him, it sounded like everyone was already returning.

Crutchie cracked open his eyes to see Jack, sitting in that chair that he’d taken over for the past week. He was drawing something, the tip of his tongue sticking out the corner of his mouth.

Around the room were a few of the guys--Mush, Blink, Buttons, Henry, Romeo. Romeo had been returning home earlier than normal, falling right into bed and lying there until Jack made him leave so Crutchie could redress his wounds. In moments of quiet, when Jack was dozing in his chair, Romeo would creep over to Crutchie’s side and whisper about how badly his head was pounding, how he felt dizzy and tired. His head had been hit pretty hard in the riot, so it wasn’t exactly surprising. The others were all still nursing various bruises and scrapes.

Jack looked up now, dropping his art as he saw Crutchie was awake. He looked bad, to be honest--his hair was sticking up awkwardly under his cap, eyes swollen and face grimy. Crutchie didn’t ask about it, just nodded to him.

“Hey, Crutchie,” Jack sighed, rubbing at his eyes. “How ya feelin’?”

Crutchie shoved away the irritation at being asked that again. Did Jack expect his answer to change just because he took a nap? He ignored the question, stretching out a little bit, relieved to find that stretching almost felt good.

“Romeo,” Crutchie called past Jack. A hand lifted from Romeo’s bunk. “How’s ya head?”

“Better ‘n better,” Romeo called back. “Think I’s just about good as new!”

Crutchie wished he could say the same. He felt like he was going to fall apart every moment he was awake, and even some of those when he was asleep. He hadn’t been having nightmares, exactly--just a vague sense of fear, death around the corner. Exactly like how the Refuge had felt. Maybe that did count as a nightmare, even if he never saw anything.

“Crutchie, I gotta have a meetin’ with the boys,” Jack interrupted his thoughts. “I didn’t wanna leave afore you woke, or wake you up. I brought ya a sandwich, here.” Jack handed him a small bundle of paper, presumably wrapping a sandwich. Then he left the room, beckoning for the other boys to follow without even letting Crutchie thank him. Romeo groaned, but rolled out of bed and followed.

They were going to have a newsies meeting . . . without him?

Crutchie frowned as he unwrapped the sandwich. He really wasn’t all that hungry, despite the only thing he’d ingested being the coffee from this morning. He was still a newsie, even if he couldn’t do the job lately. Wasn’t he?

This . . . this hurt, more than the stinging lashes on his back, more than the sharp pain in his chest when he breathed, more than the sickly aching of his bad leg. He’d been present for every newsie meeting ever since he started living here, and they were just going to have one without him?

Jack had always made sure to include him in everything. Even when some of the other guys didn’t make the effort, Jack did. And now Jack was purposefully excluding him. Just because--because, what, he couldn’t walk? That had never changed anything.

He really had to get back to work. Soon. They had to be leaving him out of it because he wasn’t technically a newsie, right? He felt bad even thinking that. Of course he was a newsie, he always would be. Newsie meant more than a career--at least, it did to him. Maybe none of the others thought of it the same way.

Crutchie morosely picked at his sandwich, putting tiny, manageable pieces into his mouth. The swelling of his face had almost completely gone down, but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt to move his jaw. Nor did it mean he wanted to eat at all.

Maybe they just didn’t want to disturb him? That was decent of them, he supposed, but not at all what he wanted. He wanted to be involved, prove he was getting better, see the guys and laugh with them again.

Unbidden, an image of the Refuge on that calm day popped into his head. All those boys, worked to death for no purpose, celebrating in what ways they possibly could while Snyder was out of the building. They included the sick, the hurt, the broken.

Now Crutchie was actually getting a bit annoyed. They weren’t even going to try to hide their meeting, or ask if he wanted to participate? He wasn’t a child. He could assess his own limits and make good choices. In fact, if Jack had just told him straight out that they were going to have a meeting and what it was about, and invited Crutchie to join them, he probably would have turned him down in favor of rest.

Jack hadn’t said that, though. Jack had left, taken everyone else with him, had mentioned it offhand like it wasn’t important at all. What kind of friend--brother--did that?

Crutchie rewrapped the sandwich as well as he could manage, his fingers trembling as usual. He was so sick of this. Sick of barely being capable of any fine motor skills, sick of not wanting to eat, sick of sleeping the day away. He hated feeling so weak. He hated the others seeing him so weak.

Mind made up, Crutchie sat up the rest of the way from his reclining position. His entire body ached, and for the first time in a long time, Crutchie wished he had a drink to numb it. He shook the thought away after contemplating it for a moment. He didn’t need another problem to deal with, another expense to owe. Not to mention, there was no way he’d get it past Jack.

His crutch was still within easy reach, but placing it under his arm reminded him uncomfortably of the cut there that was now stiff with dried blood. He probably shouldn’t irritate it anymore, should probably take the empty room as a chance to clean the wound and rewrap it.

Crutchie didn’t do that. Instead, he stood up.

He almost doubled over immediately. How was the pain that much worse than it was this morning? He hadn’t been doing anything, just sleeping. Wasn’t he supposed to be feeling at least a bit better?

He didn’t back down, though. Crutchie straightened his back, breathed in and out for a few moments, then swung forward.

His bad leg dragging against the floorboards shot needles of pain up through his body, but his knee trembled and gave out when he tried to lift it up. Dragged on the floor it was.

Just the one step had made his entire body break out in a light sweat, but still he hobbled forward. This step was easier than the last. His back stung with the stretch of his shoulder, fingers trembled around the grip of his crutch. He could do this. He hadn’t survived the Refuge just to not be able to cross a room. The next step was going to be easier still.

It wasn’t, but it wasn’t necessarily worse. Crutchie’s good leg wobbled from lack of use and fatigue, his breathing so heavy that he imagined he could feel his ribs scraping together. That would explain the pain, right?

The door seemed to be forever away. Crutchie took another hop toward it, then another, then a third in quick succession, almost trying to outrun the exhaustion that was beginning to fill his bones. He dimly registered that under his right arm, up against where his crutch chafed, was sticky. That was probably not very good.

Crutchie paused for a moment, his head pounding in time with his pulse. He could do this. He looked around, trying to distract himself from what felt like his body failing. The room wasn’t all that dark, even though the sun had completely set outside. Only one of the windows was still open, the one that led out to the fire escape right next to the bed that Crutchie had been spending the week in. A few candles or lanterns were scattered around, giving the room a familiar nighttime ambience.

Crutchie took another step, breathing in short gasps--the smooth wood felt like spikes underneath his bum leg, his chest was tearing apart from the inside out, his back had to be on fire, every single part of his body was aching and trembling.

One more step sent his legs collapsing from under him, his body slamming into the floor. Crutchie cried out quietly, shoving his fist into his mouth to muffle the sound. Not that it really mattered. There was no way that fall went unheard. The bedframe closest to him was still shaking from the impact.

He wasn’t sure that he was going to be awake in time for anyone to find him, though. Black was encroaching on the edge of his vision, increasing with every agonizing thrum of his injuries. Something sticky was dripping down his back, sticking it to his shirt, but Crutchie didn’t have the time to consider it before the world was completely black.

He wasn’t quite . . . asleep, though. He couldn’t surrender to the darkness yet, some hidden reserve of energy fighting for any thread of consciousness. The pain of his body was distant, something separated from his current state.

There was a crashing sound--the door?--then a sea of gasps and shouts and bangs and so, so much noise. Crutchie couldn’t move a muscle--not that he’d really want to, that would hurt. Still, he wished he could’ve given some sign to Jack that he wasn’t asleep. Jack, who was now brushing his hair away from his eyes.

“Crutchie,” came Jack’s frantic voice, “Crutch, can you hear me? C’mon, bud. It’s okay.”

“What happened?”

“Whaddya think?”

“Well I dunno, or I wouldn’ta asked!”

“Shuddup, Jack’s tryna focus!”

“Crutchie, please wake up. What were ya tryna do?”

I am awake, Jack, Crutchie desperately wanted to say. I’m fine. But his mouth wouldn’t respond to anything he tried. He was limp, yet frozen in place.

“Should I get a doctor?”

“See anyone here what can afford one?”

“He’s breathin’,” Jack said, so close that Crutchie could feel his breath on his cheek. A fist wrapped around Crutchie’s wrist and he panicked, tried to wriggle away from whoever it was about to drag him to his next torture session. He didn’t move at all, though, and the hand was gentle and pressed against one spot of his arm for several seconds before pulling away.

“Pulse is sorta quick I think, but his skin’s too warm. Albert, he--” Jack’s voice broke-- “help me get ‘im ta bed?”

Strong arms scooped him up, and once again Crutchie tried to throw himself away from them, his heart racing with fear. Once again, he could not move. He was half aware of who was touching him, and why, but the other half of his brain was too far in the shadow to realize that it was safe, that they were helping him.

Soon enough, he was laying on something soft and Crutchie almost let it overtake him, almost gave in to the darkness pulling at him. A feeling of--shame?--rose up, though, making it impossible to let go.

He hadn’t even made it across the room. Maybe not even halfway. He’d wanted to go to their stupid meeting, surprise them by being functional, insist that he could go out and sell at least for a little while tomorrow. Jack would never let him now, not after this stunt. Not after this failure.

“He’s bleedin’ through ‘is shirt, Jack, see?”

“I see, Blink, no need to call it to the world.”

“I’ll get the bandages, where they at?”

Crutchie’s heart seized. He couldn’t let them fix him up, they’d see! They’d see everything, all the lashes and cuts and marks from beatings. He’d seen how upset and uncomfortable just his visible ones made them, he couldn’t--he didn’t want--

Jack’s voice cut through his thoughts. “No, he wouldn’t want that. He’d be real mad if he woke up ta see we’d done exactly what he said not to.”

“So what we gonna do, Jack?”

“Jackie, somebody’s got to help Crutchie. If none of us can afford a doctor, somebody will have to do it. Who do you think Crutchie would want to do it?”

“No one, he ain’t wantin’ no one! He ain’t even let me do it, Davey, he don’t want us seein’!”

Jack sounded unbearably upset. Crutchie tried for what felt like the thousandth time to open his eyes, but his lids were just so heavy. Why was Davey here? Wait, Les was here too, he’d heard his voice earlier. They were included in the newsies meeting, when Crutchie himself wasn’t?

“Isn’t there anyone--”

“Katherine. But she’s--wait--Race--”

“Yeah?”

“Head down ta Medda’s, see if Kath’s there for a show. Bring ‘er back if she is, got that?”

“No problem, Jack!”

A door slammed distantly. Crutchie took a break from trying to force his body to move. It would hurt a lot if he succeeded, anyway. Maybe he should just sleep.

Someone was holding his hand, gently, rubbing his knuckles, and Crutchie wished he could squeeze their hand. Anything to show he was okay.

He wasn’t okay, though, was he? As he thought about it, the pain that had been distant and disconnected mere moments ago was becoming clearer and sharper. Why? Couldn’t he have a moment’s reprieve? Couldn’t he just get better already?

“Crutchie, can you hear me? Can you open your eyes for me?”

He wanted to, couldn’t Jack see that?

“Did he move?”

“Yeah, a little. His face, y’know?”

His face had moved? How had he managed that? Nothing had seemed to change--maybe his eyelids had twitched from his ceaseless attempts to open them.

The pain was spreading, bringing back every memory of how it came. Crutchie didn’t want to cope with it right now. He didn’t want to feel. He didn’t want to hear Jack pleading with him to wake up. He just wanted darkness.

Finally, Crutchie surrendered to the sleep pulling on his bones. He could rest for a minute, before trying to open his eyes again. Jack would understand.

-

It felt like forever until Crutchie could hear their voices again, but he still couldn’t move. In his mind it felt like he was drowning, thrashing about just under the surface. Each time he struggled to move, he just sank lower and lower, until he was full-on panicking, freaking out entirely while never outwardly moving a muscle.

It was mentally exhausting, and after some time, Crutchie had to take a moment to rest or risk losing this little taste of consciousness. He wasn’t quitting, he told himself, trying to placate his mind. He just needed a rest. As he did, though, it felt as if he rose, just a tiny bit, closer to the surface.

It took a few tries, but Crutchie forced himself to stop struggling. He relaxed as much as he could, and the longer he waited, the faster he rose--until--

With a release of air that almost sounded like a groan, Crutchie opened his eyes. Immediately the talking ceased, and Crutchie registered that there were several faces crowding around him. He blinked a few times: Jack, closest. Then Albert, Davey, and Henry, a little further down. Crutchie opened his mouth a few times, swallowing away the dry feeling as well as he could, then spoke.

“Hey?”

There were sighs; Jack’s head dropped to his hands, Albert rolled his eyes, Davey stepped away.

When Jack looked back up, there were tears in his eyes. Crutchie shifted uncomfortably, then gritted his teeth when his injuries all reminded him of their existence. Davey returned with two glasses of water, one of which he handed to Jack, the other he pushed against Crutchie’s mouth. Crutchie accepted it without complaint--he wasn’t sure that he could make his fingers grip the glass right now.

After he finished drinking and Davey had placed the glass somewhere on the floor, Crutchie met Jack’s red-rimmed eyes. Jack stared at him for a moment.

“What in Manhattan was you thinkin’?”

Crutchie cringed. What had he been thinking? Well, he’d wanted to be a part of the meeting, but now he wished he’d gotten over his anger. How was Jack ever going to believe that he was good enough to be a newsie now? Shame rose, bile-like, in his throat, as he opened his mouth to speak.

Jack cut him off before he could even say anything. “D’you know how much you scared the guys? What made ya think you could walk, ‘specially without help? How did ya get the idea into your pointy little head that it was somehow okay? Tell me what you was thinkin’. Tell me ‘xactly what thoughts led to ya doin’ somethin’ so stupid.”

Maybe he would, Crutchie thought with a prickle of irritation, if Jack would shut up. Jack kept on talking, though.

“Ya know ya made Elmer cry, right? You coulda been dead, for all we knew. We was so scared and you wouldn’t even wake up!”

“Jack--” Davey started, placing a hand on Jack’s shoulder, but Jack shrugged him off. Other than the three of them, the room was empty. Albert and Henry must have left at some point.

“It ain’t been a week since you was in the Refuge--” Crutchie flinched, Jack didn’t seem to notice, too caught up in his gesticulating hands and beginning to pace in the small space beside the bed-- “and here you is, tryin’ ta walk like it ain’t happened. Ya can’t even walk normally, how the he--”

“I was tryin’ ta go to the meeting,” Crutchie burst out, face red. Yes, he was ashamed of it. No, he did not need Jack jumping down his throat like that. “I-I miss seein’ everyone,” he added. It wasn't a lie, not exactly. He did miss the guys, a lot.

Jack paused in his short pacings, looking down at Crutchie with his mouth wide open. “Why didn’t ya say nothin’?” he asked loudly, as if Crutchie was slow. “I coulda brought everyone up for a few.”

Crutchie snorted, his face still burning. “Not like you gave me any time ta say anythin’. And I don’t want everyone up here, I wanted ta go to the meeting.”

Jack waved him off. “You don’t really wanna go to it, y’ain’t even workin’ right now, it woulda put ya ta sleep.”

Who was Jack to tell him what he did and didn’t want to do? And yes, Crutchie wasn’t working right now--he was still a newsie, he still got to go to newsies meetings! Right? Did Jack not see him as a newsie anymore?

“I still wanted ta be there,” Crutchie said stubbornly, trying not to show that anger was steadily overtaking his embarrassment. “I wanna know how the sellin’s been goin’ after the strike, wanna know if they’s seen any o’ my regulars, wanna know how the Delanceys are treatin’ everyone--”

Jack’s face went white. “Yeah, well, ya don’t need ta know,” he said brusquely. “You’s in bed all day. There’s nothin’ you can do about it.”

Crutchie’s fingers twisted in the blanket laying over him. The aches were vanishing as anger pumped through his body. What was Jack’s problem? Everything he was saying was just confirming Crutchie’s fears, that they no longer wanted him to be a newsie, only saw him as a burden. It couldn’t be true, right? Clearly Jack was thinking it.

“Ain’t everyone you, Jack,” Crutchie argued, shifting so that he was sitting up more. “I can decide for myself what I want, I don’t need you to tell me--”

“Oh, so you don’t need my help?” Jack cut in, disbelief written all over his face. “Ya’d be a-okay if I just stopped bringin’ ya food? Stopped payin’ rent for ya? Kicked you outta my bed?”

“Well, since you clearly don’t want me here--”

“Okay, can we maybe--” Davey tried to interject.

“This don’t concern you, Davey,” Jack spat. “Brothers only.”

Davey looked a little hurt, but instead took the glass from Jack’s hand, which he had been waving around for emphasis.

“One’d think you was tired of everything I sacrifice ta keep ya safe,” Jack continued. “Maybe you should try doin’ it all yourself--”

“Maybe I want to,” Crutchie interrupted, his face going red as his anger grew. “Didja ever think about that?”

“Yeah, well, ya can’t, so get over yourself and--”

“Yes I can! I’s perfectly capable of--”

“No ya ain’t, ya just--ya just collapsed while tryin’ ta cross the fu--”

“I’m not a child, Jack--”

“Yes you are!” Jack yelled, his face redder than ever. “You’s just a kid! You don’t deserve none o’ this, you oughtta be in school and with parents, and no bum leg and no Snyder, and someone who can actually take care of ya, someone who can stop freaks from attackin’ ya--”

Jack broke down, his knees buckling as he fell into the chair beside the bed. Loud sobs tore from his throat as he hid his face in his hands.

Crutchie ran a hand across his own face, shocked to discover tears of his own. He was fuming, madder at Jack than he had ever been. Even looking at him made him want to scream in frustration. The only other option was Davey, though, and Davey looked so uncomfortable Crutchie thought he might die from it. So Crutchie stared at Jack, wishing his eyes could set fire to Jack’s newsboy cap through the heat of his glare alone.

Crutchie swallowed repeatedly, trying to get his voice to a place where he wouldn’t yell at Jack. Finally he spoke, voice shaking. “You’s always said I’m just as capable as anyone else. Why is that suddenly not true?”

Jack drew in a shuddering breath, but didn’t say anything. Crutchie waited for a moment, before huffing and turning his head to look out the window. It was too dark to really see anything, what with the candle on the post of the bed shining right against the glass. Still, though, he stared at the glass. The adrenaline from the shouting match had begun to exit his system, leaving him very sore all over.

“I jus’--I don’ want you gettin’ hurt,” Jack choked out. Crutchie remained resolute in not looking at him. He hated it when Jack got protective like this, but usually it only lasted for two days or so after Crutchie had been sick or pushed around by one of the Delanceys. And sure, maybe the Refuge was on a bit of a larger scale than either of those, but that didn’t give Jack any right to treat him like--like a kid, like Les, or Elmer, or Boots, or any of the other littles. Come to think of it, actually, Jack would probably treat them just normal-like. Jack was still letting them sell, even after the riot. It was only Crutchie, only the kid with the crippled leg. When was that stupid leg going to stop defining his capabilities in Jack’s eyes?

Crutchie decided to try a different angle. “Why didn’tcha even ask me if I wanted to go ta the meeting?”

“Crutchie, I couldn’t--”

“No, Jack,” Crutchie interrupted. “I’s been doin’ nothing but lie in bed all day. I can handle a newsies meeting!”

“It ain’t that I think you can’t--”

“News ta me, it certainly sounds like--”

“You couldn’t come because the meeting was about you,” Davey burst in. He gave Jack an apologetic glance before turning his focus on Crutchie. “Jack didn’t want ta hurt your feelings by talking about you in front of you.”

Crutchie’s heart felt like it stopped. So this was it, wasn’t it? The decision on whether or not he was going to be able to work. Whether or not they would need to kick him out. Crutchie couldn’t decide what was worse--being thrown out onto the street in his condition, or knowing that he was just so pitiful that they couldn’t bear to do anything but keep him inside all the time. “Oh, so you was gonna save my feelings by talkin’ about me behind my back?” said Crutchie dumbly, his mouth moving of its own accord. “Real smart, Jack Kelly. Makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, you bein’ so considerate-like.”

“Ya don’t understand,” Jack managed, running a hand under his nose. “It ain’t like that, it ain’t--”

“Oh, well feel free to jus’ tell me what it was like,” Crutchie said, gesturing with a wince as he noticed that under his arm was sticky and pulled painfully. “Go ahead.”

“I can’t--”

“Oh, I’m too weak ta know, huh? Just a kid, like you said--”

“Crutchie, I don’t--”

“Which makes it so much better, huh, makes it all--”

“It was the Delanceys!” Jack shouted, spit flying. He took a deep breath and pulled at his hair, knocking his cap to the floor, tension in every line of his body. “They was--they was bein’ rude.”

Crutchie scoffed. “The Delanceys? I can handle them. I can take them any day.” He didn’t mention the sick feeling that lined his stomach at the mention of them. The last time he’d seen them, they’d practically bashed his head in and dragged him off to the Refuge. Still, he’d never known the Delanceys to be particularly kind. He could deal with their insults.

“They . . . were bein’ a bit worse than rude, Crutchie,” Davey said quietly. Davey glanced at Jack, whose face was in his hands again. Jack shook so badly that Crutchie thought he was crying again for a moment. When his face reappeared, though, it was clear that it was barely-restrained anger.

“They said they was gonna kill you,” Jack growled. A tear rolled down his cheek, unnoticed. “They--they was gonna hunt you down, and get you, and--” Again, Jack couldn’t seem to go on. Davey laid a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“Crutchie, we’re scared for you, that’s all,” Davey said placatingly. “At the meeting, we were trying to work out a way for you to keep selling papes but stay safe. We should’ve invited you, that’s for sure, Jack just thought you’d be too tired.”

Crutchie didn’t speak. The sick feeling in his stomach had spread to his head, making it feel gross and backwards and like he was going to throw up. He was fine, he was alive, but for the first time in a very long time, the Delanceys actually struck fear into his heart.

Luckily, he was spared from having to say anything by a knock at the door. Race poked his head around the corner, an apologetic look on his face.

“No sign of her,” Race called to Jack. “Need anythin’ else?”

Davey walked away to talk to Race, leaving Jack and Crutchie alone. Crutchie tried to swallow away the bad feeling, but Jack took his hand, completely distracting him. For a moment, Crutchie considered shaking him off, the embers of anger that had been left when the mention of the Delanceys had doused his chest flaming up, but it was clearly an olive branch of sorts. Jack wanted to forget the argument for now. Crutchie could at least do that.

“I-I’m sorry,” Jack muttered. “For goin’ all--y’know. A minute ago. You don’t deserve that. It was just . . . so, so--hard, and wrong, ta--ta come in here and find ya out, and on the floor--” Jack turned away, his voice choking up.

“I was awake,” Crutchie said, gripping Jack’s hand as hard as he could. Jack looked back at him, confused. Crutchie wasn’t entirely sure why he’d said it--had he been awake? He hadn’t been able to move or open his eyes. And yet, he was certain that he could remember almost everything that happened before he slipped away. Maybe he was just trying to make Jack feel a bit better. “Yeah,” he added self-consciously. “I sorta . . . heard everything? I jus’ couldn’t move, right? I’m better now, just . . . felt a bit like I was all wrapped up in a blanket an’ couldn’t escape,” he finished, blushing a bit. That was a stupid comparison.

Jack watched him carefully for a few moments, his thumb running along Crutchie’s knuckles. “Heard o’ that, didn’t know it was real. Sorry about that. That’s--real bad. Terrible, that feeling. I’ve heard, I mean. I haven’t--yeah.”

Crutchie nodded. He could guess where Jack might have seen or heard about that. He tried to swallow past the sick feeling in his throat, only succeeding in making it drier than ever.

“How d’ya feel about finishing that sandwich, huh?”

Crutchie blanched, shaking his head with jerky movements. Literally anything would be better. Jack frowned at him, but nodded.

“All right, I trust you,” Jack said. Crutchie looked him in the eyes, trying to forget about the apple he’d tossed out the window just this morning. “But Katherine ain’t around, so either I or you is gonna have ta fix you up.”

Maybe literally anything wouldn’t be better. Crutchie sighed. “I got it,” he replied, feeling weariness settle into his bones right alongside the pain. “I’ll let ya know when you can come back in.”

He was still mad at Jack, though not nearly as mad as he was at himself. What kind of idiot went and got himself all bloodied up trying to cross a room when he knows he’s hurt? Crutchie just took a shallow breath and allowed Jack to help him into a sitting position. Whatever kind of idiot that was, Crutchie was stuck with him for a while.

[suituuup]

When Beca Mitchell is diagnosed with MS, she agonises over what it will mean for her career and more importantly, her relationship. But if there’s one thing Chloe Beale knows for a fact, it’s that nothing, including MS, will get in the way of their love.

for better or worse

Rating: T

ao3 link

*

Multiple Sclerosis.

Beca blinks at the doctor’s words as she sits in his office, the news shaking her to the core. The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of medical tests ever since Beca went to her GP after dealing for months with blurred vision, vertigo, pains in her hands, and general exhaustion.

She didn’t think much of it at first. Work has been crazy since the start of the year and Beca’s been too excited about Chloe’s pregnancy to focus on her state, but Chloe has been worried it might be more serious and insisted she got some tests done.

Beca’s heard of MS before, but isn’t sure of what it means or if there’s a treatment for it. “What-- um… How is that going to affect my life, exactly?”

She suddenly wishes she’d said yes when Chloe offered to take the afternoon off to come with her to this appointment, because she really needs a hand to hold right now. Beca assured her it would be fine, that it was probably nothing.

But now… she’s fucking terrified.

It doesn’t help that her doctor doesn’t have time to answer all those questions barreling into her brain at full speed, instead sending her home with a few pamphlets and the number of a specialist.

Beca’s walk home is a complete blur, her feet carrying her on auto-pilot back to their building complex. She spends the rest of the afternoon online, researching whatever she can on the disease. Her panic only grows the more she learns about it, and when Chloe steps through the door an hour later, Beca’s still sat on the couch with her computer propped against her thighs, pamphlets and handwritten notes sprawled around her as she stares blankly at her screen.

Two words have etched their ways into her skull.

No cure.

“Babe?” Chloe asks as she takes off her coat, hanging it by the door. “What did the doctor say? I got worried when I didn’t get a text after I got out of surgery.”

Beca snaps out of her daze, her gaze finding her wife’s as she rounds the corner to their living room. Chloe’s eyes drop to the documents laying next to Beca, and she takes it between her fingers, her silence deafening as she reads the title.

“Oh my god,” she eventually croaks out, her trembling hand blindly reaching out for the back of the couch as she lowers herself on the surface. “You should have called me.”

Beca shrugs. “I know you were in the middle of surgery,” she says quietly, puffing out a breath as her eyes roll towards the ceiling to keep from crying. “So this really fucking sucks.”

She knows a dozen of questions if not more are hindering Chloe’s ability to think right now, much like they did to her back at the doctor’s office, and Beca reaches across the pamphlets to cover Chloe’s hand.

“I have an appointment with a specialist next week, she’ll answer any questions we have.”

Chloe visibly swallows, blinking away the moisture in her eyes. “Right, okay.” A few tears slide down her cheeks despite her efforts to get rid of them, and she hastily wipes them off, swearing under her breath. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t,” Beca requests softly, squeezing her hand. “I know it’s a lot.”

Chloe shuffles closer, draping her legs over Beca’s and snuggling into her side. “I love you.”

Closing her eyes, Beca basks into the comfort only her wife’s affection can provide. She knows whatever’s ahead of her, they’ll figure out how to live with it. “I love you, too.”

The next few weeks and months don’t bring much change to Beca’s daily life. She’s still tired and achy, but it doesn’t prevent her from going to work and getting the job done on her many projects. She can tell Chloe is trying her best to be supportive without crossing to the overbearing side of things.

Her first relapse shows up six months after her diagnosis. It starts with blurry vision towards the end of her work day and dizziness throughout the evening. She retreats to bed around seven and sleeps for twelve hours, waking up in more pain than she’s ever felt before. Her limbs feel exceptionally heavy and tingly all over, and it takes Beca a few minutes to realize the bedding underneath her is damp, and so are her pajamas bottoms.

Humiliation washes over her in a cold sweat when it dawns on her that she peed herself during the night. She can hear Chloe in the shower and is determined for her wife not to find out about that shameful episode, attempting to get up to change the sheets. Her body is not agreeing with her though, and the simple act of sitting up is too much for her weakened muscles that she soon gives up altogether.

The reality of her disease crashes into her all at once, the emotional turmoil she’s been trying to push down over the last few months spiraling in her chest like a tiny tornado. She bursts into tears right there, ugly sobs wrecking her from the inside out as she curls up into a fetal position.

“Baby?” She feels a hand on her arm and burrows deeper in the covers. “It’s okay, let it out.”

“I can’t get up,” she eventually manages, opening her eyes to find Chloe staring at her in concern. “I can’t get up.”

“Oh, babe…” Chloe strokes her hair gently and leans in to kiss her forehead. “I’ll call your work, okay? Tell them you’re not feeling well. You stay in bed, I’ll be right back.”

It takes Chloe a few minutes to do so, and she comes back with a glass of water which she sets on Beca’s bedside table.

“Do you want to eat anything?”

Beca shakes her head faintly. “Chlo…” Her chest tightens with shame. “I need to get up.”

“No, you don’t. Work can wait, alright? You need to take care of yourself first.”

Beca shakes her head once more. Even finding words is exhausting. It feels as though her brain is all fogged up. “I wet the bed.”

Realization and brief shock flash in Chloe’s eyes, but she quickly recovers. “Okay, that’s okay. I’ll help you up and change the sheets, alright?”

Beca whimpers; Chloe is her wife, not her caretaker, she shouldn’t have to do this. But It’s not like they have much of a choice right now.

“Come on, I’ll help you into the shower.”

With Chloe’s help, Beca manages to slowly shuffle towards the bathroom. She sits down on the toilet, more tears leaking out of her eyes as she takes in her current state.

“Hey,” Chloe whispers, kneeling beside her and cupping her cheek tenderly. “Nothing to be ashamed about. It’s not your fault.”

Beca remains silent, keeping her eyes fastened on the bathroom tile.

“I’ll go grab a chair so you can sit in the shower, okay?”

“K,” Beca mutters.

Chloe returns less than a minute later and helps Beca undress, then helps her into the shower. Beca is thankfully strong enough to wash herself so Chloe doesn’t have to do it for her, though it feels like a work-out of its own.

“Chlo?” She calls out ten minutes later. “I’m ready.”

“Coming!”

Chloe’s obviously seen Beca naked more times than Beca can count, but not like this; frail and weak and unable to fucking take care of herself. She wraps a large towel around Beca’s body and guides her back to the toilet.

“I took today off, too,” Chloe says as she rubs Beca’s skin dry.

Beca wants to argue with that, but she can’t; she doesn’t know how worse it’s going to get throughout the day and doesn’t feel like she can deal with it on her own.

“Thanks,” she croaks out, sniffling. “‘M’sorry I’m like this.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for,” Chloe murmurs, glancing up. “You hear me?”

Beca puffs out a breath and eventually nods. Chloe helps her put on a clean pair of pajamas, long sleeve shirt and a hoodie, and Beca settles down on the couch with a blanket, preferring to be in the living room.

She weaves in and out of sleep for the next few hours, waking up just after lunch claiming she’s not hungry. She does accept the herbal tea Chloe makes her, and Chloe settles at the head of the couch once she’s done drinking it, Beca propping her head onto her lap.

“Maybe you should think about telling your boss?”

Beca has avoided doing so since finding out, because she didn’t see the point of making a bigger deal out of it than it was up until today.

“I know, I just…” She sighs. “I’m afraid the label might give me shitty projects if I tell them. What I’m doing right now, it’s been my dream for so long, Chlo. And I finally have it and now--” She inhales sharply, forcing the lump in her throat back down. “I’m terrified it might crumble. Not only my job, but our marriage whenever it becomes too hard for you and--”

“Baby,” Chloe interrupts softly, stroking Beca’s forehead with the pad of her thumb. “That is not going to happen. I’m not going anywhere.”

“You don’t know that,” Beca croaks out. As much as she wants to believe Chloe, neither of them has a crystal ball to predict the future. “We don’t know how bad it might get. I could lose my sight, or not be able to walk anymore or-- we have a baby on the way. I just, I can’t be a burden to you.”

“We’ll learn to live with it,” Chloe murmurs, sliding her free hand in Beca’s. “This is all so new, we need to find our footing. You just started your treatment, and the relapses aren’t going to last forever. We’ll find professional help for whenever you do have them, and losing your sight or ability to walk is not going to make me love you any less, Bec.”

Beca swallows. “Promise me you’ll put yourself first if it becomes too much, okay? Promise me.”

If the disease were to ruin her life, Beca doesnt want it to ruin Chloe’s or their child’s as well.

“Okay, I promise,” Chloe whispers, blinking back tears. “I love you so much.”

Beca closes her eyes, letting those words wash over her. “I love you, too.” She twists her head to press her lips to the gentle swell of Chloe’s belly. “And you.”

She’s bedridden for four days, and requires the use of crutches for a week after that as her balance is really off. There’s no more avoiding possible in telling her boss about her condition, but he proves to be incredibly understanding and reassuring about Beca’s future with the label.

Over the next few months, she works with a personal coach to strengthen her balance, and finds a neurologist who specializes in MS. It takes a little while, but they eventually manage to find a treatment for which the side effects aren’t too heavy and which considerably slows down the progress of the disease.

Chloe is incredibly supportive, not that Beca is at all surprised, and somehow, learning to live with MS brings them closer and strengthens their bond.

She relapses a few months after Micah’s birth, and Chloe’s parents move in for the couple weeks it lasts as Beca can’t do much to help out. Micah’s presence keeps her from falling in a depressive state over that lapse of time where getting out of bed is difficult, as her entire right side is paralized. He often naps with her, or hangs out on she and Chloe’s bed during tummy time, his smiles and gurgles keeping Beca afloat.

“Hi,” Chloe whispers as she rounds the corner, hearts flashing from her eyes as she takes in the scene before her. Micah is fast asleep sprawled across Beca’s torso, his fingers curled around loose fabric from her top.

“Hey,” Beca attempts a smile, though it comes out crooked as she can’t control the right side of her mouth. “How was work?”

Her speech is slurred, too, but Chloe manages to understand her most of the time.

Still clad in her scrubs, Chloe gently climbs into bed, settling on her side beside her family. She kisses Beca’s cheek. “It was alright. I missed you guys, though.”

“Missed you, too.”

“My parents just went out to get groceries,” Chloe lets her know. “How’s my sexy pirate doing?”

Due to vision loss in her right eye, Beca wears an eye-patch to lessen skewed vision. She should regain her sight once she’s in remission.

“Feeling very unsexy,” she replies with a soft chuckle. “Same old. My leg’s been tingling though so that’s progress.”

“You’ll be walking again soon,” Chloe states, smiling softly. “And the three of us can have a fun day at the park.”

“Mhm, that sounds perfect.” She sighs as Chloe’s head finds her shoulder, and twists her head to kiss her hair.

As Micah grows up, he learns that sometimes his Mama has “bad days”, which means she can’t get out of bed much. One of his things whenever he’s home during those times is to move his toys to Mama’s room and play quietly on the floor so she’s not lonely. He also naps next to her and reads stories to keep her entertained, and sometimes wears an eye patch when she has to, so he can be a pirate himself.

He and Chloe are Beca’s sunshine, always there to battle the clouds with smiles, laughter and hugs, whenever they get too dark.

[unnuevosoltransformalarealidad]

Wide Awake

Title: Wide Awake Summary: Reader wakes up in the middle of the night in the needs of a company Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader Prompt: Will you stay awake with me? Warnings: Injury (mention), fluff, flashbacks are in italics Word Count: 1756 This was written for the Buckysrighthandoll’s Writing Challenge of @buckysrighthanddoll A/N: This is way past date, but I had a few issues writing it, tbh, I never got the inspiration to write it. I hope everyone likes it. This is my first time writing for Bucky, so be nice. Flashbacks are in italics. Prompt is bolded and in italics.

^

The past few weeks have been tough for you. In your last mission, you injured your knee pretty bad, you had to get surgery to fix it. Luckily you didn’t, but the recovery time took you out of your comfort zone, you weren’t used to doing anything for a long time, you weren’t used to asking for help to do simpler things such as getting up from bed to more complicated things like taking you to your physical therapy. After almost 14 weeks since your injury and 2 weeks since you started to walk without the crutches, your physical therapist cleared you to start doing training sessions.

Today was the first full training session with Nat; she made sure to not push you too much because you were still healing and your walking wasn’t the best, you were still limping because it hurt. During the training, Nat commented on your relationship with Bucky, implying that something was going on between the two of you.

-What’s going on between you and Barnes? -We’re friends. Why? -Because… Well, haven’t you seen the way he treats you? -Uhm, the same way as everyone else? -you say slightly annoyed- Everyone is nice to me -Yeah, well… We all care about you and we were worried, but he seemed, I don't know... More worried than anyone else. -Whatever Nat, nothing is going on between Buck and me. We are just friends

Nat's comments left you thinking, yeah, he treated you differently, but your friendship with him was different, besides, he stayed with you from the beginning and your friendship grew closer. He took care of you the first week, to be sure you were as comfortable as possible. That memory made you smile always asking you if you needed anything.

-Y/N, doll, do you need anything? -No, Buck. I’m fine -Are you sure? -He asked you again for the millionth time. You had to roll your eyes before answering -Yes. -But, are you sure you don’t need anything else? -No Buck  -You can tell me whatever you need, I’m here for you -I know Bucky. But I just want you to stay here with me. -Ok doll. I’ll stay here with you as long as you need me to -He said kissing my forehead.

He also joined you in your PT sessions, he wanted to be there for you. And, if you’re being honest, with him there, it helped you a lot. The recovery time was less than expected and mostly was because Bucky helped you not give up. The injury was serious, and the doctors didn’t know how long it was going to take you the recovery, they’d estimated at least six months, but at the third month you were ready to get back, but still, you had to gain strength and conditioning because you were out of shape.  Even though Nat didn't push you, you did it. You wanted to come back, you needed to be back, and you focused on that. 

The first time you tried to walk on your own without the crutches was your worst day. That day the doctors and PTs had told you that you needed to take it easy because if not your injury was going to be a lot worse and you were going to be out for at least a year in total. 

-Y/N you can't push yourself to do something you are not ready for — your therapist told you -I can do it, I'm not pushing myself -Y/N, I know you are ready to get back. But not physically, your knee isn't fully healed, and you are not able to do three steps in a row without help. You may be ready mentally, but not physically. With that positivity, you will be walking on your own in the next few weeks, but you must take it easy. I know this is hard, I've been here in this same situation, but your body needs it. -you sigh -I need to be alone for a moment. Can you leave, please?

This was so frustrating. You were ready, but your body wasn't responding. After kicking out your therapist Bucky came to see you.

-Hey doll, your therapist told me you are having a bad day -Hi -you said upset -I'm trying to walk on my own but my leg is not cooperating -What can I do to help you? -Can you hold me for a little? -you didn't finish asking that Bucky was already hugging you. You were stressed, some tears fell and Bucky held you, comforting you. Something inside you was telling you that you were safe with him.

That memory brought a smile to your face. Even though you felt so frustrated, Bucky helped you to get through it. He was really worried when your injury happened. He made sure to let you know that you weren’t alone. He stayed with you from the very beginning, since you got out from the med bay, to your PT sessions, to now, helping you with the training. All these little things he did to help you bonded more the friendship you already had, but for the rest of the team it seemed to be something else. 

After the training with Nat, he went to pick you up at the gym to be sure you didn’t overtrain. You were aware of what happens if you push too much you knee. He walked you to your bedroom that night, making sure you were fine.

-You’re going to be fine? -Buck asked you -Yes Buck, don’t worry -You sure don’t want me to stay with you? You know, just in case... -Yes, Bucky. I’m sure. I’ll lay down and ice it to prevent more swelling -I don’t mind staying -he insisted -Go to bed Buck. I’ll be fine, I promise — you said and kissed his cheek -Call me if you need anything -I will -Anything -I know. Good night Buck -Good night Y/N — He said and you closed your door.

As soon as you laid down, after taking a shower, your body relaxed instantly. It seemed to be everything all right, so you put on Netflix to catch up with your series. You were too focused on the show that you forgot to take the painkillers you were prescribed. Suddenly, a cramp on your hamstring appeared, it hurt but you were fine. You ignored it and then you felt a throbbing and pulsing pain across your leg, not only on your knee, a few tears fell, you were in so much pain that the tv was long forgotten.

-Miss Y/L/N — The AI called -Yes, Friday? -I’m sensing your heartbeat is accelerated, do you require medical assistance? -No, Friday. I’m fine. Thank you -You’re welcome Miss

You considered call Bucky to help you, but he was going to get mad at you for forgetting to take your medication. You decided that sleep for a little might help, so you stopped Netflix and went to sleep. You weren’t able to sleep, the pain was too strong, it was almost as painful as when you got injured. You tried to get up to grab the painkillers but your knee gave up and you fell to the floor. You couldn’t get up so you started to cry.

-Friday — you called the AI -Yes Miss -Would you please call Sargeant Barnes? -Right away, miss. Five minutes later, someone knocked on your door. -It’s open — you said -Doll? Is everything alright? — Buck asked you without realizing you were on the floor — Oh my god! Are you ok? — he approached you -Yes… No, my leg gave out and I fell — you said crying again -Hey, hey, it’s ok. I’ve got you — He lifted you from the floor and put you in bed again

He held you in there until you calmed down and stopped crying. You were safe in his arms

-Better? — He asked you -Yes, thank you. -What happened? -I got a cramp on my hamstring and then my knee started to hurt, so I decided to sleep for a little to see if that helped. Clearly, it didn’t. So I got up to take the painkillers but my leg gave out and I fell hitting my knee on the floor — A few tears started to fall again -Do you want me to take you to the med bay? — He asked worried -No. Will you stay awake with me? — you asked him -Anything for you — he said removing a strand of hair from your face — But first, I’ll bring you your medication

He went to your bathroom and came back with your water bottle and the painkillers. He gave it to you to take them while he prepared another ice pack to put it on, then he laid in bed with you. -Better? — he asked you again -Much better. Thank you — you said laying your head on his chest. He kissed your forehead -You know — he said — Nat mentioned something today that got me thinking -Seriously? — you said rolling your eyes -She said something to you? — he asked with curiosity. You sighed -She said that you were like this with me because I like you but I told her that we are just friends

It hurt you said those things to him, but it was the truth. You weren’t the type of girl that Bucky used to date. Silence. He didn’t say anything, he didn’t even move. So you moved a little from his embrace so you could look at him -You still with me? — He was looking at you with love, enamored. He was trying to tell you how much he loved you, but you said you were just friends. Bucky decided to try his luck and made a move He put his metal arm around your face, to caress your cheek and you melted. -Doll — he whisper -Yes Bucky, please — you begged and he kissed you The kiss was everything you’ve dreamt of. His soft lips engulfing yours. It was delicate, it was full of love, he was giving you his heart. A few stray tears felt across your cheeks -Is everything ok? — he asked you breaking the kiss and you nodded -I love you Bucky -I love you too Y/N — He said and kiss you again

Tag List (Let me know if you want to be part)

@mrspeacem1nusone @void-hoechlin @mrspeacem1nusone @thevelvetseries @optimistic-dinosaur-nacho @buckysrighthanddoll

[dreamescapeswriting]

BTS Reaction || Hospitals

A/N: It’s not just me that’s creeped out by hospitals right?

Seokjin:

You were feeling sick all week but you weren’t going to let that stop you from doing anything, you had a surprise birthday party to plan for, and an exam coming up. You couldn’t risk taking any sick days off, so you were currently in the mall looking for the perfect gift for your boyfriend, Jin, it had to be perfect or you couldn’t give it to him. You were currently on the phone to your best friend, Jimin, talking about something you could get for Jin when you were hit with a dizzy spell,

“Y/N? You okay?” You heard Jimin’s faint voice ask from the other line, you leant against a wall and hummed back at him.

“Yeah…Just a little tired. I should go and eat something.” You mumbled you hadn’t eaten in two days, it’s not that you didn’t want to eat, but every time you did you ended up being sick, the sickness bug you’d caught was taking everything out of you, draining you and now you were starting to feel the effects of it.

“Maybe you should come back to the dorms, we can go shopping together tomorrow.” You groaned holding your head.

“Jimin I have to do this today, I have to study tomorrow.” He sighed and let you go and try to eat. None of them knew you were sick, you weren’t about to spoil Jin’s birthday because you caught a small bug that would be gone within a matter of days.

(X)

“Y/n?” You looked up from your plate to see a girl around your age standing in front of you, a giant smile on her face, you smiled back at her not wanting to seem rude and she asked you for a selfie.

“Me? But Jin’s not here.” You said with a small laugh, you were used to people coming up to Jin when you were together but not when you were alone.

“I just think you’re awesome,”

After taking a few photos she sat down with you to eat and she noticed you weren’t eating anything, and you were pale.

“You feeling okay?” You shook your head and sipped on the bottled water you’d bought.

“Little under the weather,” You answered biting down on your lip, even the thought of eating right now was making you nauseous.

“Maybe you should head home…You’re starting to sweat.” She was right, you nodded and got up from your seat, she offered to help you get to the taxi bay so you wouldn’t have to walk alone and you thanked her.

“It’s nothing, do you need me to call anyone on your phone? Let them know you’re not well?” You shook your head, about to get into the taxi when another Dizzy wave hit you, this time it blocked your vision and you felt heavy.

“Is she okay?” You heard someone asking from beside you, you groaned and opened your eyes. You were sat in a hospital bed, Jin, the girl from the mall and a doctor all standing around you, you looked at Jin and he looked pale, almost as pale as you.

“She’s just got a small bug, I’ve given her some medication, hopefully, it’ll bring her appetite back and she’ll be as good as new.” The fan noticed you were awake first and nudged Jin’s arm, he instantly came closer to you and touched your forehead, checking your temperature, you pushed his hand away and reached for the glass of water.

“Your lucky Kaitlyn was here with you, if you’d have fallen without her there you might have hurt your head.” The doctor excused himself and you thanked Kaitlyn for bringing you to the hospital.

“I don’t know how I could ever say thank you enough.” You joked sipping on your water and looking at Jin, he was staring down at you and playing with your hair.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were sick?” Kaitlyn excused herself and you looked up at him, he looked sad.

“It’s your birthday soon…I didn’t want to worry you because I was feeling a little sick.” He chuckled and bent down to kiss the top of your head.

“You worried me even more by ending up in here.” You groaned and laid back against the bed.

“Yeah…this wasn’t supposed to be a part of the plan.” You joked, the door to your room opening to reveal the rest of the boys standing there, all holding get well soon presents and big smiles on their faces.

Yoongi:

“Yoongi I’m telling you I’ll be there in ten minutes, I promise.” You said down the phone to your boyfriend, you’d promised to meet him at the studio with a picnic for you both but you were running late again.

“Just be careful, it’s busy out there today. Don’t rush, I can wait.” You smiled at how he was with you, this was the first time you would be seeing him in a week and you weren’t going to miss it. You liked to give him space to work, and he was in the zone lately so you stayed out of the way. Only today he called you to ask if you wanted to come for lunch and you jumped at the chance of seeing him, even if it was for a short while.

“I’ll see you soon baby.” You giggled, hanging up the phone and leaving through the front door. He was right though, it was really busy in the middle of the city, traffic was bad because of a big accident and people were yelling and honking for traffic to start moving. You kept your head down as you headed through the city and came to a set of big traffic lights, you pushed the button and waited until it was all clear to cross.

“Morning.” An elderly man crossing the road greeted, you smiled back at him, ready to say something back when you heard screaming and a loud honking coming your way.

“Watch out!” You screamed pushing the elderly man out of the way of a racing red car, the next thing you knew you were rolling over the top of the car and hitting the floor with a thud.

“Someone call an ambulance!” A woman yelled rushing over to you, you tried to sit up but she held you down on the ground, she was saying something to you but you couldn’t make out what she was saying, there was a loud ringing going off in your ear.

“Yoongi?” You whimpered out, but he wasn’t there.

“Someone call Yoongi.” You coughed out, the woman was still trying to talk to you, but you couldn’t hear her or the words coming out of your mouth.

(X)

“Where is she?” Yoongi panicked looking at his phone, he’d called you fifteen times, you should have been here by now, even if you took a longer route or stopped off, you should have been here and you always answered your phone no matter what.

“Yoongi…It’s Y/N.” Namjoon said from the door, he had a phone pressed against his ear and Yoongi was on his feet rushing over to his panicked friend and following him down and out of the building.

“She’s in the hospital, a car came speeding through a red light and hit her head on, here.” Namjoon gave him the address and he rushed over to his car, forgetting everything about work and focussing on getting to you.

“Sir you can’t just walk in there. Sir!” He ignored them, bursting through your door and seeing you laid in bed, your eyes shot up and you locked eyes, relaxing instantly as soon as you saw it was him.

“Yoongi.” You breathed out, he rushed to your side of the bed and dragged you into a hug.

“You had me worried sick.” He panted pulling away and cupping your face in his hands, he made you look at him and you smiled weakly at him. You had a cut above your right eyebrow where you hit the ground, your arm was broken and in a cast and your ankle had some soft tissue damage but apart from that, you were fine.

“I’m fine Yoongi…I have a small concussion but I’m fine.” He shook his head, pushing hair behind your ear and leaning his forehead against yours.

“When I find whoever ran that red light-” You kissed him to stop him from continuing his sentence and he sighed,

“If anything would have happened to you-” You shut him up with another kiss and moved over so he could sit on the bed next to you.

“Nothing happened to me…I’m fine. I’m here, I’m alive.” You whispered to him, the door opened again and in walked the elderly man you had pushed out of the way of the car.

“I wanted to bring you these.” He said putting a vase of flowers on the bedside table and looking at you and Yoongi, Yoongi got up from the bed and shook his hand.

“Your girlfriend saved my life today.” He said patting Yoongi’s hand and going back over to the door, you smiled at him and looked at Yoongi who was staring at you.

“It was nothing.” You said with a small laugh, Yoongi kissed the top of your head, the elderly man chuckled before leaving you both alone in the room together again.

“Don’t you ever scare me like that again.” He warned you, kissing your lips, you giggled and kissed him back.

“I won’t,”

Hoseok:

“Jungkook!” You screamed racing after him, they’d brought you along to New Zealand for a break and you were staying in a small cabin near some mountains, you were getting ready to go hiking this morning when Jungkook came in and stole your hoodie.

“I swear if you don’t stop right now!” You yelled at your brother, he chuckled running out of the door and into the garden of the small cabin, you followed him outside and Hoseok was laughing from the kitchen, you sent your boyfriend a playful glare and hunted after your brother.

“Jung Kookie!” You screamed following him up a hill, the rest of the boys were outside of the cabin now, watching you chase after Jungkook who had climbed over a rock, you went to do the same which proved to be a mistake because you lost your footing and slipped backwards and hit the floor with a thud.

(X)

“Hoseok I’m fine.” You grumbled from the hospital bed, he’d rushed you to the nearest hospital to get some help even though you insisted you were fine. No one else agreed though, your ankle was purple and swelling up and you were in a lot of pain so Namjoon and Hoseok rushed you to see someone, you were now waiting for the X-Ray’s to come back.

“Well, it’s a break.” The doctor said coming into the room and looking at you, you sighed throwing your head back against the pillows, what a way to kick of a holiday.

“We’ll get you in a cast right away, and then we’ll send you away with some crutches to use.” You nodded along and he left the room, promising to come back with some pain relief and a nurse to get your ankle ready.

“Don’t you dare say, "I told you so"Hoseok.” You warned turning to look at your boyfriend, he chuckled and shook his head at you.

“I was actually going to ask if I could be the first one to sign your cast…and pick the colour.” You giggled and nodded along with him, you looked up when the door opened to see Jungkook standing there holding your hoodie and a stuffed bear.

“I’m sorry.” You playfully glared at your younger brother but he came in and gave you a hug.

“Hoseok wanted you dead as soon as it happened.” You said to him, which was right because as soon as Hoseok saw you ankle he wanted to rush over and beat your brother up, in a playful way…kind of.

“It was an accident, you didn’t have to follow me up there.” You shook your head, playfully hitting Jungkook in the arm and looking at Hoseok who was still staring at your face.

“Hoseok…I’m not dead! It’s a broken ankle and a cut to my cheek…I’m fine, just means no more hiking for me.” You said with a smile, hiking wasn’t your favourite pass time so at least now you could spend your holiday actually relaxing.

Namjoon:

You were driving to meet Namjoon for a date, you were going to go and have a meal and then go to watch a new film in the cinema together, you were picking him up from the studio to head straight out but there was a problem. Traffic was bad and you were late as it was, any later and you were going to miss the movie.

“Okay Google, text Joonie.” You spoke into your phone which was on the stand, you told him you were going to be late and you could still make the meal but not the movie and you would see him soon. The message was sent and you relaxed a little in the seat, traffic made you anxious, you don’t know why. It was just something about it that made you anxious and on edge.

“New Text from Joonie; That’s alright we can have a movie night at home. Drive safe love you.” You smiled at the response and began to speak into the phone again when you heard an ambulance heading your way, you moved your car over to the side so there was enough room to get through but it clipped the back of your car and you went into the one in front of you.

(X)

Namjoon rushed to the hospital looking for you, he’d gotten a call from a nurse saying you’d be brought in due to a car accident but that she couldn’t give out any more information until he came down to see you, he rushed over with Jin and came to look for you.

“Can you just let me go I’m fine!” He heard you yelling before he saw you, he looked around the floor and spotted you in one of the rooms yelling at a nurse, he sighed rushing through the door, you were laid on the bed, dressed in a hospital gown and being stared at by a doctor.

“Joonie, thank god. Can you tell them to let me leave.” You pleaded, shaking the doctor’s hand away from your face, he was trying to shine a flashlight in your eyes.

“You were in a car accident,” Namjoon said, you stared at him and then to the doctor.

“A car accident?! An ambulance clipped my back head and I went into the car in front of me…I wasn’t even in gear. It wasn’t a car accident it was a bump.” The doctor walked out of the room as soon as he realised you were serious and you got up from the bed to get changed.

“Close the curtain Joonie.” He shut you both in the curtain and you pulled off the hospital gown and began changing back into your jeans.

“I can’t believe they told you I was in an accident.” You laughed turning to look at him, he looked shaken up by the whole thing, you walked over to him and put your arms around the back of his neck.

“Joonie…I’m fine. It was a small bump, I’m fine, the other driver is fine, my car is going to need a new brake light though and some new headlights, so instead of our date can I go on a hunt for a car shop.” He sighed kissing your lips and smiling at you,

“You’re going to be the death of me. Don’t worry me like that again.” You pushed him away and left the room with him.

“Wasn’t me that worried you, it was the doctor.”

( @lovies-kpop-fan-fiction​ okay so this gif has killed me off) 

Jimin:

You were laid in the hospital bed, the doctors had been coming in and out all night to check on you, they’d wake you up to do intake and then let you drift back off to sleep again, you were exhausted. Broken sleep was worse than no sleep at all.

“Look can I just go home, I feel fine.” You said to the nurse who had come in to do another set of intake results, she looked at you with a sad look and shook her head. All you had was some stupid flu bug but because you’d passed out at work they were keeping you overnight to watch over you and to make sure you were okay.

(X)

“Hello? Yes, this is Park Jimin…No…” Namjoon looked up from the table to see Jimin on the phone to someone, the smile that was on his face less than two seconds ago wiped clean and replaced with a worried look.

“Is she okay?” Hoseok looked up next to see his friend rushing to get off the chair and over to the front door, Jin and Taehyung following behind him as he looked for his car keys, Jungkook grabbed them and they all headed for the car without a second thought.

“I’ll be right there.” He hung up and turned to his friends, he explained how you’d passed out at work and currently sat in a hospital with a concussion and asking to go home but no one would let you leave without a helper.

“She’s a strong one, you know she’ll want to go home right away,” Jungkook said with a smile as they drove in the direction of the hospital.

(X)

When he arrived you were sitting crossed-legged on the bed, dressed in jeans and a hoodie of his, you’d taken it to work with you that morning because it was cold out and you didn’t want to get worse.

“Look. My helper is here can I leave.” You grumbled at the doctor who looked at Jimin before handing him a bag of medication and a prescription slip.

“She’s to take these three times a day, and I want her to rest for a week or more.” You rolled your eyes but Jimin was taking this seriously, he walked you down to the car and strapped you in the middle of Jin and Namjoon who stared at you.

“Jimin I am a grown-ass adult I can strap myself into a car.” He chuckled at you and you glared at him, you hated people babying you all the time, it made you feel so small.

“Jimin please, I’m fine. They’re being over-dramatic because I passed out for a couple of minutes.” You spoke, the car engine started and Jungkook looked behind him while reversing.

“Try an hour…You passed out for an hour.” You stayed silent, you didn’t know it was an hour. You just remember being awake one minute and not the next.

“Oh.” Namjoon chuckled and rubbed your arm, you leant your head down onto his shoulder and closed your eyes.

“I’m tired Jiminie, can we go straight to bed when we get home?” You yawned, snuggling against Namjoon who was holding back a laugh.

“Sure thing.” Jimin said from the front seat.

Taehyung:

“You’re a fucking idiot!” You screamed at your brother who had just decided to throw the meal you’d made for him all over the kitchen, he was 19 for Christ sake he should be acting like an adult.

“Well maybe if it was ready for when I got in and not an hour late!” He yelled back at you, you shook your head at him and walked towards the front door, you’d had enough of him yelling at you all of the time and you wanted to leave the house.

“You walk out that door, don’t bother coming back!” He yelled, acting as though he was your dad, you took your jacket from the coat rack and slipped into your shoes.

“Wouldn’t dream of it!” You screamed at him, walking out of the door and slamming the door behind you, you took out your phone and dialled for your boyfriend, but it went straight to voicemail which meant he was still in the studio for the night, you hissed as the cold air hit you. You were going to have to find somewhere to stay for a while, you knew there was a cafe that was open until late nearby so you went on the hunt for it.

(X)

“Taehyung, I’ll be at the dorms soon…I got into a fight with my brother…Yeah okay, I’ll walk it’s not too far.” You said over the phone to your boyfriend who called you back as soon as he turned his phone back on.

“It’s late baby, get a taxi, it’s dark.” You smiled at how protective he was but told him you would be fine with walking to the dorms, you hung up and began the small ten-minute walk there.

(X)

“Assaulted?!” Taehyung screamed at the doctor who had called him to the hospital, he looked through the window into your room and wanted to cry out, your arm was in a sling, your eyebrow cut open and your lip busted, you were being looked at by a nurse who was trying to get information out of you. Taehyung came into the room and you smiled up at him weakly.

“Who did it?” You hissed as the nurse applied a little pressure to the cut on your eyebrow.

“I don’t know, some guys came out of nowhere and wanted my phone…I didn’t give them it and they beat me up.” He sighed and you bit onto your tongue as the cut was glued back together,

“I told you to get a taxi.” You stared at him and so did the nurse,

“Did you really just say, "I told you so.”?“ You questioned looking at him, the nurse held back a giggle and he sighed, sitting down in front of you and taking your hand in his.

"Well, I did.” You shook your head at him and the nurse left the room going to find some butterfly stitches for your lip.

“Next time I will listen.” He sighed kissing the top of your head and promising he would never let anything like this happen to you again.

Jungkook:

Jungkook came home from his tour, it was supposed to be a surprise to you but you surprised him by not being at home. Your apartment was empty except for your mum who was sat in your room packing up some clothes for you.

“Jungkook, you’re back early.” She said with a shock behind her voice, he frowned putting down his bags and looking at her, confused as to why she was packing your clothes into a suitcase.

“Is she leaving me?” Your mother chuckled shaking her head and taking his hand in hers.

“No, no of course not Jungkookie.” He let out of breath he’d been holding and looked in the suitcase, inside was a copy of your favourite book, clothes, an overnight wash bag and some magazines, then the stuffed Cooky plush he’d gotten you a few months ago.

“She’s having surgery tomorrow and we had to bring her some clothes.” His ears picked up and he stood up with your mum, zipping up the bag and walking with her down to his car, he was going to drive her since she was only going to catch a taxi there anyway.

“Surgery?” She blinked at him and then stayed silent.

“I’ll let her explain when we get there.” You’d clearly not told him for a reason.

(X)

“Mum, I can’t find my Cooky plush, I thought I brought him with me when I was first admitted…I need him.” You looked up from the bag beside your bed to see Jungkook, he was staring at you. You were dressed in a hospital gown and hooked up to an IV. He put the suitcase into the room, your mum was down in the cafe with your brother.

“Kookie, you’re back early.” You said nervously, climbing into the bed and staring at your boyfriend.

“What surgery?” He came to your side and you took his hand in yours,

“It’s nothing, just a small surgery.” You told him,

“Small? Is that why you didn’t tell me about it? Is that why your mother wouldn’t tell me.” You stared at him, it was clear he was really mad about you not telling him but he was also upset about the fact that you hadn’t told him either.

“Baby…I promise it’s nothing, it’s just to remove my tonsils.” You promised, he relaxed instantly and you giggled at him.

“I didn’t tell you because I figured you’d be on tour while it happened and I could tell you when I was better.” He sighed and you moved over so he could sit with you in the bed.

“I’ll be down for like an hour at the most, then I’ll be back up with a better throat.” You smiled at him and he reached over for the suitcase, reaching inside and bringing out Cooky.

“Me and Cooky will be waiting for you to come back.”

[hopecountysfavhoe]

‘Cold’ Chapter Fourteen

Word Count: 3,067

Rating: PG13 maybe? Idk it’s not a graphic chapter

     The doctor finally gave the Deputy the green light to leave the clinic, although she told her not to leave Holland Valley for a while.

     She sat the Deputy down and gave her a long list  of instructions. "Stay away from trouble for a while ok? No gunfights, no fistfights, no big falls, just take it easy. If you feel severe pain in your chest or anywhere else I want you to come here straight away. If you start to feel swelling in your face an ice pack twice a day should help. I'm giving you a pain pill prescription, you'll have to come back in two weeks for me to fill it again. And I know you're going to hate this next part but-" the doctor walked over to a cabinet and pulled a crutch out.

     "You're going to have to walk with this for two weeks until you come back to refill your prescription." The doctor handed her the crutch, her expression showed that she wasn't taking no for an answer.

     The Deputy took the crutch unwillingly. "Two weeks?" She asked and the doctor nodded.

     "Two weeks then you come in for a check up and I tell you if you need to use it for longer than that. Kim said she'd be here in about twenty minutes to pick you, do you want to wait in here or outside?" The doctor asked and the Deputy stood up, using her crutch for support.

     "I'll wait outside. Thanks Doc, I'll see you in a couple weeks." The doctor gave her a smile and left the room, giving her privacy. As soon as the doctor rounded the corner, the Deputy leaned the crutch against the bed, standing on her own.

     The Deputy went to the closet and found her old clothes, though they were torn and full of holes the Deputy was happy to get to wear something other than the clinic robe. When she was bored the Deputy had used a towel and water to wash the blood off of her shirt and pants so they were pretty clean.

     The Deputy groaned at the idea of having to tote around the crutch but she knew she'd have to use it when she left so that the doctor didn't get upset at her. She supposed it did help to hold her weight but she could tell it was going to get tedious fast.

     The Deputy hobbled out of the clinic and waited on the front porch for Kim. She fiddled with the edge of her jacket sleeve. After months of wear and tear it's seams were ripping, even after she'd stitched it up numerous times. The hem of the right sleeve was the most frayed, she knew she'd have to find another jacket but it was almost summer so she wouldn't be needing it that often.

     After sitting for so long inside the clinic the wait for Kim seemed like it only took a couple minutes. Soon she heard the rumble of a car engine and saw dust on the road leading up to the clinic. Kim pulled into the driveway and got out of her truck, a smile plastered on her face.

     "You ready to go?" She asked and the Deputy nodded. She lifted herself off of the bench with her crutch and walked over to the truck. Kim opened the door for her and then walked around to the drivers side.

     "So, the doctor gave you a crutch?" Kim inquired motioning to the crutch in the Deputy's lap.

     "Yeah, she told me to use this when I...feel tired." The Deputy lied, knowing that if Kim knew she was supposed to use it all the time then she'd never leave her alone about it.

     Kim knew she was lying but she didn't press her on it. She didn't try to make much small talk, she knew the Deputy wasn't in the talking mood. She brought her back to her and Nick's house and led her inside. She made up the couch for her since the spare bedroom was Carmina's room.

     "And you're sure you wouldn't rather stay with someone else? I'm just worried Carmina will wake you up in the middle of the night. She's got a tooth coming in and it's been bugging her for the past couple of days." Kim checked as she got the Deputy a cup of tea.

     The Deputy accepted the tea. "As long as you're fine with me staying here then I'll be fine. I can even help with her if you'd like." Kim smiled at her.

     "Thank you, but I couldn't ask you to do that."

     "It wouldn't be a problem. It's the least I can do since I've been taking you away from home so much, and I'm sleeping on your couch." The Deputy motioned around her and Kim sat down next to her.

     "You know you're like family, you are always welcome here Deputy." Kim gave her hand a squeeze. Hearing Kim say that warmed the Deputy's chest. She'd never really been a family oriented person, but still the thought of being close to someone was always nice. And it was like a fuck-you to Jacob, who said that the people of the Resistance didn't care about her.

     It was always hanging in the back of her mind, what if they didn't really care? But if these past 6 weeks had showed her anything the they showed her exactly how much they really did care about her.

     The sound of Carmina crying over the baby monitor made Kim sigh. "I'm gonna go see what my little bundle of joy needs." She stood up with a tired chuckle.

     "Wait, let me come with you so that I know what to do if she wakes up tonight." The Deputy suggested and set her tea on the coffee table. She lifted herself off the couch and followed Kim upstairs. Kim was hesitant but she knew the Deputy meant well so she let her follow her.

     "Hey baby, how are you feeling?" Kim cooed as she opened the door to Carmina's room. From the crib came one of the loudest wails the Deputy had ever heard. Carmina was standing up with her hands on the bars of the crib, her face was red from crying. Behind her it was obvious she had tried to use her stuffed teddy bear as a step for her to climb up the side of the crib. It's face was squished in between two of the bars with a clear footprint in its forehead.

     Kim lifted Carmina out of her crib and into her arms. "Oh baby girl, you're missing your blankey aren't you?" Another wail as Kim gave her a small bounce.

     "Where's her blanket?" The Deputy asked and Kim turned to face her.

     "I washed it today so it's in the laundry, here you take Carmina I'll go get the blanket." Kim handed Carmina to the Deputy and walked out of the room.

     The Deputy shushed the fussing baby quietly, bouncing her on her chest to try and calm her down. It occurred to her that Carmina was probably getting scared by the giant scar on her face so she moved her to the other shoulder. The screaming toddler began to calm down on her shoulder, her tiny hands grabbing for the Deputy's hair to play with. The Deputy put little kisses on Carmina's soft head.

    To help calm Carmina down, the Deputy hummed a song into her ear. It was just a song she'd heard on the radio but it sounded nicer in a hum.

     It didn't take Kim very long to find the blanket so she came back pretty quickly. She was halfway up the stairs when she heard humming and stopped. No crying? She snuck up the stairs as quietly as possible, trying not to make herself known to the Deputy. If she heard her come back she was sure she'd stop humming. She hated people hearing her sing and would stop anytime she heard anyone coming.

     Kim waited outside the room, just listening to the Deputy hum to Carmina. She loved watching the Deputy with Carmina, she was so gentle and careful Kim never worried about her. She knew that Deputy would never let anything happen to Carmina as long as she was there.

     The Deputy finished her song and cradled Carmina in her arms. "Do you feel a little better now? Are you still waiting on your blankey? It's ok, I'm sure your momma will be back soon."

     Kim decided to walk in then, holding up a powder blue blanket with giraffes on it. "Here's Blankey! All clean and fresh from the dryer!" She said with a big smile and brandished the blanket so that Carmina could see it.

     Delighted, Carmina said something in baby talk and reached out for the blanket. The Deputy chuckled softly and followed Kim to the crib where she laid the blanket down. The Deputy lowered Carmina into her crib and watched as she grabbed two fistfuls of her blanket, laughing that adorable laugh as she rubbed her hands all over it.

     "Ok, since it's still nap time auntie Dep and I are going downstairs now! You have a nice nap ok?" Kim planted a kiss on Carmina's head and her and the Deputy walked out of the room.

     Kim closed the door and turned to the Deputy. "Man does that kid have some strong lungs." The Deputy remarked quietly and Kim laughed.

     They both went back downstairs and sat on the couch. The Deputy finished her tea and they just sat together for a while.

     "Hey Deputy, I've got to ask..." Kim set down her cup of tea and turned to the Deputy. "What's your name? I know you like being called the Deputy but I've never heard you say your real name before. If you want me and Nick and Carmina to call you 'Deputy' then of course we will but...I'm just so curious." Her curiosity made the Deputy chuckle.

    "I do like people calling me the Deputy, I don't know why. It started out as a nickname for me down at the Sheriffs department and I guess it just kinda floated here. And I don't know if my name would bode well here." The Deputy explained and Kim laughed.

     "How can a name not bode well? Is it something inappropriate?" She asked and the Deputy shook her head.

     "It's just...kind of a weird name. I mean I'll tell you but, I don't know if anyone else should really know. It's not like I'm hiding or anything but, I don't know. You can help me figure out if I should tell a lot of people." The Deputy came around, especially since Kim was so curious.

     "I can absolutely help with that! What is it?" She asked, and excited tone crept into her voice.

     "Ok, but you can't laugh." The Deputy made her promise.

     "Of course not!"

     "Ok, my name is-" The front door opened loudly and Nick walked in. Both Kim and the Deputy both turned their heads to see who interrupted them.

     "Hey guys." Nick said and walked into the kitchen. He had been working on his plane all day, as evident by the grease smears all over his clothes.

    "Oh Nick!" Kim huffed and he looked over at her with a weird expression.

     "What'd I do?" He demanded confusedly and Kim shook her head.

     "It's nothing, here let me get the bread for you so you don't get grease all over my kitchen." She said and got up off the couch. She turned back to look at the Deputy. "We'll finish this conversation later, ok?" The Deputy nodded and Kim smiled.

     She went into the kitchen and chided Nick for wearing his shop clothes in the house. It was obvious they'd had the conversation many times before as they both laughed.

     The Deputy felt shy, like she wanted to leave. Not because she was uncomfortable or she didn't like being in their house. No it wasn't anything like that, it was just that the Deputy felt like she was mooching off of them and Nick and Kim were good people. She didn't want to bum off of them. She knew Kim wouldn't let her leave so she figured she would spend the night then leave in the morning.

     Kim gave an indignant shriek from the kitchen, causing the Deputy to leap off the couch. "Nicholas Rye!" Kim chided and the Deputy walked over to the kitchen.

     Nick has smeared grease on Kim's cheek, making a long black swath under her eye. They were both laughing while Kim grabbed a towel to wipe her face off.

     "Hey Dep, I made two sandwiches so that if you wanted you could come out with me to the hangar. I could always use an extra hand around the plane." Nick said when he saw the Deputy.

     The Deputy looked over at the counter to see more of a mess than two sandwiches. There were bread crumbs and mayonnaise everywhere, but there were two sandwiches sitting in the middle of the mess.

     "Sure I'll help." The Deputy said and looked back at Nick.

     "Great! And hey you don't have to eat it if you don't want to or anything. I've been practicing making sandwiches a lot recently so that when Carmina grows up I can make 'em for her!" Nick explained with a grin and started cleaning up the mess he'd made.

     After they'd gotten the kitchen back under control, the Deputy followed Nick out to the plane hangar. They ate their sandwiches and the Deputy sat on a crate while Nick worked on the right wing of the plane.

     He accidentally popped something out of place and muttered under his breath. "Uh oh."

     "What's 'uh oh' for?" The Deputy asked and Nick scrunched you his face, looking at the plane wing.

     "Oh nothing, just something else I have to fix." He said and was quiet again. The music from his radio was turned down so that they could talk to each other but they'd barely said two words since they got outside. Nick would occasionally ask for a tool from the open toolbox that the Deputy was sitting next too but that was pretty much it.

     "So, how ya been feeling, Dep?" Nick asked and stepped out from under the plane wing. He rubbed his hands on an old towel hanging on the plane's door and faced the Deputy.

     She was looking out of the hangar at the runway. Her scarred cheek was turned away from Nick and for a split second, she looked like the old Deputy. The one that never missed an opportunity to get in a fight or punch the lights out of a bad guy. The one with infectious laughter that never missed an opportunity to crack a joke.

     "Tired, Nick. Real tired." She said and turned back to face him. Nick quickly looked away, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. Kim has already lectured him about that before she picked the Deputy up from the clinic. "But I'm getting better." The Deputy added for his sake. She didn't need Nick worrying about her on top of everything else.

     The truth was that she was tired. She was tired of a lot. Her body was tired but also her mind was tired. Before she was mostly angry but after that last beating...she was getting sick of this fight. She'd almost died here many of times but she'd always had someone that had her back, like Sharky or Grace or Jess or Nick. But when she was alone in that room, it really set in that she could die here. Then what? She dies and finally gets some rest but then what if the rest of the Valley crumbled?

     It was a lot to think about so the Deputy made the conscious decision not to die. Besides, she had to be there. For Carmina, for her friends, for the people that were counting on her, she needed to be there. Alive. She just couldn't see a way that she could live and survive here with all of the fighting. It would have to come to an end, and no matter what, the Deputy decided that she would be the end.

     Jacob hadn't slept very much.

     It was fine, he didn't need very much sleep but it was making his irritable. It had been 6 weeks since the Deputy escaped and he hadn't found a sign of her. Normally that would be a good thing except the Whitetail Militia was stepping up their game. Every annoying thing the Deputy had done they were now doing. They blew up his roadblocks, destroyed his helicopters, and hijacked his supply vehicles.

     They were antagonizing him, clearly gathering the strength and rage to push back even stronger against the cult. Truthfully, Jacob didn't even know if the Deputy survived. Nobody had heard anything from her. Not John, Faith, or even Joseph. It was like she just disappeared into thin air. He assumed that it was possible she could have been recuperating somewhere but the way everything was happening was just too strange.

     Even her friends were pushing back. Nick Rye has down some flybys on his and John's outposts. A sniper had been picking off some of his hunting parties, and someone wielding a bow and arrow was killing his Judges. That idiot Hurk Drubman Jr. had been blowing up everything with an Eden's Gate symbol on it, causing a lot of property damages. Jacob almost hoped the Deputy was dead, then at least he didn't have to worry about her coming around and fucking with his plans.

     Joseph had visited the Veterans Centre the day after the massacre and spoken to Jacob. He told him about the pride of the Resistance and that their greed would be their downfall. He hoped Joseph was right. He had been right before about a lot, even about the Deputy's arrival, but Jacob doubted that even Joseph could have prophesied the amount of destruction she had the power to bring.

     Jacob had put out more hunting parties and told his siblings to be on the look out for any sort of Deputy activity. Who knows what she could be planning if she was alive...

[whattodowithace]

It's Basically The Lion King [Final Chapter] (Seyoon)

Title: It's Basically The Lion King

Pairing: Seyoon x Reader

Genre: Angst; Fluff; Spice

Word count: 15,072 [All Chapters]

Writer: Kpopmadness & Whattodowithkpop

Warnings: Mentions of death

*****

The King's laugh roared throughout the city. Residents within the walls murmured amongst themselves, not sure how to take this sudden request.

"You're a criminal." He sneers. "You don't get to make such requests."

"It's all to find the truth." Seyoon speaks up, his voice quiet because the strain his lungs had from his injuries.

The King's head snaps towards his direction, taking steps closer to the knight. "You are a criminal too. Disobeying King's orders."

The crowd's whispers get louder, making the king's worries surface.

Before anyone else could speak, The King's voice raises.

"But, since I am a fair king, my guards will escort you to the body. Though that rope won't prove anything."

He steps to the princess, his mouth coming close to her ear. "You can't tie that rope to me."

The Princess smiles  as she raises her wrists. "The rope burns stay on the skin for days. Not only will my brother's skin have these marks..." She looks into her uncle's eyes, watching the realization hit as he flips his hands, seeing the fading indents of the rope's burns against his palms.

He growls as he grabs her wrist harshly, the pain from the burns of the rope intensifying. The King addresses the people, calling their attention to the princess.

"Clearly, the princess is too cunning to be escorted to Exile Island. Why, she turned one of the royal's very best soldier against us."

Seyoon stays quiet, knowing he'd only make it worse if he spoke up.

"The only step forward would be a public execution." The King declares.

The crowd's murmurs, the tone unsure and unconvinced by this declaration. The King could sense this and took action. He reaches over to the soldier just behind him unsheathing the sword. The blade moves quickly, traveling towards the princess's throat. The Princess watches the sharp object get closer to her. She closes her eyes, knowing she wouldn't be able to stop it in time. The sound of skin being pierced is echoed through the kingdom. The silence rang through the air, the lords and ladies held their breaths as they viewed the scene before them.

The Princess opens her eyes, her brain not processing any pain. When she looks to her uncle she sees the reason. Tears swell in her eyes as she looks into Seyoon's. His lips curl up into a ghost of smile, his own eyes filling with tears.

Seyoon had jumped in front of the blade, effectively shielding the princess from the sword and being pierced himself. It felt like slow motion as he fell to his knees, his breathing labored. The Princess screams, tears falling over her cheeks as she kneels beside him, grabbing his face so she could look at him clearly. The crowd begins to protest, making the king's anger boil hotter. He raises the blade again, directed right at the princess. He swings it down, waiting for it to make contact with her.

The crowd gasps again as the king halts his movement. Seyoon had driven his dagger into the king's chest, killing him instantly. The King's body falls to the ground just as Seyoon lays on his side fully.

"No, no Seyoon." The Princess pleads as she sobs, keeping his head in her lap as she tries to keep his eyes open.

"You have to finish this." Seyoon whispers as his hands reach her cheeks, trying his best to catch her tears.

"Not without you."

"I did my part." He looks to the late king, smiling up at her. "I got rid of your obstacle."

Goblin approaches Seyoon, resting his head on his arm as he whines. The Princess sobs harder as she watches his eyes flutter close. She repeats his name, trying to get him to wake up, but with no avail. Her head lifts, looking at the people crowded around them. Her heart feels pain but she stands, resting Seyoon's head gently against the ground.

She breathes in deeply, her voice shaky but loud as she speaks.

"There is evidence that my uncle was the one responsible for my brother's death." She begins, the crowd quiet as they listen. "I swear to you as a member of the royal family that I did no such harm to my brother. I know my uncle has been a terrible king to you and I will right the wrongs he's made. Please." She trails off as she kneels, bowing her head to the ground. "Accept me back as your queen."

The silence was deafening, making the princess worry. Her worries dissipate, however, when she hears the crowd begin to cheer. She lifts her head, seeing her people celebrate her arrival back. The Princess can't smile as she looks to Seyoon, her heart breaking as she watches his chest slow.

~

The day of the princess's inauguration had arrived. It had been weeks since she had returned to the kingdom. She had already organized her brother's funeral and gave him a proper burial. Her uncle was buried but not shown the same respect as her brother. She had met the people, got to know them in the market places and became close with them. The people loved her, more than when she was a child.

Goblin had made himself at home, sleeping in the Princess's quarters and walking with her through the city as she met new friends. Goblin became close with the children and entertained them often in the evenings. The kingdom questioned her on marriage, but she always told them her heart only belonged to one man and that's how it would stay.  She never commented further on the subject and the people continued to wonder where this man was.

Her nerves were shot as she waited at the bottom of the stairs that led out to the balcony. The whole kingdom was awaiting her, the cheers could be heard miles away. Her long dress dragged behind her, the jewels that accented the blue dress sparkled in the lights as she fidgeted.

Goblin sat next to her, told to stay until she came back into the castle. The court lady who had been with the princess since she was young signaled it was time to go. The Princess releases a breath as she begins her ascent. Each step was delicate as she walked on the ceramic steps, each step being heard throughout the palace. The soldiers walked next to her and guarded all pathways as she reached the top.

The Princess’s heart ached as she wished for only one person to be next to her, but she knew he couldn’t and that hurt her more.

"Are you ready?" The court lady asks.

The soon to be Queen nods as she places her hands on the doors. She pushes them wide, walking through them to see the whole kingdom cheering below her. She smiles and waves, the people waving back at her excitedly.

A loud voice comes from the speakers that surrounded the walls announcing her as their new queen. The cheering continued, making her smile as she saw how happy the people she grew up with were.

"Now to present the crown." The speakers announced, making the crowd quiet down as they watched with bated breath waiting for her to be crowned.

The doors behind her opened, revealing the crown being held. The Princess faces forward, waiting for the crown to be sat atop her head. Her thoughts raced as she thought about being installed, but she calmed her beating heart with thoughts of the things she would make better.

She felt the crown rest on her head, but the crowd stayed silent. The new queen turned around going to ask if something was wrong when she recognized the face closest to her, retracting his hands from the crown he had just placed on her head.

"You did well, Mouse." Seyoon smiles as his eyes meet her.

Her eyes fill with tears as she sees the man her heart longed for in front of her. She feels the tears fall and his hands reach her face, wiping away the stray tears as they fell. The Queen saw his state was still not the best as bandages peaked through his armor and the crutches he used to support himself.

She lets out a sob as she throws her arms around him, her face finding a home in his neck as she cries happy tears at seeing him.

"You're okay." She breathes, her hold on him gentle so as not to hurt him.

"And you're the queen." He notes, trying to keep this about her.

"Please don't leave me again." She pleads with him pulling her face away to meet his.

"I won't, I promise."

Seyoon smiles as he leans down placing a sweet kiss on her lips before pulling away.

"You have to greet the people as queen now."

Her hold doesn't loosen, making him chuckle.

"Come with me?"

She pulls away, grabbing his hand to pull him closer to the balcony, the people cheering once they see the pair. She smiles at him, her tear stained cheeks shining in the sunlight. Seyoon smiles back at her, his words soft to where only she could hear them.

"Let's rule as your brother did."

"Is that you asking for my hand in marriage?" She jokes, but her heart flutters.

Seyoon smiles back grabbing her face with his hands, whispering to her before kissing her again.

"Yes."

previous chapter

It's Basically The Lion King Masterlist

[cordonian-literature]

The Aftermath - Ch. 9

Quality Time

SUMMARY: Liam gets a chance to talk with Gabriel and Eleanor

Word Count: ~5.5k

Warning: Mention of character death

A/N: this one’s a little longer, but is hopefully a bit uplifting compared to the previous chapters. 

*All characters belong to Pixelberry, except those that are unique to my story (I’ve also used some characters and fictional instances from Donna Tartt’s “The Goldfinch”)*

Catch up here!

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✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧✦✧

- Liam - 

The morning after they had bought gifts and candies for Gabriel and Eleanor, Liam and Drake were in the hotel trying to figure out which gifts would lighten the children up quickest.

Once they picked out the gifts Liam was going to give first, the limousine brings them to the hospital.

Drake’s phone rings after he steps out of the car. He looks at it for a moment, then puts it back in his pocket.

“Who is it?” Liam asks, looking back.

“It’s… uh… Jessica.”

“You should take it,” Liam advises. He wonders, I thought they were no longer together? The last time I heard about her was more than three months ago. Turning back to Drake, he goes, “Have you talked to her recently?”

“No, actually.” He takes his phone out of his pocket again and stares at it.

“She’s probably worried about where you are.”

Drake and Liam stare at each other for a moment. Finally, Drake nods stiffly. “I’ll see you up at Riley’s room?”

“Of course,” Liam says, and walks into the hospital.

All of the nurses and doctors on Riley’s floor knew Liam by now. They all wave and politely greet him. Liam finds himself melting back into stoic expressions through the uneasiness. Even though him and Riley had been properly re-introduced, she still didn’t remember enough for Liam to tell her how much she still meant to him. He did his best to keep his hopes up — now that Gabriel was in the picture, there was no way he was going to let his own worries and Charlotte Brooks’ aggressive behavior keep him from getting Riley back in his life. Liam consoled himself with the fact that all he had to do was wait for her memory to come back. After that, things would get easier.

He opens up Riley’s hospital room door to find Gabriel snuggled under Riley’s arm on the side of her bed, the doctor writing something on a clipboard, and another woman in a chair next to Eleanor.

They all turn to stare at him. “Hey, Liam,” Riley says, but there’s no emotion in it. There’s no hint of resentment or love or anything in between. He’s a stranger to her.

The doctor motions Liam out of the room, the shopping bags still in his hand.

“Your Majesty,” the doctor says. “We’ve good news. Since the kids have been bringing in some photographs for the past few days, Riley’s gotten some of her memory back.”

Liam takes in a sharp breath. “Does she…?”

“No, she doesn’t remember you or any of your friends. In fact, there’s still a significant part of her life that she can’t recall. Like the trip to Europe you all mentioned, her wedding, her son’s birth, though she does remember the early stages of her daughter’s life and each of her children's birthdates.”

“That’s good to hear.” Tears and disappointment well at the edges of Liam’s eyes, but he easily keeps them in as though it’s second nature.

“We understand that it isn’t much,” the doctor continues, “but she’s making wonderful progress. She knows enough about her daily life for her to be able to function properly around other people and in society. But there will be certain skills that she’ll have to relearn. Like how to cook some recipes she may have memorized, how to play sports, dancing, and some hobbies.”

“Understandable,” Liam states. He sees Drake from the corner of his eye, who comes to stand next to Liam.

“We plan on discharging her later today, there’s just some more paperwork to be filled out. She’s going to need crutches and a wheelchair due to her leg injury, though we suspect that it’ll fully heal within the next three weeks, but only if she mostly stays off of it. We’re still going to have her come in for weekly check-ups though. ”

“Of course. I will do everything in my power to make sure she sees a full recovery.”

The doctor smiles. “Oh, and… just to let you know, when you and your friends try to re-teach her everything or try to jog her memory, stressing her out has the tendency to reverse the whole process.”

“Is that a permanent side effect?” Drake butts in. “If you stress her out she starts forgetting things?”

“No, it’ll likely go away once she fully recovers, but it never hurts to be extra careful.”

Liam thanks the doctor and then turns back to Riley’s door. They step back inside, where Gabriel and Eleanor are laughing at something the mysterious woman said.

Everyone stops laughing and notices the two men standing at the door. The woman stands and extends her hand out to Liam.

“Oh, hi! You must be Drake? Or Liam? No… Maxwell?”

Drake unsuccessfully stifles a chuckle.

“I am Liam, yes.” He shakes the woman’s hand, who goes red. “This is Drake.”

“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry! I’m Rowan, Gabriel and Eleanor’s Godmother!”

“Nice to meet you.” Drake holds out his hand.

The room falls quiet and everyone looks between one another.

“Um…,” Rowan begins. “I’m going to go check in with the doctor about the paperwork and everything… so I’ll be back later.” She ruffles Eleanor’s hair on her way out.

“And I’ll go call Maxwell,” Drake declares. “Figure out where the Beaumonts are.”

Once the two of them are gone, Riley, Gabriel, and Eleanor stare at Liam. He’s been holding in his words and feelings for so long that Liam can barely contain it any longer. There’s so many things he wants to tell each of them, but he doesn’t want to stress Riley nor does he want to overwhelm the children.

Eleanor points at the large bag Liam still holds. “What’s in there?” she asks.

“I have gifts for you two.” Liam reaches into the bag, and pulls out two gift-wrapped Lego sets. Gabriel and Eleanor don’t move out of their seats, so he leans over the foot of Riley’s bed to hand it to them.

“Thank you,” they say.

“I also have candy for you both.” At that, their heads perk up. He goes into the bag and pulls out a smaller bag. I hope what Drake said about gummy candy was true, he thinks.

Liam takes out sour gummy worms and regular gummy bears.

“Which one do you like, Ella?” Liam hopes that he isn’t overstepping by using her nickname, but he didn’t want the girl to think that he was favoring Gabriel over her.

She shakes her head slightly, but in a small voice says, “I don’t like sour candy.”

“Gabe does,” Riley states, and the children smile at their mother’s words. Liam’s own heart swells as well; it was getting easier for Gabriel and Eleanor. He didn’t want them experiencing heartache over their mother. That was something Liam would not wish on any child, especially not ones he’s begun considering his own.

Liam hands each of them a pouch and they go about eating their snacks, their new toys momentarily forgotten.

Riley’s arm is still over Gabriel. She looks up at Liam, and they stare at each other awkwardly. He has a difficult time holding in the words that he’s so desperate to tell her — he wanted to do it away from the children, or at least not until he got a chance to talk to them separately.

He takes a deep breath, about to say something to her, but then they break eye contact when Gabriel starts coughing. Riley rubs a hand along his back, and Liam leans in to make sure he’s not choking.

Once he stops, Riley takes the bag of candy from him. “Maybe stay away from the sour candy for a bit?”

Gabriel nods, and Eleanor stands to pour some of her candy into her brother’s hands. Riley fusses over Gabriel for a few more moments, pushing a lock of hair off of his forehead and wiping some tears from his cheek.

“The doctor told me that your health has improved?” Liam breaks the silence.

She turns back towards him. “Yeah, thankfully. I feel a little bit like myself again. I mean… for the most part at least. When I think back on my life before I had Ella, it feels so… empty and blurry. Like I’m trying to look at some abstract painting in heavy fog, but I don’t know that it’s abstract, or if it’s even a painting.”

“Understandable,” he states. “It’s a difficult process.”

“Unfortunately it is.” She sighs. “I feel like there’s so much that I need to get back so I can solve all these problems. Like with you and your friends. Don’t get me wrong, I’m thankful that you all came to check in on me, and I’m sorry that I don’t remember your roles in my life. My mother told me about everything with Gabriel and you…. I just want to say that I’m so sorry—.”

Liam holds up a hand, stopping her. “Please, you have nothing to be sorry for.” Though there is a large part of him that feels betrayed by Riley for everything that she’s done and kept from him, he won’t allow her to feel guilty. After all, it was I who put her in this situation. I could have stopped it. I could have given her a better life. One that we could share. I should have done the right thing in the beginning.

She smiles at him, and then Charlotte Brooks comes into the room, followed by the doctor.

“We’re ready to bring you home!” Charlotte says. Once she sees Liam, her face sours, but the woman brings her attention back to her grandchildren. They’re told to get their things and wait outside while the doctor examines their Mama, and Charlotte sends Liam a look that gets him following after the children.

Rowan is on the other side of the door. She collects Gabriel and Eleanor in her arms, and shoots Liam a sympathetic smile.

“Don’t be intimidated by Riley’s mom. She’s been overprotective of Gabey and Ellie ever since everything that’s happened to Riley.”

Liam gives her a tight smile, and her shoulders tense.

“Wait, I didn’t mean to blame you or anything! Just that… you know, she was… internationally shamed… ended up pregnant and alone after what she thought was supposed to be the best decision of her life.”

“I understand your meaning. I’m not exactly proud of how I allowed our relationship to continue. I should have given her what she deserved from the start.”

“I’m sure Riley would appreciate you saying that.”

Wanting to change the subject, Liam asks, “How long have you known Riley?”

“Oh! Her, Theo, and I all met in high school. Theo went to college in Cali, which is where he met their Godfather.” She squeezes Gabriel and Eleanor, who are still in her arms.

“Where is he now?”

“He’s in Italy at the moment. He and Theo ran the company together. He focused more on international outreach while Theo was the CEO.”

“We were supposed to go visit him last week,” Gabriel adds.

“I see.” Liam and the children regard one another, and before he can say anything else, Maxwell comes rushing over with Drake and the Beaumonts trailing behind.

“Hello there, baby blossoms!” he calls to them. They smile at their new nicknames. Liam feels a small fire in his heart. How is Maxwell able to get them to like him so quickly? What am I doing wrong?

Savannah and Drake walk up to their little group, with Bartie trailing behind. They notice Rowan first, and her and Savannah are introduced. “Hey, you two!” Savannah turns towards the children. “How’re you guys holding up?”

“Good,” Gabriel mumbles.

“Don’t know if you guys have met Bartie yet.” She pats her sons head. “You guys are all about the same age, right?”

“Nice to meet you.” Bartie holds out hand towards Eleanor, who stares at it for a moment before reluctantly shaking it. He repeats the process with Gabriel.

Bertrand walks up to the group, excusing himself for his tardiness, claiming he was on an important phone call. Him and Rowan are introduced. Before anyone can say anything more, the doctor opens up Riley’s door.

“We’re going to get her the wheelchair and crutches, then she’ll be free to go,” the doctor informs. She looks between Charlotte and Liam to add, “if there are any problems or concerns, please don’t hesitate to call.”

They nod and give their thanks, and Charlotte turns to the group. “I’m going to go call the driver. Make sure he’ll be down there when it’s time to leave.”

“Please, ma’am,” Liam says. “My car and driver are downstairs. We’d be happy to bring her back to her home.”

“Yes,” Bertrand continues. “We don’t mean to intrude, but we simply wish to make sure that Lady Riley returns home safely and that there are no further complications to her health.”

Mrs. Brooks opens her mouth to refuse the offer, but Rowan speaks up and says, “That’d be great. I’m sure Riley and the kids will like the company.”

Charlotte gives Rowan a brief look but says nothing.

A few hours later, Rowan declares that she will be bringing the children to get something to eat and then will take them back home. She offers to bring Bartie with, but he nervously shakes his head. Once Maxwell suggests that they both go, Bartie agrees.

Liam contemplated going along as well; he was desperately trying to find a way to talk to the children. He could see the anxiety pool in their eyes whenever he came near. Liam wanted to assure them that he would not harm them, and that he cared about their well-being.

But he decided to stay with Riley, silently hoping that the more time they spent near each other the chances of her remembering him would increase.

A few hours later, Riley is wheeled out of her room. Liam insists on pushing her chair. Charlotte carries her daughter’s things in a bag, while Drake walks slightly ahead of them with the crutches, opening doors and pushing buttons.

Once they reach the car, Riley attempts to stand. Her mother holds out a hand to her, but Liam protests.

“Please, let me,” he says. He puts one arm under Riley’s knees and wraps his other arm around her back, gently picking her up and placing her in the car. He’s almost shocked of how light she feels, but relishes being this close to her again. Riley blushes and thanks him, but she doesn’t meet his eyes.

The drive towards the penthouse is quiet. Liam, Riley, and Charlotte avoid looking at each other, while Bertrand, Savannah, and Drake looked between them expectantly.

Outside Riley’s building, Liam helps her back onto her wheelchair.

“I better learn how to use those crutches,” Riley says as Liam wheels her into the lobby. “Don’t want you breaking your back having to carry me everywhere.” She gives a nervous chuckle.

“Don’t worry about it,” Liam tells her. “It’s nothing. Really.”

She shoots him a grateful smile.

No one talks during the ride up the elevator either. Once they reach the floor, Charlotte gets out first and leads the way down the hall.

Once they enter the penthouse, Liam wheels Riley towards the couches. He gives a quick glance around the lavishly decorated room, noticing pictures of when Gabriel and Eleanor were babes and toddlers. There were some of Riley, giving a wide smile to the person on the other side of the camera. There were some with Gabriel and Eleanor with a man Liam assumed to be Theodore. His heart clenched again. If he had done the right thing all those years ago, that could’ve been him in those pictures with them.

Liam turns back to Riley, picking her up and placing her on the couch. Him and Drake look around for pillows to give her. She blushes again and thanks them.

Rowan, Maxwell, and the kids appear from another room. While Gabriel and Eleanor go to greet their mother, Rowan announces that she brought dinner for everyone, which is in the kitchen.

Everyone eats in the dining room except for Riley, her mother, and Rowan who sit together and talk quietly.

When everyone’s finished eating, the Beaumonts bid their farewells and leave, Drake following them hesitantly, looking back at Riley all the while.

Charlotte pulls Liam to the side, out of earshot from Riley and the kids.

“Liam, I understand that you’re worried about Riley’s well-being,” Charlotte beings through slightly clenched teeth. “But understand that this is my daughter we’re talking about. You’ve wronged her and her children once before, and I’m not going to let that happen again… but I won’t stop you from being a father to Gabriel.”

Liam nods. “Of course. I regret any harm I’ve brought Riley, and will make it my duty to make sure that neither her or the children are ever wronged in such a way again.”

She scans his face for a moment. “Alright, then. I don’t have anything to lend you for the night. It would be better if you came back in the morning.”

Liam gives her his thanks. He offers to help Riley into her room, but the women say that they’ll manage. As much as he wishes he could stay, he says his goodbyes and leaves.

And though physically he’s back in his hotel room, with Drake on the other side of the wall, he feels a string connecting his heart to Riley, Gabriel, and Eleanor: where he feels like he’s meant to be. Liam falls asleep that night with a heavy sense of emptiness in his chest.

…

Around 7 o’clock the next morning, Liam is awake and ready to leave. He contemplates waking Drake and bringing him along, but decides to let him rest and text him his whereabouts later.  

When he knocks on the door to their home and no one opens, Liam is worried that he may have arrived too early. Finally, Rowan opens it. “Hey, there! Come on in.” She steps to the side and allows him to enter. “Riley isn’t awake yet, but I think this is around the time the kids usually get up.” She watches him as he looks around the living room, his eyes resting on different pictures of Riley and Gabriel. “Also could we... talk for a moment?”

He turns his head, concerned. “Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, yeah, no, it’s nothing like that,” she says. “I just wanted to let you know that… Gabe and Ellie are a little… I don’t know… shy… around you? I guess you could say? And I just… feel really bad for them you know? Like, Riley was their rock… I mean she was an amazing mom. Like sometimes I wish she was my mom. This one time when they all went to Central Park, Gabe fell and had to get a lot of stitches on his forehead, and it was not good looking. Like… he had that monstrosity on his head for a month. Anyway, some kids at school teased him about it. It was borderline bullying. Theo was the one who ended up complaining to the teacher, but man… when Riley found out, I kid you not she was about to beat up a couple six-year-olds. We calmed her down and she ended up talking to Gabe about it, but he experienced such a confidence boost after that. Like… he ended up standing up for himself and all that. We were so proud of him.”

Liam smiles at her words, a vague familiarity in it. “Heh. Riley has a tendency to inspire the people around her.”

“She really does.” Rowans twiddles her thumbs for a few seconds, then starts again. “Anyway… what I wanted to tell you was that I think it would be best if you talked to them. In private. About… you being Gabe’s dad and what that means since Theo’s outta the picture and Riley’s not doing so good.”

He nods. “I’ve meant to, but I don’t want to be too direct with them. And I don’t want to upset Mrs. Brooks either.”

“Oh! I know!” she exclaims. “Why don’t you take them out to breakfast? Like, right now? Riley’s mom isn’t up yet, so she can’t stop you… and if she wakes up I’ll do my best to keep her from getting mad.”

“Yes, that sounds like a wonderful idea. As long as the children are alright with it?”

“Oh, I’m sure they’ll be fine. Pretty sure they need some answers badly. I’ll go get them ready!” She runs off.

Liam walks around the living room while he waits, staring at snapshots of Riley’s life with Theodore. He wondered if her smiles and her joy were genuine. He wondered if after the pictures had been taken, or even before, did she think of him? Did she wonder how he was doing? Did she check Cordonian news just to see him, the same way that he would pull up old articles of her during the social season just so he wouldn’t forget what she looked like? Did she ever look back on that photo of them together on top of the Eiffel Tower, or had she deleted it?

He finds himself following framed pictures into a small hallway. There are many doors, some opened, some closed. He knows this isn’t where the bedrooms are, since Rowan had ran off in the other direction. The door closest to him is open, so he pokes his head in.

It’s a study. The desk is on the far side of the room, facing Liam. There’s an open laptop, a neat pile of papers, and a few more framed photographs. Behind the desk is a large window overlooking the city. Liam steps into the room, walking towards the window. He takes a moment to regard the city, looking down at the fast paced people. Turning back towards the desk, he sees pictures of only Gabriel and Eleanor. A flash of envy and hatred runs through Liam’s viens. Who did Theodore think he was, acting as a father to Liam’s son? And then fathering another child with the woman that Liam loved, and then not keeping a picture of her on his desk? He looks up from the table, and his breath catches. Oh.

A large portrait of Riley graced the other wall. Whoever sat in the desk would see the portrait at all times of the day. In the painting, Riley wore a wedding dress. He imagined seeing her walking down the aisle in it, and he swallowed a lump in his throat. She carried a bouquet of what could either be peonies or roses. Behind her was a beautiful expanse of colorful trees that accentuated the beauty of her dress. They had an autumn wedding.

He walks towards the portrait, eager to be closer to the mere essense of her, when he hears voices from the direction of the living room. Liam walks out, plastering a smile over his face.

“Ready to go?” he says to them. They nod their heads, and Liam is glad to see smiles on their faces.

In the elevator, he wonders if he should attempt small talk on them, but Gabriel speaks up and asks, “Where are we going?”

Dumbfounded, Liam says, “Oh. I didn’t think about that. Where do you usually go to get breakfast?” Liam wishes he had asked Drake the name of the restaurant he had got the bagels from.

“The kitchen,” Eleanor states plainly, her smile gone.

Gabriel chuckles. “When Mom doesn’t cook, we got Dunkin Donuts sometimes.”

“Is that nearby?” Liam asks.

“Uh… I know there’s a lot of them close to us, but I don’t really know where they are.”

“Oh!” Eleanor exclaims, suddenly enthusiastic. “Can we go to the Petty Cookie Dean?”

“Of… course…?” Liam thinks he misheard her.

“She means Le Pain Quotidien,” Gabriel explains. “It’s Mom’s and Aunt Rowan’s favorite place.”

“Oh, is it French?” Liam asks, glad to have finally started a conversation.

“Um….” Gabriel shrugs. “I don’t think so, but they have croissants.”

“Chocolate ones, too!” Eleanor speaks up.

“I can’t wait,” Liam exclaims.

“Can we take the subway?!” Eleanor asks, looking up at him. He notices how much her features look like Riley’s: everything from the tilt of her chin to the small hairs on the top of her forehead. Her dark green eyes were the only contrasting thing between them.

“Actually, I have a driver and a car waiting downstairs,” he tells them.

Eleanor pouts and looks away from him. Liam suddenly feels like he’s failed them. He didn’t want to go in the subway because he was afraid that he would get lost, and would therefore lose the children as well.

“If you two know how to get there,” he speaks up, not wanting to disappoint them, “then we can use the subway.”

“Okay!” Eleanor exclaims in an adorably high pitched voice that reminds Liam of a small squeaky toy. The elevator doors open, and she leads them out of the building. They pass by Bastien, who is holding the car door open. Liam shakes his head when they walk by, and Bastien respectfully nods.

She leads them down a flight of stairs in the middle of the street. There are large crowds of people coming in and out, and Liam puts a hand on each of their shoulders. They walk down until they reach a row of turnstiles.

“You have to swipe your MetroCard through that thing,” Gabriel directs.

“Where do I get a... MetroCard?” Liam asks, looking around to see people pulling cards out of their pockets and walking through the turnstiles.

“It’s okay, I have one.” Gabriel pulls a yellow card out from his pocket. He swipes the card and pushes himself and his sister through, then hands the card back to Liam.

He swipes the card and pushes, but the turnstile doesn’t budge. He swipes again, and when it doesn’t work for the third time, someone from behind Liam swipes their card and slightly nudges him forward. He goes through smoothly and turns to say thank you, but they’ve already walked on.

Gabriel takes the card back from Liam. “Sometimes people do that.” Eleanor walks down another flight of stairs and they follow.

The sound of the train running past deafens Liam’s ears for a moment, and he can’t hear anything else. Gabriel and Eleanor stop walking, so Liam stands beside them.

Many children carrying backpacks pass by with adults trailing behind them. Gabriel and Eleanor wave at them. The other children wave back, and their parents send tight smiles in Liam’s direction. A little girl comes over to quickly hug Eleanor before getting on a train that arrived on the right side of the station.

Liam motions towards it, silently asking if they should get on, but they both shake their heads.

When the train leaves and he can hear himself think again, Liam asks them, “Did you know those children?”

They both nod. “We go to the same school as them.”

“Ah, I see.... Do you both know which train we’re supposed to go on?”

“We have to get on four or five or six and then we get off around eighty sixth street,” Gabriel explains.

“And then we have to walk a little bit,” Eleanor continues.

They turn back towards the train tracks, and an elderly man approaches Liam, who protectively puts a hand on each of the children’s shoulders.

“Excuse me, sir?” the old man says. “Do you know how I could get to the bus terminal?”

Before Liam gets a chance to say he doesn’t know, Eleanor asks him, “Port Authority?”

The old man looks down at her and nods.

They both walk out of Liam’s grasp and lead the man towards a large poster in the middle of the station. 

“Port Authority is over here,” Gabriel directs, pointing towards the edge of the map. “And then we’re over here.” He points towards a space next to Central Park.

“These are the train names!” Eleanor adds, pointing towards small letters next to the colorful lines.

“Thank you, tiny humans,” the old man says, who focuses his attention on further examining the map. 

“When did you two learn how to navigate the subway?” Liam asks them, slightly impressed.

“Ella doesn’t know that much yet, but Dad taught me when I was her age. It’s just memorization, but most of the time you need the map. Dad said that even if we drive everywhere we should still know the basics.” Liam feels Gabriel’s shoulders tense and jump up. “I mean! I mean my not… dad.”

Liam laughs a little and Eleanor does, too. “It’s alright,” Liam tries to reassure him. “You don’t have to worry about what you call him or I. You can refer to me with whatever you feel comfortable with.” He hopes that his words ease Gabriel.

After a few moments, Liam’s phone rings. He takes it out to check that it’s a call from Olivia. “Hello?” he answers.

“Hello, Liam,” she greets. 

“Olivia, is everything alright?” Liam glances at the children, who are staring up at him. 

“There’s something important you need to—.” The train arrives, and he can’t hear her voice through the noise.

When the train stops, Gabriel and Eleanor walk in. Liam follows. “Olivia, could you repeat what you said?”

She doesn’t answer him, and the line goes quiet. He looks down at his phone to make sure she hasn’t hung up on him. 

“Phones don’t work in the subway sometimes,” Eleanor informs him. 

Liam decides to call Olivia later. 

When they reach their stop, the children stand, and Eleanor grabs Liam’s hand, pulling him out of his seat and out the train.

Gabriel and Eleanor expertly lead Liam down loud streets and into a cozy cafe.

They wait in line, and when it comes their turn, Eleanor asks for mini pancakes and orange juice, while Gabriel settles for oatmeal with berries and apple juice. They look over at Liam, waiting for him to give an order. He looks around and asks for a croissant with a cup of coffee.

Liam pays, adding in a tip, and they’re told to take a seat.

Gabriel immediately picks up a conversation. “So... Grandma said that you’re from Europe?” 

“Yes,” Liam answers. “I live in Cordonia.”

“Do you have a business job like Daddy?” Eleanor questions. “Lots of Mama and Daddy’s friends were business people.”

“I have a government position as a job.”

“Does Cordonia have a president?” Eleanor continues. “Do you work for the president?”

Liam chuckles. “No, actually. They have a king.”

“What’s his name?” Gabriel interrogates.

He laughs again, wondering if he should tell them the full truth. In a low voice he says, “I am the king.” For the first time in his life, he hopes that the title will impress them. He wants them to ask more questions so they can each get to know one another.

Instead, they stare at him. Eleanor squints. “You’re lying,” she claims.

“I... I swear I’m not!” Liam claims, taken aback.

“You’re not a king!” she exclaims. “Kings wear fancy outfits and crowns!”

He lowers his voice, hoping that no one heard her and would notice Liam. “I promise you, I’m not lying. I’ll bring you to Cordonia one day and prove it to you.”

At that, their faces fall. Liam almost asks them what’s wrong before the waiter comes and puts their food and drinks in front of them.

The children take a few bites of their food, eyes downcast. Liam wonders what he said wrong.

In a small voice, Eleanor asks, “Are you gonna only bring Gabe back with you?”

Liam takes a moment to consider her words. Are they worried that I might separate them?

“Of course not,” he reassures them. “If your mother agrees… then I would like to bring the three of you back with me. But I won’t make you do anything you don’t want to.”

“What about Grandma?” Gabriel asks.

“If she wants to come as well, then she can come.” He smiles at them, and the worry leaves their faces. He hopes that he’s addressed all of their concerns, but doesn’t pester them to ask more questions; the happier and less stressed they seem, the more Liam’s joy increases.

For the rest of the meal, Liam lets the children talk about their friends at school and stories from their dance and soccer classes. The smiles on their faces are contagious, and soon Liam is laughing with them. Once it’s time to leave, Liam asks them if they know where they could get cronuts from, so they can bring some back for Riley. When they shake their heads, he grabs three chocolate croissants for Riley, Gabe, and Ella, then allow the children to lead him back to their home.

[professional-benaddict]

okay so @xsmallplum and I had some more Thots,,,, What’s better than one Daddy in a flashy car and black uniform? Two Daddies in flashy cars and black uniforms.

🚓 What if Peter’s Daddy Tony was a cop? Tight black uniform, big boots, handcuffs, flashlight, a gun and everything else he needs on his belt. He often also wears pilot sunglasses and he’s always the one driving while his partner Rhodey sits in the passenger seat. They have been working for years already and Peter calls Rhodey his uncle.

🚨 After shifts, Tony likes to pick up Peter from daycare in the police car, then drives to the station to drop off the work vehicle and drive home with Peter in his own, private car. The whole thing started out as a slip up, but after that one mistake Peter begged his Daddy to pick him up in the cool, flashy car again.

🚑 But, then there is that one awful time where Peter is picked up in another flashy car, and it’s an ambulance. Paramedics Stephen and Christine respond to the call from the daycare where a Little fell from the top of the slide and broke their leg. On the police radio, Tony overhears that the traffic lights are all switched to red to let an ambulance through. The cop’s stomach drops in dread when he hears that the ambulance is headed to Peter’s daycare.

🩸 Tony and Rhodey drive to the daycare together, and Tony’s worst nightmare turns out to be true when he sees his Little screaming and crying in intense pain. Tony recognises the two paramedics, since they have worked together before. Tony crouches down by Peter’s head to comfort and praise his boy while Stephen stabilises the fractured leg. “It’s okay, it’s okay, Daddy’s here. You’re gonna be okay, I promise that.”

💉 Tony comes along in the ambulance with Peter when they head to the hospital. Things move quickly in the ER when Stephen and Christine pass Peter over to the doctors. Tony tries to follow, but he is gently pushed back by nurses who say the doctors have to examine Peter. Tony almost breaks down at that, but luckily Stephen is still there and catches the cop before can stumble and fall.

🩹 “Stark- Stark, it’s okay. He’s being taken care of now. He’s getting the best possible care, I promise. Come on, let’s sit down.” And so the cop and paramedic go and sit in the waiting room of the ER together. Meanwhile, Christine is kind enough to fix the ambulance by herself so that they will be ready for another call soon. “He’ll be all right, Stark. He’ll be all right.” “Yeah, I- I just worry... And you can call me Tony.” “Then you can call me Stephen.”

🩺 Five hours later, Peter has gone through surgery and is finally resting properly. His right leg is in a heavy cast, and propped up on pillows to prevent swelling. He’s on the ortho ward, and still sleeping off the last of the general anesthesia. Tony is still in his uniform, and he is sat right next to Peter on a chair, holding and kissing the boy’s hand every few minutes. Suddenly, there’s a soft knock on the door and Stephen enters.

💊 The paramedic isn’t in uniform anymore, so Tony guesses his shift is over. “Hey, how is he?” “He’s- he’s okay. Full recovery in six to eight weeks. The surgeon said there was no nerve damage, but rehab will still be- well, a lot.” The two of them sit quietly until Peter starts to stir awake half an hour later. Although Tony insists that Stephen can stay, the paramedic leaves regardless, saying they should have a moment alone. He promises to come back the next day though.

🧸 Peter is hospitalised for ten days, considering his Little physique and how he needs more monitoring and support after surgery to get back on his feet. Well, up with the crutches at least. Stephen visits him and Tony everyday, sometimes even twice by dropping by before and after his shifts. He often brings Peter little gifts and treats, which include tiny stuffies, puzzles and lollipops.

🎁 Peter really grows to like Stephen quickly, and not just because of how generous and kind he is with gifts, but also because he looks so similar to his Daddy when in uniform. Whenever Stephen comes by, Peter starts blabbering non stop about his Daddy’s and Stephen’s uniforms, what the doctors and nurses have done to him today and which jello he had for lunch.

🍧 “I don’t like the red one, it tastes fake- like not real strawberry. So, Daddy got me the real one.” And Tony shows the small cooling bag with jello from the store. The next day, Stephen brings more of the same jello, and even puts a small note in the cardboard packeging for Tony. ‘Call me, handsome’.

🦽 When Peter is finally discharged and Tony wheels him out to the parking lot in a wheelchair, the boy looks a bit sad, which puzzles Tony. “What’s with the frown, baby? Does your leg hurt?” But, Peter shakes his head in reply. “No- just... can’t I see Stephie anymore?” “Do you want to?” Peter nods eagerly. “Then we can absolutely see him again. How about we invite him over tomorrow?” Peter claps his hands with glee at that.

🏥 A month later, Tony and Stephen go official with their dating and Peter couldn’t be more excited to have a new caregiver to play with. “You gonna be there when they take it off? Daddy says they use a saw, and I’m not scared.” Peter says to Stephen pointing at his cast where he is propped up on the sofa. “Yeah, I’ll be there. We should get jello to celebrate after.”